It's been a crazy week for weather in Melbourne ( also across Victoria and other states ). We've had high winds for three days straight which has made it challenging to be out in the garden. I bought a few vegie seedlings earlier in the week but I'm so glad I've held off from planting for now.
We lost one large shrub in the front garden but other than that there has been no damage. We are grateful there are no tall trees around us.
Here is our frugal list for the week -
* I made a double batch of muesli bars. Darren likes them with nuts and some fruit. I like mine with fruit and more of the cereals.
* I made lots of pita chips from pita bread for snacking and lunchtime nachos.
* We saved the shower warm up water and kitchen water. This was used to water some new plants and vegie seedlings.
* All the kitchen scraps went into the compost bucket. This was then emptied into the compost bins outside.
* We used the solar lanterns in the loungeroom most nights.
* All washing was dried on the line, on clothes horses on the deck or inside over the ducted heating vents.
* I gratefully received lots of supermarket paper bags from a friend. We used them for our household rubbish. I also gratefully received some lemons
* I made a big pot of beef, tomato and vegetable soup. We ate some for dinner that night and I put aside 4 portions for my lunches. The rest went into the freezer for an upcoming card making weekend.
* I picked more mandarins from our tree. This is such a blessing and money saver.
* Darren, myself, Megan, Luka and Bryson went to a free Bunnings Father's Day Fair on Thursday night. We had a free dinner of bbq sausages in bread with bottles of water and fairy floss. They had a tea cup ride, a baby animal farm, Father's Day crafts, a spinning wheel ( with prizes ), wooden Father's Day signs to take home, children's secondhand book giveaway ( help yourself ) a fire truck and police car, a photo booth and a few other stalls. Towards the end of the night they were giving away Bunnings tshirts with every spin of the wheel. We ended up with tshirts for the whole family including Darren and Kurt. We also bought home a Bunnings basketball which the boys were thrilled about. Megan even won the Rotary raffle first prize of a power tool pack. We had such a good time and hope to go to more in the future.
* I made ANZAC biscuits using dough I'd frozen earlier. We have an outing with our grandsons over the weekend and we'll be taking some in a backpack with water bottles, fruit and sandwiches.
LINKS -
Chunky Beef And Vegetable Soup - I used 250g of beef mince
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| Chunky beef and veg soup |
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| Mandarins from our tree |
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| Homemade muesli bars |
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| ANZAC Biscuits |
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| Lots of pita chips |
How have you saved time, money or energy this week ?
The weather up here is unseasonably warm, set to be 35C today on last day of Winter!! I won't be turning the oven on today.
ReplyDelete* picked silverbeet and lettuce from garden early this morning before heat wilts them
* had silverbeet impossible pie all week for lunch from large tray I baked last week
* planted up variety of cuttings of geranium and begonia - free plants! I used pots I already had.
* steamed veg, portioned out and froze for part of our dog's food
* received lovely gifts of notebook, magnetic list pad, two beautiful scarves - very grateful
* veg scraps and shredded paper added to worm farm and compost bins
* watered garden very early this morning with tank water
* turned off appliances like microwave, wash machine, tv at wall when not being used
Enjoy your outing wirh your grandchildren, Wendy, and have a lovely week.
Meg
Your week has been wonderful
ReplyDeleteI have made the pita chips, cooked soup some still in the fridge. I have been drying washing on clothes horse and have some on the balcony at the moment as sun beaming there. I’m on night shifts at the moment. My blood sugar has been really high for me so didn’t bake this week. Not sure how to handle that. I only have 2 mandarin to take to work tonight so will look as going to get some while still on good specials. I have 3 oranges and 4 apples so plenty for a few days.
Thinking of visiting the dietitian to get some feedback on diet.
I have recently discovered your blog and find it so relatable and inspiring. Like you, we grow what we can and cook from scratch. Not just to save money but I believe it is healthier. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThe soup sounds delicious. I'm going to try it through the week. I don't have frozen leftover liquid like you do, so do you think I should just substitute with beef stock and a packet of soup mix? Have a great week.
ReplyDeleteHappy Fathers Day! We treated our family to breakfast at a cafe. It was very tasty and I’m a big fan of someone else cooking for me! The weather here is very hot. We seemed to go from cool to very hot overnight. Putting the oven on, would only add to the heat. I made your chicken and corn soup a couple of weeks ago when it was cool. It was very tasty and I portioned it up for work lunches. Have a great week.
ReplyDeleteTake care :) Rachel
The coleslaw mix is looking grim so have it soaking in cold water with small amount of apple cider vinegar, same with last of lettuce instead of throwing out. The last half of a cucumber had to go.
ReplyDeleteI have small bunch of baby broccoli & asparagus along with 1/4 wedge of cabbage and carrots for the week. The celery is chopped and most in the freezer for cooking. The 1/2 can of carnation milk turned into a pasta dish with small amount of bacon from freezer & mushroom cup a soup. One serve for dinner tonight & one serve for freezer. This week is a make do use it up week.
What a wonderful week you’ve had. Like you I’m glad I didn’t plant my seedlings this week, we didn’t have wind, but we did have 30-33 degree days (far northern NSW) which is horrendous considering it is still technically winter!!
ReplyDeleteI’ve been baking all our bread for the past month. It is so tasty, and saves us over $3 a loaf!
I’m trying to get better at saving “waste” water, it’s a work in progress. But it is so good to use on pot plants etc.
I double batch cooked banana bread last week. I almost always double batch cook when I’m using the oven these days, it saves so much on electricity costs.
I’ve been harvesting tomatoes, potato’s, and herbs from the garden.
I love your week in week out commitment to frugality and thrift. Good for the wallet and good for the environment 🙌
From Cheryl
How good are the Bunnings events! We regularly go to free events at our local Bunnings and always do their free kids craft sessions on the weekends. I have to admit, the staff know us by name now!
ReplyDeleteYour homemade muesli bars look delicious Wendy and the Bunnings event sounds so fun :)!
ReplyDelete