Friday, April 2, 2021

Frugal Friday

Another busy week, complete. It's been pretty fun to see the boys resume sports & activities & get ready for "back to school", but it's added a lot of overhead to my day. Some of it is adjusting to my "pre-COVID" life, and another part is that going back to school looks quite different right now, with many adjusted schedules & ramp back weeks, so a lot to catch up on & understand.

Here are our frugal wins for the week. 


Saving on things we buy

  • Used grocery store rewards to cover the cost of 5 lbs of ground beef, which I divided up for the freezer. Got a $.10 iBotta credit for any grocery purchase
  • Used a "one free item" coupon at our local Chick Fil A. I also bought two lunches, and made sure to scan my reward card for future discounts. 
  • Saved $3.75 with iBotta on Easter purchases
  • I submitted email on a product concern & received a $10 debit card back. I activated it & tried to use it at Amazon, & no dice. Spent the time to track down the issue with the debit card bank, got it resolved, and bought a $10 Amazon gift card with it, so I wouldn't forget to use it before it expired. Immediately applied it to my Amazon account. 
  • Tracked down $11.32 in missing Rakuten credit

Earning money

  • My sales have picked up a bit. Here's what I sold last week:
    • A Bodum tea press, that my husband had for 20+ years and never uses (doesn't drink tea any more). I found this in the back of the kitchen cabinet in our remodel, and set it aside. Five months later, it sold. Patience for the win.
    • A crystal creamer & sugar set. I've decided I'm not that type of entertainer, so listed these on FB marketplace (too heavy to ship, given the price) & again, they sold at least 8 weeks after I'd listed them.
    • A Christmas ornament
    • A work out shirt that's too big for M
    • A medal from a race. I'm not a medal keeper, and am always surprised when these sell
    • A suit that no longer fits M
    • Another tea insert (Teavana). I'm lazy & prefer bagged tea vs loose leaf
    • A tshirt Nick didn't like
    • 3 pieces of crystal (FB marketplace). To the same buyer who bought the cream & sugar set. 
  • Received a $25 refund for an old calling plan I'd forgotten I had. 
  • Cashed out $20.50 from iBotta

Avoiding spending

  • I picked up a bike mechanic book for Nick off of the local Buy Nothing group. He's thrilled
  • Used a Target gift card to pick up Easter items. We'll do a small egg hunt for the boys in our yard, as per our tradition. I picked up candy to put in the eggs. I also picked up the items I need to make a Basque (crustless) cheesecake for dessert.

Eating what we have

  • Shredded the cabbage I found on a great sale before St. Patrick's Day. Added shredded carrots to make my own coleslaw mix for Egg Roll in a Bowl, and a Keto friendly coleslaw
  • Noticed a few leftover protein bars in our pantry, with an upcoming expiration date. Had one for a quick breakfast ahead of a soccer drop off. 
  • Used an (almost last) Italian chicken sausage with a salad for lunch. One left in the freezer.
  • I was able to use cilantro from the garden for a recipe this week. Cilantro is one of the spices we use the most, so it's great that our plant has really taken off.
  • Picked oranges to juice for Easter mimosas.

For others

  • Continued volunteer job
  • Listed & gave away a few things on the local Buy Nothing group
What about you? Please share your frugal wins or things for others this week.

13 comments:

  1. I love growing cilantro. It's one of the herbs that I can manage to grow abundantly here, and I even get it to seed itself. The seeds are the spice coriander, but they have to be roasted and ground before using, which I haven't tried.
    All in all, it has been a pretty lousy week on this end, so no frugal wins to report. No school yesterday or today, as those were designated for conferences, and Monday begins spring break. 4/19 is the day the schools are supposed to be open to all students, but attendance is optional. I'm still not sure of the logistics they have planned.

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    1. Cilantro is so great! I haven't ever tried roasting & grinding it.

      We are on the same school schedule with 4/19 & all of the logistical fun required to bring the kids back.

      On my run this morning, I saw elementary kids on the playground for the first time in a year, and heard the school bell ring. It made me a little emotional - progress!

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  2. You DID sell a lot this week, congratulations. That is great. Sounds like a good and frugal week for you. We like the egg roll in a bowl too. Bailey likes anything Chinese or Japanese inspirited.

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    1. WE love the egg roll in a bowl, and it's so easy to make. That's the big draw for me. ;-) We serve ours with chopped peanuts on top, which give it a little crunch, and with sriracha for spice.

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  3. Sounds like it was a fantastic week!

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  4. I'm sure adjusting to schedules will take time. Great news on all your sales. Well done.

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    1. This week started off earlier than normal, but we all made it. Now to get everyone to their various orientations this week.

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  5. Happy Easter! Hope you enjoy your weekend.

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  6. "Received a $25 refund for an old calling plan I'd forgotten I had." Forgot about a $25 refund? What wrong with you? Most unlike you. Roderick

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  7. "Received a $25 refund for an old calling plan I'd forgotten I had." Forgot about $25? Are you sick? Something is wrong. Roderick

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You know, for years I've wondered why you only reply with something rude or snarky to say, and now i know, you're a troll. :-) You'll be blocked moving forward, "Roderick"

      Delete