Happy Friday!!! If you are new here, this is the day I share some of the frugal things I’ve done recently and then you share yours in the comments. the idea is to encourage and inspire each other—not to make anyone feel guilty.
- I got a new ring. My wedding ring needs $200 worth of prong work to prevent stone loss so I haven’t worn it for awhile. I thought no one would notice, but with our family often going in multiple directions some people asked me if Darren and I were separated and a few bold men asked me for dates at the grocery store. This is a $17 stainless steel and cubic zirconium beauty with mixed reviews. So far all the stones have stayed put, but I take it off when I do housework just to help it last longer.
2. I accepted volunteers to help me remove the carpet from my office. These are LDS missionaries who gave us a visit. We aren’t LDS but if missionaries of any faith knock on our door, we invite them in to talk about Jesus. They offered to come back and help us with the house and I jumped at the chance. The carpet in this room is more than 40 years old and I’m very allergic to something in it. I was the only one in the house with time to rip it out and the only one who physically shouldn’t do it. I’m grateful for the help. They made their mamas proud.
I’d love to paint the paneling white in here. It’s not in good enough shape to just paint, so I’m looking into repairing it or covering it with something. The second option would be expensive. sigh.
3. I shopped the house. Most of the 2nd floor of our home is painted subfloor now. It wasn’t in good shape before I painted it and the porch paint didn’t wear well (something to do with the epic Nerf wars we’ve had in the last few months.) It is chipped and scratched in a lot of places.
On a whim I looked up the flooring we used in Heather’s room makeover and they still make it. It’s only $1 a square foot, but I need 1200 square feet plus underlayment so will need to save up a little longer. To help me patiently wait, I grabbed the area rug from our living room and hauled it up to the office. We are storing a piano for some friends in the living room, but as soon as they can come get it, we will start demolition in there. The rug was going to have to find a new home soon anyway. Oh, and that white cloth is a video backdrop screen. I’m working up the nerve to do some filming.
4. I found my favorite snack on Amazon Subscribe and Save. By ordering this way I save $.75 a package or $5.25 a set over buying from Target, even with coupons. They come in at $.43 a serving. I shoot for $1 or less per protein rich snack, so this isn’t too bad.
It’s your turn. Inspire us with some of your frugal activities this week.
We are adopting a little girl from China soon. I needed a crib set, since I got rid of our old one. A friend gave me a beautiful bumper and I was looking for pieces to go with it. Matching pieces were super expensive online. Last night at a consignment sale, I found crib skirt and blanket, a crib sheet,plus 2 curtains, and a wall hanging, all for less than $20. And I sold enough at the sale to cover all I bought.
Rebecca! Congratulations on your expected daughter. What an exciting time. That’s quite a good deal on a crib set. Good job.
I love frugal Friday’s!!! 😍
My husband and I divide and conquer most nights too. But the ring is BEAUTIFUL!! And I love those almonds too. A real treat when you are craving chocolate!
My son needs new shoes for tennis so I just took some things to Clothes Mentor. I got $28! Yippee!! I’m going to scour my jewelry now and be honest about the pieces I actually wear. I can’t charge things anymore. Such a vicious cycle. One of the blazers I took in is too wintery, she wanted me to bring it back in July when they start stocking up for fall. I will find a box/bin to start pulling out the items I didn’t wear this last winter. This time of year I get the urge to declutter anyway. I’m not discouraged about buying the shoes like I was two days ago. I get tired of saying “it’s not in the budget” as much as my kids hear it, I’m sure. I try to say “yes” as often as I can.
A neighbor was getting rid of some office supplies. I was able to get a few things for a daughter heading to college this fall. Plus a twin mattress pad a couple weeks ago. I’m starting an “off to college” bin so that I don’t feel the need to over spend this fall. I will scour garage sales this summer for items as well. XL Twin sheet sets specifically.
That’s all for me… Have a great weekend!
Nicole, What great ideas! That’s awesome that you were able to get money for the stuff you don’t use anymore. That’s an often overlooked avenue. I love that you have already identified needs for the fall and have started looking ahead for frugal ways to fill them. The benefit of extra time makes saving money so much easier.
I’ve been LDS my whole life. My husband and many family members have served full time missions & I just wanted to say how much I appreciate your kind words to and about them. It’s mostly rough being away from your family for 2 years without phone calls while trying to tell strangers about Jesus (& many people refuse to believe we are even Christian). They are there to serve as the Savior did & I’m glad they could help you out. Have a great weekend!
Lindsay, It’s not hard to love the missionaries. This is our third set to come visit us. We think our neighbors across the street put them up to it :). They are coming back next week for dinner so we can thank them for their help. We don’t see eye to eye on everything but there’s a lot we can agree on. We have been teaching each other a new hymn every time they come over. (This set likes to sing.) I’ve really enjoyed it.
The most frugal thing I’ve been doing is being wise about our house hunt. I’m not getting caught up in homes that are out of our price range and keeping an open mind about renting for another year if we cannot find a home in our price range that fits our needs and is a good investment. Soooooo many talks with the hubs about ‘what do we really want out of life….what can we live it…what does the house really need…I want you to be happy…but no I want you to be happy…” Blah! (I’m mocking us, I’m actually proud of how we are handling it)
Dayna, Oh my, YES! So many people think because they’ve been pre-approved for a home they can afford it. It really comes down to making a sample budget with the new numbers and seeing how it fits with your other needs. This is such a huge decision, I’m glad you’re thinking it through.
Angela,
This is a totally curiosity question if you don’t mind answering. What religion are you? In asking because from different information you shared I thought you were LDS. I am Catholic, and since I’ve been little I love learning about other religions. My favorite thing since I started to read blogs was how many people are willing to share their love of Jesus, from all different religions. Thanks
Hi Theresa, I don’t mind answering that, but it’s complicated :). We identify ourselves as restorationists. Originally we were members of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS.) It is separate from the LDS church and has unique beliefs. While we love the Bible and use it as our main source of scripture, one of the beliefs we hold in common with the LDS church is that the Book of Mormon is an ancient record of God’s dealings with the people on the American continent. RLDS do not practice temple rituals or baptism for the dead, or believe in spiritual wifery or the Adam-God theory. We hate plural marriage and it has never been a part of our faith. We also hold more mainstream beliefs on the virgin birth and atonement. There is also a difference in our priesthood beliefs. A man cannot be ordained into the priesthood in our church without a prophetic calling regardless of age or education. The world leadership of our church turned away from God in the mid 1980s and we were forced to leave our church buildings to worship independently where we could preach and practice what the Bible teaches. Some of those early meetings took place in living rooms, others rented buildings from 7th day adventist buildings. We eventually saved up the money to buy our own church buildings and they are called Independent Restoration Branches.
Thank you so much! I’ve never heard of this branch, I very much appreciate all the information, especially how you differ. And as always thanks for the wonderful blog.
Some of my favorite things are in this post. Adopted children and frugality! Congrats, Rebecca, on your little girl! I have wanted to adopt from China for over 20 years, but it never worked out. (We’ve adopted from other places though.)
I wanted a little shelf for my bathroom since I replaced a rustic little medicine cabinet with a mirror and no longer had a place for some of our meds and stuff. I was searching and searching on craigslist and then I thought I should look around here first! I have a different cupboard to put the medicine etc in, but then needed a place for my towels etc. I went out into my husband’s workshop and found and old box that the elderly farmer (I’m sure it was he!) had put together. It is really neat. I turned it on it’s side and now it’s shelves for the towels. I still need to put something under it to made it sit flat. I thought it needed shims but my husband said those little things that protect the wooden floors from chair scratches etc would work. (Can you tell my coffee is not working and I cannot think of the name of them!?) I need to do that more. Often I find that when I really look at he kids clothing they have a lot more there that will work. We just need to organize and clean up.
Will you please share a bit more information and your experience with how to use the Amazon Subscribe and Save? I have seen this mentioned here, but I’m not certain how to best use this for optimal savings. Can you share your advice to those of us who are newly considering that buying option?
I love your new ring. It cracks me up for some reason that people assumed the worst bc you didn’t have your ring on and you even got hit on (no disrespect meant at all in that comment). With 2 littles in my house I don’t always wear my rings bc it’s not always conducive to our activities. Not that I think you have to wear a ring, but have you seen those Qalo wedding rings? I think they are really cool. They are just bands and they are made from silicone. They’re made for active lifestyles and come in all kinds of colors. I have a friend who works in the restaurant business and I think she’s getting one because she can’t wear her bling with all the work she does. And they’re only like $20. Also I love your approach to talking to missionaries. It’s so easy for me to think I’ve got it together and that I don’t need to listen to others’ who have a different faith than me. Sometimes I have that “know-it-all” syndrome. And too sweet of them to come back and help with your carpet. I love it!
Elizabeth, I know, right?! I told myself everyone is too busy thinking about themselves to notice whether I have a ring on or not. Apparently that’s one of the things people notice. My husband wants one of those Qalo rings, they look really comfortable. My heart goes out to people who knock on doors. That’s a tough business. Talking about Jesus is one of my favorite things, and it’s a relief that they aren’t trying to sell me something :).
I couldn’t wear my ring for a while because I smashed it in the door (it saved my finger!) and bent, and the prongs needed work after that…hmmm, no one hit on me, lol. Maybe because I still have a bunch of littles, lol! I haven’t done anything frugal…we are trying to move though and I have been donating all my baby stuff. Lots and lots of baby stuff, including all the clothes outgrown by my youngest kids. I thought about selling, but decided to donate because there’s still some great finds in there and I know how excited I get when I find something awesome at the thrift store, you know? So it’s been kind of fun to provide that for someone else. We don’t often donate stuff because we use things pretty hard here…usually stuff leaves our house and goes to the curb. 🙂
Beautiful ring!