Four Frugal Things & One Frugal Fail
by Katy on August 26, 2017 · 97 comments
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I was supposed to meet up with a woman yesterday to sell her a patio table that I got for free. Instead I accidentally took an extremely deep nap, and now she doesn’t want to buy the table. This was my first time trying to sell anything through nextdoor.com, so at least I know that she didn’t drive from far away. Perfect, I am not.
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I was bizarrely tired yesterday, (see above) and had planned nothing whatsoever for dinner. I was deeply tempted to get takeout, but instead I threw together some bean and cheese quesadillas for the kids and then cooked up a couple black bean burger patties for myself. It wasn’t exactly a meal to blog about, but being able to accept this simple fare saved us at least twenty bucks.
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My out of town neighbors are going to let me put some extra garbage into their bin this week, (I’m cleaning out the basement) I donated a grocery bag of miscellaneous items to Goodwill, I’m photographing Goodwill finds for eBay listings, I sold another eBay item and I finally have the DVD of Hidden Figures ready to pick up at the library.
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A friend of mine from work had been wanting to tag along for a Goodwill Outlet excursion, so the two of us arranged a little play date. (Actually there were two-and-a-half of us, as she has a newborn.) The trip did not provide any brag-worthy finds, but for $5.50 I did buy:
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A swimsuit for myself, as my old one becomes transparent when wet. (Not my preferred look!)
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A 1930’s Mickey Mouse silver spoon to sell.
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Another handful of miscellaneous stainless steel silverware for my sons’ apartments.
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A Rubbermaid silverware organizer.
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A Texas Instruments scientific calculator to sell.
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Two children’s books for my friend.
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A ceramic coffee creamer for this friend.
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An unopened package of wall hooks. Yup. For my friend.
5. I didn’t buy a Lear Jet or a vulgar gold plated apartment in the sky.
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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Cold and wet here in southern Australia, but spring is on the way, blossoms on trees , birds singing , bulbs in flower. Next week weather warming up. Picked lots of greens today , broccoli, bokchoy, coriander, spring onions. 1.Made a fish and vege bake for tea, marmalade slice for afters. Used up tin fish and old jar of marmalade. 2. Next doors reno has provided me with free carpet wool under felt that will go around my tomatoes this year as weed mat/mulch. 3. Car pooling to larger shops with friend saves us both petrol as we take turns. 4. Coupon books giving lots of bargains locally . Buy one get one free applied to bread, coffee and chicken kievs this week. 5. Local council giving out large compost bins to locals for a push to get everyone recycling food waste, happy to take one and add to my compost system.
I wish our council would give out compost bins – I’d be there with bells on. Ours seems to be a bit slow with things like that.
I don’t have much that is frugally bragworthy to tell. 1. I did get a few clothing items for my grand baby at the Salvation Army store this morning. 2. We are riding in my husband’s Chevy Volt this weekend to save on gas. 3. I’m fatigued for some reason myself so I am planning to have a low key weekend unless I feel especially energized in the morning. 4. Gonna use up some things that have been hanging around in my freezer this weekend. 5. I’m also going to make some pickles eggs since my chicken are laying like crazy right now. Good problem to have! I love reading these comments. Hearing that there are signs of Spring in Australia means there is an end to the summer heat for those of us in the South. Autumn is around the corner and I crave that time of year. I love cozy fires in the fires in the fireplace, soups/stews/chili, all the colors, crisp cool mornings, and all the pumpkin flavored desserts. Sweat is running down my back as I am typing this because it is so darn hot here, ugh!
I love fall as well Jennifer! In fact I buy pumpking flavored coffee out of season (bags are discounted) and drink it all year long, It’s gotten down to high 40’s these last few nights, I’m loving it! Mid 70’s today, LOVE not having to pay for air or heat!!! we are baking cookies right now and nice not to have to worry about it heating up the house even more.
same here in Missouri I have the a/c off using fans as our night temps are in the mid to low 50’s and I’m craving fall I love making chili/ stew/ roasts and making breads like banana, pumpkin, and cookies.
I already have a few Fall decorations out, which my husband thinks is nutty. If the stores are doing it, I might as well. It waited so long to put them out last year that it was almost Christmas so I figure a head start is good for me.
1. Using lots of green onions while cooking from the original pack I bought back in March. I had planted the bulb ends in a pot, and they’ve been producing like crazy ever since.
2. Just made rice krispy treats from stuff I had in the pantry. Had an urge for sweets and didn’t want to heat up the kitchen ridiculously.
3. Brought home the guest room bedding from my daughter’s apartment to wash and dry. I’m the one that sleeps on it and it was due. My daughter has a tiny very inefficient stackable in her apartment, and water/sewer costs are crazy high where she lives. So, this is more frugal for her than it is for me. But I get clean sheets out of the deal.
4. Planned out my errands this morning for maximum efficiency in gas.
5. Planning out the honey hubby’s meals for next week while I’ll be gone on a business trip. If I make breakfast and dinner casseroles ahead of time, he won’t be tempted by takeout. (yes, I do 90% of the cooking, but he does 90% of the laundry, so it balances out!)
1. Just dropped off two more eBay sales in the mail
2. Attended a free entertaining workshop yesterday and came away with free stainless steel straw/pouch plus a decor item I’ll either gift or sell
3. Third workout this week. I have prepaid for classes thru end of year.
4. Attended end of summer ask white attire party last night. Wore white blouse and pale lavender slacks.
5. Sent some small gift bags and other items to a friend who can use for her jewelry making biz.
1. Sold a wool throw blanket thru my etsy shop and boxed it up for USPS to p/u on Monday…no driving to the post office for me
2. Traded a beautiful pale blue cashmere sweater I bought at Goodwill with my mom in exchange for her labor to create a simple slipcover for a old ottoman that can now go in the den where it will serve as a coffee table
3. Girded my loins and did NOT go to Goodwill today and instead only ran the errands I had to do and only bought what I needed
4. Ordered, off etsy, a couple lovely lace embellishments that will be hand sewn onto a lovely linen dress that I unfortunately stained…thankfully the dress is a loose fit, rather boho style and the new additions should fit right in. I will wear this to an outdoor wedding I am attending in September so no new dress needed!
5. Frugal fail…I was unable to convince my husband that he didn’t need to purchase the MacGregor/Mayfield fight off pay-for-view…::sigh:: Men!
1.Took one for the team – teen queen refused to eat the leftover barbeque chicken legs for lunch. I used the meat of one inside a refried bean/cheese burrito (gave it a mesquite flavor). Took the meat off the other leg and will give to dog tonight for extra protein or freeze for another burrito.
2. Read my free Entertainment magazine, love the entertainment coverage and book reviews. Got it free through a Hip to Save post. I will donate the magazine to the library for the used book shop to sell.
3. Making chocolate chip cookies from things we have at home with teen queen, glad she is still happy doing things at home vs. going to the mall. She added the salt and baking soda using a tablespoon and not teaspoon (she didn’t understand the abbreviations) and didn’t have the heart to toss the dry ingredients as she had already added to the flour. I think we will be okay as we used unsalted butter and tastes good after several taste tests, lol.
4. We happily watched Beautiful Creatures on Netflix last night and I didn’t have to spring for Redbox. We watched the pilot for The Tick on Amazon Prime but I wasn’t feeling it, probably won’t watch the rest of the series. Complaint – why are most of the new series for mature audiences? Teen queen still isn’t old enough to watch those with me. We need more series that are TV-13 or 14!!!
5. Puppy outgrew her medium crate. Initially was going to just buy one at the store i.e. Meijer’s or Kroger’s. Priced them online and found a much larger crate through Amazon saving over $20 and also includes free shipping, yeah!, I won’t have to lug it home, double win.
6. Ordered our pizza online and saved 15%. Frugal Fail – This was good since I sprung for a local stuffed pizza we love which is twice as much as the usual $5 pizza I buy on Friday through Little Caesars.
I totally agree about the rated “M”. I personally won’t watch rated “M” shows myself.
Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Return is a new series on Netflix, and it’s rated PG-14. (It’s about a guy and his robots making fun of crummy movies, if you’re unfamiliar with it.)
My hubby just priced travel crates for our puppy – we’re taking him with us on a short Labor Day road trip, so we need one right away. Petsmart’s travel crate was *double* the price for the size we need, so he went with Amazon….free 2 day shipping, too, with Prime.
Ooo, I’m actually happy to hear about a “frugal fail”–keepin’ it real! LOL Definitely know what that’s like over here.
Got in a day of work as the business I’ve worked at, all freelance and contract for 28 years, winds down to a close in my state (Note to young people: Working this way is not advisable >> no benefits, no retirement and time flies!) Breathing easier as I qualified for a program that will help me while I search for a new job at 60. Bought a few things — not NCA but needed: Individually wrapped cookies (on sale) that I can use as a leave-behind while I try to get new customers until that magical new job comes along. They will be tastier than a pen or notepad. Ordered new sandals in last year’s color on super-sale from over $100 down to $24 shipped. Made all our food with the exception of the Costco roasted chicken “the gift that keeps on giving…” It has been served as plain chicken, sandwiches, salad with chicken in it, dog scraps, and the leftover will become soup. I cook well but it has been too friggin’ hot here, with more 90º+ weather coming this week. The one thing that I can’t seem to get going is culling through stuff to post on eBay and taking clothes to resale stores. There are lots of old/new clothes around here… for some reason I have not been able to make myself do it. That is next on my list. One day at a time. 🙂
Teresa – good luck on the job hunt.
One thing I used when I was in fundraising (and it was a pretty cheap per pack) and out cold calling- buy microwave popcorn in the bags – hole punch your information i.e. your business card, postcard, business brochure etc., with a sticker saying “Just popping in to tell you about…” add whatever you want text wise and tie on with ribbon. Secretaries loved it and usually got me in the door and/or they knew who I was when I called back.
What a great idea!
Thanks for sharing! ! I recently moved to a new state and I will use this fun idea this while out jump starting my business here!
1. My daughter’s high school marching band had a show preview and family picnic. I doubled an easy and cheap rice recipe I have and took that. There was such a great spread of food and my whole family ate dinner there. (I didn’t even care about the hot dogs and hamburgers … I was all about the delicious side dishes.)
2. Nothing I did, but … my husband got a free lunch at work one day this week. They had BBQ chicken, pulled pork, beef brisket, green beans, potato salad, and baked beans. His employer does that once in a while. Free, and much fancier than any lunch I would’ve packed for him.
3. Also nothing I did, but … when I pulled into Sam’s to get gas, I saw the price on the sign by the road. On the pump itself, the price was three cents cheaper than the sign – yay! And as I pulled out, the sign by the road had been changed to reflect the three-cents-less price. It must’ve changed between the time I pulled in and when I got out of my car at the pump.
4. Cut my husband’s hair. It was overdue!
Frugal fail: went out to lunch with my family today. But it was an inexpensive place, and so very enjoyable. I don’t know that I’ll ever get over my love of going out to eat.
Sending good wishes and prayers to anyone reading this who’s being affected by the hurricane.
1-Hung the laundry on the line to dry.
2-Harvested lettuce, kale and tomatoes from the garden for dinner. Both of these are things I started to do only after I found this blog and became so motivated.
3- This is the 1st year the older boy can’t hand me down clothes to his younger brother as both are now man sized. Older son needed only a belt for back to school and the younger has grown 6 inches in the past year so but his only need was new shoes (size12) and he will wait and he will wait for the cooler weather for pants as I fear another growth spurt. Both will use the same backpacks they have been using for years.
4- discovered my library allows me online access to magazines, saves clutter and money and feel rather indulgent as I would normally not buy them.
5-younger son is getting his 1st cell phone for his birthday and willingly agreed to the used iPhone that we had already. Both kids pay for the cost of their phones so this was frugal for both of us.
Good for you, hanging out laundry and growing tomatoes! (I can’t grow tomatoes because of the vermin around here!) I feel for you, with a growing boy — I’ve got one two, and I’ve told him he won’t get new trousers until October because he’s growing so fast! He will just have to wear shorts. (But I noticed the trousers he wore to church yesterday were highwaters, and I’ll just cope with that!)
1. This was the week for free tomatoes. Three different neighbors gave me tomatoes they had grown. I happen to love fresh tomatoes and can always find a way to use them.
2. Had a coupon for a free bag of corn chips from FM. I used various leftovers we had on hand (1/2 onion, 1/2 green pepper, 1/2 lb ground beef, 1/2 jar of taco sauce, shredded cheese, tomato) to make a dish which I named “Nachos for Dinner.” DH loved it and I did too.
3. Continuing to walk 3 – 4 miles in the morning when my flexible work schedule permits. It has been been an unusually hot summer here in the NW, but the mornings have been cool so this is still an enjoyable way for me to get exercise.
4. After a very intense week at work, I had a day off. I went to the library and spent 2 hours reading the latest issues of various magazines. Very relaxing way to spend time on my day off.
5. I had 2 frugal fails recently. This week, I found that 2 shrubs we planted last year did not survive the summer, probably due to too much sun and not enough water. I should have been more careful to keep them watered. Also this week, I met a group of friends at a pie shop. I intended to have just a cup of coffee, but changed my mind and ordered a piece of pie as well. The bill for coffee and pie: $7.98! Live and learn, I guess.
Don’t be too hard on yourself! Coffee and pie sounds lovely – at least it wasn’t a full blown dinner!
Pie is irresistable! Sooo hard to resist that siren song…..”come, have some pie….I’m sweet and delicious….”:-) Consider it a lovely splurge!
1. The other night I went to a department store and a boutique fully prepared to part with my money and left without spending a cent. One of the items I was after was a navy pencil skirt to match a perfect navy blazer I had found a few weeks ago at the thrift store by Cue, an Australian company that makes gorgeous and expensive clothes. The Cue store had navy skirts to match but I couldn’t bring myself to pay $180. Yesterday we went to check out a new thrift store and on the rack was a Cue navy pencil skirt in my size, identical in every way to the skirts I had been trying on, for $14.25.
2. I also got a nice top for work.
3. My aunt is coming to take our hated agaves from our garden, which she is selling for her charity for $7 a pop. We are grateful to have them gone from the garden. We are also giving her some items for her thrift store.
4. The supermarket was clearing these delicious quinoa and artichoke packs for $2. With a can of tuna they make a cheap and healthy and very easy lunch for work. I won’t pay $5 but happy to pay $2.
Frugal fail: I went to the garden store yesterday to buy some plants, intending to spend $25 and came out $50 lighter. I can’t be trusted in those places.
Love the pencil skirt story! Yay!
Seriously!! That’s awesome. And i have the same problem with garden stores….sigh.
You will love Hidden Figures. Worth the wait. I’ve seen it twice and I never watch the same movie twice!
1. Dried the king-size ragged old flannel sheet we use to protect the car seat from the dogs on the drying rack. It took a full 24 hours, but it worked.
2. Mopped my house, which is mostly tile, with buckets of hot water and about one-third of a $1 bottle of Fabuloso cleaner. It is so clean and smells nice.
3. Went after our beaten-up ottoman with some shoe polish to cover the scratches in the leather wrought by life with dogs.
4. Ate leftovers for lunch at work all week. Homemade chili-mac with a cup of sliced watermelon is delish!
5. Frugal fail: Got two parking tickets at work this week because I failed to notice that my pass expired 8-20, not 8-31, as one would expect for a pass expiring in August. Appealed the tickets because the parking office should have mailed me the new pass in time. $50 is at stake here!
1. We had Grandparents over for dinner. It was a potluck – they brought salads and we grilled excess burgers,brats and buns leftover from last weeks potluck with Husbands co-workers.
2. Packing my youngest daughter up to take her to college in the morning. Managed to cram all of it into the back of the van so we don’t have to take another vehicle.
3. Sorting through my oldest daughters stored items. I’m sending her pictures to see which items she still wants to keep. (It was no to her retainer and box of starburst wrappers.) My mother and I will be flying to see her in a couple weeks. We will fly Southwest which allows two checked bags per person. We both will take an extra checked bag filled with her stuff as well as packing some of it in our first checked bag. That should take care of all of all of the items I had been planning to ship to her.
4. Husband and I need to renew our passports. I printed the forms online and had our photos taken at Costco for $5 a piece. We combined this errand with an already planned trip to Costco. We also filled the car with gas while we were there.
5. Sold a rug on a Facebook yard sale site. I had purchased it at Target on extreme clearance. I made a nice profit.
6. Continuing to shop my house, my Mom’s house for my middle daughter. She moved into an apartment with her boyfriend last weekend. I was able to find her a canister set at a garage sale that she liked. It was one of the items on her wish list.
I am also flying out in about 3 weeks to see one of my daughters and paying for the allowed two checked suitcases. Plus the carry on I have matches the largest dimensions allowed in cabin.
If you fly Southwest the two checked bags are free.
That’s awesome that you are able to fly Southwest with their equally awesome two free checked bags!
Unfortunately they do not fly the route I need.
Good thing my daughters needs during this move just fill a couple of suitcases. She’ll live an NCA lifestyle in her new city.
I forgot my frugal fail: I broke down and we took my daughter out for Noodles & Co. Her favorite place. I’m trying to avoid eating out, but it’s her last days at home before she leaves for college.
1) Purchased 2, big tents, a screen house, 2 cook stoves and four of our 8 sleeping bags from Facebook Market Place for under $100.00 by keeping my eyes open. We are taking a 2-3 week trip next summer and plan to camp the entire time. We will be using my Senior National Park pass to get into places cheaper.
I plan to continue looking for things for that trip.
2) Making Elf-on-the-Shelf scenes for the Christmas season.
3)Using online sources to plan out the grandchildren’s homeschool curriculum.
4) Menu Planning for September so we will be wise with our money.
5) Mended my jeans so now I have 2 pair of pants.
I’m not sure how NCA this all is but I’m working on it.
Great find and pricing on the camping gear!!
What a great deal on camping equipment! I hope you were able to get your senior pass before the increases in cost.
1. I was pleasantly surprised by the yard sales I found yesterday. I bought a number of things to resell. Already listed the Nikes ($5) and Born shoes ($1) on ebay. Also found a small vintage dresser for $10 that should fit in the nook in my foyer.
2. Since we moved in, the garbage disposal has been making a rattling noise and stopped working completely yesterday. I took it apart and found a small rusted screw. Now it works perfectly.
3. Sold a lot of Precious Moments figurines for a friend.
4. I bought my bedframe a couple years ago from CL. It is not high quality, but I like the look. The headboard has been leaning in an odd way. I took it apart today and found it had cracked on both sides. I added bolts and now it is uber sturdy.
5. Fail: knocked over a full quart of stain in my garage and had a big mess to clean up.
#5 Been there, done that. Took forever to clean up, spreads like crazy. I hope you were successful in your efforts. Wouldn’t wish the experience on my worst enemy.
I admit my clean ups efforts could be described as “half ass” because our garage is old and dirty and I am lazy.
5. Awe, that sucks! Been there, done that..
However, it was not as bad as the time I spilled the entire contents of my large fry daddy onto my kitchen floor right before company arrived last Christmas. Exactly like the Gulf oil spill in my kitchen. It just kept oozing and getting bigger and bigger. For months it stayed slightly oily no matter what I did. Looking back, I think I kept re-depositing it with my mop. Anyway, it still makes me a little sick to think about.
That sounds horrendous! And slippery.
How awful! I feel a little sick just reading about it. Truly the stuff of nightmares.
Bettypants, what sizes are the shoes you listed on ebay? I have a need for a pair. Or, perhaps you would share your seller name? Thank you!
5 frugal things
1) reused a cardboard salt shaker to refill it with salt while I search thrift stores for cute shaker set.
2) using to makeshift door stops one is a gargoyle statue and the other is a slipper
3) Using a box fan as a makeshift babygate to keep my kitty off the balcony, she doesn’t jump over things so this works.
4) lunch was leftovers
5) went next door to have a visit with MIL since the nursing home is right next door to our apartment community and hubby and I spent 15 months searching over 200 nursing homes in the metro area to find her we found her this past January, so every week we go visit her and every holiday we spend with her.
1. Frugal Fail: It turns out that some of the clearance plants we bought last weekend were annuals. There is a lesson there, my husband and I thought all black eyed susans were perennials. We’re hoping they will seed themselves, after brightening our garden for a couple of months this fall. The milkweed we bought is a perennial.
2. I walked to the grocery store to buy a banana and pick up a snacky freebie. I ended up receiving a dime back because the discount/e-coupon on the freebie rang up wrong. I asked them to correct it but no one knew how.
3. I have a friend that loves to go to an orchard not that close to home. She does not like to ride with anyone only to drive. I took a trip with her and bought a half-bushel of seconds apples for $10, a half-bushel of red bartletts for $18 and split part of a half-bushel of peaches. I did share some of my fruit with my friend and also with a few other people.
4. I’ve been making smoothies out of what ever fruit and vegetables need to be used in the refrigerator and freezer.
5. I’m still using dishwasher tablets that are leftover from a product test that I did many weeks ago.many weeks ago.
I also assumed all black eyed susans were perennials. I was suckered by a Mandevilla when I first started gardening.
Lord! You can’t kill Mandevillas with an axe here in Sydney. They are happy in pots too, so maybe they could over-winter in a sheltered spot?
1. Cut husband’s hair.
2. Cut hedgehog’s nails. The first time I did it, I injured him so next two times went to a vet to have it done. Finally decided to try again and we both walked away with no bloody injuries. (He bit me the first time, after I sliced into his little paw.) The vet charged me $25 to cut his nails so finally doing it myself saved money. I know having a hedgehog isn’t frugal, but I am an insomniac and he is good company in the middle of the night since he is nocturnal, too.
3. Honestly, will the rhubarb never quit? I gave away a bunch, after dehydrating and freezing and making goodies. Then today I noticed that more had appeared, so I now have 19 more pounds of it sitting on my counter. I use it with apples to make apple/rhubarb sauce in the winter, but at this rate we’ll be eating plain rhubarb sauce!
4. Immediately after harvesting, posted free rhubarb roots on CL and have already received a call. The guy is coming by and will be dividing all my plants in half, taking half and leaving me half. That will cut down the harvest for the next year to two. Not to be ungrateful, but, really, why couldn’t I be having this problem with something like cherries or peaches??
5. Took home leftovers from a potluck, again. How can people leave all this food when the offer is made for them to take leftovers? It has fed us for three meals, including a lot of fruit.
There were people on my FB sale groups looking to buy rhubarb. I don’t think that many people grow it.
1. Been on vacation this week with frugal friends. We ate in fairly often, split the cost of items and had a great time.
2. I didn’t by any unnecessary items while I was away.
3. Frugal fail-while I was away my sunflower plant died and there is no reviving it
4. On Monday, I will pick up library books that I reserved and are in.
5. I had a groupon that expired but they gave me the option to extend it. I am quite happy about that.
(1) Mended a shirt and skirt for daughter. She would have done it but I already was doing other articles. Plus she is moving away in a week and mending is part of my love language:)
(2) Had my roof replaced ( a planned expense) . They mentioned many ways of paying including cheques and credit cards. When I asked if they would take off 2% ( the average cost for them to the credit card comapanies) They agreed to reduce my bill by this amount. This percentage off is more than I would have made in points on this card.
(3) Have a large amount of planned expenses for Sept. and Oct. as a result eating down the freezers/stock piles in lieu of purchasing most groceries. Am convincing husband that the shredded 3 cheese mix and frozen cheese strings are as good as the marble and cheddar blocks he prefers 🙂
(4) Visited the GW in my downtown. It’s the biggest and I always find some amazing vintage vases to gift the flowers from my garden. I found another that had some water staining in the bottom. This was taken care of with a denture tablet from the huge box I bought in the reduced bin when my kids had retainers and lived at home.
(5) Sometimes a bathroom light is left on in the bathroom when we go away. I find this a bit bright. Brought my blowup solar light to use here.
2. Be sure to call your insurance company and let them know you replaced your roof if you haven’t already. This made our bill go down $100!
Thank-you Jennifer, I will phone.
Every year I make a point to phone and find out if any improvement will help lower it. This year it was installed after my insurance Anniversary.
Paying off your mortgage and installing a security system does usually lower your rates.
Unfortunately my dog with a great bark doesn’t count as a security system
Jennifer, thanks again for the reminder about the new roof giving me a discount on my home insurance.
Just got off the phone and it is prorated for the remainder of the year of $10.00/month off my insurance costs. ($120.00/year reduction:)
Pardon me while I borrow the term “love language.” I’m always on the hunt for new words and phrases.
A.Marie the term “Love Languages” came from a book by Gary Chapman.
“The Five Love Languages”. He proposed that we have a primary and a secondary love language. Sometimes in relationships we perceive that others are oblivious to our needs, when actually it maybe that their primary love language is different from yours. The love languages were, gift giving,quality time,words of affirmation, acts of service( devotion) and physical touch.
Love languages can be seen in other than couple relationships, such as parent/child and workplace.
1. Our son, daughter-in-law and 2 year old grandson came for a 10 day visit. The baby developed strep and hand,foot and mouth disease since they arrived – no activities out and about since he is contagious. Lots of bubbles, balls, books, thrifted/garage sale toys to entertain.
2. We did go to the state fair with family and I bought advance tickets as well as a coupon book for food – still spent some $$ but less than planned.
3. Have been eating all meals at home (see #1) though we did pick up fish and chips tonight for dinner.
4.Went to the library twice to pick up my holds and more books for grandson.
5. Got a buy $100/save $50 coupon from Lands End for my birthday – think I will upgrade some of my thrifted/stretched out sweaters. Will also take advantage of some – but not all – birthday freebies cause sometimes I just don’t need/want/can’t share them.
1 – Went to the NY State Fair with tickets & parking pass received free from local pool store.
2 – Reading not-yet-released book for free through First to Read
3 – I had a flag pole that we no longer used – gave it to a friend in exchange for lunch
4 – Donated garage sale leftovers to Goodwill
5 – Used up or froze all CSA veggies for the week
1. Whopping big frugal fail here but it is hard to know what is best to do about the situation. When husband thought he was going to retire from his out of state job in the fall, he booked a lot of flights in advance to save money. Then he retired early. So we have flights pre-paid that we can’t get the money back for. But we can change the times and destinations. So we went on vacation where we spent even more $ for food, lodging, and pet sitting than we would have spent if we had stayed home. I believe that is known as “false economy.”
2. We had a friend pick us up from the airport, thus saving taxi fare.
3. I have a $15 discount coupon for the dog boarding and a friend did some of the cat sitting for free.
4. We saw a beautiful part of the country that we had never seen before and used my senior pass to get into national parks for free.
5. I got some new cooking ideas from restaurants we visited.
Went on vacation for 6 nights:
1. Chose a hotel outside the touristy area, saving about $40 plus tax per night.
Drove up to 25 miles each day to see various sights. Car gets 32 mpg. No big
sacrifice and the “cheaper” hotel was perfectly fine, except for the breakfast- my husband was not happy with the choices and we ate breakfast out 2 days.
2. Bought souvenir foods (visited Amish area) back for DD and SIL as she watched and fed the cat twice a day, brought in mail, etc.
3. Bought a few more souvenir canned foods and some other things which will be Christmas gifts and stocking stuffers.
4. Only ate 3 meals on 2 days–the other days we had cheese and crackers and desserts from local bakeries in the room for dinner, after a big lunch.
5. I am a small person and don’t have that huge an appetite–we order most meals planning on sharing some of mine with husband. Sometimes we can’t finish what we ordered between the two of us, but most times he helps finish mine so it almost always gets eaten. Also brought home a few food items for
ourselves as “souvenirs.” Excellent pricing at the Amish bulk food stores, and at the many cheese factories in the area. We have plenty of cheese for a while.
6. Paid cash for everything except gas bought along the way. No bills on credit card except for the hotel and a little extra gas than we would have used at home. Had a good vacation without spending a lot and without driving too far!
Marcia, just curious as to where you vacationed. We have a fall trip planned to Ohio Amish country, and was wondering if you had any recommendations if you were there recently.
Sometimes a nap just has to take first place!
This week’s:
1. Ate a leftover half grilled cheese for lunch yesterday (leftover from when my son and I went out for lunch on his first day of school, so not as frugal as it could have been, but waste not, want not!)
2. Hit the farmer’s market and practically filled the trunk yesterday with veggies. Today is canning sauce (they gave me a bunch of bruised and soft tomatoes) and canning tomatoes. A little work now saves year-round! (and tastes better)
3. Used our school recreation center membership to go rock climbing and swimming at the pool yesterday rather than doing something that would cost more money. We also took bikes to the local park- practically a triathalon training day, right?!?
4. Gave both sons a haircut. Older was going to go to the barbershop with Daddy, but was convinced to let me do it for a lollypop and $2- at least it’s a $7 savings!
5. Got chocolate milk from the local dairy for lunches next week- the kids will drink chocolate from thermoses in lieu of buying a carton for 35 cents a day. I also like it because we recycle our cartons but they don’t recycle their little cartons at school.
Frugal Fail — I have a special, dressy event coming up this week. I will be wearing sandals, so I had a pedicure. This $23 extravagance was budgeted for. However, I let the nail tech talk me into a manicure as she glared at my uneven nails and peeling cuticles. This was money down the drain. The tech did a terrible job and actually cut me. To add insult to injury, the tech and manager insisted that I pay for the service. Never again ….
I was frugal too …
1) I worked an extra 25 hours last week at a side job. I brought my lunch and drinks with me. The job site was around the corner. Extra money in the budget.
2) I batched errands on Friday afternoon. I stopped at the library and picked up two books that I had on hold. I picked up a prescription and paid for it with my HSA. I stopped a the grocery where I spent $11 for next week’s meals. (I am trying to use up some items before leaving for Labor Day.)
3) I bought a $50 gas card for $40. I love saving money on gas.
4) My question everything month continues. I am switching homeowners insurance carriers saving $1700 a year. ( Homeowners insurance in Florida is extremely expensive especially for coastal residents.) My total annual savings has now reached $5500. I really find this unbelievable. I have looked at auto insurance, cable, personal care, subscriptions, and homeowner’s insurance. I still need to decide what to do about home phones and cell service. I have decided to continue my gym membership and yard service. These are worth the expense for us.
I’m bummed out about the manicure experience. 🙁
1. Stopped into Goodwill yesterday for fun. Didn’t buy anything even though I found a couple cut clothing items. Do not need any more clothes.
2. Eating leftovers from the birthday dinner party I hosted on Thursday. No groceries bought over last week except food for party and ice cream for last night (it was 95 and I had a craving!). For birthday party managed to make 5 nice bouquets for tables and house out of $16 worth of flowers from Costco, which I thought was pretty good.
3. Hubby, 13 yo DD and I stayed in last night and watched Project Runway (free with our on-demand) while eating said leftovers and ice cream. Nice evening together, no cost (beyond what we already pay for cable, which I would get rid of but which hubby values highly).
5. Leaving for my trip Wednesday, doing laundry and packing today, plan to try and pack for 15 days to varied climes (Iceland, Sweden and NYC) out of carryon to both save money and make luggage handling easier.
I hear ya about the dang cable, my hubby values it highly too. but we have managed to get our cable bill to 93.05 instead of 154.95 each month.
1. I ate a very poor home made soup today for lunch.
2. It was a over salted by me, because it was originally under-seasoned
3. and I’m sensitive to too much salt.
4. Thank goodness it was only 1 portion
5. I’m giving myself a lot of kudos for eating it and not chucking it.
Waste not, want not. You should be proud. In the future, you can try adding vinegar or sour cream to balance out saltiness. Also, you can soak a quarter of a potato soak in the broth for 15 minutes then remove. It will absorb the salt.
Thanks Bee, I’ll try those things next time (there’s always a next time isn’t there :-))
Had a really great find today at Goodwill I was needing a cardigan for upcoming fall weather at my job and found a beautiful J.Jill new sweater with the tag for 6.99, part wool and cotton with toggles down the front, a cable knit with Velveteen strap button loops, cream color. Fit perfect! Also a new cheap puzzle for Grandbaby for a buck, and a needed basket for $2.99. Got a great at Eddie Bauer Outlet yesterday with my $10.00 off coupon, a 40% off tee shirt for hubby, was $2.70. Most of his tees are in bad shape so score! Picking some of our apples today for a cobbler, will can the rest next weekend. Will have lots of canned applesauce and slices for the next year. Fruit trees really do pay for themselves!
1) Friday, while running errands at lunch, I stopped in my favorite GW store and found a nice stroller for a friend who was in desperate need. It had 14.99 on the sticker, but when I went up to pay the clerk said it was 50% off. I’d, also, picked up a beautiful red blouse/sweater combo for myself. I scored both for $10. I’ll take it!
2) I delivered said the stroller yesterday to the happy couple. Afterwards I headed back through town to pick up groceries at Aldi and decided to run into the GW next door to that. I found an antique blue Ball Mason Jar with the original old lid on it. A really pretty painted cross and a beautiful wrought iron coat hook mounted on a plaque that says “Family” – those will be Christmas gifts for my daughter. I picked up one of those cute insulated cups with the lid that slides closed, for when the kids come to visit. Each of them having their own designated cup keeps them from getting a different one each time they want a drink. That was about $10 total too, so GW finds this week $20 and big scores all around.
3) I picked up just enough groceries to get us through the week. I’d picked up a mix to make dirty rice & beans in a sale bin last week, so the smoked sausage I bought at Aldi with the rice & beans will be dinner tonight. They had their organic ground beef on sale, so I bought a pound of that to make dinner later in the week.
4) We ate scrambled eggs (free eggs from the neighbor), fried ham and cinnamon raisin toast this morning. I spent $30 at Aldi and that will take care of this week. Thankfully, I get paid on Thursday!
5) I found a dime on the floor at work. I’m also thankful for the cooler temps, both at night and during the day. It’s kept the AC from coming on so much.
1. Received a 10$ gift card to Smiths as I got a Catalina to take a survey and I did! Caselot sale is coming so hoping to stock up on food since this years income will be low as I finish up school.
2. Uncle invited us over for dinner and a swim so that will be a nice night out.
3. Had to go to training. They provide 2 meals and we had to provide one. I ate my home packed lunch. I had to eat alone as my classmates all went out but it was worth it! They had drinks left over at the end so scored 2 orange juices to take home.
4. Hubby was able to paint a room in our house with a gallon of high quality paint he found on the oops shelf for 9.00!
5. Noticed local albertsons has 99 cents a pound chicken breast, cheese for 99 cents a half pound and eggs for 49 cents a dozen. Will by what limits allow as I have a growing pre teen boy!
Extra Credit: Its welcome week at my university so hopefully will score some hi-lighters and other needed items at the giveaway tables. Right now every little bit helps!
I’m digging deep here! Not the greatest week…
1 – both my dh and I worked/volunteered at the local MLB game making money to cover my daughters’ gymnastics costs while walking away with $16 in tips.
2 – We have been taking full advantage of our free month of bagels from Panera
3 – Bought the necessary supplies to make my own laundry detergent – I do this all the time, but need to make another batch and was out of the ingredients – now to find the time!
4 – Dh and son are meeting my sister’s family for a free afternoon of kayaking – they have 6 of them and are sharing.
5 – Told my son that he needed to buy his own food for college. I will not be giving him a monthly food allowance as I can barely afford to pay his monthly rent.
Jennifer, a lot of colleges now have food banks for students struggling to make ends meet. It’s something he should check out just in case.
Thank you for posting the occasional frugal fail. Nice to know that you are human, too, lol!
My frugal fails lately have been 1. letting food go to waste in the fridge – I threw out grapes and cherries today – might as well have thrown a $10 bill in the chicken pen. 🙁 2. Bought a round of drinks at karaoke Friday night – over $18 that I really don’t have to spend right now. At least drinks are cheaper at the Eagles than at any pub, and I did eat dinner at home before we left, rather than paying for tacos there. And the karaoke was fun.
1. My beach trip with my bff was moved from yesterday to tomorrow, giving me more time to put together a nice picnic lunch. She’s driving, I’m providing drinks and food. Taking ice water (bottled water that cost less than .10 a bottle and can be redeemed for the bottle deposit of .10 each in OR), egg salad sandwiches (my hens are laying like crazy – well, at least the ones not gone broody or raising chicks are anyway), tuna salad sandwiches (sale tuna at .50/can), cucumber wedges (gifted from my cousin), a few snack bars (that were all Friday Freebies from Fred Meyer), and a bag of Sun Chips (on sale at Winco). We’ll take along some bags for collecting sand dollars and pretty pebbles.
2. While at the beach, we’ll check out the local Goodwills and hit Costco for a few items on the way home. Plan to buy a few rotisserie chickens at Costco – they freeze well, so I try to get a few any time I can piggy-back on someone’s card, since I don’t have one of my own.
3. I found steaks on sale this week, so I will grill half the package today and repackage the rest for future meals. I grill the amount of steak we’ll eat at one meal to the perfect doneness, and the others to a couple shades rarer. Those steaks will be reheated in the microwave later this week and will be cooked to perfection at the same time. Since I’ll have the charcoal going, I’ll also grill up some hamburger patties and hotdogs for Future Me.
4. Spending the heat of the day today de-cluttering and organizing inside in my cool (from being opened all night, closed up at dawn) home. I’m listening to an audio book while I work and checking the weather situation in Houston occasionally (my handbell choir director has a granddaughter celebrating her 1st birthday at Houston Children’s Hospital today). I am concerned about the family that has come into Houston to celebrate with her and, of course, the staff of the hospital and what they are facing all this coming week. Keeping busy instead of worrying is how I cope, so my house will be benefiting from Harvey today.
I would appreciate any prayers anyone has to spare for the people of Texas/Louisiana, and especially for little Remington, who was born 2 months premature, has not yet been able to leave the hospital, and is still vent-dependent, although she is improving, bit by bit. Nothing comes easy for Remy, not even having a birthday!
My thoughts and prayers indeed are with the people of Texas. Having been through events such as this personally and professionally, a catastrophe such as this not only destroys property but lives. With such widespread devastation, the aftermath is often as bad as the storm itself. I will make my donation to the Red Cross today, And I will say a little prayer for Remy and his family.
prayers
not much here….
1. saved a lot of gas this week since i sprained my ankle. i did finally take it out today to get kitty litter.
2. got coupons in the mail yesterday from petco for the kitty litter i use plus i had manufacturers coupons. i got 45 pounds of Swheat Scoop for $18! i think that was a great deal!
3. i took a nap today (and yesterday). good for your health and free! 🙂
4. i did go out for breakfast yesterday with my best friend. We are two “wild and crazy widows”….that’s what i call us anyway. cost: $12 with priceless conversation. totally worth it.
5. rearranged my bedroom and the living room (actually, my son did most of the work). enjoying my new couch! 🙂
4. Sounds lovely!
Nancy, I hope your ankle is better. It sounds like the new couch came at the right time. My son hiked through Massachusetts this week. He said it was beautiful and a bit chilly already. He also encountered a Trail Angel around Dalton who kindly helped him out. He is now on to Vermont.
My ankle is much better but I’m pretty sure my hiking is done for the summer. Can’t take a chance of hurting myself on the trail.
Glad to hear your son met a trail angel! It has been unseasonably cold here the past week or so. August is usually when my ac runs all the time. Hope he stays warm and meets more angels. 🙂
1. Husband, younger son, and I went on vacation to southern California. Stayed two nights with a friend and then my parents let us use their timeshare week at the beach. Cashed in Skymiles so son and I could fly down. Husband, who loves roadtrips (and desert), drove the hybrid. On the way, he spent a night with my cousins, then a couple nights in Las Vegas where his buddy had a free room. On the way from LV to California, he took a side trip to Death Valley and used his NPS lifetime senior pass that he bought for $10 earlier in the year. On the way home from the airport, son and I took light rail (even though we had to change trains) to the stop closest to our house. Instead of older son having to drive 25 miles round trip during Friday rush hour, he picked us up 3 miles from the house. $2.50/each for light rail.
2. Once in CA, we hit Trader Joe’s and the Kroger affiliate and stocked up on groceries. Ate in for all but two meals, though we got coffee out a couple times (and at least one time cashed in a reward). Since my husband drove, he took our full-size cooler and brought back all our leftover food. A couple of frozen items didn’t make the 700 mile return trip.
3. Older son decided the best vacation was a vacation from his family so he stayed home and took care of the house, plants, and garden. Definitely frugal to have someone harvesting the tomatoes! He also played host to out-of-state friends who brought their daughter to move into the dorms. They were here a couple of days before we got back and left us some treats as a thank you.
4. Younger son started high school. Went “shopping in the basement” where I keep boxes of hand-me-downs and found plenty–some to wear now, some when it gets colder. Best items I forgot were there: a fleece robe and a fleece-lined, zip-up hooded sweatshirt. Also found plenty of pens, pencils, lined paper, and two literature books for his English class.
5. The usual: cooking/eating meals at home, turning off AC and opening house at night, and reading from a lovely stack of library books. I love my library! I am continually amazed at how much interesting stuff is available including a lot of new publications.
1. Menu planned for the week before doing my shopping at Shoprite.
2. There were lots of great deals this week at Stop and Shop! With digital coupons and manufacturer coupons, I brought my price from $120 down to $7!!
3. I then submitted recipts on rebate apps (Ibotta and Checkout 51) to get back $15 from the Stop and Shop trip!
4. I have avoided shopping for school supplies this summer, as I have stocked up items from previous years’ sales.
5. My teen son was dying to buy some cologne for himself. I suggested he could find some at Dollar Tree. He purchased three bottles, and was very happy with two of them. Much better prices than he saw at Macy’s and Walgreens!
Seven dollars?! How? How much groceries did you get for that?
I got six boxes of fruit snacks, six packages of single serve Cheezits, five boxes of General Mills cereal, milk, Dole fruit bowls, two 12 oz pkgs of turkey bacon and more. Check out the price matchups at living Rich with coupons.com. Cindy shows you what to buy and where to get the coupons!
Katy, I so understand. 1. I made beans, with carrots and tomatoes, and rice, along with a homemade shrimp sauce. I am alternating between using bean, rice, adding fresh tomatoes, onions, salsa, and sour cream in a tortilla, and then, the next night, eating the beans and rice with the homemade shrimp sauce…suppers for the week. 2. I dyed my hair. 3. Slept. 4. Slept. 5. Slept.
Recently my colleague from work has been bringing me goodies from his garden. I walked into the office today only to see the most beautiful (giant) ‘ugly’ tomato. It truly made my morning, I am looking forward to devouring it as a snack right before lunch today. 🙂 Not to mention, a free snack, too!
Aw man, I’m sorry to hear you overslept! It happens. 🙂 Sometimes you just need a good, long sleep.
This week:
1. We were rained in thanks to ol’ Hurricane Harvey. I cooked homemade macarons, beans, lentil curry, and more.
2. I switched the sheets and comforters on our bed and the guest room bed. This way, we can wear the fabric out evenly and won’t have to replace the bedding as quickly.
3. One of our fitted sheet straps broke. Instead of buying a new set, I just mended the broken one.
4. We weren’t able to shop for groceries because of the storm, so we made do with items in our pantry for this week’s meals.
5. I organized my family photos in an album I bought last month for $4. It feels good to get this chore out of the way. 🙂
I spent the weekend in my garden pulling weeds and picking anything I could find to can. My husband owns his own lawn business and he has a customer who has more than their share of grapes growing. They let him grab some to bring home to me. I canned some grape jelly that will last us a year.
I spent the most part of this week on work’s dime so:
1) expensed meals out
2) brought a Klean Kanteen insulated water bottle to work to avoid using plastic or paper cups – it was free and looked unused in someone’s move-out pile. I just cleaned it really well, just in case.
3) cleaned out a few shelves holding bath stuff and personal care products and not only found stuff I didn’t realize I had that I’ll use but friends are able to use some of the new items I know I won’t use
4) salvaged the lip brush part of the retractable lip brush I had that broke – it’s a tiny but useful brush now
5) put out some dishes, etc on the free shelf in our apartment building – it didn’t save me any money but it did lighten the clutter load, which makes it easier to find things and clean, which saves my time and makes my life easier and hopefully someone in our building can use them (stuff goes fairly quickly from the free shelf)
Now that I’m responsible for my own food again this coming week, I’ll need to shop and meal plan.
1. I have recently gotten married and we opened a joint checking account. It is so much easier to budget when you see both people’s money together. Since doing so, we’ve been able to start saving money.
2. Husband, a former spendthrift, went to the grocery store and stuck to the budget! Not only that, he was able to get some extras within our budget. I’m really proud of him, because he never used to watch what he spent there, and he is doing it for me, for us.
3. Saw “Girls’ Night” for free using an AMC gift card that we had gotten for Christmas. Saw it with the husband. It struck me as odd that he wanted to see it, then I realized there’s a million “guy” movies I’ve been excited about, like LOTR and Stepbrothers, so why should it be odd for a guy to want to see a chick flick?
I’ve been really sick frequently (morning sickness) and husband has been working almost 12 hour days so we have had less than zero desire to cook which equals plenty of frugal fails but I will focus on things we did well.
1. We ate before going to the grocery store so bought much less junk food than last time. We also bought a few ingredients for easy/lazy dinners so we are less tempted to buy takeout this week.
2. I have been skipping my regular carboot & thrift store excursions to stay home, save money, and think about what items in the home we really need.
3. Batching errands this week to the metro area so I can get the most out of my trip in. I’ll take public transportation there and meet my husband for date night and a ride home when we’re both done. Not frugal but I am finally getting a haircut after putting it off for 8 months!
4. Husband and I both took extra shifts this week to cover some home improvement expenses we have coming up soon.
5. Have been hanging our laundry out to dry naturally- it takes a little longer sometimes in rainy Ireland but if I can time the laundry so we don’t have any items that need to be dry right away it works out just fine!
Thank you for sharing the fails too Katy. Makes me feel a lot better about when I do! We are all in this human race together. 🙂
Whew, have had my share of frugal fails lately….the biggest one was probably going to my work’s employee appreciation picnic this past Sunday. Free lunch (burgers, hot dogs, sides, plus non alcoholic beverages), free use of amusement park rides, discounted admission to the adjacent waterpark if you so desire….frugal heaven, right? Frugal but not fun IF you must stand in line for 45 minutes with your hangry, impatient spouse, and cranky, whiny, impatient son to get lunch; not fun, if son does not want to go on any rides, since he didn’t want to stand in lines – and hubby doesn’t do roller coasters and “adult” amusement rides. Lesson learned: we could have stayed home, grilled burgers, and brought son to a local park instead.
My fft:
1) Hit a killer 50% off everything sale at my local GW. Found a crock pot ($4) to replace my trusty 25+ year old crock that died recently; official Boy Scout shorts for my son ($1.50), a 9 x 5 glass loaf pan, and a dress that will be part of my Halloween costume. I think I maybe bought a few other small items, too – oh, yeah, a huge roll of Ikea easel paper (new, unused) that will be donated to my son’s art teacher, for (hopeful) use in class, or in their school’s Maker Space.
2) Found a nickel on the cafeteria floor at work today. Put it in the “donate your change” box by the cash register that helps fund an employee assistance program. Not frugal for me, but you can’t put a price tag on good karma.
3) Ate up leftover Cool Whip topping with fresh berries mixed in, for sort of a creamy fruit salad. It was yummy.
4) Bought a few needed items at Menard’s – need to send in my rebate form and receipt.
5) Finally getting handfuls of cherry tomatoes from my garden. I adore garden tomatoes, and these have been delicious in my lunch salads.
Thoughts and prayers going out to all who are dealing with the aftermath of Harvey. I have a cousin who lives in Houston – he, fortunately, was in California, helping his dad, when the storm hit Texas. (Unfortunately, my uncle/his dad is getting treatment for stage 4 lung cancer, and will be moving to an assisted living facility. Please keep him in your prayers as well….thank you).