For Sissie-I Cleaned Up Good!

Again, here is the state of my living/dining room last week........

The tree is up(but nekkid)and tubs of stuff and other crap in the green chair......

TP and shipping boxes taking over the living room......

TP, shipping boxes and a giant painting by the sofa.......

Lots of eBay-ables in this corner of the living room....

A shit show in the dining room....

And here is how it looked on Christmas.........

The tree is all decorated and lit.......

The bannister garlanded and lit.

The green chair was "sittable" and those heavy tubs got camouflaged with a xmas tablecloth. lol  That picture Cousin Sonya gave me 2 Xmases ago(I still need to find the right place to hang it and get Hubs to do that).

BTW-Today is Sonya's birthday so leave her some love in the comments!!!

But I digress.....

The corner with the eBay-ables is mostly empty.  Wasn't going to lift heavy tubs just to bring them back down the stairs so again, another camo job with a Xmas cloth, a candle and my crystal sleigh centerpiece(which wouldn't fit on the dining room table with tableware for 7). lol

This is the sofa.  Taken the day after Xmas so there are empty/used gift bags and boxes on the coffee table instead of Xmas day snacks along with Hubs singing Xmas cactus. lolz

The dining room sideboard decluttered with a table runner, candles, pots of scented pinecones and my chicken tea pot.

I didn't bother taking a photo of the dining room table because dinner was over and the table was bare except for dirty cloth napkins and tablecloth.

Our big white Xmas tree has discolored as it's aged so I bought a small white tree in November to replace it.  Being so small we didn't have room for many ornaments so we put a few up that had meaning to us and ones from recent trips and vacations.

An iguana for St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands

A Totem from Saxman Village, Ketchikan, Alaska

A main street scene of Skagway, Alaska

A homemade ornie made with a Sand Dollar from the Bahamas

A scene from Icy Strait Point near Hoonah, Alaska

A pony representing Chincoteague Island, Virginia.

Of course being busy cooking and all I didn't get ANY actual photos of our family on Christmas that were here!  And nobody else ever thinks to pick up their phone and take a photo.  sigh

So do I pass inspection Sissie??

I hope everyone had some fun this Christmas along with the craziness and busyness.  Me?  I just want to nap for a week......... 8-)))

But first another Holiday song....

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

The "Childhood Memories" Edition...

             

I was feeling low one day last week and opened one of my few remaining cans of the "throwback" Beefaroni.  Once I was old enough to be left home alone on a Friday night by my parents, this was my usual Friday meal as I got comfy in my beanbag chair to watch something on TV.  It tasted like freedom and independence to me back then.  Ah, nostalgia.....;-)

Onward to the meal planning!

1. Sunday--No Plan

2. Monday--No Plan

3. Tuesday--No Plan

4. Wednesday--No Plan
5. Thursday--No Plan

6.  Friday--No Plan

7. Saturday--No Plan

And this is what really happened.......

1. Sunday--Apple w/peanut butter

2. Monday--Don't recall

3. Tuesday--Don't recall

4. Wednesday--I didn't eat dinner(had a Whopper for lunch
5. Thursday--Salad, Popcorn

6.  Friday--Eggplant in Garlic Sauce, Rice

7. Saturday--Christmas Dinner

What got put into the freezer last week....

*  1 bag of Brussels Sprouts

What got taken out of the freezer and used...

* 1 bag of Brussels Sprouts

I spent $47.61 on food/toiletries/HBA the last 2 weeks. This brings our food/toiletries/paper goods Total to $139.96 for December. 

There are 5 shopping days left in December.  I may go out for milk and a few assorted things but mostly I am done grocery shopping in 2021.

I've earned $138.79 on Ibotta in December.

I've earned $7.00 on Checkout51 in December.

I've earned $0 on Coupons dotcom/Paypal in December.

I've earned 11,661points from shopping on Fetch in December which equals $11.66.

I earned 3,980 points from food shopping on Shop Kick in December which equals $15.92. 

I've earned 1,408 SB from food shopping on Swagbucks in December which equals $14.08.

I've earned $4.20 from food shopping on Tada in December.

That's $145.79 in rebates(not counting the Shop Kick/Swag Bucks/Tada/Fetch)on $139.96 in grocery spending so in reality it's -$5.83 spent after the 3 rebate apps I count.  Yay me.....

My savings percentage for the last week was 66.14%(without "regular" Rite-Aid trips)and the monthly savings total for December comes in at 43.65% so far(w/out R-A). 

Leftovers going into this week....lots of Christmas dinner fare-lasagna, salt cured VA ham, Hawaiian rolls, deviled eggs, roasted veggies, mac and cheese, etc.

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

1. Sunday--FFY

2. Monday--Pork Tenderloin Sandwich, Baked Sweet Potatoes

3. Tuesday--Lasagna, leftover Roasted Veggies

4. Wednesday--Broccoli Cheese Soup
5. Thursday--Assorted Leftovers

6.  Friday--Late Lunch out using gift card

7. Saturday--More Leftovers

We'll be eating leftovers from Christmas plus I am using some leftover roux/cheese from the mac and cheese I made plus some fresh broccoli that didn't get roasted to make a soup later in the week.  The Pork cutlets I found at Weis(PMITA)Markets on clearance.

What do I need to buy to fix everything on this menu?  Not a thing.  Eating up leftovers mostly.

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?  

Here's today's Holiday tune......

Sluggy

 

Christmas Time!

 I hope y'all are having the kind of Christmas that fills you with joy.

Merry Christmas to all my readers from Sluggy and hers!

Sluggy

Frugal Friday....the Christmas Eve Dec. 24th Edition

So here are a few of the frugal-ish things that happened during this past week.......

*  I haven't cooked a single meal in 3 weeks(today I begin cooking for Christmas day).  How is that frugal?  Well, I've been using up some of my free food gift cards and doing intermittent fasting as well.  I've taken off ALL the weight I gained on vacation.  Most of the weight was from imbibing alcoholic refreshments and not taking my water pill for a week.  I got a lot of walking done on the ship and shore. Go me.

*  Last weekend Easy Spirit shoes website had a big sale(more than 50% off on some styles/sizes)so I ordered a butt load of shoes and they came 2 days ago.....

I haven't even had time to open the box yet.  Not only was it a great deal on about the only brand of shoes I can wear but I loaded up and now can get rid of some worn out pairs that hurt my feet.

*  While we were in the area I shopped at Aldi to get some items cheaper than the local grocery store.  Cheap butter, tortilla chips and a Stollen for Christmas?  Yes please!

*  I had to get a new cell phone as mine started dying on the vacation.  Did I get the newest and latest with all the gegaws that cost as much as a month's rent or a mortgage payment?  Silly question if you know me. lol  I got a "nice" phone that does what I need it to do and spent $400 on it.

*  I did some grocery shopping this week to finish up a $10 Ibotta Bonus.  I earned $42.28 in rebates and only spent $9.40 after using free Walmart gift cards.
Whether I'll finish 12 more rebates to get this Weekend $5 Bonus is yet to be seen. ;-)  I've still got $40 in free Walmart gift cards. 8-)))

*  I've been using up/rolling Bonus Cash at R-A to get stocking stuffers for my family for cheap or free.  Most of this BC needs using or it is expiring so best to use it up, right?  I've only got a few BC to spend on the day after Christmas left so I am show I'll find some clearance stuff to use it up on. 8-)

*   I found money!

I found a crumpled up dollar on the floor in my Rite-Aid and then a penny near the register on Tuesday.

I found all the above on that same day at various places.  When I found that dollar at my R-A the cashier said when you find money laying around it's a sign angels are watching over you.  I think she gave me a dash of good luck for the rest of the day as I found $1.54 in money on that day alone!

I found this quarter at the Burger King drive thru when I used a coupon to get a drink for a $1.

This dime and penny were found I don't remember where over the weekend(Walmart?)...

I found this dime at the Verizon store when I got my new phone and the 3 pennies were found in Weis(PMITA)Markets-one under the newspaper rack and the other two in the foyer leaving the store.

And this quarter was found in the Aldi parking lot in an abandoned cart far from the corral.

It was a great week finding change!!

Total Found in last Week...... $2.28
Total Found This Year......$23.60

That's about all I've got for this week.

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

And here is today's Christmas selection...........

Sluggy

It's Coming Along.....

 Well part of the living room is done and presentable.........

The tree is fully decorated and the corresponding tubs are back upstairs.

And the wall of tp and mailing boxes are gone.  I still have to move crap from the other side of the room, then vacuum the rug and clean the wood floor in here.

No progress on the dining room as it is wrapping central right now.  I should have everything boxed and bagged by tonight so I can clear that room out and set it up for dinner.

All the food has been procured and I am about to start the boiling of the ham(a long slow procedure)so I can bake it tomorrow so it's nice and chilled for Christmas.

More tunes to get y'all into the Holiday Spirit........

This "Messiah" aria was in my performance repertoire during my short lived career as an operatic/choral singer and is still a favorite for Christmastime.

And now for my personal tradition due to my redneck Southern roots......

And now from the ridiculous to the sublimey fun......

Sluggy