I donāt want to make a budget. (That was my goal, to make one. And I havenāt managed to make myself do it.) So I guess Iām justā¦ confessing.
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Have you done the tracking to see what youāre spending these days?
If not, first step would just be gathering credit card and bank statements. And then you would have done that step!!
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Veggie box came in. Now $203.10/$1012.50 on groceries.
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Thanksgiving dinner shopping and weekly grocery shop.
Bulk Barn
$10.08 dry roasted unsalted cashews (.435 kg)
$3.10 natural peanut butter (.235 kg). Hubby has to watch his sodium intake.
$8.87 large prunes (.555 kg)
$7.16 dried currants (.43 kg)
$13.66 dried cranberries (.9 kg)
$8.00 blanched sliced almonds
Sub-total = $50.87 + $1.91 tax on the dried cranberries?! = $52.78.
I paid by cash, so penny rounding meant I paid $52.80.
Superstore
$1.75 no name evaporated milk
$6.99 sushi rice
$8.00 basmati rice
$8.53 whipping cream (1 litre)
$3.99 Russet potatoes (10 pound)
$20.00 low sodium ham (2 halves)
Sub-total = $49.26. Penny rounding worked in my favour. I paid $49.25.
Oct. 8 total = $102.05
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9 days in with a grocery budget of $200 for the month so I actually eat the food I already have.
10/1 $54. Walmart
10/5 $40 Ollieās
10/7 HEB $24.
10/10 $101 Walmart.
Total: $218/$200. Wellā¦ā¦
I did do a food declutter and brought a large heavy bag of food I donāt use to a friend who has a much tighter budget than I do. (She actually suggested it when I was talking about hating to throw it away). I also made 2 grain based dishes and used up some barley and quinoa. Which was more the point than the money.
So maybe the point just needs to be just buy what you eat everyday, not the odd interesting stuff. Right now in my life I am so busy I have no time or energy in making New stuff.
The $100 delivery tomorrow is all basic stuff I eat daily,
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No more bean tacos?
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Oh thatās cool! Which app is that?
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Only 2 days a week now, because of my stupid early schedule. Waffles are the 3:45am breakfast, overnight oats are 3:15am breakfast. Tacos are for a more reasonable 5am
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Iām trying out two of them. GrocSnap and grocerytracker
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You can do a recast! Since this is the first check-in, restart at $0? Keeps you practicing good habits.
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Week 2 check-in:
The spending on the garage project continues. Itās probably a hyperfocusā¦ except I really do want to finish it. Not abandon it. And Iām doing as much as I can with existing materials, and obviously doing the work myself and so on. But yeah. Not the best check-in this week.
Still not done, or even looked at, the spreadsheet either.
My mind wants nothing but the garage project.
Truly unruly, but shiny and capable mind. sigh
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$4.65 at the small market for a huge head of lettuce. Before I bought it I made sure it was for the head, not by the pound! 
New total 45.34+4.65 = $49.99
I need milk and probably ice cream that I know of this week. I was expecting to get tomatoes and lettuce from the farm Weds. and didnāt. I have about 4 tomatoes left and plenty in the freezer. But weād used all the lettuce.
We had chicken/mushroom tacos for lunch: tortillas, onion, packet of chicken, the largest mushroom, chopped, salsa, and the usual: lettuce, tomato, cheese. Half the taco shells fell apart in the oven so I had a tostada instead of tacos, but it was good just the same! I canāt think how much $ it saves us every year that I make my own taco shells. So simple and they cost so much!
I will need to buy tortillas soon too, when they fall apart like they did, the package is getting oldā¦
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Week 2 of Budgetober 2026 Check-ins 
Just comment with where you are at and you will get week 2ās badge!!
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DO the spreadsheet, garage project as a reward
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Youāre doing fine. Give yourself credit for the strides youāre making rather than only seeing what isnāt what youād like it to be, 'eh?
Itās too easy to only see what isnāt done yet! ((hugs))
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Got a friend coming round to help me with the garage door tomorrow, which due to his schedule was arranged about a month ago, but after that, I will try.
(At which statement my mind made a face like it had just sucked on a lemon, and scrabbled to hide in the corner).
Deep breath in. I will try.
Thanks Lillian 
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Thank you! Thatās kind too. Appreciate youā¦
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Week 2 - tracking groceries
Oct. 5/26
$104.99 Superstore (Halloween candy & food for next two weeks)
$16.60 Sobeys (cucs for pickles and more food for next 2 weeks)
Oct. 8/26
$52.80 Bulk Barn (stock up)
$49.25 Superstore (Thanksgiving meal ingredients)
Oct. 10/26
$3.11 Local grocer (radishes and zucchini)
Week 2 total = $226.75 plus
Week 1 total = $125.81
Total so far = $352.56/$755.00
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I may have to recast at some point unless some of the categories come in under what I expect. The credit card on which I pay the car insurance expired and apparently I was not successful in updating it. That means I missed a payment, and when I went in to make the payment manually, it made me pay next month as well.
| Planned | 10/6 | 10/10 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home maintenance and repairs | 0 | 0 | |
| Household items and furniture | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| Mortgage | 2204 | 2204 | 2204 |
| Groceries | 1500 | 129 | 282 |
| Restaurants | 300 | 4 | 10 |
| LBās extracurriculars | 500 | 713 | 713 |
| Baby stuff | 300 | 0 | 0 |
| Boy stuff | 200 | 0 | 104 |
| Union dues/professional costs | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| Subscriptions | 100 | 0 | 11 |
| Misc. bills | 0 | 0 | |
| Utilities | 350 | 105 | 209 |
| Health | 1500 | 1453 | 1453 |
| Cash | 0 | 0 | |
| Gifts and holiday | 300 | 16 | 16 |
| Shopping | 650 | 561 | 561 |
| Cat | 0 | 0 | |
| Donations | 25 | 5 | 5 |
| Travel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Entertainment | 100 | 0 | 86 |
| Car payment | 452 | 0 | 0 |
| Auto maintenance | 2 | 2 | |
| Taxes and insurance | 180 | 0 | 375 |
| Gas | 90 | 27 | 27 |
| Parking, etc. | 5 | 10 | 10 |
| His clothes | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| His misc. spending | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| My clothes | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| My misc. spending | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| 9284 | 5229 | 6068 |
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Itās a perfectly reasonable suggestion. Iām just not reasonable about tracking. I HATE tracking anything. Iām the opposite of Lily. (Not anti-Lily, I like Lily very much and would prefer to be more like her.) But I have a real problem with tracking. That rebel part of me showing through again.
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