First Frugal Friday of June 2025

Welcome to Frugal Friday! 

Quote of the Week

“Refuse to live a life of overconsumption". ~ Bradley on a Budget

 “In a world pushing consumption, choosing discipline over dollars is a radical act of freedom. Start small, stay steady, and watch how far you go – without spending a cent”. ~ Not Buying Anything Blog 

My Frugal Week
Since it rained last Friday, I stayed home for the day. Chattanooga had over twelve inches of rain at the airport in May breaking the record from 1929. 

On Tuesday I went to town to run errands. I stopped at a tiny farm stand to pick up two free tomato plants and bought one dozen eggs for $4.00. I went to Home Depot and bought a dill plant, a bag of gravel to fill a pothole in the driveway, and they had Comet for $1, so I bought one of those too. 

Also, since I no longer need the numerous walkers I have, I took two of them and donated them to People Helping People and was able to pick up some squash and a pineapple for free from them. They had a bunch of squash to give away. 
I came home and cut the pineapple and then added the peels to my compost pile in the woods. 
I took all the books I was finished reading to McKay Used Books to trade. I earned $41 in trade credit. I found Dr. Michael Greger’s How Not to Age book for $5.00, which was a bargain. I had just mentioned wanting it here a few weeks ago. Even the cheapest used version sells for 9.66 on Amazon, but I didn’t have to pay for mine as I traded with them and no money exchanged hands. 

This spoon was coming apart at the wooden handle, so I used some Gorilla Glue and fixed it this week. 
I bought gas at Marathon this week for $2.46 per gallon using their rewards app on my phone. 
Yard Sale Saturday
Saturday we were lucky enough to go to TWO church yard sales, which we usually find has the best clothing pricing options. I bought several pieces of clothing to try on once they were washed at home. 
Here is just a sampling of the things I bought…

The collagen powder ($29.99) and creatine powder ($23.99) were both $1 for brand new unexpired containers, which was unbelievable! The lady was moving and didn’t want to have to move her stash, so we really benefited. I also picked up two new bottles of an after in shower moisturizer. 
At the same sale, Bailey stocked up on John Freida shampoo and conditioner for the next year, which sells for $9.99 at Walmart, but she only paid $1 each.
At other sales, I added to my book stash, got a glass Pyrex dish, Disney’s The Princess & the Frog on DVD, one shirt, a couple of blender bottles for the shaker balls inside as they get lost easily. I put the cups in our consignment basket to sell later. 

Bailey wrote another Substack and the topic this time is Spring Yard Sale Adventures. 
Freebies

I received a free sample of shampoo and conditioner in the mail this week. These are usually large enough to use for at least two hair washings. I also received four free magazines this week. 

Joy of the Week
Saturday evening I went to my neighbors house (the one putting in our culvert), and had the best visit with him and his sister. I paid him for the culvert, which was delivered in his yard this week along with a fresh load of gravel. He will be installing ours on Saturday. 
Photos of the Week

It's pretty neat when the tomatoes at Home Depot come with tomatoes already growing on them. 

Foxgloves

Delphinium

Savings of the Week

My best savings of the week comes from a church yard sale on Saturday. They had eight cans of tomato sauce (15 ounces) good through 2026 for 25 cents each. I bought all eight of them. 
Question of the Week
If you saw a coin on the ground at a yard sale, would you pick it up or no? Would you keep it or give it to the yard sale holder? 
I feel funny keeping a coin I find in someone’s yard, so I was curious what you think. 
Money Saving YouTube Video
Budget Pantry Meals Perfect for Rent Week by Frankie of Struggle Meals on YouTube. The lentil soup looks especially delicious. 
That is our week in a nutshell. How was your week? Any frugal wins to report?

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

Menu Plan Monday ~ Saving Money in my Frugal Kitchen ~ Week #1 June 2025

My Frugal Week

Last Monday I decided to make a cucumber, tomato, bean based salad to have to eat during the week. I had two English cucumbers along with some green peppers on hand. Green peppers are not our favorite, but a friend gave them to me and I would not let them go to waste. 

A frugal fail this week was when I went to set my small (2 quart) crockpot on the counter, the entire crock broke around the middle part inside rendering it useless. I emailed the company, but they’ve been discontinued and their remaining stock has been exhausted. So, I’ll look for one that size on the second hand market, but will use my big (8 quart) one in the meantime. 

I've used up all the fresh produce in the house including the last onion, so on Tuesday I stopped in at the community garden and picked two green onions and some kale. I also picked up some cauliflower, onions, sweet potatoes, russet potatoes, strawberries, blueberries, grapes, lettuce, celery, and carrots. It’s so nice to be stocked up again. 

We also picked up a Huge watermelon. 🍉  It took both of us to carry it into the house because it was so big and awkward. I weighed it once we got it upstairs and it weighed 53 pounds! 😳 

On Saturday I came across eight cans of 15 ounce tomato sauces, good until 2026, for twenty five cents each! I definitely bought all they had. 

On Sunday I made eight gelatin/mandarin orange fruit cups (our favorite flavors). I put pork chops in the crockpot for dinner and we went to Kroger for groceries. 

We were able to get two, one pound packages of ground chicken for $2.02. Three, one pound packages of ground chicken burgers for $1.80. And two, one pound packages of ground turkey for $2.66. 

I was surprised and grateful for those good markdowns, which are both healthier and less costly than beef. I’ve been wanting to buy some turkey Italian sausage, but it’s hard to find here. I’ll try and make my own now and let you know the results. 

What’s for Dinner

Monday & Tuesday ~ BBQ Chicken, Zucchini, Cucumber/Tomato Bean Salad. 

Wednesday ~ BBQ Chicken and Salads. I had errands to run on Wednesday and knew I wouldn’t be home in time to make dinner, so we did the best we could finally eating dinner around 7 p.m., and it was after 8 p.m. when I finally got the kitchen cleaned and off to relax for the evening. 

Thursday ~ Chicken Tacos, Corn or Flour Tortillas, Seriously Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Red Onions, Chipotle Sauce, Black Olives, Lettuce, and Bean Salad. 

Fish on Friday ~ Salmon Patties, Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Brussel Sprouts, and Green Beans with Onions. 

Saturday ~ Chicken Tacos with all the fixings. 

Sunday ~ BBQ Pork Chops, Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Brussel Sprouts, 

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

Belinda

Homemaker at Heart

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

Fifth & Final Frugal Friday of May 2025

Welcome to Frugal Friday! 
Quote of the Week

“Learn skills that will bless your family. […] Once you learn something then don't stop there, learn more”. ~ Becky @ Frugal Measures

My Frugal Week

Last Friday was my last day of physical therapy. I went to yard sales before and after PT and also went by the library. At the library they were selling DVDs priced at five for $1.00, so 20 cents each. I bought all ten of the exercise DVDs they had, so now that PT is over, I can use them on my $10 yard sale TV/DVD player. 
At yard sales I picked up a measuring glass pitcher, a sink strainer/drainer, one shirt, one shelf with hooks, new Instant Pot silicone lid, mirror on a stand for my desk, one canister, and two Aladdin hot food thermoses. 

            

Isn't this a beautiful pitcher? I saw it and liked it instantly and only paid $1.00 for it. I'm going to use it for when I make gelatin cups to pour from to avoid any drips. I did a little research and turns out it is a vintage Evenflo formula measuring pitcher from the 1950s. I love that it is vintage. 
I almost bought a hot food thermos last week to make lunches for my Florida family that came in, but decided against that. I’m so glad I did because I only paid $2 each for these from a yard sale and they were much higher than that in the store. 

Yard Sale Saturday
Bailey eats breakfast on the go on yard sale days, so I fixed her some turkey sausages and put them in one of thermoses I bought and she ate them in the car while I drove. 
It rained during the night and threatened to rain during the day and was overcast, so again yard sales were hit or miss. We started out the day in the historical St. Elmo neighborhood of Chattanooga at the St. Elmo Presbyterian Church where the Boy Scouts were having a yard sale. 
What they did have had been rained on, but we dove in anyway into boxes and bags of unsorted, unorganized stuff. Nothing was priced individually and we didn’t notice the price signs on the tables until they asked us where each item came from. 😬 Oops. 
We ended up making a deal and we agreed upon $15 for my bag of items. When I got home I counted how many items I had and it came to 18, so each piece was 83 cents. 

In the photo above you can see I got an Instant Pot stainless steel liner (wow!), three spoons, three canning jars, two of which were vintage and one was wide mouth (my favorite), a beautiful Lands End towel, homemade dish cloth, soap, three baby blankets, another jar, three books, a new magnetic notepad (goes into the gift closet), a set of stainless steel measuring cups, and some brand new magnets still in the box. It was so much fun and cheap entertainment. LOL
I also picked up a new wind chime for the back porch, priced at only $2.00. 
Sunday turned out to be a pretty day even though it was overcast. The temperature was 66 degrees, so I turned the a/c off and opened up the windows to air out the house. I also worked on my blog and did laundry in between. On Monday I stripped my bed and washed my sheets and blankets. 
I received a $50 gift card to Walmart from my insurance company for having a test done recently. One of the things I bought with it was a new windshield wiper as mine needed replacement. I watched a couple of YouTube videos to see if I could change it myself, but had no luck, so I asked a gentleman from church and he did it for me. Thanking the Lord for this blessing. 💕 
Freebies
On Tuesday I had errands to run and one of those included stopping in at the Chattanooga Free Store. I picked up a hoodie with kangaroo pocket for myself, three magazines, what I thought was a mason jar carrier, and a couple of lip balms. I had never been in there before, but had wanted to go for a long time now. I’ll definitely go back again someday. For those local folks, they let you shop once a week. 

While I was at the library this week, I decided to check out their free seed catalog, which they store in an old card catalog index file. I also checked out their toiletries closet. They offer sanitary products, makeup, nail polish, hair nets, and such. I picked up a trial size bottle of lotion and some press on nails for Bailey. 
Circle K gave me a free 28 ounce bottled drink as a reward, so I went in the store when I was out this week to pick it up. They are priced at $3.28, so a nice freebie and I stored it in the fridge. 

On Thursday I returned my car to the collision center shop for a new drivers side door handle, which was broken while they had my car. The owner says those things just wear out, but I think one of them was just too rough with it. 
I stopped in at the Samaritan Center too. Jackie over at In The Land of the Living Skies makes tinkle wipes to save money on toilet paper. While I was looking I noticed they had baby wash clothes, which would be perfect for this purpose. They were five for $1.00, so twenty cents each. I bought twenty of them, washed them, and put them in a basket in the bathroom. 
Saving Money on Entertainment
Is there anything better to a cat than an empty box? It sure does make for some inexpensive entertainment. 😂 
What I've been Reading This Week
My Money Saving Tips ~ Ilona, aka Mean Queen, over at Love my Life/Life After Money has this list on her blog on ways she saves money. She has always reminded me of someone who is hard core frugal like Amy Dacyczyn was. It’s a terrific list of ways she saves money and many of them are just good common sense and definitely worth the read. 
How was your week? Any frugal wins to share with us? 

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 on Washing Laundry

Saving Money on Washing Laundry

There are ways that we can save money when it comes to doing our laundry. One way is by always washing full loads of laundry. Use less detergent than the bottle says to use, and cut that amount in half or even less. Use as little as possible to clean your clothes. Also, you can use vinegar as a fabric softener. 

Use cold water to wash laundry to save money on electricity for your water heater and your well pump, if you have a well pump.

Before you wash your clothes inspect them to see if they really need washing. Sniff them, do they smell, are they wrinkled or stained? If you answer no to these questions, you don't need to wash them as it is a waste of money to wash clothes that are not dirty.

Wearing clothes more than once saves you money because you will do less laundry. When I go out of the house to run errands I’ll dress better than I do if I'm just staying home for the day.  

Then, once I get home from running errands, I’ll take my clothes off immediately and hang them up to wear another day and switch back into my every day clothes. This helps to make my good clothes last longer with less laundering and saves money in the process. 

Also considering wearing an apron that will save your shirt from spills and stains. You can hang it in the kitchen, and use it daily.

Also consider having outside clothes for dirty jobs like gardening, which can stay by the door and gets washed minimally. 

My Dad had his workshop downstairs for many years and it is completely separate from the house upstairs. There is also a bathroom, and washer and dryer, so he could shower downstairs and wash his clothes and not have to bring the dirt from his machinery upstairs with him. 

Stretching your laundry means stretching the life of your clothes. Stretching your clothes means stretching your dollar and we could all use some of that in our finances these days.

Saving Money on Drying

The cheapest way to dry your laundry is to hang it to dry, but if you do use a clothes dryer, be sure to clean the link trap after every load to make sure it is drying and heating sufficiently. Also, use a dryer lint brush to get all the dryer link out, or if you have a vacuum cleaner attachment use that to get rid of even more dryer lint. 

What are some ways you save money on laundry?

Belinda 🫶 💕 Homemaker at Heart 💕 ~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree

~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Menu Plan Monday ~ Saving Money in my Frugal Kitchen ~ Week #4 May 2025

 

Quote of the Week

"The cost of food is significant. When we eat out and pay someone else to cook our food for us, the bill can easily double or triple in cost. Therefore, cooking our own food at home saves us money".

Dining out multiple times per week at a cost of $15 to $50 per meal adds up and can easily become a habit, is often unhealthy, unplanned, and eats away our savings accounts.  Cook at home, invest the difference and buy your freedom. 

My Frugal Week

On Monday after letting the chicken broth from the rotisserie chickens cool, I packaged it up and ended up with ten pint sized containers of deep colored broth. 

Afterwards I sorted thru the bones and picked out the remaining meat, and ended up with about one third full of a gallon size Ziplock bag. Then I decided to use it with a package of Pepperidge Farms dressing and the chicken broth to make chicken and dressing for dinner on Tuesday evening. 

On Thursday we were out of gelatin cups again. So, I made six cups with strawberry/banana gelatin and canned pears and peaches, and I made six cups using orange gelatin and fresh clementines. These make the perfect evening snack with a spoonful of cottage cheese on top. 

On Friday after yard sales, I stopped at Aldi and picked up two pounds of red grapes, grape tomatoes, one English cucumber, and one package of strawberries, which came to $9.90. 

On Saturday I washed the new mason jars I picked up this week and reorganized a shelf in my kitchen. I washed a board we found last week at a yard sale to make a shelf liner. Then I lined up all my jars on the shelf, which should make it easier to find them and put them away after using. 

Have you ever known ketchup to go bad? I had a bottle in my fridge that was fine when we bought it but tasted off to me recently even though it was not out of date. I didn’t want to use it in my beefy baked beans recipe this week, so instead I turned to some Heinz ketchup packs, given to me by a friend, and measured out the half cup I needed and used that in my recipe instead. 

Look around at what you have and ask yourself,  “how can I use this”, even if it’s in a different way. Look outside the box. Some of these frugal tasks may seem like a lot of work, but hard work is something we can do. 

Recipe of the Week

This recipe reminds me of my homemade chicken nuggets recipe, but this one has the addition of chopped broccoli, which will boost the nutrient content. 

Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Patties  

Ingredients:

1 pound ground chicken

1 egg

2 cups chopped broccoli 

1 cup of sharp cheddar cheese

Directions:

Season with pepper, salt, onion powder, and paprika to taste.   

Mix everything together and make into patties.

Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. 

Bake at 425° and for about 25 minutes.

 

What’s for Dinner

Monday ~ BBQ Chicken, Steamed Broccoli, Cucumber & Tomato Salad. 

Tuesday ~ Chicken & Dressing, Green Beans with Onions. 

Wednesday ~ We had Florida family come in for just a few hours on a layover in Chattanooga after their Tennessee river cruise. It wasn’t long enough to bring them back home for lunch because of the distance, so we went to Wendy’s and they bought my lunch, which was a small chili and water. 

They are both very frugal and wanted to stop at Burger King to get the $3.99 Whopper Wednesday deal to take with them for dinner later. They needed two Whoppers and you can only get one on the app, so Linda bought one on her app and I bought one on my app. I teased them and told them that since they bought my lunch, I would buy dinner. 😂 

Linda saw me take the receipt from Wendy's and add it to my Fetch app, so she asked me about it. I went ahead and installed it on her phone for her and she ended up with 2,700 points before she left the Chattanooga airport. 

And I got 3,000 points for the referral.  If you're interested in joining Fetch and scanning your receipts for gift cards to places like Amazon, Walmart, Kroger, etc., my referral link can be found in the right hand column at the bottom of this page. 

Once I got home I made dinner for Bailey and myself, which was Chicken and Dressing from Tuesday, and Cucumber Tomato Salad.

Thursday ~ Beefy Baked Beans, Steamed Carrots & Cabbage, Sliced Zucchini, and the last of the Cucumber Tomato Salad. The zucchini, free from a friend, was sliced into coins like cucumbers and served raw. Bailey doesn’t care for cooked zucchini, but she really enjoyed it raw, so I’ll be serving it this way again. 

Friday ~ Bailey had her book club to attend, so I was on my own for dinner. I made both of us a Caesar Grilled Chicken salad for dinner, but we didn’t eat together like we usually do. 

Saturday ~ Lemon Pepper Chicken with Peppers & Onions, Carrots, Cabbage, and Corn on the Cob. 

Sunday ~ Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Patties (recipe above), Corn on the Cob, along with a garden salad.

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

Belinda

Homemaker at Heart

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