Episode five hundred and seven, how to Save Money on food, take out restaurants and more edition.
Welcome to the Frugal Friends podcast, where you'll learn to save money, embrace simplicity, and liver a your life. Here your hosts Jen and Jill.
Welcome to the Frugal Friends podcast. My name is Jen, my name is Jill, and today we are continuing our twenty twenty five series on how to save money on food in different categories, and today is one of our favorites. It's not our most favorite thing to spend money on is food made by other people for us, and that's takeout restaurants.
I'm especially excited to do this episode because just this morning you were chatchypting how to get free takeout? I'm tired, chat GPT said, we get it.
Chat GPT. Yeah, I was doing a little last minute research for the outline and because it's good to test different ways of asking and that, I was just like, I'm tired because when I get takeout, I'm typically tired. So will it customize for that? And it empathized artificial empathy AE.
It's not real, but it works. Yeah.
So we have a lot of good apps websites and programs to get not like I mean memberships, to get discounts, to get free et cetera. Takeout and restaurants so you can have other people make you food for less money. But first, this episode is brought to you by our mo Optimized Spending Planner. We just released this this week. If you are in the friend letter. If you get that, you've already heard about it. But this is a spreadsheet
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Yes, all right, And something you will be planning a lot of, I hope is take out and restaurants, because we want to enjoy eating out. We don't want to do it impulsively. Forget that we did it. Anytime somebody cooks me food and I don't have to do the dishes, I say a little prayer of thankfulness and I just I just enjoy that moment and we want that for you. So but definitely be sure to catch our previous food episodes.
Saving money on groceries, We've got how to save money on takeout from episode two forty seven, So it's been a while since we did one that was all like takeout tips. We're not going to regurgitate those tips in this one. And then we have how to Save money on Coffee episode that was when we did all coffee. Again, not going to regurgitate those tips. We're not going to really talk about coffee in this episode.
Okay, So we're going to go through how to save money on this category in these four ways, how to get it free, low cost, a deal, and guilt free. So we're starting off with how to get take out restaurant food for free, and our first recommendation is mystery shopping. We have not talked about this in a lot ever, well, both you and I have done this in the past, we haven't recently, but it does work, and it is a way to go out to eat for free.
And we say free because you do have to pay for it and then you get reimbursed. So I never recommend mystery shopping as a way to make money, but we always used it as a way to be able to go out and have somebody cook for us for free. So that is really how we've always viewed mystery shopping and it is legit. It does take a little bit of effort, but if you're looking to go out more frequently on you know, a zero dollar budget, this is it.
Some of the sites you can use and order to mystery shop include Market Force. They will give you mystery shop opportunities at places like Five Guys, Buffalo Wild Wings, Papa Murphy's. Kind of your your fast food, fast casual kind of thing. Then best Mark is also fast food or and sit down dining sometimes even hotels with room service.
I like best Mark. Best Mark was one that I used a lot.
Okay, Coil Hospitality this is actually the one that I had signed up for, and they are more upscale. I didn't realize this about them, but I guess I can say that this is true more your fine dining, sometimes even luxury hotel meals. I think we did a PF Cheng's mystery shop with through Coilt Callee we've done.
We did Seasons fifty two a lot.
We did a rooftop bar.
On a beach at Saint Pete Beach at a hotel several times. They have really nice hotel stays. But you have to do a lot of the restaurant ones and make friends with your person at coil to get those. So you got to work work towards it. But they do have nice hotel shops.
Yeah, then you've got secret shopper dot com. So that's a variety of different shops, including fast casual restaurants and then the brand group that would be fast casual and fast food like Taco Bell or Kudoba. So feel free to look into any of those. And again we're gonna have all of these linked in the show notes.
Yeah, and I'm probably in the friend letter as well. Okay, so a few mystery shopping tips before we move on. Never pay to join. So these aren't the only mystery shopping sites out there. There are definitely more, and it's not just restaurants. They have activities as well, mini golf, movies, all kinds of things. Never pay to join. All legit mystery shopping companies are free to apply to. You do have to pay at the restaurant and then you get reimbursed,
usually via check from the mystery shop company. Stay organized. You will need to remember details like employee names, cleanliness, timing. I would set timers on my phone and take screenshots of times so that I could get the most accurate things, because that's what these that is what you're going in to do. You're working, So that's why the five dollars you make above and beyond your meal, that is truly payment for work. So that's why I don't view mystery
shopping as a way to make money. Turn around. You have to get your report in pretty quickly. I think they want it within twenty four hours, and then they'll reimburse you, usually within a few weeks, sometimes faster and some companies I've never done this, but some companies will let you claim same day or next day. Shops a lot of them will email you. I still get emails from mystery shops same if they have a last minute thing or they have a extra boost in pay because
they're having trouble finding someone. So yeah, so those are some mystery shopping tips, and that I think is our best. We could go off and list freebies, like you know, birthday freebies at places and stuff, but you know all those we spent over a year in the friend letter giving them to you every single Monday. We have like so many options that we've told you about, and I'm sure you've already heard, So that's what we're gonna I think harp on for the free part.
Of this episode. Yeah, okay, So let's move into how to get restaurant food, takeout food at low cost so apps. There are some really great apps and new apps coming out pretty regularly, so worth staying on top of. But some of our favorites include Too Good to Go. So that is an app where usually bakeries, restaurants, some of your local eateries will give away food at super low cost that they weren't able to sell that day. It might be stuff that maybe they'd have to throw away
that night or the next day. It's not bad, but it might be close to expiring, and so you can get it at a steep discount. So definitely worth looking into, especially if you are in just like an urban or suburban area. For instance, I went on the app last week and there was a bag full of food from a local Jamaican restaurant for five ninety nine. Now, the thing with Too Good to Go is oftentimes you won't
actually know what you're getting. They'll just say a bag of maybe this type of food mystery bags, yeactually, and so like if it's a bakery, a lot of times it'll be a bag of croissants, maybe bread bagels, that kind of a thing. At this Jamaican restaurant, they kind of alluded to, you know, whatever meat and rice and beans were left over at the end of the day, and then they'll state how much that would typically go for, so you can kind of get an idea of portion size.
So I think it said this would typically retail for twenty dollars the amount of food that you're getting for five ninety nine. It is one of those last minute things like you'd want to check it during the day if you plan to pick it up that evening, order your bag online and then be sure that you can swing by. They usually give you a timeframe like between five to seven pick up your bag for this amount.
Yeah, I saw one. There's one of our favorite Indian restaurants. There wasn't a bag available, but they had recently had a bag of Indian food for five ninety nine. And this is like a very nice not a nice fast casual Indian restaurant, but I love it.
Yeah.
So yeah, five ninety nine for takeout can't go wrong.
Yeah.
So then also we've talked about flash food before in our grocery episode. So this one is helped. Like you get fifty percent off groceries at you know grocery stores across the country, and they will often have like.
Pre made foods as well.
So I zoomed out in the state of Florida and found a grocery store that had a lot of like pre prepared foods that it was putting on flash food so sandwiches, salads, stuff like that a great way, like if you did if you're near one. This particular one was like in the Orlando area, and a great lunch option. Pick it up and then there's your lunch for the next day or your dinner for that night. They have
like very very generous like pickup options. I think my last one, I had a couple days to pick it up. So that is a really good option to keep you out of the grocer regular grocery store where you could pick up you could be browsing and pick up other things you don't need.
Yeah, but I mean, speaking of the grocery store. One of the things that is a little adjacent to adjacent to this, but I think worth stating is considering getting some pre prepared meals from the grocery store. I think that that is an alternative to take out where you're not actually cooking the things, but you're spending less than
you would at a restaurant or taking out from a restaurant. So, whether that's just a frozen pizza or a completely marinated cooked chicken that you just have to reheat, you know, something in that kind of grab and go section of your local grocery store could be a good option when you are just feeling too tired to cook. It's maybe more than your groceries, but again less than what you'd spend at a restaurant. Also, you've got a wholesale club
membership like Costco or Sam's Club. You know the hack of them hot dogs. Okay, they're always inexpensive, they're always low cost, but they also have other things too, like that kale salad that you love so much. From Costco, you can also get as a smaller takeout portion through their kind of like pre prepared food line.
If you don't have a flash food then look a foodhro dot com. That's another app. It's similar to flash food. But yeah, I have been getting more and we just did a video on this for the month or for the weekly money move of buying a more expensive pre prepared meat but saving overall if it helps avoid takeout or feels like takeout without going out. So next is deal, So how can we get a deal on things? And this one I found a few new options that I
really liked. I haven't tried yet, but I just learned about them. So these two are similar. First, it's called Seated and you book a table through the app, you eat, you upload your receipt and you can get thirty percent back and give cards to like Amazon, Starbucks, stuff like this. Hopefully they have other choices, but it's an app that gives you kind of like an elevated cash back. The other app that I really liked is called Offline, and
this isn't super widely available. It's in big cities, but it's a subscription based dining club designed to help members discover and enjoy local restaurants. So it's fifteen dollars a month and you will get up to two credits for restaurants and the credits give you We'll give you ten to thirty dollars off of your bill, and so you
can go in there. You can book up to thirty days early, so you can make sure you can nab those thirty dollars ones, but you get to take advantage of it two restaurants per month, and if you don't save fifteen dollars, then they refund you your like membership fee essentially at the end of the year. I think they'll refund you the excess. I'm not one hundred percent sure. But you can also bank credits, so if you don't
use it one month, those credits will roll over. You can bank up to six So yeah, it's let's get offline dot com. You can find out if it's in your area. So those are the two new things that I found that like, Yeah, thirty bucks off at a restaurant.
That'd be great. Yeah. Some of the other sites that I like forgetting discounts on food include group on and Living Social. These sites, there's a lot that you can book on there, from activities.
Lep on, vacation.
Oh.
We keep saying it it's old and feels dated, but it's still there and thriving.
It's one of the places that I check and whenever we have guests in town, if we want to go out and do an activity. So many times there's deals for breweries and activities, but also local restaurants if they're just trying to get people in the door honestly too, spa services, massages, laser waxing, you name it.
A few years ago, your birthday present that I got you was a Groupon. It was that distillery tour.
Oh yes, yeah, yep, even that too. Yeah. But since we're primarily talking restaurants here, definitely check out Groupon and Living Social for that. Something else you can do is if you already use or have the Yelp app, if that's a way that you like finding restaurants and being able to look at the ratings and such a lot of times Yelp will have deals on different places is that you might be going.
You don't even have to have the app, they can. They just do it on the website too. It's like a buy a fifteen dollars gift car. It's a gift car, but it's virtual and you're getting thirty dollars for fifteen or something.
So there was a time actually when we were visiting Florida before we moved here, I was just looking on Yelp for a place to go eat and they and I wanted to try key Lime Pie. So I found this place that said they have great key lime pie. Then through Yelp it said, if you order like fifteen dollars worth of food, you get a free slice of key lime pie. Like that is perfect. Yeah, you just have to activate the deal if you are doing it through the app.
So they have deals like that on the app. And then they also have kind of like restaurant dot com where you buy the you know, twenty dollars and you get a thirty dollars gift card sort of thing.
And similar to that again if you have a wholesale membership, if you're part of a wholesale club, then a lot of times you can get gift cards to different places, restaurants, even movie theaters for usually at least five dollars off. There's usually always something, you know, here's a fifty dollars gift card for forty five dollars. I think at one time Eric and I really wanted to go to a top golf just to try it out. Thought that that
would be kind of a fun date night activity. And Costco had one hundred dollars gift cards for eighty dollars, so a good twenty percent off. We went with friends, so they paid us half of that gift cards. We were able to get, you know, fifty dollars worth of stuff for forty dollars, which felt worth it because then we also went on a half off night before for a certain time. Oh yeah, we hacked the whole thing
than Yeah, exactly. Yeah, but there's plenty of ways to get discounted gift cards too, which is also something to think about, especially around the holidays when all these restaurants are offering steep discounts on their gift cards. Something you could kind of plan ahead for, not just for gifts, but for yourself, your future takeout loving self.
Yeah, there's if you want to use search or AI to find like, there's gonna be some kind of hopefully local service that does this. They they go with local, They find local restaurants and partner with them to offer deals like buy you know one hundred dollars or buy it you know for eighty dollars you get one hundred dollars e.
Gift certificate sort of things.
So definitely search to see if your local area has something like that and if not, costco great option.
All right, let's talk guilt free spending full track out and restaurants because eventually we get there. We love going through this list, how can I get it for free, low cost deal? But eventually we're spending full price and we don't care. We love it. We are not guilty or ashamed of it because we know we're making good
values driven decisions. And usually that's going to include first looking to local, sustainable options, so considering how we can eat ethically and healthy, and a lot of that's going to be going to your local restaurants. So even if you can't afford to sit down at these restaurants, take out at that take out.
And here's the thing, you don't have to be thinking about everything at once. When you choose local. Your local restaurants are going to be more likely using local produce which is sustainable than your national chains. So you can hit two birds with one stone and you don't even have to think about the other bird just by making that one choice. We love efficient choices, So supporting your
local restaurants. If you can't support them, and I sit down ones, you can choose takeout, you can choose fast casual. You don't have to go one hundred percent. I know that some of these small, local, independent, you know, sit down restaurants are very expensive, so if you need to go with the national change change for sit down, then choose commit to your fast casual, your fast food. All of all of that lower cost stuff being local.
You can also opt for breakfast and lunch dates instead of dinner, so that will absolutely be lower cost. Breakfast is less expensive than lunch, Lunch is less expensive than dinner. A lot of times there's specials during these times. You can also look into whether your local restaurants have early or late night specials, like an early happy hour. So many places are doing happy hours, so take advantage of that.
Also consider splitting. This is something that allows Eric and I to go out more often is to find the places that are serving the healthy portions and we can split a meal, or we might opt to not get drinks, or we'll share just a couple of appetizers. There's kind of different ways to be able to hack it or both get a meal, save half of it for the next day for lunch. But a big bought a boom. We've solved two meals.
Yeah, we like to look for kids eat free specials. That's really nice. It's usually one per entree, so we get two kids meals two entrees too good to go.
To You know what, what's also too good to go like? We're never getting rid of it despite minimal.
They don't even charge us five ninety nine for it.
No, this is free the bill of the week.
That's right, it's time for the best minute of your entire week. Maybe a baby was born and his name is Williams. Maybe you've paid off your mortgage, Maybe your car died and you're happy to not have to pay that bill anymore. Touch bills, Buffalo bills, bill clean. This is the bill up the week.
Hi you too, I'm excited to have a bill of the week to share. This week, I went to get an eye exam at one of those stores that advertise two pairs of glasses for a pretty reasonable price. When I finished up with everything, the price they gave me was two hundred and eighty three dollars for one pair of glasses. I asked them, wouldn't it be cheaper to just do it without insurance and go with the rate
that you advertise. So they ransom numbers and it turns out that I ended up getting two pairs of glasses for two hundred and twenty five dollars. Still kind of pricey, but that's what happens as the years go and you need progressive lenses. All in all, I think that was a pretty good win. I love listening to you guys. Keep up the good work. And also I just ordered my pre order book today. Can't wait to read it.
Yay Abby, thank you so much for pre ordering the book by what you lovebook dot com buy what you Love withot going Brown.
That's nearly my favorite part by it. But also so thrilled at what you were able to do with getting glasses for less expensive breaking it through.
It is so interesting with insurance, and I would say this is especially applies to optometry and dental work that even if you have coverage to always ask them to run numbers with any promotions they're doing for self pay. So that's always worth it to ask. And even gosh, like care if you're I'm not gonna say anything weird.
If you're near the end of the year and you have not met your deductible and you will not, you know you're gonna have to pay for something on your health insurance, that would be a good time to ask then as well, like, can I see what this would be as self pay.
Yeah, they can allow you to choose that or not. Right, they're still getting paid either way. They might even get paid more with your self pay than what they're going to get from the insurance smpoldies.
It always, but especially with optometry and dental for sure worth asking and look for. These are the ones that are running specials. You're not getting special at the family health practice, right, but dentists and optometrists are always running spy. So go and if they're trying to, if it seems like they're trying to scam you out more money, ask them to run some numbers. I always ask, always hurts to ask, run it through that filter. Can I get this for low cost? Can I get a deal on it?
I mean not in like a cheap way, not just to be cheap about it, but if you know that there's a deal out there, a discount out there for you, like why not? Why spend more than you.
Need to ask inquisitively, not rudely, not like you deserve it, but you truly want to know, because that is the heart that we are asking these questions with. I don't know what I don't know, and we want to offer you questions to ask to find out.
Well, thank you so much, Abby for sharing your bill about that. So glad you have two new pairs of glasses that they look adorable. If you all have a bill that you want to submit, if it's about self paying for less, if it's about deals and discounts, or your name is Bill and you just want to call to check on your frugal friends, visit frugal friendspodcast dot com, slash bill leave it for us. We cannot wait, and now it's time for.
Okay, when do you eat at restaurants or order delivery slash takeout? And I am really interested at your answer, Jillian, tell me about it.
I am. I eat out at least one time a weekend, at least at least okay, but that's always in the plant. Yeah, always always in the plan, at least because.
It seems like the amount of money you spend per month on takeout restaurants.
Really, I do restaurants far. I don't okay, hot take I really don't love takeout. It's not my favorite thing. I feel like every time my order gets messed up, the food is cold. I much prefer to sit down experience. Yeah, well you're fully all the way out.
You don't have Hellians running around making your experience miserable, right, I like to contain them in the cage I call a house. But I would love to go to restaurants too otherwise.
Yeah, but even I mean fast casual is a super common thing. I love five guys I do. I love burgers, so I love hot dogs. Everyone knows this about me. But you know what, I also love a good burger you can eat real fast. And if I said this on the mic, You've said it on the mic. You've said it that if I ever were to do a talent show, like if someone was like, what would be the thing you get up and do, it would be me eating a burger super fast. I never put it down. I just inhale it.
And you win because no one no one would be impressed, but everyone would just be like so weirded out, But it would be the best, Like you will you will deliver on.
You, I will deliver Yeah on the hatch inhaled gone. I just sometimes a burger just hits. So those are that. That's a common thing. But pretty much every Sunday for lunch, I'm eating out. We're out to a restaurant.
And you spend two hundred dollars on Sunday lunch.
No, we must be I mean we are going. I'm just saying, yeah, no, we spend about I'll just be transparent with you all because I know we're all wondering how much is normal this. I don't think this is normal because it is much above the national average. But we do spend about five hundred two six hundred dollars a month on food that is not groceries.
Yeah, which I think is I think is closer to the average than the average that we're hearing. Yeah, but I don't know. I think the data might be a little skewed for some reason.
We're Eric and I. I will say, sometimes, for whatever reason, we're buying for other people. I'm not looking new in the eyes as I say that, But that's what it is.
It's you're not look me in the eyes.
Yeah, because they feel like you're gonna be like, why are you paying for people? Oh?
No, I thought you were saying like you're paying for me. I was like, sometimes we're paying for people.
No, not you.
No.
No. If we don't get out together, we use the Frugal Friends card.
We buy each other exactly, lunch exactly.
Okay, what about you, Jen, We do eat out once a week.
We spend about I would say three to four hundred dollars.
Honestly.
The only takeout we get is pizza. We'll do pizza two or three times a month, and we'll do torchiese tacos two or three times a month. And that's really it.
There was a time where you were going to Torcheese every Tuesday or was it Wednesday? Because it was it was kids Eat Free.
No, that was Tiwana Flats and that was we went one time.
I love to make up sorries.
We have a retraction, folks, we don't because there's not a lot of kids Eat Free promos, at least in places I want to go to.
Grandaucianda has kids Eat Free.
Yeah, but that's a sit down, like you don't want to do that. It's just very difficult with like we went, where were we the other day? Oh, oh my gosh, this is a great story. I'm not even to say it for the after show. This we're at PetSmart because we got a dog.
Okay, maybe that's what we'll talk about. Happy, Yeah, and that's why you're saying it like, and that's where my head's been at.
Uh.
So we were at pet Smart getting treats for the dog because we need more treats because she's in training, and the dog's not even there, and my two children are running around the store. Atlas is screaming through the store and he's got these shoes that have like squeakers in them, so he's squeaking running through the store. Kai has found a squeaky toy and he's running through the store squeaking it. And I am actually standing in line to buy the treats and I'm behind two people and
Atlas flies by. Travis is running after him, and I say, man, I feel sorry for that kid's mom. Oh no, and the guy Travis kind of hears me, but the guy like looks and he's like, and I'm thinking this is a joke. Only a mother it would make right. The guy in front of me didn't know that, and he like just kind of looks, you know, awkward. So Travis comes through and he's like, did you just say you
feel sorry for our family? Like not knowing, not connecting the dots, and this guy's he's like, oh man, this this middle aged father with a two year old and this woman holding the bag of treats are about to fight, yes, and he and then Travis is like, you're his mom. And so then this man gets it, like the thing has come full circle and he's dying laughing. He has
had an epiphany and he loves it. And so I'm walking out and this guy like walks past me, and you could tell he's been thinking of a follow up response like the whole time, you know, And so he walks by me and he's like, I feel sorry for that guy's wife. And I was like, oh, man, you tried.
I mean, he wanted in on the show. He did.
He wanted like a Quippi like fire follow up and he he tried. Wow, But that's like the thing and the kid's still running around right Like I do feel sorry for that guy's wife, But that's what my life is like what And I like to think that I'm an adequate mother, you know, But this is still how young boys act. I guess some young girls do too. I don't know if it's just the age or the personality.
I don't know. It's probably a whole big old combination.
Big old combo.
But so yeah, I will do.
We'll do We'll order in pizza, we'll pick it up so we don't have to pay delivery, and uh, we'll do torchies tacos because I am I love for about Like since it opened in Saint Petersburg, which has probably been like over a year, there are very few other places that I will go. Yeah, it's not a huge chain.
Yeah. Something else I'm judgmental about for me to be honest with your people in general is you can be honest is pizza. So I am accustomed to and I didn't realize this until I moved to Florida. Good pizza. There is a pizza place pretty much on every corner, like an Italian, locally owned pizza shop on every corner where I grew up, and it's all just great pizza, like New York style pizza. And then I come down to Florida and they just don't exist. And everyone here
seems to do like Papa John's Dominoes. What are the others? I don't even know, but they hurt my belly. Pizza. Huh. Yeah.
So we got a slice of Gulfport shout out Gulfport, Florida. Nice and it's fantastic. Oh, that's good, that's our thing.
Nice. So in my judgment, though, I do frozen pizzas here. Actually, like the pendulum swings so far that if I'm doing pizza, it's frozen pizza. And I just wait till I go up to PA to get myself better take out pizza. But you know what, everything else is better here, So yeah, there's that.
I guess if you're local to the Tampa Bay area and you've got a good pizza place, let us know. But I do. I like Slice of Golf. But also I don't know any better.
You have to be from the northeast, Yeah, to recommend a pizza place, okay, in the Tampa Bay area, that is because.
I don't know anything different. And even when I was in New York and I had bagels, I didn't really notice a difference. So and I had pizza in New York City quite often, and I didn't really notice a difference. So like, I don't know if I'm just numb, like I have no feelings anymore.
Yeah, but I was young then too, and we have found a decent place actually near us. I just I don't think about it too often now that I'm down here and now pizzas are like thirty bucks. They are You're a whole pie. It's not even I mean, you know, you can still feed four people, so still it is relatively inexpensive. It just feels like I'm getting strangled. Oh now I want pizza. I am getting hungry. Thanks so much for listening, everyone, and thank you for leaving us
such kind reviews of the book. You all are showing up and telling us how much you love by what you love without going broke, and I'm here for it. Like this review from Lily about the book five stars says, I have been listening to Jen and Jill on the Frugal Friends podcast for a couple of years now, and every time I listen, I feel as I'm just sitting down and chatting with friends, no judgment. There's kindness and
so much fun. I have tried several approaches to finances over them years, and it wasn't until I came across these awesome ladies that I felt like I was finally figuring it out as a real life person who struggles to stick with financial plans that don't feel like they are practical to attain. The concept they introduced of the radical middle was awesome. I have a husband, pets, and kids, and learning to tailor a budget and goals that still allow me to live and make mistakes was a game
changer to actually staying on track. And then these lovely ladies dropped a book. It was amazing. I love that it felt like tuning into the podcast like I was chatting with my friends. It was so fun to read, and the personal touches and stories are what makes it enjoyable and relatable. Love the approach to finances. Facts and numbers are a part of my financial picture, but incorporating a new viewpoint has taught me to focus on what I love and my dream just added a whole new
level to my financial understanding and journey. So grateful for these ladies who really get it understanding that finances are so much more than numbers. Love the book. Highly recommend any of your friends, whether they are frugal or not.
Yes, Lily Sames, we have a similar life track and I'm glad that you felt seen with this one. If you have read the book by What you Love without going broke, we would love if you would leave a review on Amazon. It's where even people who get it from the library go first to see if a book is worth reading. So even if you got it from the library, if you could go to Amazon or interview, that would be so appreciated. If you haven't, head to buy what youlovebook dot com get a copy of the book.
There is even instructions on that page on how to request it at your library if they don't carry it.
See y'all next time.
May. Frugal Friends is produced by Eric Sirianni. All Right, I think it's time to talk about it. Okay, I got a dog.
You got a puppy. I got a puppy, which is still a dog, but it's a very specific kind of thg when it's puppy. All Right, I'll just have we not said this yet.
We alluded to it, we've alluded to it, but I haven't really gone into the situation behind how we got it. My mom got a dog and couldn't Ah, she ended up with the dog.
I think she was kind of.
Persuaded into, yeah, into getting the dog.
She didn't have to pay for it.
It was kind of gifted to her and so she got it and she was like, none, this dog is crazy. And she also lives in a tiny one bedroom apartment with her fiance.
Oh she works full time and work.
Yeah, she works full time, just not able to Actually they're always going out. They have a vibrant social life. So she returns it to her boss, who is who gifted her this puppy, and the boss takes it to work every day, and so my mom sends me pictures. She's like, I've you know, I hate seeing this reminder of you know, what I couldn't do, and I was.
I was like, it's a cute dog. It is a all black standard poodle what we think might be a giant poodle because apparently the dad was one hundred pounds pure bread, so a victim of hurricane flooding and.
From a breeder.
So we go in to like visit with the puppy to look at it, and we I'm home with it unbeknownst to us, Well you were considering, We were considering with you, but not that day. We were just there to look at it, and they sent us home with it. I guess her boss has six dogs already, and so the boss's husband was like, no more dogs, and she wasn't going to get rid of it, but she would get rid of it to us because then she could see it more. I think that's why she gave it
to my mom in the first place. So we since February have had this puppy and she's crazy.
She's super cute.
She's very cute. She's very crazy. I still don't like puppies. I'm not a big pet person.
But the kid's lover. Have they become acclimated because I know she was like, you know, puppies talk with their mouths and that can be scary to kids. Yeah, they know that.
They still don't like being bit. You know, they don't enjoy it, but they understand it, at least Kai does.
And yeah, it also came.
And I'll tell you this was the real reason we brought her home. We needed to repair our fence from the hurricanes, and hurricanes like hurricanes have brought up fence prices. I mean they've doubled, and we just haven't been able to find room in the budget or the motivation to find room and the mushet to repair the fence. And my Mom's like, I will pay for half of your fence.
Repair if you take this dog will cost money. That's the thing. The dog will cost you money.
She said that, and I was like, I think that's how that dog ended up going home with us that day. I sometimes look at her and I'm like, it wasn't enough money.
Okay, and real, real talk, how is it? How has it been going? You made this decision a little bit on a whim. The kids love her.
I she has gotten us outside more, which I know you don't get a dog to do that. You you know, have that lifestyle and then a dog companies, but we kind of did have that lifestyle, and so being outside even more, having the kids like out of off of the TV has been really fun. And we've been training her and so we know like once we put the work in to train her. Even the people at the dog training place were like, she's really smart, and I'm like,
I'm glad somebody thinks so. But yeah, So if you have any tips for standard poodles El Jen at Frugal friendspodcast dot com, Jen and Jen only Jen at Frugal Friends podcast dot com. You can respond to any of the friend letters. They go to me and yeah, I had. The thing that has been keeping me going has been I heard one thing on Reddit and they said, the puppy you have is not the dog you'll have yeah, And I was like, god, I hope.
So it just is, you know, you're buckling up because they are puppies for two years.
I know, and we got her at six months, so we'll have, you know, eighteen months sixty I don't know.
I have lost the cook. We don't even know what day it is, math. We just know we're hungry. Yeah,