Oh my, what a month.
In contrast to the rock-bottom frugality of February, we let up a bit, thanks to extra money coming in from the Social Security backpay check. Wonderful. So we did something we've been planning for a few years now -- we booked a trip to Europe with friends in July! Five nights in Paris, four in Madrid and three in Amsterdam. We'll see a bunch of museums, take a memorial trip to Normandy, enjoy a flamenco performance...and stop by the Bayeux Tapestry mseum before it closes for renovation in September. Although our friend Tommy is griping about it (he says he's burned out on cathedrals), we'll also stop by Paris' Sacre Coeur ('Sacred Heart'). And of course, Notre Dame.
The Brick and I both had several years of French class in high school, so we've been practicing our (very bad) Francais on each other -- and looking up fun stuff to do in each area. More as we get closer to July.
This opportunity reminds me that even small actions pay off, frugal-wise. We've been cutting a bit back here and there, and saving for ages.
FRUGAL HITS
(Some of these are from late February. This report's a bit early - but I have deadlines to finish up.)
*Made a deep-dish apple pie...from 5 pounds of apples that have been in the crisper for months.
*Got a lovely bouquet for myself -- $3.20, regularly $18. Most of the flowers lasted for more than two weeks.
*Waited to go to the post office -- and postponed other trips until we could cover more than one errand.
*Friends over for St. Patrick's Day -- corned beef and cabbage, naturally. 'Irish' baklava (half-price from City Market's freezer) and 'Irish' cinnamon rolls (about $1/tube, from the Amish grocery).
*Extra goodies given, including eggs, mushrooms, salad greens and antelope steak, from Son #1 and Daughter #2.
*Played & sang for a funeral; our friend's 92-year-old aunt lived in nearby Blanca for decades, and was buried in the town cemetery.
*Two new dogs -- does this count as a 'Hit' or a 'Miss?'
*No need to buy an upright freezer anymore! (At least for a while, that is.) Daughter #2 and Son #1 will be sharing theirs.
*Bought starts for Concord grapes and black raspberries: Buy 2, get 1 free -- and free shipping from an Ebay seller. Planning where I'll put these, so the deer don't get them.
*Made bread, using my $15 thrift-shopped deep dish cast-iron pan, topped by a cast-iron frypan. (Couldn't find a Dutch oven, and ours is still in the Michigan storage trailer.) It worked!
*Batches of Buy-3-Get-1-Free books from Second Sale and OnTimeBooks, via Ebay. Some were research for a book-in-progress. Total for 8 books? About $32, plus free shipping. Just a a few bucks more than my monthly allowance, including Dickens' Dictionary on the Thames, edited by Charley's oldest son.
*Royalties: None from C&T -- but I didn't expect any. Arcadia came through with more $$ than the previous payment -- unusual!
*Gave free books to some clients -- and sold some.
*Finished up a BUNCH of appraisal reports. Other than one quilt early in the month, I didn't pick up any new work in March, which helped me make some headway. Two more Navajo rug appraisals are on the horizon, waiting for when these are done.
*Quora earnings: $14.26. Not much, but it will pay for a lunch sometime. A $5 tip from a client -- very kind of her.
*Two homemade pound cakes, from a friend: one for the church potluck, some to eat -- and the rest in the freezer.
*Lost money in the stock market - then gained it back. Then lost some back. Then gained some back. I feel dizzy.
*The Brick cleaned the chimney, using tools from Amazon, plus a burner log. We loaded the woodrack several times and kept the woodstove going, saving the propane for other purposes. He also emptied out and cleaned the hot water heater, which has been groaning periodically. (I am not making this up.)
*More postcards for the southern Colorado book-in-progress, as well as future articles: 20 percent off, plus free shipping. A few others, extremely reasonably priced, too. (A lot of Ebay sellers had March sales; It was hard to pick and choose.)
*$5 off Guiness beer...one of the Brick's favorites, but usually too expensive. He also got an 8-pack for the price of a 4-pack. Bless those folks for celebrating St. Patrick's Day!
*A $7 clearance pair of Walmart pants (reg. $24.98) had a stain on the backside. I took a chance and bought them, anyways. The stain came out in the wash!
*Planted flowers and peppers (inside) and spinach, greens outside. The bed of bunching green onions I put in last summer, thanks to sharing by a generous friend, are coming up nicely.
*More buffalo nickels. (I still can't find part of the Brick's monetary birthday present I hid "for safekeeping."
*A framed 1870 Dickens illustration, some other Dickens-themed illustrations...and a batch of Cruikshank illustrations. (Cruikshank was one of Charley's major illustrators.) The unframed pieces were little more than a dollar each. I'll keep a few; one is already installed in a dollar thrift shop picture frame. I'll sell the rest.
*The back pay promised from the Social Security Fairness Act came through -- hooray! Just in time for property taxes, I might add.
*Friends took us out for lunch! So nice of them.
*We took Daughter #2 and Son #1 out to lunch, and paid for their groceries at the Amish grocery, as well. And it felt wonderful. We also kept our silly granddog Freya while the kids were working; the puppies love romping with her.
*Now that our house loan is paid, we've started saving for property taxes -- and a car. Property taxes are due the end of April, so they come first.
*No found money for me -- the Brick found a gunky nickel at Safeway's change machine. We didn't do nearly as well as Daughter #2, who scavenged a treasure trove of coins from a Boulder King Sooper's change machine. Good for her!
*Thrift Shop buys: Two pairs of $7 jeans for the Brick. (Goodwill/Colorado Springs) A $2 ceramic bunny bowl; some people-shaped embellishments (25-50 cents each); some research books ($1-2 ea); a few pins and an elaborate necklace ($1-5)...and a cotton turtleneck tunic for a buck! Paying in cash gave us a 5% discount. (Nazarene Thrift Shop)
*Milk was a major purchase this month. Both major grocery stores had it on sale, so I really stocked up. In between, we made do with some shelf-stable milk I got at the Amish grocery store. Even the Brick said it tasted just fine. (I don't think he would have known, had I not told him.) Both groceries had half-off specials on our favorite pizza, so I stocked up on that, as well. (So much for emptying the freezer.) We also took advantage of a $5-off-$50 coupon Safeway was offering.
*Grocery buys: Specialty coffee, both for us and Adopted Son #1's birthday (expensive, even on sale, but wonderful), more organic kidney beans, 29 cents a can! (Amazon) Red Baron supreme mini-pizzas, less than a buck each; cans of chili, chicken noodle soup, clam chowder (59-99 cents) and the best buy - a 10-oz can of roast beef for 79 cents; some jars of unusual Indian sauces ($1.29), frosted strawberry Pop-Tarts (packages of 2 for 10 cents each), cans of peach nectar and protein shakes (3 for $1), and $3.99 dozen farm eggs -- still holding, so far, on egg prices there (SLV Amish discount grocery). Milk, $2.50-2.60 a gallon, Red Baron large pizzas, $2.99 each, catfish nuggets $2.99/lb - 30% off, tangerines ($1/lb), two $3.45 marked-down veggie trays (Safeway and City Market). The tangerines were 'okay;' tasty, but a little mushy. I won't get more until November.
My friend over at My Tireless Retirement (and before that, Thrifty Mom in Boise), finds discounted veggie trays regularly -- but this is the first time I have. And they've been delicious, particularly the peppers and broccoli. Hooray!
*Caught up our financial commitments to missionaries and mission organizations. We're all set for 2025.
*Kept on keeping on. That in itself was an accomplishment.
FRUGAL MISSES
*Lost our Ruby. A vet visit and x-rays told us what we figured was happening -- her kidneys and liver were swollen and holding onto liquid. Probably a tumor as well, the vet said. We had meds to ease her pain some, but they weren't working. At least she is no longer hurting....but we will miss her.
*Let the last of some ham spoil, before I could use it all. Darn it. (It was getting a bit whiffy, anyways.) Lost a (fortunately) small package of beef tips the same way. On the flip side: I did manage to rescue some freezer-burned sausage by drenching it in spaghetti sauce. A great-tasting pot of chili resulted from leftover salsa, 29-cent cans of kidney beans and tomato sauce, and a package of ground pork from the freezer. Plus a few additional bits and pieces. Take that, leftovers!
*Bought a Henry Dickens letter on Ebay. Henry was one of Charles Dickens' more responsible sons, and made a name for himself in the British court system. The letter talks about his brother Francis, as well. It wasn't cheap -- but I paid less than half from the seller's price.
And as the Brick reminds me: now I need to stop buying stuff on Ebay for a while.
Now I have letters and/or notes from Henry Dickens, his sister Mary, his aunt, Geotrgina Hogarth -- and two from Charley himself. Plus one from a friend, Augustus Egg. Yes, Charley is my buddy. But then, you knew that already.
*Never used the Brick's free birthday burger at Red Robin. We just never made it there in time. (The nearest restaurant is in Colorado Springs, a two-hour drive away.)
*Spent a bit more than we'd planned for the European vacation pkg -- because we booked it a bit later. Thankfully the extra was less than $100 each.
*The flip side of getting puppies: more poo and pee 'accidents' cleaned up than I care to remember. (A few vomit situations too - Ruby contributed to this.) But in the long run, they'll be worth it.
Last month's report is here. March 2024 is here, plus the year before that.
We've had good news, followed by bad news, all month. But we're still here...how 'bout that.
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