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Five Frugal Things

My pal Katy* from The Non Consumer Advocate frequently writes Five Frugal Things posts, where she lists some frugal stuff she’s done lately.

*Did I tell you I met Katy this spring when she and her family took a trek up the East Coast?? It happened. See?

The Frugal Girl and The Non Consumer Advocate

So, anyway, I’m borrowing the idea from her.

(Thanks, Katy!)

1. I used my My Publisher Groupons.

I told you I had one that was expiring at the end of May, and I threw together a book full of our Disney pictures.   I was even done a day early.   Yay me!

Disney photo book cover

(I downloaded a Disney font for the cover, and I am sort of pleased with myself.)

I went to get my Groupon code and much to my dismay, I saw that I’d purchased TWO Groupons.

Oops.

So then I had to make a whole ‘nother book the next day.

Oof.

The good news is that I am very current with our family photos now.

(What I think of My Publisher photo books.)

2. I’m packing lunches.

For a little while there, I was sending Mr. FG out to lunch a little too frequently, which is not awesome for his health or for our budget.

But I’ve been better lately about having backup lunch options if we don’t have any dinner leftovers. (That’s the situation that usually causes me to send him out for lunch.)

3. We used Redbox.

Sometimes on Friday nights, we all watch a movie together.   Mr. FG and the kids have all seen Wreck It Ralph, but I haven’t, so we decided we would watch it together.

Sadly, Netflix doesn’t offer it as a streaming option.   Amazon only offers the option to buy the movie for $15, and we didn’t want to buy it; we wanted to rent it.

(Incidentally, why in the world does it cost $15 to buy a digital copy of a movie when a physical DVD costs the same? This makes no sense to me.)

So we put Wreck It Ralph at the top of our Netflix DVD queue and opted to rent Monsters University from Redbox for a mere $1.

(I rarely enjoy series movies, but Monsters U was really great, possibly because it was a prequel rather than a sequel.)

4. I saved an apple.

I accidentally bought a mushy apple, which turned out to be the sort that falls to bits in your mouth instead of offering a pleasant crunch.

So, I sliced it and sauteed it in butter, which turned it from disgusting to delicious.

sauteed apple

If you cook sliced apples low and slow in butter, they end up tasting caramelized and very sweet, even though you’ve added no sugar.

5. I helped my girls save money at Michael’s.

All three had Michael’s gift cards from Christmas.

(Yes, Christmas. And I hadn’t taken them shopping. I’m going for Mom of the Year here, obviously.)

But I did redeem myself, because I found a 20% off your entire purchase printable coupon. I always print 40% off a single item coupons when we need to buy something from a craft store, but that wouldn’t have helped them much in this situation because they tend to buy many small things instead of one large thing.

Because our cashier assured us that all the girls counted as separate customers, each with their own gift card, Zoe was able to use a 40% off coupon for her wool felting kit, while the other girls used the 20% off coupon for all of their small things.

felted wool fish

So, we wrung every last dollar out of those gift cards, and the girls are well-supplied with crafty goodness.

_____________________

Well, that was fun. I should do Five Frugal Things posts more often!

If you’d like to join me, feel free to make your own Five Frugal Things list in the comments.

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Cynthia

Thursday 7th of July 2016

I like the idea of acquiring things for free as someone said that Katy did. What I do when I acquire too much is take it to the office tv room and put it out for neighbors to take and/or drop it off at the homes of some of them. I prefer doing things where I don't have to do that because it takes time to drop it off but I won't pass up free if I know someone can use it.

I make spaghetti on Sunday evening after church preparing enough for 6 lunches and 2 or 3 dinners. I do this because I work overtime 5 days a week and Saturday also a lot. Now I know most people can't eat the same meal that often but cooking several extra meals and freezing them gives you a variety of choices. I also freeze chicken to make sandwiches from ,chicken legs and thighs after cooking them, hamburger to make a variety of meals and the like. I don't follow the once a month cooking program . It is too exhausting but I do cook enough once a week to provide me many meals to eat.

Jan Elizabeth

Friday 19th of December 2014

Did Zoe make those felted fish from her felting kit? If so, that's amazing!

Kristen

Friday 19th of December 2014

Yes! Those are from a kit that we bought from Michael's.

naomi

Monday 9th of June 2014

I just read your 5 Frugal things and now I know what to do with the soft apples I have at home. Thanks so much!! I hate wasting food!! I like your website and I'm happy I found it.

Kristen

Monday 9th of June 2014

Yay! Glad I could help you rescue an apple.

MG

Thursday 5th of June 2014

This blog post reminds me that there are different versions of frugality, and I prefer yours so much compared to Katy's. I actually had to stop reading her blog, because the photos of her stuffed home and the endless stuff that she doesn't need but acquires for free or at thrift shops stressed me out. I like the form of frugality that also involves a reasonable degree of minmalism, that first avoids acquiring things unless they are truly needed (even if they are cheap or free), and that enables a less stuff-filled, stressed-out life. Managing lots of stuff, even if it's free or cheap, is the pits. And cluttering my home clutters my brain. I'd also rather leave the free stuff on the curb for someone who needs it rather than just taking it because it's free.

April

Friday 6th of June 2014

Agreed entirely!!!

WilliamB

Thursday 5th of June 2014

CI's Family Cookbook has a lovely recipe for apple dumplings. Their version is roll out premade croissant dough into circles, wrap around a cored apple, fill apple core hole with sugar & spices, bake. Then top with cream.

My even easier version is to line an large muffin tin with rolled-out biscuit, pie, or croissant dough (premade or homemade), fill with apple slices (don't have to peel), top with a bit of brown sugar and a pinch of salt. Bake till biscuit is cooked. Mine is easier to make, much less messy, and easier to portion out because it's slices rather than whole apples.

Kristen

Thursday 5th of June 2014

Ohh, the cream would put that right over the top. I love me some heavy cream.

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