First, let's do an update on our encounter with "IT!' Hubby and I are better and out of quarantine. We are in the phase though of when we are out
among people, we need to mask up. I want to give a
heartfelt ‘thank you’ to all who have reached out to us with your prayers,
help and advice. This is a nasty ‘IT’ or
it has been for both of us and knowing that so many were praying on our behalf has helped
so much. Thank every single one of you who
reached out to us! Just this morning I learned of a class mate that passed away this week from "IT," we are thanking God that our recovery is going well thus far and we thank you for coming along beside us in prayer as we travel this road.
We needed to make a post office run today and I decided that
I would go along and stop in at the local Dollar General. (We masked up and headed out! I wear a mask bracket similar to this under my mask. It keeps me from sucking the mask into my mouth as well as helps with that suffocating feeling you can get with mask wearing.) The
Dollar General is on the way to the post office so no extra fuel was used … smart
planning in the area of conserving fuel is critical right now.
By thinking smart, we were able to purchase said items without
adding the cost of getting to and from the store to the purchases. With the cost of fuel right now, we need to
think smart and plan smart so that the already increased and increasing prices
don’t become even more expensive because of added fuel costs.
How are you thinking smart and conserving fuel?
Let’s all share and inspire each other, for such a time as this!
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Until the next post,
patsi
She looketh well to the ways of her household … Proverbs 31:27
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We are doing the same. Yesterday I had to go to the dentist which is only about 2 miles from one of our salvage grocery stores. We rarely get there because one of our interstate loops is closed and we have to go the long way around to go. Oh the crazy deals we got and spent so little extra gas money. A win win! Later I saw crazy deals posted for the other store so off we went to that one.Thete is no other place we go in that direction but gas was 12 cents cheaper so we filled up. I felt a little bit compensated for the trip by finding cheaper gas.
ReplyDeleteLana, thinking smart landed you a double win!
DeleteWe are doing the same things, Patsi. Right now, gas is costing us 25% of our main income. We are definitely feeling the squeeze. We are avoiding trips to town until we have several things that we can do in one trip. Groceries are picked up on the way home from work by Colton so we don't have to make a separate trip. Otherwise, it is just Colton going to work and us going to church. We may be trading our family vehicle for a more fuel efficient one. That hurts a bit because our vehicle is perfect for us and we've said how many times we are glad we have it. But a different one could cut our expense in half.
ReplyDeleteKelsey, we're all having to make some difficult choices, aren't we? Hubby and I were just talking about some choices we may have to make if things continue as they are.
DeleteWe just returned from a combined errand run to the next town. We took off trash, picked up incoming mail, dropped off outgoing mail in town, then went by the bank. We've done this for years but I've told John we're just going to have to work a bit harder at making our trips out count. Even if we're getting hot and tired, we need to do all we can when we're in each area. I'm going to start combining grocery runs with church since it's all in the same town instead of doing those things on separate days.
ReplyDeleteTerri, we're going to have to do the same thing, work through the tiredness, make the trips a little longer and save fuel in the process. Combining grocery store runs with church is also something we can do. Great ideas!
DeleteWe're also doing the same thing errand and shopping was. We ordered our propane for this winter a few weeks ago while our propane company was having their summer special and locked in to a lower price than what it is now. And if the price should go down between now and November we will get the lower price. We also took advantage of the pre season sale on wood pellets for the pellet stove. So we're all set for winter fuel. How we will handle gas for the riding mower is to adjust the blades and cut the grass lower than usual so that we can go longer between mowings. Gasoline here has gone from $4.70 on Monday to $5 today. I will also be using the air fryer and Instant pot and save using the stove oven only as needed for baking.
ReplyDeleteCookie, that's a good idea to cut the grass shorter in order to stretch out time between cuttings.
DeleteLike everyone else has mentioned we are also doing batch errands. I was also able to get four times the fuel points this week at our local Kroger By downloading the coupon which gave me the extra points towards gas when I purchased gift cards. I bought gas gift cards to use in the future. I bought $150 worth of gas cards which gave me $.60 off per gallon the next time I need to fill up the car. The gas gift cards will be used in the future to fill up our car as well as to give as gifts in the future.
ReplyDeleteMarley, that's smart to purchase gas cards the way you did! Another great gas stretching/saving idea, thank you for sharing!
DeleteHappy to hear you are both feeling better! I've just recently found your blog and am enjoying going through the archives. So much good and useful information you've shared!! Thank you so much for all you've written about. During these times I'm trying to challenge myself to make more cuts and blogs like this are helping tremendously.
ReplyDeleteSuch a good reminder about combining trips. We are doing the same. Although we've always made an effort to run multiple errands in one trip, we are much more cognizant of it now. I'm working harder at trying to think of all that may need to be run when we have a planned outing.
Cookie - great idea about cutting the grass a bit shorter so it can wait longer between cuttings. I'm going to give that a try!
Starting in January, I began working on combining trips -- even before gas prices went up. My goal for the year was to save money by limiting my grocery store runs to every two weeks, instead of once a week (or more often). I'm now doubling down on my grocery shopping and I'm no longer staying loyal to my primary store (bigger, better selection, big box so all in one), but shopping closer to home and going to Walgreens or CVS for vitamins and toiletries. If I need to go to the big store, I'll combine it with a trip to the hardware or if there's another reason for me to be in that neighborhood. Meijer is 5 miles each way vs. Caputo's, Jewel, and Aldi @ 1 mile each way. Another locally owned chain, Berkots, moved from the neighborhood, but they have the best meat and produce and excellent prices. They are near where we hold Bible study, so I'll make a meat run this afternoon, after our Bible group. I'm also making do with what I have more often. Why should I buy bread when I have a bread maker and the ingredients? Yesterday I started with a loaf of banana bread, and followed it with a 1# loaf of white. Fresh bread for a late lunch sandwich, the best. My biggest issue I'm going to face is that I like to can my own produce, and my favorite farm stands are near my hometown, 90 minutes away (meaning $50 min. in gas). So I'm researching farms that are closer in proximity, so I can source produce closer to home (and this breaks my heart, as I loved supporting those hometown small farmers).
ReplyDeleteI need to be more intentional about planning trips. I heard gas should hit $5 a gallon in NC before the end of June. The furthest place we drive to on a regular basis is church.
ReplyDelete