This Week on the Dining Table

It's the "Adventures in Eating" Edition--
 

A very good fried shrimp  I ate last week.  Jumbo shrimp is such an oxymoron, isn't it?

 

Anyway, onward to the meal planning!

 

Here's what was planned last week.......

1.  Nothing
2.  Nothing

3.  Nothing
4.  Nothing

5.  Nothing

6.  Nothing
7.  Nothing

 

And this is what actually happened--
(Other than 1 breakfast we ate out on Monday noted below, all breakfasts were hotel breakfasts and not worth recounting.  I had either oatmeal or eggs, yogurt or fruit with sometimes some breakfast meat or not.  No carby waffles, pancakes, pastries, toast, bagels or cold cereal for me.  Drinks were either milk, iced water or hot tea.)

1. 

Lunch-homemade burger at a bar with unsweetened iced tea  Dinner-Grilled chicken breast, steamed broccoli, roll and small salad with water

2. 

Breakfast-ham biscuit wit milk, fried apples biscuit(eaten later) Lunch-no lunch, Dinner-Fried rice, veggies and meat(mine was shrimp tho, not chicken) with iced tea

3. 

Lunch-steak and salad with water  Dinner-A crab cake appetizer with spinach, corn, bean salad and a Greek type salad with water

4. 

Lunch-ribs, beans, coleslaw, pork sandwich with unsweetened iced tea  Dinner-a chicken salad sandwich and a side of raw veggies and Italian dressing 

5. 

Lunch-pork tenderloin sandwich, a tossed salad with water  Dinner-serving of beef lasagna and too many breadsticks and a cannoli for dessert with iced tea 

6. 

 

Lunch-wild boar and duck burger with homemade pecan root beer  Dinner-whole catfish and jumbo shrimp with corn and coleslaw with water

 

7.  Lunch-chicken fingers, cole slaw and fries with unsweetened iced tea   Dinner-Go see my dinner on Saturday HERE
I had that with a G2 Gatorade.
I also had a crawfish egg roll and a bite of Boudin sausage at the festival that evening.

Last week I made 0 trips to the grocery store since we aren't home.  I don't know what College Boy spent yet at the store, but I suspect it wasn't much(if anything).  I'll update the food spending when we get back.
No Rite-Aid trips either.

Our eating out totals are quite high but eating out doesn't come out of the monthly food budget.
 

This coming week there is still no plan so come back next Monday to see what interesting things we had on Week 2 of our Adventures in Eating Away From Home! ;-)
 

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?    

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten that week?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week?

Sluggy

My Off Centered Week

Well if you've noticed the lack of posts and the things I am posting on Facebook you realize I am "on the road" now.

I don't have much time for posting on the blog nor do I feel inclined to sit here(or wherever I am!)and write stuff.
Sorry 'bout that.

But I am just too busy "doing" right now to sit and write.

Just a few reflections on how things are going so far until I can catch my breath and fill y'all in on what Sluggy is up to later........

* It has rained almost every blasted day so far.  But not driving storms involving thunder and massive amounts of rain, just dribbles here and there constantly.  I think yesterday was the first day it did NOT rain wherever we have been.  The weather reporter tonight on the local tv station talked about a sand bag pick-up on Saturday and where to report to get yours.  There has been entirely too much rain here in the last 3 months!

* We are spending absolutely too much money.  Ok, let me correct that.......we are spending lots of money but nowhere near enough to make our lives unbearable in retirement later.  It just seems like we are running through the Benjamins like crazy!  Word of advice--do NOT look at your credit card statement while you are still ON vacation.   It will just make you sad. lolz
At least the extended stay in Lousiana motel has already been paid for so we won't be adding that hefty cost onto the c/c when we return home. 8-)

* I seem to be "eating my way through the South". ;-)   I have had meals in 5 of the 7 states we have passed through so far(and 1 of the 2 I've not dined in will go over to the "ate in" column later on this trip).  I am trying to make good(or at least better)choices at meals.  It's sad that when eating on the road(at hotels and in restaurants)that healthier choices are either non-existent or just plain boring(and expensive) or even worse, nasty.  Even so, there has been nary a doughnut, pastry or bowl of mac and cheese involved in the feeding of Sluggy to this point.
I did however break down and partake in a cannoli and the Italian restaurant on Thursday.............

* The hotels we've stayed at so far(5 so far in as many states)have been a real mixed bag of very good to "OMG, what are we doing in this one?!?" bad.  It seems the one I picked out to stay in for an extended time, I have been told is in the "ghetto".    Well we won't go out jogging at night here nor will we be flashing wads of cash(if we had any here)or diamonds(ditto).  The hotel seems very nice(and there is a pool!).  The prices these various hotels have charged has also been all over the place from a low of $50 a night to $137 a night...eek!  I like spending more on the side of $50 per night as opposed to that $137 one.

* We spent some time with this guy on Friday.............

Yes it's a hamster in a tux.
Its' funny how things happen and when.

We were here because of this......

My Daughter's now ex-car. (Daughter is fine.....the car?, not so much)


* Speaking of adventures in eating in unfamiliar locals.......I have yet to get food poisoning(knock on wood).  There were some questionable hours back in West Virginia when I thought I'd need a paper bag however, but it passed.

* Did I mention that we are spending too much money?  Ok, maybe I did......  We don't seem to have a lot to show for all this spending(it's mostly been for hotels and food)but we are filling up the trunk with adult beverages(well HUBS is).  I am on a liquor moratorium this year.  Ok, I lied, I did break down and buy a couple yummies but I think I've bought more bottled water and G2 Gatorade to consume on the trip so I don't break down and drink gallons of sweet tea which would be very bad for me in the long run.  Hubs' purchases have run to the bourbon and whiskey variety mostly.

* And I got to ride a bus earlier this week.......

Ok, not a bus out of here, but this short bus full of old people...........

More later on when I get another chance to post.

What have you been up to this week?

Sluggy

Let's Hear it For Tightwaddery!

When did it become a bad thing to be tight or mean with your money?  Being careful with your dollars when spending them is as important as being careful when you earn it.
Tightwaddery should not have a stigma attached to it.

Now being a miser, that's another whole level.
Some folks  who are considered tightwads have an unhealthy attachment to money and some don't.  It's just a way of dealing with a budget and still being able to do pleasurable things without going broke.
Misers don't enjoy their money(except when they are hoarding it).  Tightwads just have priorities on where to spend their money and where not to spend it.

What have you done that would fall under the tightwad category?
I'll go first---
* I often will empty a vacuum cleaner bag and reuse it.  Have you seen the price of those things??! lolz
* I save and reuse bacon grease for cooking, much like my mother and her mother before her, etc. did.  My sister in-law does me one better as she has a "grease pot".....a dedicated container with a built in strainer for keeping your used bacon grease.  I am jealous of it and her! ;-)
* I have a sign on my dryer-Only for use on rainy days between the hours of 5pm and 7am and weekends(as that is when the rates are lower).
* I reuse plastic bags(Ziploc types), always!  Unless raw meat was in it the first go 'round.
* When my kids were little and their clothing sizes/growth from season to season was predictable I would buy deeply discounted clothing at the end of each season in sizes they would be wearing that season the next year and store them away until needed.  One Spring I bought 3 years of sweatpants and shirts for each of them at Walmart for .50¢ a piece.(And some of them got handed down to the younger ones and used twice or thrice.) 
*When traveling and the motel I am staying at offers a free breakfast(well not free really, the price is built into what they charge for the room)I will take extra items I don't eat for breakfast then on the road with me to consume later.  Sometimes these items are eaten at lunch or dinner time so I don't have to shell out even more $ for another "one never knows if it will be a good or a bad meal" on the road.  My "go to" take alongs are whole fruits(like a banana or an apple), a yogurt or two(if I have a cooler with me to keep this chilled until use), or bread and little containers of peanut butter.  A pb sandwich isn't the most elegant dinner but it's semi-healthy and filling and having one that is free helps stretch the travel budget.

I see Tightwaddery as a lifestyle choice.  Habits that just throw good money away/that are wasteful  get under my skin.  But I can part with my money for a good reason or for something I see as a good value or that gives me a benefit.
Frugality is the cousin of Tightwaddery but not as severe.

So what tips or habits do you have that the "normal" person/consumer would find strange, odd or questionable?

Sluggy
 

This Week on the Dining Table

It's the "Traveling Circus" Edition--
 

Here's a shot of my dinner last night.....that plus a small side salad.  I tell you it was an effort just to eat this last night after the day I had!
Oy......more details about that in the fullness of time.

 

Anyway, onward to the meal planning!

 

Here's what was planned last week.......

1.  Chinese Take-out(Mother's Day and I don't cook!)
2.  Salmon, Squash casserole

3.  Leftover Chinese take-out
4.  Rotisserie Chicken, Roasted Cauliflower

5.  Fend for Yourself/Wing Night

6.  Tacos or Taco Salad
7.  Subway sammies

 

And this is what actually happened--

1.  Chinese Take-out(Mother's Day and I don't cook!)
2.  Salmon, Squash casserole

3.  Leftover Chinese take-out
4.  Rotisserie Chicken, Roasted Cauliflower and Potatoes

5.  Fend for Yourself/Wing Night(I had a salad & a steak.)

6.  Chicken Parm, Salad
7.  Subway sammies

Everything went as planned.

Last week I made 6 trips to 2 different food stores and spent *sit down first!* $271.36 OOP on $476.49 worth of reg. retail groceries and toiletries.
So much for my "I plan on spending about $60 this week on loss leaders."!  Yah, the loss leaders were too good to pass up this week so we ran up the spending to the tune of $271.36.
Geez......

Yes last week was bad BUT......it was getting a lot of good deals, stocking up on things College Boy will eat(that I don't usually buy now) and I TOLD YA it would be a bad month for the food budget before we started May.
The good things are-groceries won't be bought the next 2 weeks and I earned $20 in Store Scrip this month for buying things like charcoal and trash bags that we did need anyway.
Ok, enough of my justifications.....

I had 0 transactions at Rite-Aid last week and spent $0.00

$504.10(plus $11.67 at R-A) spent of my $? May food budget.  I think I am done buying food/toiletries for May now(except if College Boy picks up milk or something but I can't think of a thing we don't have other than milk now.
We should be good until June rolls around.
I did leave him basic foodstuffs and pizza money so it's all good. 8-)

We have cleaned out the leftovers other than things CB will eat(which isn't much in the leftovers dept.) so I don't plan on coming home to any food waste. *crossing fingers*

There is no plan for the next 2 weeks but I'll share yummy stuff we eat while away instead.
Now doesn't that sound like fun? lolz

 

 

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?    

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten that week?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week?

Sluggy

Saturday Shopping & Stuff

It seems like every time I turned around this week I was off to the grocery store.

I went out this morning to the local hardware store to pick up some tomato plants.  Freezing weather has now passed around here so it's safe to plant things....yay!
Unfortunately we are going away so I don't have much time to get it done before we leave and dare I leave College Boy here with instructions to plant things.....no, I do not! ;-)

So on the way I passed the municipal center and saw the local Ladies Garden Club holding a plant sale this morning.  I got the Coleus in the picture for $2.  Unfortunately they didn't have any veggie starts so I had to pay big money up at the hardware store, $3.68 a 4 pack....

Then I went back up to Weis(PMITA)Markets.......with the deals I got today, maybe I should stop saying PMITA, huh? lolz

Anyway, is what I got today at Weis.  I made another video HERE.....aren't you people just so lucky? *snort*

Paid $22.80 paid OOP for $77.01 worth of regular retail grocery items.


And just for KIM, here is a picture of the "ex" pile of clothing........

All put away, thrown away or in a bag for donation.
The only things left to put away are a few pairs of older pants I can knock around the house in.

And I should mention what you can't see is the large pile of clothing that needs altering that's draped over a folding chair by the dresser in this room.  ;-)


Now I have to finish packing and do another load of laundry and wake up "you know who" who got in this morning at 7:30am....sigh

Ok, so "you know who" is up now, since it took so long for my video to publish on YouTube and for me to get this posted.  8-P

Sluggy

Grocery Deals & Stuff

I went out grocery shopping today again.
Just trying to pick up some deals here before I leave town.
Lots of goodies at Weis(PMITA)Markets today.

Check out the video of my haul HERE.

I've got about half the pile of clothes on the bed in the "toiletries room" gone through and put away or put into bags for a Salvation Army donation.
I NEED to get that pile tackled because my Summer clothes are under all that! lol

What are you up to this weekend?
Anything fun or just a pile of chores?

Sluggy

 

Throwback Thursday.....Sluggy's Sordid Past

Have you ever "googled" old boyfriends and flames?

I did recently and found some upsetting news.

Back when I was a senior in high school I hung out with a diverse mix of folks.
In high school I had a variety of friends.......my "art" friends, my "theater" friends, my friends who I had known since childhood and elementary school and then my friends who I took  the same classes with and hung out with both in school and outside of school.

Then there were the friends I made outside of school doing local community theater.
One of these friends was named Jane and she was an older woman.....well "older" meant anyone over 18 years old at that time to me. lolz

I met her doing a local theater production of "Once Upon a Mattress". (Sort of a fitting title for a show if you knew Jane. *snort*)
As it turned out she worked at the hospital across the street from my high school and lived nearby with her husband.
Jane wasn't happy in her marriage and use to go out to clubs dancing all. the. time. 
And sometimes I went with her.  She was planning on leaving her husband and had rented an apartment and I and a friend from school(who's mother had kicked her out of the house)were going to share the apartment with her for the Summer(after I graduated from high school). 

Anyway, I was hanging out with Jane at night sometimes when I wasn't working my part time job or doing theater and let's just say that Jane met some interesting characters. ;-)  One night Jane invited me to hang out with her and her newest boyfriend, Romeo(yes, that was actually his name!)and this new beau brought along his friend, Mike.

Romy and Mike were buddies serving on the same ship in the US Navy.
My hometown had quite a large population of Filipinos, either immigrants from the Philippines or Filipinos who had joined the US Navy and were stationed in Norfolk, VA.
Yes, I dated a squid.....squid is the not so endearing term used by locals to describe members of the US Navy.
Hey! I grew up near one of the largest naval installations in the US so it's only natural that I would date a sailor at some point.

Mike was a nice guy and fairly shy.  He was only my second serious relationship at that point in my life.  He was also 6 years older than me and he was born and raised in the Philippines.  He joined the navy to see the world and to rise above a life of poverty back in the Philippines.  He had a large family with many siblings, all younger than he was.
He taught me how to make "pancit" and a few curse words in Tagalog, his native tongue.

We were "an item" the Spring and Summer of 1977 but the relationship quietly died away when I left to attend college outside of Baltimore that Fall.  Mike wasn't a letter writer and this was before the internet and cell phones and I had no landline at college.

I heard nary a word from Mike after the Summer of 1977, until two years later, during the Summer of 1979, while I was in New Hampshire doing Summer Stock Theater in a little town called Milford.   The phone in Mrs. Guertin's barn, where the theater's costume shop was located, rang one day and out of the blue, it was Mike on the line.  He had called my family home in VA and my mother happened to have been there at that time and gave him the number for the theater where I was living/working in NH.

We spoke for about a half an hour.  Mike was still in the Navy and still stationed in Norfolk VA.  He had leave(aka time off)and wanted to make a trip up to see me and renew our relationship.    Being Summer Stock I didn't get time off if he came up anyway so that wasn't such a good idea.
Besides I was now seeing and had been together with my current Hubs about 1.5 years at that time.  He said he'd call me again when I returned to Virginia before going back to college, we said goodbye and I never heard from him again.

  Mike and Romeo aboard ship..  Mike is the one mugging for the camera.

I went googling Mike the other day just out of curiosity and found out that he was dead.

Evidently he stayed in the Navy and achieved the rank of Chief Petty Officer.  Unfortunately he died in 1993 at the age of 39.  Place of death was listed as the North Pacific which means he died aboard ship. 
He was so young to have died.  It's sort of shocking to find out someone you knew when you were young died so long ago.
I don't know what he did between when we ended communications and his death.  I hope he had a good life after we parted ways and found love in his journey.
I still have a soft spot in my heart for him and this news saddened me greatly.

R.I.P.
Michael Carlos Nepomuceno

Sluggy



 

Busy Day, Getting Stuff Done....How About You?

Well the temperature finally dropped here to something more seasonal.  It hit 91F on Friday and broke a record for that date and it's been hovering in the high 80's since then.  I was beginning to wonder what happened to Spring!  We seemed to have gone from Winter directly to Summer in NEPA.
So right now it's 51F and it feels great to me.  I have looked at Shreveport LA weather for next weekend and it's going to be hovering in the high 80's down when we get there. ugh.  But that's seasonal for down there so I won't complain too much and will just stay in the a/c when we get there. lolz

The main thing I need to finish this week is packing for the trip.

Last week I did this........

I emptied my closet.....totally!  I needed to change out my clothing for Spring/Summer quickly with the extreme high temps coming so I just took it all out so I could also get rid of some items I haven't worn in years.

And here are all my clothes except the stuff in my dresser.....

And here are all my shoes in tote bags that I need to go through and decide what to keep and clean and what to get rid of........

Until I put the shoes altogether in one place I didn't realize I had this many pairs!
Yah, just call me Imelda......

So Sunday was spent pulling all the inserts out of my shoes and hand washing/scrubbing them.  Some actual shoes were also put into the wash and then air dried(great weather for that).

With College Boy home since Saturday my washer/dryer has been going full bore pretty much.  And this is after he DID HIS LAUNDRY(or so he says)before we picked him up.
But.....he had THREE COUNT 'EM THREE comforters on his bed at school so I've been washing those, along with trying to get everything clean that Hubs and I own so we can pack for the trip.

I haven't gone through much of the pile of clothing in the "toiletries/purple/guest room" yet due to the heat and not having the window a/c in the window in that room yet.
But today with the cooler temps I will tackle that chore and go through my dresser to boot.
Actual packing for the trip should happen after that or on Thursday.

I still need to gather/pack the things daughter wants us to bring her.  I'll get that finished today/tomorrow and all put in one spot so that after we pack the car with Hubs and my luggage, we'll
start adding her crap until Hubs says "enough".  ;-)

Yesterday was spent gabbing on the phone with a fellow blogger and then toting College Boy up to the grocery store.  I am done with trying to guess what he wants to eat, so I just make him come with me to the store and pick stuff out.
I picked up a few deals......dozen eggs for .99¢ x 2,  napkins for $1.88 x 2,  a head of lettuce .99¢, 2 containers of cottage cheese $5(for making lasagna at some point next month)and 2 bottles of a G2 Gatorade $2.50(I can't get in town that I wanted to try).

The rest of the $68.75 haul was all College Boy's doing.......4 x Doritos B2G2F($7.98), 2 loaves potato bread B1G1F($3.29), 4 x 12-packs cream soda($1.99 ea.), chili($2.29ea.), TastyKake  goodies(2/$6), frozen breakfast sandwiches($1.39 ea.), 2 bags of bagels(2/$3),  gallon of milk, 2 cartons of OJ(2/$3) and a frozen pizza($6.99)and a couple more things I don't recall but it was probably junk food. lolz

Speaking of College boy....he started his Summer job Monday night and it sounds like it will work out fine.....except that it's so far away.  He still needs to find another part time job since this one is only giving him 17 hours a week.  We have a couple of leads to follow up for one and I'll be nagging/pushing him to get one before we leave for our trip.

Today I need to hike up to Weis(PMITA)Markets for a few items, then swing by the bank for cash/Traveler's checks and to get CB to pull money out of his account so he can buy a PAYG phone and a phone card.
He lost his last phone at a frat party at school(argh!)last semester and I don't want him having to drive so far away to this job and coming home late at night in a rural area without a phone.
This is not negotiable with me even though he will balk at having to pay for it himself.  Well if you were more responsible with your phone you wouldn't have to, right?  Consequences are a bitch. ;-)

I've been trying to get lots of my cycling work in before we go, as I don't know if I'll have the opportunity to cycle while we are away.  I am sure I'll get some exercise walking all over so I won't backslide on the trip.

I know I won't get any sewing done before we leave now.  If I have time later this week I'll still work on that goal.  Not that I'll be able to wear any shirts I make on the trip anyway.....it's so warm down there I'll live in dresses.  I won't be wearing shorts except in my hotel room.  I don't want to be responsible for blinding the population of Shreveport Louisiana. *snort*

I went through and paid ahead all the monthly bills I could, earlier this week, since we may not be able to pay things or want to while on the trip.  The only ones not paid are the electric bill which hasn't cut yet and won't be due until after we get home and a few medical bills which can wait.
I hated to see all that cash fly out of the account especially since we haven't gotten any paychecks in this month.  But we have a nice cushion in the account so no worries.

I am off to pick up rx refills soon and up to Weis and the bank as soon as CB decides to get up today.

What are you up to today?

Sluggy


 

Tightwad Much?

I came across these series of videos on YouTube from the BBC show on Tightwads.

Here is the first video and if you watch it the subsequent ones should begin playing automatically afterwards.....




The English call tightwadery being "mean". 
Interesting, the expression "mean with money".

Give these a watch when you have some free time.   They are at least good for a giggle.  Heck, some of them might give you some good ideas! lolz


What have you done that would fall under the tightwad category?


Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

It's the "Mother's Day" Edition--

 

 

The flowers from my daughter and Hubs, cards from Hubs and his oldest brother and my oldest son called me on Sunday to chat.  My only kid actually HERE on Mother's Day made no effort.....I didn't even get a "Happy Mother's Day or I love you Mom" or a hug outta him.  Just for that, I'll be waking him up bright and early today and putting him to work out in the yard......that'll show him! ;-)

 

 

Anyway, onward to the meal planning!

 

Here's what was planned last week.......

 

1.  Leftover Lemon Chicken w/Zucchini and Rice
2.  Leftover Taco Salad

3.  Kielbasa or Hot Dogs, homemade Boston Baked Beans(maybe), leftover veggies and macaroni salad
4.  Chicken Parm, Tomato and Cuke Salad(use up some produce)

5.  Ravioli,  Sauté of Squash and Onions

6.  Fend For Yourself
7.  Pizza?
 

And this is what actually happened--

1.  Leftover Lemon Chicken w/Zucchini and Rice
2.  Leftover Taco Salad

3.  Kielbasa or Hot Dogs, leftover veggies and macaroni salad
4.  Chicken Parm, Tomato and Cuke Salad(use up some produce)

5.  Ravioli,  Sauté of Squash and Onions

6.  Fend For Yourself
7.  Fend For Yourself

Everything went as planned I guess except no pizza.  We stopped at a nice? restaurant on the way home from getting College Boy on Saturday so we just scrounged at home for something light for dinner.

Last week I made 5 trips to 3 different food stores and spent $52.98 OOP on $143.47 worth of reg. retail groceries and toiletries

I had 3 transactions at Rite-Aid last week and spent $11.67!
Gasp!!!
That's what happens when you have no +Ups or Plenti Pts. and are starting from scratch.....the OOP is too danged high!
I now have 600 Plenti Pts.
Again like last time I say....."Whoo-pee".

$232.74(plus $11.67 at R-A) spent of my $? May food budget.

Leftovers going into this week are---taco filling and some veggies leftover from the osso buco and mashed potatoes.
Hubs is out of town after Tuesday dinner time so it's just College Boy and me to feed Wednesday to Saturday.....and College Boy has work already(evenings) and Thursday is a long standing "Wing Night" at a local handout with his buds.

I don't want to cook a lot of leftover type dishes this week since we are going on vacation and College Boy has a bad track record with eating leftovers when we are gone.  I'll just put some easy fix items in the house(burritos, chicken strips, frozen pizza, etc.)and some cash to get fast food(as he has been fast food deprived due to a lack of spending $ at college)as that is what he wants to eat.
 

Here is the plan for this week.........

1.  Chinese Take-out(Mother's Day and I don't cook!)
2.  Salmon, Squash casserole

3.  Leftover Chinese take-out
4.  Rotisserie Chicken, Roasted Cauliflower

5.  Fend for Yourself/Wing Night

6.  Tacos or Taco Salad
7.  Subway sammies

I am only cooking 2 "meals" this week.  I have TONS to do before we leave and all of College Boy's crap and laundry to deal with this week so I am all about making things as easy as possible this week.
 

What I need to buy for this menu.......nothing except to buy the take-out foods(Subway sammies,  Rotisserie Chicken at Weis).  I will use up the Osso Buco veggies in sauce by putting that into my taco filling this week.  Tacos leftover is the one thing College Boy will eat that is leftover even if we aren't home to remind him. 8-)

I will be hitting the grocery stores for some loss leaders this week and any deals that pop up or instant discount meats as usual.  I am figuring about $60 of spending.
 

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?    

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten that week?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week?

Sluggy

Happy Mother's Day & Giveaway Winner

First off Happy Mother's Day to all you Moms out there!
I hope your kids fete you in some nice ways this year.....or at least CALL YOU! lolz

I lost my mom almost 15 years ago and I still miss her.

And now here is the Winner of my latest Boring Blog Box Giveaway.

CSKIES!

cskies1April 29, 2015 at 6:52 AM

Your food totals so far for 2015 look great....hope May doesn't blow you out of the water!! :)
Adding another entry for your giveaway box of goodies!!
cskies1 at yahoo dot com

Congratulations!
I guess that mountain of entries paid off for you.  ;-)

Please send me an email cskies with your full name and mailing address and I'll get this box of goodies out to you asap.  You have 48 hours from when this entry posts to get back to me with the information or I'll have to draw another name.

And another big THANK YOU to everyone who played along this go 'round.

I'll have another Giveaway Box coming up soon so stay tuned.

I am off now to enjoy the Mother's Day breakfast Hubs made for me......

Sluggy

Eyeballs, Gift Cards, Spending, Flowers & More

Well my eyeball is cleared for all normal daily activities as of yesterday.
Rah!
And they scheduled the other eyeball for cataract removal.....in JULY!
TWO FREAKING MONTHS LATER!!!
I had to wait an entire month+ for the first surgery and now TWO months.
Argh.
Between other dr. appointments and other family members plans this blows up my entire Summer and my plans.
Argh.Argh.

So not happy about that but it is what it is.  I may have to do my gallivanting in September now.

I hit 2 Rite-Aids yesterday on the way home as the first one didn't have everything I wanted......

3 x Puffs facial tissue on sale=$3.00
2 x Ziploc bags on sale=$4.00
2 x CeraVe cleanser BOGO50%=$7.93
4 x Mentos(cinnamon)BOGO sale=$2.30
SubTotal......$17.23

Coupons Used
3 x .25¢/1 IPQ(coupons dotcom)=.75¢
1 x $1/2 Ziploc items IPQ(coupons dotcom)=$1.00
2 x $3/1 CderaVe items ManuQ(don't remember which week's insert)=$6.00
1 x $1/2 Mentos Rite-Aid FaceBook Q=$1.00
Coupon Total.....$8.75

$17.23-$8.75-$8.48 + .80¢ tax=$9.28 OOP which I put on a Rite-Aid gift card I bought online last Fall at a 15% discount from one of those gift card reselling sites.  It helps bring down the costs at least a little paying this way, but it takes planning ahead.

I earned 500 Plenti Pts.(300 CeraVe, 100 Puffs, 100 Ziploc)to add to the 100 Pts. I earned the other day, giving me a total of 600 Plenti Pts.
Whoo-pee.

Had a little chat while in "my" Rite-Aid with the employees when she asked me how I liked the new program.
Oh, she got an earful! lolz
She said many of their "regulars" like me haven't been coming around at all or not nearly as much and she suspects sales are down.  She also said other customers were grumbling about the new program.

I also got this in the mail this past week.....

A Kmart pharmacy incentive to transfer prescriptions to them.  It expires in July and I have 2 rxs that are due for refills in June so I'll take advantage of this $60 deal next month.  The wording says a $30 Kmart "Award" Card, not a gift card.  I wonder if they give you $30 in "points" or something?  I need to read the fine print to see what exclusions it carries too.
It would be awesome to get $60 of free toilet paper though, wouldn't it? lolz

Then I used some of those credit card points I earned from putting the car purchase on the card briefly and ordered this, which came this past week......

A $100 Target gift card.
Since it's one of the few stores they have around here that my c/c points program offers(really, how many Walmart gift cards can a person use? lol), I got this Target card.  I figure I go into Target now and again to do a deal(though not very often and I don't like Target on the whole)and if push comes to shove my Target now carries a full grocery section so I can spend this on food if need be.

I also sold & shipped out another piece of fabric this week.
Rah!
Someone asked me about another piece of fabric too, a twill weave woven denim-like one.
The potential buyer wanted to know if it was stretchy like denim?
Hello!.....What??
Since when is regular old denim stretchy? lolz
She's been buying spandex denim much too long I think.....

And while I was on the phone on Thursday I heard a truck pull up in front of the house and then a THUMP as something hit my front porch.
Here is what I found when I went out to check......

A box of flowers.
The UPS driver never even rang the doorbell.
What an idiot to drop of something perishable like this and not alert anyone?!
When I opened the box the HEAT wafted out.
It was in the high 80's here that day and much hotter it seems in the back of that UPS truck!

Imagine what would have happened to these flowers if I hadn't gotten them inside quickly.....I'd have EX-Flowers.....

Stargazer lilies and irises.

Loved the sticker on the wrapping....

 

It's a good thing I had had my lunch already, huh? ;-)

And of course my smart ass daughter sent this card enclosed........

"Happy Mother's Day...to someone who has been just like a mother to me."

If you aren't up to speed on the origins of this family tradition go read HERE and click on the link to read more on that post.

And lastly today is the last day to enter my giveaway!
Use the link of the right sidebar or go HERE to leave a comment and enter.

And with that I am off.  I am a traveling woman today.
Back tomorrow.
Enjoy your weekend!

Sluggy


 

Last Weekend's Not-So-Frugal & Kinky Yard Work

Last weekend was an expensive one.

If you remember a couple of weekends before we started laying the border for the bed on the side of the yard......

 

Well last Saturday we got this......

a truckload of white stones
$$$!

We laid down the landscaping barrier I got at Ollie's(Good Stuff Cheap!)on sale and using a 10% off discount card......

Then Hubs shoveled a large quantity of that pile of stones......

 

On Sunday it was off to Lowe's to spend more money.....

on a bench.  I wanted to one of the far right.
Of course they only had one left in stock and it was up in the rafters of the Garden Center......

 So after wrangling an employee he mounted the fork lift and ascended toward the heavens...

and retrieved the last of that bench in the store.

Yay!  Hubs with the yet-to-be assembled bench.
More $$$!

One more stop before the check-out for some garden seeds..........not on sale, boo!.......

then home to put the bench together(which was much easier than we thought it would be!)and Voila!

Once the trees leaf out it will be a nice tranquil shady spot to contemplate ones navel this Summer.

And Hubs bought a hose last week too......

Let it never be said that Hubs is kinky. ;-)

On Saturday morning I also finally broke down and ordered a freezer......

It arrived early Wednesday morning and by Wednesday evening I had filled it.

Did you know that the freezer compartment in a full sized fridge is only slightly smaller than the freezer space in a 7.1 ft. chest freezer?
Did you also know that you need a step ladder to reach the bottom of a chest freezer if you are well over 4 feet tall?
Well now you do! 8-)

Since my last experience with a new Whirlpool standing freezer that died after 3 whole weeks of owning it I have been gun shy about replacing the freezer.  This one is much smaller(with 2-3 people at home fulltime, we just don't need that much space for frozen food anymore)and much cheaper so if it dies well before it's time I won't be in a panic to replace it and save a lot of food but I will still be summarily pissed off if it doesn't last at least a few years.

$600 give or take a few $s leaving the account last weekend for all this....rocks, barrier cloth, seeds, bench, hose and freezer.
I can't WAIT for the credit card bill to arrive for this month.........actually I can wait........lolz

This weekend is more low key as we are picking up College Boy on Saturday for his Summer vacation.  I am sure he will bring with him a whole mess of hooliganism back into our lives.
Can't wait.......*insert eye roll*

Sluggy
 

Shopping This Week

I went out driving yesterday for the first time in a week, since my eye surgery.
Let's just say I managed to NOT kill anyone on the road. lolz
I am not confident driving yet with 2 eyes that aren't seeing the same thing.

I went to Rite-Aid and bought my first items with my new Plenti/Wellness Card.....

3 x Dawn soap on sale=$3.00
I used 3 x .25¢/1 IPQs(go use the link of Sonya Ann's blog to go to the Coupons dot com site)=.75¢ off=$2.25 + .14¢ tax=$2.39 OOP.

I earned 100 Plenti Pts. on this purchase(which is equal to $1).  I have to have at least 200 Pts. to spend them though. ugh.

2 Things about this new Plenti Program, 1 I like, 1 I don't like.

1-I won't have to continually buy stuff and "roll" the pts. within 2 weeks, before they expire.  This often meant buying things I didn't really "need", but could use and it was stressful some weeks when there was little to nothing I wanted to buy.

2-I don't like that these points are only electronic and you can't have them printed out in paper.  I also don't like that they are linked to a specific card/account and can't be used on a different account held by another family member.  So don't like this and it will really cut down on my frequenting Rite-Aid. sigh.

Then it was on to Weis(PMITA)Markets.  The only items on my list going in was a watermelon and doing the Light N' Fit Yogurt Deal......

2 x Monterey Burritos on sale=$7.00
2 x Cauliflowers on sale BOGO=$3.99
2 x Yogurt Protein Shakes on sale=$9.98
1 x Yogurt 4 pack on sale=$1.69
4 x PowerAde Zero on sale=$2.36
6 x Borden shredded cheese on sale $1.67ea.=$10.02
1 x bagged Salad 50% off sticker=$1.74
1 x Bakery onion rolls 50% off sticker=$1.64
1 x Bakery French bread 50% off sticker=.64¢
2 x Gluten-free Matzo Ball mix clearance .83¢ea.=$1.66
2 x Hanover green beans 25% off=$3.44
1 x 2.26 lb PA organic chicken legs $2 discount sticker(.99¢lb)=$2.25
1 x Watermelon seedless on sale=$3.99 *not pictured*
I used 3 x $1/1 Light n' Fit Yogurt Qs for $3 off plus because I spent(reg. retail prices)over $12 on the LnF items I got an instant $3 off my total, and I used the $10 OYNO Catalina earned 2 weeks ago for spending $40 on Gatorade G2 drinks and paid $34.53(including .15¢ tax).

Regular retail was $86.85(before tax) so I saved 60% on this order.
Nice.
8-)

Everything bought was on sale.  I missed the $1.67 cheese sale in the ad so that was an unexpected surprise.  Too bad there weren't any Qs for that brand here.
The cauliflower, burritos and mega cheese means College Boy will be home soon. lolz
Unfortunately the only meat markdown deal that was worthwhile this week was a package of chicken legs.  I am not a big fan of chicken legs but slap them on the grill and brush on bbq sauce and the family will eat them.

Grocery spending for the week so far stands at $36.92.
I'll go back to Rite-Aid for 3 boxes of Puffs tissue and earn 100 more points when I go pick up an rx refill so that will be another $2.39 OOP for the week.
I may hit Maine Source tomorrow for some produce when I go for my 1 week post-op checkup as it's only a few blocks away.  I don't plan to spend much but one never knows, do one? ;-)

Sluggy