Good thing for the grocery game

So...

As it turns out, my attempts at the grocery game are going to get a work out. Yesterday Andy was informed that he only has a few weeks of work left for the year before being laid off for awhile. He's got about 3 weeks of work, maybe 4 if he stretches it. And they're not sure when they'll be calling guys back. That's scary. Very scary. It's only September. We had anticipated some time off, but we were expecting that work would run through about Christmas, and then maybe he'd have off in Jan/Feb. Not October through whenever.

I'm trying really hard not to panic. He is eligible for unemployment compensation. But when I sat down yesterday and figured out the bare bones we needed, unemployment does not cover our monthly expenses- and I didn't even figure in a grocery budget. So the hard facts are that Andy is going to need to find a job. Hopefully a temporary job, because he really does love his current job. I've figured out the minimum he is going to have to make, and so starting tonight, he is going to put out the feelers. And considering that last year at this time, he was actually let go, things could be much worse, and I am much calmer this time around, because things will work out, but in the mean time...

It's really difficult for me to not run out and do a massive grocery shop to make sure that we are well stocked. Instead yesterday I paid a couple of bills and basically prayed. He has 4 (5 at the most) paychecks left so I need to make them stretch, but I also need to keep the bills paid. The most frustrating part for us, is that for the first time in our married life, we have our money under control. We pay our bills on time, we don't have creditors calling us and being annoying, and we were actually beginning to look at buying a house as early as next summer. This is going to be a test for us, and I think for the first time in a long time, I am feeling flexible. I want Andy to put a resume on Monster this time and see what happens. I always wanted to stay here, but I think I am at the point where I am tired of having his job on the line because of weather. A rain day here and there is tolerable- but several months because of cold is just out of line. You can't live on that, and if he can find a much better job elsewhere, so be it. (And I am talking about MUCH BETTER to get me to move, but still...)

So I don't know what this means for Tummy Treasure. Everything changed yesterday. For one thing, we instantly became leftover people. Our freezer is also going to get a workout. Today, for example, Zander and I are going to the farmstand for a visit. I've been meaning to get out there and pick up some veggies to process while they are super cheap. Nothing like a swift shove to get that going. I mean, I can go buy 50 pounds of carrots for $5.00, so I'll need to go through the steps of blanching and cooling to freeze them, but that will be one less thing we need to buy in the future. So maybe I'll be posting more "leftover solutions" and tips on how to stretch a meager grocery budget. And who knows, maybe we'll be planning for nothing, but hey, we're going to be prepared this time.