Five Frugal Things | Schoolbooks already?
1. I bought some 2017-2018 schoolbooks
Regular readers know I usually tackle the task of ordering schoolbooks somewhere around August.
(!)
Nothing like last-minute. 😉
But I got an email saying that the science books I want to use this fall were on sale for a few days.
So, I added them to my cart, and an $8 shipping fee showed up.
I googled for a free shipping code and found one, but it required a $100 minimum spend.
No problem! I added Sonia and Zoe's Easy Grammar and Wordly Wise books to my cart and my total hit $103.
Perfect.
2. I gave Sonia a haircut.
Sonia's hair pattern is this: We let her hair grow out all school year long so that she can have a bun at ballet recital time.
Then we chop it all off for a fresh summer haircut.
Zoe's still waffling about whether or not she wants to get her hair cut. But I am totally not handling that task myself...her super thick, straight hair is beyond my skill level and has been for many years!
Sonia inherited my not-so-thick-and-also-slightly-wavy hair, though, which makes a DIY-haircut a 15-minute project, tops.
Related: Here's how I do a simple at-home bob haircut.
I use these awesome Tweezerman scissors to do haircuts and also to trim my bangs. SO MUCH BETTER than those scissors that come with hair-buzzer kits.
Or, heaven forbid, the household scissors you use for any other task besides hair.
3. I sold a schoolbook on half.com
Last spring, I listed a hardcover science book on half.com and promptly forgot about it. But I got the lovely, "You made a sale!" email from half.com and now I have $21 in my account.
I love that there's no time limit on half.com listings...you can just put it up there and forget about it until someone buys your book.
I packaged the book in a padded envelope I'd saved from an online order, of course.
I noticed it had a rip in the back after I'd already packaged up the book, so I just put some tape over the rip and it should be fine.
4. I am usin' up my Hungry Harvest produce like a boss.
Hungry Harvest exists to save food from being wasted...so, using up what I get in my box feels pretty important to me.
If you follow me on Instagram (I'm thefrugalgirl over there. Come join me!), you know we've been busy using our Hungry Harvest avocados to make avocado toast.
I grilled up some yellow squash, even though I'm not a huge fan of yellow squash, so, gold stars for me!
I'm slowly using up the kale in our daily breakfast smoothies (love that kale lasts for so long in the fridge.)
And I planted my last three green onions so they could grow instead of going bad in my fridge.
(If you want to try Hungry Harvest, use code FRUGALGIRL for 25% off your first box.)
5. I kept herbs alive since January!
My house is pretty dark in the winter, which makes indoor plant growing very challenging.
But remember how I tried the Thai Beef salad recipe in January? I had to buy a mint plant and a basil plant to supply the necessary herbs, and you guys, I kept those two plants alive until now!
This is amazing for me and my black thumb, especially considering that basil doesn't really love being indoors.
Anyway, yesterday I took them out of their teeny original containers and planted them in a pot that I got for free from a neighbor.
I think they'll be much happier that way.
Your turn!
Share your own Five Frugal Things in the comments. What money-saving stuff have you been up to?
Great job saving some moolah!
This week:
1. Mr. Picky Pincher did lawn work and changed the oil on his truck himself. That saved us about $100 right there. 🙂
2. I used up some on-hand items to bake a coconut cake, peach coffee cake muffins, and macarons.
3. I was traveling for work a lot this past week, which meant lots of freebies and free food. 🙂 It also means mileage reimbursements, which are always welcome.
4. Mr. Picky Pincher was going to toss some of his old socks, but I took them for myself. I added a new hem so they would fall at my ankle. I then used the old sock bits to make scrunchies. 🙂
5. I got some neat indigo glass jars for storing stuff and $40 from freelance work.
Whoa, that's an impressive sock save!
My thoughts exactly LOL
Also - kids school books and supplies frighten me :/
I had various odds and ends of potatoes that were on their last leg. We were having a family get together so I made Italian Fries. I scrubbed them, cut them in wedges, seasoned them with salt,pepper,chili powder and some olive oil. I baked them up and wow! they were gone in no time. Yeah, delish and no wasted potatoes.
My neighbor gave me two big bags of rhubarb so I made two crisps, one for a colleagues birthday on Monday (which I was going to make a treat for anyway) and one for the neighbor and I put 8 cups of chopped rhubarb in the freezer for future jam, which I'm going to make with strawberries I have in the freezer and honey I have on hand. The best part, I didn't have to buy any extra ingredients for the crisps, I had them all on hand. I killed a lot of birds with that one stone!
I love Five Frugal Things! Thank you, Kristen!
1. We had curb picked a beautiful antique buffet while moving. I listed it and got over two dozen "I want it!"s. Happily, it went to an old co-worker and we had a happy chat and I fed her lunch. One hundred dollars straight profit!
2. My husband wanted a butcher block table to turn into a sturdy desk for his office. He found a really nice one for 35.00 and the guy threw in three sturdy nice chairs since he was late. We sold those for 25.00 to another happy couple.
3. We had planned on renting a post hole digger to use for the new garden beds. When my husband got to Home Depot, he realized they were just too big for the two of us to handle. He dug most of the 24 two foot holes by hand with a bit of help from our eldest daughter who came for Mother's Day.
4. The wood for the garden beds wasn't inexpensive by any means but once they're done, they'll last for as long as we stay here. I'll plant beans from one packet of seeds and we found really nice large plants at the flea market. The two packs of tomatoes we bought were 1.75 each for four plants and I got dill and rosemary for 1.00 each. Also, two sweet potatoes for 1.00 each. I haven't grown those before but wanted to try them. Our nice new neighbor who starts everything from seed is saving me four tomato plants and tomorrow I'll stop at the garden center and get one pack of cucumbers and a basil plant. That should do it for this year,
5. I usually buy my clothing at the thrift shop but this year, Christopher and Banks keeps sending me coupons. This week, they sent a 20.00 off anything and a 10.00 rewards. Although they can't be used on clearance, they can be used on sale items. I've gotten several summer shirts, capris and one pair of needed pants for very, very little and sometimes for free. With Goodwill prices being in the $4-5 dollar range, I'm paying less per item on really lovely, well made items.
Nice job on that buffet!
Thank you! I under priced it because it was a project piece and the person who bought it will refinish it for resale. A win-win all around!
I really love how you include beautiful photos in your posts! Mr. FAF just cut his hair yesterday with a $25 hair clipper. We spent a bit too much on food this month, so I'm feeling a bit guilty about it. -_-
1. We have our seven year old umbrella clothesline back up, re-strung with new clothesline, and set in concrete. I am digging around the base to install patio "stones", which are really concrete, around it so my husband won't have to mow so near it and perhaps snatch it down again. We already have the patio stones, free, from my husband's old workplace.
2. We will be eating out of the pantry, refrigerator and freezer this week. I bought less than $20 worth of food at the store, as I've been overspending some on a few budget categories -- for needed things, but still more was spent at once than I had planned. We have plenty of food in the house, so no problem.
3. My husband wanted to us to buy steak for a special meal this weekend. I went to the freezer and brought out a small package of grass-fed steak I had purchased several weeks ago from a farm. We had a nice meal and I didn't even have to leave the house. Plus, I made a lunch out of steak leftovers.
4. We enjoyed black cherry tomatoes from our plants this weekend. So, so much better than the store's tomatoes.
5. I used old fabric from my stash to make decorative fabric bows for the grape vine wreaths on the double French doors at the front of the house. The wreaths are made from our grapevines; I make some each winter when I prune the vines.
Ooh, please, please, please be careful with that mint! It's kinda like kudzu; it spreads like wildfire and engulfs everything! Keep it isolated. Put the pot on a bench, table or deck, not on the ground. Don't let it send runners out. And never plant it directly in the ground. Also, keep it far, far away from your basil if you want to grow enough to make summer pesto.
Oh dear, I hope I've made my point. Maybe I should use more exclamation points. Hmmm, I can't stress this enough!!!!!!!
I was going to say this same thing! Move your basil, which is a polite plant, to another containter so the mint won't eat it up!
You probably can't imagine this, but my vole problem here is so bad, the mint I have in my front border barely survives. There are a few bits sticking up here and there, but most of it gets eaten!
Only the mint I put in pots manages to thrive.
You're right about the basil, though. I should move that. And you know, I could actually plant that in the ground because the voles don't bother it.
A few things:
- I made photo books over at Shutterfly for father's day and grandparents. I always make sure I look for a coupon code, and sure enough, there was a 40% off one if I finished the project by the 21st (good incentive).
- The 7-year-old was complaining that all of his pants had holes in them, which turned out to be true (!) So I found the 10-year-old's jeans from last year that he hadn't worn (he prefers sweat pants) and figured out that they would fit the 7-year-old if we cinched in the waist enough. So now I don't need to buy any new pants for him.
- Hand-me-downs are seriously the best. The 2-year-old is wearing a shirt today that the 10-year-old once wore! And he plays with the tricycles I bought for the 10-year-old and 7-year-old when they were his age.
- I used up the last of the wilting spinach in my eggs this morning, rather than throw the bag out (which my husband had tried to do yesterday).
So agree on the hand-me-downs. That's why having four kids isn't four times as expensive as having one!
My 5 frugal things:
Gave hubby and my 2 boys haircuts this week--a $35 savings over barber shop
I ordered new backpacks and lunchboxes for a few of my kids from Lands End. The items were all on clearance at or below 50% off, plus, I had a 20% off code. I got 2 backpacks and 2 matching lunchboxes all for less than the cost of 1 backpack!
Ate at home every day this last week. I didn't do a good job of planning ahead, so had to scrounge a bit for dinner, but it always came together, and my family gobbled it up!
Got the summer savings pass for me and the kids for 10 summer kids' movies for $5.00! That's 50 cents per movie, and will give the kids a treat. We rarely go to the big screen as its so pricey for 5 kids, but this is an affordable treat!
Sorted all kids clothing and was able to pass 4 large bags of outgrown clothes to 2 other families at church. Not so much frugal to me, but they are so thankful, and I remember what a blessing it always is when I receive hand-me-downs!
Thanks for the idea about Lands End. My little guy will be heading off to Kindergarten in the fall and I bought his book bag and lunch bag!!
Yay!! So glad I could help you save a few $$!
This week is going to be a rough week for being frugal!
1. I was out of town for a work event and had to pay for all of my own meals up front, but I will be reimbursed. So I guess that is somewhat frugal because I didn't have to use my own food for three days.
2. I am heading out of town AGAIN this week for work and we are asked to bring a giveaway for this conference. I was under the assumption that we had to buy the giveaway with our own money (and not use work funds) BUT my boss said that I can return what I had purchased and re-buy it with work money!!
3. I am so happy that it's Memorial Day, because we get to go camping. Though we do have to travel to get to camp (and spend money on gas), we get to share the weekend with my family and my husband's family. Since I don't cook much, we share the food that everyone else brings and we are only responsible for the drinks for the entire weekend.
4. My son is on a t-ball team and I was responsible for this weekend's drink (I needed to supply 12 drink boxes). I did have that number on hand, but it ended up raining and the game was cancelled. I didn't even have to use up juice boxes we had on hand. No money spent.
5. I'm not sure if I already used this one or not, but I had returned some dog supplies (that I had purchased though Amazon and was not happy with the quality) and we just received the refunds. Only one "supplier" asked for a more detailed explanation of why I returned the items.
I cut both the boy's hair last night. I even cut it outside where I wouldn't have to clean up, hah!
Last week we bought hamburgers at the store and cooked ourselves instead of giving into really wanting take out burgers.
I needed some new summer clothes so yesterday I went shopping at a consignment and thrift store.
I traded sourdough bread for mozzarella cheese from our milk lady.
Marius packed lunches for his brother and him for fishing today instead of buying lunch like his fishing buddies were doing.
The kids needed shorts and they had jeans with big holes in the knees...they now have shorts!
I would totally trade bread for cheese! I have no experience in making cheese, but bread is very easy for me.
I looovveee it when trading happens. My husband does mechanical work on our friend who raises cattle, friend has numerous tractors and equipment...friend buys the parts and hubs does the work...for pay we get a cow and a pig every year to have in the freezer.
Ditto with another buddy of his whos a fisherman and a hunter...fish and elk to go in the freeze
Lastly....I have a friend who has apples, plums, rhubarb, raspberries, blue berries, ect...we all pick and I put up many jams, pie fillings, dehydrated fruit, and apple sauce....the price....she gets 2 out of every 6 cans of preserves I make (she's unfortunately not one to can herself (!!)...the fruits and the jars I have are free so why not???
wow...I didn't realize how much trading we did....goodness!
awesome on the cheese...I've always wanted to try making it...wine to...
now I want bread and cheese!
FOR his friend...not ON!!! lol
1. Shopped at Aldi.
2. Made one ribeye last for two meals for myself, and it was plenty each time.
3. Ordered three tops online, and one is way too big. Instead of paying return shipping on the item, I will sit down at my sewing machine and alter it. Wish me luck on this. I've done it many times but this top has an asymmetrical hemline. We'll see how it goes.
4. Made a big pot of potato soup, all with ingredients already on hand. Had it for dinner with French bread one night, and hubby had it for lunch the next day.
5. Re-visited my Amazon Subscribe and Save account to check if my items are still the best deal they offer. They're not-- made a few changes, and cancelled one altogether.
1) I'm rescuing some wilted lettuce in cold water for a salad tonight.
2) I froze spinach before it went bad to use in smoothies and tried in out today. It was great!
3) my husband and I use the same razor handle with different blades for each of us. I found a ton of his blades and so we're good on razors for some time to come.
4) I'm taking just my baby on a mini-vacation to see my grandma and aunts this weekend. I'm staying with family the whole time and will only need to pay for gas.
5) I've been using a low laundry basket to bathe my 7 month old instead of buying a specific tub for that job. He can bathe with his older brother and it's so much easier for him to stay upright.
1) Inspired by the nonconsumeradvocate I took my Dyson apart and gave it a thorough cleaning. It is four years old and used regularly. Holy moly it was so full of dust. I wasn't having any problems with it, but I'm hoping a good cleaning will help it last for many more years.
2) My husband and I had a fantastic weekend in Alexandria, Virginia without (!!!!) the kids. He booked an airbnb as a surprise for me. Booking a shared space saved us a lot of money, but it was still as luxurious and private as an expensive hotel. We toured Mount Vernon but didn't buy souvenirs or food on site. We went for a free bike ride. We splurged on a couple of restaurant meals. Sunday brunch at Jackson 20 was worth every single penny.
3) While we were out of town and the kids were at our moms' houses we rented our house on airbnb for more than we spent on the entire trip.
4) When we got back into town yesterday afternoon my husband went to retrieve the children and I took advantage of the quiet to meal plan and shop at Aldi for this week. I planned a bunch of salads for myself and my husband, but I beefed up the menu (literally, I added a meatloaf) for the kids. We've got a couple of folks in growth spurts, and I almost ran out of food last week!
5) I'm evolving our supper routine a bit. I've got these hungry little eaters who want meat and pasta. Then I've got my husband and myself who are still loosing baby weight from the youngest and limiting our carbs. I've got a super picky eater, an eat-anything eater, and one in between. I'm starting to cook a specific meal only a couple times a week. But most nights it is a mix of salads, sandwiches, and leftovers sort of assembled out of ingredients in the fridge to the tastes and needs of each person. It's not any more work, and if my pickiest eater ends up eating sandwiches every other day made of roasted chicken breast on homemade bread, well I think there are worse things in life. If the only vegetables my three year old eats this summer are carrots and broccoli, I think we're okay. The whole scheme is cheaper too because I can buy the same simple ingredients over and over. I know variety is the spice of life, but happiness for me is a table at which three small people are all eating happily.
1.) Worked a bunch of overtime. Frugal is good but earning more is good too.
2.) Continuing our trend of eating out of the freezer and only buying produce and the like.
3.) Searched around and got a good deal on a new car seat. The old one isn't that old so we may consider selling it on CL or Facebook or something.
4.) Made granola from the ATK DIY Cookbook. My daughter is loving it though I'm not sure how healthy it is considering how much sugar is in it.
5.) Actually finding time to enjoy some of the things that I purchased years ago. It's tough when you have a kid but once in a while I get some free time and can play some games or watch a movie or something. Instead of buying new ones I'm going back to get the ones I missed when they were new.
1. Snagged some great deals at the grocery store between coupons that double, store e coupons and my coupon aps. Have a nice selection of meat items that can be grilled in the warmer weather!
2. took advantage of a colder satruday and made a batch of banana mini breads from the freezer stash.. then made a batch of lemon blueberry breads... great snacks!!
3. took advantage of the rainy Sunday and went through 3 kids drawers and closets. found a few *missing* items and put them into the correct childs closet...Removed too small, stained, too large items and divided between the "save for him to grow into bucket", " Off to K's house cause her kids never grow" and the donation bag... Re-attached/repaired a few buttons and suddenly its like they have new wardrobes... Maybe we will wear more then the same 4 shirts...-LOL
4. inlaws brought over supper on Sunday and insisted we keep some.. Adding extra broth and abag of mixed veg and re-creating the chicken N noodles.. Cheap supper!
5. read my email and saw that my grocery store is doing a free item every day.. Grabbed my box of tissues and remembered I clipped an E coupon for toothbrush heads.. grabbed the pack marked 50% off and got an additional $1.00 off that! WIN!
We had a late season snow storm last week, so instead of cursing the cold, I lit an oven - or something like that....
- I found an organic chicken on markdown and bought it for a steal.
- Roasted said chicken & made stock.
- I made baked beans from scratch.
- Found a bag of potatoes in the basement that I bought for $1 last fall - some had sprouted so I planted them. With the rest I made mashed potatoes to go with my roasted chicken & baked beans.
- Found myself in the posh section of town yesterday, so I stopped at the grocery store and got a whole grocery sack full of fresh organic fruit for $4 from the markdown bin.
I love the five frugal things!
1. I bundled errands when I went to the other side of town. It saved time and gas to plan ahead.
2. I bought imitation vanilla instead of the real thing. I looked up why prices are so high. Madagascar has a vanilla shortage and 3/4 of our vanilla comes from there. Vanilla prices in 2011 was $11 per pound and today it is $193. I will save my real vanilla that is still left for special things like birthdays. The cookies I made today using the imitation vanilla were still very good!
3. I needed a new phone and a friend is giving me an old unused one. I did not do anything for this frugal thing, but was the recipient of someone else's kindness.
4. I am just getting over a very bad cold and I restocked the cold meds that I had used up so that it is available when someone needs it. It will be a relief to have it some day and I was able to shop intentionally and get a good price, which is not always possible when someone is sick.
5. I lined-dried half of my last load of laundry.
I was wondering why the price of vanilla had jumped so high, but I'd never bothered to check why. Thanks for the tip!
Cooks Illustrated has done several studies of natural vs imitation vanilla (aka vanillin, which is technically a natural product - but barely). Unless the person isa trained tester, drinking vanilla straight, or making very vanilla-y custard, one can't tell the difference between the two.
So go ahead and buy imitation vanilla for your cooking and baking needs.
And thanks for checking and sharing. I noticed that there weren't any deals on vanilla over the winter holidays - which is my usual time for stocking up - and now I know why.
Good to know about imitation vanilla. I have some that I "inherited" from my sister in law, but I've never tried baking with it. I usually buy the Costco vanilla extract.
Thanks to you, WilliamB, for mentioning the Non Consumer Advocate awhile back. I'm really enjoying reading back posts there.
1. Dh and I are newly empty nesters ;(, so we started a new plan where we each pick one new thing to do/see every month and one new non-chain restaurant. So, this weekend we went to the beach and toured a lighthouse (I picked this), climbing all 203 steps to the top, then we ate at a new to us Italian restaurant (his pick). We budget for this and we almost never eat out because $$ and calories, and it just normally is not not that good, so it is a treat and we are picky.
2. We went to Sam's and bought only the items that are cheaper there. Basmati rice, bread flour, spinach, Romaine, etc.
3. I went to WM and used Walmart Pay and then submitted my receipt electronically for their price match guarantee.
4. I ordered a pair of Capris from WM, delivered to store (so free), I am losing weight and not wanting to commit between sizes. Our WM also has grocery pickup now, so you can order EVERYTHING online, check in on the app. when you get there and they bring it out to your car. Alternately, you can order non-food items online, i.e. feminine products or anything really, and use a cashback site and then do either site to store if you are less than the free shipping amount or do free shipping to save the hassle of going in the store.
5. My parents came over today and I made lunch at home, instead of going out, so we had spinach, strawberries, sugared almonds, Feta and Balsamic salads. I also made the Artisan bread in 5 but in the Dutch oven, it turned out perfect.
I am really overjoyed with my savings this week.
1. I was careless and washed my cellphone in a load of laundry last month. I was not willing in that moment to purchase a new phone due to the higher prices and my limited budget at that moment. I canceled my account. I saw a Facebook post where they were having a new deal. Bring your phone, buy a Sim card and get 6 months service for free. I purchased a phone at Amazon for 59.00 and the Sim card at Republic and my new service should be good tonight. The 30.00 a month service is better than I had and after the 6 months is up I will switch to the 15.00 plan. $180.00 in free service makes me smile.
2. I used a coupon at Groupon for two magazine subscriptions. I got Cooks Illustrated and Cooks Country for 16.00. I guess that saved me 70%.
3. My last child graduated high school. I bought him a tie and new dress shirt for 7.00 at Goodwill. He had enough left on his gift cards from prom to cover dinner for 3 at Longhorn steak house. He requested cupcakes from Sams. 6.50.
4. We bought 5 summer shirts at Goodwill on the day the new discounted color changed. Paid 1.50 a piece.
5. I took my youngest shopping for a trip to the West Coast. She got a new swimsuit, white shorts, sarong, and 2 dresses all new with tags at the Goodwill near her college. 22.00 for all.
Great Goodwill deals! It is hit or miss at the ones nearest to me.. but when I really want to look I go to the *rich* area and we usually score at their Goodwill! lol
1. Saved some wilting spinach today.
2. Menu-planed based on what we have with the plan to use up certain ingredients before they get to the stage where they can't be used anymore.
3. Used a 40% off coupon at Hobby Lobby.
4. Bought a box of 12 graduation cards for $5.99 instead of buying individual cards for the 8 graduates we need. I checked the inside of each card to make sure they were ones we like and will actually use.
5. I locked my key in my locker at the gym today and we had to cut the lock off. While I was planning to buy a new (combination, not key) lock after that, a friend offered that I could have her old combination lock that she had on hand and didn't use anymore. Praise God! I'm so thankful for her generosity.
I am amazed by everyone's creative approaches to using things and saving money.
As usual I will be trying hard to remember. I will confess that the last week and this week are extraordinarily tight. I have been remembering to pull meat from the freezer before leaving the house so I have some protein for the main meal. This week I have used ham and chicken to make lunches, soup as it is late autumn in Oz and a main meal from each. My washing machine can hold an enormous amount and for once the white was filled to capacity (14KG), all the washing is line dried, found cards for my daughter's baby shower reduced to 99 cents, everyone in the family is now busily shopping sales for the baby when she arrives, and lastly we are using many hand-me-downs and the ancient family crib.
I absolutely love yellow squash, but I'm a Southern girl who cut her teeth on it. Down South we cook our squash with butter and onions. First you saute diced onions in butter until just before they turn brown and then you add the squash. Add a little salt and pepper and if you like a dash of garlic. So yummy!!!!
That's how we do it in Northern Illinois, too! Same with zucchini. Kristin, I know you like zucchini and to me yellow squash or the Mexican grey calabasa both taste the same as zucchini! What are your thoughts on that?
We used to do the exact same thing with the ballet bun! It's recital season here, too.
I had a good week!
-Got several years of Taste of Home magazine for free from a neighbor
- shopped a 20% off meat sale and stocked for cookouts
- had some successes at CVS and Walgreens
- Made rhubarb muffins from garden
- attempting to propagate new Coleus plants... fingers crossed!
This week it's all about moderating expensive purchases, rather than full-bore frugality. I ate out, bought a lot of meat, and had guests.
1. I bought $125 worth of organic and/or pastured foods for $80 from Whole Foods.
Used a $20 off $100, to buy produce, cheese, and meat. Combined this with a $5/$25 meat sale, which was good for ~each~ $25 of meat. Combined with a beef sale - top round (perfect for jerky) for $5/lb instead of $9/lb. In the end, the beef was $3.20lb instead of $9/lb. Too bad I have only one of the $20 off coupons!
2. Moderated the spendy weekend a bit. Had visiting family stay with me; separately another friend was in town. Went out to eat three times. But one meal was almost free because of an accumulation of free meal coupons, another meal I was very moderate with my choices. Ate only food at home for the one main meal at home that included home-made meat marinara from on-sale beef and on-sale canned tomatoes. So much better to buy in advance when you can wait for the sales.
3. For entertainment, we went to the free museum.
4. Used a gifted subway card to take the subway to one of the restaurants meals. Helped out my friends by driving them home instead of their taking a cab.
5. Visiting family is recently-married couple who live on a houseboat. My gift to them is to knit them hats ... from yarn from my stash, bought on sale natch. The hats are durable, warm, machine washable, and don't take up much space.
I love the green onion idea, and may try that once we get settled again. I don't feel like I've been very frugal, since we're traveling, but I'll see if I can come up with 5 things:
1. We wanted to get a tarp to put over the stuff on our roof rack. My husband found a guy who is going to sew one up from an old Nissan banner, I love African ingenuity and reuse!
2. I'm using one of those big parmesian containers to keep our pretzels in during our trip. It keeps them from turning into crumbs and is much easier to store in our snack box than if they were in a bag.
3. I'm freezing bottles of water for our drive tomorrow, so we hopefully won't have to buy any water like we did yesterday.
4. While we did use the AC of our guestrooms last night, we turned them off during the day, as we pay for electrical use here.
5.And...I'm at a loss for #5, so I'll pull a Katy from Non-Consumer advocate and say, "I didn't buy a lear jet"
Our savings are in the start process with our gareden. Hubby planted 20 assorted fruit tree, transplanted gooseberry and raspberry bushes and 50 strawberry plants. I am half way through getting the rocks out of the raised beds and ready for more vegetables. I easily spend $30-40 a week on fruits and veggies, so once the veggies are ready, I will be saing plenty. Seeing $4 for a small container of berries in the store knowing I will be able to pick quarts for free from my garden has me psyched, I cant wait.
Being the weather is nice, haircuts will be outside this weekend. I told my hubby the boys are due, please do them on Saturday. My mom is coming over for me to color her hair and have my husband give her a haircut as well. Clean up after the haircuts is easy, just use the leaf blower to clean off the patio. The henna is messy though, was thinking of running a hose from the laundry room to rinse out her hair as the water from the regular outside hose is so cold. My mother has fine hair and it reaches just below her shoulders, so my husband does do the full sectioning and gives her a blunt cut with no layering. Only takes him a few minutes.My husband trimmed my locks and colored my hair so I am not due. Mine is quite thick like your daughters and reaches past my elbows, so it takes him a good half hour to do the sectioning and trimming. When he colors my hair with the henna, it takes two packets and takes him over 45 minutes to cover my mop. I am very lucky he has the patience to do it for me. My neighbor told me it would easily be over $200 to get my hair colored in the salon not including the trim because of the long hair extra charge and I don't trust anyone but my husband with scissors anywhere near my hair.
Not expecting any big savings with my car as I am getting new tires on it this week, a big expense, but I knew it was coming.
1. Shopped at Aldi using a list
2.Ate at home all week, using up leftovers for lunch
3. Made chicken stock from chicken carcess..
4. Used up spinach in smoothies
5. Read books from library.. Kids clothed in hand me downs..drank water from tap, walked for exercise..
Chicken stock is amazing. So healthy, and made from what looks like trash. Love it!
1. My tv shopping channel SIL gave me a whole box full of beautiful tops. I chose 5 and took the rest to work. My coworkers snapped them up.
2. Made chili and "leftovers soup" last weekend. I save all of our leftover beans, cooked veggies, and rice in a freezer container. When its full, I add home grown herbs and marked down beef bits.
3. A friend gave me a few dozen magazines. I kept a few and took the rest to work, where they were also snapped up quickly.
4. DS stayed for the weekend, instead of going out to eat, I made a roast I had in the freezer, the next day we ate the leftover soup and sent some home with him.
5. A candy rep stopped by work and gave us a shopping bag of samples. I chose a few, brought some home for DH, and distributed the rest to coworkers.
First time I've ever heard about Hungry Harvest...I'll definitely have to check it out and that Egg/Avocado sandwich looked pretty good.
It's been a very unfrugal week. 🙂 I got an Instant Pot and a Vitamix. But that's the reason I try to be frugal the rest of the time. 🙂
It has been a very healthy food week. Plus I'm having a great time making hot soup in the Vitamix. 🙂
Spending a lot of money isn't necessarily unfrugal. There are multiple definitions of frugal, but one of the best is that you spend your money wisely and deliberately, and look for bargains when you do buy a thing.
I've tried keeping spice plants alive, but they all died. All of them. Even the rosemary plant, that isn't pretentious. Oh well, at least I kept what was left and stocked up on spices for a little while.
I'm also the family's hairstylist 😀 To save money, I learned how to use the haircut trimmer. In addition to saving money, it's actually kind of fun!
We also saved a ton by not eating out this week. I cooked at home every day and learned how to make homemade peanut butter. Yumm!
* We had a plumber come in to inspect a drain. We thought we would have to have it repaired by digging into the concret, etc, costing about 2000$, but it ended up being something minor costing only 115$! Yay!!!! So we will put this money saved-up on the mortgage instead.
* Hubby will be doing some work himself on the land this week-end, saving us about 1000$ on labor fees
* Birthday of a little friend. Got some Paw Patrol stuff for 20$ and rounded up the gift with a ballon, a book and crayons we got for free
((And I have an happy non-frugal one to share : my 1st grade daughter has been invited to something like 15 birthday parties this year. So this is not cheap at about 20$ gift each party. But I'm SO happy about this! I'm SO happy that she has all these friends and gets included like this, it makes my heart sing! This is totally worth it. I'm thinking about this because I have 2 gifts to go shop for this week.))
Woohoo about the lower bill!