Running A Household & Saving My $$

About four and a half years ago I wrote a post about how I manage our household.  If you are at all interested in how I do it then check it out here.  In that post I detailed how I pretty much run my business much like one would run a business.  I go over how I track spending and expenses, the tools I use to do that as well as other things like having "staff" meetings and setting goals.

Finances, financial planning, savings and retirement planning are a big part of what I do as well.  So if you would like to know more about that check out that post and as always, feel free to email me with any questions you might have or comment down below.  You all know how much I appreciate your wonderful comments.

Homecoming Weekend - Go Yotes!

All projects and any other things came to a grinding halt last Saturday so the youngest and I could join my oldest at her college for family day.  We were up bright and early to make the drive over as she really wanted us to have breakfast with her in her dining hall.  Before we left I packed her up a bag of grocery items, a care package of sorts and then we hopped in the car and off we went.  It is only a thirty minute drive so not long at all and with very little traffic on the road at that time of day we were there in plenty of time to find a parking spot, walk to her dorm and then walk to the dining hall for breakfast.

We couldn't have asked for better weather

Breakfast was very nice.  For one thing the manager of the dining hall insisted we come in and eat "on the house".  That was definitely a happy surprise.  I had a wonderful spinach and sausage omelet and some fresh berries.  The kids had Belgian waffles and more sugar than I care to even think about, but it was a special occasion so I kept my cringing to myself.

Giant Jenga game

Even coyotes play cornhole

After breakfast we walked over to the big parking lot for the massive tailgate party and had a ball playing cornhole, a big jenga game made out of 2" X 4s"s, meeting the football players and a ton of other people.  Everyone was so nice and happy to welcome us to their tailgate and to join in on the fun.  They really go all out for it too.

Then we walked over to the stadium for the game and it was a ton of fun!  Plus, we won!  So far the Coyotes are undefeated this season.  We all had our game shirts on and a few of my daughter's new friends tagged along as their families weren't able to join them.  I became the designated Mom the rest of the day, which was fine by me.

This is the official campus dog

They have a very nice stadium

After the game we walked back over to my daughter's dorm so we could use the bathroom and fill up our water bottles.  Her dorm has a really nice water bottle filling station so we took advantage of that several times that day.  Then over to the student center for ping pong, air hockey and snacks.

My daughter's and some of the "new friends" my oldest has made
She has made some great friends, super nice & polite, very enjoyable to spend time with

The game was exciting - We won 41 to 39

The marching band performs at half time
A couple of my daughter's friends are in the band

The after party was held downtown at the plaza where they had a concert going, food and drink vendors and dancing.  I loved the venue and the concert was absolutely fantastic.

Coyotes dance too!

This was a local band that does all 80s music and it was so much fun to see the kids enjoying it and all of them up and dancing.  Even us oldsters.  They even managed to get the local police department out on the dance floor too.

Some of Idaho's finest hit the dance floor

This was so much fun!

The college had a shuttle bus running people back and forth from the campus to downtown.  I had a car so the kids piled in after the concert and I took them back to the dorm.  Needless to say, by the time my daughter and I dropped everyone off and headed for home we were exhausted.  But we had a ton of fun that day and I'm so happy we were able to go and spend this time with our college student.  I love this college and I am so thankful that she is going to school there.  Wow!  What a blessing.

Preparing For The Coming Winter

With everything else going on around here I am working really hard to get ourselves ready for winter.  The chickens have already molted which tells me winter is likely to hit early this year.  The mornings are already getting chilly and we have leaves on the ground.  I want to be prepared as always for the cold months and higher heat bills that are an inevitable part of the season.

Almost have this baby filled back up!

Ever since I cleaned out the chest freezer in our garage my goal has been to get it filled back up with meat, frozen veggies and some bread.  Thanks to some really great sales, coupons, markdowns and store rewards points I was able to get that accomplished over the past six weeks.  That is the best feeling to know you have all the meat you will need for several months stashed away in the freezer.

Our bins hold over 100# of chicken feed plus I bought 2 extra 50# bags

The next area I focused on and is really important to us is to lay in enough pet food to get through until spring.  I don't like to go to the feed store in winter and then have to lug 50# bags of chicken feed across an icy driveway.  So in two trips I was able to get enough chicken feed, bunny food and cat food to stock up for winter.  I used two $10 OFF $50 Purchase coupons to make it even more affordable and money I earned working overtime to make this happen.

Plenty of laundry supplies and toiletries

Throughout the year I've gathered and stocked up on laundry detergent, fabric softener, toothpaste and other toiletries that I've purchased on sale and with coupons.  I've spent very little on any of it, around a dollar an item, including the laundry detergent.  Last month I picked up a case of toilet paper to add to our linen closet and that pretty much has us set for now.

Next area to work on will be canned goods

The last area to work on is our pantry.  I'll be stocking up on canned goods next.  Mostly tomatoes, tomato sauces, mayonnaise, some more salad dressing and some canned veggies.  Most of our condiments have been acquired, again while on sale and with coupons.  We don't need much so that should be easily handled with our regular grocery budget.

Jack appreciates the 50# of cat food we have in stock

I have a few winterizing projects to tackle before the cold weather sets in and then we should be pretty well set for when the cold weather arrives.  I'll be sure to share those with you as I do them.  Once preparations are completed my plan is to hunker down and move into craft and create mode.  I can hardly wait for that.  I have a lot of things on my list I'd like to do.

Plenty of spices and extracts for cooking and baking

Do you do anything like this to get ready for winter?  I'd sure love to hear about it.

Meet Jack!

As I mentioned yesterday we have a new family member that joined us a little over a week ago.  He is a solid black rescue kitty and his name is Jack.  The vet had named him that when he came in with a wire wrapped around his neck and digging in pretty deep.  Why someone would do that to an animal is beyond me, but that seems to be what happened.  The wire was surgically removed and he began to heal.

Stella is not impressed with him
She is rather annoyed, but coming around to the idea

It just so happened that I arrived at the Idaho Humane Society the morning the vet had decided he was ready to adopt.  I wasn't sure really why I was there, but in the past few weeks I'd been looking at kitties online and feeling that familiar tug at my heart.  I looked at, petted and/or held nearly every kitty in there but none of them seemed to be right except for one little girl.  The only issue was she was reported not to get along with other cats.  That might be a problem since we have Stella.

Checking out the couch for comfy

We left the shelter covered in cat hair and went home deciding it just wasn't the right time and we would check back in a few weeks or so and see if the right kitty was there for us.  However, later that afternoon my oldest daughter showed up unexpectedly for a quick visit and to introduce us to a new friend she has met at college.  We like him very much and had a really nice visit.  Then we told her about our morning and I said I felt really compelled to go back, if nothing else, just to show her the kitties.  She insisted we did so we all piled into the car and headed back over.

After only a week with us his coat is shiny and he is really starting to fill out

I had seen Jack that morning when they first put him out and had petted him a few times, but the vet tech was working with him and I didn't really have the opportunity to hold him or do much with him.  I did get his back story though and it sounded like he'd had a pretty rough go of it.  In addition to his injuries he was extremely thin and his coat was not in the best condition.

He loves his food!

When we got there the second time I showed them the fussy female kitty and we discovered she didn't really bond with the girls although she seemed to do really well with me.  I put her back in her cage and felt terrible doing so, but in my gut I knew it wasn't the right kitty for our home.  She is beautiful though and should have no trouble finding her person.  I'm sure of that.

He also loves to hang out in our garage
Me too!

We looked at all the kitties again and I saw that Jack's adoption paperwork was now hanging on his cage and despite his obvious injuries I felt like I needed to take this little guy out and give him some snuggles.  Oh my goodness, was he ever happy to be getting some attention.  What a love!

We have two food and water stations set up right now
to make sure he gets his nutrition boosted

He was super thin and pretty scraggly, but affectionate and extremely loving.  With all of us!  He snuggled right into me, completely relaxed and started purring.  Nothing around him seemed to bother him as he lay in my arms and took in all that was going on.  None of the other cats upset him, all of the people coming and going didn't bother him.  This cat was pretty chilled out.  And content to just be held.  This was the kitty for me!  I just knew it.

I got them a new bowl at a thrift store for their dry food
I thought it looked nicer than the old one

The staff at the shelter was thrilled when I told them I wanted to take Jack home.  He stayed overnight to be neutered and I picked him up the following afternoon.  In the meantime I prepared for his homecoming and got everything ready.  Not that any of our cats are ever spoiled or anything, but he should never again know what hunger and neglect feel like.  Okay, there may be some spoiling as well.  But my goal is to make sure this little guy has the best life from here on out.

My new blogging assistant
He is not overly helpful, to be honest... 😂

Stella tolerates him, but they have yet to become friends.  I'm sure they will though as she loves to play and he is super sweet and playful.  It is hard to know exactly what this little guy has been through, but in spite of it all he has a truly optimistic spirit and doesn't seem to let his circumstances get in the way of his happiness.  He seems to really like his new home and his people.  He loves his food, which is wonderful as I'm hoping he gains some weight. He can't meow due to his injuries and he makes the funniest chirping sound instead, but we know he is telling us he loves us and his new home.  I've never adopted and adult cat before and I've never adopted a "special needs" kitty, but I'm really glad I decided to give it a go.  He fits in perfectly with our clan.

Last Week's Thrifty Moves

Our power went out in the middle of the night for about four hours.  We had a huge storm blow in and the wind was raging.  It came back on shortly after 8:00 Sunday morning with a nice rain soaking everything outside.  We've needed a good rain for a while now so I wasn't sad to see it.  The mess left from the wind, well that was an entirely different story.

Nothing about our weekend went as I had originally planned, but as it turned out that was a true blessing.  Had we not been open to altering our plans we would've missed out on a pretty special opportunity to add another member to our family.  I will be sharing more about that with all of you tomorrow.  It is quite a story.

Stocking up for winter with chicken feed

Sunday morning the youngest and I headed off early to get some errands run.  First stop was at the Grocery Outlet to pick up a few grocery items before heading next door to the feed store.  That was our intended errand and I had another $10 OFF $50 Purchase coupon I'd received in the mail the week before.  I stocked up on two huge bags of dry cat food, Stella's favorite, another bag of chicken feed and a bag of litter pellets for the bunny.

Brand new kitty door - $4.99 at Goodwill

Our next stop was to Goodwill to find a few items on my list.  I found one item plus a bonus item I wasn't planning to find, but am glad I did.  It is a cat door to install and lead out to our garage.  Our kitties have always liked to go out there and Stella is no exception.  Once that is installed she can come and go as she pleases and we will no longer need to worry about her getting shut inside.

New kitty food bowl - $1.49 at Goodwill

We popped into Wal-Mart next for a big bag of kitty litter and a few other grocery items on my list before heading home to unload the car and get everything put away.  Then I treated my youngest to lunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant before heading off to Home Depot for three more gallons of paint that included a $10 rebate on each can.  I think I now have enough paint to finish the inside of our house.  I used a Home Depot gift card to pay for most of it too.

The old kitty bowl was rather plain so I did something else with it

I had a four day work week last week as I took Friday off to get some things done around the house.  Monday through Thursday was our normal go, go, go as I worked extra each day as well as getting my kiddo to and from her school activities.  The week flew right by!

Watch out!  If I grab a rattle can you know there is a project afoot!

Wednesday evening after work I grabbed my can of Rustoleum Metallic Copper spray paint and did a couple of super quick projects.  I took an old clear Pyrex bowl that I'd put in our donate bag and spray painted the outside of it.  Then I used it to hold all of my plastic porch pumpkins.

One super cute tea light/votive holder

I also spray painted an old canning jar ring.  Once that was dry I put it on a vintage quilted jelly jar and added a tea light.  You could totally use a votive candle too.  How easy is that?  I set it on one of the end tables in our living room.  I love its simplicity and the sparkle it gives off when I light it.

The bowl now holds my porch pumpkins

Throughout the week I made more progress in my old bedroom finding homes for the things that have been making their way in there and purging a few items that we just don't need to keep anymore.  The room is becoming much more functional now and I believe I can see a light at the end of the tunnel.  Good thing because I've got big plans for that room.

Do you see these leaves already?!
I cut up that old pallet with my reciprocating saw

Friday morning I got my daughter off to school, jumped into my grubbies and got to work, having a very productive day.  We had a couple of pretty good storms roll in the weekend prior and our yard was a mess!  

I lit a fire in the fire pot, grabbed a rake and my gloves and started cleaning up the yard and burning what I could.  I burned up the wood scraps I had piled up from our latest projects as well as a stack of shreddable papers while I was at it.  I cleaned up the front porch and finished decorating it too.

I used my reciprocating saw and in 5 minutes cut down the
wood in the blue trash can into smaller sizes for firewood

Saturday was parent's weekend at the college with the homecoming football game and lots of planned activities.  My youngest and I went for the day and met up with my daughter and a few of her new friends.  We had a wonderful time.

Two bags of paint cans and an old TV to go to the hazardous waste site

We washed out a couple Ziploc bags to reuse.  I added plenty of items to our recycle bin, but not much in the way of trash so we didn't set anything out to the curb for collection.

I picked some pears from our tree in the backyard.

Homecoming football game - We won!!

I perused the grocery ads, found a few items to add to our pantry, downloaded some coupons and made a list.

I cleaned behind and under the stove

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

Laundry Room & Half Bathroom -  tidied up the laundry room, cleaned mirror & light fixture, sink & toilet.  Daily swish & swipe.

Dining Room - vacuumed floor.

Kitchen -  cleaned outside, behind & underneath the stove. Vacuumed & spot mopped the floor.

Bedrooms & Main Bathroom - vacuumed & dusted.  Cleaned sink, mirror & light fixture, cleaned tub & toilet in the bathroom.  Daily swish & swipe.

Other - two loads of laundry, vacuumed & dusted living room, hallway & entry.  Cleaned the glass shelves.  Swept front porch & garage.

How was your thrifty week?

Another Small Home Improvement Project - New Doors

After three weeks without any doors upstairs I was able to pick up three new ones from Home Depot on the Saturday morning of Labor Day weekend.  I am so excited to finally be able to upgrade those old worn out cheap ones.  I have to say it gave me great pleasure to remove those busted up old doors and hall them off to the dump.  Knowing we were going to have some pretty new ones soon made not having doors at all for a few weeks worth the hassle and inconvenience.

Doors!
I know not too terribly exciting to some people, but
if you've ever lived without them for awhile, getting
new ones is pretty darn fantastic!

We all agreed we missed the bathroom door the most

Installing prehung doors isn't too difficult, but you do need to be patient and make sure you get them lined up straight and plumb.  Once that is accomplished it is a simple manner of a few shims, a few screws and you are in business.

The door for the master bedroom

Last piece of baseboard installed

With the doors in place I used trim from the second contractors pack I'd purchased at Lowes for the master bedroom and our main bathroom projects to trim around the doors.  It takes a lot more trim for doors because you are doing both sides so I ended up making another trip to Lowes for a third contractor's pack.  Once I got home I was able to finish up trimming out the doors.  With the doors done I was then able to finish up the baseboards in the master bedroom.  Next I added more trim to the hallway along the ceiling and new baseboards along the floor.

Hurray for new doors!

I added new trim along the ceiling.  Still need to do something with that trap door.

It was a lot of work and by far the most challenging of my projects this summer.  Hanging doors and trimming them out takes time.  I had hoped to have this project completed over the Labor Day weekend, however that is not how it happened and I was okay with it.  I was able to finish up over the following week and this last weekend though so not too bad.  I don't know what made me initially think I could do it all in three days.  LOL

Stay tuned because there is more to come and I won't keep you in suspense for long.  I promise.