What Frugal Thing .....- Part II

[marvholly]

There is a new grocery type store opening today on my route to see my Dad. From the ad it appears they are a Sams/Costco/BJ type store w/o the membership fee.

Also from the ad it seems they are giving FREE breakfast (8-11) & lunch (11-?) today. Guess where I plan to be about 9 am this morning. If it is true I will stop back for lunch.

I did go to their web site on Sun but it was NOT yet active for my area. Without confirmation I probably would NOT spend the time & gas chasing it but since I am going to help w/Dad's PT today & need to hit another store in the same location I will check it out.

[Momma23]

Yesterday my husband cooked a turkey. I bought several at Thanksgiving to eat later because they were $ .24/ lb. Today I will be boiling the carcas for broth/stock. Leftovers will be frozen for future meals.

Also yesterday hubby and I purchased chuck roast at $1.99/lb and ground it ourselves for hamburger meat. I love to do that as it is so much leaner for a fraction of the reg price. We vacuum sealed 8 lbs. Love my foodsaver. Got it around Christmas for half price with a coupon code. Later ordered a bunch of bags and saved over 50% with a sale and coupon code.

I unplugged 13 items yesterday that were easily accesable. Every little bit helps.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Oh Momma23, do I have questions for you! I'd love to hear more about your Foodsaver. I always suspected that the bags would add a lot to the food price. But they sound like such a good way to keep food fresher in the freezer.

And what grinder do you use? Someone gave me one from Freecycle, but it did not work. She gave it to me having never even tried it after her mother-in-law gave it to her. I guess the MIL had never tried it either.

Have you ever considered grinding that turkey? I used to buy ground turkey, but now I read the label and it is 30% fat! It did not used to have so much fat in it. It used to have a better, cleaner taste, too. A turkey is not 30% fat, so they are saving out some of the lean for other products. Maybe if I could grind my own, I might use it again.

And by the way, my husband, too, cooked turkey yesterday. But he was pleased to have bought it for $0.89/lb. Your price is eye-popping. (convenient little smilie, eh?)

If you'd like to answer any of my questions in your blog, I could look for it there.

[Momma23]

I stayed home all day yesterday. Today I am making tex mex turkey soup from the leftover turkey. Staying home today also as I need to get some painting done.

[disneysteve]

Thanks for reviving the thread.

Yesterday, I finished a home repair job that I started last week. We had a section of soffiting in our foyer that had gotten water damaged. I scraped off all the old paint, spackled, sanded and repainted. Before, the paint was literally peeling off. Now, it looks all new and fresh. I'm not sure what I spent on supplies offhand but it was minimal and I'm positive it was a fraction of what it would have cost to pay someone else to do it.

[johna]

I went to CVS to get deodorant for my husband. It was on sale for $1.99, and I had three bygo free coupons. I spent $12 on the deodorant, so I was eligible for $6 rewards cash. Total paid: $5.97, received $6 rewards for future purchases. Yippee!

[marvholly]

I had forgotten about this thread and stopped posting. To catch up:

Had 17 NO spend days in Jan
Had 16 NO drive days in Jan
Drove only 250 mi in Jan (avg is 300-350)
Ate only 2 meals out-1 fast food, 1 sit down on senior menu
Cooked several new recipes (none are keepers)
Cooked & froze several multi-meal recipes

[Momma23]

Today I made laundry detergent. Plan on making dishwasher detergent also. I made banana chocolate chip muffins for a fundraiser.

[marvholly]

I don't/won't bother making DW or laundry detergent. I only do 4 laundry loads a month and 3-4 DW loads. With the deals I get using sales & coupons for those 2 items it is just not worth the time & bother to me.

I have had 2 no drive, no spend days in Feb so far. Today is a drive day since I help w/my Dad's physical therapy. I have a 'planned' route to also do all my errands.

[Momma23]

For me it is very worth it. I do about 10 loads/wk. I make the powder version and it only takes about 5 mins. to make start to finish.

[mom-from-missouri]

Last Saturday, I started a batch of laundry soap (finished in Sunday afternoon). It cost me a total of $7.17 to make. It is a years supply. So, yes it saves money.

There will be a few times where I may add oxyclean to a really dirty load, and bleach to whites (I bleach about once a month on my whites), and I use vinegar NOT fabric softner during static electric season. But, I would buy those anyway, and during the course of the normal year spend a lot more than $7.17 on laundry soap.

Trouble is, it never lasts me a year, because friends find out I make it, and want to "try a little"...But, I still come out way ahead of the game. I do buy laundry soap ONLY when I get it free after a sale and coupon.

Today we are eating leftovers from this week, so no money spent on food.

I had 2 no drive, no gas, no spend days this week.

Made my own fertilizer by gathering cow patties from our stock and putting them onto my garden beds. By doing it now, it will be ready by planting season, and I won't be paying $14 for a 40 pound bag in April or May. (and for my beds it would take at least 10 bags, so $140 savings...)

[NetSkyBlue]

Starting yesterday, I've begun a regimen of washing my hair with baking soda/water and rinsing with apple cider vinegar/water, as suggested by riverwed070707.

[CHH1023]

bought a large chilis from Wendy's this afternoon for $2.14 dollars, I ate half of it for lunch and another half for dinner......

[Momma23]

Yesterday I made several homemade cleaners including homemade Shout, Windex, and tub and tile cleaner. Also made what was dubbed a "miracle cleaner." It consists of baking soda and peroxide. Just mix to form a paste. Kind of like Oxy Clean. I really does work great. I was very surprised.

[Momma23]

I bought chuck roast yesterday at $1.99/lb and ground it. A lot cheaper than already ground meat and no pink slime.