photo credit: ralphbijker

Today we went on our biweekly shopping trip to Trader Joes.

I am pissed!

Our grocery bills have been inching up for a little while now but dammit if this didn’t take the cake!  Now, granted we have been out of town so we didn’t go food shopping for a week or so before the trip but, now a week after returning we had nothing in the pantry, well we did but not the basics.  So we needed to buy all the basics and goodies that keeps our pantry stocked to get us through the next 2 weeks.

Back in January our grocery bill was $99 at Trader Joes.  Today that same bill is $247.07.

Color me just a little confused and, well just pissed off!  This doesn’t even include the fruits and vegetables as we have those delivered by Washington Green Grocer at $42.75 for a large organic box.

This is where I start to balance health vs. my pocket book as I’m sure so many of you do already.  On one hand I could just say screw it an go back to Shoppers and deal with their less than fresh, often spoiled non-organic foods but I just don’t feel that I should have to sacrifice health for my pocket book.  Our grocery budget is $350 for the month.  That leaves just over $100 left for anything grocery related.  And Im not saying that we can’t go over the budget but after July’s $650 grocery bill, we had to cut back on the random trips.

So what am I going to do?

Well, for one I think that we have to develop an actual list of items that are bonafide staples in our house.  We sort of know what we want but we are the type to try something new every time we go to Whole Foods or Trader Joes which switches things up a bit.  We aren’t brand loyalists but we really only shop at Whole Foods and Trader Joes at this point because we are being more health conscious and with the recent increases in grocery prices, we might as well shop there anyway.

Here’s the plan:

1.  Make a list of staples and adhere to that list.

2.  Make sure that list of staples when totaled keeps us within our budget

3.  Get Evert bags because we spend WAY too much money on fruits and veggies only to have them spoil quickly before the weekend gets here.  We end up having to go to the supermarket often during the week because the spoil too quickly.

4.  Try to use EVERYTHING in the pantry before running to the supermarket.  By everything I mean anything that can be used to make up a meal.  I think we are so used to certain foods that if those aren’t stocked then we feel that we have nothing to eat.

Here’s the grocery receipt:

$#@%@%

*sigh*

What say you: How are you managing the fast rising costs of groceries?  Can you share any tips with me?

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Add this to the list of decisions that women are now criticized for with regards to their life decisions. If it isn’t the Mommy Wars between the stay at home and working moms, then before that it was the women who chose to get an education and work for a living instead of choosing to settle down and get married with children. Today we have Stay At Home Wives. Ahhh, let the games begin.

I’ve read much about this “phenomenon” this week and still scratching my head, asking, “what’s the big deal?” Granted, I have not held a REAL full time position since 2005, mainly due to graduate school but in some ways I plan to be a stay at home wife. I see no problems with that decision.

Before leaving my last job, I told the pregnant intern that I would be a stay at home mom/wife once we started our family and/or moved back to NYC. She gasped and then asked me what would be the point of finishing school? I exclaimed, because I can! Bless her heart.

My husband and I live on one income which makes our financial situation more secure than a two income household where if one person loses a job, the other must shoulder the burden until the other spouse obtains new employment.

Why knock something that works for someone else?  This isn’t 5 steps back for the feminist women movement as some have said outright, this is a choice, and we should be happy that more women have the choice to work, not work, work inside the home, work outside the home or hell, sit at home eating Bon Bons all day while curled up on the couch.

Stay At Home Wives can get involved in volunteer projects, pursue hobbies, go on vacation, pursue interests they may not have been able to in the past all while running their homes like well oiled machines.

The vitriolic comments I’ve seen all over the blogosphere insulting these women is frankly unbelievable, especially from other women and the men who have the nerve to say they wouldn’t “let” their wives stay at home:

Meggan writes

L - A - Z - Y
Of course they’re “strangely happy”…they don’t do anything! Why not at least go out and volunteer? If you have the “luxury” to stay at home while your husband works, at least give something back to the community through charity work!

NY1974 writes:

I’m not judging anyone’s right to stay home if they can well afford it, but I find it hard to believe that anyone with half a brain could find fulfillment in housekeeping and#38; errands. Just coming off an extended …more

I’m not judging anyone’s right to stay home if they can well afford it, but I find it hard to believe that anyone with half a brain could find fulfillment in housekeeping and#38; errands. Just coming off an extended, and rainy, long weekend, I can’t imagine staying home each and#38; every day with nothing to strive for except a clean house, paid bills and#38; the ’status’ that goes along with having a well-paid husband who doesn’t mind if you leach off of him. After 2 days of an empty house, I found myself reading aloud to my dog and watching the clock for Monday to come. I would be bored senseless if that were my everyday routine. But, as my granfather used to say, numbskulls are easily amused.

Gregg writes

These couples are really deluding themselves if they think people can’t see through this bullcrap. It doesn’t take 8 hours to clean a house or cook dinner or to do the shopping. I mean really, how dirty does a house g …more

These couples are really deluding themselves if they think people can’t see through this bullcrap. It doesn’t take 8 hours to clean a house or cook dinner or to do the shopping. I mean really, how dirty does a house get with no kids and one spouse gone most of the day? It’s one thing to stay home and take care of kids, but these women are just lazy.

Paul writes:

My stepmom is a "stay at home wife" and I can honestly attest to the fact that women who do this are simply taking advantage of men. She also considers herself to be a "feminist." He pays someone to clean the house, …more

My stepmom is a "stay at home wife" and I can honestly attest to the fact that women who do this are simply taking advantage of men. She also considers herself to be a "feminist." He pays someone to clean the house, so she just sits around all day online and watching TV. Men beware: There are a lot of selfish women out there with a sense of self-entitlement that won’t think twice about jumping on the chance to be a stay at home bum. You’ll feel taken advantage of and come to resent her for what she is: a parasite. A healthy dose of reality is needed immediately before the parasite can fully latch on and begin eating the man from the inside, eventually leaving him an empty husk of a man.

But let’s play Devil’s Advocate for a moment and ask some hard questions:

Do these women have a pre-nuptial agreement in place?  Post-nuptial agreement?  I am ALL for staying at home but let’s get real for a moment.  Should the husband decide he no longer wants to be married, then what’s the back up plan?  A man is NOT a financial plan and Prince Charming isn’t Coming!. Are they keeping their resumes updated by keeping one foot in their chosen fields?

In the event of the wage earning spouse’s demise, is she provided for in the will?  Are the assets in BOTH both names, IE is her name also on the deed to the home and not just the mortgage?  Both names on all bank accounts?  Check on that.  Does she have access to and full disclosure around all household and personal finances?  Does she know if she has also been factored into 401k contributions, IE, is the husband making enough contributions for them to both retire comfortably or will they be eating cat food in retirement?

These are questions that would make being a true stay at home wife a tolerable situation for me.  If she simply looked at her husband as a means to earn a living or create and live a certain lifestyle without consideration for the above-mentioned then I would question her financial security as women need to earn more money than men.

Question: Do you think these women are freeloaders or doing simply what works for them?  What about the feminist movement?  Have we taken a step back women women choosing ot stay at home sans children or any real responsibilities?

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The Washington Post published the article Too Educated For Entry Level, and I was actually excited to see that they’d taken on this issue, especially here in the DC Metro area. With more women going to college and then going on to obtain master’s degrees, this is a relevant article for so many of us. Here in DC Metro, most of the women here in my circle are advanced degree holders, quite a few with multiple advanced degrees. Some are satisfied with their career paths, some are not. I am in the midst of my own career development in making the choices to set the path for the next 5 years so this article hit home for me.

Check out some of the more interesting quotes from the article:

“I can say there is some real truth to having a master’s or above hurting you in the job search — but only if you have less than three to five years’ experience,” said Kate Warren, a recruiter in the international development industry.

Warren said that many of her clients frown upon hiring candidates with graduate degrees for junior-level positions. “Those with the graduate degrees always expected higher compensation and had a higher sense of entitlement to the kind of projects and level of work they should be doing. Most of the junior-level positions tend to be very administrative — thus the day-to-day tasks do not require a master’s degree to perform well, but rather an organized, motivated individual.”

In some cases, it comes down to money. “Why hire a grad student for 40K-plus when you can hire a recent undergrad for 30K?” Warren said.

The real question that should be asked: why are masters level graduates competing with early career BAs for the same positions. Especially positions that are administrative in nature and do not require an advanced degree. I wish that graduate programs did a better job of giving students a realistic idea about what to expect with regards to ob prospects upon graduation.

“And it goes beyond just the salary. The recent undergrads actually tend to perform better, and stay in their job longer, than the master’s holders will. Obviously there are exceptions, but generally the B.A.-level employee will be much more eager to tackle the admin-level tasks . . . often required in this level of position. Generally speaking, master’s students come in with a somewhat inflated sense of abilities or just end up generally frustrated with the ‘mundane’ tasks they are asked to do.

There’s a common refrain among these workers, Warren said: “I went to graduate school, got myself into XX amount of dollars of debt to do this?”
“

This is a valid feeling by masters level graduates. They went to school in order to be engaged in a career that challenges their skill sets and abilities, not to be entrenched in a day job with menial and mundane tasks which have no relation to their advanced studies. Color me entitled.

So what do you do if you are willing to do the grunt work? How do you get employers to give your overeducated self a chance?

“I don’t advocate for leaving off their degree,” Warren said, “but I think it is important that they get across in a cover letter, and if it gets to this point, an interview that they are more than eager to roll up their sleeves. When hiring, I always appreciated when candidates were upfront that while they realized the day-to-day wouldn’t be the most glamorous of tasks, they were motivated by the fact that these are necessary steps in reaching the overall goals and missions of the organization.”

Here, Warren also sees a case for working a few years before pursuing a graduate degree. “If you go straight from undergrad to grad, you will be competing for jobs with recent undergrads — jobs [in] which your master’s will give you no edge and could actually be to your detriment.”

However, she said, people who take entry-level jobs out of college, work their way up and then head back to school will find that their graduate degree will be more valued.

I agree with these statements. I didn’t understand this at first, but it makes total sense now to work for a few years in order to decide what you want to do and get some experience under your belt. Good advice!

What do you think? Does having a Masters degree exclude you from certain entry level positions? From where I sit, the reality is that it does and I believe that graduate programs should do more in the way of helping students gain practical experience throughout their program so that when they graduate, they are a notch above the rest in terms of education and experience.

[image credit: CSU]

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photo credit: CarbonNYC

May is around the corner which for some means graduation from high school, college or graduate school. I remember the feeling well. And, while it meant being released from the bosom of self discovery into the arms of adult responsibilities, I looked forward to it with enthusiasm.

I moved to DC in 2003 and I remember talking to my Uncle about all the things I’d need to take into consideration on my meager salary. He wanted to make sure that I was well informed about the realities of adulthood which meant being independent and paying for everything on my own. Now its my turn, for those of you that are graduating high school, college or even graduate school, here are 8 frugal and cost cutting tips to take into consideration when spreading your wings.

Apartment

Consider the cost of living wherever you are headed. After living in NYC for most of my life and then moving to DC, for some reason I thought apartments were dirt cheap since I was moving to the “south”. Ha! I told my uncle that I’d found an apartment for $580 per month in NE DC (not knowing a lick of information about the area mind you…) he just agreed to take me over to the area to judge for myself. While he got a hearty laugh, as I realized we were now in the not so great part of DC, I almost broke down when I realized that where I actually wanted to live, Alexandria/Arlington, VA was more like $1100 per month.

I knew that was out of my budget and regretted taking the position because I wasnt able to afford to live in one of the better parts of town. I didn’t want a roommate and settling for NE DC (no offense anyone) wasn’t in the cards. Looking back I should have considered a roommate in a better part of town. What did I do? I chose an apartment in an OK part of town for $750 per month and lived solo. I’d never live there again but it worked for the time being and I was able to save money.

Lessons Learned:

• Visit the new city before signing a lease or settling on a particular part of town.
• Consider having a roommate or two, as this greatly subsidizes the cost of living in a better part of town while meeting new people
• If you aren’t splitting utilities, find an apartment that includes utilities in the rent. With rising utility costs you’ll avoid paying the high heating/energy bills depending on the season.

Transportation

DC is very different from NY in that people who move here aim to live near their place of employment, while in NYC, its pretty normal to have a 90 minute commute to work getting from Queens to Manhattan. Imagine my excitement when I figured out that my commute would be 20 minutes max! Well that’s because my apartment was walking distance to the metro and I was also 5 minutes from the beltway. If I drove in then my commute increased to an hour because of the traffic getting into DC.

Lessons Learned

• Choose an apartment or house within walking distance of public transportation the metro
• Forgo purchasing a car if you live near a metro as this will save you money on a possible car note, parking, fees, gas, insurance and maintenance
• Before signing the lease, take public transporation around your neighborhood and to work as you would on a typical day. As you get settled in, you’ll be familiar with the area and hopefully not skip a beat as you make your way around your new neighborhood.

Set Up Automatic Bill Pay for all Bills

This includes student loans and credit cards. Don’t risk getting hit with a late fee because you’ll get so caught up in your move that financial obligations fall through the cracks. As I got settled into my new apartment a few bills didn’t get paid because I totally forgot. Why? the credit card company hadn’t sent the statement to my new address and it slipped my mind to call and pay the bill. Also keep in mind that when you pay over the phone, most credit card companies charge you a convenience fee and using checks opens yourself up to identity theft and possibly not mailing the payment to the correct address. If you must use snail mail, use the envelope that accompanies your statement.

Lessons Learned

• Set up automatic bill pay to ensure on time payment of all monthly financial obligations
• If you must use snail mail, use the enclosed envelope that accompanies your statement

Compare Cost of Living with New Salary

This was one of my biggest mistakes when moving to DC,not understanding what my salary would afford. I saw $23, 000 and thought, oh Im rich! I was sadly mistaken and in for the shock of my life when I realized I didnt have enough money to go shopping for new clothes or eat out for lunch with my colleagues. Had I known how to negotiate a better salary I might have been in a better position once I moved here. While I know some believe in paying your dues, I believe strongly in paying the bills. And, after spending 4 years and amassing thousands in student loans, college graduates should command salaries that will keep them just above the working poor, ie living paycheck to paycheck.

Command what you are worth and don’t settle for a salary that will limit you in terms of quality of life and being able to pay your bills, save and live comfortably.

Lessons Learned

• Master the art of negotiating your salary if the offer falls below your target goal
• Compare the cost of living with your salary offer and determine if you will be able to save and cover your monthly expenses without having to eat Ramen Noodles every night
• Use the Paycheckcity calculators to determine how much money you will actually take home every pay period

Sign up for a Local Food or Grocery Charity

The cost of groceries here in DC is higher than NYC. *shrug* Don’t ask me why as I thought the opposite would be true, I was quite surprised after leaving my local Giant supermarket one afternoon. Neighbors told me about Sharedc.org which allowed me to get groceries on the cheap at $18 a bag. This included fruits, veggies, meats and some snacks. It was enough to subsidize my grocery spending significantly. I still toy with the idea of doing the same thing now given the rise in food expenses.

Lessons Learned

• Compare prices of your food staples and create a price book to help you keep track of your favorite items
• Sign up with local food charities like ShareDC.org or Angel Food Ministries
• Cut coupons from the Sunday newspaper to save even more money
• Utilize sites like The Grocery Game to compare local sales in your area
• Buy in bulk in addition to utilizing food charities
• Plan your meals for the week and use leftovers for lunch

Decorating Your new Diggs

While I was on a Ms Independent kick, my mom did purchase my first bedroom set and my uncle purchased all of my kitchenware, bedroom and bathroom linens. I went for a while without real living room furniture because I refused to go into debt for furniture I wouldn’t take with me to the next apartment. I advise you to o the same. I scoured Craigslist for a futon frame and bought a cheap futon mattress from a retail store, bought a 20 inch TV for $30 and a coffee table set for $55. My living room was now complete! All courtesy of Craigslist.org. My futon doubled as a bed whenever friends stayed over and I had a working TV along with a semi new coffee table set. Had I gone out and purchased a new living room set it would have set me back over $1000.

Lessons Learned

• Check into semi used furniture to cut on the cost of furnishing your new space

More Lessons Learned….

• Spend Less than you Earn while Devising a Plan to Earn More
  • Create a budget and stick to it. Know how much you need for monthly bills and how much you have remaining for discretionary spending. While keeping this in mind, remain focused and purposed in devising your next step. Set career goals that will enable you to be promoted by learning new skills through graduate school or taking on extra responsibilities.
• Buy New Work Clothes on the Cheap and Recycle What You Already Have
  • Stores like Charlotte Rousse, Forever 21 and H&M are a godsend in helping a fab fashionista remain updated on the cheap

While this is a new and exciting time in your life, make a serious attempt to reign in your spending habits as this will be useful as you learn to make better decisions when it comes to money. What are some tips you have for the new graduate in a new town? How did you handle your finances in your first year after college?

photo credit: CarbonNYC

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I find that one of the greatest ways to save money is cooking at home. I have friends, male and female, who dine out for nearly every meal: breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They certainly have a good time eating out, and they do eat well! However, this is an expensive habit. What I think they fail to realize is that you really can prepare great tasting, restaurant-esque meals at home quickly and with minimal cost. I regularly make inexpensive meals that take less than half an hour of preparation time, with enough leftovers to eat for the next few days. When these same friends visit my home for a dinner party, they are enthralled with the menu. If only they knew how little I had spent! Further, when I prepare meals at home, I can create a variation of that meal and carry it for lunch the next day (i.e., baked chicken = chicken salad sandwich, chicken quesadilla, or a grilled chicken caesar salad).

There are many reasons people don’t cook at home, with fear/ignorance of the kitchen and limited cooking skills among those reasons. However, I believe that the biggest obstacle that prevents people from affordable home cooking is that they don’t have a kitchen that is stocked with basic staples. So they end up having to buy every single ingredient at once when they finally decide to try cooking something at home. The idea of this becomes so daunting for people that they ultimately throw in the towel and decide to order take-out. This is what I deem a “lose-lose” scenario. Not only does frequenting restaurants or ordering take-out daily add up, in terms of cost, but take-out food is usually higher in calories and loaded with a whole bunch of other “junk” that we really should be avoiding.

To prevent this “lose-lose” scenario, I suggest that you prepare in advance and begin to stock your pantry shelves today with the basic staples. By “staples” I mean ingredients that a lot of recipes call for, that will keep for a long time. We’re talking about making a very small investment that will ultimately allow you to create delicious meals with minimal fuss. The best part is that all you need spend is $150 and you may begin this process of stocking your kitchen with the basics! So, ladies, by sacrificing that one visit to the day spa for your monthly microdermabrasian you can cook at home for weeks on end.

Will this really save me money? It certainly will! It’s really quite simple. You see, when you already have certain basic staples stocked in the pantry, you are more likely to opt for home cooking rather than eating out. The reason: the ingredients are already on-hand and, thus, preparing your choice meal requires little to no effort (e.g., trips to the grocery store). With each trip to the grocery store you can add more to your repertoire of kitchen staples. I think you’ll discover that, not only are you saving money, but home-prepared food is much more delish than restaurant-food!

Here is my shopping list of staple ingredients for a well-stocked kitchen.

Baking
All-purpose flour
Baking powder
Brown sugar
Condensed Milk
Corn meal
Corn starch
Evaporated Milk
Vanilla
White Sugar
Yeast

Herbs & Spices
Black pepper
Chicken bouillon cubes
Cilantro
Cinnamon
Crushed garlic
Garlic powder
Green seasoning (found in the international aisle of grocery store)
Nutmeg
Oregano
Onion powder
Sea salt
Seasoned Chicken Breader by House Autry

Oils, Stocks, Condiments
Beef stock
Chicken broth
Lemon juice
Olive oil
Red wine
Soy sauce

Tomato sauce
Vegetable oil
Vinegar
White wine
Worcestershire sauce

Miscellaneous
Cream of mushroom/celery/chicken soup (canned)
Pasta
Rice/Couscous

Ladies, what are your kitchen staples? What are those “must have” ingredients that you keep stocked in the pantry at all times?

Ladies, what are your kitchen staples? What are those “must have” ingredients that you keep stocked in the pantry at all times?

Share your own “frugal” kitchen tips with us!

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