Frugal Friday

What a week this was! To say I am happy, ecstatic and relieved would be an understatement. There is an adult in the White House again and while things will not improve over night, I no longer fear a 2:00 am twitter temper tantrum is going to bring on WW3. To top it off, my parents are getting vaccinated today. I feel like I won the lottery. It will still be a long time for me, but the light at the end of the tunnel is starting to shine brighter with each passing day.

It’s been awhile since I did a Frugal Friday, but thought today would be a good day to go through what we have done to save some cash.

1. I have 2 pair of jeans that had some holes in them. In the past, I am ashamed to say, I would just toss them. I actually repaired them with patches and my trusty iron. I never trusted my repair skills enough to try to fix clothing that I would wear in public. But, the patches are barely noticeable and I save 2 pair of pants.
2. I have a wholesale membership with Doterra and I have a friend with a wholesale membership with Shaklee. We have started to trade goods. With Doterra I get a lot of free product. She likes certain oils, so I swap with her for cleaning products. So far it has been a serious win win. I know Doterra is expensive, but I buy the vitamins and probiotics which I have found to be higher quality than those you find at the drugstore. The oils are fun, but not the motivation for the membership. I get a few “free” oils every month and I just don’t need them.
3. With the exception of my daughter’s birthday this month, we have eaten every single meal at home. No takeout of any kind. Sometimes I feel bad because I know those restaurants need us. But, during this pandemic, I have come to prefer my own cooking. When we can actually go to a restaurant, I will be up for restaurant food again.
4. I bought the ingredients for homemade face moisturizer. I am going to give it a try. Stay tuned for a review.
5. I have been using the library more than ever. I use Hoopla and Libby, provided to me by the library, for audiobooks. We have been checking out movies, books and a hotspot on a weekly basis. According to the final 2020 receipt, we had saved over $12,000. I think that number is higher when you take into account extras, for say the movies. If we were to go to the theatre we would also buy snacks. We probably would have eaten out first and possible went out for drinks after. I also check out cookbooks first, before buying one that I have my eye on. More than a couple have been eliminated from my to buy list.

What did you do to start the year off frugally?