My reminder this week is to never take hungry teenagers to Costco with you. Oh my! They love all of the baked goods, and constantly prowl around & attempt to sneak things into the cart. ;-)
This was a much lighter work week (more craziness in upcoming weeks), so I enjoyed it as best I could. Here are a few frugal wins for the week.
Saving on things we buy
- Used a $2.50 oat milk coupon (yet another one) to get oat milk for about $1.
- Uploaded all of our receipts to Fetch
- Bought two of M's vitamins, while they were on sale at Costco
- I bought a gift card for a local boba shop (birthday gift for one of the boys friends) & earned rewards at the shop. I took Nick to boba (his request for his birthday) & the gift card purchase generated enough rewards that I had a $1 off coupon to use.
Earning money
- Not me personally, but I chauffeured Nick around to earn money reffing. He's a year away from being able to drive on his own - hurrah!
Avoiding spending
- Nick is planning to wear one of M's ties to an upcoming event. Fifteen year olds really appreciate irony, even when dressing up. Apparently, it's "cool" to wear the Santa tie ironically (e.g. not at the holidays), so you can still be cool, even when wearing a nice suit. This is what I hear, anyway. ;-) He did teach himself how to tie a Windsor knot, solely via YouTube videos, so at least he's learning something.
Eating what we have
- I got a few containers of oat milk for free/near free with iBotta & grocery store deals recently, so I've been trying to use it up. It makes a delicious smoothie (we like it with banana, frozen mango, and some protein powder), so we've been having lots of those.
- I used a container of applesauce (freezer) to make applesauce muffins
- Turned a piece of ham & some chicken broth (both from the freezer) into a delicious ham & bean soup. This also cleared out two cans of beans that have been lingering in the pantry. It was a nice "clean it out" meal.
- Used zucchini from the garden (freezer) to make another type of muffin
For others
- Helped our neighbor with painting recommendations, a tech challenge, & opening a few containers that she struggled with
- Arranged another carpool, to make driving easier for four families
- Helped organize a soccer school banquet & donated extra for the coaches (who, don't get paid nearly enough for the time commitment, IMO!)
That's it from our side. What about you? Any wins to share?
The vitamin prices are so much better at places like Sam's compared to elsewhere. Between those and my allergy tablets, that almost pays for our membership, I think. I'll need to do the math by October to see if we decide to renew. I can imagine how quickly things landed in your cart. Not quite the same, but it happens when my college girl is with me in Trader Joe's.
ReplyDeleteWe usually have a Costco membership that is worth it for a few things we buy. We keep the cost down somewhat though by going 15-16 months between renewals. We only need to shop there every few months.
DeleteWe have an electric car, & a gas car, and the price on gas is such a huge advantage as well. We also have bought recently discounted airline gift cards that we haven't found elsewhere (Southwest & Alaska), reducing our travel budget a bit. It's our primary shopping store, so we'd use our membership regardless, but the extra deals help as well.
DeleteLove the Santa tie and the fact that you really have to watch the cart when they shop with you.
ReplyDeleteThey are such voracious eaters on certain days. If it were predictable, I'd be more ready. It comes in waves, & never on the days I'm expecting.
DeleteI got three birthday presents for my daughter at a thrift store; a brand new set of Spot-It (cards still shrink-wrapped) for $1.50 + a brand-new (tags on) hamster wheel for about $1.50 + a puzzle for about $1!
ReplyDeleteI also discovered an issue in my pay stubs which means I am owed 3 months of partial back pay - so while it was frustrating the error was made, there is something nice about discovering there is a chunk of money coming my way!
Great deal at the thrift shop, and it's great that the error is in your favor! Awesome news that you'll be getting extra money.
DeleteYou had a great frugal week... I dread taking my husband to Costco as extra items seem to appear in the cart when he is with me.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
Ha, yes! A friend told me that they use Instacart through Costco. It is more expensive (items cost more), but they stick to their list, so it actually evens out & they save a bit. I don't know if I could avoid picking my own veggies, but I may try it on a super busy weekend.
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