Five Frugal Things | taxes, tea, and no power
Happily, our power is back on today! But yesterday was not so good on that front.
1. I bought TurboTax with a $15 discount
Costco (and most other places) have TurboTax marked down until mid-February. So, I went ahead and purchased my download to make sure I didn't miss the discount.
After owing so much last April, I paid vast amounts of estimated taxes for tax year 2020.
So I am not dreading doing my taxes as much as I usually do....here's hoping that my estimated tax payments were the right amounts.
Or that maybe they were even a little extra. 😉
2. I've been working through random teabags
I organized the tea brewing supplies and came across a lot of random tea that has not been getting used.
So, I've been purposely choosing those teabags when I make a cup of afternoon tea.
3. I made 3 eBay listings
I cleaned out a bookshelf yesterday while our power was out*, and I found three things to sell.
So, I put them up on eBay, added the books to my "sell" pile, and now I will patiently wait. Sometimes it takes a while, but things almost always eventually sell.
*snow followed by freezing rain tends to bring branches down!
4. I organized my laundry room food shelves
Another power-outage activity. 😉
I found a few things that were very expired (mostly salad dressing! Which is odd because I don't buy it that often.), but mainly I just reorganized things in a more sensible way.
The biggest payoff for this job is that I now know what is on those shelves. And since I'm the main cook/food manager in the house, me knowing what's there is key to us using the food in a timely manner.
Of course, since the shelves are more organized now, it's easier for everyone else to see what needs to be eaten as well.
5. I made a bowl of use-it-up oatmeal this morning
I used:
- an odd Hungry Harvest carrot
- shredded coconut I found on my laundry room shelf
- some really dry dates I found in a pantry clean-out
And of course, oats, spices, vanilla, cream, and so on.
1) I too reorganized my freezer area (basically, I moved prepped food/leftovers into one half of the freezer, stacked). I can now easily find any and all leftovers when we need an extra meal. Before, it was very much an excavation project. As a result, I had lots of good food wins for the week.
2) I also organized our garage food/cleaning supply shelves, and can more easily see what we have. It makes a big difference for shopping, and for meal preps.
3) I used a bunch of drug store rewards to buy food/snacks & paper supplies for us, and some to donate.
4) Continued to list & sell things on eBay. I had a few nice sales, & sold things. Likewise, my teenager has been buying inexpensive bikes in the neighborhood, cleaning them up, fixing them & reselling them. He's learning a lot about bike maintenance & keeping himself entertained. He's saving up for a new (expensive) mountain bike for himself.
5) Used grocery store rewards, ibotta & Target rewards to save a bit here & there on groceries.
1. I had listed skis on Kijiji...they sold! $$ in my jeans!
2. Regarding #1, no, I didn't just put the $$ in my jeans. Of course I put 1/3 to my emergency fund, 1/3 to an annual bill coming up in May, and 1/3 to my investment account.
3. I also cleaned my "catch all" baking/snacks/condiment cupboard and amalgamated 3 bags of brown sugar, 3 bags of pita chips, and so on.
4. Bought a New Year's promotion from my local, favorite salon, buy a $400 gift card and get a $75 gift card free. I have 2 kids so between the 3 of us, this will get used!!
5. Made coffee at home, made a meal plan for the week, and my husband brought his lunch to work, as usual. 🙂
Carrot in oatmeal is interesting (dates and coconut in oatmeal are more familiar to me). What's your technique? Thanks!
I've started sending a snack in every day in my youngest son's backpack, rather than filling a box of pre-packaged, shelf stable (easteful, expensive, and not particularly healthy) snacks to keep in his classroom. He's very happy with his peanut butter bread, and I'm happy to not be buying overpriced granola bars or whatever.
The middle son keeps a jar filled with homemade spiced almonds in his desk. He rarely eats snacks anyway--the only child I have who is just not much of an eater--so on the occasional days when he wants one, that's enough for him.
My eldest son needs black socks to wear to church on Sundays, because he's an altar server and I don't want him up on the altar in view of everyone wearing white socks with black dress shoes and black dress pants. 🙂 But since his feet are now the same size as mine (eek), he can wear my thicker black cotton socks. I pretty much only wear those in the winter, so I have like half a dozen pairs to share with him.
I scrubbed the heck out of my stove with baking soda and vinegar and got it almost all the way white again. I never buy special cleaners--mostly because I hate the fumes, but also because I don't want to have to pay money for them and store them--and there is almost nothing I can't clean with those two things, dish soap, and a LOT of hard scrubbing.
I discovered that three of my four children love roasted chick peas, so I finally got two cans of those we were given by neighbors out of my pantry. Some of the chick peas do kind of pop in the oven--almost like popcorn--but it's a lot easier to stick them in the oven with some olive oil than it is to haul out the food processor and make hummus. For me, anyway.
We used to do #1 but since Covid apparently homemade snacks are forbidden. I can't figure out the logic but no one has any of that any more.
I could see that if the snacks are being distributed to the class as a whole, but since the kids handle all their own snacks, and no sharing is allowed, it's fine.
Good on you with cleaning your stove with vinegar and baking soda! I tried that with my (also white) stove, and about wore my arm out but couldn't get it all. I finally broke down and got some Bar Keeper's Friend.
Also we love roasted chickpeas too; what a great snack! So much so that I ended up buying a bucket of dried chickpeas. Now if I could just get to the point where I remember to throw them in the pot to soak overnight..
Let's see if I can come up with 5....
1. We continue to eat down the freezers and hooray I can now see the bottom of the chest freezer!
In the past two weeks we have eaten half a ham and a pork sirloin roast. Last night I cooked up a large pot of vegetable beef soup to combat the cold - we used corn, tomatoes, green peppers, & carrots from the garden, banana peppers from the garden...all these items from the freezer. We also added a cabbage that was lingering in the fridge and needed to be used.
2. We kept the thermostat at 65 despite bitterly cold wind yesterday.
3. We have a batch of sourdough starter working on the kitchen counter which will hopefully yield many loaves of lovely homemade bread and provide a use for the 50 pounds of bread flour lingering in my pantry.
4. Transferred all of our prescriptions to Express Scripts as they are our new provider and we hope to be able to save quite a bit on maintenance meds over the cost of the retail pharmacy.
5. Purchased potatoes, limes, pineapple, ranch seasoning. onions, ground beef, grapefruits, and half & half at Costco. This is frugal as the prices on these items are the lowest I can get in my area and will last us several weeks.
Glad your power is back on!
1. Biggest frugal thing this week is...we paid off our mortgage!! We have been home owners for 8 years now, so this is an early pay off for us.
Funny side story....when I went to the bank the teller asked me why I needed the bank check, to which he responded "now that your mortgage is paid off, you can take out a home equity loan". What?!?!
2. I picked up a new-in-box Care Bear off Buy Nothing. This will be a Christmas present for my daughter this year. I also picked up a pair of snow pants, off Buy Nothing, that will fit my son next Winter.
3. I sold a toy from my husband's childhood on Facebook Marketplace. I also listed a vehicle accessory, on Marketplace, for sale.
4. My husband and I have really been liking murder mystery games. Once you solve the game though you can't play it again and they cost about $30 each. We found someone on Marketplace selling 4 games for $40, so we purchased them. We already played one of them, so I promptly listed it on Marketplace for $20.
5. I made vegetable stock from a bunch of vegetable scraps I was saving in my freezer. I also made baked french toast with some bread odds-and-ends. It fed our family of 4 breakfast for 2 days.
Congratulations on your mortgage! That's so awesome!
Yay! Wow! Congratulations! Have you been able to stop smiling? I think that feeling would be so positively overwhelming.
Thank you!
You know what? We waited for so many years to get to that day, but it just feelt like any other day.
Maybe it will feel different once we don't have to pay our mortgage monthly and that money can be used for other investments/ interests.
So funny about the bank. When I went in to make our final payment I had two bankers descending on me like vultures on freshly dead meat. Lol. I just laughed out loud. I was too surprised at their desperation to have a more polite reaction!
1. Made a calculated risk to not drive to work apartment due to possible snow day at the college that I worked at. Saved $25 in gas and $10 in tolls. (I would have had to go on Sunday for a Tuesday class that I teach)
2. Have been eating from the freezer and eating more plant-forward dinners, so Jan. grocery bills were overall very low
3. Wanted to stop and buy a sub for lunch while out running errands, but instead stopped at our local bakery and bought a roll, and came home and made my own.
4. Opened a new cc, which if I spend XX amount in 3 months, I will "earn" $275 back. I should be able to reach the amount on grocery & gas, since I have no plans to spend money on anything else! (fingers crossed)
5. (more luck than anything): my computer needed a new battery. It was no longer under warranty, so I was expecting to have to pay for it, but [apparently] because it is has been an issue with the model, Apple covered the cost of $299.
Frugal Fail: We were expecting over a foot of snow here in Boston, and we hadn't gone grocery shopping in 2 weeks (fridge was BARE), just went to our local inexpensive grocery store, rather than both it and Aldi's. Wow! Quite the difference in cost in the limited number of items that we normally get from Aldi.
Tell me more about the battery! My mac is saying the battery needs service, and it seems kind of soon to me for that.
It got to the point that it would not hold more than 1% power and so it had to be plugged in ALL the time! Even if I unplugged it to take from one room to another, I'd have to restart it as soon as I plugged it in again.
It is a MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016). Apparently, even if it is out of warranty, Apple will still cover the cost of the battery/labor because it is an issue with manufacturing with this model.
I brought it to the Apple store, they shipped it off to Texas, and they shipped it back to my house 4 days later.
1. Packed work lunch for my husband second week in a row.
2. Decluttering the house, donated some things and sold some things. Re-used boxes and padded envelopes for shipping.
3. Found some like new clothes at the thrift store for my kids.
4. Baking my own bread.
5. Paid bills on time to avoid late charges.
--Hip cat that I am, I ordered a sock darning kit. I have some beautiful knee-high yak* wool socks from a few Christmases ago that are starting to get thin in the heels, as they're my favorite winter socks. A $10 kit (with egg, multiple thread colors, and needle since I'm starting from scratch) to save a $30 pair of socks seemed a reasonable choice! No doubt further socks will be rescued in time.
*Yak wool is amazing. Moths don't eat it (at least not yet) and my skin doesn't react to it, unlike sheep's wool.
--I'll be making my husband's Valentine's present with items I already have on hand. I actually held back one Christmas gift idea to ensure I'd have something!
--We've been eating down the freezer to ensure there's enough room for our farm-bought meat order later this month. It's rather novel being able to see the bottom!
--The "Don't try this at home" entry: Let's just say that, as a life-long klutz, I'm grateful for the invention of butterfly stitches--especially when I manage to cut myself doing dishes during a blizzard. 😛 Our medicine cabinet ALWAYS has a box of butterfly stitches (only used as directed, of course).
https://www.healthline.com/health/butterfly-stitches#vs-sutures
--We bought a metal 3-tiered metal rolling cart from Michael's (excluded from their coupons, alas) to tame our overflowing pantry. Our house’s little kitchen wasn't meant for pandemic planning, and the pantry cupboard was stuffed to where we couldn't find things. Since the only place for additional storage was in front of our back door (between the fridge and start of the counter), it needed to be a cart with wheels for safety. (We never use the back door , but it's still a fire exit.) That $30 purchase has made it so we can actually see what we have and access it without an avalanche. Not having to shield myself with my arms when I open the cupboard is definitely a win! 😛
Oh my gosh, "hip cat". Have not heard that expression in a coon's age. Really takes me back.
As an adult, classic movies are the norm at our house. As a child, I was raised on a mix of blues, oldies, Godzilla, reruns of Adam West’s “Batman” and the original “Twilight Zone,” and 90s cartoons. I’m basically a walking anachronism at this point, I’m such a mix of influences! 😛
Ooh, I am sorry you cut yourself!
Aw, you’re so sweet! I soaked the butterfly stitches off just yesterday (it had been a week) and the cut has healed well! A normal bandage is plenty to shelter it now.
Wow, a darning kit. How quaint! I darn my socks using a plastic Easter egg, embroidery floss (super strong, cheap and comes in a zillion colors) and a cross stitch needle. But I'm really curious about your kit and will have to Google. I'm happy to know someone is encouraging a new generation to darn. Btw, I have a real antique darning egg that I inherited from my great grandmother. It's heavy glass and looks like a slightly misshapen light bulb.
The kit came with several colors of embroidery floss, in surprisingly generous amounts. When I broke it down, it was more cost effective than buying the colors separately, at least for this beginner. 🙂
That’s so cool about your great grandmother’s glass darning egg! It’s so neat when utilitarian things are lovely in their own right.
My son's socks had holes in them and I was going to throw them out. Reading these comments inspired me to darn them. I have never darned before, so the fix is my own invention. But, it seems to have gone well. So, thank you!
I use a blown out light bulb. I use darning wool, which is more expensive, but it 'felts' as the socks are washed and so the darn is very dense and strong. One pair of my shoes rubs my heels, but if I'm wearing darned socks, they don't rub as much. I only buy 2 colors, since I don't care how my darned socks look!
First, a carrot in oatmeal? That's different. Also, a big shoutout to the utility workers who are almost never appreciated in any manner.
Anyway, here I go:
1.) Used the old Instant Pot to make stock again. It makes smaller batches but I love how relatively hands off it is. I don't have to be in the kitchen staring at it, adding water etc.
2.) Bought a toy "My Pal Violet" for my niece's birthday (which isn't for a couple months) because it was discounted quite a bit. It's one of those toys that my daughter really enjoyed for years and she wanted to get one for her cousin and it was on sale so ...
3.) Got some socks for my daughter on clearance. I got home and realized they were a size too big as I misread the package (I blame my dyslexia.) So they are being put away until she fits into them. Frugal long term win or Fail?
4.) Made another batch of yogurt.
5.) Bought some french bread off the "day old" shelf at the supermarket. It became French toast, garlic bread and a tuna sub. I can certainly make it at home but bakery bread for $0.69 is hard to pass up as a special dinner treat.
On a side note: we got hammered pretty badly with a snowstorm yesterday where I live and this morning I woke up to my driveway plowed and some salt dropped on it. I am super frugal on so many things but I love that I don't have to plow/shovel/snowblow my driveway. It's money well spent IMO!
I wanted to cheer when I saw the utility truck going down my street! I am so grateful to have power back, because a long period without power in the winter is terrible if you don't have a fireplace.
That is one funny looking carrot, Kristen!
1. Dug deep in the freezer and came up with a bag of chicken breasts. I made chicken fajitas with peppers and onions already prepared in the freezer, a chicken casserole that fed us twice and two huge chicken quesadillas. The I bought another bag to replace that one at Krogers on sale!
2. Had a doctor's appointment in town that we combined with a bunch of errands. Cupboards, refrigerator and freezer are full. We also got gas at Costco which was .39 cheaper than elsewhere.
3. I'm making Valentine's Day cards with items I already have including the cup holders from Panera's free coffee subscription.
4. I found a list of historical fiction books on a forum that I'm excited about. I'll get on the library's website and see which are available.
5. And the biggie! I paid my last massive insurance premium as I can begin Medicare on March lst. Even with good supplemental insurance, I'll save over $600 a month! Woohoo! It pays to get old!
I assume your power is back on now. Do you have a generator? Also, I think I'm the only one not baffled by putting a carrot in oatmeal. I'm guessing you shredded it. Sounds like the oatmeal version of a morning glory muffin.
Frugal stuff? Nothing too exciting. Took my lunch to work as well as to my mom's AL facility when I visited her. I have the option of ordering a lunch at the AL, but the food doesn't look all that appetizing--if I'm gonna pay for someone else to cook for me, it had better be good! Other than that, the same old same old. Hoping to use my snowshoes finally--I own the snowshoes so no real expense and it's fun and a good workout.
Yep, it's back on now, mercifully! We do have a generator, but it's on the fritz. Mr. FG worked on it yesterday to no avail; there are a few more things he needs to troubleshoot to get it running for the next time we lose power.
It's a small generator, but enough to power internet and the fridge and such.
And yep, the oatmeal is kind of like a morning glory muffin or like carrot cake baked oatmeal.
Wishing you well with the generator. Ours went on the fritz about a year ago. We ended up buying a new one (the previous one had been purchased used and I think it was toward the end of its life). Generators are not inexpensive but sooo worth it when you really need one.
Yes indeed! We finally bit the bullet and bought a generator last fall. It was so expensive, but way cheaper than loading 2 adults, 2 kids, 2 dogs, 2 cats and 1 bearded dragon into a hotel. And doubly thankful to have it now when I'd rather not risk COVID exposure at a hotel.
I love that wonky carrot and the cupboard organization!
1. Vitamix blender cup had a crack in it and since we use it 7-10 times each week, and it's 6-7 years old, it was a no brainer that it was something useful to us. Luckily Vitamix sells just the blender cup but because it includes the blade, it's pretty pricy. Then I remembered that years ago I had received a notice of a class action suit that included a $70 credit on vitamix.com. So it was still pricy but MUCH less than paying for a new blender or full price for a blender cup and now the blades are super sharp and my smoothie is even smoother! And I got the size that fits under my cabinet while on the blender.
2. Ate mostly at home all week but did take advantage of a multi-pizza deal and froze the extras. Now a few lunches will be extra easy.
3. My husband and my dad coordinate expenses to maximize points/credits on our credit cards. For example, dad's cc has a promotion that gives 10x points on groceries but since we buy way more groceries (more people, different lifestyle), we use their card and then transfer the money into their account. Then when it's time to travel again, we and they will have a bigger pool of points to use.
4. Followed up with a local restaurant chain to when I didn't receive the extra promo dollars for buying a gift card weeks ago. They dropped them into my account but it took a few emails.
5. Bought a couple unmentionables at Nordstrom Rack - these cost 2x-3x more at Nordstrom. And they're good quality - I rotate the same 2-3 bras (I just mentioned them) and they have lasted years.
1. We somehow ended up with 3 open boxes of Wheat Thins that haven't been getting used up, so all 3 kids got homemade lunchables today, which they think is fun and I'm happy to have the crackers eaten.
2. One of our grocery stores is going through a major remodel and has given me 2 coupons to use in February for $10 off $50 (I also had 2 of those coupons for January and used them). I planned to go this morning because it worked best in my schedule, but I was only partially prepared with my shopping list. I figured I would end up not spending money wisely if I wasn't fully prepared going in, so I'm holding off and will try to go later this week.
3. I've meal planned at least 2/3 of the month of February! Our freezer is getting full again, so most of those meals involve something that's in the freezer.
4. I made a no-bake pumpkin cheesecake yesterday to use some heavy whipping cream that was nearing its date.
5. There was leftover pizza available for lunch yesterday and it sounded good, but I had a salad and leftover lentil vegetable soup instead so that those things didn't go to waste. I know everyone else in the house will be happy to eat the leftover pizza.
I guess all of my items this week are food or grocery shopping related. It's lunchtime - food on the brain!
Made chicken stock for soup with a frozen chicken carcass and frozen onion scraps.
Made homemade granola bars for snacks for the kiddos instead of buying the prepackaged ones.
Made homemade croutons with the odds and ends of bread left in the freezer
Got a big bag of clearance bananas for 99 cents and ate a bunch of them, froze a ton of chunks for smoothies, mashed bananas for future muffins, and baked muffins & mini pancakes with them.
Started a no-spend February challenge off by going through the freezer and making a meal plan for the month from the freezer.
I’m continuing to do many little things that add up over time, just like many of you here. Keep on keeping on is my motto.
1. Still using the cloth napkins that I unearthed last month. The majority belonged to my late mother who only used them for “special” occasions. I’m using them everyday with the added bonus of daily memories of her.
2. Still doing laundry in the afternoons when the off-peak rates apply.
3. Combined errands to save gas. Last month we filled each car once for a total of $25.90 (each car still had 1/2 tank at time of fill-up).
4. Needed sweetened condensed milk for a dessert recipe but had none in the pantry. Did a Google search for a substitute- evaporated milk & sugar, both of which I had on hand.
5. Still making my own sandwich bread & French bread as needed.
I'd love to see your recipe or basic method for making oatmeal. I've been trying to wean myself off the instant oatmeal packets (expensive, sugary), but haven't landed on the perfect homemade alternative.
1). Knitting a baby blanket to gift with yarn in my stash.
2). Haircuts at home.
3). Taking advantage of the free Peloton app trial. I like it so much that I will likely pay the $13.99/month once my trial is up. Pairing that with Yoga with Adrienne’s free videos.
4). Using up arts and craft supplies we have around the house to keep my girls busy and satisfy their homeschool art requirements.
5). Taking advantage of our library. Typically we make an appointment to visit weekly. In addition to books we’ve picked up craft/activity kits to go. So far my girls have made bristle bot robots, 3D snowflakes, and we have snowy paint kits to use this week.
4).
I am also doing Yoga with Adrienne! What a value her lessons are!
Me three! Love Adrienne!
Me too!
Yes! I love her videos!
Peloton Yoga is really good. I particularly like Ross and Kristin.
1. While purchasing a new couch isn't necessarily frugal, the one we purchased was a great deal at Costco and we've been looking for it for weeks. With the old couch, I took the stuffing out of the cushions and added it to the kids bean bag chairs. The kids took the HUGE boxes that the new couch came in and built a box fort for them selves. We even reused the sitting cushions of the old couch to make the bottom of the box fort more comfortable!
2. The same storm that took out Kristen's electricity dumped over 2 feet of snow on us here in Eastern PA. We've been staying at home and eating what we have in the house. No gas spent!
That's all I have for now.
I did come up with one more item that I reused from the new couch packaging. Each of the feet were wrapped in bubble wrap. You better believe I collected all that up and added it to my shipping materials for Ebay.
1. Shopped at Aldi.
2. Continued de-cluttering the house. Sold several things on Marketplace.
3. I’m having a little Valentine party for the grandkids, and it was tempting to just click on Amazon and order tablecloth, plates, napkins, etc. instead, I searched my stash and found most of what I need.
4. Cooked and ate at home, including taking my mom dinner every night.
5. Was planning to use stimulus money to re-paint our stairway. Did it myself instead. Still have the stimulus money!
Yay for pantry organization! Doesn't it make you feel awesome?
1. I took our vacuum to get the pulled-out cord repaired. It was $21.80 instead of the cost of a new vacuum. The very kind shop owner also cleaned it for me. I'm immensely gratified.
2. I had some leftover roasted red peppers, so I made your mayo recipe! It was delicious, and we had a couple sandwich meals, which tend to be frugal. Plus, I can't stand wasting food, so I'm glad I used up the peppers.
3. Warm clothes are getting marked way down at this point in the season, so I bought some clearance items that will fit the kiddos next year.
4. We started our taxes, and we're using Credit Karma tax again. Because I have 1099-Misc income, it's ridiculously pricey to use most tax preparation software or services, but Credit Karma's is free. This is the third year we've used it, and it's awesome.
5. We had a small repair done on our car, and we got a $25 discount for putting the charge on the company's credit card, which we already had. I immediately paid it off, so we paid no interest and still got the discount.
Thanks for sharing about Credit Karma - I’m a dog walker/pet sitter as a side gig and 1099 on paid software is expensive, will check it out
That is quite a carrot!
My five:
1. Used up a bunch of older stuff from the freezer and pantry to create yummy work lunches and suppers.
2. Needed new glasses and reused my frames, which are in great shape, for the sixth year.
3. Discovered Dollar Tree sells one of my old cat's favorite flavors of Temptations treats for 79 cents less than the grocery store for the same size bag.
4. Used some powerfully scented shower gel that was a Christmas gift to make foaming hand soap. It's pleasant instead of sneeze-inducing now that it's watered down.
5. Am reinforcing and invisibly mending the elbow of a thrift shop flannel shirt my husband has loved for several years. He always wears a small hole in the left elbow of his shirts, so I had to perfect mending them.
Bonus 6th: I put a bar of Yardley lavender soap, bought for 99 cents at the grocery store, unwrapped in my sweater drawer to take away the "stored" smell. I love wearing the sweaters now these cold winter days.
I have some similar frugal activities
1. I bought Turbo Tax from Best Buy (the digital version) to take advantage of the sale. I also organized our tax documents as much as possible while awaiting other statements to be available.
2. I organized our tea bags. I found a couple boxes of tea that we will not drink that I have ready to give away on Freecycle. I also prepared other items for Freecycle (descriptions and photos) for when the weather improves.
3. I realized that I have raisins and honey that I rarely use. I decided I would use them in oatmeal as a "healthy" snack on days when I want one. I have done that the past three days.
4. It was essentially a snow day for us yesterday. We were very happy that the electricity stayed on. I shoveled and walked around the neighborhood. It was more of the same today as we received more snow. I am happy to be scheduled to walk with a friend tomorrow.
5. I am having groceries delivered tomorrow. There will be no delivery charge since it is mid-week. I did add a tip to my order.
I've been using up the stockpile of quinoa we have from our produce box by making a whole wheat quinoa bread. This week I didn't have whole wheat flour so I used white four and some rye flour that needed to be used up anyway. I think I'll keep doing it that way until the rye flour is gone!
Last night we were tempted to order out but instead used up some vegetable soup that was in the freezer..
Our little bedroom white noise fan died and the hubs found one on sale this morning! Yay!
Once again enjoyed from-home snacks and beverages after skiing.
And like you Kristen I've been using up random teas!
1. My biggest frugal save this week was calling and canceling a virus protection subscription we no longer needed. We caught the charge on our bank statement, but luckily was able to get a reimbursement.
2. I also organized and cleaned out the pantry recently, it's so nice to see at a glance what we have and need week to week! I've been trying to use up some things before they go bad, as dry goods tend to get forgotten.
3. Using up leftovers to the max in cooking and meals.
4. Despite the snow we just got, did not buy any new winter gear as we have a wide collection of snow pants and jackets I've picked up on consignment. That said, I really need to make a list of what we need next.
Would love some oatmeal recipes also, especially ones to make in advance as I'm a very lazy cook in the mornings 🙂
I know Kristin will have some. However, the website Budgetbytes.com has several baked oatmeal recipes that are really good.
I made a loaf of bread that didn’t turn out well, instead of pitching it I used it to make strata.
I have been unable to find sifting litter box liners in local stores for weeks so I ordered some off Chewy. After comparing prices to my local Wal-Mart to confirm they were similar, I also bought a large bag of dog food so I could get free shipping.
I read two library books and my son read one.
Turned it medical bills to our flexible spending account for reimbursement.
Not sure if this counts but continued remote work means we are still saving in gas.
Shoveled 2 feet of snow from porch, pavement and driveway ourselves. Free workout and a tidy savings.
Home cooking—no takeout for the entire month of January.
Assembled a new piece of exercise equipment ourselves-3 hours and a $100 install fee avoided.
Ironed husbands work shirts instead of dry cleaners fee
Use Box hair dye instead of salon trips
New frugal behaviors/choices for 2021!!!!
My frugal things come from the past month, as I don't think I've posted here for a while:
-I organized my kitchen pantry with identical, transluscent containers, so now it's really easy to see what I have. It has made menu planning and shopping much easier. They're labeled, so the less organizationally inclined family members have some help figuring out where to put things.
-I cleared out my tea/coffee drawer and consolidated indivually wrapped tea bags. It's pleasant to open the drawer and find exactly what we want quickly, so now we are drinking tea more regularly rather than reaching for things like soda or sparkling water.
-Helped my husband organize his garage, and he was able to take a few unused things back to some stores, and he was able to get some quick projects done with the things he found he had.
-Shopped my fabric stash for a quilt I'm making for a friend.
-Win/FAIL: Used our freezer stash of extra meals while I was feeling unwell (breathing issues), but ended up eating take out several times last week after an emergency doctor visit landed me on two steroids and almost complete rest. I'm feeling better now and already working on a plan to refill the freezer.
I've had one of those weeks where many frugal attempts were paired with a fail. So--
1. I made roasted chickpeas with a can from the case my dad gave us. I was really hoping to find something that we loved (because we don't like chickpeas in many applications), but I wasn't impressed. Nobody complained loudly, but nobody really said, "Mmmm. These are so good. Make these again."
2. We bought some things to sell on my Etsy shop at an online auction. I think I'll make a profit on them, for sure (because, who doesn't want a Richard Simmons workout record album with instruction booklet?). BUT there was also a vintage Singer sewing machine on the auction (I already have 3 and didn't really need another one, but it came with a lovely cabinet that I could use). I told my husband not to go over a certain amount, but auction rage hit and. .. I have another beautiful 301a that runs oh-so-smoothly.
3. I made yogurt---but only after I realized the yogurt I'd already made had been in the fridge way too long and had pink stuff beginning to grow in it.
Sigh.
Re: chickpeas, I sub them in for the white beans in this recipe, and it’s SO GOOD, not to mention filling!
https://www.budgetbytes.com/smoky-white-bean-shakshuka/
This one is also good:
https://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-feta-and-tomato-braised-chickpeas-241543
I love chickpeas, but my husband is so-so on them. Even so, he enjoys all of the above! Your mileage may vary, of course, but they’re well worth a try.
1. A massive tree fell on my nextdoor neighbor's house. I asked the tree removal company that came to give them an estimate to give me one for removal of 4 large dead trees in my yard. After looking, they said there were actually 6 trees that needed to come down. After I received the quote, I asked for a senior discount. They said if I had my work done on the same day as the neighbor's, they'd give me 10% off. Of course, I agreed and saved $306! Bad news though - the massive crane and truck caused significant damage to my driveway. They are insured, but now I have to deal with that.
2. I spent only $28.29 on groceries in January.
3. Several food related items - I used some of a cheese ball left from the holidays to make grilled cheese. I turned some individual fruit cups that I didn't particularly like into a fruit crisp by draining them, adding butter, cinnamon and brown sugar and baking it with a topping of brown sugar, flour, coconut and butter. I added some fast food packets of ketchup that I got from my sister into sloppy Joes. I also used hot dog buns that she was going to throw out for the sandwiches.
4. I used a $10 off coupon when I got my oil changed.
5. I found 2 pounds of organic baby carrots on clearance for 99 cents.
Kristen, I admire you for using a carrot in your oatmeal. I don't think I could do that. 🙂
Let's see.
1. I went to a local discount store last night for a few odds and ends we needed. They have a very tempting close out section (my weakness) and I managed to avoid everything in it except for the two things I needed!
2. We needed two baby items for our four month old and unfortunately we got rid of most of our baby stuff before we knew he would be coming along. I managed to find them on Facebook marketplace for even less than I would have paid at the consignment shop.
3. I signed my two year old up for a mommy-and-me art activity at a local art institute. Happily they offered a discount for in-county residents. Yay! I'm happy to be able to do this with her. Since she's my third born, she hasn't gotten to do nearly as many fun activities with me as her big sisters did.
4. I remembered to cancel a free trial before I was charged.
5. Returned a coat. I've been looking to return to my pea coat roots, and my husband thought he had found me a good one at kohl's for $25. But when he brought it home and I tried it on, I didn't like the fit. So I returned it. Even at $25 for a coat, it's not a bargain if I don't like how it looks on me. Plus I'm in the process of losing some weight, so buying a coat might not be the best idea right now. I'm thinking maybe I'll wait.
1. Made maple cranberry corn muffins to use up some frozen cranberries before they lose flavor.
2. Made pork stew with butternut squash, kale, black-eyed peas, and cranberries. The cranberries helped tenderize the pork and made the broth taste like tangy miso soup, especially since I added tamari, ginger, and a bit of mustard powder.
3. Will be having leftovers of said stew and muffins tonight so no need to cook or order in. Love being able to stretch a meal over several days.
4. Used a gift card I had forgotten about to buy pots for plants that need re-potting soon.
5. Opened a bunch of salt and pepper packets saved from takeout meals and put them in our shakers to use up, recycled the paper packets.
Say, I don't suppose you'd share that recipe for Pork Stew. It sounds delish, and I have all the items in the house except the pork, so less expense at the grocery store for a dinner that will probably be good for than one meal.
Hi Heather. I don't usually follow a recipe when making stew as I make them often and have a basic technique down. I can say I browned the pork and then set it aside, sauteed onions, cubed butternut squash and celery in the leftover fat until softened. Then I added vegetable stock, the pork, a bit of fermented apple cider, cranberries, shredded kale and some tamari and fresh grated ginger. I let it simmer for an hour and then added a can of black-eyed peas. I think it would be good served with thinly sliced scallions on top.
My 5:
1. Did a better job meal planning with an eye towards our busy work schedules this week with a goal of less take out.
2. Also on the meal planning front, I picked a bunch of recipes that use some of the freezer stash.
3. E-bills linked to my checking account are reducing the paper coming into my house and helping me make sure to pay everything on time (= no more late fees).
4. Made scones from a King Arthur's mix I forgot I had in my pantry. So good!
5. I halted my Stitch Fixes for awhile. I don't need anything.
1. Did not eat out or get take out for all 31 days of January.
2. Really not letting myself go over 100 dollars per week in grocery pickup. I was getting COVID lazy. 205, 107,113erc.
3. Trying to not do small loads of laundry.
4. Shopped around for vet care. Saved 70 dollars!
5. Getting free podcasts and digital books for Covid entertainment.
5.
1. Speaking of tea, we are using less teabags recently. I started using travel mugs for daily tea instead of mugs. Tea stays hot for most of the day and I am not dumping out cold/partially full tea cups. We already owed all the travel mugs. In fact, they were all gifts from my employer (who apparently really likes to gift company members various versions of the travel mug).
2. And while it is not a new practice, I make two cups of tea with every tea bag. Since I make three cups at a time, I save one used bag for later.
3. I learned how to make corn tortillas watching youtube. It was so easy and inexpensive I might never buy corn tortillas again. The first two recipes I read/watched called for a tortilla press - a kitchen gadget ranging from $15 to $30. The third video I watched showed me a very simple (and free) method using a plastic bag and cutting board to press the perfect tortilla.
4. I listened to (read?) my first audio book using Hoopla, a digital streaming service provided though my local library. I actually loved it. It was like a dramatic audio performance of the story. While I might secretly feel that listening to an audiobook doesn't "count" as reading, this one was free and very entertaining. I look forward to using this service again.
5. I redeemed a $5 Amazon gift card with Fetch rewards points. It is a slow process for me since I only earn like 25 points for each grocery receipt, but I am always happy to have a free $5.
1) Daughter is hitting a teen growth spurt. I thought she could power thru the winter with her current coat, but the arms and shoulders are really too short/tight. Off to the hand me down bins in the basement- found a coat that while not her style, will get her thru the rest of the season. I am thankful that she is willing to wear something that she will not normally wear. I now have my eye on winter clearance items for next winter... and buy a bigger size!
2) The daughter's growth spurt also happened with her feet- She borrowed my snow boots this weekend to go sledding. I guess I am keeping an eye on clearance boots too.
3)Thankfully continuing to work from home- aka really not going anywhere so saving on gas and car wear and tear.
4) We continue to shovel our own driveway. I see a lot of folks paying a service. Right now we are healthy and have two middle schoolers to do the job.
5) Library books- So very very thankful that the library is open again.
Amy, the snow boots problem hit me with my son, with the snow my area got these past few days. He wore my husband's while he was outside. Those teenagers just keep growing! I too am on the hunt now for some inexpensive ones that'll fit him.
Your reorganized pantry looks so nice and tidy. That's one of my favorite things to do...reorganizing and sorting. I don't really have hobbies (reading = life, so it doesn't count. Lol) but I do love to spend time making things organized and sorted. My kids would say it is "so satisfying". Ha!
1) I discovered that our business license qualifies us to go to a local restaurant supply store. Just the 25 lb bag of gluten free oats has saved us $80+. I haven't calculated exact savings yet on the spices and #10 cans of tomatoes, but it is several hundred dollars. We have 3 teenage boys and have family and friends over a lot. Nothing will go bad before I can use it. So exciting.
2) I took my youngest shopping for pants and taught him the ways of the discount department store. Frugality for the next generation.
3) Our Kroger has been having some great clearances on bagged salads. I am more likely to eat salad for lunch if I can dump it out of a bag. A $ and health win.
4) I found many of my son's Latin and exposition books on Thriftbooks, a savings of $30ish, I think.
5) A friend reminded me that our state gives a deduction from taxable income for each homeschooled child. Yay! It doesn't quite cover what I spent, but that is mostly due to being a noob and buying some unnecessary or not-that-great curricula.
6) Frugal Fail: one of the Exposition books was the wrong edition. Womp womp.
1) I "purchased" airline tickets using points for our flight home this summer. Now we'll see if the flight actually goes!
2) I mended a broken strap on a book bag that I've been looking at for months...now I have it packed and ready to use tomorrow!
3) I found someone who wanted a futon cover I have. I'm giving it away for free, but it makes me happy when items are rehomed instead of landfilled.
4)I really wanted to go out for fast food, but I made a grilled cheese sandwich at home instead.
5)I downloaded 3 free kindle books.
I bought a 23 lb turkey for $9. It was so big that it was a challenge to work with (dry rub, cut into parts, etc) but the price couldn't be beat. With it I made:
- a great dinner because it turned out amazing; each wing was a serving
- 2 more dinners in the freezer because each cooked breast weighs 2.5 lbs
- leftovers for snacking
- stock
- a ton of soup
- tasty shreds for the dog (stripped off the bones after the stock was done)
Bought 3 racks of ribs for $1/lb. I noticed that some were $1/lb but others were $2/lb, so made sure to get the cheaper ones and tell everyone else looking at ribs to do the same.
(Note: it's deals like these that undermine my aspiration of buying only happy meat.)
Made braised short ribs from happy meat that's been in the freezer for a couple of years. (It was part of a package.) It wasn't a hit Chez WilliamB. I gave it to my braised short rib-loving parents. Now they have a meal for themselves and a larger meal for their handyman/go-to guy/semi-adopted son. The food was packaged in ice cream tubs that otherwise would have gone to waste.
I do love the gravy & veggies from the short ribs, so I mixed it with brown rice and froze it for lunches.
Went through my Christmas gift cookbook - Cool Beans by Joe Yonan. Now I have dozens vegetarian, inexpensive dinner recipes to try. Not Exactly A Fail: I buy heirloom, fresh (usually less than 1 year old) dried beans from Ranch Gordo for $6/lb. They really are that much better than supermarket beans.
A couple of my new windows have problems, so I retrieved the warranty information from my files and an in the process of getting them taken care of. My initial experience with Renewal by Anderson was not great so I expect hassle before.
And since I wrote this, I made bird feeding stations from turkey fat leftover from the stock (I had 3 cups of it!), leftover birdseed, and unneeded take-out containers.
FFT this week:
I am having a bike repaired;
We are planning home maintenance for this year and next. We will be spending money, but based on need, not whim;
Menu planning and home cooking are going well this week;
I have made my own laundry detergent again. I've used shopbought for about a year, but I missed my own detergent;
The cardboard playhouse we made for our cats is still holding out. It has been in our living for over 2 months now and we have never before had so much fun out of repurposed packaging. The cats start purring the moment we make for the playhouse, old shoelace in hand. They know they are in for playtime! Hint: the playhouse has many windows, slits and doors they can launch out from! And we filled it with crumpled ball lls of holiday wrapping, so they can go searching for prey between old papers.
1. Our library is closing for 3 weeks for renovations so I stocked up on reading material for that time.
2. Found a stale hot dog bun in the pantry and used it for breading in a recipe I was making.
3. Used up two overripe bananas in some muffins.
4. Made sure to menu plan so that we aren't tempted by take out.
5. Got two cookbooks from the library to preview them and make sure they were going to be useful before I purchased them.
1. Trying to teach daughters ways to save money. Oldest daughter (20) needed to get her car inspected. My hubby had to get mechanics license for his last job so he mostly does jobs on our older cars that aren't under warranty. Daughter called and told me mechanics told her that her car wouldn't pass unless she had new windshield wipers. They wanted to charge $35. She politely told them that she'd have dad put them on and then be back for the inspection. They talked to the manager who then said they'd only charge her $13 for them at which point she said go ahead and finish the job. Proud of her for not letting them take advantage of her.
2. I needed a new copper frying pan. I cashed in some rewards thru Fetch and receipt hog saving $10 toward the purchase of a new one bought on Amazon prime.
3. I was waiting in line to checkout at a store and remembered I had a 15% coupon to use on my total purchase. I had them scan from my phone. Every little bit helps!
4. Sometimes we have a few spoons of veggies leftover from dinners. I've been adding those to my older dog's soft dinners. He's loving them. No waste!
5. Hubby and I bought a pellet stove on clearance for our new camp. We happened to go back to the store for something and noticed it was marked down even further (we thought by $100). I went to the customer service desk and had them look our purchase up on our store card and it was actually less by $300 and another part by $12, so after taxes they refunded us $330.72 back to our card. Hubby didn't want to go up to desk to ask, so you can bet I did it! Big win for us!!!
Holly cow, that refund is awesome!
Wow! You rock! I hate going up and asking too but you bet I do. "You don't get what you don't ask for," is my motto. And I hate wasting money more than I hate acting like an extrovert.
Thanks Heather & Midwest Beth! We were super thankful we saved so much & Hubby was happy that I asked 😉
Reading all the comments about tea, I thought I'd share that every day, I make a pot of tea using two tea bags. One pot will easily get me four mugs of tea, so it's worth investing in a teapot and I make my own tea cozies, so frugal score on that end. Any leftover or lukewarm tea goes into a mason jar and into the fridge so it can be consumed cold. I stick to decaf tea so I can drink it any time of the day or late into the evenings without it impacting my sleep.
I scored a HUGE bag of day old artesian rolls for $2 and made two ziptop gallon sized bags of croutons in the dehydrator. Cut bread into bite sized pieces, toss with a bit of olive oil and dried herbs, then pop into the dehydrator for about two hours or so. Store in airtight container or ziptop baggies and they will last quite a bit of time.
I gave all my fresh veggies a vinegar rinse, then chopped and put into individual containers in the fridge--top shelf and not buried in the veggie bins at the bottom. It makes it significantly faster and easier to grab a container of prepped veggies to eat, and I eat veggies more frequently with less waste this way.
I too make a pot of tea everyday and leftovers go into fridge in a mason jar. Great minds think alike LOL!
1 - I've been overcharged for my last two grocery curbside pickups. So, I called twice and got $23 and $15 back respectively.
2 - We got rid of our snow blower two years ago when the kids were finally big enough to shovel. It's a bit risky with the chunks the plow moves and digging out the mailbox, but we made it through this foot and a half.
3 - I bought a ham on sale and they called to confirm that a "reduced for quick sale" one was ok. So, I got the ham at about 1/4 regular price. We had it for dinner and the leftovers will do us a few more meals.
4 - My oldest wore my husbands rarely worn 20+ year old snow pants to shovel. We mutually decided it didn't make sense to purchase him new ones when (1) he only wears them 1-2 times per year and (2) he'll probably blow right through this size, at which point we should invest in some that will hopefully last.
5 - I've been working through the food on hand and using up the oldest items. We ate a batch of stuffing I had made in bulk many holidays ago with our ham.
1. Batched 9 errands today - that’s gotta be a record!
2. Watched The Dig on Netflix and checked out the audio book on library app for free, great to listen to as I am falling a sleep.
3. Got the dog her expensive dog food at Pet Supplies Plus, used her $5 birthday reward and they accepted another $5 off coupon for purchasing over $50. Frugal Fail-bought a light up squeaky $5 red ball on sale supposedly for V-Day but she went nuts sniffing my purse (how did she know it was in there???) so I gave it to her early- she loves it, so worth it as winter is giving her cabin fever and she had been having a blast playing with it.
4. Went to Aldi’s instead of a big grocery store - I am less apt to pick up things not on my list.
5. Got gas-if you paid cash instead of credit card saved 10 cents per gallon - borrowed $10 from my daughter so I could fill up. Bonus frugal-I have been eating one a day very expired yogurt - tastes fine!
6. Frugal fail- $5 combo at Taco Bell drive thru for each of us. Sometimes you just have to splurge - for the price included a lot of food. Our review is we would probably not get it again although the nacho cheese fries were pretty yummy.
Midwest Beth my DH and I watched The Dig for our lockdown Saturday afternoon movie date and loved it. I cried like a baby - I always cry - my DH said his contact lenses were irritating him, methinks he was a little moved!!
1. I looked around to find a better price for window cleaning where the company didn't require interiors as well for a whole house price. One used by a new neighbor was much cheaper! And while on their website, I discovered they clean gutters for less than the company we are currently using. So I'm ready for the post Spring clean-out.
2. I wrote myself a sticky note so I will remember to use the digital prepaid card I received last month. Only $10 but every bit counts.
3. I am reorganizing my "I could sell that item for good money" piles, so I can actually sell it all. Taking good pictures and not having to wade through teetering stacks to use my home office.
4. I am actually making a Christmas gift ideas list, so I can buy ahead when the price is the most frugal. I'm hoping we can actually travel over Christmas break, so all savings initiatives can go into that pot.
5. I'm menu planning! Which means we actually came in slightly under budget in the food, toiletries category in January!! And I instituted Take Out Thursday. Ordering out the same day every week has drastically reduced the amount of money we spend in this category. It also helps that I'm tracking expenditures at least once a week, so I can see where we have wiggle room and where we need to skip a spend.
Your oatmeal sounds like carrot cake. Yum
Trying to think of 5 here...
1. A neighbor was homeschooling this year, and then sent her kids back to public school. Unexpectedly she gave me all the materials her children had used--some in like new condition! I listed what could re-sell on Ebay and am donating the books that have more use in them to our local homeschool curriculum closet.
2. We are using Zoom classes that are free from multiple public libraries--like all over the country. There are so many events that you can "attend" without a library card. So far we've done cooking & art classes!
3. Potatoes from our local grocery store have been going back quickly after my last few shopping trips. So this time I incorporated them into our menu right away--roasting some for a dinner side, and using others in a Chicken veggie soup making it gluten free for my husband.
4. Needed gift bags/containers for an event & went "shopping" in my stash. Found a white metal container that worked perfect for gathering some smaller gifts & a gift bag that fit perfectly for the other items. Love saving & re-using!
5. can't think of a fifth...
My frugal thing for today was to finally get my plumber to take the front off my dryer, clean the lint behind the lint trap and the lint duct to the outside. I have a Maytag dryer that I think may be 50 years old. It is solid and has the memories of raising my six daughters! The dryer is now working and I did not have to replace it! Cost to clean--$125.
Here's our five frugal things for the week:
1. Did the same thing with my random teabags. Recycled the packaging and put the teabags into two repurposed candle jars. This time of year I drink a lot of tea. it's nice to be able to see what I have better.
2. I've been saving bacon drippings in the fridge to make a savory pie crust (substitute for butter, lard or Crisco). Finally had enough to make crust for quiche.
3. Made butter from leftover heavy cream and used the residual buttermilk for pancakes.
4. Made two loaves of banana bread from overripe bananas.
5. Refrigerator and freezer eating.
Sorry about the power outage! We have a generator for times like those....
My five:
1) Got dental surgery. With new insurance, my cost was a whopping $63, deductible included.
2) The church sprung a bake sale on us. I have a box of brownie mix and will make cake pops. Never did that before.
3) Someone gave me a free styrofoam cooler and I'll use the lid as a cake pop holder..Just push them in the lid after I decorate it for valentine's Day.
4)My doc wrote me a prescription for a drug that I can buy OTC..The otc price is $160. The prescription price is $29. So glad I can get it cheaper now.
5) I wasn't sure how to send my envelope at the post office. I originally put it in a priority envelope for $7.75. But the lady at the counter said I could spend less if I sent it first class and signature required.. Saved me over $3 !
Let’s see if I can keep up with you guys:
-I shared a meal at dinner out with my husband. It’s not as frugal as possible, but a savings nonetheless and our time together has its own value
-We shopped at the local discount grocer this week
-When my son decided he needed a new phone with more storage, he didn’t even consider asking for it, he went straight to his room and pulled out the allowance he accumulated (the part he’s allowed to spend, not the savings or giving stuff). Then he asked my husband to help him look for a good used version. Major parenting win as far as I can tell
-I set my reminder two weeks like for my next haircut to spread them further throughout the year
-I asked a colleague for some spices to flavor my (rather bland) lunch after I realized I had forgotten mine at home. This saved me either getting takeout or hating my food. Bonus, I found a new spice combo I enjoy.
There, 5 things. Happy Hump Day everyone
Your son's actions are music to my ears! Well done parenting (:
*should be two weeks later on the haircut (face palm)
1. Did a tea organize too. I set up a back stock area as well. Now I know what I have and I am using those tea bags up.
2. Cut my DH hair. Frugal and safe too.
3. My daughter found out the copay for a skin cream was going to be sky high so she called the Dr. The Dr. sent the script to a pharmacy in Denton TX that shipped the cream to her with no copay. I never would have thought of looking for prescription savings 1500 miles away.
4. Shoveled snow.
5. Eating at home.