“They suffered cold and heat, hard work and privation as did others of their time. Neither they nor their neighbors begged for help. No other person, nor the government, owed them a living. They owed that to themselves and in some way, they paid the debt. And they found their own way. Their old-fashioned character values are worth as much today as they ever were to help us over the rough places. We need today courage, self-reliance and integrity.” ~ Laura Ingalls Wilder
My Frugal Week
Last month we replaced one of the air conditioning units in a bedroom. Our electric bill came this month and it is $20 lower than last month. I love having new energy efficient appliances that bring our electric bill down.
This week we stayed home at least five days (six for me) and managed to get several jobs done. Bailey went to a church yard sale on Thursday while I stayed home. She brought back several things for me. A brand new over the cabinet towel holder, Pyrex bowl with lid, and a Rubbermaid bowl with lid. The towel holder retails for $9.99 new, but we only paid $1.00.
One item we picked up at a yard sale last weekend was this Reliable digital steam press, which retails for $249.00, but we picked up for $40. I have always wanted a steam press with a bigger pressing area for sewing projects and Bailey's business, so this is perfect.
Our cat Polka Dot is doing so much better this week. He finished his round of antibiotics, and is able to jump up onto his cat condo on the back porch and is walking on his foot again.
Bailey picked up six Vera Bradley masks on their website for $9.22 with free shipping. We are still required to wear them at some places such as the eye doctor, family doctor, etc.
I was finally able to get in on the health shares marketplace program using the subsidies that are in place right now.
We had a grocery order delivered on Saturday, which included watermelon, honeydew, bananas, clementines, lettuce, tomatoes, red bell peppers, onions, sweet and Yukon gold potatoes, walnuts, almond milk, chicken, beef, bread, cheese, and frozen vegetables.
We spent $227 and that is our big grocery shop of the month, which includes enough food for breakfasts, lunches, and around twenty dinners, which includes leftovers to cover the other days in the month.
Our local county road department reported a loss of half a million dollars this financial year due to people not driving as much during the pandemic. I wonder what other trickle down effects this will have.
In our Garden
We have tomato plants, oregano and mint growing this season.
Earning Money
This week I sold a Mike and Molly DVD on eBay.
Did you hear about people who filed taxes early this year possibly getting a bigger refund if they were on unemployment last year? Well that happened to me and the extra money ($300) was deposited into my account this week.
Monday: Baked Potatoes, Seamed Broccoli, and Chopped Tomatoes
Tuesday: Chicken Fried Rice, Stir Fry Vegetables
Wednesday: Baked Chicken, Green Beans, Carrots
Thursday: Dirty Rice with Sausage, Stir Fried Vegetables, and Roasted Potatoes. We bought the sausage on markdown at Ingle's last week.
We had been using Tony Chachere's Creole Dirty Rice for our dirty rice when Cheryl, over at Cheryl's Frugal Corner, mentioned in a comment that Aldi has a dirty rice mix that was good. So, we picked some up and tried it for dinner. I really liked the Aldi brand as it is not as spicy as the Tony Chachere's.
Friday: Baked Salmon, Brown Rice, Steamed Broccoli
Saving on Entertainment
This week I watched the last two episodes of This Is Us on Hulu and noticed that The Conner's has been showing up on YouTube. I watched a couple of those as well even though I have watched them on Hulu.
Some people don't like to watch things again, but that doesn't bother me. I have watched most of the episodes of M*A*S*H, The Walton's, and Roseanne and I don't mind watching them again because I am content with what we have.
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