Five Frugal Things | old coffee = cold brew
1. I'm using up some old coffee by making cold brew
When I went to my other house to grab my things to move here into my rental, I packed up some foodstuffs that I knew would not be used in my absence.
One of these things was a bag of coffee I'd opened before I initially left in January.
It's not really ideal to leave coffee open for months (ha) and it didn't make very good hot coffee. But I've been using it to make cold brew, and it's working just fine for that.
2. I transferred my primer to a glass sauce jar
I had a very, very old bucket of primer.
And I had done a very, very poor job of keeping the rim clean, which meant the lid was not sealing properly, no matter how much I banged on it with a hammer.
(Currently, after I pour paint/primer, I use a small paintbrush to use the paint that remains in the rim. That way there's never any buildup.)
I didn't have tons of primer left in the bucket, but I did want to preserve it. Primer's not free, and heaven knows I am going to use more primer in the future.
So, I used a funnel to help me pour it into a glass tomato sauce jar that I'd saved just for this purpose.
Now it'll stay nice and sealed until I start on my next piece of furniture.
3. I bought a box of bruised peaches
Zoe and I were near the produce stand while she was having a job interview, so I popped in and found a box of bruised peaches for $12. Yay!
Since I don't currently have a chest freezer, my plan is just to eat raw peaches like crazy. 😉
4. I installed a reusable air filter in my van
Lisey is a big fan of the reusable K&N air filters for cars, so we ordered one for my van.
And once it arrived, she was delighted to show me where to install it.
5. I got a paper shredder for $5
I wasn't actively looking for one, but just before I closed Facebook Marketplace one day, I happened to notice that someone had a shredder listed for only $5.
And funny enough, it's the exact same shredder I had at my old house.
I picked it up when I was already going to be in the area and I'm pleased to report that it works great.
I didn't even bother to check how much shredders cost because I was sure $5 was a fabulous price. But it looks like eventhe cheap Amazon Basics model is at least $35, so I feel happy about my purchase!
I am loving peach season! It seems like they've been on sale more than any other fruit this summer. So...
1. I canned some peaches and purchased more peaches to can.
2. I found a gallon of milk for 75% off because it was a few days away from its expiration date. I used it to make a double-batch of waffles, a double-batch of alfredo sauce, and froze the rest for future pancakes.
3. Taking advantage of free library fun. Yesterday they showed a kids movie and had free snacks, today we're going to an animal show, tomorrow will be another storytime.
4. My about-to-be-6yo kiddo had his new toy fly into the yard a couple of doors down. I had been picking from the abundance of green beans in our garden and offered the neighbors the whole 3 quart tub of beans I had just picked when I asked if I could retrieve the toy. A free peace offering.
5. I had a great coupon code for Lands End and put some swimsuits in my cart for when my kids outgrow their current ones. (Am I geeked that I got my kid an awesome swimsuit for less than $8? YES!) I let the items sit there so I could talk to my husband that night before making my final purchase and they emailed me a better coupon code that included free shipping. We paid for it using a gift card that puts 15% back towards my kids' tuition.
@Ruth T,
That lands end suit is an awesome deal! Also the library is my favorite frugal thing, they have such fun stuff for the kiddos.
1. Hosted a dinner party for 7 rather than all go out for a restaurant. Other folks brought all of the drinks. I made a Meyer lemon tart (with gifted Meyer lemons-from a previous house guest who had grown them herself [I love frugal networks of exchange!], eggs free from mystery shop, butter that had been on sale) and black raspberry sauce from raspberries that I had foraged for free. It makes up for the not-frugal cheese and charcuterie...
2. There were supposed to be a few more people, so we are eating the leftovers for lunch all week.
3. Gratefully accepted a bag of food from my neighbor that she gets free. It is produce that has seen better days, but I used onions and sweet broccoli to make a soup using homemade chicken stock and milk & cheese free from mystery shop (thanks, Budget Bytes!)
4. Although we have a freezer full of bacon, one grocery store (not my cheapest go-to) was BOGO, and they sent me a coupon for $5 off $15 to celebrate a grocery re-opening. When I got there, they were doing a "spin the wheel" and I won a $10 gift certificate. I got 4 pounds of bacon for $1.00 total.
5. Making coffee and iced tea at home, trying not to have any food waste or use the car unnecessarily. Didn't purchase anything other than my bacon, keeping a small garden in our urban postage-stamp sized yard. Made dinner last night even though partner was trying to tempt me with take-out pizza....
@BettafmdaVille, what a score in the bacon!!!
@N, ON the bacon, ON. Blast you, autocorrect.
@BettafmdaVille,
Wow! That bacon!
I debated including this as it was 1/2 frugal, 1/2 luck.... but I got an inordinate (or perhaps an inappropriate?) amount of joy from it...
If there was ever a place to share such a triumph, this is it. We all understand the joy of snagging a deal like this!
@BettafmdaVille,
I know the feeling! And it's so nice to have this community to share our frugal wins with because people irl are always either thinking you're crazy or just snarky and jealous. I say bring on your bacon scores! I love reading about them!
@BettafmdaVille,
Way to bring home the bacon!
@BettafmdaVille, Pure envy on the bacon score! The husband loves summertime BLTs and my tomatoes are starting to ripen!
1. The neighbor that put irises out for the taking last week, put out some lily of the valley. I waited a day and they were still there so I grabbed them. She was in her yard and was happy I took them. More free plants.
2. A friend told me that the grocery store I shop at most weeks honors coupons from a rival grocery. There is often a coupon to save $10 on a $50 order in the weekly ad delivered with the “shopper”. I tried it today and it worked. The cashier knew what to do with it. It was a good way to add Bergers cookies to my order, for an out of state relative, without them seeming expensive. I also found some organic soup marked down 75%. At that price it was worth buying for an occasional quick lunch.
3. I received $15 in Staples Rewards (I guess from buying a printer cartridge). There was nothing we needed or wanted. I used it to buy school supplies that were on sale. I will donate them to a back to school supply drive.
4. A neighbor is away for several days. I received surplus cherry tomatoes and green beans. I never have too many tomatoes. I can eat them three times a day if the abundance calls for that.
5. I had three ripe bananas so I made a double batch of chocolate banana muffins. The recipe called for two bananas per batch so I added some canned pumpkin to make up for the banana shortfall. I used up one bag of chocolate chips and opened another type for the rest of the chips. The muffins are delicious. Some were shared with the neighbor that shares garden produce and the rest were frozen for future breakfasts and snacks.
@K D, nice of you to pick up school supplies for donation. I usually don’t need anything from Staples either so a few years ago I started buying coffee and tea. Just picked up a box of tea for free. Even though I think they are expensive which used to stop me from buying anything, I thought we’ll it’s cheaper with the discount. I’ve also bought, laundry soap, cleaner, tissue, batteries and sometimes even office supplies. Oh and at Christmas, Moose Munch.
Kristen, I read somewhere (Frugalwoods, maybe?) that you can refresh old coffee by grinding it again. I’ve no idea how well this works, and YMMV depending on your coffee maker’s grind specifications (too fine doesn’t work in our French press, for example) but it’s worth a try!
—Using RIT, I dyed our coolest summer sheets to better match our freshly painted bedroom walls. The king size set was another Goodwill find several years back and are delightfully heavy cotton, with black embroidered trim. I only just thought to look up the brand name—Tahari—to see that it normally has the price tag to match! I think I paid $14 for ours.
—In my quest to not heat up the house, I’ve added cinnamon rolls to my crock pot repertoire!
—I touched up the finish of our Habitat Restore ($120, woo!) Kenmore washer with a bottle of $1 white nail polish. Between its previous life and the ride in a friend’s truck to get here, the washer had a few unavoidable scars! Since the hookups are in the bathroom, one ends up contemplating the scratches while sitting. No more! 😛
—I’ve three August birthdays! Gifts were assembled from The Tub: A giant tote of nifty things found throughout the year, most second-hand or deep, deep clearance. (One gift of note is a gorgeous handmade leather journal, never used, that I found at Goodwill for $4!) All shipping boxes and packing material were second hand, and the birthday cards came from my clearance stationary stash. One of my birthday trio just had surgery, so I hustled to get her gifts (and everyone else’s, just to be safe) mailed ahead of schedule to provide some pleasant distraction while she recovers.
—Another housewarming gift will be forthcoming from an artist friend who does amazing stained glass. She offered to make us a large window, but I demurred because we live cross-country from one another— I’d hate to risk the wrath of the shipping goblins on her handiwork! It finally dawned on me to ask if she could instead make a 10 x 10” window for the not-quite-porthole in our front door, which is south-facing. She’s delighted for the challenge, and we both won’t have to be as nervous when it comes to actually getting it here (plus drastically cheaper shipping costs for her). I’m so excited to see what she does!
I don't actually have a coffee grinder! That's how terrible of a barista I am. lol
* Used PC points to get 20$ worth of free grocery
* Going to a thrift store that sells their clothes 2$/piece today. Hopefully there will be something decent
* Decided against weight loss surgery, which means no travelling, no hotel cost, no pricey vitamines and meds, no loss of work time, no risk of complications that could induce more costs, etc. Still think it's a great tool, just not one for me
* Time off with hubby. We did some shipping, board games, watched Netflix, went for a long bike ride, watched a free outdoor show. All fun, all free (except Netflix, but it's a minimal cost)
* Using my gym membership 3 times/week. I pay only 30$/month and it included massages chairs and showers, so not only is it cheap for a gym but I'm saving on hot water and professional massages, aha! 30$/month is very reasonable compared to other gyms around (60$/month + ). I could exercise without a gym membership of course, but the fact is I lose my motivation without. I like gyms!
@Isa, Bless you for making your decision. I have seen several long term issues with weight loss surgery. It is a valid tool for sure, but if you can forge ahead without it, so much the better.
@Chrissy, yes, I think there are a ton of great success stories but there is also many horror ones, and I do believe that I can (will) manage my weight loss without, so I am withdrawing my name from the surgeon's list this week. I was set for surgery in a couple months.
@Isa, @Chrissy, I am one of the success stories. I had a sleeve gastrectomy three years ago, subsequently lost about 120 pounds--basically half my weight--and I've stayed between 126 and 132. Both the surgery and post-op recovery were uneventful. I was motivated to get the surgery when a medical checkup revealed I was pre-diabetic. I did NOT want to deal with diabetes. I spent my life before the surgery being obese, and I knew well that diet and exercise were not the solution for me. Now, I continue to marvel at my increased mobility, and I don't think I ever will get over being able to wear size 6 jeans. Pre-surgery, I wore 22w.
As for pre-diabetes--that has been gone since the surgery.
One note: I too have heard horror stories about the older weight loss surgery methods-- lap band and gastric bypass. Sleeve gastrectomy is much more straightforward; it reduces the size of your stomach by about two-thirds. And yes, I still enjoy eating. It's just easier to limit the quantity of food I consume.
I bet you must feel awesome!
@Isa, I am cheering you on! You can do it!
1. I learned to drive our truck, so that my husband can take the more fuel-efficient car on a long commute he's doing every so often this summer. This is the biggest vehicle I've ever driven, and I was anxious about it, but it gets easier every time. I only drive around town, to the grocery store and errands and such, so this will save money. Otherwise he would rent a car for those commutes, to avoid the bigger gas bill!
2. Got my library card in our new city, and already read enough books to earn a "prize" in the summer reading club! Do I need a new tote bag? Probably not, but it's free and I read the books anyway. I will use it to keep my library books separate from my books so I'll keep track of them better. ha.
3. Renewed my driver's license and opted to have it expire after 8 years, rather than 4. In my opinion this will save time and money.
4. Returned a pair of shoes through Kohl's Amazon return. Batched that errand with two other errands.
@Karen, I learned to drive on a truck and always owned trucks, 3/4 ton pickups, so not the smallest models. When I married, my husband had a small car and I hated riding in it because I always felt like we were going to be squished by another vehicle, and I worried that we would not survive a roll-over (which I managed to do not once but twice in my pickup, mistaking a snow berm for the edge of the road). I will ride in our smaller car now but, fortunately, my leg brace won't fit correctly in the driver's seat so when I have to drive I use the pickup (which we downgraded to a half ton model 13 years ago)---I cannot really feel where my leg is and end up stepping on the brake when I don't even realize it.
@Lindsey, I am adjusting quite well to the larger vehicle--I think it helps that I have ridden in the truck a lot since we got it, and we've taken a long trip on it, so it no longer feels unfamiliar. I learned to drive with a Chevy Cavalier, and then always drove four door (or two door!) sedans, and even with four kids we never caved and got a minivan. But the truck is a great vehicle for us, it's a Chevy Silverado, 2009, and has been so handy for moving house and going on trips. The only adjustment, really, is learning to brake earlier and carefully than in a small car, as well as turning.
I hope your leg gets better soon!
@Karen, I prefer trucks, as @Lindsey shares. I have a newish toyota Tacoma, (red, natch) and it is SO much bigger than my original Toyota truck, way back in '87... Has been a bit of a surprise to drive, however after 5 years I am used to it, LOL. It hardly has any miles on it as I was teaching my daughter to drive in a different car, (Toyota Echo [red, natch]), and then driving with her for a couple of years. I got another smaller car and recently gave that to my older son - and then got yet another smaller car (Toyota Matrix, [red, natch]) for driving longer distances, the truck is used mostly for hauling, although #2 son is living in the barn loft and is without a car so he borrows one or the other. The newest issue for him has been that he didn't know how to drive standard - the new Matrix is standard, so he has had some steep learning. He does share that learning standard AFTER he learned how to drive is way easier than doing both at once, which is what his sister did.
I, on the other hand, have been experiencing a bit of disconnect when I switch from the Matrix to the Truck - the truck is automatic, however my hand is reaching for the stick, my foot is looking for the clutch, and I am laughing at myself for the first few kilometres...
It's very easy to make a non-pectin sort of jam--peeled and diced peaches, sugar, tiny bit of lemon juice, mashed and boiled--that will keep months in the refrigerator (because of the sugar and lemon juice). You can even just use saved jars to store it. The seal on a real canning jar isn't so essential in the refrigerator. And if you don't want all the sugar, peach puree for oatmeal or whatever takes up very little space when frozen flat in bags.
Enough unsoliticited advice! Frugal things:
--My preferred drink in really hot weather is very cold seltzer, although this makes me freel guilty because it's has to be purchased and we can't recycle the cans. It's been very hot lately, and I haven't had seltzer because we haven't been to the store at all, so I've been making sun tea in the punishing sun with the peach tea my husband used to drink all the time and doesn't much anymore. I sweeten half the tea with honey for the children and then everyone can have iced tea. I still don't like it as much as seltzer--what is it about the carbonation that's so refreshing?--but it's a nice change from the plain water I've been guzzling all day.
--We haven't put in the one window unit A/C we have. My husband would put it in if I asked him to, but I don't really like having it in the window (blocks the view plus I hate the noise and feeling cut off from outside), so I've just been adjusting to the weather by doing everything active I need to do before 10 a.m.--I can do that because I get up at 5 a.m.--and being as inactive as possible during the hottest part of the day. It's interesting to contemplate how we no longer need to change the rhythms of our lives to accomodate the weather, but of course, that used to be common.
--Started a bunch of seeds for planting next month in the hopes of continuing garden produce season into winter. I have not had any luck with fall plantings in the past with direct-seeding, so I'm hoping transplanting will work a lot better. It usually does here.
--Re-using the same pots and old strawberry containers for those seeds, and used seeds I already had.
--While the older two kids were gone on their long trip, the younger two watched a lot more movies than they usually would . Except for one movie,* I didn't rent any for them, instead finding free ones on Prime or letting them choose from among our DVDs. *I thought my daughter would love Cinderella. She came to me sobbing at the end about "the sad ending" because Cinderella got married and went away and left behind her animal friends. I was not expecting that reaction to Cinderella. 🙂
@kristin @ going country
Isn’t funny sometimes how children see things? I would not expected that reaction to Cinderella either, but it is very sweet.
@kristin @ going country, I have re discovered dvds at the library and thru hoopla. Summer in Las Vegas is hibernation time for me and movies that I don’t pay to watch help entertain me. Jane
@kristin @ going country, I'm with you on the carbonation! I don't know why either. I made water kefir for a few years but I could never get it as bubbly as I like. I recently had an unprovoked seltzer can explosion in my pantry, so for the moment, my cold carbonation needs are met by (decidedly unfrugal) store-bought kombucha. Like you, I've been making different flavors of brewed iced tea to use up tea bags and try to convince myself it'll do...
@kristin @ going country,
Check out Liz at Frugalwoods. They are addicted to carbonated water, and bought a Sodastream, but hacked it using a big refillable tank of food grade CO2 from a welding store instead of constantly purchasing the little expensive tanks that come with a Sodastream.
@kristin @ going country,
Your daughter's reaction reminded me of mine. I remember feeling sad too, but not enough to cry about it. I felt the same way about Snow White leaving the dwarves! I would simply change the ending in my mind, and would make the mice and the dwarves go live with her in the castle.
Beauty and the Beast had the most satisfying end to me, since her father's presence in the final scene made me understand that he would live in the castle with her!!
@kristin @ going country, Ha! My boys all did love watching Cinderella, but mostly because they thought the mice were funny.
Once I babysat a very precocious two year old, and her parents told me she loved to watch Disney movies, and it was okay to watch any of the ones they had. She wanted to watch Lion King, and it was going pretty well until the scene where Mufasa is dead and Simba is trying to wake him up...she went up to the TV and patted Mufasa, and then turned to me and said, "Daddy Lion sleepin'!" I said, "Uh...yep! Daddy Lion is sleeping and he's going to be sleeping a long, long time." She nodded and said, "Like Daddy on Sundays!" then settled down to watch the rest.
@st, The mice do go to the castle with her. There is a second Cinderella.
@JD, my husband and I did this after I read her blog. Works great! It costs us maybe $80 per year and the Soda Stream and bottler were $20 on Marketplace.
1. Sold the livingroom carpet for $20 as it’s to flimsy for Valborg (the robot vacuum). It’s the same amount that I paid for it several years ago. Tried a couple of days without a carpet, but it looks so bare without. Found a carpet in the attic that Valborg manages to clean.
2. Bought two TGTG bags at the local grocer that was so good! Plenty of pastries that goes in the freezer for future desserts, bread, two ready made dinners, lunchmeat, yoghurt and 2 kg margerine that I froze and will give to my mother.
3. Had bought some NPL dresses secondhand a couple of months ago knowing one of them wasn’t a color I would use, but they were sold at such a great price. Have dyed it olivegreen now and are in the process of removing the polyester seams and will sew the visible seams in matching tread. It takes some time, but then I’ll have a dress I love using dye and thread already in my stash.
4. Now as I don’t have employee discount at the local pharmacy I’ve been dreading the process of finding new moisturizer for my face that will fit my budget, and my difficult skin. If only I was so lucky to be self-moisturizing 😉 But I lucked out by finding my face cream (day and night cream in a giftpackage) at a 3 for 2 deal. So I paid $15 for each instead of $40 and I’m good for a year.
5. Home alone (I’m what we’re calling a salmon widow, my partner is on a boys only fishing trip) so eating odd bits from the freezer and not spending any money.
I love peaches. Too bad the rest of my household doesn't.
1.) Hit up a new thrift store in town. I ended up getting a couple of nice things for the family for all under $10 total. I suppose none of it was stuff we had to own but it was nice and pretty cheap.
2.) Stayed home this past weekend except for a trip to the grocery store where I bought some items which were on sale. I stocked up and bought some whole chickens which I then promptly cut up to freeze and put the backbone, neck, wing tips etc. in the stock bag
3.) Made bread for the first time in ages.
4.) School supplies are on deep discount. It's the only time to buy!
5.) The normal stuff: eating at home, using stuff from the garden, line drying clothing etc.
Fail of the week: Not so much of a fail but a bummer. My trusty kitchen shears which I've had for ten years finally failed. I guess they didn't owe me anything but now I gotta go shopping again.
@Battra92,
You are so right about school supplies. They are only a fraction of the cost right now. When my children were young and these items were on sale, I would buy two of everything and put one away in the supply box for later. After the winter holidays, it seemed that one of the children always needed something. It saved time and money to purchase these things in the late summer.
@Battra92, my husband made a splurge on my behalf when we were first married and bought a Wustof knife set. 19 years later and my shears are still going. So in case you're not sure what you want yet, I'd vote for Wustof pull apart shears!
@CrunchyCake, here's another shout-out for Wusthof. DH got me a middle-of-the-line set for my birthday 13 years ago, and everything (including the shears) is still going strong. Good kitchen knives = a worthy investment.
@Bee, Absolutely! Some items like pencil cases become harder to find during the school year as well.
@CrunchyCake, I've had one Wustof chef's knife for 33 years now as I got it as a wedding gift. I purchased two others that are going strong 20+ years later. I take the knives to get professionally sharpened once a year. I should get some kitchen shears.
@Auntiali,
I bought a Wusthof knife set 30+ years ago that I found on deep discount/clearance. The knives are still going strong. I get them sharpened by a mobile sharpening service that comes to a local farmers market. Those knives are just great.
I buy the whole bean coffee and then store it in the freezer along with nuts and anything else that might be unhappy with fluctuating temperatures. I bet ground coffee could be frozen too, but that's great to hear that a cold brew method makes older coffee more palatable. What process do you use for cold brewing?
Here are my frugal efforts this week. My frugality is mostly food-based again.
I found several good deals on "Manager's special" at a new Giant I had never been to that is on my way home from picking up my farm share. I only went because we were out of the uncured pepperoni we use for focaccia and I wanted to stock up. Also we were running low on Kikkoman soy sauce which is basically the one and only item my husband is brand loyal on, so I buy the huge jugs that cost 8.00, but last 2-3 years. I got 8 packs of the pepperoni which happened to be on sale, but the sale price only brought it down to the regular price it was six months ago since I guess it has gone up with inflation like everything else. Oh well. It's still cheaper than the other brand we were ordering online. I also got three boxes of lasagna noodles on the half price cart (which I was super stoked about because Aldi doesn't seem to carry lasagna noodles year round and we were out-now we can make more la-sun-ya!), two tubs of breyers ice cream on sale for 2 for 7.00, and three different proteins on Manager's special: pork chorizo (four 1 lbs packs at 2.24 each-even cheaper than Aldi and they only have it sometimes!), swordfish steaks (which were packed that morning so not sure why they were on special other than maybe people would be like "What's a swordfish steak?" I assume they will be like tuna steaks? At half price, they were about the price I pay for frozen fish at Aldi, so I figured why not. We are having them tonight, so I will report back on what they are like.) And finally, three boneless pork loins marinated in teriyaki sauce that were 60% off. One of the stickers wasn't scanning right and the cashier didn't want to be hassled with calling for help so she told me to just take it for free! She did not have to tell me twice! All total, I spent 85.31 there which was more than I was expecting to spend since I was planning this to be more of a grocery fill-in week, but I'm really happy with my haul since it included so many discounted proteins.
I also did a smallish trip into Aldi for fresh fruit and a couple stock up items: oatmeal, olive oil, ice cream cones to go with the ice cream, you know, essentials. 😉 My total there was 81.35, but we have lots of produce now, so I might try skipping the store next week. I also put my Hungry Harvest box on hold this week too. Time to eat what we have!
I popped into the Dollar Tree next to the Giant to look for a pair of reading glasses and found lots of nice gifts for my youngest son's birthday next month. He was along with me but was completely oblivious to me stuffing things into my shoulder bag around my back. My older son thought it was very funny, and I made the cashier's day by letting her in on the secret. She was clearly a grandmother who gleefully rang everything up for me very surreptitiously behind the counter. All these errands were batched on my trip back from the farm.
Yesterday, for frugal funsies, I decided to total up the value of my farm shares by weighing my produce and seeing what I would have spent if I bought everything at local stores and I came up with a total dollar value of 45.31 using mostly Lidl's online prices, but then I realized that I was not looking at organic prices and my farm shares are all organic, so I suspect it would have been a lot more at Whole Foods. I didn't feel like running all the numbers again. I pay for my farm shares in a lump sum in February, but they average out to about 49.00/week and it looks like I'm definitely getting at least 49.00 worth every week. The real kicker though was when I calculated the value (again non-organic prices, so probably actually worth more) of the extra items my boys and I either u-picked or got from the "cull table." U-picking is free with the share, but not everything is on u-puck every week. There is always something available though. This week, we brought home 1 lb of large blackberries, two small scarred cantaloupes, one yellow onion that was splitting in two, 5 lbs of heirloom tomatoes that had split from excess rain, about 2 1/2 lbs of kale and swiss chard that were in a field that will be ploughed under this week (I could have picked more because there was so much, but I didn't want to overwhelm myself with greens to process), 3 oz of parsley from the pick your own herbs garden, and one large bouquet of zinnias and other mixed flowers, for a grand total of 74.36 worth of produce on top of our regular shares! I call that an excellent return on about an hour of my time. My mom is always talking about what a tremendous bargain our farm shares are, and although I always knew it was true, it was still a bit of a surprise to add it all up. I might do this more often since it gives me something nicer to think about instead of the usual 2022 grown-up worries.
I also took some time to process some of the food haul to make sure it lasts properly-washed berries in white vinegar, cut up the split tomatoes promptly, packed greens into a giant ziplock, stored the proteins in the deep freezer, etc, etc. I'm never more annoyed with myself than when I bring home a bunch of u-picked (or even store-bought) goodies but don't deal with them right away so that they go bad on me before I can use them! But over abundance of farm produce is my favorite problem to have. 🙂
Happy Tuesday everyone!
Becca and Kristen — We freeze whole bean and ground Starbucks coffee that we buy when it’s on sale.
@Becca, Cold brew is super simple. I have a 32-oz rubbermaid jug that I use. It has markings on the side, so I put in ground coffee up to the 8 oz mark (1/4 of the container), then fill the rest with water. Let it sit 24-36 hours on the counter, shaking occassionally. Then strain the grounds. I used a paper towel in a sieve that sits in a pot that has a pouring spout. Rinse any extra grounds out of the original jug, then pour the coffee back into the jug. It's concentrated, so dilute 1:1 with water. I normally microwave mine because I like it hot, but you can drink it cold if you prefer. Keep the brewed coffee in the fridge and use it within 7-10 days.
@Heather,
Thanks! I'm going to try it. I like the idea of using less electricity to get my coffee fix I also like the idea another poster suggested about reusing the grounds because it is always a pain to clean out the grounds from our machine that grinds and brews, so reusing them by rinsing them into a pitcher might actually mean less clean up in a round about sort of way. Plus, if I don't like it with reused grounds, I'm out nothing but some time!
@Becca, ooh, interesting. I'd never thought about reusing the grounds. I've got a batch that I need to strain tonight. Maybe I'll put those into a mason jar and see what comes of it. I'll probably use less water than I do normally.
(fyi, I started cold brewing because I'm too lazy to make coffee everyday, and didn't want to clean up the grounds, filter, and pot. With cold brew, I only have to deal with the hassle every 4-5 days or so!)
1. Read "The Zero-Waste Chef" by Anne-Marie Bonneau (this may have been a recommendation from Bee). So much inspiration for eliminating food waste, avoiding plastic, and doing right by the planet - and saving money to boot.
2. Contacted Penzeys for a replacement lid for a spice jar and they sent two free of charge.
3. Shut the door to the laundry room to keep the heat from spreading to adjacent rooms.
4. In exchange for spending a day helping a friend's mom reorganize and purge her kitchen, I received a delicious lunch (including strawberry shortcake!) and several things that I could use that her mom no longer wanted. We filled 20 boxes of donations for either Goodwill or family members.
5. Benefitted from senior discount day at two different grocery stores. That was a good day to be old(er).
@MB in MN, thanks for the tip about Penzeys spice jar lids. I didn't know they did that. And thanks also for the reminder about senior discount days. I keep forgetting to take advantage of these, and I'm almost 67!
I spent at least $100 on my current shredder because Hubby had a giant credit balance with Amazon and I knew it had a punishing life ahead of it and wanted it to be a good one. So, $5 for that one is a huge bargain! I've been eating at home, driving much less, doing all of my own yardwork, leaving my thermostat at 78 which is perfect, and staying off Amazon for mindless shopping. If any of that qualifies as frugal, then go me. I've got some expenses coming up, but they cannot be avoided...
We love peach season too!
1. Doctor recommended a brace from my tennis elbow and I was able to get one for free from his office since we've already met our deductible and out of pocket max
2. I asked my husband to do Amazon returns to Kohl's as he batched errands. I knew he wouldn't be motivated to shop for anything to spend that $5 coupon like I would have 😉
3. Purchased gas at Costco while we were nearby
4. Canceled a music subscription service that we don't use that often
5. Made muffins for breakfast to use up an apple and sweet potato
Was at Big Lots last week, just wasting time, when I saw the shampoo that I like for $5.00 a bottle with 33% extra. I usually spend approx $7-$8 a normal sized bottle and the best I've seen it was BOGO at 50% off. So I thought 2 for $10. was better than 2 for the least $10.50. Plus I got 66% extra.
Went scrapbooking over the weekend and worked on projects that I already had, so there was no OOP layout ... until someone brought in a bunch of stuff, they did not want, to sell. Well there was a tool there that I really wanted. Since the cost for a new one is approx $90-$100, the $30. I offered - and was accepted - was a great bargain. Now to sell the one I have that is kinda bulky and uses electricity.
We have been eating at home. I'm afraid my freezer is running out of food. But that's OK, because we are also dieting and not going out for snacks and ice cream.
Husband applied for SS last week (he is 65+). As we were filing out the forms, it said he could possible be eligible to receive full benefits in Aug rather than Sept. So we shall see. Either way, we have been living on my paycheck and not really spending any money, which is good. When his SS does kick in, it is all going to savings anyway. We have tightened the reins on spending!
He also applied for a part time job now that he knows he is eligible for his full SS benefit. He won't be penalized because he has reached his full retirement age. He is looking forward to getting out of the house a few hours a week. Hopefully he will get this job that is close to home so he doesn't have to travel to get to work.
Four Frugal Things and One Fail:
(1) First, the fail: I ran the Element through the car wash at my usual gas station because gas there is 10 cents off a gallon with a wash. Of course we got an unexpected rain shower that night. One car wash wasted. 🙁
(2) But this was the first time I'd gassed up the car in three weeks, because I'm driving as little as possible and batching errands when I do. So I'll take that for a win.
(3) As another consolation prize, I found a boneless leg of lamb Reduced for Quick Sale at Wegmans that will do nicely for the Christmas Eve dinner I host for the Bestest Neighbors and one other neighbor. I hadn't seen any marked-down lamb after either last Christmas or last Easter, so this was a major win.
(4) I'm keeping the AC as high as I can stand it (75 or 76) during this current hot spell. I won't have an electricity usage charge of $0.00 this month, but I'm still trying for a low one. (And my sympathy to all the readers in the UK and Europe who are suffering through the hot spell there, often with no AC at all.)
(5) As usual, I have Jane Austen to draw on for free inspiration--or, in this case, a reaction to perspiration: "What dreadful Hot weather we have!--It keeps one in a continual state of Inelegance." (From a letter to her sister Cassandra, 18 September 1796.)
@A. Marie,
Haha! I love that quote!
@A. Marie,
I feel as though I'm in a state of inelegance all summer. This is my new phrase, I think.
@JD, Ditto! (You know it's bad when you're out walking before 7am and a neighbor comments on your (apparently) extremely noticeable inelegance 🙂
@A. Marie, I am sorry you are suffering through hot weather. Our unusually hot temps suddenly dropped. Right now it is 54 degrees and slated to go down to 45 tonight. Two days of steady, if not thunder and lightening excited, rain so the fires have diminished and the smoke has cleared. When we are done enjoying these temps, we shall send them down to you! Tonight I am making salmon chowder, which is usually a fall/winter dinner!
@A. Marie,
I love this one. Feel free to quote her on other topics such as cost of living, cost of meat, unpractical fashion, transportation and servants (we can read service providers for those). There are bound to be good quotes from her!
(Rereading Persuasion instead of watching the most recent screen adaption with Dakota something for crying out loud. Who wants to even remotely associate Jane Austen with Fifty shades? And nothing beats the books anyway)
1. Trimmed my hair to stretch out the time between haircuts.
2. Stopped by Ollie's Outlet after work one day and bought a package of bran muffin mix for 79 cents, which I doctored up with chopped apples and apple pie spice to make a pan of delicious snacks. Adding the apple and a large egg stretched the mix to make a dozen muffins instead of six. Also bought two boxes of my husband's crackers for half price.
3. Did the usual thing and turned two Soresto flea collars into three collars for my dogs. The excess cut from two collars is easy to hole punch and sew together with stout waxed twine to make a slightly looser fitting collar for our oldest dog. She prefers something that slips over her head rather than someone fussing with a buckle. This saves us $47.
4. Had some leftover mac and cheese after supper last night and I pulled out Rubbermaid lunch containers and portioned the mac and cheese out, then popped the containers in the freezer. As we have more leftovers, I'll add to the containers and eventually build some interesting lunches without any real effort on my part.
5. Grocery shopped at Aldi on Saturday and noticed whole duck in the freezer section. The exact same duck would cost us twice the price. ($11 at Aldi, $22 at Food Lion last year.) My family loves duck at Christmas, so we pounced on that and now have a holiday duck residing at the bottom of our freezer.
I love my second-hand shredder, too, especially because it's a cross-cut shredder and is super easy to empty; it has a pull out bin with a big handle.
1. When I bought my current vehicle, I was provided with points to use for servicing. I had had my car serviced at the dealer once already but forgot to ask about my points. Yesterday I had another routine service and oil change, and asked about my points. It turns out my points were tied to my personal email, and I had made my service appointments from my work computer's email, so there was a disconnect. The employee cheerfully connected my appointment to my personal email as well, and my $106 plus change visit became free.
2. I patched some boo-boos on the drywall in a tight area next to a wall of books, and I wasn't sure how to spray the orange peel texturizing spray over my patch without going to a store and buying a plastic drop cloth. Then I realized I could make a spray "tunnel" with a cardboard box. I cut off the flaps and held one open end to the wall patch then held the can inside the box and sprayed away. It worked, and I already had the box (and spray) on hand.
3. Not frugal for me, but I gave my ancient, but working, spare refrigerator to a friend of my daughter's.
4. I dehydrated another batch of elderberries. I have about one more good picking left once the remaining clusters ripen, then I'll start the elderberry honey using the dried berries. I only have two bushes, but this was a good year for elderberries, it seems.
5. I thawed leftover chicken meat from the freezer and made a pot pie that will feed me for four meals. I made the crust and the broth, too, so it's a cheap meal.
@JD,
Ooh, tell me about your elderflower honey. How do you make it?
@Becca,
The method I use is to combine 2 parts honey to 1 part dried (use only dried) elderberries. Warm them in a pan until the honey is just getting a little runny, then scrape into a glass jar, put on the lid, and let it sit away from cold drafts for about 3-4 weeks. I put mine in a window in warm weather and let the sun help infuse the honey. Strain out the berries and there you have it. I was told that fresh berries introduce too much moisture into the honey and may allow bacteria to grow.
@JD,
Interesting. My neighbor keeps bees, and if he gifts me any honey this year, I might try this with my elderberries. It would be cool to have something like that completely locally produced!
When dinner plans fell through Sunday night, I made grilled cheese instead of getting take out.
I went to Target to get a prescription and didn't buy anything else ( which for me is miraculous).
I got a $5 coupon for Target having filled 10 prescriptions.
While picking up my daughters pets to sit while she's on vacation, I filled up the gas tank in her state which was 75 cents er gallon cheaper than in my state.
I smelled the funk of a potato going bad, so cleaned out all the potentially bad ones, and then roasted the remainder right away. I was going to freeze them for future use, but they came of the oven hot and delicious. My husband and I ate them all for lunch instead.
Our neighbor likes to grow flowers/vegetables for fun, but he's a single guy and doesn't use the nearly full acre of veggies, so he lets us pick. Raspberries are growing like mad right now...sooo excited!
In that same line, the wild blueberries are coming on also, so I see lots of jam and produce freezing in my near future.
The camp where I am working gives huge portions of food for each meal, more than I can eat, but in the spirit of not wasting, I still take what I know will last (individual cold cereal, cookies, small chip bags) to use for my husband's lunches. At first, I would ask them to leave out items, but I've seen them begging people to take stuff home at the end of each week, so I help them out. Smile.
I signed up as a tester for a new app for my online bank and they are giving $25 Amazon gift cards weekly if you complete certain activities. I thought I wasn't doing enough to qualify, but I've been getting the cards in my email, so I guess I am.
I signed up for 2 mystery shops this coming Friday. They had a "bid for this shop" option, and I thought I went high on them, but immediately got them both, so I guess they really need shoppers. I'll get 2 Five Guys meals plus $30 per shop, so definitely worth my time. This is with Market Force, if any of you are interested in signing up.
@Tricia, Thank you for the info on the mystery shops. I think I am already signed up with Market Force, so I will definitely check them out.
My husband and I have Covid. Thus, we have spent very little except on Advil, soup and juice. It’s been rough but we are managing.
I do want to mention one thing. When I picked up my prescriptions (used the drive-thru), I asked the pharmacist if my insurance covered the cost of any covid tests. I was given 8 at no charge. It doesn’t hurt to ask.
Wishing everyone peace and good health.
@Bee, best wishes to you and your DH for a speedy recovery from the COVID. And I'm glad you got some free kits. I'm still well supplied, thanks to various friends and relations.
@A. Marie,
@Bee, I got 8 kits in June for free from my Walgreens. I want to get another 8 kits to have for our vacation which I'm hoping won't be ruined by Covid. Please get well soon to the both of you.
I got fresh from the hens during our visit eggs from a friend. My husband hard boiled the miniature chicken eggs and marinated them in soy sauce to make a rice noodle dish. I used the regular chicken eggs, turkey bacon from the freezer and garden veg and herbs to make a frittata. Yum!
Instead of buying dairy free cheese that tastes like sadness, I made cashew "cheese" the day before to use in the frittata. It added a nice little zip to the dish that my husband raved over. Winning!
I keep several private lists on Amazon such as Gift Ideas, Comparison Shop,etc that help me with gift shopping and wants vs. needs (put it on a list, decide later it is a want and delete the idea.) I used my lists to shop Prime day for 2 birthday and 1 big Christmas present, and several supplies for up to half off.
Took advantage of Target having their huge We're Competing With Prime Day Sale to buy needed shorts, office supplies, and winter covers for the new furniture I bought from an earlier sale.
Rehearsals for my performance side hustle started. My husband had to miss it due to work. At the last minute on Friday I learned I had to attend both days instead of one.To save on gas and get a little extra sleep, I tossed our tent and gear into my car (that may or may not have been in the same pile in the garage after unloaded the car last season.) and camped for free to save on gas and spend a little more time with some of my favorite people in the world that fill my emotional gas tank.
@Lazy Budget Chef, "tastes like sadness" - that brought me back to one of my all-time favorite books (Because of Winn-Dixie).
@Lazy Budget Chef,
If it is a lactose intolerance for your husband, try kraft shredded cheddar. Little known fact that it has 0 lactose. Works great for me and I am very, very intolerant.
Coffee grounds can be used as a form of deodorizer/dehumidifier. I have read about putting some in a paper bag inside unplugged refrigerators and freezers to prevent odors, such as when moving. I used them in containers storing wet beach toys in case they weren't quite dry.
I put a handful in the middle of a paper towel and tie it up to put in plastic storage tubs as the stuff being stored often picks up a plastic-y smell.
Just making a pot of coffee is a powerful deodorizer. Back when I worked at a public radio station, we had a volunteer working during one pledge drive who had a problem with body odor. I wasn't about to offend a good volunteer, but the room was small and the funk was strong. I remembered reading something about how when the police had to carry dead bodies out of tenement buildings in New York City, they would have the residents each boil a pot of coffee to cover the smell that would otherwise permeate the building. So the whole time our less than fresh volunteer was there, we made sure to be making several pots of fresh hot coffee in the same room. It worked great!
@Ruby, see my Jane Austen quote about "a continual state of inelegance" above. We tend to forget, watching all these pretty film adaptations, that in JA's time there were no such things as indoor plumbing or deodorants. My own guess is that the Netherfield Ball in P&P (to take a random example) would have been a decidedly funky experience.
@Ruby, although I hope I never have to use your tip for the same reason, I found this fascinating! The joy of learning something new every day...
@Ruby, I wish I had known this hint when I shared an office with a poor guy who had trimethylaminuria, where your sweat has a dreadful odor, like rotting fish. Nothing covers it up and the sufferer cannot do anything about it. He would apologize at least once a day and then some person who thought perhaps he did not know he had an odor would try to gently tell him he smelled so awful no one wanted to be around him...it was not fun for me but for him it was hideous. He finally went to HR and they found a way for him to work from home except for a weekly staff meeting, after his doctor wrote a letter explaining the illness and saying as far as he was concerned it put him under the accomodations demanded by the disabilities act. I didn't share an office because I was a good person, I was the last hired so had no choice. I did however, exercise my kindness muscle a lot which was good for someone as self-absorbed as I can be. I don't like coffee at all, but I would have tried that trick!
1. Cleaned out my son's closet and chest of drawers. Everything that didn't fit was passed onto smaller kiddos that will use it. I opened a store card account and saved 40% off my purchase plus received two rewards of $25 each. I split my purchases so that I could use these rewards. The total amount that I saved was more than what I spent. I paid off the balance right away.
2. We are harvesting a ton of veggies from our garden right now. I am canning pickles, jam, and all sorts of things to be enjoyed throughout the winter. I added high quality soil to the garden and fed/fertilized it. This is a small investment compared to the huge amounts of produce and herbs we are getting.
3. Sold an extra fridge sitting in our garage. Hello stuff out and space in. @Kate I should be getting the yarn sent to you this week - apologies for the delay...life has been so crazy!
4. Stocked up on school supplies and bought back to school shoes. for the shoes we shopped at a local store offering buy one get 50% off the second and applied another coupon that gave us another $25 off of our purchase. Bought extra crayons, markers, etc to use throughout the year. Saved the shoeboxes for upcoming school projects.
5. Ate leftovers. Took inventory of the pantry and freezers to avoid waste. Planned meals. Combined laundry loads. Stayed home as much as possible.
Happy Tuesday All!
@Angie,
Great. Thanks for the heads up.
Kate
This week, I:
*used a coupon that was about to expire at the grocery store for free almond milk. Also used three other coupons that saved me a few bucks. Every little bit helps. I love that Ralphs (Kroger) sends coupons based on our spending habits. Almost all the coupons they send are usable for me.
*sold some camping mats that had been sitting unused for literally 10 years. You guys, these mats moved homes four times with us. $40 in my pocket and more space in my garage.
*Went in to CVS to buy one item for me. Was about to walk out when I remembered I needed to buy a birthday card for my FIL so I promptly used the $2 rewards on my receipt. I never go back to CVS in time to make use of those so I was happy.
*saw a total of about $800 worth of stuff my daughter and I wanted to get from Home goods. Walked out with $60 worth of stuff we actually "need."
*painted my own nails again and I like the way they look. I've kinda been wanting a mani/pedi but then it's also kinda not worth it.
*washed our dirty cars at home.
Recycled ink cartridges (one from my parents house), received $6. Bought 100 tea bags(5.99).
Received $5 off $5 coupon at the grocery. Bought four 18 count eggs on sale, $3 out of pocket.
Have been cooking with food from my freezer. And just leaving out items I would usually use in recipes instead of stopping at the store. It of course doesn’t taste the same and is not always exciting. But we aren’t going hungry.
Renewed my cellphone for a year($300). And added $10 to my husband’s plan. He hardly uses his phone so I add money every 3 months. Which is $40 for a year. It’s not cheap for minutes but it rolls over and he has more than he will ever use.
Not really frugal for me, unless you count not having to carry stuff off. Put out some wood from my parents house. Was surprised it was picked up, then remembered how much it has went up. So glad someone will be able to use it. They also took scrap metal, which didn’t surprise me.
@cc, where/how do you receive money for recycled ink cartridges? Thanks!
@MB in MN, it was at Staples, you have to buy ink but I do that once a year or so. I also know someone who uses Office Depot, not sure how it works there as Staples is just down the street from me.
Your paint trick didn't work for me. I remember reading about it quite a while back. Recently I made a Little Free Library. In my garage I found paint stored for years in its paint can. When I finished using it to paint my Library, I transferred what was left to glass jars. A few weeks later I needed paint for another project and found the jars were full of solidified paint.
@Linda,
It takes a lid that won't let any air in. I've stored paint in glass jars successfully, but I've had one or two dry out, from using a lid that wasn't air tight.
1. I sold two items from my sister's "take to Goodwill pile" and got $10.
2. She was going to throw away two very ripe bananas so I rescued them to use in my oatmeal.
3. I've been driving so infrequently that I haven't had to buy gas since my last fill up at the beginning of June.
4. I found 28 cents while walking.
5. I called my insurance company to try to get my homeowner's premium reduced. I didn't get much of a reduction, but it all helps. I paid online with my credit card to get 1.5% cash back and will, of course, pay the bill in full when I receive it.
I am on vacation in Hawaii which is possibly the most unfrugal thing I have ever done. The prices here are insane- but here are the things we have done that helped a little:
1- rented a vrbo for most of the trip, which let us prepare meals at home. Even though groceries are pricey it's still cheaper than eating out.
2- visited botanical gardens that were free (others were $10-25)
3- bought tickets to Pearl Harbor from govt website instead of through tour operator (saving about $50)
4- taking trains/buses from airports instead of taxis/ubers. We are a family of 5 so would always need two standard cars which adds up
5- made coffee in hotel room instead of buying it from shop in lobby
6- now at v expensive resort but only doing the activities that are already free/included in price of room
I was thinking we hadn't been frugal, but in small ways we had. It has been extremely hot (code red) this week but we managed doors, screens, sunshades and windows carefully and did not need AC or even fan. It remained a blessed 23Celsius inside.
We mainly ate leftovers because less cooking in the heat.
We dried our laundry outside
We protected our most vulnerable plants with sheets and a parasol to keep direct sunlight away
We took care not to drink any alcohol nor did we have any ice-cream (hardly a sacrifice though).
This heatwave installment is only for this week since cooler days and even rain have been forecasted. Looking forward to that: our water containers are emptying quickly now.
1.My stove broke. Hubby ordered a part($17)and we are waiting for it to arrive. It hasn't stopped me from cooking. I made brownies in the toaster oven. They were a little well done but still got eaten. I made biscuits on the BBQ. They came out perfect. We have been using the BBQ, bread machine, toaster over, stove top and crock pot to get by.
2. While out running errands, I wanted a treat since it was very hot. I had a Panera gift card so I got a caramel iced drink. It was delicious.
3. I haven't gotten any squash from my garden yet but 2 friends are giving me lots. I have given them both lots of wineberries, lettuce and herbs in return.
4. I garbage picked 2 sheppard hooks. I love free garden supplies.
5. Eating lots of zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant, lettuce, sugar peas, string beans and cherry tomatoes from the gardens. I shelled regular peas while watching TV. They went into the freezer for now. I love this time of year.
1. I made $95 for a mystery shop.
2. We ate from the garden and bought only a watermelon and milk at the grocery store.
3. The gallon of milk turned out to be sour. It would have cost a lot in gas to return it, so I called and customer service told me I could get a free gallon next time I stopped in. I took her name and the time of the call and four days later the husband was driving by and returned it. I froze the sour milk in two cup containers, thinking I might use it at some point. I wanted to drink milk and the shop should not be selling it, but I could not stand to throw non-drinkable milk out.
4. My peas are done producing so I gave all the vines to the chickens, along with the excess vines I trimmed off my pumpkins. Later I pulled up a bunch of weeds and fed those to the hens, too.
5. The neighbor with a lot of dogs and saves his food bags for me so I can give them one more use by using them as garbage bags. He gave me 17 of those 40 pounds of dog food bags. Four of them were that woven plasticized material, not thick paper like all the rest. I offered them on the free site and a woman who uses them to make shopping bags was thrilled to get them. This week, she dropped off one of the shopping bags for me as a thanks---it is wonderful! Great handles and all the seams reinforced. Now I know where to send any future similar dog bags. She sells them at the farmer's market for $10 each to augment her pension.
6. I had a quick overnight at the remote village where I used to live. You don't go to those places without asking if folks want anything...I ended up bringing a box with 25 Big Macs and 10 Domino pizzas. The stores here are familiar with calls like that so they even packed them for me, and since I was going up there in a small plane no TSA things to worry about. These foods were the hit of a party being held. I was reimbursed for the food and got some caribou jerky to bring home as a thanks. In the past church groups have ordered up 100 Big Macs and the kids sold them in quarter segments to raise money for youth programs. They go like the proverbial hotcakes, believe me. (I confess to buying a few segments myself when I had not left the village for over a year and wanted a taste of familiar fast food. When there is no road out and the barge with supplies comes only once a year and flights are expensive, you start craving weird stuff.)
@Lindsey, first: $95 for one mystery shop, wow! I had no idea that one could earn so much money doing it. Second, it’s so interesting reading your number 6 😀 We’re about 950 miles from the nearest McDonalds (there was one three hours drive away in Russia, but we have never been there, or six hours drive to Finland) so I can relate to wanting a taste of familiar fast food after a while. That and sushi, it’s always on my to do list when travelling 🙂
First off is something not frugal at all. My car bumper was hit in a parking lot while I was in a store shopping. My deductible is $500. Ouch.
I've sold a few hundred dollars' worth of items on ebay over the last week or so, so those funds will go toward my $500 car repair bill.
I am on vacation of sorts for the next two weeks (time off before starting new job) which will be paid as I had unused vacation from the job I just left, and am having a staycation. I had thought about taking a short trip somewhere but have decided to stay home and maybe just take a day trip or two.
I found a sealed collectible item at Goodwill for $5 and sold it on ebay for $25 (less ebay fees - which are substantial!).
I have a fair number of gift cards on hand that I am trying to remember to use up.
Though I cannot take credit for this, I received a climate action incentive payment of a little under $300 from the federal government (Canada) this week. Guess that will be going to my car repair bill, too. 🙁
Made homemade granola bars for snacks when we are camping.
Picked up some chuck roasts on sale at a pretty decent price and stuck in the freezer for next month to use for pulled beef for the kids’ birthday party.
Picked lots of wild black raspberries from the yard and made into muffins and pancakes, and a coffee cake for breakfast when camping.
Foraged 3 pounds of chanterelles while hiking. Sautéed them up with oil and they were delicious!
Made tea with apple mint and chamomile from the yard instead of drinking canned soft drinks.
@Becca, I'm thrilled for your chanterelles! I haven't yet figured out where to look for them in my part of WI, but I hope to soon. Enjoy!
1. I take the grounds frommy husband's pot of coffee everyday as soon as it is perked and put them in a jar (doesn't matter if the filter goes in too) and fill to the top with ice water. It is tomorrow's cold brew. I don't like bitter coffee and I find that this isn't and I can make it exactly to my taste of strength. For flavor and extra strength I add 1/2 a package of hazelnut instant coffee (the pig size for 1 cup). You reuse tea leaves all the time and by keeping it in the fridge from that point on I believe it is safe to drink for a day o r two. I have had no trouble with it and you can mix it with milk, sugar or flavorings as you like or take it black.
2. We have a friend who is flipping houses. I have gathered up all our paint, stain, etc. remnants and any spare equipment (old vacuums. Etc.) and his significant other thinks he will love it. As he often ends up touching stuff up even a small remnant may save him a few dollars and a trip to the store.
1. I used some over-ripe berries to make triple berry bread for my kid's breakfast. I used left over goat cheese in my salads. I added vinegar and olive oil to the end of a jar of homemade jam to make dressing for my lunch salads this week
2. I picked up 3 bottles of contact solution on Buy Nothing for my husband.
3. A co-worker gave me a Vera Bradley laptop bag for free. It's looks new!
4. I have been studying herbal medicine for a while and have started my "apothecary" using wild plants I foraged recently.
5. We went camping this weekend and the people camping next to us left about $30 in firewood and a bag of charcoal when they left. We took it home to use on our next camping trip.
1) My 16 y.o. needed new shorts, and I ordered him a few pair. The next day on Buy Nothing, a neighbor was giving away his exact size of shorts, new with tags. I was able to return what I bought, saving a chunk of change.
2) I was able to use free COVID tests that I get from my employer, during all of the "fun" over the past few weeks.
3) My husband did the grocery shopping (see #2), and I sent him with three freebie coupons at the store (minimum $10 spend). He got an avocado, a dozen eggs, and my favorite protein bar. It was also double points day, and he used a gift card for the out of pocket spending. I uploaded receipts to Fetch when he got home.
4) Picked lots of garden goodies. Our cucumbers are so delicious! We've been making Greek salads, caprese salad, and lots of smoothies. Tonight we'll have spaghetti and meatballs, and the sauce was made with fresh tomatoes. Yum.
5) Sold a few things on eBay.
1. I went to see the movie Where The Crawdads Sing with my Mom & Sister. We went to the cheap movie theater where tickets are $4 for a matinee and didn't purchase any snacks.
2. I stopped at the thrift store across the street from the theater and purchased some Le Creuset dinnerware to sell on Ebay.
3. While running some errands with my Mom we stopped at Sam's Club. I'm not a member but she is. I borrowed her card to purchase gas which was 32 cents cheaper than other gas stations.
4. I'm reading library books on my kindle which also saves multiple trips to the library.
5. I took a weekend trip to visit my daughter. I shared hotel, gas & toll costs with my Mom & Sister. I drove since my car is a hybrid so it gets the best gas mileage. We took advantage of the free breakfast at the hotel.
After losing my jacket on a hike somewhere is WV I found a super cute one at Goodwill for $5.
Frugal only because I got them on sale. The elastic in my spare room sheets no longer held the sheet on so I purchased a new set. My old sheets are 15 years old so I hope the new set will last me a long time. Time will tell. I kept my old sheets as the fabric is still good, perhaps when I retire I may have time to repair the elastic.
Kohl's had 50% off all clearance so I snagged 2 pair of Lee jeans for $8 each and a really nice blanket for $25 (was $204). A plus is that it is cotton. Finding jean that fit...well you all know is difficult.
Hubs found a really nice umbrella someone pitched, with a cleaning it should look better. It's a very odd fabric it looks like linen.
I took my lunch every day this week.
I went to pick up a new AC filter at Home Depot the other day and I saw that they now have washable furnace and air conditioner filters.
Another tip for your paint cans, if you use a nail and hammer holes in the lip when you first open the can, any paint in that lip will drop down into the can so it parents build up. When you put the lid back on it covers the holes so you still have a proper seal.
1. We ate all of our meals at home.
2. I cut up old jeans and am in the process of making my oldest a quilt like he requested. I'm able to use thread that I have on hand so this is a relatively low cost quilt.
3. My cut my youngest child's hair.
4. I used some store credit and sales to order new clothes for my older children. We also went through old school supplies before heading to the store.
5. We accepted some free household items from my parents.
6. My husband's coworker gave us a box of gluten-free treats that she didn't like. As anyone who has to eat gluten free knows, those things are expensive! Our child with celiac was sooo happy.
I never find bruised peaches like you do. 🙁
This one stand near me has them super consistently! So I am very lucky.
FFT, two week's worth:
1. DH had previously done some tree trimming to reduce the hazard to the house but still leave woodpecker habitat. He recently got around to chainsawing up the downed trees for firewood.
2. I mended two baby outfits and a sweater I’ve had for over 10 years.
3. DH took back returns to Menards from house-improvement supplies we didn’t end up using, for several hundred dollars back on our credit card. He was also able to use a rebate check (11% back on everything!) worth $175 on a new sump pump that we needed, which he proceeded to install with the help of YouTube. It’s much quieter and should be more reliable than our previous one!
4. I cut DH’s hair.
5. Visited the Goodwill in our beach location and found a pair of perfect jeans. Especially pleased by this as I currently only own one pair! (I’m what Gretchen Rubin calls an Underbuyer, ha)
6. Stayed overnight with a friend on the way back home from the beach, and she gave us freshly-picked lettuce and frozen ham. We also tried to reduce food waste and flew home with some produce from the beach.
7. Using it up, freezer edition: made a very decadent lunch that used a raw-milk cheese that I couldn’t use during pregnancy, and which had been frozen for the last year.
It's felt like an expensive summer so far, but I remind myself that constant frugality enables financial viability of unexpected expenses and emergencies (i.e., root canal).
So...
1. I made 4 jars of jam with frozen berries that cost $4 after a store sale, store coupon, manufacturer's coupon, and earned extra rewards points which I use toward gas for our cars.
2. Got some excellent fruit and veg from the farm stand right up the street.
3. Closed the draperies to block out the hot sun.
4. Left the garage door open after parking the hot car. I'd closed it initially (force of habit) and was shocked to see the temp rise rapidly to 91 F, so I opened it immediately and put a fan blowing out to move the air.
5. Bought the least expensive cat litter because the kitten really doesn't care 🙂
I did all my errands today in a circle. My town is only 2 square miles so it doesn't take much gas to do them. It was 95 degrees but there was a breeze blowing.
I saved $62 at the library for the two books I got from inter-library loans.
I got Arrid deodorant for $2 each on sale at my grocery store. I love Arrid and only buy it when it's on sale. Otherwise it's $1.25 sale price men's speed stick. I got two cans of Barbasol shaving cream for hubby for $1.49 on sale.
After having gastric sleeve surgery and losing 98 pounds I find that I get cold in air conditioning. I run my AC in the house to keep it at about 83 degrees.
What a great post! While I wish you weren’t in the midst of a major life upheaval for you and your family’s sake, it is interesting to get different content. Almost helps people with fewer resources, as I felt when reading that you don’t have a chest freezer right now. Just very interesting to see the shift and find value from a variety of frugal habits that may be had in different circumstances and life stages.
I would love to hear more about the reusable car filter! Is it cheaper? Simply more eco friendly? When I clicked the link to Amazon, it recommended to also purchase a cleaning kit for it - is that necessary? What are the ongoing maintenance costs? I’m all for reusable things anyways even if it costs a little bit more, but would love to see a comparison.
Thanks, Kristin! You inspire me to make the best out of every situation.