I've heard that a lot this past year. "You are sooo lucky that your house is paid for and no matter what, you won't lose it!" "You are soooo lucky to have fruit trees in your yard!" "You are soooo lucky that your kids all got scholarships to college!"
I don't like to use the word "luck". Our culture has a completely different meaning for that word than I do. Our culture seems to think that "luck" has a large component of randomness. Luck just happens to some folks and not to others, or so it is implied in western culture.
The definition of luck, that I appreciate, is this. "Luck is when preparedness meets opportunity".
You can't have a house paid for if you don't put in the effort to make payments. We knew we wanted to have our house free and clear as soon as possible. We saved a little longer than many people thought we should (8 years), and put down almost half of the purchase price to get a lower mortgage. We began making extra principle payments with the very first scheduled payment, and were able to pay off our home in 14 years. It was hard work and discipline, not luck, that got that house ours, free and clear.
You can't have a yard full of fruit tress if you don't plant those trees, or at least buy or rent a house with existing fruit trees. Our very first rented house had an apricot tree and spot for a garden. I'd never planted a garden before in my life, but did so that summer. I was hooked. Our next apartment didn't have room for trees, but we grew tomato plants in pots on the deck. When we moved to Washington, we looked for a rental with space for a garden and existing fruit trees. We hit the mother lode, 2 apple trees, 1 crab apple tree, 2 plum trees, 1 pear tree and 1 cherry tree. My husband was unemployed when we moved into that rental. That fruit accounted for a good chunk of our diet that first summer. And when we bought our current house, we set out to plant it with all kinds of fruit trees, plants and bushes. It's not luck that we have enough fruit to last us over 6 months of each year.
Universities just don't hand out merit scholarships to anyone who applies. My kids worked very hard all through high school to earn those scholarships. I'm a mom, I'm supposed to say that I have the most brilliant kids around. But the truth is, as their mom, I can see their academic weaknesses. These kids have worked their tails off in school. Two of them did a summer of tutoring, to bring their math skills up. When one of my daughters was having a hard time in her History class this past year, she upped her efforts in a hurry. She didn't finish at the top of her class, but got her grade up high enough to maintain her academic scholarship for the next year. If you ask her, she'll be quick to point out that that was not luck. That was a boatload of hard work.
So I'm not lucky, but I am fortunate beyond measure. I've been provided for providentially, and someone, somewhere along the line has put in the work for me to have my fortunes. Sometimes, we put in that hard work ourselves, but sometimes someone else has laid the foundation for us, as when a parent or grandparent leaves a generous gift to their heirs. Some of us are simply more blessed in this area than others. But all of us have been given gifts by our Creator, to use to make our way in this world (that's the providence part). Some of us recognize our gifts early on in life, while others of us don't "discover" our gifts until later. But those gifts are present, nonetheless.
What about the lottery? "Oh, I wish I could be so lucky as to win the lottery." There is some randomness in the actual winning of the lottery. But even someone who wins the lottery had to buy that lottery ticket. I am guaranteed to never win the lottery, as I won't buy lottery tickets.
Some preparedness has to be expended, if one is to be available to seize that golden opportunity.
You can study hard and you may not receive a scholarship. Or you can plant fruit trees and you still may not harvest much fruit. But if you never work hard in high school, you likely will not receive any scholarships. And if you don't plant fruit trees, then it's certain that you won't harvest any fruit. If we had skipped payments and defaulted on our mortgage, then it is certain that our house would not be ours free and clear, today.
So, with the next giveaway that I host here, I may say, "good luck" to you all. But really, you have zero chance of winning the drawing if you don't enter. You know, I think I prefer to say, "best wishes to you." That doesn't sound at all like randomness to me.
Monday, July 7, 2014
Thursday, July 3, 2014
June grocery money jourmal, a revelation and the winner of a 1-year Victoria subscription
First off, the winner of the 1-year subscription to Victoria magazine. The randomly selected number is 3, Jo Ann. Congratulations! Jo Ann, please email me your mailing address, so I can fill out the forms. lili.mounce@gmail.com
So, we went over our budgeted grocery amount, not by a whole lot, but we did go over. I was beating myself up over this for a few days. Then I reread my grocery money journal for the month, and I could see for myself that I didn't buy junk (at least not a lot of it, some soda for special occasions, and colored sprinkles for cookies and cakes, but otherwise, that was it as "junk"). I spent our money wisely. It's not my fault that grocery prices have risen steeply in the last several months, or that our income has been cut significantly at the same time. I am working hard at this, and I shouldn't feel badly that groceries simply cost more than I can afford right now. Maybe next month will be better, as our garden is producing even more, and our pantry and freezers are well-stocked. It's discouraging, yes, but not a personal failure, simply something that is. I am working hard at something that just is hard.
In most of the other areas of spending, we are doing well. We continue to implement savings strategies on utilities, entertainment, leisure travel, clothing, gas for the cars and cleaning supplies. Medical expenses have risen and for our family will continue to go up for a while. We simply have medical needs right now for a couple of family members. Can't do anything about that. University costs have risen. Again, I have zero control over tuition increases. However, we are doing well with books and supply costs, either renting books or buying books used, online/from other students. And of course, property taxes rose this year by several hundred dollars. We'll just have to work around these areas that represent increased spending in our budget.
June 1.
We've been cutting and cutting and cutting, and we still need to cut back more. Next month, we have a further reduced grocery budget. We're scaling back to $165 in July, and seeing if it will work for us. This month we have $170. At the same time, I'm trying to "bank" more surplus for late summer/early fall stock-ups. All while grocery prices keep shooting upwards! We'll see how it goes.
June 1. It's a Sunday and the girls would like a ride to St Vincent de Paul, to check out their 99 cent clothing day. SVdP is on the main highway, so I turn this into an opportunity to make a run down to Trader Joes and the produce stand. At Trader Joe's I pick up 15 bananas, for a cost of $2.85.
The produce stand is just down the road. I get 1 cantaloupe (39 cents/lb), 1 cucumber (50 cents), 3 avocados (3/$1) and a bag of 5 large pasilla peppers (99 cents). I spend $3.58.
June 3. I checked the ads online for Walgreens, Fred Meyer and the Cash and Carry. Cash and Carry has a few things I'm interested in on sale. I buy 50 lb sack of onions ($8.81, that's about 18 cents/lb), 50 lb sack of stone-ground whole wheat flour ($20.08, 40 cents/lb), 25 lb sack of carrots ($6.98, about 28 cents/lb), a case of 6 #10 cans of diced, canned tomatoes ($15.96), a gallon of lemon juice ($4.97), a small box of cornstarch (99 cents), 3 4-lb jars of chunky peanut butter ($5.98 each, about $1.49/lb), 2-lb bag raisins ($4.59). Total spent $80.32, for a month to date total of $86.75.
June 5. Fred Meyer has eggs and milk on sale this week. I buy 2 gallons whole milk, $2.50 each (great for making yogurt) and 2 18-ct cartons of eggs ($2 each). While I'm there, I buy some ground ginger from bulk bins (66 cents), and I find balsamic vinegar mayonnaise on clearance for $1.32 per 30 oz jar. There are 4 jars left, but I only buy 2, for a total spent of $12.30.
June 7. Heading back to Fred Meyer on way home from dropping daughter at the park and ride. I buy 2 more gallons of whole milk (for yogurt), and 2 more cartons of eggs, plus I find 1 half gallon of skim milk on markdown for $1, and 2 gallons of 1% milk on markdown for $2. I'm set for milk for the month of June, now. Total spent today, $14, for a month to date spent of $113.05.
June 9. So, I'm looking in the pantry, fridge and freezers. It all looks pretty well-stocked. I will try to only buy stupendous deals and a little extra produce for the rest of the month. We may just make my goal of setting aside more money for the fall.
June 11. Fred Meyer for butter with a coupon, 1lb for $2, limit 2. I buy my 2 and pick up the non-food items I need here. Spent $4.
June 13. Safeway has cans of coffee on sale today only for $5. I buy 4 cans of French roast and spend $20. We now have enough coffee to get through the year and into 2015.
June 13. My daughters had a day off. When I asked what they'd like to do, they wanted to go to Goodwill. While there, I find seed packets for 29 cents. I buy 4 packets of spinach seeds. Spent $1.27
June 14. Albertson's has 2 lb blocks of cheddar for $4.99 w/ coupon (limit 1). I also need pectin for strawberry-rhubarb jam ($5.19). Spent $10.18.
June 20. Fred Meyer has eggs on sale with in-store coupon 4 dozen for $5. I check out the clearance rack and find blue sprinkles, perfect for 4th of July cookies, just 89 cents. Spent $5.89, for a month-to-date total of $154.69
June 23. Down near the produce stand, Country Farms, stop in and buy 1 eggplant (I'll make easy eggplant casserole, 79 cents), 1 head garlic (50 cents, ouch! can't wait for my garden garlic to be ready to dig) and a cucumber (50 cents). Total spent $1.79.
June 28. Walgreen's has 2-litres of soda pop for 79 cents each (plus tax), limit 3. I buy our Christmas tree decorating party bottle of cola, and 2 bottles of lemon-lime (one for punch for a special occasion and the other nice to have on hand in case someone in the family catches a stomach bug). I've got these at the back of the pantry right now, out of view, out of mind. Spent $2.60
June 28. I'm at QFC loading a bus pass onto my daughter's bus card and decide to check the dairy aisle for mark downs. I find 5 gallons of whole milk (4%), good for making yogurt, for $2.09 each, and 3 gallons of skim milk for $1.89 each. Total spent $16.12.
Month-to-date spent on groceries -- $175.20, $5.20 over budget. I'll deduct this from our running surplus from previous months, leaving $54.51 in surplus. We spent $40.88 per week, on average for the month of June, a really small amount for 5 adults, and I need to remind myself of that regularly.
So, we went over our budgeted grocery amount, not by a whole lot, but we did go over. I was beating myself up over this for a few days. Then I reread my grocery money journal for the month, and I could see for myself that I didn't buy junk (at least not a lot of it, some soda for special occasions, and colored sprinkles for cookies and cakes, but otherwise, that was it as "junk"). I spent our money wisely. It's not my fault that grocery prices have risen steeply in the last several months, or that our income has been cut significantly at the same time. I am working hard at this, and I shouldn't feel badly that groceries simply cost more than I can afford right now. Maybe next month will be better, as our garden is producing even more, and our pantry and freezers are well-stocked. It's discouraging, yes, but not a personal failure, simply something that is. I am working hard at something that just is hard.
In most of the other areas of spending, we are doing well. We continue to implement savings strategies on utilities, entertainment, leisure travel, clothing, gas for the cars and cleaning supplies. Medical expenses have risen and for our family will continue to go up for a while. We simply have medical needs right now for a couple of family members. Can't do anything about that. University costs have risen. Again, I have zero control over tuition increases. However, we are doing well with books and supply costs, either renting books or buying books used, online/from other students. And of course, property taxes rose this year by several hundred dollars. We'll just have to work around these areas that represent increased spending in our budget.
June 1.
We've been cutting and cutting and cutting, and we still need to cut back more. Next month, we have a further reduced grocery budget. We're scaling back to $165 in July, and seeing if it will work for us. This month we have $170. At the same time, I'm trying to "bank" more surplus for late summer/early fall stock-ups. All while grocery prices keep shooting upwards! We'll see how it goes.
June 1. It's a Sunday and the girls would like a ride to St Vincent de Paul, to check out their 99 cent clothing day. SVdP is on the main highway, so I turn this into an opportunity to make a run down to Trader Joes and the produce stand. At Trader Joe's I pick up 15 bananas, for a cost of $2.85.
The produce stand is just down the road. I get 1 cantaloupe (39 cents/lb), 1 cucumber (50 cents), 3 avocados (3/$1) and a bag of 5 large pasilla peppers (99 cents). I spend $3.58.
June 3. I checked the ads online for Walgreens, Fred Meyer and the Cash and Carry. Cash and Carry has a few things I'm interested in on sale. I buy 50 lb sack of onions ($8.81, that's about 18 cents/lb), 50 lb sack of stone-ground whole wheat flour ($20.08, 40 cents/lb), 25 lb sack of carrots ($6.98, about 28 cents/lb), a case of 6 #10 cans of diced, canned tomatoes ($15.96), a gallon of lemon juice ($4.97), a small box of cornstarch (99 cents), 3 4-lb jars of chunky peanut butter ($5.98 each, about $1.49/lb), 2-lb bag raisins ($4.59). Total spent $80.32, for a month to date total of $86.75.
June 5. Fred Meyer has eggs and milk on sale this week. I buy 2 gallons whole milk, $2.50 each (great for making yogurt) and 2 18-ct cartons of eggs ($2 each). While I'm there, I buy some ground ginger from bulk bins (66 cents), and I find balsamic vinegar mayonnaise on clearance for $1.32 per 30 oz jar. There are 4 jars left, but I only buy 2, for a total spent of $12.30.
June 7. Heading back to Fred Meyer on way home from dropping daughter at the park and ride. I buy 2 more gallons of whole milk (for yogurt), and 2 more cartons of eggs, plus I find 1 half gallon of skim milk on markdown for $1, and 2 gallons of 1% milk on markdown for $2. I'm set for milk for the month of June, now. Total spent today, $14, for a month to date spent of $113.05.
June 9. So, I'm looking in the pantry, fridge and freezers. It all looks pretty well-stocked. I will try to only buy stupendous deals and a little extra produce for the rest of the month. We may just make my goal of setting aside more money for the fall.
June 11. Fred Meyer for butter with a coupon, 1lb for $2, limit 2. I buy my 2 and pick up the non-food items I need here. Spent $4.
June 13. Safeway has cans of coffee on sale today only for $5. I buy 4 cans of French roast and spend $20. We now have enough coffee to get through the year and into 2015.
June 13. My daughters had a day off. When I asked what they'd like to do, they wanted to go to Goodwill. While there, I find seed packets for 29 cents. I buy 4 packets of spinach seeds. Spent $1.27
June 14. Albertson's has 2 lb blocks of cheddar for $4.99 w/ coupon (limit 1). I also need pectin for strawberry-rhubarb jam ($5.19). Spent $10.18.
June 20. Fred Meyer has eggs on sale with in-store coupon 4 dozen for $5. I check out the clearance rack and find blue sprinkles, perfect for 4th of July cookies, just 89 cents. Spent $5.89, for a month-to-date total of $154.69
June 23. Down near the produce stand, Country Farms, stop in and buy 1 eggplant (I'll make easy eggplant casserole, 79 cents), 1 head garlic (50 cents, ouch! can't wait for my garden garlic to be ready to dig) and a cucumber (50 cents). Total spent $1.79.
June 28. Walgreen's has 2-litres of soda pop for 79 cents each (plus tax), limit 3. I buy our Christmas tree decorating party bottle of cola, and 2 bottles of lemon-lime (one for punch for a special occasion and the other nice to have on hand in case someone in the family catches a stomach bug). I've got these at the back of the pantry right now, out of view, out of mind. Spent $2.60
June 28. I'm at QFC loading a bus pass onto my daughter's bus card and decide to check the dairy aisle for mark downs. I find 5 gallons of whole milk (4%), good for making yogurt, for $2.09 each, and 3 gallons of skim milk for $1.89 each. Total spent $16.12.
Month-to-date spent on groceries -- $175.20, $5.20 over budget. I'll deduct this from our running surplus from previous months, leaving $54.51 in surplus. We spent $40.88 per week, on average for the month of June, a really small amount for 5 adults, and I need to remind myself of that regularly.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
