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Dirty Work

January 13th, 2019 at 05:43 pm

Last week pay period I did a super diligent and honest job of tracking my spending. I over spent. A LOT! This pay period was the first where I had my grocery/gas money directly deposited into my separate checking account. This should make being honest with myself about purchases a bit easier. I really need to reign in the spending and look at categories that are absolutely unnecessary. This will be the key to sticking with my plan and being successful this year.

As I have been preparing for the baby and clearing out clutter, I am constantly struck by how much WASTE we incur as a result of being a consumer. This is driving me to be more frugal in my grocery purchases as well, especially in food waste. The composting has been great, but there's a huge guilt trip every time I clean the fridge. Waste of money!!!

Also, one area that is suggested to help the environment is reducing the consumption of meat. I currently have gestational diabetes, so going more vegetarian isn't going to happen. DS recently suggested he would like to go more vegetarian. Once the baby is born, I am going to appease that request for all of us. I've got some great cookbooks with some great recipes I can add to my repertoire. Plus, I have an instant pot!!! So excited to use it. Looking forward to making homemade yogurt (save money and save on WASTE!) I also want to make an effort to switch over to more glass/reusable products as possible and cut plastic out as much as possible.

The clutter. The never ending clutter. I'm also putting myself on a purchasing diet with reducing the amount of "stuff" we have hanging around. Oy. Every time I am shopping I will have to remind myself of all the drama I've had just trying to reduce, reduce, reduce around here. We have plenty of space in this house. We have way too much stuff we just don't use.

6 Responses to “Dirty Work”

  1. crazyliblady Says:
    1547402530

    I have also had trouble with food waste in the past. For example, if I had a little bit of chili or stew left over after my DH and I finishing off the rest of the pot, that little bit would sit in the fridge until, well ... you know what happens. The fridge smells gross and I have wasted what could have been a snack or lunch, right? So, now when I observe that I have leftover food like that, I either make it a part of my lunch to take to work the next day or I put it in the freezer for a later meal. It is great you are starting to recognize where the money leaks are and figuiring out better options for you and your family. Good luck.

  2. CB in the City Says:
    1547408772

    I think one of the biggest reasons people waste food is that they don't want to eat leftovers. As a singleton, I've learned to bite the bullet and do that. But if I don't eat it the next day, it goes into the freezer. A week or two later it looks pretty good! Another thing I do is always keep an eye on perishables and figure out ways to use them up. My goal is to never throw anything away. Makes for a cleaner fridge, as well as saving money. You are on the right track to limit purchases. That's where it all begins!

  3. rob62521 Says:
    1547411151

    Food waste is an issue. I work really hard to either use it up, eat it as leftovers, or like CB says, freeze it.

    I am also struggling with the issue of buying so much stuff. I have way too many things as it is.

  4. creditcardfree Says:
    1547411438

    It would be amazing if Americans did better with food waste. There is so much of it in homes, restaurants and grocery stores. You might shop your home before you go out shopping too. You might already have the thing you need in your home!

  5. Wink Says:
    1547416313

    CCF.. that's what I have been doing...shopping my freezer and fridge and pantry before I go grocery shopping. A very good habit to get into!

  6. PatientSaver Says:
    1547470978

    Here's an article that may interest you: http://bring-joy.com/2013/12/19/eating-control-blood-sugar-gestational-diabetes-vegan-diet

    I also hope to make major inroads with decluttering. It's very difficult for me to part with things, usually for sentimental reasons or the belief that I'll be able to use something down the road.

    I agree, I'm still wasting too much food. I hate getting caught with nothing to eat at home, so I sometimes wind up with having too much, but I try to mentally make a note of certain foods that need to be consumed quickly. Work in progress.

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