Learning to be Frugal. What do YOU do?

Hound dog

Nana's are Beautiful
Susie, I'm gonna sound like an idiot. But I bought lemons. I haven't a clue what to do with them. (see what I mean about the idiot part?) What on earth is a "zester"?? If you can't tell my family obviously was not big on lemons, I don't recall anyone using them for anything. Aubrey happens to love them fresh. (go figure lol) Right now I don't need to clean with them, but i don't want them going to waste until I can use them either........when I figure out how to use them. I don't own a blender, or a juicer, even an old fashion juicer.

Gonna keep that bag the potatoes and onions come in tip on the top of my mind. husband keeps ruining my plastic scrubbers and driving me nuts. I'm tried of replacing them.

I'm going to look for that 2.00 real coffee can at wm too. I need coffee (always) husband needs something to store nails, nuts, bolts, screws ect in.
 

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
Lemons... zap in microwave for about 10-20 seconds - not until "hot", but "warm".
Roll between your palm and the counter-top to soften it up - breaks down the membranes etc.
Then use a very fine, very sharp grater, and grate off as much of the "yellow" (zest) as you can.
Before you do the next part, borrow a teenage athlete...
Cut the lemon in half, and have said teenager squeeze it into a bowl.
Take what's left, cut in quarters, and float one or two in your water pitcher (depending on how big it is)... really adds a nice "touch" to plain old water.

Freeze the zest in 1 tsp mounds, then into a container when frozen.
Freeze lemon juice in 1 tbsp portions... I use a mini ice-cube tray.

Once you have this stuff around... its so easy to just grab it.
 
H

HaoZi

Guest
It's a small can on the top or next to top shelf, blue label called Master Chef, it's 10.5 oz.
 

gcvmom

Here we go again!
Eating at home (we used to eat out A LOT) most every night now. Kids AND husband take their lunches instead of buying. That's been a huge money-saver.

I always go to the clearance rack or the sale items first (even our grocery store has a clearance rack -- dented cans, torn boxes, all usually at least 1/2 off) when shopping for something we need. Buying some stuff at the dollar store that is the same quality as what I'd normally buy (toothpaste, etc.)

And I'm really looking hard at all my purchases now. Questioning anything that's non-essential or an impulse buy. Trying to train husband to change his behavior, too. Surprisingly, the kids have rolled with this just fine. They don't go without, but they also don't get everything they want when they want it. Delayed gratification. If they need it, fine, but let's get the best price possible. And if they don't need it TODAY, then let's hold out until it goes on sale at the very least.

Recently discovered our Sears Outlet store carries clothing -- found really good North Face winter jackets that the boys can use for snow-boarding if we go this winter, for just $12 each. They are getting wrapped for Xmas gifts. Also found some men's fleece pj bottoms that the boys like to wear for $2 -- those will also be Xmas gifts.

I'm caving and carpooling easy child with one of the spoiled brat kids this year and another girl. That will save on gas. And the boys will be walking to school.

It's funny, but I feel like I'm just going back to how things were when I was a kid, so it doesn't feel like much effort at all. I think it's hardest on husband and his impulse control problems.
 

mstang67chic

Going Green
I don't do as much of these as I should but...

Plastic over windows in the winter if yours aren't as air tight as they should be. If nothing else...heavy drapes/material over the windows can make a difference too. Keep curtains/blinds open during the day when it's sunny as it will help heat the room. Just be sure to close them before the sun starts to set. Depending on the type of windows you have, plastic can be put either on the outside or the inside.

If you like steel wool but don't want to spend the money on the soap pads....go to the hardware store and get plain steel wool. It comes in strips kind of like cotton wadding. Buy a length and just tear/cut off what you need.

If you have a freezer (chest or upright) but don't have a lot in it....fill a milk jug about 3/4 of the way and freeze it. The more things in your freezer, the less it has to work.

Most new toilets are designed to use less water but if you don't have one, put a brick in the tank to reduce the amount of water used.

Set your hot water heater to a lower temp.

Use hot water sparingly when doing laundry. I only use hot water when washing towels and sheets. Also, since all of our clothes are washed in cold water, as long as the clothing isn't new and won't bleed, I throw all kinds of things in together so I have a full load.

Buy as much as possible from the dollar store or discounts stores. Anymore, even Dollar General carries brand name cleaners. Or just do what you all are doing....price shop.

Like others, I buy "clearance" meat and will also get the family packs to seperate and freeze. We have also purchased meat in bulk. Either a side of beef or a quarter, depending on available space. It takes money up front but usually averages out to a per pound amount that is way below store prices.

Unplug all electrical items when not in use.

I keep a lot of things in the freezer to keep them fresh.....flour, corn bread mix...things like that. Especially things I know I'm not going to use right away. It helps keep things from going buggy.

To help make shampoo/conditioner last, especially when you have long hair...mix about half the amount you would normally use with half a bottle or so of water, shake and apply. It works just as well and uses a lot less product.

Check with the utility companies to see if it would be better to go on their budget plan or pay normally.
 

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
Eating at home... we pay for "some" more-expensive stuff, to have instead of a restaurant meal. Chicken nuggets and fries, top quality sausage for pizza, the odd carton of premium ice cream when its REALLY on sale...
The logic goes like this... To buy a premium ice cream cone at the "shoppe" is $2 for the first scoop and $1/scoop after that. 2 scoops x 3 people = $9. For $9, I can buy TWO of the 2-litre (half-gallon) containers of preimium ice cream on sale... and we get WAY more than three cones out of it. So, we still get the treat - but more of it than we could ever afford if we were going down to the "shoppe".

The kids had a hard time with not going down to the "shoppe" like all the other kids (you've heard that line, right?). Not because it was critical to get a cone, but because they got a rough time from the other kids for never going... we showed them the logic, and they throw THAT in the faces of the kids who used to give them a rough time for not going.

By having a "treat meal" at least once every 3-4 weeks, the kids don't feel so deprived - and we don't either.
 

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
Hot water tank... get special hot-water-pipe insulation for the first 4-6 feet of hot pipe coming out of the water heater - reduces heat loss from the tank significantly.

Put a timer on your furnace/air conditioner thermostat - we turn the furnace down at night and mid-day when nobody is around but the (very wooly) dogs - and can then afford to have it at a "comfortable" level for the few hours that matter. The a/c doesn't kick in until after 10 a.m. - off at about 2 a.m. In the morning, (it cools down here - this doesn't work everywhere) we open all the windows and enjoy the fresh cool air, then close up before the a/c is scheduled to come on.

Use heavy curtains to keep the heat OUT in the summer and IN in the winter.

Always wash FULL loads of clothes or dishes. Don't use the drying cycle on the dishwasher - just open the door when the cycle is done and let them air-dry.

If you need the oven on to cook supper, but the oven isn't full, look for something else to cook ahead along side... even if its just brownies for in lunch boxes.

If you boil eggs for breakfast, you can re-use that water:
1) to pre-heat the thermos for the extra coffee, so its still hot and enjoyable later (or send with husband)
2) as part of the dish washing water

Use foot-power or pedal-power for lighter errands... walk or bike (or send the kids...) to get milk, bread, or that whipping cream that you just decided you need to top off the ice cream sundaes you're making for desert...
 

Hound dog

Nana's are Beautiful
Ohh insane you're good! lol

I used to do treat night when the kids were little. We rarely, if ever, could afford to eat out even at Mc Donalds. So I made Momma Burgers.....big burgers with all the toppings (much more good stuff than you get in fast food places), real deep fried french fries (again much yummier), and I made milk shakes in the blender.

And I soooo hear you on the Shoppe deal. Ha! your kids are getting much more treat by staying home and eating it. lol

Never occurred to do that with the boiled eggs for breakfast.......now I will. I like boiled eggs for breakfast.

Stang.........I noticed that about the freezer. The fuller it gets the less it's working. (kicking on and off) And I'm going to put a brick in the toilet tank. I forgot about that one.
 
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HaoZi

Guest
Some plants (like roses) also enjoy being watered with old coffee and using the old grounds as mulch.
 

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
Lets see - all of this is off the top of my head, really, but...

Light bulbs - only put in the minimum wattage you actually need for that light. If the hall light only gets used at night to navigate to bedrooms... put a 15 watt in, its all you need. How many tri-lights do you have where you only use the first or second setting? Buy bulbs of that wattage instead. Often bathroom fixtures have multiple bulbs - don't replace the hard-to-reach inside ones, just put high enough wattage on the others that you have enough to do what has to be done. Use task lighting instead of room lighting, unless the task requires lighting up the whole room.

Do you really need all those cordless phones and their re-charge cycles?

Sometimes newer is better - computer monitors don't cost much these days, but the new thin screens use a lot less energy than the old "big box" monitors.

If you sew - its hard to get "end of bolt" deals anymore from the fabric store, but often they donate these to the thrift stores... where you can pick up good-sized pieces for a fraction of the cost... denim, cord, poly-cottons, etc. Enough for a dress or a skirt or a bedspread... If you have access to an old treadle machine, they don't use any electricity at all! AND work great for heavier jobs like denim.

If you don't use your fireplace, create a solid decorative front for it - keeps cold air from seeping down the flue in the winter.

Cheap kitty litter is a good choice for icy sidewalks - environmentally friendly (compared to salt and other chemicals), doesn't damage shoes or cars, and gives good footing.

Man, if I had time, I could probably write a book.
 

donna723

Well-Known Member
I started paring down a few years ago in anticipation of retirement and really don't miss any of the things I cut out. I started looking at my bill for my landline phone and there were things on there that I never used or didn't need anymore, all things that were costing me extra every month so I got rid of them. I have only a little prepaid Trac phone cell that I use when I need it - $20 every three months and my minutes just keep piling up because I never use them! I can't get any television programming at all without the satellite but I dropped to a different package and now my bill is about $40 a month less. I was paying for all the movie channels that I never watched anyway. I stopped buying a newspaper everyday because I can access it on the internet and I get most of my news from the TV anyway. I don't buy magazines anymore either because I tend to stack them up and never read them. I'm very limited in what I can do here because this is such a small town. It's hard to comparison shop when there's only one grocery store in town and I wouldn't save much if I drove 20 miles to another store. I'm doing a lot more shopping online now. I avoid shopping in the bigger stores because I know darned good and well I will come out with $80-$100 worth of 'stuff' that I didn't really need.
 

susiestar

Roll With It
Lemons are great for so many things!! The zest (yellow part on the outside) has a TON of flavor because the oil is there. You do have to be careful not to get the white part off with it because that is the bitter part. I have a lemon zester, a gadget that takes the zest off in little strips and cannot go low enough to get the white with-o really trying to get it. It is about the biggest waste of time and energy that I have - and I have a LOT of kitchen gadgets. I also have a box grater and a microplane grater and either of them is far better. I use the finest part of the box grater and just watch so I don't take off the white part.

Lemon zest can be tossed into cookie dough, cake batter, even pie crust. You can also store it in a bottle of vodka or light run and use that for drinks, for cooking, etc.... I LOVE lemon with chicken but I HATE HATE HATE the lemon pepper you buy. I use the lemon zest and/or lemon juice instead.

If you cook veggies and there is liquid left in the pot/microwave bowl/serving dish, DO NOT THROW IT AWAY!! Keep a container in your freezer and pour this liquid into it. Each time you have cooking liquid left, esp from veggies, add it to the container. When you want to make a big pot of soup, pull this out and use this liquid for the liquid in the soup. I would avoid liquid from things like brussel sprouts because it is so very strong in flavor/odor, but most other veggies are fine. This liquid that you have saved in the freezer has a LOT of the nutrients from your veggies. When you use it for soup you boost the nutrient content of the soup - for free!

Another huge $$ saver is to make your own chicken and beef broth. Anytime you serve chicken don't pitch the bones. Take them from the plates or serving dishes and put them in teh freezer until you have a pot full of them. Then put them in the pot (don't need to thaw them), cover with water, bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer. Simmer for at least an hour, or even a couple of hours. If you are not home a lot and don't have time to do this when you are home, try putting them in the crockpot, covering them with water and setting it on high for the day. It makes a great broth. Add carrots, onion, celery and garlic to help flavor the broth - at the beginning of the cooking time preferably but if you toss them in later make sure they have an hour or two to simmer to get the flavor out of them. Then pour the stock through a sieve into a container and freeze. I usually freeze in 2 or 3 cup containers.

If you have problems with headaches, muscle spasms or whatever and need heat therapy, you can fill a 2 liter bottle with hot water (NOT boiling - too hot and it will melt the bottle but also burn you) and use that. It is esp great for the back of the neck. My dad came up with this when we were on a trip to my Gma's in Cincy and both mom and I had migraines at the same time. My Gma didn't have a microwave so heating the hot packs we had was tough - they had to be put in boiling water. We only had one hot pack with us on the trip so my dad improvised iwth a 2 liter bottle. Since then I have used this on trips or when I had more places that needed hot packs than I had hot packs to put on them.

Some cheap cold therapy tips - I don't put cold on anything because it sends my muscles into spasms that take weeks to work out. For knee problems - freeze water in a paper dixie cup. Then peel the cup away a bit and use the ice to massage the knee. It works amazingly well. My aunt scoffed at me for this when she broke her kneecap. Swore that the ice packs the PT gave her were the best. Then her husband forgot to put them back in and the ice cups I had put in her freezer were there. She was shocked - and her PT was very impressed with the way it works. You are not just passively letting the cold work on the area - you are actually massaging with the cold and it does something in there that is very effective. I learned it from a really great ortho doctor - one who treated the Bengals and the Red's players in Cincy.

I do NOT buy the gel packs for cold therapy. I buy frozen peas, corn or lima beans. Yes, they thaw and get refrozen, so they are not good for eating. But they work much better and are far cheaper. They stay cold longer than the gel packs. I do keep them in a ziplock bag because they have to get broken up after they freeze if they have thawed too much. But bought on sale at under $1 each, and used for a couple of months, they are a far better deal than the $8 - $10 (on sale) gel packs that leak after about 15-20 uses. An alternative to frozen veggies is to put 1 cup of water and 1 cup of alcohol into a ziploc. Seal it and freeze it. It won't form ice because the alcohol won't freeze. It will be very cold, great for short term uses like scrapes, stay cold about 15-20 min, and is super cheap. I generally seal the ziploc seal, then put it inside a second ziploc and seal all four edges with duct tape. This keeps the kids from popping it or otherwise breaking the bag, and it makes it last longer. For one that will hold up even longer, use one of those vacuum seal thingies for food (s*ck and seal if the only name i can think of for it right now, sorry) and make a bag with the rolls of plastic for the machine. Put the alcohold mixture in the bag and seal it. It may take a bit of practice to do the final seal because it can be tricky.

Also, check ALL your rx medications. Some are combinations of two or more other medications. Look up prices and see if it is cheaper to get the medications individually or not. Treximet is a "new" migraine medication that is not in generic and is super expensive. It is just imitrex (sumatriptan) and naproxen sodium put together into a tablet. It is FAR cheaper to get generic imitrex and a bottle of naproxen. husband is on a blood pressure medication that is actually 2 medications. Both are on the $4 list but the combo is much more expensive. Our insurance actually won't cover the combo - prior insurance did but not what we now have. Taking two tablets may be a bit of a hassle, but the savings is well worth it. Do not be afraid to ask your doctor if there is a cheaper medicine that you can try first for whatever you need to have treated. I have often had docs who wanted to rx a newer medication that the drug co's are pushing but they gave me something else that was much much cheaper when I asked why this medication and not another. Topomax was the one I did this with several times. I took it for over a year and it was great but eventually it stopped owrking - for any of the problems it was treating. Mostly the docs wanted to give it for migraine prevention. I always wanted to know why they didn't want to start with a beta blocker or calcium channel blocker first. For a long time if my blood pressure top number went over 108 I had a migraine. I coudl tell them when it was close to or over that number. I was this way for at least ten years. The hysterectomy changed that but beta blockers still work to prevent my migraines. So the choice was a medication that was $20 or less (and some are about 10-25% of that amount) or a medication that was a couple of hundred dollars a month. I fired the three different docs who wanted to know why I even cared hwo much it cost - my health insurance would cover the cost, not me. That is just stupid thinking, in my opinion. You should feel comfortable asking the doctor why a certain medication is chosen and if a cheaper alternative exists. Sometimes there are good reasons for a more expensive medication, but often the docs are prescribing what they have heard about recently. Drug co reps know this and this is why they give all those pencils and notepads and hand lotions etc... with drug names on them.
 

AnnieO

Shooting from the Hip
Lemons... I love lemons.

The kids adore this one:

1 can CHEAP (like $0.25) frozen lemonade concentrate
3-4 lemons
1/4 - 1/2 cup sugar

Put lemonade, sugar and about 1 1/2 qts water in pitcher & mix well. Slice lemons thin, toss them in.

Tastes better than just plain lemonade (to me), less sugar, and the lemons are the most expensive part... Oh. This can be done AFTER zesting, too.

Now, if it sits in the fridge more than about 3 days, the zest will make the lemonade bitter...
Slice lemons thin
 

crazymama30

Active Member
I am not so good with some things, but others? Like food? I am good. I buy meat on sale. If it is over $2/lb I don't buy it unless it is a treat. I buy the big family packs and cut it how I want and freeze it in smaller packs. I buy bread at the bread "thrift store" or day old store. We can get the bread the kids like and will eat for much less than anywhere else. We don't go out to eat, a u bake pizza is considered eating out. Recently I started making my own pizza and the kids love it . I am trying to work on other things, but it will take time. I want to work on couponing, but that is harder than it looks for me. I need to just get a binder and get organized and it will come to me.
 

donna723

Well-Known Member
Something else I just thought of ... duh! I just realized that part of my car insurance rate is based on how many miles I drive! This wouldn't apply to everybody but I just retired last year. When I was working I drove 75 miles a day just back and forth to work and now I mostly just pooter around town where everything is no more than a block or so from my house! Now I put $10 worth of gas in my little car and it lasts me for six weeks! I finally remembered to call my insurance agent and they're going to shop around and see how much less my rates will now that I'm officially a homebody. Every little bit helps!
 

AnnieO

Shooting from the Hip
Speaking of car insurance... Staying with the same agent for 20 years, not having any moving violations or accidents or even minor claims, driving a safe car... Yeah, it all adds up. I have full coverage. I pay $34 a month. I'm not joking. 6-month premium is $201... Comprehensive.

BUT, we also have a large diesel truck, a MALE driver, and a home insurance policy, so the actual amount is more. That's just my vehicle policy by itself.
 

DDD

Well-Known Member
Reading about coffee cans made me remember that I use those (large plastic with snap on lid) for storing flour, corn meal, sugar, grits etc. I no longer worry about moisture or bugs. Everything stays fresh forever, lol. Because the jugs are large and sealed tight I store them in the laundry room which gives alot more shelf space in the pantry. DDD
 

donna723

Well-Known Member
Something else about car insurance ... it's good to check your policy every once in a while to make sure they're not charging you for things you don't have. I still have nightmares about when my son was on my policy! For a while he had a small Chevy S-10 pickup, just the standard stuff on it, none of the 'blingey' things like a lot of kids have on those little trucks. We'd been paying the insurance on it for quite a while when I discovered that they'd been charging us extra each month for things his truck didn't have. They had it down that his truck had those 'panel' things, not sure what they call them, the things that kids put between the front and back wheels on the sides to make the truck look like it's so low that it's almost scraping the ground. They add to your insurance because the stupid things get banged up every time you go over a bump! Of course,once the mistake was discovered, they refused to refund the amount that had been over charged for over a year!

Something else I didn't know - it depends on the model too. This was a while back but for several years I drove a Pontiac Grand Am that I bought used. Nice little car and good on gas. Then I traded it in on a brand new Oldsmobile Alero. I expected my insurance to go up on a new car vs. a five year old used one ... but it didn't! It stayed almost exactly the same. They told me that the insurance rates for a Grand Am were much higher because it's considered a sports car whereas the Alero was not! WTH? The two are basically the exact same car - same engine, same everything, just sightly different body style, but the Grand Am was marketed mainly to young people where the Alero was not! Wish I had known that before I bought the Grand Am! I liked it but not that much!
 

tiredmommy

Well-Known Member
The Grand Am was also outperformed in safety tests against the Alero. The Grand Am has one of the worst collision records of cars made in the USA if I remember correctly. ;)
 
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