What small things did you do TODAY to save money?

[footenote]

We have a few thousand bucks left in our vacation budget and planned to use it to take a trip over Thanksgiving week.  Decided to staycation instead.

- Pulled out our museum passes (we donate $$ to a few local ones) for entertainment.
- Used hubby's Passport card (free work perk) for a 1\2 price lunch out.
- Busted out our little stash of discount movie tickets (costco) to see Catching Fire.
- Found some city hikes to do.

We've kicked off a nice relaxing week off, without spending much at all. No plane, hotel, or petsitter needed.

SIS - That is KickAss. 

[sunshine]

My guys shot 3 deer

[nikki]

Yesterday I had my monthly book club meeting (which I walked to rather than going two subway stops), and had mentally agreed to spend 7,000w on a set with two empanadas and coffee. I still got the set, but ended up giving the coffee to another book clubber (saving her 1,000w) and getting a couple pćo de queijo to try and share. After people gave me their share, I spent 6,000w (and that's with covering 500w for someone else to try the pćo de queijo), putting me at 1,000w less than I assumed.

Yes, I'm writing in detail about a savings of less than $1USD :-p

[zinethstache]

I accepted a treadmill "back" that I had already returned to my mom. She decided she really, really will not use it. I am working through some medical issues and need to be doing controlled walking so I took it back. I had already been surfing craigslist with a budget of $150. Sooo glad this topic came up and now Im in business for $0. She is glad to get it out of her garage!

Made more holiday gifts. Have a plan for all but my step dad. Need to think of something clever for him. I make logos and designs out of heat press vinyl so I am only limited by what I can create in my cutting program:)

[sheepstache]

* reading books from my boyfriend's bookshelves (he has every single Georgette Heyer Regency romance)

This is amazing.  I can only assume you haven't yet married him because of some convoluted yet adorable social impediment that he is applying his wits to solving.  At some point before you kiss he may have to fence/spar* and then you will live happily ever after.
(Actually my favorites are Black Sheep where he wins through a business deal and These Old Shades where he wins through telling a story, but you know what I mean, there is always some sort of competition in which he wins.)

[Cromacster]

Friday: Went out to dinner with wife, used a gift card we had (50$).  Overall we spent 20$ of our own money, I suppose we could have been more conservative and just stayed within the gift card, but this place has such good beer :).

Hosted friends for dinner Saturday night.  Everything we ate and drank was stuff we've had lying around.  Smoked some ribs, cooked squash and other veggies.  Drank beer that has been around for a few months (glad alot of it is gone now).

Cost of stuff we ate and drank: 20-30, cost it would been if we went out to eat...probably over 100.

Then Sunday, I wanted pizza, so instead of ordering a pizza I made one from scratch.  I had everything I needed already other than sausage.  So on our usual Sunday grocery run I got some sausage.

Cost of stuff I used: 10, cost it would have been if I ordered pizza, probably 25$

Good weekend!

[4alpacas]

Small trip to the grocery store today ($15) and took out a few things to defrost for the week. Food cost for the week should be very low.

[acroy]

Brought lunch to work instead of using the employer-sponsored canteen. Maybe $2 savings. But it adds up!

[bexrayx91]

sold some things on the local classifieds, and drank homebrewed coffee(.23cents/serving) instead of the daily energy drink($2.25/serving) I used to drink.

[_JT]

Picked out the one bag of grain-free dog food Tractor Supply had in stock that was damaged, and got them to discount it for me. So, healthy awesome dog food made from ingredients I would eat myself knocked down from 37 bucks to 20 bucks for a 30lb bag.

[mm31]

Bought a 50-pound bag of rice.Should last us 6-9 months.

Cooked rice, with eggplant, tomato sauce  and pork. All from our reserves.

Prepared 2 loaves of bread for tomorrow.

[happy]

Today I:
Parked outside the paying parking station and walked up the hill to work.
Brought my own lunch into work.
Baked bread for lunches.

[NeverWasACornflakeGirl]

Working from home!

1.  No commuting time or cost
2.  No $ for breakfast, snacks, or lunch
3.  No fancy clothes
4.  No bail $ needed for attacking annoying coworkers  ;-)

[bexrayx91]

Waited until free dryer day at the laundromat to cut our laundry price in half

[Debbie M]

* reading books from my boyfriend's bookshelves (he has every single Georgette Heyer Regency romance)

This is amazing.  I can only assume you haven't yet married him because of some convoluted yet adorable social impediment that he is applying his wits to solving.  At some point before you kiss he may have to fence/spar* and then you will live happily ever after.
(Actually my favorites are Black Sheep where he wins through a business deal and These Old Shades where he wins through telling a story, but you know what I mean, there is always some sort of competition in which he wins.)

I quite like your fantasy (so I won't disillusion you).  My favorite so far is The Corinthian because it's funny all the way through.  I also like the mysterious ones.  Like how does she fall for this guy who's quite possibly a serial rapist (Venetia; because he's very fun conversationalist who changes his ways).

Today's:
* checked some online sources to see if they want some books I want to get rid of (no)
* made a single-page list of staples and started researching prices on the ones where I'm no longer sure of the best place to get them
* walked everywhere
* did exercise video at home
* ate my own cooking

[mm1970]

Didn't go shopping.  I'm out of a few things, but traffic was so bad I ran out of time.

[NinetyFour]

First the not-so-good news:

Spent $31.51 on chocolate made here in my home town, to give to a family I will be visiting for Thanksgiving.
Spent $3.90 on coffee and a plain bagel at a local coffee shop.
Spent $5.24 on peanut butter.

Now the good news:

Used a coupon that allowed me to get one pound of free fudge along with my chocolate purchase.
Brought my own peanut butter to the coffee shop to put on their bagel (the pb they use has trans fat, I think).
Got a free refill of coffee at the coffee shop.
Charged up my laptop and my phone at the coffee shop.
Biked everywhere today.
Went to the library to get some (free) DVDs.
Cooked my own lunch/dinner.
Mailed a form in order to get reimbursed for a recent work-related trip.

[JessieImproved]

Took a PBJ to the office.  Rockin' it elementary school style.

[Charlotte]

Returned the extended warranty plan I bought last week. Saved $50!

Vowed never to buy an extended warranty again. Priceless!

[Astromarine]

switched back to my company's phone contract, giving me 80 bucks a month of free calls. That means I cancelled my 110 buck a month unlimited data cadillac plan I was paying for myself.

Yeah, I don't know why I didn't do that earlier either.

[ace1224]

drank horrid work coffee instead of buying spendy coffee bc i was out at home.  the whole point is caffeine anyways. 

[aglassman]

drank horrid work coffee instead of buying spendy coffee bc i was out at home.  the whole point is caffeine anyways.

That's dedication.  What is it with work coffee?  Can't they just spend a few extra bucks a year to give employees some good coffee?  Every job I've ever had has had terrible terrible diesel like coffee, and powdered sadness (aka powdered creamer).

I understand in big companies where if you cut the coffee budget for the entire company, you could save a few grand, but small companies, COMMON! Only maybe a few hundred bucks MAX to make your employees morning just a  little bit nicer.

[swick]

decided to make scalloped potatoes from scratch instead of cheating and paying someone else to do the work...proceeded to slice the tip of my finger off on a mandolin.

On the bright side was able to stop the bleeding with essential oils and goldenseal and save time and money on a trip to the hospital...so...win?

[sunshine]

Bought a 2 for 1 subscription as a gift.

[Elaine]

worked out at home and as always made a home cooked meal and packed lunches for me and my SO.

[LWYRUP]

Resisted the urge to grab a coffee and sausage, egg and cheese sandwich this morning.  Ate steel cut oats and drank black tea at home.

Savings = $7.00

[Bearded Man]

Switched to landlords insurance, which was going to cost me more, except I called the wrong insurance company by accident (clicked on goodle ad instead of the search results on my phone) and ended up saving 75%!!!

Also got my high speed internet bill cut down 40% while maintaining the same level of service.

[Russ]

gave egg nog the middle finger at the grocery store today... gonna try and make my own, we'll see how that goes

went to the library

[Seppie]

Finally switched auto and home insurance to a cheaper company, plus dropped comp/collision on our two old cars.  Long overdue, and our monthly cost is now less than half of what is was before.

[lbdance]

Used purely leftovers for dinner tonight. Which is great as we have visitors coming for the weekend which usually means leftovers don't get eaten.
Have planned to do a home-cooked birthday meal at the weekend (with the visitors) which saves us all going out to dinner :)

[Bbqmustache]

A couple things this week:  We have one of those nice programmable thermostats that can wake you up in a warm house, then cool down when you went to work, warm up again when you got home, cool down after you fell asleep.  Well, as I am home now during the cool period (65f) and survive, I have locked it at 65 all the time.  Gas furnace running about 86% efficiency.  56 therms used Nov 2012, 54 in Nov this year.  Running this experiment beginning in late November, I am looking forward to seeing my year to year in December.

On another note, I have a blip on my frequent shopper card that lets me buy a free BBQ chicken or Hawaiian pizza every time I am in the store until Dec 3rd.  Freezer filling up with pizza, slowly.

[dadof4]

Ate leftover turkey (which I got for free by consolidating trips and going over $140 at the supermarket). It turns out it CAN get even drier than it was last night :)

Changed contribution level, so I'll max out the 401k for 2013. That will also have a side effect of lowering the money collecting < 1% APR in the emergency fund, which I've also been planning to do.

[lizzzi]

Took 40-minute walk in park across road from my house, instead of going anywhere in the car. Flatly refused to do any Black Friday shopping, either online or in person.

[lizzzi]

Took $5,000 out of face-punch bank savings account (already have enough in emergency fund) and bought VBMFX. (I already started VTSAX a week or so ago--guess I'm a boglehead now.  :D

[Charlotte]

I'm not sure this counts....

But I bought movie tickets for myself, my sister in law and a few nephews yesterday --  $32.50
Everyone was on their own for snacks -- about $15 each! Ouch!

I did not get snacks, so I *saved* $15 ??? (my SIL offered to buy, but I am just not a snacks at the movies person).

[davisgang90]

Stayed home on Thanksgiving and Black Friday, made all my yummy meals from scratch.

[BZB]

Took my sick mom to the emergency room per doctor's request (of course doctor office was closed because of day after Thanksgiving). I had enough time to prepare, so instead of buying lunch at the café near the hospital I brought a delicious turkey sandwich and other Thanksgiving leftovers. Didn't even buy a coffee. The café gave me hot water in my travel mug and I had some instant coffee. I saved about $8. And luckily mom just has a virus and hopefully will get better soon. Sadly this trip to the ER was not a money saver for her.

[nikki]

I went to an out-of-town conference today and didn't buy anything except transportation. I packed a lunch and my water bottle, and enjoyed the Thanksgiving dinner buffet I paid for in advance. Holy smokes was that amazing food, by the way. Thanksgiving done right--in South Korea!

I also left earlier than the colleagues I was chatting the night away with, skipping out on expensive (but fun) drinks and ensuring I made it home in time to make the subway (about $14 cheaper than taking a taxi from the train station).

I probably saved at least $30 just by planning ahead and making frugal choices.

[Itchin4Scratch]

We made all of our Christmas ornaments out of craft supplies we already had instead of buying ornaments.

[Debbie M]

* wearing a sweater, socks, and shoes instead of turning on the heat
* ate leftovers instead of eating brunch out
* transferred enough money to max out my HSA saving me 15% in taxes
* made a list of things to pack for my trip (if I don't forget anything, I don't have to buy for higher prices at my destination); found list from similar trip years ago to make it even more likely I won't forget anything important
* one of the things on that list is a list I made of things to look for at Aldi, which we will visit on the way back (there's one at the port city now, but not in my city) (and yes, we are remembering to bring our own shopping bags)
* reserved parking space near cruise port online for $5 discount; found discount code online to use for an additional $5 discount
* wrote to people I'll be working for soon to let them know I'll be out of town and away from the internet so they don't freak out if I don't answer them next week
(* remembered to take my pocket knife off my keyring so it doesn't get confiscated; then remembered I don't have to worry about that since I'm not taking a plane anywhere!)

[NinetyFour]

I ate breakfast at home BEFORE heading to the coffee shop.  Yes, I spent $2.05 on coffee, but since my stomach was full, I was not tempted to buy any food there.  And yes, it is anti-mustachian at some level to go out for coffee, but I had been in my house for two days and needed to get out and be among people (mental health!). Also got to charge my phone and my laptop (and not heat my house) while I was at the shop.  Oh, and I found a penny on the street on the way home, so the coffee only cost $2.04.  Plus I got a free refill.

[nottoolatetostart]

Continued eating Thanksgiving leftovers over the last few days.

For dinner last night, instead of thawing a chicken breast for dinner (costs more), made a big veggie salad so we were able to use up a few ingredients and clear out the fridge. I get twitches when my fridge is too full.

We also spent a bit of time outside raking up leaves yesterday - rather than hiring someone to do it like our neighbors have done (& my MIL suggested over Thanksgiving). Got some fresh air, a little exercise, and some family time outside while the weather was nice for a change.
We might do it again this afternoon.

Menu planning a bunch of economical, vegetarian meals while hubby is out of town for work and will avoid shopping at the store - using whatever is in the pantry.

[LWYRUP]

Wrote my wife a love letter as a birthday gift instead of buying something.

[NinetyFour]

Did my errands by bicycle instead of with car.  After grocery shopping, my backpack was so heavy, I had to bike home and unload and then go back out again to do my last errand.

[Rural]

Baked cookies from what I found in the pantry and freezer (banana nut oatmeal cookies with apple chunks were the result, and they're fab). Ate leftover Thanksgiving for supper, though there's still some of my homemade cranberry sauce left, so that will be going into muffins.

[C. K.]

Suggested making a home-cooked meal with a relative who prefers eating out. I've only recently figured this out, but she equates dining at restaurants with success and homemade food with failure.

She accepted the idea b/c her funds are tight. Why are they tight? B/c half her income is gone and yet she keeps spending much of it at restaurants or on snack food at gas stations during her commute. The kicker is she doesn't even like the food at most of the places she chooses!

I mention this not to condemn her; I'm just shocked. I use this person as a reminder to scour my own motives for every single thing I do. It's frightening that you might be sabotaging yourself.

[fmzip]

Gave my wife a french manicure with a DIY kit :)

This is my second attempt. She is pleased with the result as am I with the $$$'s saved!

Investing in a cheap magnifying glass to improve on my skills...

[anastrophe]

Going after work to return a $20 sweater that didn't fit, I can only get store credit, but they sell socks too:)

A previous me would have let the 7-day return period lapse and then given the sweater away for free.

[NinetyFour]

I walked to work today.  And brought lunch.

Saw a glimmer on the street at one point, and spied a penny.  When I got closer, I saw that it was surrounded by 14 OTHERS!!  Then  10 minutes later, I found another penny.  So I actually MADE 16 CENTS on my morning commute.  Yes!!

[Bigote]

Bought a 14lb turkey for $8, roasted it, bagged it, and put it in the freezer.   Slow cooker is making stock out of the carcass as I write this.