Five Frugal Things | food saves, closet shelving, a repair, and more!
1. I made a quesadilla to use up some elderly tortillas
We had two tortillas that had been sitting around for a while, unloved and unwanted.
So I made a quesadilla for lunch, and I added a sliced jalapeño.
2. We DIYed some closet shelving for Zoe
When we bought this house, the closets all had wire shelving, which is serviceable, but not fantastic.
The main issue is that it's annoying to not have a solid surface to set small things on.
And Zoe's closet had a particularly poor set-up, especially when it came to places for hangers.
Mr. FG bought a board to use as a shelf, cut it to size, and we primed and painted it. He looked at some of those melamine-coated closet shelf boards, but they seemed less durable than a regular board, plus it's hard to find the coated boards in the correct size.
Simple for the win!
(What paint did I use? Benjamin Moore Advance in Cloud White OF COURSE.)
Then we ripped out all the old shelving and installed new brackets, the new shelf, and a closet rod.
This is much more serviceable for Zoe, and all we had to buy was a board, a rod, and the brackets.
I'm still in the process of filling the zillion holes left in her walls, but I'm almost done.
3. I fixed a small fan
I'd been using this tiny fan to help the bookshelf dry overnight, and it suddenly stopped working.
I noticed some hair was wound around the blade, so I took the fan apart, removed the hair, and now it's working great again.
Yay!
A small fan is not an expensive item, but I am always happy when I can fix something instead of throwing it out.
4. I used up some sticky marshmallows
Using up marshmallows is not exactly the most virtuous thing to do, but I am going to count it. I mean, I did pay for the marshmallows, so if I threw them away, that would indeed be wasteful.
I had two bags of marshmallows in the cabinet that had gotten sticky and formed a large lump of marshmallow.
Luckily, their combined weight was right about 10 ounces, so I made a batch of Rice Krispie treats and my girls were seriously gratified.
Rice Krispie treats are stupid delicious for how simple they area. So good!
(And in my opinion, the pre-made ones in the packages are seriously inferior. I dunno what they put in them, but something tastes really weird.)
5. I...
- made coffee at home (I have a lot! Ha.)
- soaked and washed all my painting supplies for future reuse
- made fried apples to use up some bruised ones from Hungry Harvest
Your the first person I’ve heard mention making fried apples! My mom always made them when I was a kid, and now I do too but I never hear anyone else refer to them! Since my mom is southern I figured they were just a southern thing. Yum...now I may need to make some today.
*You’re... not your
I thought Fried apples were a Dutch thing. I live in the Amish/Mennonite area of PA and that is a popular side dish!
Interesting! I guess lots of folks eat them! 🙂
Although I live in an Amish/Mennonite area of Ohio and I’ve never heard any of them mention it or had it served when I’ve eaten meals with them. Must be location specific.
We use tortillas as pizza bases. Spread with tomato purée and a light layer of toppings and cook for 8-10mins. They're really nice and lower calories than a normal base. They're cooked so the tortilla is crispy so it doesn't matter if they're a bit stale to start with.
Totally agree on the fan fixing! It makes sense to clean appliances, especially if they move around the air in your house.
Five Frugal things this week for me were:
1 We became a birdlife protection members, so we can buy bird seeds at a discount. Invest now, profit later.
2 We had huge costs for our tomcat's medical treatment, but found a black friday discount offer for the urinary catfood recommended by the vet. Another "invest now, profit later" item.
3 We carefully divided our waste over different buckets/boxes, as glass, textiles, paper and fresh/garden greens will be collected for free, but other garbage has to paid for, calculated by number of instances collected x weight of garbage container. It also helps if you do not throw out stuff that can be reused (sold or gifted) to other people!
4 During errands, after I had already paid the greengrocer, I remembered that I still had red onions on my list. They gave them to me for free, saying " Enjoy the meal!". So when I used them yesterday, I was reminded of their kindness too 🙂
5 I needed some plant containers for cuttings I started, had none, and used some of our huge mugs. They are just the right color for our living room, and if the cuttings survive and thrive, I can see if I can find some larger containers.
Bonus: our stockpile of ordinary cat food was gifted to one of our children. A little windfall for them, as I had recently restocked for three months...
I always like to read (the comments to) this post!
My cat is also on expensive veterinary urinary cat food. my cat will only eat the dry. can you tell me more about where you found the black friday discount. thank you
Hi Mary, it was at Zooplus. But I live in Europe so I do not know if they also sell in the States? Hope they do! The discount was for the dry food.
FFT, Friends & Food Edition!
--I stopped by a Goodwill I don't go to often (the tiny parking lot is a Tetris challenge) and spotted a collector's edition DVD of "A Hard Day's Night" still in the original shrink wrap. I texted a photo to a Beatles-loving friend, who absolutely wanted it. It's listed for $38.96 on Amazon vs. the $3.99 I found it for--score! I ding-dong-ditched the DVD at his house on the way home.
--Another friend couldn't stand not being able to talk to me about "The Mandalorian" series, so he gifted me a Disney+ subscription. I talked him down to just two months (first month free, $6.99 for the second) instead of a full year, as we just don't watch much television (6-10 hours a week, depending on date nights) even with a Roku box and Prime. As for the show, IT IS SO GOOD!!!! I can see why he was so excited to share it! Two months will get us through the second season, and then we can resume our forgetful television ways.
--Our chest freezer desperately needed defrosting but still held more food than would fit in our fridge freezer and our little styrofoam cooler. A friend graciously loaned us a GIANT cooler so that I could thwart the frost gremlins. In return, I raided our spice pantry for her. We've been ordering spices in bulk since all our local stores shut down their bulk sections, so we've PLENTY to share!
—-Related, I upcycled two empty salsa jars to help contain our bevy of bay leaves. Some spices have arrived in hard plastic containers, whereas others are in giant bags. I’m moving the bagged ones to more suitable containers as various jars empty out.
--We're ordering bulk meat from a local farmer for the first time for early next year. Despite my answering the order form email within the hour, the farmer said our order claimed the last of everything--phew, just under the wire! I'll have to increase my speed next time. Since it's just the two of us, we ordered the smallest bulk quantities, which will still be 60 lbs.
Love your parking lot analogy! I wind up in too many parking lots like that.
LOL It’s only the truth, I’m afraid! There’s also a steep incline for extra fun. If there are more than five cars in the lot when I drive by, I just don’t bother. 😛
Kristen, have you tried keeping your marshmallows in the freezer? It keeps them from getting sticky and after a few minutes thaw on the counter, they taste great! We compared three different methods to keep them fresh: in a jar in the refrigerator, tossed with powdered sugar and stored in a jar, and in the freezer. In the freezer was the big winner, preserving the taste and preventing stickiness.
Yesterday I ground coffee beans from my stash and used my food saver to vacuum seal and help keep the rest fresh. I order roasted whole beans in 25 pound quantities as I can get very nice beans by mail order for 8 or $9 per pound vs $12+ in my neighborhood stores and I love not always having to buy coffee. I keep the surplus in vacuum sealed giant mason jars / in gamma-lidded buckets. Bulk buying for the win!
1. I received a coupon for a free package of Mrs. T's pierogies. I signed up for this a few weeks ago.
2. I redeemed points on one of the survey sites I do to get a $25 Amazon gift card.
3. I used some of the Amazon cards I've accumulated to order 3 Christmas gifts for my daughter and son-in-law. No out of pocket expense.
4. I redeemed $21.38 in cash back on my credit card. This statement had the travel expenses for my trip to my daughter's wedding in New York so it was a doozy!
5. I rescued a package of hot dog buns that my sister was going to toss (she is a terrible food waster!). I don't eat hot dogs, but I will use them as toast, bread crumbs, etc. I toasted one last night with butter and Italian seasoning and had it with ravioli. Delicious! The rest are now in my freezer.
6. One more - Kroger had Pillsbury seasonal break and bake cookies on clearance for 59 cents. I used a $1 off 3 digital coupon and got 2 packages of caramel apple and 1 pumpkin for only 85 cents with tax!
1. Laundry soap that I ordered from Target opened in the box and spilled all over a shirt that was packaged in the same box. It took a little effort (had to go into the store which I had wanted to avoid), but was able to get a refund and kept the rest of the laundry soap. The shirt was OK to wash and keep also, since it was laundry soap anyway. The packaging was ruined and it was going to be a gift, but my son will understand 🙂
2. Since I was at Target, bought some Christmas gifts and took advantage of an offer to get 2 $10 gift cards.
3. Taught my son how to clean and buff his leather boots with water repellent shoe shine. Also bought new shoe laces (at Target, ha), and they look as good as new although these Doc Martens are years old.
4. Borrowed a book from my neighbor for a book club rather than buying it. The library had too many holds on it.
5. Upped my contribution to next year's health savings account, which is deducted pretax from my salary. This will lower my taxable income and will also be a saving if I don't use it all.
Also, regarding food waste. We've been using up even more leftovers than before now when the whole family is at home and nobody is eating lunch at school or work. On Friday I happened to be by our boys schools and picked up free school lunches from their meal distribution for the kids. This came in handy on day when our leftovers and cupboards were skimpy before our weekly shopping.
1.) I made homemade baguettes (well pseudo baguettes) and they came out pretty darn well if I do say so myself.
2.) Stocking up on butter at Aldi during the butter sale.
3.) Similarly stocking up via Thanksgiving sales.
4.) Put in for mileage reimbursement at work for some traveling I did with my own car.
5.) Trying not to go too hog wild with everything. As crazy as it sounds not being able to spend money this year has made me antsy and wanting to spend money on something fun but I also don't want to waste it, ya know?
1. I made a ritz chicken casserole using leftover poached chicken from making homemade chicken stock. My family claimed it the perfect fall/winter casserole and never knew we were eating up leftovers.
2. I made a giant pot of homegrown mustard greens. So yummy and loaded with nutrients. Everything in the pot except an onion was homegrown in fact. I love gardening 🙂
3. Increased my FSA contribution for 2021 as I expect some additional dental work for my son and want to be prepared to minimize out of pocket costs as much as possible.
4. Scored butter quarters for $1.82/pound at Costco, 3 turkeys @ $0.47/pound, ham for $1.99/pound and 3 pork sirloin roasts for $0.99/pound. I also found several holiday cooking items and baking items for great prices and we are well stocked for Thanksgiving and Christmas at home.
5. Took advantage of a Black Friday deal at Target to get a small pre-lit Christmas tree for my son's bedroom for $10. Small spend but super happy little guy...he has wanted this for a couple of years now.
Stay safe everyone!
I have found a great way to use up all the quinoa we get in our produce box...last night I cooked some with cinnamon, vanilla and honey, and added it to oatmeal this morning. It makes the oatmeal last longer, is good for me and I'm using up pantry ingredients!
I returned a furminator that my cats did NOT like. I was really glad I kept the receipt as being able to return that thing meant $31 back on my credit card.
I ordered a Christmas gift for the hubs while it was still on sale, yay.
Still cooking at home...thankfully the hubs has offered to help (he would have sooner, I just didn't ask) and so that's made cooking more bearable. I love cooking, but I was really getting tempted by take-out because I was just tired of it. Last night we tag-teamed dinner and all I had to do was make the salad. So cooking at home continues!
I moved more money to savings. Always a great feeling!
"I am always happy when I can fix something instead of throwing it out."
SO TRUE. I even make new candles from old candle wax. Part of it is knowing how, part of it is not throwing things out when I can find a use for them.
"Rice Krispie treats are stupid delicious for how simple they area (sic). the pre-made ones in the packages are seriously inferior."
Also SO TRUE. The cereal is always soggy and stale.
Pretty slim pickings around here for frugality, unless you count family members kicking in to support the now-socially-distant Thanksgiving Feast. For my mental health, we're buying almost everything.
- The sauce from the Bresse Chicken in Vinegar wasn't great, more like tomato soup than a simmered vinegar sauce. Rather than compost it, I'm saving it to see if it would go OK in soup.
- Probably not going to buy a new TV for Thanksgiving. The idea was to prop it up inside the picture window so we can watch movies together while being outside, then move it to my home office. The problem was figuring out how to prop it up; I vetoed the overly-optimistic "CW and I can build a frame this weekend, it'd be easy!" because I've heard that statement before. 🙂
Haha at your last one! Sometimes, you CAN predict the future, based on past experience. 😉
One of our neighbors sits on his porch and watches tv through his window. His living room is small and the tv is big so it’s just mounted on the wall across from the window.
Unfortunately that's not an option for this space.
1. My dryer quit working so I googled the troubleshooting manual and it became a simple fix of uncrimping the exhaust vent. No repairman needed.
2. A pipe on the top of our hot water heater sprang s leak. Luckily we already had a replacement pipe on hand and my husband replaced it within 20 minutes. No repairman needed.
3. My daughter’s family had ordered take out Chinese and accidentally ordered way to much. She brought us the leftovers that has served us a couple of meals. No expense here.
4. My handmade Christmas gifts are coming along nicely. So far I have made 9 gifts below a total cost of approximately $25.
5. I signed up for CareCredit at CVS and received the 1st month free. I plan on making a trip there this afternoon to pick up some meds. I plan on using the $10 discount plus some coupons.
I am curious to hear what gifts you are making, but perhaps you cannot divulge here. I also like to make small gifts - usually something involving cooking or knitting. Perhaps this time round I will also sew mouthmasks. They will become compulsary here (NL, Europe) in December. Ideally I'd like to make some gentlemanly ones- I have plenty of stash, all fabrics that can be washed at 60 degrees (Celsius).
Oh, I love fried apples. My mother always made them with orchard-picked apples in the fall, and they were so good. I make them, too, and use sweet apples so all I add is a little cinnamon, no sugar.
1. Yesterday was finally cool enough for a sweater, so I wore a "hand-me-up" sweater from a daughter. It's always nice when you can trade clothes around with your grown kids. Our only exception is shoes - so far, no one out of me, my kids or teen grandkids, wears the same size shoes as anyone else.
2. My husband's continuous glucose monitor (CGM) failed yesterday, so I called the manufacturer. It's still under warranty, and although he dropped it in water a few days ago, they are replacing it for free. We should have it in a couple of days. I made sure I was both honest and nice when I called.
3. I ordered a gift for a child and selected ship free to the store instead of buying more than I wanted just to get free shipping. The store is close by my work place. I used some Swagbuck money to help pay for the gift, too.
4. I looked at ordering another gift at another online store, but the shipping would be over $8 on a $20 item. I discovered I can get almost the exact same thing here in town for less than that, plus I have a coupon.
5. This isn't my frugality, but I almost glowed with pride when my daughter showed me the bag of clothes loaned to her by a friend. They both have very young kids, same sex, staggered in age, so they are going back and forth with the clothes as the next child reaches that size in clothes. I'm glad my daughter and her friend view such frugal practices as normal and desirable.
Yay for a new glucose monitor! How is your husband feeling, by the way? It seems like maybe he's stabilized a bit, based on your posts.
Being honest and kind are important ❤️
Yes, thanks for asking! He has been hospital free so far this whole year! He is still weak and gets depressed at being home all the time, (which is how many of us feel) but he's not been sick. Still, he's too vulnerable to take to stores and such, so except for doctor visits and occasional rides for the heck of it, home he stays.
I feel like I am losing focus on frugal due to pandemic exhaustion.
1. Not eating out
2. Walking for exercise
3. Car probz and furnace probz not frugal but we have emergency funds set aside for these things. We do need to start building back up tho.
4. Did not buy any new fall decorations and plan to buy no new Xmas decorations!
5. ???
Ironically, I’ve been trying for years to duplicate the store-bought Rice Krispie treats...there’s just something about that flavor-I haven’t been successful yet Homemade ones are always “meh” to me.
H has COVID, so we’re hunkered down through at least Thanksgiving. No gas being used, but we’re spending more on groceries. We’re not wasting food though, so that’s good!
I feel the need to make them from scratch and eat a store bought one and compare now!! Which one do I like better?? I don't know!
1. Fiddled with our freezer and got the ice maker working again. Hope it lasts!
2. Checked out 10 newish cookbooks from the library to see if I wanted to purchase any. They all have 2-5 recipes I want to make, not enough for a purchase. I will add them to my recipe box and return the books.
3. Helped my daughter with course scheduling after her advisor flaked out. I was so ticked that we had to do this, but it will keep her on track for graduating on time and relieve her anxiety so was worth the time/aggravation.
4. Bulk purchased meat and staples from Costco ahead of my state’s grocery store capacity restrictions hitting Friday. I think people will panic buy again, but I will just need to fill in milk/eggs/etc even after my college kids return this weekend.
5. We continue to not buy a replacement car since we are WFH, I continue to make my own coffee, cook our meals, not get a hair cut, etc.
what did you do to fix the ice maker? I tried the blow dryer on the water tube but that didn't work....
We have a Samsung side by side. There is a reset button hidden on the side of the ice maker that Samsung says to use only as a last resort. It did the trick. This is the 2nd time in a month though that it stopped making ice, so I'm afraid there might be a bigger problem. Did you try googling your brand +"ice maker won't make ice"? That's how I found this tip. Good luck!
I had a bag of scones, biscuits and Irish soda bread in the freezer. I ground it up in my Vitamix and and used it used for flour in sweet bread. Total experiment and it’s was delicious! No food waste. Lol. Now I want to make it this way all the time!
1. I used up a cabbage that had been in the fridge for a really, really long time. It tasted okay!
2. Same dish, I used up a squishier than I'd like lemon.
3. I encouraged my DH to stop at Goodwill to look for treasures because he was going to be right across the street. He found a great item to sell and make extra money on!
4. We are both wearing nice tops from Goodwill to work today (and shoes I bought for a reduced price on Ebay).
5. I am happily chewing gum (from the expensive car cup pack) that I found at the flea market this weekend for 50 cents. I bought all he had left, three packs. That makes three packs about half the price of ONE car cup pack at the grocery store. I'll take that deal any time!
Bonus: DH called about a plumbing bill where he felt we were overcharged. He had carefully timed how long they were at our home and even had them on camera coming and going. The plumber reduced the bill by 1/2 an hour or around $40. Definitely worth the call.
I TOTALLY agree about premade rice krispies, there IS a weird taste. In college I used to make one serving (or a bit more...ahem..lol) size of them and eat them warm. YUM. I showed my daughter that trick before she went off to school. I clean (take apart) my box fans twice a year when I spring and fall clean. You can take off the covers and use compressed air and a vacuum. I started doing it because in AZ it is super dusty (I am from MD, so I didn't realize) and apparently it gets all caught up in the motor as well as lint and can spark! Yep, did that when I turned it one one time, thankfully it was before I fell asleep. I make my own London Fog lattes at home every day. If I bought them at SB, it's 5 bucks a day. I make them every day at home for pennies. Thanks for the post!
I’m currently replacing the pull chain on my daughter’s ceiling fan. It was surprisingly easy to remove the light kit. I’m also going to use up some older tortillas today and make chicken quesadillas.
I removed the mirror (we are tall and it’s not a good height for us) from our bedroom dresser and put it on our mantle as decor.
I removed the mirrored closet doors from two small closets in our master bedroom. They weren’t working properly. Now, after taking them apart, we have four beautiful large mirrors to prop against the wall. They can be used for OOTD pictures I’m keeping two and listing two for sale. Now I need a frugal closet door solution?
Lastly, I recently froze some bananas and grapes before they spoiled. Happy dance!
In our daughter's room, we put up a shower curtain for her closet door. It was supposed to be a quick temporary fix but 6 years later she is still using it.
1. My children's school is still in person but I see virtual coming soon and a co-worker gifted me a cute divider to place between the two kids once we set up laptops. She said she will even bring in a second one for the other one! How sweet of her to think about my kids.
2. Peeked at our electricity bill and was relieved to see that we did quite well in Oct! The extra money that I had saved for this bill will go towards Christmas presents.
3. Using up every little bit of shampoo that we have laying around the house. I have a reusable travel bottle that I'm adding all the little bits and bobs to before I go buy more.
4. Reminding my husband that we don't need to buy groupons. He sends me these deals and I remind him that if he has to put them on his credit card, we don't need them.
5. We were VERY VERY lucky that our home was spared from a small tornado that went through. About 200 yards south of our house two homes weren't so lucky.
1. I removed the lint from a hair dryer. It now runs much better and does not get hot.
2. My husband and daughter had airline miles that were going to disappear later this month since there had been no activity on their accounts since spring of last year. They each shopped for necessary items through the airline shopping portal: a small Home Depot purchase for one and a small Staples purchase for the other. Neither purchase will award many miles but they should be enough to keep the miles from expiring.
3. Meals at home, meals at home, and meals at home. I make a pot of soup and then store it in jars. Most days I have soup and other food items for lunch. Sometimes I use the Instant Pot to make the soup.
4. Covid numbers are up in our state so I used the Pick Up service at Sam's Club. There was no charge and it was quick and easy.
5. With rising Covid numbers I will forgo haircuts. I may return the my spring shagginess.
Try adding about 1/4 cup of peanut butter to the melted marshmallows. Store bought treats are not good to me at all.
'100' year old miniature marshmallows go great in hot chocolate!!
1. Mended two seam-holes. One was in a sweatshirt that was brand-new and I had only worn twice, so I'm very excited to have it back in my clothing rotation. The other was in a cardigan.
2. Made my first turkey of the season! That meat will be used in dishes 4 nights this week and the bird only cost me $4.11. Pretty good for feeding a family of 5.
3. Got a few Halloween costumes for next year at 90% off. Though my 4yo son is getting plenty of enjoyment out of the hot dog costume now, too. It was only $2.50.
4. Date nights have been few in 2020, so my husband and I used a gift card to get some appetizers the other night after the kids were in bed. Movie off Amazon Prime, gift card for food, no babysitting necessary. Very frugal date. And miraculously the kids all stayed in bed.
5. I made a pumpkin latte this morning. There was a small amount of pumpkin left from a couple of baking things, so this avoided food waste and I didn't have to spend $4 to have a fun coffee drink.
I am newly temporarily unemployed by choice (COVID 19 stress did this old nurse in, so I'm taking a much needed work break) so I have been doing things myself that I would normally be to tired or busy to do such as:
1. I have cooked every meal at home this week using mostly items already in pantry or freezer. Working me was very often too tired to do this.
2. Instead of hiring someone to pressure wash my house, I did it myself.
3. Instead of hiring someone to rake leaves, I am doing that myself with the help of my nephew and my husband.
4. I returned outdoor cushions that were too small for my furniture.
5. I scheduled warranty work on my SUV.
FFT, Frugal Fails/Recoveries Edition:
(1) For reasons it would take too long to explain (having to do with DH's dementia/paranoia), I tripped over our recycling bin on a mad dash up from the basement last Thursday. Cut my left thumb at the thumbnail, and banged up my right knee and foot. But home remedies came to the rescue (hot salt water soaks for the thumb, and ice bags for the knee/foot). I'm now almost back to my previous status quo. And thank goodness I still bounce.
(2) Front-loading washing machine had a major suds incident last Saturday, probably due in part to an unbalanced load (our Polartec bedsheets plus an afghan that fell down behind the sofa and picked up dirt/debris) and in part to the debris (I found a big, long piece of tape clinging to the afghan when I bailed out the load). I divided the load into three parts and did extra rinse/extra drain and spin on each part. Totally tiresome, but at least I salvaged everything and the machine is still running properly.
(3) I made what I must insist was an absolutely delicious Portuguese kale soup on Monday (recipe from the good old Victory Garden Cookbook by Marian Morash), and DH protested against it. (His range of acceptable foods seems to be getting narrower, although he eats incessantly within that range.) But Dr. Bestest Neighbor, who is a passionate soup eater, came to my rescue by bringing a big takeout container for himself and Ms. BN. Bless the BNs, as I have said so often here and at the NCA--and I'm delighted to reciprocate their many kindnesses in this small way.
(4) I made Southern-style "no @#$%!! sugar in the cornbread" yesterday (recipe from Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings's Cross Creek Cookery), and unfortunately, I left out the @#$%!! salt as well. But I'm about to salvage part of the cornbread with a cornbread/sausage/eggs recipe from the Internet, since I have two chorizo links left over from the soup. No food waste around here.
(5) Finally, some frivolous fun: Our local Thrifty Shopper boutique had a 50% off electronic coupon this week, and I took advantage of it while DH's aide was here on Monday. Best find = a brand-new pair of SAS shoes originally priced at $25. The sizing is off (I'm always on the lookout for shoes marked the next size up from mine that run small) and the color is unusual, but it is a color I wear frequently--so I expect to get a lot of use out of these.
How great to have bestest neighbors -- and I was giggling at number 4 -- somehow cooking mishaps seem to work out!
I've had a bit of a crappy day, and your comment made me laugh (esp #4). Thank you!
1. I went to Fred Meyer (our Kroger store) on the last day of the sale and was able to get the 99¢ per pound pork sirloin roasts. they also had the bone in pork roasts on clearance for 59¢ per pound. Got 2 of those.
2. Used one of the above mentioned 59¢ pound pork roast to make the chili rubbed pork from budget bytes. Will freeze some of the meat for our Christmas Eve posole.
3. Went through all of our tablecloths and napkins when cleaning . I should never have to buy any more of either one.
4. Made foaming hand soap from body wash and water.
5. Got my turkey for 49¢ a pound.
That's all I can think of.
Busy week, cold winter is here.
1. Heat pump is running on 70, it had it’s yearly cleaning,nice and warm. Our house is 720 sq. Feet. No oil used
2. Working on meat out of the freezer for meals. Used all chicken,1 ground beef left,
Plenty of moose left.
3.Used ham bone for pea soup and biscuits, tonight’s supper.
4.Ate 2 meals out due to medical appointments.
5.Got gas at BJ’s while in city for doctors appointments.
We will restock meat after Thanksgiving.
Fried apples?! Sounds delicious! Do you have a recipe to share, please and thank you?
It really is as easy as you'd think. Peel, core and slice apples, then fry them in butter. You can add sugar, cinnamon, what have you if you like.
I love these posts! Practical everyday tips and inspiration!
1. I made fried meat pies for supper including leftover eggs from breakfast in the meat mixture. And using mostly used oil to fry in. You inspired me with the idea to write on the used oil container what I used it for and when. I've found this has helped be much more likely to actually reuse it instead of hesitanting trying to remember how old it is or if it'll have a strong flavor from a previous frying.
2. My kids have been working on making Christmas gifts.
3. I'm trying to cook a little more often with fish (here fish is often cheaper than beef or chicken).
4. I had a skirt made for my daughter with fabric I already had. The cost of labor was about 50 cents USD. Having clothes made here is much more affordable than the US.
5. Working on a compost pile, saving seeds for next year, and reusing some of our gray water.
1.Consulted YouTube and found out how to fix a door lock that had been non functioning for a while. Zero cost as I already own a screwdriver, and I saved the cost of a locksmith call out.
2. Said ‘yes’ to a free water heater flush and faucet check offered to annual A/C service customers. This will save me a plumber call out charge and hopefully the faucet repair needed in my bathroom will be a simple fix.
3. Did a very small ALDI shop, I’m still eating down my freezer and getting to grips with buying only what I need for one person.
4. I am listing my house for sale in January and have a long list of small repairs. Most of these are within my capabilities so I’m going to chip away at them instead of hiring a handy person.
5. Sold several items of furniture and sports equipment as part of my pre-listing decluttering. The cash is saved for last minute moving expenditure - movers tips, takeout etc.
Boy, you are so handy -- how great that you have fixed all these appliances, big and small--What a savings!
1. Still trying not to buy a lot of school stuff -- using scrap paper, paint, copying worksheets and all the stuff we have for Thanksgiving crafts and work. There is so much free stuff on line and my school is thankfully very generous with xeroxing and materials.
2. We are saving the paper bags that the cafeteria sends down every day with free breakfast and lunch for all the kids. I see many many paper bag puppets in our future. Using scraps and googly eyse we already have.
3. Sending all the extra milks, juices, prepacked apple slices, burritos, etc., home with students and staff. We have so much and are trying not to waste it.
4. Eating up the ginormous pot of old beans (packaged circa The Obama Years) I cooked up. Cheap, healthy and not terrible. Going on the 3rd night tonight
5. Found a quarter in the moonlight during a walk. Sanitized it when I got home.
And all the usual stuff -- eating almost every meal in or taking it to school, using up food in frig and pantry, using all my old clothes, going for a lot of walks, reading library books and books I have owned for years (from the library sales 🙂
I received a large, free houseplant, in a nice pot no less. It is perfect for my mantle and it’s nice to have another plant.
I work in a grocery store and often there is food being given away...today I got a whole cored and sliced pineapple and a tray of veggies that are ready for a stir fry. I never buy the pre cut fruit and veggies, but will happily take them for free!
I’m going to hang up a load of laundry to line dry as soon as I’m done writing this.
I made banana raspberry bread using up frozen fruit. It is delicious!
I received yet another credit from the hydro company; I guess I’ve been overpaying and now my monthly bills have been lowered. In the meantime, I have two free months.
My mother in a nursing home, who I haven't seen since February because of Covid, has her birthday on Thanksgiving next week. I still can't see her, but I am assembling a really good amount of homemade dinner for her, plus a special present.
This is the part that has me on my knees crying like a baby, and this is not normal for me. My college roommate and best friend of 40 years has asked a friend, a kindergarten teacher, to have the children make birthday cards for my mother. I was sent a picture of one of them, and it slayed me.
Yes, life can be awful and callous and hard, but it can be beautiful and wonderful too. (Er, I just realized this was FFF, not Thankful Tuesday! Ha! Thankful anyway.)
❤️❤️❤️
My heart is with you
❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
1. Was gifted a pair of North Face boots, for my husband, from my Aunt
2. I am done Christmas shopping. Most of our Christmas presents I picked up from Buy Nothing through the year. We maybe spent about $150 on presents for 2 adults and 2 kids this year
3. I sold a kayak holder on Marketplace this weekend for $40
4. I took my daughter to her 2 year check up, which has no copay cost under our health insurance
5. I am still breastfeeding said daughter, which saves quite a bit of money both in food costs but also health costs
1) I had 2 biopsies done for questionable lesions (all good!). For our insurance here in Hong Kong, you have to pay and then get reimbursed. When the doctor gave me the original estimate, she had broken it down into 2 separate "surgeries," but then on the final receipt, it was written as one, which would mean a lot more out of pocket for me. When I went in for my follow up, I asked her if she could rewrite the receipt and she was happy to do so. Hopefully, this will mean a much higher reimbursement.
2) Last summer, we had a heat pump installed in our home in Maine. We still have our oil furnace as a backup. We just got our electric bill for the month, the first for a time period where temperatures have been pretty cold there, below freezing a number of days. It was only $34...we were very happy with that! We have the thermostat set on 55 degrees (no one is living there right now), and my husband has a remote app to check the temperature every day. It will be really interesting to compare the total oil and electric prices to last year's prices at the end of the season.
3) I downloaded "Living on a Dime" cookbook for free while it was being offered. I had been wanting to buy it, but didn't want to pay for the hard copy.
4) I've been going to the library more now that is is finally opened again.
5) This isn't "thrift" related really, but 2 of my adult sons got Covid, and I am thankful that they both had jobs that paid them while they were off work and that they both had relatively mild cases.
Oh I bet your girls loved that treat! Always loved when my mom made them:)
1. For a couple birthday filler gifts, I picked up a cute pen & pretty spiral from the Dollar Tree. My 5 year old loved getting them.
2. Also grabbed balloons, streamers, and tape from there.
3. Had a $5 Amazon credit that I used to purchase a simple cake topper.
4. We are making thank you videos to the many people who sent us things from their home state for a states study we are doing this year. Thought about doing cards, but this saves stamps and my girls have so much fun making videos.
5. Use smaller cardboard boxes for in cabinet organization. Would love cuter storage, but this works. Maybe will decorate boxes in future with things we have.
My five frugal things for the week:
1. I make the bulk of my Christmas presents every year, so I try to maximize sales and coupons for supplies. Jo-ann Fabrics had a great doorbuster sale on items I wanted, so I picked buy-two-get-two free pillow forms, fabric for pillows, silky head scarves (my daughter is making them for her college roommates), and a skirt that was 30-50% off. I got a Vogue $35 coat pattern I have been wanting for $5.99. I picked up buy-three-get-three buttons for two sweaters we are crocheting. Got 60% off a couple of holiday decorations to give as gifts. I then then used a 20% off entire purchase coupon (included sale items).
2. Our grocery store had a stock up sale on baking items. I picked up flour, sugar, salt, vanilla, chocolate chips and yeast.
3. Refrigerator eating so that there is no waste and clears out space for Thanksgiving leftovers.
4. My workmate had a 30% Kohl's coupon and needed $75 for free shipping. We combined for the discount. Fulfilling wish lists for my kids, I bought a mortar and pestle, Dunder Mifflin t-shirts and metal drinking straws that were all on sale and then the 30% coupon and free shipping applied.
5. I used rewards and discounts are Victoria Secret and paid $32 for 14 pairs of underwear.
I used up a bunch of apples that we starting to look sad. I made an apple cake and a batch of homemade apple sauce (for the first time). The sauce is so good I think I won't be able to buy store bought again.
I have been shopping in my own house to offset the cost of converting our spare bedroom into a home office.
My husband found a Regulator clock on FB Marketplace for $100. This doesn't sound particularly frugal but when I looked up one online we saved over $100.
I needed a little table in my hunting blind. We had a little aluminum slatted table in our garage. I too a pair of pajama pants that were way too big, had ripped, and had paint on them. I cut them up and used Liquid Nails to make a cover so things didn't fall through the slats and would be quieter to set things on.
I make my own Fabreze using fabric softener and water.
1) Sold four items on eBay. It's still been really slow, but at least I have a few more items out of the house. I use recycled packaging to mail everything.
2) Bought a gift card we needed via Swagbucks. I prefer Raise, but it can be hard to find all gift cards there, and Swagbucks had what we needed (Home Depot). Although it's a tiny discount (2%), it's a discount off of a purchase we need to make, so still adds up.
3) Ordered an item on Amazon, and then remembered I had an extra, tucked way back in our cupboards from 5+ years ago. Was able to return item to Amazon. Clutter now being used, and no money out of pocket.
4) Price matched an item we needed for our gutters, & saved $50 by shopping around.
5) Used grocery store rewards before they expired. I bought a few thins, and made a large food bank donation with the rest.
Got a bunch of free sub bread loaves from my husband’s work. We keep them in our deep freezer and use them whenever I make garlic toast, croutons, french toast, meatloaf or chicken patties, etc.
Made stock with the bones from the ribs I made last week. Used it for ramen bowls.
Made a homemade wedding card instead of buying one.
Steamed and puréed another pumpkin we got free with admission to a kids fun farm. Used to make pumpkin waffles and muffins.
Doubled my hours at work the next month. I am pool so I only work 4 shifts every 6 weeks but my hospital has been CRAZY so I am doing 8 shifts instead. Time and a half plus bonus because we are so desperate right now.
Also talking about work reminded me: Kristin if you are reading this I have advice for nursing: be a CNA first. Get your CNA and work in the hospital. It will be invaluable in teaching time management, critical thinking, knowing what a truly sick patient looks like, and getting you familiar with bodily fluids and uncomfortable conversations. Plus you can decide if it is really what you want to do before you spend a boatload of money on a nursing degree.
Great idea! CNAs are invaluable and make great RNs. I’ve seen many mske the progression as I’m an administrative assistant in an ICU
100% agree about actually working in health care before deciding to go to nursing school! It looks WAY different from the inside, and you will want that perspective.
Totally agree with this. I was a CNA before being an RN. You really appreciate more the job they do when you've done it yourself. Pet peeve of mine: RNs who spend 20 minutes looking for a CNA to do a job they consider "beneath" them. OH. MY. WORD. I can't even explain how infuriating this is for me.
In looking at the picture of your closet, I see that you use wood hangers. Since those are more expensive than plastic, I'm wondering if it's because of longevity? Do you have a recommendation as to where the best place to buy them would be?
Thank you!!
I love wooden hangers for multiple reasons. I think they look nice, for starters! And I like that they get less tangled than wooden hangers.
Also, they are less prone to breakage; I think in the decades I've been using wooden hangers, I've only had one or two break. My plastic ones broke much faster!
Ikea has wooden hangers for very affordable prices, but Aldi does sometimes too. And Target has in the past. Amazon may be worth a look as well!
We have that same wire shelving in our new house. I loathe it, but new wooden shelves all over aren't in the budget right now. So we went to HD, measurements in hand, and bought a huge piece of very thin flat white paneling. They cut it to the sizes we needed for free, and we were able to lay it on all the wire shelves for a smooth surface. It's not perfect, but it's much better than wire shelving, and it only cost $27!
my 5 frugal things for the week-
1. Had some leftovers in fridge that didn't get eaten before safe zone time & took outside to compost (frozen right now) so the birds loved that they got some veggies & bread to eat since didn't put out winter feeders.
2. Doctor ended up giving me more prescription so went to store/pharmacy few times so did groceries/errands while out & earned $ reward for groceries & $ reward for medication, which used to get more almond milk (seems to go quickly at store) & sale items for extra.
3. Earned enough points on shopkick app to get paypal $ & had enough purchases on kasasa checking (last month) to get $ back so was able to get vera Bradley laptop bag/pouch on poshmark (free after all said & done).
4. ordered Lego online & got free chinese new year lego when purchased few items (been waiting to become available) for Valentine's/easter (& free shipping as usual). Had trouble on Raketen app so was not able to earn any cash back since had to call to order. But now have enough lego vip points to get $ off next purchase which will be combined with another free lego with purchase.
5. continuing to go through stuff/downsizing & bagging donations for free store & animal shelter. Since moving soon (& don't want to pack/take since not sure where going) trying to pay it forward. Love the free store where anyone can get items for free.
Trying to remember not very much prepping for gifts/food since moving. Luckily not much sales that intrest us.