Budget, Budget, Budget

As part of my master plan to pay off all $54K in credit card debt, we now must stick to a strict monthly budget. Here are the highlights:

• Bills - $2220 covers everything from out mortgage and car payments to our gym membership. It's all the bills we get every month except for credit card bills.
• Gas - $200 total for both cars, but if we go over, we go over.
• Groceries - $200 I didn't realize how hard this would be. To ease the pain I've started shopping mostly at Save-A-Lot, supplemented by Shop 'N' Save for the things I can't find.
• Pet Food - $60 covers 2 dogs and 1 cat for at least a month - I won't settle for anything cheaper than Purina One, though I used to feed only Natural Choice until their prices jumped nearly $10.
• Savings - $433 is an average for the auto transfer that happens between our checking & savings accounts every 2 weeks.
• Fun - $100 each for my husband and I. This counts going out to eat, shopping and beer, wine and liqueur.

This, plus the money we're devoting to our credit cards will hopefully have us credit card debt-free by the end of 2012.

Save-A-Lot Rocks!

This past weekend I discovered what I can only describe as a magical place – Save-A-Lot. Glorified ALDI’s you say? Maybe, but at least they let you use their carts without a deposit.

I made my way slowly down each aisle in a state of wonder and amazement. 3 pounds of oranges for $1.50, red peppers only $1.29 and a strange yet fascinating 5 meats for $19.99 deal I just couldn’t pass up.

Yes, from now on Aldi’s will be my first stop when it comes to grocery shopping with a follow up trip to Shop ‘N’ Save for whatever I can’t find. Did I mention my monthly grocery budget is now $200?