Frugal Friday - Week of July 19, 2020


Zinnias in my front flower bed this week.

This was a relatively quiet week.  My course ended for the summer, the children and John are still working their normal schedules and the garden is starting to produce!  After a gap in blooms, we started having more flowers blooming as well.  The weather was absolutely lovely this week and I was able to get a lot of weeding and other yard work done.  Today, grades have been submitted to the Registrar's office and I get to take a bit of break before starting to get ready for fall semester.

Here are some frugal things we have done this week:

* We made bagels with cream cheese, blueberry-banana smoothies, banana-mango smoothies, scrambled eggs and toast for breakfasts this week.

* We also made baked salmon with potatoes and salad, scalloped potatoes with ham, roasted chicken and vegetables, soft shell beef tacos with sliced apples, and pizza for dinner this past week.

* We ate meals at home for lunch as well, including sandwiches, leftovers, and soup.

* A parishioner gifted us several large zucchini.  I really appreciated this since my plant has not produced any fruit this year.

* We harvested cucumbers, tomatoes, green beans and peas in the pod from our garden this week.

* I cut out the material for several more masks, lining them with a piece of silk left from my bridesmaid's dresses.  I read a recent CDC report showing that cotton lined with silk is one of the most effective combinations for preventing spread of particles.  I am planning on sewing them this weekend.

* I removed three "volunteer" trees from the yard.  They were growing in the edge along the fence or in my flower beds, and we did not want them growing where they are.  I also cut back a fourth volunteer tree. I have to buy a new blade for the reciprocal saw before I will be able to remove the fourth one.

* I inventoried the freezer and the pantry and listed holes that need to be filled. I also made up a menu for September through December.  We are hoping to use a work bonus to purchase some items to fill in both the holes in the pantry and purchase as much of the meat for the fall menu as we are allowed.  I am also hoping to purchase large amounts of produce from the Farmer's Market, as our garden is not producing as well as I would like and our CSA ended after last year's growing season.

* John had the car serviced, as it was time for routine maintenance.  We have found that keeping up with routine maintenance saves us so much, as far as our vehicles are concerned.

* We completed the refinance of our mortgage!  I am so excited for the lower interest rate and lower monthly payment - it means that we will be able to pay it off much sooner!

* Due to lower expenses right now, we were able to put some additional monies into the saving account.  We are very grateful! 

* I picked flowers from the yard for my kitchen table.

What did you do this week that would be frugal?

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