Friday, September 30, 2016

Month End Update for September

Well, it is time to see how well I have managed to get my goals completed for this past month.



1.  Sew tops. Done.

2.  Jay's Christmas gift. Done.

3.  Jerry's Christmas gift.  Done.

4. Unfinished goals from August.  Not done.

5.  Cut out dress.  Done.

6.  Cut out jacket.  Done.

7.  Sew dress.  Not done

8.  Sew jacket.  Done.

9.  Start Kurt's Christmas gift.  Items needed are gathered together to start.

10.  Have 17 no spend days.  I had 20 no spend days this month....exceeded my goal.

11.  Harvest garden and herbs.  Still managing to harvest a few herbs almost every day to dehydrate.

Eight out of 11 so not too bad.

This month, along with all the rubbish taken out of the basement due to the demolition of various areas, I managed to remove 54 items from the house. My total so far for this year is 867 items. I am hoping to reach the number 1000 this year. I am so very close.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.


Thursday, September 29, 2016

Thursday Tid Bits

Once again it has been a quiet day. Well, mostly quiet, if a person ignored the banging downstairs.

Harvey decided it was time to remove more of the ceiling in the old part of the basement. He came upstairs once, and showed me how dirty he was!! The ceiling down there is (or should I say was) lath and plaster. It was a mess to get down and by the time he was finished he was black with dust and dirt that seemed to collect on top of that.

The basement no longer has a ceiling, the floors are swept, the walls torn down, and all the debris (well most of it) is in the back of the truck and ready to be hauled to the dump tomorrow.

Now we (Harvey, not me) plans on getting rid of some of the old wiring down there. That, as well as hauling out some of the larger pieces of removed wall, will take place next week.

After watching Harvey limping around after his hot soak in the tub, I made the decision to call off our date night until next week. The poor guy would not have enjoyed the movies at all tonight.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Infestation

We are having an infestation (outside thank heavens) of maple bugs, or as they are known around here as Halloween bugs (because they are black and orange in colour.

I say that they are God's joke insect because they don't seem to do anything. They don't bite, don't sting, and don't seem to cause any problems except cause a person the heebie jeebies.

Harvey has been spraying, but it seems like no matter how many we kill, twice as many take their place.

They follow us into the house and every morning I walk around with a fly swatter and kill them all.

Sure hope they disappear as quickly as they showed up.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Oh yeah, they are also called boxelder bugs so if any of you have a good way of getting rid of them please let me know.

Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Thrify Tuesday

I have been racking my brain to figure out anything that I did that was thrifty this week. Really, the week past has been fairly normal as far as thrift goes.

I have been using up food items, making them into new and interesting meals, using produce from the garden, dehydrating herbs, and laying out patterns to use up the smallest amount of fabric that I can.

I have also been using up bits and bobs of yarn making gifts for Christmas, repairing rather than replacing clothing and other items.

Every bit I can save makes it that much easier to pay off those pesky bills from the basement redo. A very costly endeavor all told.

I have also been setting side spare cash and coin to help with our stock up shop on Saturday. That will be an expensive outing, but one that will be thrifty in the long run as I won't have to shop as often (or at least the total costs of the following shops will be lower).

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Monday, September 26, 2016

Menu Monday

The end of another month is here. I am kind of looking forward to a long and colourful fall season. Well at least I hope to see a long and colourful season, but here one never knows what will happen weather wise.

Monday

Chicken breasts, mashed potatoes, and leftover salad.

Tuesday

Stir fry made with some steak that has been in the freezer for awhile. Serving it over rice.

Wednesday

Scalloped potatoes and ham served with carrots from the garden.

Thursday

Clean out the fridge night.

Friday

Perogies.

Saturday

We will be doing a big shop in the city so will be eating out.

Sunday

Baked ham, egg noodles, peas and carrots.

Hopefully I can clear out a bit of the fridge this week as I will need the room to store what we pick up on our big shop.

Everybody have a wonderful day.

God bless.

Sunday, September 25, 2016

Sunday Ramblings

It was a nice sunny day today, however the wind howled something terrible!! Because of the wind my fibromyalgia gave me a few problems and I have had a headache for most of the day.

I did manage to cut out the jacket and dress, hopefully at least one will be sewn before the end of the month (think I will do the dress first as that seems to be the easiest to sew. I am making a pretty hot pink sheath. Just hope it turns out well.

Today Father Brian talked about how we have to see our brother/sister in everyone we meet. We need to treat all with respect. Considering my Facebook page is full of people cutting others down, making fun of still others and just plain not respecting their fellow men/women, I think we may have a long way to go in that area.

I have tried to see the good in others, even if I do not care for that person personally. Everybody is deserving of respect and love no matter what. I do however have to learn to block all the negativity that seems to crop up every so often on Facebook. The bad thing is a great deal of the name calling seems to come from my relatives.... So true that you can pick your friends but not your relatives.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Saturday, September 24, 2016

Saturday Roundup

This week has seen the end of a few projects and jobs around the house.

Hubby is removing some walls in the basement for the furnace install when it happens. I hope to take photos once it is all completed.

I made the cabbage rolls for the winter. I only got 8 trays and once I give Kurt and Kris a tray each that only leaves us 6. I may be making a few more....

I baked bread.


Dehydrated more green peppers, along with some herbs.


I managed to clean out a few more pots of flowers, and hopefully will get more cleaned out when the rain stops (perhaps on Monday).

I decluttered the cold room and Harvey decluttered the storage room in the basement. There are quite a few items we need to take to recycling and a few that can be donated.

I even managed to finish another Christmas gift (that makes two now, pictures to follow very soon).

Spent some time in the sewing/craft room and managed to finish the two tops I had cut out.

They need to be pressed, but for all intents and purposes they are done.

I even got the fabric ready for the next two projects that I want to at least cut out this month. With any luck at all I may even get one sewn (pattern is a very simple dress).

All in all a very productive week.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Friday, September 23, 2016

Frugal Friday


It is the start of another weekend and the time when I try and find at least five frugal things I have done this week.

1.  Managed to save almost $40.00 when grocery shopping today. This was with coupon use, and BOGO free offers. I even stuck to my list once again and even managed to stock up on a few items.

2.  Once again laundry was hung on the line to dry.

3.  Using leftovers to make new meals or using them up at lunch. I have even made a couple of TV style dinners for Kris to take back with him.

4.  Harvesting herbs for dehydrating still, onions picked, as well as potatoes and carrots harvested and put aside for the winter.

5.  I have finished another Christmas gift using yarn left from other projects and started another gift with still more leftover project yarn.

6.  The furnace is not turned on as of yet and the air conditioners are not running either.

After adding up the expenses incurred on the basement, I think we may have to tighten our belts a bit over the next few months. Nothing drastic, but I would really like to cut spending by a bit especially since we have two reunions to attend next summer.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Thursday, September 22, 2016

Last day of Hunt the Pic

Just four more pictures and the scavenger hunt is over. The five days have passed by very quickly.

Weakness

 

As you can see, I have a weakness for yarn......... For the life of me I can not pass by a good sale.

Elegance

A bride getting ready for her big day. Style, grace and elegance all combined.

Aroma

The smell of freshly made bread.

Happiness

Working around our house to make it a home.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.



Wednesday, September 21, 2016

Day Four of Hunt the Pic

Sight

A beautiful sunset. God painting the sky.

Beauty

Columbine growing so straight and tall, a beautiful blue addition to my garden.

Arrangement

Arranging quilt blocks into a pleasing pattern.

Grace

Graceful lines in our church sanctuary.... Also a place where Grace is given.

There you have my choices for the next four words. Hard to believe that this scavenger hunt is almost at an end.

Everybody have a wonderful day.

God bless.



Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Thrifty Tuesday and Hunt the Pic #3

Perhaps the thriftiest thing I have done since my last post is spend time making sure all leftovers are used up. Amazingly I have managed to get two full meals from leftovers saving on the grocery budget, and still feeding us very well. By using up leftovers I stay out of stores making it easy to save money for what we feel is important. Someone might say it is only a dollar or two we manage to save, but those dollars add up and eventually become enough to take a trip, buy a new furnace, or fix up the basement.

Never let someone say that the little things you don't make a difference cause they do.

Now on to Hunt the Pic with Mum.

Source

My faith is a source of comfort and joy. It makes me who I am.

Glance

These help me to "glance" at lovely fabrics, yarns and of course my loving husband. However Harvey would probably say they help me give him the "look".

Spectacle

Snow covered peaks surrounding a mountain lake of green.

Inspiration

My grandparents who never gave up no matter how hard things became for them. I am sure raising families during the 30's was not an easy task.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.


Monday, September 19, 2016

Menu Monday and Hunt the Pic #2

First off my regular Monday post.

Monday

Pork roast, roasted potatoes, roasted carrots.

Tuesday

Meat loaf, mashed potatoes, peas and salad.

Wednesday

Leftover pork roast made into a casserole.

Thursday

Clean out the fridge night, all leftovers used up.

Friday

Baked trout, rice, yellow beans and salad.

Saturday

Leftover Chicken made into Tetrazzini.

Sunday

Baked Ham, scalloped potatoes, peas and carrots.

So there is my menu plan for the week.

Now on to the scavenger hunt.

I am going to miss the word source for a bit and move on to the next word.

Tune or Song

The mourning doves greet us as the sun rises with their cooing.

Wink

In the wink of an eye a young boy (my godson) grows to manhood and is married.

Comfort

Seeing a beloved brother in law happily married.

Thought

A thoughtful gift from Kurt when our priest was killed in a terrible accident, one I considered a close friend.

So there are my entries for the second day of the scavenger hunt. Please go to Mums to see what everyone else has posted.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.




Sunday, September 18, 2016

Hunt The Picture

Joining in with Mum on her picture scavenger hunt.

Here are the first few pictures.

Dream

Waking up to this view every day.

Possession

My angel collection.

Passion

My family.

Wonder

How each flower is absolutely perfect.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.



Friday, September 16, 2016

Frugal Friday

Ahh, the weekend arrives bringing with it time to get things done outside (more flowers to be dumped and a digging of the potatoes).

Frugal happenings around here have been few and far between. However, there have been a few.

1.  The air conditioning has been off all week, great savings on electricity.

2.  I dehydrated more herbs, picked more tomatoes, dried green peppers and dug up all the onions.

3.  Used leftover yarn from another project to make my brothers their Christmas gifts.

4.  Used up the homemade ranch dressing, and am going to try a different recipe, along with a recipe for Italian dressing.

5.  Stuck to my grocery list and managed to get everything I needed on sale.

6.  Deposited 4 dividend cheques and a cheque from our Coop grocery store for our refund on spending.

So while money was leaving the savings account, I was managing to curb my own urge to spend (happens this time of year). I think it has to do with the days growing shorter and my need to keep busy all the time, so I usually spend on things that I can craft with or read during the upcoming long, dark nights.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Thursday, September 15, 2016

Mid Month Update

So I planned on updating my monthly goals and declutter project tonight. What do I find? I didn't even post my goals for the month. Guess I will just have to post and update at the same time.

1.  Sew tops. Not done

2.  Jay's Christmas gift. Done

3.  Jerry's Christmas gift.  Started, about half done.

4. Unfinished goals from August.  Not done.

5.  Cut out dress.  Not done

6.  Cut out jacket.  Not done

7.  Sew dress.  Not done

8.  Sew jacket.  Not done

9.  Start Kurt's Christmas gift.  Items needed are gathered together to start.

10.  Have 17 no spend days.  I am up to 11 for the month so far.

11.  Harvest garden and herbs.  An ongoing project, a bit each day.

So there you have it. Looks like a busy month ahead.

Project declutter is moving along. Perhaps not as speedily as I would like but so far another 11 items have left my home for another. Hopefully this number will grow as the month progresses.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Stuffed

Today I am going to share a recipe with all of you for stuffed eggplant. Yes, we were stuffed after eating them.

Here is a picture of them before they went into the oven to bake.

The recipe came from Food.com, but I changed it slightly to suit our tastes and to use what I had on hand.

Stuffed Eggplant

1 large eggplant (I used 3 smaller eggplants)
3 tbsp. olive oil, divided
1/2 lb ground beef
salt and pepper
1 medium onion finely diced
1 small red pepper diced (I didn't use the red pepper)
1 small green pepper diced (I used two)
3 cloves garlic, minced (I used 1 1/2 tsp of the ready minced garlic in a jar)
1/2 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp dried basil
1 1/4 cups grated romano cheese (I used a mixture of mozzarella and parmesan)
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1 egg
2 small tomatoes chopped

Preheat oven to 350 F. Cut egg plant in half and scoop out the center, leaving enough meat in the skin so that the eggplant holds its shape. Boil the scooped out center part until soft about 10-12 minutes.

Meanwhile in a medium pan heat 1 tbsp. oil over medium heat. Season the beef with salt and pepper and add it to the pan. Saute until all of its liquid is evaporated and the beef begins to brown slightly. Drain the beef. Let cool briefly and chop the cooked beef so that there are no large chunks of meat. Put in a bowl. Add remaining oil to pan and add the onions, peppers and garlic. Saute until onion and peppers are tender.

In the bowl with the cooked beef mix vegetables, herbs, 1 cup of mozzarella cheese, bread crumbs and the egg.

Fill the scooped out eggplant halves with the mixture, dividing it evenly between the halves.

Top with chopped tomatoes and the remaining cheese (this is where I used the parmesan), season with salt and pepper once again. Place on an oiled baking tray and bake for 30 minutes or until the eggplant is soft. Let cool briefly and serve.

This is what they looked like on my plate.

The two small halves I had more than filled me up.

All the items except for the meat, cheese (and salt/pepper) came from my garden and so was a relatively inexpensive meal.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Tuesday, September 13, 2016

Thrifty Tuesday

Tuesday, and finally we have the house to ourselves for a few days. The construction crew left a few hours ago and Harvey and I feel much better about the basement walls.

Tomorrow we go to look at wall board, however we are leaning towards drywall for our wall covering with a wide vinyl baseboard. The way the new walls are constructed we do not have to worry about the old collapsing or water getting at the drywall from behind. Fixing the walls was a thrifty move on our part (though the cost was high). We also put in insulation which should help lower our heating costs, another thrifty move on our part.

Today I woke up to a hard frost. Even though we had flowers and veggies covered there was still a bit of frost damage. So I picked all the green peppers, and now have 5 of them dehydrating. I usually freeze them, but thought I would try this instead, saving room in the freezer.

Two trays of garden goodness to be stored later tonight.

I also found some yarn to make one of my nieces a lovely scarf, hat and mittens for Christmas. Ruby red and sparkly, just perfect for a 17 year old.

Buttons and a seam in one of Harvey's shirts were repaired to round out a thrifty day.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.


Monday, September 12, 2016

Menu Monday

Another week of meals.... Nothing really spetacular, but a using up of the bounty that our garden has provided this year. The hail coming when it did put paid to a really bountiful harvest, the lack of heat did not help the eggplant, and the only items that seemed to grow well this year were the onions and surprisingly the tomatoes. Even my herbs are not as bountiful as other years. So I am using up what I can, where I can to extend the pantry and freezer.

Monday

Stuffed eggplant, just not sure which of two recipes I will use.

Tuesday

Leftover beef, perhaps made into hot beef sandwiches along with fries and a salad.

Wednesday

Clean out the fridge night...lots to chose from. Bits and bobs from various meals

Thursday

Sweet and Sour Ribs, rice, peas and carrots, and the remaining salad.

Friday

Salmon patties, mashed potatoes, green beans, and perhaps some sliced cucumbers and dip.

Saturday

Hotdogs, and brown beans.

Sunday

As I will be making Cabbage Rolls (stuffed cabbage) I will have that for supper. Harvey will be gone to the football game in Regina and eating out there.

Everybody have a wonderful day.

God bless.

Saturday, September 10, 2016

Saturday Roundup

It has been a quiet week on the old homestead. Things seem to be revolving around the reconstruction of the basement. Meaning that I have not really gotten much completed.

I have been working on decluttering and Christmas gifts though and hope to have pictures of some finished projects next week.

I have been continuing to harvest the garden. Today three more containers of tomato sauce will be put in the freezer. The dehydrating of various herbs continues, today I took a bit of a rest from the dehydrating, but tomorrow it will be started once again.

I picked some peppers today and plan on using a few in our meals this week, the rest will be sliced and frozen to use in spaghetti sauce and stews this winter.

I have been watering the plants sparingly. Funny thing, most are growing very well. My Moonflowers seem to have forgotten they are supposed to bloom at night. Many of the blossoms are showing up during the day, and only two plants are showing off this year. Really it is amazing how one storm at the wrong time of the year can cause such an upset with plants.

This month will be one of using things up, getting a handle on expenses, and just getting ready for the colder weather I know will be coming.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Friday, September 9, 2016

Frugal Friday

The end of what used to be the work week for us two old retired people. Actually, what I am looking forward to is a couple of days with no drilling, hammering, or other such noise coming from the basement.

Now what did I do that was frugal this week?

1.  The air conditioner has been off for most of this week. It has cooled off enough in the evening that we manage to keep the house cooled off during the day.

2.  Baked bread twice this week.

3.  Used a 10% off service work on Hubby's truck.

4.  Stayed out of the stores most of the week.

5.  Reading books from the library.

6.  Using up leftovers at various meals.

So that has been my frugal week. I, will hopefully be able to extend my no spend days through the weekend, continue my decluttering and work on my monthly goals. It is getting close to the time we start to haul in what is left of the garden as well.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Thursday, September 8, 2016

Thursday Tid Bits

We have had another day of rain and cloud. I did manage to get out and do my shopping and have my two daily walks between downpours.

The basement wall reinforcing is continuing and I am looking forward to having it completed tomorrow or Monday. The electrician comes tomorrow as well, so money is leaving the chequing account as fast as I can transfer it from the savings account. Makes for a few sleepless nights.

Here are a few more pictures from our vacation.

One evening we did a safari with one of the conservation officers. On the first part of our hike we saw these skulls (of course they were planted). We received a wonderful lecture on the elk in the park and how they were almost wiped out by tuberculosis.

Traveling a bit farther on the same hike we saw these nodules growing out of the Quaking Aspen trees.

Turns out that the First Nations People used these to carry the embers from a fire from one place to another.

That dark hole in the mound of dirt turned out to be an old black bear den. The bear was long gone, but it was interesting to learn that most dens are made by the female bear and not the male.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.




Wednesday, September 7, 2016

Vacation

I promised you all some pictures of our vacation.

The historic gate on the east side of the park. It was built in the 1930's during the make work campaign.

One of the rather large bison that wander the range in the park. Actually there are two bison, we managed to see about 20 this time around.

The park headquarters also built during the 1930's.

A picture from one of the higher points in the park. You can see where the park ends and the farm land begins.

I promise to share a few more pictures with you later.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.