First Frugal Friday of April 2026

 

Welcome to Frugal Friday
Each Friday here at Frugal Workshop, I love sharing the frugal wins, quiet savings, and simple strategies that helped us stretch our budget over the past seven days. It’s a gentle look back at the small things that make a big difference. 
My Frugal Week
One thing we did while we were waiting on our new air conditioner to arrive, was to put black poster boards over the kitchen windows because the sun was shining directly in those windows and heating up that area of the house. I was pleasantly surprised at how well that simple task made the kitchen and the whole house so much cooler. 
On Wednesday I had an errand to run in Chattanooga and I stopped in at Goodwill. I found two pull chain lamps for $5 each, so I bought both of those as pull chain lamps are my favorite lamps. I also found a large lazy Susan, also $5, for our dinner table. 
The Great Cleanup Continues …
I've been cleaning more downstairs again now that the weather been warmer. Dad had pop bottles (soda bottles) behind the door leading to his office, so I cleaned those up and put them in the shed outside with all his other pop bottles. I'm sure they are valuable to the right person. 
I've been taking one box of mail from the cabinet at a time, and going through it and disposing of it as needed. I've hired a new garbage company to come on Tuesdays and they will take off unlimited garbage for $50 per month, so I want to take advantage of that and be busy cleaning out down there, and we still have our regular Friday crew to take off garbage too. 
I found some neat things from our childhood in some of the boxes like grade cards, school reports, old pictures, etc. It's fun because I send pictures to my sister and we can laugh over some of them. 
I posted a flyer from a pizza place from the 1980s from my childhood hometown of Lockport, Illinois in that Facebook group and we've been reminiscing about it. The owner's son reached out to me and asked if I would be willing to send him the menu as he didn't think to keep one back then. So, it is back on its way to Lockport once again. 
There is a countertop next to the washer and dryer downstairs that was filled with tools and such, so I cleared all that off and scrubbed the counter, so I can put my laundry there as needed.
Someone posted on Facebook that they needed a non-working microwave along with some other things for a theater play at the local community college. So, I offered up the one Dad had downstairs along with a clock. I was glad to finally have it gone and grateful to help someone else in the process. 
Washing Machine Update

Bailey watched a YouTube video and fixed the agitator dogs in our washing machine. These are small plastic cogs in top-load washing machines that allow the agitator to rotate in one direction. 
Pictured above are the parts from our machine. On the left are the new pieces and what they should look like and the parts of the right are the ones from our machine. Yikes!
But even though Bailey was able to fix this part, there is another repair it needs, which involves lifting/moving the washer, which I won't be able to help with right now. So, for now the washer upstairs will have to wait. 
In the meantime, I continue to carry laundry outside and downstairs to Dad's washing machine. I'm so glad we kept that washer/dryer combo just in case of something like this. 
Other frugal things we did this week include:
- Taxes were completed and paid for this week. - Laundry washed, folded, and put away. - Did some weed eating and clearing of brush in the yard. - Sold one item on eBay for $22.00. 
Weekly Gasoline News
Gas Price in SE Tennessee: $3.79 gallon
The U.S. Postal Service, pending approval from the Postal Regulatory Commission, will begin to add an 8% fuel surcharge to package deliveries starting April 26 and will last until January 17, 2027 and is driven by a 43%+ rise in diesel costs. This temporary fee will apply to Priority Mail, Ground Advantage, and Parcel Select. 
Photo of the Week

I found this advertisement from Tide while cleaning out mail downstairs this week, which had to be from the 1980s. The coupon is good for 65 cents off and has no expiration date. I like it when coupons have no expiration date. 
Question of the Week?
Do you think my Frugal Friday blog posts are too long? Do they get boring to read? Would it be easier to read if I break it up into more smaller blog posts throughout the week? Please let me know what you think. 
Saving Money on Entertainment
This week I started watching Leanne, a TV series on Netflix set in Knoxville, TN. Leanne finds her husband is leaving her. The show reminded me of one of those classic sitcoms, which I enjoy,  and Leanne is very likable as a southern Mom starting over with support from her loving, but unfiltered family. 

Puff the Magic Dragon

Molly Whuppie is well known for her nostalgic folk music for children, and has built a community of followers worldwide from her home on Prince Edward Island. She sings those songs from our childhood that we all know and love. 

How Much is that Doggy in the Window?

My Reading Nook ~ What I've been Reading This Week
Consumer Affairs is reporting the U.S. inflation rate was fairly moderate at 2.4% before February 28. But after the attack on Iran, oil prices have surged. Now, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) projections suggest inflation could reach about 4.2% in 2026. 
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