Recent Frugal Efforts.

We received our tax return and put it all into savings.

I completed a survey from a Fred Meyer receipt for some fuel points.

I emailed Fred Meyer asking if they changed their recipe on some yogurt because it's been sour lately, and they mailed a $10 off coupon.

I put away the space heater and continually turn down the thermostat when my husband has it up too high.

My job search didn't go well, but I ended up getting a new position at the same company with a raise. That starts next week. Once I see what my new paycheck will be I can allocate the new funds to reach different savings goals.

I received some products free or cheap in an exchange for an honest review. Some of these are dress up things for part of my son's Christmas present, things for my coloring hobby, and a few household items that will make life in general easier to manage.

I met one of my newer neighbors, and we'll be getting grass fed beef from them in the Fall at a great price compared to stores. We'll be getting fresh eggs from them too at a good price, and we can buy just what we need so none go to waste. They even said in the Fall we could help ourselves to their orchard fruit because the trees produce too much for them. And they let my son chase after their goats and chickens. He thoroughly enjoyed himself. He even got to hold one of the chickens! I'll have to think of a way to thank them for their kindness.

The weather has been warming up. My husband put more air in the stroller tires so the little one and I can go for morning walks. Over the weekend we went down to the creek for the first time.

We're trying to be more mindful about leftovers and things in the fridge. I've been writing down our dinners on the calendar in the kitchen to aid me in my meal plan quest. We're buying less food so we can use up what we already have.

I got a refurbished Kitchen Aid mixer, and it will end up paying for itself soon enough. I'll make breads, waffles, muffins, oatmeal and raisin cookies and....I don't even know. I need to do more research on all the amazing things it can do.

My husband buys coffee every work day, and to minimize this expense he has agreed to bring coffee if he got an insulated stainless steel travel mug and a good grinder. We're in the process of this change. I'm waiting for the fancy grinder to drop in price. Until this change becomes a habit I need to remind myself to clean his mug and re-time the coffee maker so it's ready when he races out the door for work. We work different shifts so this will be fun to learn to manage.

I scored various free and cheap chocolate. I took an 18 count box of candy bars to work to share. I'll be bringing the free 5lb Hershey's bar to my new coworkers next week. Some of the other chocolate I kept for my secret mommy stash. Others I'll use for gifts. At this point my brother will receive a huge Amazon box of miscellaneous chocolate and snacks (that were free or cheap!). He'll love it.

I'm reading free Kindle books thanks to my library and Amazon slow ship credits.

I unsubscribed from a site that posted a lot of deals on Amazon. I love this site. Although I did save a lot of money I don't need that site right now. I'm stocked up on diapers, wipes, toddler snacks, soap, toys, and food stuff. I can always check it in a few months when I need more diapers. I'll be using the time I spent on this site on sites that encourage minimalism, simplicity, and good personal finance skills. (note on this "time" - it's the random moments when I'm trying to get the toddler to sleep or when I'm at work during a slow day or sometimes at night when I'm trying to unwind from a no good very bad day)


What did you do to save money recently?