Frugalities of May - Friday "Friday" or Saturday, whichever You Prefer!


No special significance for the photo - just a pretty one of the few that I've managed to upload!  And it reminds me of the beauty of the flowers all around us right now - the tulips are almost done, my rhododendron is finished, and the lilacs are in full swing!  I hav buds on the peonies and several other things popping up.  My patio table is full of seedlings and the seeds are ready to plant.  I guess that means it's officially spring!

I have several posts partially done but haven't finished any.  We have had company for almost two weeks and we have one, yes, one free weekend day between the last weekend in April and the 4th of July.  That was last Saturday.  Our weekdays have been just as busy and I've chosen to spend my time with my family and on urgent matters (grades for my students, laundry that is immediately needed, anything else that must be done now).  My twins turned 12, we have had two dance recitals, two dance competitions, and a piano recital since I last posted.  I think tomorrow (Mother's Day) will be one of rest for me!

Anyway, we've been trying to be frugal here too.  Eating meals in, taking lunches, doing our own mending and all those things.  Here's some "extra" stuff that we've done since May 1.

* I spent a lot of time working on an embroidery for a Wedding gift.  I won't finish it for the wedding, unfortunately, but I will be able to send it about the time they move into their newly purchased home later this summer. 

* We checked out several books from the library and returned others.  We also watched a few videos online.

* The children asked to go see a movie at the movie theater for their birthday present.  We went to the $5 theater and were able to buy popcorn and drinks for 5 along with the tickets for less than $40!

* My mother altered a dress for me.

* We took another load of donations to the thrift store.

* My husband lead a worship service for a church with an ill Pastor.  He was paid, even though he offered to lead worship for free.

* We have done all of our spring yard clean up, garden prep, etc., with the exception of having the lawn mower serviced, ourselves.  We are so thankful to have both our own compost bin and curbside pickup of yard waste (goes to the city compost site)!

* We sent cupcakes to school with the children for their birthday.  We did by cupcakes ($14.99 for 30 frosted cupcakes) but we added cocktail umbrellas we had left from something years ago with homemade candy shells (molds and melting candy we already owned) and candy pearls, also leftover from something else.  They turned out really cute and their classmates really liked the "beach theme"!

* The children had their spring "formal" dance at school.  They wore clothes they already had and really enjoyed their time.  "Formal" for their school's definition is no jeans, shirt + tie for the boys (my son wore his blazer too) and dresses or skirt with a nice blouse for the girls. 

* My CSA lady called and asked if I wanted her extra broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts and cabbage seedlings.  I said yes!  I have 15 plants total (3 sprouts, and 4 of each of the others) and passed on two broccoli to a friend. 

* I purchased plants at my work as a fundraiser for summer scholarships - tomatoes, peppers, squash and bush beans plus several annuals and perennial for a total of $30 for two flats of plants!  I need to plant my pea seeds and transplant the lettuce and tomato seedlings that are coming up but I only need to buy a couple of things before my garden will be complete now!  It will be completed for under $100 total including the grass seed we need for our yard!  I'm super excited about that!

* My Dad patched and painted a portion of my kitchen wall where we had taken down a chair rail and it left a huge dent in the wall.  He also touched up the paint in our main bathroom for me.  We had all the supplies leftover from other projects but hadn't had time to get that done.

* I hemmed a pair of pajamas for our son.  He received them for a birthday gift and were too long but otherwise fit fine.

* I reattached a lot of sequins that had come loose on our daughter's dance costume.  Easy but time consuming! 

* I cut off the legs on a pair of pants that had a hole in the knee and turned them into shorts for our son.

I think that's it! 

What have you done lately that is frugal?

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