Saturday 3 December 2016

This Week's Frugal Tasks Saturday 3rd December 2016

Thankyou for all the lovely comments on Facebook and My Abundant Life regarding our church's community day.   The day went really well.  We had more people this year coming in to receive toys and food.  Unfortunately we had less volunteers to help.  The good news is,  we had church families with primary school aged children who helped the adults restock the tables of toys.  They were such a blessing to us and showed great maturity.

Here's what else I got up to this week -

*  Baked four loaves of bread with extra goodness.

*  Picked the first raspberries of the season.  So exciting.  We are so glad we spent $15 per plant ( we bought 2 ) back in 2014.  We have recouped the costs a couple of times over with the fruit and extra plants to give as presents.

*  Kept the heating and cooling off for most of the week.

*  Dried the washing on the line.

*  Saved lots of shower water for the washing machine and saved the washing machine rinse water for each next load.

*  Mended holes in tow socks.

*  Made pizza for dinner using this recipe and bits and pieces we had on hand.  This pizza is so much better than anything we have bought.

*  A lovely friend leant me her die cuts ( for card making).  I spent many happy hours using them to make lovely shapes using paint sample cards and gifted paper.

*  Darren and I went to Masters ( again )  to buy a few bits and pieces at 60 - 70% off.  While we were there I picked up lots and lots of paint sample cards to use in card making.  By the time I took a few of each color I could use,  my bag was quite heavy.

* Gratefully received lots of rhubarb from a friend.

*  Jessica cleaned out her wardrobe and I scored a dress.

*  Hand washed the dinner dishes twice this week.

*  Cleaned the dishwasher using bi carb and vinegar.  Gave it a wipe out with miracle spray. 

*  Cleaned the kettle using citric acid.  I poured the boiling water onto some weeds in the hope they will die.  If they don't then I'll use vinegar and detergent.

*  I needed two gifts this week and was able to find lots of goodies on my present shelf.  One present was for  a friend of Jessica's.  This friend had arranged for a gathering of  old school friends but they all backed out at the last minute except Jessica.  We were able to give her a bag of goodies including  handmade soap I'd made earlier this year.  The other present was a last minute Kris Kringle.  In a gift bag I put a soap,  fancied face washer and some chocolates.

*  After church last Sunday Darren and I found four brand new timber pallets on the side of the road.  They were in our church's estate which is full of factories.  Some time soon we hope to make some outdoor furniture or a big box.  Stay tuned.

Our peaches are growing.


The egg on the right weighs 89 grams.

Samples from Masters

First raspberries of the season.

I've been busy die cutting for cards.

Free pallets

Daniel Morcombe rose

Christmas in our home.


What did you do this week that saved you money ?

7 comments:

  1. I am keen to see what you end up making out of the pallet. It reminds me of stories from our forebears making furniture on their 'selections' from packing cases (as it was back then)

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    Replies
    1. Phil, I've been thinking about this pallet craze for a few months. There have been a few things on facebook floating around. The pallets were too good to go past.

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  2. I am having another surgery in January with a very long recovery period, during which I will be mostly eating liquids and soft foods. I decided this week that I would try to freeze as many dinners for two (DH and DD) as I could between now and then. I made a big batch of macaroni and cheese one night. We had it for dinner, and I froze three double-serves for them. When I was dealing with my Thanksgiving turkey, I made two double-serves of mashed potatoes and turkey and I will buy envelopes of turkey gravy mix so DH knows what to do with them. I have made a huge vat of turkey broth which I am turning into turkey vegetable soup. We will eat some now and freeze several jars for their later dinners.

    I don't expect to have frozen food to feed them every night. (It's going to be 3 to 6 months). DH is not much of a cook and these will see him through those nights when he has no idea what to do.

    Other than that, just the usual frugal stuff this week.
    Maxine

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  3. Hi Wendy,
    What a good week you had! I'll be interested to see what you make with those pallets. We've been trying to find some so we could make a potato box to grow potatoes. It's been very busy in our household and we've been preparing for Christmas. We've put up our solar outdoor lights which will light up our house at night without using any electricity. A few frugal things this week included:
    - using the air con as little as possible
    - dried clothes on the line
    - tried to do several errands in one go to save petrol (and beat the heat!)
    - bought a four pack of big corns for $0.80 at coles
    - Steak was half price at woolies so I bought a few pieces.
    - Made a budget for our Christmas menu, now to put the menu together
    - Picked pak choy from our veggie patch. Our zucchinis and kale are a few days off from picking.
    - Made all meals from scratch and took home made lunches to work where possible.
    I can't remember what else I did but I'm sure there's more. I hope you have a great week. Do you have any recipes for homemade ice blocks? I might give these a go when I get some more freezer space!

    Amy

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  4. Dear Wendy, There are so many uses for pallets! They are amazing. A cafe near us has quite tall planter boxes on wheels made from them. They look amazing. People are making them and charging a fortune for them.
    Your peaches are looking good so are the eggs!
    It was great getting the rhubarb! I hope this week will be a good one also. We have had some rain this weekend which is good for the garden! xxx

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  5. Hello Wendy, could you please tell me did you grow your raspberry plant in a pot or garden?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We planted two raspberry plants in the ground in 2014 and they gave us fruit from the first season. Last year we planted little seedlings in a pot ( dug up from our original plants )and this will be the first year to get fruit. The plants dry out quicker in pots so you really need to keep their water up.

      Delete

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