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After lying in bed for hours, tossing and turning for a few nights in a row, I finally made a change.  Life is so stressful right now with end of the school year things, birthdays, blogging, and real life that I can’t seem to turn off my brain!  So I got up, found a book to read, and sat on the couch for a while.  That finally calmed my swirling mind enough that I could sleep.

May is a stressful month every year, but I’m finally realizing that I need to make it a point to add some self care to my days.  When life is at its busiest, that’s the most important time to add a buffer into your day for a nap or just some time to zone out and not think about anything!

Every Friday I think about the ways I was able to save money this week.  I’ve built up an entire series on the subject!  So if you like money saving tips, you can read other posts from this series here.

The 5 Ways We’ve Saved Money This Week

More ways to save money are shared at this blog every single week!

First Communion Card

Our neighbors were celebrating First Communion for their daughter (who is good friends with my own daughter).  I didn’t have time to get out and grab her a gift.  But I managed to remember that I had bought a First Communion card years ago and never used it.  So I pulled it out, added some cash, and called it a day.

It’s pretty handy when you have extra cards on hand!  Especially if you have the time to shop at your leisure and can look for bargains.

Creative Cooking

I needed yet another quick meal for the table this week.  I wanted to make mac & cheese, but then discovered that I only had mozzarella in the house.  I decided to go for it anyway.  So I used up 3 partial boxes of noodles (each box was a little over 1/3 full for some reason).  Then I added the shredded mozzarella and some pepperonis.  I told the kids it was pizzaroni and cheese.  Worked like a charm!

Another night of fast food avoided…cha ching!

Volunteering

I’ve been spending even more time than usual volunteering at our schools.  It’s kept me too busy to do anything…including spending!  And it’s a great way to give back without spending a lot of your own money, too.

Baseball Bag

I noticed that our son’s baseball bag was getting pretty worn.  We’d already replaced the hook on it…now it was fraying at the seams.  I knew I couldn’t patch it well enough to stay, especially with the heavy ball equipment he carries.  And let’s face it…baseball bags get thrown around, kicked, and are more often than not at the bottom of a heavy pile.

Luckily, I noticed this in front of some other Moms.  Two of them immediately offered me bags they had lying around their homes going unused.  I was happy to take them, and they were happy to declutter a little.  Win/win!  Mom friends are the best!

Instrument Rental

Our son played trumpet last year on an instrument I found secondhand on Craigslist.  This year, he decided to give the French Horn a try.  So we rented one.  (Even a secondhand French Horn costs upwards of $1,000!)

A month or so ago, I asked him why he wasn’t practicing as much as he used to.  Then I learned that he wasn’t really enjoying the French Horn as much as he’d hoped he would.  So we returned the instrument and he went back to his trumpet. I’m happy saving a bunch of money every month!  I always prefer to buy good, quality instruments secondhand rather than renting.  I’ll be writing more on this topic soon!

Those are the 5 Ways We’ve Saved Money This Week!

I’m sure counting down the days until school lets out.  Bring on the lazy days of summer…when I can actually sleep again!

Don’t miss our May goals check in!  Find out how we’re doing with paying off our second credit card.

SMART Goals and Our Big Plan for Debt Payoff

How did you save money this week?