Five Frugal Things | ghosties and pumpkins
1. I got some marked-down novelty earrings
You know how I've been wearing novelty earrings (borrowed from Zoe) to my pediatric rotations?
And how I also realized that some of my med-surg patients would enjoy seeing fun earrings? (my older ladies love seasonal things!)
Well, I bought a package of 50% off Halloween/fall earrings; I will wear the pumpkins for my Thanksgiving shifts, and I'll use the spooky ones for work next fall.
I only wanted the cute pairs from this package, so I listed the 8 other pairs on my Buy Nothing group (I will not be wearing coffin earrings to work at the hospital. Ha.)
I put them in a little sauce container I'd saved; that way they wouldn't get lost in transport when they got picked up.
2. I canceled some Subscribe and Save items
Occasionally when I order things from Amazon, I select the subscribe and save option to get the discount. But the discount is a loss if you keep getting items you don't want, so I popped in and canceled the things I don't want more of.
3. I had an extremely random lunch yesterday
I ate:
- the last two slices of deli ham
- the last cup of cottage cheese
- the last mini cucumber
- a plate of browned sweet potato slices topped with cilantro and the last of the queso fresco
Yay me for using up so much random stuff!
4. I made chocolate pudding
We ended up in a too-much-milk situation, so I employed my usual milk-waste-avoidance solution: some chocolate pudding.
This is never a wrong choice. 😉
Also, making the pudding is an easy process, and the recipe just uses regular ol' pantry ingredients (in addition to the milk, obviously). Win, win.
5. I...
- continued my streak of not buying food/drinks at the clinical hospital or work hospital
- have not bought takeout of any kind since October 25th
- bought a bag of marked-down Reese's pumpkins for Zoe
- used my Amazon gift card to buy these work-friendly cat/pearl earrings
1. We put leaves from the patio in our compost bin. DH mowed over the yard to mulch the leaves there. Good for the environment.
2. We borrowed books from a couple of Little Free Libraries in our neighborhood. We'll return them when we are finished.
3. We watched a movie using hoopla! which our library provides access to for free.
4. I hung outdoor cushions in the garage for the winter. They are used on a love seat we curb picked many years ago. We also drained hoses and put them in the basement for the winter. We took our snow shovels out of the shed, which is at the back of our property, and DH put the mower in the shed and put the snow thrower (curb picked on a bulk trash pick up day) in the garage.
5. We hiked down to the river at our local state park. Good for the soul.
FFT, I'm on a Roll (or at Least a Loaf of Bread) Edition, revised/updated from yesterday's FFT at the NCA:
(1) I made my first chicken stock of the 2024-25 soup season Sunday, with the carcass of the chicken I roasted last Thursday, additional chicken bones I saved in the freezer (along with vegetable scraps), some of my own garlic, and a generous fistful of my own dill (which is still going strong in the gardens, since we haven’t yet had a killing frost). This will probably end up in a chicken noodle soup with dill, to make even more use of the dill.
(2) While taking advantage of the low-traffic streets (because of the Veterans’ Day holiday) to do an extended bottlepick Monday morning, I stumbled across a 12-pack carton of Diet Coke cans with 9 full cans still in it. Don’t ask me to explain this; I can’t. But I went back in the Element later and scooped the cans off the curb. Since a 12-pack of canned soda can’t be had around here for less than $4 these days (and then only when it’s a loss leader), I appreciate this.
(3) And speaking of Veterans’ Day, I thank all veterans and families of veterans here for your/your relatives’ service. Our two Vietnam-era vets on this street (Dr. Bestest Neighbor and one of his next-door neighbors) flew their flags yesterday, and I hung mine out in solidarity.
(4) My next stop after the Diet Coke retrieval was the Salvation Army, where I haven’t been in ages, and where I found a pair of Keen hiking boots in my size and in excellent condition for $15. Honestly, the only thing wrong with them is that one boot has a few small paint drips on one toe. DH and I had so many clothes and shoes with paint drips on them over the years that these don’t bother me a bit.
(5) The SA was also having a monster bread giveaway: carts and carts of bakery goods signposted FREE BREAD. I chose three loaves of Stroehmann’s (two whole wheats and a potato bread) that were down at the bottom of one cart and a bit smushed, since I figured most folks would prefer the less smushed items. They plumped up nicely after my return home, however, and I’ve put them in the freezer. And at the price of bread these days, I was very happy to stumble into this giveaway as well.
@A. Marie,
#3 - Veteran’s make and have made an enormous sacrifice for our country. Thank you for remembering them.
@A. Marie, Where I live, $4 for a sleeve of brand soda is literally unheard of. That's a terrific find.
@A. Marie,
As someone with a lot of vets in my family, thank you for your #3.
@WilliamB, I was about to say the same. Hubby got a 12-pack of Diet Coke yesterday at Walmart for 6-something which is very low. Regular price, even at Aldi, is over $7.
@SandyH and @WilliamB, the $4/12 price is based on the BOGO deal I sometimes get on Diet Pepsi 24-packs at Price Chopper. Diet Pepsi is my preferred soda, but if I find Diet Cokes on the curb, I'll take them in a Central NY minute!
@A. Marie, my best buy for diet A&W root beer is 4 twelve packs for $13.99 at Walgreens. Psst...Walgreens will give rain checks. This is good for me as they rarely have 4 twelve packs in stock.
@A. Marie,
Diet Pepsi fan here, too! But if I came across some free cans of Diet Coke like you did, I wouldn't hesitate, either. 🙂
Frugal things---
● used emergency pizza from Domino's for teen for dinner
● used my Domino's reward points for pasta bowl for me for dinner
● got 10 free 4×6 photo (TMOBILE rewards)
● free Christmas ornament from Lowe's rewards that I will change ribbon & paint different color before adding photo
● earned $5 free gas rewards when filled up last week
● free card from Hallmark store
● cut up apples (for pues) & put in ziploc bags in freezer
● eating meals at home from freezer & pantry
● still no early Black Friday shopping-- sticking to no new things we don't need because Christmas gifts are done.
● have Starbucks reward points (from promo code) & was near one so decided to stop & get my free bakery item. They don't do Starbucks app rewards (but do have bakery). So I left without getting anything even though love their (exspensive) cookies
Frugal fail---
● apparently we have not drank any Almond milk in awhile because I have 3 containers that are way past date.
Smart idea to buy the novelty earrings at a discount. Will you be using the same strategy for stars/trees in December?
Also: your odds and ends lunch look scrumptious.
I
-made vegetable broth from odds and ends, to use in soup and gravy
-made a jar of home made 'ready made' gravy mix in a recipe from Down To Earth (Australia)
-made soup with the vegetable broth, and a pumpkin we were gifted
-made hot chocolate drink with almost
-found an empty beer can during a walk, worth 15 EUR cts.
-filled up our car at the cheapest place, saving 2,50 EUR
Plus I rescheduled my PT work out because I could not bring myself to go in the evening any longer. No missed appointments, and quiet evenings.
@JNL, mild that alomost went sour
@JNL,
Sigh, only increasing the number of typo's. More coffee I suppose
*I bought gifts at Target using spend $60, get $10 off .
* I asked the nice team member at Target to go through the receipt and tell me why the $10 didn't cone off my total. He patiently went through all the items, realized it should have worked, and gave me the credit. The customer service at my Target is the best.
*We have not turned the heater on yet. I'm just baking a lot for breakfast to warm up the kitchen. The kids have small space heaters in their rooms they can turn on to take the chill off.
*I went to the pricier grocery store and bought their loss leader flour and brown sugar , and only things that were on sale for below my price point.
Apparently I also have 20 cents off at their gas station, so I'll need to take my minivan out and fill up.
*I bought my husband sneakers from Amazon that are like new and save about $10 off the price of new. They still have tags on! He'll wear sneakers until they fall apart, but his knees have been hurting, so I bought a brand that's goid for big/tall guys.
@mbmom11,
Target does have great deals, but sometimes the big coupon is missed and/or the gift card promotion. Their customer service is always helpful and never given me any pushback. They have great deals on their app.
@mbmom11, Have you tried mattress-warming pads? They're like electric blankets but go on the mattress, under the bottom sheet. I really like them because they warm just me up, not the whole room, and take the chill off the sheets. They may be safer than space heaters but the tech for both has changed so much since I was a kid[1] that I don't really know.
[1] When I was a kid, my mother woke up to my father beating her feet with a pillow. Her electric blanket had caught fire and she hadn't even woken up. That was it for family electric blankets for decades.
@Bee, you are lucky that Target gave you the bonus. I've been experiencing same thing with Target & have been told multiple reasons why I don't qualify----mostly told that used other (manufacturer) coupons so can't combine (even though I go with total after coupons). I just call Target customer service number & remove myself from that stressful situation.
@WilliamB, I have a completely unfounded theory based on absolutely nothing other than suspicion and intuition that electric blankets cause cancer.
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, that's because they told us that they did. Back in the '90s we were told they caused cancer so I ripped them off of all our beds. I don't remember who "they" are, but I guess they're okay because everyone is using them again.
@WilliamB, I bought a heated mattress pad last winter and it is the single best purchase that I made in the year!
I LOVE it! If you are a person who prefers heated car seats to the heat on, I think you, too, will love it. I still haven't turned on the heat in my work apartment and instead, I just jump into bed.
@WilliamB, I LOVE our mattress pad. We have one that allows each side to heat to their own temperature. It's the BEST thing ever on a cold night!
Although I continue to do all the usual frugal things, today will be decidedly not frugal because I'm making the oddysey to Walmart (90 miles away), where I have not been in a month and where there are a LOT of random things I need to get. It is going to be expensive.
Also, after four years without a clothes dryer, I have decided that I want one now. I was sitting at work before the giant snowstorm we just had, looking at the weather report and strategizing how I could get clothes dry in spite of the weather, and realized I really just don't want that addition to my mental load at this stage of my life. And I can afford a dryer, so I will buy one. So I'm going to get one of those today, too.
So I guess today is an anti-frugal things. Life's like that sometimes. 🙂
@kristin @ going country, Years ago we lived in a house that not only did not have a dryer, but was deliberately designed with a laundry nook that had no PLACE for a dryer. Like, there were shelves built right where you would normally put a dryer next to the washer, as if the owners wanted to make sure they never gave into that temptation.
There was a huge clothesline out back, and my neighbor told me that the previous owners were...kind of stingy. They refused to buy or use a dryer BUT the wife would often come over to the neighbors begging to use their dryer in the winter so her boys' jeans would be dry for school that day. Well. (They were also not above sneaking over to the neighbor's to use their hose if they wanted water for their garden. They were on a well, but the well had an electric pump so they were trying to save on electricity.) Let's just say nobody really missed them when they moved.
We lived without a dryer for about eight months; even with small kids I made it work. But before winter really set in, DH figured out how to put a dryer in the garage and vent it outside, and I was very grateful to not be hanging stuff out in Ohio winter weather, which is damp and unforgiving at times.
Knowing you, all the other frugal things you do will offset the sunk cost of a dryer. We hang our stuff out (or in the garage) when it makes sense to, but use the dryer when it makes sense.
@Karen A.,
ah yes, the stingy people who love to ''make savings'' but never seem to consider that sponging off others is allowing this to happen for them.
No doubt, in years to come they'll be all smug and proud that they raised their kids WITH NO TUMBLEDRYER!!
This type of person really, really winds me up.
@kristin @ going country,
Isn't there usually a balance between time invested and money invested?
There is no harm in having a dryer if it makes your life much easier and you can afford, and reducing mental workload is a Good Thing.
@JNL, You beat me to the punch(line)! I was going to say (and will say!) that we need to think about saving ourselves the mental load as well as the financial load. Sometimes frugality can exact too high a price in tings other than money.
@JDinNM, "things", not "tings"! Although ... "ting" means a "sharp, clear ringing sound" so ...
@kristin @ going country,
My MIL raise 5 children without a clothes dryer which seems amazing. When she had died at the age of 97, she still did not have one. Unfortunately unlike you, she was not the type of person who thought ahead or consulted the weather. My husband has memories of playing baseball as a child in a still-wet uniform and being embarrassed because his sister’s underwear was drying in the living room. I have tried to put in a clothes line or use a drying rack, but DH is opposed. I understand. I do air dry clothes, but they are always out of sight.
P.S. DH’s mom was a great lady just organizationally challenged.
@kristin @ going country, spending money is not the same as being frugal. (I feel like I'm starting to sound like the blog's broken record on this point.) If you impulse-bought an inefficient, poor-quality dryer, that would be un-frugal. If you buy a high-quality efficient one after careful research, that is frugal.
/steps off soapbox/
@kristin @ going country, there are a lot of early Black Friday sales already happening. Washer & dryers are already on sale at Lowe's (who has free delivery, just double check since you may be outside their delivery area since you live further away).
@Karen A., your stingy dryerless people reminds me of some folks I know who lived overseas for 10 years and came back to our little town without any Ubers all proud of themselves because they now think they can live without a car (and are really smug about their superiority in this category). We have no bike lanes and almost everything here is expensive. I asked what they do when it rains and they need something down the hill. The answer: "We borrow a car from someone else!" (I avoid them now—NOT lending them my car!)
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, meaning there is no Uber up here.
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, My goodness, what chutzpah. It would be one thing if they and another neighbor or friend had a mutual lending agreement, or carsharing thing going on. Quite another to just assume somebody will lend them a car!
1. Scanned my grocery receipts into Fetch, and connected the app to my Amazon account as well for e-receipts. Every 25 points helps!
2. Library books. I'm actually doing really well on my self-imposed buying books ban--the last book I ordered was an AP Composition Test prep book for one of my sons, and that was in September. Go me. When I was visiting my friend in DC, I got to visit the Little Free Library across from her house and picked up an Amy Tan paperback I'd never read.
3. Ate leftovers for lunches. All our lunches are leftovers, actually, since we eat every meal at home.
4. I actually stuck to my list the last time I went to the grocery store--this is big for me, I have a tendency to go squirrel and "stock up" or just impulse buy. I'm surprised DH lets me loose in the grocery store, honestly.
5. DH made a fantastic tomato soup last night, with just canned tomatoes, onion, and butter...Gosh it was good. And economical.
6. This is another DH one, but the homebuilt box spring he'd made for DS#3 had busted. DH revised it so it was lower to the ground, so Clark can't try to hide under the bed (he's obsessed with getting in that bedroom, and DS was always worried about not being able to get Clark out before bedtime), so that got fixed handily and now DS lets Clark come in and enjoy his window at times. DS is still slightly allergic to Clark, so it's understandable he doesn't want him there at night or sleeping on the bed.
@Karen A., #2. I was doing pretty well, selling more books than I was buying. But ... I broke down and bought the Kindle edition of the latest Louise Penney book. (Hanging head in non-frugal shame.) In my defense, I did have some digital points to apply, but still ...
@JDinNM, remember BOOKS DON'T COUNT!! (in my (ahem) book)
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, that's what I told myself when I saw the credit card bill with all the books I bought at the JASNA Annual General Meeting. But almost all these books were by authors who are friends, and I'll cherish these books and their autographs.
@JDinNM, Then you got a bargain! And you'll probably reread it as well. I agree with Jana, books don't "count" but when we moved to a smaller home I pledged to keep my collection curated, and part of that is being very particular about what books I buy to keep...
@Karen A., I gave an entire bedroom over to my library, and had bookshelves built in, with window seats. It's just a little ... out of control. It was intended to be the "guest room", but there's really only room for the sleep sofa. Apparently I love books more than guests.
@JDinNM, Books are great company, and were I a guest, I would LOVE a guest room just chockful of books with window seats!
@JDinNM, Louise Penny books are the only books that we go out of our way to purchase! We try to get the rest from the library.
1. Got gas at BJs when we were close by since they have the cheapest price near us.
2. We got two loads of stuff out of the storage unit. I think two more loads and we will have everything out of it. The monthly price has gone up over 2.5 times so I want to get rid of it soon.
3. Made dinner at home on Sunday night when neither of us felt like cooking, instead of getting take out.
4. Returned an item to Amazon at Kohl's. I was going to look around to use the coupon I received, but the line was so long I decided to skip it.
5. Looked over the early Black Friday sales at Walmart and didn't find anything worth spending money on.
I bought Reese’s pumpkins for half off. They are our very fave!
Been making hot tea and iced coffee drinks at home.
We try to never do laundry from 3-7 pm when power rates are higher.
Using kindle and Kanopy for entertainment purposes.
Walking dog for exercise.
@Stephanie, I got some of those 1/2 price Reese’s too!
Still working on my big bills to pay off, so have been really trying to tighten the belt.
1. I have a long day today (Work 8-5, then class from 6-9). I packed breakfast, lunch, and dinner today. I will also take the free bus downtown to my class.
2. Made a freezer inventory. My hope is to be able to defrost our little garage freezer so I'm trying to empty it out and use up the items.
3. Turned in my tuition waiver for my winter semester class. Free tuition!
4. Even though I've turned in the waiver, I'm looking ahead and trying to decide how to structure my classes. Anything over $5200 in tuition waiver gets taxed, which works out to two classes per year. There is a required class that is only offered in summer so I'm trying to figure out how to take it, but not pay taxes.
5. Realizing I might need to delete Facebook from my phone because I'm getting sucked into wanting things (either the ads from my feed or Facebook Marketplace) and that's not helping my budget.
All the usual things. Tea from home, water in the car when I do errands, trying not to go out without a gift card, staying away from thrift stores.
I sat here way too long trying to understand why those cat earrings have 6 legs before realizing those are whiskers. Sometimes I wish I drank coffee haha
@Carla G, I wasted a bunch of time trying to decide which earrings were coffins. Finally figured out it was the pair of crosses. Phooey, I liked those the best (prolly the color and the cross combination).
Frugal wins:
I have 53k miles on my car and hubs noticed oil on the engine after we got the oil changed. The dealership looked at it and its leaking at the came shaft so it is under warranty till 60k or 5 years so that is 2 months from now. They are fixing it for free with a free car rental. None of my other frugals lately have come close to that one. They have to pull the engine out.
The feral that hangs at my house was laying in the rain so I fixed up a small bucket he can lay in and keep dry. He has other places he can stay dry and warm. Not sure why he is hanging close lately. Zero cost.
Picked up a couple of Halloween toys for 1.99 at Target. Pups were happy.
I pulled my fiber optic tree out. I paid $10 for it at a garage sale about 15 years ago. It is the cutest tree. I have got my monies worth!
Free food at work this week! Yay!
@Mar, not sure what state your in but my feral has been hanging closer as the weather gets colder. Eating more too - he and another neighborhood cat (who has a home) have done a stellar job of hunting mice and chipmunks (we were overrun with chipmunks).
Not frugal is spending on him but it makes me happy - was already too many depressing things in this country and now more coming. I bought a warming bed for him, will likely buy one or two more. One to go in his shelter (I need another outlet so I can get him a heated house AND heat the two water sources) and the other(s) for nice days when he spends time in the sun.
Ah, such cute little earrings for your patients to enjoy. I look forward to seeing what other holidays make their way onto your ears. 🙂
My Five Frugal Things-
1) Enjoyed free yoga at the beach, free kayaking in the harbor, and a free lunch, all part of a CleN Up The Coast Event that I spotted on our Facebook community page, and primptly copied to my calendar. If I post it there, it will happen!
- My best find at the Clean Up Event was a ball of fishing line wrapped around some kelp- abandoned fishing line can be devastating for sea critters. 🙁
2) Menu planned for Thanksgiving, and have begun filling up pantry and fridge as my needed items go on sale. Sale priced turkey and fresh cranberries purchased this week, yeah.
3) Placed all the upcoming free holiday festivities onto my calendar to, again, ensure they happen. These include a tree lighting ceremony, two holiday boat parades, cookie decorating with my hiking club, a holiday run thru a very decorated neighborhood followed by potluck dessert party with my running club, and a Santa paddleboard event. Also planned a night to stay in and watch Christmas movies!
4) Mended a small hole in my yoga pants before it became a problem and/or noticeable!
5) Visited several curbside Little Free Libraries, which I'll then donate forward once books are read.
1. I used the last of my Amazon gift cards from the work survey to buy two Kindle books. I think one of my resolutions for 2025 will be to avoid Amazon as much as possible, both to save on potential impulse buys and to support smaller business (either local to me or individual sellers/resellers on places like eBay and Etsy).
2. In that vein, I saved $5 by purchasing a new in box garage camera (one of husband’s Christmas presents) on eBay by making an offer vs buying used on Amazon!
3. Had a larger container of heavy cream than expected for a recipe, so I made a big batch of whipped cream and froze it!
4. Carefully planned the food I’m bringing to two events around food already in the pantry: pumpkin cake to use up the last can on pumpkin (just needed butter for the icing) and cake dip to use up the whipped cream and some spiced cookies to dip (just needed a boxed cake mix).
5. Husband changed the oil on my car, and I am trying to train the dog to bear home grooming (mostly nail trims, but also some paw shaving because she has long hair). In sourcing!!
I love the fun earrings!
1. The biggest by far: we were flying home from a weekend in Ottawa and Mr. B offered to be bumped and got $800 from the airline, just to wait 90 minutes for the next flight. Quickest and easiest money we've ever made.
2. We spent extra on vacation to make it feel special but looking to our similar-income peers, our holidays are comparatively modest and infrequent.
3. Our trip had one more formal event. I wore a dress that I'd made (the purple one) with a sweater to hide the ill-fitting bodice. I don't have a cropped pullover, so I just took a sweater that I've owned for ages, folded up the bottom, and tacked in a pleat at the back. It looked quite trendy, if I do say so myself! (https://meirathebear.wordpress.com/2024/10/18/three-stubborn-magnolia-dresses/)
4. I unearthed some meatballs in the freezer and we ate them for dinner yesterday. They were pretty badly freezer-burnt, but once cooked you couldn't tell.
5. Once again, I've picked up some extra work to make a bit extra to throw towards an eventual down-payment. Sigh. Inch by inch.
What an amazing way to earn $800!!!
@Meira@meirathebear, the color of the purple dress is so lovely. I have sewn for 60 years, but stopped making clothes from scratch for myself when the patterns got so darned fiddly. It's hard to fit them to myself, so I just alter thrifted clothes to fit my shorty self.
@Ruby, that's great! Sometimes people ask me if sewing saves money, and my answer is always that the cheapest way to get clothes is to buy second hand and alter them yourself. I like sewing for the hobby, and it makes luxury textiles available to me, but materials are expensive and it's time consuming to make garments. I think it's kind of like refinishing furniture versus building it. Building a solid hardwood chest of drawers would require expensive materials, expensive tools, and years of experience. Refinishing second-hand furniture is time- and cost-effective, and I think even I could figure it out 🙂
@Kristen, right?? I'm so excited. Apparently airlines used to do this all the time, but stopped when they got better algorithms to predict how full flights would be.
@Meira@meirathebear, I tried to comment on your blog but couldn't remember my WordPress PW. So, here's what I said: you look great in the purple one! And the turquoise one has so much beautiful fabric that you could turn it into a skirt. (If you don't want it, I will happily send you my measurements!)
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, Haha you're too kind 😛 That dress is currently in the naughty corner until I'm less mad at myself over it! A skirt is a great idea, though.
@Meira@meirathebear, you look great and I'm in awe of your talent (Ruby too)! I routinely have to hem pretty much any pants, but that's the extent of my alteration skills. I really admire making your own clothes & alterations
@Meira@meirathebear, I am beyond excited that you have a blog! Love to hear of your on-goings in Canada, from a fellow Canadian.
@Suz, thanks, Suz! Honestly, learning how to hem my own pants was how I started sewing, and if you're short (I am!) hemming your own pants pays for the machine pretty quickly.
@Linda in Canada, thanks! It's funny that there are some differences related to frugality between Canada and the States, and I'm always tickled to see a fellow Canadian around 🙂
@Meira@meirathebear, that would be vertically challenged I'll have you know.
Got a $0 electric bill this month. I’m on a monthly “Budget Bill” program that is supposed to even out your high and low usage months by billing you 1/12th of your annual charges each month. I guess my usage this year has been much lower than estimated. I’ll see if the next year’s estimated monthly bills go down…
Dropped a $12/month ($144/year) subscription for a fax service people once used but … not anymore.
Cancelled another subscription I would rather have kept, and was immediately offered a 50%, then 75%, reduction, so kept it but saved $90.
Picked up a free for me prescription at CVS and used the coupons on the yard-long $0 receipt to save 31% on some not-so-free items.
We had an unexpected early very heavy and wet snowstorm Thursday that knocked out power lines (and my internet service) and caused a lot of tree damage – enough to actually close a lot of roads with fallen branches. I only lost one large branch from an enormous desert willow at the corner of my property, and my wonderful neighbor texted me to ask “permission” to haul it off to the landfill for me. Permission granted! Amazing neighbors? Priceless.
I love the earrings. I am glad you won’t be wearing the coffins or the skull and crossbones to the hospital.
Here are my FFTs for the week.
1. DH, my son, DIL, and the Grands went to the Pic in the Park on Saturday evening. We enjoyed a free showing of Ratatouille.
2. DH and I also walked to the park which saved gas while getting a little extra exercise.
3. There was a wait at the library for my book club’s recent selection. This wait was moving rather slowly. Given this, I was unsure that I would have time to read it before our meeting. A quick internet search showed that it was available at Thriftbooks for only $4 with no additional shipping cost. It will arrive on Thursday.
4. Although it has been a warm fall, I have been getting my flower beds cleaned out in preparation for cool weather. I have been thinning my perennials for winter. I have dug up and saved Canna Lily bulbs as well as African Irises to share at Garden Club, with neighbors, and on Buy Nothing.
5. I have been doing all the usual, ordinary frugal things: eating simple meals at home, drinking primarily water, brewing my own coffee, scanning my receipts to Fetch and Ibotta, buying in bulk when appropriate, paying bills electronically, and taking care of my health.
Wishing everyone peace, good health, and prosperity.
I love, all your cute earrings.
I always feel very accomplished when I eat up a bunch of leftovers, too. We went camping last week and the final day for lunch we had all the bits and bobs from the refrigerator, which was very satisfying in more ways than one.
Our friends' elderly dog died (very sad.) They gifted us with all his expensive dog food, which my dogs are enjoying. Also, they have a cute new puppy, who is helping to ease their grief.
Despite the over a foot of snow we received at the house while we were away, I'm still harvesting lettuce, arugula, chard, and broccoli from the greenhouse. I also dug a last sad cabbage out of the snow and we ate it that night - it was good.
I ordered a bunch of pre-chilled hyacinth bulbs on sale online. My plan is to plant them in containers and give them as Christmas gifts to several people on my list who I know will enjoy them. I have a couple of containers here at the house that I can use and I hope to find more at the Dollar Tree or thrift store.
I made sandwich bread, and a batch of homemade yogurt. Tonight we're having dinner with friends and I'm taking a homemade pie.
1. I used accumulated fuel points to save $0.50/gallon on my last fuel up.
2. I used an Amazon gift card to order dog food - this saved me time & money.
3. I have to replace the flooring in my son's room due to damage...not a fun way to spend money. The original quote that I got was $1465 but I shopped around and saved $300 which includes all the labor and sealing the slab. With the higher quote we were going to have to move furniture, rip out the carpet ourselves and seal the slab ourselves.
4. All meals at home - this is always a money saver and healthier too!
5. Planned my Thanksgiving menu. I call this frugal because it allows me to begin shopping sales so that I can get the most for my dollar. Also we have been eating out of the freezer so that when turkeys are at the lowest price I can put 3-4 in the freezer. Inexpensive lean meat - win, win.
*Busy day at work yesterday, so I redeemed some points at Chik-Fil-A and got dinner for $6.
*Eating mostly out of my freezer this week. Took all my own meals to work this past weekend. Eating out is averaging only once per week now.
*will steam clean my carpets myself later this week.
*bought one new thing for holiday decor - a framed print that was about 50% off with free shipping. Its an angel in soft colors and really speaks to me. I'm going to change up the rest of the room decor just by switching out with stuff I already have.
*getting a small free turkey from HEB, courtesy of Son #2 who works there and gets one every year. I will roast it and divide the meat up for future meals, then make stock with the bones.
*Used my HSA card to get a food sensitivity test done which will help my health in the long run as it points to why I don't feel so great after certain meals...
Note: the coffin earrings are pretty amusing. Someone told me I shouldn't wear skeletons on anything at work, but some of it is bright and colorful, and it IS what my job is about after all...
Love your earrings!
1) Signed up for a three day user study to earn $75/day. I completed the first day yesterday. It was super easy, although staring at a computer monitor for three hours after not working for months definitely wasn't easy on the eyes.
2) Listed a few things that didn't work out (and were beyond the return window) on eBay.
3) We've been eating pomegranates from our tree, and they are amazing!
4) The usual: charging the electric car for free at DH's work, eating leftovers, line drying the majority of our clothing, washing our own cars, cleaning the house, doing our own yard maintenance, etc.
5) Reached out to DS18's college roommate's mom (she's booking the roommate's flights for the holidays) so the boys could coordinate flight times & share an Uber to the airport. This will save ~$50.
The earrings are cute. I agree, coffin earrings at a hospital don't send the best message.
1. I have to have the older portion of my fencing replaced due to hurricanes. I have newer fencing in the rest of the yard. My insurance doesn't cover fencing. By compromising a bit, negotiating and getting a little creative, it ended with the winning proposer dropping his price by $1300 and he will cut down a 20-foot tree growing into the fence for free. My kind neighbor will use his equipment to pull out the tree stumps along the fence line for free.
Side note, fencing here is now at least double what it was about three years ago when I had fence work done. All the quotes came in priced fairly closely, and the prices stood my hair on end.
2. I'm buying supplies to make a few Christmas gifts, but I always get them on sale.
3. My sister is visiting and she bought us lunch yesterday. I had the day off for Veterans' Day and my sister is retired so we got a little wild and crazy and had lunch out.
4. I continue to get by in this warm, humid weather by opening windows and running fans. Later this week is when we are supposed to see fall weather return.
5. I asked for and was given two free seats at my company's sponsored table at a fundraising event that will benefit my county of residence. This is to give more assistance to hurricane victims. Not to discount the other areas' losses, especially north of us - that was historically massive and tragic - but my county lost almost 90% of the homes and businesses at the coast and more homes and businesses further inland. Adding in the closure of the largest and one of the other larger employers, our county's tax base has dropped by 50%. It's going to be rough. Small businesses are already closing.
@JD, #1 -- not just where you are! I'm getting ridiculous quotes for pretty basic fencing projects. $20+ a running foot? When you've got an acre to fence/re-fence, with some gates ...
@JD, everything is going to be so much more expensive after back to back hurricanes. I was talking with my dad (who lives by Tampa area) & he was telling me cost of chain link fence (which he was told had to be particular color which costs more). I can't even imagine what rebuilding costs will look like. It's no wonder people are considering leaving.
@Regina and @JD, I'm afraid that your reports reflect the shape of things to come with climate change.
@JD,
I just remembered this!
When my dishwasher leaked, it ruined three planks of the laminate flooring (I will never install laminate again) plus I had to pull them up to let the underflooring dry out anyway. I was looking at replacing the entire floor when I remembered I have roughly half of a box of leftover flooring stored in a closet. It took some fiddling, but I replaced the planks and now I can put off replacing the floor for a good while.
I had such a frugal errand trip last week that I took notes for FFT. Everything was on the way back from the bike shop.
1. Picked up the bike from the guy who fixes bikes for the cost of parts. Even with the brownies and $20 (for people who can't afford parts) I gave him, it was much less than a tune-up at a shop.
2. Chinese supermarket for inexpensive veggies and chicken hearts.
3. Cheapest gas in the area. It's not close to me but it is close to the Chinese supermarket.
4. I don't remember why but a local treat shop chain was giving away a treat. The specific shop I passed wasn't doing it but the cashier decided to do it anyway. He gave me an entire small box of chocolate-covered finger cookies and peanut butter cups. I guess he was having a good day...? Now I have treats for the people who help me.
5. Got 2 free thumb drives at the local electronics chain. It's worth an extra trip (thumb drives are the new ball-point pens - always disappearing), but that wasn't necessary this time.
6. Made 2 returns along the way.
In addition, the roommate snaked a very slow drain, fixing it completely, saving at least a couple hundred dollars.
Plus the usual: library books, stocking up during sales, exercise with what I have, T-Mobile gas discount, avoiding food waste, no gold-plated toilets, etc.
Brilliant idea about selling the earrings you didn't want -- I wouldn't have thought of that! But I'm also a fan of getting lots of earrings on one card. I get a card of 20 pairs of stud earrings at Walmart for $9.99 (usually made of plastic balls coated to look like pearls or colored metallics although a few are rhinestones or other fake "jewels"), and you'd be amazed at how many compliments I get from the teen girls I teach. I always tell them it's from Walmart; hopefully, they'll save money, too. The store where I work sells comparable-looking earrings, but it's one pair for $4.99. I get compliments from my customers but I'm sad I can't tell them my source; it'd be bad for business and I'd get in trouble.
Here are my 5FT:
1. Time for new eyeglasses so I took my Rx to Walmart's Vision Center. Besides helping me see, I wanted some frames that would help hide the bags under my eyes so maybe I won't have to use so much Plexiderm. It is expensive and uncomfortable, but I look like a "before" photo on their commercials when I don't use it. Anyway, I found some frames for $17 from the men's collection. (You can't tell they're supposed to be for men.) I need bifocals, and chose the" good "lenses (I've had those before), so that upped the total to almost $300. I pulled out my insurance card and that dropped the price to $124.
2. Instead of one of those motorized round scrubbers being advertised, I bought a $3 package of sponges. Used some "elbow grease" and lots of soapsuds and cleaned off the dirty louvers on the back door. (For those of you in other countries, "elbow grease" is an old saying, meaning that you do the work yourself instead of using a machine.) The sponges are filthy but can be reused in the bottom of flower pots to absorb extra water and keep the soil and water from going through the hole on the bottom.
3. Regifted presents I've never opened or used to the church Christmas drives, one for foster children's Christmas gifts and the other for elderly people in nursing homes.
4. Shopped the local thrift store and found two pairs of brand-new shoes, never worn factory seconds, for $10 each. It was buy two get the third one free day. I couldn't find another pair of shoes that fit, so the clerk let me find some other items that totaled $10 and I got those free. Oh, and they also punched the discount card -- one punch for each $5 purchase. So I got four punches to add to the two I already got. Need just 4 more to fill up the card. When that happens, I'll get another freebie.
5. One of the above items was the kind of ice tray that has a cover on it, to keep you from spilling water. I have several no-spill ice trays now, all from thrift stores and garage sales, in addition to my old ones. I'm using those instead of hooking up the automatic icemaker in my new-to-me Salvation Army refrigerator. I'm using the large bin from my old, now-discarded fridge and dumping the ice in there. My "DIY icemaker" works just as well and saves me an installation fee. At some point, I will likely replace this old, small fridge with a better one.
@Fru-gal Lisa, your #2 has me thinking once again of the Two Fat Ladies' classic turn about "elbow grease": When Clarissa recommended using some "elbow grease" to mix up a particular dish, several viewers wrote in to ask, "What is this elbow grease, and where can I get some?" So I'm afraid that the term is not only confined to the English-speaking world, but out of date. Still, I go on using elbow grease whenever I need to. And that's a brilliant idea about reusing the sponges, too.
@Fru-gal Lisa, In the 80's my then former housemate asked me to take her to a couple of different stores to go shopping. I waited in the car for her. After the third store visit, she came out and announced, "Don't laugh at me, but I've been looking for the "elbow grease you used to clean the toaster oven!" Well, of course I laughed. a store worker had explained to her what elbow grease was!
@Fru-gal Lisa, You can always paint the earrings with colored nail polish, if you wear it, and coordinate your look.
@Heidi Louise,
Great idea! Thanks!
The reason I get Walmart earrings is that I'm always losing them. Sometimes I lose one earring. And then I'll lose another that is another color but the same size. I think I will paint the two to match each other with the nail polish I like. It never occurred to me to do so. Thanks again!
@Chrissy, ROTFL!
Thank you for the pudding recipe, excited to try it!
1. Found a good price on some shoes and insoles I needed. I also used gift cards and credit card cashback to reduce the amount I had to pay.
2. I have been cooking everything from my pantry and freezer and not buying groceries.
3. Used some emergency heat-and-eat food from the pantry instead of getting takeout when I was too tired to cook.
4. I have been wearing my clothes a few times before washing them to save on detergent.
5. I used Amazon subscribe and save to get a discount on cat food and air filters. I also skipped some things I didn't need yet.
1. Borrowed the second season of Sopranos fromthe library instead of turning Max back on.
2. Made several meals from pantry and freezer this week. Very little grocery shopping done. No flashfood. See #4
3. Our furnace finally died. No space heaters bought. We got one from a relative and one came out of my son's storage. I am canning tomato sauce today to warm things up.
4. Stopped at bread store in large city to buy of the oops racks. I bought brioche buns, italian sub rolls, flatbread, italian bread and sausage rolls for 4.50 total.
5. Went to a High school showing of Steal Magnolias on Saturday night. My daughter and i paid a total of 16.00. It was a good show.
We hosted a dinner party this weekend and some of the leftovers have been finding their way into our meals – the leftover veggie tray and meat/cheese tray items have made an appearance in my son’s lunch as homemade Lunchables. Veggies have also made their way into side dishes and bulking up mains.
Before our new puppy came home I pulled out an old kennel and gave it a good scrub down. This kennel has been used by four puppies so far! I made it cozy with our designated dog blankets (my son’s baby blankets, old blankets that aren’t fuzzy anymore, promo blankets).
I continue to put my veggie scraps in a bag in the freezer for future stock. I giggle each time my husband mentions how much he enjoys my “scrap stock” over carton stock or bouillon since it is literally made from things he would throw out.
I started some props from a variety of houseplants. I plan on gifting these to my coworkers this holiday season.
Frugal in the long run? I potentially have a stress fracture in my foot and it’s taking forever to get the tests I need to diagnose. While I wait for appointments I’m doing my best to avoid excess walking in hopes that I don’t make the situation worse. Lots of ice, lots of elevation, lots of rest. Thankfully I have support from my family and quiet hobbies that help.
Love the cute earrings! I'm sure your patients will love seeing them 🙂
My Frugal 5's
1) Brought items from Amazon on sale like tape refills and t-shirts for me and Christmas gifts for my friend. Most were at their lowest price on camelcamelcamel.com and I also got to save on shipping since I had more than $35 total.
2) Will be returning a snow globe that I got as a gift for my friend and bathroom rods to Walmart since I got something else from Amazon.
3) Watched lots of movies and shows off DVDs we already had or through free streaming services.
4) Played video games and board/card games & read books with my kids that we already had.
5) Used what I already had for fall decor to decorate the centerpiece for our table. Included a couple candle holders for height, stone owls gifted to my kids from a kind friend, and a pumpkin and grounds my kids got for free from church.
* The usual - Made food from home and cooked what we had or got from the grocery store; Used Ibotta and Fetch; Batch run errands to save on gas; Used winter clothes from last year; Got free baked goods from the church after volunteering there on Wednesdays, Kids used their kingdom cash (fake money) to buy Christmas and Birthday gifts for family members.
To keep stud earrings paired in a little bowl like that, put the stud of one through a hole in the backing of the other. (It's got to be frugal to spend less time digging around to match pairs.)
Frugals are few this week:
1. Must have used less electricity because it went out 3 of the past 6 days.
2. I didn't need to get my lips puffed up (not that I ever have or will) because I am getting a booboo on my lower lip.
3. The library!!
4. Next week I hope to report some credits with the internet/phone/tv "provider" because they weren't operational 4 of the last 6 days. (outside of the electricity malfunction times)
5. No retail therapy occurred during the very annoying last week.
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, well, you gotta take the frugalities whenever they occur, regardless of your utilities' failings. And I salute you for doing so.
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, this is how I store my stud earrings, too!
1. We put a jug of water into the tank of the toilet to save water on each flush. Still flushes great.
2. Sold a lazy susan on fb. $10 earned.
3. In my attempt to both save money and serve healthier food, I filled the snack box with peanuts, raisins and homemade pb energy balls (all in bags I can reuse).
4. Enjoying a library book.
5. Using cloth napkins.
*I have been restocking my freezer. One of the stores has a great sale price right now. The limit is 2 per account per day, so I have gone several times this week to get the limit.
*I have been buying granola bars and trail mix on sale for my husband to take hunting.
*I found the coffee we like on sale and bought enough for a few months, making sure to check the "best by" date.
*We had our kids give us their Christmas wish lists early, so we can watch for sales. We have already been able to find savings on a couple of items.
*I made sure our snow blower was ready to go a few months ago so we wouldn't have to pay more to address any issues when the snow flies.
We attended the Veteran's Day events (Chili cook-off, singing, parade, thrift sale and fireworks).
I blew leaves and picked up acorns. I collected the sprouted acorns to plant along the county road fence line.
I bartered raspberry jam for winter squash variety that I do not grow.
I collected roadside cans on my walk, picked up $2 worth in a 15 minute walk.
We sold 2 gas powered leaf blowers and string trimmers.
Having a house full of out of state friends coming this weekend. I mixed up 3 types of cookies and froze them to bake off as needed. Getting menus finalized and will head to town today to beat the heavy winds and rain we're expecting soon.
Went to the Mennonite store north of town while Molly was at the groomer (batching errands) and found brown sugar at $10 for 7lbs, significantly cheaper than Aldi and I use a lot w holiday baking.
To Home Depot (still part of the batching errands) bought anemone bulbs at half price. They are not especially favored by the squirrel population. Also bought a conduit pipe and had it cut (for free) to make extensions for the base of an iron trellis for one of my climbing roses. Once the guy knew how much (little) pipe I actually needed, he got the shorter length of pipe which was significantly cheaper.
Taking two weeks vacation, specifically to work on cleaning my home. I will still probably hire someone to do actual cleaning, but I want to spruce up some rooms with fresh decor, purge and declutter. Hopefully, it will cost less for hiring in the long run. I needed a break from work. About the time I get the energy to do something, it's time to work. Still trying to take reasonable steps and enjoy it rather than blitz. As it has turned out, one of my good friend's Mother has passed and I will be able to go to the funeral.
Gas is $2.84.
Made California Blend cheese soup with odds and ends of veggies and the last of a gallon of milk. Yummy!
Received a credit in my MisFits order. I had ordered a pineapple and it is very big! I had also ordered brioche rolls (and of course, several other items). The pineapple was on top of the rolls when I opened the box so the rolls were pretty smushed. Hence the credit after I answered the "How was your order?" questionnaire.
My frugal five:
1. I signed up to be a blood donor for the American Red Cross. My donations will be used in the creation of clinic trials and vaccines. I went for my first appointment to be assessed and had 7 vials of blood taken for further testing. For this one hour appointment I got a $50 gift card.
2. Hubby found a stroller and curbed picked it. It's a Joovy which is suppose to be a good name (?). His sister is due to be a grandma at the end of December so he thought she might want it. She did so he got it and then cleaned it up for her.
3. Hubby also detailed my car by using my clean litte green machine (?) from Bissell and he did a great job. My car is 14 yrs old and has never had the seats cleaned. He said the water was gross. Wonder why? He also vacuumed and washed down my huge Weather Tech car mats. Huge in that the front one goes all the way across the floor from door to door. It's probably as big as I am.
4. We ate at home. Hubby is the best cook and I'd rather eat his cooking then pay crazy prices.
5. Monitoring the electric and natural gas use. We've had to use both AC and the furnace in the last month.
A friend gave me a phone # she got off Facebook to call for credit for the Spectrum (internet, phone, tv) outages. It turned out to be some place selling "protection". Next, I called Spectrum and after much button pushing, finally got a human. He looked at all the outages and told me about many more back in October that I had either missed or forgotten. We got $145.02 credit!! The guy on the phone was shocked by all the outages and very sympathetic and helpful.
i forgot to mention yesterday that one of trick or treaters looked in my apt and "proclaimed what a lovely, decorated apt." that made my heart sing. the apt i grew up in was a disaster. could never have anyone over. purple carpet, green curtains, orange accent chairs, gold couch, clutter everywhere. yuck. kristen you are such a caring person you will be the best nurse ever.
I made some sourdough bread. We ate it with white chicken chili and then used the leftovers to make French toast sticks for breakfast the next morning.
Collected a bunch of native seeds to spread around in a new garden bed I made. Raked all our leaves into the bed to be mulched over the winter.
Got through the Target Christmas section without buying any new decor I don’t need! I call this a win!
Made focaccia for husband’s work potluck. He said everyone raved about it and I didn’t have to buy anything for it, just used the herbs growing in my garden.
Made lunch for company without buying anything, used all items we already had. I made French onion soup, loaded baked potatoes, and apple pie.
Made apple cinnamon mini muffins and cashew date bars for snacks for the kiddos this week. Making snacks at home saves so much money and packaging, but it is a lot of work. I am baked out this week!
Those earrings (and others) would be so great on a simple quilt!
I had a wall quilt hanging in my hallway that included handkerchiefs and openwork lace. My pins went on it -- earrings, too. (The loop earrings went through the lace holes.) That way, I could enjoy my jewelry, even while I wasn't wearing it. It was easy to walk down the hall, choose what I wanted to wear -- then reverse it on my way to bed, putting the piece back on the quilt. Worked like a charm -- and made the quilt more decorative, as well.
It's been some kind of week: replaced a broken-down chair in our son's room, repaired his old desk after it collapsed (it's a mid century piece and was not up to the amount of junk he had piled on it), and he backed his car into a pole and badly damaged the rear quarter panel. Ouch. Said car also needs new tires.
However, I made a big pot of chicken and rice kibble topper out of marked down chicken drumsticks for my dogs, which saves $14 over any storebought option. Made big pitchers of iced tea and citrus punch super cheap. Spent several hours on Sunday putting together a very thorough budget for next year, when my husband retires.
1) Got my discount at a couple vendors for volunteering at the farmers market
2) E-mailed for my free month of compost for my volunteering
3) Saw the musical Bright Star at a local community theater in exchange for volunteering at the concession table
4) E-mailed support for our bidet because it was having issues (out of warranty) and they sent us a complimentary new one
5) Used my class credit for a class at the Jewish restaurant/learning center. I pay for the membership and 2 class credits are included
1. Used peel and stick fabric to cover my cat scratches on my couch. With kids and cats not a great time to invest in new furniture.
2. I bought a ski pass - the IndiPass that gets me 2 days and 1 discounted day at a dozen ski places not to far from where I live. Skiing is an expensive sport so anything to save and I love supporting local businesses.
3. I made sure to use up a fitness pass I bought during a sale to go to a class instead of letting it expire. Life has been hard recently and it would have been easy to just curl up on the couch, but this got me to do something I like to do around other people.
4. I made yogurt for the 1st time successfully. I cheated and used ultra pasteurized milk, but it worked. And just in time as my oldest had to take some antibiotics.
5. Our entertainment for the weekend was going to a friend’s birthday party at a great indoor play place. It was a no gifts party, which is what I do with my kids. The kids were tired at the end and it was great to catch up with the parents.
Such cute earrings! I love Halloween and those coffin earrings.
Do you remember old school chocolate pudding pops? Your pudding reminds me that I want to make some of those popsicles in a recipe I found online.
FFT, a day late:
1. After watching my grandsons for four nights, I realized that my 3 yr old grandson was wearing some pretty small pjs. When I got home, I went to make a donation at the thrift store, and lo and behold, there was a pair of jammies just his size, brand new. So I got them, and also scored a pair for his cousin who is 2. They were $1 a pair. And I also got a beautiful little dress for my granddaughter. Triple win! $4 total.
2. While at the grocery store, I poked around in the Halloween goodies, scored a few 75% off things for next years goody box to send to my faraway grands in KY, they are always excited to see what I send!
3. Found a 75% off hostess gift for my sister who is having us all for Thanksgiving. She will love it.
4. Got a book out of the $1 bin at the store, too.
5. Donated a barely ever used TV to my nephew who is in need and I need it gone! Win/win!
6. Also donated a truckload of things to the thrift store, and filled the little libraries around town. The rest of the books are going to the library book sale.
Thank you to all the veterans who have protected our freedoms.
* We have decided on no more restaurants (for the family/couple) for the rest of 2024
* I am part of a new-ish Facebook board game group that takes place in various restaurants, with the expectation that will buy drinks and/or a meal (which I do). Since I'm not interested in having to spend 20-30$ for each game night I have decided to host my own group of people instead, at home. Free game night.
* Took a look at my budget from the last 10 years and realized that we spent the same amount of money on groceries this year that we spent in 2016! With prices rising (and Canada is really good at it.... Groceries here are quite expensive), either we are doing really well (frugal) or we ate like crazy back then. AND we now have two teens, back then toddlers. I like to believe it's because of 2024 frugal decisions.
* I made myself a personal budget for 2025 with saving goals and limits on spending. Part of it is no new clothes/shoes/jewelry for the year (thrifted ok). Started the new clothes ban October 1st and no problem so far.
* I have submitted a long list of new books to my public library. They are usually pretty good at buying them (and in English too, which I'm really happy about since it's a French Quebec library. French is my language, but I prefer to read books in its original version).
Yeah, I have a pretty dark sense of humor, but coffin earrings while working at the hospital does cross the line with me too!
Haha, yes, it kinda sends the wrong message!
EVERYTHING about moving into a new house is quite the opposite of frugal. BUT, I'm sticking with cooking at home even on days that I want to order out because we are exhausted from working on the two houses.
We tore out a layer of subfloor (the house had two layers and one had to come out so wood floors would be level when laid) rather than pay someone to do that.
My DH and my brother are installing the new hardwoods Friday (we're paying professionals to sand/stain/seal).
We did buy the floors during a Veterans Day Sale so we got 15% off (on $1500 worth of flooring though...that adds up)
We filed our paperwork for the taxes on the new house. DH's veterans disability rating gets him a major cut on the taxes in our state so that was a priority.
I think that's all...everything else has been spend, spend, spend.
@Marlena, take heart. The disruption is temporary, and much of what you are spending is a one-time thing.
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, that's the plus! I'm trying to just do it all correctly now so that I don't have to do it again down the line...that's frugal in the long run!
1. We made our meals at home. We brewed coffee at home. We made cupcakes at home. Yum. I haven't had take out since... some day in Oct. Our family hasn't had take out as a whole unit since June.
2. We didn't buy any more Halloween or Thanksgiving decorations.
3. We got books and a movie from the local library.
4. I saved some old jeans that will become a quilt.
5. We celebrated 2 family birthdays with lasagna and chocolate cake. All the food was homemade and delicious.
6. I *finally* got the audiobook that I've been waiting months for. I use my library card and the Libby app to get free books.