Five Frugal Things | pretty much 100% food!
When you all responded to my survey, lots of you said you enjoy Five Frugal Things posts. So, I just wanted to give a hat tip to my friend Katy at The Non-Consumer Advocate, since her blog is where I got the idea in the first place. Katy posts almost nothing other than Five Frugal Things, so you'd probably enjoy her blog if you are not already a reader.
1. I mashed and froze my cooked sweet potatoes
I'd baked them all in the crock pot (perfect for summer!) and since there were more than I wanted to eat as-is, I mashed them, dumped them in 1-cup clumps on a baking sheet, and frozen them.
Once they were frozen, I removed them to a re-used ziploc freezer bag for storage.
Now they'll be easy to access for baking recipes.
(Why yes, this method IS quite similar to the way I individually freeze peaches!)
2. I made muffins with some of my sweet potatoes
I haven't done much baking with sweet potatoes, aside from subbing them for pumpkin in this chocolate chip muffin recipe.
So I did some googling and I kept coming across nothing but healthy sweet potato muffin recipes.
And I was not in the mood for that.
I did not want:
- flax seeds
- sorghum molasses
- vegan
- gluten-free
I just wanted a regular, run-of-the-mill coffee-shop style muffin! With sugar! And white flour!
If I want to be healthy, I will just eat a sweet potato topped with a fried egg; I won't be eating a muffin. 😉
Anyway. I found this recipe from SugarDishMe and it is really, really good.
And I realized after finding the recipe that it's by Heather Tullos, who works at Mediavine, and who I met at Fincon last year. Even better. 🙂
10/10, would recommend this recipe. I plan on using every single one of my frozen sweet potato chunks to make more of these muffins.
3. I froze a pan of bread cubes
That sounds a little weird, I know.
I had a bunch of bread odds and ends in my kitchen, though, and I didn't really want to make French toast or French toast casserole that day.
So I cut the bread up into cubes, dumped them into a greased Pyrex dish, and froze them.
That way when I do want to make French toast casserole, I'll just grab the pan of cubes from the freezer and proceed with the recipe.
(I use Pioneer Woman's overnight French toast casserole recipe.)
4. I ordered an old (vintage?) waffle maker
My girls have been asking if we could make waffles like my mom does, with the small holes (as opposed to Belgian waffles).
A waffle maker that makes thin waffles is surprisingly hard to find! I did locate a new Black and Decker model like my mom's, but it was $55 and reviews were poor.
As with many household items, the newer versions seem to be made more cheaply.
So I hopped on over to eBay and found an actual old waffle maker that is identical to my mom's for $39. Even with shipping, the price came in under the $55 price for the new one.
Thin waffles, here we come!
5. I....
- shipped two more books that sold on eBay
- redeemed some points I found in my Sixth Continent account*
- bought clearanced organic body wash
- scanned my grocery receipts with Fetch
*This is the most up to date post I have on Sixth Continent. They've been kinda inconsistent on delivering gift cards, but I figure there's no harm in redeeming points I already have. That's no-risk!
Your turn! Share your five frugal things in the comments.
And it's just fine if you don't have five. Share however many you want.
I love Five Frugal Things, Kristen! Please keep doing them.
1. I did a large pickup order at Krogers as they had sent coupons. I checked my receipt and a buy one, get one free item hadn't come off. I asked at the desk and although I had ordered the wrong size, they refunded my money on one item. I also returned two avocados which were bad when I cut into them. I love Krogers and how easy they've made groceries during this crisis.
2. During my checkup, I had the assistant send all my prescriptions to my online pharmacy. Cheaper, less hassle and safer.
3. We're eating all meals based around the garden produce. It has been a strange garden year but we're doing our best.
4. The freezer went out in our refrigerator. As that's the third time, we started searching online for a fridge in local stores. Everything was out of stock or on weeks long back order. We found one that could be delivered that week at Best Buy which was the same price as Home Depot. It wasn't a bargain but my husband did get a Best Buy credit card for it so we got 10% off. The only other frugal part was we didn't lose any food in the very full freezer and our 35.00 second hand basement freezer did the job.
5. My sister makes Christmas wreaths for the graves of our close family members. I supply most of the materials and get most of my bare wreaths at the thrift shop or garage sales, That wasn't going to happen this year with Covid-19 but while coming back from a doctor's appointment, there was a large free pile with about 8 wreaths. I had my husband throw them into the back of the van. Free is even better than thrift shop prices!
Please stay safe everyone!
My husband found some perks of his new job with the state- huge online shopping code discounts! So we ordered the boy some fancy back to school shoe 50% off!
The girl needs a new pair of court shoes for volleyball season- stores don't carry her size in stock (13!) the brand website has some amazing styles/colors but you pay shipping and return shipping.. so we ordered a few old styled pairs (mens and womens)via Amazon Prime!! She can see what works best and return the others!
Went out with a few friends the other night and knowing between the chips and salsa and margarita a full meal was a waste.. I ordered the kids chimichanga meal! With the adult $1.00 upcharge it was still half the adult price and no food waste (these leftovers are not a good reheat)
scored a few stock up deals with store sales and coupons- ( I can now do my grocery deal shopping super early due to practice drop off schedule)
scored a TON of stock up deals last week with Ibotta and Saving Star! I feel some rebates are higher with back to school shopping. Took advantage of things I normally won't buy( prepackaged snacks and treats) cause the per item price was so low- it makes this super busy season a little easier) HID them in husbands office and no where near the pantry where my kids like to dig for treats!
I don't do a good job of remembering what I do from day-to-day, so 5 frugal things is tough for me. BUT I can tell you something about mashed sweet potatoes and mashed squash (any of the winter ones). . . just throw some into whatever yeast bread dough you're making with the wet ingredients. I do like to make sure mine aren't so cold as to inhibit the yeast growth. You can experiment with the amounts. I put probably around a cup in a recipe that makes 2 loaves. You need to add a little more flour to get the right consistency. You don't really get a big flavor, but you do have a soft loaf with a prettier color. It's a really good way to use up the leftover sweet potato (squash/cooked oatmeal or other porridge/whatever) that nobody seems to want to eat.
5 things-- certainly I can come up with them: I read library books, I worked in the garden, I baked our own bread using bulk yeast and flour, I ordered another 50 lb. bag of flour, and listed some school books on eBay (first eBay listing--thank you Kristen!). It hasn't sold, but at least it's listed. Phew! I did it.
1. Still cooking from the boatload (well, freezer-load) of meat I bought in February and March, and still doing freezer inventory (which I hate doing) to make sure I don't lose anything in there.
2. Went away for a few days to a historic site. Stayed in an inexpensive hotel using additional discount. Did only the outside activities (which cost less than the full ticket) and discovered that the 7 day pass is cheaper than two 1 day passes. Breakfast and all but one dinner were either from food I packed from home or bought at the local Trader Joe's.
3. Staked my veggie patch using only what I had: (old, rusty) metal stakes, green-coated metal wire (that I don't like the look of), old pantyhose from my mother's god-knows-how-old stash. Having spent only about $20 on plants and seeds, the patch may pay for itself, even though almost nothing germinated. I may research when to plant seeds in the summer for a fall harvest.
4. Bought shoes online from Zappos, returned the 4 pair that weren't comfortable. Bought pants online from Target, returned them and uncomfortable. Flagged down the local UPS delivery person so I didn't need to drive to a drop-off point. This is why I don't like online shopping but it is what it is.
5. The usuals: mended, cooked, tried to stay on top of food so no waste, used the library, etc.
Not Frugal But Not a Fail:
Bought four new, full-price books at the historic site instead of noting titles to buy used/online later. I think of this as a donation to the site combined with customer feedback.
William B., I'm with you on buying historical books at the sites I have enjoyed. I feel the same way , that I'm donating to the places upkeep. Plus, I always want to know more about the particular history involved.
Re: your #4, I agree about online shopping. I always try to order enough items to get free shipping, but inevitably something doesn't fit and has to be returned. So I grit my teeth and pay for return shipping. I don't like it, but I figure it's the cost of shopping safely these days. I really miss those long, leisurely in-person shopping trips!
I just saved the sweet potato muffin recipe and plan on making them to use up sweet potatoes I have :)))
My husband is on the verge of getting a new job back in our favorite state of Florida, so I will be using up the food I've been storing during the pandemic, which means lower grocery bills :))
Related to your last two, your thing about the french toast casserole reminded me that I had a similar casserole made with leftover waffles in the refrigerator and I'd better get it in the oven if I wanted it to be ready before my children started agitating for breakfast. So thanks for the inadvertent reminder.
My best frugal thing this week was also inadvertent: We went to the school track after church Sunday morning so my middle son could practice his bike riding on a smoother surface than our dirt road. While we were there, another of the parents who helps out with school maintenance stuff showed up to do something, and then he asked if we would like a box of commodities (like food bank stuff for the elderly people here) dairy they had gotten on accident. In the box were two cartons of cottage cheese, two cartons of sour cream, two quarts of half and half, and a gallon of milk. All name brand, not even close to expiring, and things we would have bought anyway. I guess they got two extra boxes, and we ended up taking both because he didn't know what else to do with them and didn't want to just leave them in the school refrigerators.
So I got about fifty dollars of dairy for free and without driving to a store. I was so excited. 🙂
It's been an expensive week, but we still managed a few frugal things...
1. We got a discount on my daughter's braces. We paid the full amount on the first day, so the orthodontist offered a 5% discount. This saved us well over $150.00.
2. We used a giftcard for our date lunch at Chick-Fil-A.
3. We continue to harvest fruit and veggies from our garden saving us on our weekly grocery bill.
4. Our zinnias and leatrice are in full bloom. I've been cutting them to display in our home. I often buy flowered from the grocery store, so this has saved us a bit of money.
5. Paid our 6-month car insurance premium in full (yes, it was an expensive week!) which is cheaper then making monthly payments.
When I was getting ready for my son to have braces I went to several orthodontists and found one that we both liked. I negotiated the price. Made arrangements to make full payment over three months this. I saved a considerable amount of money
Hi! Just 1 frugal thing to report. It’s really hot here, and one of our 2 floor fans is on it’s way out. I looked on my target app since I had a 5% offer that was expiring soon that I got for my birthday. I discovered that the app had 15% off fans, so I was able to use both discounts on my order! The fans are sold out at every store in our county, so I ordered it with free shipping. It’ll be nice to have a nice quiet fan again.
I laughed when you described the "healthy" muffin recipes. I do not like sweetener in anything especially drinks. With the exception of stevia, I have questioned the healthfulness of all of them. I got (2 cannisters of) vanilla protein powder to put into my fruit smoothies to make a complete meal and thought I would try a little bit of it by its self. Crestfallen. What is that taste? Looked at the ingredients: stevia. Aaaargh!!! Why did I not read the ingredients before I ordered it? Just give me sugar!
I wish I liked stevia, but alas, I do not. It tastes ok at the first sip and then I experience this odd aftertaste.
So, I sympathize!
Agreed. Stevia is nasty.
PLEASE post an update about your waffle maker once it comes. I’m in total agreement about the small holes, haha!
My grandmother used to make me waffles all the time with her 60s waffle iron. When my great aunt passed, I was given hers that was exactly the same, but not long after, it started sparking a lot while in use. My husband tried to fix it, but we ended up throwing it away. I did find a very expensive (I think close to $100– hard to swallow!) dupe at Williams Sonoma, and my husband insisted I get it (so sweet). I did, and it’s close, but I’ve always thought about trying to track down a vintage version again that’s exactly the same. I’d love to know how yours turns out!!
And now I’m craving waffles...
I never thought to freeze the sweet potatoes for baking!!!!
I always make my bread crumbs as my husband is gluten free. I used to love my mother's (not gluten free) bread stuffing and recently discovered that I can get the same taste if I make bread crumbs out of his GF bread ends.
I never think to scan my receipts...
My husband is also gf but the only bread he eats is a baguette, so no ends, and store bought gf bread crumbs are not cheap. I’ve found that processing Rice Chex in the good processor makes a very good panko-like bread crumb.
This isn't for everyone by any means, but some GF bloggers are using pulverized pork rinds, the kind you buy in packages like potato chips, to make crumb coatings for meats.
1. I got notice that the filling my husband got at the end of July would not be covered by insurance because of "frequency limitations." As though we can tell our teeth to just hold off another year before having a cavity. I called my dentist's office (which is closing this month for good, yikes) and they mentioned that the tooth was last worked on in 2017. I called the insurance company, which said their records indicate 2019, and the limit is two years between repairs. I called the dentist back today and left a message giving that information, and I hope to hear back today. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we won't have to pay the whole amount of the filling.
2. We don't eat much in the way of beans, but I planned to make pulled pork and really wanted baked beans with it. I bought the cheaper bulk dried beans and made a big pot of baked beans this weekend. I slow-cooked the beans rather than use my oven.
3. I also cooked sliced sweet potatoes in the pressure cooker, so as not to use the oven. I got brave and put a long spiral of farm sausage in the bottom with a cup of water, then put the potatoes into the basket that came with the cooker, and set the basket right on top of the sausage. And it worked -- all of it was cooked just right in 7 minutes under pressure.
4. I somehow bought the wrong size filter for my downstairs a/c. I couldn't find anyone who used that size, so I took it back to the store. Five dollars is five dollars.
5. I found Stashers bags on sale at Whole Foods. I'm a prime member, so I got another 10% off the sale price. I know their normal regular and sale prices, and this was a better price, so I got two.
Oh, that is so annoying about the filling! I hope that they can correct their records and pay you guys for it.
The dental receptionist just called -- the tooth was actually fixed in 2019, but they are waiving the whole fee! I love this dentist! I'm so sad that he's closing, but he's in his 70's, and this pandemic thing finally convinced him.
1. Started making kombucha using one costco kombucha bottle I saved as a starter. It's slower than using a pre-made SCOBY according to the internet, but after ten days, it smelled and tasted like kombucha, so I called it good and poured it into two new bottles to flavor it-one with watermelon juice I had saved from bottom of the watermelon serving bowl and one with a grapefruit and a spring of rosemary (both hanging out in fridge). So far both are bubbling and the watermelon one seems to be making a SCOBY, hurray! I'm excited to try making different flavors with random fruits, herbs and veggies I have on hand.
2. Cleaned the whole house after realizing I will be stuck in it for another six months at least. Used cleaning supplies I already owned.
3. Used my glue gun to repair the mirrors and tile in my sons' bathroom. It's only a temporary fix, but it's way cheaper (and safer right now) than hiring a contractor.
4. Changed the water in my basil cuttings jars. I have spent zero dollars on gardening this year since I can't go out, but my window boxes are bursting with plants started from cuttings obtained from my farm share: basil, zinnias and marigolds, volunteer seeds from previous years: snapdragons, morning glories, more marigolds, a pretty grass plant whose seeds the birds like, and some impatients I think, and a few kitchen sprouts: sweet potatoes, celery and lettuce ends, and some red potatoes that aren't happy but I haven't given up on them yet. I was feeling bummed that my boxes looked so barren in the spring when I would normally stuff them with cheap annuals, but they are all full now anyway-for free!
5. Ate leftovers for breakfast and drank coffee made at home.
Stay safe and sane, everyone, and if the walls feel like they are closing in on you, I suggest vacuuming them. It really helps!
Can't remember if I've mentioned previously but Fetch was not a good fit for me. I use Receipt Pal with better results.
Want to let you all know that frugal living really does work. I was raised by parents & grandparents who lived through the depression. I have lived frugally all my life and now that it's time to retire we have very nice savings/investments, no debt and should be able to enjoy retirement. I intend to continue my frugal ways, it's just my way of life.
Love the idea of freezing yams for baking. Frugal that you only had whatever you are booking them in once and having them available for homemade goodies.
Those muffins look fabulous!
1) Continued to make meals at home, without a kitchen. There have been some really questionable meals, but we've all eaten.
2) Found a $100 on the ground. Unfortunately, no one was around, because I'm sure they were very sad when they discovered it was missing. I split it with my sister, who was picking me up.
3) Sold & listed a few things on eBay & FB marketplace. Got rid of 2 Corningware dishes I've had for decades & never used.
4) Packaged all sales in repurposed packaging.
5) Dropped off & picked up a book at the free neighborhood book drop (
These are my favorite kinds of posts as it helps me be mindful each day to find at least one way to save.....
1. I cancelled a therapy appointment as something came up and I wasn't able to reschedule, saved my $35 copay
2. Changed our Netflix plan to a different plan saving us $3.18/month.
3. We needed new sheets and a quilted comforter for our bed. We shopped around and hubby was tired of shopping and just wanted to buy at Bed Bath & Beyond ($180) just to get it over with. I coaxed him into checking at Kohls across the street and found sheets that we love as well as a quilt (both on sale plus coupon code) and we still saved over $80
4. My one coworker gifted me an under armour camo sweatshirt that fit my daughter (barely worn) plus a bin of 6 rolls of wrapping paper & tissue paper & gift bags & ribbon. Sure, i'll take it!
5. We recently participated in our subdivision garage sale & had a steady stream of people all day and sold almost everything we put out. Made $230!
6. Redeemed coupon from Moe's for my birthday for dinner last night.
7. A friend gifted us extra veggies from his garden this weekend....We cleaned and froze them. We got 10 bags of green beans, 3 bags of peas and 5 bags of peppers.
1. I froze lots of peaches; we had several and also got some in our Imperfect Foods order. And, I did exactly how you do them and wow...no frozen mass of peaches! Thanks for the advice kast week.
2. I bought a large pot to transplant my Meyer Lemon tree into; got it for 30% off! I had another pot and a fern in my cart, but put them back.
3. We are eating at home most of the time now.
I’m new to trying to live frugally! Obviously! We want to pay our house off next year and have a semi-sunken pool installed; I’m working towards that goal!
1. Been wanting to shed a few pounds and based on science, knew that I needed to track meals. Downloaded Cronometer (free app) and it's so great! It breaks down foods to macros and even vitamins/minerals. It's all interesting info to me (and it feels good to see when I've met a target) so I keep using it. Am now 2 pounds away from my goal range!
2. My city has a program where you can get a free compost bin if you take a class on composting. Currently it's an online powerpoint presentation with a quiz at the end. Easy peasy. Going to pick up my compost bin tomorrow! I've been wanting to compost for years and am especially motivated this year since our garden has been successful. Wish me luck!
3. My daughter wanted a smoothie so we made it but she didn't love it. Poured the left overs into popsicle molds and froze them. For some reason that made them delicious and they're all gone now.
4. Called Costco to downgrade my membership since we don't shop as much these days and no longer fill up our gas tanks. Saved money on the membership and realized that our reward check never arrived so requested a replacement on that Also learned that instead of ordering through instacart and paying a service and delivery fee, I can order directly through costco.com for same day delivery and no service/delivery fee as long as the order is $35 or more (which is no problem at costco!).
5. We are Hindu and celebrate a brother/sister day where sisters tie bracelets on brothers to symbolize their bond and commitment to look out for one another. Usually we get together with my brothers and their kids and since my daughters have no brothers, they tie bracelets to their cousins. Since this year requires social distancing, we couldn't get together and I couldn't buy the bracelets. Instead we pulled out supplies we had at home and I taught the girls how to make friendship bracelets. The bracelets aren't terribly expensive but between my brothers and their cousins, we need 10 so it adds up.
Good luck with the composting. There's a lot of composting knowledge here so let us (well, me, I shouldn't speak for others) if you have questions.
Good luck with the composting. I think you will do great because you have the desire to do this.
I have composted for 18 years and in addition to keeping so much out of the the land fill you get so much free rich dirt.
1) I didn't buy a house. We are incredibly blessed to already own a home. But I have been looking for years for an old farm house in terrible shape back home that we can buy super cheap and slowly renovate like I want it. We were THIS CLOSE to buying exactly the home when my cousin decided that it would be too much trouble for him to sell it. Fine. It's fine. We will continue to bide our time and save money.
2) I am going on the job market this academic year, so I need a killer black suit. Something that says "this girl is hip enough to be in style, but her style takes a back seat to her super smart scholarship." So an understated but perfectly tailored black suit. I usually start big; shopping online for the perfect suit that will be expensive but last decades. Then I come down to earth a bit. I ended up at ThredUp. I bought a few pairs of trusted name brand black pants. One pair of black wool dress pants from Banana Republic was $6 and fit perfectly in the hips and butt. The thighs and below needed tailoring, so I deconstructed the garment and reconstructed a more modern shape based on another pair of pants I own. I am sending back the pairs that didn't fit and will use my credit to order a few Banana Republic jackets in black wool. I figure my odds are pretty good that one will fit and be a very similar fabric. And boom. Well-tailored black wool suit for less than $50.
3) I was craving this cilantro cream sauce that calls for tahini. Aldi doesn't carry tahini or sesame seeds. And I really hate going to more than one store. Then I remembered that I have cashews that need to be eaten up. I was able to make a quick and easy cashew cilantro sauce that was divine for less than a dollar.
4) I bought a $20 bike for our daughter on fb marketplace and picked it up in the rain last night. It was a pleasant ride through downtown to the other end of the city with my boys, who chattered the whole time. The old man who sold me the bike was very pleasant. All around I am happy with the exchange. I also politely attempted to negotiate on another bike for our son from a woman who had listed the used bike for more than you can buy it new at Walmart. At first she said she was open to negotiating, but then got all huffy (no pun intended) when I asked if the bike was the same one on the Walmart website. Duh, lady, that's probably why you have had the bike listed for weeks without a sale. You win some, you lose some.
5) I added two more academic jobs to my list to apply to later this month. I agreed to present at another event that will add a line to my cv and make me even more hire-able. I reached out to my program director to ask if I am permitted in my current status to apply for a fellowship that comes with $$$.
I sat out on my back deck last Saturday morning and was struck with the thought of how much frugality I could "snapshot" in just that single moment. So I did. 🙂
- The glider I sat in was passed on to me by a family member during their downsizing move.
- The mug in my hand came from a garage sale (and the seller gave it to me for free with my other purchases).
- The coffee in my mug was home brewed.
- Next to the glider was a clothes-drying rack filled with a fresh load from the washer.
- On the table in front of me was a pot of lemon balm that I have been harvesting and drying for herbal teas this coming winter.
- In my hand was a clipboard holding several sheets of lined paper gleaned from the back of a partially-used school notebook.
- On the notepaper was a brain-dump list of all the bird species I've sighted at our house over the years (bird-watching = frugal hobby, at least the way I do it).
Much of my frugal behavior is such a habit that I forget I'm doing it. Sometimes it's nice to stop, reflect, and acknowledge what's become automatic.
Jenzer, you painted such a peaceful and intentional scence. Ahhh
1) Made a menu plan foe the week. Let’s hope I can stick with it. It will keep me home more too.
2) We have a large Belgian Waffle maker we rarely use. I bought a small pocket kind of one that makes waffles that will fit in the toaster if frozen. But growing up my parents had received a waffle maker for a wedding present. For the 21 years I lived at home, my dad made us small square waffles every other Saturday (the other Saturdays were pancakes). He even fixed the electric cord when it broke. I think mom threw it away after we all moved out.
3) Staying home saves gas!
4) We were supposed to meet family in 2 wks in OBX. They can’t go because NYS says they would all have to quarantine for 2 wks when they get home. Most are in the healthcare field or education. So a few weeks back, we changed it to the mountains of VA. And then the governor added VA to the list. So my husband who can’t spend vacations at home, was trying to find an in-expensive place in FL where we live. I called a girlfriend who owns a 2 family house, but only rents out the other side by word of mouth. And it’s available! By the beach! With social distancing. And we can bring the dog. And it won’t break the bank!
5) Eating lunch at home. GA Peaches this year are excellent, but we don’t have a place to buy bruised ones.
6) Needed 2 cards to send out - 1 anniversary and 1 baby. Instead if buying cards, I used paper and die cuts all from my stash. It did cost extra to mail, but when I went to the post office I bought extra ounce stamps so I don’t have to make another trip just to mail letters. I can put them in my mail box for the carrier to pick up.
I am so glad to hear you worked out #4! I'm in Massachusetts and we had planned a trip to San Francisco in October. Our Governor Charlie Baker just implemented some very severe travel restrictions. Therefore we probably can't go to SFO - although my husband wants to wait and see. As a back-up I booked a hotel in Vermont so we can spend a week leaf-peeping and such. We will take our car and our own pillows. I'd rather do that now, at this point in the Pandemic.
Other than the usual stuff I do all the time, I have only one this week. The library I have been going to for the last 15 years prints a checkout receipt each time. I just noticed at the bottom there are $ totals showing what I saved by using the library instead of buying books and DVDs. My current receipt shows $124.98 for that trip; $1,780.40 so far this year; and a whopping $10,464.50 since I started using this library 15 years ago! Oh my goodness!! Of course, I would never have bought all that media, but what an eye opener!
1. I mended the ripped bed skirt in our master bedroom so it will last a long time.
2. When we craved Chinese takeout, I pulled out myTrader Joe frozen Mandarin Orange chicken and made some rice and stir fry veggies instead.I always keep a few fun frozen TJ meals in freezer JUST for this reason.MUCH cheaper than take out!
3. I traded books with my next door neighbor.We had both been clearing out our bookshelves.I gave her some cookbooks I no longer use and some fiction too. (From long time ago—I never buy books anymore, I use cloud library or real library.) She gave me a bunch of novels to read! (She buys gooks often!) FUN! FREE!
4. I spend time in prayer, with a gratitude journal, and meditating,daily. This is good for my Soul and also is a cheap method of improving my mental and physical health.
5. I spent time looking up recipes to replicate some of our favorite restaurant meals.Greek Salads, the Hawaiian plate lunch we used to go out for pre-Covid, and retried black beans with homemade chips, put together with other ingredients for a made-at-home NACHOS.
6. I made a small art journal and some greeting cards and bookmarks for my dear friend for her birthday and left them on her doorstep in a decorated bag. All made with supplies already on hand.I miss seeing my friends in person , so much!
I just stocked up at Target on cleaning/dish/laundry supplies to take advantage of the 'spend $50 and get a $15 gift card'.
I am removing 2 zucchini plants. This is frugal because we are getting more zucchini than we can eat. I will no longer have to water the removed ones, and I can plant something else in that space. I may also take out one collard tree (same problem-more than we can eat). Water is expensive, so I avoid unnecessary watering.
I made yarn out of an old T-shirt. I use this for tying up plants. Nice to get the old tshirt out of my closet.
I have been loving my new hair conditioner bar. It's Ethique brand from Target. It's expensive, at $17, but I suspect that it will last me a year. So that works out pretty cheap. And no plastic packaging!
I have fiddled with fabric combinations for 2 special order Happy Birthday banners. I bought a selection of pieces, but then wasn't totally happy with the overall look. But I did not want to buy more. So I kept rearranging the combos, adding a few that I already had, and I think I've come up with 2 winners! This makes me happy, no more expense, and no extra trip to the store. I listed a bee banner in my shop. It should be called the 'once in a blue moon' banner, because I hardly ever make them without a special order. The fabric is adorable. https://www.etsy.com/shop/FabricSpeaks
I have a waffle maker that makes thin waffles in the shape of Snoopy's face. It's quite old now but still works.
1.) Worked a bit of overtime for the first time in ages. At the beginning of the present unpleasantries I was working 10 hours OT per paycheck minimum. I then went weeks without it but now I'm getting an hour here and there.
2.) Did an actual meal plan for the first time in ages. We've just been "winging it" for a while.
3.) Thanks to said meal plan I can spend less time shopping and more time relaxing at home.
Love the Snoopy Waffles! What do you put on them?
My Mom had a waffle maker that weighed perhaps 25 pounds, a true sign of age. It didn't get pulled out of the cupboard very often.
My five frugal things:
1. My husband works in a machine shop that does not have air conditioning in certain areas...including his. I took a couple of his uniform pants that were looking a little worn in the knees and made them into long shorts for him to wear and still protect his thighs from any flying stray hot metal scraps.
2. Froze more garden goodies (beans, peas red raspberries, wild blackberries. I almost have enough for a second batch of jam.
3. A friend of mine was getting rid of some stuff and said I should go through it first and take anything I wanted. I took about a half dozen nice baskets that I will fill with gifts at Christmastime and a revolving rack with pegs that I'll use to organize sewing tools on.
4. Our dishwasher died (awhile ago) and we purchased a new one on sale and got to use our daughter's employee discount at Lowes. Saved $153.
5. Cut up and repurposed worn leggings for dust rags and Swiffer pads.
I found Crayola markers & crayons for cheap at Staples.com. Free shipping! Sent a promotional pack of 10 big markers, 8 thin markers, & 24 crayons to my 5-year old grandson in NJ. Total cost <$2.50! He was thrilled!
It's been an interesting week for frugality. I'm not sure if some of the below things that happened were good or disappointing, but it just happened that way. Here we go:
1) We had booked a family vacation back in January and had it scheduled for August. With Covid happening, the airline cancelled our tickets and we cancelled the lodging and car. Got refunds.
2) Due to the above, DH wanted a local trip for a couple days. I inquired about lodging and asked questions to those that would accommodate us. I got a reply that the lodging isn't available anymore. Couldn't spend anything if we wanted......
3)DH went to the rental shop to get equipment to fix the yard for a few hours. He ended up not renting anything due to price, so no money went out for that either.
4)The youngest has classes that will be online this coming semester and all he asked for was some notebooks and pens. I spent a total of $2 for 4 notebooks and 12 pens.
5) I had earned gift cards thru swagbucks and then got one as a gift. I spent them all on a video game for youngest son's birthday and some money was left over..
1. I picked up 2 bags of rice and frozen veggie burgers from Buy Nothing
2. Made blueberry muffins using mushy blueberries, found chicken thighs for 1/2 off at Aldi's, and made sun-dried tomatoes using a bunch of cherry tomatoes from our garden
3. Switched internet to my husband's name, which gave him a new customer rate. This saved us $30 per month and the promotional deal gives us faster internet!
4. While trying to be frugal, we went to a used uniform sale at our son's new school. Uniforms shirts are $5 at the same compared to $18 online. Unfortunately they did not have any in his size. But, the website that sells the embroidered uniform shirts is having a sale right now, so at least there's that. Uniforms are not cheap!
5. We went camping this weekend, which is such cheap and fun entertainment!
1) I was laid off in March due to Covid. I recently started a temp to perm job and a temp job. Doing both to help make up for lost wages while unemployed.
2) Bought 3 pounds of onions for $1.00.
3) Bringing my lunch to work.
4) Ordered a pressure canner with free shipping and no tax.
5) Brought goodies to work that I already had ready in my pantry.
This week is kind of the anti frugal week, youngest needs 3 pairs of new dance shoes (different types of dance classes) and I just got a rolling cart for all the school stuff this year since at best half the year will be home (A/B hybrid schedules) and in all likelihood we'll have chunks of time fully remote learning. But we still had some frugal moments...
1. Just got notification that two more library books are ready for pickup
2. Got the mailing label to send off my middle kiddo's Nintendo remotes to be fixed for free
3. Emailed a company because sunscreen damaged my youngest's sunglasses and they replaced the lenses for free
4. Made blueberry bread out of some blueberries that were past their prime
5. Went camping for several days which is a great option for frugal family time.
1. Currently spending the weekend at my parents’ cottage as a little staycation with our kiddos. We bought a few little treats at the grocery store (why does cottage time always make us want junk food?!) but kept it reasonable. 🙂 Before we left, I made 2 loaves of homemade bread, a batch of pizza dough for homemade calzones, and a batch of loaded oatmeal cookies to bring. The rest of the food is from our regular groceries.
2. I sold a set of metal wall art that doesn’t suit our new house, and was just sitting in the basement after our move. When the buyer arrived, she asked if I would sell a pair of large plant pots that we sitting outside (unused). I had already realized I was unlikely to use them, so I sold those too!
3. I had planned to have a new portrait of my children professionally framed, and then realized I had a lovely frame that would suit perfectly. Using what I already have, and saving a ton of money!
4. My dad planted a garden at the cottage, and has been welcoming us to help ourselves. Last week we picked lots of beets and green bell peppers, and today I’ll pick tons of zucchini and more peppers! 🙂
5. I’ve been scouring sales and shopping around for unadvertised markdowns at the grocery stores, in order to stock our freezer and pantry. It helps me so much to avoid takeout when we have plenty of staple foods (and a few healthy/inexpensive convenience foods) on hand for when we’re tired/hot/busy. (Recently stocked up on things like salt-free canned beans, frozen salmon burgers, and packages of ground chicken.)
6. We’ve been using our library as much as possible. My kids have been listening to lots of audiobooks through a streaming service our library offers, signing out lots of books, and we borrowed Mary Poppins on DVD for last night’s movie/pizza night.