Tuesday Tidbits And Stuff

 

The day started off much cooler and very cloudy, but by mid afternoon the sun had come out and the windows needed to be closed and the air conditioning turned on. Tonight the temperature should fall enough that we can open windows and use the night air to cool the house down. 

I finished the two tea towels and have them off the loom ready to be cut apart, blocked, and eventually hemmed. Pretty soon one more project will be marked off my list. I will probably finish the embroidered block first though, and even perhaps the mittens made. 

Decluttering is still happening, just not as quickly as I would like. By this time I had wanted to be close to 300 items leaving the house, instead I haven't even reached 200. I am definitely falling behind and not in a good way.

I thought that today I would share my grocery shopping with you today. I usually go to Walmart and my Co-op every second week and purchase what I can on sale at each. Sometimes if the regular price is good I will purchase something for the pantry.

This is my Walmart shop.

Not a great deal and the only meat purchased was some Chicken Parma, and the thick sliced bacon, both on sale. The kale was a good regular price, and the living lettuce was only $1.97 and lasts for weeks. Cherries were from the Okanogan here in Canada and were also on sale. Becel margarine was almost half price so I grabbed a container. Total cost for this lot was $109.90. 

Then it was on to the Co-op where I hoped to pick up some on sale meat. Which of course I forgot to get a picture of.

Lots more here and I am afraid I purchased a few treats. So the meat two small pork loins, two ham steaks and the sandwich meat were put away immediately. I also put away the 2 4liter containers of milk. 

The total cost of this shop was $227.85, and believe me most of what I purchased was on sale. Mind you the bananas never go on sale but at $0.79 a pound still a good fruit purchase. I am so looking forward to getting produce from the garden which would really cut back on costs veggie wise. 

What I purchased will hopefully last us two weeks or longer. The meat will be put in the freezer and used much later, this month or even next month. 

One thing I will stress, is that years ago what I bought would have cost about 1/2 of the total I paid. I probably would have been able to purchase more meat as well. 

Off to get supper started and while it is cooking I will see how many of you I can visit.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Thrifty and Frugal Thursday

Thrifty and Frugal

Wow are we getting warm, and now under a severe thunderstorm watch once again. I really don't think that will happen, but of course both of us will keep our eyes on the sky.

So what frugal and thrifty things have been happening on the Phillips homestead this week.

1.  Harvey and Kurt bottled beer a couple of days ago. Since the kit was a gift, the bottles were from Kris over the years, all Harvey had to purchase was water. The total bottled was 63 so the total cost to us was $0.14 a bottle. Not too bad at all.

2.  Clothes hung on lines outside to dry.

3.  Washed my tinkle cloths. I am able to go 2 1/2 weeks before washing them. I have a few more scraps that could perhaps extend the period between washing a bit more.

4.  Using up all leftovers in other meals or making entirely new meals from bits and bobs.

5.  Made my own hamburger buns. 

6.  Went shopping today and stayed on the list. In fact a couple of items that were not at a good price stayed at the store.

7.  Walking around the house for exercise every half hour or so.

8.  Decluttered a few more items from the sewing/craft room.

9.  Cut up some old t-shirts that were not fit to donate as rags. 

10.  Started some more herbal infused oils to make salves later this month.

There are probably a few more things we have done like watering using the rain barrel, doing a bit of yard work (moved rocks to the side of the house) and looking up recipes online to use things up.

I hope you all have had a frugal and thrifty week.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

 

Money Mastery

 

I don't have a roundup of crafts for all of you right now. I really haven't managed to get anything completed. I think I just might have hit a brick wall craft wise as the remaining projects are taking much longer than I thought. So I thought I would try something different today.

There are so many ways that a frugal and thrifty person can save money. Yet the main and probably easiest way is controlling our shopping habits. 

This is one reason I try and have no spend days, and only shop every two weeks. If I don't have something I need I will either try a substitution or do without.

Today I am going to go over some of the ways I save when shopping.

1.  I love shopping at my Co-op grocery store. People say the prices are higher, but I find if you shop their sales and are a member getting money back on what you spend for the year, it is pretty much the same as Sobey's here. If you find a store with good prices, and great merchandise do patronize it as often as you can. 

2.  You can save lots of money by purchasing clothes off season. Most retailers are trying to get rid of the items to make room for the new season clothing.

3.  Shift to thrift stores for kids clothing especially. Children outgrow their clothes very quickly. You can get inexpensive children's clothing very inexpensively. You can often find good quality clothing for yourself as well for an excellent price.

4.  Plan just one big supermarket trip. Use a list and unless something is a big markdown do not purchase if it isn't on the list. Shopping a couple of times a week often encourages us to add extras to the cart.

5.  Shop early to miss the crowds and not have to wait in long lines which might tempt you to add one of those magazines or candy bars to the cart. Always eat before you go, never shop hungry.

6.  Decide how much you want to spend before you go. By limiting your spending, you will be less tempted to splurge on non-necessities. 

7.  Add items to the grocery list as you run out and then check to see if they are on sale. This way you won't forget anything.

8.  If you are always shopping the same store organize your list by aisle. Something that can be difficult as many stores are constantly changing things around.

9.  Menu plan using what you have in your fridge, freezer and pantry. Then you only need to add a few ingredients that you do not have any longer, or you may find that you only need things like dairy, fresh fruit and vegetables.

10.  Look high and look low. Groceries tend to place the more expensive items at eye level.

11.  Try out those store brands instead of the name brands. You may just like them more and in many cases they cost much less.

12.  Check the per serving cost. 

13.  Try and cook from scratch more. Processed foods are more expensive and cooking from scratch enables you to make your meals more to your taste.

14.  Make your own spice mixes. The packages are only for one meal and your own spice mixes can be made to handle more than one meal and for at least half the cost.

15.  Grow a garden in season and freeze or can the harvest. If you can't have a garden due to room constraints, perhaps there is a Farmer's Market you can pick things up at a more reasonable cost.

So there are just a few ways to save money on shopping. 

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Saturday Roundup

 

It has been a pretty quiet week here on the old Phillips homestead. Today was slightly busier as I headed out early to get the errands done for the upcoming week. The weather is supposed to be much colder so I braved the cold today and got things completed so as to be able to stay in my nice warm home as much as possible during the cold snap.

This meant that I went to the bank, dropped off the donation bags from last month, got fuel in the vehicle, and did all the shopping. This took about 2 hours this time around, but I was happy that it didn't take me as long to find Canadian goods. I picked up a few items (well actually more than a few) for the pantry as well as some sale meats. I even managed to find brown lentils, something I have been searching for. Those are used in one lentil curry I really enjoy. I think I should have picked up another couple of coconut milk, but I can do so another time. 

Home, I put all away and realized that I need to do a pantry stock once again. I keep forgetting to do that. I also changed a few meals on my monthly meal plan to use a few older items up.

Swept the floors, cleaned out emails, and put away the dishes before I left on the shopping excursion. Texted back and forth with my neighbour as well. I think she wanted me to fix some zippers, but my machines do not handle heavy materials like denim in those cases. I gave her the name of a lady who does that kind of work. 

Phoned my brother and talked for 45 minutes. Our conversations are always the same. It is really hard to talk to someone who is schizophrenic and has the mentality of a 12 year old. 

After that conversation I did some weaving. Not as much as I would have liked but the light was changing. 

Project wise this is where I am right now.

This is the car blanket I made from the leftover fabric for my jacket.

The beginning of the knitted blanket for another of Kurt's friends. These blankets are for those who stuck up and protected him from right wing wackos. So I don't really mind making them and they do use up yarn from my rather extensive yarn stash.

I have started on another of the embroidered squares and am slowly getting it completed. 

And I am almost finished the second placemat. 

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Tuesday Tidbits And Stuff

 

It has warmed up so I headed out and managed to get the shopping completed. Most of what I purchased was on sale, except for my new keyboard. I wanted just the keyboard, but ended up purchasing one that also had a mouse. Still having a full keyboard is absolutely lovely. This means I don't have to move the other wireless keyboard between my mini computer and this laptop/monitor combination. Loving it so far. Frugal shopping takes time as I have found the last few times I have ventured out.

I have pretty much finished setting up my loom to make the tea towels and will finish the shuttle tomorrow as well as getting the warp closer together. Weaving is definitely a learning curve. I am not sure how this very thing yarn used for weaving will work as I am having a problem getting the warp to come together in a couple of places.

I got my larger reeds yesterday and am looking forward to using old sheets, strips of fabric and old clothing to make rugs. I will also be able to use thicker wool. I will look into ordering other reeds after I save for them. 

Not much has been accomplished on my various projects, but that should change for the rest of the week. Shopping and household tasks took up most of my morning, and then this afternoon I was processing the meat I purchased for the freezer. I still have the pork loin and a beef roast to process. 

Yesterday I posted a meme on Facebook that stated I was no longer going to argue with anyone. Forgot that for a moment on the forum I belong to...but caught myself mid-post reply and deleted it. Life is to precious to spend arguing with those who can't research or understand.

I am hopeful of having a few projects finished by Saturday for roundup and photos to share.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Frugal Tips For Saving On Shopping

 

Or perhaps some tips those of us who have been following the frugal pathway for awhile and have forgotten.

Saving On Grocery Shopping

1.  Start with some basic tasks like creating a grocery list after checking your cupboards, freezer and pantry, use a calculator to check the unit costs, and always check your receipts for errors.

2.  Price match if available where you are.

3.  Comparison shop. Do this while shopping and make a price book of the least expensive.

4.  Use any coupons you can find.

5.  Use cash back credit cards (only if you can pay them off monthly).

6.  Buy in bulk if possible and you have the storage room.

7.  Buy produce in season. One can always freeze or can any extra you can find.

8.  Buy generic, but only if you like that specific item. It is not saving if you try something and waste it because you don't like the taste.

9.  Avoid purchasing pre-packaged food. 

10.  Stock up during sales.

11.  Buy local. This can be done at Farmer's Markets.

12.  Grow your own veggies.

Just a few more money saving ideas. 

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Thrifty and Frugal Thursdays

Thrifty and Frugal

Wow, one could say we are halfway through the month now. Days are whizzing by and in just under a month we head out for a bit of a holiday. 

Frugal and thrifty are the goals this month, as well as trying to keep bills as low as we possibly can. Not easy as the temperatures are not co-operating at all, which means the air conditioner is running pretty steadily from late morning to late evening. It is cooling off a bit at night so windows are opened at that time, if there is a good breeze things cool off in the house overnight.

I am working on making some of my own seasoning mixes now. Hoping that this manages to save us a bit of cash in the long run. I will be saving some small glass jars for this purpose and using my label maker so I know what I have made. This week it was taco seasoning. Who knows what I will make next? What seasoning mixes do you recommend?

Picking from the garden to stretch out our meals a bit more. 

Picked some crabapples from the tree in the neighbours yard. Tomorrow I make jelly after shopping.

Finished the larger sized mitts, and now using some of the remaining bits, bobs and orphan yarn skeins to make the smaller ones.

Cleaning out the sewing/craft room closet and finding a few items I had forgotten about. I need to decide if I will use them or not over the next year.

Watering my plants every third day instead of every second day so as to save on the water bill. 

Making large batches of food so as to have meals to use when I just don't want to cook. These meals are packaged up, labelled and put in the fridge freezer. 

Of course I am still taking advantage of the nice weather to hang clothes on the line to dry.

Reading free books I downloaded onto my ereader.

Made my grocery list using the sale flyers.

Took some items to a drop box as I decluttered my closet a bit more.

Bought a new cutting mat for quilts from Amazon and saved about $25.00 from purchasing it in a physical store. 

Found a box of scarves that I can use as little gifts for various occasions.

Darned a pair of Harvey's socks, and fixed a seam on one of my shirts. 

So, all in all, not a bad week at all.

Everybody have a wonderful evening. 

God bless.

Thrifty and Frugal Thursday

 Thrifty and Frugal  

Another week has gone by since my last Thursday post, which I actually did on Friday. Guess I got my days confused.

Today has clouded up and is really quite cool with the wind. I guess the snow that has been predicted is on it's way. I just hope we don't get too bad a storm that it prevents Kris from getting home or Kurt and his students from getting to their plan from Calgary on time (supposed to be very icy there). I am keeping my phone close so that any messages that come through can be read quickly. I had to move the bird feeder from its mounting as the wind had started to blow it off.

We have had Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers at the suet out front for most of the winter. Harvey decided to make a bird house for them (well one set at any rate). Thrifty man is using up bits of wood from his workshop downstairs. He plans on hanging it out near the suet. He also plans on taking down one of the nests out there and cleaning it out. Having our feathered friends visit is a very simple pleasure. I will be getting ready for the return of the Hummers and other such birds as well.

Thrifty and frugal habits are helping keep bills down once again. Lights are off in rooms not in use, and since winter seems to be sticking around I have still been putting out the draft dodgers to keep the cold air from coming inside.

Shopping my fridge and freezers as well as the pantry to use items up. My grocery shopping has been held to just a few meat items that are on sale each time I go. Now that the upright meat freezer is organized and inventoried it will be so much easier to use things up.

I have been shopping my yarn stash and found enough yarn of the right type to knit two tank tops for the summer. I did purchase some cotton yarn to make another, but I am sure I can find enough of the type I need to make 4. I am very short on the tank top summer type shirts this year. 

Still hanging clothing on the lines downstairs, I can hardly wait until I can hang things outside, thus getting all the washing dry at the same time. 

I have started to figure out what it costs per our dinner meals. I would like to get it down to about $3 or $4 per meal and our daily meal costs down to less than $10 each day. 

I am making more of our sweets and desserts as well as bread products. I am going to try and make new and interesting types of bread. 

I mended a couple of seams and replaced some elastic in a pair of Harvey's pajamas. 

Worked on various projects around the house and have tried to figure out ways to get my life simpler. I am still thinking about the loom versus the heat press but am leaning more and more towards a loom.

The one unfrugal thing I did this week was purchase a duvet and duvet cover. Harvey wanted something like we had when in a hotel, so I got that for him. He says it makes doing the bed in the morning so easy. Now Harvey likes it, me, well I am not so sure.

I was asked the name and author of the book on Simpler Living I am reading once again. It is entitled Simpler Living and is written by Jeff Davidson. 

Everybody have a wonderful evening. 

God bless.

Frugal Friday

 

Well, I guess one could say the temperature is going up. Still chilly with the wind (-28C right now), but the sun is shining and that makes me happy.

So what frugal things have I been up to this week.

1.  Went 2 days beyond my usual shopping day. It meant changing my list as what was on sale when I made it was no longer on sale. I am really trying to stick to purchasing sale items only, unless it is milk (never on sale), fruit or produce. That meant no meat this week at all. Nothing on sale that we needed.

2.  Using up pantry and freezer items. I made bran muffins and pumpkin muffins to use for breakfasts and for snacks. I will probably make a coffee cake soon to use up the sour cream as it is just over its best before date.

3.  Used up quite a bit of the cotton yarn I reclaimed and some that I have had in storage for awhile. There are some small balls left of certain colours, so in a month or two I will knit some funky coloured dish cloths. Must use everything up.

4.  Eating leftovers for lunches.

5.  Bake to making bread once again. At least until the second week in February. Hubby will not be able to eat much bread especially the whole wheat I make and there is no way I could eat a full loaf by myself.

6.  Filled some containers that were getting low with pasta, whole wheat flour and bread crumbs.

So that is my frugal week so far along with all the usual frugal things we do like turning off lights, opening the drapes on sunny days to take advantage of our south facing window, and trying different meatless meals where I can sneak them past Harvey.

Everybody have a wonderful day/evening.

God bless.

Frugal Friday

 

Getting very excited as Kurt and Kris will be home tomorrow. However being excited and still keeping a frugal home are not mutually exclusive. Mind you the rest of December might not be quite as frugal.

1.  Lights are being turned off with great regularity now in rooms not in use. I think it has now become a habit to run around and turn things off.

2.  Walking every day, even if it is indoors, and I have found many a chair yoga or chair exercise video on YouTube.

3.  Reading a book I picked up at a sale for very little. I will go back to reading free books on my ereader once this one is done.

4.  Bought some more meats on sale this week. The turkey was really inexpensive as was the ham. Then today when I went to pick up a few items before the sons came home I bought a whole pork loin to cut up into roasts. It was on sale for an excellent price. 

5.  Shredded up some cheese and put it in a vacuum bag before it could go bad. I have another chunk that I will do the same with later tonight.

So there are the frugal things I have managed to remember for this week. Next week I hope to share some of the frugal ideas I would like to make into habits for next year.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.