Frugal Friday 482

 Happy Frugal Friday!

Here is how we saved money/spent money wisely/made extra money this week:

- Last weekend the kids had their first dance competition of the season. Even though it was an hour drive time, each way, they had late call times each day. We opted to save the expense of a hotel/dog sitter and to drive back and forth. Saved: $280

Owen's groups placed 1st (jazz) and 2nd (hip-hop)

Annabeth's groups and her solo had great first runs for the season. Her

jazz line placed 2nd overall.

- We packed lunches/dinners/snacks. The concessions are quite pricey at each competition and it really saves to pack our own.We also only buy the kids dance gear at Nationals. They learned early one to only ask that 1x a year. 

- By Sunday night we were exhauseted so we used a coupon to order in pizza. This was a FANTASTIC use of money as we were so tired and so were the kids.

- Owen chose a Disney cookbook at the library. This week he made some hamburger rollups and fancy spicy corn on the cob. I LOVE that at 7 he is able to cook a whole meal with minimal help!

- Tuesday we hosted two homeschool families. We hosted from 1-3 so I did not have to serve a meal for lunch or dinner. The kids didn't even ask for a snack until the end. I did have popcorn on the ready in case they had been hungry earlier.

- Frugal Fail: Tuesday and Wednesday evenings Owen danced at the high school sectional basketball games. He did ge in free but we had to buy two tickets each night. This was $28 :( We loved watching the kids dance but the price tag really ate into our monthly "fun" budget.

- We did splurge on Dairy Queen on Wednesday night. Annabeth was still in dance class when Owen finished at the high school so we opted for a special date with just him. Both of our kids have really expressed how much they desire one-on-one time with both Mark and myself as well as time alone with both of us. We work very hard to make that happen when we can.

- Yesterday we had co-op. We packed our lunch and spent four hours at the park and library playing afterwards. I truly cannot believe how gorgeous the weather has been the last few weeks. God is so good! We drove home right at dinner time and I desperately wanted to just pick-up dinner. Avoided the temptation and came home to make choice of pasta or zoodles, red sauce with meat/veggies, and leftover fancy corn. In the end, it took less than 30 minutes and I was glad we hadn't given in to the urge to eat out. 

We are looking forward to a fun weekend celebrating a special birthday. 

Happy Savings to All!