Boxing Day Savings - Where the real bargains are!

One of my favourite traditions over the past few years is an early rise on Boxing Day to go to the sales.  I love it!  The panic and frenzy of scrounging through merchandise to find a bargain.  Sure half price is nice, but when its more than that, my heart rate rises and I feel a sense of achievement and victory. 

There are a few extra things that can save money at these sales. 

1. Arrive early to get parking without driving around for half an hour looking for a spot.  You are more likely to get some shade if you arrive early, as the Australian Summer sun, can be horrid for your car.

2. Take a sports bottle with some water.  It will save you money on buying a drink, and be much healthier than buying a can of softdrink. (Every cent counts remember)

3. As above, either take a couple of biscuits or a museli bar to prevent impulse buying of snacks.  If you must, buy something from the supermarket, rather than a donut shop or bakery.

4. Take frequent rests, unload your purchases into the car when you are starting to tire, and make sure you drink some more.

5. Make a rough list of what you want/need and then shop around.  Even in sales there is a great different in prices. 

6. Use your imagination for birthday/next Christmas gifts, you can find some great bargains that are a bit different.

7. Always forrage through the 'clearance' bins, you never know what you could find there.  I purchased some items marked down from $15 each to $5 each and others from $5 each to 0.20 cents.  That's the sort of bargain you want. 

8. You could take your lunch from home, but I think you deserve a little luxury on Boxing Day.  Take a nice rest, have something to eat and then replenish to find more bargains.

9. Try to use your gift vouchers on bargains, that way you are getting more value for something that didnt cost you anything in the first place (assuming you received those vouchers as gifts)

10. If you make an error in a purchase, return it if you can.  This year I bought something that does not suit, thankfully I have the receipt, so will return this.  No use wasting money on something I cant use.  Many times in the past, I have just thrown this stuff out, but why when I can get a few dollars back to use elsewhere.

11. In a bargain bin, often identical items can be marked at different prices, so watch out for this and buy the cheapest item of course.

12. My top tip is DO NOT USE CREDIT IF YOU CANT PAY IT BACK BY THE END OF THE MONTH!!!!

What to get the man who has everything?!?

I have found that the hardest person to buy for at birthdays and Christmas is my husband.  While he has many interests, somehow he manages to be fully kitted up.  Apart from really expensive gear, he has all he needs for windsurfing, cycling, kite surfing, soccer, basketball, camping, swimming, fishing.  Sometimes, I might find something that he would like, but I have given many presents that have either not been used, were not liked or just took up too much room.  

This year, we are trying to get our finances into order after the house purchase and renovation, so its not going to be a frivolous Christmas - a good thing.

A month or so ago, when the weather was divine, I took our toddler to the beach for a picnic and took some photos.  I decided to paint one, as the Brighton bathing boxes at the beach are special to us.  It is where my husband proposed to me.  So this year for Christmas, using acrylics I will paint our son sitting at the beach with the bathing boxes in the background.  This will also be special as we are moving interstate in a couple of years and this will remind us of our time spent in Brighton.  I already had all of the supplies as I was going to use them for a project that I never started.  I must add that I am no artist, but I enjoy painting on occassion which is why I will give it a go.  To go with the painting, I can spend a few dollars on something token that my husband will enjoy.  Perhaps a second hand game for his Xbox that is cheap (i.e. under $20) or alternatively I could make him a blokey leather necklace with some beads.   I already have the leather and ends to make it,  just need to spend a few dollars on the beads.  You dont have to spend a lot of money on gifts!  I promise.

The $21 Challenge completed

I will count as a success, my challenge for last week, as I only spent $19 on extra food items, except for milk.  We actually drink 12-15 litres of milk each week, and while I cut down by not having cups of milo, I would not cut down for my toddler, and its my husband's drink of choice, so I wouldn't deprive him of that.  Most of his workmates go home and have a few beers, some of them smoke too, so that is an expense we dont have to worry about. 

This week's meals were tasty and different, things that I had forgotten about cooking, we had chilli con carne, bbq chops, chicken kiev with roast vegies, beef stew, lamb shank soup, and I baked some Anzac cookies and some brownies.  It was amazing to realise that I had so many ingredients already stocked up in the pantry and freezer.  Also, a couple of the meals, I was actually able to make enough for additional meals to freeze.

This week, I am back to stocking up the pantry again, but rather than spending my usual budget of $200 I am aiming to spend $150.  I'm sure it can be done, even with a few of my supplies running low.  I need more meat, so will shop around for the best deals.  I will also cook a satisfying vegetarian meal that will save some cash.  I just have to use my imagination.

Tips:
*  Butchers are often cheaper than the meat section of the supermarket
*  If you shop at the supermarket, go in the afternoon when the price of meats are marked down to move stock.

Day 1 of $21 challenge

After a stocktake of my kitchen, I have discovered an abundance of cooking and baking opportunities for the family meals this week, and I am excited.  I am making chilli con carne for dinner this evening, had all the ingredients except for the chilli powder, so had to spend some of my week's money on that.  I also had to get ham for my husband's lunches, and some bananas to try to feed my toddler for lunches - I found myself spending half of the allowed money today.  It will be a challenge, but I think I can do it.

I only have half a loaf of bread that will last tomorrow, but luckily I have a breadmaker, and will make loaves for the rest of the week.  I have all the required ingredients in my pantry.  I should make bread more often, as it saves about $2.50 a loaf, that is another way I can save that I had actually forgotten about.  It is very nice bread too, I make it with carraway seeds, just like the yummy stuff we buy at the supermarket.

Running out of time, bubs is calling me.

Tips for the day:
- Make your own bread if you can
- Make do with the food you already have in your pantry, you would be surprised what you can make for a nice meal.

I did a big shop up this week at Costco, it was not really planned, though I did have a shopping list of needs and was able to meet most of those needs in bulk.  Of course that meant that my shop was $170 instead of about $40 because I bought in bulk, but it was cheaper in the long run.  I now find myself with 5kg of onions and 3kg of carrots that really need to be stored so they dont waste.  Both can be frozen and used later, so I dice or cut onions into wedges and store them in zip-lock bags, and julienne carrots and also store them in the bags, write the quantity and date on the bag and freeze them.  I have done that with many of my fresh ingredients, rather than throwing out vegetables that were not going to be used.  With these and other vegetables, I have been able to add them to stir fries, stews and when making baby foods or stock.

To make a vegetable stock, put into a large saucepan;

2 large brown onions, halved, coarsely chopped
2 carrots, peeled, coarsely chopped
4 celery sticks, coarsely chopped
cold water
6 fresh parsley stalks
10 whole black peppercorns
3 dried bay leaves

(I also add any other peels, leaves, heads of vegetables I have saved for extra oomph)  Bring to boil then simmer for an hour, then strain out solids and freeze in 1 cup and 1/2 cup portions in zip-lock bags or containers.  To make chicken or meat stock, add meaty bones into the water and bring to boil, then add the vegetables.

To make something for Baby Food, I chopped up some carrot, zucchini, celery, pumpkin, brocchili ends and added some chicken stock. Really any vegetables that complement each other would be fine for this.   I simmered them til soft then blended in the Bamix with some lentils for protein. 

With Christmas now less than a month away, and a number of large bills for our family, I have decided I am going to do the $21 challenge next week and use the rest of our grocery money for bills.  I'll let you know how I go.  For more information on the $21 challenge, refer to www.simplesavings.com.au they have some great ideas.

And the money comes in...

I have managed to impress myself with the amount of money I have made from eBay this week.  I have made over $100 from junk I would have thrown out.  Problem is that it is now in my Paypal account and I'm charged for the honour of using it.  I try to tell people to pay direct into my bank account but I guess people want the protection Paypal offers.  Its only a dollar here or there, but that all adds up.  So its going to have to sit there until I can think of something to buy.  There are a few things we can use it for, with Christmas coming up, but I was wanting to put every spare cent into our mortgage, so that in not too many years time we can say "no more mortgage".  Oh well, I'll just have to try to be more efficient with the way I spend it.

I have an interview for temp work tomorrow, which is exciting.  I have taken maternity leave of 18 months so far and while it is a bit longer than standard maternity leave, as a contractor I have now role to go back to.  I am planning on working while my husband is off work over the Christmas break.  It will give him the chance to see how busy it is to be a full time parent, and give him a rest from work, while I bring in some money.  My husband is a sub-contractor so only gets paid when he is working.  I'll register with a few agencies to do admin work, and see what we can come up with.

I'm still busily sewing baby sleeping bags, I have four made now, and would like to have at least a dozen made within the next three weeks...plenty of work ahead of me.

Tips:
-  Try to use cash/bank transfers when using ebay, as you get more for your dollar.
-  If your unwanted junk is in good condition, it will probably make you some extra cash if you sell it on ebay, or even have a garage sale.

Cheap Chicken Meal

Today the weather is a bit cooler, very pleasant in fact, so I dont have a problem in cooking inside. Another trip to explore my options at the supermarket, and I found chicken breast on special. Its only a saving of $2 a kilo, but better than nothing, and considering I am not using a whole lot of chicken, I decided that it was an acceptable price. What is it with the price of meats in supermarkets these days?!

So tonight I am making chicken kebabs. I know I'm cheating, but I bought a tube of Morroccan herbs & spices for $3. I added diced chicken breast to some olive oil and the herbs & spices, and left it to marinate for the day. On the skewers, I will put the chicken, onion, red & green capsicum, then BBQ (could grill) it. I'll serve with some rice.


Tips:
- Check meat section of the supermarket in the afternoons, as they are usually marked down in price at that time to make more room for fresh meat.
- Compare the price of chicken breast pre-packed in the meat section and then at the supermarket deli, most of the time the deli is cheaper, and you can choose the quantity of meat you want.
- If possible, buy your meat from the market, it is much much cheaper there.
- If you have the room, buy a 10kg bag of rice to use as a base to a lot of your meals, its healthy and much cheaper in bulk.
- If you can make metal skewers they can be washed and reused, rather than buying wooden disposable ones. Alternatively, look out for them in kitchen stores, if you eat kebabs etc a lot, it would be worth your while.