1. I got a free pie plate
I am, once again, in possession of a pie plate!
I’d mentioned I was going to stop by Goodwill to look for a pie plate, and then it occurred to me that someone on my Buy Nothing group probably had an extra pie plate sitting around.
I mean, I used to own three of them and I hardly ever made pies. I don’t even know quite how I got three of them.
So, I put out a post and sure enough, someone who lives near me had an extra. Yay!
We know I will save the bag for reuse 🙂
2. I decrystallized my honey
I made the error of buying a container of honey from Sam’s Club. That is too much honey for the two of us!
Of course, it crystallized.
Usually, I submerge my small honey bottles like this:
But obviously, that wouldn’t work for such a large bottle.
I was trying to figure out what to do and then it occurred to me to use an 8×8 pan. I just screwed in a plastic top from a food package to keep it from leaking (I don’t happy to have any plastic wrap here.)
This worked very nicely and now the honey is once again squeezable.
I’m sure I’ll have to repeat this before we finish the bottle, but that’s ok.
At least I have learned my lesson: no more Sam’s Club honey for us!
3. I used up some wrinkly apples
I had a few apples in my produce drawer that had been there for a bit too long. Whoops.
I cut them up, sauteed them with butter and cinnamon, and put them on top of a bowl of oatmeal (which had protein powder mixed in because I am still trying to use up my huge bag!)
Here’s how I make my one-serving oatmeal.
4. I helped Zoe do her taxes for free
Her taxes are so simple, she can use the free version of TurboTax. Sweet.
It takes only about 30 minutes and I really am just there in case of questions on her end.
I also filed my personal return, but since mine has complications due to my blog, my TurboTax is decidedly not free. But it IS cheaper than paying my CPA to do my personal return.
(I pay my CPA to do my business taxes because WHOA that is way way way too complicated for me at this point!)
5. I did the self-service emissions testing
Our state requires emissions testing for our vehicles every two years, and my van was due.
It costs $14 if you go through the regular line versus $10 if you do the self-service. You know what I did. 😉
It’s super duper easy and the nice thing is, the self-service is open 24 hours a day and there’s usually no line. So you can save time and money.
Lisa
Wednesday 19th of March 2025
You have to pay for emissions testing? Our is free
Colleen
Wednesday 19th of March 2025
-I did not bring my wallet on an outing with a friend to a new town. We stopped at an aptly named chocolate store - Joy - and I didn’t have any $ but I enjoyed the smells & sights! - a friend is moving and let me raid her freezer, I got several Costco bags of frozen fruit & veggies, edamame and some chuck roast. -friend also let me raid her pantry, now I have enough coconut milk to last through the summer! - listed a few books to sell on PangoBooks -daily playground visits with friends kiddos are a nice practice of “staying in the moment” -got a ride to/from courthouse from a friend, which saved me the Lyft cost of $17 round trip! Also got bonus of friends support on an emotionally difficult day.
M
Tuesday 18th of March 2025
Just a note regarding tax filing, if no one’s mentioned it yet, freetaxusa.com is completely free to efile federal and $15 to efile a state. It sounds pretty scammy, haha, but it’s not. And if you are over the income level for the free versions of other programs, you can still use this one. I like it just as well as the software I used to spend $80 a year for.
Gina
Wednesday 19th of March 2025
@M,
I've used this site for the past few years and it's easy to navigate and just costs for the state. I'd rather save my money when filing.
Lazy Budget Chef
Tuesday 18th of March 2025
I'm on the road for 2 months performing at a Renaissance Festival so my 5 is weird. 1. I'm going with the free without utilities camping option that is part of my contract. Fortunately, we have a shower house and I invested in portable solar panels this year to charge personal and sound system equipment. Oh and my as a kid all our vacations were camping vacations (in a camper. I'm in a tent) and I was Girl Scout. 2. I visited the sponge docks at Tarpon Springs for free fun on my day off after searching Roadside America for free and weird tourist traps. 3. I bought a Groupon to take a discount flame working glass blowing class to make this expensive hobby a little less expensive. 4. I bought a 63% off ticket to Busch Gardens through T Mobile and checked off a bucket list item of feeding my all time favorite animal - flamingos! I road a ton of riding roller coasters which my husband is not a fan. 5. I'm cooking meals so I have leftovers that I can easily reheat for dinner on show days instead of buying dinner. More often than not I am so exhausted after giving my all that I practically pass out in my hair and makeup after the show closes for the day. All of the smiles and patron interactions are worth it.
Selena
Tuesday 18th of March 2025
Sorry but I'm leery that what you bought is really honey. Top clue is product of three countries. Do some research and I'll be there is a true honey producer in your area. Which greatly lessens the chance of the honey crystalizing.