I’m a wife to one and mom to three, and I really, *really* like saving money.
Homegrown Hillary is the only place I dish about everything frugal living. But you might have also seen me giving money tips other places around the web, like US News & World Report, Yahoo Finance, Refinery29, Parents Magazine, and Better Homes & Gardens.
Connect with me! My website: homegrownhillary.com Facebook: facebook.com/TheHomegrownHillary Email: hillary@homegrownhillary.com Snail-Mail: P.O. Box 966, Sanford, ME, 04073
I am poor as hell, but sad thing is, I have allergies. I have to shop at whole foods or natural grocers and gluten and dairy free so it's impossible for me to get out of this poor hole. I hate it so much. If I eat gluten or dairy or anything such as artificial dyes, I will get extremely sick. I don't like it at all.
I love upside. The most I've made in one month using it is $32.19 and it was all by buying things I was already getting since it is a percentage of the whole receipt instead of having to buy name brand items. They are partnered with gas stations and grocery stores that I already shop at. They also don't have a cash out threshold if I remember correctly. It isn't listing one in my app at least.
If people are worried about how well 2 tbsp of detergent will clean their clothes, I cloth diaper my baby so its the dirtiest laundry I've ever had. I only use 2 tbsp in my diaper laundry and it comes out clean with no smells. I do run it through twice because that is recommended but I still spend way less than I would if I was using disposables. I got my cloth diapers for right over $200 and I have enough that I could go about 5 days before I would run out of clean diapers.
Wish I could spend less! Food costs here in Canada are insane. I’m a celiac and buying anything Gluten free is expensive! For example a small loaf of bread is $7.99. But it is such a nice thing to be able to have a sandwich again! I found a huge pasta deal…a box of GF pasta for $2.49 just a huge bunch of GF pasta boxes in a bin and bought 2 of each type to stock up and then texted my two GF friends to tell them. Little savings even when on this type of diet are important. I see some good non GF sales but so few foods are truly GF that I can’t take advantage of those sales. I spend a lot of time meal planning to stay healthy. Every once in a while I buy GF products to make life easier. I found GF products in a local Winners clothing store (!) and it was reasonably priced so I grabbed as much as I could afford. Can’t wait to try some of it! Found a pancake mix and a brownie mix! So exciting to try these mixes…anything to try a little “normalcy”.
Our Dinner Meals - 3x a week, Chicken Noodle Soup for dinner with a Costco $5 chicken. Carrots, Onions & Celery are organic- $2.50 each for both of us - 1x a week, ground up turkey meatloaf. 1 cup Organic Ketchup, 1 cup Stubbs BBQ Sauce. Buy only when on sale- $3 each - 1x a week- Tuna Sandwiches w/tomato atop- $2.50 each. $2.50 for vegetables ground up in a blender added to ice cream= $5 each. - 1x a week- Split Pea Soup and biscuits- $2.50 each/$5 Lunch- 3x a week- Egg Salad Sandwich- $2.50 2x a week- Hot dog Breakfast- Usually nothing but we can have oatmeal about 3x a week. Add Maple Syrup & butter= $.75 cents each We spend about $300 on groceries here in California bu only because we buy what's on sale in bulk. Eat that for a few weeks then go onto to something else.
I use my points on the apps to buy items I need for my home bakery business. I love it. I do agree about Ibotta. It really needs to be updated like other apps.
I hope to find an app that will take any cash back on any paper or online receipt on literally anything just for spending but sometimes these apps are not that useful to me because they give the most points to certain items or products that I don't even need, want, or use.
In our area we have a grocery store that has a 3 day meat sale every 3 months and we save a ton. They even cut your steaks to your specific thickness. We are empty nesters and now we don't need a feeder calf so this works for us.
Sorry but some people may fail tremendously if there enter a store/shop daily. It's very hard to enter a store and not purchase something. I try and avoid entering shops myself.
Just discovered your channel, I'm late to the party on this video, but I too have taken a break from YT. I struggle with balancing motherhood with 3 year old, nevermind 3 littles, YT can be so overwhelming at times. Enjoy the break x
I found you a few weeks ago when I was sick with covid, I think I’ve watched them all 2-3 times! This weekend I went through our streaming services and cellphone bill and cut what we don’t need. I was able to save us about $100/month! Thank you so much for inspiring me to do better! ❤❤❤
I only shop twice a month ,i will stop in if i have to go out to an appointment. But with fuel ⛽️ prices i don't see going to the shops more an advantage . I spend $280.00 a month for everything from the grocery store, for 2 adults and a fat cat. We are Australia's so no coupons here.
I am confuse about the App "Upside", in your video, you mentioned that no credit card is needed but when I tried to use the App, I was asked to input my full credit information before I can get the discount / reward for gas. So, I confuse?????????
I transcribed my recipes onto my computer. I also made a list of recipes sorting them by baking temperature. This allows me to easily plan meals where I only have to bake once for multiple dishes. Then, in each group, I sub by main dish, side dish, and dessert. For example, at 450 degrees, I can make Pork Chops Stuffed with Prosciutto Mozzarella & Sage, Baked Pasta with Roasted Vegetables,, Onion & Leek Focaccia... or Honey Roasted Chicken, Ina's Mustard Roasted Potatoes, Oven Roasted Corn, and Black Pepper Buttermilk Biscuits.
If you have a family, invest in a 15 inch cast iron pan and lid to fit. Reason: It gives you great results on many of the restaurant foods that cost a lot more when you're eating out. For example, it makes the perfect pan pizza. excellent fried chicken whether it's baked or fried. It allows you to sear on the stove-top and finish in the oven for items like steaks and chops. More room for items like eggs, bacon, pancakes. You can easily fry 4 hamburgers and still have room to toast the buns. With proper seasoning, it will create a nonstock surface, and the pan will last a lifetime without having to worry about any flecks of non-stick coating falling into your food.
I found a recipe last year on how to make a small batch of cupcakes from a traditional cake mix. Any flavor. Usually, a box of cake mix makes 24 cupcakes, which is much more that what we would use at one time, and freezer space is always at a premium. My recipe makes only 6 cupcakes and only uses 1 cup of cake mix, an egg, some oil and water. This way we can have cupcakes on multiple occasions without any going to waste, all for the price of 1 cake mix. My small cupcake tin only makes 6 cupcakes, and it fits into my toaster oven. That means I don't have to heat the big oven, and there's less heat in the kitchen during the summer. If you're using canned frosting, whip it and it will increase the volume 100%, making it easier to spread and going twice as far.
I find that there's a lot of convenience foods that are way overpriced that contain the ingredients you probably already have at home, only without all the preservatives.. I now make my own spreadable cheeses like Philadelphia, Rondelle, or the spreadable cheeses you find in those Christmas catalogs that are so expensive. You can add ham, bacon, horseradish, herbs, nuts, smoked paprika, the possibilities are endless. The Butter/Oil spreads are about the same price as just butter. Margarine is full of water. I don't want that on my toast, veggies or popcorn. So I make my own Butter Oil spread from 1 cup butter and 1/3 cup oil and blend it together. If I want it to taste extra buttery, I use sunflower oil. Those expensive bottles of Ken's Dressings are so easy to make at home. I love the raspberry pecan and can season it to your taste, using as much raspberry as as like. Vidalia Onion, Asian Sesame Ginger, Thousand Island, Creamy Caesar, Lite Caesar, Greek, all available as copycat recipes on the internet for free and a fraction of the price to make. If you want to make them "Lite," just reduce the oil and add some water to taste. I started making my own low fat potato chips in the microwave. They're delicious, so crispy without being hard, and you can find recipes on how to season them for various flavors on the web as well.
