Five Frugal Things | electric savings, meat markdowns, & more
1. I switched our electric service to a lower rate
I got a renewal letter, checked the rate, and discovered it wasn't actually lower than my default company's rate.
I called to inquire and the rep said that rates had fallen since the letter was sent (yay) and the new rate turned out to be lower than the default energy company.
Sweet!
So, I switched us to a one year contract on the new rate, which means our new electric bills will be a bit lower.
2. I bought two packages of marked-down meat
A package of thin chicken breasts and a package of pork butt were both marked $3 off because of the sell-by date.
And since I can definitely use both of those items for future meals (chicken Katsu & pulled pork), I bought them and threw them straight into the chest freezer.
This is a win on the frugal front, but I am also delighted to help the store avoid food waste.
3. I redeemed my TopCashback credits
I got an email reminding me that I had $100 of un-redeemed credit with them!
So, I hopped on over, picked Amazon as my reward choice (that gives you a small bonus) and now my Amazon account has some credit.
(TopCashback is a service like eBay/Rakuten; shop through their portal, and you get a percentage back on your purchase. Make an account here.)
4. I ordered some free LED bulbs
My electric company sent out an email letting me know they were running a special rebate on bulbs, which made them $0.
I did have to pay shipping, but it was only $5 and I got 20 warm LED bulbs.
We already switched a lot of our household bulbs to LEDs, but we do still have some fluorescent bulbs.
So now when those die, I'll have free LEDs to replace them with.
5. I...
- potted a cutting off one of my houseplants
- made a menu plan (key for avoiding takeout!)
- used my $10 of Starbucks credit to get a carry-out coffee drink with Mr. FG
- helped Sonia tailor the hem of two of her dresses
Your turn; share your five frugal things in the comments.
(or four, or three, or however many you want. 🙂 )
FFT, A Chicken in Every Pot Edition:
(1) On Friday, I found two whole chickens Reduced for Quick Sale at Wegmans. See Kristen's #2 re: the benefits.
(2) I roasted the chickens Friday afternoon, and we've gotten five days' worth of meals out of them (we'll be finishing up the second of two chicken, tomato, and pasta salads for lunch today).
(3) The only reason I didn't make a stock with the chicken bones is that I have too much stock in the freezer already. -)
(4) My elderly friend who hits all the food giveaways has found a couple more and gifted me with both produce and canned goods. I have started giving these to DH's home care aides, whose need is greater than mine.
(5) Managed a quick trip to our local Salvation Army superstore yesterday. Shorts were 99 cents each, so I got four pairs (two each for self and DH), plus a fleece jacket, a fleece vest, and a pair of Ralph Lauren sweatpants (half-price) for DH, and a half-gallon Ball jar and a Leonard Cohen CD for me. Total = 18.23.
Woohoo for saving meat!
FFT: The Rural DIY Edition
Last week, the float in our toilet tank broke off and went down the, well, toilet, leaving the toilet running constantly and threatening to overflow. We obviously can't "run to the hardware store" (120 miles roundtrip), so my husband replaced the float with a purple birthday balloon that he blew up pretty small so it would fit in the tank. That will eventually deflate or pop, but he has a plan to make a new float out of styrofoam, and in the meantime, I am highly amused by the balloon in my toilet.
Also my husband: He and my eldest son spent a day working on old machines and got the ancient tiller running with a new engine. They also got our old lawn tractor fixed, and then he couldn't find the key. It's an inch long, hasn't been used in years, and is in the charge of my husband, who is not what anyone would call organized. Such was his frustration and determination to get that tractor going, though, that he looked up the key shape and size he needed online, and then MADE HIS OWN KEY from some random flat piece of metal he found in his shop. It took him almost an hour, and was amazingly fiddly and difficult. I couldn't believe he actually made a key that started that machine. There is a reason I call him Mr. Relentless.
Impressive.
That is very impressive about the key!
I never heard of cutting one's own key. That's amazing. He's talented and dedicated! And the balloon is sheer genius.
It's a little late now to mention this, but my husband proved to me that equipment keys are sometimes interchangeable. Our riding lawn mower could be started with his motorcycle key or his old tractor key. It's worth trying another key if you lose one again. It might not work, but then again, it might.
1. I've been using my yoga mat for several years and it just is not "sticky" any more (or so I thought). I hated the thought of selecting a new one and then figuring out what to do with the old one. I finally realized I could just flip it over. I don't care that there is no design on the side and it sure is nice to have hands that don't slip.
2. Vitacost sent me a high value coupon. I used it to order their gluten free flour (cheaper than the name brands and we're happy with the resulrs) and some other items we were running low on.
3. My birthday is coming up and other years our daughter would get me cut flowers. This year she asked if I'd like a rose bush. Of course I said "yes" as it is something that will keep flowering for years. When she went to the garden store to buy it they were marked down 35%.
4. Our Lawn and Leaf Chute ripped. I used duct tape to tape it back together. That is at least the third repair I've made over the years.
5. Our entertainment continues to be outdoor visits in free settings.
Gee whiz, that is seriously amazing! Kudos to Mr. Going Country for his key skills.
I think Mr. Going Country just won the Internet today. Congratulations to you all.
1. We canned 14 quarts of green beans somebody kindly gave to us.
2. We canned 7 quarts of tomato juice from tomatoes in our garden.
3. I allowed my children to learn valuable life skills by cleaning the house yesterday (instead of hiring a maid- ha!)
4. Instead of making homemade hamburger buns, I used some frozen dinner rolls that we were given.
5. I let our chickens out to feast on grasshoppers instead of buying mealworms for a treat.
Bonus: I found a book to read on my already overflowing bookshelves instead of buying a book that I want (which is $25 on Amazon and not yet in my library).
Been doing a lot of mending: resewed the seat seam in a pair of old but still nice office slacks to prevent a wardrobe malfunction, fixed the neckline of a couple of thrifted blouses to make them more modest, squared off the tails of a couple more that were too long, and sewed up a slit the cat ripped in my husband's new shirt. Scored a free e-book. Used a couple of store coupons while grocery shopping (every little bit helps). Gave my husband a hair cut. Been bringing my lunch, drinks and snacks to work every day. It helps that I have zero desire to eat out.
Mended some clothes and a stuffed toy
Ate lots of veggies from our garden
Scored a bunch of clearance meat at the cheaper grocery store.
Shredded and froze a bunch of zucchini that was hidden under the leaves in the garden and grew to the size of a football.
Made baked oatmeal and zucchini bread for breakfasts and snacks this week.
1. I found a partially full bolt of fabric for $10 at the Habitat Restore. I will use a small piece to recover the seat on my desk chair and then post the remainder to sell.
2. My sister gave me a $75 Aldi gift card as a thank you for all I have been doing for her. I used $43.17 of it and got most of what I need for the next month (I live alone).
3. I stopped into Kroger to check the clearance racks and scored a nice bag of zucchini and a bag with 2 yellow and 1 red pepper. Each bag was 99 cents.
4. I picked up 3 Kroger receipts and 1 Aldi receipt that other shoppers had left and scanned them on Fetch and Receipt Hog. Then, of course, I washed my hands thoroughly.
5. I found 2 pennies while shopping, picked them up and then hand sanitized like crazy. Who knows? With the coin shortage, maybe they'll be super valuable one of these days! Ha!
I forgot one. While at Aldu, I purchased a cabbage, but the cashier rang it as lettuce. I told him, and he removed the lettuce charge and gave me the cabbage for free!
I've found a total of 55 cents in the coin machine at Wegmans on my last two trips. Weggies has hand sanitizer dispensers about every five feet, so no problem about cleaning up (in both senses of the phrase!).
1. My son picked up a free bicycle curbside that someone had obviously kept in a garage for close to 30 years with little use. My husband helped him tune it up and fix a few small things.
2. I cleaned up some toys to offer for free on an online yardsale. A little bit of cleaning can sometimes make a big difference in what looks like junk, even though it's perfectly fine to play with still.
3. Participated in a neighborly potluck with a couple of families. Hopefully it was covid safe, as everything was wrapped up and cooked immediately on the grill.
4. Ironed and hung up clothes for use where I can see them, as this makes me use my whole wardrobe and not feel like I have "nothing to wear" (i.e. giving me the urge to go buy something new)
5. Returned an exercise top and sports bra that did not fit well to Target. They do not allow for in-store trying on so I had to purchase and take them home. The return was easy and smooth.
I love it when people give things away instead of selling. Kudos to you!
We have exactly one choice for our electric supplier. There are two companies, but they divide both the town and the rural area in an odd patchwork, so one's address determines from which utility one gets one's power. I can only imagine what it must be like to get a choice, even if it's only between two, without having to physically move.
The LED offer was great!
1. I'm having work done on our house, so I put the first 50% of the price on my double cash back credit card, then paid the card off. I'll do the same thing with the second 50% at the end. I get paid 1% for the purchase and 1% for the payment, so I end up with 2% back. It's a Citi card, in case anyone wants to check it out.
2. I'm still picking pears off our tree and making pear sauce and/or pear butter.
3. I have a number of cooking utensils that I really do use, but not enough drawer space. I decided to hang some of the utensils instead of taking up counter space with a holder, but found the hanging racks are not cheap. I had zero luck finding one used. I bought a package of large "oil-rubbed bronze" cup hooks for about $3 and I'll screw them under the cabinet to hang the most used utensils.
4. I do the Flylady routine, so every morning I give the toilet bowls a quick "swish" with the brush and a dash of Sal Suds mixed in a quart of water, re-using old flip-cap bottles to hold the soap solution. I've also used shampoo mixed with water instead of Sal Suds - a good way to use up a shampoo that was a regrettable purchase.
5. I have not ordered out or eaten out in four months, maybe longer. I've cooked at home and packed my lunches to work. I have to say - I'm tired of it! But it's frugal.
1. I made our monthly-ish run to the kosher butcher and stocked up on meat for the freezer, so I took the opportunity to make chicken wontons (a new family favourite!) and four freezer bags of chicken broth. Easy dinners, ready to go!
2. With great sacrifice (snackrifice?) I am eating my way through the delicious, delicious local nectarines so as to avoid food waste.
3. I bought two books off of Facebook marketplace at half price. In my area, it seems to have more stuff than Craiglist and Kijiji, and is less sketchy.
4. I'm making great use of the meal vouchers provided at work. It's awesome, and I'm really going to miss them when I move to another department in a month. I will not, however, miss the hours of work, which are brutal--that's (partly) why they give us meal vouchers.
5. It's been coming on five months since my husband and I got takeout. I've bought the occasional tea at work and I think he bought a package of sushi once when I was working overnight, but we haven't gone and spent $30 on a full takeout meal since we moved.
Kristen, I’ve been totally burned by those alternative energy companies in the past. As soon as the 1 year contract expired, my rates almost doubled! They are so slick! I’ve found the safest bet long term is with the standard electric provider.
I’ve had more luck with an alternative natural gas provider (Inspire), however I’m careful to read the fine print when the first year contract expires
This one does luckily send out a letter before the renewal period happens, but yes, you do have to be super mindful so you don't get burned!
The confusing thing is that my standard provider has different summer and winter rates, but the alternate provider has a static rate. So it's a little tricky to compare.
1. I'm in the process of decluttering my house. I've listed a few things on Facebook that have sold already, which has been great.
2. I've decided to follow a month long vegetarian meal plan for September & I'm hopeful it will be both frugal and healthier than our current menu has been.
3. Received 1 of 2 rebates for my tire purchase earlier in the month.
That's all I can think of for now.
I have a few frugal items, nothing earth-shattering but they all add up to savings....
1. My husband's co-worker gifted us some corn, so we had corn on the cob, yum!
2. I had $10 Kohls rewards to sue and used them towards much needed kitchen towels (most of mine are thread-bare). I still ended up paying a little less than $6 for a 5 pack of towels.....not too bad!
3. I stopped at a convenience store for some snacks and found $5 on the floor with nobody around. Finders keepers!
4. I had a no spend day last week as I was too busy canning to go anywhere or do anything else.
5. My brother-in-law gifted us 3 zucchini and 2 yellow squash. We love cooking them both together with olive oil & spices. He also gave me a few too big of ones to cut up for our chickens. They love that kind of treat!
6. I worked some overtime at work last week. Every little bit helps!!
1.) Put in for travel reimbursements for work. I had to use my own car for traveling for some work sites and put in to get my mileage reimbursed.
2.) Cleaned out my fridge and made a concentrated effort to use up what I have and prevent waste.
3.) Worked a bunch of overtime when it was available. Always nice to make extra money. It seems to add up faster working an hour OT versus saving 50 cents on cereal and 25 cents on something else, ya know?
4.) Cooking with the Instant Pot, Rice cooker etc. instead of the stove and my house isn't as hot so that I don't have to cool it as much.
5.) Just being normal and not buying anything else. I am going to make some bigish purchases that are luxury items but I'm frugal, I use savings and will get the best price. I can't just be a miser who enjoys nothing.
#3-oh yes! Increasing income is often more effective than frugal tidbits. And if you can increase income while also incorporating frugal tidbits, then you REALLY can get somewhere.
I so miss reading your blog without all these ads. I know it makes you money but l really miss your old format. Is there another way l can readvirvyo bypass all this. It interrupscthe flow of good journalism.
Do you mean her mentioning things like TopCashBack or are there pop-ups you're seeing? If it's pop-ups or something, install an extension like AdBlock on your browser.
You can download an ad blocking browser and open the website on that instead of your normal browser. I use Duck Duck Go and I don't see any of the popup ads on this site.
I completely understand that it's better to read a post without ads; no argument there! It's just like how it's more fun to watch a TV show with no ads.
So, I totally get you there.
The problem is, that to get a service with no ads, you usually have to pay for it. Like, you don't get any commercials during a movie at the theater, but you have to buy a ticket. And you can watch things on Netflix with no ads, but you have to pay for the Netflix membership.
I don't really want to make my site a paid membership site, but I do have expenses related to running my blog that I need to cover. Plus, I do think it's fair to get some payment for the many hours I spent writing blog posts, taking photos, and so on.
I hope that helps to explain a little bit about why I run ads. 🙂
1. We had a wasp swarm (?!) yesterday on the back of our house and I called our pest company since they do free treatments between the paid ones. He also treated the squash bugs I found in my garden. (Side note: I have NEVER seen wasps like that. They were attacking us as soon as we went outside. And there were hundreds of them. Even the bug guy said he’d never seen anything like it.)
2. I shredded zucchini from the garden and measured it into bags and froze it for muffins this winter.
3. I saved half my takeout lunch () so I could have it for 2 days.
4. I am painting a headboard and footboard that we’ve had forever for my daughter’s room refresh.
5. I bought extra reusable face masks from a friend for $1.50 each! Now I can go a whole week without needing to wash face masks and I do it in a bigger load, so more water efficient. Wohoo!
FWIW, if you ever have a bee swarm, don't call a pest control company. If they are honeybees, call a local beekeeper who will likely be quite happy to take away a new colony (or who would know somebody who can do it). Even if they charge, it's better than just killing them.
1. My aunt is giving us a desk she never uses which we will use for virtual school.
2. My brother found a free air hockey table on the side of the road and gave it to my son. It works and it's fun!
3. I returned some items I'd purchased which we didn't need.
4. I opened an Amazon credit card to get $70 off. The APR is super high so I'll try to pay off each month but I think this will help me track and reduce my online spending a little better.
5. I did a stock up trip a Aldi and bought a bunch of meat and stayed within budget.
I hope your new card helps with your spending goals!
We also have an Amazon card, on which we put everything but rent. Provided you can pay your bill in full every month (our household rule is if the amount of the expense isn’t already in checking, it doesn’t go on the card), it’s a great way to earn “free” money/points for things you had to spend on, anyway. We save our points up for when things need replaced—like my husband’s shoes, as Converse his size never turn up second-hand—and the holidays.
Mind, if you return something that you bought with points, you do not get those credited back! Thus, we try to only spend them on sure things—the favorite shoes mentioned above, kitchen towels, etc.—that would be easy to exchange should something prove defective.
Just food for thought on redeeming Amazon points . . . On a finance blog, I once read that you make out better by crediting your points to your Amazon credit card because applying them to a purchase reduces the total amount of your order - which, in turn, reduces the dollar amount that earns your 3% Amazon credit card bonus. I didn't prove this to be true in any way, but it did make sense to me. I get the same value from the points whether I apply them to a purchase or take them as a statement credit, so now I always apply them as a statement credit to keep the totals of my orders higher.
1. Partner spoke with a friend who works in the bike-resell industry -- bikes are the new toilet paper! We had 3 old bikes in the basement that we never used, so we listed them on Facebook Marketplace and sold them for full price within 24 hours of listing (including a beloved 35-year old bike that I brought to France with me on a bike trip when I was 15).
2. Sold 2 Kitchen Aid attachments on FB Marketplace that I never use, for full asking price.
3. I'm the administrator for a book prize. I had got 3 copies for a book that was not eligible for the prize, so I sold them all to a buyback book site for a small amount of $. (Publisher did not want me to send them back).
4. Switched internet companies to save $20 per month
5. Switched car insurance companies. Kept the exact same coverage but saved over $500 for the year!
PS: If you live in MA, you can get a free energy audit for your house. When they do the audit, they switch over all lightbulbs to LED for free!
You are so right about bikes being the new tp! Our local trails have been swamped and when I needed a new tire last month, it took my bike shop three weeks to get it!
Most of mine are about not spending.
1. Made homemade granola in the microwave and added some fruit nut mix gifted from my sister from her food shelf box.
2. Washed and removed stains from very stained covers from 2 family members sofas and prevented them from buying new sofas!
3. Helping son purchase low cost house cutting his current rent payment by half!
4. Reading through all the books I have.
5. Shampooing carpets ourselves.
1) I processed the few tomatoes I have coming out of the garden. Enough for 3 or 4 pints of roasted tomato spread
2) I was given two pints of apple butter & a pint of peach preserves. My daughter-in-law makes these to sell at farmer's market. The apple butter didn't seal so I kept one jar & passed one on to a friend. The peach preserves were a gift, a new product she wanted me to sample...of course!
3) I was given one large zucchini & I dehydrated. Delicious. I'll be making zucchini chips.
4) I converted my antique crib into a reading nook for my grandson. It's a family heirloom that's been used by babies in our family for over 100 yrs. I'm excited to find a way for this toddler to use it too.
5) I used a $25 rebate from the vet at Adli.
-I used a $110 Walmart gift card my husband received as bonus from work to buy led light bulbs, a few new bras & groceries.
1. We didn't buy school supplies this year since we signed up for virtual learning. Our district a service which packages up all the necessary supplies for your grade and delivers them to school. Historically, I've saved $20-$60 buying the supplies on my own (and I love shopping for school supplies) but I have to say - I always felt pressure to buy the expensive kits. I didn't want my kids to feel weird if I bought something slightly different than what their peers got in their kits. We skipped all of that and are using the extensive stash of supplies we've accumulated over the years - on top of the kits being more expensive, the kids would come back at the end of the year with literally unopened packages of colored pencils and markers. So unnecessary.
2. I bought some hair products on sale. They're more expensive than I usually spend but I'm not dying my hair or getting haircuts so I figure spending on the right products might be worth it if they help me feel put together (in my work pajamas).
3. We washed our solar panels so they work more efficiently. In sunny Southern California, it all adds up!
4. We ate at home, including meals with ingredients from our garden. Even made a home grown zucchini bake for my parents, who loved it (which honestly brings me more joy than any money could buy).
5. Used our collection of Baskin Robbins gift cards to buy a few containers of ice cream to go with the heat wave we've been experiencing. Felt safer in this COVID environment, didn't cost anything out of pocket and we've been having more ice cream than the one cone each we would have gotten in the store.
1. Made more sun-dried tomatoes using cherry tomatoes from our garden, used larger tomatoes from our garden and some frozen leftover white wine to make a pan sauce for a chicken dish, used the green beans from our garden to make a rice dish, put corn cobs in our vegetable stock bag in the freezer, got a huge pizza from Aldi's for $2 (it's in the freezer for a night when we need a quick meal)
2. I took this week off before school starts, which means we don't have to pay for childcare. This save us $250. Only free activities planned this week and we always pack drinks and food!
3. Picked up lots of socks in the next size up, off a free site, for my daughter. I also picked up a very nice spring jacket for my son and hamburgers buns off Buy Nothing. We always walk or bike to pick up the items, so it's exercise too!
4. Made more homemade conditioner
5. My husband fixed some rotted window sills and replaced a bathroom faucet. Having a handy husband saves alot!
I spent the morning blackberry picking with my dad, and now the freezer is full of sheets of berries which I’ll dump into reusable freezer bags.
When we were out in the country berry picking, I grabbed some free range farm eggs from a road side stand which are about $2 cheaper than the grocery store. They are also far more interesting looking!
And I took advantage of being out with my car, and returned an unneeded item to the hardware store and swung by a small grocery store that sells a lot of marked down items.
I’ve saved some filter drip coffee for an iced coffee this afternoon which will taste mighty good after working in the garden picking vegetables.
My employer gave us all masks with our company logo on them. They are nice and will be used and appreciated.
A coworker brought us all in roses. Mine were pink and so huge!
At a meeting today we all talked about once we are open and cannot wear jeans will any of us fit into our work clothes. !!
My brother gave me tons of tomatoes and yellow beans. I got over 3 quarts of sauce and froze for winter.
Someone tossed a play truck & slide for toddlers. Picked it up cleaned it up for Gbaby.
I love the little plant cutting!
1. I made homemade gluten free sourdough bread, and apple crumble with free apples.
2. I made a XL pencil case for my daughter-in-law for part of her birthday present. She is a teacher and wanted a big zip bag for pens and pencils. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/814096070135796746/
3. We are eating vegetables from our garden with every meal. The only veggies I buy are a bag of salad greens each week. We eat a lot of veggies and still don't get through all we grow.
4. My daughter needed an inhaler. We are on a high deductible insurance plan until employer plan starts in a week. She remembered about student health at her university. She had a telehealth doctor appointment for free, and paid $35 for an inhaler. We saved hundreds over using our insurance.
Hello Kristen, I wanted to know about the pork shoulder: do you let it thaw completely before you cook the pulled pork? Or do let it thaw when it marinades? How long would it take to thaw? Thanks, Katleen
Here's the recipe I use: https://www.thefrugalgirl.com/easy-pulled-pork-from-the-make-ahead-cook/
And I let it thaw completely before making the recipe; you have to cut it up into smallish pieces for this recipe, and that's awfully hard to do when the pork is frozen!
I remain committed to eating at home. This is fraught with problems as I allergic to some foods and of course these are mum's favourites.
I managed to buy some needed items at half price and have a rain check to purchase some more.
Those would be my major efforts for the last week.
1. Froze some wrinkly cherry tomatoes for a future fresh tomato sauce
2. Cleaned the house using my own "homemade" rags instead of paper towels or other disposables
3. Tended to my plants so they stay alive and produce more delish tomatoes and herbs
4. My DH repaired our lawn tractor AND our leaf blower. Yay DIY guy
5. A neighbor shared yummy pulled pork with us and we had leftover coleslaw in the fridge. I made some homemade bbq sauce. No cook, no cost dinner!
1. I use men's antiperspirant instead of women's...A)smells great B) cheaper price C) bigger stick 85g vs. 70g
2. I give old crackers to my dog with her food, win-win!
3. Same goes for the almost finished jars of peanut butter
4. I use coconut oil as face moisturizer. It may seem greasy at first, but your skin adjusts.
5. I am very late to the party, but Instacart is awesome, I tried it for the first time this week! Not only did I spend less because I'm only buying exactly what's on my list, I can use my time doing other things, my car doesn't use any gas and by tipping my delivery person, I'm helping someone else with their side hustle!
1, had dinner at my brother's to celebrate my birthday and ny sister in-laws. She gave me leftovers which equates to three lunches for work.
2 started my fall stock up for cleaning supplies and pantry staples. Used the target circle app and between circle deals and my birthday discount saves almost $60. I also received a free $15 gift card for purchasing cleaning products and earned 4.50 from ibotta.
3. Found an unused ll bean gift card in a drawer bought new pjs and a sweater and only paid 16 cents.
4. Used one of my birthday gift cards to buy three cookbooks from Amazon and only spent 1.54 out of pocket.
1. Cooked up the last of our second round of super cheap corn, cut it off the cob, and it's in the freezer for winter.
2. I'd been waiting a while for Thinx to have a sale and the week I finally decided I'd just buy them at full price they finally went on sale! So I ordered 3 pairs at 30% off. Yay!
3. I did well at yard sales over the weekend getting a number of items of clothing for my kids for 50 cents to a dollar each.
4. Washed my daughter's gym shoes (including a magic eraser scrub on the bottom) and her backpack (by soaking in Oxi-Clean) to make them look newer. She wanted to buy new ones of both and I said no.
5. My daughter has a water bottle that had a unicorn printed on the outside and the unicorn had faded really badly, so I scrubbed the rest of the picture off and it looks much nicer as a plain water bottle now. Ready to head off to school tomorrow!
I have been wanting a bigger purse for several years, the one I use is too small. I actually prayed about it recently because I hate shopping and I'm not very fashion savvy. One of my work colleagues came into my office recently with a big shopping bag and said she had some bags/wallets to give away. (She did not know I was praying about this.) I graciously accepted, and lo and behold, when I looked in the bag later, there was a large Coach bag and Fendi and Louis Vuitton wallets! I would have been happy with generic!! I shared with another co-worker.
I switched mobile phone companies because my contract was running out and found Birdie, which is a pay as you go, for only $10 USD a month (I am in Hong Kong) I'll be saving over $20 a month!
The school where I work just gave us free coffee mugs as a small thank you. I really like them. (We are still online at the moment.)
My workplace has a "free table" in the faculty lounge...a constant source of goods:)...and I just got 2 new spatulas. Again, something I have been needing and hadn't bought yet. Also, books....always books.
We recently got our HK stimulus checks, which were about the same amount as you all got in the US. They were given to all residents 18 or older, and when you have been here over 7 years, you are considered a resident. We are beginning our 9th year here.
Oh wow, that is an amazing free purse!
I love how God often shows us He cares about the little things and answers our prayers beyond how we would ask or imagine!
Absolutely! I'm 52, and even though I KNOW this...it still routinely surprises me:).
I love those free tables! I've only worked at one company that had a free table, and it was great. You never knew what would be there from day to day, and anything I dropped off would be gone in no time. I loved the ease and efficiency of it.
!. I bought a refurbished dryer from our local appliance repair company to replace our 23 year old dryer that sounds like a dying cat.
2. I bought from the website of a small business, instead of from Amazon, which allowed me to use a 30% off coupon.
3. I paid for music and dance lessons up front to save 10%.
4. I came home and made dinner even though I REALLY wanted a brisket bowl from Qdoba.
5. I humbly asked for a refund when I made a mistake and the company refunded me!
I texted a neighbor and asked to borrow some folding chairs for use at my son's 21st birthday party. He's having friends over for a bonfire and desserts. I'm making crepes ahead of time today as a special treat -- they'll have a DIY crepe bar. I will be making cold-start yogurt in the instant pot today, and that doesn't use all the milk in a half-gallon, so crepes will be the best use for the rest of the milk.
Doing IF and it's dead cheap and simple. I sort of accidentally ate only a few bites of supper last night (still full from a big restaurant lunch) and today I feel fabulous. I think I'll actually try the one-meal-a-day thing and see how it goes. I was unsure if that would be possible for me . . . this girl likes her groceries!
My toaster is only heating one side, so I'll add 'toaster' to my list of items to look for at the thrift shops. I bet I'm not the only one who would turn her bread around to toast both sides for as long as it takes to find a good used toaster rather than buy a new one?
Pre-cooling the house this morning because I'll be turning off the A/C this afternoon for a while. We pay more for peak use electricity, and reducing our use helps the power company avoid the need to build another coal-fired power plant. (Yikes!) We spent our stimulus check on a new HVAC unit, so our house is cooler now too.
Been reading your blog for many years, and have finally decided to branch out and get involved 🙂 Thank you for the years of frugal advice, raw emotions on subjects that many consider taboo, and sharing your family with us! You have silently helped me is so many ways and I thank you for that!
My Frugal 5:
*received a box of hand me downs for my 2.5 year old little girl. This is like Christmas to me!! We all know how fast our littles grow and how insanely expensive clothes can get, so to me hand me downs are the BEST!
*our little town in MT has finally started to have a few yard sales. Everyone is very courteous when it comes to wearing masks and social distancing. I think we are all just so excited for this little slice of "normal" we'd do almost anything at this point!! I did score two pairs of new fall fashion boots for a whopping $3.00!! WIN!
*our family has been "vacationing" at home this year. Lucky for us Montana offers beautiful scenery and treasures no matter which direction you go. We pack some water, and some snacks and flip a coin to see which way we are going that day. We've come across some amazing mountain lakes, cute little towns we didn't know existed and spend nothing more that maybe a tank of gas.
*sister had her end of summer sleepover for her grandbabies and my daughter, which included a hotdog roast and smores session. Free dinner and a full night sleep....that should be my 5 right there 😉
*my oldest is moving out on his own this next weekend (something about spreading his wings...I don't know) some family friends were getting ready to get rid of some house stuff and let us come look first. Got him a futon and a pizza oven for almost nothing. I guess at this point I'll at least have somewhere to sit and he can cook for me when I come to visit...every.single.day. 🙂
Yay, yay, yay! I love it when readers de-lurk.
Hugs on your kiddo moving out, and good job getting some cheap items for him.
We have changed out all of our bulbs to LEDs, we have a couple fluorescent fixtures left in the basement though. I like the daylight white bulbs for the bathroom, kitchen and dining room. It gives a much brighter output for doing tasks. The yellow tint ones are ok for the bedroom, but I don’t think they provide as much light per watt.
We are drying herbs from our garden in the dehydrator, parsley, sage, thyme, basil and rosemary. We put them in glass jars to use in cooking and have given some as gifts.
We collect seeds from our pumpkins, tomatoes, peppers and squash to plant the next spring in our garden.
With the flurry of activity my life is right now because of getting my daughter ready to go back to college in the middle of a pandemic, I didn't consciously think about being frugal this week. But, when I sat down and really thought about it, I came up with quite a few!
1. My daughter knows I love reusable shopping bags. She had more than she wanted and gave me two really nice ones.
2. My daughter also went through her closet and brought over three garbage bags of stuff for her younger sister. After she got done going through them, I did. then I brought what was left to my workmate to pick through. In the end, one bag was donated.
3. My youngest ripped the seat seam in a favorite pair of black jeans that I repaired for her.
4. Attended another parking lot barre fitness class at half the regular price.
5. Didn't have to cook dinner last Friday as friends had a Mexican fiesta and movie night to celebrate my and DH's birthdays. Knowing how practical I am, they gifted a gorgeous, heavy-bottomed glass bottle with the fixings to make enough foaming hand soap for a year. The jumbo bag of dark Dove chocolates was a nice touch, too.
6. Purchased a gently used pair of Sperry winter boots for $25 for my youngest.
7. Was mask fabric shopping when I stumbled across some wonderful linen I'd been looking at for a long time in the markdown bin for 50% off. On the end of the bolt it said it was an additional 30% off due to oil spots. When I had it unfolded, I saw about a dozen tiny spots concentrated in a half-yard area. I bought what was on the bolt - 3 1/4 yards, a summer dress pattern, and a half yard of coordinating linen for the collar and hem (to have enough fabric in case the spots were permanent). A little blue dawn on a Q-tip and the oil is gone. I see a wonderful linen dress and bonus tank top in my future for $41.
8. Made another pair of work shorts from worn out Dickies work pants for DH.
Phew!! That's a lot of frugal in one week!
1. 1 bushel of tomatoes ($15.98) = 6 pints of diced tomatoes, 6 pints of salsa (with chipolte!), 4 pints of tomato stock (for soup, hot & cold), 7 750ml of tomato stock, 5 750ml of passata, and 8 pints of tomato sauce. Seasonings other than chipolte all came from my garden.
2. I swapped a bottle of homemade wine for a haul of old lumber to the landfill
3. I gasped at the new $4400 quote for auto insurance (because my broker no longer has a contract with Jevco), an increase of nearly $1500 a year, so I searched for a new broker who does have a contract with Jevco, so my new monthly bill will be $5 less than what I currently pay (no doubt due to the car being a year older).
4. I swapped some books I'd read for others I hadn't at a Little Library and got an adult colouring book there as well.
5. I used Starbucks Stars that were due to expire on Sept 1 for a iced chai latte and brownie.
1. While on vacation this week, we managed to avoid restaurants for 70% of our meals. Cereal and sandwhiches happened a lot.
2. Walked, hiked and biked frequently-very inexpensive activities.
3. Returned some clothing that didn't fit exactly as I wanted. I could have made it work, but I know it'd end up being a very infrequently used clothing.
4. Meal prepped breakfasts and lunches for this week.
5. Meal planned for dinners this week using meats already on hand.