Dear all,

I have used up the last of my food stamp balance at Save Alot. I called and cancelled food stamps as dh has returned to the working world. I have a full freezer and a full pantry so hopefully all I'll need is fresh things like produce and milk.

I guess that means I'll be seeing you all in the Monthly Food Challenge thread  ((sniffle)). This has been a terrific thread for saving food dollars.

Dear Michelle Cinnamon Huskies, First of all, CONGRATULATIONS are in order for your new Stretchpert duties & office!  (This is the 1st time that I saw that handle for you.)

You know, I'm sure, that the working poor are still entitled in many cases to SOME Food Stamps.  I hope that you have not been too eager to go off htem completely in the event that you are still entitled, while you are getting back on your fiscal feet.

May the L-rd be blessed that you have full freezer & pantry.  Would you consider moving to soy milk, which has the much-longer "good time" than dairy milk?  Would you consider moving to canned fruit, which has no waste?  Would you consider moving to frozen veggies, which also has no waste?  Just suggestions for keeping your head above water, as you move to your new financial regimen.

Yours in Him, Deb

Thanks, Deb! I really didn't want to prolong food stamps if dh had a full time job. They did say that the kids should be covered for medical insurance for several months yet.

Dh will not drink soy milk and powdered milk doesn't agree with his tummy. So I try to buy sale priced milk( haha )at $3 a gallon. My 3 dairy goats are due to kid the first week of March, so at about the second week we start saving some milk for the house. About 6 more weeks and no more colored water store bought milk! i will have to do something with kids right away because I can't afford to bottle feed them milk replacer this year, at $28 a 8lb bucket...an increase of $8 since last year and I usually go through 4-5 buckets before weaning. hopefully I can find some 4H children that are interested in bottle feeding their project.

Dear Michelle CinnamonHuskies, If the 4H kids make bottle-feeding your goats (can't call them all kids, can I?  LOL!), will they & their families pay the cost of the milk replacer?  Yours in Him, Deb

Ran to Walmart after church today since I needed to buy Q-tips (generic 500 ct for $1.88; will last me about 4 yrs). I picked up a paper for the coupons (Pioneer Press for $1; clipped $1.40 out of it). Then went to pick up meat since I was starving. Found out this morning that what I thought was beef was pork (which I won't eat by choice) loins; picked up when I did my massive shopping earlier this month... and I was craving a beef steak! Got reduced meat (dated tomorrow) of eye of round 1.68lb for $4.83, it had 6 slices of meat in so froze 4 and put 2 in the frying pan. Bought a small bag of bananas for 53 cents (3 bananas), and a 15ct buns for $2.24 (will freeze most of them). Now down to $16.37 until the 13th of Feb.
 

Ouch!  That's a long way to go with so little balance in your F.S.

I bought today at Rite-Aid 2 - 15-count boxes of instant oatmeal.  My balance (till the 1st) is now $41.33.  I thought that I had posted this earlier today -- I either hit back rather than post, OR I mistaenly filed in another Forum.

Yours in Him, Deb

Dear All, I'm sailing in to Feb with an extra THIRTY-SIX DOLLARS in my balance.  THAT'S THE BEST THAT I HAVE EVER DONE!

I bought today the 2 half-gallons of shelf-stable grapefruit juice that I have kept mentioning.  When I had  bought the oatmeal at Rite-Aid the other day, the clerk said that my card was demagnetized, so she punched in the numbers on the card.  That got me scared, as I want to do my monthly grocery shopping on Fri the 1st, &, if it were demagnetized, would not be able to get a new card by then.  That ws the essential reasno why I went to Cala/Ralphs/Kroger today for he juice; I could have otherwise waited till Fri.  I just didn't want to stand in line & have checked out a large grocery bill, & then not be able to use Food Stamps to pay for it -- & someone would have to put it all back.  (Unless that clerk would also be kind enough to punch in tghe numbers on the card -- which was unusual courtesy.)  Anyhow, No Problemo!  Yours in Him, Deb

Deborahmichelle:

I'm sailing in to Feb with an extra THIRTY-SIX DOLLARS in my balance.  THAT'S THE BEST THAT I HAVE EVER DONE!

  Way to go!!