Five Frugal Things | Oooooh, I have time!

I signed up for 6 free sessions of holistic counseling (promo from a backpacking group I joined on fb).

I started writing on my blog again (working on self worth for free!)

Planned pantry meals for rest of month with targets on things I have a bounty of (looking at you pasta & oatmeal).

Sorted through cat food after combining bags that weren’t the same size kibble & got recent order refunded.

Made blueberry coffee syrup

Five frugal things May 15, 2025

I bought a marked down loaf of french bread, cut it in half and put one in the freezer. I'll make garlic bread out of the other half for dinner this week.

I always make a weekly menu on Monday so I get what I need when I go shopping on Tuesday. My menus are based on what I have in the freezer or what's on sale and I run the menu from Tuesday thru Monday. I try to go shopping just once a week, but may pop into the store to pick up a few forgotten things I absolutely need before each Tuesday shopping trip or if we are low on milk. BTW, I did finally see a drop in eggs last week. I paid $4.50 for 18 eggs at Sam's and they had been about $6.40 a few weeks ago. I have not seen a similar drop at Kroger yet

I bought the 2 bottles of the shampoo I use on sale and also used a coupon. I added one bottle to the big pump bottle I keep in the shower and added water to dilute it.

I stopped and picked up a few gently used children's books at my library to go along with a few other new gifts of clothing for a 4 yr old's birthday celebration. (Mom told me she loves books and I thought “do books for a 4 yr old have to be new when there are so many books out there?”) I spent just 50 cents for two age-appropriate children's books at the library and found another one at a local Free Little Library. This easily saved $20 or more and accomplished some simple recycling.

I cut up and froze two very ripe bananas to use later in banana bread or smoothies and saved, blanched and froze some fresh broccoli. I hate wasting food.

Broth - my friend gave me a ham bone so I made broth and froze it in 1 and 2 cup tuppereware bowls. After it's frozen, I put the small frozen blocks of broth in gallon sized freezer bags so it's easy to grab a cup of broth when needed. Plants - last night was my first Master Gardener Plant Swap. WOW! I got so many lovely free plants. And shared my extras with fellow plant lovers. Airfare - I lucked out when buying tickets to visit my daughter next month - tickets were $39 per person each way so it really was cheaper to fly than drive. Crocheting - I am working on having a supply of baby blankets on hand so I have ready gifts when baby shower invitations show up. I am refusing to buy new yarn and instead use what I already have on hand. Taking one for the team - I have discovered that I do not like quinoa. I made a bean salad with it over the weekend for a potluck and it seems that I am not alone in my dislike. So it came back home with me. I have been eating it for lunch and will finish today, thankfully. Any suggestions on how to make it less bitter? I did rinse it off before cooking.

* Won 10 tickets for a comedy show

* Received a 5$ credit for a late online order

* Drinking from a glass bottle I got for free (new)

* Got 3 sports bra from my Buy Nothing group

* Training the dog to stop barking. Trying it ourselves before getting professional help ($$)

My Frugal Things

- My husband will leave his job by the end of this month so the girls got their preventative dental cleaning and x-rays done. My youngest got her front tooth pulled, sealant placed on a back molar to prevent cavities and 2 fillings done. For my youngest, the cost without insurance would've been about $600. We paid just $75 for it all. Also got a few tooth cases for free for all 3 kids. - Will also take the girls in for their yearly physical next Tuesday. - Turned off the sprinklers and took advantaged for the week long rainy weather. - Made lunch and packed my husband dinner during his night shifts this week. - Been eating down food in our fridge and pantry. Unfortunately, I had to throw away some items that were going bad and had mold on it. - On my volunteer day, got some free bread and baked goods from the food pantry and church. Also got an opened container of dishwashing detergent. Was kindly treated to pizza and salad. - Mended clothing with holes in them. - Husband fixed a door in the side of our garage that wasn't closing properly, replaced the missing acorn nut on the outside AC unit that he repaired previously, and fixed the loose net on our trampoline which the girls have really enjoyed jumping on recently. - Used what we had at home for my middle girl's theme week for her class. She wore an Ariel dress for beach day and will be bringing in a game from home for game day. Will pack her some chocolate pudding and jerky stick for snack day. - Borrowed DVDs and Books from our library's bookmobile. Got free entertainment for us and the kids during this rainy and last week of school & got a head start on their summer reading program. They kindly gave the girls a small bag of candy each too. Donated a book. Also saved on gas by walking to the bookmobile and not driving to the library. Finally finished listening to a book today on their Libby ap that I really enjoyed. - Played card and board games at home too.