Frugal Friday

 It's been another wild work week, but here's what we accomplished. 

Saving on things we buy

• Used grocery store rewards to pick up a few items we needed for dinners this week. And almond milk for my coffee, because mornings are hard enough without coffee.
• Submitted iBotta offers for a few things we were already planning to buy (a sports drink for a thirsty soccer player & ground beef for weekend burgers). Saved $1.60. 
• Used a Rite Aid gift card & rewards to pay for the above sports drink & two boxes of cereal. Received a Venmo rebate for the price of both boxes of cereal.
• Contacted the grocery store, as I didn't get rewards for a gift card purchase. I find that these offers work as planned about half the time. They are always very friendly & responsive when I email them, but they should really figure out why their promotions don't work upon purchase. It would save everyone some time. ;-) 

Earning money

• I didn't list much, but sold a few things:
• A book off of a freebie table
• An unworn race tshirt that didn't fit
• A crystal candy dish, from another freebie table
• A workout tank

Avoiding spending

• Picked up a free loaf of bread as part of the Friday Freebies at the grocery store
• Filled out a rebate for two boxes of cereal (teen snack favorite). I believe the rebate is still open, if you like Cinnamon Toast Crunch. 

Eating what we have

• Lunch leftovers have been slim pickings lately (a combo of not having as much time to cook & meal prep, people eating more, & I've inadvertently selected a few recipes that just didn't make as much). Had a frozen lunch entree (frozen from our own previous meal) of chicken enchilada rice. Didn't love it as a leftover, due to semi soggy rice, but topped with guacamole, cheese & tomatoes & it was better. 
• Found some fruit leather that were apparently leftover road trip snacks from this summer. Put them in the front of the pantry so hungry teens would eat them. Done & done. 
• Used a lot of garden items in salads, and also made a large pasta salad. The salad used up zucchini, cherry tomatoes, basil, shishito peppers & banana peppers, and it was delicious. I used up other fridge items, including the last of a jar of sweet & spicy pickles. The pickle brine made a great addition to the dressing. 

For others

• Helped a friend with transportation to our soccer tournament, and took her son with us to brunch. Another friend has helped me so many times with soccer transportation, so it's really nice to pay it forward. 
• Bought breakfast for another friend. 
• Returned a lost phone to a happy owner at a soccer tournament
• Chased down our neighbor's dog (she's a wily one) & brought her back
• A neighbor needed help (& a specialty part) for a bike repair. Nick offered to help, and fixed her bike for her. She was thrilled. (She sent him an Amazon gift card & the nicest thank you note, even though no payment was required. He's hoping to build enough skills to work at a bike shop.) 
• Donated money to the boys school, and then requested a corporate match