Five Frugal Things -- Another Oregon Food Bank Donation!
1. I donated $137.82 to the Oregon Food Bank for February's $100 Goodwill Gift Card Challenge. That amount is bolstered by $50, as I chose to keep a Pottery Barn linen duvet cover that I thrifted in January. It's much higher quality than the crappy Ikea version in our daughter's childhood bedroom and it didn't seem like people were lining up to buy it. So I bought something from my own inventory.
Total donations -- $267.
I also threw a couple extra dollars onto the donation to cover their credit card fees.
Here's everything that sold in February, after eBay's fees:
- Peugeot salt mill -- $24.65
- Tiffany Box -- $36.56
- Pixies concert tee shirt -- $16.10
- Toddler Vans sneakers -- $10.51
- Pottery Barn duvet cover -- $50
I need to get back to the Goodwill bins for fresh inventory, as I still have a $29.36 gift card balance. Cross your fingers for a Faberge egg!
2. My husband fixed our dryer, which had been making horrific screeching sounds. It took $40 in parts and the same amount of time as my light fixture repair. The diagnosis and repair were guided by YouTube and the supplies were purchased from Reliable Parts, which has a Portland location. This was a deliberate decision to avoid that Schmeff Schmezos guy.
I checked and the absolute cheapest dryer you can currently buy from Costco is $499.99.
I want you to notice that we don't have an adorable laundry room. There's zero need to do laundry inside a Pinterest fever dream. We have an unfinished basement and a "dream laundry room" is straight up "keeping up with the Joneses" and didn't exist until maybe fifteen-twenty years ago.
3. I sold a $20 giraffe "lovey" on eBay, which was enjoyable as it couldn't have been easier to package up. Note that it had been listed since 2021, so it wasn't exactly a get rich quickly scheme. However, it's still money in my pocket/credit union and everything I sell on eBay is a lesson on what to pick up or not pick up in the future, which makes me a better seller.
4. My husband and I stopped by Costco and treated ourselves to $1.50 hotdogs with extra onions. (I am the cheapest of cheap dates!) We then grabbed a few essentials and gassed up the minivan at $3.66/gallon.
I know that gas prices are likely to skyrocket due to the war against Iran and figured we might as well fill the tank.
For those who always point out that homemade granola is both cheap and easy to make, it's for my husband's work lunches. I rarely eat granola and don't enjoy making it. He's a grown man and happy to be responsible for his own work lunches.
5. Last night's dinner was a variety of different veggies, plus a handful of rotisserie chicken over lettuce. It was an apology to my stomach for the hotdog and certainly a frugal meal.
Now your turn, what frugal things have you been up to?
Katy Wolk-Stanley
"Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without."
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Well done on the food bank donation!
1) Ate leftovers for dinner. This is a common plan for us, as we typically cook 2-3x/week (Fri-Sun) and have leftovers during the week. This started when we had young kids with sports practice & dinner was challenging, but just works well now. We actually cooked Sa-Mo this week, as I used the crockpot to pull together a work day dinner on Monday.
2) Made sure I went to my workout class, after I registered. Always a frugal win, and it felt great & was a workout I needed for stress relief.
3) Made protein pancakes with overly ripe bananas, to avoid waste and/or tossing them into the black hole of my freezer. In reality, we are good about using up freezer food, but bananas are harder.
4) Used up some strawberry jam my mom brought when she visited on February. Had it on the protein pancakes.
5) Helping DS20 work on a "moving out" budget, which will be very helpful for him. I wish they taught kids more of this in school, rather than say, cursive. Budgeting is so important, and if you don't have a good baseline or someone to show you, it feels overwhelming & it's easy to stick your head in the sand and then fall behind.
As a retired teacher I need to jump in. Both life skills, including financial literacy, and cursive are essential to a good education. I taught the most years at 3, 5 and 6th grades, but literally taught all years/grades from preschool thru high school (GED). There is a lot of research and practical applications for both. I taught both to all my classes, as do many educators, even though states/districts have removed them from the standards. Fortunately, they are starting to be reintroduced to the benefit of the students. Yay for learning from our mistakes.
One of my favorite lessons was giving each student a check register to track. They got paid for coming to school, class participation, assignments completed, acts of kindness, volunteering to do classroom "work", etc. They were charged daily rent for their desk and chair. They were fined for tardiness, absenteeism, work not done/incomplete, etc. (fines were waived for circumstances beyond their control) The last week of school we had our class auction of items collected all school year. Mostly stuff I bought, but sometimes we got donations. It was hilarious, and could get quite animated. Usually there would be at least 1, who would pick out what they wanted early in the quarter, and actively track their balances and work towards how much they thought they would need to budget for what they wanted. A good time was had! ❤️
I'm 66 but still remember the high school math teacher who took the time to teach us how to balance a check book. Invaluable life lesson and interesting to this future non-consumer. Thanks for doing what you do.
Thank you ❤️
Lynn, what a fun way to teach financial literacy!
Those sound like awesome lessons, @AZ Lynn! Well done.
While Consumer Ed is important (my state requires it), it is the parents responsibility to teach their child(ren) how to manage money. Schools teaching it should be there for those whose parents cannot/will not.
Growing up, I never knew how much my father earned (yeah, trad time of the 1960s/70s). BUT I knew when things were tight - hours cut around 1970/1971.
@Selena, I think the unfortunate truth is that many parents are financially illiterate, and unless talking about money and finances is considered a welcome and open conversation, most kids don't get the help they need. Look at the dire state that so many families are finding themselves, or students who take on tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars of student debt because it seems to be what one does... I have a girlfriend who did this because her mom essentially ENCOURAGED her to take on the debt.
So although it would be a perfect world with parents teaching their kids, the parents are (in many cases) lacking the education/skills themselves.
And Money is the cause of more stress and arguments in relationships than just about anything else, particularly when talking about it is taboo, or one of the two partners is hiding some big debts...
I am with you on the granola. For some reason, my homemade granola never turns out, at least not to my satisfaction. I buy mine at Aldi.
I checked out the nearest bins (again) and they are just too far away to justify the drive. Our Goodwill stores which are nearby are getting more expensive. I used to get great stuff at garage sales, but haven't had much luck there in the last few years. However, I am determined to do a better job of seeking them out when the weather permits.
So, the frugal things I HAVE been up to --
I just made blueberry pancakes from scratch. I'm going to make little waffles from the leftover batter and freeze them.
I am thawing some salsa I got for free and will make nacho dip later. I already have the tortilla chips for dipping, which were about one-third the price at Aldi, compared to those I bought at Kroger's Food4Less several weeks ago.
I picked up peppermint tea bags and an apple at the little free pantry. I sliced and ate the apple yesterday with peanut butter and honey.
After having several servings from a rotisserie chicken bought at Sam's, I stripped off the remaining meat and froze it, then made broth from the carcass.
I am keeping up a regular schedule of walking, mostly inside, because it's still too cold for outdoor walking. The indoor walking does have the advantage of taking me to a library branch, and I have a stack of books to read that I am excited to get through.
I just started using Duolingo to brush up on French. I'm not sure how long it will be free; they keep hawking their paid version. So far I'm enjoying the mind stimulation. I doubt that I will actually use French in the near future, but it's fun to imagine I will.
I did get the retroactive referral from my doctor for the dermatology appointment I had. Now I wait and see whether insurance will cover it.
Any increase in gas prices is simply due to corporate greed. Almost all of the gas used in the US comes from western Texas, with a bit from South America. It's not going to be like lines at the gas stations in the 1970's thankfully.
That is a wonderful donation to the food bank. This has been a fun challenge to watch.
Yesterday I did alterations on several thrifted shirts that had been super cheap but needed things like the sleeves shortened for summer and buttons replaced. Used several items from my stash of buttons removed from worn-out clothes and sewing thread inherited from my mom 15 years ago. Also took up the back waistband of some thrifted jeans by running elastic through it.
Trimmed my hair to stretch the interval to another haircut. Turned a big package of yellow-sticker chicken drumsticks into oven barbecue. Used up the bits and bobs of frozen berries and the last of a stick of butter making a big pan of berry baked oatmeal for breakfasts.
Great job on the donation. It's been to fun to read about this challenge.
1. I'm thawing some mirepoix and a tiny container of onions leftover from a Costco hotdog. I'll be making more minestrone soup. I'll share as always with my mom. This is many healthy, inexpensive meals for me. I feel like I eat out a lot so anything cooked at home is a win.
2. I sold and shipped a couple of Ebay items. I ordered a post office pick up.
3. I have a years worth of Menard's rebate receipts ready to mail.
4. I had dinner at a local restaurant that offers 30% off to their rewards members on Monday's.
5. I washed a cotton rug that was spot clean only in the washing machine and dried it on a laundry rack. It came out very clean but a little misshapen. It's good enough. I prefer the clean version.
FFT, "Call and Response" Edition. (I'm calling it this since some of my FTs are in sync with Katy's. And kudos to Katy on her continuing eBay successes and food bank donations.)
(1) Re: Katy's hope for a Faberge egg, I'm reminded of a discussion I overheard long ago in my Salvation Army superstore: One customer was telling others that someone she knew had found the, not a, Mona Lisa at a garage sale. Hey, we can always get lucky. 😀
(2) Re: Katy's non-Pinterest-worthy laundry room: I've got one of those in my basement, along with spider webs galore. (I'm fond of spiders, actually. Just call me Morticia Addams.) And my 25-year-old Maytag dryer, which I use only for sheets, is starting to screech a bit, though that usually subsides as the cycle gets going. If it gets worse, I'll call in my friend Mr. Fix-It, since Mr. NCA is a continent away.
(3) I too gassed up ahead of the inevitable surge in gas prices, thanks to Voldemort's not-so-excellent adventure in the Middle East. As of Monday, we still had $2.99/gal. gas here in Central NY, but that won't last.
(4) I finally managed to finish a bag of Reduced for Quick Sale salad greens from Price Chopper without having to compost more than 10% or so of it. This is a first.
(5) And CF joined me yesterday afternoon for some "spelunking" (as we're calling the hunt for documents and valuables) and a general walk-through at NDN1's house. I'll have much, much more to say about all this in future comments. But one find I'll mention now was a thoroughly dusty but otherwise in good shape American Girl doll ("Josefina") in one bedroom, and an extensive set of accessories for her in two drawers in another bedroom. Neither of us sells on eBay, but CF says she knows people who do.
We have a good laundry room, as in it's nicely painted, has floor tile still in great condition, and a big window. It was the house's kosher kitchen in 1952, and the cabinets show where the appliances were originally placed. The robin's egg blue Youngstown metal cabinet under the sink and a window valance from Ollie's that picks up that blue make me happy,though Pinterest would probably find that lacking.
Ruby, if I ever get back to my former and your present hometown, I'd love to pay you a visit. Two of my best friends from my late teens (sisters) were Orthodox Jewish, and of course their family kept kosher. I strongly suspect that you may be living in their house, or very close to it.
I'd love to have you visit! We do not know the name of the family that built the house but the dad was a Jewish grocer and they had one child. This little neighborhood had an influx of Jewish founders. My neighbor on the other street has a house with some of the same features, including marble door sills and window sills, which have something to do with the purity of the material, according to the interpretation of Talmudic law that I struggled through after he mentioned it.
I'm with you on the spiders Morticia! When we were kids, my mother would never kill a spider saying they kill the bad bugs (mosquitos, flies, gnats). Of course, she didn't like the webs and would promptly dust them away. But the spiders were like cats in ancient Egypt or cows in India. We left them alone.
The bins are a great source for duvet covers, but they are heavy, so I’ve left some nice ones behind. I wish our bins had a different way of pricing things. I’ve heard of locations where linens have a flat price per item because of the weight. Otherwise, too many blankets and duvet covers go to the landfill.
Thanks for the tip about the parts store! I somehow didn’t know about it!
1. I made stock from a rotisserie chicken and this will be the base for tonight’s soup.
2. Dutch oven bread is going into the oven this morning.
3. I have a surplus of milk that’s expiring soon, so I’ll make some flan with it.
4. I went for a long walk yesterday and found one redeemable can. It isn’t much, but every can counts!
5. Last night was pizza night. At home! I make a decent pizza, and it doesn’t cost $30.
I always ask if they'll deal on a heavy item - especially if there's a stain or damage. Usually, they cut the weighed price in half.
Our bins has no sense of humor, sadly. One time, I found an interesting project sewing machine, and they wouldn’t price it individually! It weighed a ton, so off to the landfill it went.
1. Watched Jane Goodall's final interview via our inexpensive Netflix subscription.
2. Picked up more free produce left by a local gardener at the community center - cukes and zucchini this time.
3. Made veggie stock out of onion skins, celery leaves and carrot ends that we saved in the freezer. Used in stew, stir fry and rice. I even soaked some oatmeal in it to fill out a lentil recipe.
4. Put the veggie stock in a plastic lemonade bottle. If I were at home, it would go in mason jars.
5. Made a lemon blueberry coffeecake. Improvised with baking tools available at Airbnb. Still tasted great!
There's a great article about Jane Goodall in the current issue of one of my favorite magazines, BWD (aka Bird Watchers' Digest). Dr. Jane was an enthusiast for birds as well as chimpanzees, and Scott Weidensaul (a birding legend in his own right) wrote a fascinating account of helping to guide Dr. Jane and members of the Jane Goodall Institute on trips to Nebraska to watch sandhill cranes and other Mid- to Far West birdlife.
And for all birders out there, I can't recommend BWD highly enough. Do consider a subscription (https://bwdmagazine.com/). Apologies for the unabashed plug, but it's worth it.
And bird watching is supposed to be plus to fight Alzheimer's.
Last night a Great Horned Owl, was hunting in the field, the barn owl (Bart) was wooing another owl, a Northern Saw-Whet owl was in the backyard, so tiny and cute! I could hear the Screech owls, but did not see one. We have Egrets that overnight in the oak savanna. I have 20 western blue bird nest boxes filled this spring. We rebuilt 25 nesting boxes that surround the garden and orchard for the wrens, chickadees and tree sparrows.
I love watching your donation challenge dollars go up each month!
It's been a frugal couple of days, I don't think we have spent any money other than monthly bills.
1) I made a new recipe, an oven pancake using the last of a jar of homemade blueberry jam. The recipe was okay and I will try it again in the future with some tweaks (namely, making a thinner, less cakey pancake). I stuck the leftovers in the freezer for a future breakfast-for-dinner quick meal.
2) Packed my lunch every day and resisted the siren song of the heavenly bagel sandwiches at the campus cafe.
3) I sold a piece of writing for $5 and a free book from their author list to a speculative fiction publisher. It was only a 100-word drabble (a super, super short story), so the payment seems fair! I could buy a coffee, but I'll probably just add it to savings.
4) My partner and I continue to ruin our chances of ever owning a home by eating avocado toast every morning for breakfast. It costs about 80 cents total for both of us at current avocado prices, using homemade bread and splitting an avocado, so you know it really cuts into our savings!
5) I sorted out my spring and summer clothes for mending and alterations, which I plan to get done over spring break. I shouldn't need to buy anything new this year.
Walked with 3 friends for free exercise and free mutual support. It was a good time.
Met another friend at a local coffee shop. We like to talk all things money saving. She told me that travel to volunteer jobs is tax deductible (at whatever set rate per mile that IRS sets). Only good if you itemize. All information I like to know!
I mended a reusable shopping bag. I keep 4 of the ultra-lightweight thin bags in my purse and there's zero times I need to purchase a grocery bag (paper only in my state and 10¢ each).
Opened up the house when I got home at noon, taking the indoor temp from 59° (chilly) to 64° (our preferred temp). I love this time of year for many reasons, and not needing to run the heat is one of them.
I saved and froze the water I used to boil potatoes and carrots for dinner. I don't usually save the veggie water but I had just watched a YouTube on British grandma's money saving habits and this was one of them. I'll add it to soup to stretch the broth.
We filled our car up and are cutting any unnecessary journeys this month. Saves us money, stretches the time between fill ups (cost of which may be painful right now) and continues my economic strike (buying necessities only).
Dh repaired the frame of my 4 wheeler. I asked him to leave the welder out. I'm hoping to fix a feed trough today.
Rode to the back 40 to give the cows new grass and check for calves. We have a new black bull calf, fresh from the oven! A different cow looks suspiciously thin and was giving me the stink eye. I rode around the creek just to make double sure a calf hadn't fallen in and left her to do the mothering. She has the calf hidden and doesn't want/need my help 🙂
Yesterday, I put a chicken in the oven but it wasn't done in time for supper. We had to leave for a meeting, so we ate leftovers. I turned off the oven as we left. It was just right when we came home. One less thing to do tonight!
I'll air dry 2 loads of laundry inside and finish feedng hay to the weaned calves. Half day of school, so I can't stray too far.
Yesterday's sheep spreadsheet gave me a lot of information to start planning that enterprise.
Listed an item on ebay.
Great job on your food bank challenge Katy!!!
Katy,
Despite the 5 year wait , I bet that giraffe sold as a replacement lovey, saving a mom, toddler , and possibly an entire nuclear and extended family from the anguish of a lost one! Job well done.
Congratulations on your second donation to the Oregon Food Bank.
1. I do not have an adorable laundry room either. Our non matching washer and dryer are in the basement and that has not been a problem for the almost 33 years we have lived in our house. I am just grateful for the availability of modern laundry appliances in the comfort of my own home.
2. I stopped into Aldi to pick up produce.
3. I made a pot of Tortilla soup with the remnants of a Costco rotisserie chicken. I just took a double batch of GF muffins out of the oven for future breakfasts.
4. The weather was nasty Monday evening so I met up with a couple of friends virtually via Zoom. No driving was required.
5. I am listening to the third book of the Anne of Green Gables series. I read the first two. Of course all were digitally borrowed from the library. I checked out a couple of board games to try. Why not try before contemplating buying.
Awesome OFB donation! I only donated $38 to our local kids pantry, but I bought $40 in individually wrapped pepperoni sticks and 2 cases of yogurt bars. You are such an inspiration and this community you have created shares freely.
My laundry room has a floor and paint, an estate sale cabinet that holds outdoor gear and dog treats. My appliances have never matched. My Nat gas dryer is 30 yrs old and my speed queen washer is humongous.
I mended 2 tea towels, fixed the zipper in A neighbors jeans.
Happy Wednesday, everyone!
Great to see how much you've donated to the food bank already from the $100 gift card. I can't wait to see what next month brings.
1. I'm reading a library book, Yellowface by R.F. Kuang for my book club this month. Interesting and different kind of read. I'm only fifty pages in but I would recommend it. The writer is coming to our town's library for a free author talk next month.
2. It was warm enough today in Massachusetts for a walk around the neighborhood better known as free exercise. Last night's ice coating is melting as is the snow from Snowmageddon last week.
3. When I got home, I made a cup of tea and sat on the deck with the cat. First time this year. So relaxing.
4. I gassed up the car before oil prices hit the gas pumps.
5. I did not bomb any embassies or consulates.
...#5 continued... no embassies or consulates bombed in response to an illegal war brought on by someone who is orange.
Congratulations on your good progress for a good cause!
1. I had the workers from a charity's thrift store come pick up the gas heater fireplace that didn't sell on Craig's list. Figure if it won't sell in cold weather, it sure as heck won't sell in spring or summer. So I just got it out of the way! And the best part is: I didn't have to pay anyone anything to haul it off. Even got a tax receipt in case I itemize next year.
2. Also let 'em take other items --- including a big box of roofing nails and some kind of power tool charger left behind by the roofing guys. I long ago called and told the roofers to come get these items -- but after 8 or 9 months, and numerous reminders, the stuff is still here. I'm tired of it taking up space in my garage and I'm tired of being ignored, so that got taken off as well.
3. Ate breakfast and lunch for free, consuming some of the doughnuts and kolaches I took home from work last Sunday.
4. Called about my Roth IRA account and got some helpful information.
5. Charged up all the emergency items to use in case of power outage because the weather forecast calls for storms later on this p.m.
Your food bank project is proceeding nicely! GW items turned into $ for food!
1. I got a new CC last month. I thought I signed up for auto pay. Oops. I saw a late charge on my statement. I called AmEx & they set me up for auto pay & refunded my late charge of 29$.
2. Got 5 packages of a premium brand of lasagna noodles off Craigslist for free. He also threw in a jar of chokeberry jam. I've never eaten chokeberries but bet the jam will be good. I gave my Italian BFF 2 packs of the lasagna noodles.
3. I plan to make a pan of veggie lasagna using ingredients I have on hand.
4. I have boxed up my mish mash of unmatched plates & bowls. These will go to the thrift store. I previously found a box of white matched plates, cups, bowls. My artsy BFF says white dishes are currently on trend. Who knew?
5. BFF gave me 2 large cannisters of vanilla protein powder 6 months ago. I see that Dunkin & Starbucks now sell protein lattes & other coffee drinks. I make my own using the protein powder. I actually did this BEFORE the coffee shops offered them. Am I a trendsetter??
Not sure I can come up with five as it has been an expensive couple of weeks.
1. I hemmed a thrifted shirt so it fits me better.
2. Continue to pick up unused poop bags which seem to be dropped relatively regularly on the streets we walk. No money though!
3. Trying to have no food waste but some got away from us during a tough week.
4. Hubby realized that we could cancel the service contract we agreed to when buying a new car due to my totaling our old car during an accident that was my fault. A small % of the new car cost but a savings none the less. At least we like the new car.
5. I plan on selecting a federal refund this year although last year I left the excess estimated tax payments to apply for this year. The interest should come to us not the government.
1. We had a jam packed day with the kiddos today! First we had a dental appointment for our oldest daughter. She had X-rays and a fluoride treatment, all under her insurance, she did super well! As a reward for her dental excellence she received a new toothbrush, bubbles, and toothpaste.
2. Next we went to a children's consignment shop. They have a play space and the kiddos took full advantage while I shopped and my husband dropped off our kids' old clothes. We used our store credit to purchase birthday gifts for two nephews, several dresses for our youngest daughter, a few pairs of shoes, and a pair of pants for each of them. I also found a preschool workbook that I think they'll enjoy. We started at $80 credit and still have a little over $13 left. We won't know how much credit we'll get for the items we brought in until tomorrow when they have a chance to review them.
3. We combined a small trip to the grocery store with our day and stayed in budget! Thankfully no one was able to sneak anything into the cart before we made it to the checkout.
4. After that we made it to the YMCA to re-register (free through our insurance!) and the kids were thrilled to get to the pool during open swim. We had most of the pool to ourselves for most of the time.
5. My husband made a comment about wishing Subway was better since it's so expensive earlier today, I told him that I could make 10 sandwiches for the price of one Sub. We brought up a similar point when we passed a pizza place so I made a huge homemade pizza for dinner and have enough leftovers for lunch for another few days. Suck it, capitalism.
1. I got my Grandson for a big swatch of a day, invited my Thrift Store Buddy over to hang out with us. Before she came, I was outside with GS and spent about ½ hour pruning an apple tree while he stared at the chickens.
Once he decided to start moving rather than just standing, we travelled down to the bottom field where he stared at the sheep then just toddled around.
TSB arrived and she did a teeny bit of weeding, I tried to figure out how to collapse and then (!!) uncollapse the Bugaboo stroller that I had picked up before GS was even born. It was free at the side of the road, did need a repair of a front wheel but it is one solid skookum piece of equipment, just not quite as intuitive as I would like. #2 son finally had an epiphany and I was able to strap GS into the stroller for the trip back up from the field... who invents these things? (it is a stroller from 2008, so I imagine things have improved...).
2. I met up with a girlfriend for a much anticipated and oft delayed visit. We used to meet for lunch, but she is financially a bit tight and I don't need to go out for a meal. Instead she introduced me to a lovely riverside walk, and we walked in the sunshine and discussed the state of our worlds. It was glorious. I also saw three friends I've not bumped into for a while, so that was an extra bonus. Due to the extra moving time, I finally hit over 10,000 steps.
3. We've begun to water the big greenhouse now that my gardening buddy has done such a huge job of getting it cleared out. It is a commitment to go and water every day or two for an hour or more, to get the beds awake again. There is a long stretch of 12 feet of volunteer arugula asking to be harvested, however it was in need of a watering first. Once a bed has been properly moistened we will plant some early greens, prior to the tomato planting that will happen in a couple of months.
4. I had stuffed two chickens into the Instant Pot with great plans, but there were a series of (mostly Mom-related) sudden life events that kept me out of the kitchen. I finally girded my loins and deboned and de-skinned all the meat. Not so much fun when it is fridge cold.
Put the bones and skin back into the IP for another run to make broth (turned out awesome).
Then I peeled and chopped some getting old potatoes, some discount carrots, discount onions, and using the broth from the IP chicken (after I took off the fat) I started some chicken stew. I have no celery in the house and didn't want to go shopping just for that, but remembered past Ecoteri had dehydrated some, so I put in a biggish handful and hoped for the best. Chopped up some of the saved chicken meat.
Divided the stew into two batches and thickened ours with flour, my gluten sensitive Daughter outlaw's with Cornstarch. Jarred it all up for delivery and for lunches (after inhaling a bowlful) and called it a day. Big frugal win as there is more chicken for more meals, and no driving for celery.
5. I had an oopsie with my truck which will require some collision repair work. Luckily I have another vehicle and luckily I just got cleared by the surgeon to return to normal activities so I can now drive standard (stick) with my repaired left arm able to comfortably steer.
Sigh, I do feel like 2026 is one step forward, four back. At least I have been wise to keep my deductible low by paying a slightly higher rate, I think I am going to benefit from almost 10 years of insurance for this repair (they won't write off the vehicle as it is a Toyota Tacoma and they are considered 'high value' vehicles so they will repair them at a higher cost, or something.)
1) gassed up for $1.99/gal, using up expiring fuel points before the end of the month (and the beginning of the not-a-war war).
2) 90%+ of this year's grocery buys have been loss leaders, markdowns, dented veggies, etc, including six pounds of grassfed ground beef for $20 and four pounds of frozen tuna steaks for $7.70 (normally $50). I love to sear these with a little sesame oil and ginger and use the leftovers for salads and onigiri. Kroger has been running B1G2 sales on chicken and chicken parts, so we stocked up. I used two $2.20 marked-down pound containers of baby spinach and kale, intended for salads, to make saag - 6 meals' worth for $6 total, including spices, and very fast and easy because the salad required no prep. The goal is to get as good as takeout; I'm close, and it's an easy way to get a ton of green veggies into a meal. I doubled up on oven time roasting tonight's dinner to get dented zucchini roasted with olive oil ready for the freezer, and am making smashed cucumber salad from dented Persian cukes. Kroger has been adding some great extra coupons to our account, and I've picked up a bunch of free with rebate items. I also finally got in an order through our co-op for bulk spices and tea and GF oats on sale, all about half of retail.
3) My daughter is job hunting, so we've been trying to fill out her work wardrobe. With a few thrift finds and two big bags of hand-me-downs from a professional neighbor, she was able to put together a couple of weeks' worth of outfits that she likes and feels confident in. I also picked up several pairs of shoes for her son from BN.
4) I made a very, very quick trip to the bins and picked up a duffel bag, linen shirt and oxygen concentator for $6. The duffel seemed at first to be in perfect shape, but I missed a small, repairable defect. For about $2, I'll deal with it. The shirt will be offered to my daughter, then eBayed if she doesn't want it. The $1200 oxygen concentrator, which was about to head to the dumpster, may not be able to be sold on eBay, but includes several parts that can be.
5) I took advantage of the annual Office Depot 100% rewards on batteries deal, then rolled the rewards into a major investment in toilet paper. And, I didn't murder any schoolchildren for a weird combination of oil lust and dominionist "theology."
My husband recently retired from his chiropractic practice and a grateful patients brought us a “going away” gift: a mini cooler full of BISON meat they had sourced themselves (hunters) and had processed.I have tri tip roast,rib eyes, and another-small pot roast , and 4 chubs of ground meat.
Sooo.. I-made a big pan of GALUMPKIS, polish cabbage rolls,using our CSA cabbage, and the ground bison.. it will feed us twice this week.Frugal for sure and soooo yummy.
I am cutting up my fruit and veggie servings for morning snacks, early in the morning and putting them on end of counter so when I have the “nibble” urge,I reach for my grapes or my sliced bell peppers or my oranges. I am on the DASH meal plan to keep my mildly elevate BPO in check (staying healthy is FRUGAL!) I have avoided medication by eating 10 servings a day of fruits/vegs and watching fats. (That’s only 5 cups vegs.)
Eating every single slice of sourdough bread..even the heels..
Breakfast for dinner one night is always frugal
Continue with our “cheap dates”: A drive to the river to sit and read books and chat while we wait for the wold horses to show up. A 20 minute drive from home.
Planned a picnic lunch at Saguaro Lake for NEXT week.
I find maintaining a frugal lifestyle with occasional splurges ,to be a fun hobby.. and it is the way we made it through our whole marriage without whopping debt. So why change now?? We live a retirement life that is rich in experiences and satisfaction, by just relying on the same habits we followed all our lives.
So jealous of the bison! My husband is Polish and I'm practicing "better than babcia's" golumpke. Someday!
I hate making granola and absolutely refuse to do so anymore. Also, I think it is nuts the way folks redo their laundry rooms and pay LOTS of money to do so. It is one thing to tidy it up, and make it workable, it is quite another to make it look like a magazine cover.
1. I walked an hour in my neighborhood in 80 plus degree weather.
2. I make fried rice, with egg, spices, rice, coleslaw mix, and some spinach thrown in for good measure.
3. I made a spinach/ham casserole from a deconstructed lunch sandwich I did not eat. Spinach, ham, cheese, with mushroom soup as binder, and the sandwich bread torn up as a topping.
4. I took my breakfast and lunches to work. Most of the food was from Aldi purchases or from the Pig.
5. I have neither air nor heat running at my house!
That's great, you donated so much to the food bank. That motivates me to stop in at one of our local ones and make a donation. It won't be much, but I can do a little. My late husband's motorcycle insurance was not going to be renewed since I am a non-rider. I tried not to freak out because I want it covered for fire or theft until I decide what to do with it. (It's a Triumph motorcycle and was his dream bike. So after a few calls, I discovered Progressive will insure it with me as a non-rider. I was thrilled.
I've been eating down the freezer, and that's helping with grocery money.
I'm not the greatest at watching food in the fridge, and discovered a cucumber that was past its prime and had to be tossed.
All my bills are accounted for the month. I live on a very fixed income, so that's a win.
I've never been to the Goodwill bins but I know there's one in Sacramento.
Up here we have an option called 'parking insurance' which means you can't take the car on the road but if it is hit by a tree/hail or some other random accident it is covered. I wonder if this is what your non-rider insurance is? it is VERY inexpensive
We have GEICO and my husband's hobby VW (which really, really needs to get sold) is insured as "storage." It's only a few dollars a month.
Nothing frugal about the trip we just took (this is why we save!) but a few small things since being home:
1. Any takeout has been purchased with discounts and from local restaurants
2. I'm battling a nasty cold - drinking tea and eating snacks from the pantry
3. Sitting on the couch instead of coughing on my friends
4. Playing video games I already own
5. Taking medication covered by my insurance
I wish I had a wise crack about not dragging the USA into another long, expensive military action...but mostly I just hope you all are taking care and are safe wherever you are in the world.
School closed on Tuesday due to weather, so I had an enjoyable day at home doing absolutely nothing. I also didn't spend any money. Yay me!
Working on eating out the freezer and cupboards. Yanked out a ham and cooked that, as well as some chicken that needed to be cooked which I didn't need from a dish they made the other day. (Thawed out more than I thought.) There is chicken noodle soup on the stove cooking right now, and we're having leftover ham and scalloped potatoes for supper. Soup is for tomorrow's supper.
DH's brother dropped off items his GF got from her food bank that she, nor he, wanted. My DH picked out the items we will use and we will pass the rest on to our daughter's BFF who has 2 children (1 of whom is disabled), and has custody of 2 of her little cousins (intermediate school age). Her husband works full time, but his income alone isn't enough by itself to feed and provide for a household of 6.
Going to a craft show at an area high school on Saturday which benefits their Field Hockey team. Not necessarily to buy anything...just to get out a bit. There's no entrance fee and looking is free. I especially like to look at the crocheted items. Gives me ideas for things I could make myself.
DH has 2 items he got from his mom's house when she passed away in 2011 that are taking real estate up in our house. He's looking to get them appraised and sold through an antique dealer. I'm working on filling up a box to donate to Salvation Army. The Goodwill's around here charge an arm and a leg for most everything. The Goodwill "bins" are about 2 hours from here. One of these days, I'd like to take a trip there just to find out what it's like.
My DS has an appointment on Wednesday to get her taxes done. She doesn't drive, so my DH is going to her house (45 min away) to take her to the appointment. After that, he will take her for her errands (grocery store, Walmart, bank, etc.) and then she will take him to lunch. I would normally go up the following Saturday to take her for the errands; however, this will save a trip there...and gas, too! (Our tax refund is SUPPOSED to hit the bank on Wednesday.)
We have an abundance of canned corn in our cabinets, so I guess corn fritters are on the upcoming menu (for DH, I don't like them), and corn pie for both of us...just have to get the pie crust and the potatoes to make that. It's a cheap, filling, full of carbs meal that a friend of ours served us once upon a time. It's been a while since we've had it, so it will be nice for a change...and use up some of the corn.
Good for you -- I'm betting the Oregon Food Bank is loving this!
Don't know how frugal it will end up being but switched from soda to Starbucks energy drinks which at least has some protein, vitamins and minerals.
Spending the day (and probably tomorrow as well) cleaning house. It's only me and a cat, but this place is out of control!!
Heat turned down to 62 but we have some sunlight today so pulled up the blinds for passive solar (plus the cat LOVES looking out the windows!!)