Frugal Friday Wrap Up 4/22/16

  

   It's been another busy week here with lots of projects being tackled and more time spent working out in the yard.  Spring came early so that means the weeds did too and everything needed to be pruned, and some needed to be planted.  All the while, we have still been trying to keep to our frugal ways.  Here is what we have been up to this week.


~My hubby was in need of a haircut so I gave him one at home.  I have 2 sets of clippers (I keep a spare pair just in case that I bought from our neighbors years ago at their yard sale) that have more than paid for themselves over the last 18 years of cutting my hubby and my boys hair.
~I  cashed in for another 25 Walmart Gift card via Swagbucks.
~The more than generous company that my husband works for had big 25 years Anniversary Prime Rib dinner for all the employees on Saturday evening.
~Pinch Me sent me some $ free samples and coupons.  I love getting free samples in the mail along with high value coupons.

~My parents sent out an email to all of us kids and the grandkids that they are coming over for a visit in 2 weeks.  My mother had bought a really comfortable (seriously, I have napped in that thing) recliner years ago when they moved into their home at the lake.  My father decided that he wanted to have matching leather recliners so Mom's recliner got put upstair in my brother's suite.  He already has so much stuff up there that he asked them if they could just get rid of it.  My mother asked if any one of us would like it.  I responded within 2 minutes of the email coming out that I would love it!  I will replace the one that we have now with it and sell the one here at the family yard sale next week.
~We took Caesar for several long walks.  Great exercise for us all!
~I made the decision to sell our elliptical exercise machine.  My knees have been giving me trouble and for whatever reason, using the elliptical machine irritates them further.

~There are certain supplements that my husband and I take to help us.  Some of these supplements are needed to manage my Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.  I placed an order at Vitacost going through the link at Swagbucks so I will get 3 points per dollar spent.
~I finally got the two kinds of peas, radishes and the lettuce planted in the garden.
~We needed some more multivitamins and I found 2 bottles that were marked down to $3.19 each.  They don't expire until Jan of 2017 so we have plenty of time to use them before then.  I also found 8 bars of soap and some toaster pastries marked way down too.
~A stop at the thrift store provided me with more canning jars and lids, three new shirts (I am replacing a bunch of mine that no longer fit or are worn out, one of the shirts was brand new with tags), 2 dvds, a kids magazine and some new underwear (they get new bags of undies donated to them and then they break the bags open and sell each pair individually for .29).

~Most of our laundry was line dried this week.
~We borrowed more movies from the library.
~I made a big tuna and pasta salad using whole grain noodles, some green onions from our garden and added some grated carrots and some chopped celery to it to increase the fiber and nutritional value.  It was a huge hit with my hubby who was starving after weeding out the raspberry patch. ;)
~More of our favorite TV shows were watched online.
~I managed to get plenty of exercise weeding and planting the garden.
~Our meals this week revolved around what needed to be used up in the refrigerator.
~We SKYPEd with our son Josh.  It is always fun to  have some time with him. :)

~I made more bread for my hubby's lunches.
~I have been able to turn the heat off at night when my hubby is not here because it has been unseasonably warm here during the day.  There were some nights when I had to leave the windows open until I went to bed to cool the house down enough so I could sleep comfortably.
~My hubby and I had a date day on Sunday and one of the places that he loves to go is to the big home improvement store.  While he was checking out lumber prices, I wandered the aisles and found the clearance area.  They had some of the large Yankee Candles in the winter scents on sale for $7 each.  I found 2 that I loved and I thought others would enjoy too.  They are now in my gift closet.
~Sometimes I find seeds for the garden in the most unusual places.  On Tuesday I was in Goodwill and they had a huge box full of assorted seeds for .49 each.  I picked up some more lettuce, basil, dill and flat leaf parsley seeds.

~Tuesday afternoon found me with lots of "nervous energy" (we had gotten a phone call with some not so great news about one of our parent's health) even though I was already really tired from running errands for 5 hours.  I cleaned off the top of my dresser which had become the dumping ground for things, sorted through all of that and then decided to tackle my sweater closet.  Some of the sweaters I have date back to high school and I am in my early 50's now...it was way overdue.  I purged all the too small, sweaters with turtlenecks (I can't stand to have anything tight around my neck now that menopause has hit), anything that is itchy (my skin has become way more sensitive) and anything that I have not worn for years.  That took large piles of sweaters out.  I also found a few that have moth holes.  I will take the buttons off those and repurpose them for other projects.  I will have my daughter in laws go through my sweaters and see if they want any of them.  The rest will be donated to the thrift store.
~While sorting through my jeans, capris and shorts, I found ones that needed to purged due to being worn out or not fitting me anymore.  I then knew what I needed to find a few more pairs of.  I did find another pair of skinny cropped ankle pants, a nice pair of dark gray capris and a brand new pair of jeans that fit perfectly at the thrift store to replace things that I had to get rid of.
~More goodies found at the thrift store were 2 more shirts to replace some others I got rid of and another nice lightweight longer length sweater that is perfect for those evening when there is a light chill in the air.

~Mercury Magazine had a complimentary 2 year subscription offer to Taste of Home magazine that I was able to get in on Thursday morning.  My DIL's and I all love this magazine and free is my favorite price!
~I had some leftover rice from a Chinese themed dinner I made.  For dinner the next night I used it to make jambalaya.
~The mail this week brought me 1 free magazine( Better Homes and Gardens).
~I continued to work on my points programs online.
~I have been using rainwater I collected in buckets to water all my little seedlings.
~Last year when we dug up the front garden due to having to fix our water line my hubby terraced it and made it look simply beautiful.  We turned the top terrace into another veggie garden.  Some of the irises that had previously been in that area got buried under the dirt and are now growing in the middle of my garden bed.  Hubby is digging them out and we are replanting them in the flower bed border.

~I was able to get in on an offer for a coupon for a free bag of Lay's BBQ potato chips.
~I used the $25 Walmart gift card to cover the cost of my prescription for a 3 month supply of thyroid meds, a large bag of instant yeast, 2 boxes of gelatin, a pie, a loaf of French bread, and a few other items that are slipping my mind right now.
~I have been using an old laundry detergent bucket as my weeding bucket out in the garden.


   I am thankful for all the free offers that I was able to get in on this week and for the $25 Walmart gift card.  This has been another tight month for us financially but God is good and always provides. :) For fun and inspiration, I am joining Mimi's link party with other wonderfully creative and frugal guests...come join the fun! 
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