* Made 10 cards with supplies on hand to raise funds at our church for our hamper giveaway.
* Megan went to a birthday dinner. She was able to give some earrings she bought a while ago and didn't use. She also used a homemade card from my stash.
* Used the watering can all week to water all the fruit trees and veggie plants. I used the shower warm up water to do this.
* The family ate bits and pieces out of the fridge for dinner on Sunday night
* Baked four loaves of wholemeal bread with extra goodness and two of white bread.
* Made fruit icecream using bananas and cream given to us and a few raspberries I froze from last season.
* Made a 1 kilo batch of Brown Sugar.
* Dried all the washing on the line.
* Darren fed our fruit trees with worm tea from our worm farm.
* Froze two singles serves of left over beef stew and one of Tuna Casserole.
* Stocked up on Lynx shower gel, Lynx deod and Nature's Fruits body wash. All were bought at half price and most will be put away for presents.
* Darren is now the proud owner of a two year old Nissan Dualis after saying good bye to his 14 year old Nissan Pulsar ( the work horse ). Some might wonder how this could fit into the frugal tasks post. We saved hard for four years and paid cash ( bank cheque ). No car loans for us. Now we've started saving for when my 2008 Camry needs replacing. With our car history, that won't be for quite a while.
* Made Chunky Roast Beef and Vegetable soup using left over meat.
* Darren picked a beautiful pink rose from the garden to put on my bedside table. It smells so lovely.
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| Darren and his new car |
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| Banana and raspberry icecream |
What does your frugal task list look like this week ?
Good morning Wendy, doesn't that car suit Darren :)
ReplyDeleteIt certainly does. He's so happy.
Deletecongratulations on the purchase of the car. what a wonderful achievement... proves credit isn't needed. :-)
ReplyDeleteLinda
So very true Linda.
DeleteOur last two cars have been bought via the government motor auctions, We discovered that most government departments replace their vehicles when 2 years old or before 40,000kms. We saved around half the new car price, plus the cars included many extras eg, towbar, roof racks. and included the service record card and had been NRMA checked.
ReplyDeleteThere are big savings to be made.
DeleteWell done with Darren's car. Saving for replacement cost of the next car would have to be the most ignored or forgotten about expense. Most folk are so used to 'paying off' a car that saving for one in cash is such a foreign concept - well done. This topic needs a post of its own maybe ?!
ReplyDeleteI'll put it on my list of blog post ideas Phil.
DeleteHi wendy,
ReplyDeleteWow nice car haha I'm saving for one also hopefully get it by my birthday in November!
You've got some lovely tasks this week stu and Elisha picked me a lovely flower also hehe
I think Stuart has been the more frugal one this week lol
This weeks Frugal tasks
Sold 2 sunflower seedlings for $2each and an extra $1 for a pot of dirt
With the help of Stuart we Transplanted some tomato seedlings that have grown wild in the garden
Planted 3 sunflowers and weeded the garden
Planted some cucumber seedlings into a XL pot, stuck 3 stakes in it and wrapped some twine around the stakes (Caths advice/idea) will see how that goes :D
Stuart made a little planter pot type thing out of hollowed out tree stump wood and planted a flower plant in it (aquilegia) quite pretty actually!
Stuart made some timber stakes to help hold up the fencing for the pumpkins to grow along. It's now up against the brick wall that practically goes in front of the car spaces in the flats.
I started to put up the green houses that I bought but never finished it so Stuart ended up doing it for me I've just been too busy with the kids
Stuart has been so devoted to helping me with a lot of things in the garden. He loves watering the plants and watching them grow day by day and gives him something to do while he's at home. We call it our pride and joy. I will have to post some pics on fb for you to see once everything I have done is accomplished haha
I sprouted some more seeds I have Thai birds eye chilli (I think) they are very nice and hot and I use to make chilli paste out of them 3 years ago
Stuart Snr and Elisha picked me a flower from the garden :)
Stuart made a little frame stand thing to hold our air con I can't remember if I mentioned this but it was about 2 weeks ago but it's working a treat!
Am planning a baby shower for my best friend and have so far completed her baby shower invitations (will have to post a pic on fb)
Stuart fixed one of my tyres with a puncture repair kit so hopefully will last just a little longer till I need to buy new tyres
Received heaps of clothes from a friend for Elisha but I happily shared them with my best friend instead
Great Fully accepted some food off of mum for the family to eat
Ruby went to a birthday party and we gave her friend some sale items I picked up from riot art and gave her a hand made card that I had on hand, her friend loved it!
Bought fruits body wash shampoo and conditioner stocked up quite a bit (love the coconut varieties)
Made Icecream/sorbet out of pure bananas and mango
I think that's all so far for this week I forgot to write everything down again but I managed to remember the main things :)
Hope you have a lovely week next week wendy!
Anne
You have a great list Anne. Can't wait to see the garden photos. It sounds like Stuart is really enjoying the garden. I love to take tours around my garden too, There's always something happening.
DeleteWe always pay " cash " for cars- with the first we used our home loan as the savings account, paid extra, and then redraw what we had to update the car. But yes, you're correct it is an ignored expense.
ReplyDeleteOur last update was cash all the way.
Yes we've put two cars on our mortgage but we were super quick in getting rid of the mortgage.
DeleteWendy,
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful a new car and no loan! I don't like to carry loans either. Your cars are pretty and sounds like you have gotten a lot done. We are still working on the last of the garden produce, almost there! I did a stock up trip this week with gift cards and found some fantastic clearance items for the pantry and Christmas gifts, but I didn't go overboard since there are things I still need to stock and I am saving what I have left those. I hope you have a great weekend!
XOXO
Vicky
Vicky, I love a bargain too.
DeleteDear Wendy, Well done on the new car and no debt. That is the way to do it. Proves your budget and the things you do work! Also I could tell Darren was pretty pleased.
ReplyDeleteYou had a good week. Good week here too. Just the usual mostly, but some good bargains as well.
I've spring cleaned my fridge and kitchen. That was a job but the next thing on the list. I love an organised and sparkly fridge! Very satisfying! Windows are next!
Have a great weekend, with love, Annabel.xxxx
Thankyou Annabel. It's great to avoid debt.
DeleteI sorted out my kitchen a few months ago but the fridge needs to be wiped once a week to keep on top of the food.
Definitely another good week in your household Wendy. The icecream looks yummy and so do the cards :)
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the new to you car Darren. Well done for saving the money for what you needed :)
Re cars; we are able to do things differently here. We have decided to keep our older car. Although it is 15 years old it has low mileage and is running well. We bought the car second hand nearly four years ago. It is a Holden Commodore but in good condition, and had been in a shed most of its life. The reason for doing this is; my handy hubby Phil can fix most things on our vehicles. They rarely go into the workshops to have work done on them. We are lucky as my dad is a mechanic and one of our best friends is also a top mechanic so we have plenty of able hands to fix things. The added advantage of owning our car is that the wrecking yards are full of them. This is very handy for getting cheap bits and pieces. Another advantage is we don't have to pay full insurance, just a knock policy as our car isn't worth a great deal of money. Should our car get written off, we have other cars to use in an emergency or a push bike lol!
My money savings this week included:
~Only went to the supermarket for fresh fruit and veggies. I have used from my stockpile this week. This saves so much money when you buy up big when things are on special.
~Ate lettuce and baby spinach from the garden.
~Mulched the garden beds with leftover straw from old beds and last years bale.
~Cooked and baked from scratch. {I used some of yours and Cath's recipes}.
~Gratefully received a large compost bin from someone Phil knew.
~Picked the remainder of our oranges. We only have grapefruit left now.
~Picked mulberries and put in the freezer until I have enough for a yummy dessert.
~Received gifted lemons from a friend.
~Sourced some free rocks for my wicking barrels.
~I dried some mushrooms and zucchini outside. These were on special.
~Received a bunch of yellow roses from my friend.
~Menu planned for a month
~Stuck to the menu for this week
~Used pre dishes water for watering plants.
~Watered my succulent garden with leftover water from our swimming pool {this is pumped into its own little tank}
~On the hot days, I did not put the air conditioner on until after 3pm, even when we reached 39C. I just used our fans instead. Nobody was home except me, and I don’t feel the heat as much as some.
~I am collecting the run off water from the air conditioner into buckets to put on the fruit trees.
~Made scones from leftover out of date cream.
~Line dried the washing.
~I have started planning for Christmas gifts after reading Annabel's inspiring posts.
~We sold and gave away excess eggs. The girls are laying 14 eggs a day. We also have three broody hens sitting on eggs.
~Today I will be starting to make some of my own cards. {I am home alone lol}
I had better stop as my list is so long this week. I must be getting better at this cheapskate life, or maybe it’s because I haven’t been sitting at the computer as much lol!
I have done a blog post about my week on my Out Back Blog :)
Wishing you a lovely week,
xTania
You've had a great week in the garden Tania. Great to get a compost bin too.
DeleteI'll be checking out your blog today xoxo
Aw, that's wonderful!! So glad for both of you.
ReplyDeleteWow congratulations!!! Very nice, what an achievement!
ReplyDeleteHi Wendy,
ReplyDeleteCongratulations to you all on Darren's new car. Your amazing and so inspirational to pay for a car and have no debt, well done!!!! I'm in the same boat with my car as it's 12 yrs old and will need replacing in the next couple of years but as it doesn't miss a beat at the moment, I can't justify buying another car till then. Camry's, I heard, are great cars and you will get your monies worth.
Great water savings with the watering can also Wendy. Our tank is dry so I have been saving water everywhere I can.
This week I picked snow peas, Cauliflowers, Broccoli and Silverbeet from the garden. I made a candle from bits of wax taken from the candles to use as a present. Continued to walk to school attended a carers Expo (as I am a carer) and received heaps of free goodies, no heating or cooling used and kept Wheetbix packet for my price book.
Filled up on petrol using a docket when it was cheap, shopped the specials and shopped at the fruit market just before closing and got some great bargains, met friends out for a cuppa instead of dinner and were given 2 huge Lemons. My DS1, went on a school camp and had to take all their own food which had to be hiked in, so I didn't need to buy any extras as we just used things from the pantry.
This week I cooked a lot due to the cooler weather. I made Muffins, Chocolate cake, Pancakes, Cupcakes, Dip, Pita chips, Bickies, Trail mix and ANZAC slice.
Finally got all the ingredients to make your wholemeal bread so I'm going to give it a go this week.
So glad I had a chance to post this weeks tasks are I've had a big weekend putting in a new garden bed (big job) and shopping for a new mattress for DH and I which I dread having to change over but the old one is just not supportive enough anymore.(Any tips on buying Mattress would be great)
Have a great week, xxx
Maureen
Slipped off the band wagon the past couple of weeks. I managed to get some shorts for my girls and a pair of 3/4 track pants from the op shop. I bought a bread bin which will replace my bread barrel also. Planted all my vegie seedlings and found I have some self seeded tomatoes, silverbeet and pumpkins also growing amongst them. Need more potting mix but was able to use my compost instead.
ReplyDeleteI want to get bark chips for my front garden. So I will buy a bag each pay day and so will do it slowly.
Cooked from scratch most nights. Made your yummy choc chip choc muffins. Hubby walked to work most days.
Tell me. Can all biscuit dough be frozen?