Fourth Frugal Friday of August 2024

Welcome to Frugal Friday! 

My Frugal Week
On Saturday I cleaned out the refrigerator to be able to get a few things out of there that I wanted the trash man to take off that day, such as the chicken bones (after making broth) from the rotisserie chickens that I bought last week. 
A Rakuten check came in the mail for me this week for $5.23, which is small, but  I'll take it. If you're interested in joining to get cash back on things your normally buy, here is a link where we will both get $30.00. 
On Monday I had my Reclast infusion and have felt poorly this week as a result. I'm not going to do this treatment next year as it was too hard on me this time. I'll be researching other options. 
Dad's 5th wheel camper was moved off his property this week along with the propane tank from Amerigas. Both of those took longer than I thought they would, but the area is all neat and tidy now, which makes it more attractive to potential buyers. A sign that life moves forward even if our hearts are not ready. 
Freebies

I went to the dentist on Thursday to get my teeth cleaned and they gave me these freebies. 
My Frugal Kitchen
I've been in use it up mode this week, turning to some pantry staples to make dinners this week. It's always a good feeling to use up those items. 

What’s for Dinner

Monday & Tuesday ~ Grilled Chicken, Garden Salad. 

Wednesday ~ Prince Spaghetti Day!  I checked around in the freezer for some meat for this dinner and found one lone hamburger patty, so I used that along with some crushed tomatoes, spaghetti sauce seasoning mix, and edamame pasta (freebie). 

Thursday & Friday ~ White Chicken Enchiladas, Deviled Eggs, Salad. I used the rotisserie chicken, which was stored in the freezer, I got on markdown last week to make these along with some diced green chilies I had in the freezer. I'd rather use those than my canned version to free up more freezer space. 

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

What I've been Reading This Week

From the Dollar Stretcher...9 Ways To Stretch Your Savings During the Peak of Summer Heat ~ I've been turning our air conditioning off at night as we simply do not need it at that time and our daily electric usage has gone down as result. 
How has your week been?  

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.

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

Third Frugal Friday of August 2024

                                                   

Welcome to Frugal Friday! 
My Frugal Week

Last Friday we went to a free book talk at our local library with author Tyler L. Boyd where he discussed his book on local history, "The Biggs Machine". It was a very interesting and entertaining lecture and we were happy to have went. 
The history branch of our local library is housed on a tree lined street of historical homes. Here is a photo of the staircase inside the house:

For the first half of the 20th Century in Polk County, Tennessee, Sheriff Burch Biggs reigned supreme. From 1904 to 1948, the political machine of Biggs was built upon three pillars―election fraud, police brutality, and graft. The Biggs Machine tells the story of Burch Biggs, his corrupt empire, and how it all came crashing down following World War II. 

Afterwards we went to the Provident thrift store in Dalton, Georgia. 
This was my chance to look for some new sizes in clothing for myself. I ended up with a pullover/sweater, a 3/4 sleeve shrug, one pair of pajamas, two pairs of shorts, and a pair of capris. I also picked up one canning jar, a cute lamp, 3 hand held weights to add to my strength training center, a wide view rear view mirror, and a new cookbook. 
Eye Update
On Monday I had an appointment with my retina specialist. The news wasn't what I wanted to hear as both eyes were swollen/leaking fluid. He gave me a new injection, Cimerli, in each eye and has me coming back in five weeks instead of eight. My eyes have been itching all week, which is one of the side effects of this new medicine. 
I also went to my primary care physician to get surgery clearance for my knee surgery. She is sending me to the cardiologist for an echo in September. This is all standard procedure for getting clearance for knee surgery. 
Freebies
CVS sent me a survey link and then gave me $10 for filling it out. Nice!
Photo of the Week

My Dad made this mailbox out of steel and welded it together years ago to prevent mailbox vandals on our rural road. The vandals have tried a lot of things to wreck it over the years like gunshot blasts (you can see the bullet holes in the door) and fireworks, but it has stood the test of time. 
Recently the handle broke off and the door hangs open. Bailey thinks someone broke it for meanness, but I tend to think it just wore out and broke off after years of use. 
Now my Dad would have come up with a great solution, but I had to come up with one on my own. My fix was two very strong magnets and a rubber band, as you can see in the photo. We will see if that works and since I already had all of those things on hand, the repair didn't cost me anything. 
Any other repair suggestions out there? I'm open to any and all ideas. 

Saving Money in My Frugal Kitchen
We ate a lot of salads and grilled chicken this week as it's just the perfect time of year for that. I did find three rotisserie chickens marked down at Walmart on Thursday for $2.53, which is a great deal. 

What’s for Dinner

Monday ~ Grilled Chicken, Chopped Tomatoes, Garden Salad. 

Tuesday ~ Mediterranean Salad with Grilled Chicken.

Wednesday ~ Bailey was gone to Atlanta for a book signing event, so I was on my own for dinner. I made a baked sweet potato and served it with hummus and chopped tomatoes. 

Thursday ~ Greek Chicken and Salads. 

Friday ~ Hamburger with Cheese, Baked Potato, Salad. 

Saturday ~ Salmon Patties, Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Corn. 

Sunday ~ Grilled Chicken Taco Salad, Oven Roasted Smashed Potatoes. 

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

What I've been Reading This Week
Books I've been reading this week include Raw Dog: The Naked Truth About Hot Dogs.  This is a book, which was recommended by the owner of the Book & Cover bookstore in Chattanooga, and Bailey read for one of her book clubs. Her and her dear friend Abby went to Atlanta this week to meet one of their favorite authors, Casey McQuiston, the author of Red, White & Royal Blue. 
I went to the Samaritan Thrift store in Ooltewah yesterday and picked up five books for 50 cents each to add to my reading shelf. I don't know if any of you use the Goodreads website, but if you do and want to add me as your friend, here is a link:  Goodreads

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.

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

Second Frugal Friday of August 2024

                                                              

Welcome to Frugal Friday! 
My Frugal Week
I searched for a coupon code while making a purchase online the other day and saved $15.20. It really pays to search for a code before shopping online.
We have a couple of cats who do not like to take their flea pills when smashed and mixed with wet food. Bailey suggested getting some pill pocket treats to stick the pill inside and then they can eat the whole thing. So, I bought some on markdown at PetSmart and used a $4 reward to help pay for them. 
Dad had a stack of about 30 styrofoam sheets in the yard wedged between two trees. Our garbage man has been getting a few sheets every time he comes for garbage and he got the last of it on Saturday. The yard there looks so much better with that gone, and the snakes and ants that were unearthed no longer have a place to hide.

Saving Money in my Frugal Kitchen

We went to UGO (United Grocery Outlet) in Chatsworth on Monday evening. 

We found more Flatbreads marked down to 50 cents each, Del Monte canned pears for 50 cents each, Chesterfield Butter Beans for 79 cents each, Hormel turkey pepperoni for $1.49 each ($3.97 @ Walmart), Jimmy Dean turkey sausage for 69 cents, and Tuscan chicken sausage for $1.99 each. 

We bought 20 of the turkey pepperoni for the freezer, which is savings of $49.60. Bailey goes through about two packs per month, so this will last us for more than six months. 

What’s for Dinner

Meatless Monday ~ Pizza & Garden Salads. 

Taco Tuesday ~ Chicken Tacos

Wednesday ~ Grilled Chicken, Sweet Potatoes, Brussel Sprouts. 

Thursday ~ Chicken Sausage, 15 Bean Soup with Vegetables, Broccoli. 

Friday ~ Salmon Patties, Roasted Yukon Gold Potatoes, Green Peas.

Saturday & Sunday ~ Sardinia Minestrone Soup

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

What I've been Reading This Week
we are going to the library today while out running errands to pick up a copy of Forever Strong written by Dr. Gabrielle Lyon, which Elle recommended last week in the comment section. 
This week I finished reading Strong Women Stay Young and A Pound of Cure written by Matthew Weiner, MD. 
What have you been reading lately?

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.

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

First Frugal Friday August 2024

                                                       

Welcome to Frugal Friday! 
Quote of the Week

"While politics grows ridiculously toxic and the bar for acceptable behavior toward people that do not share your beliefs inches ever lower, my goal is to be the opposite.

It won’t be a perfect ride, nor a flawless life, but I won’t harm living things nor make someone feel bad about themselves, or the life they are living." ~ Tom Goose

My Frugal Week
Oh my gosh! We are so excited here. Walmart has expanded their delivery and they will now deliver to our back door! We are both so thrilled! We already pay for a Walmart Plus membership to get free, next day shipments, so this is just icing on the cake. Woo Hoo!
I had a grocery order delivered on Wednesday and I am just so happy. This was definitely one of my joys of the week.

On Monday I went to see my orthopedic doctor regarding my knees. They did more x rays, which stated...

3 views of bilateral knees show severe varus alignment with hypertrophic osteophytes diffusely around the femur tibia and patella. Severe medial wear of her proximal tibia bilaterally. Lateral tibial subluxation bilaterally.

I had to Google most of that to figure out what it meant. He is satisfied with my BMI & weight loss and is scheduling my first knee replacement in three months with the second one six weeks after that. I am very excited!

On Friday & Saturday I  measured & processed over seventy pieces of clothing for Bailey's online shops. My arm/shoulder was really sore after that, so I put some Voltaren cream on it for the pain. I've stopped steaming clothes for her for this reason. 
One of our UPS drivers dropped a package in the woods last week. I just cannot imagine what they were thinking, so I went out on Saturday and brought it up to the house. I drove around Dad's place to check on things there and brought two traffic cones over here with me and set them up in our driveway to alert drivers to one of the culverts.  I also pulled some weeds from around our picnic table and picked up some stuff that had fallen underneath it. I met our friend & garbage man in the driveway and was able to get his help to bring some items up the stairs for me and straighten up the picnic table.  
The Circle K Gas Stations here had a Back to School special on Thursday for savings of 40 cents off per gallon of gasoline. When we drove by the price was $2.70 per gallon, but I had also signed up for their reward card, which saves me 25 cents for the first five fillups. So, I ended up paying $2.51 per gallon and filled up my car for $37.33.
Stranger Danger
Bailey came home one day and found a strange man parked on the old driveway on our land. She stopped to talk to him, and he said he had a flat tire, but she was very concerned about him being on our land. I can't imagine why he would pull up that far onto our land if he had a flat tire? I got in my car and drove own there to investigate. 
Turns out the neighbor had a tree fall on our fence and I *think* he was removing it for them. The man with the "flat tire" didn't speak to me, but the neighbor did and so I don't really know, because this neighbor is a known thief and liar. I'm always pleasant to him though because I ensure our safety by keeping the peace. 
When Bailey left for book club on Wednesday she forgot her book, so came back home only to find this neighbor pulling into our driveway. There is no reason for him to be on our property. Bailey thinks he was coming up here to see if anyone was home. When I went out on Saturday I noticed someone has been using the driveway a great deal and has it really messed up with all the rain and mud. If my Dad were here he could help us fix this issue. ::sigh::
Freebies

 A friend gifted me with this package of Edamame Spaghetti and Lentil pack along with one jalapeño and one cucumber. 

Photo of the Week

This is a massive 91 pound watermelon grown by the Mennonites in our community and for sale at their farm stand on Needle Eye Lane in Delano, Tennessee. Bailey and I bought a thirty pound one a few years ago and we thought it was huge!

Saving Money in my Frugal Kitchen Happenings

Publix has Cabot & Frigo cheese on sale this week, so we picked up some of both on Thursday while we were out running errands. I also pick up the Siggi's yogurt at Publix since Walmart does not sell that brand and it has 18 grams of protein in it so I prefer it.

We stopped at Gordon Food Service Chattanooga and picked up two big cans of black olives as their price is much cheaper than Walmart. We also picked up two large containers of cottage cheese, which are good until later in September, so I stored them upside down in the refrigerator. That is a old Tightwad Gazette tip from back in th day.

What’s for Dinner

Monday ~ Salmon Patties, Roasted Sweet Potatoes, and a Cucumber Bean type salad that I made using up several containers of similar items from the refrigerator. 

Tuesday ~ Chicken & Onions, October Beans, and Steamed Broccoli. 

Wednesday ~ Major frustration as I put pork steaks in the crockpot to cook for dinner, but the power went out after two hours and did not come back on until around midnight, so they had been in there for about 12 hours, so I had to toss those on Thursday. I need to work on having a back up cooking source for times when that happens. 

We didn't want to be home with the power out in this triple digit heat with no ac, so we ran errands most of the day. We ended up eating at our favorite Mexican restaurant. I had the Grilled Chicken with pico de gallo and Bailey had her favorite Nachos.  

Thursday ~ Fluffy Baked Omelet, October Beans, Roasted Sweet Potatoes, and Cucumber & Bean Salad. Using up several leftovers from the refrigerator to complete dinner. 

I didn't have any ham to use in the Fluffy Baked Omelet, so I used a one pound package of sausage and browned it and used half of that. I put the other half in the freezer for another meal later in the month. 

I also made a batch of Sardinia Minestrone to have for lunches this week and some to freeze for later. 

Friday ~ Hamburgers, Roasted Sweet Potatoes, and Cantaloupe. 

Saturday ~ Bailey was gone to book club, so I made a baked cottage cheese pizza bowl for dinner. 

Sunday ~ I put several varieties of beans on to soak for this week. I also put on a pot of dandelion tea to steep. Dan Buettner says that many centurions in the Blue Zones drink dandelion tea for the health benefits. My favorite brand of tea is Traditional Medicinals. 

Bailey went out with her book club friends for dinner, so I was on my own again. I made myself a vegetable sandwich using the Flat Out wraps. 

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

Savings of the Week
We had a lot of savings this week with the gas and cheese sale. Another one concerns Christmas. I tend to buy one Christmas present per month, so I'll have them when Christmas rolls around. I searched Google for a coupon code and found one for 10% off, which turned out to be $4.00 and paid for the shipping. 
What I've been Reading This Week
This week I finished reading the Blue Zones Dan Buettner book and started reading Strong Women Stay Young by Miriam E, Nelson. 
I read her Strong Women Stay Slim book years ago and wanted to pick up a copy of it, but could only find the Strong Women Stay Young book at McKays. That was OK with me as it also had the strength training exercises in it that I was looking for. 
I mentioned before that I ride my stationary bicycle for one hour every day (I rode over 2,000 minutes in July) and I read while doing this, as I want to strengthen my legs & knees as much as possible before my knee surgery. The ortho dr has ordered physical therapy for me to help with this. I want to build my strength, stamina, and balance, and strength training is supposed to help with that.
That's all the news to report from here this week. 
How are you doing and what have you been up to this week?

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.

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