The Frugal Five: #78

 The Frugal Five: #78

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- The Joy of Dinner Kits 

I thought Dinner Kits were a waste of money, but I have changed my mind.     With our very busy schedule and tendency to hit the easy button, pay the stupid tax, and order out.   This week we picked up a dinner kit from Costco for one-third of the cost of eating out.   I recognize that it costs more than cooking from scratch, but it is much less than eating out.     

2- Curb your Grocery Shopping Bill 

When we have more time off from work (holidays or summer breaks), I wait to go grocery shopping for at least 1 day.   By waiting to replenish my pantry and refrigerator by using what we have and/or leftovers, I can reduce the overall amount of groceries I purchase per year because I do not increase my weekly grocery budget and usually come in under for the week.     This tip was provided to me by “See Mindy Mom” and it works very well.     

3- Haircut Savings  

I am still cutting my husband’s hair for a quick $30.00 savings every other week.    In addition, my hair salon previously offered a 20% discount on their gift cards over the holidays and I am still benefiting from this deal.   Finally, each time I get my hair cut, I have them fill out my loyalty card.  Once I complete 10 services, I receive $50.00 off my next visit.     

4- Saving on Essential Items

I have been looking for a few clothing essentials and this week it became necessary for me to purchase them.      I was able to leverage my Costco membership and get 2 items for the price of 1 in other stores.    In addition, I went to my local shoe store and discovered that I had a coupon and a $5.00 reward on my account.    The $10.00 discount was a small amount, but it was nice to have it applied to my bill.  During these challenging times, every little bit helps. 

5- One Pot Lunch

This week I made an entire crockpot of French Onion Soup and prepacked my lunch for the week.   I paired it with a salad and a piece of fruit.   Since I picked all of these items on sale, it makes for a very low-cost lunch. 

What Free-bees have you been able to pick up this year?    My entire year is attached below.    

Here is my list: 

Do you want to see what we did last week?   

Just click on the picture for the link. 

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