- I stopped into the Goodwill Outlet on Monday with my mother and picked up this Buffy The Vampire Slayer T-shirt. It’s in like-new condition, so my first thought was to list it on eBay as it’s a medium which is absolutely not my size. However, I’m concocting a plan where I cut off the graphic and then sew it onto a shirt that actually fits me. My friend Lise has a serger, so I’ll be hitting her up for assistance. I’ll let you know how this plan goes. (For my fellow Star Trek: Voyager fans, I’m referring to this as “phage-ing” my shirt. For those who steer clear of such abject geekiness, you can think of this as “make it do.”)
- I mailed out another eBay sale, which was a set of “Healing Cards” that I picked up from a garage sale freebie pile. I like to think that I’m putting wanted items into the hands of others. I certainly didn’t want these cards, but I was able to locate someone who did.
- Yesterday and today have been over 100° degrees here in Portland, Oregon. Instead of cooling off in a movie theater or a restaurant, we’ve been munching on casual meals and running our ragtag air conditioners. Yes, our electric bill will be higher than normal, but it’ll still be cheaper than the cost of restaurant meals and first run movies. I’ve also expanded on my practice of placing the crock pot on the porch to include the toaster oven. This method allowed me to bake yummy salmon without heating up the kitchen!
- I worked on Tuesday and brought weird leftovers, (spinach with leftover taco meat, chopped tomato and salsa) and drank the free crappy coffee and the free delicious tea.
- I didn’t buy a Lear Jet or a vulgar gold-plated apartment in the sky.
Five Frugal Things
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I’m just waiting for a post about raccoons visiting your front porch!
I’ve never done a frugal 5 and may not be able to complete this first try, but here goes nothing. 1. For entertainment we (me and the grands) have been painting ‘kindness rocks.’I’ve had acrylic paint for ages and need to use it or lose it. 2. After painting we get free exercise by hiding our creations and looking for rocks painted by others. 3. School begins in a week so I’m bringing out the stockpile for the grands to choose items they need. 4. I think that’s all I got for now.
Thank you for the idea of kindness rocks…I had never heard of them. I added that idea to a Pinterest board for when my son is a bit older. 🙂
– With the heat, I convinced my husband to cold-water-wash and hang-dry clothes. A HUGE step for him. The rack usually goes in the hot driveway, but he ended up finishing up the clothes with the rack in the living room after it got dark. He didn’t want my undies to go missing.
– Limping by with fans, ice packs, and one pitiful window unit in the kitchen.
– Continuing our world-tour of salads. Cheaper than take out or eating out.
– Speaking of salads. . . the garden is producing most of our produce. Woo hoo!
– Continuing to take the bus and walk, even with the nasty smoke drifting down from BC.
Loved your “Rosie the Riveter” type tee shirt. Way to go re-purposing good stuff. In MN the hot humid weather has suddenly turned rainy and dare I say it??? Cold! Feels good to those of us who are trying to get by without A/C this summer. Broccoli cheese potato soup is simmering in my crockpot. Gotta love leftovers and the returning energy to cook!
I’m your neighbor in northwest Iowa. I agree with you it’s cool out. Love the cool weather instead the dogs days of summer that we usually have. I have the day off tomorrow and plan to cook and bake up a storm. Has been to hot to do much of either lately. I love sleeping with the windows open and the box fan sucking the cool air in.
I agree Natalie, I love, love, love fall. The weather is wonderful! Love to cook and bake.
I am proud of my frugals so far this week! Really trying to get back in the habit, as we seriously need to build up our savings.
1- I needed make up my guest room for a visitor this weekend and the old set of sheets/comforter I used to use was so covered in cat hair, there just wasn’t any saving it. First I went to Goodwill to try to find a set, but I couldn’t find anything matching, so I went to Walmart and bought the cheapest set of all cotton full sheets, and some cheap pillows. All total $35. (in the past I would have full out bought $150+ for a brand new, best of everything)
2 – Decided to dig through the bedspreads and comforters I had in the rest of the house to find something else to cover the bed. Found two clean and cheery bedspreads that will look very pretty. Both were gifts from many years ago. All total $0.
3- We’ve kept the oven off and had cereal and sandwiches all week. Along with eating at home or packing for all of our meals. All total (whatever we paid for groceries last weekend, less than $40 for those items)
4- Also in preparation for our weekend guest I’ve been doing a very small amount of cleaning in each area of the house every night. I’ve realized if I do this every week, I may actually be able to enjoy the weekends when we’re home. I hope to start a new “after work” habit of cleaning for 15-20 minutes a day… instead of getting overwhelmed on the weekends.
5 – We’ve been much better about eating leftovers and not letting food go to waste. While I’ve only actually cooked one night this week, I’ve eaten those leftovers 3 times for lunches.
1. I attended another free work seminar this one served free subway lunch! Yay!
2. I exercised at home.
3. I was told about some very disturbing, and blatant lies that were being told about me and my family. I did not have a heart attack, nor did I sue. Instead, I told my boss (since the liar called my work office and spoke to my secretary, thinking she would not tell me which tells you they are not the sharpest tool in the shed), told a good friend, and decided to take a nap. Lying, messy people are going to be nasty no matter what. Social media has also given them an avenue that was not available previously to spread their hate. As my hardworking farmer granddaddy said, “a liar is worse than a thief, they will hurt you more.”
4. I trimmed my hedges.
5. I made a doctor’s appt for myself. I have been taking care of everyone else and I think a little self care is needed.
Cindy, I am sorry about the liar. People can be very unkind sometimes. My dad– a wise man like your grandfather– would say don’t let his problem become yours. And for some wise words from a pop star, here’s Some Taylor Swift. Hang in there! https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nfWlot6h_JM
Thanks!
Re: your #3, Cindy: Stay strong, and act as you think best–both of which I know you’ll do.
Thanks!
People can be a hot mess. Taking a nap was the right response.
True
Freezing cold here down to -3 celcius overnight with frost and black ice on roads. Drizzled rain all day yesterday. 1.Broccoli, kale and rocket harvested from garden, homemade pumpkin soup and pizza for warming lunch. 2. Opened a jar of nectarines I had preserved in summer, they were delicious with a dollop of yogurt and dusting of cinnamon. 3. Made raspberry muffins, and scones for a treat. 4. Neighbor gave me a bag of oranges and grapefruit to use for making marmalade. 5. Bought cheap chicken livers and made my own pate, much cheaper and tastes better than store bought. Wood fire going constantly, wet laundry hanging from rafters over fire to dry…. works a treat. Gooday from down under…. your summer heat wave is what we get here normally in summer, !!!
Sounds cozy and nice!
Ah so cozy…and that would sound so nice ….in October for us here! 🙂
1. Went to the county fair today because it was free for seniors and today was the quilt show, too. Snagged a few freebies that were needed, found a cute yarn kit to make my granddaughter a hat for winter (not for free, but worth it), and spent about 2 hrs with her, her mom, and her other grandma, walking around while she rode all the rides. Free entertainment watching her have so much fun! (Her mom paid for the ride bracelet…)
2. After GD and co. left, saw a few friends I haven’t seen in years and spent some time catching up, also free entertainment.
3. Broke in my new sneakers I bought for my gym workouts, and skipped the gym for today. I’ll have walked enough by the end of the day to make up for the skip!
4. Snagged a plastic cup at a realtor’s booth, just for filling out a survey, and the cup can be refilled free with water or lemonade there for the rest of the fair.
5. Got hungry, but stuck to the free popcorn that was being offered at 2 different booths. We’ll go back tonight for dinner, so I’m waiting for that!
5.
1. Used up all the otc flu meds to relieve my flu symptoms
2. Returned a couple of things I didn’t need to bed, bath and beyond & target
3. Used coupons to score packages of highlighters for .44 and mechanical pencils for .27. Will donate to church for the school supply giveaways
4. Brewed ice tea
5. Raised the a/c a couple of degrees while hubby is at work.
The weather patterns this past month are quite strange. Although it has been in the triple digits in Portland, the temperature in Florida has been in the low 80’s all week. Of course, the humidity is 90%+. Stay cool, Katy! This too shall pass.
1) I mended a fitted sheet today that had torn. It was a small rip , and the repair was not where it would bother anyone as they slept. So even my poor sewing skills sufficed.
2) I sold two items on eBay today. Happy! Happy! Joy! Joy! I have listed 20+ this week. I love decluttering, and I love making money. I have soooo much to get rid of!
3) I made plane reservations to attend a wedding over Labor Day. I booked on Southwest and used loyalty points to pay for one leg of my trip. Of course, there will not be any charge for my luggage and no change fees if changes are needed.
4) I am working on my finances today. I paid my bills and updated my spreadsheets. Making plans and making changes. Crossing my fingers it will work out the way it is supposed to.
5) I have had too many peppers in my farm box over the last several weeks. My neighbor mentioned that she wanted to make stuffed peppers, but the peppers were $2 a piece at our local market. So I gladly gave her mine. No waste and a happy neighbor. 🙂
Huzzah for no waste peppers! 🙂
And peppers freeze well, for us who don’t have pepper-loving neighbors!
Yup I freeze them all the time! When I need them they are there.
OMG that shirt is awesome- it has two things I love in one! Rosie the Riveter and Buffy! Definitely fix it so you can wear it.
It’s either put the image onto another shirt or breast reduction surgery.
May I share an idea DH came up with for saving the images from beloved old T-shirts? He stretches them out in frames and hangs them on an inside wall of our garage. So far, four or five of his and one of mine have been memorialized in this way.
It’s a great shirt but that’d be a bit extreme
Here on Arrakis, water is life! Yet, one must cool down!
1) I have been running the heat pump (reverse, of course) and that has keep the house at a reasonable 78F at night when we need to sleep.
2) Prepped fixings for lunch + dinner in anticipation of the heat. No slaving over a hot ANYTHING this week. Chopped greens, radishes and cucumbers for salads, fried rice made in bulk, grilled tofu, a big batch of herb+avocado yogurt dressing, corn on the cob, hummus + carrots, a big jar of iced hibiscus tea and vegan ice cream, of course! 🙂 Just seeing those containers full of yummy food has been very comforting in this heat. At most I have used the microwave to heat up fried rice + corn on the cob.
3) Went swimming at East Portland Community Center + SW Portland Community Center instead of drinking beer in bars with friends. Playing with kids + swimming laps made for a cooled off body and deeply refreshing sleep.
4) Have been taking full advantage of my Netflix subscription in this heat. Also doing some yoga moves- free hot yoga! 😀
5) Am now updated on a new skill set at work and have been pitching in with projects, which makes me very happy and has long term implications for career advancement.
6) I did not buy a Lear jet nor did I fire an exceptionally vulgar person in my employ.
Your eyes — they are blue within blue within blue.
And everything smells of cinnamon!
Bahaha! I identify so much with the “weird leftovers” phenomenon. Just today I had a weird smattering of foods to avoid takeout.
This week
1. I’m going on a little road trip by myself so I’m packing nuts, fruits, and crackers from my pantry to munch on. I’m emptying out the pantry with zero special trips to the store!
2. Instead of drinking more coffee, I use my lunch hour to take naps. I guess it’s frugal in that I feel refreshed and don’t have to make more coffee, eh?
3. My company is paying for my driving and meals for next week, which is nice. Hopefully I can save some leftovers and bring them home with me.
4. I’m packing my workout clothes for the trip so I can take advantage of my hotel’s free gym. They also serve free breakfast, which is nice.
5. I made a smoothie this morning from odds and ends in the fridge and it was mighty tasty!
A nap is a frugal way to husband your energy. America needs more naps!
I’m doing my part for America, every day!
1) Cleaning out my freezer. Planning on using some found food in our meal plan this week.
2) Took leftovers to work today. I really wanted an afternoon coffee but had a cheaper, vending machine soda instead.
3) Making eggs for dinner.
4) Going to neighborhood book club tonight. The book came from the library, so that was awesome!
5) Making a shopping list for tomorrow’s grocery run. I have some coupons for things we need.
This has been a great FRUGAL week and it is only Thursday.
1. Changed homeowners insurance and saved $500. WOW!
2 Changed auto insurance and saved $400. Another WOW!
3. Returned a battery to Costco for a full refund, over $100. My husband said, “and that’s why we shop at Costco”.
4. Making all meals at home this week.
5. Canning and eating out of the garden. So fresh and always frugal.
That is some serious savings! WOW indeed!
I have Goodwill envy!
I too have Goodwill envy having moved recently and finding the ones here pretty awful. Got to find the good thrift and consignment shops.
1. Eating down the fridge and freezer while Hubby is on a business trip and before the power is off all day Tuesday while the power co makes upgrades – some interesting (not) meals.
2. Came up with 3 different outfits I could wear to a party on Saturday by shopping my minimalist closet instead of shopping.
3. Cooking brunch on Sunday to entertain and came up with a nice but lower cost menu then shopped only for what was absolutely needed.
4. In the midst of figuring out how to use an iPhone we were given on our pay as you go plan. Now to try to get the existing Sim card out.
5. Nothing else but the usuals!
1. Resolved the second of two business-type money problems I had this week. It had to do with my medical flexible spending card. They have the information they need so they’re happy, and I have my account squared away so I’m happy.
2. Grocery shopped for an upcoming vacation. It’s an extended family vacation and we eat most meals in, taking turns with who’s in charge of what food. I have egg salad and pasta salad for lunches, and a spaghetti, meatballs, and salad dinner. I’m going to make the egg salad, pasta salad, and meatballs at home before we go, and the spaghetti and salad there. It would be fun to eat more meals out but also much more expensive.
3. Also while I was grocery shopping, I was trying to be careful with perishables. I crossed out a couple of fruit items I had on my list because I thought it would be too much to try to use up before we go. I already have a honeydew melon and a cantaloupe to eat up before we leave. I always find it hard to gauge that.
4. I worked a shift. It was fun and I made a little money.
5. Started reading The Tightwad Gazette and am loving it. I’ve always felt a little different from most people in the areas of money and stuff (interested in saving one and in not collecting the other!). It’s nice to know there are others out there who feel the same way.
I forgot to comment on the previous FFT post that I often see copies of various Tightwad Gazette volumes at the local library used-book sales DH and I like to visit. So keep an eye peeled at those sales (and at secondhand sources generally). They’re worth owning.
I also have a complete set of the original TG newsletters. My mother was an early subscriber, and I took over her subscription about halfway through the run. This set may be one of the few things I own that would be worth mentioning in my will.
You are right about the TWG newsletters. I lent out my copies (didn’t have the whole set) and they were never returned – I supposed they didn’t look as though they had value to the recipient.
How cool. You know, if you’re one of us.
I have practically memorized the books but have learned there were gems in the newsletters that didn’t make it into the books. I’d LOVE to read the newsletters. Anyone ever see them for sale? I’m going to start looking. Her writing changed my life, For the Better!
1. Did three mystery shops so we had three free meals out this week, plus I made sure to spend up to the limit allowed for the meal and twice that meant ordering a meal to take home with us. Using vegetables from the garden, I stretched those two meals to four meals—so the husband and I ate for free seven nights this week!
2. Signed up to do a free movie shop tomorrow. If I get the large popcorn combo, we get a free refill and I always do that and bring home a vat of popcorn for the neighbor’s chickens. She uses the popcorn as treats. She always gives me three eggs in exchange. Hey, every egg counts!
3. My husband sings in a group and mentioned that I was looking for more rhubarb. Last night he came home with 44 pounds of rhubarb—turns out six people in the group raise it for looks but don’t eat it. That was a bit more than I had anticipated so today I am freezing pieces for winter cobblers, and making rhubarb butter and rhubarb liqueur for Christmas gifts.
4. My nephew borrowed $20 a while ago, when he needed money for a Mother’s Day gift. He never paid me back so yesterday I called him and informed him it was time to pay the money back and that I expected to see him at 8 am today to plant some serviceberry bushes I bought for future berry harvests. He came and spent two and a half hours and planted all four trees. I was tired of being irritated with him for not paying me back and I knew he had the day off from his summer job (he is a high schooler), plus I want him to keep his commitments. I told him that he did more than $20 worth of hard labor so what did he think I should pay him to make it fair. “Consider it interest.” I sent him on his way with some homemade granola that I know he likes.
5. Sold an item through Craigs List. For some reason I find it really awkward to do stuff like CL and garage sales. I am sort of introverted in person and find it hard to face all these unknown people.
Not frugal: I struggle with not being able to buy a book as soon as it comes out—the library wait can be long. So I have decided that I am going to allow myself to buy two books a month, from favorite authors I want to support. The rest will come from the library but I am tired of feeling deprived. I don’t really care about/buy new clothes and I don’t wear makeup or dye my hair so I don’t feel deprived by not buying those things, but not buying books really bothers me. I save in what are non-essentials for me so I can spend on things we do want, like travel and, for both of us, books. I don’t want to feel like I am resentfully frugal, so I am going back to loosening up on buying books.
You are a brave woman. I don’t know that I could face that much rhubarb with enthusiasm.
Who would grow it just for looks? I mean, it is lovely but it’s also delicious
OMG! I’d love 44 lb of rhubarb. Down here in Arkansas it is too warm to make a good crop of it.
I love #4! That is a life lesson to be remembered, and fabulous that you earned ‘interest’! I think you set a very firm but loving example for him, and it sounds as if he responded like a champ.
Yay you for allowing yourself two new books a month. Hubs and I try and do the same thing – be frugal in areas that seem “painless”, so we can have some small indulgences that matter. For example, neither of us likes to wait to watch Game of Thrones….so paying for HBO Now is worth it to us (plus watching other shows, films, etc. on there). We cut cable/satellite almost 4 years ago, so our “home entertainment” costs are still low compared to what they once were.
I have a rhubarb plant in my back yard. unfortunately the freakin’ bittersweet got ahead of me and started to choke it out (like everything else that damn vine touches). I typically make a rhubarb cake with it. it’s like a spice cake with chopped rhubarb in it. so good and not sweet. whenever i bring it into work, they are tentative about trying it, then they can’t get enough!
I’ll buy that shirt!!
Let me know where you list it if you do!
Cindi
In my excitement about the shirt I forgot my FFT:
1. Worked from home 2 days this week.
2. We have eaten vegetarian every night this week. Even the Resolute Omnivore went back for seconds.
3. My 12 year old wants to go op shopping on the weekend. They is trying to find their personal style as a non-binary gender queer young person so I am pleased they is interested in an NCA way of doing that. Still getting used to non-binary pronouns though!
4. Bringing my tea and coffee to work
5. I have retained my staff for longer than ten days. Recruitment is expensive and time consuming!!! No really- I’m recruiting right now and I don’t know how he can just ditch them like that.
Sounds like you are putting more thought into the recruitment process than some. And probably you have a sense of responsibility instead of a sense of grandiosity.
Love that you are trying to use non-binary pronouns. I just wish there were other pronouns rather than using plurals, however, as it can be confusing and also demands unlearning years of grammar. I end up sounding like an idiot catching/not catching/changing mid sentence…
Some around here use “e” instead of he or she, and “ers” for his/hers, and I think shim for something. It sounds better /more elegant and natural than they/their, actually sort of English, like Eliza Doolittle! After a little practice, it’s not bad!
I might suggest that to them, thanks!
I agree that the they/them/their is hard to get used to – it has taken me months to stop using the old binary pronoun
Another option I’ve seen used frequently is ze/zir/zirs. I will use whatever the person tells me to, of course; absent that directive or when talking non-specifically, that’s what I revert to.
Good luck with the shopping – clothes are so damn gendered that your child might want to learn to sew. Good luck to your child, too – it’s a hard path. Your openness and support are going to be critical; it’s fantastic to see such support in action.
Thank you. Such a great group here
The longer I use “they” as a gender neutral, the easier it gets. And I do a lot of work editing and proofreading so telling my brain that “they” doesn’t have to be plural is not easy! My son pointed out that “they” made it into the OED. I figure if it’s accepted by Oxford, then I can get used to it 🙂 .
1. I picked up Your Money or Your Life at the library, and in keeping with what I knew would be an exercise in the book, I calculated how much it would take me to get there. $3.50 on the bus or $1.25 in gas. I opted for the car, as I don’t drive it too much, so once in awhile is okay.
2. Speaking of cars, I am probably going to get rid of mine. We live close enough to public transportation that I should be able to use it to get around for work and entertainment, although some of my jobs (I’m a tutor) are further than I’d like them to be.
3. Baking bread for the second time in two weeks. Saving plastic and connecting to my womanly roots are the main reasons, though I think it costs less than a loaf of bread at the store. Not big savings, but some.
Frugal fail: have been into fresh-squeezed orange juice lately, mostly because I’m trying to avoid excess packaging. I’m buying organic oranges, and I think it’s costing around $2/glass. So around $10/week if I keep it up, not too frugal.
on your Frugal fail – Could you water it down? That would reduce the cost, but you’re still getting the vitamins.
I like to add a squeeze of orange or lemon to my water and when I drink water at a restaurant, I always ask for lemon or lime to go with it.
what about making frozen fruit pops and adding the juice to save some $?
Ouvickie and Rebecca, good idea. I was thinking I could begin to water it down. And last night I had water with lemon instead of juice, and it was just fine. It could be I just crave fresh citrus, so maybe lemon will work sometimes.
1. Reading library books
2. Buying groceries on sale
3. Using air conditioning minimally
4. Found some meatballs at the bottom of the freezer and brought them for lunch
5. Watching Broadchurch. I love this series. There is something about British police dramas that I love.
Have you tried Happy Valley? First 2 seasons are on Netflix.
Isn’t James Norton (aka “Katy’s” yummy vicar of Grantchester) in Happy Valley?
Also, Paranoid. British detectives, on Netflix.
Yes, Yummy Vicar is in Happy Valley. He has an astonishing range—his character on Happy Valley is grotesque and he pulls it off. I’d rather see him as the vicar, as I don’t like thinking an evil person is handsome!
I also love British police dramas. I watched on for many years called, “Waking the Dead.”
Also watch Line of Duty – its gripping!!
Happy Valley is absolutely one of the best shows I have ever seen. I will need to check out Line of Duty. I watched “River” and it was fantastic as well.
I’m late to the party here, so I don’t know if anyone will see this, but the British cop drama, Scott and Bailey is really wonderful. I just wish they were going to make more episodes. The actors wanted to go out on top, they say.
I know I’m late to this but No Offence is a fantastic British cop drama – a bit gritty but awesome!
1. My sister is visiting, so the two of us decided to take lunch to my parents, instead of going out. She provided dessert, wine and veggies and dip, and I provided egg salad, buns, lettuce, tomatoe, cucumber and watermelon. Delicious, cheap and healthy.
2. I took two bags of assorted clothing, linens, and fabric scraps to the textile recycling depot. Not NCA per say, but it gets clutter out of my house.
3. Eating from the freezer to clean it out, as we have decided to sell it. So far, eating last year’s apple sauce, and tonight will have some unknown kind of soup that’s thawing in the fridge. Also thawing a block of assorted fruit that will become crumble.
4. Having a heat wave at the moment, and don’t have AC, so cooling off under the ceiling fan, staying in the cooler basement, and drinking ice water.
That lunch sounds so fabulous and so much yummier and healthier than a restaurant meal or takeout.
I also love British cop shows! “Line of duty” has been my favourite so far, I watched it on Canadian Netflix.
1. It is hotter than heck here in Southern California, so we are on a “whatever is around” diet. Last night it was nuts, apple and cheese for me (no wine… too hot!) Tonight it’s a nice salad with, yup, whatever is in the fridge.
2. Today was my second to last day of physical therapy so I spoke up about pain after the exercises and asked for the electrodes (they really do this and it works!) and spinal manipulation after my exercising so I wouldn’t hurt when I got home. These treatments actually make me feel like I’ve been to the spa for a massage. I’m asking the PT’s every question I ever wanted to ask about exercise and aging, so the treatments are proving useful in many ways.
3. Used a $10 off $20 grocery coupon! Whoo-hoo! xxx ooo Grocery Outlet <3
4. I'm impressed by Katy Wolk-Stanley's ebay business… We have so much stuff I can sell. I just need to put my head to it and do it.
5. On Sunday I picked up an extra $40 babysitting. I spent it immediately on a couple of new shirts that I needed for work but that's ok. Otherwise I've been pretty thrifty!
Salads are the best in the heat and very frugal- no heating up the stove!
1. Checked in with my sister in Seattle to make sure she was OK in the heat – she has opened her doors in the early AM and closed everything down as the day continues – here in Mpls we were at low 60s today so I closed my windows and put on a fleece jacket!
2. Bought some lovely cherries which I prepped for the freezer – will love them in winter with dessert/waffles/munching.
3. Keeping a list of activities/meals in/meals out for when family comes in late August – balancing $ spent vs $ saved
4. Library books picked up/returned – returned several which I just could not get int0 and picked up several that if they are not to my liking, that’s OK
5. Rained all day/read library books/napped/made dinner – can’t wait til fall!
Bonus – my husband cleaned the garage and we found things to entertain grandson in the visit 2 weeks out/made a donation pile/county hazardous waste pile/next years garage sale pile
You can enlarge the shirt by splitting it up both sides and adding a panel of fabric or lace. If you want it not obvious, use another T-shirt of the same color for the fabric. I did one with black lace and I love it. Similar to this: http://makezine.com/2011/10/13/size_up_a_too_small_t-shirt/
Much easier than cutting off the panel and sergine.
1. Got a free 5 gallon water jug from Craigslist. It will go back to college with DS#2 to take to Ultimate tournaments.
2. Made a Key lime pie with on hand ingredients. It truly is one of the easiest desserts to make and costs about $2.50 when I buy the ingredients at Aldi. All my guys have been happy to make it disappear.
3. Finished up Walgreens reset today a day early. Doing another one next week. DS#2 starts his junior year of college in 2 1/2 weeks. Tuition fund.
4. DS#1 also did the reset for 14 hours. We worked together and he learned some new skills. He commented that he made more than his car payment so he was very happy.
5.Sold 2 more items on Amazon today. Packed with recycled and freecycled packing materials.
This week, it seems most of my FFTs have been found by the side of the road.
1. Came off the freeway at my exit, rolled up to the stoplight, and spotted a pair of kid’s shorts on the side of the road. Pulled off, waited for traffic to go by and ran to pick them up. A pair of black Garanimals shorts, 24 months size, brand new with tags still one, and not even sun faded yet. The chances that whoever lost them will have any clue where they ended up and come back to get them was pretty slim, I think, so I will add them to the clothes I have set aside to take to the kids’ resale shop.
2. Found a rotten nectarine in a bag from Grocery Outlet – it had spread to most of the rest of the fruit (able to salvage 3), so I returned the bag to the store for a refund. No problem with the return, and rather than mess with giving me .99 in change, she handed me $3 (bag was $2.99).
3. Didn’t make a special trip to return the fruit as it was on my way to Lowe’s, where I bought more cap blocks to finish my deck and steps. I try to combine all my errands whenever possible.
4. On the way back from Lowe’s, I spotted a FREE sign in front of some furniture outside a house. Did a quick turn around and scored a white bookcase in need of a bit of TLC, a pretty wood headboard and a bag of clothes. I thought the headboard was a full size, and didn’t take the mattress that was next to it, even though it seemed to be in good shape.
5. Did some measuring today and the headboard is actually a queen size. I really like it and am considering changing out my white iron bedstead for this one. Now I really wish I’d picked up the mattress – queen size mattresses sell like hotcakes around here.
Bonus #6. The bag of clothing turned out to have 4 pair of jeans (3 of them a size too big for me) and a pair of khaki capris, also a size too big. I can take them to the plus size resale shop and turn them into credit or cash. The one pair of jeans fits me, but are too long and too flared – I’m going to follow Katy’s lead and cut them off, making capris or shorts out of them. Also in the bag were an Otterbox for an I-Phone, and several chargers, one of which works with our phones. Resale items!
Wow…I never find anything on the side of the road unless it is too worn to use. I guess that is because I live in a very poor area and most folks use stuff until it cannot be used. Congrats on your finds and I wish I could find good stuff like that.
Thanks! I look for”free” signs along the roads, as well as 5 gallon buckets and garbage cans (running joke in my family is that Mom brakes for buckets). You just never know what you might find.
1. Used coupons and a store special to stock up on laundry detergent and dishwasher soap, what would have been $50 was $31. I have enough for months now.
2. Stacked books on downstairs vents to help “push” cooler air upstairs, it’s been over 100 here like Katy mentioned. Trying to keep air lower by making the upstairs cooler this way.
3. Sold items on FB resale page, put that money towards ice cream at the beach.
4. Took my kids to the beach. Packed lunches, lots of water bottles (frozen ahead- so cold and great), played on beach all afternoon. Did not spend night, drove back late. Did eat dinner out but was reasonable (fast food). This was our only beach day this summer and it was perfect.
5. Made a “salad” drawer in our fridge last week and will copy this week. Prepped lettuce, veggies, and even some cooked chicken. Older kids made salads all week and loved it.
We’re having extremely high temperatures over here as well! It’s so hot, it’s ridiculous! But we’ve done the same thing: stay indoors instead of getting out of the house. We don’t have air conditioning, but our table fan has been working its butt off to keep us cool 😀 We’re also dipping into our homemade ice cream, I guess that’s pretty frugal 🙂
I know this is the only group I know that would appreciate this:
Frugal win: For a 40-hour trip over planes, buses and automobiles, we spent only $5! (on a greens drink because I was flailing and needed some energy) while on the road for food and drink. This is a personal best for our family of 5. We packed lots of snacks, made a stack of sandwiches and put them back into the bread bag like when I was a kid, bought some deli salads which were more expensive from the grocery store but not as crazy expensive as from airports or planes. My kids did not complain but eagerly ate what we had in the food bags.
Also: I think my kids are now understanding the environmental impact of straws and we are doing well at going straw-free. We’ll keep trying.
Frugal fail: 2 sandwiches went bad before we were able to eat them 🙁 blah. Hate wasting food.
1. Defrosted one of my freezers and currently have apple muffins in the oven from a pack of diced apples I found buried. We also promptly thawed peaches and strawberries that were 2 years old and had a delicious smoothy.
2. Found a large plastic spoon and pizza cutter at Goodwill for $0.85 total for my son’s new college apartment.
3.Talked my husband out of buying my son a $400 bike while I was out of town. yes he needs a new bike, no he does not need a new $400 bike.
4. Toured colleges in VA and stayed with my brother’s family. Only expenses besides gas were some wine tasting at a local vineyard and our favorite dairy-free gelato only found there. For a 4 day weekend that is pretty darn good.
5. Opted out of being the parent chaperone for 2 separate gymnastics camps that my girls are going to this fall. it would have added several hundred $$$ each to our bill for those camps.
for your sons bike…..our local police department has extra bikes they have picked up off the side of the road that are never claimed. sometimes they give them away or for a donation. they are usually nice bikes too. (I found this out because someone dumped a 10sp Trek bike on my front lawn last summer. it sat there all day and i finally called the police to pick it up (it did not belong to anyone on my street). the incredibly handsome officer (:-O) who picked it up told me about the cache of bikes they have in the back of the department that never get claimed and that’s what they do with them.).
#3 – You might check with the pawn shops in your area, or in an area close to a University and you will likely find a nice bike for cheap. I bought my brother one two years ago at the one where I buy my electronics. He got a very nice bike for $60 that looked nearly new and he said would have cost $300-400, if he’d bought it new.
Five frugal things, fishing edition:
1. We bought spouse fishing licenses at the beginning of the season (cheaper that way) and with every fish we catch to freeze or eat fresh, the cost of the license is “reduced” (in my mind, anyway – I figure the fish offsets it). Fishing has been great lately and our cost per fish is already so much lower than any fish you could purchase. I love to see how low I can go with the “cost” of my fish.
2. We live on a lake so there are no travel costs, and we happen to live right off a fishing “hot spot” so most days we don’t even need to take the boat out to fish – we fish right from our pier.
3. Most of the fishing equipment we had already owned for many years, but I did find a really nice rod/reel in a ditch along the highway last year – probably bounced from a towed boat or back of a truck. I let it sit for a week but since no one came back to claim it…I did.
4. Husband “lost” two bobbers in one day this past week. I was able to wade out and rescue one (hooked on a tree) and since we were taking friends out on the boat anyway the next day, I was able to retrieve the other one by boat.
5. While wading out to retrieve bobber #1, I noticed a lure hooked to a tree overhanging the lake. I was able to unhook that and add it to our collection.
I think i can come up with 5 FFT……let’s see….
#1 My husband is a volunteer firefighter (for 25 years now). His department hosted a family picnic Monday night & served us a catered picnic. Then Tuesday evening we went to “National Night Out” and ate our dinner there….all free foods that included hot dogs, popcorn, cookies, ice cream and drinks. So i didn’t have to cook for two evenings in a row.
#2 We shopped around for estimates for tree work we need done on our property. Ended up choosing a guy who we know from a club we belong to & he saved us over $2400 from other quotes!!!
#3 Our community had a residents weekend last weekend with lots of free events and food. We went 2 of the 3 days. We did buy Chinese Auction tickets, but did end up winning a whole box of goodies!!! We ended up donating some of it to my baby sister who has 4 little kids.
#4 I get an extended lunch today at work. While tempted to buy myself lunch out as a treat, i’m being good instead & brought in some odds & ends food that needs eaten up and will have plenty to eat for lunch. Taking a few for the team 🙂
#5 Took some clothing our girls no longer can fit in or want to a clothing retail shop. I made $40 for my efforts! Will use towards school shopping.
#6 Freezing produce from our garden for later in the year/winter.
I love Rosie the Riveter emblems. Katy – I hope you post a pic of your new shirt, when you’re done!
1) I’m really tired this week, but thankfully it has cooled off here, so the AC isn’t coming on as often now. The weather geeks are forecasting a mild and raining August – Praise God. As long as it’s below 95 most of the time, I’m a happy camper.
2) I’m wearing one my blood donation free t-shirts today – since Fridays are casual dress at work. It’s loose, cotton and comfy and free is a big bonus.
3) Since Monday was payday, this week has been restock week on staples for the month, but I’ve stuck to my list. I did however buy myself a $1 box of Italian Icicles for the freezer here at work, from the DT. Love to eat one in the afternoon as a snack.
4) No plans for the weekend, so other than church and buying a few groceries, I should be able to save gas by staying home. It’s nice not to be “busy” every weekend. Now that my daughter has a boyfriend, they take their kids and do stuff together – hallelujah! I love my grandkids, but this grandma likes to have a weekend to herself sometimes.
5) I didn’t buy a Lear Jet, or anything else ostentatious or gold plated this week.
Frugal fail: I ate lunch out twice and I had to spend over $700 on car repairs, but at least the car is running better and will be safe ready for our family vacation trip in September.
1. currently have a load of clothes hanging on the line. plan on doing the sheets next.
2. make a batch of yogurt this morning with a 1/2 gal of milk that was just about starting to turn.
3. taking the plates off the Jeep and taking pictures of it today to sell. (no one can test drive it, needs front brakes badly and a new battery since it sat too long). will also ask the insurance company to remove it.
4. toured a local comm college yesterday with my son. he has decided (after 10 yrs of saying he wasn’t going to college but in the service) that he is going to college but wants to get his assoc at a CC before transferring over to a regular school. much cheaper option and he is guaranteed acceptance to 11 different local colleges and state schools and, this is the best part, HIS TUITION AT THE OTHER SCHOOL IS LOCKED STARTING SEPTEMBER!!! so, no matter how much the tuition goes up, we still pay what it is now. happy mommy! and proud too!
5. started making a grocery list and found there are really only 2 things i need. cheese and milk (and maybe some steak for my growing boy). i have everything else i need!
6. i’m being taken out to lunch by my former boss. MMM, Sushi! best part is, i get to hang out for a little while with this awesome woman! 🙂
4. That’s fantastic, Nancy! Congratulations to your dear son. 🙂
1. I got an email from Panera saying they loaded a free bagel every day for the month of August to my card. I’ve gone and gotten one three out of four days so far, and not bought anything else. I normally bring a bagel into work each morning anyway, so I already have cream cheese and a toaster oven in my office. The Panera is a 2 minute drive from my house and I pass by it most days anyway, so no extra gas or anything.
2. I’ve had a really tough time having the motivation to prepare big meals with lots of leftovers since having my son and going back to work full time. No leftovers means I buy lunch out a lot at work. This week I bought a small package of hamburger and made some meatballs. I used jarred sauce I already had on hand. I’ve been having meatball sandwiches at work all week and haven’t spent any money on take out.
3. I was recently given some brand new shoes & boots that don’t fit me. I finally got them listed on ebay. If they don’t sell there, I’ll post them on a FB garage sale site, though I prefer not to have to meet up with people, so fingers crossed for ebay.
4. Last Sunday my best friend, my son and I visited a local lake beach and splash pad that she has a pass to. I packed lunch and snacks for my son so no money spent.
5. I recently found out my best friend is expecting her first baby (yayyy). I’ve started putting aside some stuff I already have on hand to give her as her due date gets closer. My husband and I would still like to have at least one more baby, so I don’t have a ton of hand me downs for her, but I’m sure every little bit will help. I also gifted 9 sample cans of formula I don’t need/use to a coworker whose wife just had a baby. Not frugal for me, but it was nice to declutter a little bit.
Great frugal win on the meatball sandwiches at work! I am copying that one. I usually want something “hot” for lunch. Cold food doesn’t feel as satisfying and the whining-baby-in-my-head cries for eating out. Hot homemade meatball subs should shut that tyke up but good. Thanks for the idea.
1. Harvested purple hull peas, tomatoes, habaneros and jalapenos from the garden. Hubby will make hot sauce and jalapeno poppers (to be flash frozen for college football game days this fall). Cooked up the peas to go with dinner this week.
2. Took advantage of a “clearance remodeling sale” at my local grocery store. Stocked up on some non-perishable items that we use pretty frequently.
3. Took advantage of our annual botanical garden membership to take the pups for a walk during their “Fido After Five” event. The change of scenery is nice for summer evening walks.
4. Finally got around to combining cell phone accounts for the hubby and I (after being married two years!)… Managed to save $54 a month just by doing that!
5. Carefully read over our cable statement and realized I was being charged $4/month for a stupid magazine that comes every month that I don’t even read. Had that one removed REALLY fast. Totally ill with myself that I never noticed that before. GRRRRR.
This is a little off-topic, but I recently adopted a dog (super frugal as I fostered-to-adopt, which came with a free crate, two months of food, free veterinary care, etc!)…
But as I have been walking with him around the neighborhood, I have been SO DISHEARTENED.
There is So. Much. Trash that is not really garbage that is put out every day. I take some of it & freecycle it or put it to use in my house. But there is more furniture, etc put out than I can possibly transport or restore. I am so upset that these things are going into the landfill/being incinerated rather than being repurposed.
Jessica,
There’s an older fellow with a pick-up truck who comes through our neighborhood and scavenges for furniture and building materials that have been set out on the curb as trash. We’re actually glad to see him coming, since stuff will not be going to the landfill.
What disturbs me lately is the amount of thrown-down rubbish at the entrances to our neighborhood. The street is wide and shady, and people pull in there and throw out beer cans, drink cups, plastic bags. I hate littering and pick up as much as I can.
Could you do a “curb alert” on craigslist or a waste nothing group’s FB page?
I feel the same way. I am often bringing someone else’s “trash” to GW. Enjoy your pup!
Bee,
Yes, I have wanted to, but our local freecycle doesn’t allow curb alerts. I need to figure out what venue is best for that.
-Jessica
1. Gave a big box of shoes and clothes cleaned out of our closets to a coworker to donate to a good cause.
2. Eating a can of soup from my desk drawer stash at work for lunch. I try to use use up the stash periodically so nothing gets out of date.
3. The Mister’s employer had a round of lay-offs this week. The Mister is okay, but it gave us a nudge to look at our savings plan, just in case.
4. Am using up a little tube of free toothpaste from the dentist that I don’t really like that much, but it’s free.
5. Did not do mid-week laundry so that I would have a couple of full loads instead of one full and one half. Absolutely must do it tomorrow or go commando! 😀
Ruby, your #5 made me laugh as we are in a similar spot. My then 5 year old (now 6 1/2) couldn’t remember commando so he said “guess I’ll go camo”! It is so great we have never had the heart to correct him…
1. Making crockpot meals from freezer and pantry. Trying not to turn on the oven if possible.
2. Found a place to cut my preschooler’s hair for 12 dollars instead of 35. I’m terrible at cutting hair so I’m happy to pay for someone else to do it. I started going to kid’s salons but now I’ve found someone at the local QuickCuts that does a great job for half the price.
3. Yesterday was in the 90’s so we went to Wendy’s for 50 cent frosties. They are actually quite large and my kiddo wasn’t able to finish his so we split it. So really, I had a 25 cent Frosty. The 50 cent deal is only for the summer! We went with some friends and brought some little toys so we ended staying for about a hour. It was nice cool break!
4. The Rotary Club set up a free Sprinkler Park for three hours. Basically it was on the city’s little league field that needed to be watered anyway, but the Rotary club coordinated with the city to let kids run in the sprinklers, and then every hour they moved the sprinklers over to water another section of the outfield. Pretty cool. We stayed for about two hours and everyone had a blast.
5. My husband’s work is having Friday Pizza night for families to come hang out in the air conditioning and they’ll be serving pizza. Don’t have to cook and it will be cool! Yay!
I love the Rotary club’s idea. So clever. I will pass that one on!
You always inspires me! I just started my new job a few days ago and I’ve been bringing lunch with me. So far the only time I spent money on buying lunch was when my husband happened to be in town where I work and he wanted to have date lunch with me for a Runza sandwich which only cost $7 for both of us! Every time I’m tempted to spend on something, I always think about your blog!
Keep inspiring people!
*inspire
Are you in Nebraska? My mother’s family is from there and I have many fond memories of Runzas.
1. Going on our “last hurrah” weekend with our friends and our kids to a hotel which is not frugal, but we brought all our meals and we play cards/ games/ swim in the pool. Our goal is to never leave the hotel! Split hotel with said friends.
2. Bought provisions for our weekend at Aldis.
3. Used an old gift card and coupon to get youngest son his school sneakers. $43
4. Did an inventory of sons’ clothes and decided that three shirts, new shoes, and 2 shorts each will get them started.
5. Thought we were going to have to hire a professional to fix garage door, but my Dad fixed it!
Have been back-sliding a bit, and next week we are taking a short vacation. (finally!) We will probably spend more than we would have at home. Also, decided to have new brakes installed – safety is important.
1. We are staying home this weekend. Got sale pork chops for dinner tonight. Treating son to a homemade dinner while we are away. Got frozen Boston Market dinners as requested for other son which is way cheaper than eating out.
2. Getting rid of club membership which we rarely use. We have talked about this for a year but finally got it accomplished. Loved the place, but it is expensive and I am retired, so no business reason to use it.
3. Cooler weather is welcome – so far no A/C this summer; we live in an old house with very little insulation so need to make up for high winter energy use. Cooking with our crockpot, microwave and rice cooker which is energy efficient and cuts down on kitchen heat.
Portland and Seattle hot weather have made the news even in the Midwest!
4. Opening up a new credit union account that offers a $100 bonus.
5. I am making homemade snacks and filling the thermos with iced tea to cut down on convenience store temptations next week.
I lived in Portland forever, and can’t imagine the heat now! Moved to Boise where everyone has A/C. And forest fire smoke 🙁 Wish we had an GW Outlet here, I hit their stores on a regular basis. I’ve eBayed quite a bit from finds like that too. Nancy
Re 2: Yes! You are doing a huge service for those of us who want to be frugal and nonconsumerist but have no time or interest to do buy-by-the-pound Goodwill.
Here’s mine:
1) We’re staycationing this week. We’re big travelers, even with three small children. But we were feeling overwhelmed this year with kids and a business and grad school, and were really feeling staying close to home. We’re saving the $2-$6K we have been spending annually on home exchanges, but still taking the week off that daycare closes for “summer vacation.”
2) Part of our staycation is just getting stuff done. Our oldest is getting a gravity filled. It isn’t covered by our insurance, so I paid cash to get the cash discount.
3) My husband is having eye surgery. It’s something he has put off too long, and we’re excited that he will no longer experience double vision! It’s covered by insurance. And he should be back to normal (but better) within 24 hours.
4) We also took a pair of broken earbuds back to the Mac store for a replacement, finally picked up a part for our dishwasher that I ordered weeks ago, stopped by Costco and bought only things that actually save us money (no giant boxes of somethings we will never use), and stopped by the bank to add my husband to a new savings account I opened over the phone. We could run these errands any time, but doing them during the work day costs us work time, and doing them on the weekend costs us relaxing time.
5) Lest you think we are only doing not fun stuff on staycation we are right now all happily piled on pillows in the living room watching TV, we are planning a couple of trips to the river for some free swimming, we did spring for a baseball game with friends later this week, and Friday night we’re having other friends over for tacos with all the fixings.
1 – We did a road trip up to my in-laws’ this weekend. We shared costs for groceries, and took advantage of the free ‘babysitting’ while we were there. It’s such a treat to spend time with them, and we feel lucky that we get to live within a few hours of family.
2 – My father-in-law is good friends with an elderly couple who have about 30 blueberry bushes. They can’t (a) pick them all or (b) eat that many berries, so we trucked over there for a couple hours on Sunday evening and picked to our hearts’ content. We wound up enough to fill 12 of my mother-in-law’s freezer bags, and shared them with three other families when we got back home.
3 – We try to involve our kids in our family mantra of “experiences, not stuff”, and signed them up for two kids’ triathlons this weekend. The race was advertised as $15 per kid, but only $5 if you didn’t want a race shirt. Since they both have plenty of t-shirts already, we chose that option and the kids loved the race. The second race was cancelled due to lightning storms, so we enjoyed hanging out with the grandparents, aunt and uncle and baby cousin who’d come down for the race, and all went for a hot dog roast on the shore later when the weather did a 180.
4 – We took advantage of the free passes the kids earned from our local library, and hit up a fun park after their race. We brought our own snacks and drinks, and ate our lunch at picnic tables at the park.
5 – We’re due for groceries, but instead of dining out at lunch, I’m having a mish-mash of fridge & pantry items.
I love that there was an option to pay less to not get the T-shirt. I see so many of those at the Goodwill bins!