Five Frugal Things | food waste prevention
I did not plan this to be themed, but today's Five Frugal Things is gonna be all food-related!
It's basically a tour through my adventures in trying to avoid food waste.
1. I baked all my sweet potatoes
When I got back from Hawaii, my Hungry Harvest box included a bunch of sweet potatoes. Zoe's not a fan, so it's up to me to eat these.
I kind of forgot about them (whoops), so on Sunday I put them all on a half-sheet pan and baked them.
Once they were cool, I peeled 'em and put them in the fridge; a baked and peeled sweet potato is much easier to grab than an uncooked one!
I also cooked a small pot of black lentils.
(I'm embarrassed to tell you how long these have been in my pantry, unopened.)
(Ok, fine, it's probably been since 2016/2017. It's a good thing lentils don't really go bad.)
I also made a cilantro/sour cream sauce (eyeballed, but made of cilantro, sour cream, mayo, salt, pepper, and garlic powder).
So now I can throw together some simple lunch bowls with the lentils, sweet potatoes, and sauce.
I read that black lentils are the healthiest among lentils, and whether that's true or not, I do know they are a good source of protein.
And more than that, I know they needed to be used up. 😉
So, I'd be eating them right now regardless of their standing in the Lentil Nutrition Olympics.
2. I rescued my crystallized honey
I don't know why, but my last container of honey crystallized a lot faster than usual. Sooo, there was still a lot of honey left in the container.
To fix this, I submerged the jar in hot water, using a bowl to weigh it down.
After a few minutes, the honey was soft enough to pour right into a glass jar.
I think we'll finish this before it re-crystallizes, but if it does crystallize, I can always just submerge the glass jar in water again.
3. I made a use-it-up bowl of oatmeal
In addition to the aforementioned half-full jar of honey, I also had the previous honey jar still in my cabinet. This one had only a teeny bit of crystallized honey in the lid, so I scraped that out into my bowl of oatmeal.
Also, before I went to Hawaii, I had thrown my container of blackberries into the freezer.
For longer storage, that's not ideal (you'd want something more airtight!), but for temporary purposes, this works fine.
I stirred about half of the blackberries into my oatmeal yesterday, and I'll probably use up the rest in a bowl today.
If it was summertime, I'd make a smoothie to use these up, but man, I don't really love drinking a cold smoothie in January/February!
(Here's how I make my one-serving bowl of microwave oatmeal.)
4. I made some croutons
I barely looked in my kitchen freezer last semester, so I didn't really know what was hiding in there.
But, as I was searching through it this past weekend, I found a small bag of bread cubes.
I sauteed them in butter, then baked them in my toaster oven on the air-fryer setting until they were crispy.
Then I ate 'em on top of a bowl of butternut squash soup (also from my freezer!)
5. I made a small batch of applesauce
I had a gallon bag of thinly sliced, peeled apples in the freezer and honestly....I think I had grabbed these from the freezer at my old house when I moved out.
Sooo, they were kinda* elderly.
(!!!!!)
*that is, if "kinda" means "actually-factually"
But I wanted to at least try to rescue them, so I threw them in a pot with some cinnamon and cooked them until they were soft and falling apart.
They tasted just fine as applesauce, so I'm glad I gave this a try.
Beluga lentils are soo good. I like eating them with roasted beetroot, walnuts, some garlic and mushrooms, and feta cheese. They make a perfect fall/winter salad.
This weeks Frugals:
* Sold an old toy
*Prepped this week's meals, including making some dressings and sauces, vacuumsealing bean sprouts etc and using up some cupboard orphans
*Picked up a soda can thrown away by some biking youngsters right in front of me - bringing the fortune at my feet fund to 30 +15 = 45 cts this year
*Found our cat's collar, which she had lost a week ago, in our neighbour's garden
*Ate veg that a neighbour kindly gave us
* Bought (a lot of) coffee at buy one get one at half price
Also I polished leather some shoes and our eldest thoroughly cleaned a ventilator, ahead the summer season. Taking good care of furniture, appliances, clothes that you have does not always feel like frugality but in fact it is.
@JNL,
you listing the ingredients for a beluga lentils salad made me realise that I do have all of them at home - so this salad it will be today.
Thank you very much for the inspiration.
I totally forgot about crystalized honey process, & I too need to do this. I have Honey bee Mason jars I purchased last year specifically for putting honey into. Thanks for the reminder. 🙂
Frugal things---
● I had to have the plumbers back again (less than 2 weeks) for similar issue. This time I asked that they clean all the way to end/road. Pulled some tree roots (which actually is not the reason for everything, but would have caused problems also. Good to go (few weeks?) until can schedule for complete pipe(s) replacement--which I was really hoping could wait. Only charged for doing tree root, not redo of problem area.
● Since not safe access to water we got Domino's & teen had knew about coupon code for Large pizza 2 toppings $6.99.
● Used Fetch rewards points to get Auto Zone gift card & picked up 3 oil filters (costs more than Meijer) because Meijer now stopped carrying Fram brand oil filters.
● Meijer has this week buy $100 in store get $10 off coupon towards next purchase. This particular Meijer scan & go doesn't print coupons out at registers so had to go to Customer Service (where not too friendly 🙁 ) Questioned other discounts that did not happen also (first day new ad) & was given cash (instead of coupon/gift card).
● Exchanged calendars at Dollar Tree (purchased last week because didn't see any received in mail but then found after purchase) for flower pots (just got in store) that needed for sprout Aloe Vera plants.
● Eating meals at home eating out of pantry & freezer (except Domino's 1 night)
● got gas for $2.81 before went up (again) to $3.09/gallon & can now use discount up to 35 gallons instead of previous 20 gallons---yeah! My tank is 28 gallons on empty.
Frugal Fail---
● plumbers fixed problem but mess on basement floor that I needed to clean & also need to wipe down all cans & plastic storage containers on shelving in basement.
@Regina, I bought a pack of the honey bee Ball jars last year also. I love them! They were not the most frugal, but they definitely bring a lot of happiness.
@Regina, your Customer Service experience seems to be typical, with bad attitudes, and lack of information. There are many obstacles in the way of deals and discounts that it almost feels purposeful on the part of the advertisers. Unless one is particularly determined, it is often difficult to get those "rewards".
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, I actually had the opposite thought! I was disappointed for Regina because our local Meijer has great customer service employees and employees at self-checkout that are willing to correct things that scan incorrectly.
I'm sorry your customer service employees at Meijer aren't as friendly, Regina!
@Ruth T, I was actually thinking about Customer Service in general, not Meijer in specific. I should have been clearer, and I'm heartened to know that there are good Customer Service employees out there.
*I tackled another huge pile of Clothes Heap-- all sorted out.
*I mended a sheet (which took up a good bit of room in the clothes heap) and a nightgown. Maybe something else.
*I planned and instigated the making off all meals in our house this week. (My shoulder is still being babied.) I really should thank my husband for this because I stopped short of begging to take the whole family out for dinner at least once; he held firm on this one, and I'm thankful because nothing was that hard to do.
*We bought two bookcases on Marketplace. They are huge and all hardwood. They weren't expensive (maybe not dirt cheap), but we really need more living spaces for our books.
*We reorganized our school area using one of the new bookcases. This was a job, but I am so much happier with the result. Everything is more accessible and neat, and we found much that could be recycled or given away. How is this frugal? I guess my happiness level is worth something? Lots of people spend a lot more money trying to make themselves happy? Or maybe now I know where things are so I won't buy duplicates?
*I have a HUGE dictionary which had been languishing beneath a pile of stuff. We never used it because the binding was broken, and we'd have to uncover it and find a place to move it to use it. My husband used some book fixing things he has and fixed it up. It now has a new home on top of the kids' cubby hole shelf, and it's always open. It is right next to the flow of traffic in our home, and the kids have used it so many times already since yesterday afternoon! Totally worth it.
*I planned meals around meats in the freezer that were the oldest.
@Jody S., I love having a big dictionary! I have a TAHDEL (The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language) that I don't use much. I also have a wooden thing I bought because I thought it was a footstool. When I got it home I realized the top is slanted, and it's not really comfortable as a foot rest. Even though it lacks something to keep the dictionary from sliding off, I may be able to use it as a lectern. If sliding is a problem, I can probably attach something for the book to rest on. Now to find a good spot for it!
@Dee in AZ, Yes! Make it work:)
@Dee in AZ, and @Jody S., one of my most cherished possessions is a dictionary stand that my FIL made for DH and me from a small, old dining room table with a pedestal foot. So anything is possible along these lines!
@Dee in AZ, I had the same dictionary--it was a required "textbook" when I took a course in the History of English for my Master's. Alas, the binding really broke down and my sons informed me they use the computer to look up definitions now....so I had to toss it.
If anyone else is a word nerd like me, the Etymonline App is free and fun for looking up origins of words. My kids are always asking me where words come from, and while I know some of it, it's fun to look it up and make sure I've got it right! 😛
@Karen A., Can you recommend a good, physical etymological reference book of not too gigantic size?
Also, I so fondly remember my History of the English Language class with Professor Baskerville. Doesn't that sound like the perfect name for such a class? (And he was so smart!)
@Jody S., It depends on what age you need it for? With my kids, I used English From The Roots Up (came with lovely flashcards), and I adored it, I think half of them endured it, but I am convinced they expanded their vocabulary and were really good at looking at words and figuring out their likely meanings.
But that is more of a workbook/flashcard thing, but I found it fascinating.
For a pure dictionary, you could check out John Ayto's Dictionary of Word Origins. Yes, it is 592 pages, but it is one I've had on my wish list and keep drooling over.
For a fun read, try Mark Forsyth's Etymologicon: A Circular Stroll Through the Hidden Connections of the English Language. He has a blog, as well, and other books. Warning: He has a section in there about the names of private parts, so mind your step!
@Karen A., I found your John Ayto Dictionary on Abebooks for under $10 so if you don't mind used, you likely can do the same. (or similar). not all deals are great but sometimes I find books I really want....which can be dangerously unfrugal
@Ecoteri, Thank you! I just got into ThriftBooks, but Abebooks sounds intriguing as well. 🙂
@Jody S., reading a giant dictionary was one of my favorite pastimes as a kid. My sister used to uncharitably call it a dorktionary haha
FFT, Birthday Month Edition
—My husband roasted a leg of lamb for my birthday! I bought the lamb two months ago when I spotted it for $5.99/lb (cheap for lamb) and stashed it in the freezer. After birthday lunch and dinner, I put the leftover meat in the crockpot with vegetables for stew and the bone in the freezer for future broth. The lamb was a splurge at $26, but it ended up making six delicious servings.
—My parents gifted me over $100 in restaurant gift cards! We eat out maybe once every 3-4 months (again, my husband’s medical diet—restaurant food is a salt mine) and always split entrees, so I dare say we are set for a couple of years. I downloaded the apps for the restaurants in question so we can earn additional freebies when we use the cards.
—While I’m desperate to see “Godzilla Minus One,” I decided I’d save what we’d spend on tickets to buy it so soon as it’s available on blu ray or dvd. Thus, for my birthday we instead watched our copy of the original “Gojira”—amazing, amazing movie—followed by the far later/lighter installment “Destroy All Monsters.” My husband somehow grew up without kaiju (!!!), so it’s been great fun indoctrinating him. He even has “Mothra’s Song” set as my ringtone on his phone now. 😉
—I also received $100 from my parents to spend on silly things. (They were feeling very celebratory!) I bought the purple enameled dutch oven I’d been eyeing on Amazon—$52 for a returned one vs. $80 for brand new. The remaining money was spent on tea. A friend sent me “Reindeer Fuel” mint/chocolate Adagio brand tea for Christmas, and I freaking love it. I ordered more while it was still available, and my husband and I each chose additional flavors for free shipping ($50 threshold, handily) in addition to maxing out the multiple free offers available at check out.
--Victoria's Secret sent me a $10 birthday voucher. Woot, new underwear! 😛
@N, happy birthday to you! Also, loved Godzilla Minus One. Terrific movie.
"Destroy All Monsters" was my absolute favorite as a kid.
My list this week is a lot more humdrum!
1. Borrowed and returned library books
2. Cancelled a subscription
3. Brought lunch to work every day
4. Made a sauce instead of buying a jarred one. I did have to buy some herbs but it should save money in the long run
5. Stayed home all weekend. Not my favourite way to save money but I was also tired from my trip and work so it wasn't too bad
Mine are almost always food-related, since, well, my life is food-related. Which reminds me: I was appalled at how much I spent on concession food when we went to homecoming on Saturday. We were there for six hours, and I'm usually much more careful about at least bringing snacks and water with me so I can at least mitigate the damage. But we were rushed getting out of the house due to something not in my control, so I was at the mercy of concession food. Fifty dollars seems like a lot--and it is!--but I fed four of us for that, and it doesn't happen very often, and the money at least went to our co-op school instead of a corporation, so I can let it go. Or try, at least. 🙂
So! Let's see what was frugal this week!
--My youngest son was very sick last week with what was probably the flu. I made him switchel (water, lemon juice, maple syrup, ginger) to keep him hydrated, and also gave him the last jar of applesauce I made in the fall. I didn't have a lot of apples this year to make sauce with, so I saved it for sick children. It's very comforting for them.
--I made a soup over the weekend for the sick ones (husband went down, too) with lamb broth I had made from lamb shanks, a ham bone from the freezer, pinto beans we got for free from excess commodities, and a can of green beans from the same source. Other stuff, too, of course, but those were the salvage items in there.
--My older two boys went to the community dance after homecoming, which here means the sort of country dance that involves line dancing and the two-step. This means proper attire is jeans, button-down collared shirts, western boots and hats. My middle son grew out of his boots and hat and we hadn't gotten him new ones yet, but my older son rummaged in his wreck of a closet and found his old hat and boots. He let his brother wear them, and then just gave them to him, since they didn't fit him anymore. He bought that hat with his own money, so it wasn't mine to pass down, but I'm really glad he did that. Hats and boots are really expensive.
--Middle son also needs a new belt. I got him a solid leather one from the Etsy maker I have purchased from before who makes really nice belts that are only about 10 dollars more than one on Amazon or whatever, but will last for years and years. My older son has been wearing the same belt for three years with no signs of wear, whereas my middle son's cheaper belt is pulling apart where the thinner pieces were sewn together. In this case, the slightly more expensive option is a better deal. My very slender children wear a belt every day, so it will see a lot of wear.
--Still wearing and mending my (very) old running t-shirt that is really falling apart, but I'll use it until it's too hot to run in long sleeves. And then for next winter, I'll buy another long sleeved t-shirt from a thrift store, which is how I got this one more than a decade ago. Definitely got my three dollars out of it. 🙂
@kristin @ going country,
who is the Etsy seller for leather belts? Our local boot salesmen had leather belts (but very wide) & doesn't have any to fit teen who needs belt.
@Regina,https://www.etsy.com/listing/1038389158/1-12-belt-hand-made-leather-belt-brown?ref=yr_purchases&variation0=2145779675&variation1=2121175312
I have never had black beluga lentils. I eat brown/green and also red lentils all the time. I'll have to look for them.
1. Back in September 2020 Kristen posted about legal action on iPhones and a claim she had filed. DD had a phone that qualified and since she had replaced it and given her old phone to me to use for FaceTime I submitted a claim (we had purchased the phone for her). The other day I received a settlement check for $92.17. I heard nothing from Apple from the time I filed the claim until the check arrived. I passed the funds along to DD since the phone was hers. Thank you Kristen for sharing the details.
2. A neighbor passed along coupons for The Grocery Outlet which we do not receive. Some had expired but I was able to save $5 on a $25 order the other day. Among my purchases was holiday gift bags that I'll share with the neighbor, they were 75% off of 50% off.
3. I chopped walnuts and put them in jars in the refrigerator. It is much cheaper to chop your own and sometimes we eat them unchopped anyway. Next up is to chop pecans. I like to have chopped nuts for baked goods and to put on top of oatmeal and yogurt.
4. A friend invited me to come for breakfast with a mutual friend we have not seen recently. It will be a simple breakfast as the point is to spend time together in a relaxed environment.
5. I made a pot of BBQ Baked Lentils in the Instant Pot. I store it in jars that it can be reheated in. The jars are Bonne Maman like but are from organic jam purchased at Lidl so the lids are not fancy.
@K D, I received the $92 Apple check in the mail as well and couldn't remember when or how I had filed a claim. Thanks for the reminder!
@K D, glad to know! I know I filled this out but I'm still waiting for my check. Hopefully soon!
@Lindsay B,
I had a digital file showing I filed the claim on 09/09 2020. I has long ago given up on receiving any money.
@K D, Yes, that was a frugal thing my husband did long ago, and we got our check in the mail last week.
I was down with the Vid last week so less frugality going on.
~used a loaf of frozen bread dough to make a loaf of fresh bread to serve with the beef tips and gravy everyone hated last round.. Tossed that into the crock pot to cook longer and I think it tenderized it round 2.
~ate random freezer items on nights I sent husband to take a kid for supper(2 different nights diff kid each one!) .. gave them some one on one time and allowed me to free roam the house without hearing people complain I was gonna give them germs
~followed up on rebates that were denied.
Alcohol rebate forms are the worst! They are super tiny and I cannot write that small so I put all required info on an index card and send that, the receipt and original form in. Before I do I take a photo for my records. They always get denied b/c the slip is blank.. so when they send denial card I call back and they pull the scanned info up, see my index card and complete the data input and send me my money. I only buy a few times a year but always maximize with rebated and Ibotta so its worth the few minutes
~Ordered some new clothing online with store bonus perks, delivered free to the store.. had a kid pick it up.. returned items that did not fit
~scanned all paper receipts I found into Fetch
@jes,
What is an alcohol rebate form? I've been living my life wrong if there has been a way to get reimbursed for drinking. 😉
@Becca,
some stores/manufactures have rebates (during different times) that if you buy ____ then you can get $____ cash back/rebate check.
@jes, you should win the Game of Thrones wineglass I bought myself on Saturday at the Thrifty Shopper: "I drink and I know things."
@jes, the alcohol rebate is yet another example of obstacles in the way of taking up manufacturers' rebate offers. . . they pretend to be generous and then make it super difficult. Reminds me of insurance companies—always happy to sell to you, but when you make a claim, they say "Oh sorry, no can do, because you were wearing red socks that day" or "Didn't you read the microscopic print on item #2,478 that disqualifies any claims for you particular situation??"
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, YOUR particular situation
@jes, My Mom would use a return address label and stick it to the form. (If one still gets such freebies from charities now). Tiny print, but print. Cut off any decorative part.
@Heidi Louise, We have a fair every summer and a lot of the booths have contests for things like free fuel and so on. I always bring a roll of address labels with us so filling out the contest forms is fast and they are legible.
@A. Marie,
Isn't that a Tyrion Lannister quote? Lol. I loved that show.
@Heidi Louise, ah but that is now VERBOTEN - handwritten only. Lucky me since I am a "small" printer/writer. Mailed in my low $30 rebate about 3 weeks ago. I've never been stiffed on an alcohol rebate.
-I bought our plane tickets for summer vacation after price hunting for a while and then giving up. Anything that seemed like a deal involved bringing no baggage or not being able to book all members of the party at once. Going directly through the airline seems to be simplest and best if there are any problems.
-We hosted a work event at our house leaving us with all the leftover food, wine and beer that the job paid for. No complaints about that! It makes up for the hassle of getting the house company-ready.
-Youngest kid needed ice skates, was able to find a pair in the hand-me-down pile of sports stuff languishing in my storage room
-Checked out books from the library for myself and youngest kid.
@SK in Norway, I've heard that if you are looking for airline tickets, you should clear your browsing history each time you search so that the browser won't tell the ticket selling website to put a false sense of hurry-almost-sold-out or make the price go up each time you look. I don't know if this is true, but it is certainly worth trying.
@Central Calif. Artist Jana,
I have heard this as well, but my hubby generally does all or our travel planning (as far as flights, hotels/airbnb/etc goes) so I have no experience with this myself.
@SK in Norway,
There are definitely not any bargains to be found. I’m looking for plane tickets for my husband and me. My nephew is celebrating a significant life event this June and he has asked us to be there. He does live in Hawaii so it is a long flight. However, tickets are nearly 3x the price that they were the last time we took this trip pre-covid. I’m not sure we can do it.
Sometimes I feel like I am the only one dumbfounded by this extraordinary inflation.
@Bee, I'm always surprised at the cost of things. I should be used to it but I'm not.
@Bee, nope, you are not alone in feeling dumbfounded by the extraordinary inflation. I regularly feel gobsmacked—'HOW MUCH??!! Don't need it that badly, nope, not paying that!!"
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, yes definitely! I usually try to search in "incognito" or "private" mode. I do feel like they falsely inflate the price when they "know" you are interested.
@Bee, I can imagine Hawaii trips are never cheap even in the best of times. I hope you can find a way to swing it if it's important to you. We went to Hawaii two years ago and were just shocked at how expensive everything was there in general- It was one of the most expensive trips we've ever taken.
@SK in Norway, I love that you get reimbursed for cleaning your house - paid in leftover food etc! to me, I sometimes look around my house and realize it is worse than even I can stand it. So I say to myself "Self, you better have some people over in 2 days so you get some serious cleaning done." Works wonders. Never thought to have them bring food and leave the leftovers as being part of the bonus of clean house, but they often do... (just put the chicken carcass in the freezer from someone's abandoned rotisserie chicken potluck donation - after getting at least 4 cups of picked meat off it since the party). Party = tidy house + good snacks for days.
Found a pack of nighttime pull-ups on clearance for half price and had $1.50 coupon off too.
Ollie's had a bunch of Hart items which my husband likes. I got a chemical sprayer with battery and charger for less than just buying a battery by itself. I also had a 15% off total purchase coupon too.
Target sent me $5 digital gift card for downloading the app. When I logged on there was also a 15% off total purchase which was usable online (nearest Target is 2 hours away). They also had a deal to spend $100 on baby stuff and get a $20 digital gift card back. I spent $80 for $100 worth of diapers and baby items and got $20 in my account to use next time.
The local extension office has little free libraries outside for books, games, and puzzles. There's rarely anything but books, but I dropped off some books and DVDs and found a brand new Monopoly game and a puzzle I gave my mom.
Cashed out a $5 Amazon gift card on Receipt Hog.
1. We made it another weekend without takeout. I am trying to remind myself that this will necessarily lead to an increase in my grocery bill, but a larger decrease in our restaurant line item. For some reason my brain doesn't make that connection automatically...
2. We were able to find the same model of upright freezer that we had before, from marketplace, for a pretty good price. I still wish we didn't have to buy a replacement but it was clear the old one was done after being submerged so high in water.
3. Getting the freezer led to us cleaning out the garage on Saturday, which was very satisfying
4. Instacart sent me (maybe everyone?) two coupons for $40 off of $80 purchase. This saves me money even though they mark up prices on instacart. I used the first one for an Aldi pickup order today
5. Trying to group together some plans and errands so that I am not driving all over the place every day
Yum! We are going through a challenge right now with food. (By the way, we have a very large family and we buy honey in huge 5 gallon buckets. It crystalizes every year unless we happen to get it into smaller jars. I mean those crystalize too but are easier to deal with. This year one of my kids noticed empty honey bear containers in a free pile at a garage sale so we swooped them up. This has made it much easier. We poured the honey in the summer. I love your bowl to weight down the honey but it also occurred to me that it would help it warm up faster too keeping the warm air there!) Anyway, back to our challenge. We have lots of fridges and freezers around here. (Three fridges and two large freezers. Very big family and we do entertain large groups sometimes.) One of our fridges died at Thanksgiving and we were going to just let it go and be happy to "only" have two of each, but we found this challenging with big kids and their Christmas appetites home over the holidays so we found a new one on craigslist. For that reason,
and the fact that the one we had moved into the kitchen was doing what it often does which is freeze up through the whole fridge unless we defrost it. We decided to let that one go (Right now we have two fridges in our kitchen! One is waiting for a new home.) Anyway, we can cope with the fridges but the freezers are crammed jammed, pretty full. So anytime we eat it must come out of the freezer mostly. My son requested a cherry pie when he was home and even then I said, "No," and made a peach pie because that fruit was out of the freezer. A lot of the time the meals made during these more challenging times are the most delicious somehow. I look forward to only dealing with four of these appliances and perhaps we could work down to three because it all draws on electricity. (Lots of on sale meat and garden produce in there. Most of it is really good still but there are some sausages from Aldi that I did not repackage and what was on them was not good for long term storage. Now they are freezer burned and actually smell pretty gross (not bad just old. I don't know how to explain it. We probably could have eaten them as far as nutrition but not the weird smell.) Unfortunately, I bought several of them. We started cooking them and feeding then to the dog in place of some of his dog food which he loves. I wish I could say that I did this with all of them but I got tired and threw two away. I almost never waste food like this but I was weary of how full the freezers were. I just had to let it go. We had other sausage from a local store that was better packaged and it tastes so much better even though it looked bad. (Okay, I shouldn't make comments right after coffee because I tend to go on and on as you can see.) Btw, my daughter is a labor and delivery nurse and she really loves it. I wish you well with your schooling.
@Liz, I am so curious about your family size. If it isn't too nosy for the World Wide Web, do tell, please!
@Liz,
Hello from another Liz! I can relate to your freezer burned sausage story....we had a pack of hot dogs in the freezer for, well who knows how long....not wrapped or made freezer-ready....hubby took them out to make hot dogs for lunch, and he said they were gross (apparently smelled horrible. Were probably freezer burned, too, who knows). Trying to do better about using up what's in there!
We just discovered red lentils,so much nicer than the usual green!
1. Library books (both physical and e-variety). And I started using Thriftbooks and have determined to only buy used books in 2024.
2. On YouTube (no subscription, just the free version) I found the entire run of Alien Nation free for watching, no ads! I don’t know how, but some very kind person curated them and uploaded them, so now I am happily revisiting one of my favorite 90s-era sci fi shows.
3. We realized Special Agent Clark was not enjoying the placement or manner of his water dish, i.e. he wasn’t drinking much and was constantly agitating about his food dish. By dint of ousting a slowly-malfunctioning keyboard, that nobody was playing anymore, and repurposing the hutch from a desk, we made him a lovely eating platform, far away from his box. We have a small one story house, so finding space for his litterbox was a challenge alone, so at first we had his food and water kind of near there. Pro tip: Cats do NOT like having their food and water by their box, and I don’t blame them!
4. To upgrade Clark’s water experience, DH scrounged in the garage and found an aquarium pump and some water pipe and borrowed a small stainless steel baking pan I haven’t used in ages, and made a lovely DIY cat fountain. Clark was so delighted he jumped right up there and started slurping away.
5. Gave up coffee right before the New Year, and make tea at home. Using up the teas I have before I splash out on any new ones.
1) I made a stuffed pepper casserole using discounted peppers (crispy fresh but marked down because they had small bruises), some sweet Italian sausage from freezer and some mozzarella cheese that needed to move along. Made a salad with lettuce from the garden and a lemon/garlic dressing with some elderly lemons and fresh garlic. We invited neighbors who are still working on storm repairs for dinner (and who have very limited kitchen functionality). Sent them home with leftovers.
2) Made my weekly trip to library and requested they purchase the new Elizabeth Strout book that is coming out in August.
3) we filled every yard waste container we had plus some the neighbors weren’t using this week after my husband gave our “jungle” a haircut thus weekend. I cleaned and organized our new potting bench area that my husband made with material salvaged from our storm repairs.
4) i was craving oatmeal cookies and made a small batch of dough that was just the right size. I love the small batch recipes I find on internet. Brownies in a loaf pan is the perfect size for us these days.
5) reusing ziploc bags and bread or veggie bags as often as we can. I have a foldable dryer thingy that is made for drying water bottles that is also very handy for drying (or filling) ziploc bags for reuse.
@Jean C, My sister gave us a box of large ziplocks for Christmas 5 years ago and a fair number of them are still going strong. I jokingly call it the best Christmas gift ever!
@Jean C, one time I was feeling smug about reusing ziploc and veggie bags. Then I was just cruising through the internet and came across a bunch of zero-waste type bloggers. One of them said, "Who even uses ziplocs anymore??" Puh-leeze!
Thanks once again for inspiring me to help less food waste! I really struggle with this, especially since we are now empty nesters and I am learning to adjust the size of my meals!
I have some apples right now that need to be rescued. Tomorrow is my day off so maybe I will make applesauce. I am trying to get my freezer emptied before I get my annual "meat bonus" from my work. That is a huge bonus...maybe I could consider the meat bonus a frugal win?!
Someone suggested to me that a way to use up extra roasts or even steaks (we don't have a grill) is to cut them into small pieces and pressure can them. I'm definitely going to try that!
@Alica, Meat bonus is definitely frugal win!! Lucky you. 🙂
@Alica, A meat bonus sounds AMAZING!
@Regina,
It is! So thankful...when the small company I worked for was bought out by a larger company, this was one of the fring benefits.
@Ruth T,
We are so thankful! I have to get creative with using some things that I wouldn't normally buy, but that's a good "problem"!
I will copy you and make this into a themed 5FT. My frugal wins this week are with greeting cards.
1. Went to the local thrift shop where I usually get greeting cards extra cheap. The rack was in a mess! However, I rooted through it and found some Xmas cards, left over from the holidays that folks had recently donated. (I know this because I regularly look at the card rack.) I like religious-themed cards so I got some to save for December. Cost: 10 cents each.
2. Also got a box of religious-themed cards on clearance at a regular store.
3. a. Back at the thrift store, I found an anniversary card that reminded me of a darling married couple who are my good friends. I wanted to send it for Valentine's but it said "Happy Anniversary" (only in one place) instead. So I kept browsing. Eureka! I found a Valentine's card but it was used, already signed by someone; I guess it was put in the rack by mistake, since it had a handwritten note and signature on it so you couldn't send it. Took both to the front. Bought the Anniversary card and showed the clerk the inside of the used Valentine's card, which she then gave me for free.
b. At home, I cut out the words "Valentine's Day" from the inside of the latter card and glued it over the word "Anniversary". Now the card says "Happy Valentine's Day," and is perfect for the above-mentioned couple!
c. Next, I cut off that (previously used) card's front, which features a heart and the words "Thinking of you at Valentine's" on it; will glue that to a plain red paper gift bag to make it suitable for a Valentine's Day gift. I already have the bag, left over from Xmas. (Who says you can't re-use a card? Just in a different way!)
4. Similarly modified a greeting card featuring dogs and cats to make it into a special thank you card for the nice lady who rescued my dog (after my dog escaped from the yard and ran away.) Enclosed a Starbucks gift card; I never go out for coffee, and this was given to me for Xmas, so I regifted it. The gift card is for $15 but didn't cost me anything. She saw (then picked up) my dog as she was in the Starbucks parking lot, so her next overpriced coffee is on me!
5. From my card stash, I sent a sympathy card to friends. Again, the card was from the thrift store and cost me a dime. I bought it a long time ago. I keep an assortment of cards for all occasions in a large file to prevent mad dashes to the store at the last minute. Hallmark has nothing on me!
@Fru-gal Lisa, my dad and his brothers used to send the same birthday card around to one another, never signed. I'm not sure how they kept finding card-sized envelopes for it.
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, When we exchange cards in-house, we never put any writing on the envelope, so it can be reused. Or write the name smallish where a stamp would cover it.
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, My friend/roommate from boarding high school and I send the same Christmas card back and forth, but we sign it and add a few lines bout the most important thing that happened in the last year. By year 10, the card was impossibly full so the next time it came back to me, she had glued on a blank page. We now have 22 years of comments in that same, very tattered card, and it is a joy to reread it every Christmas. We had lost touch after high school and I wish we had not because if we had started the card exchange then, we'd have 50 years of memories.
@Lindsey, that is so very cool!!
@Lindsey, my mom did this for years with one of her girlfriends from elementary school (a birthday card, I think). Mom is still with us but I am vaguely remembering finding her in tears at the front hall closet where the cards were kept. I guess her friend had died that year. My... I think I will ask my mom to share that story with me when I see her later this week... Her birthday was Jan 30th - she is 94 now, and so many of her friends from her youth and young adulthood are gone....Thanks for reminding me of this precious story
I should cook my elderly apples into sauce, come to think of it. Later.
*My son and I re-leveled our dishwasher so it works again.
*I've been reading a book free online (I do that a lot)
*I lent my neighbor a vintage image from which he's going to make T shirts and not give me a cut (keeping in nice with the neighbors is good).
*I planted pansy seeds. Well, it's cheaper than buying them.
*I don't have to buy any other seeds since I saved them from last year.
@Rose,
I started the Road to Wigan - I think you recommended it?
@JNL, One of my favorites, so it was probably me.
orwell.ru has all his works.
@Rose, YEA for you, having frugalities this week. I was getting concerned for you!
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, Ha! I think I will demand a free T shirt from the neighbors, though. (It's letterhead from the naval torpedo testing site that existed in our town in WWII. It's really cute, with a sailor riding a torpedo. The old cement launching ramp is still there although now it's part of the dog park.)
@Rose,
Yes, you are definitely owed a t-shirt! The graphics sound super cool. I love vintage graphics, advertising, and similar. LI has so much interesting history!
@Liz B., A lot more than you'd think! People only picture Levittown in 1955 when they imagine Long Island. Here on the East End, we have 11 historic wooden windmills, even, the largest collection in the US.
https://ibb.co/z46prgP
@Rose,
Love it! Very cool! I may have mentioned it before, but I lived on LI for 5 years when I was a teenager. When I visited my BFF last year, she mentioned the Shinnecock reservation on the island -she had attended their annual Pow-Wow, and had amazing photos to share. How did I *not know* there's a Shinnecock reservation on the Island?!?. As a teen, I suppose I was too wrapped up in my own stuff at the time. Major eyeball roll at past me.
I think I'm going to do a similar thing with some apples I have today, using my mini crock pot. Its been a spendy month here, but I am doing well on my self-imposed budget for food, using up things from my pantry and freezer in order to avoid waste. Those lentil bowls look very good and might try to add a bowl situation into next week's menus.
I cancelled Netflix last week because I would rather read books, so I'm calling that a frugal win as I am getting my books from thrift stores and I have piles of them to read.
Lastly, getting the boys to help me sell some of the things left in the garage from all of my massive purges. The money will go to home improvement, which seems to be never-ending!
After a super expensive couple of weeks (one thing was planned but ended up being more expensive than anticipated, then we had a couple of unexpected expensive things), I feel a renewed commitment to frugality! Thankfully, I don't typically spend like crazy, so hopefully it won't feel too painful.
My FFT:
1. I used some overly ripe banana to make muffins for school snacks.
2. I (finally) returned a Christmas present that we ended up not needing for one of my kids.
3. Another Christmas one - I had a rebate for an item and had the deadline wrong in my head. I mailed it a day after the deadline (I figured the worst that would happen was that I'd waste a stamp), but they still processed it and gave me the rebate! I was surprised and delighted to get that mail this past week.
4. I paid cash for a big purchase that would have had a processing fee for paying with a credit card.
5. Over the summer we ordered a gift for a birthday party but the gift didn't arrive in time, so we just hung onto it for a future birthday gift need. My youngest kiddo is attending a birthday party this weekend and the saved gift will be perfect for the birthday girl.
@Ruth T, I'm glad to read your #3 because I am very cynical about rebates.
FFT, Simulcast Edition (I’ve just put this up at The Non-Consumer Advocate):
(1) I managed to get out to a Thrifty Shopper store I don’t often visit for a bit of thrifting on Saturday. I found a pair of Marmot activewear pants, a book, a dozen more votive candles, and a few odds and ends for $15.
(2) I stopped at four Little Free Libraries on my way to and from the Thrifty Shopper. I found two very nice children’s books that I’ll pass on to JASNA BFF for her grandchildren.
(3) Peanuts in the shell are back in stock at my Ollie’s, so I used the Ollie’s 15% off Valentine’s coupon to buy several bags. The peanuts should keep things lively during next month’s Great Backyard Bird Count.
(4) I made a quick chicken cacciatore with some of the boneless/skinless thighs I found Reduced for Quick Sale last week, plus a jar of Wegmans Italian Classics sauce that was nearing its best-by date.
(5) And I’ve gritted my teeth and started in on my tax paperwork. (Whoever it was on either the NCA or the FG who said recently that she enjoys preparing her taxes is cordially invited to help do mine!)
@A. Marie, it was me or Heidi Louise that like dealing with taxes. Doubt if either is close to you but I'm sure one or both of us would enjoy helping you.
1) Clipped coupons in the BJ's app before going shopping, including one for a $15 credit when you spent $50 or more.
2) Got gas while at BJ's.
3) Canceled Hulu Live now that college football season is over.
4) Made a big batch of breakfast burritos for us and the kids.
5) BFF gave us a prepared meal that she bought BOGO and didn't like. I'll have that for dinner while DH is away at Mayo clinic.
Not sure if all of these are considered frugal but they’re ways we haven’t had to spend money this month, so here goes:
My husband noticed one of his headlights wasn’t working so he replaced the bulb. The headlight still wasn’t working so he thought perhaps it was the fuse. Upon closer investigation, he discovered that the wires had been chewed through by some rodent. At first, he ( my husband, not the rodent) thought he would take his car to a local friend who could fix the problem for a small fee. However, my husband decided to fix the wires himself. The problem is fixed and the headlight is working. Yay!
I scrounged around and found some old, large plastic tote bags that I can use to avoid the charge for brown paper bags at the food stores.
The place where my husband and I frequently dance has just changed their entry fee to give students, military personnel, and veterans a break in cost. My husband is a veteran and can now get in at half-price.
We have quite a few family birthdays in January and February. I did a better job than usual in planning ahead on making or buying gifts for these birthdays only I prepared for them way back in October.
I had special offers for various stores for October being my birthday month. Instead of buying stuff for myself, I bought some gifts for our Jan/Feb people and then made gifts/cards for some. So our January spending is looking good in a few ways.
- After some time on a waitlist, I finally got a rotten fence post replaced. They ended up being cheaper than the original (and problematic) company I contacted, and keeping the fence secure is a small fraction of the cost of our vet bills the last time my dog escaped.
- I used a 30 day free trial of Amazon Prime to get something with free shipping, and then canceled it so I wouldn’t be charged when the trial ended.
- I celebrated my birthday with a family game night. We all laughed so hard, it made my day. Big benefits of older kids include the increased game options and a much lower chance the night will end in a meltdown!
- I continue to use the cash rewards and digital coupons at my grocery store. They are customized for the things I already buy, which makes it easy and helpful.
- I took advantage of some Target sales to earn gift cards on things I needed.
- We made our weekly trip to the library to keep my kids in books. Bonus - They recently had a take home craft that my 9yo enjoyed. This is my kid that loves to stay busy, so additional free entertainment is very welcome.
@JenRR, I had a great batch of store coupons that were sent to us and were for the things we usually buy. Hubby went grocery shopping and forgot to use the coupons. Sometimes I want to bang my head against the wall!
Biggest frugal win was that my husband and I fixed a plumbing problem ourselves, with thanks to some youtube videos. It was a little annoying to do but it wasn't difficult and we saved the cost of the plumber coming out to help! We even had all the tools we needed so there was no cost at all except our time.
Other frugal things from this week:
1. Used up some various freezer things while preparing meals.
2. Did a trade with a neighbor...she did some sewing for me and I made her a loaf of bread and gave her some magazines I was done with. She has a heavy duty sewing machine and it can handle the fabric of my daughter's ski jumping suit.
3. My younger daughter wanted to buy some clothing items. She found a babysitting job that paid $100! She then had plenty of money for shopping, but then she decided to save the money and not buy the clothes. Nice to see her practice being frugal!
4. My older daughter had to buy quite a few books for her college courses this semester. She found them all on Thriftbooks for a low price. Last semester, she didn't have to buy any books at all, so it's totally fine that she needs some this semester. And she was frugal about it too!
5. My husband was about to go to the hardware store to buy some various things for a house project. I realized that we might have some of the supplies he needed in a box that other neighbors had given us when they moved away. We checked the box. All he ended up needing to buy were a few of a specific type of screw. The screws cost under $3.
@Ann, We've saved thousands of dollars over the years by looking up how to do things on YouTube and doing it ourselves. Your plumbing win is a big one!
@Ruth T, I just discovered Thrift Books and bought one book. My kids (30 and 32) rented their textbooks for college. Chegg was one company - not sure it's still in business - and my son used Amazon too and my daughter could rent books from the campus bookstore.
I also had to melt my honey earlier this week. It was the second time for that jar...we apparently having been using it up quick enough or something.
I'm still making progress on the freezer clean out.
My dog had a small lump come up on her leg that she needs to see the vet for (not frugal), but when making the appointment I noticed that she was due for her annual visit in February also...so I made one appointment for both. No reason to pay two appointment fees. And no reason to drag her over there twice (she hates traveling anywhere).
I went to walgreens with a coupon to buy my husband's supplements that were on sale, but also came across bags of Dove chocolates for .74 each (normally $4). I bought 10 and will have enough candy for my candy jar for the year. And I had a couple of dollars of cash rewards when I got to the counter that they applied also.
I made (your recipe) french bread at home one day because I knew if I went into the store to buy it that I would buy other items also. Staying out of a store is always for me the most frugal!
@Marlena, Pound Hound loves going places in the car. Several times he has jumped our five foot fence to jump into the USPS van when the postman parks in our driveway to deliver a package.
The applesauce looks soooo good. We eat lots of apples but I've never tried to make sauce.
Here are my 5:
1) Gas was $2.25/gal at Sam's club. We use gasbuddy.com to find the cheapest prices and have memberships at Sam's Club and Costco. Usually one of those are top of the list.
2) I put items for sale on our local ad and most are $5, so I hope they find a new home.
3) I'll trim the trees/bushes today as they produce fruit and trimming helps with that.
4) I have a coupon for a haircut and will use it today.
5) I have lots of brown bananas and will bake them today.
Kristen, all of your food waste saves look delicious!
1. Used up not-great bread in a delicious tomato and bread soup.
2. We took our niece and nephew out to dinner. The bill was higher than expected and we noticed that when my nephew changed his order, his original order wasn't removed. Got that fixed. My entree was so large it made two more meals. After dinner, instead of going to an ice cream shop, I suggested we buy a container of Talenti to split since we were returning to my nephew's apartment anyway. Everyone was so excited to have gelato that no one realized I suggested it in order to save money. Spent $6 instead of much more.
3. Received a can of hot cocoa mix and found that using 1/3 of the recommended scoop is plenty.
4. Was tempted to treat myself at Dairy Queen after a yucky medical procedure on both feet. Instead, I went home and made a yogurt parfait with ingredients on hand.
5. Received a packet of "welcome to the neighborhood" coupons for freebies of a bottle of wine, two meals, a dog wash, a car wash, and an oil change.
If you peel the baked sweet potato, what do you do with the peels? I have been saving our pieces for nacho toppings. My husband is on a diet so he didn’t ask about the “crisps” he was just excited to have nachos!
I’m working on getting my home ready to babysit in it (we don’t have kids), so most of my frugal finds this week relate to that.
1. I was gifted a pack n play, stroller, double stroller, baby monitor, and some toys from friends whom I’ll likely babysit for in future.
2. Another friend is gifting me a high chair, and some baby items for meals.
3. Our church BNG group has provided me with a counting fish toy & baby food meal cards.
4. I have meal prepped my husband’s meals for his diet for several weeks ahead of when we need them & he is beginning to lose the weight!!
5. My friend invited me to the aquarium & I was able to get in free due to her snap/wic benefits.
1. The biggest one is, for work-related reasons, I can't sleep in my room for two nights of the week, from Dec-Feb. This is as annoying as it sounds BUT while many people stay in a hotel ($$$$), I've been rotating through my relatives' homes. Slightly less convenient, but all it costs is the ride over, some takeout, and a spare set of sheets.
2. Frugal wedding reception: Mr. B and I are hosting a very belated wedding reception in the summer (we covid-eloped in April 2020) and we're being frugal about it. I've been picking up second-hand wedding décor on FB Marketplace, which this week meant that I got 62% off some lovely candle holders and LED tealights. (If anyone wants advice on throwing a frugal wedding, hit me up. This is my second time planning a frugal wedding--to the same person, fortunately--and oh boy Pinterest will lead you ASTRAY.)
3. I rescued some apples and made applesauce.
4. I'm taking a week off from work to study for my Big Scary Exam and I guess it's frugal to not fly somewhere beautiful and warm and instead just hunker down at home.
5. Made bread in the breadmaker; cooked at home; made soup with a sad-looking leek; ate meatloaf that previous-me made and froze.
1. I had a $10 Panera gift card that needed to be used by tomorrow, so we bought lunch with it. I also had a $2 off a salad coupon. They ended up making a mistake on my husband's salad order. They made us a new one, but said we could keep the one that was not correct. He ended up liking that one too.
2. We took our kids and niece to a trampoline park and arcade. We had gifts cards from Christmas and also used coupons. We brought drinks and snacks with us. We ended up spending $31 for a fun night.
3. I am eating left over chicken, with home made mole sauce, rice, and black beans for my lunches this week. I found rolls and bacon in our freezer, which we used to cook egg sandwiches for my kids and our niece this weekend.
4. I took out some frozen home made pear sauce and home made apple and banana bread from the freezer, as the kids have been hungry for lots of snacks lately.
5. I used leftover apple juice to make popsicles for my kids.
I've never had black lentils. I'm getting ready to try lentils again, to see how I do, so I'll keep my eye out for them.
Frugal Things:
1. For starters, I got a text from an unknown number stating in essence that the texter had received a check from me without my signature, so they would (so helpful of them!) sign the check for me if I would just send a photo of my signature to them, which I did not do because I am not stupid, thank you. I reported the text.
2. I scrounged through DH's tools and miraculously found both an 8mm socket and the handle it fits on, so I was able to remove the four screws holding the cover over the air filter in my car and replace the air filter myself. I guess the old days of a simple air filter cover held on by a single simple wing nut was just too simple, and had to be improved upon.
For all you metric users who can't understand why the U.S. hasn't gone metric, please enjoy the fact that the U.S. has gone just metric enough that we have to keep both SAE and metric tools of all kinds around, because you never know which ones you will need.
3. I get my dog food at a store with a reward program, so my last purchase of a $72 bag of special no-chicken dog food was purchased by me for $8.31, using my rewards points. This reward program is free to join.
4. In that same vein, I saved almost $11 on bird seed, which I buy regularly, as a club member at that store. I do pay annually for this membership, but I very easily save more than the membership costs, every year.
5. I put the new birdseed in the freezer for 24 hours to kill any insect eggs, because although the seed is nice and clean, they can't guarantee no moths will hatch out, and once that happens, I have to toss the rest of the seed, which isn't frugal at all, plus they might invade my own food.
@JD, Re: #1 - That is insane! No, you aren't that stupid.
(I suspect that any legitimate business that you send checks to would have a policy in place for dealing with unsigned checks, probably writing a letter to tell you that your bill isn't paid, and charging you interest or a service fee).
@JD, Canadian here, using metric and imperial all the time, all over the place. berloody annoying, but we can actually purchase tool kits with both flavours, if we want - helps a lot for those annoying days when you THOUGHT it was metric but of course it wasn't.... however you brought the whole toolkit just in case. My #1 son thought he was helping me by taking all the sockets out of my kits and storing them (labeled, at least) in trays. GAHHHH. and he threw away the special plastic kits... Ahem, mostly he is a decent sort but there are times.....
That applesauce looks particularly yummy, Kristen.
With my son's help, I reorganized and dejunked our mess of a garage. Spent $60 on lidded bins at Dollar Tree -- after shopping around for the best price on the right size -- to contain everything on the shelves and took a carload (stuffed to the roof) of items to Goodwill and Habitat.
I also cleaned out and scrubbed out our fridge, then made meals out of what's in there and informed DH of what to eat. He has a terrible case of "fridge blindness" and just does not see stuff in there unless I point it out. Plated up some leftovers for quick meals from the freezer.
Mended my son's favorite jeans for the fourth time. Cleaned and polished my old shoes. I lost a half a shoe size along with losing 66 pounds, so rummaged in a box of insoles and added some to my old, now loose shoes to get them to fit better.
@Ruby,
Google "Anne Taintor male refrigerator blindness".....hilarious!
@Ruby, 66 pounds is amazing!!! You should be very proud of yourself!!!♥️
@TL, It's taken 21 months of being careful about what I eat and getting lots of exercise by getting my house and yard in shape, but I am thrilled with the results all around.
@Liz B., I love Anne Taintor and buy her wall calendar every year. I used to joke I could hide a severed head in our fridge and DH would never notice!
@Liz B., Or you can google "Anne Taintor Frugal is such an ugly word" -- but don't tell Kristen.
@Ruby, never heard of her, so I looked her up and WOW! I've seen these before and loved them. I am putting this on my month-end blog post of things I learned in January with this link to the Bored Panda https://www.boredpanda.com/sarcastic-retro-humor-anne-taintor/
THANK YOU!!
@Ruby, and @JDinNM,
Her stuff is hilarious! I have had her wall calendar at work in past years, and my co workers get a big kick out of it. I often have to tell my husband, as he stares blankly into the fridge, "you might have to *move something* to find [x]". 😉
@Central Calif. Artist Jana,
An awesome addition! I have a "male refrigerator blindness strikes again" magnet, and a few other things she's created.....all so very funny!
Despite the broken stove, I started cooking. I haven't felt like cooking in about a year so this is a big deal. Lots of use-it-up here as well.
1. By prepping a lot of produce, I've been eating and using a lot of produce. Including, I kid you not, 4 melons.
2. I made a potato dish of the 2 russets that have been in the fridge for 4 months, some of the leeks, and milk from the individual serving box that's my emergency milk stash. My roommate had the skins with cheese and bacon from the freezer. Despite the age of the taters, only about 15% was inedible.
3. Made banana bread using 5-6 from the freezer.
4. There was a bit of kerfluffle about book club which meant there was less food than usual. I used the opportunity to share some of my bits and bobs via a tray of cheeses (many of which had moldy bits cut off), assorted crackers, some box cookies I didn't like, and so on.
5. Made roasted carrots for a Sunday Supper using leftover monster big carrots from the Asian supermarket, some fancy honey that's been hanging around for 2 years, and the very last dregs of 10 year old authentic Balsamic Vinegar from Italy. This was the real deal, the sort of stuff you serve by the drop on strawberries or cheese, the not the stuff we by for $10/bottle and think we're paying a lot. (It was probably $10/oz or more. A gift, btw.) The bottle was empty but there was dried vinegar on the sides. I used boiling water to dissolve and dilute it for the carrot's glaze.
6. I spent an hour or two on my houseplants, digging up the impressively compacted soil, adding home-made compost, repotting into trash-picked ceramic pots, etc. The only thing I've paid for is the potting soil and the dracena (sp?). The rest of the plants and pots are scrounged and clippings.
Honey: it's my experience that once honey crystalizes, it's going to recrystalize as soon as it cools. Kristen, does yours stay liquid?
Almost all free food:
1. Neighbor brought a Costco chicken, which made several meals and then broth.
2. A friend picked up some butter for us while down the hill and wouldn’t accept $ (I won’t tell her anymore when she offers to grab something for us)
3. I gave a drawing student a two hour oil painting lesson, just as a gesture of friendship (and fun), and she gave me a gift certificate to the best sandwich shop in my town as a thank you!
4. I bought some fancy cheeses to share at an outing with friends using a gift card to Sprouts.
5. Needed kitty litter, so I ordered 2 bags plus some cat food on Chewy in order to get free shipping.
Bonus: I finally got to experience Aldi's. Found the prices to be very close to Winco, with much less selection, so I will stick with Winco because it is in a slightly more convenient location (perhaps simply more familiar, which saves time.)
My frugal five:
1. I wanted a 32 oz insulated water bottle. During a cupboard clean out I found a 32oz Nalgene bottle we rarely used because of it's wide mouth cap. A little research and a test fit with the chug cap from the 24oz Nalgene I use constantly, I confirmed chug caps fit both size bottle. I ordered a new chug cap and an 32oz insulating sleeve. I turned the water bottle I had into the one I wanted for 12 bucks.
2. My husband made broth from a duck carcass and made two delicious dinners with it.
3. I got 3 prerequisite classes waved in order to take the class I wanted.
4. I patched a hole in my favorite yoga pants with a small machine embroidery test piece I saved just in case I needed a small patch.
5. I decluttering and reorganizing small spaces like closets, sewing desk, etc bit by bit for a low cost activity since it is too cold and gloomy to do anything outside
* got 5 proteins bars (my favorite kind) from my Buy Nothing group. Also, borrowing a tripod from a member for a night instead of buying one.
* Gearing up for a low spend on the personal front in February. So, no crafts, jewelry, going out, etc. Just the basics.
* Used my student card to get discounts on play tickets
* Buying less grocery and using up what is at home already. Buying a weekly basket of past best-by date of food for 15$ (veggies/fruits/ 2 loafs of bread/ 2 liters of milk/ small carton of cream/ a big tub of greek yogourt)
* Did not buy new clothes since losing weight, thanks to donations from my Buy Nothing group and from friends. Waiting maintenance before investing in new clothes (if needed)
I didn't know black lentils were a thing. Will have to look for them.
*an aside: my Texas raised son lived in Connecticut for 5 years. During that time a wild turkey flew by on his way to work one day. He told me - I didn't even know that was a thing! It just stuck with me.
@Cindy,
I have bird/wildlife photographer friends who live on Long Island (just across the LI Sound from CT), and they see wild turkeys now and then. I've heard them in my area (Ohio), but have never seen one.
@Liz B., We regularly have wild turkeys in our yard. The most fun is when we see the mother and her babies and watch them grow up. We've had toms fighting each other in our front yard. I've seen as many as maybe 20 or so in our yard at once.
@Jody S., The most NOT fun is when the toms start chasing your car. Usually during mating season.
@Jody S.,
Wow! That's so amazing!! I see plenty of songbirds in my (admittedly suburban) yard, but no turkeys....that would be a sight to see!
This week I did a freezer stock check- we have one deep freezer and two fridge freezers. I made a list of the contents of each in the notes section of my phone and as we use the items I mark them off. I'm going to see how this works as sometimes I forget about what's at the bottom or the back depths of the freezers. This way when I'm doing my meal planning each week I can easily check the notes on my phone and "shop" from my freezer without having to dig around.
Ralph's had organic strawberries for $2.99 a basket- usually these are @$6 so I grabbed a couple as my teens love strawberries. We already have frozen strawberries so I didn't buy more to freeze. We went to the movies at Cinemark at 10am on Saturday. My husband and I each get to see some movies for free through our unions and I had unused passes (pre-Covid!) on my Cinemark account so apart from a non-frugal popcorn splurge for the kiddos we had a free morning at the movies- and the theater all to ourselves! We rarely go to the theater so this was a really fun family outing.
Kristen .... she's just like us. She has items in her pantry and freezer that are older than she wants to admit. 🙂
Yesterday I figured out why my laptop wasn't charging, saving the cost and hassle of taking it somewhere. The battery wasn't staying completely pushed into the slot, so I took care of that.
I cancelled an autoship order that I no longer need after my dog died.
I ate a container of soup from the freezer. I can see the back of the freezer on one side now!
I got a package of cooked chicken out of the freezer. I think I'll get out a container of ratatouille and make some rice for a couple easy meals.
With the help of friends and neighbors, we picked most of the oranges off my tree before it got a major haircut. I continue to eat oranges daily.
@Dee in AZ, also read a couple library books on my Kindle.
1. Made a pot of chicken and rice soup using up the Costco rotisserie chicken and baby carrots that needed to be used.
2. Made a "spaghetti cassarole" using, noodles, sauce, cottage cheese, parmesan and mozzarella I already had.
3. As always, reading books from the library.
4. Our date night was at happy hour at a BJs Brewhouse Fridau,where we get deep dish pizzas for $7 (less than half price). The pizooki wasn't frugal, but it sure was delicious!
5. Stayed home and ate sandwiches and leftovers rather than going out Saturday since we ate out Friday.
6. My parents send me (and one of my daughters) boxes of White Mountain puzzles (definitely not frugal for them!) after they've done them and we pass them to each other, then to my ex husband after we are both done. I still have about 44 and she has about 30, and we typically only do them late fall through winter so we've got a few years worth to do! It keeps me from buying all the fun puzzles I see!
7. Sold compression garment on Poshmark and will list many more items soon.
Not frugal but in the long run I think it will be frugal. I bought freezer storage containers from Jeff Bezos. I have so many small items in the freezer they always fall out. Now they are in a container. This will also help with bad words flying out of my mouth when those small items fell on the floor.
I cleaned out the fridge and freezer. Found some freezer burnt turkey that can go to the ferals.
Other than a couple onions that went south nothing else spoiled.
Working on eating the 4.2 million containers of packaged fruit my FIL gave to us. He gets one every day with his meals but won’t eat them.
I made a detailed list of all canned goods in the cupboard in hopes of not having too many of 1 item. I did the same for the freezer and did not realize I already bought a large package of chicken from Sam’s. Ugh!
Worked on puzzles that friends gave me, I passed those done to others.
I hit Meijer sale for the 7/7 sales. Stocked up on needed items in particular Kleenex.
My brother gave me cereal he had extra.
Cleaned out fish freezer and canned 50 half pint jars of kitty food. Took time (90 minutes per pressure canner load), watched a few instructional videos on permaculture.
Cleaned up yard, driveways, barn approach from last winter storm, we are having spring temps, t-shirt weather. Only lost one potted plant, not bad!
Planted some well sprouted tulip bulbs a neighbor didn't get around to planting. I planted her a whiskey barrel and delivered barrel and bulbs for a surprise when she arrives home from Hawaii.
Picked up fallen branches along the county road and cut them up for firewood, makes the road safer and ditch clean out is a good thing. Got about 1/2 a cord!
Working on tax prep for 3 family members...bartering for plumbing/finish carpentry.
Still eating out of freezers, found too many cartons of homemade jams and jellies. Made thumbprint cookies for a former neighbor's funeral.
I started tomato, eggplant and some perennial flower seeds in the greenhouse.
I love marinated lentils, chickpeas and quinoa for a green salad topping.
@Blue Gate Farmgirl,
You amaze me with your tenacity and how much you accomplish in a week. I, too am always doing something, but not as much as you. I love reading your posts.
Since we are soon going to be moving out of our house so that repairs can begin I have been focused on using up odds & ends so that I don't have to pack it all. This type of food waste post is right on time!
* I made some egg muffin sandwiches using the last of the diced ham and some whole wheat English muffins. I chucked these into the freezer for protein packed breakfasts as we need them.
* I used up some rice krispies and the remainder of a bag of coconut to make a recipe of energy balls.
* I cooked up a large batch of black beans using the last of my frozen jalapenos and some frozen cilantro. These will make great burritos and bowls as we go through the week and they are packed with protein and fiber.
* I cooked a turkey last week and have used the meat to make several dishes along with a recipe of bone broth that went into a turkey pot pie. Yummy food for not a lot of money!
1. I “erased” a few scratches on our veneer closet doors using furniture repair markers I’d previously purchased. Not being able to see the dings is good for my mental health, even if I didn’t specifically save any money.
2. I finally finished free cream of wheat cereal in my morning steel cut oats. I could only tolerate about ¼ cup of the cereal at a time, so it took a while!
3. Thankfully labor with Baby #2 has held off! I was able to complete 2 days of virtual coverage for a health clinic. Since I didn’t have much actual work to do, I was able to complete various household tasks during that time as well as working on continuing education for my license and certification.
4. Household tasks done during #3 above:
*Mending: multiple board books, a chair cushion, a toddler shirt and sock, and a kitchen towel.
*Packed up Christmas ornaments.
*Spackled holes in the wall.
Glad we are not roommates---I detest lentils, I don't like sweet potatoes, and cilantro tastes like soap. I admire people that eat lentils and sweet potatoes but will never join their ranks. One thing I learned from this blog that I put to use this week was to freeze spinach if I bought too much to eat before it went bad, no blanching or fancy prep required. (It is hard to buy small bags of it around here. The ones I see would work for a restaurant supply house!) And this week I used up a bag by putting it in every single dinner, including clam chowder, chili, hamburger gravy (fixed only because the husband loves it so much), and the mushroom sauce in our crepes. Cut up small with my kitchen scissors, it was nearly undetectable---a requirement for the man who hates greens. And I used up the remnants of a bag of slightly freezer burned cauliflower by chopping it up and putting it in our shrimp scampi dinner.
@Lindsey, my husband has the cilantro tastes like soap gene too. I do ok with cilantro, but ginger is really bad like soap for me.
1) Fixing DH lunch every day. He spends too much and comes home too hungry, two incentives!
2) Cooking dinners from freezer bounty instead of going to the store.
3) Filled gas tank while price was low, and got 30 cents off per gallon with Kroger plus card.
4) Ordered sewing book that comes with six patterns, much cheaper than the six patterns separately. They are sold by the same company for $20 each or more; book and patterns cost $30.
5) Resisted ads for gorgeous cookware. I am a sucker for kitchen gadgets and cooking stuff but I forced myself to remember that I already had a pan identical to the beauty in the ad, but mine wasn't a pretty color.
Great idea with the honey. My last jar also crystallized quickly. I will do this and also put in a wide mouth jar, which is much easier to access that the small necked container it is currently residing. :)O
Next time you have sweet potatoes to use up this recipe is a family favorite at our house, in regular weekly rotation. I don’t love baked sweet potatoes but I could eat the entire pan of these (I think they take a bit longer to bake than the recipe says) https://familystylefood.com/spice-roasted-sweet-potatoes/#wprm-recipe-container-88994
I have found that cooking sweet potatoes in the crockpot is a very easy way to get soft caramelized sweet potatoes without burning them. I usually cook several and freeze the extra for later.
I make a lot of larger casseroles and freeze the extra into serving size for a quick meal.
I respect your food clean ups Kristen. I’m afraid I still throw away some things that might have a chance for a new life!
My FFT:
I bought a baby doll for my granddaughter after Christmas for half price, only $7.00. Lucy has a January birthday, so the after Christmas sales are perfect. I had a basket lying around collecting junk, so I cleaned it up to make a bed for baby.
I used a piece of a pillow case I had shortened to make a little mattress for the basket and filled it with a part of a roll of batting I rescued from my aunts house.
I used a piece of flannel from some I had bought and made beautiful burp cloths for Lucy as a baby. Now her baby has a nice soft bed made from all recycled things. And oh, how she loved this gift!
I salvaged two slightly freezer burned chicken breasts from the freezer and using more beans and canned tomatoes from my aunts house, made a chicken taco soup (or 7 can soup, some call it)
And, lastly, my prize frugal thing this week, I found Dove chocolates (the 14.2 oz bags) for 90% off at our Walgreens. 12.99 bags for $1.29! Well, I love chocolate, my mom loves chocolate, my aunt loves chocolate and I brought a bag to my son, who rarely gets it, so I shamelessly bought 12 bags! Got to the checkout, had a $1.00 coupon and $20 in rewards, besides my chocolate stash, I had several other clearance items, toilet paper, tissues and some cleaning supplies. My whole order came to $9.00. Best deal I’ve found in a long time. Yay. Ironically, the 7.1 oz bags of Dove candies were sitting right next to this on the shelf, marked 2/$10.
Good job on using up old foods!
Frugals
-I signed up to be a substitute aide for our homeschool co-op, and I had three jobs right away! Plus it was fun to be in the classrooms.
-Used up a $2 remaining Starbucks giftcard with a tall cup of plain coffee. I think I paid 50 cents, but it was worth it to sit there and read for an hour.
-I sold a couple textbooks on eBay this week. One was within 10 minutes of listing it!
-I've been learning how to use an instant pot that someone gave me. I made lentils & rice and it was delish and like 75 cents for a pot of food!
-I've been staying out of stores, even my favorite (Goodwill) in effort to freeze spending on nonessentials. It's amazing how much you don't need to buy when you don't go in a store
-We cut our grocery spending this month by eating from the pantry, eating extra beans/rice/potatoes, and buying no boxed or bagged snacks. I told the kids their snacks are fruit, vegetables, and nuts. And they've baked cookies a few times because I'm not bringing in treats. Baking skills are frugal too!
My frugal five:
Got gas at Costco for $2.85
Hubby and I watched "1923" a Yellowstone prequel. Got from the library so it was free.
Got two books out of the library.
Eating from freezer.
Got some deals at Walgreens this week.
One bad thing that isn't related to frugalness but state of mind - the cloudy, gray days we had for over a week. Bah!
1) I actually went through the effort of listing a few things for sale. A bunch of stuff at low prices on FB. I find that, for me, $20-30 is the sweet spot. Not enough value to be the target of a scam, but enough that it's worth my while. I also try to keep the price super, super reasonable compared to the item value, to reduce back & forth with buyers. I sold three items really quickly, which was awesome. I ordered the wrong size of running shoes, & didn't notice until they were past the return window. For those (a niche item that sells for more), I used eBay & they sold in one day.
2) I made a couple of "use it up" recipes this weekend, including a coconut curry chicken dish (used 2 cans of coconut milk) & a Greek veggie bake, which used up some old potatoes that were close to needing to be tossed.
3) I picked apart a rotisserie chicken, & used the bones from that (plus, a bonus bag of chicken bones from the freezer) to make a double batch of chicken broth.
4) I've been giving a ton of stuff away on Buy Nothing. Frugal for others, & I love a cleaned & organized house.
5) Booked 3 hotel rooms, x6 nights each for an upcoming trip using points. (See below).
In wildly unfrugal news, we booked flights to Turkey to see my husband's family (potentially the last time he can see his mom, due to her difficulty traveling & his inability to visit her in her home country). It's emotional, and we definitely want to make it happen. I did manage to use flight credits to offset a teeny, tiny amount of the cost of four international tickets.
I think those flights to Turkey are a very very wise use of Money. I hope the trip is everything you guys need it to be.
@Kristen, I agree.
The point of frugality is to have enough for what really matters.
1. The adults were sick this week, so only the oldest kid spent any money on entertainment. Everyone else found stuff to do at home for free.
2. We ate all of our meals at home and used up food from the freezer.
3. We looked through boxes and closets to find bigger clothes for one kid. We did not need to buy anything this time.
4. I returned my library books on time. Our library doesn't actually have late fees anymore, but I like to return items on time. I was able to do it when I was driving the oldest to youth group.
5. I didn't order anything online while I was home.
Oo that applesauce is a good idea! We have a giant bag of green apples (not my fave) that we need to use up. SOMEONE insisted they would eat it and changed their mind (it was the four year old ;)) I’m thinking apple pie but maybe apple sauce could work instead? Hmm
Frugal things:
-I sold some outgrown toddler winter and rain boots on FB
-as usual, all coffee and lunches at home
-gotten the husband on board with taking lunch three days a week to work (this is a big one!)
-I did my annual review of my jobs benefits and found some new free offerings! Subscription to the calm app, cash incentives for certain health activities I already do (like preventative care)
In all the years I've been rescuing crystallized honey, I never thought about using a bowl to weigh it down. That's brilliant! Thank you.