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The Frugal Five: #111

 


With inflation on the rise and salaries not increasing, our ability to make ends meet is decreasing. Therefore, we must be more careful with our money. The Frugal Five is a series in which we celebrate the daily or weekly activities that help us live a frugal life.    


I am exploring ways to reduce costs during busy weeks. One strategy is to watch the pennies because they add up. Here are some of my tips and tricks.   


1- Garden Update 


I have been enjoying harvesting a few items from the garden.     Strawberries are ready for picking, and our family has eaten them as fast as they ripen.     In addition, the kale has been growing very well.   I have several 2-cup packages in the freezer waiting for winter soups.    Another way I use kale is to mix it with cabbage and lettuce to bulk up our salads.      


Unfortunately,  the peas have not grown this year, so I have substituted beans in their place.    Now I just have to wait until they start producing.   I have planted my tomatoes, various peppers, and the rest of the cucumbers.    Finally, my friend gave me 2 additional heirloom tomatoes to plant and collect seeds from at the end of the season.      These plants get huge, and I am excited to see what they do.    


2- Eagle Scout Project Food


My son is finishing up his Eagle Scout Project, and the team needs to be fed, so instead of ordering pizza and picking it up, I decided to cook.     I picked up the ingredients for baked ziti with bread as their lunch.    


However, the bulk of the money was spent on snacks.   UGG!   I reduced the price slightly by shopping the sales, so I picked up soda for half price and chips for $2.00 a bag.   


3-  Summer Tasks 


Our home is filled with antiques, and since we moved into a house with a boiler system for heating, special care needs to be given to our cherished possessions.      This means I need to start oiling my furniture to prevent cracking, waxing the drawers, and assessing any damage that has occurred this year for repairs.   I have created a schedule and will systematically care for each piece of furniture this summer.   


4- Homemade Items on the Rise 


Since I am finished my 9 to 5 for the school year, I will have more time to make homemade items such as yogurt, granola bars, snacks, etc.     This will save us money on groceries.     In addition, I am working on developing a few freezer meals that my family loves, so next school year we won’t eat out as frequently.    


5-  Hair Care→ Cutting the Cost 


My hair salon will offer a discounted gift card twice a year.    I take advantage of this each time.    The officers are usually in May (Mother’s Day) and December (Christmas).   I calculated the amount of money I typically would spend from May to November and purchased a card for that amount.    In addition, I participate in their loyalty program, so I will also receive a $50.00 discount each time I fill up the card.    The program has changed a little, so I recalculated how often I will receive the discount and moving forward to adjust my gift card purchase based on the math. 


In addition, I cut my husband’s hair every two weeks, which saves us $80.00 a month.   On occasion, we will invest in a good pair of hair clippers, but even with that expense, we are saving a lot of money each year.     


What Free-bees have you been able to pick up this year?   The  2024 Free-Bee Summary has been posted.    If you missed it, then click on the link below. 


Here is my list:

Do you want to see my last post?   

Just click on the picture for the link. 



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


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