Skip to main content

Frugal Fridays- January 4



Making small changes that have big results.
On Friday’s I share 5 frugal ideas to help you maintain The Sweet Life on a Budget.  
These things will have money saving ideas and/or a way to enhance your lifestyle
for very little money.
                                     

 Get Organized for the New Year.  Calendars can run between $1.00 (Dollar Store)
up to $30.00 (Staples/Office Depot) or you can download a free template and print it yourself
for pennies.  I have a basic template that I downloaded and use it to schedule what is going
on in my house. (Swim, Work, Scouts, Family events, Etc.)

A little bit of pre-planning can save you a lot of money this year.  Let's look at how:

- Meal Planning
- Packing Snacks/Meals
- Gassing up your car at lower prices
- Going to free events (when available)- Saving the more costly events for when
   nothing free is offered.
 
Start planning for a little frugal fun.  Mark your calendar for these National Park Entrance Fee- Free Dates in 2019!
   
      January 21: Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
      April 20: First day of National Park Week
      August 25: National Park Service Birthday
      September 28: National Public Lands Day
November 11: Veterans Day


While your doing your family activity calendar, plan on checking out your local parks.  
In my area, we have Metro Parks. They have all kinds of free or low cost activities
year round and planned activities that you can sign up for.  There are a large number
of Hiking Trails, Fishing Spots (catch and release), Picnic Areas with Grills, Nature
Centers, Frisbee Golf Courses, and more.  Each park is within a 30 minute drive and
our family makes a day of going. There is so much to see and do that we never get
bored and can easily change our park destination at a moments notice if we have an
itch to do different activities.  With it being winter time, the activities take on a very
different feel than during the summer, so we bundle up, bring the hot chocolate and
explore.
                        
This Giant Moose can be found in the Nature Center at one of our favorite Metro Parks.
                        
During the Ice Age, glaciers created deep cuts in the rocks and a natural water way.
There are large deposits of shale all along the trail.

The next two pictures are part of the new Natural Play Ground in one of our Metro Parks.
                                          

                                                  
Be willing to try new things and request samples from companies.  When a company
has a new product that they are trying to get exposure for, they tend to offer samples
with high value coupons and then pair it with sales at local stores.  I like to request
samples of products on a regular basis and then if I like the product look for sales and
coupons to secure the items at a discount. Here are a few items I have submitted requests
for lately.

FREE SheaMoisture African Black Soap Mud Mask Sample

FREE SheaMoisture African Black Soap Mud Mask Sample
Fill out the form to get a FREE sample of SheaMoisture African Black Soap Mud Mask.

FREE Olay Regenerist Whip Sample

FREE Olay Regenerist Whip Sample
Fill out the form to get a FREE sample of Olay Regenerist Whip.
I was able to pick up a Kindle book for free from Amazon Prime.  


So what small things did you do this week to save money?  
Share below in the comment section.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Menu Planning: #245

  NOTE-  1- Click on the picture and get a link to a post sharing the recipe.  2- Although all prices were correct at the time of the blog postings, the current cost of preparation of these dishes may be higher due to inflation and/or location.      March USDA Thrifty Food Plan ccording to this plan our family would have a budget of $186.20 per week.  Given our health concerns, we struggle to maintain this budget, but I am going to try to make this happen.    Cost Saving Tip of the Week: Check your sale flyers for loss leaders.   Each week grocery stores advertise specific products at a great price to get you in the store.   Recently, I have noticed a very specific time frame for getting these deals.   Good luck and happy hunting.   Here is what we did this week to make our week easier:   Refrigerator Clean Out Pre-cut all vegetables for the week Pulled older items to the front for easier consumption C...
Post a Comment
Read more

Menu Planning: #250

  NOTE-  1- Click on the picture and get a link to a post sharing the recipe.  2- Although all prices were correct at the time of the blog postings, the current cost of preparation of these dishes may be higher due to inflation and/or location.      March USDA Thrifty Food Plan According to this plan our family would have a budget of $186.20 per week.  Given our health concerns, we struggle to maintain this budget, but I am going to try to make this happen.    Cost Saving Tip of the Week: When I purchase fruit for the week, it helps to calculate the cost per serving vs. the cost in general.   For example, this week a whole watermelon was on sale for $3.99 each.    When it is cut up, the watermelon will yield at least 20 servings which will place the cost per serving at $0.20.    Here is what we did this week to make our week easier: Breakfast Options:  Hard Boiled Eggs Yogurt Homemade Breakfast ba...
Post a Comment
Read more

Menu Plan #307

  Menu Plan #307 NOTE-  1- Click on the picture and get a link to a post sharing the recipe.  2- Although all prices were correct at the time of the blog postings, the current cost of preparation of these dishes may be higher due to inflation and location.      February 2025  USDA Thrifty Food Plan According to this plan, our family would have a budget of $189.30 per week. Since March has 4 weeks, our monthly budget is $757.20.   We elevate our dining experiences by including fresh fruits, vegetables, and higher-quality meats.  Since we have health concerns and are active individuals, we limit our processed food choices.    Grocery Shopping Tip:     Utilize your grocery store’s loyalty program. This month, my 2 primary grocery stores have provided me with store coupons for bread, Silk milk, jelly candy, frozen vegetables, and Bali coconut water.  Here is what we did this week to make our week easier: ...
Post a Comment
Read more