Frugal Friday Wrap Up 11/30/24 and some Ponderings

 

   Well here it is, the end of November already.  The past few weeks seem to have flown by all too quickly.  I had such great plans to get things done Christmas decor wise but found myself completely exhausted and wondering why I was losing so much hair.  Then it hit me, my body has reacted this way in the past when I was under a huge amount of stress.  I now realize why I have felt almost paralyzed, trapped and not able to do much.  It's that "fight or flight" response.  My "flight response" is mentally shutting down and closing up within myself, something I did in my childhood just to mentally survive at times. I know it sounds extreme, but that is just the way I cope (or maybe don't cope) with stress.  Hopefully, now that we have Helen's ashes here with us and will be scattering them where she wanted, Jeff and I can both breathe a sigh of relief knowing that we have done all that she wished.  I also made it through my first holiday without my dear cousin Jeremy here.  It felt very sad not to be able to call him and wish him a Happy Thanksgiving.  I am pretty sure that Thanksgiving was his favorite holiday.  Jeff and I both miss him so very much.  He became like a brother to me and one of Jeff's closest friends.  We have had too much loss within a short amount of time and it has taken a toll on both of us.

   Speaking of Thanksgiving, Tammy, our Heather's mom, invited us over for Thanksgiving again this year, which was so very sweet of her.  Everyone contributed something to the meal and, as usual, it was delicious!  I had a great talk with one of their friends Kayla, who I met last year at Thanksgiving.  Kayla and her husband are missionaries who do a lot of outreach to families in need.  I also got to visit with Heather's grandma Sandra, whom I absolutely adore.  I glanced over during the meal and saw her sitting at the "kids table" with all her great grandchildren.  I know that she and they love each other so very much and are so blessed to be in one another's lives.  It brought me great joy to see them enjoying their meal together.  I am so very glad she lives right up the road from Heather's parents and that the greatgrandchildren enjoy spending time with here and that she is teaching them all kinds of wonderful things.  We did miss Jaysn, Rachel and Steven this year but were so happy that they were able to go down to visit Josh, Lauren, Tate and Peyton for the holiday.  It really warms my heart to know that our kids continue to be close and want to be in each other's lives.  I also love that our grandkids can and do build those strong family bonds.

    So now we get to the frugal doings for the past 2 or so weeks.  Again, please know that this addled brain of mine has trouble remembering all the stuff, but I will do my best.

~I went to Goodwill and found brand new reusable Christmas and Winter themed bags (originally from Marshals) for .39 each.  I got both the huge size and smaller sized bags.  I am thinking they are good for both shopping since we have to bring our own bags in Washington state when we shop anywhere and also would make great gift giving bags filled with presents for loved ones.

~More bread was made.

~I made a huge pot of macaroni and cheese for Thanksgiving and made extra cheese sauce on purpose.  I then took that cheese sauce and made it into broccoli, potato and cheese soup.  YUM!

~I did my "Black Friday" shopping online and got some great deals.  I bought practical things like a nice forehead digital thermometer, electric toothbrushes, electric scrubbing brush with long handles to help clean the shower without us having to lean over (it also works for cleaning furniture and cars), some glass bottles with stoppers for decanting my homemade fruit infused vodka and gin, along with homemade vanilla, more rolls of bags for my food saver, and a Christmas gift that is a surprise.

~Jeff and I have been watching Christmas movies on TV.  It is wonderful to just be able to pop some popcorn and settle back into our recliners, with our feet up, and watch some of our favorites.

~We bought Maggie a winter jacket.  I never thought I would be someone to buy clothes for their dog, but here I am.  She gets cold easily, so we found her a nice jacket for under $20 at Ross.  It fits around her barrel chest and even has a cute hood (which she is not too keen on).

~I have been filling my house with the sounds of Christmas, even breaking out the classical stuff when Jeff is outside. 😉 He is not a fan of orchestra music, but I am.  He does seem to not be bothered by my Christmas jazz music but prefers the old-time radio kind of Christmas music that he and I grew up with.

~Since my sleep patterns are so screwed up again, I have been using the late hours of the night and early morning hours to watch documentaries.  I am amazed at how much I do not know about our world. 

~I gave Jeff a haircut.

~I shop all year long for Christmas gifts and am already buying some things for next year for our kids.  I like giving them "gift baskets or bags, and since I already have most of the things for them for this Christmas, as I find other things I think they would like, I just set them aside for next year.

   I do hope that everyone reading this had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are looking forward to spending time with loved ones this holiday season.  Make sure to put some effort and thought into doing something special for yourself please.  So many times, we put others ahead of ourselves and often forget that we deserve some special time and gifts too. Be blessed my sweet friends.