Thursday, January 13, 2022

Thrifty Thursday-When is a Bargain a Bargain

      There was kind of a ruckus on a Facebook page I follow the UK Aldi site. Originally I joined in error, not seeing the UK part, but I get a kick out of seeing the differences between the countries, so I stay following. Apparently earlier in the  week, they clearanced things down to just 9 p, and some people were buying chocolates, and kids stocking stuffers, and all kinds of other Christmas leftovers for a steal. I'm not talking 3 or 4, but dozens and dozens. It got a little catty in the comments; who the heck cares how much of what someone else buys?  I like a good deal and I like to save money, to a point. As I get older though, I'm finally honing in on when a good deal should just be ignored if it is not something I really need or want. 9 p chocolate or not, I don't need any, and don't want more than a little bit to tempt me. Others though have different needs and wants and that's OK. I found a 75% off sale this week too, but tried to reign it in, but there were years when I would have been the 9 p shopper, and then ultimately thrown much of the darn stuff out a few months down the road. I'm getting wise in my old age, but I finally put it together that a bargain is only as such if the items are needed, wanted, and used. How did my thrift pan out over the week?



  • Speaking of the 75% clearance, I bought three bags of Christmas M&Ms. I let DH get his sugar fix with one over several days, but the other two are froze and will be used for Valentines and then St Patrick's Day  M&M cookies. I'll have to sort by color wearing food prep gloves, but an easier job than peeling  off the little foils from the Rolo or Hershey Kisses for baking. (Now let's hope some of the get togethers will actually happen that I plan to bring the cookies to!
  • I bought 2 boxes of really pretty higher stock getting cards for just $2.50 a box, plus a new flannel back table cloth for the kitchen table for $1,  also at the 75% off point. The last cloth I had that I used for Christmas time is 30+ years old, thin and had rips.
  • While feeling lousy, I wanted something a little sugary to raise my energy, but not too much like soda would have been. I found I had some Capri Sun pouches still in the pantry from summer. It was just the right amount. M last clearance purchase I can't share the details as will be part of Christmas gifts next year for my kids, but I am absolutely thrilled with the find. 
  • I had ordered a Vault Covid Test before Christmas, and decided to finally use it on Tuesday just to make sure I was just experiencing a cold and or allergies. I'm staying put, away from DH, wiping things down with antiseptic wipes, spraying Lysol on everything, until I get the results-likely today. 
  • The Kohl's bills came and I gave DH various gift money to deposit before paying the bills. This went towards the coffee maker DH gave me, and the new flatware and bamboo sorter, and meant we are still on plan. 
  • We also received another 30% off  Kohl's coupon. We need nothing-so into the recycling bin it went. The best thrift-ignoring needless spending.
  • Both meal planning and having a well stocked pantry with staples was a real help this week when I was feeling yucky. I knew what we had for food and was able to cobble together  dinner, which  resulted in leftovers for lunch. While tempted to get a Jimmy John's, or pizza delivery, knowing comfort food was readily available curbed that impulse. 
  • Prior to getting ill, I made delicious pizza and four small pizzas using with the exception of cheese and spinach, odds and end leftovers in the fridge. We got two lunches from leftovers as well. I was shy on mozzarella, but had some haloumi and it was so good as a topping! Note my daughters was just loaded with vegetables and nutritional yeast. 
The basic Pizza crust was par baked before topping-so tasty. 


     The thrifty week was mostly avoiding spending. But there's little we need and I need to avoid people anyway. Even DH cancelled his what is becoming a regular Thursday meet-up with his friend for lunch and brews. On that front, as I did a saliva test and the labs are backed up, still no news, but I feel much better than Monday and Tuesday and appreciate the well wishes. And yes, Meg, I did not take any time off work to just get better and it really is not an OK situation. 

      How about your January goals? Are you doing no spend or minimal spend and are you on track? Have you hit the really low Christmas clearance or trying to ignore more coming into your home?


30 comments:

  1. I make a lot of sweet treats through the year for others and I found really nice boxes and bags at hobby lobby for .50 for a package of 10 so loaded up on them. Half were white with red polka dots and half were black and white buffalo check so either can be used throughout the year not just Christmas. Other than that, I haven't bought anything saving myself 100%.
    Hope you're feeling better!!

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    1. I love the treat boxes. I didn't find any on clearance but have other years

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  2. Those pizzas look good!
    Hope you're feeling better today and the tests come back negative. We follow the government directive and take lateral flow tests twice a week, we always hold our breath until the Clear bar appears!
    Nothing's ever a bargain if it's not used, is it? I don't do food shopping and Jon only buys discounted food if it's something we normally eat and will use - this week it was a bag of peppers for our roasted veg and Halloumi and a can of japaleno stuffed olives which we're having for tea! xxx

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    1. Is lateral flow the saliva/ spit in tube or nasal swab? I'd go for olives in a heartbeat- not discounted.

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  3. Funny about the UK aldi facebook page. I'm amazed how much they discount stuff, and I've seen other bloggers talk about the yellow stickers but I never find such good deals.
    Great deal on the M&Ms. They will make delicious cookies.
    I haven't been out much, and I must have missed the Christmas closeouts since I haven't seen much.
    Your pizzas look delicious. I have some haloumi lurking in the fridge that I need to use soon, so thanks for the pizza idea.
    Hope you feel better, and I hope your covid test is negative.

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    1. I think the US must just remove and send to foodbanks at a certain point. It wastefully toss.

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  4. I haven't had a Capri sun since my kids were young, haha! Your pizza's look delicious!

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    1. I think I bought for the park cleanup, or summer. It hit the spot.

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  5. Those M&M's are making me hungry (I looove M&M's, but have zero self control).

    My PCR came back positive, as expected. Just cold symptoms, but would rather not have them! Thankful for the vaccine/booster.

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    1. As a candy, one of my least liked so I can ignore but I love in baking. You and I sound like we're getting the same Covid experience.

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  6. I am *still* on my no spend January, and it's going fairly well. I did, however, pick up a box of mini, multi-colored Christmas lights at Rite Aid for 90% off. $2.49 each. (I can't remember if they were 300 or 600 now. I only bought them because DD's newest kitten destroyed two strands this year.) DH told me to go back and get a box of white lights as well, since we like to mix the white with the colored lights. There were also several pre-lit, 36" Christmas trees for $3.49. I held fast, though, and did not pick one up!
    I have been told that coupon etiquette allows you to clear the shelves of close out or clearance items, but not regularly advertised sales. While I've cleared shelves of close-out items (most recently, Coleman's mustard in the clearance aisle of our Kroger family supermarket,) it's never more than I can use, and, I always, ALWAYS, if anybody is shopping near me, ask them if they want any before I take it.

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    1. That's a darn good price in lights. I too bought a couple day after Christmas, but they weren't that low. Sanity kicked in to not take more than needed. I had three purposes for the MMs, so just bought those.

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  7. The only thing I bought reduced after Christmas were four massive boxes of crackers to eat with cheese which were reduced to £1.25 each. My son has a savoury tooth so he had one box and the others will be meted out during the year as the best before is not until 30th Nov 2022. We'll really enjoy them and they were a steal at that price. I don't normally buy them. Arilx

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    1. If they have long shelf life, something that easily is a year round item is a good buy. I love cheese and crackers.

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  8. The pizza looks great! We've been working our way through the freezer. A friend generously gave us two large bags of gyozas, which took so much more freezer space than expected. As a result, there's been a lot of juggling!

    Tonight we'll be having gyozas & chicken. A good way to make a tiny dent in the inventory.

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    1. I had dumplings lingering forever in mine too! My daughter likes them but forgot they were there.

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  9. I didn't buy any closeout stuff this year after Christmas, probably because I didn't do much shopping due to being sick. Your pizzas look yummy! I hope you are feeling better today and get your test results soon!

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    1. Tough to shop and feel lousy. I was smart this year.

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  10. I really overbought on the half price Christmas/holiday Ziplock freezer and storage bags. However, the last time I found this deal after Christmas, I bought so many it was embarrassing. I did use them all, so I am not worried about the number of boxes I bought. We use lots of storage bags for storing the crackers after they are opened, cheese, leftovers of all sorts. I even store sewing stuff in them since I have no storage space. I am going to Publix in a few moments for bogo stuff, things we use. I have not bought any reduced candy since I won't leave it alone.

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    1. Zip lock pay for themselves in saving food waste.

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  11. Sorry you are sick, I too am heading for a chest cold. Into the 3 days coming. I was coughing a lot last night and Kelsa was up because I was coughing. SO tired. Going to take a nap. I try not to buy everything when it comes to food like that, but it is a great way to stack up and I love that you sort the m and m's. I do that all the time!

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    1. Holiday candy us insanely priced in grocery stores. These measly 10 ounce bags were $4.99 before discount! I'll sort red and green for the principle alone.

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  12. I hope you start feeling better and your test comes out negative. I love homemade pizza over any chain. Take care and be well!

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    1. By now if course, we know positive but I'm not so bad really anymore. Monday night was awful, but not worse than some if my whopper colds.

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  13. No Christmas clearance. I've spent less than $20 at the grocery store. I now need milk but that is all for at least 1 more week.

    I did a big stock of fresh veg/fruit on Dec 24, enough for about 3 weeks. We'll eat out of the freezer/pantry week 4 and then back to the store for freshies. This is my plan for 2022. I aim to empty the freezer and refill from garden harvest.

    We shall see how this goes.

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    1. Might be too little too late, but I'll avoid the kitchen now other than warming stuff up. DH got me diet coke and some things for himself. It'll be a low spend grocery month by default.

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  14. I just buy what I need which was chicken for 79 cent lb I ( I used dto get it as low as 39 cents a lb since we are a major chicken producing state but those deals do not exist anymore)! I bought ground beef at $3.39 lb…. Ugh. This meat was from a Piggly Wiggly. I bought pasta sauce for $1.05 at Aldi, but their eggs were too high. I bought them anyway at $1.52 for a dozen. I need extra sheets and will probably purchase some this week. I did buy Powerade. I think it was $5 for a six pack at Family Dollar I cannot remember about the Gatorade. I purchased a can of corn for 80 cents, which made me mad because I usually purchase it at Dollar General for 50 cents a can.I am not running from store to store tho in the middle of Covid. I have been cutting my own hair for years. I made a meatball sandwich with leftover spaghetti sauce that was more meat than sauce. I was kind of mad that my son did not want my cooking and wanted me to spend money on a Whatsburger combo but I suspect he has Covid so I spent it and dropped it off at his doorstep. I don’t argue with sick folks. Cindy in the South

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    1. You're a nice mom. I'd prefer the meatball sub!

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  15. My husband found a pair of Christmas pjs for himself for 1.49. That’s all the Christmas clearance we bought this year. I would have liked to get some wrapping paper but I probably have enough for at least one more year, even if it’s not the prettiest. I used to be a huge clearance shopper, but these days it all feels like more clutter that I don’t need. Not purchasing any new Valentine’s decor this year either, unless something really strikes my fancy. Got some fruit, milk, eggs and my beloved Coke Zero today, enough to top off with this impending snow storm on the way. JoAnn

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    1. I peeked at the theme wear, but it all stayed in the store.DH brought me diet coke- and not cheaper diet Pepsi. True love.

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