Frugal Friday

 Here's how the first week of December went for us. 

Saving on things we buy:

• Used Rite Aid rewards to buy four packages of sparkling water, noting the minimum purchase for a corresponding Fetch offer. Paid $9.21,and earned $2 back via Fetch. 
• In the same vein, used CVS rewards to stock up on vitamins, including a BOGOF sale, and a BOGO50% off. I saved about $30 on the vitamins, and earned another couple of bucks back via the iBotta cash back reward. 
• Picked up chicken at Costco for $5/off per package. Packaged it out & stuck it in the freezer for future chicken needs. 
• Stacked a $5 off a $50 purchase at the grocery store with two $20 rewards (earned from buying gift cards). It was the last day of the $5 off & I decided I'd do a stock up to be able to use the $40 in rewards & the extra $5. I bought: two packages of tea, two containers of oat milk, 4 packages of cheese, 2 very expensive containers of candied fruit (for some holiday baking) & a giant bag of gummy worms (part of Nick's Christmas gift). All told, I spent $13 after the coupons.
• I received a request from the staffing agency I'd used to do a sexual harassment prevention training. It was unclear if I needed to (my user study work had ended), but I took it anyway on the off chance I got paid & made $40. 

Earning money:

• Made $150 doing a couple of user studies,& saw a user study that required a teenager. Nick is desperate to find a flexible job (around his many activities, which is near impossible to find), so I asked him if he wanted to participate & he made $30 on a user study as well. 
• Filled out a few other surveys & earned $20. I'm trying out a few low touch side hustle options.
• Sold a scarf on eBay & made $16. It's been listed forever, so I'm glad to see it gone!
• I also sold a workout pullover top on eBay. 
• Received a $25 Discover gift card as part of a settlement. 

Avoiding spending

• Can't really think of anything that fits the bill for this. It's an expensive month, with gift purchasing & all. 

Eating what we have

• I picked the last of the 20 or so pomegranates & M cleaned a bunch of them. We were able to send Sam back to college with a huge container, as pomegranate seeds are his favorite. I've been snacking on them all week as well. 
• We finally finished off the last of the Thanksgiving leftovers (steak, beans & scalloped potatoes). The stuffing was gone the next day, as it's my favorite!
• I've been using spinach in smoothies for lunch, to drive up my veggie consumption, and also stay on top of the large containers of spinach M buys. For my smoothies, I use: a banana, spinach, a small scoop of peanut butter, oat or soy milk, & any frozen fruit I have around for a little sweetness. I would like to add protein powder, but it depends on when I'm making the smoothie, as protein powder bothers my stomach if I haven't already eaten. 

For others

• My sister & her partner have been so incredible for Sam (attending family weekend, managing transportation from the airport, stocking him with supplies) that I wanted to thank her. Used Alaska miles to purchase a flight for a trip she's making here, saving her ~$300. 
• Gave away teen clothes to a local mom, including two pair of dress pants that she was very excited to receive. 

What about you? Any wins to share?