Thrifty Thursday: Things that I Do to Save Money and Stretch those Groceries

Is there are week that is slow??  I am really looking for this week to happen cause I need a little break.  Of course, I enjoy baking and it is a stress release for me but I hate washing dishes so that always makes it harder when I don't want to clean up.  I started off the week hoping that I could make one more breakfast treat this week then I did last week (didn't get done) and I also needed to make another batch of rolls for the freezer.

Here is what I accomplished:

1. Make Baking Mix:

I used the rest of the Bisquick in the cupboard so I am going to make some more of my homemade baking mix to have on hand when I need it.  I have used two different recipes and I think that they are both good and I usually do them in two different containers but I made them in one big bowl this time.  This will also help me use up the powdered milk that I have in the cupboard.  I made both recipes and they are already mixed and ready to go!!

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2. Make Popcorn:

I made a bunch of popcorn on Friday because I had filled up my son's snack and he wanted some for breakfast (after finishing his granola bar and oatmeal).  I made a batch which was good because I got to take some for lunch and my mother in law got to enjoy some too.  I love this super tasty and inexpensive snack.  I make at least 4-6 pots of popcorn a week because we love it so much!!

 

3. Make Rolls:

I was almost out of homemade rolls so I decided to use the milk that was past the expiration to make some rolls.  It is the perfect use of the milk that I paid good money for.  My son is not drinking as much milk as he used to and my husband and I don't drink it so I really need to get a few more recipes to use up the rest of the milk.

4. Make Lemon Blueberry Scones:

I decided that since it was raining we might have time for a special Saturday breakfast before soccer was cancelled.  I made a quick batch of Lemon Blueberry Scones which my husband really enjoyed last weekend.

5. Make Applesauce Bread:

I made a loaf of applesauce bread after the scones came out of the oven.  I used the honey butter because it has cinnamon in it and I haven't been able to use it for anything else.  I figure that it won't taste much different except add the cinnamon taste more right?  Here is hoping!!  I also used the free applesauce pouches that I got at super doubles awhile back.  I have a ton so we have applesauce bread forever!!

6. Make Baking Mixes:

I made two scone mixes and one applesauce mix.  It is super easy to fill them so that I have them to use next time especially since I have tons of all of the ingredients right now.  I might have to mix up one for the chocolate chip cookies since I make those so often but I haven't because I usually make those on a whim and use different recipes.

7. Make Ice Tea:

I love my tea and I had company so I made even more tea this week.  My husband hates me making it in this pitcher because the first glass poured always drips.  I normally do the first one over the sink and then others are poured over the counter or the floor and my husband complains that it drips.  Since I put sugar in it now, it is leaving little sticky spots.  Of well, I love my ice tea pitcher and I am not changing.

8. Make American Sandwich Bread:

I love how soft the bread last week turned out even though I was a little worried that it was under cooked in the middle, we turned out okay.  I took it out 15 minutes before the timer went off because we were headed out of the house and I feel that mine cooks and overcooks if you leave it in after the timer because it keeps it warm.  I wish there was a way to shut off the warming option because I don't need a bread crockpot and sometimes it is hard to time the cooking when you have a million things to do.

9.  Get Newspapers from local library:

I got newspapers from the local library and there were only 8 left so I ended up going to the other library after we went to the store. 

10. Got Coupons:

There were two inserts this week so I didn't get as many but there were some good ones including the Cheez-It coupon which I went and used right away!!  I got 20 sets of coupon inserts (between the two stops) which I sorted and have to cut to file.

11. Got Free Pizza Hut Pan Pizza:

My son has to read 20 minutes a day for school so he gets to track them for Book It.  When you turn in the calendar for the month, he gets a coupon for Pizza Hut Pan Pizza.  For some reason, he has decided that he doesn't like them except the ones from Target which he loves but the coupons don't work there!!  We get a pizza and ask him if he wants it but then he says no and we got to split it.

12. Went to Harris Teeter to get Saturday Freebie:

I got to get the Saturday free Oreo Thins from my card and my mom's card which are normally $3.99.  Super excited that we got those because my son has been wanting to try them so we got regular and mint.  YUM!!  Sadly, we got a lot of other groceries but at least we got $8 worth of free cookies right??  If I waited until Sunday, then I would have been able to use my last $3 off $15 coupon from Wegman's but I wouldn't have gotten cookies.  At least I got it done!!

13. Transferred Money to PayPal:

I sent $34.80 from Ibotta to PayPal and $0.75 from MobiSave which have cleared the account.  I transferred money from Saving Stay which I promptly forgot the amount but it turned out to be $26.63 and it has finally landed in the account.  The PayPal account was getting low because we used most of the money in there that I made from selling coupons to buy stuff at Home Depot that we ordered online.  This will add a little bit of "free" money to spend on Christmas and other stuff.

14. Make Dinner Rolls:

I decided that since I had all the ingredients, that I would make the rolls for Thanksgiving dinner and then my sister in law asked if I would make rolls.  Guess great minds think alike.  This was an older picture.  I actually think that I got better at shaping them so this years was a little prettier but I didn't get to take a picture.

15. Made Meals At Home:

We ate most of our meals at home this week which we made most of except that we got Chinese because my mother in law begged us to get it because her husband doesn't like it and we have the best Chinese restaurant around (expense $39 for 4 people).  She said that she would pay for it but my husband did because he hates people to come to our house and feel they need to pay for dinner...although most times that includes Chinese for visitors.  We had two dinners at my sister in laws over the weekend to visit with family.  Mostly great with a few variations to the menu plan but we didn't get too much unplanned.

16.  Made Lunches at home and to take:

There were a lot of lunches at home over the weekend which we ate leftovers and a frozen pizza (we finished them all so no more emergency pizza for backup).  All school lunches for myself, my son and my husband have been packed all week so that we didn't have any snacks or things purchased outside the house.  This doesn't seem like a stretch anymore because we have done it for so long.  I usually pack snacks to take everywhere with us.  My mother in law treated to Wendy's for her and my husband one day because he couldn't figure out any food in the fridge even though I filled the fridge and freezer with tons of food.  Although there was one day that I was leaving work and heading to the grocery store that I passed a Burger King and it sounded like a great idea but I passed it by :)

Did you do anything frugal that saved you a little money this week?