Frugal Friday....the May 28th Edition on Saturday

Here are the few frugal wins from this past week.......

*  We picked a contractor to renovate our main bathroom and he started this past week, 3 weeks earlier than expected.  I forgot to take before photos but here are some in process ones......

This has always been a dreary looking bathroom as it's on the North side of the house.

Tan everything with an oak vanity. bleh.

That's the bottom of part of the tub.

And one of the bathtub surround walls(on it's side)sitting in the hallway after removal.

Here's where the mirror/cabinet will go.  He had to enlarge the hole in the wall for it....

Here's the new vanity/sink sans faucet in the room but not installed yet....

The new tub in place.  We are still waiting on the tub surround to come in as the tub and walls have to be finished before he can do the floor.

Everything leaving is out and everything going in is here except the tub surround. The new floor will really help this all come together.  And he should be finished by next Friday, I can't wait!

The reason I am calling this reno frugal is because his bid was was less than the others.  He's a one man operation and doesn't have to pay a big crew and his quote included the cost of all the "appliances" while the other quotes were at least $2K MORE plus we had to pay for the sink/toilet/tub/mirror/lights/etc. too!  The only thing we'll need to do after it's finished is paint the walls in there.  If this goes well and we are pleased with the work we'll have him redo the powder room downstairs too.  At this point we aren't in a big hurry to get it done so a one man operation works for us plus Hubs can lend a hand if needed.

*  We finally had to ditch our deck swing.  It lasted a long time but rust and weather finally made it unusable.  We found a new one to replace it at Wayfair.

It came earlier in the week and we got it put together.  Nice and cheery color!

* I ordered from Rite-Aid online on Sunday.  They were offering $15 Bonus Cash when you spent $50 plus there were a $10 off code on an online order this week.

This came to $48.76 in Bonus Cash after discount code and digital coupons used and I earned $45 back in new BC.  Of course I made a few trips to local Rite-Aids to roll more BC this week and utilize that Spend $40/Get $10 off Coupon.

* Hubs and I went out for lunch at Applebee's this week.  Used a gift card to pay and I've still got a little left on it for half of a free lunch. lol

* I found money!

Two whole cents for the week.........

A penny at my Rite-Aid.

And another penny at the Clueless Rite-Aid. lol

And that's about it for this past week.  Except for working on getting ready for a Stockpile Sale, hopefully next weekend if the weather cooperates. ;-)

What frugal wins did y'all have lately?!

Sluggy

Changing it Up Today

 I'll get to Frugal Friday tomorrow(maybe).  I thought I'd changed things up by posting this Youtube video about the 10 Most Boring States to Visit instead.....

I've visited all but 2 of these states(no Kansas or Oklahoma, yet)and I tend to agree with most of what he says......except for when I saw friends in some of these states, that's what made them interesting.

Out of the states you've visited, which ones would you put on the Most Boring List and why?

Sluggy

6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon or Something Like That

Yesterday a reader, Traveling Oltmans, left this comment on that 1960's frugal American housewife film I posted......

Traveling OltmansMay 26, 2021 at 1:10 PM

"Do you remember the old pledge polish commercials where the woman would glide through the living room, pledge and rag in one hand, wearing a chiffon dress ;). My favorite."

Well it made me giggle because the actress in those Pledge commercials from the mid 1960's was my mother's 1st cousin, Donna. That makes her my 1st cousin 1 x removed. 8-))

Sluggy

The Thrifty Wife of the Past

 Just had to share this little gem.......

Have a great Tuesday!

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

  The "Will I Ever Learn?....Maybe Not!" Edition.......

I LOLed at this when I saw it on Facebook.  I guess I'd still be a dumbass if it's true. ;-)

Onward to the meal planning!
Moving On-

This is what was planned.....

1. Sunday--Chinese take-out

2. Monday--Fend For Yourself or Leftover Chinese

3. Tuesday--Take-out(working the polls all day/night)

4. Wednesday--Cheeseburgers, Squash
5. Thursday--Caesar Salad w/Grilled Chicken

6.  Friday--Salmon, Veggie TBD

7. Saturday--Leftovers

And this is what really happened.......

1. Sunday--Chinese take-out

2. Monday--Fend For Yourself or Leftover Chinese

3. Tuesday--Take-out Salad(working the polls all day/night)

4. Wednesday--Salmon, leftover Green Beans, Garlic Bread
5. Thursday--BBQ Chicken Thighs, Creamed Spinach, Baked Tater(Hubs)

6.  Friday--No Dinner for me/Hubs leftovers

7. Saturday--Cheeseburgers

Last week saw 3 nights of home cooked dinners, 2 nights of leftovers/planned overs or FFY and 2 nights of Take-Out/Eating Out.  More Take-Out than I like to have but "election working happened" so it was not eat all day or get Take-Out.

Didn't cook the squash so that moves to this week.  No Romaine lettuce so that meal didn't happen either but I bought salmon and chicken thighs so that happened instead.

What got put into the freezer last week....

*  3 packs of sausage strips

*  2 packs of chicken thighs

*  1 bag of veggie mix

*  1 box of popsicles

*  1 piece of salmon

What got taken out of the freezer and used...

*  I piece of salmon

* 1 pack of chicken thighs

* 1 box of creamed spinach
* 4 burger patties

We spent a whopping $116.86 on food/toiletries/HBA last week at Weis($47.61)and Walmart($69.25).  I forgot to use a free gift card to pay some of the Walmart bill. sigh This brings our food/toiletries/paper goods Total to $269.54 for May so far.   

There are 6 shopping days left in May.

I've earned $114.43 on Ibotta in May.

I've earned $0.00 on Checkout51 in May.

I've earned $1.50 on Coupons dotcom/Paypal in May.

I've earned 8,063 points from shopping on Fetch in May which equals $8.06

I've earned 15,950 points from food shopping on Shop Kick in May which equals $63.80.

I've earned 1,241 points from food shopping on Swagbucks in May which equals $12.41.

I've earned $18.87 in Target gift cards.

That's $115.93+ in rebates(not counting the ShopKick/Swag Bucks/Fetch/Target gift cards)on $269.54 in grocery spending so far.

My savings percentage for last week was 37.10%(without "regular" Rite-Aid trips)for April and the monthly savings total for April comes in at  54.50%.(w/out R-A).  

Leftovers going into this week...1 cheeseburger, 2 chicken thighs.

Here is this week's "food plan".....

1. Sunday--Fend For Yourself

2. Monday--Beef Pie

3. Tuesday--Teriyaki Pork Stir-Fry w/Veggies

4. Wednesday--Chicken Parm, Grilled Squash
5. Thursday--Mushroom Quiche, Salad

6.  Friday--Pizza?, Salad

7. Saturday--Leftovers

What do I need to buy to fix everything on this menu?  I had a leftover pack of mushroom I didn't need for the Stroganoff so I'll make 2 quiches this week and freeze one.  The only thing I "need" is salad greens.  That doesn't mean I won't buy anything else however. lol  I am working on a $10 Ibotta bonus after all and I have 18 offers to finish before the end of May.  I do as many offers as I can at Rite-Aid(which will be Zero dollars and the rest I'll pick and choose what is needed and/or cheap after rebate at Weiss(PMITA)Markets and/or Walmart. 8-)

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten last week?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week?  

Sluggy