Last Week's Thrifty Moves

Our weather has cooled down significantly in the past week and that always gets me in the mood to pop something into the oven.  Sunday I made us a double batch of pumpkin waffles for brunch and then I used the rest of the can of pumpkin and baked a pumpkin spice bundt cake for friends that were coming over on Monday.

I put the flannel sheets on my bed as well as my winter blanket.  It is a whole month early for me to do this but it has been really chilly here.  I've also dug out my winter pajamas and we've been using the fireplace in our living room to keep things nice and warm.  Along with that I'm also enjoying burning my fall scented candles.

Monday after our guests left I mended my Egyptian cotton fitted sheet where the seam had come unstitched before I stored them away for winter.  I also repaired a hole in the seat of my daughter's favorite fleece lined lounge pants.  She was pretty happy that I could fix them so she can keep wearing them.

Tuesday morning I sliced up the leftover pumpkin bundt cake and took it into work to share with my co-workers.  They scarfed it up in record time so I'm assuming it was pretty good.

When I got home that evening I pulled out the orange and black bin from the garage and added some fun Halloween decor in amongst our fall stuff.  It only took me about ten minutes to get it done and I think it looks really nice and festive.  My favorite decorations are still my little ghosts I set on my kitchen windowsill.  I have no plans to purchase anything new for my Halloween decor stash this year.

Wednesday my youngest had a dentist appointment and we scheduled her for oral surgery to remove her impacted wisdom teeth.  We can't wait too long or they'll mess up her pretty straight teeth and we certainly don't want that to happen.  I also ordered her a heavier duty retainer.  Our dentist is beyond wonderful and told me he would give it to us at cost.  Amazing!

Thursday I had a wonderful surprise waiting for me in the mailbox.  The hospital refunded me on all the money I had already paid them.  I was not expecting that at all!

Friday I was contemplating taking my daughter out to dinner but we were both tired out after a busy week.  Instead I baked her a pan of brownies from a mix I had bought on sale for 69¢ and dolled up a frozen rising crust pizza I'd picked up for 99¢.  I even indulged in a slice of pizza and small brownie.  It wasn't bad at all.  We enjoyed a quiet evening together in front of the TV.  We've been binge watching Vampire Diaries on Netflix and enjoying it quite a bit.  So much drama!

Saturday we raked up a nice pile of leaves, picked the rest of the apples from our tree and covered Laverne for the winter.  I cut up the bucket of pears I'd picked the week prior and put them in one of my slow cookers to make pear butter.  I plan to give it away to my co-workers for Christmas.

I collected all my spent candles and melted the leftover wax in my largest slow cooker.  I used jars and a wick I already had and was able to make two more candles to burn and enjoy.

I washed out a couple gallon sized ziploc bags to reuse.

I worked some more overtime last week.  We have plenty of work to do and I am so grateful for the opportunity to earn extra $$ each week.  It has been a real blessing for us.

Investment cooking = keto creamy chicken enchiladas that I cooked in my slow cooker, hard boiled eggs, pear butter and a double batch of egg roll in a bowl.

Some of the 15 Minute Chores I accomplished to keep my home in order:

Laundry Room & Half Bathroom - vacuumed floors, scrubbed toilet.  Daily swish & swipe.

Dining Room - vacuumed floor, cleaned the window & sill.

Kitchen -  deep cleaned inside the refrigerator, vacuumed & spot mopped the floor, cleaned window, wiped down range hood & stove, cleaned microwave.

Bedrooms & Main Bathroom - vacuumed & dusted.  Scrubbed the sink & toilet in the bathroom.  Daily swish & swipe.

Other - one large load of laundry, vacuumed & dusted living room, hallway & entry, washed pantry door and front door, cleaned window and sill.  Wiped down hallway baseboards and heater.  Swept front porch & garage.

How was your thrifty week?