Frugal Friday......the September 22nd Edition

*  Eldest son experienced a change in life status recently so we went down to Va to assist him in finding bedroom furniture for his apartment.  Eldest is a not very well paid new teacher and he just bought a car(after being car-less for an entire year)so money is real tight for him right now.  There would be no perusing expensive furniture stores for a matching bedroom suite.

While he worked on Friday we visited many, many thrift stores scouting out the furniture prospects.
At the Goodwill no furniture we could use but I did find College Boy a Xmas present.........hehehe

We found 3 candidates for a bedroom night stand in our travels.  We took some photos and after viewing them later, Eldest picked this one to go and purchase on Saturday.......

It has some style, was "real wood" and sturdy and the best part it was only $8.
Sold!

After about 6 thrift stores and no luck we saw this dresser sitting out in front of a junk store across the street from a thrift store we checked out........

Again, real wood and fairly sturdy and large enough to hold his stuff.  Knowing it was a deal at $55 I went ahead and paid for it and we went back on Saturday to arrange for delivery.

After checking out some mattress stores Eldest decided on a temper-pedic type foam mattress and a platform type bed frame/headboard.
The "discount" mattress store wanted upwards of $3500 for a queen sized 14" foam mattress and frame/platform.
hahahaha
No wonder people have to make payments and buy a bed on time at those prices!

So it was either buy a cheapy regular mattress and box spring at a store, or get a good mattress for cheap online.
He opted for the good mattress online where his dad and I got ours along with a platform bed frame/headboard.
He's all good in the bedroom department(mattress/frame/headboard/dresser/night stand)for a grand total of $770.

*  Remember all these that I have been collecting(mostly at Rite-Aid for free)all year........

This past week I turned it into this..........

$80 in cold hard cash.

*  While in Va we got Domino's for dinner on Friday using an old gift card so no new money OOP.

A Stormtrooper was riding shotgun for that delivery driver.
"Keep calm and join the dark side" as the back window suggested.

*  Almost free razors at Rite-Aid, free barbecue sauce at the Shursave market, and a few items bought while on the road to VA and back as shared already are my grocery finds.

*  In Goodwill I also scored a stocking stuffer for one of the kids and it was that week's 50% colored tag so half price off a thrift store price.  Rah!
In Walmart in WV I scored some clearance clothing too.......

Sleep tank tops for Daughter for $1 each.
I also found Daughter something I had already bought at the local Walmart for $4 cheaper so I bought it and will return the one that was more $. ;-)

A Summer nightie for me for $7.

And a Wonder Woman sleep shirt for me for $3.
Because I am "Fierce" when it comes to saving $. lolz

What have you done lately that is frugal?

Sluggy

Shopping This Week

Here's the little bit of shopping I did since last Thursday.

While in Virginia over the weekend I picked up a few things to bring home...........

Some Walmart brand mayo when we did grocery shopping with Eldest son.
Hubs and I hit Ollies(Good Stuff Cheap!)while Eldest was working on Friday and I picked up some applesauce and mandarin orange cups and 2 bags of rice.
Then on the ride home we hit a Food Lion along the way to look for discounted meat deals and I picked up 4 containers of bouillon cubes for cheaper than I can find them for at home.

I also got a pork butt for $1.29 lb...............

I would have bought more(3 more I think)if we had brought the large cooler with us, but alas, we only have the small handheld one.
I want to smoke some butts, cut them to size and then put them into the chest freezer.  That way, we can have barbecue pork anytime we want this Fall/Winter.  You just can't smoke outside here once teh cold hits.  My smoker isn't electric, it's charcoal so the wind and cold keep you from regulating the smoking temperature.

Moving on.........

On Tuesday I had to go to Rite-Aid for drugs so I also picked these up.......

2 x Daylogic 3 blade razors on sale$5=$10.00
Add tax of .60¢ and this came to $10.60 which I paid for with PPs.
I earned back $10 in Plenti Points so .60¢ spent down in points for two razors.

The local Shursave market had a One Day sale(today)so I stopped in and picked up a few things..........

Their private label Greek yogurt was .50¢ a cup today only so I picked up 10.  I get the plain ones and use them to mix with sour cream in recipes(and dips)to bring calorie count and fat content down.  I also use these for breakfast, with the additional of a little honey or fruit and granola and flax seed.  I find the already fruited ones just too sweet.
The turkey breast are half price all week, .99¢ lb. with a limit of 2.  This makes for a cheap protein for dinners.

Cauliflower heads were .99¢ today only and the broccoli crowns were .99¢ all week.  The barbecue sauce was free with the e-coupon attached to my store card.

I am hoping to find a good deal on pork butts/shoulders this weekend or early next week as I'll be smoking said butts/shoulders then.
It looks like no tomato canning or relish making will happen this year.  We missed the peak of tomato picking at the farm we go to since we were gone the end of last week and the weekend.  I could still pick peppers for relish but I am just not "into" it right now.

I haven't been sleeping well so I am going to go attempt a nap, if the construction workers building a massive garage down the road stay on break long enough for me to conk out.

Did y'all find any good loss leaders at the stores this week?

Sluggy

Frugal Cooking

While down in Virginia to see our Eldest son late last week I did a bit of cooking for him.  We didn't want to spend on Eating-out much and didn't want Eldest to pay for that either(Eldest is quite generous and will splash out for meals without being asked to pick up a tab.)  Plus cooking is one of the few things I can do for him at his age.  ;-)

He needed to go grocery shopping so I picked up a few items as well at Walmart when we went with him.  Eldest always grocery shops at Walmart as he isn't into hunting the best price and can't be bothered to go from store to store so he shops at "the Mart" as it's convenient and he uses their Savings Catcher feature.

Eldest loves leftovers and his usual MO when cooking is the prepare a large container or two of some food and eat off of it for dinner all week.  He cooks well but he really doesn't want to spend his precious free time during workdays making meals so this works for him....cooking on weekends and eating the leftovers during the week.

I purchased a small beef roast, a package of 4 boneless pork loins(prepped like a cube steak and discounted), a pack of hamburger rolls, a head of lettuce, 2 lbs. of whole mushrooms, a canister of panko bread crumbs, a bottle of ketchup and 1 onion.  I had also picked up a container of sour cream at Aldi's when Hubs and had gone there the day before while Eldest was working.
I spent $30.09 on all this.
I also had at my disposal, back at his apartment, cooking oil, flour, spices, rice and mayo.

Before we went out on Saturday I prepped the beef roast by halving it.  I cut one half into bite-sized pieces and used them in a large pot of Beef Stroganoff along with the whole 2 lbs. of mushrooms(which got added later).  The ratio was 2/3 'shrooms to 1/3 meat basically.  It cooked away in a crock pot most of the day and was served over rice that evening.  This fed the three of us handily(Eldest had seconds)and also left him at least 3 additional meals worth for later.

On Sunday I prepped the pork pieces, first by flattening them more, then salting and peppering them.  Each was coated in seasoned panko and sauteed in a skillet, then drained on paper towels.  Add lettuce(slice of raw onions and tomato optional)and mayo on a warm bun and you've got a filling pork tenderloin sandwich, something I developed a taste for in the Midwest a few Summers ago.

I had planned to serve these for lunch on Sunday but Hubs and I decided to bug out on Sunday rather than Monday so I prepared these for breakfast on Sunday instead.
By flattening the pork slices I was able to get 7 portions(3 were large enough to cut them in half after pounding them)that would fit on a hamburger bun.  After we ate our fill, Eldest was left with two portions to eat at another time.

The other half of the beef roast was frozen for later use.  I told Eldest he could season it and put it in his crock pot to cook while he was in school and just throw a potato and some other veg in the microwave when he got home and have dinner ready in short order.
I also recommended the leftovers of his roast could be cut up and with the addition of carrots, onions, garlic, and any other veg he preferred(potato, green beans, etc.)in his crockpot he could have a nice stew later on.  I figure using that hunk of roast this way would get him at least 3 more servings from it.  Adding it to a stew with vegetables would extend how many meals it would make.

All totaled I spent $30.09 on 14 helpings of meals(both the ones we ate then and the ones that will be eaten later).
Plus Eldest got to keep half the container of sour cream, most of a bottle of ketchup, most of a head of lettuce, 3 hamburger buns and half a canister of panko crumbs to incorporate into future meals.

If Eldest had all 14 helpings for himself this would have fed him for lunches and dinners for a whole week.

Sluggy

Frugal Friday....September 15th on the 19th

Finally getting a chance to do a frugal update.
Here's what we did Frugal last week.

* We didn't do any Eating-out or Take-out.

*  I used up leftovers and foods we already had at home to meal plan.

*  Did laundry during off-peak rates.

*  Mostly we stayed home and did chores/projects around the house.  Sanded and repainted front porch posts, had the driveway seal coated.  Proactive maintenance costs less in the long run.

We didn't have anything out of the ordinary or noteworthy the previous week that was frugal beyond the same-old, same-old.  No Rite-Aid freebies at all and just a couple grocery store deals.

Just a boring old week in frugal land........

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

The "Traveling Again" Edition--

Hubs and I went down to VA for a few days to help Eldest son deal with some "stuff" and hang out with him.
It was a great visit and so nice to see him again.

Moving On....

Onward to the meal planning!

Here's what was planned last week--

1. Sunday--Spaghetti and Meatballs, Cuke/Tomato Salad

2. Monday--Beef Pie

3. Tuesday--Ham, Brussels Sprouts, Sweet Potato Cornbread

4. Wednesday--Haluski

5. Thursday--Leftovers
6. Friday--Leftovers
7. Saturday--Leftovers

And this is what actually happened--

1. Sunday--Spaghetti and Meatballs, Cuke/Tomato Salad

2. Monday--Beef Pie

3. Tuesday--Ham, Brussels Sprouts, Leftover Corn and Leftover Zuke Casserole

4. Wednesday--Haluski

5. Thursday--Leftovers/Eating-Out
6. Friday--Leftovers/Take-Out Pizza
7. Saturday--Leftovers/Beef and Mushroom Stroganoff over Rice, Grapes

Last week saw 4 nights of home cooked dinners, 3 nights of leftovers(or 5 nights of home cooked dinners, 2 nights of take-out/eating-out for me and Hubs) and 0 nights of Take-Out.  

Hubs and I took an unscheduled trip down the Eldest son's apartment to help him on Thursday so we weren't here the last 3 days of my menu plan.  We left Daughter tons of leftovers(plus a couple of tv dinners in the freezer)and she was suppose to eat on those if she didn't feel like cooking.  Daughter cooked a small ham shank I had in the fridge and ate a few leftovers but didn't finish anything(sigh)so we'll be eating on those leftovers this week as well.

I made 1 trip to Weis Markets and 2 trips to the Shursave Market which brought the weekly food spending to $59.62 last week, and bringing food spending in September to $208.32 so far.   

My savings percentages last week and for the month to-date?   Last week's percentage was 39.53% and the monthly ends up at 45.05% as well(without Rite-Aid trips added in). 

Leftovers going into this week.......1 kielbasa hunk(which Hubs will have for lunch on Monday), a hunk of baked ham, Beef Pie, Halushki, Spaghetti and Meatballs.

Here is this week's "food plan".....

1. Sunday--Leftovers(or Eating-Out while on the road)

2. Monday--Leftover Spaghetti and Meatballs, Salad

3. Tuesday--Leftover Beef Pie

4. Wednesday--Leftover Haluski

5. Thursday--Leftover Ham, Sugar Snap Peas
6. Friday--Leftovers if still available or ?
7. Saturday--Leftovers if still available or ?

This week will see 0-2 new meals cooked, 5-7 nights of leftovers and 0 nights of Take-Out/Eating-Out.
Depending on how long the leftovers hold out I may not be cooking at all this week, just reheating leftovers and adding a tossed salad or veggie side to augment the leftovers.
If needed I have all the makings to do a lasagna or fix pork tenderloin sandwiches if we need "new" food this week.

What I need to buy for this menu? Nothing.  Daughter needs some lunch meat but I don't plan on getting anything much beyond that as the grocery ads are "bleh" this week.

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 last week?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week?


Sluggy