Author Topic: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?  (Read 8021187 times)

4alpacas

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9650 on: September 26, 2017, 09:47:59 AM »
Hosted a sushi party with friends.  We spent about $50 in ingredients and fed 11 people. (Someone else brought dumplings, another person brought brownies, and we did BYOB.)

Going out for sushi costs my husband and I about $40- so this was a great time with our neighbors.!

Plus I have leftover sushi for lunch today.
That sounds awesome!

Packed lunch, made tea at home.
I made my first loaf of bread in our breadmaker over the weekend, and we've been having easy dinners this week (avocado toast with eggs and balsamic vinegar).
Made dog treats (froze plain yogurt with a few bits of kibble sprinkled in)

honeybbq

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9651 on: September 26, 2017, 11:43:44 AM »
Hosted a sushi party with friends.  We spent about $50 in ingredients and fed 11 people. (Someone else brought dumplings, another person brought brownies, and we did BYOB.)

Going out for sushi costs my husband and I about $40- so this was a great time with our neighbors.!

Plus I have leftover sushi for lunch today.
That sounds awesome!

Packed lunch, made tea at home.
I made my first loaf of bread in our breadmaker over the weekend, and we've been having easy dinners this week (avocado toast with eggs and balsamic vinegar).
Made dog treats (froze plain yogurt with a few bits of kibble sprinkled in)

I just got a free breadmaker on our local buy nothing group. I'm so intimidated to use it... do you have an easy recipe to share? I downloaded the user manual but it was hundreds of pages.....

4alpacas

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9652 on: September 26, 2017, 11:57:39 AM »
Hosted a sushi party with friends.  We spent about $50 in ingredients and fed 11 people. (Someone else brought dumplings, another person brought brownies, and we did BYOB.)

Going out for sushi costs my husband and I about $40- so this was a great time with our neighbors.!

Plus I have leftover sushi for lunch today.
That sounds awesome!

Packed lunch, made tea at home.
I made my first loaf of bread in our breadmaker over the weekend, and we've been having easy dinners this week (avocado toast with eggs and balsamic vinegar).
Made dog treats (froze plain yogurt with a few bits of kibble sprinkled in)

I just got a free breadmaker on our local buy nothing group. I'm so intimidated to use it... do you have an easy recipe to share? I downloaded the user manual but it was hundreds of pages.....
We have a larger breadmaker, so I'm not sure how the recipe would scale.  I used the basic recipe from our breadmaker manual to check it out. 

We did something similar to this, but I used dry buttermilk (we had a container in our pantry).


TravelJunkyQC

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9653 on: September 26, 2017, 12:04:41 PM »
Needed to get my bike back from the shop. Instead of the car, I took the bus to the shop carrying my front wheel with me, and then biked from the shop to work.

Poundwise

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9654 on: September 26, 2017, 12:07:04 PM »
Shamelessly took home almost all the leftovers from a family party last weekend.  5 bags of bread, an entire casserole, 2 loaves of zucchini bread, etc.   Almost everybody else was flying out of town within 24 hours, and the rest were elderly and didn't have the capacity to store/consume vast quantities of leftovers like we do.  Score!

horsepoor

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9655 on: September 26, 2017, 12:26:46 PM »
Free Italian plums from a co-worker.  Will toss them in the dehydrator when I get home.

Checked the quarterly 5% cash back categories on my CC's and will add a note to each card so I maximize cash back next quarter

Kwill

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9656 on: September 26, 2017, 01:49:50 PM »
I just got a free breadmaker on our local buy nothing group. I'm so intimidated to use it... do you have an easy recipe to share? I downloaded the user manual but it was hundreds of pages.....

If it's a PDF, you can probably use a keyword search for "Basic" and find their recommended first recipe. You're probably safest doing the basic recipe for the manual for your particular bread machine the first time because the size will be right.

marielle

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9657 on: September 26, 2017, 02:22:06 PM »
Hosted a sushi party with friends.  We spent about $50 in ingredients and fed 11 people. (Someone else brought dumplings, another person brought brownies, and we did BYOB.)

Going out for sushi costs my husband and I about $40- so this was a great time with our neighbors.!

Plus I have leftover sushi for lunch today.
That sounds awesome!

Packed lunch, made tea at home.
I made my first loaf of bread in our breadmaker over the weekend, and we've been having easy dinners this week (avocado toast with eggs and balsamic vinegar).
Made dog treats (froze plain yogurt with a few bits of kibble sprinkled in)

I just got a free breadmaker on our local buy nothing group. I'm so intimidated to use it... do you have an easy recipe to share? I downloaded the user manual but it was hundreds of pages.....

I threw out my manual for my bread machine because most recipes called for milk and/or eggs which is ridiculous for bread. I just google "X bread machine recipe" where X is the type of bread I want to make, such as "pumpernickel bread machine recipe".

Then put in liquids first, dry ingredients last. Just like any normal baking, make sure to measure exactly and do not pack down the flour. Use a spoon to put flour into a measuring cup and do not scoop into the flour container with the measuring cup (this will pack the flour down). The most basic recipe is a french bread recipe that is flour, yeast, salt, and water.

I've made this one a couple times, not my favorite bread to make in the machine but the simplest:
http://www.geniuskitchen.com/recipe/failproof-french-bread-bread-machine-81211

You can bake the whole thing in the machine or remove the dough and finish in the oven as the recipe is written.

Try a recipe that uses 2 cups of flour (you can scale all the ingredients down to match 2 cups flour), even the smallest bread machine should be able to accommodate that. It should have a "basic/white bread" setting and possibly a setting for how many lbs the bread is, use these measurements as a guide:

1-pound = 2 to 2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2-pound = 3 to 3 1/2 cups flour
2-pound = 4 to 4 1/2 cups

Good luck!

slappy

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9658 on: September 26, 2017, 03:51:56 PM »
I resisted the urge to go out for Mexican and grabbed something from the freezer instead. Then I made myself homemade brownies to reward myself. :)

mustachepungoeshere

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9659 on: September 26, 2017, 04:57:43 PM »
I used to free brown bananas for use in baking, but I've changed my diet and I can't remember the last time I made banana cake.

Instead, I'm slicing soft bananas onto a baking tray to freeze and keeping the chunks in a container in the freezer to use in smoothies.

Better for me, won't heat up the kitchen in summer, and a lower barrier to entry (it 30 seconds and one or two other ingredients).

frooglepoodle

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9660 on: September 26, 2017, 05:23:48 PM »
I didn't go to the farmer's market - I'm nearly out of onions and garlic, but I'm sure I'd have come home with more than just those two things.

Gerard

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9661 on: September 26, 2017, 08:00:47 PM »
Free pizza at work for lunch. Breakfast and supper both included plums from the yard and slow-cooker black beans (not together). Got milk at the corner store for less than at the supermarket. Rode bike everywhere, of course.

Thinkum

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9662 on: September 26, 2017, 10:57:28 PM »
Was getting hungry and had no meals ready to heat up and didn't feel like cooking. Went online and found a quick vegan chili recipe for the Instant Pot. Little bit of work and now enough for quite a few meals. Saved money and calories of eating out.

mustachepungoeshere

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9663 on: September 26, 2017, 11:44:52 PM »
Husband was sent a review copy of Forza 7, which he would have bought anyway. Saved $140.

MaybeBabyMustache

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9664 on: September 27, 2017, 02:31:19 AM »
-Remembered to cancel a winter sport for the kids before the deadline. (They changed their minds.) I'm getting a check back for $522. Win!
-Also provided feedback to a local(ish) dairy about a cheese package that didn't properly seal & molded before it was opened/before the use by date. Received a coupon for a free replacement, plus a coupon for a free smaller size as well.

Linea_Norway

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9665 on: September 27, 2017, 03:38:32 AM »
Finally used my legs again to walk to work today.
Ate homemade lunch at work, as practically every day.
Will make mushroom soya tonight from selfpicked mushrooms. Usually this comes in expensive small bottles.
Intend on my way home to pick up some edible mushroom that I saw when walking to work. One was inside someone's garden. I'll have to call on the door and ask politely.

Raenia

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9666 on: September 27, 2017, 05:21:43 AM »
Combined errands to the library, bank, and produce market, and walked instead of driving.  By the time I was on the way back in 84F heat, I may have regretted it a little, but I made it ;)

plainjane

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9667 on: September 27, 2017, 01:55:12 PM »
A coworker brought baked goods today in a large ziploc bag.

Once everything was gone, I washed the bag to bring it home.

Linea_Norway

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9668 on: September 28, 2017, 04:30:21 AM »
I picked 3 species of edible mushrooms on my way home from work. And finally I have managed to stop the habit buying mushrooms in the shop for the time being.

And I ate homemade lunch at work, as usual. I smelled something good in the cafeteria, but could resist buying lunch.

marielle

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9669 on: September 28, 2017, 06:51:17 AM »
(Yesterday, but I never have a laptop at night to post)

Rode my bike 7.5 miles roundtrip to the pool hall to play on my league team. I'm hoping to work up to being able to ride to work at least one day a week or maybe just to get home on Friday (18 miles each way). Ride home Friday, rest the weekend, ride back Monday morning? Might not be bad at all. Would save me ~$50 a month roughly.

Didn't order food at the pool hall despite not having dinner yet. Ate a few fries from a friend though. Got home and figured I'd just skip dinner and go to bed.

jordanread

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9670 on: September 28, 2017, 06:57:04 AM »
Rode my bike 7.5 miles roundtrip to the pool hall to play on my league team. I'm hoping to work up to being able to ride to work at least one day a week or maybe just to get home on Friday (18 miles each way). Ride home Friday, rest the weekend, ride back Monday morning? Might not be bad at all. Would save me ~$50 a month roughly.

18 miles is right in that sweet spot. You can't help but be in the zone by the end, but it's not an all day thing. Jump over to the cycling thread if you want some additional guidance. We've got good people there. Link is in my signature.

4alpacas

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9671 on: September 28, 2017, 09:37:06 AM »
Made another loaf of bread last night.  Italian Herb.
Packed my lunch, had breakfast at home, made tea at home (and another cup at work), using a water bottle (gifted a really cute one, and I LOVE it)
Made treats for my dogs. 

Beardog

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9672 on: September 28, 2017, 02:22:09 PM »
Biked back and forth to meditation this morning.  Hung three loads of clothes on my clothesline to dry.  Roasted a pile of vegetables from my CSA, some of which I froze for the future.

Bracken_Joy

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9673 on: September 28, 2017, 06:44:35 PM »
-Needed a specific item. Remembered I have a gift card. Used all but $4 on the GC, and found out that Cabela's just gives you cash when you get a GC down below $5. So not only did I not spend $20, used a GC we've had over 2 years, I also "liberated" some as real US currency.

-Canceled an appointment I can't keep enough ahead of time I won't face a late fee.

-Been focusing on babying the gas mileage. Went from ~39mpg average on the tank to 41.1mpg.

bigdoug03

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9674 on: September 28, 2017, 08:15:50 PM »
I realized this summer that the new boiler we had installed comes with a feature called "outdoor reset", which changes the target temperature of the water in the radiators based on the outdoor temperature. It is more efficient because on days that aren't bitterly cold it can maintain a lower water temperature and still keep the house warm.

Our installer had never enabled this feature, which blows my mind. I bought a $10 sensor and wired it up in about 5 minutes. I expect it to cut at least $100 off our gas bill this winter.

Linea_Norway

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9675 on: September 29, 2017, 06:51:20 AM »
We'll need to see if this turns out in a saving thing. I am today going to buy wine yeast. Unfortunately my DH thought about it too late, so I need to drive extra kms to a shop where I shopped earlier this week. My DH is going to buy grapes on sale at a cheap grocery store. He is going to combine that with the few grapes he managed to grow in our own garden and make it into wine. Wine usually needs to be on the yeasting bottle for a year or so, so this is a thing for next year. We can probably save some bottle of shop wine, which is very expensive in Norway.

4alpacas

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9676 on: September 29, 2017, 09:33:04 AM »
I was craving something sweet yesterday, so I made a small batch of chocolate chip cookies (2 cookies to be exact).  I didn't have chocolate chips, so I chopped up part of a dark chocolate bar I had in the house.
I had a simple lunch and dinner yesterday with items we already had in the house. 
I've packed my lunch today. 
Bathed one of the dogs at home.

frooglepoodle

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9677 on: September 29, 2017, 10:50:03 AM »
A bunch of money-saving cooking: sourdough bread (my first time making it without any extra yeast and I was pleasantly surprised how it turned out!), enchilada sauce, and homemade ice cream.

Managed to go all week without a trip to the grocery store for "just one thing" - went today and only got what was on my list.

My husband and I have been strategically trading off cars depending on who needs to drive more on a given day. Since I don't have a need to drive at all many days and my car gets double the mileage of his, this should save us a lot in gas.

MaybeBabyMustache

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9678 on: September 29, 2017, 04:46:04 PM »
-Got back from an international work trip today,and am super jet lagged, so not sure I have anything compelling. But, I did take a couple of delicious tea bags home with me from the hotel room. Both are decaf, & British tea is fabulous.
- Didn't spend any money on treats for the kids. (I usually just get a package of local candy, nothing crazy, as I travel a lot). My coworker bought three bags of Maltesers (malt balls) for the kiddos, as a thank you to me for covering a late meeting
-All food & drink for the last 5 days was covered by work, and I didn't use any gas (not at home to drive to & from work)
-Earned plenty of air miles & hotel points. I'll transfer both tom preferred domestic carrier

However, I may cave & take everyone to dinner tonight. It's an inexpensive place, and we have a gift card. I'm definitely most susceptible to eating out after a long trip.

Dollar Slice

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9679 on: September 29, 2017, 05:03:22 PM »
I haven't actively spent money in eight and a half days. Just a few auto-pay bills. Definitely a record for me, and I may go a few more days with it. I'll definitely break the streak on Monday (doctor's appt co-pay, taxi).

I don't really recommend replicating my methods, which involve being physically unable to get to a store and being looked after by family. ;-)  But I'll take the silver lining.

mc6

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9680 on: September 29, 2017, 08:39:33 PM »
I went car shopping with a friend and saved her a few hundred bucks!

Raenia

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9681 on: September 30, 2017, 06:54:40 AM »
Used a coupon for a free pizza and resisted buying anything else out of guilt.  Walked to pick it up to avoid the delivery fee.

Gone_Hiking

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9682 on: September 30, 2017, 08:08:00 AM »
I didn't go to the farmer's market - I'm nearly out of onions and garlic, but I'm sure I'd have come home with more than just those two things.
THIS

The farmers market in our town has a reputation for being pricey and I, too, decided to stay away this week.

I went to the grocery store yesterday and was eyeing fresh pasta: four-cheese tortellini, sun-dried-tomato and ricotta agnolotti, butternut squash ravioli...  at a nice $7.99 per pack.  Holy profit margin!  I skipped that deal and cooked about $0.50 of dried pasta with homemade pesto instead... hmm, the family hasn't had homemade ravioli in a while....

Gone_Hiking

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9683 on: September 30, 2017, 08:09:22 AM »
I went car shopping with a friend and saved her a few hundred bucks!

Wow, good for you!  How did your friend help you save?

horsepoor

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9684 on: September 30, 2017, 10:23:12 AM »
I was out running this morning and found a pair of work gloves on the side of the road.  I will run them through the washing machine and use them when trimming my horses' hooves.  This is quite funny to me because I just threw away the previous pair that I found in the road and have been using for the past year. I almost passed up this glove because it appeared to be solo, but I stopped and looked around and saw its partner about 10' away.

Later today I'm getting a my truck loaded up with free manure for the veggie garden.

Carefully inventorying food in the house before grocery shopping.

Drying several pounds of free Italian plums, which will be nice mixed into oatmeal all winter.

Making stock with a chicken carcass, lamb bone and celery ribs that were too tough to eat raw

mustachepungoeshere

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9685 on: September 30, 2017, 05:02:03 PM »
Saved $28 on a bottle of champagne for my in-laws for Christmas.

lexde

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9686 on: September 30, 2017, 05:24:04 PM »
I was out running this morning and found a pair of work gloves on the side of the road.  I will run them through the washing machine and use them when trimming my horses' hooves.  This is quite funny to me because I just threw away the previous pair that I found in the road and have been using for the past year. I almost passed up this glove because it appeared to be solo, but I stopped and looked around and saw its partner about 10' away.

Later today I'm getting a my truck loaded up with free manure for the veggie garden.

Carefully inventorying food in the house before grocery shopping.

Drying several pounds of free Italian plums, which will be nice mixed into oatmeal all winter.

Making stock with a chicken carcass, lamb bone and celery ribs that were too tough to eat raw
Do you have any ferrier training? Or did you just learn as you go? I was always terrified to trim my horses' hooves, but one of them had gait issues so I always just left it to the ferrier. It's been years since I've had a horse, though.

Off the Wheel

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9687 on: September 30, 2017, 05:32:23 PM »
I was out running this morning and found a pair of work gloves on the side of the road.  I will run them through the washing machine and use them when trimming my horses' hooves.  This is quite funny to me because I just threw away the previous pair that I found in the road and have been using for the past year. I almost passed up this glove because it appeared to be solo, but I stopped and looked around and saw its partner about 10' away.

Later today I'm getting a my truck loaded up with free manure for the veggie garden.

Carefully inventorying food in the house before grocery shopping.

Drying several pounds of free Italian plums, which will be nice mixed into oatmeal all winter.

Making stock with a chicken carcass, lamb bone and celery ribs that were too tough to eat raw

Do you have a dehydrator for the plums? Otherwise, how are you doing it?

Off the Wheel

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9688 on: September 30, 2017, 05:34:12 PM »
This is so tiny, but small things! DH and I always go for a long walk with the pup to the best bakery in our hood on the weekends. We get a pastry and a coffee. Today I chose the cheaper pastry and the cheaper coffee, about $2 in savings and just as satisfying. Also cooked at home for lunch and planning to for dinner, and harvested some more veg from the garden (the last of the tomatoes, some carrots and the beans) - though discovered someone stole my cabbage!

Bigger impact long-term might be the fervour with which I'm getting into the MMM forums. ;)

lexde

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9689 on: September 30, 2017, 05:37:17 PM »
Trimmed my own hair - $12
Trimmed my dog's nails - $9

We look fab.

Also made some extra money from a bank bonus today, $300, although I don't know if that counts for this thread.

horsepoor

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9690 on: September 30, 2017, 06:35:25 PM »

Do you have a dehydrator for the plums? Otherwise, how are you doing it?

Yes, I have a little dehydrator.  It is getting quite a workout lately.

I also used a tip learned here:  dehydrate tomato skins and buzz them up for tomato powder to add flavor to dishes.

Raenia

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9691 on: October 01, 2017, 06:40:17 AM »
Yesterday we finally stopped by the little local farmer's market that we've been meaning to visit, and one of the vendors had a section for seconds!  Great prices, I picked up enough pears and tomatoes to make 3 quarts each of brandied pears for holiday gifts, and a mild salsa for us.  Next week I want to go back for more pears and tomatoes, and possibly some hot peppers to make a spicy salsa as well, and maybe even some blemished apples for applesauce!  Need to get more canning jars before then, though, so not a total money-saver :)

MaybeBabyMustache

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9692 on: October 01, 2017, 07:04:03 AM »
-Line dryed clothes
-Used two free coupons for cheese (from providing feedback about a bad product), saving $18
-Made all meals at home, & tried two ingredient cookies. Yum! Added vanilla & chocolate chips. Really wanted to go out last night (got home late from soccer), but informed everyone it would be a slightly later meal, & got going!
-Made an extra meal for the freezer
-Signed up for a free one month carpool service for work. SO excited! Traffic is terrible here, so cost savings aside, getting rid of the need to drive to & from work will be a huge stress relief
-Made homemade rolls to go with dinner
-Brought water bottles with us to all of our activities, saving money on buying

Imma

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9693 on: October 01, 2017, 07:56:06 AM »
- Line dried three loads of laundry
- Went grocery shopping and bought only produce and meat that was reduced in price. We don't eat a lot of meat so I froze most of it.
- Partner likes to buy expensive italian bread with eggsalad at the local bakery. I knew he was going to want that on Sunday, so I made it myself on Saturday night when he was out.
- Cleared out a drawer and found two travel adapters that I thought we'd forgotten on our last trip. Now we don't have to buy a new one for our next trip.

mc6

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9694 on: October 01, 2017, 08:45:16 AM »
She bought me a delicious pizza lunch!  I owe her big for various favors she did for me this summer.  I was happy to help her on a car buying adventure.   

I went car shopping with a friend and saved her a few hundred bucks!

Wow, good for you!  How did your friend help you save?

radram

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9695 on: October 01, 2017, 09:04:20 AM »
Made 14 quarts of grape juice.... out of garbage.

Pressed 3 bushels of grapes for wine. I usually just take the skins and stems and spread them out in the garden. This year I added some water and warmed them on the stove. I let them drain overnight, added a little sugar and canned it into a 50/50 concentrate. The stems and skins still made their way to the garden.

Step37

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9696 on: October 01, 2017, 09:55:01 AM »
Yesterday we finally stopped by the little local farmer's market that we've been meaning to visit, and one of the vendors had a section for seconds!  Great prices, I picked up enough pears and tomatoes to make 3 quarts each of brandied pears for holiday gifts, and a mild salsa for us.  Next week I want to go back for more pears and tomatoes, and possibly some hot peppers to make a spicy salsa as well, and maybe even some blemished apples for applesauce!  Need to get more canning jars before then, though, so not a total money-saver :)

Do you can your applesauce? I’ve had great luck with freezing mine (reusing plastic containers from sour cream, yogurt, etc.). Assuming you have the freezer space, of course. The brandied pears sound delicious!

For saving money today, I’ll read my library book and cook at home, as usual. Last Sunday I made a batch of pasta sauce that made 12 servings. Delicious, and roughly only $5 I am sure.

Off the Wheel

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9697 on: October 01, 2017, 11:40:57 AM »
Dug into my banking and automated fees. Realized I was paying $20/month for accounting software I no longer used, and about $10/month in overdraft fees since DH and I hadn't adjusted our automatic transfers into our joint account since our mortgage rate went up.

Raenia

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9698 on: October 01, 2017, 05:11:14 PM »
Yesterday we finally stopped by the little local farmer's market that we've been meaning to visit, and one of the vendors had a section for seconds!  Great prices, I picked up enough pears and tomatoes to make 3 quarts each of brandied pears for holiday gifts, and a mild salsa for us.  Next week I want to go back for more pears and tomatoes, and possibly some hot peppers to make a spicy salsa as well, and maybe even some blemished apples for applesauce!  Need to get more canning jars before then, though, so not a total money-saver :)

Do you can your applesauce? I’ve had great luck with freezing mine (reusing plastic containers from sour cream, yogurt, etc.). Assuming you have the freezer space, of course. The brandied pears sound delicious!

For saving money today, I’ll read my library book and cook at home, as usual. Last Sunday I made a batch of pasta sauce that made 12 servings. Delicious, and roughly only $5 I am sure.

I do can my applesauce.  I'm sure it would freeze great, but my freezer space is currently full of soup, chili, pizza crusts, and many other things.  My plastic containers have already been pressed into service for soup, homemade veggie broth, and homemade yoghurt :)

Today I hung a load of laundry to dry, baked a loaf of break, read my library book, and ate leftovers to clear out the fridge.

frooglepoodle

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #9699 on: October 01, 2017, 06:58:14 PM »
Didn't spend anything today!

Cut up a slightly stale loaf of (homemade) bread and made croutons to serve with soup.

Used the carcass from tonight's roast chicken and the bag of veggie scraps I save in the freezer to make stock in the Instant Pot. Tomorrow morning I'll strain it and make a batch of chicken soup to freeze.

Did a bunch of small fix-it projects around the house. The drill got a workout this weekend!