Happy, Happy New Year! We were
snowed in over Christmas and that made me very happy! I loved being at home!
Christmas
morning was very nice in spite of the fact that my oldest was battling a
terrible case of the flu. We truly felt
very sorry for her while we've been trying to keep our distance and not catch
it ourselves. Of course when she's
crying and needs a hug from mom all bets are off. Lots of hand washing and prayers have been
said for the rest of us to remain healthy.
I did my
usual Christmas morning thing as the gifts were unwrapped and collected all the
reusable bows, tissue, gift bags and gift boxes for next year. After taking the trash out to the garbage and
recycle bins I got busy and re-organized the gift wrap tote in our hall closet. Only took a few minutes and went a long way to
quickly tidy up our little living room.
Plus, it made me happy. J
Our
Christmas brunch was an easy and thrifty one.
I cooked up half a package of our free bacon from Winco (I got back in
October) and made homemade gingerbread waffles served up with butter and
homemade syrup. My youngest said it
really hit the spot. Our Christmas supper
was pretty thrifty as well. I made four
cheese manicotti and served up leftover salad and garlic cheddar biscuits from
the night before to go along with. It
was delicious!
Messy and then I got the vacuum cord caught up in it |
I recycled some
denim jeans and made a mat for the floor near our front door to set boots and
frozen chicken feeders on. I needed
something durable and washable to contain the mess that was getting tracked on
the floor and driving me mad. I cut the
jeans up the inside leg seams and then cut out twelve 8 inch squares, which I
sewed together. To back it I used an old
pair of my flannel pajama bottoms I love
the new floor mat. It cost me nothing
but my time, recycled some clothing that was beyond donating and now the mess
is no longer. Win-win!
Much better! |
Cute too! |
I set up my
ailing laptop on my desk with a keyboard and wireless mouse we already had. I'll use it more like a desktop PC until I
decide what exactly to do with it. The
technology is still relevant so it may be worth a repair. I gave it a good cleaning and it is running
cooler and I've been pricing replacement keyboards. Right now it seems to be operating well and I
want to work with it for a couple of weeks to make sure there isn't something
else going on with it. So we shall see
if I end up ordering parts or not. I really
hate to toss it out if it can be fixed.
Somebody thought that I needed a hand |
My oldest
gave me two old calculators to use since she has upgraded this year to a
graphing calculator for school. I like that
they have the bigger buttons and screen than my current one I got at the dollar
store about ten years ago. My youngest has
now commandeered the dollar store calculator for herself. It all works out.
In spite of
having an extra two days off for Christmas I volunteered and worked several
hours of overtime leading up to the end of the year. I was able to work those hours from home
which made it very nice. I plan to put the
extra income toward my debt elimination goal.
Christmas dinner - baked cheese manicotti with shrimp It was so good! |
I already
began my Christmas planning for 2017. I
know... I know…
I did not
grocery shop or doing any other type of shopping, for that matter. We just didn't need anything. J
I started a
January shopping list for Cash & Carry.
They have some really good bargains on meat right now and I could stock
up for the year quite easily.
In
anticipation of next week's shopping I washed out and re-organized the refrigerator. It is always nice to get that done ahead of
time, I think.
Wednesday
morning I impressed myself by using more of the old denim jeans I had saved to make
my daughter a case for the Kindle she got for Christmas. I even put one of the pockets on the front so
she had a place to store the charger. I
lined it with the flannel from my old pajama bottoms so it is nice and soft
inside. She loves it!
I saved the
rendered fat from frying bacon and put it in the jar I keep in the refrigerator.
I saved the
rendered fat from browning ground beef and mixed it with some scratch grains to
make the hens a suet cake. I used a
saved Cool Whip container to form it in.
I added a
little water to the dish soap bottle and gave it a good shake. I was able to wash two more loads of dishes.
I added a
dab of milk to the mayonnaise jar and gave it a good shake. I then used it in making up a batch of salad
dressing.
How was your
thrifty week?
All of your thriftiness is a constant inspiration to me! I am always so impressed with what you manage to do. I will be paying very close attention this year as my husband and I have some very big financial goals this year.
ReplyDeleteI am so looking forward to a thrifty 2017. I have some lofty financial goals myself! So glad you will be along for the ride. :)
DeleteSo sorry your daughter got the flu.. Sad..
ReplyDeleteYour dinner sounds wonderful. Proud you and girls had such a lovely Christmas.. The snow looks beautiful
I was sad for her too. Our dinner was delightful and I am enjoying the snow. It really is pretty!
DeleteI love this blog so much! I have read every single post since I found the blog last week. Interesting, fun, and very inspiring! Just LOVE it!
ReplyDeleteAnd it seems like you had a fabulously thrifty Christmas week! Those meals -- yum! I also love repurposing jeans into new things. Hope your daughter is better now, and that no one else caught the flu!
She is doing much better and so far, so good for the rest of us (fingers crossed). So glad you found us. Love hearing from my readers. :)
DeleteI hope your daughter is feeling better. You are really talented with your sewing and thriftiness!
ReplyDeleteShe is on the mend and doing much better. Thank you for your kind compliment. :) Happy New Year!!
DeleteSorry to hear your daughter had the flu. Hope she feels better, soon, and everyone else stays healthy. Looking forward to reading all about your thrifty ways in the new year.
ReplyDeleteShe was so sick, but is doing much better now. We are hoping and praying we don't get it. I'm so happy to hear you are going to follow my journey in 2017.
DeleteI'm glad your daughter is feeling better now. I'm so impressed with the Kindle holder and the mat by the front door that you made. I really do need to get my sewing machine set up and get busy on some projects myself. I no longer can use the excuse of having Christmas gifts stacked on the table that the sewing machine is on. ;)
ReplyDeleteLOL I understand! One thing sewing does is force me to slow down and do something less strenuous! And I'm creative in the process. Hope to hear about some of your projects soon. :)
DeleteLove the floor mat! I have an old kitchen sink mat (intended for the floor) at the top of the front entry stairs to corral boots/shoes. I'd much rather wash this upon occassion (it's sunny yellow so dirt eventually appears but it reminds me also, that it's doing the job!)than to clean the floors daily, as in mopping. I swiffer or vacuum otherwise almost daily, as we have 2 cats. I looked at buying a boot mat, hated the price, so I am making do; this works.
ReplyDeleteFunny how the item actually made for the job is so expensive. Fortunately there are always less expensive alternatives when we get a little creative and think outside the box.
DeleteThe holidays sure can get pricey. With the average for 2016 being over $900, it`s great to get thrifty. I appreciate your creativity, and found it very inspiring! I remember my mother used to always repurpose our old clothing, and make it into something exciting again. The floor matt, and kindle case were great ideas. Can`t wait to read more!
ReplyDeleteRudy Swanson @ HAAKER