Frugal Friday

Another week, with a few savings here & there.  

Saving on things we buy

• I used a gift card to treat the boys to dinner, after a wild Friday night soccer game last week. The drive thru person was new & didn't know how to use gift cards. The teens were "embarrassed" & wanted me to pay with credit, but one minute later, all was sorted. One less gift card in my purse, & we saved some money on dinner. Win/win.
• Followed up with an iBotta offer that didn't work. From a time/money tradeoff, it's definitely not worth the effort, but I'm always frustrated by their process, and figure the more time/money they have to spend troubleshooting customer complaints, the more likely they are to fix the issue in their system. 
• I used a grocery store reward, a coupon & a Friday freebie offer to save $23 off of my bill. I also bought the kids ice cream via Fetch, earning another $5 P&G offer. My local grocery store is quite expensive if you aren't shopping the sales or doing rewards, but if you pay attention to some of the rewards, they can be quite good. 
• On a tip from The Frugal Girl, I installed the Safeway app & found a $5 off/$5 purchase reward, as well as a $5/$5 purchase birthday reward. I remembered that I was close to earning another P&G offer via Fetch, so stocked up on some ice cream treats for Sam's birthday. Unfortunately, on my 1st purchase, the items I bought rang up incorrectly (self checkout) & a sweet guy came over to help. He rounded up the discount, which put me $.04 short of the P&G offer. I went back in & made a second transaction, so now we have even more ice cream. ;-) All told, it was a $.55 money maker, & I bought three containers of Ben & Jerry's cookie dough, a large box of popsicles, and the mini caramel ice cream bars. I'll take it! I'll have to keep my eye on Safeway's app in the future. It's not the cheapest or closest option, but may be good for infrequent deal stop ins. 

Earning money

• Work was intense, so I definitely earned my standard salary
• I also sold an old book on eBay
• Redeemed $25 of Fetch rewards

Avoiding spending

• I skipped Costco (where we buy the majority of our groceries) & filled in at the grocery store, as we didn't need much. I'm sure I saved money, as I  *know* I would have bought more than what was on the list. - Well this was originally accurate, but M then went & picked up a few things when he got back to town. 
• I charged my car for free on a day when I needed to stop by the office. 

Eating what we have

• I made muffins from lemon curd (freezer) last weekend, and had a bit of lemon curd left over. I'm now eating the muffins with the rest of the lemon curd spread on it. What a delightful treat!
• I made waffles ahead of Nick's tennis tryouts, using up almost the last of the mix. We eat waffles/pancakes so rarely, I had no idea it was running low, but won't replace it when it's out. It was a common breakfast when the kids were young, but they rarely take the time to make (or eat) a big breakfast.
• I made a bag of edamame (freezer) to go with dinner one night. Sam ate most of the bag - he's an edamame lover.
• I also used up a can of green beans to stretch out a dinner for Sam. Green beans are his favorite vegetable, and the only one we really eat canned. He ate an entire can in one go. 
• I made the Red Baron pizza (iBotta offer) for lunch on a weekend day for the teens.
• I continued to have creative lunches (leftover takeout salad, eggs & homemade hashbrowns, fruit & muffins, waffles with hummus, chili from the freezer). 
• Used stale cereal to make granola bars
• Free lunch at work one day

For others

• Went through the boys closets & fulfilled an ask on Buy Nothing (volleyball kneepads for a kid who wanted to try out). Nick doesn't play anymore, so two pair out of the house & in the hands of someone who wants them
• I also gave away a very expensive almost new (one season) soccer kit to a mom on Buy Nothing. Her kid plays in the club the boys used to play for. The uniforms are crazy expensive, and I had nine items (practice jerseys, extra shorts, etc), some of which were brand new. So happy they are going to someone who will use them!
• Continued to help with my non-profit role, and mentoring
• Took a bonus kid to dinner. His parents haven't attended any of the soccer games, and when I was planning a dinner with my boys & a friend, he was standing around. He was so excited to be included.

In non-frugal news, Sam and his buddy are having birthdays within a week of each other. He got into the car after practice this week, and asked if they could all go to dinner together, after their schools play each other in soccer. It wasn't frugal, but was a really fun time, and Sam isn't the most social guy (nor is his friend),  so I was thrilled to make it happen for them. He kept talking about how much fun they all had. In embarrassing news, it was my idea, i offered to take everyone to dinner, I added on a bonus kid, plus I also had Nick, and when we got to the restaurant, I didn't have my wallet. This NEVER happens, but I'd switched cars with M, so I wouldn't have to take the kids bikes (from school) to the restaurant. I left my purse in the wrong car. My friend ended up paying. I paid her back via Paypal on the spot, but I was so embarrassed. Please, come out to dinner & celebrate with us. Oh, and I "forgot" my wallet. ;-) 

What about you? Any wins (or fails) to share?