2024 Frugal Friday File, May 10...

 

1.  I had to cancel my trip to see my friend.  Too many questions surrounding mother-in-law right now.  Thankfully I had purchased a refundable ticket.  Happily it was refunded more easily and quickly than I expected.  I will reschedule, but nice to have the money in the bank in the meantime.

2.  The traveling to be with m-i-l isn't cheap, but we were able to keep purchased meals to one a day.  Being sure to eat a good, filling and free breakfast at the hotel.  Even at home we quite often only eat twice a day, so it wasn't a hardship.  Carey also made sure to fill his insulated coffee tumbler at the hotel.

3.  When we returned home, the cupboard was pretty bare.  I made a pasta salad from things on hand in the fridge, and a can of salmon from the pantry.  We ate it, but nobody wants me to make it again.

4.  I went to the office for online training on a new software the company is switching over to.  I got paid for the training hours, and now I can continue to fill in as needed.  Money in.

5.  I've lost weight since retiring without even trying.  I think it's due to less eating out, and healthier home cooking.  I tried on a few nice tops that have been hanging in the closet for quite awhile without being worn due to the fit, and they fit comfortably again.  "New" work clothes without a price tag.  Yay!

My To-Do list...

This is my To-Do List.  Each page is meant to be for a week's use.  I made this one myself (and had it spiral bound), because I wanted regular items printed on there instead of having to handwrite the whole thing from scratch each week.  I also wanted to make it cute, because it makes me happier to look at if it's pretty.  Each month is a different color scheme...May's colors are purples for Mother's Day.

Last night I was reading blogs, and, as so often happens, I found a spark of inspiration at The Boomer Girl's Guide.  Juhli's posts always make me think or spur me to action.  Last night she mentioned her To-Do List, and it reminded me that I had seen mine recently in an odd place, so I directly went and retrieved it before I forgot where it was.  For years I used it religiously, but have fallen out of the habit since retirement.  Last night I made a list for today before I read myself to sleep.

Mostly what I wanted to work on today was clutter-filled boxes in the guest room, doing laundry, and changing bed linens, which meant even more laundry.  Currently my 6th (!) load of laundry is in the dryer.  The guest room bed linens have been washed down to the mattress, and the bed has been freshly made up again.  The down blanket and a comforter have been washed and dried, and now they are lying flat on the bed with the ceiling fan on directly over them to help dry any residual dampness before folding them and storing away.

I have emptied one box filled with old medical info (all that remains of my birthday broken shoulder in 2022, well that and the diminished range of motion), LTC insurance info, Medicare supplement insurance info and other equally dreaded documents.  I've shredded and thrown away and filed.  I've Swiffered.  I've moved my out-of-season clothes to the guest closet.  

I'm too pooped to pop!  It was 96° here today.  We are supposed to have storms overnight, and only be in the 80s for the next couple of days.  I am about to make my to-do list for tomorrow, carrying over what I didn't do today, and adding some other new chores.  Hopefully I can keep the momentum going. 

What I'm reading Wednesday...

Striking Range: A Timber Creek K-9 Mystery

by Margaret Mizushima

I just finished this one.  This series is where I turn when I need an escape.  The characters are very likable.  The relationship between the sheriff deputy and her K-9 partner keeps me coming back. (Probably because Robo is SO well trained and well behaved, and Rudy...well...isn't.  I mean Rudy DOES know he has to sit in his bed until we finish our ice cream if he wants to lick the bowls.  And even though he repeatedly tries to inch closer to us before we are done, it only takes a look or a hand motion and he does an adorable little moonwalk backward to his bed.  But I digress.)  

This one is number seven of a series of nine (so far), and I eek them out, saving them for when I really need a break from a hard read (like The Alienist I finished just before this one) or life overwhelms me (like all the traveling we have been doing to be with, and help out with, Carey's mom as she is now on hospice).  This series takes me out into the mountains and fresh air on horseback.  I highly recommend the series.  They can be read as stand alone, but since the characters lives progress and relationships develop, I would recommend they be read in order.

The Music Shop by Rachel Joyce

Just started this one.  It is by the author of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry which I loved.

2024 Frugal Friday File, April 26...

 

1.  I have a trip coming up to visit an old friend.  I haven't flown in at least fifteen years (in fact my last flight may have been to visit this particular friend).  Luggage rules have changed in that time.  Since I fly so rarely, and my current luggage works for the car trips we usually take, I will be borrowing carry-on luggage from Kasey instead of buying.

2.  Last night Carey was eating leftover pizza.  I wasn't starving, but I wanted something.  As I looked through the fridge, I saw the remainder of the blueberries (that Carey said he would eat, but he hadn't eaten all week).  I had a bag of lettuce mix, I added the blueberries, some pears from the pantry, some pecans from the freezer, some feta, and I mixed up a quick Honey Dijon dressing.  It was all things that were needing to be used up and/or hanging out waiting to be used.  It took all of five minutes (opening the can of pears was the hardest part).  It was fabulous.  

3.  A week or two ago I had some blood work done.  The lab was in a building that was nearly impossible to find.  GPS sent me to a weird dead-end roundabout and down an alley.  I pulled over and Googled two more times and drove back to a known starting point twice before I found it.  Originally, I had felt stupid for leaving an hour early, but thank goodness I did, because I arrived barely on time.  

This morning I am having a mammogram at a different provider than I have gone to in the past.  Guess where it is located...same building!  I won't waste time and gasoline finding it this time.  It is burned in my memory!

4.  I will pick up a reserved library book on my way home.

5.  Tax refund arrived!  I have squirreled it away into four different subaccounts: some for emergency cash, some toward money waiting to pay our long-term care premium at the end of the year,  some toward property taxes also due at end of the year, and some in a long neglected account to go toward our next vehicle (I'm really hoping we won't need one for a long time, but really need to keep socking away for that purpose when I can.

On the menu this week:

Saturday:  Leftovers

Sunday:  leftovers

Monday:  Sunday supper at Kasey & Beau's

Tuesday:  No Peek Chicken

Wednesday:  Homemade Pizza

Thursday:  Carey leftover pizza - me **salad

Friday:  ?

**designates meatless meal

What I'm reading Wednesday

Things to Look Forward To: 52 Large and Small Joys for Today and Every Day

by Sophie Blackall

This was an ebook impulse buy from Kindle Deal of the Day email received this week.  I paid $1.99. The short essays and the author's illustrations are delightful.  I read it in one sitting, and I will go back to it again...and maybe again...on repeat.

I want to buy a hardcover copy of it and tuck things like movie ticket stubs, old photographs, and postcards into it.  I've also ordered a hard copy of it to give as a gift.

The Alienist by Caleb Car

This one caught my eye on special price for Kindle.  I briefly thought about buying for $1.99, but, as always, I checked the ebooks at library instead, and they had it available for checkout.  

I haven't seen the Netflix program, but am aware of it...I've currently started reading another book that I want to put off reading for awhile...I'm waiting on reserve to come up for one I really want to read...so I thought I'd give this one a try.  Hardly a ringing endorsement, but then I haven't started it yet.

Sunday desserts, 4/21/2024...

Lemon Blueberry Pound Cake from realhousemoms.com

 

On Sundays we have supper with Kasey and Beau and family at their house.  We've been doing that for around ten years now.  We usually have something from the slow cooker if Kasey is doing the cooking, or something from the grill if Beau is doing the cooking.  From the start I've been taking a dessert almost every week.  I never missed in the early days, as I never wanted to disappoint my sweet grandchildren.  My youngest grandson asked me one Sunday, "How do you think of a different dessert every week!?"  (Thank you, Pinterest, for making me a super Grandma!)

 Aside from delighting the grands, it is also a way that I still get to prepare desserts without Carey and I having to eat the whole thing on our own.

This week I had those yummy free blueberries in the fridge, and in the springtime I always crave something lemony, so I searched for Lemon Blueberry Pound Cake, and this one popped up.  Thanks to realhousemoms.com for the recipe, and I've linked to their recipe above right under the first photo.

The lemon flavor and generous blueberry ratio make this delicious.  The ease of preparation makes it a keeper.  I should have taken it out of the oven about 10 minutes sooner, but even so, it is moist and yummy!

About the time I took it out of the oven, Kasey texted me that they need to postpone Sunday supper till Monday this week.  I'm sure it will still be delicious tomorrow, but I shouldn't be held responsible if there are a number or slices missing by then!  :)

What I'm reading Wednesday (on Saturday)...

The Girl in His Shadow by Audrey Blake

Finished this one on Tuesday.  When the main character is orphaned during a cholera epidemic, the doctor takes her home with him to figure out what to do with her.  The doctor's housekeeper insists they keep her.  She's bright and interested, and he trains her to help in his practice.  I liked it, and would rate it 7 out of 10.

The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

Inspired by an actual midwife in 18th century Maine.  I love a good midwife story, and this did not disappoint!  I would rate it 9 out of 10.  The Author's Note and Acknowledgments were very interesting, and are worth a read after finishing the book.  I had to wait several months for this library ebook, but so worth it.  I couldn't put it down, and finished its 450 pages in 3 days. 

The Housemaid by Freida McFadden

For a change of pace I will be starting this one next.