Five Frugal Things | asthma? Time for PBS!
1. We got a free PBS trial
Sonia had a rough asthma day last week and had to come home from work because of it.
Sometimes, a combo of albuterol plus distraction helps, so she and I got a 7-day PBS Masterpiece trial going and we spent the afternoon watching period dramas together.
This is much preferable to spending the afternoon in the ER!
(Though if it turned out that she actually needed to go to the ER, of course, I would take her, and I have in the past. She always prefers to avoid that if possible, though.)
2. related to wedding shoes...
I needed some non-stiletto shoes to wear under my bridesmaid dress because the upcoming wedding and reception are outdoors.
(And also because I hate wearing really high heels, especially if I have to stand for a long time.)
I found a pair at DSW that would work, but the size 8 is just a little too small, and there was no 8.5 in the store.
So, I ordered a pair for in-store pickup so that I could get free shipping, and I also used a $5 DSW shoe reward.
My dress is floor length (ground-length if we're outside?), so the look of my shoes is significantly less important than how comfortable they are. Hopefully, this new size will be great!
3. We picked some mulberries
I got the idea to bring a bucket to the roadside tree, and Mr. FG cheerfully went along with it.
It was actually very helpful to have two people; one to pull the branch down, and the other to pick the mulberries.
They make a bowl of yogurt turn a lovely shade of light pink.
The best thing about mulberries? Their seeds never get stuck in your teeth. So much easier to eat than blackberries!
4. I made some peanut butter squares
I'm working through the case of peanut butter that the food pantry send home with us last time we volunteered, and I remembered my old recipe for peanut butter squares, which are kind of like peanut butter cups.
Here's the peanut butter square recipe; it's super quick and easy!
Obviously, Sonia can't eat them, but Zoe and Lisey will be happy to polish them off.
I should make some more energy balls too, actually...
5. I booked some discounted hotels
We are traveling to my one brother's wedding this month, and thanks to my other brother's hotel job, we have access to discounted hotel stays through any of the brands associated with his company.
So, that's always what we check first when we're booking a trip! Sometimes there are no good deals available, but this time we got a nice $55/night price.
I have lived with asthma my whole life. Often, when I'm having a bad day, albuterol and Strong green tea helps. Green tea is a natural source of theophylline.
I'm so sorry to hear that you struggle with this too! We are really stumped as to what has triggered these last two recent attacks; they seem quite out of the blue, and we can't find any commonality between the two times.
We have an appointment with her asthma doctor tomorrow and maybe he can help us figure something out.
I can have a bad day just because I've pushed myself too hard or slept badly. Then the slightest trigger sets a full-on attack. Chronic inflammation builds up in your body. Once I set off a whole bad week because I drove home with the windows down and passed some farm fields. Asthma is weird. The first attack I remember, I was 3. My mom says there were earlier ones. I hope her doctor has some answers.
Kristen, I know nothing about asthma, but I know Sonia has started a new job. I wonder if there could be something in the store that is triggering her. Perhaps a chemical on new clothing, or a larger amount of dust in there?
Here's another PB recipe that I tried recently. They're vaguely like Rice Krispie treats. Here's the recipe and technique, scale it up as much as you want.
1) Melt together (microwave works fine)
- 1 oz melted chocolate
- about 2 T peanut butter
2) Add
- 1 c. Rice Krispies or puffed rice/wheat cereal
3) Stir till mixed, adding more PB as needed to hold it together
4) Optionally, add
- Nuts or chips.
As usual, I adapted from the original. The original called for almond butter rather than peanut butter and also 1 T. ground flaxseed. I had PB and didn't have flaxseed, so I did the above instead.
Awww, poor Sonia. I've experienced an asthma flare up but likely nothing like what your daughter suffered. It was a frightening experience. I hope that the doctor will be able to provide much help. Good luck.
I'm sorry to hear about Sonia's asthma, and hope she's feeling better!
Frugal things in our house:
1) We used a bunch of accumulated travel credits/points to book travel for this summer. Our teens have both been double vaccinated (as have the adults), so we are looking forward to booking a few things this summer. We were able to save a lot by using previous credits, the tail end of a gift card, points, etc.
2) I used a discounted gift card, Rakuten & a sale at Old Navy to buy some non-logo'd hoodies for the kids. In bonus points news, they had two very neutral options, so they don't have to wear the same colors. 😉
3) We are using a lot of goodies from the garden: radishes, kale, spinach, cilantro, basil, Greek basil, and all of the zucchini. This week, it looks like we'll have green peppers & tomatoes as well.
4) In order to avoid food waste, and to combat that my husband bought *a lot* of fruit this week, and we head out on vacation soon, I've made a large bowl of prepped/cut/cleaned fruit. The kids can scoop out what they'd like, and it's going quickly. Laziness is apparently a big deterrent, so this is working well.
5) The kids don't have flip flops, and we're headed to the beach. I happened to be going through my husband's stuff to help him pack, and found two like new pair of extra flip flops. He has a terrible habit of forgetting things when we travel, and needing to buy extra at the location. One teen was able to fit into the flip flops, and the other will prefer to wear slides (which, we have as hand me downs from their cousins.) Perfect. Zero shopping needed, and my husband's previous forgetfulness is now largely "erased" by the flip flops getting a new life. The other pair is almost new, and an expensive brand name, so those will go on eBay.
6) Bonus, I've given away 10+ zucchini this week to willing friends, neighbors, and folks picking up things I'm giving away on Buy Nothing. Our zucchini plants are like a jungle & I don't want there to be any waste!
Sonia might be interested in a bit of US industrial history. Back in the day, white mulberries were planted all over the Eastern US to feed silkworms. Silk was so expensive to import, Americans wanted an American silk industry. Connecticut especially produced a lot of silk--many textile factories were built there. But in the 1830s, a new species of mulberry was introduced that grew much faster than the other types, so could feed many more silkworms. This ignited a get-rich-quick craze that pushed the price of these trees from $4 each in 1834 to $10 each by 1836. Then the whole thing collapsed. Trees by 1839 were selling from 2 to 4 cents each. Blight eventually killed most the mulberries, and the US basically gave up on silk production in the 1840s. Those textile factories imported the raw silk from then on.
This is fascinating! Thank you for sharing! It's interesting to see the trends during history of what markets have expanded and collapsed so quickly.
In the 19th century, there were a number of these agricultural crazes. First, “Merino mania” surrounding a Spanish merino sheep; then “Berkshire fever” involving a hog that produced quality bacon; and the Rohan potato, which from a single tuber could produce 50 pounds of potatoes. These are all American. Of course, Dutch tulip fever is the most famous.
Yep, tulip fever!.
I wonder if bit coins will be the tulips of our time? At least tulips look nice...
This comment made me laugh!!!!!
Yes! Bitcoin and NFTs are a great comparison.
This is so interesting! It reminded me of when I was in grade school (maybe 6th grade? I forget exactly), so this would have been in the early 1970s in southern California....our teacher had us raise silkworms as a classroom project. She knew there were mulberry trees growing in our general area, and would bring in bags of leaves to feed them. One time, I went to pick leaves when I cared for my silkworm over a school holiday. We got to watch the entire life cycle, and take home our silkworm cocoon....mine was bright yellow. I still have it some (mumble mumble) 45+ years later.
5 FT:
We trimmed up our bushes that looked like a jungle. We hire out a lot of our landscaping work but diy’d this.
Daughter took on a coaching position for summer swim so fee-free fit us this summer.
Invited family to our house for a bbq for my mom’s bday on Saturday. Cheaper and easier for us than eating out with my gluten free girls.
Got a good sized state tax refund because we cycled my daughter’s off campus housing payments through the 529 account.
Got my kid to an SAT test that was pretty distant. It cost us extra to manage the logistics but if she’s able to bump up her score a bit it will be key for college scholarships. This is a case where some initial outlay may pay back in bigger dividends long term.
PBS:”Miss Scarlett and the Duke” has 6 episodes ( season 2 delayed due to Covid),
“All Creatures Great and Small”. I decided my entertainment budget would cover a subscription to PBS.
1. Yesterday had me craving something chocolate but instead of purchasing candy to have in the house when the craving hits I whipped up a chocolate cobbler using ingredients we already had on hand and it was fabulous. For those who might be interested do a google search for Southern Living's Chocolate Cobbler - it is like a brownie fell in love with a molten chocolate lava cake. Yum.
2. We harvested a good deal from the garden this week including squash, zucchini, spinach, various herbs and our first few peppers of the season. We added these items to meals and enjoyed them immensely.
3. My favorite part of the Spring and Summer....flowers to bring in doors!! I cut beautiful arrangements of hydrangeas, gardenias, purple coneflowers, daisies, bee balm and greenery to supplement them. I love to have flowers in my home and virtually free is wonderful as many of these are plants that we planted years ago so they require minimal maintenance to thrive.
4. I am ordering my contacts for the year and using flex dollars to pay for that subscription.
5. I purchased 35 pounds of strawberries from a local farm and put away 27 pints of strawberry jam. I know this sounds like a bunch but it will last our family more than a year.
Enjoy the week!
A bit off topic but I couldn't help noticing in the photos that the stems were left on the mulberries in the yogurt. I know nothing about mulberries but my inclination would be to remove fruit stems before eating - like cherries & blueberries for example. Perhaps mulberries are consumed with the stems intact?
Same thought crossed my mind!
The mulberries I grew up with in Kansas always had stems that were reluctant to be removed. Attempting removal before eating was guaranteed to give you purple fingers. So sometimes I would put the berry in my mouth with my fingers on the stem and de-stem it that way at the time of eating. And other times I just chomped and swallowed. 😀
But I was usually grabbing a handful from the seat of my open-cab tractor as I pulled close enough to a tree in a fence row during summer fieldwork, so I have no idea what "inside etiquette" is for eating mulberries!
The stems on mulberries aren't "woody" like a cherry or something. They're pretty soft and green--easy to eat with the mulberries. Much easier than trying to get them off. Mulberries are really soft, very juicy, and stain EVERYTHING, so it's best to avoid squeezing them. 🙂 Unless you're making juice, which I would absolutely encourage. It makes your hands (and kitchen) look like the scene of a very exuberant butchering, but it is, bar none, the best juice in the entire world.
PBS Masterpiece recommendation - the new "All Creatures Great and Small." It is the best bit of comfort television I have watched in a long time. After each episode, I just gave a very contented, satisfied sigh. My fourteen-year-old son enjoyed it also. They are supposed to be filming a second season now; we are eagerly anticipating it.
I second that. We are new to having a PBS Passport and just finished the first season and awaiting the second.
I loved it too!!! Sadly, there is only one season. I hope more will be coming!
Eagerly awaiting the second season, too!
1. I spent more at the store than usual...which sounds unfrugal, but the reason is I'm trying to go to this grocery store less often. If I go less often, there should be less impulse buys and saves time.
2. While at the store I grabbed some cookies off the sale shelf. I like having some store-bought cookies on hand for easy desserts when we have guests. While it's nice to make a homemade dessert, it saves me time and stress having this in case I don't get around to it.
3. We bought chicken leg/thighs in bulk and I froze them in ziplocks. We've found this is a cheaper source of protien than beef.
4. I'm keeping track of our food expenses this month. I'm curios to know exactly what we spend, not how much I estimate.
5. We went to town today, combining multiple errands saving on gas.
One of my favorite PBS period dramas is Poldark - set in a small town in England it follows Capt. Ross Poldark's life as he returns from fighting in the American Revolution - love, loss, birth, marriage, death - it has it all! There are five seasons.
I can have a bad day just because I've pushed myself too hard or slept badly. Then the slightest trigger sets a full-on attack. Chronic inflammation builds up in your body. Once I set off a whole bad week because I drove home with the windows down and passed some farm fields. Asthma is weird. The first attack I remember, I was 3. My mom says there were earlier ones. I hope her doctor has some answers.
I have no idea why this posted twice.
1. As always, shopped at Aldi.
2. Used a Texas Roadhouse gift card for dinner out on Friday night.
3. My mom, who is an active 85 years old, is now having trouble with mundane household chores such as dusting and vacuuming, changing lightbulbs, mopping, etc. she was considering hiring a service but instead, I rounded up my kids and we all hit her house like a tornado Sunday afternoon. Even my 9-year old granddaughter helped quite a bit. My son removed leaves and pine needles from the roof, hauled some large pieces to the curb for heavy trash pick up, and at 6-foot-4, was the logical choice for dusting ceiling fans and the tops of china cabinets. My youngest daughter was on kitchen duty, cleaned stove and countertops,etc then my middle daughter steam mopped the floor and that of the bathrooms as well. It was hard work but I told my mom she had the cleanest dirty house I’d ever seen… none of it was that bad at all.
4. DIY’d a flowerbed makeover. Pulled out an ugly shrub I’ve hated forever, and replanted with plants I got on sale.
5. Cooked from scratch.
Hello Kristen. Have you tried Homeopathy for Sonia's asthma? It's really helpful! And this herbal remedy is a game-changer for allergy relief https://amzn.to/2TaKXbU. I hope she feels better soon.
1. There's another wave of COVID going through our church (including people who had it last fall) and we have several people hospitalized, so I've been making meals for their families at home and other people who are sick at home. A friend had given us extra frozen chicken and egg noodles, so I combined those with homemade broth to make soup. I've fed 45+ people over the last three weeks for less than $8 or of pocket. (my time is another matter entirely...) I'm also thankful that my vaccination seems to be doing its job of protecting me and allowing me to serve others.
2. I happened to be at our WalMart when they were clearancing some shelves and picked up a $40 hand vac for $5 to replace our dying one. I also picked up giant boxes of diapers for $5 each and passed those on as baby gifts.
3. I organized my menu this week around what needs to be used to. Yay for frugal and saving food!
I gave myself food poisoning last week trying to use up some old sausage from pizza. I haven't had food poisoning in a while, so that was annoying. But it's a known danger with my congenital anosmia. I just need to do better with dating things and making sure I follow the dates.
Praying you find answers for the asthma! Flare ups like that can be so discomfitting since you don't know what's causing them!
🙁 Poor Sonia. Keep us posted on her health.
We had my son's graduation party over the weekend so it doesn't feel like I was terribly frugal! However, I did have dinner ready in the crockpot on Friday before graduation, I had purchased Subway subs to store in a cooler for us to gobble down Saturday (we had his Eagle Scout Court of Honor in the morning followed by his open house in the afternoon--we had it at our church and their current covid restrictions prohibited us to serve food so we had goodie bags instead--due to the timing of everything, I knew my hangry family would need lunch so that worked out well). Sunday was the day that the graduates were honored in church and after we got home I hit the easy button and made scrambled eggs/toast/sausage for lunch. And then I napped! So, my thinking is that I would easily have spent a lot more money ..... I guess that's a frugal win?
I'm a new asthma sufferer (developed it after decades of allergies destroying my lungs.) I actually had a small "issue" (not ER worthy but not fun) at work yesterday. Luckily I got it early before
Montelukast has been a big help for me. Not having restricted airways is better.
But let's see what I've done lately.
1.) BJ's sent me a $5 off any purchase order. I bought a rotisserie chicken which at $4.99 was ineligible for the coupon, so I had to buy some bread too. So $2.50 for a chicken and some bakery bread was not a bad deal at all.
2.) After switching to the new Ting plans last month (I was on an old legacy plan) I can say that I am saving money. Unlimited talk and text is nice too.
3.) Ordered some checks through Amazon (yes, strangely we still have to write checks in 2021!) but ordering them via Amazon qualified me for a $10 credit for spending on Prime Day, so I can use that on something I need anyway.
4.) The last of my CDs matured and since CDs are effectively negative interest these days (when you consider opportunity loss and inflation which the feds claim doesn't exist) we are using the money to finance our home improvement project.
5.) Paying my car insurance in full saves me something like $150 vs monthly. This is definitely one of those "taxes on the poor" it feels like but I am still happy to take advantage of the discount (which sure as heck beats any interest I'd get from a bank these days!) I also chatted with an agent and got another $73 off since we don't drive nearly as much as we used to. Finally I paid with a credit card that has cash back rewards so another discount. (is that three in one?)
This week I...
1) Became a property manager for our first rental property! When we purchased our new house, we were lucky enough to be in the position to keep our old house as a rental, if we wanted. It is a very hot market in Portland, and it is tempting to sell high and quickly and be done with it. BUT. In the long term, renting it out is a wiser choice. And I don't want to pay a property manager to handle work I'm capable of managing, so learning how to do something new was a frugal choice.
2) Made the kids wait for dinner. The steam time on the package of tamales was wildly inaccurate, and dinner was taking forever last night. I could have thrown in the towel and moved to take-out, but I didn't. I just handled hungry, impatient kids for awhile and eventually everyone was fed.
3) Ordered strawberries by the flat vs. random pints here or there. The kids go through them SO FAST that buying a few pints of berries at a time can get really expensive. Even a flat disappears really quickly, but at least the price per pint is cheaper.
4)Fixed a clothesline so we can hang dry all summer and save energy costs (and have sunshine-smelling sheets and towels)
5) Made dog treats. We're doing lots of training with our golden retriever "puppy" (10 months old and 80 lbs!!). Good treats add up FAST. I use canned pumpkin (bought in bulk from Costco last November), pb and chickpea flour (made in the vitamix from whole dried chickpeas).
Would love to have the recipe for those dog treats.
I just discovered some mulberry bushes in the park near our house last summer! A woman was picking them, so I asked her about them - then next time brought a container and harvested my own. I put them in a mixed-berry cobbler. Ours probably won't be ready until near the end of the month here in Hardiness Zone 5b.
Thank you for the visual eating mulberries. I have a huge mulberry tree in our yard and never knew what to do with the berries. When ripe will be picking.
We cleaned out our big barn/shed last week, which had several benefits of a frugal nature.
1) We had never sorted through the stuff in one half of the barn that the previous owner left behind, and we found quite a bit of usable material--window screen, pallets, actual windows, wood, etc.--that my husband can use for various projects.
2) We put the boys to work removing hardware from junky old doors and such, so now we have quite a few hinges, latches, and so on.
3) Now that the space is open on the smaller, dirt-floored side, we can use it for animals. So we put the chicks in there, which got them out of the too-small tote they were in without having to build something in-between for them. The barn is close enough to the house to run an extension cord for a heat lamp for them, which they still need at night. (And because I know someone is thinking that a heat lamp in a barn is asking for trouble . . . We know. It's set up so that if it falls, it unplugs, and also falls on a dirt floor.)
4) I raked up all the waste hay on the bigger side of the barn where we had stored hay in the winter and used it to mulch my tomatoes, asparagus, and rhubarb. Back-breaking work, but it saves some on weeding, and, most importantly, watering.
Poor Sonia. I hope they can figure this out!
1. I have a few stretch silicone lids (Lekue brand) but I always find myself needing another one, plus I didn't have any of the "watermelon" size, like Kristen's. I went to the Lekue website and they had a set of six, going from 2 of the smallest size, a size I use a lot, to the big watermelon one. The set is on sale for $50. I signed up for emails and got 10% off. Shipping was free since it was over $35. I have $40 in Swagbucks that I will transfer to my Paypal, then to my bank account. So, I will get six very nice silicone stretch lids for -- $5.
2. My boss gave me a bag of cleaned fish from his Gulf fishing expedition this weekend. It was so good!
3. I have taken lunch to work all but two days this year so far. Both of those days were for times when I knew our office would be going out for lunch as a group.
4. I'm eating blueberries and blackberries off of my bushes. Figs are on their way!
5. I'm still cooking from scratch every single day. It's tiresome, but it sure saves money.
I am planning a 1 night mini-vacation with my husband and was able to get the hotel free with honor points earned before the pandemic. The points were set to expire last year, but the expiration date was extended to the end of this year. Yeah, for low or no cost hotel rooms!
I purchased a state park sticker and now that I am 65, it only costs half the price of the regular sticker. It is good at all state parks, recreation areas, and trails for the entire year. So, part of our mini-vacation will be walking some trails and seeing some of the beautiful sights in our state parks. A good deal, plus some frugal exercise too!
I always use grocery fuel points for gas. As the prices go up, and we get out on the road more, this will be even more important to do.
I finally switched to summer clothes and am happy to say they still fit and I have plenty to wear!! I should not need to buy any new clothes this summer.
The best of all-after having the stomach flu last week I lost my taste for diet soda, at least for now. (I have had 1 can per day for many years). Today is Day 7 without any and I am trying to do this permanently-for health and cost reasons. So far it has not been too difficult. I am thinking it was more of a habit than actually needing it, but we will see as time goes by. Some day I will figure out the cost savings. I am replacing the soda with our delicious well water, so no cost there.
1. I had a bad day and got take out for the first time in a longgg time. Used coupons in my Dominos app and got pizza and garlic twists for less than 13 dollars. 3 meals for me and Hubby.
2. Cooking a lot with home grown herbs. My dill, thyme, chives, lemon balm, oregano and mint all came back. FREE HERBS The invasive herbs are in pots! ( mild winter here this year).
3. I got some baby gifts on clearance at Kohls. ( 14.00 separates for 2.80 plus 20 percent off). I stocked up the baby gift drawer...it was nearly empty. Our neighbors are expecting their first any day and a coworker just had her first. Babies are precious!
4. Bought some Brownie Mixes for 50 cents each at Kroger to have on hand for quick cook out desserts for summer. Maximum allowed ( 5). I bought the maximum.
5. We just did a full gut job of upper bathroom. It went over budget....we had cash saved. Our only major project to go over budget in a full house 23 month do it yourself house remodel. I made the art accents from items found at home: cute pics cut out of magazine, frames, and a beautiful gift bag. The art really looks nice....EVEN my young adult son commented ( on bathroom art????? WOW). Zero dollars spent.
If you are a Masterpiece fan, you MUST watch Atlantic Crossing! It's a dramatization of the friendship between FDR and Crown Princess Martha of Norway. My husband is Norwegian and had family in the Norwegian resistance during WWII, so it was too personal for him. However, I hung on every second of it.
This was another possibly great series that irritated me with the gratuitous sex in the very beginning. What the heck did their sex life have to do with anything?
Thanks for the great cookie/ candy recipe! Today is my husband's bday and I'm making his dinner of choice but wasn't going to make dessert. This was perfect, not too difficult (easy actually) and sweet but not too heavy either
I would definitely make them in the 8x8 next time. Mine were pretty thin
If you can get “The Durrells in Corfu” on Masterpiece, it is my favorite! So charming for young and old! Be sure to see it. Several seasons and leaves you wanting more. Based on a true story.
I read, that autobiography! "My family and other animals" if I recall correctly. Hugely enjoyable.
Amazing how different tastes are---I detested that series. I found the characters totally unsympathetic and realized after a few episodes that I didn't care if they all drove off a cliff so I stopped watching. But most of my friends loved it, so maybe I am the weird one--Ha!
Lindsey, I disliked the first season--I thought the kids were spoiled brats and the mom was nuts for allowing them to behave as they did. However, the second season was much more fun to watch. I don't think it would interest younger viewers (except for the animals) and some of the content seemed more appropriate for adults rather than kids. The scenery was gorgeous and I think it might be nice to watch in the middle of the winter when craving warmer weather.
I read My Family and Other Animals and enjoyed it but some of the other books by the same author seemed to drag.
I enjoyed this show too! Especially the mother!
The mulberries look delicious!
On the topic of high heels: I read that royals and celebrities who spend much time waiting in high heels (during speeches, on red carpets etc) wear their shoes a size bigger because their feet will get swollen in the course of the day.
On frugal habits:
Toasted leftover bread for toast and breadcrumbs
Made grilled veg pasta sauce from sundry leftover vegetables
Cleaned out my pantry so I would not buy foods I already had plenty of
Asked the gardener to inspect some patio tiles that were substandard. They were put in in the beginning of the year. Substandard quality acknowledged, proposal to solve coming soon.
We asked quotes for some repairs but the first one was too high. The repairs are cosmetic, not urgent so we can afford to look around for someone cheaper.
Have an enjoyable week!
Ooh, I had forgotten about those chocolate peanut butter squares. I used to make them often, using your recipe. Sounds like it's time for me to make them again. I especially like that recipe because I almost always have all the ingredients on hand already. And I remember they go fast around here.
1. Used a few store coupons to help knock the cost of our weekly shopping down to $88, the lowest of recent weeks.
2. Altered another thrifted shirt to make the neckline more suitable for the office.
3. Had a huge package of pork neckbones that were getting a spot of freezer burn. Cooked them in broth, picked the meat off the bones and added barbecue sauce. Side dish was an acorn squash and big sweet potato that needed to be used up. They were peeled, diced, tossed in olive oil and seasoning, and roasted. All was delicious and no food waste.
4. Used up the last of some aging strawberries and cherries to make yogurt parfaits for my work lunches.
5. Instead of a fancy water bottle, I use a white ceramic mug found in my old work office and fill it up often. This lets me get away from my desk and stretch my legs.
Five frugal things
1. Planned menu for the week based on what we had in the freezer and from our bi-weekly CSA.
2. Found a 2nd real estate agent to give us an assessment of value on our college son's home. Want to make sure we aren't leaving money on the table. We're hoping to recoup all the mortgage payments we made while he was in college which would mean instead of wasting the money on rent, he'd have a sizable down payment on the next home.
3. Returned several items that I ordered that did not work out.
4. Made overnight oatmeal to use up oatmeal I found when cleaning out the cabinet
5. The clock in the family room died and I was shopping for replacements when I found one when cleaning out my son's closet.
We found a place for our Christmas trip to Austin. We found the hotel on Hotels.com but then we also checked the website and found a better deal there!! That is cause for a happy dance!!
XOOX
Jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
1. In preparation for super hot weather, I cooked and baked, and cooked and baked some more, so that I wouldn't have to use the stove or oven and so that no food went to waste.
2. Air conditioner died just when the heat wave began. So grateful for ceiling fans while we waited several days for the repair.
3. Went to Aldi for the first time. Because of comments on this blog, I knew about the 25 cents per cart. I returned two stray carts and pocketed 50 cents. On the way to my car, a man asked if I had change for a dollar so that he could rent a cart. I gave him a quarter.
4. Attempted to make homemade sour cream. Instead used the runny mixture as buttermilk.
5. While shopping at Target I was offered a free bottle of nail polish in recognition of "National Nail Polish Day" (who knew?!). Since I don't polish my nails, I was offered a very nice nail file/buffer instead ($3 value). I think I have been whittling away at my stash of emery boards for a hundred years (give or take).
I would highly recommend Jamestown on pbs masterpiece.
1. We purchased a whole cow to share with my parents and my sister/her family. Good local, grass fed beef at a much better price than the grocery store. Unfortunately my mom "met" the little guy at her friends' farm a couple days before he was slaughtered. 🙁 This gives the meat more of a "face" for my animal-lover self, so I need to get past that... at least he was at a happy little farm.
2. Taking advantage of some free educational videos for my kids.
3. Listed more items on Facebook marketplace. Haven't sold as many yet as I'd like, but I know they eventually will.
4. Bought a facial oil that is supposed to work as a moisturizer, but it didn't absorb and seemed to irritate my skin if I left it on. So I'm not using it as a moisturizer, but it works great as a makeup remover. So it's still getting used.
5. Watching my kids enjoy activities that don't cost much of anything.... baking, painting, jumping on the trampoline, riding their scooters, watching free kids' shows on youtube, playing with their barbies and American Girl dolls, play doh, etc. etc. It's good for them to enjoy being at home learning to to make their own fun, plus it makes them more appreciative of the paid-for activities we offer them.
5FT
1. Cooking meals at the rental I’m currently staying in instead of going out or getting take out
2. Getting COBRA until my new ins kicks in because it’s better to pay and have ins then risk getting stuck with a huge bill if an accident or emergency happens
3. &4.Packed food from my own fridge that I could eat this week in a cooler and brought to the rental so saved money and prevented food waste
5. Since I’m currently in a state of transition for the next few months I cancelled my Hulu plus subscription (may it RIP) so that should save me a good chunk of change.
*also I like period dramas too but be forewarned that Bridgerton on Nexflix is very risqué. I like it but would never watch it with my parents or grandmas. I’d stick to the ones on PBS they are probably safer!
If you were involuntarily terminated you may be eligible for a subsidy so you don't have to make payment for the monthly cobra payments.. April thru September
Hi Michele, Thank you so much for that information. Luckily I left on my own terms before they gave me the boot(Hah!)( they are trying to get rid of people with seniority ). But my new ins with my new employer does not kick in for 30 days.
I agree, skip Bridgerton with your teens! Very uncomfortable, even watching alone. I stopped that one, but I did love Downton Abbey.
1. I used digital coupons at Sprouts to get 7 items and paid only 59 cents in tax (we have a high tax rate here, even on food).
2. I treated a friend to a Panera birthday lunch using a gift card I received for Mother's Day so no out-of-pocket cost to me.
3. So far for the month of June, I've spent only $10.51 on produce at Aldi and 59 cents at Sprouts. I've had no other spending. I am trying for an almost no spend month.
4. I watched several movies on the free streaming services I can access and checked out free books from the library.
5. A bone density scan was recommended at my last appointment. Insurance covered the total cost. Bad news though - the scan showed I have early stage osteoporosis in my spine and osteopenia in my hips. I have been referred to an orthopedic doctor who specializes in this.
1. My husband found a newer lawn mower in our neighbor's trash earlier this month. He fixed it for $16. I promptly sold our other, smaller lawn mower (that was also free) for $55.
2. I picked up Crayola Color Wonder paper and a seed growing kit off Buy Nothing. These will be Christmas presents for my son. Also picked up a large computer screen off Buy Nothing. This will help my husband and I both work from home easier.
3. I moved into a bigger office. Instead of buying new decorations for the walls I hung up lots of my kid's art work. It looks beautiful and makes me smile.
4. We went to my mom's house for a birthday dinner for me and my twin sister. She sent us home with leftovers.
5. We found a slip-n-slide for our kids this week for $10. It has so far been hours of fun for our kids.
Love #3. I use so much of my kids' artwork to decorate my house. It can look really nice in a frame... even stick figures! Plus it definitely sparks joy. 🙂
Yes!! It makes ne so happy!!
yummy recipe--will have to try soon!
1) Planning lots of free summer fun on our calendar with our parks department, VBS, summer reading program, etc.
2) We visited my in-laws at their RV park in MI and used their state park pass to go to the beach. When they left and we still had some time for a quick 2nd beach trip, we walked into the park instead of driving in (saving $11).
3) Sold My Father's World homeschool books/flashcards in a MFW facebook group.
4) Checked out a try-it embroidery kit from my public library--came with fabric/thread too to keep. Might become a future hobby of mine:)
5) Sunbutter was on sale, so I stocked up. My youngest can't eat nut butter.
1) My sons school is having a spirit week and one of the days was tropical day. He didn’t have anything to fit that theme but I saw someone giving away boys shirts in his size on my local buy nothing group, one of which was a tropical shirt, so I picked them up!
2) My sister is visiting from out of state and she spent the day here today. The temptation was to pickup takeout or go out to eat with her but I was able to make us a nice lunch and will make a nice dinner. We did go out in the afternoon for a boba tea treat, much cheaper than going out for two meals though!
All I can think of for now!
1) I've been working on getting the security deposits back on utilities for over a month. It's ridiculously difficult here in Hong Kong; I think they hope that you will just give up, but they don't know who they are dealing with. Ha. So far, I've received 2 out of 4 ($206 USD so far) and will keep at it.
2) One of the burners on our 2 burner stovetop unexpectedly broke about 2 weeks ago. I told the landlord, and we are in the process of helping to get a new one installed. The new one came with a free gift, a 3 liter ceramic sukiyaki pot. It's from Australia, and very nice. Sadly, I do not have room to take it with me, but it will be a nice welcome gift for the new tenants.
3)We continue to eat up leftovers and bit and pieces of everything in the cupboards...
And that's all I can think of this time around!
1. After visiting SO many stores to try to find a kiddie pool (ours died over the winter) and pools being out of stock everywhere, we ordered online. I purchased a birthday gift for my nephew to get us up to free shipping.
2. I did my first Meijer pick-up order this week. They had to substitute some things that were part of a buy 2 get 1 free and I asked to make sure one was still free. He had to manually make the adjustment and gave me the more expensive one for free.
3. Same order didn't take off a $5 coupon (get $5 off when you spend $20 in baby wipes), so I called customer service. 13 minutes on the phone got a $5.50 coupon added to my account for my next purchase.
4. We were on the road during dinnertime tonight, so I packed food instead of going through a drive thru. Also packed a picnic lunch for a park playdate yesterday.
5. On the back corner of our house there's a little area we converted to a flower bed this year but we weren't sure what to put in it. After spreading out some compost, we now have about 25 little tomato plants growing!! So this year it'll have free tomato plants in it.
Sooooo excited that you took the plunge and foraged those Mulberries!! They really are just amazing. We also hold down branches for others to strip when we forage...and even take a ladder at times. Those berries are worth their weight in gold!
5FT
1. Made bone broth with a bag of leftover frozen pork and chicken bones. Used onion peels and the good parts of a mouldy carrot. As I strained it my husband wondered out loud if we could grind the bones to make bone meal. Has anyone tried this??
2. Planted some more perennial onion that I got from a local plant share group. Hoping to be able to have a steady supply of shallots and green onion from our garden.
3. Made guacamole with cilantro from our herb garden. Cut up and quickly deep fried some corn wraps as we had no corn chips left. We ate these with our guac on Sunday and it was sooo delicious I think we'll make our corn chips this way from now on.
4. Bought 15 vintage Bobbsey Twins books for $50 for my voracious 6 yr old reader via Marketplace.
5. Bought Pullups via Marketplace for our 3 yrold. 99 pullups for $15 sounds good to me!
Oh Sonia, I feel your pain. I hope it passes for you soon. I used to end up in the ER every June when I was your age. I started yoga in my 20s and since there is such a focus on controlling your breathing, I have been able to use those skills to help relax when I have one of those not-awesome but not-quite-ER episodes. I still do free videos from YouTube Yoga with Adriene almost every day. I used to watch pbs with my mom, too, during those episodes, but that was because it was the 80s and we didn’t have cable where we lived or very many other options 🙂
Good morning!
We do not have a brother with hotel discounts, but one of my fft is about travel as well.
1) I read a while back that rental car prices are going to sky rocket this year. I decided to reserve the rental we'll need asap instead of waiting. I checked the price of the same rental last night and it has gone up 1000 already! (It's a long trip for our 20th anniversary this year!)
2) I went to work yesterday even though everything in me wanted to stay home or be late. I have the sick time/absence allowance to cover it, but now I will still have those, and my day went pretty well!
3) I bought some corn on the cob at .10 an ear... 48 ears worth, we ate 12 and I prepped and froze the rest.
4) my oldest is in the waiting stage for his first apartment (they gave him the address, but it won't be available until Sept), so we packed up as a family amd drove there last night to see which building it was. As we lived there when we first moved to the area, I already knew, but super exciting for him! We then went to Culvers to celebrate that and the end of the school year. We had received coupons, so we got BOGO cement mixers, and BOGO sundaes... and the fifth kid in the car actually asked for a pop. So only 11 something and a fun time!
5) I'm a little ashamed of this one, but our library has removed late fees, so all my overdue books will not cost me something. Although at this point I think I'm going to offer to pay for the book they think we lost. I can't find it and they can't find it.
We are getting ready for a week long camping trip, so I feel as though my week is not very frugal, however, I'll give it a try.
1. Our upcoming camping trip will require a 6 hour car ride. I decided that I would NEED something to keep the kids entertained. On top of some other things, I purchased some silly candy that I will put in paper bags and allow the kids to choose which bag they get during the ride. The paper bags I plan to take right back from them so that they can be re-used for lunch bags when we get back OR sick bags (which I'm really hoping we DON'T need).
2. I found some online printables of car ride games for the kids.
3. We are planning a surprise Disney trip for our kids in the winter. I've been feverishly saving money each day. Hubby's co-worker is a Disney Vacation Club member who is going to sell us her points. 7 nights for $1500, I think is a steal in Disney. Now on to find more money saving techniques for this trip. If you have any, please share.
4. Surprised by one of the families in my girl scout troop by a nice Dunkin Donuts gift card as a thank you for my service.
That's about it for me this week.
Hi! For your Disney trip, if you're staying in one of the Vacation Club villas they have full kitchens. Definitely eat breakfast in your room. And keep snacks in the room to take to the park with you. Instacart delivers to all the Disney resorts or take an Uber to Walmart, It's not far. One of the best souvenir things to do is pin trading. Before you go to Disney buy a bag of pins and a pin lanyard off of Ebay . You can buy 100 for around $50. These things sell at Disney for a minimum of $5 each. Your kids can wear the lanyards with some pins that they are willing to trade to the parks, most cast members have pins that they wear just for trading with guests. It's lots of fun!
You can buy Disney giftcards for a discount at BJs wholesale club (probably other places too) and use those for park admission and inside the park. Also checkout undercovertourist.com for a park crowd calendar. That way your can see which parks are the least busy on which days. If your kids will want Disney shirts, get them ahead of time at Target or Walmart and take them with you.