F is for Frugal Family

A is for apple, B is for blog…no doubt you’ve read your share of children’s alphabet books. When I browse the children’s book section at thrift stores, I’m amazed by the variety of subjects that lend themselves to teaching alphabet names and sounds. Sometimes even adults need to come down to basics. Here’s my take for those with tight finances: “F is for Frugal Family.” A is for advertisements, asking yourself “how much is enough?” and deciding you have enough already. B is for bookcase. Each of our children had one, filled with books they picked out at yard sales, thrift stores, or the school’s carnival “used book sale.” When they tired of the books, back those books went for the next year’s book sale. C is for coupons. Clip ‘em, file ‘em, and match them to a sale price for products you actually use when you can do better than with a store-brand or generic product. D is for delayed gratification, avoiding the credit trap. The couch that my beloved brought into our marriage was, well, abstract art. I never was fond of its splotches of turquoise, brown and orange. But I waited several years (knowing its colors would camouflage any baby oops) as we saved up for a couch that wasn’t as flashy. E is for extra life, what my husband gives bikes he finds at yard sales and that need the magic touch of soap-and-water, steel wool, oil, or a patch for the tire. Once redeemed, they’re ready for another little biker. F is for “frugal family,” of course! It’s also for furniture bargains. After used-crib days, our daughter grew into a bedroom set that originated as hand-me-downs or thrift store finds. But white paint and stencils gave her something very feminine. G is for “gift cache,” the dresser full of bought-ahead or sewn-ahead generic gifts such as aprons, homemaking books, burp cloths and newborn baby clothes. H is for haircuts in the kitchen. Hubby’s “buzz” takes five minutes. (I stretch out my cuts, but “invest” in good professional haircuts on my shorter hair.) I is for instruction books, gathered either into a hanging file or punched and put in a three-ring notebook (the sales slip stapled on it in case something goes kaput before the warranty’s out). J is for junque-ing, a cheap Saturday morning date idea. (Junque is junk with a price on it.) K is for keeping my sewing notions in a huge plastic guy-style tool tote with all its handy flip-top sections. L is for library. Why buy when you can borrow? M is for make-do. My parents and grandparents, shaped by the Depression, did. When you’re grateful for what you have, you’re less apt to think you’re entitled to more. N is for napkins, easily sewn from fabric scraps. O is for office supply cache. It has paper bought on sale, spiral notebooks from thrift stores (a few pages are missing, but who cares), recycled file folders…whatever we’ll somehow use and find cheaply through a store sale, thrift store, or yard sale. P is for the patches I ironed on inside the knees of my son’s jeans when he was younger. It’s also for patchwork quilts I make from scraps given me. Q is for quilt. Yes, I just named “patchwork,” but I did create some useable “art” by sewing a "Log Cabin" pattern quilt for our bed. Having sewing for a hobby helps me create things people can use. I just never got into hobbies that result in things you have to dust and move around. R is for rebates and “free offers,” up there with coupons for saving money. We even got a family portrait for sending in the appropriate number of soup can labels. (And it wasn’t cream of say-cheese soup, ha-ha). S is for sun-dried sheets, up there at the top for “simple pleasures” in our household. Sun-dried towels? Well, it saves electricity, but a quick tumble in the dryer might keep them from feeling like sandpaper. It’s also for stretch cords, hung on a curtain rod in the garage. T is for toys that created excitement even though many were used or make-do. Barbie and her family slept on upside-down shoe boxes, covered with a scrap of fleece. The “bathroom” included a sink made of a cocoa box and a tartar-sauce cup from the fish restaurant. Oh yes, the “house” was a yard sale book case, giving her a four-story home. Barbie’s “closet” was jammed with one-of-a-kind garments from sewing scraps. (Don’t ask me about the nightmare of sewing dresses for a doll with a three-inch waist.) U is for “under the sink,” which I’ve claimed for storage in my tiny kitchen. Baking sheets and clunky appliances live there. The covered trash bin is nearby, cleaners on a utility room shelf. V is for vinegar, which is lots cheaper than commercial cleaners and does its share of cleaning tasks. Clogged drain? Soda and vinegar, chased five minutes later by a kettle of boiling water. Vinegar and salt clean copper. W is for wrapping paper, found at yard sales or ironed for re-use from gifts we received, snug in a long box under a bed. It’s also for white toothpaste, which fills nail holes in white walls in a hurry. X marks the hot spot where important act-on-it stuff (like things to deliver, letters to mail, a to-do list) is consistently put. Y is for yard stick. One slipped into an old sock is a handy duster in tight places, like under the refrigerator or tape player. Z is for stuck zipper. Sometimes it just needs some candle wax or soap run over the teeth. Found something helpful here? Please forward the blog link to a friend!

P.S. A special "hi" to Amber who attended the Colorado retreat where my friend Cindy spoke. I'm so glad you connected!