Frugal Friday....the April 4th Edition

Here are the frugal wins for this past week....

*  I love finding marked down foods at Kroger(this really doesn't happen at Walmart).  The lure of Ibotta sucked me back in so I bought some items for the food bank that had Ibotta offers.  I also got some marked down produce, salads and I found these three catfish fillets....

Not only were they marked down but they were also part of the Mega sale(buy 5, get $1 off each)so that made them $1.93 each.  I also bought 2 6-packs of Gold Peak tea which I'll need when we are moving, making it 5 items(and the tea was on sale and had an Ibotta rebate too!

*  We used up some pantry items as well.  The less we have to move the better. I'll be going through the pantry this weekend and culling a donation to the food bank.

*  There was no eating out this past week.  

*  Made a sale locally of a ton of laundry detergent.  The people here are so flaky about showing up so I was glad to make this sale.

*  It's been warm here so the heat had been off during the day.  We actually had to put the a/c on a couple of days too.

*  Entertainment last week was free tv, YouTube watching, sitting on the deck reading or doing genealogy.  Still slogging my way through the Jesse James tome.

*  Played Bingo at Group Therapy on 

Thursday and I won a pair of socks. 8-)

*  I found money!

Found a nickel at Walmart on 4/1, Tuesday.

          

Found .56¢ in the Walmart parking lot when  we went to pick up a new Rx.

Found Money This Week..... .61¢

Grand Total Found in 2025....$2.10

That's all I got.

Any frugal wins in your neck of the woods?  Let's hear all about them!

Sluggy     

The To-Do List....the August Edition

 Let's see how we did with our To-Do List for August..........

* Pay Bills  DONE  Always done first.  Had to pull from the Slush Fund to cover it all but we had the funds.

* Read 1,2,3 Books  PASS  Well I barely read 2 Books.

"What Would Dolly Do?:How to be a Diamond in a Rhinestone World" by Lauren Marino

Marino styles herself a super fan of Dolly Parton and it shows in this tribute Ms. Parton.

Lot a lot of "meat" in this little book but it's "well done". (See what I did there? lol)

There are many facts to Dolly Parton beyond the country singer and dumb blonde image she projects.  She is an entrepreneur and has spearheaded many charitable works around the country.  She has also brought many jobs to her little holler in Tennessee, an area of crippling poverty where she grew up.

A quick read and two thumbs up.

Then I read this one........

"The Bonanza King:John MacKay and the Battle Over the Greatest Riches in the American West" by Gregory Crouch

This one took forever to get through.  It was very detailed and after reading it you will know EVERYTHING having to do with the "Comstock Lode".  The author got caught up in the minutiae at time and other parts it sailed along but overall it was a very enjoyable and interesting read.
I had never heard of John William Mackay(pronounced Mackie)before reading this book but his is a true rags to riches story.  Though he became one of the "giants of industry", like Carneige, rockefeller, Morgan, Gould, Getty, Vanderbuilt, etc. he is often forgotten.  He wasn't one of the Robber Barons but a humble man even with all his wealth and he never took advantage of the working class men like his fellow "giants".  

I learned a lot about mining and such.

Four thumbs up for this book.

* Hold Giveaway  DONE  A different kind of  Giveaway this past month thanks to Sonya Ann. 

*Mail Giveaway  DONE  The Virtual gift card was easy to mail. lolz

* More Decluttering  DONE  Most of the decluttering was due to stuff found when Ex-CB moved out and the subsequent moving of stuff from other rooms.

* Stuff to Sallie's  FAIL  

We have an overflowing box of castoffs(mostly thanks to Ex-CB leaving)but it still sits in the living room.  Maybe next Sunday when Hubs goes to the rifle range I can get him to drop this off at Salvation Army because even though the store is closed on Sunday they are back to accepting donations in the back.

* Dr. Appointment  DONE  I had my visit with my new primary(I just get a doc broken in and he leaves....is it me? lol).  He's young and shiny like a new penny.  He's sending me to Orthopedics for my leg.

* Continue to Deal with Garden Harvest  DONE

We've stayed on top of the veggies the garden has produced(eaten it all-nothing to preserve)being as there hasn't been much.  It's been a strange year in many ways not just due to Covid.

* Fill more Giveaway Boxes  DONE

I've got 6 boxes ready to go.
Go me. lolz

* Continue to Deal w/VA Stuff  PASS  Still dealing with legal stuff and hoping we will be at a point soon to make some relocating decisions.

* Access Damage in Bedroom and Fix  DONE

Other than lots of cleaning the bedroom didn't get anything else done in there. 

Furniture reposition-ed, day bed added and the toiletries stockpile organized and stored away all in one location.

This was the big August project and it's complete.

Done and dusted as far as I am concerned. ;-)

* Eat Down the Pantry  FAIL
With all the doom and gloom predictions of higher Covid numbers in the fall and food shortages we didn't see the need to eat down food stocks here really once the month began.  We've pretty much been restocking as we eat down so we are status quo really on food.

* Surgery  DONE
Trust me, you don't won't to see pictures of this! lolz  I am glad it's over and the surgery site is  mostly healed up.  Soon I can go bra-less at night....yay!  Now we await the medical bill for this.....not yay.

* Work on Details of Winter Trip  PASS  I am reticent to commit to tickets and reservations still but I am working on making this happen.  Still in the "pull the details together" stage on this but making progress.

That's about it from here for August.  Nothing much exciting but we are bumping along in life during a strange Summer.

How did you do on your To-Do List for August?
Let us know all about it!

Sluggy

2018 July To-Do List....Update

Let's see how we did on our July To-Do List...........

* Pay Bills  DONE  Everything got paid, nothing deferred and no interest paid.

*  Read 1, 2, 3 Books  2.5 DONE  I read 2 books last month and got halfway through #3.
First I read this.........

First in a series of Huguenot themed books called "Cousins of the Dove".  Part historical/part fiction this was an enjoyable read, especially to me given my Huguenot ancestry.
From Amazon's website...."France, 1685. Catherine Gillet knows her brother, Jules, wants to protect her from the sinister threats of the French crown. But Jules is involved in a potentially deadly enterprise, one connected with an encoded document. When his actions put the whole family at risk, will Catherine find a way to save them?

Virginia, present day. Renee Talbot, a direct descendant of Catherine's, is fascinated by the document that's been part of her family legacy for more than three centuries. Certain its pages hold hidden secrets, she takes a closer look—and makes a shocking discovery. But when memories of a childhood trauma are rekindled, she's forced to seek answers of a different kind. Inspired by the faith and bravery of Catherine, can Renee find the truth and face her deepest fears at last?

And I read this one..........

A series of short stories from one the more celebrated short story writers of our day.

A few were good a few were "WTF?" and a couple I couldn't get "into" them.  He knows his craft but some of his subject matter isn't my bag.

*  Organize the Garage  OFF THE LIST  I did some organizing/straightening in the garage but I am taking this off the list since we really can't do much until the Daughter moves out and takes all her stuff, some of which is stored out there, with her.

*  Order Birth Certificate  DONE   Ordered and it arrived quickly albeit somewhat crumpled.....

*  Get Photo Done  DONE  It took two attempts due to Rite-Aid not doing it correctly the first time(I did that refunded)but it got done.

*  Fill out Application  DONE

*  Apply for Passport  DONE  It took 10 days to receive my passport.

It was a LOT quicker than I was led to believe it would take.  My birth certificate on the other hand just arrived back on Monday Aug. 6th.  Almost 3 weeks after I handed it over at the PO.  I was starting to get concerned since the PO lady said that would take a week for the State Dept. to get it back to me. 8-(

*  Hold Giveaway  DONE  

*  Mail Giveaway  DONE  And it's been received by the happy winner. 8-))

*  Plan Possible 2018 Travel  WORKING ON IT  I am waiting to here back from my travel companions before I make any reservations as things/dates depend on their flights.

*  Work on 2018 Goals  PASS  Of my 10 Goals, 3 are done for the year(sell house, password book, cull stockpile), 4 are ongoing(weight, gardening, travel, selling stuff)and 3 haven't happened yet(genealogy, sewing, list of repairs on house).  Good progress and I'll take it. ;-)

We are making progress but not at a frantic pace.  It works for me.

Did you tackle anything in July?
Tell us all about it.

Sluggy

December 2016 To-Do List....Hahaha!

Let's see how we did with our December To-Do List, shall we?
My month didn't go as planned because of Hubs' accident early into December but we salvaged what we could from the list.

* Pay Bills  DONE  If nothing else I always pay our bills in full each month.

* Bike Something  PASS  Well after Hubs' accident I didn't have much time or energy to bike in December.  I got a few miles in but nowhere near how many I wanted to do when the month began.  Even if I didn't get biking done I was moving a lot more in December so should be in a little better shape by month's end.

* Read 1 Book  DONE  Actually I haven't quite finished it as I only get a few pages in each night.  I highly recommend "As Always, Julia: The Letters of Julia Child and Avis DeVoto" by Joan Reardon.  It's a collection of personal correspondence between the two women from 1952 until soon after Julia's book, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" was published.  Besides chronicling the path to publication, there are recipes discussed and cooking talk, national politics of that time, as well as personal stuff.

Avis DeVoto was the wife of historian and writer Bernard DeVoto, who was quite popular in the earlier part of the 20th Century in the US.  He had done a magazine article about how French knives were superior to US cutlery back in 1952.  Julia, living at that time in Paris, had sent Mr. DeVoto a fan letter about his article along with a couple of French knives.  Avis, DeVoto's wife was also his secretary and answered much of his mail. Avis ended up writing Julia a reply and a thank you and thus began their pen pal correspondence and later a personal friendship that lasted until Avis' death in 1989.  If anyone can be credited, it is through the efforts of Avis DeVoto and her connections in the publishing world that got Julia's epic book into print and into the hands and hearts of American cooks.
5 thumbs up!

* Shred Papers  FAIL  Nope, just not enough hours in my day in December to get to this.  The project moved to January's list.

* Hold Giveaway PASS  The December giveaway took place.

* Mail Giveaway  PASS  The package was sent off well before Christmas and received heartily.

* Finish SA Donation #1, #2 CANCELLED  After Hubs' accident there was no way I had time or the ability to get this chore done. 

* Take Donations in #1, #2  CANCELLED  Decluttering and Donations can wait and be done in 2017 once the invalid is off my hands.  8-)

* Go to 2 Dr. Appointments PASS  Appointments done and Yours Truly is doing so much better healthwise.

* Put Xmas Tree Up PASS
No tree.....

Tadah!  A tree.

* Decorate for Xmas PASS considering what I had to work with.  Hardly anything got put out other than stockings, a purple garland on the stair railing and the Christmas tree. Hubs had put the door wreath up and the porch lights outside before the accident so we had the bare minimum.
I never got around to hanging the Xmas cards we received onto a silver garland and putting that around the kitchen window frame.
I did however set them all out on the kitchen table for a few hours and snapped this photo.....

While I didn't get much Christmas decorating done I did cook a lot of goodies and food for the Holiday.

* Finish Xmas Shopping DONE  The bulk of it was finished before December began(thankfully)otherwise there would have been little under the tree this year.  I did run out the Friday morning before Christmas for some last minute gifties(and partly just to get out of the house and away from the invalid). ;-)

* Wrap Presents DONE  I do believe I was up Christmas even wrapping some items and having to fill stockings.  Just not enough hours in the day with Hubs' incapacitated to get everything done sooner this year.

* Make Charity Donation DONE  This year I wrote a check to the local Food Bank.

* Pick-Up College Boy DONE  He got picked up by my Daughter since she was done with finals earlier that day.  This was a big help to me not having to drive to his school and back with everything going on here.  Of course, after I saw what they spent on fast food on the way home on my credit card I started second guessing sending her! lolz

* Finish 2017 Budget FAIL What with a decrease in pay after 1 month on disability and not knowing still when Hubs can return to work and his usual paycheck it's hard to get this finished.  But we are close and I hope to have the budget in place before January is out.

* Take Care of Invalid Patient(and don't kill him) DONE  Well as of this morning I haven't killed him yet.....not that I haven't been tempted some days. 8-)))

I should be able to get a tad more done in January as Hubs gets to where he can do more for himself.

How did you do getting chores on your December To-Do List marked off?

Sluggy

February's To-Do List Final Tally

Here is my final report on my February Goals from my To-Do List....

Make new Price Book--DONE!

Clean out InkFrog files & Close Account--Not Done...still re-evaluating whether I want to do this or not.

Scan 1 scrapbook of photos--In Progress and about halway through this scrapbook.  I need to ramp this up or I'll never get all these books of photos digitized.

Read L. Seabrook Book--DONE!  It's a great book for History buffs interested in the Southern view on things.

Read RG Williams Book--In Progress  This book is slow going and a little "dry".

Do Taxes--DONE!  Thank you God!!  Now Hubs has to do the local taxes.

Do FAFSA--DONE!  Only had to do 1 this year.

Declutter and Make 1 Load for SA--DONE and it's been taken to the Salvation Army.  I have begun another load too.

List items on local Tag Sale site--Not Done.  The local site isn't worth even posting things on.  The local economy is so bad nothing put on there is selling unless it's a necessity, like a car or a space heater, etc.  I'll take a FAIL and take this one off my agenda.

Dental Appt.--Done....sort of.  I go back in 1 week and will either get relief or have this tooth pulled.

I had a good month overall, since I got all the paperwork and the Price Book done, did some decluttering and read 1 book.  Other than taxes, my February wasn't very aggressive or chocked full of goals, was it?

I am off to figure out what goals I want to set for March.
How did you do in Feb. on your list of things to do?

Sluggy
 

Sunday Night Chit-Chat....I'm Back!

I am back for CARLA'S Sunday Night Chit-Chat.  Go check out the rules on her site and then join in!


What are you...

Reading?
I am finally almost through "Do-Over!"

It's not a long/hard read but I just had a problem getting into it. The way I've been lately, I would have had problems getting "into" most any book. Once I did get a couple of chapters in, it was easy going.  It's a fun, light read and has a few wisdom-type nuggets in it.  A thumbs up. ;-)


Watching?
I'll be watching "Finding Your Roots" on the local PBS channel tonight.

It's along the lines of the NBC show "Who Do You Think You Are", which follows back the ancestors of famous/notable folks.  The Narrator Henry Louis Gates Jr., if you know who he is, has a well-known agenda which "colors" the show(no pun intended).  Sometimes it works itself seamlessly into the fabric of the show and sometimes it's obviously brought front and center and smacking you in the guilt centers of your sensibilities if you are of the caucasian persuasion.  Sometimes the points he makes are ones that need to be made and sometimes it's the same old crap.  On the surface I enjoy this genealogy show but sometimes the subtext does nothing to enhance it.  That and the fact that I don't agree with some of his politics probably turns me off sometimes too.

Anybody watch this?
What do you think?....I mean, what do you really think??

Listening to?
#2 Son practicing his flute.  It went to the shop for repairs earlier this week and he just got it back on Friday.  He was gone all day today for a Jazz Competition(where he plays bass)so this is the first time he's had to practice again with his flute.  He's got a lesson tomorrow.   Here's what he's working on now....


(PS-That is NOT my son in the video.lol)

Cooking/Baking?
Not today.  Since #2 Son was gone all day we didn't know if he'd want dinner tonight.  I don't like to cook for just Hubs and I.  I guess I'm going to have to learn to just make little meals soon, huh?

Happy you accomplished this week?
Got my new wand scanner so I can get to all these photos I need to digitize!  Wait.....I just realized I made MORE WORK for myself!! ack

Looking forward to next week?
This week is suppose to be super WARM for April.  I'm trying to talk Hubs into turning off the heat.  I might try to get outside and weed the front bed since my sinus meds are starting to take hold finally.  I usually start them in April so that by May when things start throwing pollen all over I am protected.  But everything is a month ahead of schedule in the throwing pollen department but I didn't get my meds a month early.  *sigh*

Thankful for today?
Allergy Meds
Tax Refunds
Having meals made ahead and in the freezer so I didn't have to cook today.
Nicer weather

***
Your turn!!
Reading?
Watching?
Listening to?
Cooking/Baking?
Happy you accomplished this week?
Looking forward to next week?
Thankful for today?

Sluggy

Goals for 2011.....Halfway Point Check-Up

 Every January on my blog, I post a list of Hopes or Goals for my year.  HERE's the post from earlier this year where I talked about what I hoped to accomplish in 2011.

Since we are halfway through the year......let me say that again.....halfway through the year!......I thought it would be a predictable time to check-in and see how I'm doing or how I'm NOT doing at this point in 2011.

1. Put more Money Into Savings.

PASS-We are slightly ahead of our Savings Goal at the halfway point from 2010.  I only upped my Savings Goal 2 thousand dollars in 2011 since food costs have been rising this year and with another teen starting college in August, we have more expenses to cover.  We are on track as of now to meet our savings goal. 8-)

2. File all the Paperwork that needs filing  and completing it on time.

PASS-We got all the college and income tax paperwork completed with time to spare earlier this year.  I also tackled a huge pile of papers that needed filing in May(was it?)  Going forward I am going to try to file every 2 months so the pile doesn't get too unruly.


3. Declutter my entire house and garage, and storage unit(and then stop renting the storage unit).

PASS(so far)-This goal is ongoing throughout 2011.  I had the storage unit down to half-empty.  Then I had to temporarily put a large load of boxes from the garage into the unit so I could stage for a garage sale this month.  Besides just the moving of crap around in this way, I have decluttered at least 6 loads(off hand I think it's 6, I might be wrong) so far from the house and unit.  After the garage sale is over, more loads will begin leaving again for Sallie's.
This Goal is my largest, ongoing, physically challenging one for 2011.  It may just kill me by December. ;-)

4. Read 30 books this year, with 75% of them being non-fiction.

FAIL-I am STILL on Book #6(this one is a 'difficult' read) plus I pitched Book #5 before finishing it because it was just horrible!  So technically I am on Book #5 with 25 more to go. 
bleh.
I am just not feeling much like reading yet.  Maybe next month when the weather turns beastly hot I'll want to do nothing but sit still and read in the a/c.

5. Finish ALL in progress sewing projects and alter ALL clothing that needs it or give it away.

FAIL-I hemmed some pants and worked on some PJ pants for my Daughter but haven't finished them.  Hubs bought 4 pairs of pants for me to hem so the pile has gone UP not DOWN. 
bleh. bleh. bleh. 
I just can't seem to get into a sewing zone.  This is worrying me.  People are going to start thinking I really can't sew.lol

6. Cook more foods from scratch and phase unhealthy options out of my stockpile.

PASS-I was doing very well on this earlier this year.  I was cooking much more from scratch and we were down to a small number of cans of soda(of which I was only drinking 1 can per week if that)and I only had 2 tv dinners in the freezer.....no frozen pizzas, no 'snack' foods like Pop-Tarts or Toaster Pocket thingies, Froot snacks, only a few Helper type mixes.  Ok, I still had a ton of cake mixes and breaded chicken products.lol  Then school ended and I caved and bought some pizza rolls, pizzas, chicken strips, ice cream and more soda for #2 son.  The kid has to eat lunch, right?lol  And unless I want to spend ALL DAY cooking this summer, I'm giving him easy things to make for lunch(rather than spend a fortune buying Taco Bell and Baconators at Wendy's)and I'll give him healthy foods for dinner.  It's the compromise I'll make to get through until school starts again.

And I promise I shall NEVER buy Pop-Tarts again....Nasty!

7. Grow more of the food we eat or source our food from non-grocery chain stores.

 FAIL(so far)-With the wacky weather and being super busy in May/June with the impending Graduation and all that entailed I was sooo not 'into' my garden this year.  We did get it planted but not everything I wanted.  I don't feel we will have as much to eat from our garden this year as we did last year.  As for sourcing from non-grocery chain stores, we are just getting into the season where we can buy from the local farms.  I am determined to get to the farm stands this summer and put up produce for 2012.  I am still looking for a local source for meats.  The closest is over an hour's ride away so not very economical.

8. Use my skills to step up what I do for Others.

 NEUTRAL-Ok, I can't say Pass or Fail on this one.  OTOH, I have done on par with last year in terms of family and food bank donations so far this year.  As soon as the garage sale is done I have another donation to take to the food bank.  But since I have not been 'extreme couponing' this year(due to the lack of deals locally, not traveling where the deals are because of the price of gas and wear and tear on the minivan AND the lack of good value coupons this year, due to the tightening up on coupons by manufacturer's in part because of "That Couponing Show Which Shall Not Be Named")I haven't had as much to donate as in past years.  It will take me MORE money in 2011 to donate the same amount of food as I did in 2010.  I just don't know if I can come up with enough money this year to put toward this goal to "step up" what I give. 
I may have to look at other ways besides monetary/food donations to do for others.

9. Be more "in the Moment" for my Family.

PASS-I feel that, so far in 2011, I have been more 'there' for the family.  I have tried to limit my time on the internet by blogging less(ok, not MUCH less!lol), and spending less time deal hunting.
See?....crappy coupons and local deals give me more time to be with family, so there is one good thing about the dirth of deals!lol  With less of a stockpile I spend less time organizing it.
Of course, the teens don't actually want to spend time with me when they are home, unless I have cooking them food or handing over cash....oh, the blessings of having sullen, eye-rolling teens! ;-)
Now that #2 son is home from camp, I'll be offering to drive him places and do some things for him so he can hang out with people that aren't his family. 

10. Organize the running of my Home.  

How to score this one?.....
I guess I'm on my way to a PASS with this one.  With 2 less kids home things are running fairly smoothly.  With less clutter in the way, it's easier to keep what is here organized and clean.  But with so many projects pending or in progress(garage sale, cleaning out the storage unit, sewing, home repairs/remodeling)it seems like everything is at 6's and 7's and just a moment away from flying off the tracks.  Since the older 2 kids don't have a car while working across the state this summer(due to the car wreck in May), I'm having to deal with business stuff for them like driver's license renewals, dr. appointments, prescription refills, college papers/forms, scholarship forms/requirement, ordering books and tuition bills.  This is stuff they should/would be taking care of but since they don't have transportation or bank/credit card access it's all falling on me.  I haven't screwed anything up yet, knock on wood.lol

So how about you?
How are your goals for 2011 panning out?
Are you on track to accomplish what you want to this year?
Have your goals changed significantly since the beginning of 2011?

Sluggy