First Frugal Friday of November 2025

 

Welcome to Frugal Friday
My Frugal Week
Last Friday we went to a Halloween Party at my niece's home where we played games and had such a great time. My niece made polo loco chicken for dinner and it was delicious. 
On Saturday Bailey and I went to Georgia to UGO and Kroger to get groceries. 
I filled up my car with gas at Mapco on Saturday paying $2.44 per gallon using their reward app, which saved me 15 cents per gallon. The second time I use it I’ll save 25 cents per gallon and the third time I’ll save 35 cents per gallon. Having been to Chattanooga twice this week, I needed to fill up my gas tank again on Wednesday, which saved me 25 cents per gallon paying $2.25 a gallon. 
On Monday and Tuesday I stopped in at the Samaritan Center in Ooltewah because I was going to Chattanooga both days anyway. They give away free medical equipment and I wanted a shower chair for the downstairs shower.
I don’t know that I’ve ever shared this,  but my Dad only had one leg due to an auto accident in 1973. He had a plastic lawn chair in the shower, so I replaced it this week with a real shower chair. It’s just a small way of honoring him. 
At the Samaritan Center I also picked up four wide mouth Ball canning jars for 60 cents each, and a folding laundry drying rack for $2.00. 
I also stopped in at the Dollar Tree and bought four 64 ounce jugs of cleaning vinegar for $1.50 each, and a container of twenty bleach tablets for $1.00, which is much lighter than a gallon of bleach. I’ve done the math and this is the best price I can find on vinegar. 
I also stopped in at Aldi and picked up four bags of onions ($1.65) and six bags of cranberries (99 cents each). 
I stopped in at the new Hunt’s thrift store in East Brainerd, but was unimpressed with their prices and didn’t buy anything. 
I had an appointment with the dermatologist on Monday. I’ve had a flare up of psoriasis in recent weeks, so he is starting me on a biological medication called Taltz, which means another trip (my third this week) to Chattanooga for blood work. 
The Great Cleanup
The weather was warm enough on Wednesday to work in another shed outside. I hauled off a trunkful of trash plus three contractor bags of other trash. There are four more five gallon buckets of liquid I’ll have to dispose of as well. I plan on going out there today too and disposing of some larger items such as a glass window and wooden pallet. 
Freebies
We received our free copy of Good Housekeeping this week. 
Saving on Electric

Sunday & Monday are days when we do laundry and you can tell from our kWH usage on those days. The other days our energy consumption is much lower with no air or heat running, which is another reason I love this time of year. 
Saving Money on Entertainment

Emmy Russell pays tribute to her Grandmother Loretta Lynn in this performance at the Grand Old Opry during Opry 100 Honors: Loretta Lynn. The song was written by Mark Marchetti and released in 2016. The lyrics reflect on the struggles of life and express a longing for peace that will only come after death.

What I've been Reading This Week on Thanksgiving Meal Deals
Surviving Financial Hardship is a Facebook page run by a lady who chooses to be self sufficient. She is really into the Aldi $40 Thanksgiving meal for ten and has already bought two of the meals. She’s planning on buying one of the meals each week until the sale is over on December 24, 2025. She has plans on making this food last her and her husband for at least four months. I don’t know how successful she will be, but I hope she succeeds. 
The Aldi $40 Thanksgiving meal plan has twenty-one items and includes:

Whole turkey (14 pounds)

Chicken broth

Condensed cream of mushroom soup 

Evaporated milk 

Hawaiian sweet rolls

Miniature marshmallows

Cut green beans (x2)

100% pure canned pumpkin

Shells and cheese (x2) 

Brown gravy mix (x3)

Poultry spices & herbs 

French fried onions 

Pie crust 

Chicken or cornbread stuffing (x2)

Whipped dairy topping 

Yellow onions (3 pounds) 

Baby peeled carrots

Celery 

Cranberries

Sweet potatoes (3 pounds)

Russet potatoes (10 pounds)

Walmart is offering their version of a Thanksgiving meal, which states it will feed ten people for under $4.00 each and comes at a cost of $39.92. 
Walmart’s Thanksgiving meal plan has fifteen items and includes:
Butterball Turkey, 13.5 lb. (97 cents a pound)
Kinder’s Fried Onions, 4.5 oz.
Campbells Cream of Mushroom Soup, 10.5 oz. (1 can)
Stove Top Turkey Stuffing, Twin Pack 2 x 6 oz. 
Great Value Dinner Rolls, 12 ct. 
Fresh Russet Potatoes, 5 lb.
Fresh Cranberries, 12 oz.
Great Value Baby Carrots, 2 lb.
Great Value Corn, 15 oz. (3 cans)
Great Value Green Beans, 14.5 oz. (3 cans)
Great Value Artisan Macaroni & Cheese, 12 oz. (3 boxes)
Great Value Brown Gravy Mix, 0.87 oz. (2)
Great Value Pie Crusts
Great Value Evaporated Milk, 12 fl. oz.
Great Value 100% Pure Pumpkin, 15 oz

And finally, Target is also offering a Thanksgiving deal this year for $20 for four people. 
Target’s Thanksgiving meal plan has seven items and includes: 

Good & Gather Premium Basted Young Turkey (Frozen, up to 10 lb.)(79 cents pound)
Good & Gather Russet Potatoes (5 lb. bag) 
Ocean Spray Jellied Cranberry Sauce (14 oz.) 
Stove Top Stuffing Mix (6 oz.) 
Heinz Home Style Roasted Turkey Gravy (12 oz.) 
Favorite Day Soft French Bread 
Good & Gather Frozen Corn
With all these meal plans you will still need to use some items from your own pantry like butter and spices. You’ll also want to use your calculator to find the best deal for your family if money is tight this year and that it’s important to you. I can remember the days when Mom & I could easily drop $100 on a holiday meal plan, but these days priorities are different and I won’t spend that for one holiday meal. 

What I like about the deal at Aldi is you can buy each item separately and Aldi has marked them down through the holiday season. I’ve not been able to find three pound bags of onions for $1.65 in a long time, so I stocked up on those this week. 

How was your week?

Thank you for dropping by my frugal blog, you are always welcome here. 
We would love to hear all about your week in the comment section.

Belinda 🫶 💕 Homemaker at Heart 💕 ~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Saving Money in My Frugal Kitchen ~ Week #1 November 2025

My Frugal Week

This week I compared several of the items I normally buy at Walmart to the price of the equivalent item at Aldi. While I used to find Walmart usually had the better deal, I did not find that to be the case this week. For example, Walmart has their three pound bag of yellow onions for $2.49 while the Aldi price on them is $1.65. 

On Saturday we went to UGO and Kroger in Georgia to get groceries. Two of the best deals from UGO were turkey sausage for $1.99 and turkey pepperoni for $1.79, which are both better than the regular grocery store. We stocked up on both of those. 

At Kroger we saved $51.30 using their digital coupons and got deals on cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese, butter, and several meat markdowns. 

On Saturday evening I went to PHP to get the free vegetables from the Mennonites. I came home with peppers, tomatoes, green beans, eggplant, lettuce, and radishes. 

On Sunday I worked on getting all the produce washed and cut up to use this week. I broke and strung the green beans to have for dinner one night, washed and diced all the peppers and radishes too. 

What’s for Dinner

Monday ~ Chicken Breast or Salmon Patty, Green Beans with Onions & Potatoes. 

I wanted to avoid food waste and use up some leftovers we had in the refrigerator. So, it was a choice between chicken or salmon. Green beans with onions and potatoes rounded out the meal. 

Tuesday ~ Chicken Sandwiches like Chic-fil-A, Baked Potato, Purple Turnip, Yellow Squash & Onions. 

The chicken sandwiches were for Bailey for her movie night. I had a vegetable plate for my dinner, all free from the Mennonites & PHP here. I baked the potato and roasted the turnip, yellow squash and onion in EVOO and they were delicious.

Wednesday ~ Chicken, Baked Sweet Potatoes, and Butter Beans. 

I made a couple of chicken breasts in the Instant pot for dinner and put a couple of sauces on the table to go with it and we both chose the BBQ sauce. Baked sweet potatoes and butter beans rounded out the meal. 

Thursday ~ BBQ Chicken or Smoked Sausage, and Baked Apples. 

Friday ~ Polo Loco, Rice, Queso Dip & Tortilla Chips. 

We were invited to a Halloween party Friday evening and this is what was served. It was delicious. 

Saturday ~ Grilled Chicken, Teryaki Stir Fry.

We had been out the majority of the day getting groceries, and rather than eat out and spend more money, I came home and made a quick dinner. I made grilled chicken and used a marked down stir fry kit of teriyaki vegetables. 

Sunday ~ Ham, October Beans, Corn on the Cob, Stir Fry Vegetables, and Salad. 

We had a couple of salads we bought on markdown plus I had the free vegetables from PHP, so we had salad with our dinner. I also served ham, October beans, and another marked down package of teriyaki stir fry vegetables. 

What’s been on the menu in your home this past week?

Belinda

Homemaker at Heart

~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Image Credit

Fifth & Final Frugal Friday of October 2025

 

Welcome to Frugal Friday
My Frugal Week
On Tuesday I had an appointment with my retina specialist to address the posterior vitreous detachment (PVD) in my left eye. He will be keeping a check on it and says it should disappear in six months time. 
Afterwards we went to Aldi where I bought vinegar and cheese and Bailey picked up the Friendly Farms Ultra-Filtered Milk, which is Aldi's alternative to Fairlife milk, which is $4.97 at Walmart verses $4.29 for the Aldi dupe. 
Other frugal things I did this week include...
- Used Fetch and NCP to enter my recipts for the week- Perused the groery store ads online- Called Hormel as the turkey pepperoni I bought had molded, they will be sending me coupons to replace the item. 
Homemade Cleaning Wipes

This week I decided to make my own disinfectant cleaning wipes, so I gathered some supplies and made my own wipes. The jar came from a church yard sale, but had no lid, but I knew there was a lid downstairs, so I used that for the lid and it fit perfectly. The cleaning cloths are a motley crew of washcloths, and free scrubby microfiber cloths. 

These will work well to keep germs at bay, by wiping down surfaces, with the oncoming cold and flu season approaching.

Ingredients:

1 cup water

1/2 cup of vinegar 

1/4 cup rubbing alcohol 

1 tablespoon dishwashing detergent like Dawn

Cleaning cloths or rags

Directions:

Fold and place cleaning cloths in the bottom of your storage jar. 

Add all liquid ingredients together.

Stir and pour over the cleaning cloths.

Allow the cloths to absorb the liquid by pressing them down. 

If you need more liquid add a tad bit more water. 

They should be fully damp but not soaking wet.

Make sure the lid is on tight, and store in a cool, dry, place.

The Great Cleanup
On Sunday I went outside and emptied a five gallon bucket of liquid into smaller containers with lids and disposed of them. It’s so nice to have that task checked off my to do list.
I took Dad’s suits and ties to People Helping People to donate. They will sell them and use the funds to help people in our community. I was going to work outside on Monday, but it was raining, so I concentrated my work indoors. 
Yard Sale Saturday 
We left the house around 8 a.m. to go to a church yard sale. They were accepting donations rather than charging for items individually. I picked up several useful things including a hoodie, sweater dress, and a jacket. 
I want warm clothing to bundle up during this time of year and I look on the second hand market year round to obtain these items as inexpensively as possible. I’ve picked up a couple of really nice thermal blankets this summer and have them washed and ready to use when needed. 
Freebies

Freebies this week include...
- The latest issue of Southern Living magazine. - four clothing racks ~ Bailey scored BIG with this free Facebook Marketplace find. A couple who had just moved was giving away four clothing racks for free. These will work perfectly in her business. 
Saving on Electric
We've not had to use the air conditioning or the heat this week, which will help to lower our electric bill this month. On Tuesday we only used 24.26 kWh, which is  lower than 47.93 kWh, we used on this day last month. 
Photo of the Week
The photo does not do this picture justice, but I awoke one morning this week and saw this spider web in the woods outside my bedroom window, which was wet with dew and brightened by the sunshine. I picked up my phone and took this photo before it disappeared.  

Savings of the Week
Aldi has onions this week in the three pound bag for $1.65, which is cheaper than the Walmart price of $2.49. I’ll be buying several bags as I’m down to just a few onions.
Saving Money on Entertainment
The YouTube channel, No Longer Here, is an interesting and nostalgic look into past generations of American livelihood. Some of my favorite videos were the ones on forgotten vegetables our grandparents grew to survive hard times, 25 meals our grandparents ate to survive, and 30 cheap meals our grandparents ate during hard times.
What I've been Reading This Week
 I just figured out this week that I can read Mother Earth News magazine for free using the Libby app. This is one of my favorite magazines, but I won’t pay for a subscription, but rather look for them second hand. 
American Consumers Are Getting Thrifty Again ~ an article from the Wall Street Journal about how Americans are embracing frugality in these hard times. 
How was your week?

Thank you for dropping by my frugal blog, you are always welcome here. 
We would love to hear all about your week in the comment section.

Belinda 🫶 💕 Homemaker at Heart 💕 ~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Saving Money in My Frugal Kitchen ~ Week #4 October 2025

My Frugal Week

On Monday I stopped in at People Helping People and dropped off some clothing donations and picked up tomatoes, purple turnips, and yellow squash for free. 

Recipe of the Week

This recipe comes from the Hello Nutritarian website. Kristen is a huge fan of Dr. Joel Fuhrman and has created a lifestyle that follows his Nutritarian eating plan. Her website is filled with wonderful recipes devoted to plant based eating. I initially reversed my diabetes following the plant based diet outlined in Dr. Fuhrman’s End of Diabetes book, so I’m a firm believer in this way of eating. 

Split Pea & Sweet Potato Soup

Ingredients:

32 oz low-sodium veggie broth
2 1/4 cups dry split peas
2 cups water
2 sweet medium potatoes, peeled & diced (equals about 2 cups diced)
1 medium onion, diced (equals about 1 cup diced)
1 red bell pepper, diced (equals about 1 cups diced)
2 medium carrots, peeled & diced (equals about 1/2 cup diced)
2 to 3 celery stalks, diced (equals about 1/2 cup diced)
1 tsp liquid aminos
1/4 tsp garlic powder
black pepper (optional, to taste)

Directions: 

1. Set large pot or Dutch oven over medium-low heat.  Add diced onions and dry sauté for about 6 to 8 minutes, stirring every 1 to 2 minutes.  Continue to dry sauté until moisture is released and onions are tender.  Add in 1 tsp liquid aminos to "de-glaze" the onions. Mix well. 

2. Increase heat to medium and add in diced carrots and celery.  Add in 1/4 tsp. garlic powder and ground pepper to taste.  Dry sauté the ingredients until you see browning on the bottom of your pot (see pictures above for reference), about 10 minutes.  

3. Add 1 cup veggie broth to "de-glaze" the browning on your pot and mix the veggies well.  Add in the diced sweet potato and mix well.  Cover your pot with a tight-fitting lid and allow the sweet potatoes to "steam-cook" for about 5 minutes.  

4. Reduce heat to low and add in the rest of your veggie broth, 2 cups of water, the split peas and the diced red pepper.  Cook covered for 45 to 50 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the peas are tender. 

 

What’s for Dinner

Monday ~ Chicken Breast Filets, Corn on the Cob, and Carrots. 

I made the corn on the cob the other day, so today I cut it off the cob to get it used up for dinner. I served the chicken with honey mustard in case anyone wanted that with their chicken. 

Tuesday ~ Chicken, Steamed Broccoli, and Carrots. 

Bailey had homemade pizzas that I made for her movie night while I had leftovers of the above mentioned items. There is no need to make more food when I already have this cooked and in the refrigerator. I just need to heat up my portion. 

Wednesday ~ Apple Bourbon Pork Tenderloin, Baked Potatoes, and Broccoli. 

The tenderloin was one I had stashed in the freezer and I really like the flavor, but Bailey wasn’t crazy about it. I have plenty of potatoes on hand so made her a baked sweet potato while I had a russet potato. 

Thursday ~ Chicken Cacciatore, Carrots & Onions, Butternut Squash. 

The chicken was placed in the crockpot early in the morning along with spaghetti sauce, onions, carrots, celery, garlic, tomatoes, and spices. I baked the butternut squash later in the day. The squash was so delicious with just a sprinkle of cinnamon. 

Friday ~ Homemade Pizza

Bailey had book club, so we didn’t have dinner together as usual. I had made her a plate of chicken and vegetables from the night before for her dinner. Once I came home from tutoring, I finished processing clothes for her and made myself a tortilla pizza in the air fryer and called it a night. 

Saturday ~ Honey Mustard Chicken, Scalloped Potatoes, Green Peas.

After dinner Bailey went to a Halloween party where they had s’mores. We had dinner before she left. Chicken from the freezer, scalloped potatoes and green peas. 

Sunday ~ Salmon Patties, Green Beans with Onions & Potatoes. 

It had been a while since we had salmon patties, so I made it for Sunday dinner. I made the green beans, onions and potatoes in the same pan, seasoned with EVOO and spices. 

What’s been on the menu in your home this past week?

Belinda

Homemaker at Heart

~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Image Credit