2025 Frugal Friday File, November 7...

 

1.  Planned overs from beef stroganoff.  Heated stroganoff leftovers, with added packet of brown gravy mix and water, diced potatoes, sliced carrots.  Voila!  Beef Stew, and made cornbread to serve with it.  Felt like a new meal from scratch, but with hardly any work or time.

2.  I responded with regrets for a 50th anniversary celebration for my bestie since grade school.  I would dearly love to go, but a ten hour round trip with a hotel stay doesn't seem doable for me when I know I will need to be at my best the next week and weekend for oldest grandon's wedding.  (The steroid shot in my right knee is wearing off, and I worry that keeping it bent for entire drive, and perhaps walking standing more than usual would be pushing it when I need it working for wedding.)  It feels like I'm wimping out, but I just am more limited than I used to be, and I have to take care of what I can.

3.  I made a gallon-jar-full batch of homemade brownie mix for the pantry.  And while I was at it, I noticed that my gallon jar of homemade pancake mix was empty too, so I made a batch of that as well.

4.  It is that beautiful weather time of year that I love.  And have to admit that the old electric bill being lower is one thing that makes me love it!  However, I think we are supposed to have a freeze this weekend.

5.  The fall garden has not been a huge success.  We have gotten a couple of meals worth of green beans, and that may be the beans end of season.  We should have a good harvest of spaghetti squash.  Neither the Brussels sprouts nor the beets even come up.  And the carrots...well I'll let you be the judge:

The one in the middle is about the length of a U.S. dollar bill.  So sad.  I hope Carey is still willing to try again in the spring.

What we ate this past week:

Saturday:  Family supper at Kasey & Beau's

Sunday:  Beef Stroganoff, Garlic Fried Green Beans

Monday:  Homemade Biscuits w/ Sausage Gravy,  fruit

Tuesday:  Beef Stew w/ Cornbread

Wednesday:  takeout burgers

Thursday:  Jalapeno Sweet Potato Soup

Friday:  leftovers

What I'm reading Wednesday...

 

Free-Range Knitter: The Yarn Harlot Writes Again

by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

Essay's on the author's knitting obsession.  This has been on my Kindle since 2011.  I started reading it back then, but at the time I had a knitting project going which took all my attention.  :)

2025 Frugal Friday File, on Saturday 11/1...

 

1.  I read a library book and a book that had been on my Kindle forever.

2.  We rearranged a bedroom, and repurposed a piece of furniture.

3.  Took advantage of another free library program and learned how to make homemade soft pretzels.  The ones we made during the class turned out pretty good and were easy.  I will make them again at home, and may also try making bagels.

4.  Had my wellness visit w/ the doc on Friday.  Aced the 'draw a clock' exercise (by reading the entire directions this time), but couldn't resist having a little fun with it...it was Halloween after all.

5.  Our first beans were harvested from the fall garden.

What we ate this past week:

Saturday:  Family supper at Kasey & Beau's

Sunday:  Ham Loaf w/ Potatoes Au Gratin, Broccoli

Monday:  leftovers

Tuesday:  grazed

Wednesday:  Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes w/ Brisket

Thursday:  Deconstructed Kabobs w/ beef flavored rice

Friday:  out for Tex-Mex

**designates meatless meal

Short verse...

Outside the winds howl.

Rudy, warm, sleeps on my lap.

Twenty pounds of love.

What I'm reading Wednesday...

 

Buckeye by Patrick Ryan

Buckeye was just released last month.  When I noticed the library had already acquired it, I jumped on the reserve list asap.  Set in the 40s through the 70s, it was quite good; I would give it ✮✮✮✮.  Very well-developed characters; even the villains could be forgiven.

(I feel like I need to add here that I only give 5 stars to books I know I want to reread in the future, so 4 stars is almost as good as it gets.)

Poison Flower by Thomas Perry

Thomas Perry is my favorite mystery writer.  And Jane Whitefield is my favorite of his characters.  She is a smart, strong (both emotionally and physically) indigenous woman who helps people in trouble to vanish.  Her job has increased in complexity since I began reading the series (The Jane Whitefield novels) decades ago.  With computer technology advances, and a society that now has video cameras everywhere, her methods have had to change with the times.  

This has been on my Kindle for years (since 2013!), and I just kept putting off reading it, because I have trouble saying goodbye to favorite characters.  But there are now two further books after this one, and I need to read them before I run out of time.

Highly recommend this series.

2025 Frugal Friday File, October 24...

1.  Taking advantage of the great opportunities at our public library.  Tuesday was Cook Book Club.  A different cook book is selected each month, and members sign up, choose a recipe out of it to cook, and bring the dish to the monthly meeting to share (potluck style).  Wednesday was chair yoga day.

2.  We decided not to take a vacation this year.  Carey had a rather expensive vacation this past summer with our son and Carey's brother and nephew.  We had kind of kicked around taking a road trip vacation in the fall, but I just don't feel good about it right now.  With all the skunks that have been around lately, I don't want Rudy spending all day and after dark outside by himself.  There have been rabid skunk and fox in the county, and I just don't feel right about leaving him.  Jared is always glad to take care of him, but he works different shifts throughout the week, so just not ideal right now.

3.  The dress I ordered to try for the December wedding arrived.  Ummm...  I haven't tried it on yet, but I can tell it is way too long, and so wrinkled from the shipping, I'm wondering what it would look like after driving to the wedding venue.  Thinking I might have to get back on the hunt.  The good news is that I can do the shortening myself, not that I want to.  More details later.

4.  Made a menu for next week, and placed grocery order.  

5.  I put out the autumn decorations.  Same ones I've had for years; some used in a new way.  I don't have a lot, but I love what I have.

     Now, we have a lot more Christmas decorations than autumn.  Between now and Thanksgiving, my plan is to decide what I will put out for Christmas THIS year.  All other Christmas decs WILL be donated in the next few weeks so that they can be useful items for someone else's holidays this year.  I say this every year, and I have donated some, but I need to be more ruthless about what goes and what stays.  I am putting it out here so that I will be accountable.  I would love it if decorating for Christmas was as easy as decorating for other holidays/seasons.

What we ate this past week:

Saturday:  Family supper at Kasey & Beau's

Sunday:  burgers out

Monday:  **takeout pizza

Tuesday:  Tuna Salad Sandwiches, Fruit

Wednesday:  lefovers

Thursday:  Quiche and Stir Fried Asparagus

Friday:  leftovers

**designates meatless meal

What I'm reading Wednesday...

 

Murder on the Mind by L.L. Bartlett

I received this book free in January of 2013, and it feels awesome to get another one read that has been lingering for far too long.  

It was pretty good.  Liked the plot and the characters.  It is the first in the Jeff Resnick Mystery series.  I have two others in the series which will be read soon (I hope).  The premise is interesting.  An uninsured insurance investigator is mugged, beaten, and left with a severe head injury and broken arm.  While still in the hospital he is plagued by nightmares and frightening visions of a murder.  His injuries reunite him with his brother who helps him investigate what the visions mean.