My little 'Christmas' project, using just what I had on hand...
In The Kitchen:
We went a full pay period without purchasing groceries. I picked up
milk and bread and a snack item for us for here at home, but we skipped
the whole grocery store experience entirely for one whole pay period. I
spent about the same amount I'd normally spend on one of those 'in
between' trips to the store, right at $40.
Second grocery frugal: we bought a few grocery items while we were on
vacation because we always cook most of our meals while we're away.
Does that sound like I spent grocery money, and didn't really have a
savings? Wrong! I had money set aside for vacation foods. It's
planned into our budget for the trip.
We planned to visit with the grandchildren (it was the twins first
birthday) on the way back home and because that was another over night
stay we didn't want to pack up a lot of food to try and keep cold for 36
hours. We decided Friday to go out to eat for our dinner meal and
opted for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for our supper. I think we
spent about what we probably would have at the supermarket for snacks
and food for Friday on our dinner, so it was an even swap. And the
bonus was not having leftovers to haul about.
I spent about the same amount as always this pay period, no more. I didn't try to make up for not shopping two weeks ago.
After I came down with the flu, I scratched our plans to go to meat
market this pay period. I did a quick scan of the freezer and we can
manage fine for two more weeks on what we have on hand. That's another
bit of savings, too.
One reason why we could postpone the meat market: a big turkey breast we roasted for dinner. That should net us several meals.
After the big meal I put the carcass on to boil and got 2 quarts of broth and another 1 cup of meat off the bones.
I put a pan of turkey and dressing in the freezer for a heat and eat meal for later in the month (or even next month).
We ate lots of leftovers for our supper this past week, mostly turkey and dressing, but I can't say it was a hardship.
Boiled eggs to make egg salad sandwiches for work lunches and snacks for John.
I didn't have many 'ready to eat' foods on hand, with this illness which
broke my own rules. I did use a container of chicken pot pie filling, a
jar of chicken broth (homemade and frozen) and a container of leftover
frozen rice to make soup the day I felt the very worst. We had takeout
day two and John brought home a frozen pizza on day three. I'll be sure
to put a few new entrees into the freezer as soon as I'm well enough to
manage it. We had to shop for groceries on day four and did our best
to keep it short and sweet, but John insisted on buying dinner so I
wouldn't be overtaxed that day.
An easy cupboard/leftover meal: Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo, using
bought sauce, leftover chicken breast, and broccoli that I steamed while
the pasta boiled. Super easy, tasty, filling and quick to clear up
after.
Later in the week, I wanted a cup of coffee but coffee was running low
and I didn't want to go to the grocery right away. I opted to use the
single cup coffeemaker we were given a few years ago. It's handy to
make a single cup of coffee instead of a 4-cup pot.
I feel much better but have been pressed for time, trying to make up for
the lack of housework last week. I didn't have time or excess energy
to bake this week. I had a chocolate poundcake in the freezer. Weekend
baking taken care of, thankfully.
In the Home
Necessity almost always leads to creativity in my home. I wanted new
wreaths but alas, the funds just weren't there, even though I looked at
half priced items. So I made my own. Dusted off an old wreath and then
used pine cone picks, an empty wooden box and a bird figurine to make
something entirely fresh and new. I've a few more tricks up my sleeve,
but I haven't yet had time to employ them all yet.
I did purchase two boxes of half priced ornaments. I got 20 new ornaments for the price of 1 box.
I bought three floral picks at half price, too. I was disappointed
however when I arranged them because they lacked that Christmas cheer. I
found four glittery poinsettia blossoms in the shed and three of those
proved to be just what that arrangement required. Perhaps after
Christmas I'll just use the greenery by itself but I think the red
punches things up for the holidays don't you?
The wax warmer on the buffet was a gift from my daughter-in-law. She
sold some items at an online party back in the autumn. One of the
scents I ordered was called Aspen Pine. Oh my gracious does that smell
good! We really enjoyed that fresh pine fragrance (NOT like Pinesol but
more evergreen smelling). I love these melts as it takes just a
tablespoon to scent a room and it lasts quite a while.
I did say I wouldn't buy any decorations until Christmas gifts were all
bought. Well they are all bought, we finished up on Monday. I spent a
whole $18 on my purchases for decorations. I may buy a few more, but I
don't foresee big expenses in this area.
My mantel decorations cost me NOTHING...I'm quite happy with it. While
digging in the Christmas bins out in the shed, I found a bundle of
garland I forgot I even had. One piece of that garland, the last of the
glittery poinsettia blooms and my two poinsettia hurricanes look just
right on that mantel.
I can't name the amount of pleasure the flowers on my front porch have
given me. There are just two of them there, but economy and pleasure DO
mix that's for sure. The geranium I bought in late spring when it was
very hot and the plant sort of limped along, but has decided it likes
cooler weather very well indeed. And the petunias rescued from an old
bucket that held a dead rosebush where they had self sown are blooming
away, too. I smile every time I look at them. I can't name the luxury I
feel to smell those petunias on these cold evenings either.
Remember In The Kitchen, when I mentioned that 1-2 cup coffeemaker we
have? Good thing! The Bunn died Wednesday night. I tried what I refer
to as a 'Rhonda repair' which consists of unplugging it and walking
away but alas that didn't work either. Then I tried running vinegar
through it just in case it was calcium buildup even though our water
here is very soft. No good on that repair try either. Then John took it
apart yesterday and looked inside it but we didn't find the source of
the problem. However, that only made it flood even worse than before.
So it's certifiably dead. We'll be getting another but won't have to
rush it with the spare coffeemaker on hand.
Picked up pecans again this week. Unless we get a good hard windy day
there won't be many more to pick up before I sell them one last time.
I'm praying for a windy day! There are lots of pecans in that tree
yet. This last batch will fund the extra meat I want to buy for the
freezer when we do visit the meat market next week.
Went into CVS this past week with my Extra Cash bucks and spent them
all. I picked up four bottles of ALL detergent on a very good sale, and
a handful of needed cold remedy items. I earned 4 more ECBs to use on
my next visit to the store.
Mama and I were out shopping Wednesday. My expenses were $18 for the
Christmas ornaments and picks, and $20 for our dinner. I paid for the
dinner out of my allowance, so no cost to the household for that. Mama
provided a coupon to help cut down on the costs for our meal.
I harvested seed from the basil in the pots on the back porch. I hope
to replace those worn out plantings with some pansies soon, but in the
meantime, I've left the dead stems of the basil. They smell so fragrant
when you brush past them. It's a nice surprise. I like knowing I'll
have more basil next year courtesy of these seed.
John suggested we look into buying a small greenhouse. He explained his
reason: disliking that I bring plants indoors for wintering over. I
explained to him that I would love a greenhouse, but his reason was
misguided. The plants that winter over here are plants known for
improving air quality in the home: ivy, spider plants, palms and ferns,
etc actually reduce toxins in the air. I don't know if he means to
still consider that greenhouse purchase or not...
We need rain badly, but I can't deny the sunshine is a huge bonus for us
this time of year. It not only warms the house but fills it full of
light as well, which means that we seldom need to use a light for
reading or any other work we might be doing indoors.
