Five Frugal Things | in eight minutes!
I have eight minutes before I have to leave to take Sonia to her tutorial. Let's see if I can make it to five!
1. I used the CVS app to access coupons.
I needed allergy meds and deodorant, and I remembered to check the app. Sure enough, there was a $3 coupon and a $1 coupon!
Plus, I noticed a really good coupon for toothpaste, so I picked up a tube for $0.29.
2. I used a loyalty card to get gas.
A local chain here has a discount card, and I made sure to fill up while I was near that station. $0.10/off per gallon!
I have a Shell discount card too. And sometimes I get gas at Costco if I'm in the area. It's important to not drive out of your way to save on gas (you can easily spend more in gas just getting there!), so that's why I like to have multiple discount options.
3. I got 50% off at Old Navy.
Sonia and Zoe needed some cold-weather clothes, and while they were having a 40% off sale, if you paid with a Gap/Old Navy card you could get 50% off.
I didn't have my card with me, but they were able to look it up. Yay for 50% off!
4. I remembered to bring a Bath and Body Works coupon with me.
We needed a few birthday gifts and I remembered that I'd gotten a coupon in the mail. It's hard to not buy extra things at that store, but Sonia and Zoe and I stuck to our list!
1. I just started using Ibotta. Only 75 cents on my account so far, but that's better than nothing. I really don't want to allow it to encourage me to buy things I wouldn't otherwise buy and that might mean not racking up cash back very fast.
2. I've gotten started back with Swagbucks after being off a long time, I'm actually earning more than before by trying out surveys.
3. We were treated to lunch yesterday and brought home the leftovers which the kids ate for supper, and my husband had for breakfast this morning. I think we still have some queso, which we can use to top the potatoes at lunch.
4. I bought 2 clearance loaves of day old bread for 73 cents each. And I was going to buy ground beef, but saw ground turkey on clearance for $4.20/3 lbs, so I got that instead.
5. I enjoy watching Til Debt Do Us Part, and it reminded me how knowing where your money is going is so important. It inspired me to go ahead and add up grocery receipts so I'd know how much we've spent these last 3 months.
wow, i had almost the exact same ground turkey experience -- mine was a $4.50 3 lb. chub -- hmmm -- parallel lives!
Mostly the usual small frugalities that add up:
1. Hosted Supper Club - 9 persons total - with input of an organic roast chicken ($12-15) and Pumpkin Pieless ($3 total).
2. Having so many over exceeded the capacity of my diminishing set of plates, purchased on sale at Ikea 15 years ago. So I broke out the new plates. Which I bought 3 years ago, at deep discount (factory store prices + holiday sale + 100 anniversary of Pyrex sale + another discount = 65% off list), while I was visiting Corning, NY, and kept in the closet for when I finally broke too many of the Ikea set. The 20 settings should last me 15-20 years.
3. The roast chicken drippings/juice were so good that I had Chicken Sops (bread soaked in drippings) for breakfast. The bread was the last few pieces of the homemade challah brought by a Supper Club member. The frame will, of course, become stock.
4. Supper Club dinner was at my grandmother's old dining table, which can be as small as 2-3 people and as large as 8. Cost to me was zero; benefit is being reminded of my grandmother frequently.
Impressively frugal way to feed nine people! My dining room table is also a family heirloom. Most days it is a small undressed round table that accommodates 4 people. But when we have company, it extends to a large oval that sits 8 people. The large table reminds me of my beloved late aunt, especially with a table cloth and settings.
That wasn't the only food, thankfully. My Supper Club is potluck; other people brought squash, eggplant, bread, 2 flannkuchen, and 3 bottles of wine.
Sounds lovely!
Holy cow, you had a great week for coupons!
1. I used up a bunch of bananas in baking. My kids aren't always in the mood for bananas, so into desserts they go!
2. I bought butternut squash when they were on sale (probably the cheapest price of the year), roasted them whole, and scooped them out and froze them to enjoy all winter long.
3. I walked for exercise. Outside is free. 🙂
4. Groceries were only $39 this week. Go me! (I mean, part of that was because I ran out of time to get to other stores, but still!)
5. We visited a local park with a really moving military museum. It only cost $5 for the whole family to go and it's well worth the price.
Frugal fail: We had to turn the heat on!!! 57 degrees in the house is just a little too chilly for my tastes, but so far we're comfortable with the thermostat set at 65, so that's good. 🙂
1. Used $8.00 worth of CVS coupons toward a purchase of Zyrtec. Received $4.00 back in coupons for any purchase plus serval others.
2. I have enough Shopkick points for $2.00 off my next purchase at Walmart.
3. Saved .10 off gas by keeping an eye out for cheapest gas around the areas that I frequent.
4. We have been eating out of the freezer and pantry for the last week. No eating out.
5. So far I have completed making 3 Christmas gifts and 1 birthday gift.
Have you checked out the Costco generic version of Zyrtec? Super cheap and I could detect no difference. Huge savings. Also, huge quantities, so easy to stock up or have a friend grab for you if you're not a member.
I need to look into loyalty cards for gas, apparently. I thought that they just earned points to buy snacks or something like that! Thanks, Kristen!
1) I sorted through all of the kids clothes for things to hand down, to mend, to sell, to give away and to throw away. I found that everyone is good to go on cold weather pants and shirts but I need two winter coats. Finding this out now gives me time to thrift them, rather than an emergency buy.
2) I was able to buy more than half of my list at Aldi's this week. Frequently our special diet dictates otherwise, so that is a huge win!
3) I was complimented on my outfit on Saturday. It was all thrifted, except for my shoes. She was a younger woman working as a cashier that thought thrift stores are all 1980s colorblocked sweaters and stonewashed jeans. Lol! I gave her some tips.
4) We are getting chilly around here but I pulled out the warm socks and hoodies to keep my husband from cranking up the heat. A little bit is one thing...but not 75 degrees! Sheesh!
5) Frugal Fail: we wanted to go to our local German festival and see the dachschund races, eat some wursts and hear some fun music. We bought tickets the day before to save money and had budgeted to buy food there...and then arrived to find they had run out of brats, they didn't put up bleachers for the races so my 10 year old couldn't see and the music was in the bar area! Womp womp. We chalked it up as a donation to the local German American Club and their efforts to maintain the historic building there.
1.) Had a birthday party for my little one and we didn't use any disposable plates or cutlery. There were about 20 people there so we had enough plates.
2.) Had some leftover near beer and I'm not a fan of it (never drank real beer by the way so at least I know I'm not missing much) so I used it in a recipe for homemade mustard.
3.) Planning on getting our free birthday burgers at Red Robin. Hopefully it will be this week. We'll see.
4.) Got paid for some work related driving I had to do. I'll be doing the same again this week. I enjoy doing it because while I know it involves wear and tear on the car, it's essentially two tanks of gas for what amounts to a quarter tank of driving.
5.) Not frugal per se but important financially is that my wife and I will be going through our health insurance enrollment packages to determine what plan will be the best plan for our family.
1. Made homemade pizzas and ceasar salad for my son's 18th pizza party. WE DID NOT PICK UP PIZZA. Also made a homemade cake. Food delish. Happy guests!
2. Used up some raincheck coupons at grocery store.
3. Washed all big blankets I could at home and not at the laundry mat ( large washers so tempting).
4. Bought some marked down meat and froze it.
5. Used the Online doctor for my sick son instead of taking him into walk in clinic. ( Saved 49 dollars out of pocket). My son is now 18 and was able to communicate symptoms and needs. I would not this with a small child.
We had pizza for our son's birthday party, too. And homemade "cake"-- pan choc. chip cookies/brownies with the toys he wanted on top. We also did not do party favors, games, or decorations. And the kids still had a blast (except for the one guest who lost her pacifier). For gifts, we bought one truck regularly priced at WalMart, but spent a total of less than $10 for 3 other gifts. We gave him a huge box of Thomas the Tank Engine wooden track we'd purchased for $2 at an auction (we still have more left to gift at another time). Birthdays can be less expensive and still loads of fun!
Wow that's a good post for only 8 minutes! My frugal win this past week was to just eat leftovers for lunch at all all week (and possibly anytime I'm at home and Mr. FAF is at work). Being on maternity leave has saved me lots of money on transportation and eating out! 😀
I'm back from time in no-power land after Michael's deadly landfall. If Michael hadn't shifted a little west, I'd probably still be waiting on power. It was bad, y'all, really bad, for West Florida. What people envision when they think "Florida" is beaches with expensive little cottages and large mansions, and people who moved there from up north so they could ride in convertibles and wear big dark glasses. What is most often reality in West Florida is a lot of small communities, fishing villages, and small-ish towns heavily dependent on tourism. Many, many people live near the poverty line -- the average annual salary in many places is under $40,000 for a family. Please consider giving to a reputable charity for these devastated areas, where some of the people will never see their jobs return or be able to re-build a home, and they have little or no reserves.
Public service announcement over.
1. Well, while we were out of power, we obviously saved on electricity, and we stayed home a lot, so we spent very little.
2. I had enough Swagbucks to order three Christmas presents through Amazon.
3. I was able to grocery shop on Sunday, after stores started opening up around here, and found a few really good deals., keeping my bill under $100. However, much of the fresh and frozen food is gone -- they had to dump it, which is so sad.
4. I hemmed a dress that had needed it for literally months. It's like having a new dress now.
5. This will be frugal for my kids not me, but I pre-planned my and my husband's funerals this week, after the hurricane. My appointment was already set for that date, so I went ahead and kept it. The funeral price is locked in and will be fully paid for. I've had family already pre-plan at this funeral home and it worked very well when they passed. We elected a memorial service at the funeral home, cremation, and the use of theVeteran's National Cemetery near here for inurnment of our ashes, so each funeral including visitors' book, programs, death certificates and obit is just a little over $3,000. Vet's spouses, be aware that you and a dependent minor child can be buried or your ashes inurned in a national cemetery, with or without your spouse, and the burial or inurnment is free for you and dependent children, as well as the vet. Also, if you use a private cemetery, you may be eligible to get an amount of money from the VA to help you with that expense. A vet needs to be other than dishonorably discharged, and there are a few other qualifications, but reservists, and I think Coast Guard are eligible, too. The VA has information online.
My parents preplanned their inurnment/burial of ashes in the veterans' section of their local private cemetary. It went so smoothly after their passing.
1. Made homemade pizza Friday night even though we were tired and hearing the siren song of takeout.
2. We ordered a bed and bed frame from Costco and found it was missing two screws when my husband was putting it together. He went to an industrial fastener distributor and purchased similar parts for $6.54. I contacted Costco and they provided a generous refund to cover the cost of the replacements and the time he took off work to get to the store before it closed.
3. Our 21 year old son asked for new cookware for Christmas (his roommate has ruined several pieces). While shopping this weekend, I found an out of the box set that was originally $400 and after sale and coupon it was $79. It's a really nice set and is now in a box ready for Christmas.
4. Bought gas at the station associated with our grocery store and saved 10 cents a gallon.
5. Ordered pet medication from our vet's online pharmacy and saved about 50 cents per pill.
I can only think of 3.... sold my grand daughter's high chair that we no longer need for $20!
I scored about 40 cinder blocks for my garden for FREE from FB Market.
Also scored about 30 of the scalloped concrete borders from another FB Market post for FREE!
So I saved close to $180 with both of those freebies.
Way to go!
I feel like I'm finally coming back up for air after the back to school madness. One more Back to School Night this week.
1 - With the kids on the school bus I've been driving very little to the point where its been over a week now since I bought gas.
2 - We had company for the weekend and with an uncertain arrival time Saturday night + our activities + 11 people to feed we got five takeout pizzas. This brought us to the Club level where pizzas are about $10 vs about $16 each. And, despite the mix of people and five different flavors we polished them all off between dinner Saturday and lunch on Sunday.
3 - I cooked at home every other day.
4 - I sold three items that had been leftover after the tag sale I participated in two weeks ago.
5 - I'll be putting up four more listings today. That will bring me to the end of the larger items that are worth the hassle of private sales. Everything else is either bagged & tagged for the next sale or in the donation pile to be sorted soon between Goodwill & two local charities depending on item.
1. I put together a detailed meal plan for the week and a grocery list of only meal plan items. I am attempting to put together a monthly meal plan by basically combining four weekly menus.
2. I only bought groceries from the menu/grocery list.
3. I cooked a big pot of beans and now have lunch for the rest of the week.
4. The weather dropped significantly. Last night we opened the fire pit and made s'mores. Lots of fun and little money spent.
5. We celebrated my dad's birthday over the weekend. It is a little difficult for me to find good gifts for him. So I put together a basket of various things he likes, like tea and lemons and fresh garlic and photos. In the end, he received a basket full of his favorite everyday items and it cost me less than a restaurant gift card (my usual go to) - WinWin.
I have to start off with a frugal fail also. Temperature plummeted here from upper 80s during the day to mid 50s. Finally caved and turned on the heat. Husband did replace the air filter before we turned it on.
1. Panera, bless them, is giving me a free bagel every day in October. Every time one of us goes past, we stop to pick it up. Such a lovely treat!
2. My sister is doing a craft show and is selling a few things for me. I purchased a box of vintage canning jars with glass or zinc lids at a neighbor's garage sale. I've cleaned them up and will price them each. I'm also making a few ornaments with on hand materials(except for one roll of .99 ribbon). Any that don't sell will go on our tree this year.
3. After my husband's dental appointment today, we went to the thrift store where someone had cleared out a huge fabric stash. It was 25% off day and many of the fabric pieces were .29 minus the discount. Some days you just hit the jackpot!
4. After shopping, we used our calendar cards at Chick-fil-a plus bought a sandwich. I'm going to miss not having them next year!
5. Making extra meals for a friend who had surgery last week. But the grocery budget is staying the same. I am putting a dent in the meat in our freezer but can certainly wait for a great sale to replenish. And it's a blessing to have the food to share.
Love that coupon use! This week:
1. I scored a $25 off coupon for IKEA. We're going there this weekend to update a few furniture pieces, so that worked out perfectly. 🙂
2. Over the weekend I baked a couronne (a braided raisin sweet bread). I used home-dried raisins that had been soaking in our homemade mead. How's that for urban homesteading? 🙂
3. I'm proudly dressed head to toe in secondhand fashion today. My oldest piece of clothing is a 20-year-old sweatshirt I got from my dad.
4. Today is my first day of self-employment. So far it's been very nice. 🙂 I've been able to do a few nagging tasks around the house and run errands, as well as work, so it's been a good balance. Hopefully I'll have more time in the evenings to veg out!
5. I signed up for a fitness program with my insurance today. It's $25/mo, but I can use it to go to ANY gym in their network. I can accrue points and actually get free stuff. So I get exercise, leave the house for a bit (important for a remote worker), and earn swag in the process. Win, win, win. 🙂
Once again these tips are inspirational. We eat at my grandparents dining table as well. Will try to see if I can add up to five,
1. Fuel has become crazily expensive here Australia. I managed to save around 12 cents a litre but it still hurt the financial situation.
2. I managed to convince my mother we could eat at home. It was tastier, cheaper and mum ate her whole meal. This is rare.
3. It has been raining for seven days. I am pleased as we are in drought. I had to use the dryer though. I normally one dry everything. Our tanks are full and that is a good thing.
4. I am still sticking to the use it up program and there is more space in our freezer.
5. Purchased some Christmas gifts on salae/
1. Dinner was made up of leftovers, except for some applesauce that we made today with apples that I got super cheap (we made over 7 quarts with$5 worth of apples!)
2. Did not cave to the children's requests for a treat at the store today.
3. Got a good price on getting bed today since I got 10 pounds of it.
4. Figured out what I can make for a brunch on Wednesday that's frugal... Deviled eggs!
5. Returning my kids' library movies on time once I'm done typing this. 🙂
Best use of 8 minutes !
1. Used my CVS bucks and coupons to get marked down toilet paper (I know, exciting) but I've never used the app. Must look into!
2. Went to library to return books I couldn't renew online to avoid fees and it was (HORRORS!) the library sale which, although very cheap, is more stuff I do not need. So I left --empty handed.
3. A dear friend broke her hip and is not loving rehab! She had requested the the JK rowling for grownups and I did buy it for her (not frugal) but used my discount to save a bit. It was in paperback. Wish I had known this at the library sale 😉
4. Also wanted to bring her flowers and found a new, locally owned, tiny store that sold the loveliest bouquet for $5.00 -- much cheaper than anywhere else. Supposedly farm-grown and family owned -- will support them.
5. Kudos to husband: He bought a part and fixed our toilet. Also, bought another part to keep our "snake" going -- we've saved a ton having him snake our drains, so the $25 part to fix it was worth it.
6. Pantry challenge was so beneficial last week -- we are doing it again (although I couldn't turn down 3 lb. chub of ground turkey for $1.50/lb. Turkey chili tonight and 2 pounds to freeze.
So inspired -- thanks everyone!
1. Bought 10 lbs of pork tenderloin for $.99 per lb
2. Grocery bill was a little over $50 for 3 people this week
3. Eating all meals at home
4. Price matched at a local pet store to save $10 on flea medicine for our cats
5. Husband installed his own oil filter saving us $10
6. Picked and froze tons of peppers from our garden
7. Have not bought any maternity clothes thus far (35 weeks!)
That's amazing! 35 weeks and no maternity clothes. You are doing awesome!
I don't do much shopping so it can be a stretch to come up with stuff....Here we go:
1) Heat was not working in the condo so maintenance will come to repair it for free. COOL. In the meantime, a $40 electric portable heater has been a saving grace. Whew. At 17 degrees outside, this heater is so valuable.
2) Made chicken soup a few days ago and have a bit left. Eat that for dinner each day. Very good. Total cost was $11 for a gallon or so.
3) DH always kept his dad's army blanket in his car, for emergencies and such. So I got one for the oldest for Christmas. The last time I got the oldest a car kit on Christmas, he needed to use it to rig his bumper back on to his car from a unforeseen mishap a few months later! Ebay cost me $21 for a wool/nylon blend.
4)Working the food bank this week. Fun to work with a lovely couple and I enjoy doing this for others. Makes me happy.
5)I was gonna visit a ear doctor to figure out why my one ear gets clogged when I lay on it. After reading online about others having this issue, one man said his wife had this and to massage the jaw joint there to relax it. Well, sure enough, as soon as I did that, my ear clogged!! yikes. But I tried a bit more and it's been helping. Amazing the medical info we find online! That saved me a $50 copay.
1. Needed to print a bunch of stuff on card stock. Bought the pack of card stock at Joann Fabric with a 40% off coupon then printed myself at Staples for 11 cents a page.
2. Printed labels for a project on the card stock and cut them out with my friend’s Cricut instead of ordering labels. Saved over $50.
3. Remembered to fry up,the leftover potatoes for breakfast.
4. Made chicken rice corn soup with leftovers and the chicken crock pot juice
5. I’m packing a sandwich to eat while I teach tonight and I already made dinner so the guys don’t order pizza:)
1. I used a coupon for a strawberry shake I really wanted.
2. I got yarn out of my stash for this pair of socks instead of buying new yarn.
3. We went back to using cloth diapers instead of disposables after being in disposables for months.
4. DH has packed lunches all this week instead of buying.
5. We ate up all the leftovers in the fridge today for lunch so that nothing went to waste.
1. Found a Batman play set that my son has been looking for at the thrift store for just $3...he was so excited to save over $30 by buying it used...training him right:)
2. My daughter found two dresses appropriate for the 1930s era to use as costumes in a play (She is playing Aunt Tilly in It's a Wonderful Life)
3. I fixed the zipper on my wallet.
4. I mixed up a blend of oils to help with anxiety...it seems to be working!
5. Will not have to buy any winter clothing for myself or my daughter because everything still fits from last year...which is good health and money wise!
I love that cowlneck on you, Kristen!
1) I went to Goodwill with my mom and mother-in-law and scored a huge crockpot in good shape, a beautiful sculptural lamp for a side table, a new stash of stainless travel mugs and brand new science kits as Christmas presents for our boys.
2) My husband and I are making a renewed push to eat lunch at home or take it with us. Lots of progress to be made but we did better this week.
3) I actually used my clipped coupons to create my list AND remembered to take them to the store AND remembered to use them. The eternal struggle.
4) We are switching from cable to some sort of streaming plan that has all of the sports my husband loves and needs in his life. $40+ savings per month.
5) I dug out some framed photographs in very nice metal Pottery Barn frames that we received for our wedding 19 years ago. We have been in this house since 2004 and had never hung them up, even though I loved having them in our old bedroom. They are up now and make our room look very stylish and polished. It doesn't hurt to save something pretty to use later, if you have the room.