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~~~~ November Frugalistas ~~~

mommyoffive

By mommyoffive,
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Shoeless

Shoeless

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I got lucky and found 2 big bags of "good" candy for 50% off, (Twix, Reese's, KitKat, etc.).  The people in this town are like vultures and I normally never find anything good! 

The pharmacy gave DS15 and me $10 coupons when we got our covid shots. I'm using the free $20 for treats for stockings.  I wish I knew they were doing that when I got our flu shots 2 weeks ago!

I bought our Thanksgiving turkey today. The store runs a deal where if you buy a ham, you get a 12 lb turkey for free. The small hams and turkeys go really fast, but I was able to get a 5 lb spiral ham and a 12 lb turkey for $26. I might go back and see if there's another small one of each to freeze for Christmas.

I bought a couple of books to set aside for Christmas during BetterWorldBooks 40% off sale. 

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DawnM

DawnM

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Y'all!   I know we are in temp housing right now, but even so, when we got our checks for the end of October and realized we have NOTHING to pay off, WOW, what a great feeling!

Our new house is significantly smaller than we have had in previous years, but it is being purchased with cash and that feeling can't be beat!   

I need to get the 5 year old some winter clothings and a coat.   I will stop by the kids 2nd hand shop as I will be meeting friends for dinner over that way.   Hopefully they will have some long pants and a winter coat.   If not, I will see what Costco has.

I don't think we are getting A's SSI check this month.   His birth mother got a letter saying she is no longer disabled and won't get checks anymore, and that affects our son somehow......she has re-applied but I think she has to go get quarterly checks or something and hasn't done it?  I don't know how it all works.   All I know is that even though she is no longer his legal parent, the money is tied to her getting SSI.

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mommyoffive

mommyoffive

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8 hours ago, Shoeless said:

I got lucky and found 2 big bags of "good" candy for 50% off, (Twix, Reese's, KitKat, etc.).  The people in this town are like vultures and I normally never find anything good! 

The pharmacy gave DS15 and me $10 coupons when we got our covid shots. I'm using the free $20 for treats for stockings.  I wish I knew they were doing that when I got our flu shots 2 weeks ago!

I bought our Thanksgiving turkey today. The store runs a deal where if you buy a ham, you get a 12 lb turkey for free. The small hams and turkeys go really fast, but I was able to get a 5 lb spiral ham and a 12 lb turkey for $26. I might go back and see if there's another small one of each to freeze for Christmas.

I bought a couple of books to set aside for Christmas during BetterWorldBooks 40% off sale. 

Score on all the deals.  We got the $10 with all our vaccines and i did not use them.  😞

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JustEm

JustEm

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Hola! We're hosting my families thanksgiving the Sunday before. But all the food contributions are split among all the families. We usually do the turkey, pies, and asparagus.

No candy purchasing for us this week. 

Other than Christmas shopping we don't have much in terms of additional spending. We have $200 Amazon gift card that I got with credit card points that will go towards gifts. I'm hoping that will knock out gifts for everyone but our kids with a bit left over for stocking stuffers. I'm doing that shopping today so we'll see.

I don't really know what to do for gifts for our kids. Usually by this time of the year I've got most of my shopping done and a list of the rest of what I need. But this year, I've got almost nothing. Dh and I will be discussing it tonight and figuring it out.

 

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Brittany1116

Brittany1116

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1 minute ago, DawnM said:

And now we need a winter coat for the *almost* 6 year old.   I have been to 4 thrift stores and haven't found any, so I think I am trying to find coats a little late this year.

I will have to order one.   Sigh.   

If you can wait a few days, check ads from several stores bc I have been getting emails on coat sales from lots of stores. 

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mommyoffive

mommyoffive

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53 minutes ago, DawnM said:

And now we need a winter coat for the *almost* 6 year old.   I have been to 4 thrift stores and haven't found any, so I think I am trying to find coats a little late this year.

I will have to order one.   Sigh.   

Kids Puffer Jackets Only $14.99 on JCPenney.com | Hip2Save

Or do you need a warmer coat than this? 

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JustEm

JustEm

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ok knocked out gifts for mil and all my nieces and nephews (23) with $122 left of the amazon gift card.  One of mil's gifts came from a $25 gift card purchased with credit card rewards.  The kids in the 2 families on dh's side got joint gifts they'll love. And my side nieces and nephews get the normal small gift that every kid loves, candy! In past years we've done boxes of cereal or just Ramen noodles. My side is all about consumable gifts that don't break the bank or go overboard with the sugar. It's a win win for adults and kids all around.

Dh and I will sit down tonight to evaluate what gifts we already have for our kids and we'll likely figure out how to use up the $122 for the kids before expanding on that.  We're really trying to think of ways not to overfill out house with stuff.

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mommyoffive

mommyoffive

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3 minutes ago, hjffkj said:

ok knocked out gifts for mil and all my nieces and nephews (23) with $122 left of the amazon gift card.  One of mil's gifts came from a $25 gift card purchased with credit card rewards.  The kids in the 2 families on dh's side got joint gifts they'll love. And my side nieces and nephews get the normal small gift that every kid loves, candy! In past years we've done boxes of cereal or just Ramen noodles. My side is all about consumable gifts that don't break the bank or go overboard with the sugar. It's a win win for adults and kids all around.

Dh and I will sit down tonight to evaluate what gifts we already have for our kids and we'll likely figure out how to use up the $122 for the kids before expanding on that.  We're really trying to think of ways not to overfill out house with stuff.

Is the trip you guys going on the gift?  Maybe things to go with that?  

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JustEm

JustEm

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Just now, mommyoffive said:

Is the trip you guys going on the gift?  Maybe things to go with that?  

No the trip isn't a gift, they've known about it since January so that doesn't really seem fair to call it a gift.  It is just a planned family vacation and they don't really need anything for the trip. 

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JustEm

JustEm

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14 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Maybe ticket experiences for when you are there?  

Our trip is fully planned. We've got a day in the rain forest, 2 snorkeling days at two different locations, a day in Old San Juan.  And the days in between will be spent at the beach. No real need for paid experiences.  We are the explore things on your own type of family. They'll all get some spending money.  But other than that they are set for that trip. It also falls right after one kid's bday, during one kid's bday, and right before 2 other kid's bdays, so the things we are planning already take that into consideration in terms of bday gifts!

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mommyoffive

mommyoffive

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4 hours ago, hjffkj said:

Our trip is fully planned. We've got a day in the rain forest, 2 snorkeling days at two different locations, a day in Old San Juan.  And the days in between will be spent at the beach. No real need for paid experiences.  We are the explore things on your own type of family. They'll all get some spending money.  But other than that they are set for that trip. It also falls right after one kid's bday, during one kid's bday, and right before 2 other kid's bdays, so the things we are planning already take that into consideration in terms of bday gifts!

I did not mean really ticket things, I would just make a ticket a present.  Like day in the rainforest in PR.  But if they already know everything and you do not have other time there, then that does not sound like it would work.

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JustEm

JustEm

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42 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

I did not mean really ticket things, I would just make a ticket a present.  Like day in the rainforest in PR.  But if they already know everything and you do not have other time there, then that does not sound like it would work.

Gotcha.  They don't know specifics but we've talked enough about it that I don't think I can do it as gifts. Next big trip which I think will be Universal will likely be a Christmas gift for everyone next Christmas though

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JustEm

JustEm

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Ds14 asked to go to goodwill today because he wanted to look for a few pair of pants. Great idea, but I didn't hold out much hope for him finding anything. He's the kid who gets most of his clothes new now because I can't find stuff used for him.

He ended up finding 4 great pairs of pants and the warmest zip up hoodie ever.

I found some Christmas presents too. A brand new pair of roller skates for $4 for ds6. An almost brand new bike for dd8 for $20. This is a $180 bike, that someone clearly donated after it was used a handful of times and then sat in a garage for a bit. I also got 2 pottery barn kids backpacks for $4, which will be perfect for the little kids carrying their own water and towel in Puerto Rico. 

This Christmas is going to be a bike filled Christmas, since all but 1 kid informed me they want/need new bikes. So, I'm really hoping to source all of them in like new condition.

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mommyoffive

mommyoffive

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24 minutes ago, hjffkj said:

Ds14 asked to go to goodwill today because he wanted to look for a few pair of pants. Great idea, but I didn't hold out much hope for him finding anything. He's the kid who gets most of his clothes new now because I can't find stuff used for him.

He ended up finding 4 great pairs of pants and the warmest zip up hoodie ever.

I found some Christmas presents too. A brand new pair of roller skates for $4 for ds6. An almost brand new bike for dd8 for $20. This is a $180 bike, that someone clearly donated after it was used a handful of times and then sat in a garage for a bit. I also got 2 pottery barn kids backpacks for $4, which will be perfect for the little kids carrying their own water and towel in Puerto Rico. 

This Christmas is going to be a bike filled Christmas, since all but 1 kid informed me they want/need new bikes. So, I'm really hoping to source all of them in like new condition.

Amazing deals.  You should be able to find great deals on used bikes, the market really fell on bikes

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JustEm

JustEm

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2 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Amazing deals.  You should be able to find great deals on used bikes, the market really fell on bikes

That is what I'm seeing. I was checking Facebook marketplace and it seems like there are a lot in like new condition at great prices. So, tonight or tomorrow I'll be reaching out to people to inquire about them

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JustEm

JustEm

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2 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

For a limited time, head on over to Amazon where they are offering Buy Two, Get One Free Books!

Note that Target is offering a similar sale.

thanks!  I was waiting for this to pop up so I could purchas each kid a book for Christmas. 

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JustEm

JustEm

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This is going to sound silly but, I got my ds10 4 haunted house themed gingerbread house kits for Christmas. Found them at the grocery store today in the clearance section for $3.75 each. This kid searches for these kits after Halloween and Christmas every year because he likes them so much. He also makes his own gingerbread to make houses but the kits are a fun easy activity that brings him so much joy. So, he's getting 4 of them. He'll get more if I find more but I'm not hunting them down

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mommyoffive

mommyoffive

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2 hours ago, hjffkj said:

This is going to sound silly but, I got my ds10 4 haunted house themed gingerbread house kits for Christmas. Found them at the grocery store today in the clearance section for $3.75 each. This kid searches for these kits after Halloween and Christmas every year because he likes them so much. He also makes his own gingerbread to make houses but the kits are a fun easy activity that brings him so much joy. So, he's getting 4 of them. He'll get more if I find more but I'm not hunting them down

Fun.  I get clearance gingerbread houses after Christmas and save them until the next year and then the kids make them as an activity. 

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JustEm

JustEm

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1 hour ago, mommyoffive said:

Fun.  I get clearance gingerbread houses after Christmas and save them until the next year and then the kids make them as an activity. 

Nice! My son would kill me if he knew I was holding out for a while year. Luckily, he doesn't mind when things aren't the right holiday. He actually wears Christmas shirts until right after Halloween and will wear Halloween shirts until March when he finds it appropriate to ironically wear a Christmas shirt again. So, he'll be tickled pink that they're not Christmas gingerbread kits 

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mommyoffive

mommyoffive

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40 minutes ago, hjffkj said:

Nice! My son would kill me if he knew I was holding out for a while year. Luckily, he doesn't mind when things aren't the right holiday. He actually wears Christmas shirts until right after Halloween and will wear Halloween shirts until March when he finds it appropriate to ironically wear a Christmas shirt again. So, he'll be tickled pink that they're not Christmas gingerbread kits 

Oh duh, that is even smarter!!  You do not have to store them all year.  Hmm maybe I will look for some and do a little Nightmare Before Christmas theme

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JustEm

JustEm

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5 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

@hjffkj  Did you ever get your Lego account issue worked out?

 

Donated a ton of stuff 2 times over the weekend.  Hopefully get some more done on Sunday.   

Yes I did. I meant to tell you but I had been waiting to actually spend it to make sure it worked. They put the points back into my account so I could repurpose the discount codes

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mommyoffive

mommyoffive

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1 minute ago, hjffkj said:

Yes I did. I meant to tell you but I had been waiting to actually spend it to make sure it worked. They put the points back into my account so I could repurpose the discount codes

Glad it all worked out.  Lego has great customer service.   They are having some great sales and stuff this weekend for the Lego Insiders

 

What did you end up deciding for your odd and ballet competitions? 

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JustEm

JustEm

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1 hour ago, mommyoffive said:

Glad it all worked out.  Lego has great customer service.   They are having some great sales and stuff this weekend for the Lego Insiders

 

What did you end up deciding for your odd and ballet competitions? 

Thanks, I'll have to check out the sales because I haven't spent the points yet.

 

As far as competition. She'll be doing one in March. Her teacher has picked the classical piece she'll be doing so I imagine private training for that will start within the next few weeks. And the person choreographing her contemporary piece has been working with her to find music they both like. 

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mommyoffive

mommyoffive

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4 hours ago, hjffkj said:

Thanks, I'll have to check out the sales because I haven't spent the points yet.

 

As far as competition. She'll be doing one in March. Her teacher has picked the classical piece she'll be doing so I imagine private training for that will start within the next few weeks. And the person choreographing her contemporary piece has been working with her to find music they both like. 

Oh how fun.  What competition is she doing?  We are trying to make this choice this week.

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JustEm

JustEm

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1 hour ago, Brittany1116 said:

My CVS had TONS of makeup marked 75% off. Literally every brand had swaths of clearance. Might be good for stocking stuffers for someone? 

Oh I'll have to check that out because I'm going to need makeup for The Nutcracker performances my girls are in

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DawnM

DawnM

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Y'all......I just paid CASH for a house!   I can't believe it.   We finally have reached our goal of having a paid for house.   AND, since we opted for the lower cost home (I honestly think it is just as nice as the higher priced ones we looked at!) we have money for our other projects!

We have rarely kept credit card debt, but had racked up some due to the move.   That is now paid off.

 

 

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DawnM

DawnM

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On 11/4/2023 at 10:55 AM, DawnM said:

And now we need a winter coat for the *almost* 6 year old.   I have been to 4 thrift stores and haven't found any, so I think I am trying to find coats a little late this year.

I will have to order one.   Sigh.   

Well, I posted on our local foster families group and asked if anyone had a coat and I ended up with a Lands' End 3 in 1 coat for free!!!!!!!!

 

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JustEm

JustEm

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4 hours ago, DawnM said:

Y'all......I just paid CASH for a house!   I can't believe it.   We finally have reached our goal of having a paid for house.   AND, since we opted for the lower cost home (I honestly think it is just as nice as the higher priced ones we looked at!) we have money for our other projects!

We have rarely kept credit card debt, but had racked up some due to the move.   That is now paid off.

 

 

That is amazing!  I can't wait to not have a mortgage but at the same time will never pay it down faster because our interest rate is only 2.875%

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DawnM

DawnM

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6 hours ago, hjffkj said:

That is amazing!  I can't wait to not have a mortgage but at the same time will never pay it down faster because our interest rate is only 2.875%

Yes, but if you run the amortization, you are still paying a lot in interest.   We had 2.6% on our last mortgage.   

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JustEm

JustEm

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43 minutes ago, DawnM said:

Yes, but if you run the amortization, you are still paying a lot in interest.   We had 2.6% on our last mortgage.   

Of course you are, but those extra payments will almost always do better in the stock market over the course of a 30 year loan. I know I've made more in the stock market then I've paid in interest since having this interest rate

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Shoeless

Shoeless

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Turkeys are 98 cents/lb here. I grabbed another frozen turkey for Christmas because I doubt prices will get cheaper than that!

Target has a deal where you get a $10 giftcard if you spend $50 on select Lego sets. Amazon has a similar deal: $10 off $50, $20 off $100 on select sets. Of course, they didn't have anything we wanted. 😕 

ETA: the Amazon code seems a little glitchy. Sometimes it takes $20 off $100, sometimes it doesn't. 

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