Five Lil' Frugal Things -- 3¢ for The Win!
1. I received a notification from Portland General Electric informing me of a 5-8 P.M. "Peak Time Rebate," so I made the effort to switch off extra lights, unplug the microwave, not watch TV and even turned the heat down a few degrees. (We have a gas furnace, but the blower is electric.) Because . . . why not?
What did I learn? That keeping the lights on in the entryway and over the kitchen sink, (which I normally do at all times) doesn't use a significant amount of energy. They both have LED bulbs and keep us from turning on the overhead lights when passing through these rooms. I've always felt a bit guilty for this practice, but now I can let that go.
Please don't be jealous of my recent influx of money.
2. I was craving a donut, so I made myself a single blueberry pancake using pancake mix. It scratched that itch and was especially frugal as the mix was something my kid was about to throw away when they last moved.
3. I used $60 of my $100 backpack money to gas up the car and saved 25¢/gallon by paying cash. This was an extremely dull way to spend the money, but I yam who I yam.
4. I took two full bags of paper grocery bags from my mother's house and dropped them off a consignment shop who'll reuses them. They're always super appreciative and I'm happy to give them a second life!
5. I didn't share state secrets with a pedophile network.
Katy Wolk-Stanley
"Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without."
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1. I took my leftover coleslaw mix, added chicken bullion, chopped potatoes, and carrots to make a soup.
2. I may use The Tightwad Gazette method of removing liquid, adding rice , egg, and chicken bits to make chicken fried rice with the soup that is no longer soup. I do find removal of liquid more difficult than adding liquid. Still, money is money and food waste equals wasted money!
3. I walked an hour in my neighborhood and the local cemetery. I like walking in the cemetery bc no traffic.
4. I cleaned my house so didn’t pay anyone to do it. That is normal for me.
5. I have kept the air off and the heat off. It hit in the low 80’s yesterday but a bit cooler today so I put on a sweatshirt.
Cindy, I never thought to use coleslaw mix in soup. I have some to use up. Thanks for the inspiration!
1. Ordered my free pizookie ($9.99 regularly) which is the birthday reward from BJ's. As this probably contains nothing that I can eat, my husband eats this treat.
2. Made a franken-box to ship an ebay sale. I get my packing tape free at Staples because I use points received from turning in ink cartridges. Dh rode bike down to UPS store to drop off package.
3. On a clear liquid diet due to some flare up. So that saves money. I did not go to ER, instead using pain medication I had at home, as well as anti nausea medication. $500 copay saved. This isn't a false economy, I would have gone if I hadn't managed at home. Doctor called me with no cost to me (covered fully by insurance) and imaging is scheduled for Tuesday, which is pretty awesome since it was Friday afternoon when he called me.
4. Cooking beans in the IP, I noticed the other day I didn't have any in the freezer. Since I can't eat anything, this is a gift to future me.
5. Two different friends dropped off stuff for me to sell on FB marketplace and I get to keep the money. Both have high incomes and they just want the stuff gone. I, on the other hand, have chronic illness and a little hobby selling stuff is perfect for me. I can do it when I'm able and we're very grateful.
1. My mom and sister asked my husband and I to dinner at the last minute, and we said sure. The club they belong to was having a steak dinner with salad, baked potato, rolls, and a dessert for $12. Which was even more frugal because my mom and sister insisted on treating. Plus my husband and I brought leftovers home for tomorrow.
2. The weather was in the 40's today so I walked 4 miles around our country roads for free exercise. Picked up trash as I went.
3. Spent under $45 at the grocery this week. Continuing to eat from the pantry and freezer, which is starting to feel like it will never end. On one hand I am grateful to have so much, but it's so much we don't feel like eating. Staying the course and learning.
4. I have continued on my no buy low buy for almost 2 months
and with 3 days left to my budget cut off date I am $200 under my budget goal and $400 under my typical spend.
5. Listed more stuff from around the house, and gifted items on Posh and eBay. I have had a good run lately so hopefully that continues. I also brought home boxes and packing from work to use for shipping.
* I made a mental note of something I wanted to mention here, and of course I can't remember it. So frustrating.
5.
1. Made a stew of leftover pork chops, veggies on hand. Splurged on a box of red lobster cheddar biscuit mix
2. We’re binge watching Dark Windows on Netflix
3. I found a NWT grey skirt suit at the Presbyterian thrift store for $10. I added to my closet of dog judging clothes.
4. Sold another item on Poshmark
5. Expensive week with co pays for dentist, ophthalmologist and nurse practitioner. Health is priceless
1. Frugal fail: Snuggles the Dog wished to express his displeasure at being shut in the bedroom while I was talking with a workman, so he chewed up the threshold. It was some kind of jerry-rigged board the LVP installers had put on there, but it was not supposed to be a big dog's chewstick.
2. Put a throw rug over the gap under the bedroom door where #1 damage was. It actually works better than the board they put down for the threshold... I'm not constantly tripping over it.
3. Decluttering continues. This time, I realized that I almost never read the collection of how-to books and household hint books taking up space all over the house. And if I ever needed to know how to do something, I can find the info online. So the thrift store that caters to DIYers now has a box full of those books, along with a glue gun I've be used and didn't know I had and other such odds and ends. I took it all over to them today. Doubt if I'll ever miss that stuff.
4. Not frugal for me, but for a single mom at my checkout stand: she mentioned that her little girl, who looked to be about 6 y.o., was wanting a bicycle for her birthday and the lady was sad she might not be able to afford it. I told her of 2 thrift stores where I've seen bikes being sold. Keeping my fingers crossed they have just the right bicycle at a good price for her.
5. Used a heating pad in bed last night to doctor my sore leg and to keep warm without turning up the heat.
My hubby and I did an inventory of all our freezers (two small chest freezers and the one attached to our fridge). I wrote down everything in them, and I’ve meal planned for some items that need used up soon. I rescued three packages of hamburger that were getting a little freezer burnt by cooking it all and packaging it to use sooner rather than later. Unfortunately there were some things that had to get tossed, but it was mostly leftovers that I had saved in hopes of eating later.
My granddaughter and I took a walk (in her hand-me-down stroller) to enjoy the beautiful day before we get hit with another snow. We had so much fun!
We walked to CVS where due to a sale and using Extra Care Bucks, I got three smaller bottles of arm & hammer laundry detergent. One immediately went home with my son.
I started watching a series on the free Tubi app. I’ve been reading the books and was excited to see there was a show that was free to watch.
1. I had friends over last night for homemade chili in the crockpot. I baked a cherry pie for dessert. Thanks to the person on this blog who clued me in to the Dollar Store carrying canned cherry pie filling.
2. I made a batch of jello for a friend who has been having problems swallowing solid food. Easy and inexpensive.
3. I found two old photos of my great grandparents and my great great grandparents. I'm using them as decor on my great grandfather's steamer trunk.
4. I'm wearing my jeans more than once. In fact I wore a pair today for the third time.
5. I did not swear in a vulgar way about the Supreme Court after they ruled against my dumb tariffs.
1. I combined errands and dropped off my taxes and picked up a few things at Aldi which is on the way. I mostly stuck to my list except for a few items I realized I needed.
2. I chopped up some mirepoix for a future soup. I used up the rest of a package of sad celery and some excess onion from another dish as well as the green onion bulbs I pulled out of a pot in the fall.
3. I sold a couple more items on Ebay. They are small sales but every little bit helps.
4. I watched more of the Olympics with my mom and she fed me a dinner of leftover meatloaf sandwiches.
5. I sent most of a bag of oranges my mom gave me (they were buy one get one for $1) home with my youngest as well as some cookies that I don't need to eat.
Filling up gas with your money score is a great win. We still need to figure out what's happening with our solar panels, because they are not sending any power to the grid. DH has promised to look at it before we spend money having someone service them (with no guarantees they have a fix). Fingers crossed he can sort it.
1) DH was able to repair the door on our mini shed where our garbage cans go. The door was ripped off during a recent storm. I have no idea how he is so handy, but he got it all sorted & we are back in business with our sheds.
2) I returned 2 items we didn't use on our trip to REI.
3) I returned a gift (a hiking trip item) that arrived late & received future credit that we will definitely use.
4) I signed up for, and then attended, my workout class. It's not particularly frugal anyway, but if you miss a class, it's especially unfrugal.
5) As I always do, paid a medical bill on my rewards credit card & then reimbursed myself from my HSA. A little more rewards towards future travel.
Hawaii Planner, that is frugal genius to pay with the credit card and then pay the cc off with your health savings account money! That's beating 'em at their own game!
1. Got 2, 2 lb packs of ground turkey at a crazy low price (for here), and used one to make like 5 gallons of chili. Okay, it wasn't five gallons, but it was a LOT of chili, so I froze most of it.
2. Used up some of the chili last night to have a friend over for dinner, and then we went to a free classical music concert at a very nearby college. We often do something like this as we both love music and the college has outstanding performances.
3. I mulched my veg garden so it can survive without watering for a few days while we're away.
4. I TRIED MY BEST to do some cost comparisons of an upcoming colonoscopy, and quickly found myself lost in the bizarro world that is US healthcare. God knows what I'll actually pay for this, cause I sure can't find out. I thought the "No Surprises Act" was supposed to help with this ish, but I guess this administration only cares about enforcement of laws when they can knock people around for it.
5. I'm GETTING that colonoscopy instead of waiting around for the condition to worsen and thereby need even more medical care in the end.
Found on our walk this morning:
1. Unused poop bag
2. A dime and a penny (alas, so banged up to be almost unrecognizable)
3. Microfiber cloth
4. Pen
5. Square rubber mat (the kind that interlock). Will repurpose it as a gardening knee pad.
That's a very profitable walk!
1. Dinner last night was a mishmash of leftovers and managed to eat almost everything that was about to expire. We did have about 1/3 cup of rice that couldn't be saved, but better safe than sorry.
2. We discovered last night that peanut butter toast with cinnamon sugar on top is 10/10, most delicious snack ever. We're down to about 1 1/4 sticks of 'butter' and 1/4 tbsp spreadable 'butter' (dairy free) in the house and had to improvise.
3. My husband made two loaves of bread yesterday since we were running low. Good thing he did too, our oldest had 4 slices of PB cinnamon toast for breakfast!
4. I realized it had been a while since our kids' bath toys had been scrubbed so I put them in hot water and soaked with vinegar and Dawn. While their tub was empty I gave it a good scrub with more vinegar and Dawn.
5. We're making plans to sign up for a YMCA membership for our family when we go to town next. It's free for OHP members in our area. While it's not exactly conveniently located, it's something that would be nice to take advantage of when we are in that area.
It's so satisfying when leftovers get completely eaten up!
Thanks for taking it for the team on the energy re-(de)-bate test. I have wondered so many times how my bill never changes despite 60F all winter, unplugging stuff and, now that I am back in the office, no one even home during peak hours.
Also, I never considered making a pancake for a donut craving. Great snack hack, thanks!
1. I am going strong on a pantry challenge. Now that I am an empty nester, I am understanding that the hubby (who travels for work most of the month anyway) and I don't really eat a lot and we do not need an apocalypse hoard of food anymore (although, with grocery prices, I am also glad I stocked away at lower prices).
2. I eat a homemade lunch at work every single day. I prep different types of burritos and freeze them. I keep a stash in the work freezer for days when I rush out without my lunch. Ditto for coffee. Ditto again for snacks.
3. I am heading to Africa next month for work. I am shopping my closets for the business clothes I will need. The only item I needed to buy was Pepto tablets (recommended by colleagues) and mosquito repellent since I will be in the countryside at certain points. I am so looking forward to this trip despite long workdays.
4. Reading Possums Run Amok (and taking it on my long plane ride). I found it in a neighborhood Little Free Library. It's good. Also, this is a repeat F5, I am using the library to learn some new things. I also just read The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer (library book) and I recommend it.
5. Which reminds me, I canceled all of my streaming services in January. I don't miss them at all. I watch YouTube (with ads) and Tubi (with ads). I also canceled Amazon (again) and will be canceling most of the other nickel/dime subscription crap that has crept into my life. I'm also side-eyeing IG and FB. I used them to keep in touch with friends and family, but no one is saying much these days. It seems to be influencers and ads. I am not much of a trendy person, but I did jump on the analog challenge as the only goal I set for 2026. I am starting to feel a tiny bit of my mental focus come back. I have been listening to already owned CDs/vinyl, reading books and blogs*, even writing snail mail to friends. Stamps are not cheap, but it's not just the frugality aspect that attracted me to the trend. It's the loss of time, loss of connection, increased "noise" and my waning ability to focus on a single thought. I was feeling exhausted and analog life seems to be helping a bit.
*Blogs are included in my own analog list.
I added a handful of frozen blueberries, so the pancake counted as "fruit."
Thank you keep keeping blogs, despite them not technically counting as "analog!"
I'm home, and gosh it feels so good! The drive started out quite slippery, but I soon ran out of the snow. I stopped at McDonald's, as much to get out of the car and walk around as for the food. But I bought a pancake breakfast, bringing home the sausage to use later.
My friend was very generous, paying for my food and gas. Of course I did provide excellent care.
I listened to a book on Hoopla on the way home, and I will continue to listen now that I am home.
Came home to find my new driver's license and my mail-in ballot (for our primaries) in my mailbox -- along with a bunch of junk.
My friend keeps her house very cool, so I'm so happy to be warm again! Extra blankets did not help!
I keep my house cool, but always crank it up when I have visitors.
Well, darn, I lost my post, so I'll recap -- more briefly. I'm home after my little caretaking "job." My friend was very generous, paying for my gas and most of my food.
I listened to a book on Hoopla on the ride home. Since I only got about a quarter of the way through it, I'll be listening at home.
Very glad to be back where it's warm. My friend keeps a cool house and extra blankets just didn't cut it. I think if I spend the night there again I will take an electric blanket!
1- made pinatas for my son's birthday with newspaper from my neighbors
2- made muffins at home instead getting donuts
3- made my own brown sugar instead of resupplying from the store
4- used my gym membership to work out
5- bedtime story was from the library
I love that you made a piñata, what was the shape?
I always use "I yam" and add a yam emoji. Smiley face.
My husband tells me LED are cheaper and now I can believe him.
I too got a credit for a 3 hour energy saving challenge, however mine was for $3.00!