We got our first full electric and natural gas bill using the new smart meter. The bill was for 29 days and was $ 148.72. We used 19.6 therms which was for skillet cooking on the stove top, a couple of days of heat, and heating our water with our tankless water heater. Everything else was electric: sump pump, computers and those accessories, chest freezer, lighting, refrigerator and freezer, small appliances, microwave, air cleaner, televisions, cable box, and small 11 in 1 oven, etc. We used 387 KWH which I think is probably the lowest we have ever had. I was thrilled when I saw the bill this morning. It sure beat last month’s which was $ 225.23.
Last year’s bill for the same period was $ 176.60 for 29 days. We used 7.2 therms and 525 KWH.
We put our A/C on for the first time 2 days ago. We are having a heatwave here. We kept it off as long as we could. When the humidity got bad, we had to turn it on. However, we have bumped it up to 74 degrees.
We have been trying to cut costs where we can this week. I grocery shopped and purchased some ingredients for when my online friend, Chris, and her Hubby come to visit. I have menus made out so I was able to buy many things on sale for them including strip steaks which were on sale for $10.99 a lb.
My oldest son let me know he will be coming to visit soon also. We are very excited to have everyone here. We absolutely love Chris and her Hubby and have some things planned to do.
We have not seen our son since the end of December. We do not drive long distances anymore so he has to find the time to come to us. His work and business keep him pretty busy. I can’t wait to get a hug. I hope he is bringing Hotch, his dog. Eloise loves to play(torture) with him.
For those of you who have been with me since I started my first blog, do you all remember when we lived in Arizona and Alexa was born? Well, she is no baby any longer. She turned 18 yesterday. I don’t know where the years have gone.
Now I will tell you what we have been doing to cut costs. Every bit of money that is not spent during any particular month is invested to create passive income. We keep our costs low so that we can save as much as we can each month.
I have been actively looking for rebates on the things that we purchase. For example, I have sent in a number of rebates for liquor and beer that we have stockpiled for company. If it doesn’t have a rebate, I don’t buy it.
I broke another whiskey glass when I was putting it in the dishwasher the other night. We were down to 2 glasses. So I found a set of 4 marked down and then applied my cash back in my Walmart account to make them even cheaper.
We ran the sprinkler system this week so that the lawn won’t burn out. It is the first time we have used it this year. We only use it when we don’t have rain. Most of the spring, it rained all of the time so we did not have to run it. Our summertime water bills should be way down.
I needed to buy some catnip toys and some treats for Eloise. I bought them from Amazon and just spent the minimum to get free shipping. Then I used up all of my Amazon reward points to keep the cost down.
I switched our Mint cellphone accounts to their senior plans and we now get unlimited everything for the same price we were paying.
We are eating our third night of pasta, meat, and sauce. I made Hubby spaghetti sauce on penne with meatballs the first night. I made me alfredo sauce with penne and chicken which I ate for 2 nights. Hubby had a hot meatball sandwich last night. Tonight, he again will have a sandwich and I will eat the little bit of alfredo that is left with a salad. We still have alot of penne left so I will make a cold pasta salad for dinner tomorrow to use it up. Waste not, want not!
I hung the laundry to dry again this week.
I have switched to drinking a lot of water with a bit of lemon juice when I am thirsty.
That is it for now. What have you been doing to cut your costs?