Monday, January 28, 2019

Frugal Accomplishments Last Week of January

This week was pretty good in terms of frugal accomplishments.  We got to celebrate a birthday and did some other fun things at home.  We've been watching Tidying Up on Netflix and have been inspired to begin cleaning out again as we begin the building process on the house.  If we clean out a box or two a week from storage, then we should be in pretty good shape for moving into the new house by the end of the year.


  • Cooked all meals at home including smoothies with frozen berries and greens, toast and jam/butter with fruit, tacos, dinner salads with chicken, hard boiled eggs, or nuts for protein, and snack plates with fruit, veggies and homemade yogurt dip, and nuts/gluten free crackers.
  • We enjoyed a birthday meal out thanks to my mom who treated us to the local Japanese steak house, which was a first for little man.  Both boys seemed to love the experience, and it was really fun for all of us.  We all had water and two of us split plates with the boys to save on expense.
  • Birthday cake was made from scratch, and I made the ganache for the cake using evaporated milk instead of heavy cream because I didn't have any.  I also used a baking chocolate bar because we were out of chocolate chips.
  • Little man got a thrifted new shirt from us, which he wore on Sunday.  It fits him perfectly, and it was nice to use ThreadUp credit that needed to be used.  He also received a few very special toys, clothes, and books from family, including some basic origami paper and directions, a magnetic dart board, and a new remote control car.  Friends brought items for the humane society to us to donate, as this is typically what he asks for in lieu of gifts.  
  • We had a family birthday breakfast with my in laws.  They rented a place with minimal kitchen equipment, so we picked up some breakfast pastries from our local bakery (with a gift card), and took a partial carton of eggs to cook, as well as some fruit.  This, combined with some things they had, made a lovely breakfast, and limited the expense of eating out.
  • All laundry was done at home and hung to dry.  
  • Used brown paper bag and colorful yarn to wrap birthday gifts.  All our wrapping paper is in storage, and this was free and was easily recyclable.
  • We continue to focus on potty training for baby with the hopes of being diaper free before three (at least during the day).  We use cloth diapers and wipes at home and during the day, so we save on the expense of diapers.
  • I worked out with YouTube videos and at weekly free yoga class.  Benny continued to work out with Tang Soo Do class and practice at home with YouTube videos.
  • Used Children's Council resources to get night time diapers, new boxes of toys for the boys to play with, and some free soap.  Once we have 10 "baby bucks" we'll cash in for a Walmart card.  We'll use this for purchasing a baby shower gift.
  • We volunteered to help with the food pantry pick up from Food Lion on Sunday morning before church.  There were several produce items that we took because they wouldn't last until Wednesday, including cut up fruit, organic veggies and herbs, some organic milk, cheese, yogurt, and nitrate free sausage.  It was great for the boys to be able to help out, and was nice to receive enough fruit and other items to get us through the week.
  • The boys and I have been talking about getting a cat when we move into the new house.  Well, when we came home from the birthday party Saturday, there was a stray gray tabby just waiting in our carport.  We've fed her with things from the pantry (evaporated milk, tuna, dry dog food) for the past few days and Benny is searching local ads and the Humane Society to see if she belongs to anyone.  She is still shy, but seems very willing to stick around.  We used some of the blankets friends gave us for the Humane Society to make a bed for her in the carport inside a cardboard box.  (We can't do an indoor cat due to family allergies, and if she does belong to someone, we don't want her to get too used to the indoor life.)  So, it's been an additional little birthday surprise, and super sweet to watch the boys look for her and begin to bond with her.
What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!



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