1-19-17 Frugal yays and nays

It has been very rainy here the last few days.  Today was complete gloom and rain.  I stayed snuggled in the house part of the day, after errands of vet with a foster kitten and grocery store.  Here's just a few things I've been up to lately:

My husband loves red beans and rice and I make it at least once a month for him, if not more often.  As vegans, we use a plant-based sausage in the recipe.  My local small-town store carries this one item from Field Roast, and today I hit the jackpot.  I got 6 packages marked down from $4.29 to $2.09.  I am not going to find a better price than that anywhere.  Into the freezer they all went, where they will stay good for many months.




Earlier this week, my husband had a doctor's appointment in the big city.  (Really, it's not all that big, but it does have things we don't have here in our small town.)  Last week I noticed a new pizza place and discovered they have vegan cheese and vegan sausage on their menu.  This is a huge deal for a pizza joint in our neck of the woods.  It was delicious!  I topped mine with vegan cheese and sausage, onions, sun-dried tomatoes, and basil.  No regrets about spending the money, because we enjoyed the food so much and it was nice to have some time together.



I buy organic bell peppers when they are on the clearance rack for 3/.99, cut them up, freeze on a cookie sheet, then put them in food storage bags in the freezer.  They stay good for a long time, and I always have cheap peppers for chili.  I'm also going to use them for the first time in spaghetti sauce tomorrow.



Let's see, any other frugal yays or nays to mention?

Oh, I needed to use up two small bags of potatoes last week, so I made a huge pot of mashed potatoes.  We had them at a few meals, and then I made potato cakes with the rest of them.  Such a nice treat, if not healthy.

I got .30/gallon off my gas fill up today by using my grocery store reward points.  I used a few coupons for things I was going to buy anyway.

I cancelled an online dog food subscription.  Feeding out pets a healthy food is essential for us, but we've switched brands.  They have had the new brand before and I will slowly switch our three pups over.

I put in for reimbursement for two items I purchased for the humane society, and should be receiving a check for them soon.

And that wraps up my frugal yays and nays for today!

1-14-17 Decluttering

Finally!  My first declutter show and tell of the year.  These items are still sitting on my dining room table in a box, waiting for me to take them to the Goodwill truck, but they are all definitely leaving.

Below:

-sneakers
-two furniture sliders
-fake greenery (aka dust collector)
-six shirts, including three that my mom was getting rid of a few months ago and I thought I would wear.  Nope.  Not going to happen.
-one dress
-husband's robe that he never wears
-travel mug
-husband's belt
-two pillowcases
-one cooking fork (Christmas gift from husband's coworker.  We will never use it, so are letting someone else have it.)
-Polar Express-themed lantern
-three-way bulb adapter
-journal
-binder
-lots of colored paper

My sister is taking the journal and paper.



I put up a box that contains random Christmas items, but before it went back on the shelf, I sorted through it.  Most of the items that remain are for wrapping items.



What I got rid of:

-a brand new box of Christmas cards
-ribbons that came off of packages
-tags that my husband won't use because they are too much trouble
-and their replacement, tags that won't stick to the packages for some reason! (went in the trash)
-barking/meowing Christmas dog/cat.  Yes, really.
-vintage tablecloth (that I am eyeing possibly selling on Ebay because they seem to sell well there)




Random bits and bobs:

-a string from an old dishcloth (in the kitchen drawer for some reason; now residing in the trash)
-goldfish cracker cutter (cute but only used it once)
-potholder from Arizona (gift from mother-in-law)
-blown fluorescent bulb (going to Lowe's for responsible disposal)
-heart cookie cutter (nephew is too old to enjoy his sandwich with a heart cut or imprint now)
-a second metal cookie cutter that was bent went in the metal recycling
-metal racks that go in the bottom of a rice cooker and Instant Pot
-screw and old battery, in the trash



I needed to put something in our lockbox, so while I was in there I emptied some items that could go:

-old rabies tags for our pets and the records that go with them
-old insurance policies
-expired credit card
-purchase papers for a truck we no longer own



I've got more items coming.  I'm on a roll and loving it!

1-9-17 Spending report

Monday I took two kittens to Petsmart to be adopted.  While in the big city (not really, but bigger than where I live) I took the chance to go to Goodwill.  What I really need are some new sleep pants. Every pair I have came from Goodwill initially and they have lasted several years.  But now they are falling apart or the drawstrings are coming out, and they won't stay up.

Sadly, I did not find any sleep pants, but I did make a small purchase.  I spent $3 total:  .99 for the little guitar-playing guy below, and .99 for the book.  The little guy will go in our humane society's auction in the fall, and I will probably start the price $5-$10.  I see them going for $15 and up on Ebay. The book is for my nephew, who loves Skylanders and will be thrilled to see it in the car when I pick him up from school today.  My total with tax was $2.16 and I rounded up to $3.

While at Petsmart, I found a bottle of Pectalin for kittens on clearance.  I am a kitten foster, and motherless kittens seem to always come to us with diarrhea.  Gross, but true, and can be deadly if not treated quickly.  I paid $2.60 for the Pectalin to have on hand.  If it works, will be worth every penny.

And then I succumbed to temptation and went to Panera.  Sigh.  I spent $9.59 on bagels and a drink. I noshed on the bagels yesterday and today so far and still have one left.  Do I regret it?  Yes, somewhat.  I should have gone prepared with something to eat and my bottle of water.

Fresh

I love a fresh page, whether in a notebook or on a blog post.  I'm typing my very first post on this blog, and I am ready.

Here is what I plan to talk about:  Decluttering, junk, cats, dogs, my family, money.  Just pieces of life.  

A little about me:  I'm a mid-40s gal.  I've been married for over 20 years to my high school sweetheart. We don't have any kids, but I do have a nephew in whose life I am very involved.  My husband works in health care and I work in animal rescue.  

How many times before have I said "This is the year I get rid of this junk."  Every year for the past several years I'm sure.  But this year I have a new goal to add on to that, and I hope it helps me have more motivation to dejunk my house.  Our only debt is our mortgage, and we want to pay that off early.  We are paying extra on it each month, but we would like to pay it off even faster.  So I'm hoping to sell a few things that we no longer want and make a little cash to put towards our debt.

I'll also be reporting on spending, because seeing the numbers in print makes it a little bit more real! 

I'll be posting pictures along the way.  My house is junky in the corners and closets and we just have too much stuff.  And I'll be showing what I get rid of along the way and progress pictures.  

And so, here we go!