What small things did you do TODAY to save money?

[Lauran75]

Figured out how to turn off booze rebates in ibotta. (I've used them once or twice, but they're crowding out useful groceries now that it's holiday time.)

For anyone interested: In app, tap hamburger nav (3 horizontal stripes in top-left corner), tap gear (top-right corner), go to Preferences, and swipe all the way to bottom. Switch setting to Off, click Save, enter password, and finally done.

Now if only there were an option to turn off babies, pets, and junk food...

Thank you! I'll add to your instructions though ... you have to log out and then log back in for the change to register. I don't drink, nor know anyone who does ... so to be rid of those without having to click "not interested" 50 million times ... Incredible!

[Kwill]

Made up a list of things I have that could be wrapped up and given to family members for Christmas instead of buying new things. I'm not sure I'm going to do it, but I'm seriously tempted.

I did this one year, but we were young and suuuuper broke so we could get away with it :-). And some of them were things that were actually on the person's list, like a griddle pan for my sister and hot rollers for my mom. And some of them were board games.

I called and talked to my parents today. I think I'm going to do it. I've most likely got a major move coming up, and it's been something of a lean year. I'd bought a few used books here and there because they seemed like things my nieces might like, so children's books for them, a crockpot as a late gift for my Mom's birthday, a pretty box and maybe a plant and a Christmas CD for Mom for Christmas, a projector for Dad to use with his laptop (sidewalk find earlier this year--I just bought a power cord and a cord to attach it to the computer), and books and Christmas CDs for my siblings. I might throw in some new decorative soaps or hand lotions or candles or something, and I'll probably buy new things for friends and grandparents.

[Tyson]

Signed up for Vonage.  And switched over our Internet from Century Link to Comcast.  Before we had Internet and phone bundled with Century Link, but holy crap they had a lot of hidden fees that drove the price of their service WAY up over what their salespeople quoted me when I signed up.  Put up with it for a couple of months and now I'm kicking them to the curb.  Should save me about $70 per month AND I'll be getting even faster speeds than with CL.  Win-Win, for sure. 

[horsepoor]

Bought a new dog door for our sliding glass door today.  It's much better fitted than the old one and prevents drafts.  Used a 10% off coupon, a Coinstar voucher and a store credit to pay for most of it.

It was DH's birthday and he opted to eat in instead of a fancy restaurant, so spent probably 25% as much to have some nice steaks, drinks and fancy cheeses as compared to going to the steak house downtown.

Donated a bunch of stuff to a thrift shop that qualifies for state and federal tax write-off, and more stuff to Re-Store for the federal write-off.

Got my new tires installed on my car.  70,000 mile warranty with no time limit.  Bought them for a good price from tirerack.com and had them installed at the place that offered the best install prices.  Shouldn't need tires again for a loooong time.

[Zaga]

My iPhone is dying an inexorable death, so I'm phone shopping.  I found a basic smart phone available on my plan for $108, which has all the capabilities that I use.  I really don't need the fancy iPhone anyways!

[Joggernot]

Visitors came in last night...

Edit: forgot to mention that he is an electrician and I just happen to have a ceiling fixture that needs fixing.  I don't want a redneck fix...;)

Follow up: I now have a working ceiling fixture done for $4.99 in parts.  They also bought a couple of my wood carvings as Christmas gifts for friends, so I'm $40 richer.  Yea!

[ShaneD]

* Wasn't very hungry yesterday, so ended up fasting most of the day, then only eating half the dinner we'd made. I'll finish what was leftover for lunch today.
* Started measuring certain things that are really easy to over-pour -- like half and half, olive oil, vinegar. Not being particular or scientific, but pouring olive oil a few times onto a spoon only takes a few more seconds than glugging it straight onto salad and saves a few cents (and calories).
* As part of relocation process, been calculating every known financial variable using 10 different scenarios (including differing income levels) to (hopefully) get a good idea of what different locations should (or could approximately) cost. Finally finishing that spreadsheet up today.
* Been watching old movies free off YouTube lately. Last night was His Girl Friday.

Figured out how to turn off booze rebates in ibotta. (I've used them once or twice, but they're crowding out useful groceries now that it's holiday time.)

For anyone interested: In app, tap hamburger nav (3 horizontal stripes in top-left corner), tap gear (top-right corner), go to Preferences, and swipe all the way to bottom. Switch setting to Off, click Save, enter password, and finally done.

Now if only there were an option to turn off babies, pets, and junk food...

Thank you! I'll add to your instructions though ... you have to log out and then log back in for the change to register. I don't drink, nor know anyone who does ... so to be rid of those without having to click "not interested" 50 million times ... Incredible!

Ooh, yes -- good point. Change didn't take at first, but I'd had to walk away for a few minutes, and when I got back, the app updated. So it's not instantaneous. Good idea on restarting.

I'm disappointed, though: so far, it hasn't resulted in more non-alcohol rebates; just more rebates in general. Hoping that'll improve soon. (I've got zero Any Brands right now!)

[Kitsune]

My husband requested butter chicken last night (while we had house guests) and I managed to pull it together with freezer/pantry ingredients, all of which are bought on sale.

I am making a turkey dinner for 6 tonight (turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans). All ingredients bought on sale and from the pantry/freezer. Total cost: 15CAD, and I'm expecting leftovers.

Went to the library and took out 3 books that were on my Amazon wish list (Amazon would have charged 68$ for them). We also got a pile of books for our toddler, and a book of stir-fry sauces (healthy veggie-filled dinners made quickly!!)

Found an old white sheet to cover the box spring in the guest room: looks much better, didn't buy a bed skirt, didn't cost anything.

Used old stained fabric to sew and modify the base pattern for a tank top, and then sewed the modified pattern out of flannel I bought on sale. It is warm, soft, fits like a glove, looks great under cardigans/sweaters/Blazers, and the fabric cost me 10$... And now I can use the same pattern in other fabrics to sew up tops that fit perfectly, with about an hour of effort each time. Best part: that's an hour while watching Jessica Jones on Netflix. :)

[mustachepungoeshere]

I've been absent here for a little.

We had been busy so I didn't have a chance to post, then last Tuesday my husband found out he is being made redundant on December 31.

It's a very long and complicated process, the company has not followed protocol, the media union is now involved, and it is an absolute clusterfuck. My husband's entire department was sold off as part of a joint venture with a new company. He and his team were promised three months of contract work from January, then "the intention" (the language they are using) is for the new company to hire them. But no promises.

I know this isn't the right thread for such a discussion but we've spent a few days coming to terms with it. I will eventually write a much more detailed post (elsewhere) to ask for input on our plans and how to manage his redundancy payout, but this one of my favourite threads on the forum and it feels like a safe space.

Back to the topic at hand:

- Called our telecommunications company and combined our phone bills to share data and cut out phone expenses by about $50/month.

- Picked up my $10 eBay blockout vertical blinds, swapped them out in 10 minutes, and have spent the past two weeks basking in the darkness of my bedroom. (I have been so proud of this. $10 has made a world of difference to the quality of our sleep.)

There have been others but it was hard to keep track when I got out of the habit of updating every day.

Edited for punctuation.

[dudde_devaru]

Researched a lot for our Disney/Hollywood trip this month and finally found discounted Disney gift cards in target. Saved $30 on 2 tickets :D

[G-dog]

I've been absent here for a little.

We had been busy so I didn't have a chance to post, then last Tuesday my husband found out he is being made redundant on December 31.

It's a very long and complicated process, the company has not followed protocol, the media union is now involved, and it is an absolute clusterfuck. My husband's entire department was sold off as part of a joint venture with a new company. He and his team were promised three months of contract work from January, then "the intention" (the language they are using" is for the new company to hire them. But no promises.

I know this isn't the right thread for such a discussion but we've spent a few days coming to terms with it. I will eventually write a much more detailed post (elsewhere) to ask for input on our plans and how to manage his redundancy payout, but this one of my favourite threads on the forum and it feels like a safe space.

Back to the topic at hand:

- Called our telecommunications company and combined our phone bills to share data and cut out phone expenses by about $50/month.

- Picked up my $10 eBay blockout vertical blinds, swapped them out in 10 minutes, and have spent the past two weeks basking in the darkness of my bedroom. (I have been so proud of this. $10 has made a world of difference to the quality of our sleep.)

There have been others but it was hard to keep track when I got out of the habit of updating every day.

Sorry about the layoff - no matter what happens, I know you will make it through strong. But, I do hope it all works out easily and well for you.

[Kwill]

We had been busy so I didn't have a chance to post, then last Tuesday my husband found out he is being made redundant on December 31.
... I will eventually write a much more detailed post (elsewhere) to ask for input on our plans and how to manage his redundancy payout, but this one of my favourite threads on the forum and it feels like a safe space.

Good luck with everything. I hope it turns out better than expected.

I always go for brunch on Sundays with church friends, but today I ate breakfast and had coffee early in the morning at home so that I could skip buying coffee and order a lunch item. That saved a dollar or two, and I wasn't hungry again until dinner when I had leftovers.

I went through some boxes and got rid of some old papers. In the process, I located some printouts and drafts that should save me time and trouble since I would have eventually had to redo them. No actual money was found, but there was stationery that is usable.

[QuirkyNurse]

I finally took a plunge - I hated my old hospital, and decided to switch to one closer to. I was expecting to take a paycut, but ended up getting a raise, and now I can bike to work! I could bike the 10 miles to and 10 miles from my job, but it was kind of a drag. This new place is 4 miles, which is a much more manageable commute.

So, I biked to work this morning! Hopefully this a trend to continue.

I'm terrible about buying coffee out, so no only did I make coffee this morning, I remembered to grab it off my counter.

Despite not grocery shopping in 2+ weeks, I was able to scrounge up a healthy lunch. I try to eat fairly low-carb, and there aren't a lot of low-carb options at the cafeteria, so that helps my decision making too.

I've been slowly emptying my freezer and keeping my fridge empty to avoid food waste - I pulled out cream cheese stuffed, bacon wrapped chicken breasts for tonight, yum!

And tonight will be a night in, so no money spending there. I've gotta sew up some new scrub hats, which will keep me occupied and away from tempting stores.

[ohana]

I had $25 in rewards from my Visa (which I never use, it took years to get enough in there to redeem it); so I redeemed it for cash and bought one share in my Prosper account.

[Bracken_Joy]

We had been busy so I didn't have a chance to post, then last Tuesday my husband found out he is being made redundant on December 31.
... I will eventually write a much more detailed post (elsewhere) to ask for input on our plans and how to manage his redundancy payout, but this one of my favourite threads on the forum and it feels like a safe space.

Wishing you the best! And I agree- this thread is like a comfy living room where everyone gathers to chat.

I've been working on my hypermiling techniques. No stunning successes yet, but I am about 1.5mpg higher than usual on the drive I've been making.

[Zaga]

Ate leftover beans and rice for lunch, with a bit of avocado and salsa on top. 

[albireo13]

Checked my State Farm auto policies and found they had too many of my children on them.  My daughter had moved out last summer.
Premium should drop a bit.

[JLee]

Checked my State Farm auto policies and found they had too many of my children on them.  My daughter had moved out last summer.
Premium should drop a bit.

They might backdate that and issue you a refund, if you ask nicely.  I removed a vehicle from my policy (Progressive) and when I told the CSR that I had forgotten/neglected to call the day I dropped coverage, she offered to backdate the change for me so I would end up paying less.

[4alpacas]

Packed breakfast, lunch and snacks from home.  Most of the food was leftovers from a potluck with friends.
Made tea at work instead of buying something.
Ran outside instead of going to a gym (cancelled my gym membership about 5 months ago)
Youtube AM yoga routine in my living room this morning (spending a lot less on yoga studios)

[1967mama]

1) Made a big pot of chicken-vegetable-rice soup for dinner and made 2 loaves of bread.

2) Drank 2 big mugs of tea at home.

3) Trying to read this forum more often to motivate myself.

4) Trying really hard to hold back on Christmas buying.

5) My mom did some knitting for me to take to a "bring a homemade gift" party .. she was glad to do it too! She says it keeps her busy.

[ShaneD]

We had been busy so I didn't have a chance to post, then last Tuesday my husband found out he is being made redundant on December 31.

It's a very long and complicated process, the company has not followed protocol, the media union is now involved, and it is an absolute clusterfuck. My husband's entire department was sold off as part of a joint venture with a new company. He and his team were promised three months of contract work from January, then "the intention" (the language they are using) is for the new company to hire them. But no promises.

I know this isn't the right thread for such a discussion but we've spent a few days coming to terms with it. I will eventually write a much more detailed post (elsewhere) to ask for input on our plans and how to manage his redundancy payout, but this one of my favourite threads on the forum and it feels like a safe space.

Goodness, mustachepungoeshere. I hope all works out well, and the process isn't too difficult. Best wishes to you both.

I finally took a plunge - I hated my old hospital, and decided to switch to one closer to. I was expecting to take a paycut, but ended up getting a raise, and now I can bike to work!

That's excellent.


Today:
* Shorted the scoops a bit while making coffee.
* Signed up for a new health plan for next year, saving $80/month and getting lower co-pays.
* Went to look at options for business gifts for my small business and found a promo for 25% off and free shipping that ends today. I wasn't going to order until later in the week, but hurried up instead and saved $200.
* Threw some deli meat into freezer so it won't go bad.

[mustachepungoeshere]

Thank you for the encouragement after the redundancy, guys. We're getting more information every day, which helps. The uncertainty is the worse part. I have posted a full breakdown of budget and redundancy in Ask a Mustachian for anyone interested in a play-by-play.

My small things today:

- Used a small brush to use up the remnants of a near-empty lip balm.

- Caught two cabs for work instead of using my own car. (They reimburse me for cabs but not fuel.)

[QuirkyNurse]

ShaneD thank you!

*got up at 5 am to make coffee and breakfast - I've adopted the "laying everything out the night before method", and it's really helped my organization, and helped me stick to my goals. My free-spirit is suffering, though.

*gathered together all my gift cards, bonus points, promotions, and sales coupons - hopefully Christmas won't cost me too much cash.

*had to buy new glasses because mine broke and insurance hasn't kicked in yet (boo.) Luckily, the place I went to had a BO-GO deal that still applies, even if you need fancy Nikon-drill high-tech hella-expensive lenses! So 2 pairs of high quality glasses for one price - that's a rough $350 savings for me.

*made a grocery list on Ibotta, and plan to try it out tonight. Does anyone else have experience/good results with this app or any others like it?

[AgentCooper]

I’m sure this is super basic to most people, but it’s new for us.  Our electrical bill usually jumps from $100 -$150 per month up to $200-$275 per month during winter.  Had our first really cold night last night (29 is about as low as it gets in southern Louisiana).

So this winter we tried something different:  We used about one week’s worth of electricity bill money to purchase two sets of long-sleeved, long-pants pajamas for each person in the house.  Then turned the heat setting from 73 down to 60.  It kicked on for the first time in the wee hours last night, for about 5 minutes.  It was 29 outside, 60 inside.  When we’re chilly in the evenings, we are now adding socks and layers rather than running to turn the heat on.  In previous mild winters, before reading MMM, I would have worn shorts and short-sleeves all year inside, and gone barefoot, and would have just adjusted the thermostat to match my wardrobe.

And now, the payoff:  My electric bill is way, way down already. 

Recently we replaced all traditional bulbs with CFLs, tried to leave the thermostat set to "off" as much as possible (both when it is hot out and when it is cold out), and started using pajamas and cozy clothing inside during the cold days instead of turning on the electric central heating. 

Electric bill comparison between this year and last year for my house:
Date Range: 11/2/14 to 12/2/14 vs 11/3/15 to 12/4/15
Days:  30 vs 31 (1 extra day this year)
Total charge:  $183.64 vs. $68.14 (down $115.50 this year for November)
Usage:  2,292 vs 821 (down 1,471 this year)
Avg Usage: 76.40 vs. 26.48 (down 49.91 this year)
Max Temp:  78 F vs 84 F (up 6 F this year)
Min Temp 24 F vs 29 F (up 5 F this year)
Avg Temp 54 F vs 62 F (up 8 F this year)

[AgentCooper]

This weekend we visited another local farmer and bought end-of-season excess goodies for a fantastic price.  Spent an hour listening to him talk of his decades of experience in selling farm goods to the public.  He had a lot of great tips about pricing, the best signs, how to offer a sample, what to expect, etc. 

We took his advice and set up our sales booth, and made back 75% of our money in 4 hours.  Still have plenty left to sell at next weekend's farmers market, plus we can eat all we want and freeze the rest.

He wants us to come back next year and help him all season long. 

If any other Mustachians are farming, don't overlook the wisdom, experience, and generosity of your old farmer neighbors who have been at it forever and know what they are doing. 

[2ndTimer]

Currently drinking coffee made from Costco beans using my French Press with steamed milk made with my otherwise broken espresso machine.  Have the heat on in only the room where I am currently sitting.

[Bracken_Joy]

ShaneD thank you!

*made a grocery list on Ibotta, and plan to try it out tonight. Does anyone else have experience/good results with this app or any others like it?

I use Ibotta pretty regularly. It's an easy way to stock up on things that we would not normally purchase. I've received around $175 from it since last December. The any brand rebates are great because its rare to find coupons on produce and every little bit counts. I also like it a lot for stocking up on alcohol. We like to keep a well stocked bar (cheaper than going out for drinks!) and getting $4-6 off liquor is fantastic. We've been able to stack sales, coupon and the ibotta rebates to get things for free before too.

Just be careful you don't let yourself buy things just to get the rebate.

+1. I also use Ibotta after every trip. I haven't made nearly as much- like $13 since I started a few months ago. But then, we only do every brand purchases and rarely a Bota Box rebate. I also agree- do not let it make you buy something you wouldn't buy otherwise! I don't make a list from Ibotta- I decide what I'm going to buy and treat Ibotta as another coupon. (Okay, I need cream cheese. Let's see- Challenger is on sale through the app. Does that make it cheaper than the store brand cream cheese? If yes, purchase; if no, store brand. But I'm not going to buy cream cheese if I didn't already need it).
------
My savings: DH had his last project presentation and defense for the term yesterday (yay!). Instead of going out to a restaurant or ordering delivery, he picked up a couple of frozen pizzas and beer on the way home (he even used a coupon!). So we fed both of us and Brother for $9 of pizza instead of the $25+ we would have spent pre-MMM ($40+ if we got beers out as well).

[ShaneD]

ShaneD thank you!

*made a grocery list on Ibotta, and plan to try it out tonight. Does anyone else have experience/good results with this app or any others like it?

I use Ibotta pretty regularly. It's an easy way to stock up on things that we would not normally purchase. I've received around $175 from it since last December. The any brand rebates are great because its rare to find coupons on produce and every little bit counts. I also like it a lot for stocking up on alcohol. We like to keep a well stocked bar (cheaper than going out for drinks!) and getting $4-6 off liquor is fantastic. We've been able to stack sales, coupon and the ibotta rebates to get things for free before too.

Just be careful you don't let yourself buy things just to get the rebate.

+1. I also use Ibotta after every trip. I haven't made nearly as much- like $13 since I started a few months ago. But then, we only do every brand purchases and rarely a Bota Box rebate. I also agree- do not let it make you buy something you wouldn't buy otherwise! I don't make a list from Ibotta- I decide what I'm going to buy and treat Ibotta as another coupon. (Okay, I need cream cheese. Let's see- Challenger is on sale through the app. Does that make it cheaper than the store brand cream cheese? If yes, purchase; if no, store brand. But I'm not going to buy cream cheese if I didn't already need it).

Another +1 for ibotta, for all the reasons already provided. That and Savingstar are my top 2.

Savingstar has a weekly produce rebate, and sometimes has brands/items I regularly buy (sometimes not). The big thing I've seen there is that Savingstar rebates often parallel available coupons and available digital coupons at my main supermarket. So if you skip being brand-loyal, you can end up with quite a few freebies or really cheap items by stacking Savingstar with coupons. (I now own a bunch of free moisturizer and body wash.) On rare occasion, it also has a freebie item (like a free Kit Kat the other week). The minimum cash-out price is also low ($5). ETA: I've also gotten small percentages back on online shopping (they include a lot of sites).

I just started trying Mobisave (was on a waiting list for a couple of months), which has mostly things I don't buy, but when something does pop up, it's advantage is that the money goes straight to your PayPal, with no minimum cash-out required.

I just downloaded BerryCart yesterday, actually, which seems like a cross between ibotta and Mobisave. Don't have enough experience yet to give an opinion.

Two I haven't found worth the time for me are Snap and Checkout51. I thought Checkout51, in particular, would be useful, but the vast majority of products on it, I've never heard of and have no access to, let alone would buy. 25 cents each week for 1 produce offer is something, but once I finally hit my minimum on that one, I think I'm going to cash out and scrap it. Snap, approximately the same experience, although it, too, has occasionally produce items. (Got free scallions that way, for example.)

ETA: I should add that there are a bunch of blogs out there dedicated to sharing fortuitous coupon/rebate combos. While I do come up with some of them myself (since everyone's available rebates can vary), this site in particular has been invaluable to me, as they post a lot on my local store: http://www.livingrichwithcoupons.com/ . They cover not just physical coupons but online rebates/cash-back as well.

[Bracken_Joy]

Two I haven't found worth the time for me are Snap and Checkout51. I thought Checkout51, in particular, would be useful, but the vast majority of products on it, I've never heard of and have no access to, let alone would buy. 25 cents each week for 1 produce offer is something, but once I finally hit my minimum on that one, I think I'm going to cash out and scrap it. Snap, approximately the same experience, although it, too, has occasionally produce items. (Got free scallions that way, for example.)

I haven't used Snap, but that is 100% my experience with Checkout51. I thought I would like it because it's not store-specific like Ibotta (I can't do Trader Joe's or Grocery Outlet on Ibotta), but the rebates never seem to cycle and I don't buy anything on there. So I just do the one produce deal each week I remember, and will cash out then delete.

[ShaneD]

Cut open an "empty" plastic squeeze bottle of mustard. Salvaged ~1/3 cup.

[horsepoor]

Charged up Eneloop batteries for my wireless keyboard and fancy bathroom scale instead of using Duracells.

The other day I made pulled pork and instead of throwing away the cooking liquid, stuck it in the fridge.  Just now cut up a cabbage and am pressure cooking it in the liquid, which is full of garlic, chipotle and other delicious flavors.

Skipped a co-worker's retirement sushi luncheon because he'll be having another retirement party in the office next week, so I'll catch him then.

[Jschange]

I got my iud installed...
And even better, I managed the trip there and another trip on one crumpled bus ticket I found when I was cleaning out my wallet last night.

I'm glad to hear the blackout blinds are a success, good luck with your husband's transition

[1967mama]

Took my kids to The Peanuts Movie tonight using BOGO coupons. Bought no snacks there and brought a small (metal) water bottle in my purse. Brought along a granola bar and 2 little candies for each child. Everyone was delighted and we had a fun evening together. The movie was cute, BTW. Will enjoy it again someday when the video comes to the library :-)

[mustachepungoeshere]

Catered work drinks this afternoon.

Heaps of leftovers, so I brought home some chicken sticks, which just became dinner.

[Rural]

Finished my holiday shopping using Amazon gift cards and a (very small)amount of one of the two useless gift cards to a mall department store that somehow manages to carry nothing I'd have and virtually nothing anyone else would either.


Rant alert:
I've tried to use these gift cards more than once. Also they ship USPS only but won't ship to a PO Box so I can't buy anything from the website, which at least has decent pillows.


And most of the resale sites don't do this company's gift cards because they know they suck too.


They do carry a great deal of disposable "fashion" which I'm sure is how they stay in business,

[Cookie78]

Called to change my credit card to one with no fees after realizing I don't spend enough anymore to make the extra cash back cover the annual fee.

[Jakejake]

Formally opted out of the secret santa office gift exchange this year.

I'd rather spend the money to buy myself stuff I actually want - when I find a deal on it and when I want it - than spend time and money on 5 gifts (it runs 5 days!) for someone who might not even appreciate them. And I don't need someone else spending their money to buy me 5 random things that I don't need.

[Kitsune]

Volunteered to make a gluten-free cake for my colleague's baby shower as my contribution. (I can make it using ingredients from my pantry, and it will be way better than what the local bakery markets as gluten-free baked goods.)

[G-dog]

Extending the last of homemade ham and bean and vegetable soup by cooking up some Basmati rice and eating a bit of soup over the rice. The soup is very flavorful, so can use little to nicely flavor the rice. Also, lots of beans, veg, and meat in the soup.

[1967mama]

1) Making 2 loaves of bread a day in the bread machine - one is a regular loaf and one is a fruit bread.

2) Husband got given free NHL hockey tickets so he's taking 3 kids..yay for free!

3) Trying to be consistent in using up the beef we have in the deep freeze (2 sides)

4) Gathering library materials to get them returned on time/no fines

[mustachepungoeshere]

Volunteered to make a gluten-free cake for my colleague's baby shower as my contribution. (I can make it using ingredients from my pantry, and it will be way better than what the local bakery markets as gluten-free baked goods.)

This is my go-to gluten-free cake recipe.

http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/20395/flourless+chocolate+hazelnut+cake

It's always a hit, and it's great if you need to use up half a dozen eggs!

[ShaneD]

Formally opted out of the secret santa office gift exchange this year.

I'd rather spend the money to buy myself stuff I actually want - when I find a deal on it and when I want it - than spend time and money on 5 gifts (it runs 5 days!) for someone who might not even appreciate them. And I don't need someone else spending their money to buy me 5 random things that I don't need.

5?!? That's crazypants.


Did some sale-specific grocery shopping today, that with rebates and coupons included:

* 1 free bag of frozen meatballs (Not something I generally buy, but free is good)
* 1 free facial cleanser
* 1 free bag of snack crackers
* 1 free instant cup of soup (Again not something I'd buy, but for free, it's a snack for DH)

I'm bummed that they didn't have a certain kind of vitamins, though, as that would've come to a $5 profit!

I also ended up picking up 2 big boxes of expiring fancy salad greens on manager's special for 70% off. Took a bit of time to separate out the good food from the slime, and I ended up throwing out about 40% of the total haul. But the work was painless (and I did some paying work in my head while doing it), and at the price we still came out ahead.

[Kitsune]

Volunteered to make a gluten-free cake for my colleague's baby shower as my contribution. (I can make it using ingredients from my pantry, and it will be way better than what the local bakery markets as gluten-free baked goods.)

This is my go-to gluten-free cake recipe.

http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/20395/flourless+chocolate+hazelnut+cake

It's always a hit, and it's great if you need to use up half a dozen eggs!

That's very similar to one of my standbys!

I also use this one:
http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/chocolate-cloud-cake-170 (which is what I made last night - 10 minutes effort, tops, and the ingredients cost about 6$, mostly because I used good chocolate... way cheaper than a gift contribution of 20$, and more appreciated in the end)

And this one is really good! http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/CHOCOLATE-OLIVE-OIL-CAKE-5551

Honestly, extra eggs are way cheaper than rice flour and gluten-free flour blends... and these cakes are EASY and use pantry ingredients. I have no idea why people are so intimidated by gluten-free baking; there are recipes that don't require 8 different kinds of odd flours.

[horsepoor]

Our FoodSaver died a couple months ago and I was trying to compare models this morning.  Determined that the GameSaver model has a longer warranty and is more heavy duty, so went to the FoodSaver website to try to look up specs.  Turns out, they had this model on super sale for $84 with free shipping vs. $110 at Amazon, and the warranty is 10 years vs. 5 years for the fancy stainless countertop model on sale for $130 at CostCo.  Also found a promo code to get a jar sealer from them for $4.99 (I am constantly storing stuff in mason jars).

[Jakejake]

I've been too cheap to buy the countertop foodsaver. I had a handheld one that was on sale at Target a few  years back for ten dollars, free with a ten dollar coupon. But it died - and I figured out I could use a handheld wine sealer over the foodsaver bag circle thingie to suction out the air. It was something I already owned and has no electric parts to break. Attached- a photo of my winesaver putting my foodsaver to rest.

[4alpacas]

Packed my breakfast, lunch and snacks.  All random leftovers. 
Defrosting chicken breasts for dinner.  I bought them on sale a few months ago. 

Volunteered to make a gluten-free cake for my colleague's baby shower as my contribution. (I can make it using ingredients from my pantry, and it will be way better than what the local bakery markets as gluten-free baked goods.)

This is my go-to gluten-free cake recipe.

http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/20395/flourless+chocolate+hazelnut+cake

It's always a hit, and it's great if you need to use up half a dozen eggs!

That's very similar to one of my standbys!

I also use this one:
http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/chocolate-cloud-cake-170 (which is what I made last night - 10 minutes effort, tops, and the ingredients cost about 6$, mostly because I used good chocolate... way cheaper than a gift contribution of 20$, and more appreciated in the end)

And this one is really good! http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/CHOCOLATE-OLIVE-OIL-CAKE-5551

Honestly, extra eggs are way cheaper than rice flour and gluten-free flour blends... and these cakes are EASY and use pantry ingredients. I have no idea why people are so intimidated by gluten-free baking; there are recipes that don't require 8 different kinds of odd flours.

I'm not gluten free, but I love dense chocolate desserts.  I've only had them at restaurants, so I'm excited to try to make one at home.

[ShaneD]

Two I haven't found worth the time for me are Snap and Checkout51. I thought Checkout51, in particular, would be useful, but the vast majority of products on it, I've never heard of and have no access to, let alone would buy. 25 cents each week for 1 produce offer is something, but once I finally hit my minimum on that one, I think I'm going to cash out and scrap it. Snap, approximately the same experience, although it, too, has occasionally produce items. (Got free scallions that way, for example.)

I haven't used Snap, but that is 100% my experience with Checkout51. I thought I would like it because it's not store-specific like Ibotta (I can't do Trader Joe's or Grocery Outlet on Ibotta), but the rebates never seem to cycle and I don't buy anything on there. So I just do the one produce deal each week I remember, and will cash out then delete.

Checkout51 must have heard us: this week's options I've mostly heard of! Still little I'd personally buy (maybe some Raisin Bran for DH), but much more friendly to the average bear this week.


My small things today:
* Woke up feeling lousy with aching sinuses, so going to save money by not eating today.
* Got a robo-call saying we still needed to sign up for healthcare, which we'd already done. Checked account online, and yep, we're fine. Discovered that new insurance will take credit cards, though (last one wouldn't), so happily our health insurance is going to earn points for cash this year.

[OmahaSteph]

Had a lunch date but instead of ordering an entire meal, I packed leftovers and just ordered a chai latte while out (hush, I know that was bad enough).

Logged into Mint to check budgets.

Browsed the MMM forums to find end-of-the-year tips and things I can start in the new year.

Oh! And yesterday I changed my filing status on my W-4 when I discovered it would put me in a lower tax bracket.

[cats]

Received a gift certificate for Starbucks, I don't drink coffee and their pastries are shitty, so I just listed it for sale online.  Would rather have $20 than spend $25 on crap pastries and/or hot cocoa that my waistline could do without.

Also just listed an electronics doo-dad that I was gifted but have zero interest in using on Craigslist.

Hopefully these will both move fast and then that will be my Christmas budget taken care of!

[Threshkin]

Free pizza and beer for dinner!

A local business incubator holds a monthly event where startups pitch their business.  The presentations are interesting and unlimited (within reason) pizza and beer is provided.

I found this event through a Meetup group.