be more frugal

After more than a year and a half of working on being more frugal, I can definitely say this has become part of my lifestyle. It’s helped me to do some really important things, like using the money I saved to pay off my student loans early and buy my first home. It also put me in a better mindset for my bigger goals of living simply and urban homesteading.

I made big batches of pb&j sandwiches and cookies then froze them for grab and go lunch options on busy mornings. (There’s no excuse for eating in the cafeteria now!)

I know I missed posting a lot of these here. The rest are on my blog.

The grocery store had big signs up saying banana prices are on the rise. So the next time I passed Aldis I stopped to get 4 bunches of bananas to dehydrate. That way I’ll have cheap banana chips to munch on when fresh banana prices are high.

I’ve been saving egg cartons to use as seed starter trays. I’m starting my first garden this year!

I’ve been doing my grocery shopping at Aldis.
I hang up clothes I’ve worn that aren’t dirty yet (like work skirts!)
I’ve been making sure to turn off the water when I brush my teeth.
I’m making due with my 11 year old jacket with ripped out pockets and a sticky zipper.

Don’t buy cups of coffee. Make it at home. Better yet, if they have coffee at work then wait and get it there for free.

I’m working on quitting drinking soda.
I’ve been packing lunches for work.
I’ve been using the library for books, cds, some movies, and magazines.
I’ve been hanging my laundry to dry.

Plan your meals. Make a grocery list. And most importantly, stick to the list!

Fill the sinks with some wash and rinse water, rather than letting the tap run :)

Added a goal to start making some OAMC meals, as a way of cooking more frugally. I spent $31.58 for groceries to make 9 dishes totaling 60 servings! But I also had to shell out $20 to increase my stock of gladware to handle all of that :)