Frugal Friday Wrap Up 8/13-8/19/16

   

   Here we are at the end of another week of trying to live a full yet frugal life while getting ready for the cooler months to come.  This will go down as one of the better weeks for frugal doings in awhile. :)  I have been pushing myself to get things done and by Friday afternoon I was hurting all over my body. I hurt to touch.  I tucked myself into bed after an early dinner and watched the movie "Holiday Inn" on dvd.  I can't believe I had never seen it before.  Jeff cuddled up with me to watch the last half of it while he had some coffee before he had to get ready for work.  Hopefully I will not be as sore tomorrow but Jeff has already told me that I need to take it easier this weekend and be kind to myself.  I love that man!  Now, without further ado, onto the frugal doings...

~While doing the watering, I filled buckets and the cat and dog water dishes with the water from the sprinklers also.
~Jeff and I stopped at the thrift store to donate a bunch of stuff and we found a few things there for ourselves.  He found a shirt and I found a cami, 2 shirts from Coldwater Creek, a sweater, an antique oval picture frame and print, some sterile gauze pads and a dvd.
~We also stopped at a garage sale on Saturday and got 2 movies, a season of Castle, and a book on homesteading, all for $5.
~I have been able to harvest some blackberries from our plants and they are so good!

~Multiple loads of laundry were hung out on the line to dry.
~I was able to get a free subscription to Field and Stream for my hubby.
~Jeff and I went to see the new Jason Bourne movie.  We used a gift card and went to a matinee.  We did buy popcorn and split a large drink so our cost out of pocket was $3.
~Hastings is going out of business so Jeff and I stopped by there to see if they had anything we might want.  We did find Lethal Weapon, Lethal Weapon 2 and Lethal Weapon 3 in one set for $5.60.  We had been looking all over for Lethal Weapon and had the others but we went ahead and bought the 3 pack since it was less than the price of just buying the one movie alone at Walmart.
~I had a coupon for a free small sized Bath and Body Works product.  I got a lotion in an apple scent.  I love that scent for the Fall.
~Caesar's claws were is desperate need of clipping so I finally got that done Sunday evening.  It takes both Jeff and I to do it.

~We stumbled upon an amazing deal at Winco.  They had their Echrich Turkey sausages marked down to .99 a package.  We bought 8 packages of them and froze 7 for future meals.
~While at Winco, I had planned on buying some more avocados but they have gone way up in price so I scratched those off my list for the time being. My hubby picked some up on Monday from Walmart for me since they were cheaper there and he was in town anyway.
~More things were harvested from the garden this week including a few blueberries, cucumbers, beans and a small zucchini.
~Monday I cooked up a crockpot full of potatoes, onions, some of the sausage I got on sale and kale from our garden.  I cooked this all up in some chicken broth and added some freshly ground pepper to it right before serving.  I had needed to use up half a huge onion and some potatoes, along with some kale, so this was the perfect dish to do it with.
~I also made 2 loaves of Cuban bread so my hubby should be set for bread for the next 4 days or so.
~Monday was my sheets and towels day.  I got them all washed and hung out on the line to dry.  Jeff remade the bed when the sheets dried and before he went to sleep for the afternoon and early evening.
~Remember that big box full of nectarines?  Well I pitted and sliced up 10 of them, packed them into jars and then filled it up with vodka.  In a week I will strain the fruit out of it and add some simple syrup to the liquid.  Some of this may become Christmas presents...that is if I can stay out of it. ;)

~I strained the second batch of homemade raspberry gin.  I am set for quite awhile. ;)
~Three magazines, all free subscriptions, came in the mail for me.
~We used SKYPE multiple times this week to talk to our son Josh.  He made us laugh with one of our conversations where he was showing us just how gray his hair is starting to get.  My poor boys inherited the going gray prematurely from their daddy and then losing their hair from my side of the family.
~I was able to get in on the free samples from PinchMe on Tuesday morning.
~Jeff and I used the $25 Walmart gift card that I earned through Swagbucks to buy the following: 2 character beach towels for $5 each (these will be Christmas gifts for the grandboys), a shirt for Jeff that was on clearance for $2, a package of hamburger buns, a package of hot dog buns, a huge container of organic salad mix, and a package of Johnsonville cheddar and bacon burgers. My total out of pocket cost, after the gift card, was .65 .

~Jeff found a part that he need to fix the sprayer hose on my car for under $2 at the local home improvement center instead of going through the car dealership where they wanted a fortune for one.
~We were given free bottles of water to take home with us at a restaurant as part of the welcome back for the WSU students.
~Tuesday evening I took Caesar for a walk and we foraged for wild plums and came home with about 10 of them.
~I found blueberries for .99 a container and bought 2 of them.  I would have bought more but my freezer is stuffed!

~Our dear friend and neighbor made dinner for Jeff and I on Wednesday night.  We had been out running errands that afternoon and evening and picked something up for her in town that she needed.  She is so very sweet!  I refer to her as my hanai (adopted by love) sister. :)
~Jeff and I stopped to get more canning jars on Wednesday since they were on sale.  While we were there, Jeff also found something that he needed for his gun and it was 40% off.  The five out free popcorn there which was perfect because Jeff had not eaten since he got up.  I had brought a bottle of water with me so we had popcorn and water as a snack to hold us over until we got home.
~We stopped by the newly expanded Christian thrift store that helps people who are struggling to get back on their feet.  We found some more clothing items, some car stereo speakers,  and a brand new leather cross body purse there.
~We also stopped at Goodwill and found a dress, a brand new bra, some Bath and Body Works stuff, books and dvds.  I was able to pick up the first 2 seasons of Sex in the City for half price since the price tag was their discounted color tag of the week.  Season 2 had not even been opened.
~More shows were watched online.
~I sliced up some cucumbers from our garden and put them in a container with some seasoned rice vinegar.  It makes for a very light and fresh tasting pickle.

~Thursday I made some fruit leather with some nectarines, lemon juice and honey.  I could not find all my fruit leather insert trays so I made some with parchment paper.  Of course right after I did that, I located all the fruit leather trays. ;)  I cut the fruit leather and rolled in up on the parchment paper and put them in a freezer type Ziplock bag and froze them.  This will keep them fresh and I can just pull some out as needed.  I hope the grandboys like them...this Grammie sure does.
~The hanger for the muffler on my husband's car broke.  Jeff, being the handyman that he is, was able to rig up a new hanger for it. :)
~My hubby loves hard boiled eggs to snack on so I hard boiled a dozen sale priced eggs up for him.

~I was craving a cocktail so I went to my pantry and found orange juice and some vodka that I had leftover from making the nectarine vodka.  Screwdriver time!
~The trays for my huge dehydrator are a pain to wash in the sink because they do not fit.  I have found my big sunken bathtub the perfect place to soak and wash them all at once.  The hand held sprayer from the shower just makes the job of rinsing them all off so much easier. :)

~PinchMe sent me a box with dog food, a wake up aid and lots of coupons that I had ordered from them last month.
~I have been diligently working my Swagsbucks program.  I would like to be able to get another gift card at the first of next month as the discounted rate.
~Friday I cut up most a a large bag of onions and have them dehydrating in the garage.
~Three more cucumbers from the garden were cut up and made into refrigerator pickles.

~I have been watching videos on making artisan breads on YouYube.  This is something that I want to learn how to do.
~I froze a bunch of blueberries Friday that I had not gotten eaten because I did not want them to go bad.
~I am finding that my new go to outfit at home, for the days when I am not going anywhere, are shorts and a camisole. I stay much cooler and do not have to turn the swamp cooler on until later in the afternoon.  I had tons of camisoles just sitting in my drawers so now they are being put to food use.
~Friday evening I was worn out and really sore.  My hubby BBQed some burgers for dinner and I made a southwestern pasta salad to go with it.

~We had leftovers several times this week.
~I have been trying to eat a bit healthier and get more protein into my diet.  I'm trying to have cottage cheese with either fruit or fresh veggies mixed in with it each day.
~While at a store earlier in the week, I picked up the free newspaper with the ads in it.  They also contain coupons so I picked up 3 copies.
~I completed a few surveys for some companies and will be compensated for that.


   So not a bad week at all. :)  I have more onions to dehydrate and depending on how many more cucumbers that come ready next week, I may be making a few jars of bread and butter pickles.  I'd also like to make some more pickled green beans to have on hand.  Be blessed and I hope you all have a great weekend!