Substitute Dough Blades And Different January 2023 Bills

Chickens: cuter than a bread machine

My $5 yard sale bread machine obtained upgraded to a $40.91 yard sale bread machine with the alternative of its dough blades. Who doesn’t love beginning the brand new yr with new dough blades?! These small, blade-like objects snap into the bottom of the bread machine’s basket to carry out the essential kneading step within the bread making course of. I’m thrilled to outsource kneading to those blades they usually tirelessly execute their job with out a lot as a squeak of criticism (can not say the identical concerning the youngsters of the home to whom I additionally try and outsource… combined outcomes; will report again in 10 years).

I picked up our Zojirushi bread machine at a yard sale about 3.5 years in the past and we’ve made what I estimate to be ~200 loaves of entire wheat sandwich bread since its arrival. After mixing and kneading lo these many loaves, the unique dough blades wore down and misplaced their non-stick coating, inflicting massive clumps of bread to stick to the blades and never the loaf. A brand new Zojirushi bread machine–of comparable make and mannequin to ours–runs $319.99 (affiliate hyperlink). YIKES. What a delight for Mr. FW to find that one should buy simply the blades for a mere $35.91 (affiliate hyperlink)! The brand new blades are put in and to date, rotating with ease.

Why Bake Your Personal Bread?

Baking one’s personal bread is a unbelievable and easy component of placing your life on frugal autopilot. When you begin, you most likely gained’t cease and also you’ll get monetary savings on bread eternally and ever. Additionally, it’s extra yum.

It takes ~3 minutes to dump the components into the basket and activate the bread machine. It’s so easy that my four-year-old can *virtually* do it. Plus, the components are less expensive than a retailer purchased loaf. Bonus: heat, aromatic bread aromas permeate your private home.

My VERY keen kitchen assistants just a few years in the past

Advantages of baking one’s personal bread:

1. Cheaper
2. More healthy
3. Tastes higher
4. Home smells nice

Downsides of baking one’s personal bread:

1. You not have a motive to go down the bread aisle on the grocery retailer
2. Should you don’t have time to do it by hand, you will want to acquire a bread machine (I’m crew #breadmachine4lyfe)

Methods to supply a bread machine:

1. Thrift retailer
2. Yard sale
3. Purchase Nothing Group
4. Basement of somebody you recognize
5. Basement of somebody you type of know
6. Buy new

Our present bread machine is our third second-hand bread machine and we paid not more than $5 for each. Bread machines appear to be a kind of issues that folk obtain as a present after which by no means use… appears like a conspiracy…. Therefore, I see them at yard gross sales, thrift shops and accumulating mud on counters on a regular basis. Should you too wish to enterprise into self-made carb cubes, ask round and see what bread machines supply themselves as much as you.

Our Sandwich Bread Recipe

Household ski! Mr. FW, Kidwoods and Littlewoods

Since I do know you’re going to ask, our recipe relies off of this King Arthur Baking recipe. I’ve modified it over time as I’ve found totally different bread machines work otherwise. In our present bread machine, right here’s what we do:

611 grams white entire wheat flour
355 grams water
37 grams olive oil
90 grams maple syrup
2 tsp yeast
2 tsp salt

I discover that utilizing our meals scale to weigh by grams is each sooner and extra exact (affiliate hyperlink). The white entire wheat flour is essential for us–once I use entire wheat flour, it comes out like a dense brick (even when I exploit very important wheat gluten). Fortunately, we’re capable of purchase white entire wheat flour in bulk from our co-op.

Different Bread Concerns

To get skinny sandwich-sized slices–and never mediaeval hunks–I lower a cooled, contemporary loaf in half after which lower slices ranging from the middle. Use a correct bread knife and hold it sharp!

For storage pre-kids, I froze half of each loaf since my husband and I don’t eat bread on the price of a hyena pack. It freezes completely superb!

For storage post-kids, I put every half into its personal gallon-sized ziplock bag. This retains it contemporary for a few week (most likely?). Not sure as no loaf has ever laster that lengthy in our pantry. See above notice re. present hyena pack’s bread consumption skills.

I’ve tried storing bread loaves in tea towels, a field, and foil, however nothing works in addition to plastic zipper luggage. I simply re-use the identical luggage time and again.

Blissful baking!!

Can I Speak To You?

Our gingerbread home within the woods

Sure! You’ll be able to rent me to jot down a full monetary plan for you OR you may choose my mind for an hour over the cellphone. Have an excellent fast query? Speak to me for half-hour.

1. Rent me for a non-public monetary session right here.
2. Schedule an hourlong name with me right here.
3. Guide half-hour with me right here.

To be taught extra about one-on-one consultations with me, test this out.

I Love the Free Cash Monitoring Instruments from Private Capital!

I exploit a free on-line service referred to as Private Capital to arrange our cash. It tracks our spending, web price, investments, retirement, every little thing.

Figuring out the place your cash’s at is among the best methods to get a deal with in your funds. You can’t make knowledgeable choices about your cash in the event you don’t know the way you’re spending it or how a lot you could have. Should you’d wish to know extra about how Private Capital works, take a look at my full write-up.

And not using a holistic image of your funds, there’s no option to set financial savings, debt compensation or funding objectives. It’s a should, of us. Private Capital (which is free) is an effective way for me to systematize our monetary overviews because it hyperlinks all of our accounts collectively and supplies a complete image of our web price.

Should you don’t have a stable concept of the place your cash’s at–or the way you’re spending it–take into account attempting Private Capital (notice: the Private Capital hyperlinks are affiliate hyperlinks). 

Credit Playing cards: How We Purchase The whole lot

We purchase every little thing we are able to with bank cards as a result of:

1. It’s simpler to trace bills. No guesswork over the place a random $20 invoice went; all of it reveals up in our month-to-month expense report from Private Capital. I additionally spend much less cash as a result of I KNOW I’m going to see each expense listed on the finish of the month.

2. We get rewards. Bank card rewards are a easy option to get one thing for nothing. By the playing cards we use, we get money again in addition to lodge and airline factors for purchasing stuff we had been going to purchase anyway.
3. We construct our credit score. Since we don’t have any debt, having a number of bank cards open for a few years helps our credit score scores. It’s a grimy fantasy that carrying a stability in your bank card helps your credit score rating–IT DOES NOT. Paying your playing cards off IN FULL each month and maintaining them open for a few years does assist your rating.

For extra on my bank card technique, take a look at:

Money Again Playing cards to Contemplate

Should you’re now cash-back curious, there are a selection of playing cards in the marketplace providing fairly good money again percentages. Listed below are just a few I believe are an excellent deal:

This child is at house on the slopes!

1) Blue Money Most popular® Card from American Specific:

• 6% money again at U.S. supermarkets on as much as $6,000 per yr in purchases (then 1%).
• 6% money again on choose U.S. streaming subscriptions.
• 3% money again at U.S. gasoline stations and on transit (together with taxis/rideshare, parking, tolls, trains, buses and extra).
• 1% money again on different purchases.
• Earn a $250 assertion credit score after you spend $3,000 in purchases in your new Card throughout the first 6 months
• $0 intro annual price for the primary yr, then $95. Charges and costs particulars right here.
• Phrases apply

2) Blue Money On a regular basis® Card from American Specific:

• 3% money again at U.S. supermarkets (on as much as $6,000 per yr in purchases, then 1%).
• 3% Money Again at U.S. gasoline stations, on as much as $6,000 per yr, then 1%.
• 1% money again on different purchases.
• Earn as much as $250 – Right here’s How: Earn as much as $150 again whenever you store with PayPal. Earn 20% again as an announcement credit score on purchases whenever you use your new Card to take a look at with PayPal at retailers within the first 6 months of Card Membership, as much as $150 again. Plus, earn $100 again as an announcement credit score after you spend $2,000 in purchases in your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership.
• No annual price. Charges and costs particulars right here.
• Phrases apply.

3) Capital One Quicksilver Money Rewards Credit score Card:

• 1.5% money again on each buy, day by day.
• $200 money bonus after you spend $500 on purchases inside 3 months from account opening.
• No annual price.

4) Capital One SavorOne Money Rewards Credit score Card:

• Limitless 3% money again on eating, leisure, well-liked streaming companies and at grocery shops (excluding superstores like Walmart and Goal).
• 1% again on all different purchases.
• 8% money again on tickets at Vivid Seats by means of January 2023.
• $200 money bonus after you spend $500 on purchases throughout the first 3 months from account opening.
• No annual price.

Winter barnyard view

5) Chase Freedom Limitless®:

• Earn an additional 1.5% on every little thing you purchase (on as much as $20,000 spent within the first yr), which is price as much as $300 money again:
  • 6.5% on journey bought by means of Chase Final Rewards
  • 4.5% on eating and drugstores
  • 3% on all different purchases.
• After your first yr (or $20,000 spent), you earn:
  • 5% money again on Chase journey bought by means of Chase Final Rewards
  • 3% money again on drugstore purchases and eating at eating places, together with takeout and eligible supply service
  • Limitless 1.5% money again on all different purchases.
• No annual price.

6) Chase Freedom Flex℠:

• 5% money again on as much as $1,500 in mixed purchases in bonus classes every quarter you activate.
• New 5% classes every quarter.
• 5% money again on journey bought by means of Chase Final Rewards
• 3% money again on drugstore purchases and eating at eating places, together with takeout and eligible supply service
• Limitless 1% money again on all different purchases.
• $200 bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening.
• No annual price.

Should you’re curious about journey rewards, folks love the Chase Sapphire Most popular Card®. You’ll be able to earn 60,000 bonus factors after you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening, which is $750 whenever you redeem by means of Chase Final Rewards.

Large caveat to bank card utilization: you MUST pay your bank card payments in full each single month, with no exceptions. Should you’re involved about your capability to do that, or suppose utilizing bank cards may immediate you to spend extra, keep on with a debit card or money. However in case you have no downside paying that invoice in full each month? I like to recommend you bank card away, my pal! (notice: the bank card hyperlinks are affiliate hyperlinks).

Money Again Earned This Month: $60.45

This little skier is up the chairlift now!

The silver lining to our spending is our money again bank card. We earn 2% money again on each buy made with our Constancy Rewards Visa and, this month, we spent $3,022.43 on that card, which netted us $60.45.

Not some huge cash, but it surely’s cash we earned for purchasing stuff we had been going to purchase anyway! Because of this I like money again bank card rewards–they’re the only option to earn one thing for nothing.

To see how this provides up over the course of a yr, take a look at How I Made $712.59 With My Money Again Credit score Card.

The place’s Your Cash?

One other simple option to optimize your cash is with a high-interest financial savings account. With these accounts, curiosity works in your favor versus the rates of interest on debt, which work towards you.

Having cash in a no or low curiosity financial savings account is a waste of assets–your cash is sitting there doing nothing. Don’t let your cash be lazy! Make it be just right for you! And now, get pleasure from some explanatory math:

Let’s say you could have $5,000 in a financial savings account that earns 0% curiosity. In a yr’s time, your $5,000 will nonetheless be… $5,000.

Let’s say you as a substitute put that $5,000 into an American Specific Private Financial savings account, which–as of this writing–earns 3.4% in curiosity (affiliate hyperlink). In a single yr, your $5,000 can have elevated to $5,170. Which means you earned $170 simply by having your cash in a high-interest account.

And also you didn’t must do something! I’m a giant fan of incomes cash whereas doing nothing. Is anyone not a fan of that? Apparently so, as a result of anybody who makes use of a low or no curiosity financial savings account is NOT getting cash whereas doing nothing. Don’t be that individual. Be the one who earns cash whereas sleeping.

Sure, We Solely Paid $28.41 for Cell Cellphone Service (for 2 telephones)

Our mobile phone service line merchandise will not be a typ0 (though that actually is). We actually and actually solely paid $28.41 for each of our telephones (that’s $14.21 per individual for these of you into division). How is such trickery doable?!? We use an MVNO!

What’s an MVNO?

Glad you requested as a result of I used to be going to let you know anyway: It’s a mobile phone service re-seller.

MVNOs are the TJ Maxx of the mobile phone service world–the identical service, A LOT cheaper. Should you’re not utilizing an MVNO, switching to at least one is a simple, slam-dunk, do-it-right-away manner to economize each single month of each single yr eternally and ever amen.

Listed below are just a few MVNOs to contemplate:

For extra, I’ve a full chart of suppliers and their costs right here: The right way to Save Cash on Your Cell Cellphone Invoice with an MVNO: I Pay $12 a Month*

*the quantity we pay fluctuates each month as a result of it’s calibrated on what we use. Think about that! We solely pay for what we use! Will wonders ever stop. These MVNO hyperlinks are affiliate hyperlinks.

Expense Report FAQs

• Wish to know the way we handle the remainder of our cash? Try How We Handle Our Cash: Behind The Scenes of The Frugalwoods Household Accounts
• 

  Winter wooden

  Don’t you could have a rental property? Sure! We personal a rental property (also referred to as our first house) in Cambridge, MA, which I talk about right here and extra lately, right here too

• Why do I share our bills? To provide you a way of how we spend our cash in a values-based method. Your spending will differ from ours and there’s no “one proper manner” to spend and no “good” funds.
• Are we probably the most frugal frugal folks on earth? Completely not! My hope is that by being clear about our spending, you may achieve insights into your individual spending and be impressed to take proactive management of your cash.
• Questioning the place to start out with managing your cash? Take my free, 31-day Uber Frugal Month Problem.
• Should you’re curious about different issues I like, take a look at Frugalwoods Recommends.
• Why don’t you purchase every little thing domestically? We do our greatest to help our local people and purchase as a lot of our meals as doable instantly from our farmer neighbors. Our city doesn’t have any shops, so we depend on on-line ordering and large field shops for requirements. The closest shops are 45 minutes away and we go just a few instances a month to refill on what we are able to’t get from our neighbors or on-line.

However Mrs. Frugalwoods, Don’t You Pay For X, Y, Or Even Z???

Questioning about frequent bills you don’t see listed beneath?

Should you’re questioning about anything, be happy to ask within the feedback part!

Alright you frugal cash voyeurs, feast your eyes on each greenback we spent in January:

How was the primary month of 2023 for you?