Five Frugal Things | one last birthday freebie!

1. I got free soup and bread

I think this is the last of my birthday freebies; this one gets to me in April but doesn’t expire until June, so it’s always the last one I use.

It’s a $15 credit to use at a local Italian restaurant, so I always use it to get some soup.

Evidence of inflation: I used to be able to get a bowl of crab soup AND a bowl of pasta e fagioli with the offer, but this year, I could only get the cream of crab.

But that is fine; it’s super delicious and it comes with some delightful bread and dipping oil.

10/10, would recommend. 🙂

2. I did some produce prepping

I put my earbuds in, listened to some podcasts, and worked on turning my raw produce into something quick and easy to grab.

I:

• made a jar of this vinaigrette so I can easily use up my lettuce for breakfast salads
• made a batch of carrot salad
• made a bowl of kale salad
• baked a bunch of sweet potatoes in my toaster oven
• cut up my remaining watermelon

On a watermelon note, I know I have said this a lot of times but MAN, I love my silicone watermelon cover.

It works great on half a melon and equally well on a quarter melon, and it is the most mess-free way possible to store a partial watermelon.

I have the 10.2 inch one and it works great for most melons that I’ve bought.

I’ve been using mine for years, and since it’s a thick, quality silicone, it’s no worse for the wear. I would 100% buy one again!

3. I used a welcome offer at a grocery store

I signed up for a bonus card at a grocery store I don’t frequent super often, and they gave me an introductory $5/$30 coupon.

So of course, I scanned the ad for loss leaders and scrolled through the app for coupons to maximize my discounted shopping trip. 😉

4. I cleaned out my desk and found some gift cards!

In the summer, I usually try to do a systematic declutter of my house, and I decided to start with my desk.

Well, I found $175 of unredeemed Amazon gift cards in my drawers, plus $26 of Whole Foods credit, plus $100 of Darden restaurant credit. SWEET.

I added the Amazon cards to my account, and I put the other gift cards out where I can see them so that I will actually remember to use them.

I’ve read that the average person has $175 of unredeemed gift cards, and well, I certainly was part of that statistic!

5. I went to a free outdoor symphony performance

I got there early enough to snag free parking, and while I was waiting for the concert to start, I read a book and ate my sandwich/fruit that I packed.

It was beautiful weather, which is not a guarantee in June.

In the summer, I notice and appreciate every single low-humidity day we get.

Your turn! What frugal things have you been up to?