First, the frugal fail!
Recently I’ve been guilty of throwing away too much food. (The horror!) Food waste, according to this study from Penn State, costs the average American family $1,866 annually. Ouch. I needed to get a handle on this, quickly.
For a few weeks after we moved into the new house, I had way too many leftovers in the fridge. Food was spoiling before we ate it, and I was puzzled as to why.
Then, it dawned on me.
I’m cooking for too many people!
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I’m simply making too much food for my current season of life.
For so long I was cooking for 9 people, 3 of them men. My habits hadn’t caught up to the current reality of my life. Right now I have 5 kids at home, not 7, and no husband to cook for. In addition, my oldest daughter is a vegetarian, and typically makes her own dinner.
I need to adjust my mental calculations!
Another thing that’s different since we moved is the size of my refrigerator. I had a larger fridge (with French-style doors, I loved that!) in the old house. The new house has a new-ish fridge, but it’s apartment sized.
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I can’t complain about a smaller fridge when I have a smaller family now. But it does take a bit of getting used to! Since freezer space is at a premium, I have to be more strategic about cooking, because there just might not be room for leftovers anywhere.
Now, on to the frugal wins!
I paid my life insurance policy’s annual premium all at once, instead of having it set up as a monthly draft. Soon, I plan on doing this for my car insurance.
Shortly after moving, one of the kids dropped a glass soap dispenser into the porcelain sink, and it broke a huge chunk out of it. I was able to get a new sink on sale, and with my employee discount at work. Then, one of my sons installed the new sink.
I’m so grateful for young adult kids who have skills I lack!
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And finally, this is a small thing, but one of the girls had a flip-flop “blowout”. That’s what I call it when the thong in the middle comes out of the hole, making it unwearable.
I fixed it with a couple of bread tabs. Saving a pair of $1 flip-flops that a kid wears to the pool isn’t a big deal, but it makes me smile to keep it out of the landfill for another few months.
I closed a checking account that pays no interest, to one that pays 1.25%, SoFi. They also gave me a signup bonus of $50 when I signed up for direct deposit. Free money? Yes, please.
What have you done to save money lately?
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