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Snowing in Spring…Adjusting Our Frugal Plans

It is a few days past the official start of spring, and I am looking at a wintry wonderland just outside my window. The salt trucks and plows have been by, but they have to be diligent. Already the driveway and roads are covered with white. Despite about three inches of snow on the ground already and more to come, schools are not closed today. There is no excessive wind, and we are used to snow. The weather has been wrecking some havoc with our spring frugal plans. We can’t get started on our garden, and may lose out on … Continue reading →

How to Make a Weekly Frugal Food Plan

Food is quickly becoming one of the biggest expenses in the average family’s budget. Attack your food budget with a weekly money-saving plan. Each day pick a task that will help you save money on your food bill. Developing a weekly frugal food plan can reduce the cost of feeding your family. Below, you can see an example of my own weekly frugal food plan. You can use it as a guideline and customize it to make it your own, so it makes sense for you and your family. Sunday Go grocery shopping with a list and coupons. Distribute bulk … Continue reading →

Freezer Pizza Dough

Make your own pizza dough, pop it in the freezer and have it available any time you like. The best part? You’ll be saving tons of money over the year in pizza costs, and with pizza dough from your freezer, you can make enough to cover everything from a busy weeknight meal to a kid’s birthday party. Now that is economical! Freezing this pizza dough recipe actually make the dough easier to work with, so you will make perfectly round pizzas with no tearing each time. You can also work the dough into a square pan or a rectangular jelly … Continue reading →

Back to School Frugal Fun and a Free Owl

Two of the kids are back in school starting today, and my Kindergartener starts on Thursday. It is hard to believe that the summer vacation is already at an end. If I still had any doubts, though, the early morning alarm shocked me back into reality. Back to school is a celebration, not only for the parents, who may be experiencing a mix of excitement that may be able to visit the bathroom without five separate interruptions, and a little sadness to see their babies one year older and off to adventures without them. Many parents plan a celebration for … Continue reading →

The Great Freezer Shut Down

Shutting down our freezer has led to some pretty interesting meals and decisions this week. My husband brought up a tub of his favorite rocky road ice cream from the basement freezer and was getting ready to enjoy a late night treat. I opened up the tub (maybe if I put it in a bowl and added some whipped cream he might not notice if I took a scoop for myself as well). The ice cream, although still frozen was pretty soft. Uh oh. Over the next few days, we kept checking on the freezer. While everything stayed frozen, some … Continue reading →

Cleaning the Freezer

I’ve been thinning the house out again. It’s a sickness, this purging thing I have going on. I can’t stand to own things that are not living up to their full potential. This time, it’s my freezer. I bought the freezer when Hailey was still living at home thinking it would be great extra food storage. Turns out that all we ever kept in there was frozen pizzas and pie crust. Not the most efficient use of the space, or the money spent on the freezer. Now that Hailey is married and in a place of her own, the freezer … Continue reading →

What is Freezer Blocking?

I’ve practiced doing freezer blocking for years, although I never did know that there was an actual term for the practice. What is freezer blocking and what can it do for you? Let’s answer that second question first. Freezer blocking can save you money. Freezers work most efficiently when they are packed solid. The more stuff in a freezer, the better insulation it has, which means that it doesn’t have to work as hard to keep your food frozen. This means that you save money on electricity. Freezers work by keeping the air cold. The less air there is, the … Continue reading →

Frugal Meal: Breaded Chicken

I cringe when I think about how much money I’ve spent over the years for pre-breaded chicken, including chicken nuggets, when breaded chicken is so easy to make at home and costs so much less than the prepared kind. Your own breaded chicken can be prepared ahead of time and placed in the refrigerator for a day or two, just like the expensive kind you will find in the refrigerated section of the supermarket, or cooked ahead and then frozen for convenience. You can also take your savings to an even higher degree when you use your own bread crumbs … Continue reading →

Dried Beans for Frugal Living

Incorporating dried beans into your family’s diet can save you quite a bit of money. You can use the dried beans to make nutritious meatless meals or to add valuable and inexpensive protein to many traditional dishes. At just pennies per serving, using dried beans makes a lot of sense. I used to be intimidated by dried beans. I wasn’t exactly sure how to prepare them or how to use them, but using dried beans is pretty easy. While most modern recipes call for canned beans, you can substitute your own cooked dried beans in any recipe. Just keep in … Continue reading →

Stock up on Freezer Food This Month

The month of March is an excellent time to get your freezer stocked. This is because it is National Frozen Foods month, which means more savings for you. Frozen food manufacturers are issuing more coupons, and the stores are having more sales. Stock your freezer as cheaply as possible now, and reap the benefits in your family meals for the months to come. In order to have a successfully stocked freezer, you’ll first need the freezer space. You can often gain more space by taking items out of their original packaging and freezing them flat. If you have a larger … Continue reading →