Five Frugal Things | a mostly spendy one
Item #3 today was particularly spendy...but not as spendy as it COULD have been. 😉
1. I got my book club book for $0.99
I accidentally forgot to get this month's book from the library. Book club is on Thursday and I realized this on Sunday. That left no time for my usual cheap-book-acquisition practices! What to do??
I looked at buying the Kindle version and then saw it was free with Kindle Unlimited. So I signed up for a $0.99 two-month trial and downloaded the book.
And while I was at it, I ordered next month's book on eBay for $3 (it is unavailable at my library).
2. I saved $94 on an eye doctor bill
Cigna processed my claim as out of network for some odd reason, even though this doctor is most definitely in-network.
So you know what's coming next: I called them. I (nicely) dispute every medical billing error I find!
(Sometimes I think Cigna is probably very tired of me. But on the other hand, if they stopped making errors, I would stop calling them.)
At first, the phone rep told me, "Yep, this was an out-of-network service." but I politely pointed out that Cigna's own website lists this doctor as in-network. So, after a hold where she chatted with an adjuster, she was able to reprocess it as in-network. Yay!
So, a $94 refund should be coming my way.
3. I used a Hershey Park discount
I got an email from them offering good-for-any-day tickets at the kid price vs. the adult price.
This is still pretty expensive, but it is less outrageously expensive this way.
So, I bought three, and I will take Zoe and a friend there for a day this summer.
I also bought pre-paid parking, which will save me $5.
4. I took advantage of a Native deodorant sale
I keep meaning to finish my post about this, but I switched away from conventional deodorant a few years back, and Native is my favorite non-conventional brand.
It is definitely not cheap in comparison to conventional deodorant (it's usually $13/stick!), so I try to keep an eye out for deals on it. I got an email saying that Native was having a 20% off sale, so I bought a three-pack (a discount is automatically included there) + a single, and used the 20% off coupon on all of that.
And that was enough to qualify for free shipping.
So, I got four deodorants shipped to me for a total of $36, which works out to $9/apiece. I'm guessing these four will last me a year, so that works out to about $0.09/day, which is quite reasonable.
(Hmm. I just saw that you can get a three-pack on Amazon for $29, so that's pretty close to the deal I got from Native directly. Although it always feels slightly better to buy direct than through Amazon. Heaven knows Amazon gets enough of our money!)
5. I used a $5 Grove credit
They randomly sent me a $5 coupon, plus I had $25 in credits in my account, so I got a whole box of stuff for $7 out of pocket.
Yay!
FYI, Grove is most definitely not the cheapest place to get cleaning products these days, but they do usually have a good introductory offer for new customers...you can check out the current offer here.
I go to water exercises and wear boys swim shorts, women’s swimsuit tank and a swim shirt. The tank was worn out and I’ve been looking for a new one. I made the current one but haven’t had time to sew. As expensive as they are I was getting ready to just make one when I remembered a pair of sports bras I bought that zipped up. I didn’t like them(zipper unzipped and had put the unworn one in a donate box). I’ve used it twice now and it worked fine with the zipper safety pinned together.
My grocery is having a daily game, I play in the morning while I have my coffee. You watch cooking videos for a free chance. So far I won 60 cents off gas, $70 off groceries and a year membership in their delivery service. I probably won’t have anything delivered but along with the membership you get $5 monthly to spend on groceries.
I made fruit salad with some wrinkled apples and oranges stuck in the back of the fridge. We just didn’t finish them and I was going to bake something but this was easier and better for us. Also froze leftovers we we tired of, it’s been hard to cook less for the two of us. We had sausage soup from the freezer yesterday this leftover was just enough for two bowls.
Received our first electric bill after turning on the AC. It wasn’t as bad as I thought. We have it set where it’s not cold but cool enough we don’t sweat.
Kristen, I meant to ask about your library’s e-book selection. Mine has a good variety and you can recommend books. This works great on new books because it puts you on a list so if they buy it you get it quicker. I was first in line to get Nora Roberts new book on release day. The problem is on popular books the wait can be long so your selection may not have been available. But my library also has Hoopla which has books always available. I use it mainly for audiobooks.
I’d certainly be curious about your deodorant adventures post! I switched to using my husband’s Old Spice because I do not sweat delicately, and no ladies’ deodorant was strong enough. “Funk + flowers” is not a desirable scent!
Anyhow, FFT! 😛
—I signed up for and received a free packet of wildflower seeds. I just need to decide where in the yard to plant them! I’m thinking around one of the tree stumps.
—-My husband got four giant garbage bags of free mulch from his outdoor work, courtesy of several trees that fell victim to recent high winds. We’re using it around our fruit trees and to fill weird spots that are hard to mow, like the space between the garage and shed.
—Since I couldn’t find anyone nearby who sharpens reel push mower blades, I ordered a kit to do it myself. A kit is good for four sharpenings, so that $25 will more than pay for itself vs paying someone else four times. I’ll gladly spend a little more DYI time with our old timey mower instead of having to pay for still more gas (oof) and for the freedom to mow at 6 AM without bothering anyone. My pasty self burns no matter the SPF, so it’s 6 AM or bust for our lawn. 😛
—Dr. Arthritis, the brand that makes my nighttime compression gloves, sent me a voucher for a free product. Hello, new heavy-duty wrist brace! All that DIY is catching up to me. 😛
—I upcycled two more plastic cat litter tubs into garage storage totes for seasonal decorations, tools, etc. It may be slow going, but cardboard boxes are gradually being replaced with litter tubs. I’ve grown to prefer litter tubs for this since they stack, their size means one can’t overload them, and they come with handles. 😛
@N, I'm still chuckling over your "funk + flowers." I've been using men's deodorants since junior high school, so I'm in the same funky boat.
@A. Marie, Does men's deodorant really work better? I'm joining the funky club, and my Degree just laughs at me some days. 🙁
@Sarah C., in my experience (and apparently N's too), yes, it does. I generally use Old Spice High Performance, and when I find it at Ollie's, I stock up. But Degree never worked for me either.
@Sarah C., Ditto what A. Marie said. Old Spice Classic is my (and my husband's) go-to, and the scent is nice without being overpowering. Old Spice also has yet to irritate my skin, which isn't something I can say about most ladies' deodorants.
Chiming in--I do not like fragrances of any kind, and have found Secret Clinical (Sensitive, Unscented) to work best for me. I really, really hate sweating. I have tried the natural deodorants without antiperspirants and...just can't. I know I'm probably plugging my pores with aluminum that will kill me someday, but for now this is what I do. I look for coupons my grocery store puts out for my favorite brand.
My husband once got me Secret regular (Not Clinical) and it didn't work at all for me.
@Karen, I too hate scents. I use SURE, I scented. It’s fairly inexpensive as well. And works for me, even with all my sweating gardening I do.
@Kathy, meant to type ‘unscented’
@A. Marie, et al,
I've been using Mitchum men's antiperspirant/deodorant for a zillion years (I use unscented). It's the only "standard" one that works for me (I haven't tried any natural deodorants, so I can't say anything about that).
@Liz B., @A.Marie, et al,
I've been buying men's deodorants forever, mostly cause at one point I think they were cheaper than women's. Daughter and I are not girly girls so anything that keeps the stink gone is good for us. I usually tell hubby to get unscented.
Last week I was chillin most of the week alone in my basement/backyard keeping my *C* germs to myself! Spent a lot of time scrolling and online wheeling and dealing! lol
*Found a BST deal- 11 graduation table top decorations -unopened and not year stamped- for $5.00. These will go into a tub along with other deals I scour through the next year!
*Booked a local community park hall for June 2023 for my twins graduation party($200 rents the hall for the entire day-full kitchen/bathrooms/tables/chairs/air conditioning)
*planned an online grocery haul combining on app grocery coupons, matched with ibotta deals on a bonus day- grocery store child brought the order home after work.
(Then when ibotta never gave me the monies I emailed them, proved my order and got my money)
*Old Navy Cash back promo started so snagged a few shorts/shirts for the older son then went back and helped the girl get some shorts for work and used my $rewards on those
*killed time on the walgreens app and snagged a ton of great deals and in app coupon deals. earned back through Rakuten, plus earned walgreens dollars and then picked up from the store once my Q period was done and I could go out with my mask.
*Used my free time to inventory my freezer and pantry
1. Went to the big box store to buy a water heater blanket. After searching and getting help from two different sales associates, I finally found the only one they had in stock. The package was dusty and opened on one end, so the sales associate told me to ask for a discount. At the checkout I repeated what she had suggested and the cashier gave me a 50% discount! So I got it for 16 dollars, and once I get it installed, it should pay for itself pretty quickly since our water heater is estimated to be about 35% of our electric bill.
2. While there, I also bought two more window air conditioners which I installed but we haven't had to use yet because the weather has turned so pleasant this week. One of them had a bit of damage on the back from the packaging, so I took a picture and plan to ask the store for another discount. They might say no, but I figure it can't hurt to ask.
3. Bought a couple more plants on sale while I was there-some discounted flowers and a container of about twelve cucumber plants that I plan to pry apart. Seedlings were also "take as many as you want" from my farm share on Saturday. The choices were slimmer, but I've got a bunch more plants to plant now.
4. Cut the grass on Sunday for the first time this year. I'm seeing how long I can go between cuttings-better for the pollinators and saves me time and money.
5. Went u-picking when I picked up my farm share on Saturday. My farm always has something on u-pick, but I didn't always pick since my kids needed more supervision. Now they are old enough to help, so we got about 6 lbs of strawberries, a lb of mulberries, some sage and parsley and a nice bouquet of flowers. I picked lillies which the ants love, so I had the brilliant idea to pick some that weren't open yet. They opened the next day in the vase and were ant-free, yay!
The Red Tent is one of my favorite books, especially the first half. I hope you enjoy it as well.
@WilliamB, One of my favorites too. I read it again for a church study group and was amused at the reactions from some people--so many viewpoints are missing from conventional Old Testament books. I found it thrilling to read a women's history.
@WilliamB, same. Definitely in my top 5.
I love the Mrs.Myers lilac scented products but no one carries them locally. I was able to stock with Grove and it was a bit cheaper than bc they had a package deal
There aren't many novels that get space on my shelves. The Red Tent is one of the few that rates keeping. Hope you enjoy it.
I moved to more natural deodorant, too. I haven't tried Native yet, but usually use Tom's or Jason's, with Tom's being my favorite of the two. I tried Schmitt's (Schmidt's?) and it ate my underarms up! It looked like I had sandpapered them.
My frugal things:
1. I have free-standing open shelves in my laundry room, but what I've really always wanted is regular wooden cabinets, not open shelving. I went to the Habitat Restore last Friday and found vintage, but sturdy, solid wooden kitchen cabinets, for $15 per piece. I bought a double bottom unit, a double top unit and a single bottom unit to fit in the space of the shelves, for $45. The open shelves will go in the shed, where they are needed.
2. While at the Restore, I walked around and found attractive "tumbled stone" 4-inch square tiles for 25 cents each. I bought four of them and put little felt bumpers on the backs to use them as coasters, since all the over-priced fancy coasters I've been given have broken. I already had the felt bumpers for use on my cabinet doors.
3. I've started painting my bathroom cabinet myself. It could have been hired out, but I can do this, and many people do paint their own, so that's not that special. Where I'm being frugal is that I'm putting the same handles right back on instead of buying new ones to update the look. They are still good, still being sold today, and I still like them.
4. My credit union's website is still not fully functional yet, if you can believe it, but I can go online and do most things now. I paid my bills through their Billpay and saved myself checks and postage. I had to wait in line to log on and got timed out in the middle of paying bills, but I got it done.
5. I made sure to pay a tax bill in plenty of time, since paying earlier means paying less.
@JD, Excellent Habitat Restore scores! I love that place.
@N and @JD, I'm considering making a big donation to my local ReStore, after I have that garage sale of DH's tools I keep talking about.
Well, let's see . . .
I haven't had to get a Misfits Market delivery in several weeks, thanks to my mom bringing a ton of produce with her when she visited, and getting two of the excess commodities produce boxes. And my own garden, from which I am now getting lettuce, sugar snap peas, and dill. Yay!
Going to Tucson next week. We could do the drive in one day, but with kids, it's less stressful to stop somewhere overnight. So we're going to camp in the Chiricahua Mountains Friday. Tent camping is of course incredibly cheap, and also doesn't require a reservation. I don't remember the last time I saw more than one person in a tent camping area. RV areas are often full, but never the tent spots.
I already have a plan for the food we will have in the car and for camping. We never stop at restaurants when we're driving somewhere, both because of cost and inconvenience.
We're staying with my parents in Tucson and my brother in Phoenix one night, so we won't have any housing costs for the week.
We will be paying our teenage neighbor ("neighbor"--two miles away) to take care of our livestock while we're gone, but I am very happy to do this. I would much rather pay a teenager who is bored and will be excited to earn money than ask a favor from my adult neighbors who would be happy to help but definitely don't need any extra animal work. 🙂
@kristin @ going country, Enjoy Tucson! 🙂 I am there this week for work. Camping in the Chiricahuas is fun. I camped there with my hiking group in the Chiricahua national park about 15 years ago. The weather should be nice there. It will be hot in Tucson and especially in the Phoenix area (where I live).
We switched to using a PO Box for our mail when we moved--we had been using the UPS mail boxes, but the USPS is cheaper. When we went to check our mail at the new place, we found the local Kroger had sent us a nice coupon for 10% off our next shopping trip. So I used that, along with several other coupons and savings, and saved 25 bucks off my trip. Not too shabby.
Lately pre-formed frozen beef patties have been a better deal than ground beef at the store. I found a big 10 pound box (40 quarter pound patties) on sale, and it worked out to 2.99 a pound, as opposed to $4 a pound for the chubs we normally get. It served us well for three beef-based meals: pizzas (the boys like ground beef on their homemade personal pizzas), burger night, and sloppy joes. Sometimes the ground beef chubs are on sale, but not lately.
Sometimes you see the frugal light when you get sick of something. I was using sponges in the kitchen, but despite all my microwaving and bleaching, they smelled horrible after a week. So I switched (back) to dish cloths, nice thin dish cloths that dry quickly and can be washed more easily. If I were really frugal I'd learn to crochet or something so I could make my own out of rags or whatever.
Holding back on any fun purchases (which for me means books or art supplies) until next month. I forgot and put a couple of books in my Amazon cart, but remembered and saved them for later.
I forgot--we discovered mulberry trees (bushes?) in our backyard at the new place. Not enough, probably, to can or anything, but it's a fun free diversion for the kids to go pick a snack from the backyard! Now i know why we have so many birds back there, ha.
Mulberries are so good just eaten right off the tree! You are so lucky to have mature ones in your yard; mulberry trees take a lot of years before they start producing fruit.
Kristen,
This is the second place we've lived (in this area) where we had mulberry trees near our property. The last place, the landlord didn't even know there were mulberry trees in the park next to our house! And he lived there for 30 years!
@Karen, I use crochet dish cloths that I bought from a friend. I have enough that I can have a clean one every day.
Speaking of medical bill errors...I went to see my doctor that I'd seen for years but she was now in a new practice (still in network) and my husband also went for our 'Annual Well-Visit' appts. Well I got a big ol' fat bill of almost $500 and my husband was charged nothing (as he should). I went round and round with the girl who submitted the claim to the insurance company. She had every excuse in the book I tell yal. But then e
ven the dr. emailed her and asked her to correct it because that is my 'free' appt for the year. It took lots of phone calls and several weeks but she eventually fixed it. I have no idea what her problem was but I prevailed, lol. And kept my cool the whole time! But you've got to keep your eye on your medical bills for sure.
Yep. A watchful eye on the medical bills can save you big bucks!
@kris, I swear a solid 1/3 of my incoming gray is from time on the phone correcting/following up on insurance claims. The weirdest was the representative who refused to talk to me about a back-and-forth claim (covered, then not, then covered again, then not--seriously) for my husband despite my having medical power of attorney and previous permission from him saved on the account. The rep's response when I politely pointed out that I had medical PoA and was on record as having spoken to them about previous claims: "I don't care." I explained what happened to our dentist's office and asked if they could possibly call because I was too frustrated. I don't know what magic they worked, but our dentist's office either got the work covered (which we'd cleared with insurance ahead of time as necessary, I might add!) or wrote off that part of the bill, as we were only charged the initial post-insurance estimate.
@N, I feel compelled to point out that I made the mistake of working for a tele-survey company when I was a broke college student. Nothing, NOTHING will give one better phone manners than being screamed at, sworn at, you name it for an entire shift. When I have to make an insurance or service call, my goal is always to be the most reasonable, patient person a representative speaks to even if they end up not being able to help me. Thus, the "I don't care" rep was really out there!
1. Hosted family potluck dinner and was given many leftovers.
2. Took scrap metal to special recycling center. They even take tops of jars (like from pickles).
3. Next week I'm taking my niece on a trip to Maine (Portland to Bar Harbor and points in between). Nothing frugal about it so far except the AARP discount, but it will be totally worth it for the memories.
4. Cancelled monthly HVAC company service plan after they performed covered services. We hope to be moved by the time the next annual service is needed.
5. Carpenter friend was here to fix a fence. While he was here, he fixed several other things for us.
@MB in MN,
The coast of Maine is beautiful! I’m sure you’ll spend some time in Acadia and enjoy a lobster roll. There is much to see and do. Have a great time!
@MB in MN, there are lots of free/inexpensive things to do in Maine. Go to Only In Maine for a variety of ideas.
Thank you, Bee and Cathy B!
I have had a very spendy month. My husband and I attended the wedding of a family member who lives 1000 miles away. I am also hosting a baby shower this coming Saturday. Whew!!!! I’m trying to save where I can. Here are my FFT…
1) I sold two more items on eBay over the weekend. I have been trying to list things that I no longer need on various selling apps. The money I made the previous week was enough to pay for our transportation expenses (Uber) while attending the wedding mention above.
2) I borrowed a dress from my sister for rehearsal dinner. My dear friend gave me a pair of shoes that worked with the dress that I actually wore to the wedding and loaned me a pair of earrings.
3) Although it was tempting to eat at an nearby coffee shop, we ate breakfast and drank our coffee at the hotel. We received a discount in the restaurant while staying there and coffee is always free.
4) Although we used Uber to and from the airport and to and from the wedding events, we walked everywhere else logging in excess of 15k steps on Saturday and Sunday.
5) We did all the usual things when possible, we drank primarily filtered,
non-bottled water. I brewed my own coffee and cooked at home.
Wishing everyone peace and good health…
#1 - I needed a new black bathing suit top (mine was wearing in spots) and found one on Academy on clearance for $20! It's basically the same top with just a different print and it's an unusual top so I was glad to find one that was the same so I won't have weird tan lines.
#2 - My husband was looking for some bolts and nuts for a pole barn he's building to keep his boats under. The combo at Home Depot would have been $4 each (he needed 20 combos) but we found them at Rural King for .80 each! So instead of $80, we paid $16!
#3 - Speaking of the pole barn, this normally wouldn't be a frugal win because it's still expensive but we looked into a place that has them and it was almost $9000 installed. Then we looked at the pre-fab kits and it would have been between $6000-$7000. He mentioned to his boss he was wanting to build one and his boss said he had trusses he was fixing to sell on Marketplace but he'd let him have them for $500.00! And he had poles that they'd just took off another job that he GAVE him. We did have to pay full price for the beams (about $500) So with the trusses, the poles, beams and hardware were only in a little over $1000. He does have to buy some more beams and the metal roofing material, so about $2500 more. But it looks like we'll get this built for around $3500-$3800, which is WAY cheaper than the other options. And it'll protect his boats from this brutal Florida sun which can really damage expensive toys!
#4 - Friday night is our date night but going out to eat is getting super expensive. So (again my husband's boss) just got back from a fishing trip to the Keys and gave my husband a really nice Mahi fillet. So instead of going out my husband stopped on the way home and got a couple of small steaks, 2 pcs of corn and some rolls. He grilled all of it including the Mahi for a delicious Surf-Turf dinner for $27! We hung out in the pool until grilling time and had the most lovely evening. And we saved gas because we didn't have to drive anywhere.
#5 - I roasted up some veggies that we're about to go bad and combined them with rice and leftover chicken and having that for lunch at work this week. What I couldn't save went into the compost bin.
On Wednesday I found a number of big brand clothing items on clearance at K Mart. I bought my eldest granddaughter eight items of Bluey clothing for $6.50. I also found a knitting book which was reduced to $5. The knitting book is so beautiful and could be used as coffee table book.
I found site that enables you to have items from K Mart mailed to you for free. The first month is free and the monthly cost for this service is $4. I will be making the most of that month to see if it worthwhile. I have used this to buy two novels and some puzzles for little girl birthdays.
I have set myself a strict money limit for this fortnight and so far I am doing well.
I have stuck to the eat at home plan and have only had one meal out with my daughter and granddaughter.
I am becoming more mindful about what I am buying to eat. Hopefully this will help with endless weight problems.
We attended a wedding last weekend (technically it was just a reception, they got married via zoom on their original wedding date in March 2020, this was just the chance to finally celebrate with everyone!) so like you, not necessarily frugal but more frugal than it could have been.
1. My parents watched our kids for the weekend and a friend stayed with our dog so that saved us a lot!
2. I wore a dress and shoes that I already owned (no need to buy new when I haven’t worn any of it for 2+ years so it’s all like new to me haha)
3. The hotel we stayed at had free breakfast.
4. Non-wedding related, I had bought some items on ThredUP and 2 didn’t fit well and one did not match the described condition (swim trunks for my son, someone had cut out the mesh liner but that wasn’t mentioned in the description) Its a hassle to return things, especially by mail, but it’s a waste to keep them unused. Luckily since I returned to the office it easier because there’s a post office nearby and it’s an easy thing to complete on my lunch break.
5. This is a prospective savings but we are starting potty training with our daughter. She just turned 2 and our son was closer to 2.5 when we did potty training but she seems ready (mostly because she wants to be like her older brother) and it’s been going well so far. It will be so nice to be done with diapers both for the cost and the time and unpleasantness of changing them.
Your #5: one of the earliest posts I did on my blog was about potty training Zoe! I hate potty training, so I was calculating all the cost savings in order to motivate myself. 😉
I remember going to Hershey Park when I was younger and lived in Delaware and Maryland - fun!! I love all the kiss-shaped details 🙂
Here's my Six FT:
- Last Friday I bought groceries at Publix and got a gas gift card at $10 off. I was careful to buy items at a good price to avoid negating the gas card discount.
- Today I shopped at Target and got $10 off my bill using a new Target Circle coupon. Woot!
- When hubby and I wanted to eat out over the weekend, we split a sandwich and paid around $10. We drank water we brought from home.
- I accumulated enough Swagbucks to redeem for an Amazon gift card. I'm saving up gift cards to purchase a shipping scale to replace the vintage kitchen scale (which used to be my mom's) I've been using for the past 10+ years. Bonus - I'm hoping the more accurate scale will lower my shipping costs going forward, since I usually overestimate weight due to the old scale.
- I used my Starbucks stars to get free drinks for me and hubby. Another bonus - all of my Starbucks funds have come from gift cards either gifted to me or earned from rewards programs. Woot!
- Hubby and I picked up a bunch of free N95 masks at our local CVS when he got his booster. The sign said that there was no limit. We'll take em!
FFT, Cast-Iron Update Edition:
(1) I posted recently about trashpicking two pieces of cast-iron cookware (a Griswold #5 frying pan and a small muffin pan) in filthy condition. Well, by gum, after three trips through the Easy Off oven cleaner/black trash bag in the sun method, some careful scouring with fine steel wool, and an afternoon of oven seasoning, those babies are CLEAN. Not perfect, mind you, but free of rust and crud, with just enough "character marks" to be interesting. I can't decide whether to use them or just hang them on the kitchen wall and admire my work!
(2) I suppose I can also count using up DH's old can of Easy Off. He kept it for cleaning ovens in rental properties (we have a self-cleaner at home).
(3) I recently took a bin full of some other old cleaning products, etc., from the house and garage to our local site for recycling toxics. Not strictly frugal, but better for the environment than just tossing the stuff.
(4) I also continue to sell or give away tools from DH's vast holdings. (What I really need to have is a garage sale featuring mainly tools, but I haven't mustered that kind of energy yet.) I sold his Dremel Moto-Tool to our yard guy last week, and I'm talking with a friend who wants to put together "starter sets" of tools for his teenage sons.
(5) And my gardens, both here and at the fenced veggie plot I'm sharing this summer, are finally almost all planted. Of course, some wotten wabbit hopped by and nipped the tops off four zinnias before deciding they weren't tasty after all, but so it goes. Paging Elmer Fudd...
So happy to hear your pans turned out well! Yay!
@A. Marie,
My brother-in-law used to camp out in the woods as a teen and he always took his mom's cast iron skillet to use for cooking over the fire. He said she wanted him to do that, because the fire broke off the built up rock-hard crud they can get, especially on the bottoms. She would wash and re-season them after he used them over his fire. I've not needed to try it myself, but it might be an idea to put the pans in a fire (in a fireplace, perhaps?) should you have some good-but-dirty finds again.
And I've heard that they can be left in the oven during self-cleaning, to burn off the crud. I don't know anyone who has tried that, though.
Good job saving those pans, and Griswold, to boot.
@A. Marie, Congrats on the cast iron pans! Griswold is a good design and should do some great cooking if you decide to use it for that. Oven cleaner is not a good idea for cooking pans, but your local metal workers can use a sand blaster. It is clean and mechanical. The guys at my local one were tickled by such a small project and charged nothing to clean my aebleskiver pan!
@Kristina, no worries that I'll be committing slow suicide by Easy Off. What with the careful steel wool scouring and the thorough wash with soap and water that happened just before the oven seasoning, I think I'll be OK. (And, alas, DH's guy friends didn't happen to include any metal workers.)
Here's the link to the website with the instructions I followed (https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-restore-vintage-cast-iron-cookware). The link with the instructions for washing and seasoning is embedded in this one.
And I've already decided to treat the muffin pan as an objet d'art. I evicted a much less interesting pan from my kitchen wall display to make room for it. I probably will use the frying pan, starting with a batch of my "No @#$%!! Sugar in the Cornbread." I find that cornbread is one of the best ways of continuing to season cast iron--and my name for the recipe is a dead giveaway of my Southern roots.
@JD, I've combined reseasoning a cast iron pan with the oven self-cleaning cycle. It works great to strip out crud and seasoning. I did that with an old (my grandma's?) jelly roll pan as well, to great success.
I wonder why your BIL's mother felt the need to reseason cast iron after using them in an open fire. I speak from experience when I say that the fire doesn't negatively impact the pan.
@ A. Marie, you could hang the pans for a while then use them or consider the wall their permanent home, taking them down when you need them.
@WilliamB,
Because she washed them with soap to remove the soot, my B-I-L said. I asked the same thing.
@JD, A-ha. I thought you meant stripping the seasoning and starting again.
I'm so excited you are reading The Red Tent - it is one of my top five favorite books! I hope you love it.
1 - I signed up for a daily email from BookBub.com years ago. It sends me a list of books available on Kindle for a deep discount (think .99) or for free. I purchase maybe one or two a month (and sometimes those are free based on my Kindle credits from delayed shipping through Amazon) to have on my Kindle for those times when I need something to read and I don't want to wait for the library. I'm plugging away through one of the free books this week.
2 - We had my parents and in-laws over on Sunday for lunch. I created the menu based on what was in the freezer and pantry to avoid a trip to the grocery store.
3 - I've reduced my days in the office from three days to two. I have a 45 mile round trip and I work in our downtown area so traffic can get really heavy.
4 - I signed up for an app that gives discounts on grocery stores and gas stations - there is also a referral bonus for sharing the app. I'm up to almost $100 in cash back!
5 - My son is still in school until Thursday and the school district is still offering free lunch and breakfast. Two free meals a day have really been a blessing! He loves school lunch and I love all the time I save by not having to pack a lunch each morning.
I'm traveling today to a wedding in another state, but left home with coffee in my travel mug, used points to get the flight free with American Airlines, used the airline credit on my Amex Hilton Aspire card to buy a one day Admiral's Club pass, which will be a $59 refund, and am currently sitting in said lounge, noshing on avocado toast and Greek yogurt. I'm staying with a friend, who is picking me up on arrival. The best kind of travel. (I return the favor whenever possible.)
I love that you do this and it helps me to think about what I’ve done during the week to save or reduce waste.
1. Shopped at a local consignment store for an outfit for my daughter for my friends wedding.
2. Purchased a zoo pass to visit with my family. It makes me feel less guilty when we can only handle about 2 hours there at a time and encourages us to go other times as there is no cost to go to rest of the year.
3. Instead of ordering out when we were spent this week, we cooked up some potstickers I bought a few weeks ago at Trader Joe’s.
4. Convinced our pediatrician we no longer needed to supplement with formula as our daughter is growing well and I’d hate to buy formula for a kid who has plenty of breast milk available when others need it.
5. Got a #3 candle on my local buy nothing group for my daughters 3rd birthday next month. She did have a tantrum when we picked it up because she wanted to know where #2 was.
@Carys, your #5 made me smile
Here's our frugal things for the week
- it was a fundraiser colour run for my daughters school on Thursday. I was in charge of cooking lunch (hamburgers and smokies) for just over 200 people. This is the kids, staff and other volunteers. We had 8 burgers and 1/2 a bag of carrots and a bit of broccoli left over so I got to bring it home.
- Son #1 high school grad was this last Friday. He opted to not go to the dinner portion. $50 a plate for roast beef dinner, so I made a Mexican dinner at home for us and the grandparents. (If he would have really wanted to go, we would have but he really doesn't enjoy roast beef)
- my scrap veggies are growing wonderfully in my kitchen window. I have 2 romaine lettuces that I used and am re growing, a head of celery and some green onions.
- combined trips to save on gas. It's 1.80/L or $6.81 a gallon.
-planted more seeds in the garden so hopefully we will get a great harvest to eat fresh all summer and preserve in the fall.
My wife and I will be taking our daughter to Hershey Park this year. We've never been so I'm hoping that she enjoys it.
1.) Bought a crate full of kids' books on FB Marketplace. They averaged just a little over a quarter each! Some were quite old and possibly valuable (My father got the Howdy Doody and Lone Ranger ones of his childhood) but the majority were from the 80s and 90s and not worth all *that* much but my daughter is over the moon with receiving them. She is very big on books so I am happy to feed that habit.
2.) Listed some stuff for sale online. I have a small pile of books as well that will be going on eBay or elsewhere.
3.) My wife got a new laptop a few weeks ago and decided she really did still need an optical disc drive at least occasionally. New no-name probably garbage brands on Amazon and NewEgg start at around $20. I got a used Dell one for $10. It may still be garbage on the inside since 99% of everything made now is trash, it seems but at least it was trash for half the price. Every little bit helps!
4.) I've been making my wife's lunch regularly again. She had fallen back into the habit of going out from time to time.
5.) A sad observation. I used to buy my prescription at Costco once a month and the savings more than made up for the gas spent. Just by going from $2/gal to $5/gal it is now no longer worth the trip. I mean, I still save money but making a trip just for meds is out of the question. I have to justify it with another reason. So in the end it's now more frugal to buy it locally.
@Battra92, your #1 reminded me of this article. I was surprised at the prices because these are the books I received as a kid.
https://adirondackgirlatheart.com/a-cool-collectible-little-golden-books/
@Battra92,
It takes 3 gallons of gas for me to travel to Costco or the nearest Aldi. Traffic in this area of town is also terrible. The cost of the gas and the time spent making this trip definitely decrease the actual savings that I realize. So I am constantly asking the question: Do I shop close by and spend more money on groceries; or do I save money on groceries but spend money on gas? I don’t know. It seems like a toss up.
@cc, thanks for the link! Some of the ones I got were on that page like the Smokey Bear one.
I have a vacation-y frugal list. We went for a week on vacation, and while there we:
1. Signed up for Culver's email club and got a BOGO coupon. Two really nice dinners for $10!
2. Signed up for a Spinx email club and got a free drink and 25 cents off per gallon of gas - we used this for an entire fillup.
3. My husband had wrangled a deal and got $275 of Uber Eats for $50, so we utilitzed that several nights.
4. We had $20 in free points expiring to Papa John's, so we used that up.
5. We stayed in the most affordable rental we could find, and it was lovely!
Lots of expenses are happening over here but I am trying to save where I can....
1. I found two upholstered chairs at a yard sale that I have been wanting for my dining room. I want to mix and match and we have no dining room furniture so I am trying to furnish the space on a non-existent budget. I will need to recover them but they are in excellent condition and cost $5 a piece.
2. Also happened upon brand new in the box outdoor light fixtures for our home for $5 a piece.
3. I finished planting an enormous garden. It is twice the size of what we had in our previous home and God willing it will produce enough veggies to sustain us, put away for the year, and share with our neighbors.
4. I pulled out the last turkey we have in our chest freezer to cook this week. I purchased it in November for $0.49/lb and it will give us several meals over the course of the next few days. I will also freeze some of the meat into casseroles that I can pull and cook from the freezer to make quick meals during the summer.
5. I am staying home as much as possible to avoid the ridiculous cost of gas, turning up the AC as much as possible - every little bit helps!, eating all the leftovers, adding egg shells and coffee grounds to my garden to enrich the soil, planting flower seeds instead of seedlings which cost quite a bit more, bought mulch on sale over the holiday weekend, offered college students cash to help spread mulch and top soil, and borrowed wheelbarrows to help with that task.
Blessings to all!
I...bought some clearance plants at Lowe's: a mini rose and 2 hydrangeas, for $5.50. I could have spent ZERO and not bought any new plants, but plants make me happy and $5.50 is a GREAT deal on a rose bush and hydrangeas. Granted they were pretty pitiful looking, but if they don't survive it won't have been a big loss.
I used up a half a hamburger bun and the heel of a loaf of bread to make an odd sandwich the other day. It was good!
I got some digital coupons from City Market: $5 off my next pickup order AND 500 bonus fuel points, so I'll definitely be taking advantage of that soon.
I cancelled a subscription I no longer use. Even though the cost wasn't huge, it's still something I don't need or use.
One other food related one: I finished off the last of some rice, beans, and a bit of grated cheddar for breakfast yesterday ... I did what Kristen would do and put an egg on it!
Yesss! An egg makes a meal. 🙂
Oh, The Red Tent! I read that book for a college class years ago and I have never forgotten it.
There are so many of you who love this book! I had no idea it was so well-known.
@Kristen,
I loved it also! With your interest in childbirth, I think you will especially enjoy it. It almost made me want to become a midwife.
Dr Teals aluminium-free deodorant works extremely well and is half the cost of native. Walmart and kroger sell it.
Ooh, good to know! I will look for that.
@April, Yes, I agree. It is my favorite.
Hi, Kristen! Hi, Community! *waving hand like a fool*
1) I picked up my allergy pills, (3) 2-liters of diet soda, (3) photo prints of my granddaughter, and a treat for my Mama at CVS and saved $7.62 cents by using the coupons and rewards on my CVS Rewards card AND earned a $3 reward for my next visit.
2) Still saving on gasp! (see what I did there?) for my car by working from home.
3) Using up leftovers in the refrigerator and freezer before stocking up on groceries. Well. I'm trying. Points for effort?
4) Hauled 11 (yes, I said 11 - don't judge) boxes of clothing, linens, and rando household items to our local Goodwill. No contribution to the landfill and a tax deduction.
5) Disputed (and won!) a $75 lab bill for a Med Express visit from March. (The office visit charge at Med Express is supposed to include include all lab work, x-rays, etc.) Technically, it's not a savings, but it is $75 I didn't just blindly pay. Always question any charges you are not 100% sure of!
Kristen - I've been tempted to try the Native deodorant. Does it really work as well (or better) than other brands?
@sfeather,
gasp! Ha-ha!
It's been my favorite natural stick deodorant so far. I also liked Soapwalla, but you have to apply that one with your fingers.
There are a lot of others that I tried and hated. But deodorant seems to be rather dependent on the person; some people love the ones I hated!
There is a bit of an adjustment period when you go off of aluminum deodorants, but that's temporary. So, you can't judge any natural deodorant initially...they all will seem like they're not working at first! More info here: https://www.realsimple.com/beauty-fashion/skincare/bath-body/natural-deodorant
I am protesting a bill on my solar loan. ($125 of the previous owners bill was transferred to me.) I don't think I'm going to win this one because the company isn't returning my calls or emails, but I'm trying.
We bought a pork but for $1.99 a pound. (Orange Ancho tacos.)
A co-worker gave us some oranges that needed to be used fast. I juiced them by hand and made great orange juice.
We are opening up the house at night rather than running the AC. This approach to cooling the house may not work much longer. We are approaching the upper 90s this week.
The Red Tent is such a wonderful book. You are in for a treat.
The FFT this week at my house: Cut my husband's hair. Turned dinner leftovers into my lunches for this week. Turned the last of the apples, which were getting a little wrinkly, into a stellar apple crisp. Made a toy for the new kitty out of a little ball of yarn leftover from crocheting coasters. Replaced two pairs of well-worn black office slacks with one pair of the same brand frugally purchased on eBay. The original two were at least seven years old and I had re-dyed them black three times. It was time to retire them to yard and painting pants when I put a pair of them on and the waistband came off in my hand. I sewed it back on later, but sudden stitching failures mean they can't be worn out in public any more.
@Ruby, I don't think those office slacks owe you a thing. Retire them with full honors!
1. Did three gas mystery shops, so $15 free gas plus three bottles of free pop that I was required to buy and will be reimbursed for in a few weeks.
2. Did two food mystery shops, one for hamburgers and one for a sub that was vegetarian so pretty healthy. Free dinners large enough that the husband and I could share one by adding some fruit for dessert.
3. Husband repaired a hose that I needed for watering, using pieces of other dead hoses. Free and works perfectly, although quite ugly.
4. Accepted three dozen free guinea fowl eggs from a neighbor who has 40 of the birds. We just finished eating down an overstock of eggs but I am not going to turn down free protein out of boredom, not with food prices skyrocketing. They are a slight hassle in that you have to use several of them to equal a chicken size egg but well worth it. More quiches and crepes coming this week.
5. Husband went to a meeting and came home with all the leftovers---it was a men's singing group and no one wanted to take the food so we ended up with over a pound of deli ham, a loaf and a half of bread, and about three quarters of a pound of cheese. (They have sandwiches because they realized that when they do a pot luck it is usually their wives who do the work but they can manage to buy sandwich materials on their own.) I think no one took the food because my husband was the only one going home, the other were going to jobs or another meeting so having perishables was too much trouble.
@Lindsey, do guinea fowl eggs taste any different from chicken eggs? Inquiring minds want to know. (Same question re: the meat.)
@A. Marie, Not Lindsey-- but yes, they taste the same. But the shells are harder to break.
I think you found some great deals! And I also think Amazon gets enough money from us...
Here's my 5-
1) Our college student is taking Summer classes and got his bill. Later, the bill showed a zero balance. The college had given him a scholarship and it paid for the classes. Savings- $2,300
2) We get a discount on gas from purchases at the local supermarket and fill up once a month or so. Savings- $12
3) I donated various clothing/misc. bags to a thrift store and they picked up for free. Savings in gas- $8
4) I'm an ebay shopper and found some water spout drains cheaper than the stores/Amazon with free shipping. Savings $2
5) We had a free consultation for functional window shutters. Instead of replacing the windows, the shutters can help with heating/cooling. They're not cheap, but they are less costly and have less construction mess than window installation. We still need HOA approval to do this and will only do 1/3 of the windows for now. Savings- $5,000
*Today we planted half of our garden (finally). I even used some saved seeds.
*For the graduation party we bought whole deli hams and sliced instead of buying pre-sliced (that saved more than $2/pound). I am getting ready to go save the leftovers.
*I made all the cookies for the party.
*Instead of renting a dumpster to throw all of the junk in our house away so that it looked neater for the party, I just hid it away in our basement. 😉
*The graduating son's birthday was the day after his graduation, so instead of making cake and an all new meal-- we just made some bbq shredded chicken (new) and added it to all the other party leftovers. (He suggested it, and I love him for it.)
Here's an oddball one: I stretched food court grill-top teriyaki by asking for extra veggies instead of the rice and for another scoop or two of the sauce. At home I sauteed more veggies and meat, added the leftovers, then cooked down the extra sauce just as I saw them do on the grill top.
Looking ahead to future frugality, this summer I'm getting serious about really eating down the freezer. I expect some ... interesting ... meals as I scrape the bottom. I'm going to have trouble eating 1.5 quarts of apple cider caramel sauce and a quart of pulled pork that I made for a party that was scheduled for late March 2020. Not because it's old but because I don't like pulled pork.
For the record, there are a few things I expect will remain. The 3.5 lbs of Penzey's garlic powder (they keep giving it to me for free), the 2 gallon ziploc of other spices, the lard that someday (really!) I'll use to make soap, the half dozen smoked pig parts that I'll gradually use for making beans.
@WilliamB, I'm not big on pulled pork either, but I've occasionally used leftover pulled pork (if sauce is compatible) to make a hearty Cuban black bean soup/stew; tasty and takes the focus off the pork.
Looking forward to hearing updates on your freezer cleanout meals...
@Suz, I don't have anything too crazy in there. Too many hot dogs, too much hummus. Hopefully I don't see another great sale on, say, chicken that causes me to buy another 15 packages.
Oh, to add to the "probably won't get used up" is the hoisin and the garlic black bean sauce, which are in the freezer because I use them so rarely.
I love native and they have all the time great seasonal scents.
I read the blog for many years and i remember a lady with a husband is in assisted living. She was in need of covid tests. since we had a bunch with short date i would love to send it to her.... I just cant remember her name
sorry for the typos....laptop is mondaysick
Another The Red Tent fan here, Kristen! I would have gladly mailed you my copy.
1. I had bloodwork done for a doctor's appt. tomorrow. They said the insurance wouldn't pay for the vitamin D test so I refused it as I know it is unnecessary. I'll check with the doctor tomorrow to insure it was the correct decision.
2. We stopped for our free Panera coffee after and hit the thrift shop. My husband found a Thomas Kincaid house to use with his indoor trains and I found a beautiful new Ann Taylor scarf for 1.49. I may use it as a window topper upstairs.
3. We put in a flower bed beside our garage using free iris I got at a garage sale, free black eyed susan seeds from my daughter's landscaping, and I filled a free galvanized washtub with free wildflower seeds from our nephew's wedding. The only purchased item was a marked down pot of stell o'doro daylillies. I'll decorate with my grandmother's geodes and some yard art I move around wherever it's needed.
4. I just put in a Kroger's pickup order as my husband has to pick up subscriptions. Adding vacation food for next week put my total just over 75.00 so I was able to use a 15.00 off coupon. Cheap food from home equals a frugal beach vacation!
5. There was a picnic potluck after church Sunday. I dug through the cupboards and came up with the ingredients for a chocolate pie with an oreo crust. It must have been good as there was none left and we had a lovely free lunch with no need for supper.
It was a good frugal week!
1. We combined errands today to only make one trip. Did a Walmart grocery pickup where I did not receive my apples, a quick online chat and that money was refunded, dropped off a video game sold on ebay and a rented textbook, and swung by our electric co-op where we received a free mop bucket, bag, and two LED light bulbs.
2. Got 5 brand new porch chairs for $20 my aunt was getting rid of.
3. Used old cake mix and chocolate chips to make brownies and made rice krispie treats with free rice krispies. Both were taken to a potluck.
4. Was given free clothes and toys for the baby.
5. My in-laws took a load of metal we gave them to the recycling center. It gets it all out of our way and gives them some extra cash which we were going to help them with anyway.
Hersheypark isn't far from me. If you're looking for central PA things to do, let me know. 😉
@Marsha, You probably know all these things, but I love this website: https://pabucketlist.com/
I wish I could share good deals, but just seem to be leaking funds. I guess I found $5 sets of twinkle lights that I like to give as part of graduation gifts for dorm room bound graduates.
1. Continue to use up odds and ends of food my mom purchased when she was here for specific recipes. She makes wonderful meals, but it drives me crazy to have little bits of this and that hanging around in the pantry and freezer. This week I used some frozen tomato juice in a lentil stew.
2. Picked up another 8 free covid tests covered by our insurance– unfortunately we all turned up positive. Thankful for fairly mild symptoms.
3. Picked tons more rhubarb in order to let smaller stalks have more room and light. Will either make something or freeze it for later.
4. That’s all for now!
(1) Sponsoring an Afghan family. Put a call out on FB for the possibility of finding a donated sofa and chair. Was reminded of ones that a friend had but could not be removed earlier in the pandemic, so it’s our’s. Hurray!!
(2) Not so much for me but the family we are sponsoring. Was informed of someone’s friend passing away and the deceased’s family was gifting the majority of the household items to us for setting up the new family.
(3) Leaving my library today, saw on the bulletin board a gathering for a Newcomer Welcome Fair and Multiculturalism Celebration. The poster indicated they would be welcoming new Afghan refugees and Ukrainian newcomers as well as other newcomers. This was timely as these events will specifically have many native speakers and resources present. I think when you are in a new country( having lived overseas before), it is such a relief to find people who you can speak with without attempting to use a translation from your phone. Plus you find out additional information on places to shop,eat and live.
I forwarded the poster picture onto my next door neighbour who is welcoming a Ukrainian family of 8 on Wednesday.
(4) A friend is dropping by 9 delphinium starts that a friend had grown. My friend only needs 3 of a dozen and…..I ripped out my front lawn and I always have room for more perennials:)
(5) My children are grown and have left home. I’ve still have a graduation outfit (from a university grad) that strikes the right tone for a Harry Potter themed party. They know they can “shop at home”. I’m sure the original had been thrifted.
My daughter visited with her dog a month ago and ordered a special pad to go under the dog's pee pads. The pad never arrived, but she forgot to cancel the order. It was finally delivered yesterday, but she and the dog are long gone. She is going to send me a link to print out the return label and if I take it to Kohls for return, they will give me a $5 coupon (which might almost pay for the gas to get there ;o)
I think you will enjoy the Red Tent. I read it years ago.
Instead of buying new patio furniture i bought two cans of $6 black spray paint and repainted them. Plus i purchased a replacement umbrella canvas for $20 instead of getting a new umbrella. Almost looks brand new for $32 dollars total! Yay!
1. Our house has the original siding on it from the 1940's. A neighbor on Buy Nothing found a stack of it in their basement and kindly gifted it to me. My husband used some of it this weekend to repair a broken piece on our house. He then painted the new piece and painted the front of our house.
2. I used a bunch of breads ends I had frozen to make a pan of baked french toast for my kid's breakfast this week. I used a package of frozen tortillas to make eggs burritos for breakfast this weekend.
3. Our home owners insurance renewal information came in the mail. The price had increased by $150/year. I called the company and they were able to reduce the price by $150/year, so a $300 savings.
4. Our credit card company sent an email saying they would give us 1,000 points to pay one utility bill using our credit card. I paid our gas and electric using our credit card, which will give us $10 in points.
5. My son got a Tomagotchi from the 1990's from a garage sale for free this weekend. He is really enjoying it.
I had some spendiness too.
1. Our stove and oven died, so we purchased a new one. (Yikes.) But we got one with great reviews, that was big-time on sale, and we paid for it with our Lowe's credit card to get 5% off. We will pay it off right away.
2. Instead of paying to have them haul away our broken one we will set it out by the curb for a scrapper to pick up - it will probably take less than 24 hours.
3. I used a 15% off coupon at Ollie's today for some snacks for next week's camping trip, a couple of Father's Day gifts the kids picked out, and some shoes for my kiddos that were a price I was very happy about. I'd been looking for shoes for a few weeks and was happy to finally find some and pay less than I expected.
4. I was not above bribing my kids today (we had to stop at the store on the way home from the vet's office for an emergency visit for one of our cats during my kids' normal naptime) but instead of buying something I swung through Panera and got a free lemonade that I split with them all.
5. I... bought clothes at a yard sale, cut my daughter's hair myself, made cookies for a picnic with ingredients I already had, menu planned around what's in my freezer, and have been running the dishwasher and dryer during off-peak times since we get charged more at peak times in the summer.
Thank you for sharing! I appreciate this
Hi Kristin,
Would you be able to set up a patreon account, so we as your fan club can support you. You have been so helpful in savings us money over the years. I know I would like to give back to you through this time of change in your life. How can we give to you, so that your privacy is protected and we can help?
Aww, that is so kind of you. I have thought about setting up a Patreon, but I am a little stumped as to what to offer to supporters. I know usually Patreon subscriptions offer some type of exclusive content, like live Q&As or behind-the-scenes content. Thoughts?
Well, I always think I’ll have to struggle to come up with five, but let’s see:
1. Shopped at Aldi.
2. Cooked and baked from scratch. Made sugar-free strawberry pie ( I was recently diagnosed with diabetes).
3. Meal-planned and stuck to my list. Tonight’s menu was King Ranch Chicken Casserole. However, in mid-afternoon, we noticed it was getting warm in the house, so my husband called a repairman and described the problem. He suggested to turn off the a/c for three hours! it was 96 degrees in Houston today, but we did it, sat under the ceiling fans, and it worked. But the thought of turning on the oven was repulsive, so we ended up with Subway sandwiches.
4. Bought a very cute, large ceramic planter on clearance. BUT it had no drainage hole. Husband dug out a ceramic drill bit and drilled me a hole in my cheap, pretty planter.
5. Sold seven items on eBay. I have reached top seller status. Or something like that, lol.
*Put together a beautifully curated wedding basket of goodies from my gift closet. I lurked the couple's registries to get a sense of their style and also made several personalized goodies like stationery and pictures with their names and wedding date for keepsakes. I used our new oh-so-amazingly-wonderful ink tank printer (thank you for the recommendation, Kristen!) to print everything and it was lovely not to leave home and spend anything extra.
*Declined said wedding shower invitation - the party is an hour drive each way in the middle of a Saturday and I'm not intimate with the couple (though very happy for them!). I'm dropping my gift off with the hostess when I see her tomorrow.
*Am organizing our annual educational materials swap at church. Folks bring what they don't need anymore and snag what they can use. We donate the extra to a great local thrift store that supports our community. It's always a big help and encouragement.
*Not sure it's technically a win, but encouraged my son to choose an all expenses paid Washington DC tour he was awarded over a national speech competition when the dates overlapped. We could never duplicate all that he's getting to do on the tour, and hopefully he will do well in speech again his senior year so he'll have a national shot again.
*Volunteered with my husband to be on the monthly meal cleanup rotation for Wednesday supper at our church. They make a catered dinner available prior to classes for a very reasonable price, and the cleanup family usually has first dibs on the leftovers. It is a nice, quiet time for us to work together and talk (that doesn't happen often!) and the bit of extra groceries are a big help.
*Said yes to a pile of absolutely random free things from a friend. We never know what he's going to send our way (sometimes it's pretty yukky, spoiled stuff that has to be tossed). This time was a gold mine, with a bag of fun clothes in my size to add some zip to my wardrobe, a beautiful wrought iron soap holder, some fun vintage cookbooks, several bags of kale salad mix, eggs, bell peppers and several containers of sour cream. Best of all, though.....
*The loan of a sliding shower seat!!!!! I've been tapped to help my husband's 87-year-old spunky grandmother with bathing/showering, because she was only giving herself sponge baths and forgetting to wash her hair for weeks on end. The doctor says that it's absolutely necessary and I'm glad to assist. She's been quite firmly opposed to it even though she'd originally been agreeable to my assistance (there are some memory bloss issues at play, and she was justifiably fearful of slipping) and I've made it a safe and comfortable experience that she seems to thoroughly enjoy once it's underway. Anyway, we were loaned this stool and put it in the shower after demonstrating it, and now SHE HAS SHOWERED ON HER OWN! I'm so excited that it has given her the means to be independent and enjoy a shower again.
@Amanda P,
Memory loss, not bloss! Oh dear, she may not be the only one with her memory slipping, sigh.
Hubby and I took the kids to Hershey Park for a family reunion at least 20 years ago. I got discount admission tickets at a Giant food store. It was a great park then. My parents took my siblings and I when I was real young (58?) yrs ago and they had a picnic grove with tables and shelters to eat your frugal lunch.
My friend and I read The Red Tent at least 20 yrs ago and we liked the part that when the women where at "that time of the month" they sat on hay, braided each other's hair and had honey cakes. Yes Please!
Frugal things:
Used my pre-paid Lifeline Screening amount to put towards a new one this Monday. I missed the first one I had scheduled. So I'm not losing any money this way.
Hubby went grocery shopping and used the Chobai yogurt coupons that I got (.75 off and they were doubled - there were 2) and used my coupon for a free box of Outshine popsicles. I used one at a different store and realized the cashier didn't take the full amount off the bill. I am going back to the store to get my extra $1 owed to me.
Policing the electricity usage by running the dish washer on a 30 minute wash vs. a 2 hour 15 minute run. So far so good. I make sure I rinse them very well with as little water as I can.
This may be a repeat but hubby screwed on the bracket on daughter's car that came loose.
Trying now to get my cable/landline and internet bill down. Started at $137 at least 10 yrs ago and now it's up to $187. Boo, hiss! I want to get rid of the landline and have a cheaper monthly bill. So far I'm at the triple play for $159 a month. Going to talk to a friend of mine to see how she did it and got rid of her landline.
I'm jealous you'll be reading The Red Tent for the first time! It probably in my top 5 books of all time!
Work had their faculty luncheon and invited us to eat with them, free food. Sad part they had SO much food left over.
Kids need some more plants for their front yard, I will give them some of mine.
My other son gave me a nursery gift card so I bought raspberry plants, deer here eat everything so we fenced it off with a piece of fence we already had on hand.
Hubs saved his gas points to get $1.50 off per gallon 20 gallon limit.
Remembered to renew our dvds from the library. I forget often so yay for no fines this time!
My son got to pick out a free book from the library for completing the “1000 books before kindergarten” challenge
Hubby got free tickets and food and drinks for a minor league baseball game so we had a free night of entertainment
Made dandelion and mint tea from the garden several times to avoid drinking canned soft drinks
Cut my own bangs instead of going to the salon
I use the Libby app through the Brooklyn Library for ebooks and audiobooks. They generally have many copies of whatever you're looking for so wait times are super short or not at all.
Here's our Five Frugal Things for the week:
1. Vacuum cleaner extension wand snapped. Ordered a new one and saved 20% using a promo code from Retail Me Not.
2. The periodontist recommended using an electric toothbrush for gum care. I found one on amazon that offered an 11% discount code. Still expensive, but necessary for my oral health.
3. A friend had more than she wanted of starter pepper and tomato plants; which I gratefully will plant in my garden.
4. My youngest wanted to try out this cute little crumpet cafe. We went and enjoyed them with homemade jam. The owner gave us a package of four more on the house in honor of the Queen's jubilee.
5. We went to a flea market over the weekend. I picked up a like-new blouse for $3 that I can wear to work and a very cool vintage jean jacket $20. So happy with it. Mine, which is a hand-me down, is probably more than 30 years old and is sorely frayed and worn thin. It's a little bit like getting rid of an old friend, but I will honor her in cremation by cutting her up and use her as fire starter fodder when camping this summer.
Long-time reader, first time posting!
1. I scored a culture pass from our library last week and took my seven year old to her first art museum visit; she loved it! We stopped by her great grandparents on the way home and enjoyed lunch with them.
2. Today is my eight year anniversary. We have a gift card to Flower Child and will enjoy dinner out.
3. Now that I’m off for summer break (teacher), I’m starting to bike more. My daughter and I biked to a local park yesterday (about a mile and a half from our home). Good exercise and free entertainment!
4. Used up some vegetables from a friend’s garden last night with dinner. I hate wasting food, and especially when it’s local produce!
5. We are going to Disneyland next weekend (daughter’s first time). Not frugal by any means, but I bought some Minnie Mouse ears on Amazon ahead of time and purchased a Fanny pack for the park from Goodwill.
Aww, I'm so glad you joined in the comments. Yay!
1. I made all of our meals at home. Tomorrow I'll start preparing food ahead of time for our trip.
2. I asked my kid if he *wanted* me to mend his winter clothes which may or may not fit him come winter. He said no.
3. I combined errands.
4. We packed lunches for my husband. The kids and I ate leftovers at home.
5. We checked out a movie from the library last week. In the way of small children, we watched it about 328 times this week.
6. We are enjoying free entertainment this summer.
7. I calculated that it's cheaper to just pay at the pool as we go instead of getting the kids pool passes. They would need to go to the pool at least 19 times to make it worthwhile; at least 26 times for an adult. We just won't go that often.
8. I haven't used the air conditioner yet this year. I haven't used the furnace in about 3 weeks.