I harvested blackberries, tarragon, and parsley from my garden.
I collected shower warm-up water and used it to water potted plants in my garden.
I studied Urdu for free by listening to YouTube videos and e-books from the library while working in the garden.
I cut roses from my garden to enjoy inside.
What did you do to save money the past week?
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We harvested Early Elberta peaches, Royal apricots, Mission figs, blackberries, Meyer lemons, Swiss chard, tomatoes, Thai basil, green onions, and chives from the garden. I sowed more basil seeds in the garden. These were ones that came with a seed order that I made last year. I made a simple cake recipe from an old…
We picked apples, plums, peaches, and apricots from the garden. I cut two bunches of grapes from the garden. We cut larkspur, gladiolas, and lilies from the garden for three flower arrangements inside. I planted seeds for cucumbers yet again in my garden, as most of my seedlings have once again disappeared. Though I…
$0.56 worth of pansies cheer up this pot and I can see them from inside the house. I began sewing a birthday gift for a daughter using fabric and a pattern I had on hand. My dad had leftover scraps from his back patio/deck (which runs right into our matching stairs between our backyards) to redo…
I cut apple branches from the garden to put in vases. I cut flowers from the garden for the table. I cut garlic chives, peppermint, thyme, basil, a few beans, and grape leaves from the garden. I cut a large Armenian cucumber from the garden. This one was growing on the driveway! It took…
We celebrated my youngest’s birthday with homemade eggless chocolate cupcakes. I had ordered gifts for him months ago, which seemed way ahead of time at the time, but I’m glad I had them now. We threw him a Ben and Holly birthday party. I used my frog molds that I’ve previously used for Harry Potter…
If you haven’t see the video coverage of the grasshopper swarms in Las Vegas, I encourage you to check it out. We’ve seen many more than normal here, but the majority of the grasshoppers are downtown. I’m hoping they don’t eat everything in my garden. The garden was very productive this past week. I harvested…
I housesat for my college daughter recently and had so much fun. I binge watched a season of The Gilded Age ,as we don’t have that channel at home. Kid has a huge washer and dryer compared to mine , so I washed all our summer clothes and blankets. I will be returning in a few days for another 4 day visit. I’m gathering my large comforters to take with me this trip. It cost me $10.00 to wash one at my local laundry mat , so this is a huge savings for me. Last time I purchased laundry appliances, I bought regular size ones and regret it now. When I return home , I will put all of mine in storage for the winter. Last year , I found out that running 3 AC window units was 50% cheaper than using my Central air. My son installed our window units this week. Sugar cookie and I continue to explore dumpsters at dusk. This week we retrieved 25 cases of near the sell by date snacks. Lots of cookies and candy. Popcorn and your usual snack aisle items. When I locate sealed cartons , we remove them quickly and leave. I don’t stop and examine them. I certainly would have hoped for different items but they were well used. A neighbor collected them all and distributed them to a few needy families. Dish soap etc might have impressed me more but the neighbor children were ecstatic. I housesat for a neighbors 150 lb Rottweiler. She’s my best buddy. No money changed hands but these neighbors are the very first to step in and help me when needed. That’s priceless. I filled up my car at $3.35 which is still one dollar more than normal. I have reduced my nightly prowling by 50% to cut back. I went out tonight and found items I was thrilled to have. The elderly cat will receive 50 jars of baby food meat variety. She’s 18 and it’s her favorite. I have a 50 lb bag of sweet potatoes. I will share them with several families that likely will pass them on to other people. Strawberries are plentiful and the kids all love them. I’m grateful for all the fresh vegetables as they are outside my budget. Asparagus , butternut squash, yellow squash, and zucchini are showing up frequently. We had ID theft last year. It has continued to trickle down and affect me. I’m unable to receive mail , which effects every aspect of our life. Our insurances with Medicaid and Medicare have been canceled. All I can say is the struggle here is well more complicated than one would imagine possible. Please be cautious . I’ve always knew it was troublesome but nothing like we have experienced. Hope everyone is have spring weather.
Lillianna, do you ever get pushback from the owners of the dumpsters? Here in California it is highly controversial because of people who have been sued over someone getting hurt while doing it. I wish there was an efficient way to distribute so many great resources.
Lillianna, sorry you are having so much trouble after the ID theft. Having your insurance cancelled is frightening. Sending you hope for a good resolution. Thanks for making food available to those that need it.
Bea
Hi Brandy and everyone
I hope you enjoyed your birthday, you looked beautiful in the photo on Instagram.
We used rhubarb, cauliflower and purple sprouting broccoli from the garden. We planted out main crop potatoes and more sweet peas. My husband wove more willow wigwams and received more free pots from a client.
We planted more seeds and I dug over, weeded and raked a bed for growing cut flowers.
We had a bulk order of compost delivered by a friend at ‘mates rates’.
We replaced a frying pan at a sale price. I have scoured charity shops for one for months but can’t wait any longer so we bought one new.
I made a sponge cake which didn’t rise well so I used it as the base for a trifle. The fruit layer was baked rhubarb and foraged blackberries from the freezer. I already had the other ingredients.
I wrote an online review of a product for ten per cent off the next purchase. I do plan to buy more from this company in due course.
Best wishes to everyone.
I discovered that my new closest grocery store sells bags of marked down produce for 1.99 so I have been shopping there-along with picking up marked down meat. It is close enough to walk or bike. I continue to ride my bike for free exercise-although more snow is expected later in the week.
My husband and I were treated to lunch out for his bday on Sunday-he also received 2 nice shirts from co-workers.
The grass is finally starting to green up a little and the trees are budding out-the leaves should be out in a week.
I am off on an 11 day Alaska cruise in May with my daughter and her fiance. My husband is working and unable to pick me up at the airport so I plan to save money by taking public transit home
I, how exciting! Our youngest son and his wife just gifted us flights and an Alaskan cruise🥰 We are going in September and flying into Vancouver early where my daughter and her husband will pick us up and we will drive back to their place and spend some time before the cruise. I am sooooo excited as this has been on my bucket list since I was very young (probably because I read about Alaska in a book) and it is doubtful we would have done this on our own.
What gorgeous flowers! And Happy Birthday! In addition to the myriad of ordinary, everyday things we do to save money and increase income, I did research this week and tried to lower some recurring expenses. For about an hour of my time, I reduced our monthly bills by just over $100 by cancelling a two subscriptions that weren’t being fully used, and negotiating with our mobile phone service provider. It’s so easy to have things like that quietly drawing from your wallet and I find a more regular audit of our finances is needed in these modern times. I ordered my cats’ medication from a different supplier as they sent me a coupon code. For maximum savings of 35%, I ordered a 6 moth supply. I will go back to my regular supplier in the future but this saves us a significant sum for a while. I needed a few bee supplies this season. It doesn’t happen every year but some of my equipment is 15 years old and needing replacement. My husband long ago determined that to make the bee boxes does not save us any money due to the cost of wood so replacements are sometimes needed. We purchase our bees supplies from a company in a town about an hour away (the closest) who make the products there on site keeping their costs low. I always make the trip worthwhile by going to the Aldi nearby and any other errands at shops we don’t have. This time, I didn’t really need to do anything else and with the cost of gas, I calculated that it would be less expensive for them to ship the items to me than to drive there myself. The extra nice part was they overestimated my shipping costs and I got the refund the next day making it even more cost effective. I appreciate them being honest with their shipping as I am sure some companies wouldn’t have bothered to refund the difference if they even noticed. I got free seed from the Little Free Seed Library at our local library. Many come from the experimental garden and farm at our local university so they should do well. I chose all perennials that my bees will love as well as a syrup and grain sorghum. Excited to give them a try. I don’t think I have mentioned this but I am brushing up on my Norwegian using the free app Duolingo. I am sure there are better ways to learn but it’s free and I hear my grandmother’s voice in my head during every lesson. I am on a 250+ day streak and have noticed I can read a bit more of the Norwegian language books I have from my grandmother more easily now. My oldest son is in his final week of the classroom portion of his Driver’s Ed class. Unfortunately, it is almost an hour away from our home but it is the only option. I have made good use of my time by doing necessary errands while he is in class or by just sitting in the truck reading or taking care of correspondence. One night, I filled out a form that might garner us some assistance in repairing the landslide below our pond which occurred during Hurricane Helene. I don’t totally believe in the adage that time is money but it is helpful to be good stewards of both. The garden is growing, the chickens and ducks are laying, the sun is shining and all is well in our corner of the world. Hope the same is true for all of you!
If you want something else, look up Norwegianaclass101.com for more free learning!
They also have videos on YouTube.
When I was relearning French, I found that using a variety of sources was the most helpful to me.
Now that I am learning Urdu, I have done the same. Hearing other speakers, getting repetition of words from various sources, and just listening over and over to vocabulary via e-books is helping me. It’s still hard, but I figure the more exposure, the better!
Thank you for the advice! I will check that out. 😁
We waited out the 28 hour electricity outage safely, (it was caused by downed poles over a wide area), and it prompted me to go through the flashlights-and-batteries cupboard. I will watch for a sale on a second headlamp, as the one super LED one we have was quite helpful, as long as no one accidentally looked directly at the person wearing it. The older flashlights that use the heavy “D” batteries will be retired as they burn out.
The frugal find was a package of two “C” Energizer batteries that had been sitting around for a long time. I put them in the old silver metal flashlight–probably from the 50’s and it still had the label tape with my name from taking it to camp– and they worked. The 25 cents off next purchase coupon on the battery package expired in 1996!
The zipper on the dollar yard sale purse that I have been using for the last five years irreplaceably broke. It is exactly the right size for the little I carry, cotton, lightweight, and I am not hopeful of finding a precise replacement. I will now use it to store the above-named flashlights and batteries, as it is just the right size for this new purpose.
I wish my grocery store had the clearance carts close to the front door instead of in the far back corner, though I understand their plotting to keep me in the store longer. I am pretty good at shopping “the perimeter”, staying with the fresher foods and dairy I need and not going down the aisles. Big cartons of orange and grape juice on clearance was yesterday’s find.
Reading library books: “They Left Us Everything”, clearing out her family home, by Plum Johnson has some good observations about family and home and house and possessions, as well as being a memoir/tribute to her parents.
Good week to all! I hope you continue to heal, Brandy.
Can you have someone fix the zipper?
Oh, wow– I looked at it again to describe the zipper, (set into lining, sort of, difficult to deal with), and noticed a tiny tag-behind-the-tag I hadn’t seen. I only saw the care instructions before, but there is a brand name. Thanks for asking, because I might find something used online. It might be intended to be either a child’s purse or a make-up bag.
Happy birthday to all of us celebrating this week!
You can find different zippers replacement zippers online.
Happy Birthday! We share our birthday week. Your flowers are beautiful. My zinnias and wild flower mix are coming up nicely. I have baby blueberries on my little bushes. I was tickled to death. Our garden is doing great. I am hand watering every other day since it has been so dry here. My broccoli is heading. I can’t wait to have roasted broccoli and broccoli salad again. I have tied up my tomato plants since they are growing. My step daughter gave me 7 baby tomato plants that she grew from seed and did not have room for in her raised beds. I work in the garden everyday to keep up with weeds and keep a check for bugs/cabbage worms. My church is planning VBS and I was asked to teach 5th -6th grade. I always get excited about VBS. We continue to walk each day and I have been reading my library books. I have been eating out of my freezer as much as I can to make room for fresh vegetables. My step daughter bought a green house kit from a couple and they gave us a tour of their homestead when we picked it up. They decided to build a bigger one than the kit they bought. They gave us a dozen eggs and some freeze dried eggs to try. They have a great set up and it was so nice of them to share their story and give us a tour of their farm. They even had bees. I want bees but my husband is allergic and I can’t take that chance on him getting stung. My sisters and I met for a birthday lunch yesterday. My older sister’s birthday is the 20th and mine is the 22nd. We get together several times a year in person and talk on the phone/Facebook the rest of the time.
Donna – As a beekeeper, I suggest asking another beekeeper if they could use some help. Even if you can’t keep bees on your own property, you might be able to assist someone who could really use help during hive inspections and honey harvesting. They would appreciate the help and you might be able to get some fascinating education and honey out of it. Also, there might be an option to keep your own hives on someone else’s property. This often happens when a beekeeper runs out of viable space on their property or when landowners would like the benefits of having bees on their property but don’t want to or have the knowledge to do it themselves. If you don’t personally know any beekeepers in your area, find out if there is a local bee club, a Master Beekeeper program at your local community college or agricultural extension office or ask around at your local feed stores. That might give you some direction. I will also add that, of all the “homesteading” skills, beekeeping is one where you really benefit from an in-person mentor. There are so many variables and factors to consider that just reading about it or even watching YT videos (though there are some great channels now to help) can leave you with more questions than when you started. However, David Burns (name of the channel) is a great one. He has a beginner beekeeping playlist that might be of interest to you. Like most things, if you’re really interested, there is a way to be involved with bees. Best of luck!
Thank you for the information. That is a good idea and I am going to ask around if anyone knows a beekeeper.
The little white roses are an understated beauty. I’m happy to read you harvested some blackberries. I was thinking of getting a cutting here and try growing in a pot (for height and eventually fruit)
For short breaks of mental health boosts – I have been taking 10-30 minutes a day to create art/craft from items I have. One day might be collecting small flowers to press and make stickers using packing tape, doing a small water color tutorial or sew using scraps of fabric. These end up in snail mail for friends, gifting flair, or placed in the little free art gallery.
Started dividing plants to fill in weeded spots. This planting season’s mission is to divide and place.
Planted seed potatoes that I saved from last season.
Received a free pack of cosmo seeds which will be great for my cutting garden.
So far I have kept cutting a small vase of flowers each week for my desk. It’s been delightful!
Vegetarian dishes are a hit here – especially if there are potatoes involved.
Hope everyone has a calm and productive week!
I love your creative time each day. I am trying to get more creating done each day, but it’s difficult.
It’s huge for mental health!
I love these regular creative moments and try to do the same myself. 😁
Nice to read your post today, Brandy. I hope you are no longer having aches and pains
from the car accident.
I read several flyers from several stores. I have a rain check for my favourite (but pricey) peanut free bread. Instead of $5.99, I will be able to buy 4 loaves at $4 each – a friend will keep 2 in her freezer for me. One store has a better deal on oranges and cheese sticks. One of my friends shops at Safeway and lives close to me so it s not a problem for her to pick up things. Also I point out the good deals to her. I have low-cost usually free delivery from No Frills, another grocery store so I comparison shop between the two. I also remember that just because something is a bargain, it still costs money. There is a bit of a pattern between the 2 stores – one week, one will have an item on sale but the next week the other will have the same item on sale. If I had a car, I could drop by
other stores but that involves more gas and time (time should be valued at something when going around to various places). I tend to think about food only once a week when I read the flyers. I am getting a system in place, to live very simply but very nutritiously. And to have a good pantry as backup. I am trying to reduce expenses on groceries which is challenging in these times.
I will be buying fewer bedding out plants but being very selective about what I do buy. I have almost all the perennials I need –except perhaps for one rose. Last year I spent more money than usual on hiring gardeners and they did a great job to get the weeds under control. It should be more routine this year. Gardening expenditures will be down, but there are a few needed household repairs to pay for.
I am still hurting but it is lessening.
I hope you are recovering from your accident and are not in too much ongoing pain.
We have continued to not order heating oil. When prices doubled overnight in March, we shut off the central heating. We still kept the hot water on, but I am amazed at how little oil we have used. I am grateful that we had half a tank left at that time, and still nearly do, so we can hopefully wait until late summer before we NEED to order more, when prices will hopefully have gone down. I am monitoring the price every week online so we can take advantage of a dip if there is a significant one.
My husband had a week off and we built a fruit cage in the garden. It was not a cheap project, but not as expensive as it might have been: he designed it himself rather than buying from a kit, and we already had the netting. (It tore while putting it on, but I know I can mend it.) And now the pesky birds (and toddler!) can’t get at our soft fruit, we can buy some more. Cherries and blueberries are top of my list, and maybe a grape vine. (We already have raspberries, strawberries and currants.)
Brandy, I have been so inspired by you over the years to dream big about what my garden can produce, especially as my family has grown bigger. We only really buy berries if someone requests them for a birthday as they are so expensive and the children can eat such a lot of them! But I am hopeful that over the next few years we can start getting enough from our garden.
Frustratingly, though, I am struggling to get direct-sown seeds to germinate. I don’t know why. So I have sown some in the greenhouse to see if that helps them along.
I was able to help two friends out with childcare at short notice. I am pleased that I can stay home to be able to do these things that would be hard if I had to work. I’m sure at some point in the future they will be able to return the favour!
I suggest using a thermometer to check the soil temperature and make sure to sow the seeds at the correct temperature. Then make sure they stay wet. Those are my two biggest issues.
Thank you! My guess is that nighttime temperatures are maybe still too low? We’ve been having hot sunny days (I mean, for us in April! Peaking around 18-20C) but the nights are still near-freezing.
Frugal Lessons From Cleaning and Decluttering:
When I clean out closets and boxes, I automatically want less stuff. Air, space and lightness count more to me than things. I donate more. I found a wetsuit which I won’t fit in again and sold it for $30. I gifted a friend with attachments to a hair dryer that I blew out traveling. She saved $50. All around, it is a good thing for my little world.
When I take time to do detail cleans, I am reminded to be more careful with the things I value. I am often a hurricane – bumping, tumbling, dropping myself and all things around me because I am going too fast. That causes a lot of damage and costs more money. ( Case in point – I slipped and my knee caught the rotary cutter while sewing. I had a $5, 000 emergency hospital bill. Sheesh. Slow down. Take my time.
I am going to do the renovation clean up myself. I can’t find a reliable company and I have trust issue. A subcontractor used some kind of chemical on my new bathroom cabinets at the renovation and took off some of the finish. I was furious. I am taking the experience as an opportunity for growth. I have since researched construction cleaning. I am purchasing a few high ticket investment items like a Dupray steam cleaner for tile floors, an electric scrubber with an rod extension, and a backpack shop/vac with HEPA filter. The River House Renovation is a large old farmhouse. I will be cleaning it myself and I am only going to be getting older. I want the right tools for the job to preserve my body and the house we have invested so much in.
Mary Ann, I remember when you posted pictures of the river house when you first got it. It was amazing then; I can’t imagine what it looks like now! I love hearing about your progress.😊
The flowers you displayed are beautiful Brandy. I am glad you are feeling better.
This week…
*Made a new pair of potholders from my stash of extra fabric. Decided to simple recover and stitch old potholder pair with the new fabric.
*Invited to dinner at a friend’s home. I took a potted plant placed in an open box, covered the sides with strips of gift wrapping paper which was free from a rummage sale.
*DH and I installed a dock while many in our area spend several hundred dollars to hire it done.
*I have some shampoo that is simple awful, my daughter wouldn’t even take it because she tried it and agreed. I am using it to clean waste baskets as needed.
*Made 1/2 recipe of scratch yeast sweet rolls with cream cheese frosting. I used less cream cheese in the recipe and it was fine.
*Starting to see growth in the begonia and dahlia bulbs that I (dried) overwintered and put in small metal cans of soil.
*I passed on buying hummingbird powdered nectar and will simple use the 1 to 4 ratio of sugar and water. I never use red food coloring as it is harmful to the birds.
Hope everyone is having a good week and thanks everyone for your wonderful ideas and suggestions.
Happy belated birthday!!
This week I have been taking my bestie for daily radiation treatments at the Cancer Clinic. Our days are long with added doctors appointments, ultrasounds, etc. The hospital food court is so expensive so I have been packing sandwiches,fruits and water.
Gas is still around $7 a gallon in my part of Canada. On the way home one day I saw some for $6 a gallon so I filled up.
DS is leaving on vacation and brought me the perishable contents of his fridge that I can definitely use.
Still shoveling snow for free exercise lol.
1. Eggs were 89 cents a dozen at the store where I work so I bought a couple of cartons and called my local frugal friends and neighbors and let them know.
2. Also got the dog some highly-rated dry dogfood, vet approved, that contained salmon, 24 lb. for $19.99. Which I’m told is a bargain for that type of pet food. I worked the night shift and didn’t want to have to make another stop, and we were completely out of kibble.
3. Took some books from where they were neither wanted nor needed ie,wealthy suburbs where few people fool with secondhand books)and gave them to a book drive for children living in the slums who lack reading material, with no means of transportation to the library.
4. Transplanted mint into the hanging basket where the flowers died. Soil was still good.
5. Collected rainwater for the houseplants…much better than tap water.
I am glad to find you posting again Brandy – I had checked from time to time but missed when the blog started up again so I will enjoy going back and catching up. Sorry to hear that you were in a car accident and that you are still recovering – that must have been frightening. Your pictures are always so lovely – they remind me of the artwork in “Victoria” magazine. I gave up purchasing magazines a few years back except for “Victoria” – it is my treat every other month or so. I jusy picked up the latest issue this morning so will enjoy it this evening with a cup of tea.
As for bargains – well, they are fewer and fewer but I watch the flyers, check for managers’ specials and do my best. I have been restocking a lot of non-food items over the past few weeks and have managed to do most of it during sales. I will pick up a few more items tomorrow when the sale at the drugstore starts and continue to put things away. Hygeine items, cleaning supplies and paper products have really climbed in price, plus there could be shortages due to the oil situation so wanted to get those squared away. Being able to only purchase food some months really makes a difference. I am tracking my monthly grocery expenses (food vs non food) and was quite shocked at what I was spending! And I am mostly an ingredient person who cooks from scratch but it does add up.
One recent bargain was butter – a couple of different supermarkets had it on sale for almost all of March so managed to get quite a few pounds into the freezer. My local No Frills shop seems to offer a different protein on sale each week so that is what I’ve been buying – ground beef and pork when 50% off – pork roasts for $6 and this week its chicken thighs (something that has been difficult to find recently) so I have bought 2 packages and may get at least one more if I can find room in the freezer.
So happy to see comments from so many familiar people.
Victoria is my favorite magazine; I started my subscription when I was 13 years old. What a wonderful compliment; thank you!
Hi Margie,
I’ve often wondered how you are — great to read your blog again. Ann
Margie, it isn’t the same as holding a paper magazine in your hand, but I like to read “Victoria” magazine online for free at home through my library. It is a treat I save for myself when I am in need of a good hot cup of tea and some “me” time.
I agree, just seeing Brandy’s website pop up inspires me to make something around me a little bit prettier.
Jeannie
It’s been an expensive few weeks with our university student home for Easter break: he snacks a lot! Found a recipe online to replicate his favourite branded biscuits. Mine turned out more like a chewy cookie but still tasty. Avoided food waste by chopping remnants in the fruit bowl to make fruit salad which was enjoyed for breakfast. Used left over bread to make bread and butter pudding for dessert. Now the teen is back at university we’re eating from the freezer for a while. Needed to replace a frying pan and had been looking for ages. Found a top quality one reduced to £20 from £65.
Happy birthday, hope you are on the mend! Flowers are beautiful and the frames are lovely.
Monday was the emergency dentist 50 miles away, Tuesday the hospital emergency room, and Thursday a different emergency dentist, the good news all covered by insurance. I was overprescribed antibiotics so have been eating only yogurt and mashed potatoes, since I can’t chew anything. Tomorrow is my root canal.
Filled my tank in prep for the 100 miles round trip tomorrow. Least expensive station besides Costco. $6.05 per gallon. The most I’ve ever paid locally. However, my reward points kicked in to give me .30 cents a gallon discount. The biggest discount I’d ever received.
It was my turn to take my neighbor a meal, but after seeing my swollen face they insisted I don’t. I’d already bought 2 chickens so froze them. Seems really wrong you can buy a rotisserie chicken already cooked for $9.99, but buy a fresh whole chicken you need to cook, on sale, and it cost $15.99.
Checked out several audiobooks from the library given pain medications were not working. The best I could do was close my eyes and listen to an audiobooks to try to distract me. Looking forward to putting these tooth issues behind me.
Spring has sprung here, The trees have all leafed out and we’ve been having beautiful weather with the odd day of rain drizzle thrown in.
Hope all have a good week.
I’ve attended several swaps of crafts, clothing, and household items this month. Last weekend, I got 2 cashmere sweaters that are stretched badly, and I intend to felt them in the washing machine and dryer, then cut the resulting felted fabric into potholders and coasters. I’ll add some embroidery. These will be gifts.
I also got a few kitchen items, a couple of tee shirts and hoodies, pattern books for several types of needlework, and some needlework supplies.
I rescued a wide variety of meats, 10 eggs, and lots of fruits and vegetables (a wide variety), some fresh herbs, corn chips, and a bag of sugar. All meals cooked at home as usual.