On Thursday

Dancer: "Don't bother me, I'm not going to smile for the camera"

On Thursday, I was up fairly early (for me, anyway) to take the car in for a service.  My appointment was at 9:00 a.m. and I was there in good time.  I was hoping that I could get away with an oil change and maybe a tire rotation, but, no, apparently, I needed several things, including the battery, checked and several things, including the air filters, a fan belt that was starting to crack, and front brakes, replaced, and something else that was due because it's been so many months since it was last done, etc.  Sigh.  Considering the fact that I don't drive my car a lot since I retired, there was quite a lot that needed to be done and it turned out to be an expensive service! They did arrange for a ride share to take me back home and another to pick me up to take me back to the service garage, so, at least, I didn't have to spend all day in their waiting area!  They normally only give a ride to the house (or office); you have to find your way back to the service center to pick up your car.

I spent some time in the garden after I came home, made a citrus drink with lemons and oranges from the garden, ran the dishwasher, replied to blog comments, etc.  Then, it was time to collect the car. 

I must have been tired, because, after I came home and we had a late lunch, I fell asleep on the sofa while listening to the evening news!  

After I woke up, I returned phone calls (both aunt C and friend R had called while I was napping), made tea for my daughter, cleaned Dancer's litter box, and wiped down the kitchen counters, stove top, and the front of the lower kitchen cabinets.  Dinner was leftovers.

On Thursday, I was grateful for:

- Being able to get the car serviced
- Getting a free ride both home and back

- Lemons and oranges from the garden
- Naps on the sofa
- Phone calls with family and friends

Thursday's joyful activity was spending time in the garden.

Plans for Friday include doing a load of laundry, taking daughter to get the shoes her podiatrist recommended, and tending to the garden with M in the evening.

How was your Thursday?  What are your plans for Friday?  

Mid-Week on Wednesday

 

The Stumpery

Thank you, everyone, for your kind comments about the garden posts.  I realized that I had forgotten to post the pictures I took of the stumpery, so, here go you - two for the price of one!

The Stumpery

I wanted to shift the log that is in front a little closer to the stumps, but, then, I noticed that there are osteospermum seedlings starting to sprout in that space and that's what I want to happen.  I want to see the plants growing in and around the stumps, making a habitat of it.  The "scaredy cat" plant cuttings I pushed in among some of the branches are starting to grow, too, and I am looking forward to seeing them and the osteospermum growing among the stumps.

Today, Wednesday, was another gorgeous day with the high being in the low 80s.  I sat outside in the back "patio" area, to say my morning prayers as it was a bit warmer outside than inside.  After I finished my prayers, I wandered around the garden for a bit, and picked a few of the moringa pods I had left on the tree to mature and dry and collected the seeds from them.  I planted four of them in a planter and one in the ground, in the stonery.  I have more seeds that I want to plant in small pots to get them started, but, I don't have anymore potting soil.  When M came to tend to the garden, I gave him some moringa seed pods, too, and asked him to buy me another bag of potting soil.  We'll plant the rest of the seeds when he bring the potting soil.

Later in the afternoon, I called Dancer's pharmacy to order a refill of his thyroid ointment and I called the car service people to book the car in for a routine service.  I also finally unpacked the car trunk of the stuff I had put in earlier, when preparing to evacuate.  I left the box with the six gallons of water in the trunk, though.  

I spent an hour or so relaxing and sewing my fabric scraps together.  I'm just sewing them into squares and rectangles for now without following any quilt patterns.  There are some leftovers from previous quilts, too, that I am incorporating into this project.  I've no idea how it will turn out!  Speaking of fabric, I am so glad that I stocked up on fabric, in December of last year!  The fabric store chain, which declared bankruptcy, will be closing all their stores.  Not sure quite when, but, I assume it will be in the near future.  

Later, I cleaned the bathrooms, chatted with friend R, and then, took a nap on the sofa.

Brunch had been a tiny bit of a very spicy ramen cup noodle that M brought for my daughter to try (I just had a taste of it as it was too spicy for me; it was almost too spicy for my daughter, too!) followed by a bowl of yogurt (I'm trying to get more calcium in my diet, per my doctor's recommendation following my blood test results).  For dinner, I cooked savory rice (with chicken broth added to the rice) and cauliflower, served with leftover salmon.  I shared an apple with my daughter, afterwards, followed by a couple of chocolate truffles leftover from the almsgiving/Christmas.

Today, I am grateful for:

- A sunny, warm day
- M helping with the garden
- Moringa seeds to plant
- Chatting with friend R
- We didn't need to evacuate, after all

Today's joyful activity was playing with fabric.

Plans for tomorrow (Thursday) include:

- Taking the car in for a service
- Maybe picking up Dancer's medication (if ready)
- Cleaning the kitchen
- More playing with fabric.

How was your Wednesday?  What are your plans for Thursday?

The Back Garden in February

 

The Back Garden

Ready for a quick look around the back garden?

"Bulbery"

Nothing very interesting going on in the bulbery since the iris flowers died.   But, one of the aloe vera plants by the side wall is flowering:

Aloe Vera Flowers

Aloe vera is a different species from the aloe growing in the front garden and the flowers are smaller and yellow.

The strawberry plant is flowering too:

Strawberry Plant

I stuck in a couple of carrot tops to see if they would grow, but, so far, they haven't done anything.  But, the lettuce stem I planted had produced a few new leaves, although, they seem to have wilted in the sun (we went up to 80F today - Tuesday)

Crocosmia 

Nearby, the crocosmia plants are sending up flower stalks, although they haven't opened up, yet. 

And my birthday rose is leafing out: 

Neptune Rose

Meanwhile the standard iceberg rose that M re-homed in my garden is barely waking up from its winter dormancy:

Standard Iceberg Rose

There are several osteospermum seeds germinating all over the back garden, too, but, this plant overwintered and is already in flower:

Purple Osteospermum

M has been planting more succulents at the back, behind the garage:  

A New Succulents Area

Hopefully, they will grow well and spread over this area.

The papaya plant that had been growing so happily in the blueberry planter, did not take kindly to being transplanted.  Here's how it looked when it was first transplanted:

Newly Transplanted Papaya Tree

Here's how it looks now:

Papaya Plant

It went into transplant shock and lost all its leaves.  I am hoping it will revive; wait and see, I suppose.  I do have a few papaya seeds saved from the last papaya I bought; maybe I'll plant them and see if any of them sprout.

Lemons

But, the lemons are growing well, and the blueberry bushes are flowering:

Blueberry Bushes

Blueberry Flowers - Close Up

And even starting to set fruit:

Blueberries Forming

The nasturtium vine is growing well:

Nasturtium Plant

I think I might need to make a small trellis for it!

The hellebore plant is flowering, too:

Hellebore Flowers

And my cabbage plant, grown from a rooted stem, seems to be trying to form baby cabbages:

Cabbage Plant

And finally, the peach tree.  Here's how it looked in January, when it had three flowers:

Peach Tree in January

Here's how it looks now:

Peach Tree in February

It is almost done with flowering!

Peach Blossoms

Thank you for visiting my back garden in February.  I hope you enjoyed the stroll.

The Front Garden in February

 

The Front Garden in February

There is a little change in the front garden after the rain we received, earlier, and longer daylight in the evenings. 

The lantana bushes in the front are starting to perk up and flower:

Lantana

There are flowers on the drought tolerant plant that M brought me last year (he didn't know the name of the plant, but, thought it might be in the gentian family; I don't think so, but, I haven't been able to identify it, yet; the flowers look a lot like salvia flowers and someone said it might be a type of sage).  

Drought Tolerant Plant (Sage?)

Close up of the flowers:

Flowers on the Unidentified Plant Teucrium fruticans "Azureum" or 
Azure Bush Germander

Does anyone know what this plant might be?

The plant has been identified!  One of my long-time readers, Bushlady, identified it in her comment, below.  The plant is Teucrium fruticans "Azureum" or Azure Bush Germander.  Thank you, Bushlady.

The succulents circle is doing well, although there are fewer flower stalks on the aloe plants this year.

Succulents Circle

But, the flowers are very striking and the hummingbirds enjoy their nectar.

Aloe Flowers

In general, the succulents are doing very well and that includes this bulbine plant (another gift from M) that is flowering:

Bulbine Plant

It's leaves remind me of spring onion leaves.

Bulbine Flowers

And these aeoniums I planted along the side wall with the idea of extending the succulents border:

Succulents Along the Side Wall

I had planned to put in a path with some paving stones in front of the succulents, but, haven't done so, yet.

In January, I said that due to the lack of rain and watering, not even the weeds were growing.  We've had some rain since then and now, just about everywhere one looks, the osteospermum seedlings are popping up:

Osteospermum Seedlings

Obviously, not all of them will survive and grow, but, already, some other osteospermum plants are starting to flower:

Osteospermum Flower

The euryops bushes are flowering, too:

Euryops Flowers

And there are still a few paperwhites that are flowering:

Paperwhites

And last, but, not least, the rosemary bush that's growing in the front:

Rosemary Bush

And that is the tour of the front garden in February.  Hope you enjoyed the tour.

February Meal Planning - Week 4

After not meal planning last week, here's what I have planned for the rest of this month:

Brunches/Lunches: Scrambled eggs with sausages and fried potatoes or toast, Baked chicken drumsticks with salad, Ramen noodles, Coconut roti with lunu miris, French toast, leftovers

Dinners: Mac & cheese with tuna and a side salad; Baked chicken thighs with savory rice, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower, Baked chicken thighs with oven baked potato wedges and salad, Rice and chicken curry with vegetables, leftovers.

Snacks: Fresh fruits, cereal and milk, crackers with peanut butter, granola bars, etc.

Saturday, being the first of March, there will be milkrice in the morning. 

Sunday, we'll get Japanese food or Italian food (daughter's choice) from a restaurant to celebrate daughter's birthday.

That is the plan. Apart from Sunday's meal, everything will be prepared from ingredients on hand, in the fridge, freezer, and pantry cupboards.  But, the planned meals are subject to change as always, of course.  What's on your meal plan for the last week in February?

February Grocery Shopping Part 4

I ordered and picked up more groceries, today.  I needed more half and half and bananas and I wanted to take advantage of a "buy one get one free" deal on chicken and a  good deal on raspberries.  Here's the receipt:

Rewards

Total Savings: $18.27 ($11.32 + $6.95 pick up fee)

---

Order Summary

Original Item Total$28.46*

Item Coupons/Sales-$11.32

Fulfillment Fee+$0.00

Sales Tax$0.00

Order Total$17.14

---

Item Details

7 Items

Cucumber, 1 ct$1.78

2 x $0.89 $0.99 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$0.10

Item Coupon/Sale: -$0.10

Foster Farms Fresh & Natural Chicken Thighs & Drumsticks Picnic Pack, 1 pk$7.99

6.07 lbs x $1.31 $2.49 each (approx.)

Item Coupon/Sale: -$7.12

Fresh Banana - Single, 1 ea (4 bananas)$0.70

1.02 lbs x $0.68 each (approx.)

Fresh Red Raspberries, 6 oz$3.98

2 x $1.99 $3.99 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$2.00

Item Coupon/Sale: -$2.00

Kroger® Half & Half, 1 pt$2.69

1 x $2.69 each

* Actually, the original item total was a bit higher, over the minimum order amount required to qualify for free pick up, because the "bogo" chicken had to be entered as two trays of chicken, and each was estimated to be over $12.  But, the original price was recalculated once the order was submitted and I still qualified for free pick up.  

The raspberries were a good price with the digital coupon; it was what I paid for the blackberries at the ethnic store.  They are a treat for my daughter as the last time I ate raspberries, I noticed that I experienced mild symptoms of a food allergy (tingling in my mouth, upper palate, etc.)

My total came to: $17.14

I had started out the year budgeting $200/month for groceries for my daughter and myself.  I went over that budget by a little over $15 in January.  I deducted that amount from the February's budget of $200.

My February grocery budget, after deducting what I overspent in January, was $184.55

Spent to date in February: $60.21 + $63.44 + $28.13 + $42.35 + $4 (spent at the dollar store for 8 Jamaican style hand pies) + $12.40 (for pork chops and chestnuts) + $17.14 = $227.67

Amount overspent in February = $184.55 - $227.67 = -$43.12

I am not planning on going grocery shopping again, this week.  But, if I need to, it would have to be only for half and half, bread, or milk and the total amount of money overspent has to be $50 or less.  Why $50?  Because that's what I allocate for gas for the car, each month, and I haven't used any of it, so far, this month.  If I use the gas money to cover the grocery overspending, I won't have to deduct any money from the March grocery budget.  If not, my March grocery budget might be $150 and that might be interesting! 

As always, I am grateful for:

- Being able to afford groceries and having a bit of a leeway with the budgeting
- The availability of groceries
- Being able to take advantage of sales
- Getting free pick up
- A safe drive to the grocery store and back

I went ahead and cooked both trays of chicken after I got home.  I had bought the "picnic" packs which are a mixture of thighs and drumsticks.  I baked the drumsticks with a tomato chutney glaze and baked the thighs with a curry powder-chili powder rub.  I might freeze some of it; if not, they will be the basis of next week's meals and I will have minimal cooking!

How is your grocery shopping coming along this month?   Are you finding good bargains?

This Week

 

The First Nasturtium Flower

The week is going by fast!

Monday was President's Day.  We enjoyed a fairly relaxed day at home.  I did some house cleaning, checked on things in the garden, and took the trash bins out to the curb.

On Tuesday, I brought the emptied trash cans in and went to the pharmacy to pick up a medication refill that was ready.  The pharmacy receipt showed that I had another $2 bonus rewards coupon.  I looked in the cereals aisle and most of the cereals that had been on sale for $1.99 were sold out, but, there were boxes of frosted mini wheats that were on sale for $1.99, so I used the coupon and got a box for free.  I was happy with my free cereal.  Then, I went into the dollar store next door to the pharmacy, but, they didn't have the item I was looking for, so I didn't buy anything.

Afterwards, I went to the Armenian store to get their pork chops that were on sale for $1.99/lb. on Tuesday, only.  I bought six pork chops which weighed a little over 3 lbs. and came to a total of $6.70.  Daughter had also requested a few more packets of the grilled and peeled chestnuts, which were still on sale for $0.95 each, so I bought six packets of those for her, for a total of $5.70.  My grocery total came to $12.40

I did a load of laundry and remade daughter's bed with the freshly washed (and dried) sheets.  

On Wednesday, M was here to tend to the garden.  He brought me two more day lily plants and planted them in the stonery area. We admired the first flowers on the nasturtium plant and discussed eating the nasturtium leaves and flowers.  I want to keep the flowers to form seeds, but, maybe there will be sufficient flowers to do both, eventually.  

I called the vet's clinic and made an appointment for Dancer to have his arthritis injection.  There was an appointment available for later in the afternoon on Wednesday, so, I took him in, only to be told that he was not due to have this injection for another four days.  I wish I had checked the dates more closely or they had checked his charts and told me when I made the appointment.  Anyway, because they know how difficult it is for him to be sedated and brought in, they offered to trim his claws at no charge to make up for the fact that we had made the drive there.  So, Dancer had his claws trimmed and he was very good about the journey in the car, so he got to enjoy a little tuna after we came home.

I cooked two of the pork chops for dinner and froze the rest, individually, with a marinade, for later.  Daughter and I shared one of the pork chops, with rice and broccoli for dinner.  The other pork chop is in the fridge for another day.

Thursday was another relaxed day.  Daughter woke up with a migraine; she managed to make it through a meeting in the morning, but, had to take the afternoon off on sick leave.  While she took her medications and slept off the migraine, I did some scrap piecing.  I find it very relaxing and enjoyable.  

Plans for Friday include a follow up appointment with my oncology nurse practitioner to go over my mammogram and blood test results. Later in the evening, M will be here to tend to the garden.  

This week, I am grateful for:

- Pleasant weather
- My medications were available
- A free box of cereal with my coupon
- M's help with the garden
- Being able to go over this month's grocery budget

Joyful activities have included piecing my scrap fabric, being in the garden, watching videos with my daughter, exchanging emails and chatting with friends on the phone. 

How was your week?  Any plans for Friday and the weekend?

Meal Planning Gone Off Track!

I am afraid that I have not been doing very well with meal planning, lately!  Here it is, almost at the end of Week 3, and not only have I not reviewed my meal plan for Week 2, I have not made a proper meal plan for this week, either!

This was my meal plan for February Week 2 (2/8/25 - 2/14/25):

Lunches: Leftover pizza with salad (Saturday)✓, pancakes and sausages, scrambled eggs with bacon and fried potatoes (for dinner)✓. toast✓, boiled mung beans with sambol✓, tortillas with egg and sambol✓

Dinners: Pot roast with rice and vegetables (Saturday)✓, smoked sausage stir-fry with rice✓, chicken curry with rice and sauteed green beans. sauteed cabbage, and spicy sauteed potatoes; leftovers✓

Snacks: Fresh fruits, banana muffins, smoothies, tuna salad and crackers, Cheetos, etc.

Here's how it worked out:

Saturday:
Lunch: Leftover pizza with salad
Dinner: Pot roast with rice and vegetables

Sunday:
Breakfast: Tortillas with egg and sambol
Lunch: Pot roast sandwiches
Dinner: Smoked sausage stir fry with vegetables over rice

Monday:
Brunch: Toast (me); Jamaican style meat patty (daughter)
Dinner:  Leftover pot roast with green beans and bread

Tuesday:
Brunch:  Pot roast sandwiches
Dinner: Leftover smoked sausage stir fry and green beans, with rice

Wednesday:
Breakfast:  Tortillas with seeni sambol
Lunch: Jamaican style meat patty (me); leftover stir fry and rice (daughter)
Dinner: Leftover pot roast with green peas and cucumber salad

Thursday:
Brunch: Boiled mung beans with lunu miris and sugar (daughter)
Tea: Jamaican style meat patty (daughter)
Dinner: "Breakfast for Dinner" - scrambled eggs, hash browns, salad

Friday:
Brunch: Jamaican style meat patty
Dinner: Cucumber salad and an assortment of Leftovers

I didn't make pancakes for brunch and I didn't make the planned chicken curry for dinner, and I thought I went off the meal plan quite a bit, but, upon review, I didn't do too badly.  

In the meantime, February Week 3 February 15 - February 21) started and I got distracted by grocery shopping and going over budget and mending, so, didn't post a meal plan!  Nevertheless, we have been enjoying some nice meals.  Since they weren't exactly planned, I will simply list them:

Lahmajoon 

Saturday: 
Brunch: Homemade Lahmajoon made by neighbor S's mother
Dinner: Daughter shared her restaurant meal of salad, salmon in Dijon mustard sauce with vegetables and potatoes; tiramisu for dessert

Sunday: 
Brunch: Leftover lahmajoon (and daughter had leftovers from her dinner the previous night)
Dinner: Salad, ham steak  (leftover Thanksgiving ham from the freezer), and parmesan Pasta Roni (from a box in the pantry); I meant to add frozen green peas to it but forgot.  Fresh blackberries for dessert.

Monday:

Cassava and Lunu Miris

Brunch: Cassava with lunu miris
Dinner: Salmon sauteed with onions and homegrown tomatoes, green beans, rice, tomato chutney; avocado pudding for dessert

Tuesday:
Brunch:  Leftover ham steak and pasta roni (daughter); leftover cassava (me); fresh papaya
Dinner: Leftover (planned over) salmon, green beans, garbanzo beans, rice, tomato chutney; cucumber salad, mandarins
Snacks included peanut butter sandwiches

Wednesday:
Brunch: Leftover cassava (daughter); cheese sandwich (me)
Tea: Homemade potato fries
Dinner: Teriyaki pork chops, rice, broccoli, mandarins for dessert

Yes, I did buy the pork chops on sale for $1.99/lb. on Tuesday.  I bought six pork chops and they weighed just over 3 lbs.  I marinated and cooked two of the pork chops for Wednesday's dinner (but, each pork chop was so big that daughter and I shared one and there's one for another meal later in the week); the other four pork chops were frozen individually with a teriyaki marinade for later.  

On the meal plan for the rest of this week:

Thursday:
Brunch: Pancakes with sausages and syrup or blueberry compote
Dinner: Salmon, rice, broccoli, tomato chutney, cucumber salad

Friday:
Brunch: Tortillas with eggs and lunu miris
Dinner: Pork chops with rice and Brussels sprouts and/or cauliflower

That is the plan and I think I can keep to the plan for the rest of this week!  I think there will be chicken curry over the weekend.  

Have you been meal planning this week?    

Yuca/Cassava/Manioc

Yuca/Cassava/Manioc (Manihot esculenta)

Yuca, cassava, and manioc are only some of the commonly used names for this tuberous root that I purchased from the ethnic store on Friday.  It's scientific name is Manihot esculenta.  I grew up calling it manioc.

I cooked it for our brunch on Monday.  Cassava has to be carefully peeled and washed before cooking because there is a poisonous layer containing cyanide just under the brown peel.  Fortunately, the whole peel and the poisonous layer comes off as one rind if you cut into it and pry it off the tuber with the tip of a knife.  But, if you just scrape off only the brown peel, the reddish layer under it is poisonous and must be removed. 

Cassava Peel and Semi-Peeled Section

I was showing my daughter how to remove the peel properly - you can see the rind that I peeled off in one piece at the top and a semi-peeled section just below it, where I had just scraped off the thin brown peel to reveal the reddish toxic layer containing cyanide which should be removed before cooking and eating (although, cooking will remove most of the cyanide).  I peeled off the reddish layer after I took this picture.

Then, I washed the peeled and cut root and boiled it in salted water with a little turmeric added to it, which is how I learned how to cook manioc.  Depending on how much turmeric you add, it changes the color of the manioc from white to light yellow to a deeper yellow.  Mine turned out almost orange!

Boiled Manioc with Lunu Miris

I served the cooked manioc with some lunu miris, which is a mixture of dried red chilies, onions, lime juice, Maldive fish powder (a type of dried tuna), and salt.  It was delicious and obviously, I cleaned it well because both my daughter and I are well and alive.  LOL.

By the way, some stores do sell pre-cleaned frozen yuca, but, I prefer to buy the root and cut and clean it myself.

Have you eaten yuca/cassava/manioc?  

More Mending

Shawl/Poncho

This is a shawl I knitted several years ago.  I call it a shawl, but, it is more like a poncho.  It was knitted as two rectangles which were then, sewn together.

The Tear

This is the tear that appeared one day.  Not quite sure what happened - whether the yarn, which is quite fine, gave out or whether Dancer's claw pulled it, or, it got caught to a branch while I was out in the garden.  I have been wearing this shawl with the hole around the house for several weeks, but, I decided that it was time to repair it.  

Mended Hole

I didn't have the same yarn, but, I had wool in a similar color.  I darned the hole, using a regular darning weave, without trying to duplicate the knitting stitch.  I didn't mind if the darning was visible.  I was mostly interested in preventing the tear from becoming bigger.

The Mended Shawl

And here it is, the mended shawl/poncho.  I could turn the mending into another rose bud, but, I think I'll just leave it as it is.  What do you think?

February Grocery Shopping - Part 3

Or, how to go over your grocery budget by mid-month in three parts!

In case anyone is interested, Part 1 and Part 2 have been linked.

I did more grocery shopping this week.  

On Friday, I went to the Armenian store for fresh produce, for the most part:

Ethnic Store Receipt

Just about everything I bought there was cheaper than what I might have paid for the same item at the supermarket.  For example, cucumber was $0.69 there and $0.89 at the supermarket.  Lettuce was $0.99 each and $1.99 at the supermarket.  Apples were $0.79/lb. vs. $1.49/lb.; cauliflower $0.69/lb. vs. $2.29/lb., yam/sweet potato $0.99/lb. vs. $1.99/lb. and so on.  Shopping for fresh produce at this store saves money, but, there is no curbside pick up available.

I spent $28.13 at the ethnic store on Friday.

However, I still wanted to get a few other items from the supermarket to take advantage of their weekly deals, plus half & half for my daughter (I wasn't sure how good the half & half at the ethnic store was and they didn't have the regular sandwich bread I wanted).

Here is the Supermarket receipt:

Total Savings: $30.70 (sales, coupons, and waived delivery fee)

Order Summary

Original Item Total$66.10

Item Coupons/Sales-$23.75

Fulfillment Fee+$0.00

Sales Tax$0.00

Order Total$42.35

---

Item Details

12 Items

Fresh Atlantic Salmon Center Cut Loin Farm Raised (never frozen; sustainably sourced), 1 lb$15.61

1.42 lbs x $10.99 $15.99 each (approx.)

Item Coupon/Sale: -$7.10

Kraft Original Mac N Cheese Macaroni and Cheese Dinner, 5 ct$5.79

1 x $5.79 $6.79 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$1.00

Kroger® Half & Half, 1 pt$2.69

1 x $2.69 each

Kroger® White Sandwich Bread, 20 oz$2.49

1 x $2.49 each

Kroger® Wild Caught Chunk Light Tuna in Water, 5 oz (for us)$5.00

5 x $1.00 $1.29 each

Oscar Mayer™ Naturally Hardwood Smoked Maple Bacon, 12 oz$7.98

2 x $3.99 $10.99 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$4.00

Item Coupon/Sale: -$4.00

Item Coupon/Sale: -$3.00

Item Coupon/Sale: -$3.00

Ralphs® Vitamin D Whole Milk Half Gallon, 1/2 gal$2.79

1 x $2.79 $2.99 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$0.20

I spent a total of $42.35 at this store and, yes, I took advantage of their curbside pick up.

This week, I spent a total of $28.13 + $42.35 = $70.48

But, I had only $60.90 left in my February budget!

My February grocery budget is $184.55 (after deducting what I overspent in January)

Spent to date: $60.21 (2/1/25) + $63.44 (2/7/25) + $28.13 (2/14/25) + $42.35 (2/16/25) = $194.13

And that is how you go over your monthly grocery budget in three easy parts by mid month!  

I still have two more weeks to go and no grocery budget left!  The ethnic store has advertised a one day only sale for pork chops at $1.99/lb. which is a good deal and I had been thinking of buying some, but, with what?  Do I borrow from the March grocery budget?  Do I increase the February grocery budget?  Do I let the sale pass without buying any pork chops?  What would you do?

As it is, I will have to borrow from the March grocery budget to cover half & half for my daughter, for the rest of the month.  Daughter has offered to pay for the rest of February's groceries, but, I don't want her to do that (we might do something like that once she comes home to stay).  I told daughter that we will eat from the pantry and freezer for the rest of the month to keep the borrowing from March to a minimum.  Obviously, I have not been as savvy a grocery shopper this month as I've imagined myself to be!  I've been indulging in too many splurge items!  

How are you managing with your grocery budget this month?