Another month has gone by. I am still watching my spending very carefully. Here is how it went in March:
I spent $850 on housing -- that's mortgage and assessment fees. Utilities I track separately, and they came in at $257 because I paid for gas twice (timing thing). It was time to pay my semi-annual property taxes -- $523.
I spent $132 on gifts and charities.
Only $59 on groceries. I surprised myself. I have to wonder if I forgot to count something. But I can't figure out what. I do know that I have been eating from the pantry and the freezer religiously.
I spent $53 on medical and health-related things. My phone was $50, as it always is. Entertainment was $44, and that was mostly for streaming. I got a haircut that cost $41. I spent $37 on gas. I also spent $37 on eating out, the bulk of that one meal with family. I spent $33 on various household items and supplies, $24 on aquarium supplies, $20 on laundry, and $6 on clothing (a pair of leggings from Goodwill). I also spent $17 on items that I thought I might be able to resell on eBay. I have sold two items so far, and haven't quite recouped my investment. Yet.
Altogether it was a pretty low-spend month, especially considering the property tax.
I don't even want to look at my retirement fund. Another day.
April 2nd, 2026 at 09:07 am 1775120862
April 2nd, 2026 at 07:11 pm 1775157110
Good job on keeping your expenses low!
April 3rd, 2026 at 03:00 am 1775185249
I don't eat much meat, because I have Stage 3 kidney disease, so I eat a lot of salads, soups, veggie bowls, smoothies, and the like. I rarely follow a recipe; I tend to throw things together.
One thing that is very helpful to me is that my city has a number of little free pantries, which operate much like little free libraries. You leave food you know you won't eat, you take something you will. It's for everybody, it's not necessarily a charity thing. It's a community thing.
I am very careful to never throw away food -- well, almost never. Sometimes it can't be helped. But I'm always repurposing leftovers, and I am quick to freeze food that I think I might not get to.
I buy mostly ingredients, and I cook from scratch. Not entirely. For instance, I have given up on making granola, and I buy it from Aldi. Other than things like that I hardly ever buy processed food.
Aldi is where I buy most of my groceries, but I visit other stores, too. I just always look carefully at the clearance shelves.
It's an enjoyable challenge for me to make the best meals out of what I have on hand. Lately, I've been using ChatGPT to suggest meals from ingredients I need to use up. It always gives me fresh ideas.
All that said, $59 is very unusual. My grocery spending usually hovers around $100, and that's because I really work at it. And honestly, I eat well!
April 6th, 2026 at 02:34 am 1775442885
April 6th, 2026 at 10:03 pm 1775512996