A Long Overdue Catch Up

 

   Well here I am again, after another long break from blogging.  Just when I thought we could breathe again, we had more horse poo thrown our way.  UGH!  After nearly a month of sitting down at the dealership, and several days AFTER we were supposed to go to Utah, we finally found out that there was nothing that could be done about our car since it was not throwing a code.  They told us to just drive it until the transmission goes out and then it could be replaced under warranty. I was seriously ticked off since we had to cancel our trip to see our son Josh and family, and the hotel I booked was nonrefundable.  So we did not get to see our youngest grandkids, I am out over $100 and my car transmission is still acting up. Oh, and did I forget to mention that we ended up owing the IRS about $1,400 dollars?  Yep...so tightening our frugal belts is beyond needed at this point.  On another note, my computer is not uploading photos from my memory card from the camera.  Therefore, there are no photos to share at the moment unless I figure something out.  

   Sadly, we also lost another dear friend to cancer.  He had been fighting it for years and would go into remission and then it would come roaring back.  This last time, it ravaged his body, and he could no longer fight it.  Tyke was an amazing, kind and loving husband, father, papa, and friend.  He married one of my best friends, Robyn, and I was part of their wedding party, and she was part of mine.  We remained close over all these years and celebrated family weddings, births of grandchildren and I became very close with two of their daughters.  One of their granddaughters is also a friend of our grandson Steven and they are in the same class at school.  Jeff and I went to Tyke's funeral and saw so many old friends there that I had not seen since graduating from college.  It really is sad that the only time you see old friends is at weddings and funerals. 😢Tyke will be dearly missed by so many people that loved him.

   With everything that has happened, I am just exhausted.  I feel like every time I think I can start to breathe again, something happens to knock the wind right out of me.  With the heat of the summer hitting, I am also feeling the effects of that on my body and it is no joke.  Fibromyalgia is kicking my behind and I am doing all I can to just try to stay cool at the moment.  At least this part is something that I experience every year so I know how it will affect me.  

   Okay, enough of the bad stuff, let's try to turn our focus to the things that Jeff and I have been trying to do to save money and some of the good deals we have found lately.  Sound good?  

~Jeff and I dug up 2 of the volunteer potato plants in one of the garden beds.  They were getting to be way too big for the space that we needed for other things, so out the came.  We got about 2 pounds of small all purple potatoes.  Hey, I'll take that. 😉

~Before the heat really set in, we were harvesting lots of lettuce and some of the smaller spinach before it went to bolt. We also were harvesting strawberries (and still are), so I was enjoying fresh salads with strawberries and balsamic vinegar salad dressings.  Pure bliss!

~Our raspberry plants are starting to produce, much to mine and Shannon's delight.  Yes, I had been sharing with her.

~Jeff and I harvested all the bok choi and the huge spinach plants.  I blanched and froze 5 bags of bok choi and 3 bags of spinach.

~Safeway had an amazing deal on steaks, so I bought a package of 4 and froze 2 of them for a future meal.  I also found some round steak marked down to half price, so I cut that in half and then froze both halves.

~With the 2 steaks that I kept out, Jeff grilled them and I served them with a nice salad, corn on the cob and rice pilaf.  Oh my goodness, it was delicious and a real treat!  We decided that it was my early birthday dinner.  

~I found a small cheesecake and some donuts marked down.  You know those came home with us too.

~I had been looking for another clothes basket and some shade cloth.  I found a collapsing laundry basket and a shade sail at Goodwill.  Jeff found something he wanted while we were there and I also found a beautiful Lenox bowl that retails for $32...I paid $3.99 for it, and I found a DVD that I had been looking for.

~Jeff had been given a $25 gift card for selling a large amount of Trex decking at work.  We used that card to go out to eat at one of our favorite burger places (this is what Jeff wanted to use the card for).  It ended up being free for us since we used the card and we still have some money left on the card too.

~We finally got everything from inside the greenhouse planted.  We will have tomatoes coming out our ears when they all start coming in.  I have about 49 plants.

~I noticed that I have a tiny yellow squash forming on one of my squash plants.  I am beyond excited!

~Meal planning and cooking ahead have definitely become a need, especially with the heat and the fact that we are living on a very tight budget since we owe the IRS money and that took a good part of our monthly income.  

~I used up some of the random leftover pasta from other meals and made a big tuna pasta salad with veggies in it.  I did this twice within the past few weeks and it fed us for several meals.

~Grocery Outlet had their fresh family sized pastas on sale.  I had been buying them and freezing at least one package and then cooking up the other.  I also found coleslaw mix marked down to .49 a bag, so I bought 2 of them.  One bag was made into coleslaw, and the other was used in Yaki Soba.

~We have been watering the gardens in the evening so that the water does not evaporate so quickly.

~I have been having some computer issues and our neighbor was able to help me trouble shoot what was going on and how to work around it.

~I continue to feed the hummingbirds with homemade hummingbird food and I try to keep the front birdbath full of water for them too.

~Jeff and I went to an estate sale on the 2nd day of it when they were willing to make good deals on things.  I found a set of 6 really well-made outdoor chairs with cushions and got them for $30 for all of them!  Jeff and I are giving the ones that came with our table to Chris and Heather and are now using the ones we got at the sale out on our back screened in porch.  I also found some good cookbooks and food storage books there, along with a beautiful painting.

~Jaysn came over and helped us rearrange our living room since Jeff's neck had been bothering him and he wanted to move the recliner to a different spot so he did not have to turn his neck as much. Jaysn ended up taking us into the ready care clinic since Jeff's neck kept getting worse.  They did not take our insurance but finding out what was going on with Jeff's neck and getting him some relief was worth it.  He had strained a neck muscle so he got a shot and then started taking muscle relaxers to help it heal.  We are so grateful to Jaysn for dropping his plans for the day and taking care of us.  We did take him out to lunch as a thank you.

~Jaysn and Rachel picked up 2 more bags of tortilla chips from Costco for us.  It's nice that our kids have Costco cards and can pick things up there for us.

~I am keeping the bamboo sun shades down on the back porch to keep the sun from heating that space up so quickly and it also helps to keep the house cooler.

~We finally were able to take the 3 older grandboys to the trampoline place.  It was part of their Christmas present.  Since Heather is a first responder, we got them in for half price.  After they bounced for an hour, we went to a park for a picnic and Rachel joined us there after she got off work.

~Jeff and I cut each other's hair.

~We finally got new neighbors in Uncle Bob's old house.  They are a really nice young couple who are expecting their first child in August.  We are giving them our pack and play that we no longer need, along with our stroller and, if they want, our highchair. 

~The 4th of July fireworks were absolutely amazing in our small town this year and we enjoyed watching everyone's display that we did not have to pay for. Jeff and I both commented of how much money must have been spent collectively in our town on all the fireworks that literally go up in smoke.

   That is about all I can remember about the frugal doings lately.  We still have a long list of things that we want to get done that will save us more time and money.  Jeff is off until next Friday, so I am hoping to get a few more big projects done around here.  Be blessed my sweet friends.

   

  

Frugal Friday Wrap Up Over the Past Month

   I want to first thank everyone for their thoughts and prayers for my cousin Jeremy, Jeff's aunt Helen, and for us.  The loss of Jeremy has taken a huge toll on us emotionally.  We appreciate it and all of you so very much.  Jeff's aunt continues to have health struggles that we are trying to get to the bottom of and to get her the best care plan possible going forward.  We are also trying to get her trailer sold.  After a visit with my parents, we can see that my daddy is having some struggles with his balance, and we can see that he is definitely slowing down. It's hard to see him that way because he was always such a strong man physically.  He is in his late 80's now and I know just how blessed I am to still have him in my life.

   Below is a compilation of things that we tried to save money and some of the "curveballs" that life threw our way.  I know there are so many things that I missed, but given what all we were going through at the time, I'm sure that you will all understand.  I hope that you find something that will help you on your frugal journey in the post below.  

   

     Also four weeks ago:  Well, it is a good thing we did so well a few weeks ago with our frugality because we needed the money we saved to cover getting my car ready for long trips this summer.  New brake pads, fixing a rotor and a complete transmission flush was NOT cheap, but needed to be done.  Hopefully this is the end of car repairs and/or replacements for years to come.  UGH! This did not help with my fibromyalgia flare at all.

   Four weeks ago:

~I cut up and froze 4 pints of strawberries and 2 packages of Kalua Pig.

~Jeff built me a cucumber arch and I got cucumber seeds in and also planted more lettuce, spinach, and pok choi.

~Jeff got more well-rotted and aged chicken poop dug into more of the areas in the garden that I still need to plant out.

~ We had to go back up to work on Jeff's aunt's home, have a meeting with her care team and we also went to her physical therapy with her.  She did so well and really enjoyed having Jeff right there to help her.

~After our time with Jeff's aunt, we went out to lunch at Olive Garden.  We ordered off the lunch menu.  With our $25 gift card, we only ended up paying a little under $12 for lunch.  I did notice that they have changed their menu and there is way less on it now.

~Tuesday was a rough day for me after the really busy day before.  I ended up on the couch and in bed for most of the day.  I still managed to make dinner for us thanks to instant mashed potatoes, canned pears and chicken tenders quickly done in the air fryer.

~I fed my sourdough starter and made some sourdough discard crackers.

~The hummingbirds are back so I made some hummingbird food and filled then hung up the feeder outside for them.

~I called my cousin Jeremy and had a phone visit with him.  Please keep him in your prayers and pray for healing for him.

~We are getting our dates planned out for our trip to Utah to see Josh, Lauren, Tate and Peyton!  We will be down there for my birthday and I am so very excited.  We are already planning out things to do and see.  Josh reminded me that it will be really hot and he is being protective of me since I do not do heat well.  I think we will be going to the splash pads and the river near them.

~Jeff and I stopped into a Goodwill and found 2 brand new and fun t-shirts, some brand new tennis shoes in the exact size and brand that he wears ($7.99), a book, and some decorative ivy vines that I wanted for decorating.

~I continue to "cherry pick" the sales.  Oh my goodness, we all need to be on the lookout for deals and stock up when we see them.

~I called my dad on his birthday and we had a nice visit.

~I set up auto pay on our vehicle loan after the check we sent for a payment never made it to them.

   Three weeks ago:

Family emergency came up and we had to take a trip down to see my cousin Jeremy and pick up his dog.  We tried to be frugal on our trip, but it was still about $500 all included with gas, hotels costs, eating out, etc.  We now need to buckle down even more.

~Josh and Lauren graciously paid for our hotel room the first night of our trip.

~Instead of going out to eat all the time while on our trip, I packed snacks, we had burritos from the truck stop store on night and bought sandwiches several times. We did eat out at Applebee's one night with my cousin Andy and my Aunt Phyllis.  Andy made us breakfast one morning also.  

~The hotel that we stayed at on our way back home greeted its guests with a glass of wine.  Since there were two of us, we got two glasses of wine.  Jeff does not drink, so I had them both.  They also had a nice breakfast buffet that we took advantage of.  

~We spent one of the nights with my cousin Andy at the beautiful townhouse he rented.  I took full advantage of the big deep bathtub for a much-needed soak after a long drive.

~We took a side trip up to Crater Lake on our way home.  I asked about buying a National Park pass and they saw my handicapped parking placard. They handed me a form to fill out and I got a free lifetime pass because of my disability.

~Jeff and I stopped at 2 Goodwills, including 1 with a bins room.  I was able to find some nice and fun shirts, as well as some other home items that we had been looking for including a second pizza stone.

~I made a meatloaf one night for dinner and served it with some beans that I had grown and frozen last season, and some mashed potatoes.

~The next night I took the leftover meatloaf and made a macaroni , beef and cheese bake.  The sauce was a canned spaghetti sauce that had leftover red wine, more spices and cheese in it.

~I bought Maggie 3 large bones from our local meat shop here in town.  I gave her 1 and froze the other 2 for later. Talk about a happy dog.

~Maggie and I went for a walk around the neighborhood.

~Jeff fixed the lawnmower yet again.  He is a very handy hubby!

~We brought home food and canning jars from Jeremy's house.

~I've been talking to Jeremy every day and sending him pictures of Maggie and her adventures.  Being stuck in a hospital bed, he has really enjoyed seeing these pictures of her.

~My parents have offered to pay for our gas for our trip over to see them and all of our expenses will be covered while we stay with them also.  They have graciously agreed to let us bring Maggie with us too.

~I cashed in my points at Safeway for a free 2 lb brick of cheese.  I picked the most expensive item that we use on a regular basis to use my points on.

~I noticed that I have several volunteer tomato plants coming up in the front raised garden bed,  I think most of them are cherry tomatoes, but there is one that may be a Roma.  These will be transplanted to another spot.

~We had two nights of frost warnings so we covered up some of the raised garden beds with old sheets and a large tarp that went over the strawberry, rhubarb and blueberry patches.

~I picked, stripped, blanches and froze a 5-gallon bucket full of spinach that had overwintered.

~Heather, Chris, Bradley and Isaiah came over and brought dinner on Thursday night.  She made tacos with homemade sourdough tortillas (yum).  It was wonderful to have time with all of them.  Maggie (dog) enjoyed bounding around the backyard with the boys as they chased each other.

Three weeks ago:

~We took a trip over to see my parents and my brother in Montana.  Maggie came with us and Shannon took care of the cats.  It was so nice to be there with them and we got to visit with our friends Burl and Maggy also.

~While visiting my parents, we were invited to go to the dress rehearsal of the musical "Beauty and the Beast" at the Bigfork playhouse that was going to be opening to the paying public the next night.  It was absolutely wonderful and we were so blessed to have been in the right place at the right time to get the invite.

~Yes, you know it, we checked out the thrift store and I found a few things there.

~I called the hospital where Jeremy was at on Tuesday morning and got the sad news that he had passed away about an hour prior to my call.  Oh my heart hurt.  Since we were with my parents and brother, we all contacted family members to let them know.

~We stopped at the Care Center where Jeff's aunt is on our way home from Montana.  We took Maggie in to meet her and the staff and other residents there all spoiled Maggie rotten with treats and lots of petting.

~We ate out of the pantry, fridge and freezer upon our return home.  

~We ate out of the pantry, fridge and freezer upon our return home.

This past week:

~My new car, yes my new car, has developed transmission issues  UGH!!! Luckily we had bought a warranty for it and hopefully the cost, minus the $250 diagnostic test, should be covered.  Jeff, Steven and I took it down to Lewiston to the dealership.  Still waiting to hear what they come up with.

~I bought some shorts, a few shirts and soft summer dress at a few thrift stores.  I also bought some baskets and a few books.  Steven picked out a magic set.

~Steven helped me pick out a new collar for Maggie and we made her a nice new info tag (her jewelry) so if she gets lost, people can contact us.  We also picked up a huge 44 lb bag of dog food.  It was about half the price by unit than the smaller bags.

~I made a big tuna pasta salad.  It provided two meals for us.

~My doctor sent in a prescription for 3 month supplies of all my meds.

~Jeff brought home the leftover popcorn from the big popcorn machine on Saturday since they would be closed on Sunday.

~I made two loaves of bread.

~We got stocked up again on fruit and veggies since there was not a lot in our house.  I have been planning meals around them since we are trying to eat healthier.

~I picked my first strawberry off our new strawberry patch in the side garden.

~After getting a tetanus shot, I got really tired.  I don't know if there is a connection there because of my fibromyalgia or not.  I decided to take a nap and put off my afternoon plans of working in the garden. I later found out that it did the same thing to my grandson Bradley.

~I found a book that I had been looking for at a small little store across the street from my doctor's office.  I had been looking for a copy of "Five Little Peppers Grown Up" for years.  I found one there that was given as a gift from an aunt to their niece for Christmas of 1918.  How cool is that?  I love old books and was thrilled to find this treasure for just $12.

~I booked a hotel in Boise for our upcoming trip (it is the halfway point for us) through Priceline and got a great deal on a hotel with a pool and free breakfast.  I also was able to Use Rakutan, which will get me more money back.

~I chatted online with my cousin Andy (Jeremy's brother) for a bit.  He flew back over from Thailand to be with his mother and to spread Jeremy's ashes in a place that is special to my aunt.  Oh how my heart aches for them.  He asked about Maggie and I sent him a picture of her with her new collar and her chewing on a bone.

~ I found more volunteer tomato plants coming up in another raised bed where I grew them two years ago.

~We have been eating lots of leftovers for lunches.

~I finally got all my summer clothes and winter clothing switched out in my dresser.  I now have 3 bags full of clothes to try and sell at our yard sale.  I still have the closets to go through.

~Jeff and I broke down and bought some cantaloupe plants for the garden since only one of the seeds I planted came up.  We found two containers that had 3 plants in each of them so that saved us a ton of money right there.

   Life continues and we are adjusting to our new "normal" of having both Remi (Helen's cat) and Maggie (my cousin Jeremy's dog) living with us.  Maggie gets along well with all our cats, except Remi.  Remi is the cause of that though and she does not get along with any of the other cats either.  Maggie has also made friends with Whiskey, Shannon's youngest dog.  It is sweet to see both of them looking for each other when they are out in the back yard.  Please forgive me the lack of pictures.  I have not taken many lately.  Hopefully that will change with my next post.  Be blessed my sweet friends!

   

    

My dear cousin Jeremy has passed away

 

   My dear sweet cousin Jeremy has sadly passed away.  Jeff and I got a phone call about 2 weeks ago from my cousin Andy that Jeremy was in bad shape and were we still able to take his dog Maggie to live with us.  Jeff and I packed our bags and headed down that same evening.  It was a 12 hour drive.  We drove part way and spent the night and headed out early the next morning.  We got to spend some time with Jeremy, my cousin Andy and my Aunt Phyllis.  We said our heartfelt goodbyes the day after we arrived and brought his precious Maggie home to live with us.  Within a little over a week, Jeremy was gone.

   Jeremy left this life on Tuesday, passing away peacefully after a courageous battle with a very aggressive form of cancer that took over and ravaged his body.  My heart is breaking for my cousin Andy and for my Aunt Phyllis.  My heart is also breaking for my hubby, my kids, my grandkids and for me too.  Jeremy was one of the most generous, kindhearted and loving people that I have ever been blessed to have in my life.  His time here on earth was way too short and we cherish the time that we had with him.  We feel so very blessed to have connected with him and having been able to build a very close relationship with him.  He was more than just my cousin, he was also one of Jeff and my closest friends.  He loved our kids and grandkids and took great delight in spoiling us all.  

   Jeremy's final "gift" to us was bringing my cousin Andy, my Aunt Phyllis, Jeff and I together.  He wanted us all to meet.  The last time I saw my cousin Andy and my aunt was when I was 2 years old.  He loved seeing us together and getting to build those close family bonds that were so needed in a time like this.  All of us spent time together and I hope it brought joy to Jeremy knowing that his wish for us all had come to fruition, even though the circumstances were not what any of us wanted.

   Jeff and I got the sad news when we were in Montana visiting my parents and brother Fritz.  Jeff and I took some time to go into Bigfork and we found a beautiful piece of art that spoke to me and represented to me the bond that Jeremy, Jeff and I shared.  Jeff bought it for me knowing that I needed something beautiful to look at remember our sweet Jeremy by.

   Maggie Mae, Jeremy's faithful companion is now happily living with us.  I kept the promise I made to my cousin when he first brought Maggie home to meet.  I named her and told him that if anything ever happened to him, I would take Maggie and make sure she lived a happy life.  None of us could have ever imagined that within 5 or 6 years, I would be keeping that promise I made to him.  Maggie is the sweetest red nosed pit bull and loves other dogs and cats.  She has bonded big time with my hubby Jeff and is his shadow when he is home.  She is very smart and learns quickly.  I love her so much and am so happy to have her here with us,  Jeremy told me on our last visit that his main concern was making sure Maggie was taken care of.  It brought him great comfort to know that she was with us, people who loved her and would take good care of her.

    I'm still processing my grief over the loss of my dear cousin.   I know that I will break down at some point, but for now, I have too many other things and people that I feel I need to stay strong for.  I feel his loss so deeply and I fear he will not be the only family member we lose this year.  Plans are being made for us to travel to Tahiti to spend time with my sister who has been given a "timeline".  She is flying Jeff and I down and wants us to stay 2 weeks.  He first grandchild should be born around that time and she wants us there for that.  Please continue to keep her in your prayers also.

   

Family Going Through a Rough Time

 

😢

   You never want to get the call saying you need to come sooner than later and that your beloved cousin Jeremy is in the hospital with internal bleeding.  We got that call from my cousin Andy (Jeremy's brother) who flew in from Thailand.  He and my Aunt Phyllis were there with Jeremy. Andy warned me that Jeremy was looking really rough.  Jeremy wanted us to come and get his companion Maggie (dog) to come home and live with us. It was a promise I had made to him and I was going to keep it.

   I quickly called Jeff and he made arrangements to take the next day off work.  I also called Shannon and asked her if she could take care of my fur babies and water the plants in the greenhouse for me.  Josh called and I told him about Jeremy and how we needed to leave that afternoon and drive part way since it is about an 11 hour drive.  Josh generously paid for our hotel room for that night.  Jeff got off a bit early and quickly packed his suitcase and got the car ready to go.  I had snacks packed and ready, along with my suitcase.  We arrived at our hotel late at night and did not sleep well since it was across from a truck stop in the tiny town right on the highway.

   We got an early start the next day and went straight to the hospital where Jeremy was.  It was strange going back there since it was the same hospital where I had given birth to all 3 of my sons.  Andy and my Aunt Phyllis greeted us and Aunt Phyllis, Jeff and I headed down to the family lounge to get acquainted while Jeremy and Andy were on the phone with some government entity that was giving them the run-a-around.  I had not seen my Aunt, or my cousin Andy, since I was 2 years old.    Andy came to get us when the phone call was done and I got to share a hug with him and then go see Jeremy.  

   Jeremy was in really rough shape and the cancer had ravaged his body.  The internal bleeding was glaringly evident as well.  Despite all this, he was very happy to see us.  We all visited for awhile and then left him to rest for a bit.  Jeff and I drove around Klamath Falls and were shocked at how much it had grown in 30 years.  Later we had dinner with Andy and Aunt Phyllis and then went to stay in the beautiful townhouse that Andy had rented for the week.  My aunt took the late night train out to go back to her home.

   The next morning we went back to the hospital for one last in person visit with Jeremy and had a really good time together despite everything going on.  We told him that after we left him, we were going to the house to pick up Maggie and then we were heading up to Crater Lake since it was on our way back home.  He loved that idea.  We shared a last heartfelt hug and "I love you" and he made sure to tell me to pick out a bronze statue for Chris as a gift to him since they had shared a special bond.  He also wanted me to take any artwork that I wanted.  The rest would be auctioned off.   

   Upon arrival at his home, Maggie greeted us and I got her nails clipped since they had gotten so long.  I picked out a bronze statue that I knew Chris would love and Andy told me that Jeremy insisted that I take any art I wanted.  I picked out a wolf drawing that Jeremy and I both had loved from the moment he got it and was special to him, and I also picked out a wood block print that my Aunt Phyllis did.  I chose not to take any other artwork or cast bronze artwork because I knew the money that was raised from auctioning off these items would help pay for the debts that Jeremy had.  I had the two pieces that meant the most to me and the bronze that I knew Chris would love.  Andy also loaded us up with food from the pantry and I grabbed some canning jars.  We then loaded Maggie into the car, said our goodbyes to Andy, and headed up to Crater Lake where Jeff and I found peace, share memories of having gone up there when the boys were little and were reminded of God's amazing beauty that He has created for us.  We once again stayed the night at another hotel before we headed out for the final leg of our trip back home.

   About an hour before we would get home, my mom called and I update her on Jeremy.  I told her that I was exhausted and just wanted to get home and crash.  This trip had taken a toll on me both emotionally and physically.  She then said that she hated to tell me this, but she had more bad news.  My sister in law's mother had died the day before.  Again, I was hit with so many emotions knowing that my nephew Cade was with her when she had a heart attack and that she never recovered.  Oh my heart aches for my brother, sister in law, my nephews and for Christie's dad and brother.  I adored Min and we saw her last Spring.  She was always so kind to me.

   I am running on fumes here.  I have been trying to help my cousins and other family members deal with Jeremy's situation and to come to terms with all of this.  Phone calls, emails, facebook messages have all been happening.  I am at a loss on how to help my brother and his family deal with the death of Min.  I have texted with my brother and left a voicemail for them telling them how very sorry I am and how special Min was.  Right before we left to go down to see Jeremy, I got a call from Jeff's aunt...let's just say that it was not good and we now have to get caught up on things with her friend, her social worker and her on the situation.  I am dreading that because I know it will not be good news.  I have to remind myself of the reality of all that she is going through.  I love her and want the best for her, but I also have other things going on that had to take precedence at the time of her call.

   So yes, we are going through a rough time as a family.  I am praying for peace for my cousin as he makes his way out of this life and for comfort for my brother and his family.  I am also praying for no more "emergencies".  

    Finances have taken a hit with this unplanned and sudden emergency trip down to South Oregon, so we have to buckle down even harder financially.  I am glad we took the trip though because I needed to see my cousin and to get Maggie.  We have another trip to see my parents in a few weeks (this was planned for months now), and another trip in July to see Josh, Lauren and the grandkids (also planned).  Jeff and I are praying that the garden does well this year because we will be eating out of it this Summer and Fall.  I am hoping to can up some fruit and that we also get a decent crop of potatoes since I planted some and we also have several volunteers coming up in the various garden beds.  Much of the produce will also be dehydrated or frozen, as well as being eaten fresh.  My pantry needs to be worked on so I can expand my food storage area and get it better organized.  Jeff and I are slowly trying to get all of this done.

   Be blessed my friends and be sure to love on those people who mean the most to you in your lives.  You never know when you may get that phone call.

Frugal Friday Wrap Up 5/1/24 and 5/10/24

 

   Grammie brag!!! Our Isaiah is quite the hunter, he lined up his shot and got both turkeys with one bullet!  We are so proud of him.  His daddy also got a turkey so they now have 3 for the freezer. 😊  Isaiah is our hands on, outdoor loving kid who is happiest fishing and hunting.  I love that he shares this passion with his dad (our son Chris).

   Life once again got away from us.  We have been so busy both physically and mentally.  Many, many phone calls have been made concerning Jeff's aunt's trailer and her care. There was also a trip up there and another one coming up this Monday to hopefully finalize the Power of Attorney for Jeff's aunt and pick up the last of the items that she wants from her home.  A few will be going to her at the care center to help decorate her space.  I really hope that will help he feel more settled in.  This has been a rough journey for her, and for someone who has lived alone most of her life, a HUGE adjustment.

   

Week 1:

~We went to a dear friend and his son's birthday party over the weekend and had a wonderful time!

~Jeff installed the new toilet into our guest bathroom.

~I got the steaks I bought on sale repacked up, along with 1-pound blocks of Mozzarella cheese and food savered them, then froze them.

~I marinated steak tips in red wine and Montreal Steak Seasoning and the cooked those up with onions and sweet red bell peppers.  I served those with well-seasoned mashed potatoes.

~We made a last-minute trip up to see Jeff's aunt on Monday and cleared out more of her house for her. When we got home, I changed into pajamas and went to bed.  I was totally exhausted and hurting so badly.  Cleaning out houses when having fibromyalgia is not a good combination.

~Tuesday Jeff went to work, and I got up early, feeling an urgency to pray.  As I opened up Facebook, I found out why.  So many of my friends and family need prayer.  This became even more apparent later in the day also. Of course, this made my fibromyalgia flare even worse and I am so glad I had leftover pizza in the refrigerator that I could warm up for lunch.

~I spent most of Tuesday on the couch, in pain, and getting caught up on a few shows on TV.

~Dinner Tuesday night was cheese and crackers.  Jeff and I both thought that sounded good and it was very easy to pull together.

~I uploaded Safeway's digital coupons onto my card.  I will have Jeff pick me up some of the creamer that is on sale.

~We worked on many projects around the house.

Week 2:

~Jeff and I went "treasure hunting" at the apartment complexes that WSU students moved out of.  We found and collected the following: a fun t-shirt, an Eddie Bauer light down filled jacket (this is going to Chris and Isaiah), a heavy weight winter jacket, a fleece pullover, a lightweight hoodie, a Carhart jacket that fits Jeff, a round side table, 2 milk crates, and a large plastic tote (which was much needed).

~I cut a really big pork loin roast in half so it would fit in my largest crockpot and made Kalua Pig with it.  I added spinach from our garden shortly before it was done and after I shredded the meat and put it back in the juices and broth.

~Jeff and I worked on the gardens, and he got the tomato support and the bean arch done and in place.  He made these with pig panels and some t-posts.

~I got more things seeded in.  I also trimmed back plants that had gotten hit by the frost we had about 3 weeks ago.

~We shopped the loss leaders at the grocery stores.

~Our entertainment for the week was going to a very cold and windy baseball game to see Bradley and Isaiah play.  They both did great!  My biggest surprise and blessing was Steven seeing Jeff and I arrive there and running up to me yelling Grammie with a huge smile on his face!  We both has really missed each other.  It was so good to see Jaysn and Rachel too...it has been way too long with them and us having been super busy lately.  I have to give it to my family, they really do try to be there for one another as much as possible, and that makes my heart smile.

~We got to talk to Josh and Lauren about when would be best to come down and see them.  Jeff and I were both giggling listening to them both stop mid-sentence multiple times to tell the little ones something.  It brought back many memories of our boys growing up and us doing the same thing.

~I have been trying to use up things that have been in the freezer for a while.  I will need the space when the gardens start producing so I am getting ready now.

~Jeff and I watched a disaster movie on YouTube.  Yes, it is relaxing to me.  Strange I know.

~I got all of Jeff's aunt's summer clothing washed and ready to go up to her.  I am also throwing in some of my things that I no longer fit in, but I think she will since she has lost a lot of weight.  She was very happy with that idea.

~Since the weather has been much warmer, I hung the sheets and some of the other laundry out on the line to dry.

~For Mother's Day this year I asked for and got 2 green table grape vines.  I usually ask for rose bushes, but this year I changed things up a bit since I found the grape vines at a terrific price and I have always wanted some.  Now to figure out where to put them.

   Be blessed my sweet friends and may your days be filled with beauty, peace, and all things good!

 

Frugal Friday Wrap Up 4/26/24

   Jeff and I have been super busy this past week.  We took a trip up to see his aunt on Sunday and to start cleaning out her home and getting the things out of there and down here that she wanted to keep.  Chris, Heather and the boys came up to meet/visit with Aunt H and she was delighted to see Chris as a grown-up man and meet his family.  We went over some care and legal matters with her and Jeff was named Power of Attorney, with Chris being a backup if needed.  Jeff is Aunt H's favorite nephew and Chris knows the medical side of things, so they were both the best options in my opinion.  

   Chris and Heather were an amazing help getting things out of Aunt H's place.  She has some great artwork pieces from other artists, as well as some that she did herself.  We also took her computer, the rest of the family pictures, some furniture that she wanted to have us keep for her, financial documents, the television set, and some nick-nacks that mean a lot to her.  She gave us a list and we followed it and then picked out more things that we were sure she would want out of there and added those to the bins that we took up to store it all in.  The biggest item, her car, was given a good jump start.  She gifted the car to Chris and Heather so that the boys, Bradley and Isaiah, could share it when they got their driver's licenses.  What a generous thing for her to do and we were all very touched by it.

   Other frugal doings:

~We stocked up on baking supplies before the prices go up again.  We had been down in the valley and found that prices at Winco are cheaper there than up by us.

~Jeff and I ran into a dear friend that we had not seen in years!  Years ago, she and her husband ministered here in our town and our kids got to be good friends.  She and I became very close friends too and it was hard when she moved away.  We are able to give each other hugs, get caught up on each other's lives, and share great memories.  What a blessing it was to see her once more since I had been wanted so badly to see her and had just been thinking about her moments before.

~I bought 4 beautiful Geraniums on sale for $1.99 each and am going to try my hand at propagating them.

~Meals were eaten here at home, or, if we were out, we bought a sandwich to share from Winco.

~I found a Ninja Turtles walkie talkie set on clearance at Walmart.  This is a gift for one of our hanai son's birthday. I also found a gift bag to put it in at a thrift store.

~Jeff and I went to watch Bradley and Isaiah's baseball game on Wednesday.  We took popcorn and our drinks with us.  Jeff also gave Heather's dad a box full of some screws that he can use.  He was blown away by how many there were and only took one of the two boxes full.

~Jeff also found someone who wants to buy some of the drywall screws that he has here from that pallet of screws and nails he bought for $50 from work.  He is going to charge them $25 for them which is a great deal for them and gets Jeff back half the money he spent.

~Jeff bought a new taller toilet from work and of course got his employee discount on it.  We needed to replace the toilet in the guest bathroom.  He will be installing it this weekend.

~I bought some steaks on sale and will be repacking most of them and freezing them for meals at a later date.  Steak is something that we can rarely afford, so when I saw the amazing price on these, I jumped on it.

   Now, an update on Remmie, or Miss Hiss, as I have nicknamed her. 😉 She is settling in more and more each day but cannot be left without supervision.  She tried to jump up on the curio shelf with my grandmother's teacup and saucer set...um no, that is not happening!  When we leave our home to go somewhere, Remmie has to go into the guest bathroom where her food, water, liter box and her cat bed are.  She is not happy about this arrangement, but sadly, it has to be done.  She is getting more and more loving with both Jeff and I, but will hiss at us when she is told no or just randomly.  He and I are learning to ignore her when she does this since we are sure some of it is attention seeking behavior.  She still gets lots and lots of lovies from us both and is slowly learning what the rules are in our home since she basically ruled the roost in Aunt H's house.

   Be blessed all and have a great weekend. 

    

A Phone Call, A Family Reunion, and Remmie.

 

   Life has been so busy and we thought it was starting to slow down, when we got the phone call.  Jeff's aunt needed us and we dropped everything to go up and be with her.  Arrangements were made to take care of our cats and I quickly made a hotel reservation.  Jeff and I packed an overnight bag and headed up her way.

   We had a wonderful in person reunion with her (it was supposed to have already taken place but we did not have a vehicle to get to her until we bought the new one since the truck was also having issues).  Lots of hugs, tears, memories, and the starting to make plans on how to handle things.

   The main concern, and rightly so, was her beloved cat, Remmie, who is a beautiful 18-year-old Russian Blue.  Remmie needed to be rehomed and we told Jeff's aunt that we would take the cat before even meeting her.  Upon meeting Remmie, we were greeted with lots of vocalizations, figure eights around our legs, and the need for lots of lovies.  Jeff's aunt had been concerned that Remmie might hiss at us and even bite or scratch us.  There was some hissing, but only when we had to get her in the kitty carrier to bring her home with us the next day.

   There were other things that needed to be taken care of and we were able to get a few of them done, but will be going back up again with our son Chris to pick up things from her home that she wants us to keep safe for her.  Chris will get to see his great aunt once again, since he has not seen her since he was a child.  His great aunt is very excited to see him again too.

   If I may, let our family be a lesson in how lies, jealously and deep hurts can tear a family to shreds, but there is hope for reconnecting with other family members who have also been victims of all of the above.  People, who were innocent, have been blamed for things they did not do, and that led to further divisions within the family.  The past two days, more lies were brought to light, and I think we all realized that so much time and energy had been wasted for all these years.  As for us, and for Jeff's beautiful aunt, we are just so thankful that we never gave up on reaching out to her and that now she knows the truth, that we always have, and always will love and want her in our lives.  

My Oh My!

 

   I am beyond exhausted and just want to find a warm spot in the sun and take a nap!  So much has happened over the past few weeks, and I have felt like I was in either "push it to the max" or drowning mode.  We have had medical emergencies including a late night run into pick up Steven from the emergency room where Rachel was for the second time within a 24 hour period (it turned out to be a very nasty and painful stomach virus that mimic gallbladder trouble, she is fine now thankfully) and bring him home with us and then get him back into his town for school the next morning.  We have had horrible news about our car and how much it would cost to fix it.  The fix is more than the whole car is worth, so we had it towed home and decided we would contact a salvage company to come and get it.  Jeff and I have both been battling sinus issues and our backs have been really acting up but gardening season is upon us, so we could not let down.

   

   We finally decided to bite the bullet and start test driving cars.  The first two we test drove were not our favorites and Jeff did not even fit well in either with his long legs.  The salesmen there tried every high pressure gimmick they could though to get us to buy one of them though.  We walked away from them and their nefarious ways!  I saw a Subaru Forrester that I thought would work for us so we went down to see it and before we could even get the keys to test drive it, Jeff saw the Chevy Impala above.  Jeff was sold on it!  We took it for a test drive, they took our Ford Flex in for a trade in (and they are going to pay to have it towed), and we also put some money down, so our payments are around $200 a month.  That is more than doable, and we will be throwing extra money at the payments to pay it off early.

   

   I've been trying to stretch the money like I stretch a chicken!  Above its meals 4, 5 and 6 off a roasted chicken that I got from the Walmart deli that was marked down to $3.32.  The first two meals were chicken legs, thighs and one of the chicken breasts.  Oh, I also made a chicken salad for sandwiches, so that would be meal three.  I then took the remainder of the chicken and put it in a shallow crockpot along with some water and a little chicken seasoning and let that cook overnight.  That gave me a rich broth that I cooked the cheese tortellini in while I picked the chicken off the bones and put most of it back into the pot.  I did save some and put it in the freezer to add to some soup later.  I also made some udon soup with green onions from our garden and made Jeff some crispy chicken sandwiches for dinner another night.

   Jeff and I stripped out our strawberry bed in the side garden and since we had to cancel our trip to see my parents because of all the car issues, I put out a post on Facebook that I was looking for some ever bearing strawberry plants.  A dear friend said she had some and that I could have all that I wanted.  Upon our arrival at their home I was met with the cutest little dog who wanted nothing more than to love on us and at least 12 raised beds of various types of strawberry plants.  We got ever bearing for the side and are trying some June bearing in the front around the bird bath.  Luckily Jeff had our side garden bed ready for the plants and he was I both worked on getting them in after I got dinner started.  We had a 30 minute window to get them planted and watered in while dinner cooked and we just made it!  We were both really sore with our backs aching and mine having locked up to the point where Jeff had to help me stand, but we did it and hopefully will be rewarded with at least a small crop of strawberries this year.  I am dreaming of more fresh strawberry topping for pancakes, waffles and Angel food cakes. 

   That is about it for now, I need to get the taxes all signed, copied and sent off in the morning after having finished them today.  I have a feeling that today was a rough day for Jeff at work and I did not want him to have to help me again with them tonight.  Anyone else think doing taxes is a real pain? 

Frugal Friday Wrap Up 3/8/24 and 3/15/24

 

 

   Our oldest grandson Bradley, pictured above, is now 12!  We are so very proud of our incredibly smart, creative, kind and yes, still sarcastic and quick witted young man.  He does not like seeing people left out of things and is our 6 year old grandson Steven's favorite cousin because he always goes out of his way to play with him.  Steven absolutely adores him!  He is a "country kid" and loves hiking, hunting, exploring, camping and playing baseball.  He also is getting really good at driving.  Again, country kid and it is very common around here for kids to learn to drive early to help out on farms and such.  He was and remains our favorite anniversary gift ever!

   Our car remains in the shop waiting to figure out all that is wrong with it and hopefully, it will be cheaper to fix it than have to buy a new (used) vehicle.  Good news is that Jeff's Social Security was finally approved and we had 2 checks deposited into our bank account!  We have no doubt that most, it not all, of it will be spent on the car repairs or purchase of a new to us vehicle.  We can live on just what Jeff makes at his part time job thankfully.  Now onto a 2 week Frugal Friday Wrap Up...

   

Week 1:

~I found some marked down fried chicken at Winco for half the regular price.  That made 4 meals for Jeff since he loves fried chicken. 

~I had a "feeling" that we needed to stop in at Goodwill because there would be something golf related there for Jeff that day.  There was, it was a brand new golf glove in his size.  We rarely see those there.  I also found a beautiful Fall themed throw blanket with a pumpkin and fox print on it.  So very pretty and will become part of my Fall decor since I keep a basket of blankets in the living room for anyone to grab and cuddle up under.

~Jeff and I have been binge watching the various "Traitors" shows from around the world on Peacock. It is interesting to see how people react to each other as they try to figure out who the traitors are.

~Pantry pulled meals are what is on the menu this week.  Jeff got a package of ham slices out of the freezer and I used half of it to make Fettuccini Alfredo with some of the dehydrated zucchini from our garden boiled along with the noodles.  Very yummy and made for 2 meals!

~Chris borrowed a trailer from another one of his friends to haul our car over to our mechanic.  He traded his truck for ours to haul the car and took the truck our home with him since he used our truck to tow the trailer with the car on it.  We will trade him back when we go over for Bradley's birthday dinner next week.  I gave him $50, which he reluctantly agreed to take.  I told him to buy the guy who he borrowed the trailer from some beer and use the rest to help pay for gas for his truck.

~I tried something new with the sourdough discard.  I made some everything bagel crackers and did a long ferment on them.  So GOOD!!!!

~More homemade washcloths and a scrubby pad were crocheted on Monday while I watched some television.

~Tuesday we had leftovers for dinner.  It had been one of those days when I just had to rest both physically and emotionally since my nervous system was overwhelmed.

~I had some leftover coffee at the end of the day so I made an iced coffee as a pick me up as my energy waned.

~Homemade biscuits and sausage gravy with a side of fresh pear slices was dinner on Wednesday.  Comfort foods at it's finest.

Week 2:

~Jeff and I celebrated our 39th wedding anniversary over the weekend.  We ended up going out for lunch (much cheaper than dinner).

~I found 3 feather pillows for the living room for $1.99 for the smaller one and $2.99 for the two larger ones.  I have been trying to change over all of our living room pillows to high quality feather ones. Yes, this was at the thrift store.  I also bought 2 shirts for .75 each.  Jeff found a pair of work pants for $5.99 also.

~Jeff chose teriyaki meatloaf, rice and corn as our anniversary dinner here at home.  I also scrubbed up some potatoes that needed to be used and baked those alongside the meatloaf.

~Six of the baked potatoes were used in a huge pot of veggie chowder.  This gave us many meals!

~Our family celebrated Bradley's 12th birthday on Tuesday.  Can you believe he is a "tween" now?  I started this blog when we found out that we were going to become grandparents for the first time.  We all had a wonderful time together!  Oh, Chris sent me home with 3 bottles of beer since he was not fond of them.

~While at Chris and Heather's for Bradley's birthday, we filled up a large garbage can with well-rotted chicken poop and bedding.  This is going into our garden beds and will be worked in well.  Free fertilizer is always welcome!

My best find of the week, hands down, was a Magic Mill food dehydrator.  It was $34.98 at Goodwill.  It looks brand new and has the silicone drying sheets and screens with it.  I price checked on Amazon and they are welling for around $200 there.  I had been wanting to replace one of my dehydrators that has seen better days.  I was so very happy to find this one!

~Jeff got all the fruit trees and the berry bushes pruned and cleaned out.  That man works so hard for us!

~Our dryer decided to make an awful noise!  Jeff took things apart and found out the squirrel cage had gone out again.  We picked up a replacement part for it and Jeff will be installing it this weekend.  Luckily for us, we have our clothesline so we were able to get all the sheets dried out there.

   So there you go, another 2 weeks' worth of savings, bargain hunting, trouble shooting, gardening, cooking and 2 very wonderful celebrations of in our family.  As always, family is our main focus, for family is the greatest treasure here on earth that God has ever blessed us with.  We also continue to try to build up and expand our gardens, our food preservation tools and our skills here at home.  Be blessed my dear friends.

Frugal Friday Wrap Up 3/2/24

 

   Hello all.   I am trying to get this post actually up on the day that it should go up.  I'll count this as a win thank you. There is so much going on in our lives right now and the stress of it all continues to take a toll on my health.  I know, I know, so many people say I have to not let it, but it does, it is just part of how I am wired.  We got news this week on our relative's health and it is worse than first thought.   The cost to fix my car keeps climbing as more things are found to be wrong with it.  We did get a bit of good news amongst the bad though. We were able to talk to someone in the Lewiston, ID Social Security Office and he sent to message over to the Auburn, WA office about there being no movement on Jeff's claim since January 4th.  That apparently helped to get them to start actually working on said claim.  Thank goodness the claim for benefits is retroactive because we will need those funds to help pay for the repairs to my car.  Now, onto the frugal doings...    

  

~Chris came over with a trailer that he borrowed from his police chief to haul my car over to the mechanic in the next town over.

~I have been trying to build up our at home library with books that will help us be even more independent food wise and live a more frugal life than we already do.  I picked up a book on foraging and a book on retirement for .99 each at Goodwill.

~I found a beautiful gray throw blanket at Goodwill for $3.99.  Jeff found a cover for his windshield to keep snow and ice off it and a Seattle Seahawks shirt.  He used a 20% off coupon on the most expensive item.

~I made several batches of sourdough and cheese crackers and also a batch of Everything Bagel crackers.  They have become a favorite here.

~More sandwich bread was baked.

~We stocked up on more bottled water.  We had a situation in our town recently where our water was injected with way too much chlorine.  It smelled like a swimming pool whenever you ran any water.  I am so glad that we have a Berkey and lots of bottled water on hand.

~Jeff and I finally got my hair cut.  I feel so much better now.

~We had a nice facetime visit with Josh.  He is up for a great promotion and from what he is hearing, he will be getting it.  Lauren is also applying for another job and we are praying that she gets it.

~Heather's parent gave us a beautiful gift of a honu (turtle) with a meaningful design on its back wood carving that her father Bruce made.  He is an amazing artist and is finally selling his carvings.  I will treasure this gift and it will go down through our family as an heirloom for generations to come.

~We had Steven spend the night with us this past weekend while his parents had a date night and went to see the musical "Stomp".  We had so much fun with him!

~We are eating out of the pantry, fridge and freezer for the most part.  Jeff has been helping me more with making meals since he is semi-retired.  He made us pancakes for breakfast on Monday.

~I was feeling rather stressed out on Tuesday while my car was in the shop.  Jeff and I headed into town to pick up a few things (we took his little car to save gas).  I found 2 beautiful coffee mugs, a gorgeous little vase ( I had been wanting one that size to put roses from my garden in), a Wizard of Oz book that had the complete first 5 books in it (gift for a grandson whose birthday is coming up), a beautiful Thomas Kincaid print with an inspirational bible verse that is a much needed reminder that God is always with us (beautifully matted and framed) and 2 shirts (on clearance for .75 each).

~We stopped at Grocery Outlet after the thrift store and found a 20oz. package of refrigerated chicken and herb tortellini on clearance for .77 (that became dinner once we got home with a homemade garlic butter, parsley and spinach, dehydrated from our garden last Summer) sauce.  That made for 2 complete meals for both of us.  We also found a party sized package of mozzarella sticks for $3.99.  I could not even make them from scratch for that price!  Gala apples were $3.99 for a 5 pound bag, so we got some of those too.  They had our new favorite coffee there for $5.99 a large can so we bought 2 of them.  We picked up a few more items to round out our pantry and I feel like we are set for awhile now. 

*******************************************************We picked up my car from the our mechanic and he did a great job replacing the CV joint and fixed another issue he came across.  Unfortunately, upon driving my car home, the transmission decided to act up big time> UGH!  Jeff thought it was just the CV joint causing the issues but now we know it was a multitude of problems.

*******************************************************

~I made a menu up based on what needed to be used up ASAP so that we do not waste anything.

~I had to cancel our planned visit to my parents and brother due to the car problems.  It broke my heart to have to do so, but we are still planning ongoing to see them when we loop up to them in late April after going to see Josh, Lauren and the littlest grandkids.

~I had avocados to use up so I made a big batch of guacamole with them.  I had that with tortilla chips for dinner on the night that Jeff had his bowling league.

~My husband blessed me by mixing up some chicken salad and made us chicken salad sandwiches for dinner on Wednesday night while I took a shower.  It was so nice to come out to dinner that was made.

~Walmart is being hit with a class action lawsuit over prepackaged organic fruit and prepackaged meats saying they weighed more than they did.  I just filed with the settlement claim for a check for $15 because of all the meat I had bought there from 2018 to 2023.

      As you can see, we have had quite the emotional ride.  Prayers would be much appreciated for our relative and our finances also.  Jeff and I continue to try to keep the budget low for things we can control, and we do take advantage of good sales and things when we find them.  I still am in shock at the price we found the tortellini for.  I just wish there had been more than one package so I could have thrown a few in the freezer for future meals.  Since Jeff is at his bowling league tonight, I think I will look and see what kind of flower seeds I have here on hand.  Then I can dream of where I shall plant all those flower seeds once it is time to do so.   I am so looking forward to Spring!