I've seen the five frugal things idea most recently on The Non-Consumer Advocate's blog (can't remember if the idea is original to her or not though). I thought the idea was a good one so here goes:
Five Frugal Things:
1. Overcame temptation to eat at Chik-fil-A and instead had leftover beef vegetable soup (sorry CFA cow mascots). Was rewarded when 15 month old closed her eyes, sighed and said "ommy" (yummy).
2. Replaced elastic in the legs of 10 well loved BumGenius diapers. They were basically useless to me with the old elastic and this will hopefully be the last time I need to replace it. Good thing because each one took me half an hour. Thanks for the false hope, five-minute tutorial on YouTube. Honestly, though, thank you five-minute tutorial on YouTube for showing me how to do this in only half an hour instead of the three it would have taken me to do it my way.
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| From stretched out to like new... |
3. Held a garage sale. Was not so much rewarded in money (though $11.75 isn't nothing) as in fellowship. Thanks, A, for sitting with me in the cold and covering for my multiple trips inside to change diapers, feed kids, and change outfits (toddler+wet grass+dirt=mud). Actually toddler+anything+anything=mud come to think of it.
Some leftovers went to Goodwill, others in the back of my van for drop off at Half-Price Books, and some I sold on a virtual garage sale page. This box represents "as yet to be dispersed" items.
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| This is so much more manageable |
4. Sweet talked my way into a free paint stirrer stick at the hardware store. No, actually, I offered to pay. We have an area on a doorframe where there once was a hinge. Rather than filling the entire thing with wood putty, my husband suggested gluing in a piece of wood and puttying around it. We had some paint sticks that were a smidge too big, and the ones at this store were just right. The guy behind the counter was not so much overcome with generosity because of my ingenuity but by sympathy for my fool's errand. In his immortal words: "I don't think that will work." I haven't done this yet. I'll let you know.
5. Made a batch of baking mix. I pinned a Pamela's copycat recipe awhile back but something always went wrong in the three times I've attempted it. I think by swapping buttermilk powder for regular powdered milk and using store bought rice flour instead of grinding my own I'm on the right track. It's still a tad bit salty for my taste so I'm going to cut the salt next time.
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| A bowl of (future) biscuity goodness got the recipe here: http://community.stretcher.com/forums/t/1823.aspx |
P.S. Re: painting on leaves and using them to stencil your walls: um...fail. I'm glad I practiced on a sheet of paper first. The leaves will stay in my backyard for the time being. Kudos to anyone who attempts and recreates the concept though.
