Frugal Fridays #22

I missed last week’s Frugal Fridays because I fell sick with food poisoning on Wednesday … it was horrible! I’ll spare you the details, but it took  until Monday until I was able to really eat again. Add to that 3 out of 5 kids getting sick (thankfully not the baby!), and we had a rough week. We’re all healthy now though. Hopefully it stays that way for a while!

Successes/Blessings:

1. Last Friday I took the children to Eucharistic Adoration which our awesome priest holds on the 3rd Friday of each month. On the way home we pass by my grandparents’ house and I try to stop by when we can and when they are feeling well enough to be invaded by a van full of little kids! This time Grandpa offered to cook lunch for the kids, and sent me home with a 21 pound turkey. I asked him why he bought a 21 lbs turkey since it’s just the 2 of them, and he told me that he saw a great deal and couldn’t pass it up. I guess the frugal apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Actually, I knew that already. I also inherited the gardening bug from Grandpa, and the couponing and canning comes from Grandma.
2. I cooked a ham for dinner that was purchased last month when they were on sale at Aldi’s. We’ll get at least 3 meals out of this one ham.
3. I got back to monthly meal planning and shopping this month, and came in $10 under my $400 monthly budget.
4. I made seed starting tape for my carrot seeds using materials I already had on hand. I bought the packet of carrot seeds last year, and I had paper napkins on hand. I made a paste out of flour and water to make them stick. I’ve never started seeds this way before and I’m excited to see how it works out. I’ll post more about this once I see how my results are! As soon I get a day of nice (enough) weather and cooperative children, I’ll get these planted…hopefully that’s within the next few days!
5. We spread some mulch in the front flower/blueberry bed that was picked up for free from the town (and by “we” I mean my wonderful husband. I was nursing the baby while he did that chore for me. I really do love that man:D). I’m so thankful for a free supply of mulch. It’s not the prettiest stuff, but it does the job of retaining moisture and suppressing weeds. Plus because it’s untreated, it breaks down nicely to improve the soil. Can’t complain there!
6. I picked up some freesia bulbs for less than $3 at Lowe’s, as well as a bag of wildflower seeds. I’m hoping to get these planted in the side garden bed in the next week or 2 (again…this depends on weather and children. Both have been unpredictable lately).
7. My father’s coworker blessed us with a ham. She had intended to cook it for her Easter dinner, but her Easter plans changed and so she gave the ham to us!
8. I ordered 30 melamine foam sponges off of Ebay for $5 shipped for DIY Magic Erasers. I’ve successfully removed crayon and colored pencil off of one of our walls, and scoured my bathtub and kitchen sink with them.

How did you save money this week?

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