Frugal Friday Wrap Up 8/1/25

   

   Jeff was finally ready to return to work 2 days a week.  He is working Monday and Wednesday and going to physical therapy on Tuesday and Thursday.  Wednesday they were especially happy to have him there since the other 2 people in his department were both out.  He ended up working a half an hour longer than normal so he could help close up the store at the end of the day.  He is coming home really tired, but I know that he is also happy seeing so many people he knows once again.  He does still plan on fully retiring this Fall though.

~We had our town wide yard sales on Saturday and Jeff and I decided to go to them.  We scored some good stuff.  We found a large tote on wheels for $10.  We had been looking for one to put in the back of our truck for when we go camping.  We also found the following all the following for $12: sterling silver earrings, another cute pair of earrings, a large 31 brand insulated bag (I had been wanting one since our last one broke), 2 Ruck for the Fallen shirts, 1 Ruck for the Fallen hoodie, a like new quilted flannel jacket for my hubby, a nice reversible leather belt for hubby, and one other item that I cannot remember at the moment.  

~We had some nice visits with our neighbors that day.  One of them is going to be retiring soon and had lots of questions and concerns about how to transition from working full time to being fully retired and how I managed it.

~Lots of raspberries were picked along with more tomatoes, blueberries and the barrel of potatoes was harvested with dismal results.  We think it was due to the heat and us being in a drought since everything was drying out so quickly.

~We ate lots of salads this week with lettuce and tomatoes from our garden.

~Jeff changed the alternator in our truck.  The battery is now holding a charge!

~Jeff cleaned out the chest freezer.  Wen found all kinds of stuff buried in there.  I need to keep a better eye on things.

~We had leftover pancakes for 2 more meals.

~I cooked up a pork loin for dinner one night and it gave us 2 dinners and 1 lunch

~Jeff picked up bananas at the grocery store while he was in town.

~More hummingbird food was made, and the feeder was refilled every 2 days.

~Jeff got one of our bigger bills payments changed to come out after his social security check comes in each month.

~We had several nice telephone calls with my parents.

~I found chicken thighs for $1.29 a pound and bought a family pack of them.  That gave us 8 thighs.  I had one and Jeff had the rest over several more meals.  He loves oven baked chicken!

~I have been trying to us up some of the mashed potato, rice and pasta mixes from the pantry as side dishes.  I do not want any of those things to go bad.

~I did break down and have Jeff bring home Panda for dinner on Wednesday.  It got up to 101 F on our back porch and I really do not do heat well.  The last thing I wanted to do was heat up the kitchen.  We had leftovers that I morphed into another meal adding a few veggies to it.

~I went through my buttons stash and found buttons to sew onto and fix 2 pairs of Jeff's shorts.  He is happy to have the shorts fixed again.

~I made a grilled cheese on sourdough with sliced tomatoes (from our garden) and Colby Jack cheese for lunch one of the days that Jeff was at work.  It was so good and the perfect comfort food.

~I have been enjoying listening to Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar on YouTube.  It reminds me of my childhood growing up in Hawaii and hearing it played at night at the resort my father managed. It is one of the things that I can always count on to calm my soul.

~I gave Jeff a haircut.

~We picked the summer apples off our tree.  So many were lost early due to the heat.

~We harvested the two remaining raised beds of potatoes and got about half of what we did the previous year.  Still, I am grateful for what we were able to harvest.

~I made a large venison meatloaf, and it gave us 3 meals with sides added.

~I uploaded Safeway's digital coupons to my card.

   We had to cancel having our Steven out on Friday to be with us for the day.  There is something going around at Jeff's work, which we did not want to expose him to.  That is the last thing Jaysn and Rachel need to worry about with her still recovering for her ACL surgery.  It turned out to be for the best anyways since the weather was a bit stormy and a very lovely cool temperature.  It was not however conducive to swimming at the pool.  Jeff and I spent the morning in the garden and rested in the afternoon.  I have discovered that this slower pace of life is starting to fit me better and better.  I am not feeling the pressure to get everything done at once and pacing myself helps with the pain levels.  I can always tell when I overdo it...my body just screams at me.  Stupid Fibromyalgia anyway.  

   So there we go.  That was our frugal week.  This next week will also be a frugal one.  I will not be going to the next town over town wide yard sales.  I will be baking bread, working on making applesauce with those apples and am hoping to be able to get one more picking of them if the wind does not shake them all down.  Jeff will be working on car repairs and he and I will work on some inside projects that desperately need to be done.  Be blessed!

Frugal Friday Wrap Up 7/25/25

 

~Jeff made a second compost bin with some of the pallets that we have here.  He also dug out the top layer of the other bin, put that on the bottom of the new bin, and now we can reach and use all the rich compost that is at the bottom of the old bin.  Oh how I love that man of mine and how handy he is!

~We harvested 6 gallon sized bags full of lettuce from the garden before it went bitter and to bolt.  I gave some of it away.

~Our tomato plants are blessings us each day with ripe and juicy little bursts of sunshine.  There is nothing like a warm from the sun tomato fresh out of the garden to eat.

~The raspberries continue to produce for us.  I have frozen a lot, given some away, snacked on them fresh like crazy, made 4 quarts of raspberry vodka and have more to go out and pick tonight.

~The blueberries have produced more this year than ever before.  I am enjoying them too.  Dinner Wednesday night was smoked breakfast sausages and pancakes, plan for Jeff and blueberry for me, with homemade syrup.

~We picked up fruit and a bottle of wine from the Farmer's Market on Saturday.  We also went to a few yard sales where I bought Bath and Body Works body sprays, a really cool puzzle/model (will be a gift), and 3 seasons of Last Man Standing on DVD.  Steven was given a toy glider that has its own motor.  He was thrilled! 

~Jeff and I hit a sale at Bath and Body works.  It was their semiannual sale.  I also had a coupon for a free product since it is my birthday month.  I walked out with a body spray and 2 yummy smelling liquid soaps for the kitchen and bathroom.  We bought these days before the yard sales where I found the other body sprays.  I am now set for years!

~I made homemade Fettuccini Alfredo since I had everything I needed on hand, and it is a favorite with Jeff and I.  It made 2 meals for each of us.  

~Green salads have been on the menu also.  Jeff and I each enjoy making them the way we want.  

~Jeff grilled up some sausages on the outdoor grill and I made homemade Sweet Potato Fries in the Air Fryer.  They were so good.  Jeff cooked up extra sausages and they have been a blessing with my fibro flares.

~Jeff worked on the pop up tent trailer.  Some of the hydraulic lifts were not working right so he built braces for the roof.

~One especially hot night, when I really did not want to cook, I quickly threw together cheese quesadillas and served them with salsa.  They were really good and so easy and quick to make.

~Steven helped me measure all the drawers and cabinets in the trailer so that I could find containers that were mouse proof that would fit in each of them.  I want to be able to store things in the trailer so that we are ready to go at a moment's notice. 

~We spent Friday afternoon at our town's swimming pool.  It is only $2 for a day pass per person.  The water felt amazing and I got to visit with some of my old students who now have families of their own.

Checking in once again...

   Hello once again.  I know that I have been horrible about keeping up with posting here.  It seems to be a trend with me and I wish it was not so.  I have been MIA for multiple reasons.  I wish I could say that it is because we have just been extremely busy (which we have been).  I wish I could say it is because Fibromylagia has been kicking my behind (yep, it has).  But the truth is that our family suffered another loss with the death of my Uncle Ed, and it hit me hard, harder than I thought it would. 

   My Uncle Ed was so much fun, and I enjoyed many moments of intense laughter, the kind that makes your stomach hurt, with this dear man. He was an outdoorsman and took his family camping for a good portion of each Summer while his sons were growing up.  He helped them learn about the flora of the 48 lower states as they visited each and every one.  They also visited Canada from what I remember.  He was one of my dad's close friends in college and it was through my dad they he met my Aunt Lucy, my mom's sister.  Love bloomed and they got married and had 2 sons, my cousins Mark and Tim.  As Jeff and I grew our own family years later, they would stop and see us at our home, or we would meet them at my parent's place in Montana.  My boys got to know them and Josh especially became close with them and with my cousin Tim.  It was wonderful watching my own kids and my grandkids getting to know my aunt and uncle.  He was such a special person to me and to them.

   This week I had every intention of getting a bunch of things done and then I got a message that another friend died.  Randy was a sweat soul who I have such fond memories of.  He was one of my little brothers through the fraternity where I was a Little Sister.  I was also close with his older brothers Chris and Kevin.  The last time I saw Randy was at one of my best friend's husband's funeral last year.  It threw me for another loop and bam...huge fibro flare.  I know I am at that age where friends and family are passing away, but man, this has been a hard year and a half for our family.  

   Jeff is in physical therapy and going twice a week.  He is doing really well and making great progress.  His range of motion is coming back quicker than we thought it would.  He has a doctor's appointment tomorrow, along with his physical therapy and he is hoping he can get the go ahead to be able to return to work starting in August.  He has already spoken to his boss who has agreed to let him work 2 days a week instead of 2 one week and 3 the next.  This will allow him to continue physical therapy if needed.  I am hoping he will be done by then because his health insurance is not covering any of it and it is expensive!  Oh, our Rachel also had her knee surgery and is now home recovering.  There have been some rough moments for her with this recovery, and I would really appreciate your prayer for both her and Jeff.  Thank you!

   Anyway, we will keep plugging along and then getting the medical bills, along with some other things needed before Fall paid off.  We have one more rough month financially before my Social Security kicks in now that I am 62.  We are working on projects around the house and harvesting things from the garden.  I am trying to be mindful of what we have in our gardens, freezer, fridge and pantry and not waste anything while being creative with meals.  Some days I am better at it than others. ;)

   

Frugal Friday Wrap Up 06/20/25

   It has turned out to be another busy week.  I had tried to keep things calm and limited trips out of town, but that was not to be.  We did stay home over the weekend and that was a much-needed break from all that had happened the previous week.   Jeff just wanted a quiet day at home for Father's Day, so that is what we did.  I do believe there were naps involved both over the weekend and during the week for both of us. Four different doctors' appointments of four different days for Jeff, having Steven here Friday, going to get our concealed carry permits, still attempting to get Jeff's enhanced driver's license, and doing some grocery shopping again wore me out.  Did I mention that all but three of these things required us to drive to other towns?  Then there is also the gardening to make sure we take care of.  At least Jeff is able to help with some of that once again, which is lovely!

   Onto the Frugal Doings:

~I did a sheet-pan dinner with 5 Italian Sausages along with a cut up onion and a large cut up orange pepper seasoned with salt pepper and Italian seasonings.  I served these on hot dog buns.  YUM!  

~I took the 1 leftover sausage, along with the leftover onions and peppers and turned them into dinner for Sunday.  I cut up everything and then added it to frozen cheese ravioli and pasta sauce, which I baked in the oven covered at 425F for an hour.  I then added some Pecorino cheese, along with Monterey Jack Cheese (because I was too lazy to go and get the froze block of Mozzarella cheese out of the freezer and deal with all that) right before serving, stirred some of it in and also topped it with some and set it under broil.  These made lots of leftovers.  I also served a spinach salad (with spinach from our garden) with it.

~I made a HUGE salad with some Romaine from the store, along with spinach, other types of lettuce, and radishes from our garden.  Jeff and I each customized our salads with various dressings, croutons, and other add ins.  There were leftovers which made for a nice side salad later in the week.

~I pulled all the radishes and got those washed and put in the refrigerator for snacking and salad making.  I also pulled all the spinach out since it was just starting to bolt.  I made a delicious spinach and strawberry salad for me with some of it, along with strawberries from the garden.  I also picked more strawberries throughout the week for snacking on.

~I got the tomato plants all staked up.  I also found a few volunteer ones that I will add to other areas in the garden.

~The cucumbers and summer squash plants, that I started in the greenhouse from seed, were all put into the garden.

~I made more Hummingbird food for our tiny, feathered friends.  They bring me so much joy! :)

~We had a lovely chat with my parents over the weekend via Facebook.  They were both looking really good and it was an easy and much needed one.  My parents are such a great and loving support for all of us.

~Jeff got more shade cloth put up over the roof of our greenhouse so the plants inside did not get sunburned and roasted.  Luckily, we still had some on hand, so we did not have to go out and buy more.

~Homemade lemon thyme and chive butters were made with herbs from the garden and frozen for future use.

~I scraped out the bowls I made the homemade herb butters in and spread that on tangy slices of sourdough bread.  

~I got my sourdough starter fed again and used the discard to make some long fermentation cheese crackers.

~Jeff helped me get the homemade blackberry vodka and raspberry gin into proper bottles instead of canning jars.  This freed up room in my refrigerator also.

~I made some homemade scrapple.  It is one of our favorites and is a very frugal.  We can make 3 meals out of it.

   Steven spent Friday with us once again.  Jaysn blessed us with donuts when he dropped Steven off in the morning. Steven helped us tremendously with the garden.  He planted cucumbers with me and I planted the squash.  We had some leftover cucumber plants which Steven took next door to his beloved Auntie Shannon.  He helped harvest more strawberries and rhubarb.  Later in the evening, Chris stopped by on his way to work the Sprint Boat races the following day.  We sent him off with some cucumber plants (that I had promised him), a nice hoodie that I found at Goodwill that I thought he would like (he did!), and something to drink on the drive over to where he would be working the next day.  

   As you can see, it has been a busy week for us.  Be blessed all!

Frugal Friday Wrap Up 5/29/24

 

                                 When the kitty steals your new bed...

    Jeff is recovering from orthoscopic knee surgery and has to be off his leg for at least 3 weeks.  The first week was pretty rough, but we are now in the second week and the doctor prescribed some meds to help him relax so he can heal faster.  He is trying to help me with the household tasks and amazes me with what he can do without putting pressure on that leg.  That being said, I am still having to do the majority of the things he usually does around here.  With my own problem knees, back, hip and fibromyalgia, this has not been easy and I am exhausted but it has to be done.  Luckily our kids and neighbors are helping out with mowing the lawn, and doing other household tasks that I cannot do.  Prayers for my sweet hubby are appreciated and welcomed.

   This is a conglomeration of my frugal doings over the past month or so.  My memory is not the best, but I will try to list all I remember.  

~I'm back to making bread again.  I had taken a break for about 3 weeks, and both Jeff and I missed my homemade bread.

~Jeff got my back screened in porch furniture all take out of the shed and back where it belongs.  This was before his surgery.   I love sitting out here while I type up my blogs along with eating meals and having coffee (or cocktails depending on the time and the day).

~Jeff and I went to an estate sale and I found lots of nice quality named branded clothing in both my size and his, some were even new with tags.  I got us all stocked up for the colder weather months again.  I also bought a gorgeous crystal bud vase and a book.

~Yard sale finds included 2 sterling silver rings for $3 each and some more books.

~Thrift store finds were a caftan, some small shaker style jars to store seasonings in for the camper, and women's bible study book for me and a nice sweatshirt for Chris.  We also found some shorts and shoes for Jeff at a second store.

~I went to JoAnn Fabric on one of their last days and bought interior paint for the pop-up tent trailer at 80% off and also got bra extenders for under $1 per package.

~I put together my own hanging baskets of flowers for a fraction of the price of premade ones.

~We were able to use the ramp that goes over the back steps onto the porch that we use for pellets for Jeff to be able to use his walker to get into the house after his surgery.  I am so glad he built that thing and that we have wonderful friends and neighbors who got it set up for us before we got home.

~I found Hershey's chocolate candy for .79 cents a bar on clearance.  I bought 20 of them to use for making smores when we go camping (okay, there is one less chocolate bar now since Jeff and I split on a particularly frustrating day).

~We have a local to our town Farmers Market.  I went down to it for the first time this season on Sunday.  I bought some rhubarb blueberry jam and some homemade goat's milk soap for my hubby that a dear friend makes.  They were also giving out some food leftover from our town's commodities distribution.  I got a 4 bags of powdered milk, 2 bags of lentils, 2 bags of split peas, a bag of pears and a bag of apples for free.  This will really help with the food budget.

~The garden has been planted out with 5 tomato plants, radishes, spinach, lettuce, 2 1/2 beds of potatoes, 1 raised bed of beans, and I have cucumbers and zucchini started in the greenhouse.  Once the spinach and radishes are done, I will plant the cucumbers there and trellis them.  The zucchini will be planted out in another spot in the garden.

~Our new Home Depot opened and I was able to find 2 medium sized planters with pink Dalias in them for $8.00 each. They are now on either side of my bench in the front of the house walkway.

~I'm cherry picking the deals again at the grocery store and found pork loins for $3.00 each after my discount and the half off sticker.  This made 3 servings. I also found thinly sliced round steak that I turned into some delicious stroganoff with the addition of a package of sliced mushrooms.  This made 5 servings when served over baked potatoes.  I also got 2 more cans of baking chocolate so I can make homemade hot cocoa mix for Jeff to have in his coffee.  It is much cheaper for me to make it that buy the premade stuff.

~Our neighbors had bought a big watermelon and had too much for just the two of them so they gave us part of it.

~Our son Jaysn, along with our Rachel and grandson Steven came over and got the swamp cooler up and running for us.  This was really sweet of them since Jeff is in the second week of his recovery from knee surgery and still cannot put any weight on it or bend it.  We had pizza for dinner, along with some watermelon and had a wonderful visit with the 3 of them.

~I got the lighter weight quilts out that my mother made for the bed and the smaller ones for the living room to cuddle up under when the nights are cooler.  The heavier feather duvet got folded up and the duvet cover got washed and put away for the season.

~While making the guest bed (which is where I sleep), I put 4 hand embroidered pillowcases on my pillows.  These are ones that I found at previous yard and estate sales and compliment my mother's quilt that I put on the bed.

   Next week will be a rough one for our family with Jeff's siblings, his aunt, one of his cousins, and our kids and grandkids having a graveside service for both Jeff's parents.  Following that, we will be scattering his Aunt Helen's ashes up on the mountain where her parents' ashes are.  Given the family dynamics, well, we will see if everyone can just focus on paying our respects to our beloved family members who have passed.  We are looking forward to seeing Jeff's aunt and cousin and visiting with them, along with getting to spend a bit of time with our Josh who is coming up for the service.  As you all know if you have been reading this blog for awhile, family is our personal treasure here on earth.

   

   

A Big Thank You and Catch Up

 

   I want to thank everyone who has commented, prayed and kept our family in your thoughts.  It has not been easy.  I did not realize how much it was affecting me until I hit day 4 of not showering and just staying in the same pajamas.  I knew I had to claw my way back up and out of the depression spiral.  I can "mask" things pretty well with a smile, concentrating on helping others, etc. all the while slowing being sucked down myself. Not even my sweet hubby knows how deep the hurt is until I finally open up and tell him.  I then find out that he is hurting very deeply also.  So today, I finally took a long shower and tried to scrub away the pain.  Did it work?  No, but I am clean now and am able to post here again, so I would say that I am moving in the right direction.

   Jeff and I have been working on projects around the house, trying to get things back in order after almost a year of just not having the energy physically or mentally to do "all the things".  None of the projects are huge, just time consuming.  There has been lots of cleaning, purging, reorganizing and making lists of other projects that need to be done.  I'm sure many can relate to this.

   Jeff and I did go on a real "date" last Friday.  We went to one of our favorite breweries for their Saint Paddy's Day dinner.  Well, I ordered the traditional corned beef dinner, Jeff had a burger and then finished the rest of my dinner because there was just so much food! They also had green beer in very tall pilsner glasses and it was really good.  Dessert was Green Velvet cake with vanilla bean ice cream.  YUM!  Jeff and I shared that because it was a huge piece.  We waddled out of there happy and came home to our recliners and watched Moana 2.  

   Earlier this week I got a message from our son Josh who said that our youngest grandkids wanted to talk to Grammie and Gpa.  I got the computer all loaded up and we Facetimed with them.  First thing our little Miss Peyton says is "Where's Gpa?" since he was turning on a light and was not in frame.  Yes, she is Gpa's girl!  She then modeled her Snow White princess dress for us.  Tate, who is Grammie's buddy, decided to take the phone from his father and give us a "tour" of the cool new vacuum that  his mom got.  LOL!  This is a boy who loves cleaning gadgets and was very excited about them having a new one. ')    Those grandbabies, along with our other 3 older ones, are helping motivate me to come up to the surface once again. :)

   There have frugal doings around here too.  I cut up, sugared and froze 4 pints of strawberries. I made Belgium Waffles with some mix that I found in my pantry that I had forgotten about and served that with homemade maple syrup along with some cherry syrup I made with some of my mom's homemade cherry jam.  Jeff used up the last of the syrup, so I made more to have on hand.  We got in on a really good chicken deal.  I got the chicken hindquarters for $1.57 a pound with $1.00 off the package.  Apparently, they had a lot of chicken to sell quickly, so they also had a buy one family pack, get one free deal.  I froze one of the packages and made shoyu chicken with the other.  We had shoyu chicken over rice for one meal and I then froze the rest for another meal.  I love having fully cooked meals I can pull out of the freezer and just add a side dish to it.  The leftover rice was used for 2 meals of chili and rice. Cabbage was on sale, so I bought 3 of them.  I used half of one to make coleslaw, and will use the other half in another dish.  The 2 remaining cabbages will be used for a cabbage salad, while most of it will be blanched and the dehydrated so I can add it to soups, stews, etc. at a later date. I made a nice dinner with broiled asparagus and lobster ravioli.  I also made another nice homemade alfredo pasta dish and served that with a nice crisp salad. We ordered another hose online for Jeff's cpap machine saving ourselves about $40 there.  I have been using decor that I have on hand here to change out my Winter decor and bring our some of the Spring stuff.  Jeff found some watercolor prints from Hawaii that I will be framing and putting up in our guest bathroom.  They are bright and cheery and remind me of happy times in my life growing up.  I finally found a pair of jeans that fit me and Jeff found some lounging type pants at the thrift store.  Oh, I also found more new canning lids and rings.  I love to have lots of these on hand.

   I had better go and figure out dinner for tonight.  Be blessed all and thank you once again.

   

   

Frugal Friday Wrap Up 2/21/25

    

Hello all, I hope you have had a good week.  It has been a productive one around here with little projects getting done.  Jeff is also finally processing his father's passing away (he died at the start of January).  I knew it would take him time to really come to terms with it.  My husband tends to hold things in and put them away in "little boxes" in his mind.  I understand this all too well, as I also do the same thing.  I am glad that he is able to talk about some good memories and some things that he cherishes that his father gave him when he was still allowed to have a relationship with him.  We talked about how we are breaking that generational curse with our own children and grandchildren.  And now, onto the savings this week.

~Saturday Jeff and I took a quick trip into town to both get me out of the house for a bit and to pick up a few things.  We found some great deals at the grocery store and ran into one of our neighbors there. 😄

~The snow came in over the weekend and Jeff got the driveway and walkways shoveled out.  He also got the lower driveway of our shared driveway with the neighbors done and shoveled out a walkway for the to their back door.  The have a baby and Jeff is always trying to find ways to make their lives easier and safer.  How I love that man of mine!

~For Valentine's Day (one day late), I cooked up some lamb chops, red skinned mashed potatoes from scratch (using up the rest of my half and half that needed to be used) and green beans.  I made a double batch of both the lamb chops and potatoes so that we could have them again on Monday.  The lamb chops were bought on sale a few months ago and frozen until they were pulled out again for a treat like this.

~We watched several movies over the weekend in the comfort of our home and recliners.

~Jeff and I cut each other's hair.  It feels so good to have my hair short once again.

~More bread was made.  Jeff loves my homemade bread.

~I took the bones from the lamb chops, added some celery, onion and parsley, along with some seasonings, put them in the slow cooker, and set it on low for 24 hours.  It made a very rich broth.

~We do not take Maggie to the groomers to have her claws clipped.  We did them ourselves on Thursday.

~Jeff reglued the joints on my larger antique rocker that has been in my family for generations.  It is an old Windsor style and I absolutely treasure it.  I put a pillow on the seat of it to help protect it and a sheepskin on the back to keep the drafts off your back in the cold weather months.  I brought it out here for extra seating for humans, but the cats have taken it over.  At least it is being enjoyed on a regular basis, right? 😉

~I used my Trac Phone rewards to cash in for a $25 Applebee's digital gift card.  I also was able to get 2 free digital magazine subscriptions, including Magnolia magazine.

~Jeff and I talked to Bradley and Isaiah about G-pa (Jeff) teaching them some basic car repairs on our little car that the boys will be getting within the next year.  Chris is too busy to do his own car stuff and takes their cars to a mechanic, so the boys have not been taught these skills.  We will pay for all the parts and things, and they will help with the labor.  Jeff will also be teaching them how to drive a stick shift (which is what this car is).  Both boys were very excited and both want G-pa's car.  They do have another car from Aunt Helen, but it is not "cool" like G-pa's car.  LOL!  It looks like they are going to have to take turns.  

~We have so many CDs.  I am trying to play them and see which ones I want to keep, and which I want to try and sell.  We are trying to do the same with some of our DVDs and Blu-ray movies.

~I received 2 refund checks in the mail from our doctor's office.  They had charged me for 2 office visits, both which should have been free.  These happened months ago and to be honest I had forgotten about them.  The checks added up to about $60, so that was a nice surprise!

   I'd better go and get the dog's tennis ball back from Patchy cat.  She and Midgey like to steal Maggie's toys and play with them, much to Maggie's dismay.  I have put extra balls out, but Maggie has a favorite ball and the cats seem to love that one too.  Go figure!  Have a great weekend and stay safe and warm.

   

   

Frugal Friday Wrap Up 2/14/25

 

   I was watching a video on YouTube the other day that really made me think deeply about life and "stuff".  The YouTube channel is Pinball Preparedness, and I really like his direct no nonsense approach to life, even in some of the few instances where I did not agree with his point of view. 😉 Anyway, he was talking about how we work so hard to accumulate "stuff" over our lifetimes, and want the bigger how, the latest "thing", car, etc. and go into deep debt doing so.  We then come to our retirement age and if we still owe on the house, cars, and stuff, we may not be able to retire when we become eligible to do so.  He quoted the  average life expectancy and how in reality, we don't have a lot of years left to enjoy our retirements.  It made me so thankful that our home is paid for and that we are paying off my car.  When Jeff fully retires (or maybe sooner), we will be giving the oldest 2 grandsons his commuter car.  We will then  have my car and the truck (which we need to haul the pop up tent trailer and bring home pellets for our pellet stove, haul yard waste, etc.).  Since we live in a smaller home and have a nice garden, and live a frugal life, our bills are pretty low by comparison to many around us.  However, we can do better and that is my goal!  I want to have us in a position where Jeff can fully retire.  I really do love having him home with me!

Here are some of the frugal things we have done this week:

~I took down the last of the Poinsettia garlands and put up new decor including the bronze statue of the Hawaii Io (hawk) that my parents gave us for Christmas. I continued the bird theme by setting out a gorgeous Asian vase with white peacocks on it.  I replaced the picture in our bathroom with one that has hummingbirds on it, also in the Asian theme.  Soon I will be putting the needlepoint picture that my grandmother made for me, which features an Asian pheasant, back up in the living room.  I also put up my beautiful Asian themes watercolor painting that used to belong to my grandparents, up in the living room.  I rotate my art by the seasons and yes, I do love Hawaiian and Asian themed art.  I grew up with these and they remind me of Hawaii and the people and places I hold dearly.

~Jeff got the pantry all cleaned and organized for me.  It makes it so much easier to go in there and pull things for dinner.  For example, Wednesday night I pulled cream of mushroom soup, enchilada sauce, tortillas, and canned chicken out of there.  I added some leftover rice and sour cream, along with some seasonings, and was able to make creamy chicken enchiladas for dinner.  It was great comfort food on a bitterly cold day and was absolutely delicious!

~Jeff had his appointment with the orthopedic surgeon about his knee.  He definitely has a torn meniscus, along with bone spurs, and will need orthoscopic surgery.  His surgeon told him that he will not do unnecessary whole knee replacement, like the insurance company insisted on with his other knee.  We are now waiting for the approval from the insurance company so that he can have it done in late April/early May.  This way he will have it after our trip down to help with our youngest grandchildren and be healed up before camping season goes into full swing.

~It has been so cold here with temps dipping down into the below zero range.  I have been bundling up while at home and wearing cozy socks.  I have not gone outside much because the cold makes my muscles contract and is very painful for me (it's a fibromyalgia thing).

~My 11-year-old grandson Isaiah has a school project where he has to interview someone and he chose to interview me because he wants to know more about my childhood through today.  It has been great fun with him sending me questions via email, which I then answer.  We have kept this chain of emails going to make it easier for him to have all the info on hand in writing so that he can then type up the completed interview.    I love this boy so very much!

~Rachel and Jaysn surprised me with some lobster ravioli from Costco.  All our kids spoil us rotten. :)

~Jeff and I have been enjoying our blankets that my mother made for us.  They keep us nice and cozy warm when we are in our recliners.

~I've been reading some of the many books that I have here at home.  I take great joy in getting lost in a good book.  It is the perfect little escape as I sip on some hot tea while I read.

~Jeff and I have been missing meatloaf, so Jeff pulled some ground venison from the freezer, and I made a teriyaki meatloaf and served it with rice and corn.  We had enough left over for another serving the next day.  I did use half an onion in the meatloaf and cut up the other half of the onion and froze it.  I would usually use green onions, but I did not have any on hand.

~Jeff and I watched several movies over the weekend.  I made up a cheese and sausage platter to have for a snacky dinner one night and popped up a bunch of regular popcorn to have with another movie the next night.  We do love popcorn in this house and it really does not take much time to pop some up from scratch.

~Our Ethan Allen headboard on our bed had cracked across where it had been glued together when it was made.  I have no idea how old it is because my parents bought it used when they were first married and then gave it to us when they got a new Koa wood four poster bed.  Jeff managed to get it glued back together.  He did have to buy some longer clamps for this project, but he will use them for years to come on other projects.  He also got them at the employee discounted price.

~I went into our subscription account for Maggie's CBD tincture that helps with pain and nervousness and changed it to every other month rather than monthly.  We are finding that we are already ahead by a month.  This will save us about $30 a month.

~Snow came in Thursday night and will continue for days!  It honestly is a welcome relief after the below zero temps that froze up our hot water in our master bedroom bathroom.  I had Jeff pick up my prescriptions and a huge bag of dog food for Maggie Thursday since it is his bowling night and I really do not want to go anywhere in the snow.  I am more than happy to make it a movie marathon when he is home.  It also saves us gas money and unnecessary spending.

~I went through more of my books and made a stack of the Jason Bourne series that I have not read yet.  I really want to get to those.

~Jaysn got ahold of us and asked if we could watch Steven this coming Monday.  Jeff is working that day so I will have my bubby here to keep me company!  Yay!!!!

~I have lots of beautiful cut glass pitchers, bowls, vases, trays, etc.  I got one of the pretty little creamer pitchers and put a battery powered tea light in it.  I love the way the cut glass looks at night when the tea light is on.  I am going to try to use my pretty things on a regular basis and not just have them stored away in our buffet.

~There were only 3 items on my grocery list for this week.  Jeff picked them up for me before his bowling league on Thursday night.  All of the items were on sale at Safeway and I cashed in some of my reward points and combined that with a sale in the bakery so we could buy a small cheesecake.

   I hope you all have a wonderful Valentine's Day!  Stay warm and safe.

 

Thoughts, Thrifting and the Start of Healing

 

   Yes, I am finally popping my head back into my sweet blog.  It seems that this blog has been a long journey of emotions for 13 years now.  There have been such highs as we added our beautiful girls to our family and were blessed with 5 amazing, funny, smart and loving grandchildren.  If you have been reading my blog for any amount of time, you already know what the lows are and how that took a huge toll emotionally and even financially on our family and health-wise also for me. Throughout it all, our kid, grandkids, my brother Fritz and my parents grew even closer.  We were so blessed to have had my sister come for a visit several years ago, which meant everything to both she and I.  Now that she is battling cancer once more, it means even more to us.  We have strengthened our relationship and she has been blessed with a beautiful daughter who married into her family and a adorable granddaughter of her own.  She is now experiencing the same joy that I have been for all these years.  Grandchildren are the best!

   I am starting to finally let go of the pain of losing both Jeff's parents, his aunt Helen, and my cousin Jeremy.  There are still moments when I see something and hear something that reminds me of my dear cousin and I want to pick up the phone and call him.  I know that is not possible, so I remind myself that I get to enjoy it for the both of us and that he would want me to have that giggle, stare in awe at a beautiful piece of art soaking it all in and continue to love on and enjoy the antics of Maggie Mae.  It has taken me a long time to get to this point and to also not shed a tear when I think of our one-of-a-kind Aunt Helen.  I am so very thankful for that short time we had with her.  As for Jeff's parents...I realized that I had been so worried about my husband and kids losing them that I had not taken the time to personally grieve for both his parents.  Jeff and I had many long talks, and I realized that I needed closure.  I think I finally got it by going to his grandparents' gravesite where his parents' ashes will be interned.  I had not been there is over 40 years, but I made a promise to his mom that I would make sure that Jeff and the kids would always know where it was.  It helped me to let go of the hurt and anger that I had towards them and let the love and good memories (and there were many of them) take their place within my heart.  It feels like a huge weight had been lifted off of me.

   Jeff and I have done some thrifting lately and have found many cool things.  We found the pair of pillows pictured above that will be a perfect birthday gift for our fishing and hunting crazy grandson Isaiah.  His room is decorated in that style, and I checked with Heather and she told me she thought he would love them.  So they shall be his!!!!  We also found some really good kneepads for Jeff, a brand new large soft and fuzzy throw blanket, a blender, a large coffee maker to keep in the tent trailer, a gorgeous planter, some clothing, a pretty basket, some picnic plate holders (again for the tent trailer), a small lantern that puts out a tremendous amount of light and an Ethan Allen decorating book.  I really enjoy that style and I think it may be genetic since that seems to have been something that even my great-grandmother loved.

   Jeff and I have been talking about how he wants to fully retire within the next few years, as soon as he can get his full retirement amount.  I have to look into when I can also start taking retirement and what time that will be to make the most of it.  We talked about what full retirement will look like and ways that we can save even more money as to make it possible sooner.  We have been thinking of side hustles, how to make the most of our garden and help it be more productive.  All of these things are very important for us.  We are getting better about not eating out at much.  I'm trying to make sure that we have some quick to make meals here on the ready at home.  Today I made two loaves of bread and took some homemade chicken noodle out of the freezer to make for dinner.  I also threw an acorn squash in the oven too bake so that I have that ready for another meal.  There are two bags of raspberries from our garden thawing on the counter and I will use them to make some raspberry infused gin (a huge favorite of mine and Chris').  It also makes great gifts for loved ones.  I had bought the bottles for it from Amazon awhile back and have also been collecting larger bottles with stoppers on them for keeping it in here at home.  I still have lots of fruit to use in this manner for both gin and vodka.  I would like to get it all made and ready for this year.  Between the blackberries and raspberry stash I have in the freezers, I should be able to make enough for a while year for myself and others.

   I hope that things are going well for all of you who read my ramblings.  As you can see, I am in a much better headspace now.  It has been a long time coming, but the sweet relief now that it is here is incredible.  Thank you to Jesus for your healing and to my amazing family and friend for loving me through it.  Be blessed all.                   

   

   

Mid-Month Frugal and Other Updates

 

      Jeff and I are missing our youngest grandbabies so much.  They recently got snow at their home in Utah and the kids were so excited!  They went out and made snowmen and played in the snow.  Josh said they were very happy little campers. :)  Chris and Heather invited us over for dinner last week and we had a wonderful time with them and the oldest grandboys.  We did try to get together with Jaysn, Rachel and Steven, but they were out of town at her cousin Doug's birthday.  Hopefully we will get to see them soon. 😊

     Jeff went up and closed out Helen's bank account and then headed up to Sandpoint to pay for her cremation.  His cousin very generously sent us a check to help with the expenses but we still spent over $1,000 out of our own pocket to cover her final expenses.  We will scatter her ashes up on the mountain where she wanted them.

   Jeff and I both got the crud making the rounds and are still recovering from it.  We both already had doctor's appointments scheduled for other reasons and luckily our lungs were clear.  Jeff had to get an x-ray on his knee and they found lots of arthritis there.  He now has another upcoming appointment with the orthopedist to see if he is going to need surgery since his knee has really been bothering him.  

   Now onto the frugal doings.  I am going to try to remember everything, but we all know how well my memory is.  LOL!

~I found more of the poinsettia garland at the thrift store and bought all that they had.  I also found some more Christmas decor including some old glass ornaments like I had on my childhood Christmas tree and 2 more bags of balls for Maggie.  Spoiled puppy!

~I am always on the lookout for more Christmas china.  I was so excited to find some of the Pottery Barn retired reindeer pattern dinner and salad plates.  I got the 4 salad plates for $1.99 each and the 4 dinner plates for $2.99.  

~Jeff found a pair of jeans on clearance at Walmart.  He needed a new pair for work.

~I made a huge pot of spaghetti sauce with the last of the tomatoes that had been ripening in our house.  I'm freezing it for future meals.

~Jeff and I went out to eat and we both brought home half of our lunch since the portions were so huge.  That made for 2 meals for each of us.

~Shannon was so sweet and brought us home a street taco kit from Costco on one of the days that Jeff was still feeling ill.  that made for 2 meals with leftover tortillas, salsa and cilantro lime dressing.

~I found some beautiful decorator Santa plates at. you guessed it, the thrift store for $1.99 each.  They are now hanging up in our kitchen by the sink and bring a smile to my face each time I see them.

~More bread was finally made.  It had been a long time since I made bread.  I sent one of the loaves home with Shannon as a thank you for all she does for us.  I also sent home some of the last of the tomatoes with her.

~Jeff finished off the wood trim for Shannon's new kitchen door.  Luckily, we had some extra wood here at home that he could use since they ran a bit short.

~We popped up some popcorn and watched the movie "Twister" on TV.  It was really good!

~Jeff and I both found some nice clothing at Goodwill.  I found jammie pants and some shirts.  Jeff found some slacks and a nice WSU jacket.

~Chris and Heather surprised us big time by giving us their pop up tent trailer.  We had offered to buy it in the past, but they said it needed some repairs and they did not want us to have to do them.  We had told them that we could make the repairs since most of it was replacing some flooring and dry rot.  Jeff can easily do that.  Still, they had not wanted us to have to do any of that.  Thus how surprised we were when they surprised us with such a kind and generous gift.  We are storing the trailer in their shop since it will keep it undercover.  In the Spring, we will bring it home here so Jeff can replace the flooring and we can paint the interior to give it a fresh look.  We are looking forward to many years of family camping trips and fun!

~I've been switching out the artwork on the walls with more winter and Christmas stuff.

~I went through Helen's Christmas decorations tote and found some beautiful and meaningful things in there.  One of the items was a fabric Christmas tree that Jeff's mother had made for Helen years ago.  I recognized it immediately since Jeff's mom had the same one in her home and had told me that she had made it.  I know this might sound strange, but I am finally able to appreciate things from Jeff's mother again.  There were years when I could not due to all the heartache she put Jeff, our kids and me through.  I'm still healing but am moving in the right direction.

   So that is all that I can remember right now.  My plans for this week are to get the house decorated for Christmas.  I really am needing the joy that the season brings.  It has been a rough year for us and this Christmas will be bittersweet.  There are daily reminders of our loss of my cousin Jeremy and Jeff's Aunt Helen since we have Maggie and Remmie with us.  I will say that Maggie and Remmie bring us comfort and comic relief.  I am so glad that they are now ours. I am going to try and focus on the good memories and building new ones.  Be blessed my sweet friends.

Frugal Friday Wrap Up (including the past month) 11/1/24

 

      Thank you all again for your patience with me.  Lots and lots still going on dealing with Aunt Helen's death and the aftermath of all the legal stuff that we are still dealing with.  Now I know what you may be thinking...what does the picture above have to do with frugal living...well I will tell you.  Our son Chris is receiving an award for going above and beyond in helping evacuate people and coordinating saving lives in a recent fast-moving fire.  Since he is also a firefighter, he knew exactly what to do and how to coordinate agencies.  We are so very proud of him!  Now here is where the frugal living comes in.  Chris was homeschooled as many of you know.  We lived on a small single income for many years to make this possible.  It allowed all of our boys to get the best education possible and for them to pursue their individual interests.  Chris happened to love firefighting and being an EMT.  Fast forward to today, Chris and Heather are living on a single income (his), homeschooling their boys, both are volunteer EMTs for their community and Chris is also a volunteer firefighter.  Heather helps to bring in some "fun money" by selling delicious homemade treats.  It allows them the freedom to go fishing, hunting, hiking, camping and to travel to see family when time allows.  They grew a very productive garden this year and Heather blanched a froze lots and lots of beans.  They also had tomatoes, squash, pumpkins, and all kinds of other things.  Using well-rotted chicken poop, tilled into their garden, made things grown quickly.  The chicken poop was from their chickens.    Now that is what I call frugal and I could not be more proud of them.  Oh yes, Isaiah (our grandson #2) shot a deer the other night when he and Chris went out hunting.  More meat for all of the family!

   Now here are some of the things that I have been doing over the past month in no particular order:

~Steven and I went to an estate sale here in town and I found a beautiful brand-new tote bag with a watercolor picture of a hummingbird on it.  My mother loves hummingbirds and this will be part of her Christmas gift.

~Other finds from the state sale were two cookbooks, one a local community cookbook from 1983 that has recipes in it from so many of the people that welcomes us with open arms and hearts when we first moved here, and the other a sourdough cookbook.  My other fun find was a handmade broach with a beautiful slice of agate.

~I have been going to the thrift stores and finding Christmas and Fall decor for pennies on the dollar.  Some of my finds include 2 ceramic partridges, some high-end poinsettia garland, a cute straw deer that Steven absolutely loves, and some crystal vases along with a few Christmas mugs. I also picked up a bag of tennis balls for Maggie since she loves them and destroys them pretty quickly.

~I found a brand new with tags jacket for $5.99 and used a 20% off coupon to bring the price down even further.  I found out that it retails for $100.  Score!

~Jeff and I love lamb chops, but they are so expensive.  I found 3 packages marked at half price at Safeway.  I got all they had and repacked them with my Food Saver.  These will be delicious that coming holidays!  What a treat!  I also found ground beef on sale there for $2.97 a pound so I bought 3 pounds of it and repacked it for the freezer.

~The ice built up in our upright freezer and forced the door open.  Luckily we caught it and only lost a few things from the shelves on the door.  Jeff unpacked the whole freezer and defrosted it, the repacked it all.

~We have been enjoying pears and tomatoes that we grew as they ripen up in the house.  I am freezing lots of tomatoes too!

~Jeff and I have slowly been going through Helen's belongings and found lots of unopened health related products like mouthwash, dental flossing picks, toothbrushes, etc., that we are adding to our HBA cabinet.  It is hard to be going through her things as we still are mourning her.

~I'm still cherry picking the sales at the stores to stock up our pantry.

~We have been watching lots of movies lately thanks to Paramount, Disney, Peacock and YouTube. Have you seen the prices of movie tickets at the theater lately?  Even with our senior discount, we would still be paying a lot.  I'd rather be in my recliner at home watching them.

~Jeff and I both did a major purge of our clothing that we no longer use and donated it to Goodwill.  We shop there a lot so it is easy to just drop it off there and run into the store.  On one of those trips, I found an item that has been on my wish list for over 30 years.  I found a Fenton flow blue plate.  Luckily, they had just brought out a cart of new items and I snagged that and a tiny Victorian style ring box.  Right place at the right time I would say!

~Rachel's mom moved up closer to us all.  It was so nice to see her on Friday when I stopped by with Steven.  Steven had made her a turkey decoration earlier in the day at our house.  I am looking forward to spending more time with her.

~Jeff and I met with a court advocate who helped us fill out forms that we need to be able to access Helen's account so we can use that money towards her cremation. She also called some other advocates to help us figure out if we could get some financial assistance with Helen's cremation costs. Apparently, the county she died in will give you a loan, not a grant as we had been led to believe.  Jeff and I now have to foot the bill for the rest of the cost beyond what is in her account.  We are talking close to $2000.  UGH!  We will have to put it on our credit card and then pay that off in 3 payments with Jeff's checks from work.  If he was not still working part time, this would sink us financially.

~I trimmed my bangs as they were getting too long.

~Jeff and I have been trying to mostly eat out of our pantry and freezers.  There are times however that we still grab something to eat that is ready made from the grocery store.  It is still cheaper than going out to eat.

~Maggie has been a nervous wreck since she got home from the kennel.  I ordered her some CBD oil to see it that helps calm her down.  I feel so bad for her.  I think she may have thought that we were abandoning her.

   I think I will end this post here.  With all the stress of setting Helen's affairs, trying to get ready for the cold weather months, purging the house of so many things and the weather changes, my fibromyalgia and arthritis are acting up big time.  My sleep habits have been thrown into a tizzy also.  Not a good combination.  However, life must be lived to the fullest.  I have grandkids to love on, along with our kids, friends and other family members.  I'm looking forward to getting back into some kind of routine again and having more sleepovers here with the oldest three grandboys.  Steven spent Thursday night with us and it was so much fun!  There are also upcoming fishing trips with Chris who is buying a bigger boat from a friend.  I love to go fishing, so this will be a lot of fun for all of us!  

   Be blessed my friends and I pray that there will not be any more unrest or acting out in our country with the upcoming election this Tuesday.  We experienced first-hand some shady stuff in our county with the post office in Spokane processing our ballots, and sending them out, yet only a few made it to our town, ours's were not among those few.  Our county auditor has launched a full-on investigation with the postal service over this and we were able to get replacement ballots.  Much love to you all, be safe!

And Yet Another Long Overdue Post

 

   The picture above is of my paternal grandparents on their wedding day.  I absolutely love my grandmother's wedding dress and veil.  She died when I was very young and only had one time getting to know me when I was about 2 years old.  I have no memory whatsoever of her and that is something that really makes me sad.

   This leads me into some other thoughts.  I cherish my time with my grandchildren and get to spend lots of time with the 3 older boys who live close, Bradley 12, Isaiah 11, and Steven 7.  I so wish we lived closer to our two youngest grandchildren Tate and Peyton.  Jeff and I are trying to figure out when we can go and visit them that works for both us and for them.  Since we had to cancel our trip earlier this Summer, this is something that we really feel we need to do soon.  Praying we can find a way to make it work for all of us.

   Life has been beyond busy here and time seems to just fly by.  We have been determined to keep the gardens alive with this horrible heat.  We had one soaking rain come through is the past 3 months.  The thirsty ground took it all in and I could see that the plants were happier for a day or so before the heat again took its toll on them.  I frequently have to water twice a day.  The heat is also taking a toll on the hummingbirds who are drinking up all the nectar I put out for them.  I have to refill the hummingbird feeder every 3 days now.  It used to be once a week.

   I have been harvesting squash, potatoes, raspberries, strawberries and blueberries from the garden.  Our tomato plants are starting to set fruit, as are the cantaloupe plants.  The cucumber plants are starting to produce tiny little cucumbers.  The pole beans are struggling, and I don't know if we will get anything off them.  Our apple tree and pear tree seem to be struggling and producing little sized fruit.  I believe this is due to the heat and lack of water.  I need to get better at making sure they stay well-watered.

   Jeff and I spent about 2 weeks getting ready for our townwide yard sales.  We did sell a bunch of stuff and made about $100 for us, $38 for Jeff's aunt and Heather also made money selling her delicious homemade huckleberry cinnamon rolls.  We had lots of stuff left over so we took the sheets, blankets and bedspreads to the Red Cross Shelter that had been set up for victims of a big fire burning south of us.  We met a sweet mother and daughter there who had left with only the clothing on their backs and asked if we had any sweaters since it got cold in the shelter at night.  Jeff gave them a big bag full of sweaters from our yard sale and they were so grateful.  I really do pray they have a home to return to.  The rest of the items were donated to one of our local thrift stores that keeps the money in our community to help people get back on their feet again.

   We have made many trips up to see Jeff's aunt and will be going up to see her once again tomorrow.  We will deposit the money from the yard sale from the sale of some of her things into her account at the care center for her to use as she pleases.  I really do enjoy our visits with her and am so glad that we are in each other's lives again.  She is always pleased to hear how her cat Remmie is doing and this time I get to tell her how Remmie now cuddles with me at night and sometimes even during the day.

    While in town tomorrow to visit Jeff's aunt, we will also be going to an appointment with a Medicare broker since Jeff will be 65 next month.  Is it just me or is this whole Medicare thing confusing?  Hopefully I will understand more after tomorrow.  My reward for sitting through all of that is being able to go to a few thrift stores.  The Goodwill up there has been newly redone and the items there are really nice.  I have a few more things that I would like to pick up like some soft cotton lounge pants and I am hoping to find some either there or at another store.  The last time we were there I found some needed things and some nice artwork.

   Speaking of thrift stores, I found a really nice cuddly blanket that is perfect for this Winter and Christmas time.  I also found a knome, a decorative plate, a shirt, and a few other items.  The stores are putting out more Fall decor now and I am here for it!  Today I actually went through the Fall decor I have on hand here at home.  Most of it came from thrift stores.  Very few items were bought new, as I find great stuff at the thrift stores, and I can't stand to pay retail for anything if possible.

   I had better end this post here.  I need to get a few things done before Chris comes to pick me up.  We are having a birthday party for Isaiah at the skating rink (no, I will NOT be skating), followed by dinner at Panda Express.  Jeff is working today so he has my car and he will just meet us at the party.  This way I only have one car in town, and it gives me a chance to have some one on one time with Chris.  We rarely get that chance anymore and both and I enjoy our visits.

    Be blessed my friends and keep praying, staying strong and keeping your eyes and ears open.  So much is going on in this crazy world and we need to be able to separate the truth from the lies.  Make sure to also take time to relax, unplug and enjoy life to the fullest.  We all need that balance to keep us sane.

   

 

   

   

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!