Keep reading for more about the dinosaur!
1. I had a use-it-up lunch
Which is nothing out of the ordinary; I often try to get rid of odds and ends when I eat lunch.
This particular day:
- a Hungry Harvest carrot, sautéed in bacon grease with salt and pepper
- a chicken sausage sliced and sautéed in the same pan
- the last cornmeal roll, toasted and spread with cream cheese
A lot of veggies can be made tasty with bacon grease, salt, and pepper in a cast iron pan. So good!
Also: a shout-out to toasters for their ability to make slightly dry bread delicious again.
2. I called Cigna to get a bill processed
I had submitted an out-of-network bill months ago, and it was stuck in processing. It finally got through the system, only to get kicked back for a lack of information.
Except, in June, they’d already approved and paid a bill of the exact same type with the exact same provider with the exact same type of receipt.
Sigh.
So I called, and the rep is resubmitting it; he says I should have a new Explanation of Benefits in five business days.
This bill is from July, so I am not exactly waiting with bated breath.
But, regardless of how long it takes, I will eventually get Cigna to pay this bill. I have oodles of perseverance left. 
3. I let Hungry Harvest know about a quality issue
Last week, my asparagus got moldy within 24 hours (unusual!). Hungry Harvest wants to know if this happens, so that they can adjust course in the future.
So, they have a form specifically for reporting on their site.
I filled it out, and I should get a credit for the funky asparagus in my next order.
4. I ordered some charging cable protectors
Zoe and I both needed new cables, and I added some cute cable protectors to the purchase.
I’ve never tried these before, but they are supposed to reinforce the spot that always breaks on chargers; the area where the cord meets the end that goes into the phone.
At less than $3/apiece, they will be worth every penny if they extend the life of a charging cable.
Also, they are extremely adorable.
(Note: I had a heck of a time getting the dino onto my braided cable. I had to use a screwdriver to pry it apart enough to squeeze the cable in. But now it’s firmly on. I imagine it would be easier to get one onto a regular iPhone cable.)
5. I…
- used WD-40 on multiple squeaky doors. Such a cheap and easy DIY fix!
- used my fabric shaver (see the P.S. below) on a shirt, which was a clearance Eddie Bauer purchase some years ago
- bought some grocery markdowns
Your turn! Share your frugal five in the comments.
P.S. People often ask me which fabric shaver I have. Mine is an Aldi special purchase, which means you can’t just go out and grab one. It’s basically exactly like this one, except the one at this link comes with replacement blades!
Carol says
Merry Christmas Everybody!
1. Used my Lint Lizard to suck out my dryer lint trap. Makes the dryer use less energy and lower chance of dryer fires. Love the Lint Lizard!
2. Christmas plans got canceled due to SIL being diagnosed with Covid yesterday – so Christmas dinner will be made from groceries already on hand.
3. My car door hand froze last week and then broke when I went to open the door. Order a part online for $20 (including shipping) and my husband replaced it after watching a YouTube video. Dealer would have charged $120 for the part plus labor.
4. Made myself new masks from materials I already had on hand.
5. Made several Christmas gifts.
Nancy says
1.purchased turkey and ham on sale (2). One ham all cooked goes to my daughter in law.
2.Eating from our freezer.
3. Planning on pea soup with leftover ham
4. Had to purchase a replacement gift as other one is somewhere. Will return the 1st one.
5.Rain storm tomorrow ,no ice fishing.. like free food
Merry Christmas , be safe.
Mary Malpezzi says
I bought fabric on sale last January to use to wrap Christmas presents this year. They were the perfect size for large presents. I have put holds on two books at the library instead of buying them. We are eating more home-made soups this year.
Julia says
1. Using up “leftovers.” Made a ham and bean soup with the leftover broth and ham bits from making hammocks and collard greens. Cut up some carrots to cook in the broth and added a can of beans. Yummy quick lunch for a few days.
2. Using what I have on hand to wrap the few presents we will be exchanging.
3. Received a free large bag of dog food from one neighbor (her dogs didn’t like it, mine eat anything), got a free bag of guinea pig bedding from a neighbor who had received the wrong kind from her pet store order.
4. Went for a drive to look at lights for free in local neighborhoods that compete for best light show rather than pay to go through our local Hershey Park Sweet Lights. I also made Christmas Lights bingo cards with random things to look for (wreath, star, Snoopy and Woodstock, pink lights, Santa…) as folks got bingo they got to pick from a goody bag of snacks. We listened and sang along to Christmas music while we drove. You can look up make your own free printable bingo cards on line.
5. Gathered eggs for Christmas morning quiche. Our chickens are still happily laying eggs. Looking forward to a low key holiday. Eating good food, watching movies, going for walks if it’s not raining. I am off between Christmas and New Years and looking forward to relaxing and having fun with the family. I work virtually from home and homeschool our son so hoping our days for the next week won’t be so fragmented and stressful. Peace on Earth! Well, we will see.
Julia says
I save bacon grease also. Love to cook cabbage and onions in it. Yum!
Carolyn says
Bacon grease is a staple in our house, my husband always saves it after cooking bacon, so we have a jar in the refrigerator that he uses in cooking, especially when he is cooking up venison. His grandmother always did the same.
Heather says
My gramma kept bacon grease too!
Meg says
Same here! Don’t eat as much as much bacon as I’d like to haha! But always save the grease in can in freezer. Scrambled eggs in bacon grease-yum! My mother and grandmother always saved bacon grease.
Marybeth says
Christmas eve I cooked scallops in bacon grease. So good.
Ruby says
Made a meatloaf to use up the wealth of bread heels in the freezer. Used a couple of disposable dusters to clean the blinds around the house and thought the dusters actually looked pretty sturdy, so I hand washed them and hung them up to dry. Cleaned and organized the kitchen cupboards and pantry and realized we do not need to buy cleaning stuff any time soon. Mailed a package and Frankensteined a plain brown box for mailing by taking apart a printed carton nutritional shakes were packaged in and turning it inside out. A little hot glue, a lot of mailing tape, and it was good to go. Rescued a discarded piece of wood paneling from work to enclose the open back of out tv console. It looks great and should be much less dusty now.
Jenzer says
Used a handful of soy sauce packets left over from takeout sushi and Chinese food to make a batch of tamari almonds (recipe here: https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/tamari-almonds-236702/ ). The almonds were bought for cheap at Sam’s Club.
Updated my price book to include frozen vegetables I’ve been bulk-buying from the local food service supply store. Discovered that frozen broccoli florets are actually less expensive to buy at Sam’s.
Spotted a bottle return slip on the floor in the grocery store’s cart corral, after returning my own bottles and cans. The slip was worth $9.60. I passed the bonus money on to my kids.
Helped an older family member sign up for a free trial of Sit and Be Fit streaming videos to do at home. Family member then learned their health insurance offers free access to streaming fitness videos from Silver Sneakers.
Taking advantage of our library’s resources to boost my bird ID skills during the pandemic. The RB Digital app lets me read the latest issues of BirdWatching and Birds & Blooms magazines. Through Kanopy I’ve been able to watch the Great Courses series, “The National Geographic Guide to Birding in North America,” plus a few birding documentaries. Paying attention when I’m outdoors costs zero dollars.
JD says
I’m home on vacation so I have to type on my phone which I hate, but here goes:
1. I just reorganized a closet that is about the last one on my list to organize and carried the good stuff to Goodwill. I found several things I forgot I had and will still use!
2. I cooked a pot of green beans with one last smoked ham hock from the freezer. It added just the right touch.
3. I have been transplanting my carrot plants that I thin in the container gardens and so far the transplants are growing.
4. This is not my doing but my daughter was buying a pair of dress shoes for her growing teen and found there was a BOGO free sale. She found a pair of black boots in my size and got them for me free. My black boots had just died and I had asked my kids to watch for sales with me.
5. Even though I’m home on vacation and it’s tempting to order a meal or two, I’m still cooking every meal.
Gina says
1. Did all my gift wrapping this year with paper I purchased last year on deep discount plus wrapping and tissue paper I was gifted when a friend moved to Florida. The Christmas cards I sent out all were on 70% off sale at a store closing. Only had to buy tape this year. My boxes all were saved during the year or reused from the food pantry at my work.
2. I had lunch with a good friend of mine last week and since we couldn’t eat out at restaurants, we ate at her home & I made ginger cookies for dessert, costing me less than $2 in ingredients. It was a wonderful visit!
3. Oldest daughter’s car was at car dealers for 11 days for a “simple repair” of a turn signal socket. Dealer had to order parts a few times so hence the delay. I was super frustrated at the whole experience that I called the shop manager to tell about the long drawn out experience plus bad experience on my vehicle less than 2 months prior and he wrote off our whole repair of which was going to cost us $140. I offered many times to pay for the part, but he insisted on making it right. (i looked at the repair bill and the part only cost $16, the rest was labor).
4. Youngest daughter’s phone won’t hold a charge and her phone was eligible for an upgrade. We went to phone store to see about upgrading and they had an awesome promotion that she was eligible to upgrade from an iphone XR to an iphone 12 for $5 less a month than what she’s currently paying. We upgraded!
5. Sunday ate leftovers for lunch and ate dinner at home. Usually on weekends we are a little lax on eating at home, so this was a win!
6. Today since there are only 4 of us at my work, my one boss is treating us to lunch!
Hawaii Planner says
It hasn’t been the cheapest week, but here we go.
1) Made a road trip to our vacation house & we will see my parents over the holiday & stopped just twice on the 12 hour road trip, to reduce potential risk. We used a gift card for breakfast, & bought lunch for 4 of us for under $7 (Costco food court, while we were gassing up). It was a very cheap food day, given it was a road trip.
2) Converted flights (original plan) to credit that we will use on a future flight.
3) Bought discounted flight gift cards for Alaska Air (preferred airline) via Costco for future travel. I know the airlines are struggling & I would really like this particular one to stay in business, as they have fantastic customer service. Here’s hoping we’ll travel again at some point in the future!
4) Our dryer broke at our vacation house (not frugal), but we were able to buy most of it with Home Depot gift cards purchased at a very small discount. So, we saved a bit. The dryer has been questionable since we bought the house 12+ years ago, but we weren’t excited to replace it, as we’re not here very often. It’s hobbled by, but been a real hassle when you need to dry sheets or towels or something before you leave. Hopefully the new dryer is a pleasant surprise that lasts for a really long time.
5) Due to COVID, nothing is open in the little town where we have our vacation house. We’re making at home “date nights” with slightly fancier dinners (steak, shrimp, bacon wrapped chicken, cocktails, etc) to make it feel like a date. It’s been wonderful. While we spent more than usual on groceries, it’s still way less than eating out.
Diane C says
I found a screaming deal at Grocery Outlet – 7 oz. bags of whole cashews for .99. With the owner’s blessing, I bought 24 of them. Then I found dried fruit packets for $1.00. Finally, tiny, adorable boxes of Harry Potter Inspired “Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans”, which are locally produced Jelly Bellies, in some good and some awful “flavours” were 4/$1. At the 99 Cents Only Store, I bought 3/$1 packs of perfect-sized holiday gift bags.
I scrounged through my supplies and found a wonderfully appropriate holiday card, which I had sale-purchased several years ago, along with some 75% off holiday tissue. I printed up funny Pandemic Holiday notes, which I pasted into the cards and then assembly-lined it all into cute packages. Each one cost about $3.25, including supplies. I’ve been porch delivering them around town for the last few days. It’s been extra fun to deliver unexpected holiday cheer into dear one’s lives.
Normally, I make cookies and candy as gifts. This year didn’t seem a good year for that. I’m thrilled to have come up with something factory sealed and appropriate for a pandemic Christmas for less than the typical cost of baking ingredients.
———————————————————————————
My 96 year-old friend is taking sheltering in place very seriously. Except to walk around the block, she doesn’t leave the house. Her kids and grandkids porch deliver her groceries weekly.
I did a Twelve Days of Christmas series for her, except I started early and I won’t stop before Christmas, so it will actually be sixteen days. Each bag is filled with fun things that she can use and enjoy. She’s frugal and practical, so a fresh can of cleanser and a pumice stone from the Dollar Store (she was out and didn’t want her kids to buy them at the “expensive” grocery store, lol) were her gift on Day 4. Some days have pretty things, others are practical. A 1,000 piece puzzle will keep her busy for days…
She has a small table next to her front door, in front of a picture window. I stealthily leave the day’s gift there, at a different time each day. She says I made it fun to look out the window again.
Typically, I give her a big gift basked of treats that I collect all year long when the price is right, so I had a number of things on hand. Switching the format from one large basket to two-plus weeks of small presents made it way more fun for both of us this crazy year.
That’s my FFT, Pandemic Version. Off to pack up my last round of deliveries…
Merry Christmas, everyone!
Cheryl says
You are blessing so many during these hard times. I love that you have found ways to spread cheer frugally! Merry Christmas!!
Becca says
Got a bunch of chicken breasts 50% off at Target. Brined and froze the bulk of them, used some for taco salads right away.
I had been really wanting a bookshelf for our living room. It is pretty minimalistic as is, so this would add some character, as well as needed storage. When my kid gets library books and then also a bag of books from preschool they end up all over making clutter. Our Christmas books came out and it was the last straw. They had no home and were always scattered all about the living room. Of course my picky bougie self could only find one bookshelf I actually liked for the room and it was $600, which I really didn’t want to spend. But it was sowing seeds of discontent in my mind constantly. In an effort to combat the consumerism of the season I’ve tried listening to a lot of minimalist and frugal focused YouTube videos and finally while listening to one about how to live under the poverty line it clicked in my head that I seriously needed to find a cheaper alternative to a new $600 bookcase. Well in my basement we have three apple bushels that we get when we go apple picking. They aren’t beautiful, but they are simple and free and hold all our Christmas books! And I still think it would be great to have a bookcase, but my discontent at not having one has gone down to almost zero and I am so happy I was able to use something that would have been tossed out to keep our living room tidy and the books easy to access for kiddos.
Made tapioca pudding with milk that was about to go bad.
We’re skipping gifts with my husband’s side of the family this year. No wasting money buying each other junk we don’t want and more time enjoying good food and company.
Used free passes from my work to a local drive through Christmas light display for a night of free fun entertainment.
RachelB says
I’m not sure I’ll hit five, but I’ll give it a try!
1) We celebrated my daughter’s 7th birthday. My in-laws treated us to a Lebanese food feast! (Frugal for us, not for them). We didn’t waste any leftovers (and there were a ton)!
2) We continued the celebration with a trip through the Wayne County Light Fest (holiday light display through a road in a park). It’s usually $5 per car, so pretty cheap, but some kind stranger paid for a run of cars to go for free. It was a nice surprise.
3) The birthday girl chose Culver’s frozen custard as her birthday treat. My FIL had some BOGO coupons, so all of the treats came to less than $10 (two concrete mixers, two sundaes, and a kiddie scoop)!
4) We’re wrapping presents with leftover wrapping paper. A dear friend gifted us rolls and rolls when he had to leave his apartment. He died a few months after that. I always think of him as we’re wrapping up the presents. He’d love to know that our kids are still opening gifts with “Uncle Keith’s” paper.
5) I thought it was going to be a good day to bake bread last weekend, so I made up a big batch of dough. The day had other plans, so I split the dough into three, and transfered them to the freezer.
Heather says
I love that you’re remembering your friend like that! Happy holidays!!
A. Marie says
FFT, Socially Distanced/Frugal Holidays Edition:
(1) I am making my usual Xmas Eve dinner (a Two Fat Ladies lamb dish) for ourselves and friends, using a nice piece of lamb I bought Reduced for Quick Sale at Wegmans after Easter and put in the freezer for this purpose. However, we’ll be having it over at the Bestest Neighbors’, since they have room to host a socially distanced dinner and we don’t. Our lovely next-door neighbor (also part of our “pod”) will be joining us–bringing a batch of her famous brownies for dessert!
(2) Most of our gifts for the friends and neighbors with whom we exchange gifts are the usual mix of clothing, housewares, and books, acquired either secondhand or otherwise frugally. The exceptions are the parody Martha Stewart calendar I’ve described in earlier comments, plus a birdhouse that one of DH’s aides brought for him as an art project, and that we’ve painted for the BNs.
(3) I’m still using up the massive stash of gift wrap acquired over the years out of DH’s rental properties or off curbs (it seems that when people move, gift wrap *always* gets tossed, often in the original shrink wrap). For gift tags, I often use the fronts of appropriately sized holiday cards from the previous year.
(4) Over 20 years ago now, my oldest sister suggested that we four siblings exchange charitable donations instead of gifts among ourselves, and this excellent tradition continues. The charities, however, have been shifting to reflect our current life concerns: One of mine this year is the Alzheimer’s Association, and my brother (a survivor of several bouts with cancer) picked the American Cancer Society.
(5) Finally, an update on the car situation, since Kristen was kind enough to ask last time: As soon as I get the wrecked Prius officially off the NY State books (I sent the plates back to the DMV via U.S. certified mail, they took almost a week to get there, and I *still* haven’t gotten the necessary form back from them), I plan to go car-shopping. Frankly, I’ve needed the “Christmas truce” from making this or any other important decisions, anyway.
Suzan says
This year I have not purchased any Christmas paper as there is plenty of that here. I continue to work hard on reducing our food waste. I am also working on being realistic about gifts this year. Not so easy but I am trying. I filled the fuel tank at a $1.02 a litre (US quart) instead of $1.51. This is a significant saving. I keep telling myself that I have plenty of yarn and do not need to buy more. This is the same for fabric and scrapbooking supplies.
God bless everyone’s Christmas.
Tricia says
1) My husband and I had our teeth cleaned today. Our dentist is still not using the water pick thingy, just manually scaling, but we were way overdue, so something is better than nothing, and my teeth feel so much better. It was also time for x-rays, so they did bitewings on both of us. No problems. Our school policy covers all of this= nothing out of pocket. Yeah.
2) I mended a pair of knit slippers, the band on my pajama pants, and 2 pillow cases. The pillow cases were actually a remake of regular sized cases for the smaller pillows on our bed. I contemplated looking around for the right size, but then realized that was silly when I could remake the ones I have. So I did! Voila. “New” cases.
3) We used Starbucks gift cards that were a gift from work for our date night last week.
4) We are using up the fruit that came in a large fruit basket for “sides” in meals. I often think I have to have a veggie, but there’s really no reason not to use up the fruit. I hate to waste food!
5) I looked around my cupboard to see what kind of cookies I could make without having to buy anything extra, and settled for soft molasses ginger cookies. It was a new recipe, and very tasty. a bit of a crunch outside, but a soft and chewy center. Glad I decided not to go buy chocolate chips or icing sugar.
lisa says
I’ve had some unusual frugalities this week.
1) I earned a $5 GC to ebay so I decided to buy a few baby food items to be donated to the pantry. The mailman delivered 3 boxes of baby food. As in 72 pouches of blueberry oatmeal flavor and apple cinnamon flavors. The shipping alone would’ve been more than $5 and I’m so excited to bring all of it to the pantry.
2) I’ve sold ornaments and clothing on ebay.
3) I’ve sold anything that nobody wanted on ebay to people in my neighborhood using porch pick-ups.
4) I’ve earned a $5 Target GC.
5) We decided to join fitness center as our local gyms are booked up with the decreased amount of people allowed in them and the decreased hours that they’re open. It was extremely difficult to get a reservation for one person, much less our family. We ended up joining a fitness center for $10/mth (plus $100 in fees). All in all, it was waayyy cheaper than the YMCA.
Tracey says
I am in total agreement about the bacon grease!!! It makes sauteed veggies taste wonderful. Here’s our five frugal things for the week:
1. This is probably the weirdest way to get free produce, but here goes. A produce truck tipped over and the store it was headed to was unable to sell any of it. When it hit our local recycling/ refuse center, volunteers sorted the good from the bad and distributed the good stuff to those who wanted it. We got red, yellow and green onions, scallions, green beans, pineapple, apples, two kinds of grapes, spinach, three types of lettuce, lemons, tomatoes, pomegranates, carrots, bananas, eggplant, celery and oranges. I couldn’t believe how much food fit into one of those trucks! So grateful to the people who took the time to sort everything out so as little as possible was wasted.
2. My boss got two deer this year and gave my workmate and I steaks and burger.
3. Wrapping paper was on sale (already) buy one, get four free!!! I used up pretty much all the stash I bought on sale three years ago, so I stocked up.
4. The hem came undone in a pair of work dress pants. Instead of trashing them I repaired them.
5. I have a group of friends who love to quilt. I went to our local quilt shop and purchased fabric for them (during a sale) for Christmas. The store has a purchase punch card, which I’ve now filled. I’ll receive 15% off my next purchase…squeeee!!!!
Happy holidays to you and your family. I truly look forward to reading your posts. They are a ray of sunshine arriving in my email
Kristen says
Wow, that’s so great that you all rescued the produce!
And I am so happy that my posts bring you joy.
Darlene H says
Hey, just as an FYI, I just saw in the January 2021 issue of Real Simple an article entitled “It Feels Good to Be Frugal.” I immediately thought of this blog.
jessica says
Its been a very frugal week around here… I had surgery on the 14th and left the house for the first time today -8 days in the house.. This has NEVER happened! So the gas tank is still full!
-most days a friend brought supper over which was such a wonderful and loving gift I never would have expected or asked for. Kids eating all the random up in the fridge/freezer for breakfasts and lunches. so very little food waste!
-FINALLY got someone to listen to me and understand my billing issue at Verizon. My local store doesn’t do anything ( already earned their commission) so I had to call corporate. I have 7 months of credit being put onto my January bill and the Feb bill should be the correct pricing.. finally! Persistence and patience finally paid off!
-managed to walk through Rite Aid for a few minutes today to use up my store credit and got stocking stuffers- discounted! (Then right back home to rest!)
– saw clearance tags at Rite Aid in the Dollar aisle! Grabbed a box of cereal, 3 bags of brownie mix and 3 small bags of jerky for $.50 each!
Ruth T says
That dinosaur is awfully cute.
1. I gave my son a haircut this morning.
2. I stopped by the clearance food section at Meijer the other day and found canned peaches marked down to 29 cents a can! They don’t expire until 2023 and there’s nothing wrong with them. I bought 18 cans and my kids have been loving them.
3. Taking from what you did the other week, I took some sticky marshmallows and made rice krispie treats. We put last year’s clearance Christmas sprinkles on top.
4. After delaying the trip for 6 months (and 3 “maybe things will be good enough to do it in a few months”), we’re hopeful to go visit my sister-in-law next week. My nephew turned 1 a few months again and we haven’t been able to meet him yet! Ugh! But in preparation for next week, I bought food for in the car to hopefully avoid stopping for meals/snacks and bought instant oatmeal and cereal to take for breakfasts in the hotel. I’ll buy milk when we get there. Even if they do offer the free continental breakfasts, we’re not excited about food that a bunch of people have been around or eating around others.
5. I was planning to buy paper bowls and plastic spoons, but realized last night that I don’t need to take disposables. Since we’ll be there for 4 days, I might as well just pack 5 regular bowls and 5 spoons and wash them in our room everyday. Save $4 or so.
Corrine says
1. I gave away odds and ends on Buy Nothing this weekend. This is not frugal per say, but helps prevent unnecessary purchases in the future if you know exactly what you have.
2. Used our zoo membership this week. The membership was a Christmas gift, from a relative, for our kids last year. Brought our own food and water to the zoo.
3. Sold a piece of a vintage Babie Dream House on ebay.
4. We went hiking this weekend, which is free and good for our health
5. Used up some pineapple in the refrigerator to mix with yogurt for my breakfasts during the week, thawed out frozen homemade Jamaican beef patties to use for my lunches during the week, and used frozen bread odds and ends to make breakfast sandwiches
Lindsey says
1. Husband and I cut each other’s hair.
2. Did a box store mystery shop that was evaluating curbside pickup. Got a free product and $25 and never had to mingle with other shoppers.
3. A friend moved some time ago and left us a 50 pound bag of pinto beans. I cannot express how much I hate the texture, smell, looks of and taste of beans of any kind. Well, I decided to try and make refried beans because my husband loves them and only gets them when we go to restaurants and we have not been going to since Covid started. I followed a recipe and it made a ton so we now have 9 containers in the freezer and one in the fridge. Still seems like I have not made a dent in the bag but I am determined to use free food up.
4. Sold a solid oak file cabinet on FB. It was 20 years old but the quality showed—it still looked wonderful and it sold for $100.
5. While cleaning the back of a kitchen cupboard I found two large bags of seeds made for sprouting so have been using those up instead of buying lettuce for sandwiches. I keep two jars going, so as we finish one the next one is ready to be eaten. If we can’t keep up with the eating, the excess goes to the chickens.
6. I bought a $5 raffle ticket from a friend’s kid and won a $100 restaurant gift certificate! They are open on Christmas so for the first time I will not cook on that holiday and we will order take out from them.
Heidi Louise says
Lindsey: I’m with you. All beans are vile. In all forms.
I will, however, eat refried beans if enough other Mexican food is available to dull them down. Good luck on working through what you have!
kristin @ going country says
Since moving to New Mexico, I have never NOT had pinto beans. They’re sort of unavoidable. Most of us love them but I do find that even my bean-hating son will eat refried beans with lots of garlic in them. Good luck.
MEM says
Lindsey, I laughed so hard at your comment about beans! I’m the same way and its only getting worse as I get older. I can eat refried beans if they are part of something else like loaded nachos. Dave Ramsey’s “beans and rice and rice and beans” sounds like my idea of Hell. I’m sure I must have a “bean intolerance” and need to keep them out of my diet.
Jenelle says
1. I have to give hubby credit for this one. Our kids never eat the crust off their pizza. She he cut it off and put them aside to make cheezy bread sticks for the next day. He added sauce and cheese to it the next day and they came out amazing. Who would have known!
2. I mended a few items this weekend. My children are very hard on their masks, but I”ll keep sewing them!
3. I decided that we would not be sending Christmas cards to family this year. I did, however, just write out 100 cards to be sent to the local nursing home. I had oddles of miscellaneous cards laying around. It was nice to use them up and know that they would be going to someone who would appreciate them (I hope!). My goal for the next time I visit the Goodwill bins is to get some more Christmas cards for next year. There are always cards in the bins.
4. I decided that my kids would give their teachers a small handmade ornament. We had made some wooden disc ornaments with leftover from a previous project and I asked them to pick out one for their teacher. Someone once told me that was their favorite present from their students…a simple ornament.
5. An over abundance of snow has made for some great free sledding with the kids. Now, if hubby wouldn’t have broken one of them =(
K D says
1. I made beef stew in the Instant Pot. I was unable to get beef stew meat from the local grocery store so I’d bought a package at the warehouse club. I used half the package a couple months ago and froze the rest. I thawed it and used it on Sunday. While we are not in love with the results (new online recipe) it is more than edible and we have eaten leftovers for lunch the past two days.
2. My hair is getting a bit scraggly but with Covid-19 cases up in the state a haircut will have to wait. I’m grateful I did get haircuts in June, August, and October when our numbers were lower.
3. I have been trying not to do too much online shopping but I have been better about remembering to order through a rebate site and using my few credit cards for maximum cash back.
4. We did a virtual holiday movie watch party with my niece and her family and our daughter and her household. We all started the same movie at the same time while connected on Google Meet. We would unmute to comment. It was a lot more fun to watch that way.
5. I gave away a bunch of stuff on Freecycle. Frugal for others and I love knowing that our no longer needed possessions are going to new homes.
Barb says
1. I raked the leaves in my front yard (again!). I really hate this chore but doing it myself saves me from paying someone else to do it, and it’s free exercise. Unfortunately, there are more leaves to fall. Sigh!
2. I have been keeping my heat set on 60 day and night and bundling up.
3. I made a lot of cookies and candies using mostly low-cost ingredients and nuts and chocolate chips I bought on clearance after the holidays last year. I gifted many of them to a friend and to my sister’s family.
4. I helped my sister post items on Marketplace again and got free lunch at her house. We are never going to finish this project because her house, garage and attic are completely packed!
5. I redeemed a coupon for free guacamole at Sprouts.
Jennifer O says
I miss Sprouts….where do you live? We had Sprouts in Colorado! My mother now has it in her area in Florida.
Kris says
Made ham and potato soup with some potatoes that were past their prime …. took my kids on a freebie outing using a gift card to Barnes and Noble and Mcdonald’s …. another freebie outing yesterday to a local museum (there was only one other family in there at the early hour when we went and we made a point of giving them space) …. kids and hubby have been eating breakfast and lunch leftovers all week …. still cooking instead of eating out (although I may opt for a fun meal out next week!).
Katy in Africa says
1. We’ve been fixing up the other side of the house we live in for guests. While some of it’s cost money, a lot has been plain old organizing and elbow grease.
2. My husband and some have reused a lot of wood to make 2 end tables and a small bookshelf for the guest apartment.
3. I bought a used rug for the bathroom.
4. We’ll have leftovers and smoothies for supper.
5. Used leftover rice to make breakfast rice.
Julia says
What is breakfast rice?
Cheryl says
Julia, in my home, it is re-heated rice with milk, cinnamon and just a bit of sweetner. My husband grew up eating it whenever they had leftover rice. He loves it.
JD says
Same here. I grew up eating rice for breakfast every time my mom cooked rice for any other meal. She always made enough for leftovers. I still love it.
Rachel R. says
What a brilliant fix for cord care!!
Here’s my 5:
1. Shopped at Dollar Tree for husband’s co-worker Secret Santa gift–put together a movie gift with Robin Hood DVD, popcorn, and candy
2. Used clearance Halloween candy (stored in freezer) as “filler” item in clear gift bags that I had bought in too big of a size.
3. At work (a library) there were free books and free Christmas cards, and I happened to be one Christmas card short so that worked out great to pick up a free one! Also was able to gift my Mom a bonus like-new book gift:)
4. Saving all of our Amazon, etc. bubble envelopes for future mailings. Perfect for when selling used books. Sold a book this week too!
5. I let a friend know we’d be happy to receive anything her youngest daughter grows out of, and she has 3 new to us items coming our way to help fill in my youngest’s wardrobe. She had given us dress shoes and boots in the fall too–such a blessing. She seems to appreciate the gifting too!
Jen says
1. I picked up Costco groceries for a friend who didn’t have a Costco card. Since I have an executive membership, I get points for the purchase and they dropped off dinner as a thank you.
2. I read that people are happier who know their neighbors. I bought my house right before the pandemic started so I don’t know a lot of my neighbors. I made bread and tied it up with a bow (reused from gifts I have received) and took it to my neighbors. Bread is pretty cheap to make and they seemed to really appreciate the gift.
3. I was able to use a gift card to pay for most of a Christmas gift for my brother and his wife.
4. Turning down my heat to 60 at night, since I can put on warm pajamas and pile on the blankets.
5. Found some small hotel shampoos and conditioners in a bag. They aren’t high quality, but I find I don’t mind them mixed with my normal shampoo and conditioner, so I squeezed them into my normal shampoo and conditioner and shook up the bottles.
Lyndsay says
Would be very interested to know if the cable protectors work. I tried a low quality one in the past that just kept falling off.
Angie says
1. Filled up my tank using ready to expire fuel points which saved me $0.30/gallon and given the fact that we don’t go anywhere should last until the 1st week of January by my estimate.
2. Pulled chili from the freezer for an easy meal with baked potatoes Saturday evening while doing all the wrapping, baking, etc.
3. Purchased a great pair of tennis shoes for my Mom who will have knee replacement surgery at the beginning of the year. Normally these shoes cost $150/pair but we happened upon a lovely clearance and saved 40% which is unheard of for this brand of shoes.
4. Working to keep our thermostat to 63 or 64 at night and during the day if at all possible. Combining loads of laundry and running full dishwasher loads. Preparing a simple but delicious Christmas dinner. Using coupons for pizza on Christmas Eve – this Mama has to catch a break sometime!
5. Enjoyed three lunches provided by my company as well as a holiday Amazon gift card.
kristin @ going country says
Last night I opened one of the giant cans of “fruit mix,” (6.8 pounds of peaches, pears, grapes) we got from the school when they were clearing out the kitchens before Thanksgiving. I remember eating this all the time as a kid–with the thrilling addition of the elusive tiny cherry pieces, it was “fruit cocktail”–but my children have not, and they were not too enthused. I added a tiny bit of maple syrup and some cinnamon (the fruit was in an extra-light syrup, and was pretty bland), but only the younger two finished theirs. So I froze the rest of it for smoothies in the summer. I have two more cans of it, so I guess we’re all set this coming summer.
Also I made a broth from the carcasses of the rabbit and pheasant I roasted this weeked, which yielded a lot of broth and then soup with the meat that I could then pull off. It was really good.
Sue W says
1. Decided I didn’t need all the Christmas lights on all day long while I am home alone, so I am turning them on just for a little while in the morning while my husband is home and then again in the late afternoon through the evening.
2. Filled my gas tank up last Friday, before the prices went up this week. I also used my grocery perks card and saved $.20 per gallon when I did.
3. Put on an extra fleece sweater today to avoid turning the heat up, at least for a while.
4. Finished a bag of lettuce salad that was starting to get brown. With enough cheese and dressing on it, I hardly noticed!
5. Made and ate some sugar free pudding that I bought accidentally that didn’t taste very good. But it didn’t get wasted and maybe was better for me than the regular I thought I bought.
WilliamB says
– Bought a bunch of holiday gifts on sale from Penzey’s. Small boxes of 4 jars were on sale for $10 instead of $20, plus B5G1F.
– Used notecards I already had that I bought on sale, rather than buying special holiday ones.
– I wrapped the boxes with tissue paper and gift bags I already had; first I checked that the tissue paper was in decent shape and the gift bags didn’t have writing on them.
– Although I just learned that I need gifts for my nieces (long story), the adults long ago stopped giving gifts to each other, although my SIL insists on giving my mother a birthday present (harrumph) (I also wonder if she sends my father a birthday gift or if Mom gets one because her birthday happens to be about when we gather for winter holidays).
– Eating down all the produce before I head out for a week. I get to be somewhere else, yay!
– Continued to brown bag when I do have to go into the office.
– Bought a pack of 6 2020 covid-themed ornaments for about $2 each. Five are gifts for my immediate co-workers, the 6th is for me.
– Used the high-quality artificial tree I bought about 15 years ago, the ornaments that I got either as gifts or as travel souvenirs, and the decorations that are either family heirlooms (I use that word advisedly) or bought as travel souvenirs. I like my theme of travel: they bring back good memories, they’re easy and relatively inexpensive to buy and transport, and give my tree a cohesiveness it would otherwise lack.
Julia says
We buy ornaments on our travels as well. So much fun to reminisce when decorating the tree.
Battra92 says
1.) Ordered some refills on my medication online before the year is up and got my eye exam. Luckily my script isn’t too different so I don’t need a new pair of glasses just yet.
2.) Didn’t go hog wild on Christmas this year even though the temptation to spend like crazy was there.
3.) Planning on using the unnecessary “stimulus” check for either my Roth IRA or just toss it on my mortgage.
4.) Upped my 401k contributions slightly after the first of the year.
5.) Bought a bone-in rib roast (if it were prime it would be prime rib) as Christmas dinner. It was the most I had ever paid on a single piece of meat but dang it, I’ve saved enough on other things that I can splurge once in my life.
Andrew says
Unnecessary? There are a lot of people who need it.
Kristen says
I’m guessing he maybe meant that it was not necessary for him personally. I feel the same; neither Mr. FG nor I have been out of work, so it’s not like I need financial help from the government.
But we will try to use ours in ways that are helpful to others in some way (like supporting a local business).
Battra92 says
I said what I meant and I meant what I said. It’s unnecessary.
Andrew says
Maybe not to you, but for the people who have lost their jobs, can’t pay their rent and have to go to foodbanks, it does help somewhat. Unfortunately in Texas, people are having problems affording food and having to go to foodbanks.
My daughter lives in California and lost her job of 5 years due to corona. She is 30, got a new job and after 2 weeks several people came down with corona. Including her immediate boss, who has a severe case and her supervisor who is 6 months pregnant. She had to quarantine and thank goodness her tests are Negative and she goes back after Xmas. But being a new job, they are no benefits yet, so she has to use her savings.
Lacy says
You can return the money to the government. I know someone who returned the previous stimulus money and the government did process the return. The government isn’t forcing anyone to keep it, so it is up to each individual to decide what is the right thing to do.
WilliamB says
Hell, yes. That is exactly why I save on other things. The goal of frugality (once basic needs and debts are met) is to spend our money on what matters to us, not to spend as little as possible.
Battra92 says
Considering that I haven’t been able to spend on anything nice all year, I mean … why not?
N says
–I bought A LOT of clearance wrapping paper at Michael’s last year @ $1 a roll, which means we still have some left despite feeling like I wrapped everything but the cat this month! Since I’ll likely skip the holiday clearance blowout on the 26th, I’m happy for the leftovers. I brave the 26th if there’ something specific we’re hoping for (i.e. last year’s 1/2 price flannel sheets and replenishing the wrapping stash), but there’s not a thing that’s worth leaving the house this go around!
–Frugal for my family: Needless to say, we’re not traveling for the holidays, and my parents (who live a state away) were worried about their gifts arriving on time. They enlisted a friend who had to drive our way for work to play Santa. I met her in the lobby of her hotel (masked of course) to pick up the gifts. I brought her a small “thank you” gift as well, as that was very sweet of her!
–Flat-rate priority mail boxes for the win! I shopped my family’s presents out at the beginning of the month, and I don’t know that I could have afforded to without the flat-rate loophole. Some masterful Tetris meant their box was both stuffed and HEAVY!
–The Aldi brand scoopable cat litter was the same price as the Super Saver store brand I had been getting (cheapest per ounce that actually worked), so I gave it a try. Happily, Aldi’s works even better! This eliminates a monthly stop, as I would swoop in to Super Saver expressly to stock up on litter.
–To help balance out my husband’s pricier-than-usual November birthday, I made his main gift this time around. I had all supplies on hand save for the $1 bit I bought at Michael’s. How much time I spent on it is another matter, but hey, only $1 spent!
