Skip to main content

Frugal Five- #15

 The Frugal Five

With inflation on the rise and our salaries not being able to keep up, it seems like we have taken a pay cut and must be more careful with our money.   The Frugal Five is a series where we celebrate our daily or weekly activities that help us to live a frugal life.    



1- Meal Planning 

We have been a little relaxed on the meal planning and as a result, our eating out habit has returned.     This week I am determined to eat at home all week.    I inventoried what we had left over from last week, and built a meal plan around that.   This week's game plan- easy and simple meals.      


2- Strategizing Meals for the Weekend

We had another swim meet this weekend and it was over meal times, so we packed drinks, breakfast, and lunch again.     Since we need to get up so early and swim meets can be exhausting, we do not feel like cooking dinner when we get home.    This weekend, I planned ahead and gave my crock pot a workout.    I prepared the ingredients on Friday night for both Saturday and Sunday, then all I needed to do in the morning was dump & go.    Given how expensive eating out is, we saved quite a bit of money by doing this.     


3- Coffee at Home


Given out swim practice is at 6:30 AM, it is vital that I have my coffee.    However, Starbucks is still over $3.00 per Vente.   My solution is to bring my Yeti mug filled with hot coffee.   This mug will keep my coffee hot for over an hour in the cool morning air and I don’t have the expense of a Starbucks run.         


4- Unpacking more Boxes 

Instead of running out and buying more things, I just keep unpacking our moving boxes.    Although some days I don’t go through any boxes, most days I get through 1-3 boxes.   For example, my son is going on his annual camping trip and the movers didn’t label his camping gear.   He started to panic and wanted to buy more gear, but we continued to go through boxes until we found his backpack, sleeping bag, hammock, mess kit, flashlight, first aid kit, and more.  He is ready for his camping trip and we didn’t buy anything new.         


5- Use of a Drying Rack 

We had a drying rack from our previous home, but because of the HOA, we weren’t allowed to use it.    Well, NOT anymore.   We currently do not have an HOA and the drying rack is in full use this summer.  Swim towels get used more than once which reduces their wear and tear, laundry loads, and the expense of drying them in the dryer.    


Please leave a comment below with your ways of saving money this week.


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2025 Updated Breakfast Under $1.00

On the USDA Website, their thrifty grocery budgets range from  $25.70 to $72.80 per week ($3.67 - $10.40 per day) per person.   The two factors that determine the amount allocated are age and sex.  With such a small amount of money allocated daily for food and my attempt to eat healthily, I need to plan each week carefully.     With the Bird Flu hitting America hard recently, the egg is no longer a humble star but is turning into a luxury.     A dozen eggs cost $5.49 or $0.46 each.  At this price, I am looking at other options for breakfast.   Breakfast is a great place to add value to your meal planning.    It can be the cheapest or most expensive meal.  The choice is up to you.    NOTE: Prices are for the Northeast area for March 1,  2025 Let’s look at breakfasts that come in at or under $1.00.     Beagle and Cream Cheese ($0.69 per serving) Kroger Prices Bagels (6ct)- $2...
Post a Comment
Read more

Meal Planning: #287

  Menu Plan #287 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.      August  USDA Low Food Plan According to this plan, our family would have a budget of $185.60 per week.  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.          Here is what we did this week to make our week easier:   Breakfast Options:  Yogurt Muffins Egg Sandwiches Lunch Options: Grilled Chicken  Salads Chicken Salad Monday Hamburgers Roasted Potatoes Corn  Tuesday Street Tacos Salad Wednesday Enchilada Salad Chips w/ Salsa Thursday Leftovers Friday Chicken Parmesan Pasta Sal...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Frugal Five: #88

  The Frugal Five: #88 With inflation on the rise and salaries not increasing, our ability to make ends meet keeps going down.    Therefore, we must be more careful with our money.   The Frugal Five is a series where we celebrate the daily or weekly activities that help us live a frugal life.     This week I am exploring how to keep costs down during busy weeks.    Keeping dinner on the table instead of eating out is one of my strategies to get the job done.    Here are some of my tips and trips.    1- Free-Bee Pick Up  Over the last month, we have been blessed with several Free-Bees.  First, a friend gave us a dozen eggs from his chickens.  In addition, we picked up several photos with discount codes from Walgreens and CVS.   Next, we used our local grocery store coupons for several free food items such as seltzer water, ice cream, etc.   Then, we picked up toothpaste and eyeliners from ...
Post a Comment
Read more