Another 'interesting' month in the life of the Bricks.
We've now been in Michigan since mid-October, because of The Mama's poor health. Somehow she survived a stay in the hospital (2 weeks), rehab (3 weeks) and a move into a care facility. However, her mobility and general well-being have been slowly deteriorating since then. A 'skilled nursing' room is next -- at more than double the current (expensive) rate. (Update: she went back in the hospital on the 29th...her calcium rate was sky-high Still there, as of this writing..)
This experience is another reassurance that we'll have some backup, if this happens to us. Our current annuities provide for a substantial chunk of the cost, if we have to go into a care facility. And if we never need to? The annuities continue to grow. No paying for a long-term care insurance plan we'd never use. (This happened, sadly, to the Brick's mom.)
We only skipped a few days visiting The Mama at the care facility. In between, we took care of various small jobs; spent time with family...and celebrated a very quiet Christmas, missing our kids desperately. They came out to visit at the beginning of the month...but couldn't take time off toward the end. Totally understandable.
We'll spend another quiet New Year's Eve at The Mama's room, watching Michigan play Georgia in the Orange Bowl. Can the Wolverines do it? Can they beat Georgia's powerhouse defense? No one thought they could beat Ohio State...or Iowa. But they did. (Update: But in this case...they didn't. Georgia: 34. Michigan: 11.)
What will happen in coming months? We don't have a clue. It's quite possible that we'll continue staying here for a while. On the plus side, we're no longer heating both house and fifth-wheel -- it seemed foolish. (And was.) And we really enjoy being with cousins and other family members we love, but haven't been able to spend much time with in the past. The Brick and the dogs are here, too -- after all, he points out, The Mama is his mama, as well. I am soooo grateful for that commitment.
On the negative side, we're "camping" in a house that's not ours. We take care of The Mama's bills, make repairs and generally keep up the place for her. For now, we've moved essentials into the house, with periodic trips to the fifth-wheel, still parked in the barnyard, to get extra stuff. We're in the house I grew up in...but it's not OUR house, if that makes any sense.
I had to cancel teaching commitments to come here, and have had to turn down a big batch of appraisals since then. Hopefully at least some will still be doable, once we move back to Colorado. I have done some zoom work, which works for my ASA affiliations. Life goes on.
FRUGAL HITS
(some of these are from late November)
*Sent some presents home with the kids...not everything, but at least a few each, so they'd have something from us under the Christmas tree. We also gave them a few unwrapped, so we could enjoy their response. (Like a Cow Yoga calendar for Daughter #1, and a coffee grinder for Son #1 and Daughter #2.) They, in turn, gave us a few presents early, so we could enjoy them now -- like a new dognail trimmer! (Not that Ruby 'enjoys' this...grrrrr.)
*Instead of presents to friends and some family, sent a big batch of Christmas cards, instead.
*A few free suppers, eaten with The Mama at the care facility. We were also given a Hello Fresh meal's worth of makings, as well as couscous and some extras by cousins. Delicious.
*Cooked meals at home several times, when I could have easily suggested eating out. The few times we did go, it was usually something like Little Caesar's Pizza or Chinese takeout.
*Took advantage of restaurant specials a few times -- ordered lunchtime specials, or used a Groupon. Used the McDonalds app to get a free order of fries. Yum.
*$50 worth of giftcards at Outback -- earning a bonus $10 giftcard for free. Weekly lunches and supper with the cousins - half-price. (Two work at Outback, and shared their employee discount.) These kept me sane during busy days.
*Cleaned out my purse, especially the wallet. Sorted through everything, then rearranging it for greater ease. Also, threw away handfuls of old receipts. Tidying up does feel good on occasion.
*Started a 2022 calendar appointment book, transferring birthdays and other important dates. A dollar store notebook worked great for 2021 -- plenty of extra room for dates, plus extra pages -- so I repeated the process. This is one of my methods for starting the New Year right.
*Got a much-appreciated Christmas bonus from one of our volunteer positions. They also gave us a beautiful pot of white cyclamens and several small goodies. Also given a $25 Starbucks giftcard by a fellow appraiser I'd been advising. Thank you so much!
*Brought the DVD player in from the fifth-wheel, and watched a lot of Christmas movies
*The Brick checked and rechecked medical insurance for me -- and ended up saving us $50/monthly
*Made Christmas cake and Sachertorte to give for presents (and send the girlies and Son #1). Their box included some cookies, as well. (See next)
*Babysat our great-nieces and nephews -- and made sugar cookies with them one time. (We decorated the floor, as well as the cookies, but I cleaned up afterward.) They also fed us supper twice.
*Frugal presents between us both -- and the kids. Some presents will be taken to them after we return to Colorado.
*T.A.C.O. Tuesday at the movie theater -- saw Dune for $4 each! It would have been worth it at full price...
We also saw the Ghostbusters prequel (wonderful -- but only if you're familiar with the movies) and the remarkable West Side Story. I thought it better than the 1961 version.
*Picked up the girls and Son #1 at the Grand Rapids airport in early December. Took them back, too -- including Daughter #1 to Chicago. (A 3-hour trip each way)
*Sang and played Sundays for a local church -- and talked a few cousins into doing a carol service with us one Sunday, as well. Also helped out during a community hymn sing, and two Sunday night services at The Mama's care facility.
*Ceramic Christmas trees for the girlies, both scored from the Mel Trotter thrift shop in Sparta. Fortunately, I had already purchased more than enough bulbs to replace the missing ones, in order to fill the spots on my "Missions Barrel" ceramic tree. (I knew I had a good thing while checking out, to hear an employee say -- with no little interest -- "Where did you find those?" A second employee chimed in, wishing she'd found them first. No way, guys -- they're mine! Ha ha!)
*Kept purchases for the Seven Fish Dishes to a minimum. We already had a few cans of oysters and some tuna. I bought frozen cod and salmon fillets at (gasp) Dollar Tree...and they were very good, too -- and smelt and scallops at Wallymart. (The thick-sliced bacon came from an unadvertised sale at Daily Deals -- about $3/lb!) The kids bought a bunch of extra groceries for the dinner, as well -- and refused to let us pay them back.
*The Mama got a $100 giftcard for Family Fare -- and gave us half of it for groceries. (Other family members will use the rest.)
*Grocery buys -- 6 pounds of clementines for $2.49*, 88 cents/lb spiral ham (Family Fare); large jars of applesauce for a little more than $2 each, and 'little smokies' sausages for $1.66/lb (Sam's Club - the next cheapest applesauce on Amazon was triple the price). I also took advantage of Sam's Club monthly specials to save more than $8 -- and use the $20 giftcard I got for free.
*I ended up returning one bag of oranges to Family Fare when I found several soft and spoiling fruit, and got a replacement.
*Amazon buys (mostly Amazon Warehouse -- you should check there, too) -- chicken bouillon and onion soup mix; Japanese citrus sauce; more English Breakfast tea. A real buy on the latter - about 10 cents per teabag.
I know, Brit friends. You make tea loose, not by the bag. Shame on me. But after reading umpteen Miss Read novels where they enjoy fireside tea and scones, I still enjoy the quickie version. So spank me -- dignified-like.
*Finished my work report commitments. I cannot tell you how difficult it has been to keep at them, even when we're schlepping off to do errands or be with The Mama. But they had to get done. I have the best clients in the world...they not only understood what I was going through, but were extremely patient with me. Thank you; I'm so grateful.
*All twelve of Miss Read's Thrush Green books...at a steep discount. I love this peaceful English country 'town' with its quirky characters. (This is where my Nov/Dec allowance went.)
FRUGAL MISSES
*A rip in the fifth-wheel's roof! Caught in time before it did damage, thankfully -- and stabilized by the Brick. (It had gone down to the bare wood, however. There's been a lot of wind the past few months.)
*A year's worth of auto/fifth-wheel insurance paid in one chunk, as well as a very expensive American Society of Appraisers membership. Yes, it saves on fees, but Ouch.
*Beer and wine for the Seven Fish Dishes. Granted, we didn't get the most expensive kinds...but we still dropped more than we should have.
*Used a medium Priority box to send Christmas cake and Sachertorte to the kids. I had to...they wouldn't fit in the small box. (Yow, the post office charges a lot for Priority now!) But I did stuff that sucker to the limit with stocking stuffers and small gifts, as well...
*Unfortunately, I bought the wrong-sized replacement lights for the ceramic Christmas tree. Had to order more via Amazon, which we still had to file down to make them fit. (At least I can use the others for embellishing.)
*Started paying monthly for internet access again. We've been limping along on hotspots, using our phones -- this had to stop. The Brick did research and get the best plan possible.
On the plus side, we got a year of Paramount Plus thrown in -- and can access Amazon Prime again.
*No extra work income, other than a bonus check from a past client. (Thank you, Rusty.) On the plus side, this kept my earnings safely down enough, so my Social Security check wasn't docked.
*Still paying some of The Mama's bills out of our own account. It helps her budget, and we can get by without the extra $$. Besides, we're living in her house -- it just makes sense to help out, particularly with utilities that we're the primary ones using. But we're spending more to heat (and minimally heat) both the house and the fifth-wheel than we did, caretaking on our friends' Colorado ranch.
*Couldn't return a Dremel grinder -- because we'd had it more than 90 days. (It just stopped working recently.) On to complaining at the manufacturer -- it is still under warranty. At least Daughter #1 bought us a useful replacement.
*A sound system for the keyboard. We've been doing without since we sold the house -- which has bothered the Brick. (You could only hear the keyboard playing through headphones.) No, it wasn't cheap. Yes, he got it discounted from a guy via Craigslist. So in a way, it was a 'hit,' too.
Here's last month's report -- and last year's, as well as the year before. This marks 5 1/2 years of Frugal Hits & Misses reports. How things have changed...and yet, in some ways, they've stayed the same. Then again, that's the way life works, doesn't it!
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