Last Week's Thrifty Moves

I cut out and sewed two pair of gym shorts for my youngest who decided to join her school's track team.  We bought the sweatshirt fabric with a 50% OFF coupon making them just $4.50 each pair.  I saved more money by using a pajama shorts pattern, plus thread and elastic I already had.

A few years ago I figured out a way to use the narrower elastic in waistbands by stitching two sets of rows and working 1/4" elastic through each stitched casing.  I discovered I actually prefer this method as the elastic doesn't twist and the waistband is more comfortable.  I also double stitched the hem to give them the athletic look of store bought shorts.  She loves them.

I baked two loaves of whole wheat bread.

I cleaned out the jar a candle came in by removing the last remnants of wax and the labels before scrubbing it clean.  I think it will be great to re use it as part of a gift for someone.  Perhaps I'll fill it with candy or some homemade bath salts.  It's a really nice jar, too nice for the recycle bin at this time.  It would also be great for storage.

I added a half cup of bleach and some warm water to my Clorox Clean Up bottle.  I refilled my spray bottle with a cup of Fabulosa (I buy that at the dollar store) and the rest of the way with warm water.

The girls hanging out in the sunshine with my oldest.
They are really growing fast.

The weather was warm enough to keep the main heat off.  We have only needed to use our infrared heater periodically after the sun goes down.  It does an amazing job.

We got some pretty good rain this week so I didn't need to water the newly seeded area in our lawn.  I was hoping this would be the case if I seeded early enough this spring.

I worked several hours of overtime again this week.

I cut the bottom off a milk jug, filled it with soil from the garden and planted about a half dozen Roma tomato seeds.  The seeds were some my daughter saved and dried when she cut up a tomato to make a salad.  We will see what happens and if they germinate.  So far none of the other seeds we planted a couple weeks ago have sprouted.  We may need to start over.

I took the sliver of soap left in the shower and grabbed a new bar of soap then got them both good and wet so I could stick them together.  Laminating soap slivers to a new bar helps us to easily use it up with virtually no waste.

Thursday evening I sold my little washing machine after advertising it on Craigslist.  I was a little sad to see it go but I am very grateful to have the extra money.

Fred Meyer sent me another coupon booklet in the mail.  Yaaaaay!

My oldest won an award at school last month.  The prize for winning awards at our house is that we go out to dinner as a family to the restaurant of the winner's choice.  Since the youngest also won an award a week earlier we celebrated her dinner in February and then Friday night we celebrated the oldest's achievement.  I had a $5 coupon to use and instead of ordering a dessert to share we decided it was a much better deal for all of us to use that money and stop at Albertson's on the way home.  We used a store coupon to buy two cartons of ice cream for $1.99 each (less than the price of one dessert).  While we were there the girls turned in their winning Monopoly game ticket for a free package of Oreo cookies.  The mint ones were back in stock. 

The young one and I got up early Saturday morning to beat the crowd at the grocery store.  There were several pantry items I was low on or out of that I knew we could pick up reasonably at Winco.  I also had some bulk bin items to get.  I used the money from the sale of the washing machine to fund this trip.

I ordered some more beer brewing supplies from Amazon.  I also shopped online for larger chicken feeders.  I didn't buy any yet.

How thrifty were you last week?

I Own A Cell Phone, But It Doesn't Own Me

The other day I walked into the break room at work to have lunch.  It was packed with women and dead quiet.  I heated up my leftovers and took a seat.  I was ready for conversation and a nice meal and yet not a one of them spoke a word.

Now I have never, in my life, been in a room full of women that one of them didn't have something to say.  But every single one of these gals was focused on that little flat box in their hand.  Finger swiping up and down as they scrolled the internet or facebook or whatever.

After awhile  I tried to start up a conversation.  No one joined in and it was literally like I had just started talking to myself.  I got the giggles and I'm sure they were probably wondering about me, but most likely, I doubt they were even aware.  It is insane to see people so focused on an inanimate object like that to the point that they won't even socialize to a small degree.

When cell phones first hit the scene they were a modern convenience I felt I could do without.  Truth be told I kind of still feel that way, but then again I have never been one to ever be tied to a telephone of any kind.  When I did finally get one it was a novelty and I will admit I preferred having it to use over a dirty payphone even though I was spending far more per month on the basic plan than I ever would have on quarters to use said payphone.  But when we travelled it was nice to have as long as we had service.  That is sometimes sketchy.

My cell phone stays on my desk 99% of the time when I go to lunch.  I hardly ever take it with me and guess what?  That's rare.  The rest of the time it resides in my purse.  On vibrate.  If I need to use it I go get it, use it and put it back.

Please DO NOT do this.

I don't pack it around with me in my hand.  It is not an extension of my arm.  I don't wear it.  It is not an accessory.  I don’t have it clipped to my belt or tucked in my bra.  It's just a freakin' phone.

I'm sorry but I have other things to do.  Farting around with the phone just isn't one of those things.  I really don't care about the funny picture you found on the internet or the latest cat video you found funny.  Isn't it enough that we are friends on facebook and I'll see it there too? Of course that means I'll have to check it but then that is a whole other story - don't get me started.  Tee hee. 

I know I am way outside the norm here.  I just don't see the attraction or attachment a lot of people have for these things.  It just concerns me that they seem to be taking over and people aren't interacting like they should.  (In my opinion.)  I guess I just don't get it.  That's okay.  Certainly not the first time that has happened to me.

I've been "scolded" on occasion by my friends a few times that I "never answer my text messages".  I gently remind them that my phone is for my use.  (Not theirs.)  Besides, I don't want to carry on a conversation in abbreviated text dotted with smiley faces.  Let's get together and, I don't know, talk to each other.

K?

c u soon :)

XXX OOO

Ornery old bat aren't I?

LOLOLOLOL.

KIS - Meal Preparation

Along with saving money on grocery expenses and planning out our meals I have tried to make simplicity in meal preparation a big part of the process as well.  Three important things factor in to how I prepare meals.  Time.  Ease. Nutrition.

Time

When I get home from work I try to get my meals prepared and on the table in about thirty minutes or less.  I save more complicated and time consuming menus for the weekends when I have more time.  Weeknights are more limited with time and we tend to be rather busy so it has always been important to keep meals easy and quick to prepare.

Ease

To shave off prep time I try to plan our weeknight meals so I am preparing simple stuff.  For example in the time it takes to boil water and cook a pot of pasta or rice I can usually brown the meat and put the sauce together to simmer while it cooks.  By the time the rice is done or the pasta is ready to drain the sauce to accompany it is ready as well.  I usually will have at least ten minutes to put together a quick vegetable to heat in the microwave or put together a salad to serve with dinner.

Keeping the ingredient list for my main entrée around five items helps a lot too.

Generally I only serve a main dish and a vegetable during the week.  Everyone is responsible to help set the table and get drinks poured while I am cooking.  If I can get a helper in the kitchen, then so much the better.

Cleaning up as I go minimizes the work after we have enjoyed our meal too.  Helpers in the kitchen to put away leftovers, condiments, etc. and help with clearing the table and dishwashing is mandatory at our house.

Nutrition

Because I am only serving two things I try to pack as much nutrition as possible into each thing I prepare.  Salads with at least three vegetables in them are a huge part of our diet.  When I make main dishes I choose lean cuts of meat, add extra veggies where I can and limit starches.  For example when I make spaghetti sauce I like to add a can of diced tomatoes to my sauce.  Tuna casserole get peas added in while my creamy chicken and rice has chopped broccoli in it.

How are some ways you simplify meals and save time at your house?

Easy Lemon Poundcake

Reposted from December 6, 2011    Love this one!

I have yet to master a lemon cake recipe that truly knocks my socks off and I love lemon cake.  So, despite my desire to bake everything from scratch, there comes a time when you have to accept your limitations.  In the case of lemon cake I buy a mix.  As a result, several years ago, I happened to buy a box of cake mix once that had a lemon pound cake recipe on the back.  I tried it and have used it ever since and in a variety of ways too. 

The recipe is super simple: 

Lemon Poundcake 

1 lemon cake mix

4 eggs

1 c water

1/3 c oil 

Preheat oven to 350°.  In a medium sized mixing bowl combine all ingredients and whisk until batter is smooth, no lumps.  Pour batter into a buttered and floured bundt pan or two bread loaf pans.  Bake for 50 to 60 minutes until cake is done.  The top should spring back to the touch. 

Allow cake to cool 10 minutes and then remove from pan to a cooling rack.  Cake should cool completely before slicing.  Serve plain or with berries and whipped cream. 

I have found I can make variations of this cake with other flavored cake mixes: 

Pound Cake – use a yellow cake mix, add 1 tsp. vanilla.  Bake in loaf pan and slice for strawberry shortcake. 

Chocolate Pound Cake – use a chocolate fudge cake mix.  Goes great with raspberries! 

Gift Idea:  Use smaller mini loaf pans.  Reduce baking time to 30 to 40 minutes depending on pan size.  After cakes have cooled wrap in plastic wrap and then in aluminum foil.  Wrap a strip of bright flat ribbon lengthwise down the center of each cake and secure with a small piece of tape.  Make a decorative label Lemon Pound Cake and place across the center of the cake. 

One Christmas I made three different flavors of batter and baked them in mini pans.  I wrapped them as I have described above and set three different cakes in a basket to give as my gifts to my neighbors.  My next door neighbor still talks about that, she really loved the chocolate cake. 

Give this a try next time you need a delicious and simple dessert.  I think you will really like it.

Tip:  For added savings wait for cake mixes to go on sale and stock up.  Use coupons with sales items for additional savings.

Spring Cleaning - Part I

I prefer to do my spring cleaning in installments.  There is really no sense in working myself to the point of sheer exhaustion plus I don't want to make it such a monumental chore that I end up dreading it.

I like to give each room a good and thorough cleaning every six months.  This month marks six months since we moved back into our house over the Labor Day weekend.  I decided to start my spring cleaning in the living and dining room since those are the two rooms I set up first when we moved in. 

I began by moving all of the smaller pieces of furniture into the dining room, folding the area rug and setting it on the opposite side of the room and pulling the sofa and shelving unit away from the wall a good four feet.  I washed the walls and baseboards and was amazed at the accumulation of dust and cobwebs in such a short amount of time.  I vacuumed the floor and along the ceiling.  Then I washed the inside of the living room window and cleaned up the window track and sill.  The drapes were vacuumed for dust.  I washed the door, doorknob, light switch plates and outlets.

The shelf unit was washed down with glass cleaner before it was put back in place and everything was cleaned and set back on the shelves.  I wiped down the sofa and recliner and put them back in place, cleaned the lamps and shades, polished the tables with furniture polish, washed the coasters, cleaned the TV and its stand then put the rug back into place.  I vacuumed one final time.

I rolled my little computer desk forward to finish cleaning the walls and baseboards and to vacuum.  I tossed out a few accumulated papers and filed away some tax information as well as some insurance papers.  I dusted the desk and the shelves above it and wiped down my chair.  All done.

Next I removed the dining room table and chairs to the living room.  I took a one hour break before I washed the window, window track and sill.  I washed down the walls and baseboards, wiped down the china cabinet, cleaned the ceiling fan, scrubbed the tile floor with a scrub brush, cleaned the table and it's legs and did the same with each chair.  Once the floor was done I put the table and chairs back into place.  This time I angled them for something different.  We like it.

The only thing I didn’t do was the hearth and fireplace because I had just done it a couple weeks ago.  I did give it a quick dusting, however.  I also dusted all of my wall art, the clock and the mirror over the fireplace.  I chased a lot of cob webs.  Far more than I had expected to find.

All the cleaning supplies I needed to use.  Not too much.

I was amazed when I got done it had only taken me a little more than four hours to complete this project.  Far less time than it ever has before.  In the past I had spent the majority of a weekend to get all this cleaning done.  I attribute this change quite simply to the fact that I now own way less stuff.

The kitchen is the next room I plan to do and I hope to have it completely done in about two hours.  We'll see how it goes.  Next Saturday is the day I've chosen to make that happen.

Have you started spring cleaning yet?  How are some ways you tackle this job?

Last Week's Thrifty Moves

I had a delightfully busy Sunday.  I love daylight savings time and I woke up motivated to really do some stuff.  I put the Daytona 500 NASCAR race on TV (Youtube), cleaned my kitchen and ran a load of laundry.  Then I brewed up a batch of beer.  Afterward I fixed my little darlings a pancake breakfast complete with sausage links.  I made extra pancakes for them to reheat for their breakfast before school throughout the week.

The weather was nice enough that we hung our sheets on the clothesline to dry.  I hope we can keep doing this.

Once the chores were done I took the girls to the dollar store to pick out new Easter baskets.  The old ones they had were worn out.  While we were there we happened upon a brand new display of flower and vegetable seed packets.  I was able to get almost all of the ones I had on my list for only 25¢ each.  The girls also picked out a new pair of gardening gloves.  I found a really nice self watering planter.  Even the cashier was impressed with it.  Now I'll have somewhere to put the spider plant once it takes root.

I also bought a package of 3 plastic lids for cat food as well as two packages of cheese slices and a package of sundried tomatoes.

On the way home I used store coupons and picked up two dozen eggs and a container of parmesan cheese for 99¢ each.  I grabbed a few extra coupons so I can stop and get more cheese later on.  The coupons are good until the end of the month.

I had put on a pot of ham and bean soup in the slow cooker using up some of the ham I had made the week before.  Our friends called and took us to dinner Sunday night so I saved it and reheated it for our supper on Monday night.  We made a batch of cornbread to go with it.  I also put some soup in a couple freezer containers for quick meals later down the road.

I gave my youngest a haircut.

The weather has been so nice I've been turning off the heat during the daytime.

The girls won a free package of Oreo cookies playing our grocery store's Monopoly game.  They were pretty excited about that.  They want to get the mint ones.

A friend and I met for dinner and then went to the movies on Tightwad Tuesday.  I used a gift card to pay for my movie ticket so I didn't have to spend any money out of pocket for it.  I kept my dinner tab to a minimum buy ordering a cobb salad and drinking water.  Since the credit union is located en route I also made my trip to the theatre count by waiting and making my bank deposit along the way saving myself from having to make a special trip and a little gas too. 

I refilled my kitchen hand soap dispenser using up the big jug of floral scented dish soap I buy at the dollar store.  I put some water in it and rinsed it out really well which gave me enough soap to wash a load of dinner dishes before I put the bottle into the recycle bin. 

I used a toothpick to remove the last of the Chapstick in the tube.  I am officially out of Chapstick now but I do have a tube of Blistek I received as part of a gift bag.  No better time to use that up than now.  In the meantime I will be looking for a sale on Chapstick so I can restock my stash.

I turned the bottle of lotion I keep on my desk at work upside down so I use it all up.  I replaced it with one a friend gave me a couple months ago.  She had collected it from her hotel while on vacation.

I washed out a one gallon and a two gallon Ziploc bag so I can reuse them.

I was offered the opportunity to work some overtime the last half of the week so I took it.  Three ten hour days will give me six hours at time and a half.  I plan to put all of the extra money I earn toward one of my financial goals.  It looks like that opportunity will be available through the remainder of the month.

My youngest entertaining the chicks.

I listened to music on Youtube.  We watched a few episodes of a couple TV shows we like on Amazon using our Roku.

I updated my household budget spreadsheets and adjusted my financial goals in the process.  Looking good!

I brought home another file folder box to re-use as a gift box and some cardboard squares I plan to use for an upcoming project.

I added coffee grounds, tea bags, egg shells and vegetable scraps to our compost bin.  We shared some stale bread and a burnt pancake with the squirrels.  Soon our chickens will be getting the majority of the bread and veggie scraps.

I shopped online for bare root everbearing strawberry plants, raspberry starts and blueberry bushes.  I didn't buy any but I got some ideas and prices so I'll know if our local prices are within reason.  I found the strawberry plants for just over a dollar each with free shopping.  I doubt I'll find them here for less than that.  Plus they are guaranteed and come from a strawberry farm in Oregon.  Most likely I'll end up ordering those next month.

The youngest and I took some online coupons I printed off and headed to JoAnn Fabrics to pick up some sweatshirt fabric.  She has decided to join the track team at school and needs some shorts.  I was able to get a yard and a quarter for what we need at 50% off.  Great savings!

How thrifty were you last week?

Our Chickens

The coop the girls and I built.

For me, the final thing to do, in order to bring our lives completely back to normal in our house, is to acquire new chickens.  For those of you that have read my blog awhile or read old posts you may know we decided to move to Arizona and unfortunately we were plagued by strange events that kept us from making that move.  Eventually I had to sit back and take stock and realize that perhaps this move, quite simply, wasn't meant to happen for us.  Again.

I loved that we were able to try out tiny house living for a year and we had a ball, most of the time, in making that work.  We totally planned to give it another year until our tenant informed us she could no longer pay rent and I decided we should probably move back into our house rather than find another tenant.  It just made better sense and as it turned out, our home was in deep need of some TLC making it, in my opinion, un-rentable to anyone in its condition at the time.

Our tenants had been thrilled at the prospect of raising chickens and we agreed to leave them rather than re-home them elsewhere.  Apparently the novelty must have worn off because a few months before I evicted them they got rid of the hens.  I was sick about it, but they were theirs to do with as they saw fit.  Of all the decisions I've made and all the trials we dealt with my only regret is that our chickens paid the price.  No one spoils their chickens more than we do or at least that is how we think about it.  We consider them family members.

Edith

Recently we all agreed, as a family, that raising hens was important to us.  Every bit as important as putting our home back together and getting settled in.  We also want to successfully raise a vegetable garden and get things set up how we used to have.  The chickens are a big part of that process.

A few weeks ago I super cleaned up our old dog crate and washed all of the feeders in preparation.  My youngest and I cleaned up the coop and spread all of the composted manure in the planting beds which I turned over and raked smooth.  In a couple months the beds will be planted.

We acquired four pullet chicks and you all know by now that we lost half of them.  We even lost the extra one they gave us.  But with the feed store's encouragement and our own resolve we took home two more and so far, so good.

I plan to rake out the run area and add new sand for them to scratch around in and help with mud in the wet season.  By the first of May they will be ready to move in and take over.

I expect they'll be laying eggs by the end of summer and I have plenty of people who want to buy our extras.  My hope is to sell enough eggs to pay for their feed which will make them pretty much self sustaining.

How many of you out there raise chickens?  Or want to?