Frugal Friday

Happy 4th of July, for all of you in the US! I'm thrilled to have today off, to go to a workout class, as well as catch up a bit on life, work & prep for next week. 

I'll start with my frugal fail, although it's really Nick's frugal fail. Nick went golfing, and a friend was coming over on Sunday night for a late dinner & hang. No problem, I made some pasta & left out a bunch of hot dogs M had grilled (maybe, 18?) I asked him to put everything back before he went to bed, and he's typically very good about that. However, something must have happened, because when I woke up in the morning, lo & behold, the first container of hot dogs in grilled buns was empty & the container of 18 hot dogs was still sitting out on the counter. Into the trash they went. I hate waste! 

Saving on things we buy

• Once again, I scored on my credit card cash back rewards. (I save any I think there's even the most remote possibility we will use, and then forget about them, both because of my memory, but also because I don't want to make a purchase just to get the reward.) Nick lost his debit card on his road trip, so we agreed he could use the credit card for all of his purchases, and then reimburse me when he was back & had his card. He made a couple of fast food purchases during the journey, so I earned $1.13 from one, and $.26 from another. Basically getting rich here. ;-) But, it's money that takes almost no effort, and happens pretty seamlessly, as cash back from my credit card. 
• Won another $.75 of grocery store rewards with their current promotion, and redeemed another $2 of rewards won on another shopping trip. 
• Sam is going to visit my parents in August, and catch up with his cousin who wasn't around when we visited in June. His job & summer classes will both be wrapped up before school starts again, and he asked for more time with his grandparents, which I love. I used Alaska miles to book his flight, paying just $25 out of pocket. 

Earning money

• I'm officially back at work, and earning money. And, getting health care benefits! Woohoo!! I signed up for the HSA account, as well as my 401k, which felt nice. 
• I received a $36 settlement for something. They take so long to payout, I can rarely remember what they are for. 
• Sold a couple of things on eBay, earning $15, and further continuing out my stuff. 

Avoiding spending

• Picked up a free package of shredded cheese (I had a game piece from the store with this as the reward), which saved close to $5. Wow! Expensive, and not something I'd purchase unless it was much cheaper. 

Eating what we have

• A friend dropped off a flat of strawberries, so we have been eating our way through those, in addition to our garden strawberries. We are also freezing some for smoothies. 
• We managed to clean out the fridge pretty well, which was needed, as it was getting overly full. 
• Sam & I avoided takeout, despite me having APAC meetings in the early evenings. We ate some delicious samosas from the freezer, and had breakfast for dinner one night. 
• I had salads for lunch, and had prepped a big tray of chicken, and added that to lunches for a quick meal option. 

For others

• Bought my sister's flight for a trip she's making to visit in a couple of weeks. She and my BFF are flying in on a Thursday night. We are all going to work on Friday, and cut out a few hours early. Then we will have Friday late afternoon/evening + all day Saturday together & Sunday morning. It was tricky to find time to get together, with me starting my new job, and BFF is a school administrator, so also has a limited travel window. I wanted to thank my sister for hosting Nick & his posse for his senior trip, as she spoiled them with takeout, lots of snacks & homemade meals while they stayed with her. I used a flight gift card, purchased on a discount at Costco. 

What about you? Any wins to share?