Today, we went on a truly frugal family outing–we went to Bordine’s nursery. So we could aaah and oooh over all of the beautiful and rare plants…and to pick up the free tomato plants–one free per child. Like I said, we’re thrifty. The nursery is giving out these plants through Memorial Day.
Tax Act Standard–Doing My Own Taxes
Well, I finally did it. My own taxes.
Usually, I’d go to a preparer and spend $175, but this time I used Tax Act software–for a total of $34.
Well, what did I think? I was very nervous, but it went OK. I was really obsessed with doing it right, which was probably healthy.
And yes, I’ll probably do it again.
Does anyone else do his or her own taxes? What were your experiences?
Is Sam’s Club Worth it?
Last week, in our newspaper, a Sam’s Club one-day pass came out at us. Our adventure began in the parking lot, where a double shopping car make schelpping my two preschoolers around easier.
At the door an unsmiling greeter, seeing my one-day pass, directed me to a womanned table, where a friendly woman asked me questions about my monthly budget. Using a computer, she said that I would save $55 to $791. Pretty exact, huh?
She sent me to the customer service desk. Neither of the women at the customer service smiled, said hello, or showed any pleasantness. When I asked if I could purchase gas (a few cents cheaper than the local station) today, one of the unsmilers told me I could if I purchased a membership. I declined, explaining that I live eight miles away.
She grabbed a list, obstensively of other Sam’s Clubs, but didn’t do anything with it or mention it again.
Again, the other workers at Sam’s Club seemed to be penalized for smiling. The few that I saw seemed surly and put upon.
I wasn’t going let a little surliness ruin our day. My kids enjoyed the wide variety of samples from the smiling samplers (note they don’t work for Sam’s Club, so they can smile).
The selection is poor.
The prices: eh… A 60 ounce coffee creamer was $5.47. At the dollar store, I can buy 60 ounces of creamer for $5.
Skinless, boneless chicken breasts were selling for $1.99. The butcher shop across the street where I live routinely sells it for $1.39.
An eight-pack of Del Monte canned vegetables was $6.80, or about .80 per can. The local Aldi, two miles from me, canned vegetables are .49.
A Miracle-Gro potting mix for 55 quarts was more than $11. I have no idea if that were a good price or not because there were no others with which to compare it.
Since I just bought a digital camera, I was curious to see what Sam’s Club had. Sam’s Club offered about five models, far fewer than even Target offers (about 20). I would feel reluctant spending a large sum of money without much comparison.
While at the camera section, I noticed the prices on printing digital prints: 13 cents. Walgreens usually runs a special for .10 per.
On the way out, we made our only purchase, an ice cream sundae, from another unsmiling worker.
Is Sam’s Club worth it? Maybe for some:
- People who shop once a month and don’t follow supermarket sales papers.
- People who live in rural areas without much competition.
- People who live or work nearby and want to take advantage of the gas sales.
So is Sam’s Club worth it for me? In short: NO.
Free Kids Event
Today I took my daughter to the monthly free event at Evanswood Church of God. For two hours, kids listen to Bible stories, eat cookies and have fun.
It’s held the first Saturday of each month. Here’s the church’s website:www.evanswoodchurchofgod.org
Did I mention this is free and open to all kids?
Towels
This weekend I went to an estate sale…for towels. I need towels. The towels I bought when I got married are soon reaching the point of becoming dust rags.
So there I was on the way to the library when I saw a sign for an estate sale.
The house was just chockful of goodies, like fancy china and stuff. But with two special needs kids, I focused on my prey: towels. There were white towels, in good condition with prices of .25-.50. So I bought all they had, with a package of oatmeal (still within the expiriation date to boot). The final price: $2.
Here’s a link to the guy who runs the sale. http://www.garyshouseholdsales.com/index.html.
I met Gary, and he seems really nice.
Declined another jewelry part invite
Declined another jewelry party invite. It’s Premier Designs. With inside info, I determined that the cost of a piece of jewelry would be $20-$60. I can buy good quality costume jewelry for much less than that at the Salvation Army. Also, Kmart, etc. often has “real” jewelry (real gold, diamonds) on sale for much cheaper than Premier Designs.
I did my famous “sorry, can’t afford it, but thanks for the invite line.”
For more info, here is this link. http://reviews.ebay.com/Premier-Designs-Jewelry_W0QQugidZ10000000002324023
What I thought was interesting about this website is that the costume jewelry I’ve bought at the Salvation Army has held up really well. So you don’t need to buy from this firm to get good quality costume jewelry.
Frugal Fun (and Free Milk) at Kroger
Well, today I hit in rich…in my own way. Kroger has this promotion going that if you buy four selected Quaker products (mostly its cold cereals), you will get three FREE gallons of milk.
Well, today I went to Kroger, and, of course, went to the clearance table. Lo and behold, I found four boxes of heavily discounted Quaker cereal—$1.29 a piece, a total of $5.16.
Since milk was on sale for $1.59 per gallon, for a total of $4.77 each, the price I paid for the cereal would be almost equal the free milk I would get. What a great deal!
Value world coupons on the web
Print out half-off Value world coupons by going to www.valueworld.net
Value World
My favorite thrift store has finally joined the internet age—it has a website www.valueworld.net
Mom to Mom Sales
I love mom to mom sales. They’re a staple of my frugal diet.
For the unitiated, mom to mom sales are when a group of moms sell unwanted or outgrown clothes, toys and books in a school or church. There’s usually a tiny admission fee which goes to charity.
On my last outing, I spent $55. Was it well-spent? You be the judge. For that money, I bought 15 long-sleeved tops for my daughter and 14 short sleeve ones. I bought three dresses, and one two piece outfit. I also bought two pairs of pants. For my son, I bought two long sleeve tops, one short sleeve one and one pair of pants. I bought a dozen books, a pair of shoes for my son, and three videos. Quite a nice haul, and the quality of all of the items were excellent.
For more mom to mom sales, look at www.mom2momlist.com
