Thrifty Tuesday

The temperatures have fallen, the furnace is running more, and the sun didn't really shine at all today. Drapes are closed against the cold and dark so we are nesting once again.

Today I had three very thrifty moments on the old homestead.

Harvey had a couple of shirts that needed buttons. Of course he didn't manage to save said buttons, and had no idea where they ended up. Out came my seam ripper and I removed all the buttons from both shirts. I pulled out my button jars (I have my buttons separated by colour) and pulled enough matching buttons out to repair his shirts. The buttons I removed were added to my collection.

Then he had a couple of long sleeved t-shirts that had the elbow coming through. I made those into short sleeved tees that he can wear until they are only fit to be rags (that's how the man rolls).

Lunch saw us using up some of the myriad of leftovers that seem to collect in the fridge. Really, I don't know where they all come from. I am sure that in the dark, moist, cool of the fridge those suckers multiply. Then to use up even more in the ways of leftovers I made a stir fry for supper. Of course there is enough left of that for another meal. Now I just have to warm up, and will save myself some time and effort later in the week.

Tomorrow I will update all of you on how well I did as far as my goals last month, give you all a look at my new goals for February and let you know how we did with the monthly budget.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Menu Monday

A bit late today with this post, but I have been watching the news about the terrorist attack on the mosque in Quebec City. So very, very sad.

Monday

Leftover ham, peas and parmesan noodles.

Tuesday

Leftover pork made into a stir fry and served with rice.

Wednesday

Small pork sausages made into a casserole.

Thursday

Leftover chicken from Sunday made into a casserole. I may try my hand at making chicken enchiladas.....

Friday

Fish fillets (probably salmon) served with a salad (or sliced raw veggies and dip) and rice.

Saturday

We will be out of town so supper will be out.

Sunday

Roast Beef, roasted carrots and potatoes.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Sunday Ramblings

Yesterday, the highway was not in very good condition and because of this we ended up not travelling to Regina to do our big shop. The weather is supposed to get colder over the next week so the roads should not be as icy (wind blew the snow over a melting road and caused some areas of the highway to be sheer ice), so we will be making the trip up next weekend. I do think Kris was a bit disappointed that we weren't coming up, but phoned us tonight to talk. He seems to be happy knowing we will be coming up next weekend.

Today has been quiet, a day of reflection and working on my knitting projects. I really should be sewing, but my sewing mojo seems to be hibernating right now. I am hoping that it will come back next month.

The gospel today was the Beatitudes, one of my favorite gospel readings.

I can envision Christ moving among the people saying Blessed be the poor in spirit....... and touching his followers softly on the head as he moves among them.

With the world in turmoil, and the very unchristian happenings to the south of us, more and more I am turning to the New Testament and the teachings of Christ. He tells us to open our hearts and homes to those who have less, that no matter the colour of a persons skin or their beliefs we are to love them as we love ourselves.

I am a great believer in love conquers all.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Frugal Friday

Time for my frugal five for this week.

1.  Once again blinds and drapes open wide during the day to take advantage of the heat and light of the sun.

2.  Knitting up the small leftover balls of yarn into squares to make some blankets.

3.  Used up some more fabric making another set of pillowcases for my rather over sized pillow.

4.  Used up a tube of lotion that was given to me as a Christmas gift from a student many years ago.

5.  Watching an old British crime series on my android box for entertainment.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Thursday Tid Bits

Thank you one and all for your comments. I have decided to just step back and let my friend try and handle her husband and his spending/giving money to the kids habit. I did help her set up a menu for the upcoming week (even gave her ideas for the leftovers, since her Hubby does not like eating frozen items....says the flavour changes). We even pulled out her bread machine and I got her started on making bread at least once a week (hopefully they will love it so much that bread machine will be used more often).

Tomorrow I am going to show her how to thread her sewing machine and do some minor repairs. D always takes her mending in to the seamstress here in the city and I want to show her how hemming, sewing on buttons, or even fixing a seam can save her lots of cash in the long run.

I figure that the more I show her how to watch the pennies without pushing a budget the more likely it will be that D can get her husband to climb on the frugal train. I am hoping that eventually they will both learn that just because you are frugal, it doesn't mean you can't have fun or that you are cheap.

Next week I hope to introduce her to not grabbing something to eat on the way home from appointments, or because she (and he) are too tired to cook.

The rest of the day has been spent here on the old homestead. Quiet, plenty of tea, a glass of wine with Hubby before supper, and lots of knitting.

I managed to get a bit of decluttering accomplished in my closet. As I folded items to place in the bag/bags I thought to myself that I could really get along with much less in the way of dressy clothing. Perhaps that will be something to think about. Yes, skirts, tops, and simple dresses are extremely easy for me to sew, but perhaps I should be sewing things like pants, shorts and t-shirts instead. My lifestyle has changed and it is probably time that my closet and drawers showed this.

Worked on a couple of lists today. I figured out the extra cleaning I want to get completed next month, and got a good start on my monthly goal list. I am also getting ready to start another price book. I used one when I first started on my journey, and over the last few years I kind of laid it aside. With prices going up it will be nice to have something with which to check sale prices. I may be traveling to more than one grocery store once again.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Midweek Musings

Today I spent part of the afternoon trying to help my friend convince her husband that they needed to be a bit more proactive in regards to their money situation.

My friend has been off work for almost a year now, the place she worked did not have long term disability so she went on short term, then Unemployment disability, and now is using up what holidays she has. Paperwork is underway for Canada Pension Disability, but it is not for certain that she will be able to collect that. Her husband collects Canada Pension, plus a pension from the company he worked for.

They should be able to live on what her husband brings in, and in a few years D will be eligible for Canada Pension and the pension from her previous work place. There is a bit of money put aside in retirement savings as well.

Now comes the big problem. When their boys were young they took out a second mortgage on their home to pay for A and AAA hockey for two, and AAA baseball for one. Then when they could no longer borrow against their home, they took out a line of credit.

Over the years they borrow from the line of credit to pay off their MasterCard and Visa bills, then in a few years extend their line of credit and use it to pay off the second mortgage. Give another few months and they are once again extending their line of credit.

Right now they are barely keeping the bills paid, and still D's Hubby spends money. He spent money they did not have to buy a snow blower for their son, and to help pay for their grandson to play AAA hockey. All three of their boys owe them money and none of them seem to be paying it back.

I don't want to push too hard, as I do value D's friendship and have a feeling if I keep pushing budget her Hubby will get mad and not allow her to see me.

I have a feeling they are going to hit rock bottom before things change and I suppose all I can do is stand by them.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Thrifty Tuesday

Another quiet day. It seems like every day rolls by much the same as every other day this winter.

Today was the perfect day to stay in and follow some thrifty pursuits.

Over the years I have done a great deal of knitting and being the type of person I am, and from what I saw my mother do, all those leftover skeins and balls of yarn have been saved. I have knit hats, scarves and mitts from the leftovers and even a shawl or two from what I inherited from my Mom. However, a person can only use so many hats, scarves or mitts and can only knit so many to give away to schools and the various homeless shelters before you hit a wall and say "Please, is there anything else you can use?"

A couple of days ago, I pulled out all the leftover shades of purple and pink yarn and started knitting squares. I hope to have enough squares to make a blanket or perhaps even two blankets. I plan on taking them to the nursing home here in the city, perhaps they can be used to keep a senior or two comfortable. If they go over well there, I think I may make a few for our Warm Welcome Shelter which runs during the winter months. I have a feeling my Mom would really love this idea.

No wasting, using something to make someone happy or at least comfortable, to let them know that someone cares enough to reach out is the best possible way for me to use my thrifty ways. It also makes me feel a bit better about my leftover yarn "hoarding".

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Menu Monday

Another week, another weekly menu plan.

Monday

Clean out the fridge night. We will be having the leftover baked spaghetti along with a salad.

Tuesday

Leftover roast beef. I am thinking hot beef sandwiches along with home made fries and some salad (probably leftover salad from Monday).

Wednesday

Stew and dumplings.

Thursday

Hot dogs, baked beans, and probably pasta of some type.

Friday

Soup and sandwiches. I plan on using up some stock from the freezer.

Saturday

Now if we head to Regina for a stock up shop, supper will be out. If the weather is such that we can't go we will have leftover stew for our supper. Probably served with or on thick slices of bread.

Sunday

Roast chicken, roast potatoes, roasted carrots.

Lunches will be the bits and bobs from previous meals or sandwiches.

Everybody have a wonderful day.

God bless.

Sunday Ramblings

The fog lifted today and while the sun was not shining, the temperature was at least lovely and there was no wind.

I did a bit of a walk after Mass trying to figure out where I am being called and how to actually get where I am called to be. This is going to take awhile to figure out and a great deal of time in prayer and quiet listening.

I finished the shawl today and so my next task during evening knitting sessions will be working on various coloured knit squares. Those knit squares will eventually be sewn together to make another blanket for the living room to keep us warm on those chilly evenings.

Knitting while watching television is how I spend many an evening and weekend afternoons. This weekend I finished off the Victoria season, started watching Cold Feet (I heard them talking about it at the end of each Victoria episode) and didn't like it. So I managed to find the next season of Midsomer Murders!! I do like that show and will probably watch another two sessions next weekend. 

Tomorrow Harvey and I head to the bank to talk to our financial advisor. There really isn't much that she can tell us. Interest rates are low, prices are rising, and things no longer look as rosy as they used to. We will be just fine, budgeting and living within our means will see us well through our retirement years.

I do worry about the boys however. Not so much Kurt as he is a teacher and so far has enough seniority in his school division to at least be safe for the foreseeable future. Kris on the other hand is in a business where layoffs and redundancies seem to be a daily occurrence. I will keep both of them in my thoughts and prayers.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Saturday Roundup

All has been quiet here, we have had almost a full week of lovely weather (the lowest temperature being -12 C  and the highest 0 C in the morning). I loved being able to get out and walk. Today was not quite as nice as it has been, not that it was cold, more that a heavy freezing fog moved in. While the trees look lovely covered with hoar frost, it felt damp and because visibility (even in the city) was bad I stuck to an area around my home. Hopefully I can get a walk in tomorrow with no fog to keep me contained to this area.

As far as projects go this week.....

The finished lily cross stitch. I found some orange fabric that might just enable me to make this into a pillow. Then again I do have some green fabric that could be used as well.

Evenings are spent knitting, curled up in my favorite chair and watching various programmes on the television. This is going to be my new shawl/wrap. I call the pattern my dishcloth shawl. Mainly because it is fashioned using the same pattern as the first dishcloth I made. It is on a bigger scale though.

I have picked my next cross stitch kit out and sorted the threads. I am hoping to make another flower based one and turn it into a pillow also. I can perhaps recycle two of the older pillows in the living room.

I have also gathered together all the partial skeins and wound balls of yarn. I think I will make a blanket of many colours for my next knitting project. Just have to figure out how to combine all the strange colours together so the darn thing looks decent.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Frugal Friday

My frugal five for the past week:

1.  Had my early morning walks on most days. Free exercise is wonderful.

2.  Free coffee at a friends. I did help her with her knee exercises and she repaid me with coffee.

3.  Blinds and drapes opened to take advantage of the suns light and solar heating.

4.  Using up yarn from my stash to make a lovely shawl for this spring, summer and fall.

5.  Used up three pieces of fabric from other projects cutting out patterns of tops.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Beef Jerky

This is the recipe for Beef Jerky I use. Mind you this is with a few tweaks and changes to make it a bit more cost effective.

Beef Jerky

1/3 cup (75 ml) soy sauce
3 tbsp. (50 ml) brown sugar
2 tsp. (10 ml) Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp. (1 ml) onion powder
1/4 tsp. (1 ml) ground ginger
1/4 tsp. (1ml) garlic powder
1/4 tsp (1 ml) liquid smoke
1/2 tsp. (2 ml) table salt

 1 to 1 1/2 lbs Lean beef steak, visible fat removed about 1" thick


I always partially freeze the steak after removing the visible fat this makes it much easier to slice in 1/4 inch slices. You cut across the grain of the meat not with the grain.

Mix the other ingredients in a small bowl. I pour this into a zipper top bag and then add the meat. Let marinate in the fridge overnight and pour into a bowl. As you remove the strips of beef draw them across the edge of the bowl to remove excess marinade. Place on dehydrator trays. Turn on dehydrator and if you are lucky enough to have a temperature dial turn to 150 F or 65 C. Cook for 7 to 8 hours. Turn over strips at about the halfway point.

Keep in fridge or freeze for long term storage. However it never lasts that long around here.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

A Bit Of A Break

Not from blogging, but from the extremely cold weather we had for the last couple of weeks.

Today we got to work around the yard a bit, getting rid of snow on the roof, on the deck, and clearing some ice out of the gutters. In fact it got so warm the snow has started to melt, and water was running out the downspouts. I even got my early morning walk in since it was so nice.

The rest of the day was spent working on getting the sewing/craft room straightened out (a never ending task it seems) and those tops cut out. I can now start to sew them up tomorrow, thus finishing another goal.

The cross stitch is completed, and pictures will be posted one of these days soon. I think I will make a pillow out of it as I have another flower type cross stitch ready to go once the sewing is done. Two new pillows will brighten up the living room a bit.

I have been a good girl for the past few weeks. Nothing new has been bought, I have stuck to using things up as much as possible, stuck to my grocery list, and ran around turning off lights in rooms not in use (something Harvey seems to have a bit of a problem with once again). This will continue until the end of the month, we want to make a stock up trip to the capital (get to visit with Kris as well) and it will be a spendy one. We are running low on many basic items and for some reason those basics do not seem to be going on sale. I am also running out of certain thread colours and flosses (not so much fabric and yarn, but one never knows) so I am hoping to run into a good sale at Fabricland and at Michael's.

We also want to look at dehydrators. I would like a bigger one so that the two smaller ones we have can be donated, or in the case of one sent to the recycling depot. The ones I have do not have a temperature control and that is something I could really use when making jerky or drying herbs.

So my list is going to be made over the next few weeks and we will be set for the rest of the winter. I find that this stocking up every three months or so really helps out with the budget overall. The expense for that one month can be scary, but the next few months are very low. I do understand that this does not work for everyone, but it does work for us.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Menu Monday

Since last week got a bit mixed up due to our heading out for a Chinese meal on our anniversary. People may notice that meals that were not made last week will be made this week (only two that I see so far).

Monday

Hamburgers, homemade baked beans and a salad.

Tuesday

Stuffed Chicken Breasts, leftover salad, roasted veggies and rice.

Wednesday

Spaghetti and sauce. I plan on making another salad here or serving with garlic bread.

Thursday

Leftover ham made into a ham and rice casserole (using up the leftover rice and broccoli as well).

Friday

Perogies, sour cream and loads of fried onions.

Saturday

Baked spaghetti, using up the leftover spaghetti and sauce.

Sunday

Here is the Roast Beef that we were to have on the 15th. Serving this with roast potatoes, roast carrots and I may even make a gravy.

Lunches will be the usual sandwiches or leftovers, and breakfasts will be toast or yogurt for me.

Everybody have a wonderful day.

God bless.

Midmonth Goal Update

1.  Take down Christmas decorations.  Done

2.  Cut out three tops.  One has been cut out, two more to go.

3.  Sew two tops.  Not done.

4.  List Messy Bun/Pony Tail Hats for sale.  Pictures to be taken and this should be completed tomorrow.

5.  Declutter.  Ongoing goal.

6.  Burn our Spain/Portugal holiday and other pictures to CD.  Done.

7.  Work on projects to use inherited yarn, and cross stitch/embroidery items. On going goal which is worked on everyday.

8.  Have 20 no spend days this month.  I have managed to string 10 no spend days together so far this month.

The declutter project is still moving along nicely. So far this month I have managed to remove or recycle another 204 items from the house. Of course most of this was knitting magazines, but still removing something from the house that I "could or might" use has always been difficult for me. This time I gave myself permission to go through said magazines and remove those patterns that I might use down the road. Who knows perhaps next year those will be leaving my house as well.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Saturday Roundup

No real project completions so no pictures to share.

Still working on the lilies cross stitch, though I am getting very close to being finished, did sew up all the knitted pony tail/messy bun hats, did burn the DVD's of pictures from the computer (must delete those files and do a clean up tomorrow) and continued with the decluttering in the sewing/craft room.

While things are not totally completed (except for the sewing up of the knitting) things are being accomplished slowly but surely. Perhaps I will even have pictures soon to share with all of you.

I have started a shawl to use up two balls of yarn bought specifically for this project. Nothing like wrapping up in the cuddly warmth of a hand knitted shawl on cool spring and fall mornings or evenings. Heck, I even wrap up in one while in bed reading or watching Netflix.

We are going to be having a lovely week temperature wise and I am going to be starting my morning walks once again. It will be nice to be out in the fresh air, and perhaps I can manage to take some pictures of all our snow, and there is a great deal of it. The roads are clear however and that will make walking so nice.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Frugal Friday

My frugal five for this week:

1.  Blinds and drapes open on those sunny days to take advantage of the solar heating and light from the sun (and when it is -52 C with the wind chill having the bright sun beam into the front room sure keeps the furnace from continually running).

2.  Brought home the leftover Chinese food from our anniversary supper. We had another supper and a lunch from what we brought home. 6 meals, how wonderful.

3.  Using up the bits and bobs of yarn and fabric around the house.

4.  Getting everything together to list on the handmade site, plus some of the garage sale sites.

5.  Using the last of the DVD's to copy my pictures to. I have one completed (then the computer started acting weird...must have done something wrong) and hopefully will get three more done very shortly.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

What To Do

I have often spoken of the inherited craft projects from my Mom. I am slowly but surely working my way through them all. I do have to mix in a few of my own projects, but the end of the cross stitch kit projects seems to be in sight.

The following are the ones left from Mom's stash.

So a whole 8 kits left to work my way through (please excuse the yellowish pictures, for some reason the flash on my camera is acting very strangely).

I figure that doing the easy ones first will give me the most satisfaction, and perhaps the most bang for my time.

After these are done, I must get the stamped embroidery and the sugar bag tea towels completed. My mom always seemed to have something on the go, and it looks like she had planned to be busy for another 10 or so years.

At least now I will have room for a few of my own projects.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Not So Thrifty Tuesday

It actually did start off being a rather thrifty day. I had every intention of making a stir fry and enjoying a quiet winter's day here on the old homestead.

That is until Harvey realized something....

It is our 41st wedding anniversary today and so Harvey slipped out after lunch today and bought me flowers. Not my usual yellow roses, but one can just not help but smile at all the happy colours (and there is some yellow).

I had planned on spending a few hours going through all these knitting magazines.

Plus I have another shelf full after these are done. I am going through them and tearing out those patterns I may just try, and recycling the rest of the magazine to either one of the schools, or if I don't rip any pattern pages out they will be going to the Salvation Army. Guess I can work on this some over the next few days. Hoping to have those shelves cleaned out by the end of the week and have many more items leaving my home as well.

Instead I was whisked out for a Chinese supper (not complaining, the stir fry can easily be made in the near future). The remains of our meal have been brought home and will be used for our supper tomorrow.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Anyone else having trouble getting blogger to upload pictures?

Menu Monday

Here we are into the second week of January 2017 already and I am finally back to what passes for normal here on the old homestead. Actually, normal is not something that is always going on here, but to all intents and purposes I am at least back to being able to keep up with everything, and even finish what I start.

Looking out the window about an hour ago, it was clear and I could see the sun rising. Looking out the window now, well it is snowing and blowing. I think we might be headed into a bit of a January snow storm. The first of this year.

Here is my menu for the upcoming week.

Monday

I made meatloaf a couple of nights ago so we will be having leftovers along with some hash brown patties and salad.

Tuesday

I am going to use a package of the meat I put in the freezer last night and make stir fried pork. Serving this with rice.

Wednesday

The bag of leftover turkey that is in the freezer will be made into something new and different. Just have to pull out the cookbooks and find something that our taste buds will enjoy.

Thursday

Clean out the fridge night.

Friday

Tuna casserole. I will be serving this with a nice salad or perhaps roasted veggies.

Saturday

Hamburgers, homemade fries, and probably slaw.

Sunday

Roast beef, roasted potatoes, roasted carrots.

Everybody have a wonderful day.

God bless.

Sunday Ramblings

Today let us follow the call of Pope Francis to open our door to all who seek entrance. May this Epiphany see a welcoming of all.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Saturday Roundup

I started a new cross stich project at the end of Christmas.

This is one of the many kits I inherited from my mother (well that Dad gathered up and gave to me after Mom died) and since I decided to work my through them all this was next on the list after the ornaments.

It seems to be working up fairly quickly, which makes a nice change. I hope to get it done in a couple of weeks and then I will move on to the next one.

I also cast a new project onto my needles at the beginning of the week.

I am using some recycled yarn from a sweater I disassembled awhile back to knit an infinity scarf (notice I knit this not in the round) and once the scarf is completed I will make a pair of mittens for myself (I always need mittens, cause I seem to lose them over the course of a couple of winters). Hopefully the set will be done by the end of the month.

Having to stay inside because of the extremely cold wind chills is helping get projects completed. Having to stay inside because of the extremely cold wind chills is helping with the extra cleaning list. Having to stay inside because of the extremely cold wind chills is not helping with my exercise program!

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Frugal Friday

Hoping that I have had five new frugal things for this week.

1.  Downloaded a few books to my ereader. Also downloaded a few I paid for, but they were all very inexpensive.

2.  Took apart a sweater to recycle the yarn.

3.  Walked three days this week.

4.  Used a number of coupons when shopping. I don't think I will ever manage to make it to Extreme Couponer status, but every little bit of savings helps.

5.  Using up, making do and doing without as much as possible.

Here is a picture of our snow for the month of December.

This is the snow bank from blowing the snow in our driveway. I am afraid that soon there will be no place for more.

Hope everybody stays nice and warm.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Cold and More Cold

The next few days are going to be cold ones. Time to nest here on the frozen prairies if you can.

I got a phone call today and my damaged Terraine was ready to be picked up. This is a whole day sooner than I was told it would be ready. It even smells brand new!!! Feels so good to not be sitting on the ground and driving, my loaner was an Impala and something I am just not used to driving under the conditions we have right now.

So since I now have my own vehicle back I won't be nesting in my nice warm house. Instead I will be making my first grocery run of the new year. I have made my list and will be sticking to it. As it is mostly dairy and produce the bill should not be excessive.

We are setting up the budget for this year and are hoping that prices do not go up as much as we are being told they are. This year we will only be raising the medical, house insurance and property taxes lines.

I will really be watching what we spend on groceries and hopefully will be able to hold the line here. After seeing what the stores are charging for herbs I think I just might extend my herb garden. Herbs are so easy to plant in containers and that makes them very easy to harvest.

I usually plant mint, oregano, parsley, sage, thyme, and rosemary but would like to branch out a bit. I am open to suggestions.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

My Techie Skills

Today my shipment from Amazon arrived. Surprisingly, even with the holidays it came a day earlier then we were given to believe it would.

So far my skills with technology have not been too taxed. Well, perhaps a bit with the plug and play features of the Slim Line external hard drive.

How hard could it be to attach something this small and innocent looking to a computer. Right????

Well, the first time trying to download and install the program that runs this tiny little thing didn't take. So I had to do it all over a second time, restart the computer and cross anything that I possibly could. This time I got the program installed.

Now it was time to backup the computer. Hmmm, did the backup twice and nothing, no files at all were backed up. So after a bit of fooling around I managed to at least backup important files, and set the backup of said files to occur every Tuesday (I will probably change this eventually).

Then I decided it was time to update and sync my ereader. I couldn't eject it as some how it was being read by the external hard drive as well as my computer. What to do? I ended up ejecting the external drive (I will plug it in again next Tuesday morning) and then I could do what I wanted to do with my ereader.

So far the only item that I received today

the USB hub is the only thing that is not causing me undue problems.

Tomorrow I tackle learning how to use the micro SD cards in my tablet and ereader. And since I am busy being techie, perhaps I will save the holiday pictures to CD and clean up the picture files.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

January Goals

I have a few goals for this month. Most will be very easy to complete, some will cause me to stretch, and still others I am keeping my fingers crossed.

1.  Take down Christmas decorations.

2.  Cut out three tops.

3.  Sew two tops.

4.  List Messy Bun/Pony Tail Hats for sale.

5.  Declutter.

6.  Burn our Spain/Portugal holiday and other pictures to CD.

7.  Work on projects to use inherited yarn, and cross stitch/embroidery items.

8.  Have 20 no spend days this month.

Some will stretch my technological know how (I may just have forgotten how to transfer pictures to disc), keeping my fingers crossed for those 20 no spend days (considering we will need to pay for the deductible to repair the car, that is a day I was hoping not to have to spend), and listing things for sale scares me something silly (what if no one wants them???).

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Update On Last Months Goals and Declutter Challenge

Once again I am a bit late, but better late than never.

1.  Get the tree up and decorated.  Done.

2.  Gifts parcel done and mailed to my brothers and nieces. Done.

3.  Cards/phone calls/and ecards done.  Done.

4.  Wash, iron and frame our sons cross stitch gifts.  Done.

5.  Wrap gifts.  Done.

 6.  Finish the Christmas baking.  Done.

7.  Continue with my knitting, sewing and cross stitch projects.  Continuing, each and every day.

8.  Try for as many no spend days as possible this month (I am not going to set a goal, rather I am just going to see how many I can accumulate).   I finished off the month with a total of 24 no spend days. The nasty weather had a great deal to do with this number.

 9.  My new household calendar pages need to be made. Done. I ended up buying a daily journal and making extra pages for my monthly menu, appointments and meetings, goals and extra cleaning lists.

This year I actually managed to remove 1005 items from the house. I will be continuing this as I use up more of my fabric, cross stitch and yarn stashes. I think I just might feel a bit lighter.

Tomorrow I will post my goals for the month of January.

One wonderful thing I would like to share with all of you is that we were under our total budget for the year by almost 7k!!! Hope to do just as well this year by getting the grocery budget even lower.

The costs of the new furnace and the basement redo are from our savings account. Harvey calls them capital expenses and has a totally different spread sheet with those expenses on it. Not doing quite as well with this as things seem to be adding up much higher than expected.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.