Frugal Happenings Last Week of October

1. Happy dance here!  The fall weather (even though we are hitting near 80F some days) has helped drop my utility bill down to $155.  (This includes water, trash pickup, and electricity.)
2. I spent $20 on groceries for the week.
3. We ate meals from what was on hand.
4. I donated 4 large boxes of books to the local library.
5. I set aside 3 large boxes of homeschooling reference books to give to my daughter-in-law for my grandson.  It is hard closing that chapter in my life, but I know it is gone.
6. I gave away a large plastic tote of crafting magazines.
7. I carried two loads of items to Goodwill.
8. (In case you cannot tell we are cleaning out our homeschooling library.  This freed up considerable space on my bookshelves and I was able to unpack several boxes filled with books we will be keeping.)
9. We purchased a new sectional sofa.  Not frugal, but over the last bit I had saved enough from the household budget to pay for it.  We only have one "big" purchase left for the house, and I've started saving for that.
10. I'm cleaning out baby and toddler items.  I found someone who can use the toddler bed and mattress and I have given that away. 
11. We gassed our cars up at Sam’s Club and the prices were 10 cents less per gallon than the local gas station. 
12. I took advantage of Sam’s Club sales to fill some gaps and to start filling November’s needs. 
13. I placed an order with Vitacost and took advantage of their free shipping.  This came from my holiday budget.  
14. We had a Friday night family night complete with homemade pizza and movies at home.
15. I brought home a stack of books from the library.  I've finished all but one of them...so it has been a good reading week.