Last week's frugal efforts and fails.

Our washer and dryer have been acting up lately. I'm not sure how he fixed the dryer, but my husband also fixed the washer. The drainage hose was plugged up. I'm thankful to have working appliances! I was worried I'd have to hand wash some clothes in the tub.

I made foaming soap for our reusable foaming hand soap dispensers.

I've kept the thermostat off during the day since our system is occasionally acting up.

I picked up a free reusable tote bag from the local grocery store.

I filled out the grocery story survey for free fuel points.

We took advantage of some pizza deals so we got two large pizzas for a great price with plenty of leftovers.

I suddenly had the desire to work on my latent Etsy shop. I went through things I already had on hand as well as made a list of materials that I needed. I'm making a solid plan from how many items to start with to how often to post on my shop blog/website. If you use my link you can get 40 free Etsy listings (and so do I!)

An ebook I requested to be added to my library's online catalog was finally added so I borrowed it for my Kindle right away.

I filled out a survey for pizza to get $3 off our next purchase.

We're continuing to eat down our pantry and freezer.

I listened to Dave Ramsey's and Chris Hogan's free podcasts.


My frugal fails:

I forgot to keep up with my son's library books so I owe about $3 in fines.

My husband bought the wrong coffee creamer. I tried to drink it, but some of it did end up going to waste.

For accountability: I took advantage of PayPal credit to get some supplies for my Etsy shop. The total is less than $400, and if I pay it off within 6 months I don't have to pay interest. If for some reason I don't generate enough in sales to cover that I'll use my personal money so no interest will be paid.


What did you do to save money last week?

Last week's frugal efforts.

We made four loaves of banana bread. I used a cast iron bread pan and a glass Pyrex bread pan. I think the cast iron pan made the better loaves. I snuck in some chia seeds on the second batch.

I redeemed points for a $3 Amazon gift card from Swagbucks.

I ended up using some of my Amazon credit to purchase a set of two mini angel food cake pans so I can use those for future gifts of bird seed wreaths. I also got an ink stamp set with some all purpose greeting stamps. One of my goals this year is to make all cards instead of buying them.

My Keurig stopped working, and just as I was starting to rage I took a minute to Google it. I found a YouTube video that showed me the problem: a clogged pin. I'm happy I was able to fix it, and it was a nice learning moment for my son too.

We made foaming hand soap. Water + liquid Castile soap in a foaming dispenser we already had on hand.

It turns out that my dryer isn't broken. So it's great that I don't have to buy a new one, however, if it truly was broken I think I'd be okay with hanging things to dry for awhile.

I ate leftovers all weekend.

I brought food, coffee, and water to work in reuseable containers. (mostly)

I borrowed free ebooks from my library.

My son is using a handkerchief for his cold.


What have you done to save money last week?

Moment of Pause #16

I recently took a day trip to Sequim for work. I was standing in the parking lot and looked to my right to see this beautiful view of the Olympic Mountains. It was a fairly overcast day and not too cold. I've seen these mountains before, and I wouldn't mind sitting and staring off at them again for a whole day.

What have you seen lately that made you take a moment of pause?

Last week's frugal efforts.

I wasn't really planning on it, but I ended up hanging my clothes up inside to dry. The dryer wouldn't turn on. It's curious because earlier in the day I was reading a post about how to hang dry clothes inside and was thinking that I needed to get back to doing that sometime...I just wasn't expecting to so soon!

I composted when possible.

I brought food, water, and coffee to work in reusable glass containers and stainless steel. I keep a cat mug and a spoon at work.

I've kept the thermostat down and wore a sweater around the house when cold. I even got the little one to wear a sweater!

I've continued to eat down the pantry and freezer. I want to use up what we have then start intentionally eating better.

I redeemed a $3 Amazon gift card from Swagbucks.

I redeemed a $5 Amazon gift card from Bing Rewards. I'm not sure what to use these on yet. There is something about January that robs me of the desire to purchase things.

I've been burning candles to use them up. I find it relaxing too. The little guy sometimes does a candle flame dance. : )

Little Man is going through a phase where he asks for something then changes his mind and wants something new to eat. Um...nope. So I save his snack or meal to eat later. It's hard sometimes, but overall it seems to be working.

What have you done to save money this week?

Last week's frugal efforts.

I'm using a textbook that I rented from Amazon. It was much cheaper than buying, and they will give me a free shipping label to send it back when I'm done.

I kept the thermostat down and sparingly used a space heater in the bedroom. It's unusually cold here lately.

I meal planned using food items we already had in the pantry and freezer.

I'm being more strict with my son about being done with one food item and wanting another instead. Nope.

I upped my 401k contribution at the same time my new insurance rates will be reflected on my check so in a way this is a mind game in the sense that whatever my first paycheck of the year looks like, that's what I have to work with.

I'm on a mission to use stuff up around the house. I'm burning candles and eating or giving away food items.

I'm decluttering in spurts. This always helps curb any desire to spend money.

I watched some free YouTube videos. People are so inspiring and helpful.

We made foaming soap.

My husband bought the wrong coffee creamer. Instead of pouring it down the drain or giving it away I decided to mix it with my regular creamer when I make my coffee so it's more tolerable. Hopefully he won't make that mistake again.

I ended up with a free planner. I had ordered one from Amazon, then I was gifted one at work. I went on the Amazon site to see how much it would cost to send the planner back, but it said I would be refunded right away with no need to send it back. The planner from work I decided to use for work things. It actually has made me stay more organized and on task so that's a double win.

I signed up for MyPoints so I can earn some gift cards for little effort.


What have you done to save money lately?