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I asked in my Buy Nothing group if anyone had an apron that I could give to my son as a holiday gift. It took a few days, but someone a couple blocks over had one to offer. I walked over this morning and left them a prettily tied handful of rosemary sprigs as a thank you.
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I offered up the leftover Christmas tree boughs on my Buy Nothing group. These are the ones I got for free from a Christmas tree lot a few days ago and am happy to share the extras. I also offered up a box of maple flavor Cream of Wheat packets that had been too sweet for my palate. I’d used a coupon to get them for free, but that doesn’t mean it’s okay for them to go to waste.
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My neighbor across the street gave us a box of Christmas cookies and mini-cakes, which were top tier amazing as she’s a trained chef. We were somehow able to make them last over the course of multiple days and even shared some with our son. I’m not doing any holiday baking, (so far at least) but I did bake up a loaf of no-knead artisan bread to return the favor.
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My son wanted to hit IKEA after work to pick up a specific kitchen wastebasket and asked me to accompany him on his adventure. Although my first instinct was to say “no,” (The 4:29 P.M. sunset is far from invigorating) I did assent, as quality time with my adult kids is increasingly rare.
I did grab a few gourmet goodies to give as gifts, but otherwise kept my wallet in the closed and locked position.
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• I’m picking up mail for a neighbor who’s out of town for a few days.
• I tied the rosemary sprigs with leftover bakery twine from Zeppieri & Sons, my favorite Bronx, NY bakery.
• I stopped into the CVS that’s near my father’s house to pick up the medication for my husband’s upcoming colonoscopy. This saves us from driving across town for a single errand and is a favor to future us.
• I cut out gift labels from the paper cookie box for next week’s Chrismukkah-palooza. -
I didn’t buy any vulgar gold plated apartments in the sky.
{ 75 comments… read them below or add one }
Hey ! First to comment in first 🙂 I haven’t FFT to expose you but I love so much read you from France.CatherinefromFrance.
Thank you! I love my international readers and am always interested in how people are living their daily lives across our planet.
I decided not to substitute teach today, the last half–day before “winter break,” as they’re now calling it. The kids tend to go uber-crazy, even more than usual, during such times.
1. Filled up with gas at a Circle K using the discount card I got that takes off 10 cents per gallon. The card expires on New Year’s, so I’m using it while I still can. Also, I found a Circle K that was selling gas for a cheap price. Regular unleaded is $2.29/gallon today but my card allowed me to pay $2.16. The weather is beautiful this afternoon so it’s much nicer to fill up now before the cold front gets here. I saved maybe 60 cents but every penny counts. And it all adds up over the course of time. But you know that already!
2. Paid my car insurance and got the discount for paying for the whole year.
3. Called my soon-to-be former Medicare Advantage provider and ordered the OTC stuff that is “free” once a quarter. You get an allowance for such things. Funny thing is, I can go down to the drugstore where I work and buy the items for a cheaper price than Humana/Centerwell Pharmacy’s catalog prices them at; if it wasn’t free, I’d be paying through the nose. Anyway I got my money’s worth for all the perks that came with the plan, which is being discontinued in my state as of Dec. 31. (Shame on you, HumanaMA!)
4. Made arrangements for my SS check to be direct deposited into my credit union account, not the bank account. I figure if I up my car payments using part of my SS$, I can be done paying it off in a little over a year.
5. Using the online freebies for all they’re worth: free crossword puzzles, free jigsaw puzzles, free streaming music; free reading. I esp. love the newspaper features (news, comic strips and advice columns) and jigsaw puzzles because you can enjoy them without cluttering up your house.
Meanwhile, here in the Middle of Nowhere®, I’ve been feeling glad gas is $4.20 a gallon, after being over $5 for the past six months.
1. I decorated my Airbnb rental with a few low cost bits. A large dried straw wall hanging that spells out JOY with white lights and shells, an old wreath made of shells, and a very nice tiered wooden treat tray in the form of a Christmas tree. Daughter and I made clove studded tangerines from a bag we forgot about during Thanksgiving, and eked out the rest with pine boughs and cinnamon sticks.
2. That’s quite literally it. I can’t do five things every day! As it is I bought takeout from Wo Hop, NYC’s oldest Chinese restaurant which frankly I think is coasting on its reputation, but Son got annoyed when I suggested another place. I also bought new toys for the dogs and a Fancy Feast “four course meal” with a silly little china heart shaped dish, but what the heck, it’s Christmas.
I should have mentioned that those decorations came out of my overstocked with Christmas junk, can’t-do-too-much-this-year-puppies basement. Except for the tangerines.
I went through a small town in Texas and gas was $2.19 a gallon. I thought man, I should live here. I drove around a bit to have a look and was soon back on the Interstate. I never knew before that gas prices included ambiance.
My five are from the whole week since I haven’t commented in a while.
1. I found a use for a soy yogurt I got by mistake instead of throwing it out. My stomach can’t tolerate soy in large amounts, but a little is okay, so I used the yogurt, slightly thinned with water, as a substitute for buttermilk in a spice cake I made.
2. I frosted said spice cake with lemon frosting I already had (which I had bought on sale) instead of buying or making the cream cheese frosting the recipe called for.
3. I sold a pair of jeans that didn’t fit. I packaged them in a large envelope I had saved from something that was sent to me.
4. I sold my cat’s outgrown carrier, after cleaning it well. The box I meant to ship it in was too big and would have cost too much, so I found another large envelope to reuse, and with a bit of creativity, I made it fit.
5. I listed my old computer on eBay, used an Instacart gift card to buy groceries, and used a Walmart gift card to buy gifts for my nieces and nephews.
@Elizabeth M – did you make sure to securely “wipe” your personal data?
Yes. I’m very glad that’s an easier option now. I remember my dad taking the hard drives out of old computers and physically destroying them to make sure the data wouldn’t get into the wrong hands.
1) We baked muffins and froze some for quick, convenient breakfasts.
2) I used CVS ExtraBucks to pay half the cost of an item. The other item purchased that day was buy one get one half off. (And both were on the list before spotting deals for them.)
3) Hubby fixed the rattling exhaust fan in the bathroom. He was able to replace the part with the worn out bearings instead of replacing the whole thing.
4) We’d recently bought a box of grocery store bakery cinnamon rolls for a co-worker of our son. We know he likes them, doesn’t drive, the store isn’t convenient to bus, and they were on sale half off. Son recently picked up a new activity that is a former hobby of the co-worker and he brought in a related item for our son, so we no longer need to purchase that item.
5) I spotted a list of local Christmas light displays set to music and we’re going to have one or more evenings enjoying them.
I love the circularity of frequent kindness! If you are kind often enough your life will be studded with delightful little kindnesses coming home to roost! NOT the reason, but a happy result! Wishing you all a year to come that is better in every way!
1. I took a veggie tray to gathering. I froze the leftover broccoli and cut up and sauteed the remaining carrots, celery, and sweet peppers. I’ll freeze them for use in future soups. I gave the ranch dressing to a friend since we wouldn’t have used it.
2. We walked in the snow/rain/snow. It was a gray day but fresh air and exercise are good for your mood and immune system. We took umbrellas with us.
3. I stopped at Aldi on my way home from having the oil changed in my vehicle. It was crowded and people had carts full of stuff. I stuck to my list and only bought produce and butter. I found a penny and then two more in the parking lot.
4. Tomorrow I will help DD wrap gifts she has for her in-laws. They like to exchange volumes of gifts. She does not experience that at our house.
5. I’m wearing layers inside and outside since my body does not love the cold.
If I am doing my volunteering at the food bank on a Friday, I often am offered one of those veggie trays because they will go bad over the weekend and none of the customers wanted it. I take them home, throw all of the vegetables in a pot of chicken stock and cook them to death and then use the immersion blender on them. Makes a thick and healthy soup, which I then ruin by throwing in cheese so that my husband will eat it. But it really is so convenient to do that and it happens about once a month and feeds us for three days.
Do remember that cheese doesn’t undo the healthiness of the vegetables.
Great idea.
The fat in cheese helps you absorb the vitamins and minerals in the vegetables. Cheese also contains protein and calcium.
1. I wrote out Christmas cards, using supplies I had from the last several years. Some cards were from yard sales and had no envelopes, but I found blank ones in my stash for them. (My family exchanges cards without writing on the envelopes or licking them shut). I like to send them for my great-nieces/ nephews, for whom mail might still be a Big Deal.
2. When my Dad traveled in northern Europe, he visited a Santa land of some sort. I found some postcards he had bought there when I cleared out his office stuff, and used those for Christmas cards this year to a few people who knew him.
3. Husband’s favorite childhood candy was Cherry Mash. We had bought some cherry chips to make some for him and didn’t use them all. I am going to use them in oatmeal cookies, giving him a cookie and chip that no one else really likes, so he can eat them all.
4. Tree still smells good, so my house is being frugally scented. I don’t use artificial scents.
5. Will start shopping for clearance holiday cards in the next few days to be ready for next year!
I’m also injoying the smell of actual Xmas tree branches instead of the artificial tree that we’ve used over the past nine years or so.
We used to share a real tree with a colleague’s family. We would buy it and use it for the first part of the month. Then, when we traveled to see grandparents, we would take the decorations off and deliver it to a colleague, who would enjoy it for the next few wees. She made a charitable donation for the cost of the tree and we left it in the stand for them.
Finally, in January, they would undecorate it again, return the stand, and put the tree in the river behind their house for fish habitat.
We use an artificial tree but I also cut or get pine boughs to stick among the fake ones for the fragrance.
I mix the sugary flavor packets of oatmeal with plain oats to make it less sweet
Cream of Wheat is a completely different texture, so I think that would have been unpleasant.
1. I’m working at a friend’s giftshop over the holidays. I asked if I could have the same hours that my partner is working there so that we can commute together each day, rather than a) drive separately and b) have one of us pay for parking since there is only one parking pass.
2. We are bringing our coffee and lunches, and tonight, despite it snowing, and me being exhausted (menopause insomnia SUCKS, plus finishing my end-of-the-semester grading), we were going to order Chinese food. But, in the end, we stuck to eating the dinner we had planned.
3. Dinner tonight was frozen canederli that I had made previously and frozen 1/2, made from homemade stale bread, free eggs from mystery shop, and homemade chicken stock made from bones that were free from a mystery shop and veg scraps. I added some sauteed mushrooms, also free from work CSA.
4. We planned side/veggie dishes for Christmas and Boxing Day based on what was in the CSA—parsnips, carrots (Boxing Day), beets, and kohlrabi (Christmas). We are making carbonates, and one option is to serve them with a chanterelle mushroom sauce. One woman didn’t pick up her mushroom CSA, so we were able to bring it home (it would have cost $35!). It was full of beautiful lion’s mane mushrooms, black oyster mushrooms, and shitakes. We’ll use the shitake as a substitute for the chanterelles.
5. Despite working in a gift shop over the holidays, and getting an employee discount, I will buy nothing, for as we’ve learned here, we are going to work to make money, not spend money!
I should have noted: my partner works at the store the day that the CSA boxes are picked up, so he gets one for free, which is a super great perk.
Your #1…is how DH and I went down to one car. We worked together at the Post Office, same hours and always drove in together. And yet we still had a second car mostly sitting in the driveway, insured and we continued to pay for repairs and upkeep on it. A lightbulb went 9n one day and we decided to get rid of one of them. Retired now, we’ve never looked back.
Congratulations for sticking to the meal plan. Because of this lovely blog and Katy’s frequent posts, I am finding the mantra of “There is food at home” is becoming a natural message. There are lots of fast foods near where I am currently working out, but other than a free-with-points decadent serving of French Fries, I have managed to eat the FOOD AT HOME. The struggle is real, the more we support each other the easier it gets. And congrats on getting the message about working to earn not spend money!
Yum — I love mushrooms!!
That “here to make money, not spend money” is powerful mindset.
Betta, I’m green with envy over the mushroom score in your #4. I can tell you that those mushrooms would have sold for a lot more than $35 at Wegmans.
And given my recent remarks about Wegmans, some folks may be wondering why I continue to shop there. Several reasons: (a) I’ve been using its top-notch pharmacy since DH and I were picking up prescriptions for his parents back in the early noughts; (b) Wegmans does have some things you can’t get anywhere else in my town; (c) its current “Hot Zone” loss leaders are cheaper than I can find these items anywhere else; and (d) it accepts more brands of bottles and cans for the NY State deposits than any other place in town that isn’t a dedicated container return business. So I can often combine a lot of errands into a trip to Wegmans.
Not to mention,Wegmans is a food lovers paradise.
1. I borrowed some Christmas themed ” brain candy novels” from the library. Mary Kay Andrew’s is always a fun read.
2. Clearance Kings Hawaiian rolls double bagged abd in the freezer await some leftover Christmas ham. These will make tastey sandwiches.
3. Purchased some protein bars for post gym snacks from my grocery store Clearance section.
4. Wearing holiday clothing purchased years ago. I made the effort to refrain from running errands in my fuzzy, fleece, Grinch lounge pants. As sure as I gave in to this, I would have seen 10 people I know. LOL
5. Eating salad and continuing to eat last weeks beef and vegetable soup for supper.
Mary Kay Andrews is amazing, such a great writer!
1. A mystery shop I did not want was offered for $20. Nope. $30. Nope. $50. Nope. $80 if I do it tomorrow. Okay, I can be bought. It will take me about an hour and it is next to a mystery grocery pick up shop, so no extra gas. Apparently I will sell myself for $80 an hour.
2. The food bank offered all the volunteers a holiday thank you in the form of small lovely silver-colored planters filled with herbs. It was 27 below so it took a lot of brown bag covering to get it home without frost bite but it is now sitting in the living room. Free winter greenery that is edible!
3. Am using up old, old, old tea bags for iced tea. (Not a fan of hot drinks, even in the winter.) I am not a tea person but I am tired of water and I refuse to buy pop unless it is with a convenience store mystery shop where I have to a bottle.
4. I wanted to go see a new release movie but convinced myself that I could wait until it streamed on Netflix. Made a bowl of buttered popcorn and watched a movie at home instead. Made a second bowl of popcorn when Clobber Paws accidentally (I think) knocked the first bowl off the end table with his tail. The two dogs gobbled up every last bit within about 60 seconds, leaving me only the grease to clean up.
Other than these things, I’ve got nothing.
Lindsey,
$80/hour sounds really good! I’ve worked at the same job for 38 years, and make $40+/hour.
I have to ask — how well do dogs digest popcorn?
Our dogs can digest as much as they can get their teeth on. They love it. I always have to make extra for them. They like to catch it mid air.
Except for the 36 full size Hershey Halloween bars that he both pooped and threw back up, the dog has successfully digested (and this is just from the top of my head): a pound of regular butter, a pound of fancy European butter, a frozen 8 pack of Angus pre-formed burgers, a skillet of one pound of still hot cooked sausage, a party size bag of chips on the way to the party where we were supposed to be contributing chips, an industrial sized bag of honey-mint cough drops and the popcorn. The sausage was my fault, as was the first butter, because I left them sitting on the stove for about 3 minutes while I went into the other room, but the others were him reaching what we were convinced was unreachable or opening the cooler in the back on the way home from the grocery store. One time my wheelchair was sitting near a counter on a day when I was feeling pretty good, and he climbed into the chair and then on to the kitchen counter to reach something on top of the fridge. And then he was too frightened to climb back down so we had to call our burly neighbor and his buddy to lift him off. After about the age of two, giant breeds tend to calm down so I just have to hold on until he leaves his adolescence.
Lindsey – your dog litany had me laughing out loud! That list tops my in laws previous Newfoundland puppy who once at an entire pan of turtle brownies (including the tinfoil pan and the plastic knife) with no ill effects. I swear I watch our puppy more diligently than I did DS when he was the same age (2ish).
Dogs tend to eat first and think later.
To the extent that dogs think at all!
1. I attended the public celebration of life for our former provincial Premier, and (thanks to my son’s relationship with him and his son) was seated in the uber-VIP section. The event was long and heartful. Due to our VIP status, we had access to a tasty spread of sandwiches, sweets, and veggie plates.
I ate a plateful, however I cringed at the likely food waste – lots would have been thrown away, unless someone had arranged to collect it. (It wasn’t the kind of venue where I could have gotten away with filling a Tupperware!).
2. #1 son and I then attended a swanky and much smaller event at Government House. That was a lovely event and so special to actually be able to spend time with the former Premier’s wife and two sons and some important government officials – as well as close friends and family.
Here, too, was a fancy spread of finger food, of which I partook, sans Tupperware again. However, I suspect that the Lieutenant Governor’s kitchen staff would have taken the leftovers home, as she is a practical woman.
3. I went to McD’s for a pickup after spending time in town. I had points so ordered fries for free, but was having trouble with my CC so wasn’t able to get the discount burger (when our hockey team plays, there are discount meals). I guess that is a bonus as I got out of there for free and came home to eat?
4. I have picked up a serger from FBMP – my mom gave hers to my niece, who has somehow misplaced it. I have enough projects to really justify having one, and am tired of waiting for the niece to find the lost serger (it has been 2 years!) so have found something that will work well for me.
A bit of a road trip and I had a whole day free to do it. Time with myself! I downloaded an audible book using Blackstone which is free with my Library card, and traveled with a lovely and silly romance (Lies Jane Austen told me, @A. Marie). Totally formulaic but fun all the same
5. Hauled an ENORMOUS gorgeous bumpy skinned pumpkin out of the squash storage, cut it in half and roasted it while I was cooking two Hash Brown Pies (essentially quiche but with frozen hash browns forming a thick crust).
Took a pie and some greek salad and some broccoli to #1 son for dinner (secret way to see Grandson). Once home I scraped out the squash. It is quite sweet so I am researching a carrot ginger coconut milk squash soup, will make once I recover from my busy day.
6. I am continuing with my weight training – the coaching isn’t currently frugal right, and yet I need a trainer and am feeling both stronger and more enthusiastic. I came home afterwards, today, and proceeded to work hard in the yard with Wonder James – cutting and hauling branches, moving dirt around, then finally getting the last load of firewood into the shed. I need to up my step count and today I certainly managed without a formal walk. Tired and happy!
7. I have too many chicken eggs so packed up four cartons and dropped in to my Doctor’s office.
I had some AA literature to drop off that she had requested, so did that too. The gals behind the desk got a gleam in their eyes and said they would put the one poster up in the bathroom – a more private place if anyone was wanting to use the QR code.
My wonderful Doctor had earlier mentioned that she needed some more information about meetings – so she now has some lists to share. If even one person who has a problem can get started on the road to freedom, I will be doing my part.
That was amazing, thank you so much for sharing all of this!
Bless you for getting info about sources of help to where it is needed. Pls. suggest to the doctor’s office staff that it’d be a great idea to also put up a poster or some info in the ladies’ room about your local domestic violence shelter. Ours suggests the info be put on the back of the stall doors so no one can see anyone taking down the info. In case a MIL goes into the restroom with the victim.
I never would have thought of the need to put the info on the stall doors! Thanks for sharing that tip.
The financial institution for whom I work has teller/branch training for domestic violence/sex trafficking. Don’t know if state or federal law (if not federal it should be) that a victim of domestic violence/has order of protection can receive their statements/correspondence at a 3rd party address. Sad to say abusers are far, far too motivated to find their victims and will go to great lengths to find them.
I think a lot of people don’t realize they can receive their own statements and have their own contact info. I found this out when I thought my husband and I shared an online bank account log-in and was told he would have to set up his own. (Fortunately, sharing money is not an issue for us!).
I have extrapolated this to any financial account that is held in one’s name, such as individual credit card and investment statements.
On a lighter note, I first learned about the effectiveness of posting information inside a bathroom stall when someone on my residence hall who sold Avon posted things to read while seated there…
My five are all about receiving things and being ever grateful:
1. A $5 gift card to a coffee shop from a small gift exchange.
2. A gift bag of homemade goodies from a friend: loaf of artisan bread, biscotti, and dog treats.
3. A free piece of chocolate when I went to the See’s Candies with a friend (our third trip in as many weeks).
4. A gift bag containing a coupon for a free Crumbl cookie and some candies (I regifted the candies to our mail carrier along with the biscotti mentioned above).
5. A lovely afternoon of tea and sweet and savory treats at a neighbor’s house. Then we received a box of chocolates on our way out. We’ll bring those to our family Christmas gathering.
Love those free See’s chocolates!
1. Still helping the young kids I work with on special tips from this old lady.
2. FaceTimed with my son this afternoon for a little while guiding him on his first ever crockpot, beef stew. His boyfriend and their roommate are coming home soon, so it will be nice for them to have a meal prepped and ready to go. (They don’t get home until about 9:30 at night.)
3. I can’t remember if I mentioned this last time I commented, but my son has FINALLY signed up for community college for film/communication/media. I’ve been wanting him to do this for years. And because we live in Massachusetts, he applied for the special grant to go to school for free. Hopefully that doesn’t disappear with the stupidity of getting rid of the DOE.
4. So far this month, I’ve spent $62 on groceries. (I spent a little more than my budget last month because I hit a couple great sales on meat) and I have a few months left of the winter CSA share that I signed up for. So my grocery bill for December will be very low. I have quite a few veggies in my fridge right now.
5. I finally was able to participate in a focus group this month. This is the first time since pre-Covid. It took all of 25 minutes and I got $125. I really hope I can qualify for more moving forward. (Because of my age, I tend to be asked if I want to participate in incontinent supplies or medical devices for seniors, etc. None of which I use.)
I wish all of you a happy and healthy holiday season!
Oh! My husband is still leaving me dimes. I have found two so far this month.
So . . . you could make more money if you pretended to be incontinent?
I wish your son wonderful classes and delicious stew!
1. Made my 4 hour drive home after a week of helping DIL while my son was away. Bought food at Target to eat on the way home. Drove home late evening when there was less traffic so I’m guessing I saved on gas. I stopped at Costco to fill up.
2. Found a used book ($2!) for a gift that I needed.
3. Arrived home to find the packages from thriftbooks that contain other gifts. Thriftbooks is awesome! I didn’t know this until this week, but they also carry new books. Free shipping for orders over $15 and some of the orders less than that I have paid $1.99 shipping.
That’s about all I have. But thank you, Katy, for the frequent posts. I has made an enormous difference about how I feel about my modest gifts and the season in general.
Thanks for the Thriftbooks tip and for the kind words!
I haven’t got much, but here it is:
(1) I went to Trader Joe’s yesterday morning for a few things I need for Xmas Eve dinner. It was less crowded than Wegmans (which usually has a cop out front directing traffic by this point before Xmas); I found most of what I was looking for at lower prices than Wegmans’; and I managed to steer clear of the holiday goodies displays altogether. Win/win/win!
(2) The neighbor on the other side of my NDN, who occasionally brings me his NY State deposit containers, stopped by yesterday with half a trunkload. Another $6.15 into the 2024 bottle/can total.
(3) And I got a free thrill early yesterday morning when a handsome female Cooper’s hawk took a swing and a miss at four pigeons at my bird feeders. As far as I’m concerned, she can have all the pigeons she wants–and pigeons are what she clearly prefers, judging by previous feathery evidence.
Is it pigeons that are the seagulls of the land? Or seagulls are the pigeons of the sea?
Personally, I’d rather have pigeons than seagulls. For one thing, I don’t think a Cooper’s hawk would take on a seagull–and for another, I imagine that pigeons are tastier. (If push comes to shove in the next few years, I may get out there with a net and grab a few pigeons myself. They’re easier to catch and prepare than deer, my other great temptation.)
Few (if any) pigeons here so mourning doves are the preferred prey for Cooper’s and Red Hawks.
I thought seagulls were “rats of the sky”?
I don’t have much to add either.
1. I split a sale spiral sliced ham with my mother. This will be several meals and she also let me have the bone so we will all have split pea soup in the future. Right now it’s all in the freezer.
2. Not frugal for me, but I was able to help my niece and her boyfriend out by giving her son and his son and daughter in-law a room at the inn. There was some missed flight shenanigans and they needed a place to stay before heading further north. They are all great kids and I was happy to be able to help.
3. I shared a meal with my mother at a local breakfast place before we sent the kids off on the next leg of their journey.
4. My very reasonable handyman installed my new ceiling fan. It was a pain in the butt but he got it done and barely charged anything.
5. The usual things…I’m hanging my laundry on racks to dry. I’m reading a library book on my kindle. My coffee was made at home. My heat is low and I’m dressed in layers. Etc. Etc.
Got invited to a $75 survey last night, and got reimbursed for an Ebay purchase I had to make. I bought something I already wanted to purchase (workout pants that are my favorite & Nordstrom stopped making years ago. I have a collection, but I work out every day, and they eventually get holes.). I paid using paypal & a pre-paid gift card I’d received as a settlement. I’d read that saving those pre-paid gift cards to Paypal is a great way to use them up, as they allow split payments. Anyway, I paid zero out of pocket, & should receive about $100 after all is said & done & a pair of my workout pants.
I did splurge & take my two teens out to lunch yesterday. I suppose the positive there is that they both voted on a restaurant where I’d added a credit card cash back offer, so I’ll get a small amount of my purchase back.
Got a refund for an eBay return and put it into what’s supposed to be an ultra quiet nail grinder for my older dog, who is such a nervous girl about nail trims.
Gave my dogs a bath and brush out at home yesterday. Cleaned the hard water build-up off the kitchen and laundry room sprayers with some Barkeepers Friend and a toothbrush. My husband bought some toothbrushes that are too stiff and they have become cleaning tools.
Finished watching the remake of All Creatures Great and Small, which is free on PBS through Dec. 23. We do support our local station, but it was nice to be offered an entire series to catch up on.
Thoroughly cleaned my house and laundered the reusable mop pads and dusters.
Some Pre-Christmas frugal things:
* Got a bag of apples from a friend and immediately turned them into apple butter. Made 6 jars. Yummmm
* Made a centre piece for the Christmas dinner table by using a glass dome that I had found in a charity shop in summer (it was 4 Euro). I filled it with twigs, a string of red pearls and a gold star. Everything looks better in a glass dome!
* I have tried the Too Good to Go app and have gotten a few boxes from Aldi. There was one day when we got really good stuff, so I tried to get one again on the same weekday the next week but the contents of the box were not as good. They are always worth more than the 4 Euro the box costs, though. If I didn’t have the teens I wouldn’t be getting it as half of the stuff is processed food which DH and I are trying to avoid but the teens like it as a treat. So I will continue to get the box once a week. I take a picture of what we get every week as a friend of mine also gets one occasionally and we like to compare the loot 🙂 This week we got: 2 large packets of spicy chicken nuggets, Colcannon mash, a packet of fresh cherries, a carton of soy yogurt, barbecue pulled turkey breast, soda bread, a packet of spinach, custard.
* I made my own christmas cards with watercolour paintings on them (very simple, just baubles in different colours). I enjoyed that very much!
* My hellebore (Christmas rose) plant that I got last year flowered again as did the one I got two years ago. This has never happened before! I love hellebore and always get one in November. They flower all winter. I then keep them for two years in the hope that they might flower again – but they never do! Except this year, so I did not have to buy a new plant. They are quite pricey, around 18 Euro.
*I needed new earpods as my daughter “borrowed” mine (I never saw them again!). Found a (new without tags) pair on FB marketplace – with postage they were only 2 Euro cheaper than brand new but I will always prefer to shop from the stuff cloud.
* Also a form of shopping from the stuff cloud: found a Tommy Hilfiger hoodie for 3 Euro in a local charity shop for one of my teens. Everything was half price as it was their last day before the Christmas holidays. I also bought a beautiful silk scarf for 1 Euro to use for wrapping some future present (I was inspired by an article in a magazine about the Japanese custom of furoshiki gift wrapping). They were giving two free festive (water) glasses to every customer which was nice!
A very merry Christmas to everyone who celebrates it and a peaceful and hygge winter time to all!
You are absolutely correct about the glass dome (or cloche or bell jar, whatever)! It’s basically the same as framing a picture–sets off the objects as special.
Regarding the Hellebore (Christmas rose). Mine are fickle, too, and I love them so much. I THINK that one of the issues is that I have inadvertently buried the crown, or let the crown get buried by fallen leaves. I had one that was struggling and when I dug it up and potted it higher, I got blooms.
I have a habit of over planting things. Might be needing to learn this elsewhere in my life!
Hi Katy,
No time for an FFT today, but I did send you my “How to Make Your Colonoscopy More Bearable” cheat sheet. I hope it’s 1. On time and 2. Helpful.
Hi Katy! And all of the others posting here.
How have I never seen your posts before today?! I’m so impressed and encouraged by all of your efforts to be frugal and eco-friendly.
Maybe I’ll have some to post sometime soon. How do I make sure to keep receiving this?
Anyway, a very Merry Christmas to you all from sunny Arizona! And a safe Happy New Year.
Anita
There’s a Facebook group for the blog!
https://www.facebook.com/groups/thenonconsumeradvocate
I was about to comment that that was 6, not 5 frugal things, then realized it was actually even more than that! You have a sneaky way of sneaking multiple into one!
1. Accepted a free cashmere sweater my mother-in-law Thrifted.
2. Found a dime. Husband also found a dime.
3. Yesterday we ate 2 packed meals on the road instead of fast-food.
4. The one packed meal was egg sandwiches made with egg whites leftover from husband’s homemade Eggnog.
5. Tomorrow we are doing a gift exchange, some of our gifts were Thrifted.
Found 4 Christmas trees off in the ditch of a sharp corner on our County Rd., put them up for adoption on FBMP.
Made a mixed greens wreath for an elderly friend as she just lost her bestie. (horrible time of year to lose friends/family…I’ve lost a couple of dear friends and family at this time and it is so sad). I decorated it with coca-cola bears and battery powered cola bottle lights as she is a diet coke-aholic. She had a smile ear to ear!
Made an mini tree for the littles, I used to decorate it with fruits and nut ornaments for my Christmas hutch. They get my Grandmother’s 1970’s Christmas elf ornaments (made of felt). This tree will go in our den/library/puzzle/game room.
Made a set of fabric book bags for the newest little in the family. Every year, he will receive holiday books in a festive bag/gift wrap. I still have all of the books that I received as a child from a childless University Professor couple that we invited every year to celebrate Chanukah and Christmas. About 40 years ago I made the fabric bags instead of wrapping each book every year.
Went to a “make your own shower steamer craftapalooza”, can see making those next year for my Christmas baskets. This was a clever holiday party.
Gave the pup a long soaking bath and blew her dry. I washed my cousin’s dog at the same time and he gave me dog jerky treats as a thank you.
Love the Coca-Cola bear wreath! How thoughtful and appropriate!
Although I can’t match you on the fabric book bags, BG Farmgirl, I can tell a story of a book-giving benefactor who was like your childless professor couple. This was my godmother, “Auntie Genevieve,” who made a point of giving me a lovely hardback classic every Christmas. I still have the copies of The Wind in the Willows, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and Saints: Adventures in Courage (a robust and well-illustrated kids’ version of various saints’ lives) that she gave me. She was also the parish secretary, so thanks to her, I got to roam around parts of our church that even the cleaners didn’t often get to. May she rest in well-earned peace.
@A. Marie – ah the Wind in the Willows. Another childhood favorite of mine is The Cricket in Times Square. And another, the something papers, I’ll have to dig in my stash of childhood books. I remember being able to order books at a reasonable price via my school. I’m sure I always marked far more than my parent’s budget allowed. I do remember most books were less than $1 a book, yes I am old.
That is so nice of you and what a hilarious and perfect present!
BFF of 40 years left us two years ago on Christmas Eve, 11:45 PM. I miss her every single day but joked that she wanted to see if the legend was true about animals being able to speak at midnight Christmas Eve.
I’m still full of grief for her, my mother dying in May and my dog in October. My younger brother who died at 15 had his birthday 12/29. It’s been a heavy burden the past couple of years.
Peace be with you, Rose.
Oh, I love the book bag idea, and with a new ‘little’ (YAY, first grand baby) this Christmas, and a new to me serger, I think I have my first project. My beloved Aunti gave all her nieces and nephews books until we were 18. She died just last week, so I think I will include a story about her with the book I already have for #1Grandson.
Your wreaths and gifted Christmas trees and mini tree all sound like lovely ways to spread the joy. Merry Christmas!
Not to mention,Wegmans is a food lovers paradise.