What Did You Do Frugal Today VIIII

[Lee]

Joy,
How exciting for your grandson! That is for sure something him and your family will never forget! Will be a story for his grandchildren some day!
Went shopping last night a couple of sweaters for 9.95, originaly 40.00! I need new clothes so badly, between losing weight and what was already worn out before getting pregnant. I hate spending any money but darn it I am sick of dressing in things that are 3x to big for me. My best purchase was jeans for 25.00 well the best part was they are a size 10! Also got some new undies on sale for 1.00 a piece! I do need to check out the thrift store. It is kind of annoying that thrifting is so in now. My favorite place always issued 50% off coupons. I think because they now get so much business they no longer are doing that. Still advertising though!
Good frugal thing is my future sil and I were going to eat out, but decided after shopping we just shouldnt do it. So I came home and had cereal for dinner.
Leighann

[Songberries]

Lee- great job on the shopping! Oooh, a size 10! That's what I want to get into!

Joy - Congratulations! Oooh, that is so exciting for your grandson! Definitely something he'll always remember!

Well, I've got to go take the kids to school, then I'm off to the gym for and hour of weights.

Carol

[jjoj]

Joy, congratulations to your son.! What an honor. You must feel so proud.
Crochet2, good job on getting free bread and salad. Don't you just love it when things like that work out?!
Redcardinal bird, I think you have a special knack for finding the sales at Meijer. Whenever I go there, I don't have that kind of luck. It's probably a timing thing. Anyway, I am impressed with your finds!
Today, I am going to lunch with my friend to the Olive Garden. We usually pick there because it's our favorite place. Neither of our dh's like it, so we get our pasta fix this way. Usually after all the salad and breadsticks, I have to get a take-out box, so that will probably be my lunch for Thursday and Friday. I guess that would be the only frugal part of the whole thing. Will try to be better tomorrow. Take care and God bless.

[sandieluvsbears]

Hi all, I dont post here all that much because as much as I hate to admit it I wasnt as frugal as I wanted to be this past year,but am changing all that this year for sure. I just got back from picking up some things that were advertised at our BIG LOTS t(they buy closeouts) and I got Pillsbury Complete pancake mix 2/$1 I grabbed alot and will give some to dd for the kids. Paper towels were 3/$1 limit 12 so I will go and get more later LOL.
They had window valances(springmaid) for 99 cents!!!!!I dont really need any but it was worth 99 cents just for the material, Im using one as a cover for my ironing board, so that saved me alot right there. I also got this atcle in my email that I will post and there are some things I will be doing right away because this Xmas was so stressful for us!!I will definate be buying for Xmas all year long, and making things too. Here is the artcle
Hugs Sandie



The Black Belt Shopper
(featured column)

Enjoy a More Affordable and Less Hectic Holiday

by Larry Wiener



Here are a few tricks I use all year to make Christmas both more affordable and less hectic. Even if you can’t use them this year, they may make next year better. Print this article out and put it someplace where you’ll read it after Christmas. Then you can start even on December 26 to buy for next Christmas.

* * *

Shop for Next Christmas at the After Christmas Sales

The day or two after Christmas, you’ll find bargains galore on gift packs and other holiday-theme items. Last year I picked up, among other finds, a $40 package of bar-b-que goodies (sauces, etc.) for $12 the day after Christmas at a mall-anchoring department store. Use your local newspaper to help make the best use of your valuable time. Find out which stores are having big sales and clip extra percent off coupons which abound the day or two after Christmas.

And, as every black belt shopper knows, after Christmas is the best time to pick up wrapping paper, cards, and other Christmas purchases.

Consider Exchanging Gifts on New Years Next Year (or Maybe Even This Year if You Can Pull it Off)

I know several families that do this. They agree not to exchange their gifts on Christmas so they can focus on other aspects of the season that day. They then come together on New Years to exchange gifts. They have another week to shop which reduces stress and also helps them to pick up more bargains.

Consider Making Gifts for Next Year

Most of us get more than enough ties, socks, and the like at Christmas time. Gifts you can make (often with your computer) can be much more meaningful. Besides the usual cookies and cakes, consider t-shirts, photo collages, and other unique gifts.

Use Auctions to Find Unusual Gifts Built Around Friends’ Interests

Any online auction contains a larger variety of goods than any store—probably than any mall. Is your nephew a Spider-Man fan? Look up “Spider-Man” on an online auction and you’ll find t-shirts, lunchboxes, books, and more Spider-Man paraphernalia than you can imagine. Auctions and online consignment stores, such as half.com have out of print books and movies which may match your friend’s interests.

Consider Gifts of Time

You can make a nice certificate offering your recipient time spent on his/her behalf. Maybe you know a couple with small children who could use a night out. An offer to baby-sit (maybe with a certificate for tickets to the local multiplex) can go far.

If you are an expert baker, computer person, or gardener, maybe you can offer to do something special for your recipient.

Buy All Year for Christmas

As soon as you have time, make your gift list and jot down your friends’ and family members’ interests. Then whenever you see a good gift at a bargain price, pick it up. That will both save you money and will make next Christmas less hectic.

Check Out the Dollar Stores

Here’s something you can do this year even at the last minute. If you are using Christmas napkins, wrapping paper, and other consumables, your local dollar store (Dollar Tree, Dollar General, 99 Cent Stores, etc.) can help save mightily with those and other items. And, if you live in California, Nevada, Arizona, or Texas, you can go to the 99 Cent Store and buy penny-a-minute long distance cards to call everyone on Christmas and whenever else you want to call.

Step Back and Assess

After Christmas you may want to step back and think about how you can make next Christmas better. Discuss it with others in your family. Write it down so you’ll remember. Do you really need to keep everyone on that long Christmas card list? Are there some events that you feel compelled to attend, but that you’d just as soon not? Think about it.

Christmas can be one of the most hectic, expensive, and stressful times of the year. You may or may not be able to do much to improve on that this year, but planning ahead could make Christmas both more enjoyable and less expensive from now on.



* * *



Copyright © 2004 by Larry Wiener, author of The Black Belt Shopper's Guide

Want more money-saving tips? Get a FREE Subscription to our monthly newsletter!



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63 Gift Ideas for Under $10

What Exactly is Black Belt Shopping?





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[justEricka]

well lets see..no frugal today..the blower went out on this furnace. its chily in here..but its 34* outside. the plus side of that is i got up adn did laundry..and my dryer is vented into our house for winter..and the oven is on, im baking something in a few minutes..just to warm up the house. we all slept under lots of blankets and we were ok. keep your fingers crossed dh will find one.

on the good side..my sons basketball team won last night and we got the other part of our tax refund cashed. i wasnt able to go pay on the trailer...but i did find out ..the 10000 covers his pouring peirs ( what are thoese) and putting the ancors in and setting my traielr up. thats good. i guess. and he said..it doesnt come with underpinning..but he has alot there that dont match and he will let me have as much as i want to use to make my underpinning. so thats helpful. the whole house has new carpet and linolulm, so thats a good thing..and all new cabinates and things in the kitchen. it has 2 celing fans in there..with valuted celings, but my sil..she has a new double wide getting set up today and theres a hunter green fan she hates in side..she gave it to me..im thrilled. im putting it in my kitchen above my table. my kitchen is going to be barn red and hunter green with roosters. so thats going to save alot of money for us. i think i may make a thread asking for cool decorating tips and storage soulitons in there. is there a decorating place on here...

ohhh and i cant rember who asked..sorry..but we plan to hook in to moms water and sewer. mom has a white sand well and it wont go dry so thats good. its just easier that way. plus easier to remove the trailer if we want to later.

have a good day..
ericka

[mom2-4]

Originally posted by joesbaby
..the 10000 covers his pouring peirs ( what are thoese) and putting the ancors in and setting my traielr up. thats good.

All that piers are is a poured into the ground block of concrete. And that is what the anchors will be hooked to. Your current trailer should be hooked to these concrete blobs. If you get a chance take your kids to watch them pour them, it is actually pretty neat. At least anyway for us it was neat to watch, as my DH is a concreter. Oh, and congrats on the new to you home. That is exciting!

Right now sitting here looking out the window at the snow. Did I ever mention, I hate snow???!!!!

Gald the missing doggie came back home!! I would hate to see one of kitties get out in this cold. The poor things would probably freeze like the cat in that movie Christmas with the Kranks!! As they have never been outside. And yes, I think of them as my kids!

Songberries, glad to see you back!! Good job on teh weight loss!!

Lee, good job on your weight loss too!

Has anyone heard from emmjean? Or did I miss her post, I am thinking she is probably busy moving, that is just so exciting!! I hate moving, but love the thrill of it!

Frugals for me I have been making my own laundry det. drying my clotes on my drying rack, my indoor wash line, my shower curtain rod in the laundry room, and my shelf in the laundry room. Yes, I need that many spots to dry wash, even with washign every day. Staying home today. For me that feels extremely frugal, as my car insurance dedecutible is $500. And I had the agony of paying that four years ago! I just paid off the bed and bedroom set we bought for DD's over the summer. That was a savings of over $500. The total for paying it today was $368 if we would have waited until tomorrow it would have been $767. Had we kept making payments it would have been well over $1,000!!

Tomorrow my Mom, my sister, and myself are taking my Dad to his heart Dr. appt. They will be discussing whether they will be giving him a defribillator. So, that is why so many of us are going. Dad does not ask questions, he just listens to the Dr. (or pretneds to listen) than comes home and pretty much forgets everything that happened at the dr.'s office. So, I will be driving all of us there, and they will all donate money to me for gas, so that will be frugal. (I guess)

Well, keep up the frugalness!!

Oh, yeah, I filed my taxes online, that saved a big fee to file at an accoutants office.

[ethansamuel]

Ericka,

Your new home sounds lovely! I love roosters too and have them in my kitchen also. Good luck on everything and I hope your dh finds the part you needs for your furnace! It will be so nice for you to be right there at your Mom's next to your horses and all.

[justEricka]

mom2-4- our trailer now is just set on concet blocks on the ground. we used the cinder type blocks. it moves some in the wind..ok..alot in the wind...and it scares me. they tell me with the peirs it wont move much at all. so im hopeing. the trailer needs some work..the tolits need put in, the sink put in the cabinate, adn hooked up, and the range hood addded. i want to paint my living room, and maybe my kitchen, but im not sure. other than that..its just a nail here, or a door hung there. and its all there..the guy who we are buying it from, is just tired of working on it. so we get a great deal. its gonna be good. the only bad so far, is the cost of setting it up...300 deposit to the elect company, and the time to have it done, plus 300 for a meter loope. but that shouldnt be a huge problem to find. my bil and nephew in law are doing my electric and my water so its gonna be cheaper. i cant wait to just have it set out there, and ready to start on. its great.

my goals now are to get the furnature i want..the stuff we have now is ratty and yucky and we want diffrnt..not new..but diffrrnt. ive bought the girls a bed the same way mom 2 4 did..we paid it off like that too. its like 120 days same as cash. its a good thing if your going to have the money. i like to do that just to get the new things i cant afford off the top.

still no furnace..its still a bit chilly but joes going to get a part it needs now..he has the blower fixed..now the pipe needs redone..its going to be warm tonight..lol
have a good day
ericka

[justEricka]

looking for frugal storage and decorating ideas for new trailer...

here is the link to my frugal decorating idea thread..im looking for anything you all think would work. thanks in advance

have a good day
ericka

[mom2-4]

Oh, joesbaby, than you will be happy living in an anchored down home. Ours sways very little. Actually less than the two story home we lived in before. But, we do have a line of trees behind and trailers on either side of us so that may block alot of the wind, and keep us from shifting.

We also like buying our furniture like that with the rent-to-own. The best thing about it for us is that we have bought so much from them and paid it off early, that we even get a 15% discount. So the store really isn't making much money off of us, but, we are not paying much more than we would at a regular store. Except a used store! Which is still how I buy my couches, used!!