Menu Plan Monday ~ Saving Money in my Frugal Kitchen ~ Week #4 June 2025

My Frugal Week

I went to the community garden on Wednesday and picked one cucumber, three onions, and some dill. I went home afterwards and made a cucumber tomato salad for dinner. 

On Thursday, I sorted and broke green beans for dinner one night. I also cut up a watermelon, chopped up a cabbage for dinner, and shucked some corn that I picked up the day before. Of course, I added all the refuse to the compost pile in the woods. Looks like I have a few mushrooms growing in the compost pile now. 

Someone gave me a bag of BBQ sauce from Burger King, so I decided to decant the individual tubs into a mason jar. There were nineteen sauce packets and it ended up making two cups of BBQ sauce. I have some jackfruit that I'll add to this for dinner one night soon. 

Recipe of the Week

For this recipe, I used a one pound package of Butterball taco seasoned turkey meat I had in the freezer. I only bought one, so we could try it and see if we liked it and we did. So, I will definitely be buying this again in the future as it is much healthier and has better macros than ground beef.

Cheesy Taco Pasta

Ingredients:

One pound ground beef or turkey

1 package taco seasoning mix

2 cups water

2 cups uncooked pasta (I used protein pasta)

1 cup salsa

1 cup shredded cheese

Directions: 

Brown meat in a large skillet.

Drain the fat.

Add seasoning, water, pasta, and salsa.

Stir well.

Cover and simmer for 12 to 15 minutes.

Make sure pasta is tender.

Stir in cheese until melted.

 

What’s for Dinner

Monday ~ Cheesy Taco Pasta, Cole Slaw, Brussel Sprouts. 

Tuesday ~ Vegetable Plates ~ Corn on the Cob, Brussel Sprouts, Sliced Tomatoes, Strawberries.

Wednesday ~ Chicken Breast Filets, Cucumber Tomato Salad, and Cole Slaw. Just as I was finishing making dinner and washing the last of the pre-dinner dishes, the power went out. I had enough made at that point to feed us, but the power didn’t come back on until after ten p.m. So, I got up and washed the dinner dishes because I don’t like going to bed with a messy kitchen. 

Thursday ~ Sirloin Beef Tips with French Onion Gravy, Cabbage & Onions, and Cucumber & Tomato Salad.  

Friday ~ Baked Chicken, Cucumber Tomato Salad, Cabbage & Onions, Cucumbers, and Strawberries. 

Saturday ~ Chicken Tenders and Salads, and Watermelon.

Sunday ~ Chicken Tacos

Monday ~ Salmon Patties , Green Beans with Onions & Potatoes, Corn on the Cob, Roasted Carrots. 

What’s been on the menu in your home this past week?

Belinda

Homemaker at Heart

~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Image Credit

Third Frugal Friday of June 2025

Welcome to Frugal Friday! 
Music  

Good Riddance is a beautiful song written by Billie Joe Armstrong of the band Green Day and was released in 1997. The song captures the complex emotions that come with ending a chapter in life, acknowledging both the good and the bad, and wishing the other person well. 💕 
My Frugal Week
We sold a box fan on Facebook Marketplace for $8.00 that I dug out of the space in the kitchen that I cleaned out last week. We also sold a keyboard for $20, a guitar for $50 and my Ninja Food Grill for $50, all on Facebook Marketplace. 
I love not having to pay any fees to sell items. And now we have more than enough yard sale cash for this week without having to dip into any of our financial accounts. 
This week I was able to add two items to my Christmas bin for presents. I found both items at yard sales over the weekend. I also went to two different estate sales, which I find sad as I walk through someone’s once proud home (as my grandma would say), and see their stuff for sale. 

I did some weeding in the yard and repotted my two free tomato plants and red pepper plant. I also put a tomato cage around the tomatoes as they were leaning. And I repotted my dill and catnip plants. I like to break off a leaf from the cat nip and let the cats roll around in it. 
Even though it is summer time, I’ve not been sleeping with the window air conditioner on in my bedroom. I rarely even use a fan, which saves on our electric bill. 
Freebies

Last weekend when we were out and about I noticed some items on a curb that looked free, so I turned down that road to check it out. Sure enough, there was a free sign attached and Bailey wanted this mirror, so we loaded it into the car and off we went. 
Joy of the Week

My friend's husband passed away this week. 
He loved to make a garden every year and this year was no exception. 

After his funeral her friends and family went to her home and helped her pick, break and can the green beans he had planted this year. The people were in her living room, front porch, and yard breaking all those green beans.

She ended up with 45 pints and 28 quarts of green beans. She said would have never gotten them done by herself and that her husband would have been proud. Wasn't that just the sweetest? There is just nothing like friends and family to step up to the plate like this when needed.
Savings of the Week

Food City had these Bertolli Sustainably extra virgin olive oil (16 ounces) on closeout for $6.50, which is a savings of about $2 over the Walmart price, so I picked up two for our pantry. 
Question of the Week
Do you have an Ollie's where you live or have you every shopped in one?
I've not been to one before, but did stop in on Wednesday, as I had an appointment right next door and needed to pass some time. 
Now, I did buy some everything bagel seasoning and a hummingbird feeder, but other than that, I was unimpressed by their prices. The items I normally purchase can all be had somewhere else for less, so I probably won't be making this a regular shop. But, I'm curious as to what you think about it if you've shopped there. 
Saving Money on Entertainment
This week I watched The Dollmaker for free on Tubi. This film, created in 1984, features Jane Fonda as the character of Gerti. Her and husband Clovis along with their children move from their rural Appalachian home to Detroit for Clovis to find work. Jane Fonda won an Emmy for her portrayal of Gerti and I can see why. Her steadfast determination to save and be a wise steward shines through. 
What I've been Reading This Week
- Honoring Heritage: 20 Old-Fashioned Skills from My Great-Grandmother

Thank you for dropping by my frugal blog, you are always welcome here. 
We would love to hear all about your week in the comment section.

Belinda 🫶 💕 Homemaker at Heart 💕 ~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Menu Plan Monday ~ Saving Money in my Frugal Kitchen ~ Week #3 ~ June 2025

My Frugal Week in the Kitchen

Last Monday I woke up early for some reason so I made myself useful in the kitchen and made eight mandarin orange gelatin cups since we were out of them. 

I had some onions that must have been older when I got them as they were starting to sprout. So, I cut them up and diced them and made sure to use them before I lost them. We normally go through onions so fast that is not an issue, which makes me think these were older when I bought them. 

I've continued to work on reorganizing our kitchen and pantry this week. I went downstairs and brought a table up from Dad's office and am using that as a drink station in the kitchen. It is definitely a work in progress. 

On Tuesday I made a Tuna Macaroni Salad to have on hand for Bailey for her lunches. I also made a fruit salad, sort of like a Waldorf Salad, but with Greek vanilla yogurt instead of mayonnaise to make it healthier. 

There were some things I needed at the store this week, but rather than spend the money, I decided to make do with what I had on hand rather than make a trip to the grocery store.

I wanted to make cole slaw, but I was out of buttermilk. Rather than go to the store, I used up a bottle of Hidden Valley Ranch Cole slaw dressing. Same with tartar sauce, I just made do with what was here instead of grocery shopping. 

I continued to add to my compost pile in the woods by dumping peelings from all our fruits and vegetables. Luckily, no animals have found it yet as they are bad about eating down my compost when they find it. That is one of the tradeoffs of living in the Cherokee National Forest. 

On Friday I sorted through all my spices and organized them in a new area in the kitchen. Here is a photo of what the area looks like now. You can see my beans in jars collection there too. 

On Sunday I made more gelatin fruit cups for the week. I had three small containers of fruit lurking in the fridge, so I used those up along with a can of fruit cocktail. #useitup

Two big boxes of gelatin with fruit will make eight cups for us to enjoy this week. One small box of Great Value gelatin is now 98 cents while the big box of name brand 

Jell-O costs $1.74. They don't sell big boxes of sugar free Great Value gelatin here, so its cheaper to buy the name brand. 

Recipe of the Week

A simple squash casserole recipe to enjoy this summer.

Squash Casserole

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter 1/2 onion thinly sliced 1 small zucchini sliced in rounds 1 small yellow squash 2 large cloves garlic minced 1/2 cup milk or heavy cream 1/4 cup grated parmesan 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Directions:

Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. 

Add onion and cook until the edges start to brown. 

Add garlic and cook for an additional 1 minute. 

Add cream and simmer until bubbly and starting to thicken. 

Slowly stir in parmesan. 

Add zucchini and yellow squash.

Cook for an additional 4-5 minutes.

Stir in  cheddar cheese. 

Place in greased casserole dish. 

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is golden brown.

 

What’s for Dinner

Monday ~ Beefy Baked Beans, Steamed Carrots, Corn and Sliced Tomatoes. 

Tuesday ~ Shrimp Burgers for Bailey on her movie night and I made the Blue Zones Sardinia Minestrone soup for myself and for lunches the rest of the week. 

Instead of using dried beans, I actually had all three varieties of beans in cans, so used those instead. I also added some vegetables like zucchini that I had in the refrigerator. 

Wednesday & Thursday ~ Sticky Pineapple Chicken, Cauliflower Rice, and Steamed Edamame. On Thursday I added a squash casserole along with honeydew melon. 

Friday & Saturday ~ Bean & Cheese Enchiladas, Mexican Rice, Broccoli Stir Fry and Corn. I also heated up any leftovers from the week and served those to use them up. 

Sunday ~ Cheesy Taco Pasta Bake, Southern Spoon Bread, and Brussel Sprouts. For this recipe I decided to use a one pound roll of Butterball taco turkey meat. I was out of cheddar cheese for this recipe, but did have pepper Jack cheese in the freezer, so I used that. This was a new recipe for us and I’ll share it next Monday. 

Monday ~ Salmon Patties, Cole Slaw, and Green Beans with Potatoes & Onions. I chopped the cabbage & carrots and made the cole slaw on Sunday. 

Beverages

This week in our fridge you'll find water, milk, cherry apple juice, apple juice, grape juice, green tea, V-8 juice, and fruit punch in order to quench any thirst. The original Hillbilly Housewife Maggie says the best way to save money on beverages is to mix your own at home. 

What’s been on the menu in your home this past week?

Belinda

Homemaker at Heart

Mortgage & Debt Free~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Yard Sale Friday & Saturday

Early Friday morning I woke up around four a.m. and couldn’t fall back to sleep, so I checked online for yard sales. To my surprise there was a church one not far from home starting at six a.m. I’m an early bird so I jumped out of bed and got my day started early, so I could be there when they opened. 

Here are some treasures I found…

Like new Silpat mat (paid $1.00, sells for $19.67), like new Blender Bottle (paid $1 sells for $13.99), Pampered Chef ladle (I paid $1.00, sells for $16), an apple peeler (paid $1 sells for $22.99), and the Thirty One box for $1.00. Also included is the set of measuring spoons with a whole in the bottom to use as a funnel when filling spice jars for $1.00. 

I also found one pair of Keen hiking shoes. I’ve been thinking for a while now that I would like a pair of boots now that I’m walking so much better and walking over the hilly terrain here. I saw a pair of boots in the yard sale ad, which is why I went, but those boots were too small. 

And then I spotted these:

Now, I don’t normally buy shoes at yard sales because in my mind none of them will fit me. I’ve mentioned it before, but when I weighed more it seemed like all the clothes and shoes were too small for me, so I never really looked. Now that I’m smaller, I need to be looking! 

Saturday morning I looked down at these shoes and thought they look big enough to fit me. So, I took one shoe off (unheard of for me at a yard sale 😂) and tried it on and it fit like a glove. Woo Hoo!

And check this out, they retail for $135.00. Score! An unbelievable deal. I bought them on Friday and wore them to Saturday yard sales and they are really good and supportive shoes. 

Recently I wrote that Bailey had won a Hulken Bag. Imagine my surprise when I pulled up to a yard sale on Saturday and saw this one. The lady wanted $40 for it, but I asked if she would take $30, and we settled on $35. This bag retails for $125. 

Since Bailey has gotten her bag, we've used it to shop multiple consignment sales and it always comes in handy, so now we will both have one to use as we usually separate when we are at these types of sales. 

I also picked up this shelf for $5.00 and hung it where there used to be a vintage telephone that belonged to my parents. We had it in our home in Illinois during the years we were growing up and my sister wanted it, so her husband came to get it last fall. 

I knew this shelf would work in that spot. It is mounted above our beverage station and Bailey is going to put her drink mixes and other items in here. 

That's it for yard sales this week. Were you able to go to any or did yours get rained out? If you did and found anything, we would love to hear about it in the comment section. 

Belinda 🫶 💕 Homemaker at Heart 💕 ~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Second Frugal Friday of June 2025

Welcome to Frugal Friday! 
First some music…

This is Lacy J. Dalton singing 16th Avenue, which is a song written by Thom Schuyler referring to Music Row in Nashville, Tennessee. 
Quote of the Week

By getting the urge to splurge under control, it’s possible to save significant amounts of cash that can be used to stretch your household budget. ~ Len Penzo

My Frugal Week
Last Monday I took the garbage off, took some canned food to the local Little Free Pantry, took the last walker to People Helping People and dropped off some other donations there. 
Once I got back home I started in on laundry and cleaned out my bedroom walk in closet, so I could actually put more stuff in there. It’s much nicer having the extras in the closet instead of my bedroom. We also store the items we will consign later in the year in the interim to keep them out of the way. 
Last week when I deep cleaned the kitchen, I pulled out a tall cabinet we used for storage and moved it to the back porch in favor of an open shelf in its place instead. I’ve stored my canning jars in the cabinet on the back porch, which worked out so well. We will even be storing our garden tools in there. 
We also moved a table from downstairs into the kitchen/dining area upstairs to use for storage. I sorted all my canned goods and organized them very well. I’m actually very excited to have this extra space upstairs. 
I listed and sold a wedge pillow on Facebook Marketplace (FBM) for $20.00. Bailey sold a cart from the pole barn for $20 on FBM also, so now we have mad money for yard sales this week. 😂 
I processed clothing for Bailey’s shops this week. She has a new program that uses the photos she takes and it fills in all the information about the clothing item such as V-neck or scoop neck, color, sleeve length, type of print (solid, abstract, floral, etc), type of fabric, etc. 
These are descriptions I used to have to write down for her, but now I only need to weigh, measure, fill in the size and brand, which is much faster for me. Technology sure can be a good thing sometimes. 
Some of the things I did to save money this week include cutting my own hair, and turning off the internet on my tablet from Verizon. We have separate internet other than Verizon, so there was no need to pay two different companies for internet. 
I also unsubscribed from more marketing emails from companies I did not sign up to receive. It’s part of my goal of avoiding consumerism. Also, I was at Home Depot the other day and an employee stopped me and asked questions about our water. 
Turns out they were selling whole house water filtration systems, which did not bother me. BUT, since then I’ve received several phone calls for handyman services and am convinced they sold my cell phone number, which makes me upset with Home Depot. 
On Thursday we went to the first day of a church rummage sale. For those local, it was the Bowman Hills Seventh Day Adventist School. They did not have women's clothes this year and the prices are higher than usual, but I suspect it is because everything is fifty percent off starting tomorrow. 
I bought a Campbell's Cookbook from 1968 for $1.00. 

One can of bean sprouts for 50 cents to make Almost Spaghetti. 

One fish soap dispenser for $1.00, which is so cute. 

And, these pretty cloth napkins for $1.00. 

Freebies this Week   
A lady at one of the yard sales I went to asked me if I wanted some cockscomb flower seeds, and of course I said yes as they are such beautiful flowers. 
I found a nickel in the floor at Dollar Tree this week too. I won’t keep a yard sale coin, but will keep a corporate one. 😂 

‘

In the free boxes at yard sales I found a bag full of gift bags, some dish towels, dish clothes, and a reusable shopping bag. I donated some of this but did keep the gift bags and a very nice dish towel. 
Fun Question of the Week
If you could come home to one of these three things, which one would you pick?
1. A clean home.2. A home cooked meal.3. Your partner all done up. 
For me it’s a toss up between number one and two, but if push came to shove I’d pick number two. The husband of the wife who asked him this question on TikTok also picked number two. You know that old saying, “the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach,” fits here. 😂 
Saving Money YouTube Videos
Prepper Princess has a new video titled, “Extreme Frugality: When You Finally Realize Almost Nothing is a Necessity”. I know some people feel like she is extreme, but she does have some good points here like using Zote soap for laundry and V05 shampoo because they are both affordable, which is wise frugal advice. As with everything else, use what you can and leave the rest. I for one will not be going without deodorant. 😂 
What I've been Reading This Week
Over at Len Penzo.com I was reading about how to Drop the Guilt: How to Splurge Without Breaking the Bank. In another post he writes about Nine Things We Routinely Overpay For. Len says that by getting the urge to splurge under control, it’s possible to save significant amounts of cash that can be used to stretch your household budget.
That’s all for this week, folks. How was your week? Any frugal successes to share?

Thank you for dropping by my frugal blog, you are always welcome here. 
We would love to hear all about your week in the comment section.

Belinda 🫶 💕 Homemaker at Heart 💕 ~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27