Last Week's Thrifty Moves

This last week blasted right past me.  It was our busiest week so far this year, the busiest we've had in quite some time.  Before I knew it, it was over and done with.  Monday was even a school holiday!

One of my lunches

I meal prepped on Sunday and it is a really good thing that I did.  I managed to prepare and cook up enough things to get us through the week ahead so meals were fast and easy.  I made ground turkey taco meat for myself, beef and bean burrito filling for the girls, a pot roast in the slow cooker, some bratwurst patties and we still had some leftovers from the week prior to finish up.  Plenty of suppers and lunches the next day to keep us going.  Fresh salads, some steamed asparagus and frozen broccoli for quick sides.

I made these little keto chocolates

Tuesday morning both kids had dentist appointments, my youngest had cheer practice after school and my oldest had to work, Wednesday the youngest cheered at a basketball game.  Thursday my oldest had to be at school by 7:00 a.m. for an all day band clinic and my youngest had an orthodontist appointment after school, the oldest had to be picked up from school after that and dropped off at work.  I hit the grocery store on the way home.

Friday the oldest had a basketball game to attend.  While she was at the game I managed to get in for a haircut.  First one in a year so I was definitely in need.  I had downloaded a coupon to my phone and saved $5 too.  I stopped in at Rite Aid afterward and picked up a bottle of hair dye that was on sale.  It has been over a year since I've done any coloring and I'm ready for a change, I think.  I still had time left so I popped into Family Dollar and picked up a few items that were on sale along with a couple bags of cat food.  I had loads of coupons to use and ended up leaving with quite a few freebies.

Saturday the youngest went to a sleepover and the oldest went to work.  Along with everything else going on we had snow, wind, cold and yucky roads to deal with.  I went to work early every day and put in a bit of overtime to get caught up on things there as well.  By Saturday evening I was ready for a break.

I picked up chicken breasts for $1.49 a pound

We composted the usual items, fed our kitchen scraps to the hens, put several items into our big blue recycle bin and only added one grocery bag full of trash to our garbage bin.  Because the recycle bin is only a quarter of the way full and we decided not to set anything at the curb for collection last week.

Sirloin steak & asparagus

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

Laundry Room & Half Bathroom - super scrubbed the sink & toilet, vacuumed floors & rug, cleaned the mirrors.  Daily swish & swipe.

Dining Room - vacuumed the floor.

Kitchen -  vacuumed & spot mopped floor, cleaned the microwave.

Bedrooms & Main Bathroom - vacuumed & dusted.  My oldest cleaned the bathroom.

Other - three loads of laundry, dusted & vacuumed living room, hallway & entry.

How was your thrifty week?

Cleaning Cloths & Saving My $$

My cleaning rags were looking a bit dismal.  Most of them had holes in them and several had paint stains from using them last year on some of our projects.  I'd used up a few when we stained and painted and tossed those when we were done so what was left wasn't much to brag about.  Not that one really brags about their collection of rags.  LOL

When I was going through our things for  the 30 Bags In 30 Days challenge we did last month I came across a stack of hand towels we had used in the bathroom of our old travel trailer.  They didn't match our new decor so they had ended up in the linen closet.  Upon further inspection I found they were in good shape except they had stains on them so not worthy of donating.  But definitely worthy of a new purpose.

I cut them up into various sizes and hemmed all the raw edges so they won't unravel and leave a trail of strings and terry cloth fuzz behind when we use or wash them.  I simply folded over the edge a 1/4 inch and did a fairly tight zigzag stitch.  Nothing fancy, in fact I used the thread that was already on the machine.  Didn't even try to match it.  These are cleaning cloths after all.  Four old hand towels later I'm back in business with a nice big stack of cleaning cloths.

I gave up buying paper towels several years ago deciding to switch over completely to cloth for cleaning.  It is a decision I've never regretted.  Not only do I save $$ by not purchasing paper towels, but it is less I contribute to the landfill.  We do keep a roll of paper towels in our garage for really nasty stuff when we have a need, so not 100% paper towel free, but pretty dang close.

I've used a lot of different things to make cleaning rags over the years.  My favorite, hands down, is cutting up old towels.  I use old flour sack towels for cleaning mirrors and windows, a microfiber cloth for polishing furniture and terry cloth for just about everything else.  Super easy, super thrifty and super simple.

One Year Of Keto

Hard to believe it has been one year now since I began my Keto Journey.  The biggest surprise for me is that I've stuck to it!  It has been an amazing time for me, to be sure, and the benefits of this lifestyle are incredible.  I am so very happy I decided to take the leap.  Keto has given me my life back!

I had so many crazy things going on this time last year.  My health was tanking and I was really sick with nonstop migraines, auto immune issues, high blood pressure, intense back pain due to a kidney that wasn't functioning properly and several other problems.  I was facing another round of steroids that I absolutely did not want to take due to the fact that one they didn't seem to help much and two the side effects were awful.  Needles to say my anxiety was off the charts and I felt like I was spiraling fast.  No one likes to feel hopeless, but there I was.  I was really scared too.

Never in a million years did I think something as simple as changing my eating habits could have made such an impact.  I dove in head first, figuring I had nothing to lose at that point.  I was hoping it would help.  Keto not only helped it began to turn everything around.

Within two weeks I felt amazing.  I never did get the Keto Flu, or if I did, it was better than how I was feeling to begin with.  The first thing I noticed was all the swelling in my body flushed itself away.  I lost 8 pounds of water and my clothes fit.  I was able to sleep through the night and when I woke up I wasn't in as much pain and I felt rested.  As time went on pain was no longer my constant companion.  Nor was my anxiety.  I felt calmer.

My body began to change.  I was on this Keto journey to improve my health.  My focus was not on weight loss because I knew that would happen anyway so I didn't worry about it.  I got stronger, my muscles began to function and I was able to do things like I should be.  I began to to do repairs and updates to my house.  I spent more time with my friends.  I began to have tons of energy.  I wanted to do stuff!  And I did.

My health stabilized.  The migraines have subsided.  In the past year I've only had two, instead of two or three per month.  My blood pressure has gone down, my kidney is behaving itself, my back pain went away, my muscles no longer hurt and my joints don't ache.  The nonstop tinnitus I was suffering gives me a reprieve during the daytime.  I'm hopeful it will continue to improve.  My mood is so much better and my anxiety is much more manageable to the point I often forget it is an issue.  My hormone levels are normal for the first time in years.  I feel good.

I did lose weight.  Thirty six pounds in total.  I am now at the weight I was six years ago before all of this nonsense began to get out of control.  All of my clothes fit.  I'm at the weight I am supposed to be and I recognize myself again.  I am 54 years old and I feel like I did when I was 40.

Mentally I'm much sharper and clearer than I have been in a long time.  No more brain fog.  I feel like I'm able to make better decisions with regard to all the different areas of my life.  Last summer I changed jobs and I love what I do and my coworkers too.  I have an amazing boss and I enjoy going to work each day.   When I come home to my beautiful home I find I'm very happy to be here and I enjoy it so much more.  I'm better off financially, spiritually and emotionally.  I'm hopeful, I'm grateful and for the first time in a very, very long time I'm optimistic about my future.  I'm back in control.

There is no doubt in my mind that this Keto journey has literally saved my life.

Pesto Shrimp

Super simple and super delicious this dish makes a spectacular appetizer, side dish with steak or topping for pasta or salad.

I shelled and cleaned raw shrimp.  Then heated avocado oil in a skillet and cooked the shrimp on each side for a few minutes until they were cooked through and turned pink.  I then placed a little bit of pesto on each shrimp and sprinkled fresh grated parmesan on top.

Oh my goodness gracious these are good.  Low carb and keto friendly too.  If you enjoy shrimp give this a try, you won't regret it.

Minimalism Isn't For Everyone

I happen to be one of those!  While I truly admire those that are, I have no desire to be a minimalist.  I like my stuff too much and I admit I also like to acquire things.  I have a few collections and a love of vintage items.  I like to decorate and make things too.

While I don't wish to be a minimalist I do wish to be a minimizer.  I think, for me, it is important to minimize the items I keep in my home.  Clutter has an amazing way of gnawing at my psyche.  It makes my anxious and uncomfortable.

Last year I researched minimalism quite a bit.  I read articles and blogs, watched TV shows, documentaries and YouTube videos.  While it didn't make a convert out of me it did motivate me to continue my journey of minimizing.  I did the 30 Bags In 30 Days challenge last month and I am really glad that I did it.  Doing that challenge enabled me to start the year out on the right foot and make sure I don't hang onto things that we don't need to have in our home anymore.

Since moving back into our home nearly 4 1/2 years ago we have brought in a lot of new things.  We had purged, sold and donated our items to the point that we were able to downsize into a 27 foot travel trailer where we lived for a year.  When we moved back in we were literally starting over with our possessions and I loved it.  But I really didn't want to fill my house back up with crap again.

Before that time I spent over 5 years getting rid of the stuff I had accumulated in my lifetime.  The final six months I was ruthless.  It amazed me how much stuff I had squirreled away in every nook and cranny of my home.  Once it was finally gone I felt like I could fully breathe again.  It was quite an eye opening experience to realize how all that stuff had been affecting me over the years.

As I continue my journey of minimizing I am now much more mindful of the what I purchase, what I bring into our home and ultimately what I keep.  Many times I've thought about building a storage shed on our property, but then I realize that if I keep my possessions in check I don't need another building to store my stuff.

The things we own now, we use and enjoy.  I've gone through our home from top to bottom and made sure of that.  Moving forward I will be going through our things regularly and removing items we no longer need.  Every day I work on eliminating paper clutter (the bane of my existence) by going through mail, school papers and receipts and tossing them in the recycling bin or putting them on the shelf in my hall closet for burning.  Once that stack is a couple inches thick I take it outside and light a match.  Paper clutter can be overwhelming so I try to really stay on top of it.

This year I am planning to purchase less stuff.  We don't really need much so, in theory, this shouldn't be a big problem for me.  When I do buy something I want to be really intentional about it.  I don't want to be wasteful so I think it is important that I put more thought into what I spend my money on.

Do I really need or want it?  What is its purpose?  How often will I use it?  Is there something else I have that will already do the job?  Is this a quality item?  Is it priced well or can I do better?  I think asking these questions will make it easier for me to be more mindful of what I buy.  In the end I will spend less and save more of my hard earned money.

How do you feel about minimizing your possessions?  Is your home thinned out or do you have a ways to go?  Or, how do you feel about minimalism?  I'm curious.

Last Week's Thrifty Moves

Sunday I was up early baking bread, Death By Chocolate Cookies and making a batch of Butter Toffee.  The cookies and candy were my Valentine gifts this year and lucky for me I already had everything I needed on hand in my pantry and refrigerator.  I even re-used bags from my gift wrap stash to assemble all of my gifts.

My oldest needed a ride to an appointment later in the afternoon and the drive home found me stopping in at Walgreens once again to pick up two more bottles of laundry detergent for 99¢ a bottle.  I had no plans to buy these, but my daughters thought it was a good idea so I acquiesced.  It really wasn't hard for them to talk me into it.

They were on sale for $1.99 and I used a digital coupon loaded to my rewards card and a paper coupon printed from Coupons.com to bring the price down to 99¢ a piece.  I also picked up some deodorant for 99¢ each.  Since my oldest needed to go to Dollar Tree I also picked up a deodorant and used a 50¢ OFF coupon making it only 50¢.  Two of the deodorants were set aside for Easter gifts and everything else was put away in the linen closet.

I made a delicious and super thrifty Sunday dinner using items I'd purchased on sale and with coupons.  We had loads of leftovers to enjoy throughout the week.  I shared how I did that last week in this post.

I used a 79¢ cake mix from our pantry to make a pretty bundt cake to take to work on Valentine's Day.  I used a couple squares of Baker's chocolate (from Dollar Tree), a tablespoon of butter and some powdered sugar to make a ganáche to put on top.  The guys I work with really enjoyed it.  The girls made up a 79¢ box of brownie mix to take into school and share with their classmates on Valentine's Day.  They sprinkled them with powdered sugar over the top and they looked very pretty.

I made foaming handsoap solution to refill the dispenser in our upstairs bathroom.

I traded my retired plumber friend a loaf of homemade whole wheat bread for a new flapper for the downstairs toilet.  I think I kind of like this bartering business.  It's a win/win for both of us.

We composted the usual items, fed our kitchen scraps to the hens, put several items into our big blue recycle bin and only added one grocery bag full of trash to our garbage bin.  Because the recycle bin is only a quarter of the way full and we decided not to set anything at the curb for collection last week.

I printed off some more online coupons and downloaded more grocery coupons to my store rewards cards.  I checked out the ads and only picked up a couple things on sale.  I used a lot of digital and paper coupons to pickup low carb yogurts that were on sale making most of them only 38¢ each.  These use stevia and make for a great treat for me.  The pot roast was on sale for $1.99 a pound so I grabbed one.

I worked a little bit of overtime.

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

Laundry Room & Half Bathroom - vacuumed floors & rug, cleaned the mirrors.  Daily swish & swipe.

Dining Room - wiped down the chairs & table, vacuumed the floor.

Kitchen -  vacuumed & spot mopped floor, cleaned all the shelves inside the refrigerator.

Bedrooms & Main Bathroom - vacuumed & dusted.  My oldest cleaned the bathroom.

Other - two loads of laundry, dusted & vacuumed living room, hallway & entry, swept front porch.

How was your thrifty week?

Groceries & Saving My $$

Another area that we can easily work within a small budget is with our groceries.  Right now we are very blessed to have a well stocked pantry along with two full freezers.  I keep one of the smaller chest freezers in our garage which holds quite a bit and the freezer on our side by side refrigerator is pretty crammed even after working for a month to clear some of that stuff out of there.  We did a good job, but we still have a lot to do.

This year, in an endeavor to spend less, I am challenging myself to use up what we have and then mindfully spend smaller amounts each week on new items.  I employ a lot of different strategies to help me buy more and spend less at the grocery store.

I sign up for the grocery store rewards card.  The stores send me special offers for reduced price items and quite often free ones.  Albertson's allows me to stock rewards points for each dollar spent that I can redeem for free items too while Fred Meyer (Kroger) offers me a free item every Friday and also mails me free item coupons.

About every six weeks I get Kroger coupons in the mail.  I also download digital coupons from the store websites.  Most of the time when an item goes on sale I'm able to pair it with either a paper coupon or a digital one I've already downloaded.  Coupons.com is also another good place to print out paper coupons.

I check the sales ads every week to see if there is anything I need or want and take advantage of the loss leader items (items that are often on sale below cost) to stock up my food storage.  Then I match those sales items with any coupons I might have and make up a list.  Shopping with a list is vital to me in order to save money.

I look for markdown items frequently, especially on meat, cheese, produce and bakery items.  I seldom buy anything unless it is on sale or markdown.

Lastly I track my spending.  I keep a separate budget for food and nonfood items and I track those purchases on a spreadsheet so I know what I've spent and how much I have left so I don't go over budget.  Tracking my spending also helps me to evaluate my purchasing habits and look for ways to improve.  I find there is always room for improvement and I work on it every time I plan a list and shop.