Frugal (sort of) files

I have seen a few Frugal Friday posts pop up on blogs. They have always intrigued me because I like the concept and practice of spending money wisely and saving whenever possible. However, I am in no way a minimalist and sometimes feel like a frugal fraud because I often spend money carelessly. Is it hypocritical to celebrate/ discuss frugalness when living frugally is not my overall lifestyle? I mentioned in a recent post that we spent the most money we ever had spent in one month just last month. But if overspending can and does happen occasionally, can't I document wins on the not spending as much money front?

On the grocery front, I have done better this week by shopping virtually only the sales at Kroger. Prices for groceries have skyrocketed and Kroger's regular prices on many items are ridiculously high. Kroger has had some BOGO sales recently that I have taken advantage of; honestly the cost per item after taking into account that one of the items was free merely seems like the cost per item that it should have been. For instance, I bought some walnuts recently at Kroger that were BOGO. I think the price was $7.99 per bag. So, in getting one for free after buying one, it was as if I paid $4 a bag for each one. I don't buy walnuts super often so I don't have prices memorized. But one of our local chain stores (Discount Drug Mart) usually sells the same size bags of walnuts for $3.50 or maybe $3.99. That's what I mean that even taking into account getting one item for free, the cost per item is not that great, though much better than not getting one item for free.

Kroger fairly frequently has Entenmann's brand snack baked goods on BOGO sales. Alyssa likes the mini muffins so over the summer, I would buy them for her when they were on a good sale. One day recently, I needed a quick snack, and I grabbed a bag of mini muffins. They were surprising really good (I had always thumbed my nose at factory baked muffins!) and I could see how Alyssa liked to take a pack to work for her as a quick snack.

When I was at Kroger this week, I saw that Entenmann's has some new lower sugar muffins and since they were BOGO, I got two different kinds for the price of one.

Tell me your processed food is not healthy without telling me that it is not healthy- this "touch of" veggie cracks me up. Technically, I suppose it is better than nothing!!

Now if I were really frugal, I would make a batch of muffins from scratch (could even do cute mini ones like the Entenmann's), place them in bags in the freezer, and get them out as needed. That would be much cheaper. Well, baby steps- for now, only buying them when they are on a decent sale is as good as it's going to get for me cost savings wise!

Another frugal win was finally making it to Aldi to buy pantry staples. Aldi's regular prices are so much better than Kroger prices. The problem is that we don't have an Aldi in our town (though that is changing! Our little Boro is getting an Aldi and I can't wait) and it's sometimes hard to justify a trip to one just to save a few dollars. 

Earlier this week, I found myself driving almost right past the Aldi in Lebanon. It was about a quarter mile out of my way which of course was no big deal. I didn't really want to stop- going home sounded much better. I had gotten up early to sub in the morning, then driven almost an hour to Cincinnati to have lunch with Jacob (not a frugal endeavor...) and was very much looking forward to being home. But I knew I would regret not stopping at Aldi the next time I was at Kroger and had to pay its prices for some items I knew we were running low on- pantry staples like sugar and eggs. 

I made the stop at Aldi and was glad that I did- it was nice to be back in a grocery store committed to low prices and not to frills and then gimmicky sales. I like how Aldi just keeps prices consistently low(er)! I hadn't been to an Aldi in probably two months. I wandered down the unimpressive looking aisles and was impressed anew with this no-nonsense store. I stocked up on some pantry staples. 

I also bought some unhealthy processed food- I reasoned that this is a bit different than food I can buy at other grocery stores. While making homemade is usually an option and it is generally healthier and cheaper, sometimes it is nice to know there's something quick and easy sitting in the freezer. Also, when time is truly limited and getting food out seems like the only option, it's nice to have options in the freezer to resist eating out.

Torrie mentioned in her last frugal post that she and her family enjoy going on hikes together. They get to be out in nature, see pretty sights, exercise and spend time together as a family outside the confines of their unusual together environment, the home.  Donnie and I have gone on walks almost every day since I have been able to walk without a boot (late June). I wouldn't necessarily view this activity as a frugal win since I can't imagine an activity that we would be doing in lieu of walking that cost us money. In other words, we have not exactly saved money by going on walks. Nonetheless, we are doing an activity that is good for us and one that some people do spend money on (joining a gym for exercise). (Donnie has had gym memberships in the past and used them when he had the memberships. Fortunately, he bought a lot of equipment for the basement- weights and what not plus we have a treadmill which I use on occasion.)

Walking outside together is an enjoyable low-key activity for us to do. And though the sights seen during walks in suburban neighborhoods- where houses sit on quarter acre plots of land- are the not as visually appealing as those encountered while hiking in a bucolic countryside or forest, there is still something refreshing about being outside and moving. We walk quite briskly and talk about all sorts of things. It's funny how talking takes on a slightly different quality when walking side by side someone as opposed to sitting across from someone at the dinner table.

Anyway, walking is a fine and frugal (due to zero costs!) way to get fresh air and exercise and I like that we are in this habit. And though we don't have any pretty vistas to speak of as part of our normal walk, living in and walking in a small town has its advantages. We can walk to several businesses and sometimes we walk to buy something as opposed to drive to the store to buy it. 

One last frugal accomplishment- I needed to bring a dish to share to a women's event at church. I was going to make a pumpkin based dessert but upon scouring the pantry, realized that I had no canned pumpkin. No problem, I wasn't working that day, and it was no big deal to drive a couple of miles to the store to get some. Then I took a long hard look at the four zucchini that were sitting on the counter. They had seemingly miraculously grown from the clay-y soil in our small suburban garden, and I knew then I wanted to find a recipe and make something with the zucs instead of driving to a store to buy canned pumpkin. So that it what I did...It was fun, satisfying and frugal to find a recipe, to try it, and to not leave the house all day (until Donnie and I went on a walk later!).

My very favorite "treat"- getting items from the garden :).