5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I made homemade toffee to take to work instead of buying a treat.

2. I wrapped Chrîstmas gifts with wrapping paper we already had

3. I used my tag punch to make gift tags out of recycled Christmas cards I have saved from years past.

4. I made a list and stuck to it when grocery shopping.

5. I combined my driving and shopping to coincide with my going to work. No waste of gas

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I went into Goodwill looking for a few items which I did not find. I left without buying anything 

2. Repurposed some leftovers into soup

3. Sold some of Kid# 5 outgrown tights on a facebook page. Made $5. Every little bit helps :)

4. Sold 4 scarves this week. Made an extra $52. Again every extra $1 helps :)

5. Combined my driving in order to save on gas

I Am Still Around....

I haven't wrote a real post in forever!  I am still around though and I read others blogs often. 

We are still plugging away at our snowball. I am really hoping to be debt free by Jan 1.  However if that doesn't work out then it will definitely happen by mid January. Woohoo!

I am 3/4th of the way done with my Christmas shopping.  So far I am on budget.  How is everyone else doing?

There are some big changes coming for us in 2015 which I will write more about when I post my goals for the new year. Has anyone else started thinking about their goals and what they would like to accomplish?

One thing I would really like to do is cut our grocery budget.  We now have 3 sometimes 4 people we feed regularly in our household compared to the 7 we originally had.  Our budget has been $400 a month for a long time.  I frequently have money left.  So I believe it is time to take another look at this budget.  I think I will wait for the new year to start though before doing so.

Anyway, I wanted you all to know I am still around.  We are still working on being debt free.  I am still doing all the same frugal things I have always done.  I hope to post some presents I have made this year after Christmas is over and the recipients have received their gifts.  Just in case they read my blog :)

Here is one project I made for myself and Kid #3.  We needed something to hang our stockings on since we don't have a fire place mantel. I already had the boards and the paint.  Spent about $15 to make 2 of them.

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I sold 4 scarves and 2 lace boot cuffs which brought in $52 extra this week :)

2. We ate our leftovers

3. We stuck to our meal plan

4. So far I am on budget with my Christmas shopping

5. I have de-cluttered and gave Kid # 3 alot of Christmas decorations. I have not bought any new decorations

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. Planned a menu, made a grocery list, shopped 5 different stores and stayed on budget :)

2. We ate our leftovers

3. I did not go Black Friday shopping

4. I made $50 from my after school babysitting job

5. I recieved a $148.50 refund from the oral surgeon for Kid#3 wisdom teeth removal. Our insurance paid more then they estimated. It will go straight towards the debt snowball :)

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. We had one of our out building painted by a friend who runs a painting business. We bartered services she painted our building and my husband did her tax work for the year. Win win for both of us!

2. Kid # 5 wanted a new winter coat. She wanted a plan black one, hers still fit but had peace signs all over it and she decided she was to "old" for it. I saved my $1 for several weeks and ended up having enough cash saved to purchase one from Target for her when the coat she liked went on sale orginally $39.99 and I got it for $29.06 :)

3. I had $43 leftover in my 2 week grocery budget.  Might be time to rethink the grocery budget after the holidays are over.

4. I sat down and made a menu for the next few weeks. I also started a grocery list to go with the menu :)

5. I finished making to of my Christmas gifts. Each cost me about $10 to make so I stayed within budget and both will be well recieved 

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I went in Goodwill twice this week and didn't buy anything :)

2. Stuck to the menu plan and even repurposed some leftovers into new meals

3. Sent Kid # 5 with a "cold" lunch to school which consisted of chicken noodle soup, grapes, sugar snap peas, fruit snacks and a water bottle. All for about $1. For the month of October she will take her lunch 11 times which will save me over $11 :) Every little bit helps!!

4. Mixed up some homemade All Purpose Cleaner instead of buying some 409 :)

5. Washed the laundry in cold and hung some of it to dry. In the colder months I do use the dryer more then when the weather is nicer out and I can use the clothes line 

Wedding Presents

We have been invited to 4 wedding since June. Since we are striving for debt freedom by the end of the year and I am also a crafter I searched for an inexpensive yet personal craft I could make to give as a gift. Here is what I came up with....

The first and last pictures are glass ornaments with the wedding invitations cut into strips and placed inside. I also added some glitter to each. I then added an initial sprapbook sticker of the couples last name to the outside of the ornament and a coordinating ribbon. The second and third pictures are coasters I made with the couples last name initial stamped to scrapbook paper, cut to the shape of the tile and mod podge on. I added cork to the back. 

Easy peasy :) I think they turned out cute! 

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I had $100 left in our two week grocery budget. This will be added to our Christmas fund.

2. I stuck to our meal plan

3. I made a homemade tomato soup which used up the last of our tomatoes and some heavy cream I needed to use. It was yummy!

4. I sold my first scarf of the season. I made $12. I have a ton of scarves left from last year. So this years should mostly be a profit.

5. I found Kid # 5 a cape for her Halloween costume at Goodwill for $4.99. The rest of the costume we should be able to pull together from things we already have.

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I took on a second "job" watching a girl Kid # 5 goes to school with. I start Monday. I will have her after school 4 days a week, any half days of school and some days when there is no school. Also a couple Saturdays a month. The girl is 11 so it should not be to hard :)

2. We are one week in to our two week grocery budget and I have yet to go grocery shopping. Although hubby went to Costco and spent about $40. 

3. We have ate all our leftovers :)

4. Got a discount when eating out with my family since I work for the school district using my work ID. Saved 20%

5. Wanted a nice crusty bread to eat with our soup on Thursday. Didn't want to spend the money or go to the grocery store for some so I used our bread machine and made some.

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I made a batch of homemade powdered laundry soap. It is easy and  should last us a long while.

2. I turned two different leftovers into two totally different meals. The first was some crockpot chicken which became stir fry. The second was some goulash I bought home from work which became a yummy soup.

3. I started and am almost finished planning a menu for the whole month of October. This will save my sanity and us money!

4. I made Kid# 5 some snacks for her cold lunches for school. One was a s'mores trail mix which was easy and yummy. The other was almond bark coated pretzels. The pretzels were getting kinda stale but I knew Kid # 5 would finish them off it I made white pretzels with them. 

5. I declined doing Secret Santa at work, which may seem kinda Scrooge like of me, but it is not in the budget and I would rather be " car payment free" by the end of the year instead. 

Spaghetti Sauce Recipe

I made a big batch of crockpot spaghetti sauce not long ago that turned out really good. I thought I would share the recipe and also have a place to be able to find it again :)

1 -105 oz can of Tomato Sauce ( from Costco)

3-Tablespoons Oregano

1- Heaping Tablespoon Minced Garlic

1- Bay Leaf

2- Teaspoons Basil

1- Tablespoon Onion Powder

4- Tablespoons Brown Sugar

1- Tablespoon Parsley

1- Teaspoon Thyme


Add all of ingredients to the crockpot.  Cook on low 8 or 9 hours or so. 

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. Kid # 5 had outgrown her tap shoes. I found her a " new" pair on ebay for less then half the cost of buying her brand new ones.

2. We have had our air conditioning off for a while now. We have yet to turn on our heat even though many people around us have for a few days last week. I love this time of year for cheap Ameren bills :)

3. Used all our leftovers to make lunches for my hubby. Used a few more to make soup for dinner. No food waste :)

4. For the last several months I have been using wool dryer balls in place of dryer sheets. I love them! I made mine myself and I really should do a post about them soon!

5. Received two checks in the mail for text books I sold online. 

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. Made a big pot od chili and used up little bits of this and that out of the refrigerator 

2. Combined my errands so that I didn't waste gas

3. Had to do some state testing for work. Earned and extra hour and half pay.

4. Found Kid # 3 some curtains at Goodwill for $12. They were nice, heavy, lined ones.

5. Found Kid # 5 a few shirts and a couple sweaters at a yard sale $6.75 spent 

" Cream Of" Soup Mix

 

 

I thought I had posted this recipe before but apparently I have not :( 

 

Anyway, I use this mix often in place of canned cream of whatever soups.  It is easy to use and stores well.

 

 

2 cups dry powdered milk

3/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup instant chicken or beef bouillon powder

1/2 teaspoon dried crushed thyme

1/2 teaspoon dried crushed basil

1/4 teaspoon pepper

 

Combine all ingredients using blender or food processor.

 

 

 

Store in an airtight container.  I store mine in a jar with the directions taped on :)

 

To prepare as substitute for 1 can of condensed cream soup in recipes, mix together 1/3 cup dry mix and 1 1/4 cups water in sauce pan. Cook and stir until thickened

Menu Sept 1 - 5

Monday- Pork Chops, grilled zucchini and baked potatoes

Tuesday- Pizza Burgers and salad

Wednesday - Crockpot sausage, peppers, onions, mushrooms and potatoes

Thursday - Nachoes

Friday- Snack night

We typically wing it for Saturday and Sunday :)

Cabbage Skillet

I posted in my menu plan that we were having Cabbage Skillet for dinner one evening this week. Lena commented asking what that was. I actually had thought I posted this recipe already but I guess not :(  So anyway here it is:

1 lb browned and drained hamburger 

1/2 a cabbage chopped ( I have used green cabbage and purple. Both are good)

1 can, drained Italian diced tomatoes or 1 can regular diced tomatoes drained plus Italian seasoning to taste. ( I have used both depending on what I have)

Salt and Pepper to taste.

Add all ingredients to skillet and cook until the cabbage is the texture you like :) 

Easy Peasey! 

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. Made the hubby and Kid # 5 some popsicles and pudding pops. My hubby says they are the best popsicles he has ever had :)

2. Went to the Habitat Resale store, bought supplies for a couple wedding presents I am making. Spent 86 cents!

3. Returned a book for a particle refund that my husband ended up not needing for school

4. Repurposed or ate all our leftovers

5. My co worker shared with me that I could receive a 18% discount through my cell phone carrier because I worked for the school district. This is better then the one we were already recieving through my husband's employer. I signed up. We are now getting 18% plus 3% for paperless billing. Every little bit helps!

Menu Plan August 25-29

Monday - Cabbage Skillet and Green Beans

Tuesday - Vegettini Zucchini Noodles w/ Garlic Butter Sauce and Salad

Wednesday - Quasidillas with Refried Beans

Thursday- Pizza Pasta Bake and Salad

Friday- Snack Night

I am trying to simplify my life a little bit since we are going on our second week back to school/ work. Menu planning is one of the very easiest ways for me to stay on budget and make meal times easier.

Looks like it should be a good week :)

5 ThingsI Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. Participated in a yard sale at my daughter in laws Mother's house. Made $85 yesterday and got rid of more clutter :)

2. We ate all our leftovers.

3. I combined my errands in order to save on gas

4. We set our air conditioning to 78 during the day and 79 while we sleep to help with our Ameren bill

5. I signed up for paperless billing with our cell phone service so that we will receive a 3% discount. That combined with the employee discount will save us $10 a month. Every little bit helps!

Just A Little Update

This week is our first week of school.  It is also my first week back to work for the school year.

 Boy the summer sure did fly right by. 

We accomplished many small projects, most of which I posted about in "5 Frugal Thing I Did Last Week". 

We also had our finished basement shower rebuilt and threw my parent in laws a 50th Anniversary Party complete with family pictures.  All of which we budgeted and paid cash for.  Go us!!

We have paid off over half of our car loan.  We are still on track to have it paid off by Dec/Jan.  I actually have a large chunk of money ear marked for the car loan in our savings account. It would empty the account though so I am not ready to do that. Now that I am back to work I will be building up the savings to $2000. Then paying the ear marked cash. That will leave us at just a little over $4000 to pay off between now and the end of the year. I think it is doable :)

I would not say this has been our most frugal summer ever but it has been much better compared to years past. 

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I made these shirts for a cute one year old's birthday :)

  

2.  Was offered and gladly accepted a bunch of free produce from my sister and mom :)

3. I had $100 left in my $200 two week grocery budget!!

4. Found several seasons of a very popular television show at a yard sale for $2 each. These will become a Christmas gift. ( sorry can't tell you which show or for who the gift is for just in case the person reads this)

5. Ate all our leftovers. No food waste this week :)

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I found Kid # 5 a messenger style zebra print ( which she is currently into at the moment) bag in great shape at a yard sale for $3.  Score on the book bag for school!

2. We ate at home everyday this week.

3. I made 2 loaves of banana bread, 1 Starbucks knock off lemon loaf and a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting ( kid # 4's birthday was this week )all from scratch this week using up items we already had.

4. We had a birthday party to attend for a cute 3 year old.  I made him a cape and a mask for about $8.  I had everything I needed for the mask but did have to buy the material for the cape.  The gift went over very well!

5. We got free movies at our local library.  We have been doing this once a week for a majority of the summer.  We also remembered to return them on time so we don't end up with late 

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I taught myself how to sew button holes by watching YouTube videos. I then turned an old table cloth I had into a new shower curtain :) ( not the best picture but you get the idea )

2. We are going to a wedding tomorrow. I made the wedding gift using most of the items I already had. I did buy some glitter and ribbon. I will post pics after the wedding :)

3. I bought 2 Christmas presents on Amazon and used $15 in Amazon gift codes I had earned from my Reciept Hog app and Swagbucks. Spent $8 and some change out of pocket. Not to bad for getting 2 gifts :)

4. I got my hair cut and had a full punch card so I got $5 off :)

5. We ate all our leftovers :)

Inexpensive Meal-Beef Orzo Skillet

The other night we had this Beef Orzo Skillet for dinner. The cost of this meal was about $4.57.

 

Here is the breakdown:

 

Ground beef: $1.99 lb ( bought on sale at Kroger)

1 cup Orzo Pasta - $ .64

1 can diced Tomatoes - $.59

About 2 cups chopped Spinach - $.85

Minced Garlic and Italian Seasoning - around $.50

Chicken Broth - Free saved from cooking chicken in the crock pot from a different meal

 

Yum yum!  Not only was this an inexpensive meal but it tasted great too!

 

 

 

 

The Grocery Budget

For the last several months I have tried to cut our $400 a month grocery budget.

Ideally I would love to shave $100 off of it a month. 

 For the most part we are now feeding only 3 people on a regularly.  

Occasionally there are 4 of us but not to often.

I am hoping to start posting about some of the cheaper meals we have been eating.  We will see :)  

Over July 4th I made a pasta salad which had about 10 serving to it.  We ate 5 serving on July 4.  I mentioned in my last post about finding pasta on sale at Kroger for 50 cents a box if you buy 6.  I bought 12 and might go back for more :)

Anyway, last night we ate the leftover pasta salad which we had approximately 5 servings of.  We added 1 pound of grilled chicken breast to it.  

Here it is:

Here is the cost break down of the original pasta salad 

Pasta : 75 cents ( I used a box in half)

Carrot : .07 cents ( I used 1 which I shredded)

Green Pepper: 56 cents ( I used 1 diced)

Black Olives: 50 cents ( I used half a can which come whole and I sliced)

Caesar Dressing 85 cents ( I used half a bottle)  = $2.73 or about 27 cents per serving.

5 servings of leftover pasta salad - $1.35 + chicken breast I bought for $1.35/ a LB = $2.70 for dinner :)

*Note: For the pasta salad I used things I had on hand and other then the pasta which I bought at Kroger every thing else was purchased at Aldi

Chicken Breast - I posted about this deal here and I got it at GFS.

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. My hubby found 2 pairs of nice dress shoes, which he needs for work, both on clearence and spent less then $52 on both. Plus we walked from our house to the shoe store also saving on gas :)

2. I earned a $5 Amazon gift code with my Reciept Hog app :)

3. I had $50 left I my 2 week grocery budget even though I bought extra stuff for camping 

4. We turned off our air conditioning for the last 2 days since we are having mild weather.

5. I stocked up on pasta and hamburger yesterday at Kroger since they had good sales. The pasta was 50 cents a box when you buy 6. I bought 12. The hamburger was $1.99 a pound. I bought 10 lbs and may go back for more

 

Happy 4th of July! I hope to make more of an effort to blog regularly starting on Monday!

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1.  Planned a trip to the local zoo with my sister, nephew and Kid # 5. When we got there we discovered it was "free" day. I put $5 in the donation box.

2. I bought to Christmas presents both of which were on clearence. Total spent around $14.

3. Inventoried my freezers and made a menu based on it for the next 2 weeks

4. Painted my downstairs bathroom using leftover paint from another room. Cutting the cost a little bit of our shower project

5. Took my dog for her annual check up and paid cash for the visit with money we budgeted. 

Cash is king :)

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

  

1. Kid # 3 had her wisdom teeth removed this week. Our out of pocket expense which included the  consultation visit, the removal and prescriptions was $973.95. We paid cash!  There will be no worries about how to pay the bill later! Cash is king! 

2. The hubby needed a new belt. We had some gift cards for JC Penney. He ended up with 2 belts for free using our gift cards.

3. I haven't had to put gas in my card in 14 days. Woohoo for summer and being able to stay home.

4. I made some "smoothie bags" for the freezer. I used fruit and spinach that needed used up so it didn't go to waste. This makes my breakfast time easier

5. I made my grandson, who turned 1 on June 19th, a shirt to wear for his birthday party. It was cheaper then buying one and fun to make too! 

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I stuck to my grocery list and only bought items we really needed.

2. I used my Checkout51 and Receipt Hog apps to record my grocery shopping and earn cash/ coins hopefully to use for our Christmas shopping.

3. Hung my laundry on the clothesline. The couple times I did use the dryer I waited until night time and dried everything one load after another.

4. Ran my dishwasher at night also and only when full

5. Made all the snacks we have eaten this week from items we already had. 

Debt Update

Well here we are halfway through the year and it appears we are right on track to pay off our car loan by the end of the year!!  Woohoo!!

The summer months are usually our most expensive so hopefully we will be able to keep those in check.

Right now we are having some work done in our basement shower.  It was not poperly installed and had developed a leak.  We are having it rebuilt and paying cash for the project!  Any money left over from the shower project will be put towards the car loan.

A few days ago I found this printable on Pinterest.  I have it hanging on my frig to help keep us motivated :)

Here is the blog the printable orginally came from, Debt Free Charts , in case you all might want one for yourself.  There are many other printables on the blog too :)

I really need to set down and do a menu plan to help keep the grocery spending in check.  So far we are staying on budget but I think we could probably do better with a plan.

Hopefully the rest of you are doing well this summer too :)

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I have been participating in a yard sale with my daughter in law and her sister for the last 2 days. I priced my things mainly to get rid of and didn't have a ton of stuff but have still made $70 and have one more day to go.

2. We have ate all our leftovers this week

3. I earned a $5 Amazon gift code from Swagbucks which I will be saving for Christmas gift shopping.

4. We have turned off the air and used fans for the last few days since the weather has been cooler outside

5. I used my Receipt Hog app to earn points on some shopping receipts and also my Checkout51 app. Hoping to earn some more gift cards to use for Christmas shopping!

Ice Cream Cake

Here is a picture of the ice cream cake I made Kid # 5 for her birthday on Friday.

I have made several of these and have lost my orginal recipe so I am just gonna try to explain how I made it and then if anyone has questions feel free to ask them in the comments :)

First I went to Walmart and bought the 2 quart ( I think that is what they are) boxes of Great Value ice cream.  I bought one each of chocolate and vanilla.  I also bought one package of Great Value sandwich cookies.  The ones like Oreos.

Next I took a spring form pan, you know like you use for cheese cake, and used half the chocolate ice cream to put a layer on the bottom ( see picture above).  You have to let the ice cream soften so it can be spread but not to soft.  I did this on Thursday morning and then stuck the pan in the freezer 

with a plate sitting under it.

Thursday after noon I made this Chocolate Syrup .  While it was cooling I put my chocolate sandwich cookies through the food processer until crumbly then dumped them in a bowl and set aside until the chocolate syrup was cool.

When the chocolate syrup was room temperature I mixed about half of it into the sandwich cookies crumbs until the crumbs are well coated.  I then spread that on top of the chocolate ice cream and put it back in the freezer.

Friday morning I added half the box of vanilla ice cream on top of the cookie/syrup mixture and again put it back in the freezer.  Friday afternoon I drizzled a small amount of chocolate syrup over the top of the vanilla ice cream and spread it around a little, use your own judgement here.  Again back into the freezer until we were ready to do the birthday celebrating.

In the past I have left off the chocolate syrup on the top and have done Cool Whip instead.   I have also done frosting and chocolate and caramel sauce drizzle. I have also added caramel sauce to the middle layer after using the sandwich cookie crumbs.  Lots of options to do here.....

We have 3 days left of school and then we will be on summer vacation.  I hope to be back to regular posting very soon :)

5 Frugal Things I Did This Week

1. I made Kid # 5 a " Dairy Queen" ice cream cake myself for about $6 vs buying one for her birthday this week 

2. We are having our finish basement shower rebuilt because it leaks. I paid cash for this project :)

3. Watered the few plants I have managed to get planted so far with water from my rain barrel

4. We ate our leftovers

5. I have been drinking smoothies for breakfast using up fruit and some spinach that might otherwise have been thrown away

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. I stuck to my grocery shopping list and had $45 left of my 2 week budget :)

2. We ate our leftovers

3. I stumbled upon a great deal on mulch for my yard. 25 cents a bag because they had come open or had holes in the bag. I bought 5 more bags ( which is all they had left in the red color I like) to use in my yard.

4. I went on a Girl Scout outing to a paint your own pottery place with Kid # 5. Because so few showed up I got to paint a piece for free along with Kid # 5. I made my grandson one of his birthday presents for free :)

5. Used some material scraps to make Kid # 5 some birthday presents. I will post some pictures soon :)

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. Finalized our new homeowners and car insurance saving us over $600 a year.

2. Kid # 5 and I made cookies using pantry items we already had

3.  Boxed up and priced 4 more boxes of items for our garage sale we are having in June

4. Made a big pot of homemade chicken and alphabet soup all with pantry items. We ate it for dinner twice this week

5. Planned most of my driving so I didn't waste gas

5 Things I Did That Were Frugal This Week

1. We ate our leftover food so there was 0 food waste.

2. I make my husbands birthday cake. He requested a jello cake. I made the white cake from scratch. Purchased 1 box of cherry jello and one container of Cool Whip. Nice cake for really cheap!

3. I made my own chalk board labels with items I already had.

4. I sold a box of toys Kid # 5 no longer played with for $25. I put this right into the school tuition envelope for Kid # 3. She attends community college and we split the price of tuition. We are getting ready for a yard sale which she is helping with. Anything we make goes towards tuition and then we will split what is left.

5. I found us new homeowners and car insurance saving us over $550 a year. Just waiting to finalize all the paper work!

Skirts....

Last week I sat down and made Kid # 3 and # 5 each a skirt.

I have many craft supplies that I have bought and not followed threw on making. 

This is going to be my year of changing that! 

Anyway here are the skirts :)

This one is Kid #3's.  The waist is made from an old white tshirt.  The striped part is from some material I had in my stash.  I read several tutorials on Pinterest to figure this out but didn't really follow any one.  It turned out cute I think 

The next one is Kid # 5's and she loves it.  She has already worn it to school one day. I even got her to model it for me :)

Orginally I followed this tutorial I found on Pinterest.  However I didn't measure correctly and ended up modifying it to correct my mistake.  It still turned out pretty cute and Kid # 5 really likes it which is what matters :)