Frugal roundup for the week

Here are a few of the frugal things I accomplished this week:

• Took a survey at Rite Aid, and saved $5 off of a future purchase. Used that $5 to buy mailing envelopes for two holiday gifts.
• Made all of our meals at home, despite the chaos of the week. I also used up a few things that were lingering in the freezer.
• Picked a bunch of fruit to donate to a non-profit in our area, so nothing will be wasted.
• Took stock of all of our gift cards, including them in our budgets for 2017
• Minimized loads of laundry to save water, & line dried everything but the towels. They tend to pick up a smell, as they are very thick & take a long time if we try to air dry them. 
• The boys made Christmas cards, rather than buying. I do need to replace my cardstock, but overall, it was a frugal win.
• Found a $20 Uber discount code through work to use for our ride to the airport today
• Will bring a water bottle (empty, reusable) as well as snacks for the airport.
• Bringing library books on our trip vs buying new. This is so embarrassing, but in my 20s, every time I traveled, I would go to Target & buy books. I can read 5 or so books in a week on vacation, so this was obviously an expensive & wasteful habit. I'm reformed now! :-) 
• Speaking of library books, I checked our account in advance of our trip, rounded up all books that we were done with or would come do & couldn't be extended. I also extended any that we were still reading. This will ensure we don't rack up fines while we are traveling.
• We are taking our leftover fruit with us to the beach. Minimizing waste & reducing our grocery expenses. 

What about you? It's an expensive time of year, but there are always small ways to trim your spending. What kind of frugal things have you been up to?