Welcome to Friday!
My Frugal Week
We went to 15 yard sales last Friday and Saturday. There were not as many as usual since it was a holiday weekend. The weather on Saturday was so nice and cool, just beautiful yard sale weather.
There were protestors at Hamilton Place Mall on Saturday while we were there. They were chanting loudly, which made me nervous. I was glad when we left the area. We were looking for a restroom we could use. COVID has shut down so many indoor fast food lobbies that it was hard to find one that was open.
We found the cats a new tree house at a yard sale. It has cat nip in it from the previous owner and the cats were lined up to get inside of it. Of course, Polka Dot was the first one inside.
I made homemade Oxiclean this week. The recipe calls for 1/2 cup of baking soda, 1/2 cup hydrogen peroxide, and one cup of hot water. You’re supposed to use it up within 24 hours or it will lose its effectiveness. So, you could mix up a smaller batch if necessary.
Speaking of laundry, I got mine all done on Tuesday this week. It makes me feel good to get it all washed, folded, and put away on the same day.
Avoiding Spending
I did have one prescription to pick up this week, but that is the only spending I’ve done.
Saving Money In My Frugal Kitchen
I’ve been making a gallon of iced tea every day for the last month or so. I like to have two to three gallons at a time in the fridge during this hot weather.
I inventoried my freezer and pantry again over the weekend to come up with meals for this week. I’m happy to report we had no food waste this week as we either used it up or froze it for later use.
On Labor Day Monday I used up a can of pumpkin that had been lingering in my pantry and made pumpkin waffles for breakfast.
I took the last of the Beans and Franks and the last of the Chicken Fried Rice, labeled them, and put them in the freezer in individual containers for a quick meal later. I now have six meals like this in my freezer.
I’m very excited to report that Chattanooga now has a Trader Joe’s. I have wanted to go in this store for a few years now, but none of them were close to us. We are going to wait a month or so until we go as we want the new to wear off while the Delta variant from COVID is so bad right now.
Meals This Week
Friday: Chicken Fried Rice, Steamed Broccoli, Chopped Tomatoes
Saturday: Beefy Baked Beans , which I made with hotdogs instead of beef since beef was so expensive the last time we ordered groceries we did not buy any. This is why we've had so much chicken on our menus lately.
Sunday: Grilled Italian Sausage, Prince Edward Vegetable Medley, Rice Pilaf, Cucumbers and Radishes, Salad
Monday: White Chicken Enchiladas, Prince Edward Medley, Lettuce, Tomatoes, Cucumbers, and Radishes. I placed my enchilada on top of a bed of lettuce and tomato, which really made it taste like a dinner at the Mexican restaurant.
Tuesday: Tonight is movie night, which means I will make a pizza for Bailey. We will have a late lunch making a Baked Potato Bar. That way I won’t have to make any dinner for myself as I probably won’t be hungry.
Wednesday: Salmon Patties, Rice Pilaf, Home Fries, Green Peas. The Rice Pilaf is what was leftover from Sunday’s dinner. I also had one baked potato left from yesterday, so I made home fries out of it. Between the two side dishes there was plenty of starch to go with our meal and we had no food waste.
Having sweets in the house isn’t something we have often. But I did make a batch of brownies this day.
Thursday: Dirty Rice, Steamed Carrots, Sweet Corn, Pickled Beets
Saving on Entertainment
Have you all been watching Frugal Queen in France videos on YouTube? They are really done well and her husband Michael does a good job of editing them. And of course they are free to watch and learn from, so be sure to check out her channel if you haven’t already.
Another YouTube channel I’ve recently learned about is SeeMindyMom. She has videos where she will take $10 and make three meals with the money. Other topics include grocery hauls, budget cooking, meal prep, clean out the pantry, etc. Her channel goes right along with many of the things we do here.
What I've been Reading This Week
Lost Pies of the South over at Southern Living
https://www.southernliving.com/desserts/pies/southern-state-pies?did=672523-20210908&utm_campaign=sl-best-of-the-south_newsletter&utm_source=southernliving.com&utm_medium=email&utm_content=090821&cid=672523&mid=66494526424&slide=b2d1410a-5db1-410b-9ffc-70731320dc7c#b2d1410a-5db1-410b-9ffc-70731320dc7c
Freebies
General Mills is offering a rebate for a free box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal here. It is not good on the mega box or any individual cereal container, so be sure to shop carefully. Also, Publix has it on sale this week for buy one get one free, so you may be able to get two boxes out of the deal.
https://freectc.com/
That is all the news to report on our frugal week in Tennessee. Thank you for dropping by, you are always welcome here. We would love to hear about your week in the comment section.
Belinda~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
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I love the kitty tree. That is adorable.
ReplyDeleteGood job on using what you have and making yummy sounding meals. I have only been to one yard sale all year. Haven't seen many - nor are there many advertised around here.
Have a good weekend.
Thank you, Cheryl. We liked the kitty tree too. There hasn’t been as many yard sales this year here either. We think it is because of the pandemic, but are not sure.
DeleteI love watching youtube videos about saving money thank!
ReplyDeleteYou’re welcome, Kim. I enjoy those too.
DeleteThe enchilada meal looks so good! I love mexican food and can't do without my carrots. You are going to love Trader Joe's. Be sure to try the samosas when you get a chance. We love the chicken one.
ReplyDeleteThat makes me very excited. I can’t wait until we get to go. :)
DeleteGlad you had good yard sale weather. Sounds fun! I haven't seen many interesting yard sales this year, and the ones that I did see, have high prices.
ReplyDeleteThe cat tree is so cute; looks like the kitties really enjoy it.
Your meals sound so good. Thanks for the links for videos. Hope you have a great weekend.
Thank you, Kathy. Yes, some yard sale prices are too high for us too. We usually just leave those and move on to the next ones.
DeleteI hope your weekend is a great one.
You did well at the sales and the kitties must be very happy!
ReplyDeleteTomorrow I need to use up the last of the salad greens and I'll have it with some tuna to ensure it isn't wasted. I'll probably cook a couple of different things on Sunday to prepare meals for the week and I have some mushroom barley soup to use up. I like the idea of a baked potato bar - a great way to use up bits & pieces as toppings.
I do watch "Frugal Queen in France" on Youtube and I used to follow her blog for years when she lived in England.
We're steadily reopening here although restrictions are still in place and won't be lifted until 90% are fully vaccinated in my province - we hope to hit that by the end of October. I am fine with easing back into things slowly! Stay well.
Oh, that is wonderful that your province will not open up completely until 90% are vaccinated. That should nip the virus in the bud there. That is what we all hope for.
DeleteGood job using up what you have on hand to avoid food waste. That just makes smart sense to save you money.
Cheers for Fugal Queen as she knows her stuff.
I hope you have a terrific weekend, Margie.
Having to pass through demonstrators unsettles me too. Not nice.
ReplyDeleteThat's a lovely cat tree, no wonder they are queueing up!
xx
Thank you, Joy. :)
DeleteBelinda, I am sorry you had to deal with the demonstrator's. They just suck. In my area they take their protesting into the stores and I have had some bad experiences. I just keep my head down and finish shopping quickly.
ReplyDeleteI love Polka Dot's new tree.
Thank you, Safyne. Polka Dot is very happy with his new tree. 😂
DeleteUgh, I wouldn’t like shopping with protesters in the store. My heart goes out to you.
That Kitty Tree is wonderful and I am glad the cats are enjoying it.
ReplyDeleteI haven't been to a yard sale in over a year and really miss going.
God bless.
Last night we made a big batch of chili for the first time in probably a year, because we found ground beef for $2.99 a pound (which is a good price up here in Alaska). I, too, had been thinking about a big can of pumpkin languishing in the pantry. So I added about a cup of it to the chili. I'd done this before, since it adds nutrition and a slight, almost indefinable sweetness that blends beautifully with the spices.
ReplyDeleteBonus: In amongst all those other flavors, no one could have noticed that the pumpkin was REALLY old.
The rest of the pumpkin I froze in one-half-cup portions, either for future pie or future chili.