Sometimes it feels like my frugal "wins" are drops in the bucket compared to expenses, but I keep on keeping on. Because, what's the point of spending more than you have to, and all of the savings adds up. That's what I keep telling myself, anyway. ;-)
Saving on things we buy
- Saved $134 by paying upfront for Nick's orthodontia
- Saved $6 on a cash back offer I'd forgotten about (on our credit card) for the pizza we ordered for Nick's VP debate watching party last week.
- Uploaded grocery receipts to Fetch
- Used CVS rewards to pick up Nick's preferred brand of deodorant, and used an iBotta/CVS offer to save another couple of bucks.
Earning money
- Sold Sam's old bike, & made $300
- Sold a pair of sunglasses & made ~$90
Avoiding spending
- Arranged for a friend to drive Nick to a far away soccer game (Nick drives him to all of the practices), so we both share on gas costs
Eating what we have
- Picked out first few pomegranates and have had those for a snack in the evening (largely Nick)
- Continued eating basil, peppers & tomatoes from the garden, but the heat has killed everything else.
- Brought home leftovers from date night, and had that for two lunches (veggie risotto, which was so delicious)
- Made Nick & his friend snacks while they were studying at our house, saving them the cost of eating out or grabbing snacks
- I'm working on eating a huge container of spinach, so I've been trying to incorporate it into all of my meals. Had the last of the veggie risotto over a bed of spinach. I just heated it in the microwave, which helped the spinach soften a bit. It was delicious & just the right amount of spinach to risotto ratio to be healthy while not overwhelming tasting like warm spinach. ;-)
For others
- This is a busy time for seniors applying to colleges, so I've been spending quite a bit of time helping my volunteer students with their tasks, answering questions & generally providing guidance.
- Stayed after a soccer game to collect the goals, flags & shade/bench to put away in the shed with another parent. There is no assigned roster of people to help, so unfortunately, one parent does most of the heavy lifting on this. I was able to help & streamline it all, which was great since it was unbearably hot.
What about you? Any wins to share?
Have you thought of making your help with college prep a part time job? It seems like a lot of parents would pay for it especially if they either can't or don't have the time to help.
ReplyDeleteI am trying to use all of our food purchases before I go back to the store. RIght now I am trying to finish off a big bag of brussels sprout I bought, thankful they have a longer refrigerator life than most veggies.
That is absolutely something M wants me to do. My biggest hesitation is that bay area parents can be.... a little difficult to deal with, shall we say. I've helped a lot of our friends (not for money) & enjoy the volunteering. I've thought about doing it at the advisory stage (earlier in the process, and then handing them off to someone for the application process itself.) Maybe in the future. Definitely something I've thought about. (HP)
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