Frugal Activities #13
I really like doing this post weekly as it keeps me accountable and does make me think twice about some things ... of course, I do not live a wholly frugal life and I also disclose some of the NOT so frugal activities too!
It's so nice having Hubby back to work ... and I am honestly trying to figure out how we can reduce our expenses to start paying down the mortgage ... I figure I can toss another $200 a month of MY wages to the pot to offset the principal balance ... but we first need to get a payoff statement (not what the monthly statement shows) ... unfortunately, we are in the awkward transition to Greentree Servicing which means that neither Citi or Greentree will really have any current information to offer us ... they still haven't taken the regular mortgage payment out this month (um, hi, it is normally the 2nd of the month when it's done) ... I told Hubby to brace himself when he calls to inquire.
I also was looking at the taxes and insurances for the year. $20,000. YES. That's a LOT. We will most likely be getting rid of my Tahoe soon as Hubby has a company car again, and I just can't be the house with 6 cars in the driveway, 8 when the b/f and g/f are over ... good grief. We don't need 4 cars between Hubby and I ... so off goes the Tahoe. I'd like to get rid of a 2nd car but that would mean either Brutus (for towing the boat) or the Hemi ... and Hubby is not ready to part with either. Of course, that means I'll be driving the Hemi and that car scares the snot out of me. Uggg.
Here are some of the Frugal Activities we did this week ...
1. Pulled the pool cover off on Saturday and read a (free from friend) book while floating on 4 year old raft (yes, it's lasted 4 years!)
2. Hubby and I both spent 4 hours on the boat late Saturday afternoon trying to finish up the detailing ... I handled the vinyl trim work and he did the brite work (stainless stuff). Not exactly my favorite thing to do but we were both in the right frame of mind and talked, laughed and just had fun for those 4 hours ... we finished the job and were thankful that we tackled it! It really is nice to work side by side and enjoy each others company ... we couldn't always say that!
3. Opted NOT to order pizza after working on the boat ... instead grilled up the last (I think) package of chops from the freezer and made a package of quick cook noodles that were floating around in the pantry.
4. Cooked up the big package of ribs (in the crock pot!) that had been hanging out in the freezer ... this will make my upcoming freezer inventory project a little easier as it was hard moving stuff around the long package!
5. Cooked up one of the two whole chickens in the freezer, making it a little easier to clean and inventory that freezer too ... except THEN I went to Costco ...
6. Fed my Aunt, Uncle, 4 young adults and Hubby and I with stuff from the freezer and pantry. We had one batch of the red sauce left so we did a big spaghetti dinner ... thankfully I also had some decent wine in the wine rack so 3 of those bottles are gone now too ...
7. Did two stops at Publix to get some good sale items with coupons, both times I saved just as much, if not more, than I spent. Utilized the $5 off $30 coupons on both occasions, with the cashier allowing me to use 2 of them both times (one order was over $100 before coupons, other was over $60 before coupons). Should have been good to go but then I hit Costco on Friday.
8. Returned the chicken thighs to Costco and got a store credit of $16.00. No questions asked.
9. Picked up 3 (!!) bottles of the Golden Margarita from Costco ... $9.99 less $2 each bottle ... couldn't pass that deal up with Cinco de Mayo (Birthday!) and summer pool parties coming up, you know?? ;-)
10. Picked up eggs at Target for 99 cents per dozen. I got 6 total. Wishing I had bought more now as we are down to 4 dozen after boiling 1 dozen for the deviled eggs for Easter Sunday.
And of course, full disclosure of some of our NOT so Frugal Activities ...
1. Costco! Need I say more? I did stock up on chicken breast and returned the $16 worth of thighs ... but still ... $410.00 ... uggg. I think I will avoid the grocery store for the next few weeks ...
Other than that, I can't think of any other not so Frugal Activities ... yeah!
It's so nice having Hubby back to work ... and I am honestly trying to figure out how we can reduce our expenses to start paying down the mortgage ... I figure I can toss another $200 a month of MY wages to the pot to offset the principal balance ... but we first need to get a payoff statement (not what the monthly statement shows) ... unfortunately, we are in the awkward transition to Greentree Servicing which means that neither Citi or Greentree will really have any current information to offer us ... they still haven't taken the regular mortgage payment out this month (um, hi, it is normally the 2nd of the month when it's done) ... I told Hubby to brace himself when he calls to inquire.
I also was looking at the taxes and insurances for the year. $20,000. YES. That's a LOT. We will most likely be getting rid of my Tahoe soon as Hubby has a company car again, and I just can't be the house with 6 cars in the driveway, 8 when the b/f and g/f are over ... good grief. We don't need 4 cars between Hubby and I ... so off goes the Tahoe. I'd like to get rid of a 2nd car but that would mean either Brutus (for towing the boat) or the Hemi ... and Hubby is not ready to part with either. Of course, that means I'll be driving the Hemi and that car scares the snot out of me. Uggg.
Here are some of the Frugal Activities we did this week ...
1. Pulled the pool cover off on Saturday and read a (free from friend) book while floating on 4 year old raft (yes, it's lasted 4 years!)
2. Hubby and I both spent 4 hours on the boat late Saturday afternoon trying to finish up the detailing ... I handled the vinyl trim work and he did the brite work (stainless stuff). Not exactly my favorite thing to do but we were both in the right frame of mind and talked, laughed and just had fun for those 4 hours ... we finished the job and were thankful that we tackled it! It really is nice to work side by side and enjoy each others company ... we couldn't always say that!
3. Opted NOT to order pizza after working on the boat ... instead grilled up the last (I think) package of chops from the freezer and made a package of quick cook noodles that were floating around in the pantry.
4. Cooked up the big package of ribs (in the crock pot!) that had been hanging out in the freezer ... this will make my upcoming freezer inventory project a little easier as it was hard moving stuff around the long package!
5. Cooked up one of the two whole chickens in the freezer, making it a little easier to clean and inventory that freezer too ... except THEN I went to Costco ...
6. Fed my Aunt, Uncle, 4 young adults and Hubby and I with stuff from the freezer and pantry. We had one batch of the red sauce left so we did a big spaghetti dinner ... thankfully I also had some decent wine in the wine rack so 3 of those bottles are gone now too ...
7. Did two stops at Publix to get some good sale items with coupons, both times I saved just as much, if not more, than I spent. Utilized the $5 off $30 coupons on both occasions, with the cashier allowing me to use 2 of them both times (one order was over $100 before coupons, other was over $60 before coupons). Should have been good to go but then I hit Costco on Friday.
8. Returned the chicken thighs to Costco and got a store credit of $16.00. No questions asked.
9. Picked up 3 (!!) bottles of the Golden Margarita from Costco ... $9.99 less $2 each bottle ... couldn't pass that deal up with Cinco de Mayo (Birthday!) and summer pool parties coming up, you know?? ;-)
10. Picked up eggs at Target for 99 cents per dozen. I got 6 total. Wishing I had bought more now as we are down to 4 dozen after boiling 1 dozen for the deviled eggs for Easter Sunday.
And of course, full disclosure of some of our NOT so Frugal Activities ...
1. Costco! Need I say more? I did stock up on chicken breast and returned the $16 worth of thighs ... but still ... $410.00 ... uggg. I think I will avoid the grocery store for the next few weeks ...
Other than that, I can't think of any other not so Frugal Activities ... yeah!
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