Frugal Friday File 2019, January...

This was an experiment...converting the Frugal Friday File to monthly instead of weekly.  It seems too long.  I may go back to weekly.  Or should I cut it out altogether?  Opinions?

Week 1 Successes:
1.  Reworked/updated my wall calendar and my spiral to-do list pages.  I know you are probably thinking I am crazy to make my own, and you would be correct, but I don't like change, and this just helps me to have consistent planning pages from year to year...completely personalized and pennies on the dollar of store bought.  My 2019 calendar is on the wall, and to-do list pages are printed and ready to take to be spiral bound, which will be done before I run out of pages in my current one.

2.  Took guest surveys from Sonic receipts.  Three more free unsweet teas with magic ice in my future.

3.  Made a menu plan and shopping list, then made a grocery run.  Having the freezer and pantry stocked makes it so much easier to get through meal prep.

4.  We switched to cloth napkins around 1990, and just toss them in laundry with a load of bath/kitchen towels.  My favorite napkins are sturdy 100% cotton, and they last forever.  Surprisingly they rarely have a stain that sets, so they still look presentable.  I bought some replacements several years ago in plain beige, but have never needed to add them to the rotation.  I should either use them or donate them.  I wonder how many packages of paper napkins and paper towels I have avoided buying over the past (almost) thirty years?

5.  Carey took advantage of senior discount on museum admission.

Week 2 Successes:
1.  Made a run to Joann's for supplies for a project and to replenish my supply of rotary blades since they were 40% off.  No impulse purchases.  Used my Joann's App to access coupons which shaved a further $18 dollars off of my purchase.  Only go to a craft store during a week that your needed item is on sale, plan your purchases, and have appropriate coupons.  It seems like half their stock is 40% one week and the other half the next...purchasing at full price feels like a rookie mistake.

2.  I used Gala apples to make an apple pie...rather than going to the store for the kind the recipe called for...gasp!  Around our house, nobody complains about things like the texture of the fruit in a baked good, so I use what I have on hand.  I sent this one to work with Carey for him and his coworkers, one of whom is my favorite brother-in-law.

3.  Too much online spending has been going on around here.  The only thing I can say in my defense is that I checked Retail-Me-Not before finalizing the orders to check codes for discounts or free shipping, and was rewarded with one of each.

4.  One of my online purchases was from Chewy.com, they of Rudy's favorite television commercials.  (He jumps up from a sound sleep to stand upright in front of the TV to watch these ads!)  I had priced a new outside dog bed locally, and it was twice the price of Chewy's.  And while on the website I priced dog food and found the cost the same or lower than locally, and so 2 dog beds, 40 lbs of dry dog food, and a 6 pack of canned dog food all shipped free.  

5. Cooking in large batches, eating lots of leftovers.

Week 3 Successes:
1.  I turn the thermostat down to 62 when Carey leaves for work.  He wants it warmer when he's home.  I turned the heater off when the outside temps weren't dipping too low. 

2.  Wear my favorite old pair of wool socks to bed.  Between them, flannel sheets, and down comforter it is perfectly comfortable.

3.  Filled the back of the car and dropped it at Goodwill.  Working on being more frugal with use of space in my home this year.

4.  I used way overly-ripe bananas to make two loaves of Pineapple Banana Bread.  Once cooled, I sliced one loaf completely and placed in individual baggies and placed in the freezer for Carey to take to work.

5. Worked one day this week, and scheduled a full week of work in March.

Week 4 Successes:
1.  Our trips to see Carey's mom are always pretty short, since we go and come all in one day, but we are thankful that it is close enough to do that.  In addition to the greeting card set that I made for her, I also made sure to take along some jewelry making/repair supplies so I could take care of a medic alert necklace that was scratchy for her to wear.  I also gave her a nice long foot rub.  All things that don't cost money, and won't take up space in her small suite, but that I hope make her feel listened to and pampered.  (Well, the cards take up space, but at least they are consumable.)

2.  Jared was over, and I thought about ordering pizza.  But I knew I had Italian sausage, a bell pepper, and a bag of shredded mozzarella that needed to be used before much longer.  Also had ripe olives, half an onion, a jar of pizza sauce, and some pepperoni.  I always have flour and yeast, so I mixed up some dough for crust.  Two pizzas made that fed the three of us and made four servings for Carey to freeze and take to work.  

3.  I was in a neighboring town for an appointment, and made sure to fill up with gasoline at our favorite station before heading back home.  Saved 16¢ per gallon compared to the ones closer to home.

4.  Library ebooks.  Free reading.  No gasoline to pick them up or return them since it's all done via computer.  Our library is under construction for expansion.  The building is still open, but I have been relying on ebooks for the most part for convenience and to avoid the construction mess.

5. Staying home and hibernating...multiple no-spending days.

Week 5 Successes:
1.  I needed an angel food cake for Sunday family supper's dessert.  Unfortunately, I forgot to bake it in the lower (larger oven), and it did not do well in the small oven.  It rose and burned onto the element and onto the pan.  I ended up peeling off the crusty top, and the interior of the cake was fine and did not have a burned flavor.  I was using it for a sort of trifle, so tearing it into chunks was the original intent anyway.

As far as the pan, the interior...the complete interior...had black cake burned welded onto it.  I soaked it repeatedly...I scrubbed out what I could...I sprinkled baking soda and added vinegar and let that bubble and soak...I scrubbed with Bar Keeper's Friend.  Then I finally called it 'as good as it's gonna get' and washed with dish detergent, dried it, and put it away.  Frankly, if it hadn't been my mother's pan that I like using, I would have just tossed it.  But sentiment kept me using frugal on-hand cleaners and elbow grease, and ultimately saved the price of another pan.

2.  I've been having muscle spasms in my back Friday through Tuesday.  (Scrubbing that damn cake pan didn't help!)  I hate taking muscle relaxers, but I kept them at the ready.  My plan was to go to the chiropractor on Wednesday, but Wednesday I had no pain and muscles felt loosened up, so was happy to keep the price of an adjustment and the gasoline for the hundred mile round trip in pocket.  

3.  Kasey ordered a high-speed photo scanner and now has all of her photo prints saved and organized digitally.  She has generously offered to let me borrow the scanner to do the same.  Borrowing and bartering is a big help, and I try to be respectful and careful of other people's property when I do so.

4.  I watched a movie on Youtube when it wasn't available on Netflix or Prime without paying to view.

5.  I used up the end of a bag of kale, and the liquid left from cooking a roast in the slow cooker to add to the Dublin Coddle.  I'm still a long way from zero food waste, but I've come a long way 

Frugal From the Kitchen This Month:
week 1
Saturday: *pizza
Sunday:  Sunday family supper at Kasey & Beau's
Monday:  leftovers
Tuesday:  breakfast for dinner
Wednesday:  Winter Vegetable Stew w/ cornbread
Thursday:  Quiche with green beans
Friday:  *dinner out

week 2
Saturday:  leftovers
Sunday:  homemade hamburgers with sweet potato fries
Monday:  15-Bean Soup with Cornbread
Tuesday:  *Tex-Mex
Wednesday:  Dublin Coddle
Thursday:  leftovers
Friday:  leftovers

week 3
Saturday:  leftovers
Sunday:  Sunday family supper at Kasey & Beau's
Monday:  late lunch, skipped supper
Tuesday:  wings (another test in air fryer)
Wednesday:  Goulash
Thursday:  Sonic 50¢ corn dogs
Friday:  *Schlotzky sandwiches

week 4
Saturday:  Homemade Pizza
Sunday:  Sunday family supper at Kasey & Beau's
Monday:  big lunch, skipped supper
Tuesday:  roast, carrots, green beans, garlic & Parmesan roasted potatoes
Wednesday:  chili and tamales
Thursday:  leftovers
Friday:  *burger

week 5
Saturday:  planned over Mexican Casserole (from leftover chili)
Sunday:  Sunday family dinner at Kasey & Beau's
Monday:  leftovers
Tuesday:  sandwich
Wednesday:  leftovers
Thursday:  Dublin Coddle
Friday:   late lunch out, skipped supper


(*not-frugal takeout or dinner out)