Frugal Accomplishments and Blessings for Mid-January (Menu too!)

This was taken several days after the snow had fallen.

We were blessed with lots of beautiful snow last Sunday night.  On Monday, we played in the snow and made snow cream.  Do you know about snow cream?  This is how you make it:

1.  Put a food container out in the snow, up high where dogs can't get it.  This container should hold way more snow than you think you need.  Let it fill with new-fallen snow.  (Alternately, you can scoop up snow, being careful that none of it has tracks in it...and that none of it is dirty, or yellow.)

2.  Add cold milk, sugar and vanilla to your snow, and stir.  It will 'shrink' a lot.  There is no real measurement for this, so start with a little, and add gradually.

3.  When it becomes like a white slushie, taste for sweetness/vanilla and adjust if needed.  Serve immediately.  Warning:  Snow cream can give you a frozen brain headache!!

Minifigs with cocoa, warming up in front of the fire after skiing in the snow.
(Can you see the flames, deep in the fireplace?)

When I shoveled the front walk, I put the extra snow onto the perennials in my flowerbed.

I got credit for three surveys this week, all from Pinecone Research.  I also took one more survey.

I contracted with the local library district to do three chicken programs in March of this year.  They are really, really fun, and they help us financially as well.

See the Great Horned Owl?  He's sitting atop the center tree at sunset.

We heated with our wood stove to save on propane.  I also warmed our meals on the wood stove when it was feasible, to reduce our propane use.  It also made me feel a little like Laura Ingalls, which always makes me happy.

I used the drying racks to dry our clothes.  I washed them in homemade laundry soap.  Our washing machine is being wonky.  It stopped mid-wash on Monday, because the little sensor that tells my machine that the lid is down has a crack, so it had moved out of line.  I dis-connected it from the body of the machine, and stood there holding the little lever in place while the clothes spun, just to finish washing that load of clothes.  Husband used a strong epoxy to re-attach the broken piece of the sensor.  Once it was set, he re-installed it, and all is well.  We already had the epoxy on hand, so there was zero cost.

Raarrrr!  Snort!  Groooowwwwlll!!!  Raaarrr!  At least, that's what I hear.

Daughter plays a Wii game called Skylanders.  This week, she got 8 of the characters second-hand for $15.  She used some of her birthday and Christmas money to pay for them.  Buying them second-hand saved her a lot, and buying them locally also saved her shipping.  The 'trick' to all this, if there is one, is that she is playing, and enjoying a game that is 'old news' to a lot of the kids....so they cost far less than they did when they were the new, hot thing.

I made lasagna this past week.  I've stopped using lasagna noodles, simply because I ran out.  I cooked up some wide noodles instead, and you know what?  It's easier to assemble, it's easier to cut/eat, and we like the texture of the dish better.  I just put some (cooked) noodles down, then the cheesy layer, then more noodles, and then sauce.  Bake, then top with cheese and bake a little more.  It's become a favorite for us.

Taffy gets prettier every day!

Taffy went to the spay-neuter clinic this week and had her spay surgery.  She is doing great, and two of the technicians said she was so sweet that they wanted to take her home.  We also had them do her rabies vaccine (that one doesn't 'count' if I do it at home), and the total was just under $100.  I hear that going to a full-service vet in our area would be 2-3 times that amount, just for the spay surgery.  The clinic has been in operation for almost 35 years, and has a very good reputation.  They did an exam, asked questions of me about her history, even called the day after surgery.  We are very pleased with them.

Taffy's get-well present.

I went a little wild this week, and bought myself a butter bell.  It was second hand, and I used some of my spending money to pay for it.  We do keep our butter on the counter, and a butter bell is supposed to keep the butter fresh a really long time, even in summer when the temperatures are warm.  Since we don't go through butter very quickly, this is useful.

We were in the right part of town on the right day, so I went to the LDS Home Storage Center and bought a 25 pound bag of dehydrated refried beans.  We use them for refried beans (of course), in burritos, taco salad, to make bean dip, and I have used them to thicken chili and soups.  They are very affordable, and we really like them.  It is $29 for 25 pounds.  I have never weighed them before and after rehydrating them, but they really expand a lot and go a long, long way.  I also splurged and got a little bag of the potato pearls.  I have always heard they are good, and I have always wanted to try them.

We picked up books, movies and media when we went to the library.  There are some bins in the entry with magazines that are free for the taking.  I picked out several, since these are titles we don't usually see.  When I am done with them I'll pass them on to friends or donate them back to the library.

When friends came to play on Thursday, I made popcorn and sliced apples and oranges for snack.  Popcorn is filling (and whole grain!) and sliced fruit reduces waste, because the individual pieces are smaller.  None of the children ate a whole piece of fruit - if I had given them whole pieces, there likely would have been some waste.

A friend gave me some sliced rice cake rounds that she does not think she will ever use.  They are frozen...we think they are to add to stir fry.  I have never used them, but I will do some research and give them a try.  The same friend had a birthday party for her daughter this week, and sent leftover sandwiches home with us.  I made a card for the birthday girl, and used sealing wax to put a paw print on the front.  This was my first time using sealing wax - I like the effect!

The folks from the raptor rescue program came out on Friday to hunt.  We spent two hours out in the snowy fields, flushing rabbits out of the bushes and from under the trees.  Still no catches, but Roxanne, the Harris Hawk, is getting more comfortable with her surroundings (and with us).  Nike, the Prairie Falcon, is mostly learning to fly to a lure, so she is not really hunting.  The entire time, Daughter and I were learning more about the characteristics and habitats of both birds, along with the history of falconry.  It is a wonderful opportunity!

I am starting to think about the garden, and what to plant this spring.  I know I want to grow lots of greens, so I picked up kale, spinach and chard seeds at Dollar Tree.  I think I already have seeds for everything else I want to grow.  Packets there were .25 each.

I made bread again this week.  I had thought that the bread I made last week would last longer, but I was wrong.  We have all the ingredients on hand, so there was no out-of-pocket expense to make it, just the use of pantry ingredients.  It is a multigrain bread, similar to the one I made last week.

This recipe says it makes two loaves, but I have smaller bread pans,
resulting in three loaves of tasty bread!

I picked up a large package of the fruit for fruitcake, on markdown for $1.  I also got a red bell pepper for 34 cents, some fresh green beans for .99/lb., a pack of pepperoni for $2, and a slab of ribs that was on markdown for $1.70 a pound.  Husband was wanting to make ribs, so this works out well!  I also bought tater tots that were on sale, 2lb. for $1. We are trying to eat better, and I think we are doing good overall...but tater tots!  Oops.  I didn't buy a lot this week - we still have a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables on hand from previous weeks.

Here is the dinner menu for the coming week, too!

S - barbecue ribs, slaw, baked beans, baked apples
M - char siu lo mein with vegetables, kimchee, sliced oranges
T - cheese enchiladas, Mexican rice, broccoli, sliced apples
W - homemade chicken noodle soup w/crackers, garden salad, canned pears
R - calzones (makes 8, so extras for the freezer), marinara sauce, apple-carrot-raisin salad
F - lentil curry with vegetables over rice, sliced oranges
S - leftovers

I also plan to make babaganoush, blueberry muffins, and possibly some fruit and nut energy balls with the fruitcake fruit in them.  (I have to find a recipe to work from on that last one!)

How was your week?  What did you do to spend less, save more and make do?  I'd love to read about what you're doing these days - leave a comment if you will!