We sold our car! We are now officially a one-car family again. We were very blessed to sell it for just $500 less than what we paid for our new van, so it was like buying a new car for $500.
Because we waited to register our van until after we sold our car (we had 30 days, and the car sold in 2 weeks), the DMV gave us the credit from registering our old car to our "new" van, which saved us $102.
We went to switch the license plates over to the new van (thinking it would save us money), and we found out that they actually charge $6 to switch plates, or $1 for new plates, so we went with new plates.
I made pizza, Greek yogurt, Italian Dressing, and French bread. I cooked a turkey this week.
I bought no groceries this week.
I made hair detangler this week.
I went to the nursery this week to get tomato plants. Our last frost date was the 15th. I went on the 13th and was there in the morning as they unloaded the first tomatoes and other vegetables off of the truck. I bought 12 tomato plants; one had 2 plants in it, and the one large plant I bought had 4 plants in it. I carefully separated the plants when I took them out of the pots and I planted all of them in the garden. The nights are still cool (low 40's) so I have covered most of them with quart-sized mason jars, to see if it helps them to grow larger like it has for the lettuce. I can see that for tomatoes, it would be better to have large garden cloches or larger jars, so as to allow them to get much taller before they have to be uncovered (because they're reached the top of the jars).
I continued to feed the baby lots of things from our table. She loves broccoli, pasta, butternut squash soup, and peas.
I tried a candy recipe for what I had hoped would make a great filling for chocolates. It turned out just like taffy (and after reading the taffy recipe a few pages further, I found out out that it was almost exactly the same). To quickly salvage it, I called the children in for an impromptu taffy pull!
What did you do to save money this last week?
Monday, February 18, 2013
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Hi Brandy,
ReplyDeleteIf you go to a restaurant they will often give you their big pickle jars and you can use those to help with the plants. They are usually super large as they buy the bulk size just for food service:-) My son works pt in a restaurant and he gets them for me.
Suzanne, that is a great idea for a large cloche! Thanks!
DeleteAwesome idea!!
DeleteLove your blog... idea for you...ask friends for either clear 2liter soda bottles OR gallon milk jugs .. cut the bottom of either and use as cloche ..take the lid off for air circulation and back on at nite for frost protection .
ReplyDeleteWe are past frost here, so I don't need to cover the tomatoes from frost. I am covering them just to get them to grow faster. We have very high winds here on a regular basis--quite a few are expected this week--and the plastic ones just blow away. I would use pickle jars but I filled all of mine with beans!
DeleteI use the milk jugs, also. To protect them from going over, I attach a stick to the side, and put that into the ground. One could also put a stick down the middle of the jug; there's still plenty of room for the plant. And they do grow much better with a little greenhouse!
Delete- removed old binding from 3 hot pads that had seen better days in preparation to recover them.
ReplyDelete- found a small piece of wood in the stash I keep in the garage that was the right size to make a top for the toy butter churn.
- reorganized the cubby to make space to store the empty jars from the food we have consumed thus far.
- drove my husband to work on Wednesday & did all my errands that day. Filled the car with gas, using the Chevron card for the discount, & picked up the free car wash coupon. Bought blue toile fabric at JoAnn’s for 50% off. Bought a new full/queen comforter for 50% off. Both of these were planned purchases, waiting for a good sale. Checked three thrift stores on the way home, & found nothing at 2 of them, but at the 3rd one I found the wooden mirrored sconce that our youngest daughter wanted for 50 cents.
-repurposed the heavy plastic zipper bag in which the comforter came to hold the patchwork jeans quilt that used to be on our bed. The quilt is patchwork blue denim, with white denim patches as stars, positioned on the quilt top as the Big dipper, Little dipper & Orion constellations, on a field of blue. Across the bottom I used streaked denim to represent the Northern Lights, since Steven served his mission in Sweden. The outside border is black denim squares & it was his Christmas present years ago. It served us well for several decades, but the quilt is too heavy now, weight-wise, for my knees & has been causing problems. It will still be useful on the guest beds or over the inflatable air beds for winter visitors, & the zipper bag will keep it clean & protected.
-cooked all meals at home, as usual. I had planned a special meal, but my husband was sick enough that we went to the ER in the early am on Valentine’s Day, so he had clear liquids instead.
-made fudge for Valentine’s Day, & took some to the ladies on my Visit Teaching route for church.
-changed the Valentine’s Day decorations to St. Patrick’s Day on Friday. We have 1-2 plastic shoeboxes of decorations for each “minor” holiday, that lift the spirit & cost only the time to put them up from year to year. When we were raising our children, our budget could not include a category for “decorating”, so these were purchased on clearance or at thrift stores over the years, mostly for 10 cents to a quarter. I saved some of the prettier 99 cent heart-shaped candy boxes & glued them shut. Placed on their sides, they make cute Valentine’s Day decorations. Over the years, I found heart shaped Christmas tree decorations on clearance, & they came home to hang from candlesticks, & live in the Valentine’s box. We have a few leprechaun statues I bought years ago, & 4 painted shamrocks I bought as a set at DI for $1, that I think were originally from Terry’s Village. Years ago I bought a package of small black kettles for 10 cents after Halloween. After Christmas, we bought a few packages of the gold foil covered chocolate “coins” on clearance, & filled the “pots of gold”. They make a nice decoration on the corners of a bookshelf, in front of the books, or set beside a green candle. After the holiday, I pack the chocolate coins into a quart sized zip bag, & store them with the decorations. Over the years, the now-quite-stale chocolate “gold coins” have filled a “wise man’s gift” at Christmas, the little pots, & sometimes a green cut glass leprechaun hat I bought at a thrift store. Over time, each of our grandchildren has snitched a coin, to find out for themselves that 20 year old chocolate is really not very tasty!
-Saturday was a sunny day, above freezing temps, & the snow had melted off the cloches, so I planted a few lettuce seeds under the “new” small cloche, next to the other small cloches. Planted a few spinach seeds under the larger “new” cloche.
Last week I made shortbread cookies for Valentine's Day.
ReplyDeleteMade homemade watercolor paints using ingredients I had on hand.
Gave two of my children haircuts.
Made a birthday banner for my six-year old using cardstock, homemade watercolor paints, and the cardboard tubes from toilet paper.
A few weeks ago, I was able to get a pendant light for free but the glass shade was broken. My husband hung it over the sink in my kitchen where it sat shade-less until finally this week he was able to salvage two pendant lights from work that they were going to throw out and now I have a complete light.
Received the kitchen scale and chicken supplies in the mail that I ordered a few weeks ago. The chicks are due to arrive at the end of April and I need to come up with a plan for a brooder. We have a bunch of wooden pallets so I'm going to see if my husband will build something to house them. I still need to get some pine shavings as well.
Made a flourless chocolate cake for my son's birthday on Valentine's Day. His teacher also gave him a red carnation and although it's the only flower on the table it still brightens the space.
I bought strawberries on sale and since no one was eating them I diced and froze them. I will use them later on to make homemade strawberry ice cream.
Stuck to my menu plan and ate a few meatless meals including pancakes.
Downloaded a few free e-books from Amazon.com.
Made a batch of laundry detergent using a bar of Dr. Bronner's peppermint soap.
You can see photos on my blog:
http://lisajoseph.blogspot.com/2013/02/my-frugal-accomplishments_18.html
I enjoyed the pictures on your blog, Lisa!
DeleteGoodness, I am still reeling from the idea that you had strawberries and no one was eating them! At our house, they barely make it out of the grocery bag before being consumed!
DeleteA friend of mine gave me a bag she had gotten somewhere full of jeans that she thought I could use for quilts. I don't have quilting on my schedule anytime soon but I went through the bad and found 3 pairs of jeans in great condition for a teenage daughter and one pair in great condition for a 7 year old son. I found more pairs in good conditon and re-donated those so others could get affordable jeans at the thrift store.
ReplyDeleteI have continued to de-clutter and organize my closet which helps me to find things we own easier so we don't purchase things we already have and to eliminate things we don't need so that we can use our space better.
I just started decluttering yesterday. It's been on my to-do list for a loooong time but after reading frugal accomplishments last week I got motivated to start. I started with the master bedroom. I had things on my list I thought I needed but realized I didn't when I organized what I had. I gathered up 2 big bags of garbage, another nice sized pile to donate, and a box of things I'm going to list on ebay. What a great feeling - so much more peaceful in the house already.
DeleteI'm so glad you were able to sell your vehicle so quickly - that's great news! We had a frugal week too - I have a bunch of stuff posted here:
ReplyDeletehttp://tenthingsfarm.blogspot.com/2013/02/frugal-accomplishments-this-past-week.html
And...if you go to the banner at the top and click it, then it takes you to the front page where you can read about our other goings-on, if you're interested! :)
We cut ourselves from $40 a week to $20 a week for groceries, so that we could eat down the pantry and freezer, which are both kind of overflowing/over full. I've been finding pretty good produce prices to keep us in some fresh stuff, and still managing to stock sale prices a bit, even on just $20 (for three people). Thanks for all you do - I really enjoy reading everyone's accomplishments!
-Laura at TenThingsFarm
Made homemade detergent and pancake mix (put in individual baggies so easy to pour and add milk/eggs for pancakes or waffles).
ReplyDeleteExperimented with a homemade syrup recipe...my family loves Mrs. Buttersworth but I don't love the ingredients or cost. I'm getting closer---found a recipe that called for corn syrup and that seemed to thicken it up. Was too thick though (like honey!)...and tasted too much of corn syrup...but almost there. Any ideas/recipes most welcome!
Found apples/oranges/grapefruit in the discount bin at grocery store. Most everything looked and tasted so fresh---not sure why in bin (perhaps a bag had split open)...but I got a bargain.
Found potatoes on sale for under 30 cents/#...bought 20 lb.
Gloried in my children making homemade gifts for their friends for Valentines...they created woven mats decorated with hearts for teachers, made bead bracelets, origami, etc. Had a great time making it and cost was $0 as everything on hand.
Visited a friend on bed rest and took a lot of old mags from my stash. She was very appreciative...guess she likes to look through old mags as much as I do!
I have to travel out of town for our business next week. Instead of staying in the conference hotel, I found a nearby condo with full kitchen for $50 less per night. Will bring all my own food...plus there is a $50 Visa card the rental place will give me when I arrive---will use that for groceries the next week for home (we are self-employed so all expenses/receipts are basically out of the same pocket so to speak). This meeting (though I hate to be away from home) is a blessing to me. I have been desiring to have some time to myself for a mini-retreat. We couldn't afford this out of pocket but the conference gives me several hours each day of downtime...plus it's right by the beach.
3 cups brown sugar, 1/2-1 coup water ( have to experiment with amount for thickness you want), 1 tbsp vanilla, butter optional. Heat on stove on medium heat until sugar all melted. Stir occasionally. That's our syrup
DeleteYou may already use this with your recipe, but I have used imitation maple flavoring (about one teaspoon) in a simple syrup solution. Hope this helps.
DeleteWe decided aloooong time ago that we were going to use real maple syrup. We both grew up using it and we thought that would be a doable thing and economize somewhere else. We are lucky to live in an area though that produces syrup and so on a weekend drive can find it sold along the side of the byways for decent prices. Also the children were never allowed to drown anything in syrup. Waffles and pancakes happen here only on a Saturday morning when there is plenty of time, so also not used that often.
DeleteHusband back in college days did go the "mapleine" route, mixing the flavoring with sugar and water. We keep a squirt bottle of "pancake syrup" in the VW van for camping cooking.
I've always heard to use maple flavouring and corn syrup. I personally don't like corn syrup so I just swallow hard and use real Maple Syrup from Canada and try to cut down on other things to justify the cost.
DeleteThis recipe is from the Tightwad Gazette and it is excellent. 3 c sugar 1 1/2 c water 3 T molasses 1 t vanilla 2 t butter flavoring and 1 t maple extract. Bring to a boil stirring til sugar dissolves. Turn off burner but leave pot on burner until bubbling stops. I use Natural Maple Flavoring instead of the extract. My kids love this recipe better than Mrs. Butterworth's their prior favorite.
DeletePop, can you tell me where you find Natural Maple Flavoring? I make pancake syrup at home, but I've only ever found the Mapleine. Thanks!
DeleteYou guys are great...will try these suggestions and see if we find a hit with the kids!
DeleteI have had mine quite a long time and I'm not sure where I got it from but maybe label info will help you. It says The Spicery Shoppe Satisfaction Guaranteed Non-Alcoholic Natural Maple Flavor Contains: Glycerine, water & Natural Flavors 1 pint Dist by the Spicery Shoppe, Downers Grove, IL 60515
DeleteHope that helps, Holly
We ate all our meals at home :) Starting with I roasted a chicken one night and then I cooked the carcass and picked the meat off the bones to make chicken and dumplings. I am also having chicken and dumplings at least 2x for mine and our youngest's lunches this week!!
ReplyDeleteMy stretchy meal for this week is ham, I baked a med size one yesterday almost 10lbs which was gifted to us and I will incorporate the leftovers the leftovers into other meals this week before freezing alot of it to use later on so we won't tire of it :)
I made our valentine's day dinner and dessert off of recipes and ideas I found on Pinterest. The biggest expense was time and I learned something important and that is I will never buy lasagne noodles again, after finding out how extremely simple making your own hm pasta can be!! Our Valentines day meal was heart shaped ravioli with red sauce.
Those are just a few of the frugal things we did this week!!
I am continuing to work on not wasting food and using what I have. I was gifted some Italian seasonings 2 months ago. It’s the kind in a huge shaker divided into 4 sections with a different seasoning mix in each section. It was on my kitchen spice rack still shrink wrapped so I made a point of opening it and using it this week and not “saving” it. I toasted French bread , brushed it with melted butter and everyone put their choice of seasoning on their bread at the table– it was so good - I should have opened it right away.
ReplyDeleteI bought a 5 lb bag of potatoes for 99cents which is a very good price for this area. Thank you Brandy for sharing your price for potatoes and how nutritious they are. I never used to buy potatoes. I made a simple meal of scalloped potatoes (no cheese, no onions. Just milk, butter and potatoes). I layered some diced ham in the layers of potatoes that I froze after the holidays which I picked from the bone. Such a delicious simple meal – really creamy and potatoey . I served it with collard greens I had in the freezer. I was very cranky the night I stayed up until 1 am freezing batches collards after working a 12 hour shift, but I was very thankful I had them in the freezer.
I made a soup using bits of this and that leftovers I threw in the freezer, a bit of shredded brisket and gravy, cut up spaghetti noodles, all kinds of veggies. My kids call it “freezer supreme”. I served it with homemade dill bread made with dill I froze from the CSA. I have a nice collection of frozen herbs in the freezer. I’m trying to use them too and not just collect them.
Last week pasta and tomato sauce were on sale but the store ran out. I took the time to get rain checks and got them this week when they were back in stock. I combined the sale with coupons and got eight 15 ounce cans of tomato sauce for $1 total and eight boxes of pasta for $3.48 total.
I made pear bread with 2 pears that were overripe.
I worked extra overtime (I work overtime every week but picked up a few more hours when they offered an extra bonus).
I checked some cookbooks out of the library. My bread machine is 20 years old and I have one thin cookbook that I got with it. I have a few favorite recipes I use but I hardly use it. I need to start using it more and the new cookbooks are motivating me to use it more. I also checked out a slow cooker cookbook. I got a crockpot after Christmas on clearance and used my drugstore bucks to get it with no out of pocket. This is my first crockpot, so I’m looking for some good recipes so I can use it often. I never wanted a crockpot before until I started reading everyone’s ideas on this blog for using one, especially to cook and not heat up the house in the summer. We have a screened in porch, so I think I’ll put it out there to simmer during the summer.
Have a great frugal week everyone!
Another good resource for bread machine recipes is Money Saving Mom's blog. She makes breadsticks, cinnamon rolls, and regular rolls with her bread machine. Here's the link to her recipes: http://moneysavingmom.com/recipes
DeleteThank you for the link - the cinnamon rolls look so good!
DeleteWe got our taxes and paid off completely 9 bills. We went and spoke to the electric company and starting in March, we are getting on a monthly average bill, so we can save up for the winter. My friends and I had harvested walnuts, and we made our own Nutella, one of my friends taught me how to make Artisan bread and now have a bowl of dough in my fridge that will last 2 weeks. I finally went to the Grocery Outlet in our town, and fell in love. They have pretty good prices on food, it changes often and its almost expired but it will work. I have lots of applesauce I canned and will be making apple oat muffins to freeze and have ready for a quick breakfast or treat for hubbys lunch. I have started using a smaller amount of detergent and adding a tbls of baking soda and my clothes feels just as clean and our detegent has lasted a long time.
ReplyDeleteI did great and came in almost 50 dollars under budget for our groceries this week, I used the extra to buy a Valentine's Day treat for my family and got shoes(never worn!), and a pair of denim overalls and a toy truck for my son at the consignment shop. I used this opportunity to show my older son that when we save money on groceries we have more wiggle room for toys and activities. We went to a Valentines Day event where he decorated a cup cake and got a balloon and did a craft and had a great time for just five dollars. Which was so nice. We gave his craft as a gift to his aunt.
ReplyDeleteMy husband's birthday was this week and my gift to him was time, I sent him out with his friends and stayed home as "the sitter". He had a great time.
We had a nice(ish) day so I girded my loins and took the boys to the farm where they enjoyed both fresh air and copious mud. We are still debating rejoining the co-op but the best perk is that we can go to their farm whenever we want and play. That is a huge thing for us because we live in a Philly suburb and are just four row-homes from a four lane highway with no fence in between. It is even closer to our back yard. . We are kind of thinking of the co-op as a camp that gives us veggies. Some of their vegetables are great and some of them my family won't eat no matter what I do. Like kale, or turnip greens. I tried and tried and no one would touch them. I watched what they gave us compared to store prices and we did get considerably more than 500 dollars worth of produce, with the huge added bonus of my children having a nice and safe place to play. So we are really torn. It is quite difficult to go to the farm and do u-pick with two small children not to mention getting it all home and cleaning it. We just can't decide. If I wait and my husband joins us it screws up dinner and bed time, uggghhh. I am sure next year when the baby is two and my son is four it will be much easier but right now it is kind of daunting. it's not like a grocery store or even a farmers market. We are wondering if it would be better to put the five hundred aside and watch for good sales at the store and can that instead. But then we miss out on the farm with the bunnies and sand tables and tractors and general groovy farmness and fresh air and quiet. it's never quiet here because of the road noise.
ANnnnyway that was a novel, sorry. We also had company for dinner four times, I made budget friendly french onion soup with garlic french bread, black bean burgers with corn and cold slaw,pancakes and creamed chip beef on toast. We had enough leftovers that I only had to cook four times this week. YAY! My Mom gave us 200 hundred dollars toward our big birthday-palooza. She and my sister are going to come down so I can make and freeze cookies for favors, I found a train cookie cutter and am going to write every guests name on their cookie. We are making bookmarks for the pinata, and have 150 lollipops I bought for Halloween( they are still fine) that we never got to use because of the hurricane. I have been doing so good on my grocery shopping that I have been able to stock up on diapers and cat food which normally have their own budgets.
I chop kale and other greens very finely and add them to chili. No one even notices---not only because they are so small but also because they sort of absorb the flavor of the tomatoes and spices. My husband dislikes them and it took him about a year to notice that his meatloaf and chili had specs of green. If you are going to use them in chili, you can chop very finely and freeze in a bit of chicken stock or tomato juice,and freeze in one cup portions to use as you need them. I also put them in spaghetti and lasagna.
DeleteI also chop them finely and put them in smoothies---if you use something dark, like blueberries, no one will notice. I do the same thing with chickweed and lambs' quarters and young dandelion leaves---which are free and grow like crazy in my yard and garden. They are very nutritious and free! (I don't know where you live, but you can do the same with the leaves and young shoots of fireweed, which also grows in abundance in Alaska but may not grow anyplace else for all I know...)
I will try it in the chili and meatloaf, thank you.
DeleteMaybe there is someone you know that you could barter/trade the things you don't like and get things you could use instead?
DeleteHere is my FAVORITE kale recipe. Saute one diced onion in a pan. Add a little minced garlic. Then add enough water to fill the bottom of the pan 1". Add about 5 peeled and chopped potatoes. Allow to cook until tender but not quite done. Add 1 thing of kiebasa sausage sliced. Then add 1 bunch of kale chopped (stems removed). Season with salt and pepper. In five minutes the meal should be finished. Sometimes I also serve this with cornbread. This recipe is my go-to recipe. I love it and so does my super picky husband. He just won't let me tell anyone he likes kale. Ha,ha!
Deletealso try the Sneaky Chef cookbooks from the library by Missy Chase Lapine. They sneak them in all kinds of things unnoticed much like Sesele. She has a kid's one too. Holly
DeleteLast week I:
ReplyDeleteOnly needed to go to the grocery store one time, for milk and swiss cheese ( the hubby needed swiss, specifically) We went out to eat one time last week, to his favorite buffet because it is in the next town and I had had my weddings rings resized (1 1/2 sizes!!) and it was right by there. It was an early Valentine's outing, but I ended up getting food poisoning :( and missed 1 day of work ( thank goodness I get sick time). So we didn't do anything else for Valentine's day, but that morning before work I set his homemade card on the bathroom counter and taped little hearts all over the bathroom mirror.
Our bathroom remodel is DONE!!! YAY! We did a little at a time when the things we needed/wanted were on sale. It took 3 months but it's finally done! It's so pretty, and only cost a fraction of what a professional job would have been.
When we got our ginormous meat order a week or two ago (previous post) we also got a HUGE corned beef brisket. This is a treat for us. The hubby cut it in half and froze them. We took one out and he made it. It was delicous! and we have been using the left overs all week, at least one meal a day. We still have one portion left.
Used up other leftovers during the week. Continued the usual of taking my beverages and food/snacks to work with me.
I filled up the gas tank twice. It's usually once, but my husband did a lot of driving for different things and used a lot of gas.
I bought new color and black printer ink from Staples on sale, plus card stock and recycled paper for the printer. I accrued some reward points and now have a $5 off coupon to use. We will see if i actually get to use it. I can't forsee needing anything soon.But I now have card stock to do some crafts/gifts with that I have wanted for quite awhile.
I printed Brandy's seed packets off her website. This allowed me to better organize the seeds I have been saving to plant in spring from the organic vegetables we eat. I feel this brought their cost down more.
We bought our daughter 3 new outfits that she desperately needed on clearance. They mix and match with other clothing she has and are absolutely adorable. We don't get hand me downs and I had struck out several times at our local thrift store. She has outgrown a good portion of her clothes. I can't wait until our rummage sale season!
I found a new shower curtain on clearance for $7 that matches our new bathroom paint beautifully.I had owned our old for 10 years. It still worked but was so sick of the colors.
I downloaded several more free kindle books
The hubby found strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries on clearance for 99 cents a package. We froze them for later use.
He used some of the blueberries and made homemade blueberry pancakes for supper one night.
Thank you everyone! Reading everyone's accomplishments is the highlight of my week!
Three packets of Emergen-C in 8 oz of water will stop food poisoning almost immediately. If you are not completely clear of it in 30 minutes take 3 more packs. We always keep it on hand and take it along when we travel. We stopped going to food buffets because we would get sick from them too. So not worth it!
Deletestaples sells cases of water, so you could use the coupon on water??
DeleteThank you ladies! I did not know the Emergen-c tip. I will have to get some to keep on hand. We agreed no more buffets. Which the hubby was sad about because that was his favorite place lol
DeleteMy husband got a promotion and a bonus at work this week! Yay! We used most of the bonus to pay off a partial loan on our home. We are in the process of making a new budget for the 2013 year. We made most of our meals and food this week. My daughter and I made homemade Valentine's for her friends, dad, and brother. We also stayed home a lot.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations!
DeleteI just LOVE reading about your week, Brandy, and also the many inspiring comments!
ReplyDeleteThis week I tried to do things more frugally:
I cut my son and my husband's hair.
I made Bruschetta with the mix that my friend gave me (it was expiring soon). I made 4 loaves of Brandy's french bread, and gifted one to the friend who gave me the mix. Then for dinner that night, we had Bruschetta! It was delicious!
We are decluttering BIG TIME, which I think can help us live more frugally, in that we will be able to actually find things instead of going out and buying more of something that is missing! Grrr!
Made homemade Valentines for each of my children out of construction paper we already had in the house.
I turned the heat down one degree now that it is getting a little warmer out most days. We put on sweaters and socks and are just fine! haha!
After I finish baking something, I leave the oven door open a crack to let the heat into the house.
Made soup stock from the chicken bones.
I have been looking around on Google & Swagbucks for a way to keep track of my spending and savings at the grocery and drug stores. I do not have Mirosoft Office and all of the tracking "spreadsheets" have required an Excel program...Ugh! Well I finally found a website and it was free and no download!! I love it :) It keeps track of total spent, tax, coupons and store sale prices.
ReplyDeleteA couple weeks back Meijer had Ocean Spray grapefruit juice on sale $2.00 each. Hubby & I printed the $2.00 coupons and we were able to get 6 free. Meijer also had a promotion buy 2 grapefruit juice get a 5 lb. bag of grapefruit for free. I was able to get 2 bags that week. I have been using the peels to make citrus vinegar cleaner.
I was able to download 13 free books to my Kindle Fire from Amazon. One book retails for $22.95 and it's about making your own soap. It looks interesting
I was able to find 2 bags of green peppers on the discount produce rack at Meijer. They were marked down to .23¢ a pound for a total of $1.35 for 11 peppers. I cut up 7 peppers and froze for other meals and the other 4 peppers we are having tonight (stuffed peppers)
I was able to stock up on certain food and HBA items at Meijer last week by combining sales, promotions & coupons. I bought 13 Oscar Mayer hot dogs .44¢ pkg., Lipton 100ct tea bags $6.60 for 10 boxes, 5 Dove Men's body wash .50¢ each and three 8 pack soap $1.09. My husband is now set for the rest of the year. I use only 5 tea bags for a gallon of tea. I will be able to get 20 gallons of tea out of one box making it around 3 cents a gallon. I am so excited about this because my husband will drink a gallon of tea a day between home and what he takes to work. He does not sweeten his tea either so that helps to keep the cost very low!
In the mail I received a free coupon for a 2 liter of Pepsi Next and a 20 oz. bottle of Coke both from the Superbowl. I also received a sample of Purina One dog food for my dogs and a sample from L`Oreal for their new shampoo & conditioner
For Valentine's Day hubby & I stayed home and I cooked rib eye steak from our 1/2 cow, homemade French fries and butter fly shrimp (purchased on sale with coupon for $2.74).
You can always download open office, that does have a free spreadsheet program in it. If you don't mind sharing what program are you using? I'm always on the lookout for a good program. I'm using EEBA to keep track of my "envelopes" Thanks!
DeleteI just recently heard about Mint.com. It's a online budgeting site that's also free. If you have a smartphone it works on that, too.
DeleteSakura, Here is the website I found to keep track of my receipts http://www.couponrecord.com
DeleteThanks Melissa! I'll have to check it out :)
This is for two weeks.
ReplyDeleteI cooked a turkey for no special reason. After reading everyone's comments, I decided to try it. We got several meals and lunches from the turkey. Then I made turkey noodle soup for another meal and lunch. It worked out very well.
I picked lettuce, an onion, and peas. I had enough peas to make potatoes and peas in cream sauce. This was one of my childhood favorites that my mom cooked in the spring. Our weather turned very unspring-like this weekend. We had the lowest temperatures in the last 13 months. I covered my garden plot, but somehow the tarp blew off. I had small heads of broccoli forming, so I hope it wasn't killed. Time will tell.
I received a rebate and a coupon for a free 2-liter soda in the mail. I stocked up on canned tomatoes when they were on sale for 49 cent a can.
I had to have my car towed and repaired. While this was expensive, it is still better than monthly car payments. When this happened,I was blessed to be in a parking lot and not on a lonely stretch of hiway that I drive daily.
I was surprised when my husband accepted a bag of green onions being given out after our Wednesday night church supper. I used these in soup, but cut only the tops. These had the roots still attached, so, since I had read about planting these on this blog, I tried it. I'll see if I get even more "free" onions from these.
I always seem to learn something new when I read the comments. Brandy, thanks as always for hosting this blog.
Thank you for all your wonderful ideas. It is very encouraging to know there are like minded people out there.
ReplyDeleteSunday - Made pasta fagoli for dinner without meat and homemade rolls.
Monday-made homemade tortillas for peppers and mushrooms.
Tuesday-accepted another large box of grapefruit from a friend. They are delicious and will probably be the last of the season.
Wednesday-rice and lentil tacos for dinner. Cheapest meal ever!
Went to SAMs for a few things. Definitely the cheapest price on canned tomatoes. I buy the big cans and just freeze what I don't use right away.
Planted more lettuce seeds. I love having fresh greens from my backyard.
Thursday-made a Moroccan chickpea salad for a work pot lock. I always cook my own beans from dry.
The weekend got a little crazy with my middle daughter home from college. She needed groceries and gas. Ouch! Gas is back up. I made her Brandi's granola - our favorite recipe- to take back to school with her. I also made her a vege pot pie and some leftover pasta fagoli for her to have at school.
Made brunch for the family and grandparents Sunday morning. Eggs, bacon, waffles, cinnamon rolls and fresh squeezed o.j. Everyone enjoyed the food and we were able to visit for hours.
I fixed the toilet Plumbing problem (saved $50.00 for the handyman to come fix it)(Hubby can't do it anymore it is harder when you get older things cost more again.
ReplyDeleteI made chicken soup.
I wrapped a homemade gift for a birthday gift and sent it off.
I sent off a letter to my daughter with some coupons.
Picked up a free bottle of juice and a free shampoo with coupons.
I picked up sticks for the fire in the evenings.
I signed up for Patient assistance (Thanks for the tip on one of hubbies meds) ( I will pick them up this week)
I went shopping for all of the birthday gifts for everyone in the family for the entire year. ( I spent $87.00 and I have 6 people to buy for I got nice gift and even got a gift for Christmas already with that / I used coupons and discounts at the outlet malls with sales!
We went out to the park for date day on Saturday and on Sunday we went to a dinner on a gift card paid only the tip $5.00 and went to the movies on coupons from cereal boxes.
So the entire date cost us gas and the tip.
I sold two items on ebay.
I used to home that I googled one for my sore throat and one for hubbies sore foot.
I shopped for groceries after the movie on Sunday to save the gas back into town. I only needed a few things this week plus I picked up the free and really cheap items. Total Grocery cost this week $16.01 and I get back $7.00!
I am still doing research on getting a sewing machine but have not decided anything yet for certain.
I am also looking at monies owed me from my past and I am collecting (long story but sort of unclaimed type deal)
I sent Love notes to each of my children , my hubby and my daughter in law, and my daughter's new boy (Kind of her fiance / kids do things their own way now and I can't blame them with student loans hanging over their heads and job offers not coming. But he is her fiance.
I got free cookies, chocolate covered strawberries , candies, and cupcakes for valentines. We ate 1/2 the cookies , all of the berries and I have the other's for desserts this week.
I made all the meals at home except the Sunday lunch that was on the gift card.
Thanks again for hosting this Brandy! It's so excouraging!
ReplyDeleteThis last week we:
* Worked from home for three days since my son was sick. Saved on gas and babysitter that way. Had someone teach my class for me one day so I could do this - repaid them by teaching theirs later in the week so they could attend a meeting.
* Hubby stayed home from work for another day - again spared us the cost of a sitter and he was able to get ahead on his schoolwork too!
* Finished making our homemade Valentine's from what we had and a $1 bag of candy for the kids to give at school and dance class and mail to relatives.
* Downloaded several free ebooks for my free Kindle for PC.
* Watched 2 movies on Netflix and several funny videos and music videos on YouTube with the sick kiddo for some variety in entertainment.
* Ate all our meals at home this week, tried a new recipe to use up things we had on hand (it was okay).
* Took coffee and lunch to work each day I was at work.
* Was gifted a headband for my daugther from a friend whose daugther had outgrown it - it's sparkley purple and she loves it.
* Spent $8 and change less than our grocery budget ($40/wk) so I tucked that away for bulk purchase run to Sam's club later this spring - currently have $11 and change for that saved. We will go when we have at least $20, though we're hoping to wait until we have at least $40. We're hoping to save up for a 1/4 cow the same way later this spring.
* Mended the fallen hems on a pair of slacks and a skirt for me; put a new hook and eye on 3 skirts - two for my daughter, one for me. Let down the hems on three more pairs of pants for my son.
* Worked on several gifts using things we have - didn't finish any but we're getting there!
* Cleaned out more things and we are getting ready for another Thrift Store run later this week.
* Checked out 2 movies and several books from the library and returned what we had the week before.
Thanks for the great ideas everyone!
Have a wonderful week,
Lea
**My grocery spending was a little over budget this week since I wanted to make a special Valentine's Day dinner for my husband. I made his favorite Beef Tips With Mushrooms and tried Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Pie for dessert (amazing!) and splurged on a bottle of sparkling cider.
ReplyDeleteEven though this wasn't the cheapest meal I have ever made, it was still much less expensive than having a meal at a restaurant.
**I packed my son's lunch in plastic containers and used very few sandwich bags this week.
**My son made his 100 Days of School project out of legos that he had.
**The school sends home a lot of information about school and community special events as well as notes from my son's teacher. I've been using the back of that paper to make lists and for notes.
**I used the turkey stock I made last week and made Turkey Noodle Soup with heart carrots. It did seem to be a little wasteful to make the hearts, but instead of throwing away all the scraps and shavings I put them in the freezer and will use them in my next batch of chicken stock.
**Found some coupons that I could use in the coupon exchange box at the library and also dropped some coupons off for others to use.
**Used coupons for free paper towels, relish, soap and other personal care items.
**Purchased bread for $1 at the bread store.
**Made smoothies with cherries that had gotten lost in the freezer and some berries and yogurt in the fridge that needed to be eaten.
This week I...
ReplyDelete- Hung one load of laundry outside to dry.(Would have hung more but, the temperature dropped.)
- The girls passed out Valentines at chuch. They used old valentines I had bought on clearance last year. I think they were 25 cent a box. We have a ton left so I don't think I will need to buy any for a long time.
- I made sloppy joes with kidney beans instead of meat. I also made veggie soup, french bread, chocolate cake for valentines day and coffee cake.
- A sample of dog food came in the mail also a sample of shampoo and conditioner.
- At the grocery store I was able to get free eggs, gum and a pepsi.
- A free magazine came in the mail.
- I finished two felt puppets and gave them along with some candy to the girls for Valentine's Day.
- I was given a free coat.
- Used scrap paper for homeschool (spelling review, math problems ect).
- A coupon came for another free pepsi.
- I turned the heat down to 60 each night before bed.
- My husband worked two hours overtime.
I'm sure there was more. I didn't keep a good list this week.
here we go:
ReplyDeletemade a smoothie with clearance orange juice
accepted haricuts from my mother in law for my husband and three children
repaired my winter coat (attached buttons) and fixed my son's "broken mittens".
got a free 38 oz bottle of Heinz ketchup at Target (print coupon from the target site for $2 off 1. It is priced at 1.99)
accepted a chicken carcas and made 12 cups of chicken broth to freeze for soup
made homemmade pizza hut pizza
used homemamde laundry detergent
downloaded free kindle books
bought a birthday gift for my sister who runs her own bakery: cupckae liners (75 for 85 cents)
used a free car wash certificate to get the road salt off my vehicle
my husband shoveled our roof
used the water, as it was warming for dishes, to water my house plants
ate homemade granola bars for breakfast this week
ate leftovers for many meals this week
was provided lunch at work one day this week
Thank you again for my favorite post!!!!
We have been eating noticeably less meat. Dinners have included potato tacos, bean burritos, breakfast has included potato, soyrizo (yum, if you haven't had it before, it's great) and egg frittattas. Have also eaten Soyrizo frittata for dinner a few times. I started storing my potatoes in a 5 gallon bucket with gamma lid - but I am not tightening it all the way because I know the spuds need air. Any advice?
ReplyDeleteContinue to make homemade laundry detergent. I have to say that is the most instant, noticeable way our grocery bill has gone down. I can't notice any difference with the clothes with the exception of one load where th grated ZOTE soap did not quite dissolve. I love not being dependent on grocery store laundry soap.
We have eaten out more than usual lately, but mostly because of Valentine's Day and we try to see a few of the big movies nominated for Academy Awards, but we have used coupons when available.
We planted a lime tree -- we go through a lot of limes and we are planting nasturtium and other edibles. I am sure we will recoup the cost of the semi-dwarf lime tree in a year or two at most. We keep our fingers crossed that our avocado tree will bear fruit (yes, we eat a lot of guacamole when possible).
So grateful for the way smart women on this blog, most especially Brandy
In 8 years of making my own laundry soap, I've only had it not dissolve about 5 times. I do find that it's important to grate it very small if I want it to dissolve properly. When I do have trouble, it's usually on a gentle load, which is a shorter load with very little agitation (I have a front loader).
DeleteI have a recipe for powdered laundry soap. I have 50 bars of Ivory soap i got for free that I use. It always dissolves...so far. And you microwave the Ivory bar and it "poofs". its fun to watch.
DeleteWhat a blessing to sell your car so quickly!
ReplyDeleteI shared my accomplishments on my blog: http://www.thedollarholleringhomemaker.com/2013/02/last-weeks-frugal-accomplishments_18.html
Nora
Nora,
DeleteI like your list!
It seems to me that Netflix is great for a few months, and then off for a few months, because you've seen everything you want to see and there's nothing new for a while that you want to see. They have a up to-three-months account on hold option. We've done that, and we've also just cancelled for a long time and then signed up for 3 months later, and then cancelled again. So, there are lots of ways you could do it to get caught up on the movies you really want to see.
We're snowing again here...came out of Homemakers to find about an inch collected.
ReplyDeleteThis month's grocery total still low...stocked up on oranges for marmalade and eating. The man in front of me at checkout gave me a $4 coupon off milk he didn't want. Another $2 off meat coupon printed on my receipt last week so bought another $2 worth ground beef to add to the other $2 worth in the freezer.
Most of the last trip was spent in produce....offered to bring the salad to a dinner on Saturday. It was a very large lettuce salad with carrots, celery, cucumbers, red cabbage, sugar snap peas, radishes, cauliflower, black olives, grape tomatoes. My brother was having a dinner at his house as his children and families would be home so my children met there and I brought my mother down. He did 2 crockpots of spaghetti and meatballs. We don't see his daughter too much as they live in Minneapolis. So it was good travelling weather and just nice to sit and chat. No one has grandchildren yet but there were 4 granddogs. there.
Baked 2 loaves bread, 2 pans pecan rolls, cornbread, pineapple upside down cake, Made 5 bean chili that I add corn, zucchinni, onions, diced carrots and peppers to, all from the freezer. Made macaroni and cheese. Someone else mentioned this, but use the strongest cheese you can and then you use less. I used extra sharp cheddar. Also adding some dry mustard boosts the flavor. Packed some of the extra chili in quart jars for my other children to take home with them when we met up this past weekend.
I did mix up 2 quart jars of the powdered milk. I used 2 cups in the bread and 6 cups to make the white sauce for the mac n cheese. I mixed them up ahead of time as was suggested, also the glass jars were suggested.
I finished reading all the past blog posts. So much to learn. HOW do so many people end up getting 3 tea bags in the mail. I must have read that 7-8 times. Always 3. I want to get tea bags!
Still no heat in my car. My husband wanted to take in last week, but mechanic lives 25 miles away and that is an inconvenience. I said I have been through the minus 0's already what if we wait til later on. I don't spend that much time in the car. I did warn my mother to dress warm when we drove to my brother's ...about an hour each way. The sun was shining brightly in the a.m. so warmed us up and we did bring a pile of blankets if anyone got too cold. My daughter and the dog cuddled in the back seat. Then we left by 4p so wasn't as warm but still OK.
A childhood friend of my husband's was driving through the area so stopped to see us. THey went out to dinner. For a treat and since I now have this steady supply of .36/lb bananas I made a 2nd banana cake and we had a little belated birthday desert with "Uncle Joel" as the children all called him, well still do. Husband also brought good portion of his meat entree home. That is in the freezer for now...I have mushrooms that I bought but never put in that salad so I will make a small batch of stroganoff with the beef, mushrooms, onions and some of the greek yogurt, probably for dinner tomorrow.
Husband went "up north" this weekend to photo some dog sled races. He winter camped to save on hotel fees...it was -18. He said that is that coldest camping now. Up to then it had been the night we winter camped in Wyoming in the 1980's and was -11. I am too old for that now. He did replenish our maple syrup with a couple quarts. When he's gone the daughter and I tend to just eat toast, popcorn, scrambled eggs...no organized meals, as the children call it.
I made some popsicles with mashed banana and the pineapple juice left from making the upside down cake. Tasty.
This is my first time in posting and feel it only fair in a way to post as i am so encouraged by the community that you have here Brandy and this is one blog that is the absolute highlight of my week.
ReplyDeleteWent out on v-day to catch up breakfast with a troubled friend as my preschooler had a v-day pgm @his school. Not very frugal but its good to encourage one another and if it only costs $5 (drank water for beverage)and not out of my way, its worth it....
Also this past week we have not had it too frugal in other ways as our Honda SUV 2010 brand new car has had its engine wires eaten the third time this past 8 months. We usually park this car in our driveway becos our tiny single car garage overstuffed with clutter. Very expensive and very frustrating. We have another old toyota car and nothing ever happens to that car parked in the driveway so why this one, god only knows...
So this forced us to clear the clutter in the garage which we successfully did in a day.
we loved that we found a few surprises like my husband's before marriage change bundles which look like a $150 worth stuffed in some of the old forgotten boxes lying around. As well as an old camera that is still usable which we passed down to my 4 year old and some washing soap bars and powder.
I made out of rice a huge batch of idli/dosa mix for us this week. I made also a lot of mung bean dal and toor dal to go with it for the family as well. We cook up to 2 cups of basmati rice every week for dinner. (yes we are indians and we cook most things out of scratch eating a lot of rice and grains as the main part of our diet)
Since I am observing Lent till Easter Sunday Breakfast my diet will be veg one but hubby observes the last week of Lent as he does not seem to do well without his fish or any other meats.Less non-veg for us...
Made loads of Indian crackers out of semolina and all-purp. flour and carom seed/bishop's weed which both hubby and son adore.Since I use oil for frying out these crackers, I also fried some store bought "fryums" as well using the same oil.My 4 y.o loves this and I really need to learn how to make this from scratch as we go through $1.25 packet super fast.
I have been de-cluttering our wardrobes and stuff around the house for a spring garage sale.Just have my old Lexmark printer box to go through this week and sort-hoping its still usable/saleable!!
I made some of brandi's laundry soap listed here minus the oxyclean stuff.
Just wondering what women do here in order to replace their salon prepping?? I live in NJ and salons here are expensive even the Indian ones.
Sheeba
Sheeba,
DeleteWhat do you mean by "salon prepping"?
I've paid to have my nails done only once (right before I was married) and I used to pay to have my hair cut, but my husband has been cutting it for several years now.
I haven't been to the salon in almost three years. It's not that I don't love to get my hair cut, I simply cannot afford the $85 + tip every few months. Instead my husband colors my hair with hair dye I get on sale for less than $4/box and I trim my hair myself. Like Brandy, I've only ever had my nails done once at a salon but a bottle of clear nail polish and an emery board work wonders. :)
DeleteThe places we have lived (3 states) I have managed to find a place I like that will cut my hair for $20 + tip. I color my own hair and do my own nails. I trim my own bangs in between hair cuts. Last time I went 3 months between hair cuts, but that was a little long, as the ends of my hair were so dry at that point. There is no way my husband would cut my hair! He would be so afraid of messing it up and he likes it longer, so it means a lot to him. Even so, I don't spend a lot on 'salon' type services.
DeleteIf you live in the city you may be able to find free hair cuts. I have done this twice at great clips. They were testing students there. Both times I loved my new hair cut. Other then that my husband has always cut my hair. I haven't paid for a hair cut in our 10 years of marriage. You might be able to find a video on youtube that would help you cut your hair. I found a video I used for my five year olds hair. Her hair was long and straight. Now it is layered. The front frames her face but the back is half way down her back. When we went to church the next day so many women came up to me and asked me where I had taken her to get it cut.
DeleteI do have to color my hair. I stared getting white hair(not gray) when I 18. I buy the colorsilk it is usually under $3 a box. My hair is very thick, long and curly so I need to buy two boxes at a time. When I dye my hair it last about 2-3 months.
My husband cuts my hair and I finally stopped dying it. That was after my friend's daughter (about 5) drew a picture of me and left me hairless. I asked her why and she said with that complete devastating innocence, "Well, I couldn't find your hair color in my crayon box." I decided I would rather have nice grey hair than wear a color not found in nature. Much less fuss and cheaper.
DeleteWhoa, haircuts for more than 80 $? I do have to spend more on groceries than Americans, I guess, but on the other hand my regular hairdresser cuts my hair (long!) like for 15 $ and I'm not supposed to give any tip. So I spend in total like 30 $ a year on haircuts. (My husband is not very gifted in three-dimensional tasks of any kind...) I'm using henna too, which is also a good conditioner and strenghtens my hair, a double batch costs like 4 $, which I'm fine with.
DeleteI pay $13 for a haircut every 2-3 months. When I was still working, it had to be every 2 months, or my hair was long enough to catch on my stethoscope, but now that I am retired, I can go a bit longer in between, & as of January, I get a seniors discount, too! I wash my hair before I go in, & pay only for the cut, which saves me $5. I do not color or perm my hair. I have never had a manicure, or a pedicure, other than what I do myself at home.
DeleteSheba, If you can't DIY, like hair color, and perhaps need/want a perm, maybe you could consider a local beauty school?
DeleteAlso, ask around. Sometimes you can run across people who went to school but now are SAHmoms :)
Oh,we already use the cutting hair at home method too(slow to catch up with my husband but he is getting there) and I even color my hair with henna(which is very cheap @ the Indian store) with a friend. I meant like getting waxed, getting facials etc.Its tough to do this by yourself and get the results...And once in a way like for Christmas or birthdays its nice to have professionals do this for but dislike the price a lot...
ReplyDeleteI have never paid for a facial or to get waxed. For eyebrows a good pair of tweezers does fine (most tweezers don't work well; I have one pair that does work real well, but others I have bought did not).
DeleteThere are lots of facial products available that you can use at home.
Sheeba,
Deletebeauty schools will often do facials and waxing for a very inexpensive price it just has to be a cosmetology school look in your phone book for them. I have never gotten a professional manicure, facial, or waxing. But as a special suprise for my grandmother I got her a facial at a cosmetology school for five dollars in my area. I have my very thick eyebrows waxed there once a year for five dollars also I use tweezers in between to maintain. I make my own sugaring cream for hair removal at home the internet is full of recipes. Henna is fantastic for your hair many people don't know that you can combine it with other herbs like wode, and indigo to create other colors like black.
Sheeba,
ReplyDeleteTry cutting your hair in a one-length style. Layers and short hair grows out too quickly. Also, forgo the perms and colors if you really want to save money.
Thanks everyone for the comments.we really have to make do with what we have in order to save...I just remembered though that last year I did use a LivingSocial deal at a salon within 9 miles of me to do something with my hair and I had one credit that I used and only kept tip in cash aside for the trip.it felt wonderful as it was to celebrate my birthday.hard to come by such deals
DeleteI have found that there are "brow bars" where I can go and get threaded - way more gentle than waxing, IMO - and it costs $6. I'd look to see if you have a brow bar or brow boutique near you. Also, many cosmetics lines will have trade in offers around earth day and/or will be very generous with samples, even if you don't purchase anything. Origins is one that I know is like this. You can go to any origins store and either walk in or make an appointment for a free mini facial. You receive the facial sitting in a chair but it is wonderful, takes 20-30 minutes and I have never had any pressure for purchase. Plus they give you a million samples of yummy smelling products :-)
DeleteWe ate every meal at home except one and we had a $9 coupon for that.
ReplyDeleteMade DH his Valentine present by using Foldify app.
Found a 3 kg bag of pasta for $1.25. It expires in April. Looks like lots of pasta dishes for us :-)
Avoided the supermarket and just ate what we have on hand.
Made numerous loaves of bread.
Bought coffee online cheaper and better tasting than what's in the store. With the Bilka and the milk frother I can have cappuccino cheaper than buying it in a coffee shop.
Walked to work everyday and rode the bus provided by work (free) home in the evening.
Cooked food for my toddler rather than buying expensive baby/toddler food.
Bought 2 new loaf pans and 3 pounds of dry organic black beans for less than $15 from someone who was moving out of country.
Negotiated with a friend, who is a doctor, for a cosmetic procedure. I got a huge discount and he got immediate extra income as insurance doesn't pay for any cosmetic procedure here.
Watched tv shows and a couple movies for free using my computer.
Hung all the laundry to dry.
Took the subway for less than $3 round trip into the city and passed on a huge bag of books I decided to part with. This has freed up shelf space and reduced the need for constant dusting. I got a day of window shopping while I was there.
While delivering book went to Tiffany's and got my necklace cleaned and checked for free.
Read a free book on my ipad rather than purchasing a new one.
Let my son watch Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers Neighbourhood on Youtube.
Congratulations on selling your car!
ReplyDeleteMy frugal things:
Continue to make bread
Made all meals at home (except our date meals, but we use coupons)
Treated the children to a Valentines dinner at home. It was pricey, but nowhere near what the same at a restaurant would be.
Purchased a few clearance items for gifts for the future.
Started some seeds.
The children gave out valentines we bought on clearance last year.
Packaged the large bags of grain in buckets I already had, and in the half gallon canning jars my mom gave me because she didn't use them.
Found our laundry detergent on a great sale and stocked for the year. I used to make our own but found that one of my children is allergic to something in it as well as a couple other detergents.
Brandy, are you still able to find Oil of Olay sensitive skin bars? It seem they are no longer made. I had to buy Dove because I ran out of our homemade soap and my toddler is too feisty to allow me to make any more for a little while because of safety issues. She is actually climbing my back right now! And she climbs everything, actually I am grateful she does not climb shelves just yet, just every other surface available. I ended up buying regular dove because of the great price I could get and had an allergy filled weekend. So I had to go out again and find dove sensitive skin.
I need to work harder to be a better steward over what I have been blessed with as I haven't tried as hard lately, so I appreciate the continued support and reminders here!
When my daughter was a toddler, I would make soap at night, after she went to sleep. I pre-measured everything but the lye, got everything set up, prepared molds, all that, and then as soon as she was asleep, I'd get started. It was the only time I felt it was safe to do it, because Hubby was home if she woke and I didn't have to worry about her toddling in and getting into something she shouldn't. Hope that helps! :)
DeleteI forgot to add that my husband had his glasses snap in half and I was able to wire them together until he found his other frames. He ordered identical frames the last time so when he gets home we will put his current lenses into the older frames. He thought the older lenses would be ok, but he is really struggling today.
DeleteLaura, I love that idea. My days are quite full with the age spread of my children so I gave up trying for a while. I think I could find a way to make your idea work though. I really don't want my oils to go rancid because I didn't have the time to use them. Thanks.
Sam's Club only carries the Shea Butter Oil of Olay bars, and these bars are bigger than the same type of bars from the store. I wanted to use the sensitive skin ones, but I tried the Shea butter ones (they are .88 each), and I haven't had problem with them. I originally started making my own laundry soap because I was allergic to most; when the one I was buying was discontinued, I had to make a change, and that's when I started making my own. I can't use Fels Naptha; I can't even hold it in my hand without it burning. Dove does okay for me but Oil of Olay is even better.
DeleteAbout the climbing: My mom found me on top of the refrigerator once when I was very small. I used to climb out of my crib every morning at 4 am and because we had a full basement, I hit the floor with a big thud. My mom said it scared her everyday. I was really little, too (young AND extra tiny).
I can tell you that you can (and should) attach your dressers, shelves, and anything else heavy to the wall with L-brackets. This will keep a bookcase or another thing from falling on top of your child and crushing her.
We did that with the brackets and it is a great relief , we only had one thing we could not mount and it is just this monster oak buffet and I HATE IT. My 1 year old son hangs on it and slams the doors. I sympathize, 3 year my son came out of the womb with a bang! The child climbed everything. We don't even have end tables in our living room anymore. We got rid of the china cabinet and the media cabinet, I wish I had thought to buy furniture that was child proofable. I am finally on the tail end( i think) but I could not turn my back on my son for two years. He pulled down four sets of drapes and warped curtain rods and scaled dressers and tables and chairs and end tables and whipped cords around like lassos. Once I caught him on top of the dining room table reaching for the chandelier and I had only run for a glass of water. My baby is a bit more tractable. A bit. I use Dr. Bronner's soap or Kiss My Face, it's a bit pricey but so much cheaper than laundry detergent. My older son is very rash prone.
DeleteStocked up on flavored creamers for my coffee. They were on sale 3 for $5.00 and then I got a coupon at check out for $1.00 off two so I went right back around and got two more. (I had only bought one the first time around since that will last me a week or longer. Now I have enough for a month and as long as it isn't opened it will keep in the fridge.) So I paid $1.33 per 16 oz. bottle compared to $3.00 per 16 oz bottle.
ReplyDeleteDownloaded five books for my Kindle for Mac program (also free through Amazon for those that do not have a Kindle) for free.
Made cupcakes for my class for Valentine's Day instead of buying them. The cupcake liners were free because a parent donated them and the sprinkles for the tops of the cupcakes to my class.
Ate collard greens that someone gave me at church this weekend last night.
Used flowers and feathers I already had to make a matching corsage for a new outfit I bought to wear to church on Sunday.
Got chicken leg quarters for .79 per pound.
Not so frugal: Ate out on Sunday. Even ordering cheaply off the menu it cost almost $40.00 and that was with ordering water to drink. The groceries I could have bought with that would have fed us for almost a WEEK!
The important thing is that you learned, and next time you'll cook at home instead of going out to eat.
DeletePiggy, I need to talk to your friend who does the cosmetic surgery.
ReplyDeleteI have needed something done since I was very young.
Robert, I don't live in North America. However, I think you could negotiate with a doctor for a cosmetic procedure if you paid for everything up front rather than financing it.
DeleteThat's great news! Congrats on selling your car.
ReplyDeleteThis week, the kids and I blessed my husband for Valentine's Day by cleaning the garage and his workbench. He made me a chocolate cake, and we made Valentine's dinner at home and avoided going out. Win win!
Made granola bars, pizza crust, and spaghetti sauce from scratch.
Made an apple tart with fruit I was given by a co-worker.
Started tomato and pepper seeds under my homemade seed starting light.
Hi there! This is for almost the whole past month, since I’ve been too busy with the end of term rush to write it down:
ReplyDelete- cooked everything from scratch as usual and packed lunch for my husband every day but Wednesdays; planned my meals in advance and around items on sale
- made a pair of mittens for my son out of a fleece scarf on sale (I did not find mittens which would have worked for him at any store)
- made play food for my son from scraps I had on hand. He liked especially the fried egg made of felt
- reorganised my very limited food storage and made some more pasta fit in
- I fixed most of our bookshelves again to the walls with better metal straps than before
- bought some of the lacking clothing for my son on sales
- made several pillowcases form worn-out blankets which we have got from my grandmother-in-law some years ago
- My backpack broke (I have been using it like for 4-5 years), that is, one of the main zippers broke and the fabric around it was also damaged in a way I could not mend it. I removed all of the zippers and clasps that were still working and packed them away for later use. I had to buy a new one, though, I’m carrying every day a lot of weight so this one wasn’t as thrifty, but hopefully it will save my back.
- Downloaded free audiobooks and books.
- Downloaded free scores to play the piano and sing with my son
- Mended several clothing items
- Accepted an autumn coat from my mother in law (will have to change it to fit, though)
Thanks for the great ideas to everyone! I want to try Brandys recipe for laundry soap some time soon, but still need to figure out what I can take for substitutes. Now that the term is over I might get to that, too.
Sheeba, there are a lot of facials you can make from scratch and they work great! You have to know your skin type, then you can make them from you regular groceries. Btw how do you grind your dosa batter?
I bet a pillowcase made from a blanket would be super snuggly! Sounds like a great idea.
DeleteHave you thought about buying a really high quality backpack? I have a Lands End backpack. I got my first one when I was 14 and replaced it when the bottom wore through when I was 35. I bought a new one then and since I don't carry as much weight every day as I did in college, it should last me until I retire - which won't be any time soon! :) I was a science major in college in the 1990's and carried approximatley 70lbs of books each day all over campus in that thing. It flew all over the country and two foreign countries, went camping, and attended several conferences with me too!
DeleteThey cost anywhere from $35-$75-ish but are made to carry heavy book-type weight every day. They also have a lifetime guarantee on the zippers - when I was 20 one of the zippers on my original backpack broke (teeth came off) and they sent me a new one for free with a package to send the old one back (postage paid). They have nice padded straps and can be used for all kinds of things.
I know a lot of people think they're really expensive but I figure it's like paying roughly $1.75 per year for a backpack (that's how much it was for my first one)! Some people can even find these at second hand shops, so it might be worth looking there too.
Just a thought,
Lea
Lea, thanks, that is exactly what I have done :), that's why I meant it wasn't too thrifty. But at lest the new backpack was on sale and I hope to save time not having to run an get a new one soon.
DeleteThere are some good deals on Lands End backpacks right now... just ordered my daughter one for $16.99
DeleteCan you please share where you found the piano music?
DeleteAmanda, I have a source for free piano music listed on my website here: http://theprudenthomemaker.com/index.php/frugal-living/frugal-gifts/music
DeleteTiggr:
DeleteThe dosa/idli mix is easy to do though it does take the day ahead to make. I use idli rice which you can get in 5lbs bags or larger(do not know the price)but this much easier to grind than regular rice and it will rise.The ratio is 4 cups of idli rice to 1 cup of urad dal(white lentils)and 1/4 c fenugreek/2 TBSP. This was a challenge for me to get the dough to rise overnight in my oven with just my oven light on(warm but not there to cook it)...However when I soak the idli rice seperate in a bowl after washin it super well and the fenugreek with urad dal seperate for about 5 hours or more and then grind them individually only mixing both of them at the end when they are grinded-salt it to taste before letting the dough rise in the oven...The mix lasts a little over a week in fridge and saves me from buying two 16 oz. tubs for $2.49 each at my Indian store...This is idli mix recipe and when you want dosa add a little water to however much of the same dough you are using and make your dosas..
Sheeba, thanks for the recipe! What do you use for grinding, do you think I could do it with a food processor or would it break?
Delete(Btw, nursing ladies, nothing is more efficient than fenugreek tea, if you, err, need more milk!)
Amanda, I'm not an English speaker, so the songs I found the scores of for free wouldn't be of much use to you, I'm afraid. Still, Brandy's link is great! (I have been browsing the free piano sheet stuff every once in a while for classical scores.)
Sheeba, I made idli mix 3 weeks back and its still in the fridge, not at all gone bad.We have idlis once every week. If you add cooked rice(if its a day old even better) while grinding it will definitely rise.I also soaked a fistful of poha. The idlis have come out extremely soft and dont dry out even after a day.
DeleteTiggr-I used to grind with the oster blender (will be slightly coarse) before I got the vitamix. It definitley grinds extremely well.I didnt know the idli mix has to be less thick when you put it to ferment,previously i used to avoid adding too much water to keep the mix thick. But when i had done it this time around I added water so that the mix was less thick, it fermented very nicely and puffed up.
DH found a new/unopened box of Pyrex storage containers at the town recycling center. The largest one retails for $13 by itself and I had been saving my change to buy one.
ReplyDeleteFound a long-sleeve Valentine onesie for $1.27 on clearance. My baby is growing more quickly than I expected and needs a few things to get through until warmer weather arrives. Since it will be layered under his clothing, no one will see it except us.
Used a coupon to get a package of cleaning wipes for 9 cents. Used some other coupons to get a good deal on dishwasher detergent.
Made all meals except one at home.
Well I did a not-so-frugal thing when I accidentally threw out a gift card. I had two similar gift cards, one with $8 on it and one with no value left. I got them mixed up and threw out the wrong one. The good and more frugal news is that I e-mailed the company (Kohls), explained what happened, and they mailed me a new gift card!!
ReplyDeleteI got a free redbox code for Valentine's Day and used it to rent a movie.
I used my Tomato Bank points at EarthFare (grocery store) to get ice cream and peanut butter. Because of the points, I only paid .49.
I got a tube of toothpaste at CVS for "free" using coupons. I just paid .26 for tax.
I'm making more of an effort to re-wear clothes that I've only worn once and that aren't dirty.
Washed my fabric shower curtain and then cleaned it with vinegar because it was starting to get mildewy. I hope by doing this I can make it last for a while. Does any one have shower curtain cleaning tips? Thanks!
I wash my fabric shower curtain with a litle bleach, and then just hang it to dry back in the shower.
DeleteI also wash my fabric shower curtain with a little bleach at least once a month and it has lasted me about ten years this way.
DeleteI'm a slacker:) I only take it down and wash it in the spring and fall, the rest of the time; I spray it about once a month (or every other month) with bleach and once a week with vinegar.
DeleteThe vinegar sprays keep me from having to bleach as often.
Overall we had a VERY non-frugal week. I literally think we ate out 5-6 times as a family & Brandon ate out a couple of times without me! It was just one of those super crazy weeks. In just a few days we had blown our “eating out” budget for the rest of the month & then some!
ReplyDeleteWhile it would be super easy to just throw my hands up in despair thinking of how much I failed last week I”m not going to. Instead I’m going to remember that there is GRACE! Isn’t that wonderful? I’m not the perfect wife, mother, or frugal homemaker that I would love to be BUT I do serve a God who is perfect. Hooray! I’m looking forward to things getting back to normal this week. What I did accomplish is listed on my blog: http://emersonfamily.wordpress.com/2013/02/17/frugal-things-i-did-last-week-or-what-to-do-when-you-fall-off-the-frugal-wagon/
We spent a long weekend in a family vacation home. We spent only $20 eating out for one lunch for three of us. The rest of the meals we bbq'd loads one night and ate all weekend. I am getting to where I don't even like restaurants any longer. I think I could buy half a weeks groceries for what a meal out costs. I am putting a few tomatoes in as well but have volunteer maters I have caged that have loads of blossoms already.
ReplyDeleteI often feel that way about restaurants. We only go out once or twice a month as it is, and even then I think I prefer our food at home and saving our money. My husband has said something similar a few times too....
DeleteCongrats on the tomatoes!
-cut all boys' hair (well, actually, the older ones are learning to cut their own, then I trim)
ReplyDelete-trimmed dh's hair after he cut it
-made bread for sandwiches and pita on days we had to run errands
-made yogurt, kefir, buttermilk
-made 4 quarts of laundry soap
-had to buy 5 pieces for the guitars, paid $16 on ebay for what would have cost $100 locally (which would not have been affordable!) <3 ebay
-used the internet for chord charts and youtube for how-to-play videos
-took children to free art class at library (and I enjoyed 'alone time' in the library while they were in class, except for jumping out of my skin whenever anyone said "mom" :)
-took dd to free yarn social at library, where we were given several skeins of free yarn
-picked up 5 free books outside of a local used book store that are really good (2 science, 3 on various organs, one of which is on the heart and goes along with a current study for teen)
-darned some more of my socks
This week was not too frugal for us either.
ReplyDeleteWe ate out on valentines at chipotle for lunch (my mistake coz there were leftovers of the previous evening but i totally forgot..i know!!!)
My daughter had a cold and I never keep kleenex in the house and used a lot of handkerchiefs.
We are cutting down on our use of paper towels, and we decided the best thing to follow it out is to not buy any at all and manage..thats what we have been doing and we dont miss it as much except for when I have to drain the fried bacon of the oil. Does anyone have any idea how to do that ?
I went to farmers market and made an impulse buy on jam, I regretted buying it later on. now Im not going to the market for a while now.
Bought quite a bit of chicken and milk with a good deal.
Gas prices have shot up like crazy.It was 4.15 here. We managed to find a gas station which was charging 3.87 if paid for by cash and thats exactly what we did.
On one day when daughter went to school I pampered myself at home with a facial, deep conditioning treatment and bath soak,saved a trip to the spa. I felt so refreshed. Now planning to do it more often.
The weather has suddenly become chilly but we are avoiding switching on the heater, warm clothes will do.
Brandy I got the orchid from costco because I felt it was cheaper because I got 4 stalks for $20. Its a very pretty yellow and maroon mixed.
That is a great deal on the orchid!
DeleteThe only thing I use paper towels for is draining bacon. I put several sheets of newspaper, then just one layer of paper towels, so that I just use the one sheet. I think you could also designate a kitchen towel for this purpose. After you use it, just put it in some really hot soapy water in a bucket and get it as clean as you can (and pour the water on a rose bush after it cools).
DeleteThis is exactly what I do---I have several bacon rags. I put one on a layer of newpaper or magazine paper and then after the grease soaks through to the paper I either soak in a small amount of hot soapy water and throw it in the next wash, or, if it is really old, I throw it away. Heaven knows I have enough rags that throwing one away is much more frugal than using paper towels.
DeleteI also wanted to include lots of greens in our daily meals and what i ve done is I got a bunch of kale, collards, chard and bok choy. I have started incorporating it in everything thing i make like the green bean potato bake, pasta,lentil soup,fried rice,smoothies,brussel sprouts etc.
ReplyDeleteFor the Bacon try paper bag to get the oil out. The Freezer sections always have small paper bags to bring home ice cream in. Newspaper works too.
ReplyDeleteThanks for that idea robert! Will def try it out this coming saturday.
ReplyDeleteElaine- you said it right about getting to a point where you dont like restaurants. I think i am going through that phase too and plus this is the first time i have planned 2 weeks worth of meals.... I just feel bliss!!! Otherwise every other thing worrying me is what am i going to make for lunch and dinner
ReplyDeleteTaral and Elaine I know what you mean about not going out to eat. I have a very low tolerance for getting sick and since we eat at home more I find I am not nearly as sickly. I know what is in the food we eat and I know how the counter was washed and how the plates and forks were washed as well. Many restaurant workers are not paid well , so they come to work sick , they need the paycheck, then they handle your food.
ReplyDeleteAdd to that many of the low cost items at restaurants are the foods that can be made very easily at home. I remember everyone raved about red lobster biscuits (they are soooooooooooo easy!)
Hamburger is often my husband's go to item (That is so easy at home!)
We eat out one time per week but often it is a picnic I packed from home / mostly it is just to get out. We live right near the Great Smoky Mountain National Park so we go out and often find a nice spot and just sit at a table and listen to the water pass by.
Many times no matter where you live there are really pretty places near a library or a water supply bldg, or a power plant I have even take a quilt and just made a prompt picnic.
I hope this idea helps others as we down sized some time ago and we have a large number of folks in a very tiny space so this is what has worked for us. Jenna
Jenna- Thanks for that information, it is good to know we are at least avoiding getting sick. Our family has never been a fan of fastfood restaurants ever. I dont ever remember the last time i have eaten at MacD and the rest of the chains,been years.We dont eat beef (religious reasons) and i found out macd fries their fries in beef fat, that made me stop eating their fries too.My husband hates it and he says if we do have to go out and eat it should be a decent place coz it should be like a real treat, but thanks to Brandy we have been avoiding going out that one time per week too. Like i had mentioned in my previous reply to elaine, once you have a menu planned everything is stress free!!!
DeleteBut I think im going to try your idea of a picnic, it sounds good. And since we avoid going out, I like splurging on groceries.Coz it still tends to be way cheaper!!!
Taral,
ReplyDeleteThe newspaper and the brown bags work but not quite as well as the paper towels but use them and some paper towels to cut down on the paper towels. I also use the trick when we go out to eat the napkins that the silver is wrapped in that you place on your lap and wipe your face with if they are barely used I fold them and place them in my purse, bring them home, I have a empty Folger's container in my pantry and I keep them in there. So I will use brown paper or newspaper and one of those when I have to drain bacon. IN a pinch tissue paper will help too but you have to use that in between something else often or the tissue will start to end up in bits of tissue sticking to the bacon. I have also used brown paper and newspaper and a flour sack towel that I wash afterwards.
LOL! I was just reviewing the blogs I like to visit and noticed I had you (your website) on there from way back before you even started your blog! Glad you do have a blog now!~TJ
ReplyDelete