Summer is officially wrapped up for another year. My oldest has started kindergarten so we’re getting back into a routine and I’m left with memories from a great summer.
I am so, so glad that I took time off from regular posting to Simply Frugal. I do not regret my decision at all and valued the time I spent with my family. There were even some days when I didn’t even turn on the laptop! I realized that it’s okay to step away from work. The world didn’t crash ;).
However, I missed you all and am looking forward to getting back into the swing of things around here. Back to posting regular sales, coupons and other fun frugal things that you’re used to seeing.
In today’s post, I wanted to share about our summer of frugal fun. A recap of where I’ve been all summer, if you will. Also, in the recent survey that you were kind enough to fill out, many of you mentioned wanting ideas for frugal fun. Entertainment ideas on the cheap. I hope today’s list will give you some ideas even if they’re specific to our area.
Waterslides
Normally, our local waterslides would be a pricey excursion. But at the beginning of each season, they sell hourly passes for a fraction of the cost of regular admission. This is a great deal in and of itself, but I actually snagged a pass from someone in a Facebook Buy & Sell group who couldn’t use the remainder of their hours. I got a smokin’ deal. 26 hours for just $30!
Reunions
August was a busy month. Two weekends were spent at family reunions that were held here. Each family was responsible for some aspect of the food. We also played some old fashioned (cheap) games like potato sack races and wheelbarrow races. We also held our own ladder balland horseshoe tournaments. It was cheap fun for us!
Outdoor Group
Most Thursday mornings, I would take the girls to an outdoor group put on by a local community group. Each week was at a different park or splash pad. The kids can play or do one of the activities brought by the facilitators. They also provided a great snack each week. I’m sure most cities have something similar to this!
Outdoor concerts
Our city and a neighboring city host a free music night each week in a local park. Every week features a different local band. It’s a fun family friendly night. Perhaps your city has something like that?
Beach
Living in the Okanagan, beach days are mandatory. I’d throw in the towels, sand buckets and snacks and off we went for a few hours at the beach. We made good use of ourpop up beach tent and picnic blanket this year!
Cherry picking
Also because we live in the Okanagan, cherry picking is a must. One afternoon, we headed to a local orchard and picked buckets of fresh, delicious cherries. For only $1.50 a pound, you can’t beat that for the perfect sun ripened cherries!
Pool days
My husband has a cousin who has a pool so we spent a couple of days throughout the summer at their house swimming around. It’s always great to know somebody! 😉
Playing tourist
We played tourists in our own area one day. We took a drive to a nearby town to walk the wonderful boardwalk they have that runs all along the lake. We had family visiting so we threw in the bikes for the girls and our walking shoes. We had a blast biking, playing on the playgrounds, sharing fish & chips and scoping out the cheapest ice cream joint.
All in all, it was a fantastic summer spent with family and friends! I’d love to hear how you spent your summer. What sort of frugal fun did you have?
How to Get a More Organized Kitchen in Just 15 Minutes
The kitchen is one of the easiest spaces to allow clutter to pile up. Since it is one of the busiest rooms in the house and there’s lots of counter space for stuff, it can quickly become overrun. So how do you enjoy a more organized kitchen without investing a ton of time? Luckily, there are a few tasks you can do each day in 15 minutes or less to help you keep a clutter free kitchen. Look at these tips on how to get a more organized kitchen in just 15 minutes and see what a difference they can make.
1. Assemble baskets for mail and paper work.
Kitchen counters can be a catch all for mail and school papers. Instead, place basketson the counter for these items to go in. Then, check in with these baskets daily so you can read letters, discard junk mail, and sort through papers as needed.
2. Remove all non-kitchen essentials.
So many non kitchen items end up in the kitchen throughout the day. Take a few minutes each day to remove these items that have crept in. Have everyone in the household help you return these items to where they belong. Toys, clothing, books, and other items that aren’t used in the kitchen can all be removed.
3. Choose one drawer a day and organize it.
Trying to tackle every drawer at once can be exhausting. Instead, choose one drawer a day and go through it, tossing what you no longer use or need. Use simple drawer baskets to keep the remaining items organized and easy to grab. Once you make your way through the drawers, take on one cabinet at a time and do the same thing.
4. Comb through Tupperware and organize tops and bottoms.
Storage containers tend to make a mess of kitchen cabinets. Take a few minutes to go through the storage containers and match up the tops and bottoms. Discard any pieces that don’t have a match or have been overused and showing a great deal of wear.
5. Arrange spices and cooking ingredients by alphabet.
Make your cooking ingredients easier to navigate when you organize them alphabetically. Organize your spices and dry goods by alphabet and line them up neatly so the next time you need them, you aren’t playing a game of hide and seek. I use a spice organizer like this in one of my cupboards and I love that it’s expandable.
6. Clear counters as much as possible, utilizing drawers and cabinets.
Remove all non essentials from the counter and place these items in drawers and cabinets. Keep your counters as open and clear as possible. Any item that isn’t used daily can be stashed away where it is out of sight and won’t take up a ton of room.
Are you ready for a more organized space? Consider these tips on how to get a more organized kitchen in just 15 minutes and see how simple getting organized can be!
What’s one area of your kitchen that drives you nuts? What are you going to tackle first?
I had to jump in from my “break” from regular posting to let you all know about this free 14 Day challenge you might enjoy. Especially if you’re in the same boat as me and feeling frustrated with your wardrobe!
The From Frustration to Functional 14-Day Challenge is unique because it digs deep into the psychology of our wardrobes and our clothing choices, highlighting the mistakes we make and providing tools to fix the problems long term. How awesome, right? I can foresee myself wasting less money because I’m making smarter purchases!
This four-lesson challenge consists of lessons, videos, and worksheets:
Lesson #1 – Defining Your Lifestyle
Lesson #2 – Auditing Your Wardrobe
Lesson #3 – The “Why” Behind Closet Frustration
Lesson #4 – How To Create A Functional, Frustration-Free Closet You Adore
I have gradually been changing the way I shop for some of my girls’ clothes. When I had only one daughter, my goal was to spend as little as possible on clothes. Now that I have two girls that can wear all the clothes, I search for items that are higher quality. Of course, I still love a deal though!
That’s why this sale from Limeapple is so appealing! They have three back to school packs (Sport pack, boutique selection and gym strip) that will be highly discounted. I love the quality of their clothing and know they will hold up through both of my kids.
Be sure to check out the sale starting today Friday, August 18! Hurry, the sale ends August 20.
We’re 5 months into living in our new house. Everything is unpacked and it’s feeling more like home every day. However, we’re still missing some personality in most of the rooms. I’ve been waiting to hang pictures and add decor items until after we’ve painted the walls. Well, we’re nearing that point so I’ve been having fun looking for inspiration on Pinterest!
BUT… decorating a home isn’t always easy or cheap. In fact, making a house feel more like home with decor items can be downright expensive! So, I’ve been looking for really simple and budget friendly ways to decorate. There are some crazy creative people out there that have turned everyday dollar store items into near works of art.
From practical to pretty, I’ve rounded up my favourite Dollar Store DIY’s that Will Make Your Home Look Fantastic.
I’m a big fan of succulents and I happen to think this DIY would look so pretty on a shelf or tucked in a kitchen corner. Or maybe the seldom decorated bathroom?
Check out these dollar store decor ideas and let me know which one is your favourite in the comments below!
Credit card bills, utility costs, mortgage costs and groceries are only a few of the common costs that we face while running a household. These costs are often high and many families are finding that the dollar does not stretch as far as it used to. Rest assured, there are small changes that can be made in your frugal lifestyle that can help you to simplify and leave more money leftover in the budget at the end of the month.
Here are 5 Tips You Should Know To Start Your Frugal Lifestyle:
Ditch the Debit Card
A few dinners out, a stop at the movie store and the mall – grabbing a coffee on the way into the Supermarket, these are all money traps. Leave the debit card at home and it will be just that much harder to reach into your wallet and grab the last twenty bucks. Do this for one month and you will likely be shocked at how much you are impulsively-overspending.
Cut One Luxury
Something as simple as cutting the movie channels from the home cable network can save up to twenty dollars a month. It doesn’t have to be cable, it could be that expensive latte on the way to work, or that splurge on expensive eye-makeup can save you hundreds of dollars each year.
Brown Bag It
Brown bagging it has come a long way since cold sandwiches. Choosing recipes for dinners that would refrigerate well to make hot lunches for the next day is a great way to repurpose meals and avoid waste. Finding inspiration through Bentolunches, and having fresh options available can be a great way to give the Brown bag a make-over.
Bring the Restaurant to Your Kitchen
With a little research through popular recipe websites or Pinterest; you can bring your favourite restaurant meals home. These popular copycat recipes are readily available and ready to be made in your kitchen. With the ingredients purchased, it’s quite likely that those ingredients on the shopping list will make more than one meal. Plus, it’s often less expensive than eating out. What a great idea for date night!
Stop Buying New
Bright and shiny items from the store only remain bright and shiny until you bring them home. Why not buy used from Facebook groups, Craigslist/Kijiji, local garage sales and even swaps for baby and children’s gear. Purchasing these gently used items can save up to fifty percent on the items that may have been purchased in store anyway! Give your wallet a break and break the addiction to new items.
Frugal Living doesn’t have to mean that you have to change all the aspects of your lifestyle. By making slight changes in the way that you live can help you find the extra money in the budget to reduce the pinch that comes with increased living expenses.
What was your first step to frugal living? Let me know in the comments below!
Our summer should really start to get busy now! We have had family (cousins!!) arrive for almost the whole month. We’ve got a family reunion planned as well as other fun days for the kids. Us parents are pretty excited too because we like to think we’re still kids at heart ;).
On the home front, I’ve finally started to paint the walls in our new home! I’m literally working on one wall at a time so it’s going to be a very slow process. But you gotta do what you gotta do with young kids underfoot. The one wall I have completed makes me think I’m going to love the colour I chose. Speaking of paint, I bought the paint a month or so before we even moved because The Home Depot had a great rebate promotion going on that I didn’t want to miss. They run these rebates somewhat regularly, but this particular offer seemed to be of higher value than I remember. I couldn’t pass up those savings!
I’d love to hear how your summer is going so far. Any exciting things still to come? Let me know!
Here are the interesting links I came across on my travels around the web this week! Enjoy and have a great weekend!
It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of meal planning (and think you should be too 😉 ). It puts deciding what to cook on autopilot all week long. No more last minute trips through the drive thru or slapping together a so-so meal that everyone will complain about anyways.
Jotting down your list of meals in a plain notebook or a scrap of paper is great, but did you know you can totally up your meal planning game? How? Well, with these 7 free printable weekly meal planners that will knock your socks off. I found some pretty amazing printables! All different kinds so there should be something to suit your specific needs.
Check them out and let me know which one is your favourite.
Now, this is a great idea! Use a dry erase marker to write out your menu for the whole week with this planner. Then, once the week is over, wipe it clear and start fresh for next week.
This one is from yours truly! I think it's fun and I love that there is space to jot down meals, your shopping list AND any prep work that needs to be completed! (Like remembering to take meat out of the freezer to thaw!)
Whether you’re new to meal planning or you’re just wanting to liven up the way you’re doing it, any one of these free printable meal planners will do the job perfectly.
Let me know what you think of these great free printable weekly meal planners!
PS: Looking for even more meal planning help? Check out this gorgeous printable MEAL PLANNERSET– with monthly, weekly + daily meal planning worksheets, brainstorming sheets, food inventory sheets, grocery lists, price matching sheets and more!
