October Frugals

[SteveinMN]

We love these friends and want to celebrate with them...but we just cannot afford to continue the sushi tradition (as lovely as it is).

There is a lot to a dinner outing besides the food, but if you live near one or two good grocery stores (not a Walmart) or an Asian grocery store, it's not that expensive to put together a decent sushi meal (rolls, not so much nigiri) and assembling the meal could be a lot of fun to do with another couple who will enjoy the results.

[Simpler at Fifty]

StevinMn - We just got $20 back from the State and were happy about at that. $500 is even better. Good for you for checking into it.

[Merski]

Rosa- the porthole is right on the wharf so you go down an alley. Not too far from the ferry terminal. Perhaps it's listed online. They made beer battered fish that was great with FFs and coleslaw was about $12.

[fidgiegirl]

Hi Kat!

Steve, you inspired me to go take a peek. Didn't find anything for me or my DH but my niece has something from a former employer. So thanks!

In other frugals we made supper last night even while I reaaaaalllllly wanted DH to stop for Leeann Chin . . . then we went and spent $300 on an Sleep Number bed from a friend of ours. I didn't want a big ol' mattress taking up a ton of space in the guest room, nor did I feel comfortable putting guests on an air mattress (though, of course, this one is, you just never would know it because it's so firm like a bed). If we decide we want to use the room for something else, we can disassemble the bed and store it. Plus it will hold some resale value - all the ones on CL were at least $500. So while it was a chunk of change, it was thought out and it's what we want and it's a quality product. Spending less on an air mattress would have been a waste and I think we both knew that and that's why we couldn't take action. So yeah! That's done!

[Stella]

I'm enjoying reading everyone's frugals.

I have had such a lovely, frugal day. Today is the Feast of St Francis of Assisi, which is kind of a big one to our family. In celebration, but in keeping with the spirit of poverty, I made a bread pudding for breakfast this morning for the family and another for my church women's group brunch. We have a table at church for free bread from a local bakery that anyone can take, so I got a package of french bread last night and used that for the puddings. Delicious, simple and very frugal.

The brunch was so amazingly lovely. It was a potluck and the speaker for today was a very gifted poet doing a poetry reading. Her words were so moving and deep. The food was good too; fruit plates, breads, chicken salad, devilled eggs, cakes and coffee. It was the perfect way to spend this chilly fall morning.

We came home and had lunch and the little kids went to sleep. Bella wanted to watch the movie Into Great Silence on Netflix. That was beautiful too. It's a silent documentary, but Bella was asking so many questions it was acutally kind of noisy. Tonight I am making stir fried chicken and veggies with the free chicken we got a while back. Yum!

[Tussiemussies]

Hi Stella, sounds like you always have very meaninfgful or FFF things to do. You are so creative!

[Kat]

Hi fidgie and rosa! It's good to be back. :-) My life has just been crazy busy--at home all day with the baby and then work from 8 PM-1 or 2 AM every night. Up again at 6 with the baby. Repeat. Working less will make things tight financially, but I hope to be happier (and better rested! :-) )

Well, DH did ask his friend, and his friend still really wanted to go out. DH felt it was important to his friend, so he (DH) said he would be paying for the meal out of his own allowance (we each get a little blow money each month, and he has been saving his). I am fine with this, but I do think our friends need to understand that we are not in the same place they are. They are DINKs and think nothing on driving a couple of hours to a good restaurant and dropping $100 or more on a meal. We are living on 1 smallish income (with a tiny supplemental income here and there) and have a baby to consider. I hope this doesn't put a wedge between us...but we just can't keep up with them (nor do we want to try).

I made a menu plan today and went shopping with a grocery list. Came in under budget! :-) Baby and I had some FFF this afternoon. I put some Cherrios in a plastic bottle and watched her try to figure out how to get them out. Then afterwards we snuggled and read a big book about animals. I have the best kid ever.

[SteveinMN]

I do think our friends need to understand that we are not in the same place they are. They are DINKs and think nothing on driving a couple of hours to a good restaurant and dropping $100 or more on a meal. We are living on 1 smallish income (with a tiny supplemental income here and there) and have a baby to consider. I hope this doesn't put a wedge between us...but we just can't keep up with them (nor do we want to try).

You've probably already heard this, but don't feel that you can't guide your friends' behavior. It may not even occur to them that spending even $50 on dinner out is a big deal to you at this point. If you (or DH) can initiate and suggest activities that are fun but do fit into your interests, values, and budget, rather than just hoping your friends catch on to the idea, you may find yourself less stressed about it. Humor can work, too. "$100 for dinner! Why, that's two months of food* for Baby!" said with a smile is a gentle way of reminding your friends that you have different priorities now.


* just picking figures out of thin air. I have no idea what baby food costs.

[Selah]

I have been wanting to repopulate my home with houseplants ever since I had to give them all away when we moved from Nevada to Florida two years ago. In Florida, we didn't get any because we knew we were moving to Israel. After being here for nine months, a friend gave me a pot full of potting soil that was stuffed with lemon verbena cuttings. They rooted in about a second and a half, and now I've got a giant plant from which I can take other cuttings. However, I went to a local nursery last week to investigate the cost of potting soil and plastic pots, and went into sticker shock.

Walking to the grocery store yesterday, I noticed that a lot had been cleared, but a lot of landscaping rubbish had been left in the corner. In it, I found fourteen perfectly good plastic pots, complete with drainage holes. I gathered them up, took them home, washed them out, and they're ready to do. Now, if I can only find some potting soil, I'll be good to go. I have a friend with a gorgeous container garden on her balcony, and she's offered to give me all the cuttings I want. If I go all-out and buy the potting soil, I think I can get about fifteen plants, made with free pots and free cuttings, for about 70 NIS, or USD$17.50.

[Selah]

This just in:
DH: "I'm going to go to the grocery store before it closes at noon today."
Me: "Great! Could you please take back these two empty beer bottles for recycling there? They'll give you money back for them."
DH: "Nah, it isn't worth the trouble to just take back two empties. I'll buy more beer so we'll have at least a six pack to take back later."

Gentle readers, what would YOU have said? LOL!