Frugal Friday......February 23rd Edition

Let's see what good frugally things happened this week......

* We got to the bank and cashed in two US Savings Bonds that reached full maturity and are no longer earning interest.  No point in hanging onto assets that aren't going to grow, right?
The cash is sitting in an envie awaiting the next move--were to shove this cash to keep it growing, at least a little bit.  ;-)

* I hit Rite-Aid on Wednesday to return 2 items that L2CQs didn't come off when purchased(Rite-Aid doesn't do "post coupons" for electronic Qs). Oh well.....
While I was there I picked up all this.............

The Revlon color silk hair dyes are part of the Bonus Cash scheme this week(Buy $50 participating items/Get $20 in BC)and there were $2/1 Wellness Wednesday Qs for it, plus this dye brand was on sale for 2/$6.
14 hair dyes=$42-$28 in Qs=$14 spent in BC/PPs giving me $42 toward that $50 threshold.

Add in 3 Hershey bars--3 were Buy2/Get3rdFREE so $3.98 and I used 2 of my Free Hershey Gold bars Qs(worth $1.50 off each)so $3 off of $3.98=.98¢  OOP using a R-A gift card.
$45.98 "spent" before Qs so only $4.02 more to "spend" on participating items to earn $20 in Bonus Cash before the sales week ends Saturday night.  I'll probably pick up 4 more Hershey bars to finish this off and get to the $20 BC level. 

I also bought that box of candy, it was $7.99 after 20% Wellness discount plus there was a $6 off 1 box Q in the WWQ flyer so $1.99 used in PPs.
The Campbell's soups that were $1.49 reg. shelf price after 20% Wellness discount were $1.19 and there was a $1.25/1 WWQ in the flyer for Campbell's soup, so these were slight .06¢ moneymakers each.

After sales/Qs/using $5 in BC I will have "spent" $12.56 in PPs to get a $20 BC so really after spending down $5 in BC(and the additional $1.07 4 more bars will cost me in PPs/R-A gift card I will be "up" $1.37 on this whole deal.  Hey, getting paid a couple bucks AND having all the above(+ 4 more candy bars)to use/sell/give away works for me. 8-)

*  I was sick a bit last week so I missed out on a couple of free Hershey Gold bars(seriously?  make the link live at 5am ET??)but I did score two more rounds of free candy Qs on Wednesday night(and into the wee hours of the morning after the Women's Hockey game.....who says there are no advantages to being sick and not being able to sleep?lol).  I ended up able to print off 24 free candy bar Qs during this Olympic/Hershey's offer. 8-)))

*  I stayed home except for a trip to the Urgent Care and a trip to Weis(PMITA)Markets and Rite-Aid this past week and I didn't do any online shopping while I was home bound and sick.  Being sick meant some extra $ spent on take-out but we kept that to a dull roar.

* We needed new thermometer covers so I used PPs to purchase R-A brand ones(got 20% off w/my discount too).  I also used some PPs to pay for our Rxs as I forgot the HSA debit card one trip.  Yes, I can use PPs to pay for Rxs in PA so that's one way I can use some of those up! I'd much rather using them to pay for something we need like medicines rather than go spend them on housewares/clothing/over priced tchotchkes at Macy's.  ;-)

That's about it from Chez Sluggy this week.

What frugal wins did you have this week?

Sluggy

Giveaway Winner #2 for 2018

There were 80 valid entries this go around.
I numbered them all and put it to Random dot org to pick the winning entry.
And the winner is...........

Crystal Hankey!

Crystal HankeyFebruary 21, 2018 at 6:06 PM

Today's entry! Back to feeling crappy too. Just finished steroid pack and had such high hopes. lol. Been sick two months have had numerous Dr. visits and antibiotics and steroids. Hoping to get better. Every winter for 3 years have been sick for months. Hope your family gets through all this yucky stuff super quick and heals asap. Take care. crystalhankey@yahoo.com

Congratulations Crystal.  Unfortunately if anyone needs cold meds and hand sanitizer right now it sounds like it's you. ;-)

Please email me within the next 48 hours from the time this post goes live with your full snail mailing address and I'll get this out as soon as I can.

Thanks to everyone for playing along and be looking for another giveaway coming up in early March.

Sluggy

Craptastic Health Update

Well I finally went to the Urgent Care and just as I suspected I have a sinus infection.  Haven't had one of those in years so yeah.....
I was also working on a case of bronchitis it seems but I took an albuterol treatment and am on an antibiotic and steroids for one or the other condition and am feeling on the mend at this point.  I sound like death when I breath or I am hacking up a lung but really I am better and not contagious.
The Daughter woke up this morning feeling like crap(or so she said)so she went up to the urgent care for a flu test.  Daughter can be a bit of a hypochondriac(she comes by it honestly as my mom had a touch of that)plus all her medical studies before she decided not to continue in premed and go to medical school.  We'll find out tomorrow or tonight if she is contagious so until then she is banished to her room and the Lysol and hand sanitizer are back on standby at Chez Sluggy.

With my luck if both the kids have the flu it will be hitting me next on top of my current miseries. sigh.
I wore a mask to Rite-Aid today to return the shampoo and Kleenex that my L2CQs didn't come off for and got some other goodies with today's Wellness Wednesday coupons.
I'll write that trip up later tonight or Thursday and report in on it.

Don't forget to enter the giveaway!!!
 Today is the last day it's open so go HERE.

Fear not!  The box is filled and sealed already just waiting to make it's way to it's new home so no germy hands with me handling the goodies.  I'll open the lid briefly to slip in a paper with the winner's address/name(after spraying that with Lysol of course!).

Ok, I am off to go nap if I can stop coughing long enough to do so. 

Sluggy

Our Trip to Maine August 2016.....Part 3

Part 1 of our Maine trip is HERE.
Part 2 of our Maine trip is HERE.

So we boarded the wooden Schooner Alert on a grey day that threatened rain.  We were the only customers for that cruise.
The day before they had a full capacity of 28 passengers.

This ship began life as a tall ship called TALL COTTON.  Built in York, Maine and launched in 1992, she changed hands in 2006 when a fisherman bought her, renamed her ALERT and set out to use her for commercial ground fishing and research.
In 2013 ALERT was purchased by a husband and wife team, the Davis'.  Along with their ketch TEVAKE the Davis' run windjammer cruises around Bailey's Island and the Casco Bay waters to the public, as well as offering school student educational excursions and are affiliated with a non-profit organization called Tall Ships Portland(part of the Tall Ships America)that train the youth of Maine sailing and life skills during sea adventures.

Though the captain said they hadn't have any wind to speak off for about a week, he and his crew woman hoisted the sails anyway but had the engine ready to go if the wind stayed calm.

So we set off on a two hour tour.  Not like that infamous 3 hour tour you all know about..............

Who is that fellow guarding the adult beverages? lolz

And as we cast off the breeze started blowing!

Passing a local lobsterman working his pots.

Another lobster boat with the Casco Bay passenger ferry in the background.

One of the many small islands offshore from Bailey's Island.  This one is called Little Mark Island.  The monument was built there in 1827 and is now operated by the US Coast Guard.  A beacon was installed on the stone monument in 1927.  It is solar powered and supplies are stocked in the base to aid shipwrecked sailors.

 Another shot of the sails from below.  I could look at this all day. It was so quiet out on the water without an engine roaring.

Two old derelict lookout towers from WWII when submarines German submarines were on the prowl in the Atlantic.

 The ferry again.

I caught this shot of a loon before he dove below the surface again in search of food.

This is the "Giant's Steps on the other side of Bailey's Island from the dock where we cast off from.  It's a rock formation that resembles a set of stairs made for a giant.

The winds died down when we got to this side of the island so we had to sail back with the aid of the diesel engine.

The crew mate set out a snack plate of fresh apple slices and homemade muffin type bread(made by the captain's wife).

The last hour of the sail the rain began that had been threatening all day.

A channel marker.

Wooden ship decks are quite slippery when wet.....take my word for it.

The captain, a fine fellow pushing 40 years has been making a living on the water for many years. It was interesting to listen to his tales of crewing boats all over the world.
He also knew a fair amount of family genealogy so of course, that set me off! lolz

The bird off the shore there looked like a cormorant.

Back to the side of the island where the cribstone bridge connets Orr's Island to Bailey's Island at Will's Gut.

The captain said someone famous use to have a house on this shore(Edna Saint Vincent Milay I think?).  As we passed the shore closer than this shot, someone came out of one of the houses(a big modern one with a high deck/balcony, not a cottage)and waved to us and took video of the schooner and said they were happy to see a "real" boat out on the water.

Another channel marker with what is probably an osprey nest on top.

Even with an hour of drizzle and then steady rain I resisted going below deck to get out of the cold rain.

The historic cribstone bridge(the only one in the world) linking Orr's and Bailey's islands.

Our cruise pilot, Perry Davis and his mate Erin.  I think they were glad to put into port and get out of the rain too by this time.

This windjammer cruise could have had better weather but even so, it was worth the cost to us.
And the partial bottle of Allen's coffee liquor Capt. Davis snagged floating in the water along the way(must have fallen overboard from a lobsterman's boat as Maine fishermen are crazy about Allen's!lol)was a bonus.  ;-)

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

The "I Got Nothing" Edition--

 I didn't leave the house except to put this little guy out to do his business since Wednesday so this in the only photo on my camera right now.  Chester kept looking at me this past week like he knew something was wrong with me and he wanted to make it all better.   It's a good thing I had a few posts written up before I got sick.  The most strenuous thing I've been doing is trying to stay up to watch some Olympic coverage.  8-(
I may attempt to leave the house later this week.....or not.  ;-)

Moving On....

Onward to the meal planning!

1. Sunday--ham and cheese quiche

2. Monday--hot dogs on rolls, beans

3. Tuesday--ham and bean soup, cornbread

4. Wednesday--leftovers

5. Thursday--chicken fajitas
6. Friday--Italian pork roast, potatoes, onions and carrots
7. Saturday--leftovers

And this is what actually happened--

1. Sunday--ham and cheese quiche

2. Monday--hot dogs on rolls, chipotle beans

3. Tuesday--ham and bean soup, cornbread

4. Wednesday--leftovers

5. Thursday--Chinese soup or take-out
6. Friday--Fend for Yourself
7. Saturday--leftovers or FFY

Last week saw 3 nights of home cooked dinners, 3 nights of leftovers/fend for yourself, 1 night of take-out and 0 nights of Eating out.  College Boy and I got sick in quick succession and as I might have had the flu nobody wanted me touching/making their food so there was leftovers/FFY or take-out from Wednesday on.
I did knock out a couple of ham and cheese quiches and a big pot of ham and bean soup before I felt unwell.  The rest of the ham got tucked into the freezer to use at another time.

2 trips to Weis and 1 trip to Dollar Tree,brought the shopping last week to $98.62 for all.  That brings February's food spending total to $242.59.  There are 9 days left in my shopping month.

My savings percentages last week was 56.86% and the monthly savings so far ends up at 54.69%(without Rite-Aid trips added in).

Leftovers going into this week.......quiche(a large piece left), ham and bean soup.  I may need to shove some of the soup into the freezer later this week as it isn't being eaten at a good clip with 2 of us off food mostly.

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

1. Sunday--Chinese take-out(again!)

2. Monday--Italian pork roast, potatoes, onions and carrots

3. Tuesday--fish, sugar snap peas, boxed mac and cheese

4. Wednesday--spaghetti and meatballs, salad

5. Thursday--chicken fajitas

6. Friday--pork tenderloin sandwiches, sweet potato fries

7. Saturday--leftovers

This week will see 5 new meals cooked, 1 night of leftovers, 1 night of Take-out/Eat-Out.  I am feeling better so am up to cooking, plus the family doesn't feel I am "Typhoid Mary" any longer. lolz

If I don't feel up to cooking most of these can still be made by Daughter or Hubs.  College Boy will attempt to go back to his internship job tonight so won't be home for meals.

The only things I need to buy to make these meals are carrots, chicken, salad greens.

I made Hubs go to Weis once for a few things on Friday(mostly 5 bottles of OJ).  I don't feel up to grocery shopping still, so I'll send Hubs out for those things above that I need. 
I swear that when I die Hubs will subsist on pasta and take-out.

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