- I worked the last two days, plus work tomorrow at the hospital. I’ve brought my own lunches, and enjoyed the free free coffee and tea. Monday was time-and-a-half, (yeah, baby!) which will inflate my next paycheck to something special. July is a three paycheck month, so I’m hoping to sock away as much money as possible towards September’s double college tuition payments. My sister will be visiting Portland during the second half of August, and I plan to take that time off from RN work.
- My Sasha doll eBay listing went live. No bids yet, but lots of views, so I’m crossing my fingers. I also have a woman who has been e-mailing about my antique oak pedestal table. I submitted another Clark Howard article, plus have another one in the works.
- My husband seems to be doing better about making dinner from scratch on days that I work.
- I took care of my mother’s guest cottages whiles she was out of town. One tenant needed a vacuum cleaner. Instead of buying her one, I brought her mine to use until my mother can set her up with one from her basement.
- I didn’t buy a Lear Jet.
Now your turn. What frugal things have you been up to?
Katy Wolk-Stanley
{ 60 comments… read them below or add one }
You’re so lucky- my hospital only pays time and a half for Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Years Day!
1. I worked from home, and am working from home again tomorrow. I’m saving four hours of commuting time and petrol, and my sanity. I’m just as productive, if not more so.
2. We are sticking to our menu plan and food budget. Tonight was Haloumi burgers on homemade burger buns.
3. We are using our wood fire to keep warm. I don’t think we will have to buy wood this season.
4. Watched free catch up TV last night on my phone. ‘Rake’ is back on the ABC, for all you Aussies. I just about passed out laughing. Free belly laughs.
5. It has been pouring with rain here, but we are happy because we planted our new fruit trees a week before the deluge started and now they will be getting a great soaking. Looking forward to (almost) free summer fruit in a year or two.
Frugal fail – I forgot to renew a DVD at the library and now I will have a fine. Bugger.
Our library started something new this summer…read away your fines (for ages 17 and under) $1 off every 15 minutes you read. 😉
1. I went to Dollar Tree for a specific list of things. I couldn’t find any of them, and left with nothing.
2. Then went next door to Michael’s for some small American flags for a project for next summer. I came across the project last week, but no way was I going to pay full price for a week’s worth of decor, when I knew they would be 60% off July 5th. I also checked phone for coupons, and they had a coupon for an additional 25% off purchase including sale items. Next year I will be happy with my patriotic decoration knowing it was not a budget buster…talk about delayed gratification. 🙂
3. Then I saw Hobby Lobby right across the street. Walked in at 4:00 pm. Browsed briefly. Took a photo of something interesting that I could create on my own with supplies at home. Left store with zero purchases at 4:12 pm. Damn, that old impulse-purchase bug is losing its grip on me!
4. Hubs wasn’t home, so I made myself a sandwich for supper. Tasted extra good, because it was so easy.
5. Reading library ebook on my Kindle.
I cleaned out my hall closet and organized it with free boxes I had instead of buying storage containers.
I melted down a too-dark lipstick with a too-pale lip balm to make a lovely new color.
I used sales and coupons to get two tubes of toothpaste for less than $1
I said “No” to childrens’ fast-food requests. (They’ll thank me when they’re 30!)
I shopped at ALDI and bought lemons instead of lemonade.
I love that you melted down the two colors to make a new one 🙂 I like doing that with makeup… it is kinda the same thing as combining random leftovers into an awesome tasting dish. My husband now knows to ask me, “Will you be able to make this again?” LOL, prolly not, dear…
Some of our best meals have been happy accidents. This happens when you cook with what’s on hand and from the heart.
1) I have taken a little side job today. It is only minutes from my home. I have my PB&J ready to go and my ice-cold water. Extra $$$$ will go into our home repair fund.
2) It was too hot to be outside yesterday. Temperatures were still in the 90s at 8:00pm, so we watched The Tunnel on PBS. Free entertainment.
3) I pulled tonight’s dinner out of the freezer this morning. It is defrosting in the refrigerator and will be ready to cook when I return home. I will pair fish with sliced tomatoes and greens. It is really too hot to cook, but the men in my life insist on eating.
4) I had my “office day” yesterday. I took care of some financial business for the week.
5) Too hot to go anywhere. Too hot to do anything. Too hot to even reach for my wallet. I haven’t spent on anything, but groceries for days.
Company still here, so here’s what we are doing:
1. Haven’t gone out to eat for two weeks while company is here. Meal planning together to save money instead of going out.
2. Using local produce for a large part of our meals.
3. Taking daughter out for lunch with gift cards to have some one on one time together before she leaves today.
4. All children are drinking water or kool aid, no soda.
5. I have a play area I’ve furnished with toys from Goodwill and old items that belonged to my children. I watched what theGrandchildren play with and culled through, taking out the toys they don’t, giving them to Goodwill. Less clutter, more fun.
1. Productive but frustrating night of completing online form to get my $699 back from the Verizon phone deal of BOGO which involved uploading forms, figuring out how to scan my boxes for the UPC to find out the printer/scanner doesn’t work i.e. I think its the cable. 🙁 Waited on the phone over 30 minutes for customer service to finally get someone to respond in their chat room who told me to take a photo and attach – duh! Got it done though and will receive a Visa card with the money on it.
2. Completed this morning the other rebate from buying the phones a $50 Costco card.
3. Completed my invoice and submitted my hours from my part-time job, pretty nice sum. 🙂
4. Uping my Swagbuck game, now leaving my phone on the video app, really adds up the points and not as distracting as having to keep clicking all the time. Hope to have another $25 Paypal card by next week.
5. Looking forward to the free concert I had won tomorrow night which comes with appetizers and a tour of the auto”baron” home. 😉
Frugal Fails –
1.No rain in over two weeks thus having to water my plants and succumbed to watering the front lawn only every other night. At least I am doing it later at night.
2. Also running the air conditioning all the time, to hot and humid not to. At least we are closing the blinds during the day and doors to help limit the use, although I have to lower it at night as it gets to hot upstairs from the sun beating on my bedroom till late. 🙁
Re: your Frugal Fails, Beth Anne: Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. I haven’t been watering the lawn at all, because I’m giving the veggies priority (no water, no tomatoes). But I hear you re: the AC, the blinds, etc.
Now, my FFT:
(1) Many thanks to all of you who weighed in with support re: DH on my “Five Things Making Me Happy…” comment a few days ago. I like this kind of Internet support a lot better than the tech support I usually get when I try for that.
(2) I’ve figured out a way to make running the AC in a drought work for me: The AC dehumidifier drips condensed water off the coils into our laundry tub, so I’m putting watering cans under the outlet and collecting the water. Every little bit helps in my poor parched garden.
(3) Three jars of refrigerator dill pickles so far. The cukes are grateful for the water.
(4) Continuing to work on eating up what we have on hand. Veggie burgers last night from an ancient warehouse club pack, and chicken legs tonight out of the freezer…
(5) …plus a homegrown salad (the very last of the heat-blasted spring lettuce, along with a couple of cukes too deformed to fit into pickle jars).
1. I’m volunteering my RN services to a free clinic tonight, after working all day, so I have BBQ pork defrosting in the fridge for hubs and kids. I will bring water from home and some peanut butter and crackers to get me through and help me avoid the drive through.
2. I really need my hair cut. It’s starting to look pretty scrappy. I am going to continue to hold off for awhile by wearing it in a messy bun until my cosmetology student daughter can pencil me in her schedule.
3. I am loving the fact that my little girls wear mostly sundresses and flip flops all summer. This easy wear also saves on laundry, no socks or pants.
4. I have been avoiding the stores and trying to use things I have on hand. I do feel like I need to add some more fresh fruits/veggies to my diet. We have also been out of town a lot the past two weeks and my diet has suffered from too much prepackaged crap.
5. I am planning to go though all my kids clothes to see what all we have that fits and what needs to be replaced or put up. A little organization can save so much. School starts in 1 month, where did the time go?!?
1. Working a full shift at a my part time job today, and swapped childcare with a neighbor for the 2 hours overlap between my husband going to work and me getting home.
2. Enjoyed a smoothie during my morning drive to work made from brown bananas and some fruit I froze rather than let go bad while we were out of town this weekend
3. Took advantage of grocery store ecoupons to stock up on gift cards for upcoming birthdays. ($10 off 2 $25 restaurant gift cards, plus I get 4 times fuel points and 6% cash back on my credit card)
4. Going out of town next week and menu planning with what we have on hand. Also freezing portions of leftovers so my husband will have food for his lunches while I am gone.
5. Continuing to line dry all my laundry. Texas heat is good for something at least.
And one frugal fail: our cable bill has gotten out of control, and I have had “call cable company and see about lower rate” on my to-do list for weeks. Calling them is always a miserable experience and I keep putting it off. Need to suck it up this week and deal with it.
(I would be happy to cut the cord, but husband still wants to watch “real” TV. Since he’s frugal everywhere else he can have his TV.)
I feel you on this one! We would cut cable and use “free” streaming from Prime, but we have satellite internet which we pay dearly for each month – and that is a work necessity so no cutting that (or upping it if I can help it). Meanwhile, the loving spouse gets to watch “real” TV. 🙂
I love doing this! Last time I did it, I got my cable bill lowered and free DVR for two years! But, I will periodically cut off my cable for months, too, so they know I mean it when I threaten to leave.
One thing that always helps is to say, “Look, I only watch Game of Thrones and Walking Dead (or whatever two shows you love) and I could just go buy the seasons for the pricepoint I’m paying per month with you.” For some reason, I’ve found using economic jargon with them really seems to work.
This past weekend we were very industrious!
1. We visited family over the Fourth of July weekend and partook in far too many greasy, delicious foods. We came home Sunday night and we were exhausted and felt gross. Instead of picking up fast food or eating out, I defrosted a few bags of spaghetti squash. I bought the squash a few weeks ago and cooked and stored it for a rainy day. I prepared it lo mein style with a soft boiled egg on top. It. Was. So. Good!
2. My in-laws sent us home with a free dozen of eggs from their yard chickens, so we didn’t have to buy eggs this week. Score!
3. Blueberries were on sale for 97 cents a pound, so we bought four cartons of them. We washed, dried, and froze them. I used a cup of them to make a blueberry pound cake, which also solved our problem of having too many eggs!
4. I made croutons out of old bread bits and ends. We save any stale or uneaten bread in our freezer. Once the bag is full, I either make croutons or bread crumbs. Cheap and delicious!
5. I made my first sort-of-okay attempt at sewing a work shirt. It turns out that I need to learn how to adjust sewing patterns, though. The shirt looks beautiful but it’s too small for me in certain places. Curses! Oh well, it’s been a good learning experience. I picked up a few sewing patterns at the store this week and plan to use my cheap Goodwill fabric for more “learning” projects.
Congrats on the eggs! Always a nice treat.
Good luck on the fabric. I’ve started checking out sheets and fabric at thrift stores- such a great idea for those learning projects.
Ugh! Reading these just reminded me I had a rebate to mail in and forgot! I missed the deadline. 5 FTs really helps me improve my frugal game.
1. I took two large boxes of mostly thrifted books to Half-Price Books and received $41.
2. Donated some extra household items to Habitat Restore (tax deduction for next year).
3. I am on vacation this week and my sons have been happy to just hang around the pool (at my boyfriend’s condo) and do activities on the free city Cultural Pass (basically free museum visits for kids and an adult). I hardly hear the word ‘Staycation’ anymore, but that is pretty much what we are doing this year.
4. Bought groceries at Aldi and our local grocery salvage store. I have only spent about $100 for three (sometimes four) of us.
5. I made vegan coconut milk cherry ice cream. I used ingredients already in the pantry (and fresh cherries bought on sale) and the Cuisinart ice cream maker I thrifted new-in-box some time ago for $11. It was a yummy cold treat!
5. sounds delicious!
1. Sold the Coach wristlet on ebay that I bought locally last week. I also listed the larger bag, coat, and silk dress.
2. When I installed a new bathroom vanity a couple months back, I considered buying a reciprocating saw, but made it work using tools on hand. In retrospect, it would have been MUCH easier with the right saw. Someone posted a Craftsman for $25 on a local FB board yesterday, and I bought it.
3. Sold numerous items on a FB board yesterday to one person for $22. Always a nice surprise when someone takes the time to look through my album and wants more the one thing.
4. Checked out Zootopia movie from the local library to watch over the weekend. All DVDs are free, and they have a huge selection.
5. Sold both copies of our Wii Sports game on ebay. They used to come free with the Wii and were worth nothing. I guess now they are in short supply. Not sure why we had two, but as we have better sports games for the Kinect, nobody at my house wanted them.
Read your #4 and thought it was a great idea – took a second and popped over to the library website and put it on hold. Only 164th in line. Yikes! 😮
Holy cow. My library only has 13 holds on 6 copies right now.
1. I started a new price book. I had convinced myself I knew my prices and didn’t need one, but in making up this new one I found some recent unwise purchases so obviously the new one is needed.
2. Hubby and I emptied, repaired, cleaned, and re-organized a leaning bookcase. He initially declared it unfixable, but he came back to it with another idea and now it stands perfectly straight and is well-secured to the wall as well (it is 6 feet tall).
3. In the process of #2 I found a few duplicates and some other books to resell.
4.I finished paying off one large medical bill and the next day a new big one came in. I am paying on it but have adjusted the budget so the difference in the payments doesn’t evaporate!
5. Eating leftovers from the 4th. Potato salad for the win!
Good luck with your Sasha doll! I know you’d love to add that little chunk of change to the old college fund.
Here are mine:
1. Instead of going out for fireworks on Independence Day, we stayed in and had a friend over for hamburgers. He brought sparklers, which the boys enjoyed thoroughly.
2. I brought the boys to the library Saturday morning for family story time, which will hopefully be a weekly tradition. I’ve been a bit lax about going to the library regularly, but I’d like to really start taking advantage their wonderful programs and, well, the books, too :-).
3. My mom gave me something like 100 lbs of free cat food – like high-end cat food. The kitties will be eating well the next several months :-).
4. Independence Day morning we went to a parade in the small town where I lived during high school. My grandfather (a member of the American Legion) was participating and the town served up free hot dogs, chips, water, and cake for attendees! The extra family time was also nice.
5. Managed to get quite a bit of boxes cleared out of our 3rd bedroom, which has been a holding area since we moved. Most things just needed to be unpacked an put away, but a good bit of stuff was put in the donate box or will be sold at a local consignment sale at the end of the month. I’m looking forward to getting this room into a usable state!
1- Almost 4 years after being laid off, my husband found a job that pays enough to pay for daycare (2 kids) and has family-friendly hours! We’ll have to dip into savings to cover day care until his first check comes in, but hopefully we’re on our way back to stability.
2- Went to Goodwill yesterday to “cherry pick”. No wonderful deals, so I walked out.
3- I’m meeting my sister and her family, and my Dad and step-Mom at the coast for the weekend. I spent last night putting together a menu plan, packing list and grocery lists. It should head off eating out or expensive last-minute choices.
4- In one of Portland’s great free piles, I found a window AC unit. It works wonderfully and will take the edge off when we start heading towards 100 degrees. We didn’t have any AC, so it is very much appreciated.
5- Still packing lunches, making my own coffee and taking the bus every day.
Hurray on the new job!
Congratulations on your husband’s job! And on your excellent AC find.
Congratulations on the new job for your hubby! I’m sure you’re both relieved. I’ve been laid off twice and I know how unnerving it is to lose your income.
Great news about your husband’s new job.
I just did my last 5FT yesterday, but I will try again,
1. I skipped new accessories and a warranty when I purchased my new work phone. I always ask about factory refurbs, but no luck this time. I don’t buy warrantys due to the ROI (it’s a great deal for the company selling it!) or buy items I can’t replace in cash if a fluke accident, so no $12/mo insurance either. I didn’t finance, I paid in full. My cittern accessories work fine. No no no to unnecessary extras! Now I can work again!
2. I batches errands for dinner and phone and library, remembering we have a t-mobile store in our neighborhood, no dreaded trip to the mall!
3. My friend is bringing my left behind phone home with her in August from Serbia, where I left it in a cab. No shipping costs and it will be a BIG upgrade to my husband’s current phone! No need to buy him one now, my exhaustion is a gift!
4. Catching up on my junk TV shows for free, with a swapped account.
5. Found a million and one free things around this house to do this weekend as we have been gone. Mostly chores, but it counts!
*current not cittern, which is apparently an instrument from the Renaissance?
That is too funny. I wonder what accessories a cittern would have? 🙂
When I buy a product from a store and they immediately start talking about the extended warranty for that product. I look them in the eye and say very calmly and seriously, well I am buying your fine product and I expect if there is a fluke and it breaks you will stand behind this fine product.
It is usually young men selling the product. Some looked confused and some look embarrassed but they all stop talking about the extended warranty.
We just bought a$12 box fan and they wanted to buy the one year warranty! Who does that?
What I always say is, ‘no thanks, I don’t buy insurance for things I can self-insure.’ That always confuses them as well.
1. I cut my own hair. My husband’s haircut is coming up next.
2. I found a dime on the floor of a store, under the shopping carts. It was worth the stretch to get it, in my opinion.
3. I had some décor in mind to make for my newest grandchild’s nursery — I kept waiting for a sale to buy the fabric, but finally got a 50% off coupon. When I went to the store, the fabric was almost sold out, but they had just enough for what I needed (whew!), and I got the end of the bolt price — a little less than 1/3 the normal price. I was able to use the coupon on the other items I needed, instead. And also important, I sat right down and made it. I have had a habit of buying DIY supplies but never getting around to using them, which I am working hard to break.
4. Our KMart is closing so I went in and bought underwear and socks at deep discount. I googled prices first — some of the sales weren’t as “sale” as they claimed to be, so I only got the things I could verify as a good deal.
5. I’m still cooking from the freezer, pantry and garden as much as I can. I haven’t bought any meat but bacon in a good while, once I stocked the freezer. I like going in to a store and coming out with only a few dollars worth of groceries!
1. Enjoyed the fireworks show the local boy scout troop put on instead of driving to a larger town and fighting the crowds like we normally do. It saved gas and time and the show was just as nice.
2. My husband’s elderly uncle has fruit trees that he can no longer manage. We made a family day of fruit picking and now we’ll enjoy peach jam and all things plum for months to come. I also shared with the neighbors and relatives.
3. The garden is producing nicely so our grocery budget has been greatly reduced. Every summer we eat 95% vegetarian and focus on stocking the freezer for winter.
4. We are enjoying our pool pass. We swim 2-4 hours 6 days a week. The exercise is so nice and the children haven’t uttered the word “bored” yet this summer.
5. The children completed the summer reading program at the library. The t-shirts they were awarded will be put in the back-to-school pile and the hamburger/fry vouchers will be saved for a rainy day.
#5 ) Congrats on the reading program!
For anyone on the East Coast, TD Bank has a summer reading program for kids: read 10 books and earn $10 from the bank. Participants need to have a “Kids Savings” account, which is free, in order to receive the prize. More details online. This is our third year – I am hoping DS will be able to participate until he ages out in 5th grade!
1. One of hubs customers (he is an internet installer) gave him some cake from a celebration this last weekend. He brought home 12 pieces of delicious chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. Dessert is taken care of for the week. 😉
2. We were invited to a cookout/4th of July celebration this Saturday (the 9th…they live in the country…it was raining on the 4th here), and I offered to take a few dishes and a dessert, but only things I already had on hand in the pantry and freezer. No additional costs to us, and no extra trips to the store. 🙂
3. Listing several items on a local swap this week……so hoping to make some moola. Last time I made $200. All money made will go towards a fall vacation for the family.
4. Selling some books and curriculum we don’t need/use, and have outgrown this week. One item should sell for $125.00 with some smaller items on top of that. All money made will go towards field trips for the year for the kids. We love homeschooling!
5. Several bags of clothing were going to a consignment store, until I found out they only take almost brand new items. These have been through 2 rough and tumble boys. LOL So I am going to donate to the local Thrift Store instead. It is on the way to hubs work, so no extra trouble or gas used.
BONUS: 6. Some of the jeans that I was going to donate (see above) have holes in the knees. I have decided to cut off the bottom part of the jeans, and sew some trim, fabric, lace, etc. on them to make longer shorts for my daughter. She will grow into them in a few years, and I can coordinate the fabric or trim to her tshirts. 🙂 I only paid $1 each for these jeans in the first place, and they have gone through 2 boys, and now will be saved for my daughter. 😉
1. We’ve been eating off the July 4th leftovers – burgers, hot dogs, homemade potato salad, chips and beans go a long way at our house.
2. We watched the free fireworks show Monday night at a casino north of us. Parked off the highway on a grassy area and set out in the lawn chairs. It was fun and the weather was good, not too hot.
3. I’ve been sick with an upper respiratory infection and, thankfully, had plenty of cold remedies here at home. I’m not spending gas going to work, but having to use two days of my PTO is a bit disappointing – at least I have it to use though.
4. We have some leftover hamburger meat I need to use, so I’ll either make soft tacos or Manwiches for dinner.
5. I didn’t buy a Lear jet.
Referring to #4) I made my own Sloppy Joe mix from ingredients I had at home, instead of buying it. I used a recipe I found online. It was so good, I may never use the canned stuff again! YUM!
A great way to save money on food and no spending gas running to the store. I need to make more things myself, instead of opting for convenience, it was so simple.
1. I have a cold so I’m not leaving home today. Or maybe tomorrow if I don’t feel better. Nothing spent if I can’t leave home!
2. Got a refund check for my insurance yesterday for $17. Deposited it directly in savings.
3. Last weekend when I went to see Noel Gallagher, I was looking at the tickets I got off stubhub– I’d waited literally to the last minute because I wasn’t going to pay the $150 per ticket they wanted when the tix were released (I can never get tickets through ticketmaster for the Ryman in Nashville!) I guess because I waited till three days before the show, the seller had gotten nervous they might not sell so I got great seats for $25 LESS per ticket than face value! The total for 2 tickets even with all the fees was less than what they had originally wanted for one!
4. I skipped the merch line at the show.
5. We ended up looking at couches last week on Friday and the wife wanted couple. I said, “Let’s just go out and eat dinner and talk it over before we pull the trigger.” So, we went and had Mexican food (this sounds very not frugal because we ate out, but…we decided NOT to spend $1400-1800 on new living room furniture. When our oldest friend came over later to take us to pick up an antique library table (for my desk) he said, “I think I’m going to buy a couch later today. I hate the one I have and like my neighbors which is on sale this weekend. You want my old (only 2 years old) sectional?” So, by going for dinner and talking it over, I saved $1500 easy. (And his couch is perfectly fine, he dislikes that it pills but that’s easily taken care of!)
6. Am listening to an audiobook from the library. Tim Gunn’s _The Natty Professor_. I love him!
So weird, not only have I been nursing a cold for the last couple of days, but we are also watched a similarly titled _The Nutty Professor_ (original one with Jerry Lewis) from the library.
Great save on the couch! I love when that happens!
I also love Tim Gunn. I just checked our library and they don’t have the audiobook, but do have the book. Thanks!
I feel for you, nursing a bad cold myself.
GREAT save on the couch, that’s awesome!!
1. Load of laundry on my rack outside.
2. Husband’s aunt brought us a dozen peaches so will make crisp or something with them. Likely use my convection feature on the microwave to avoid the oven.
3. Keeping lights off until absolutely necessary in the evening.
4. Finally gave up on watering the lawn. 2 1/2 weeks of 90+ in June killed the yard. I think it’s gone dormant so will do like the neighbors.
5. Enjoying a homemade angel food cake my mom baked for my sons birthday with extra eggs I gave her before we went on vacation. It’s his favorite so he was pleased!
6. Unloading a lot of stuff on Facebook swaps the last few days. Some $ to my son and the rest to pad the savings a bit.
We started the long holiday weekend by vending at the local farmers market. My hubby vends pancakes & bbq, so we all ate free for breakfast and lunch. He had a lot of customers and there were no leftovers to bring to work for the week, but he made a lot of $cratch! Our one Frugal Fail was he thought he forgot to pack the eggs from our free-range hens that he had scrambled up the night before, so we had to stop and {gasp} buy some, only to find that he had indeed packed them! Our hens are all going broody and we are running low anyway, so I turned all the store-bought into hard-boiled for my lunches this week.
We were invited to picnics on Sunday and Monday. No one wanted me to bring a dish (I did ask!). No cooking for us either day! Plus we got to see friends who came back for a visit after moving away. It was priceless getting to see them IRL.
I redeemed my swagbucks for a $25 Amazon gift card. My middle daughter’s birthday is coming up and she wants a watch. Of course, she found one at the market for free that she’s happy with, but the gift card will still be there when she finally decides what she wants.
Our kids help us vend at the market and we treat them to ice cream as a ‘thank you’ (on top of the tips they make) on the trip home. Instead of dropping $25 on 1 serving, I ended up buying a huge 4qt container of ice cream and different toppings for them to make their own sundaes at home. They have now decided that they want to vend milkshakes at the market, so we’ll be practicing that all week. (next FFT will definitely include lots of walking!)
My wonderful fixit hubby tore apart the malfunctioning dishwasher and cleaned it out and it’s working like new again! I hate shopping for appliances, so this is a huge load off our minds and bank account. I am looking for a free or very cheap fridge to hold all our extra milk and fixin’s for his market.
Here’s a weird one: my co-worker handed me some brand new horse hobbles yesterday morning. His wife didn’t want them anymore (neither they nor we have horses). I guess she bought them intending to hobble their bloodhounds so she could trim their nails. Not sure why I was with gifted them, but my hubby and I had a good giggle or two out of it. I’ll be listing them on ebay when I’m done laughing and blushing.
* Went to a specialty store to possibly get a new bra. Can’t shop for them at Walmart anymore! (Size)… But, geez, 60$ for a very ordinary bra?! I’ll pass and wait for one more reasonable. Or, if I’m lucky I’ll find one at the thrift store like I did 6 months ago (1$!)
* A store I really like had amazing deals (like 4$ sandals and 1$ earings). I choose a couple items, then asked myself :” Do I really need these?”. No. So I left empty handed.
* Went grocery shopping and bought only healthy food, zero junk.
* Used a coupon for a free salad at lunch.
* We don’t have decors in bedrooms. Any colors, any styles, whatever. The doors are closed when we have company.
Have a great frugal day!
1) Have you considered Jockey bras? My favorite for the last year because the straps actually stay up. You can buy a “fit kit” online and size yourself and then you also get a credit on your first order. They often email about specials, discounts etc and have a rewards program.
Thanks for the tip!
1. A friend hosted a birthday lunch for me today and also gifted me with original and useful gifts. She colored an intricately designed piece of art which was both original and useful – she shrink wrapped (probably too good for this use) it; intended to be used as a mouse for my computer. Also a tin of English tea and a kit to fix eye glasses. Delightful and unexpected.
2. Leftovers from lunch were turned into a base for dinner tonight.
3. Am re-reading Stud Terkel’s “Hard Times” which is still a vibrant and interesting read. Voices remembering the 1930s told with compassion and humor. The only drawback is that my paperback copy is literally falling apart!
4. Tomorrow I plan to get the case of books riding around in my trunk to the used book store for a few $$.
5. Purchased an American Flag for my son’s new house last year and misplaced it. Found it in original wrapping and husband went out and installed it. Everyone happy – and no expenditure on a replacement.
1. No money spent today as I stayed home, did work and watched Wimbledon.
2. Kept air conditioning off a lot of the day and blinds and curtains shut to keep house cool.
3. Ate leftovers
4. Cancelled my netflix dvd membership and will only stream from now on.
5. I have a potential self-pay new client at my private practice. Fingers crossed!
1. I hung a load of laundry to dry.
2. My fiance paid off one of his student loans.
3. We just moved into a new apartment and needed a sofa. I found one marked down to $99 at a furniture consignment store. It is so comfy, and it feels even comfier because it was such a bargain!
4. In the same vein as #3, we bought two beautiful bar stools to go with the breakfast counter in our new kitchen on Craigslist. $20 each!
5. A friend and I had planned to go out for coffee yesterday, but instead I hosted her at home and made iced coffee for us.
I love it when you all share what you’re reading. I’ve used your posts to find books and audiobooks at my library! Thank you!! 🙂
I’m with you. I’m in the middle of reading _Fashion on the Ration_ by Julie Summers. Can’t remember who recommended it, but it was in someone’s FFT. And I just finished _A Few of the Girls_ by Maeve Binchy, published posthumously. I love the way she writes, but hadn’t heard of her until she was mentioned here.
I should have said that (of course) both are library books. Had to request _Fashion on the Ration_ through interlibrary loan.
1. Discovered broken washer upon arrival at cabin. Husband did a bit of research and bought the (expensive) part and installed it saving us the (very expensive) service call and labor.
2. Was able to talk a local McDonalds into a discount on their b’fast sandwiches (50) for a family reunion breakfast where we wanted no cooking and little clean up.
3. Saved on trailer rental fees for above reunion by using 2 tents instead of one.
4. Packed 2 meals for trip home, only purchased Target’s popcorn combo, and used a gift card for that.
5. Repaired car instead of buying a new one. Even with high mileage, the repair was cheaper than having monthly payments again.
1. Currently selling an old pair of sneakers that I haven’t worn in years on eBay. Also have something else listed but it has no bids yet.
2. Ate leftover salad, broccoli and asparagus soup for lunch. Made dinner with stuff from our pantry and freezer. Have a bunch of leftovers still to eat so will eat those for lunch and dinner tomorrow.
3. Celebrated the Fourth of July at our friend’s cottage on a lake. Stayed overnight and enjoyed boat rides and tubing and a fantastic fireworks celebration. Brought things I had on hand…a salad with strawberries, blueberries and goat cheese and a strawberry vinegarette, chips and salsa, beer, Doritos and pop tarts. Spent about $11 on buying things to bring up for making s’mores since they were hosting us overnight. Also took my husband’s work car so we didn’t have to pay for gas.
4. Have my fifth of seven training sessions scheduled for tomorrow. I won the training sessions from a challenge at the gym.
5. Project use it up: just about finished with a bath and body works Juniper Breeze shower gel that I feel like I’ve had for over a decade. Almost finished with a Yankee candle Lilac candle and a Glade Spring Breeze candle. I’ve been lighting them most evenings. I have a surplus of bath supplies and candles it seems so I’ve been on a quest to use them up and not buy anymore until I finish these…otherwise it’s just wasted money sitting in my cabinets.
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”
I found this out very quickly when doing groceries..
I wanted a full pantry and fridge and oh boy, what a mistake.
I wasted so much food because I could not go through all of them or just wanted a taste once. Now I buy my lunch and eat the same supper until all the ingredients are done.