Plans for the Week

I have to admit that the cold, dreary February weather made me lazy.  This week I need to get back to my cleaning schedule.  I have been cleaning the house, but it does not feel especially clean without the extra deep cleaning chores I do throughout the month.

I have been organizing some things for the Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes.  My goal for this week is to pack another 50 pencil cases.  I bought the zippered pencil cases online earlier this year.  I am able to fit 5 pencils, 3 erasers, 2 toothbrushes, pencil sharpener, comb, stickers, mini notepad, small box of crayons, and a spoon inside.  Not only does this make the shoebox packing go faster, it also helps keep the items compacted so we can fit more in the box.

I need to make a new sign to hang out front advertising eggs for sale.  We have a few people in the area who like to purchase our eggs.  The sign lets them know when we have some for sale.

Finally I hope to finish another month's worth of handmade birthday cards.  My craft room is terribly cold in the winter and not worth trying to heat.  Now that the temperatures are higher I am able to get in there and do some work.

I am keeping it simple this week as I may end up doing some work outside with W. 

Savings Highlights from the Past Month and the Reason for My Absence

First the reason for my absence....computer issues.  My computer has been on its last leg for about six months.  Recently however it was having serious issues.  I needed it to do things for church so I was saving its last bit of usage for that.  A side benefit was that I took a mini-vacation from being online.  For someone who was practically attached at the hip to the computer, that was a big deal!  I hope it carries on for a bit now that I have a new one. 

I will never remember all of my savings for the past month, but I did want to hit some highlights.

I saved up to pay cash for my new computer. 

I stuck to my grocery budget and have a bit of money saved up for a trip to Sam's in a month or two.  We have put a bit of a dent in the freezer.  I froze muffins, taquitos, and meal size portions of a Boston butt (purchased on sale).

W had a pair of work boots repaired for just $12.  A new pair of boots is $85.  He should be able to get close to a year's worth of wear from the repaired boots.  I also had a pair of my shoes repaired.  I spent $5 to have a loose sole fixed.  It was not an obvious problem, but I wanted to fix it before it became a major problem.

I waited to wash clothes until I could dry them on the line.  I did dry smaller loads and delicates on a drying rack inside.  February was a wet, dreary month here so not using the drying all of the time was a struggle.  It was a money saver to not use it though.

W cut his own hair.  I am letting my hair grow out so I have skipped several months' haircuts. 

The chickens have started laying again so we have plenty of eggs.  We continue to use the gutter system in the greenhouse to grow wheatgrass for the animals.  They also got lots of clover when I weeded a few of the raised beds.

I avoided sinus problems turning into something worse with a homemade decongestant.  It was strong but I actually liked the taste.  Better yet it broke up the congestion I had which most likely would have turned into bronchitis.   I had all of the ingredients on hand so it was frugal too.

That is just a quick update on things here.  I am happy to be back online!