Bargain price on a staple of my summer wardrobe

A simple white t-shirt is a staple for my wardrobe in summer. I wear them with jeans, capris, shorts, and casual skirts. A plain white women's t-shirt, bought in a clothing store, runs about $8 to $12. Thinking outside the box, and shopping in a craft store, a similar t-shirt can be had for a fraction of that price. This past week, I found a great deal on a summer shirt.

One daughter and I were picking up t-shirts at Jo Ann Fabrics for a family project. Jo Ann's had the Buy 1 Get 1 Free deal going on for a few days with the t-shirts used for tie dye, painting, iron ons, and silk screening. The regular price is not horrible, at $6.49 for women's styles, and $4.49 for kids and basic adult t-shirts. But with the Buy 1 Get 1 deal, that made the women's t-shirts (more body hugging style with a slightly lower scoop neck or v-neck) $3.25 each, and the basic adult shirts $2.25 each. With this deal, my daughter and I each got an extra shirt to keep as a white t-shirt for summer. Later in the week we went back for 2 more shirts for other family members. The B1G1 deal was no longer on, but I had a 50% off coupon with me, and my daughter was able to pull up a 50% off coupon on her phone. So, we were able to buy 2 more shirts at the lower prices of $3.25 and $2.00. In addition to white, these shirts come in a variety of colors, BTW.

I checked Michael's crafts, online, and this week they have the basic style, short sleeve t-shirt  for both kids and adults, in a bunch of colors, for $2, even cheaper than my deal at Jo Ann's. Hobby Lobby's shirts are slightly more expensive at $2.79, on sale. I consider a casual shirt in the $2 price range to be a great deal. My guess is these shirts are offered at such low prices because crafts stores expect that you will also buy paints, dyes, and transfers to enhance the shirts.

You may be thinking, "but the sales will have passed, soon." True. Here's the thing, when the shirts are not on sale, I can often find a 50% off (or more) coupon that is good on 1 regularly priced item, yielding that same great deal on a simple t-shirt.

For a casual weekend shirt, or a layer under another shirt, I think these shirts are a great addition to my family's wardrobes. Father's Day is past, but there are birthdays, and other holidays looming on the horizon, for which I think another couple of these t-shirts would make great gifts. My husband wears basic t-shirts around the house on weekends. For $2.00 to $2.25 per shirt, he could have 4 new t-shirts for $8.00 to $10, or about the price of 1 men's t-shirt at a store like Kohl's. Like I said, these comes in lots of colors.

Now, for that family project that I spoke of. . .

Sunday afternoon we had fun tie dyeing some shirts. And after using the dye for these shirts, 3 of us used the leftover dye, dumped into buckets, thinned with a little water and combined to make nice tones as over-dye for some of our existing clothing. I over-dyed a washed-out light blue t-shirt into a bright mint green one, a daughter dyed a pair of washed-out lavender long underwear/pjs a lovely shade of lilac, and the other daughter over-dyed her gray heather, short-sleeved sleep shirt into a magenta heather. one. Didn't want to waste that last bit of dye.

In preparation for the 4th of July -- making a batch of homemade rosemary mustard

For dinner on the 4th we're doing sausage, veggie, and potato kabobs. As a condiment, I've made some rosemary mustard using: ground mustard seed (the powder-kind of mustard), salt, water, rosemary from our garden, a spoonful of honey for sweetness, and vinegar. It's mellowing in the fridge for the next few days (the flavors mingle, the mixture thickens, and the heat reduces with time).

Homemade gourmet mustard is so easy to make, yet so economical. On Amazon, herb mustards range in price from $3.50 to $5.00 for a 6 to 8-oz jar. Yet it can be made at home for a fraction of those pricey jars.

By buying ground mustard in a 10-oz canister from Cash & Carry, for $3.49 (pricing similar to Costco), my cost for an 10-oz batch was about $1.15. Alternatively, I could have saved even more, by buying ground mustard from bulk bins at WinCo, at about $2.49/lb, yielding a cost of just under $1.00 for a 10-oz batch. If I had needed to order ground mustard online, I found it selling for just under $6.00 in a 1-lb bag, which would have brought my cost up to about $1.20 per 10-oz batch. Any of these scenarios is at most about 1/5 of the cost of buying commercial gourmet mustard.

Gourmet mustard is a great way to use up those odd bits of liquid leftovers, such as the last of a bottle of white wine, champagne, beer/ale, apple juice, or sparkling cider, by substituting this leftover liquid for all or part of the water called for in a mustard recipe.

The actual preparation for homemade mustard is under 20 minutes, including a 10-minute waiting period before adding the vinegar, and chopping herbs. Bonus -- it keeps in the fridge for several months.

A little jar of homemade mustard makes a lovely little gift, as well. The varieties are endless, by changing up the liquids and mixing in chopped solid additions, such as cranberries, herbs/spices, jalapenos, or horseradish; varying the sweet/hot ratio by adding honey, agave, or maple syrup, and timing the addition of vinegar to adjust the heat; and/or altering the texture by using some whole mustard seeds in addition to the ground mustard.

So, our full menu for the 4th of July looks like this:

• using our fire ring for roasting, we will each assemble our own kabobs on our home-fashioned, marshmallow/hotdog-roasting, long-handled skewers (as seen in this post). We'll be choosing from chunks of 3 kinds of smoked sausage (turkey, beef, pork), small, pre-cooked potatoes, zucchini chunks, green pepper pieces, pineapple chunks, and cherry tomatoes.
• condiments for the kabobs: homemade rosemary mustard, barbecue sauce
• rolls from the freezer, leftover from our reception in early June
• green salad of lettuce and kale from the garden
• this creamy rhubarb gelled salad using rhubarb from the garden
• red, white, and blue mini cupcakes from the freezer, leftover from the reception
• s'mores, of course

Homemade berry lemonade -- pennies a glass

If you happen to have an excess of berries this summer, berry lemonade is both thrifty and delicious. I've used strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries to flavor lemonade made with bottled lemon juice and sugar.

This past month, I've focused on using up surplus frozen, wild blackberries from previous years. The procedure for making berry lemonade is the same for all berries. Simply mash or puree the berries, press through a sieve with the back of a spoon, and stir in lemon juice, sugar, and water.

For 2 quarts of berry lemonade, use:

1 to 1 1/2 cups of fresh or frozen berries (thaw first, if frozen)
7/8 to 1 cup sugar, depending on taste
scant 1 cup lemon juice
water to the 2 quart level



Berry lemonade is an excellent use for berries that are going soft, or are overripe when picking, as their soft texture will make them easier to mash. I use a vegetable masher in a bowl with the berries, then follow up by pushing the berry pulp through a sieve set over my pitcher. If the berries are very sweet, then less sugar is required. And likewise, if the berries are tart, then you may prefer the greater amount of sugar.

My cost for homemade berry lemonade (using homegrown or wild-picked berries) is about 7 cents per glass, about one-third of the cost of store-brand berry lemonade from frozen concentrate (at about 20 cents/glass), and twice as flavorful.

Re-purposed sparkling cider bottles used for chilled water

In addition to serving blackberry lemonade in our new punchbowl at the reception a couple of weeks ago, we also had chilled water available on a few tables in the house. I save glass bottles that I find attractive in shape or color. I had a total of 6 clear glass bottles that I wanted to reuse for chilled water for this event. Some of the bottles had a unique shape or tint to the glass, which I felt made the presentation of the chilled water more interesting.

I have found that the paper labels on the sparkling cider bottles are relatively easy to remove with a bit of soaking in water (compared to something like the labels on peanut butter jars). Once the labels are off, there is the "sell-by" stamp to remove.

This is easily done with a little baking soda on a rag. The stamp literally rubs right off with the baking soda.

half of stamp rubbed off with baking soda

now completely gone

With bottles completely cleaned, the evening before our reception I filled the bottles, recapped, and chilled in the fridge overnight. The next day, I placed filled bottles, along with stacks of cups, in key places where guest might congregate. The bottles served an extra purpose in their lives, and looked attractive in the process.

I had been thinking, this might be a good way to serve homemade lemonade or iced tea at backyard BBQs this summer.

The punchbowl makes a comeback

Punchbowls have fallen out of favor in recent years, likely due to easier methods of providing beverages for large gatherings, combined with the hassle of storing a punch set. However, I think they can be a money-saver for some frugal households. Here's why:

I bought this punch bowl, cup and ladle set at Value Village for $6.99 this past month. I already have 12 punch cups in this pattern, which I bought at a thrift store several years ago, so the new set brings me up to 24 cups. My old cups have been well-used, so I won't factor in their cost in this calculation. The punchbowl has an 8 quart capacity. We had about 30 guests at the reception, the other weekend. I made 2 gallons of blackberry lemonade, using bottled lemon juice, sugar, and frozen wild blackberries. If  I had served commercial beverages, I would have bought 2 2-liter bottles of soda pop and 2 half-gallons of juice, spending around $6. Each quart of homemade lemonade cost about 25 to 30 cents. 8 quarts cost me $2.00 to $2.40 -- a savings of $3.60 to $4, compared to buying commercial beverages. My punch cups were sufficient in number for our guests, so I saved about $2 to $3 on purchased plastic cups (bought in 10-packs from Dollar Tree). So, my savings from this punch set is now up to $5.60 to $6.00, or about $1 short of the cost of my new punch set from Value Village. I will be hosting a similar reception in one year, when my other daughter graduates. It will take me less than 2 receptions to pay for the cost of the punch set. I will use these pieces for several other events in my own home, and now there is a punch set in the family to be loaned out to others.

Should I want to sell this set, I could make $20 or more in profit. This same pattern punch set is currently selling for $24.99 on ebay. So, my purchase price of $6.99 was a pretty good deal.

I almost always see punch sets in Value Village and Goodwill, which is a good thing for those of us wanting to buy a set. When I went out shopping last month, I was pretty confident that I would find a set or at least a punchbowl.

The bonus with buying this punch set was in avoiding single-use beverage containers, which would end up in a landfill.

A Good Steward: the too-thin oven mitt

I repair many household objects, not because I can't afford to replace the items, but because fixing what I already have is much less wasteful, and that makes me feel good. Case in point, our oven mitts had become too thin for comfort in key spots. I only spent $1 each for these mitts (at Dollar Tree), so I know I could replace them cheaply. But I just don't want to throw an item away that could be repaired for free, and in just a little time.

I used some scraps of fleece fabric, leftover from making baby clothing 23 years ago, and assorted thread in colors as close to the sage green of the exterior of my oven mitts.

I turned each oven mitt inside out. I traced around the outside of the mitt on large scraps of fleece, then cut along those trace lines. Using my sewing machine, I sewed the fleece to the inside surface of the mitt, using a tight zig zag stitch along the original seam line of the mitt, sewing through the fleece and both parts of the mitt. I only stitched the sides and fingertip area of the mitt, leaving the opening edge free of stitching, at this point. Then, I turned the mitt right side out, and carefully stitched the fleece to the mitt, along the opening edge, attaching fleece to only one part of the mitt (so as not to close the mitt with stitching).

Due to the limited room inside the existing oven mitt, I only attached fleece to one half of the mitt. For the second mitt, I attached the fleece to the opposing side of the mitt, giving me a left and a right-handed oven mitt. My family now knows that to use these mitts they must put the palm of their hand against the new fleece lining, to get the benefit of additional lining between hand and hot baking dish.

It's not a perfect sewing job, but the mitts can now be used again.

Thoughts on our weekend reception

My daughter's graduation weekend about did me in; but I survived! It really was a full weekend, beginning early on Friday and ending late in the afternoon on Sunday. Most importantly, I am so very proud of my daughter's hard work and achievements. I'm sure you know what I'm talking about --  that pride that you feel about your own kids' successes.

I am still putting furniture back into place, though I am nearly done. Live and learn, you asked if I thought I might not put all of the furniture back into place, after experiencing the house with less in it. I think that's a really interesting question. Whenever we have a big deviation from our everyday routine, whether it be for a vacation, or a change in how we use our home, we have that moment to assess our usual way of doing things. I know that when I am on vacation I tell myself that I want to continue some of the aspects of the vacation once home, and bring more enjoyment into my everyday life. Using our home for a reception this past weekend did make me rethink some of the little things that I can do on a regular basis to bring more enjoyment into ordinary life. For example, using candles more often. I have a few nicely-scented jar candles. I had a lemon and mint leaf one burning in the living room throughout the reception. One of our guests asked about the fragrance. The candle not only looked appealing, as the small flames flickered in the late afternoon sun, but the fragrance added to the ambience. I have several candles that I can put to use for more ambience in our home. As for the furniture, I don't have any place to store excess furniture. We don't have a basement or a weather-proof attic. For now, it all has to stay.

So I overbought. I think we'll be eating leftovers for a while. I froze a good chunk of leftover deli meat, some cupcakes, and some bread products. My daughter helped me pick out the cupcakes, and it just so happened that she wanted the red, white, and blue ones (they have a strawberry filling). We'll have some of those on the 4th of July. There were a few, unopened packaged items (crackers, cookies, and a box of chocolates). I have tucked those away for future gatherings or celebrations. For those items, I don't look upon them as part of over-buying, but as advanced preparation for a future event or need. The box of chocolates might make a nice hostess gift the next time we are invited to a friend's home. The cookies will be useful for an upcoming coffee hour after church. The crackers will come out for a family gathering later this summer. On top of all of the leftovers that we'll use in the future, I was able to send a huge grocery bag of food home with some helpers.

The 4 food stations worked really well. Some guests found a spot in the house and stayed put, while others meandered to the different open rooms. I had different goodies in each room, so that made for a bit of a surprise for the guests that moved about. For the most part, though, the family room seemed to collect the most people. Perhaps that was the tower of fresh strawberries and whipped cream perched on the coffee table in that room? One moment that particularly made me happy was when one friend said to another as she was arriving, "there is food all over the house." That just made me happy, as my aim was to provide abundance to share with our friends. Happy feeling!

I am very glad that I didn't bother with tea or coffee. For a late afternoon reception, the blackberry lemonade and water were all that were needed. Coffee and tea would have been one more thing to keep an eye on, as I don't have a large coffee urn or other way to keep hot beverages in their hot state.

All of the little details that you think you need, but you really don't have time to take care of, well, you really don't need them. At least I didn't. I wanted fresh cut flowers throughout the house. I didn't have time to get outside to do that. But, as you can guess, it didn't matter and I could have saved a tiny fraction of my mental capacity by realizing that fact while I was in preparation-mode. I didn't buy plastic forks, because my menu was all finger foods. A friend brought a cake, so I did need forks of some kind, after all. I simply pulled out our regular forks for those who wanted some of the cake. Of course, I had my husband search the trash for forks before taking to the garbage can. That's how we lost a spoon from our flatware set, 30 years ago. The point being, as I had planned on finger foods, most folks would not need utensils, and the few who did could use our everyday forks -- no need to buy plastic cutlery.

It was all good. I could have simplified the menu a bit more and bought a bit less. I have this information going forward, and as I'll be doing a repeat of this reception next year when my other daughter graduates, I am ready for the challenge. I hope you all had a lovely weekend.

Making room for party food -- an interesting supper of odds 'n ends leftovers

On Friday I will be making a trip to Cash & Carry (a wholesaler that primarily serves small restaurants, but will also sell to the public) to pick up a large amount of produce, cheese, and sliced meats. I will need all of the fridge space I can spare, both for the purchase and for the trays that I prepare with all of this food. In addition, I will have water and blackberry lemonade to chill. I have a garage fridge, too. I am moving everything I can, which won't be needed for Sunday, into that fridge. Unfortunately/fortunately, I did my senior shopping on Tuesday, so that fridge is already quite full. My back-up is a picnic cooler which could hold items like condiments, which would free up a bit of extra space in the fridges.

Earlier this week I began cleaning out the fridge by using up all of the odds and ends of leftovers and almost-empty jars of various items. Wednesday's dinner did a great job of using these bits.

I made an odds and ends soup, using leftover bean soup, leftover, previously frozen canned tomatoes, and some diced tofu. I added chili powder and a bit of salt. The soup was quite tasty and just enough to serve all of us without any leftovers to go back into the fridge. I also made a very good jello and fruit salad, using the sweet leftovers of cranberry cream cheese spread, blackberry lemonade, red currant jelly, and the last bits from 2 jars of applesauce. I combined all of this with some dissolved, plain gelatin, and a spoonful of sugar. Once set, I scooped into individual dishes, and topped with sliced bananas. I thought it was very tasty, and a great way to prevent food-waste. Bonus --  one lucky family member got the scrapings of the practically empty peanut butter jar on their buttered bread, which accompanied this soup and jello salad supper.

Today's lunch found a lingering, single hot dog and bun. As of now, there is someone's small bowl of canned tomatoes, a single slice of salami, a slice of cinnamon swirl toast, and 2 halves of peeled, raw carrots. I'll be asking to whom those items belong this evening. (Plus there's my daughter's punch -- she buys this herself.) Otherwise, I think my fridge is ready to be filled!

An afternoon reception

my entry porch decorated for summer -- going for an Americana look

So I'm hosting a little shindig for my daughter's graduation. We've invited friends from church as well as friends from her university. We have no idea how many folks will show up. It could be a lot (maybe 50), or it could be just a handful. We left it as an  afternoon, open house-style reception, which is good when you don't know who or how many will come. No one is expecting a sit-down dinner. Plus, I am doing the food by myself. Both daughters will be very busy in the days leading up to the reception, so my usual spare hands won't be available.

Here's my menu, so far:

a meat and cheese platter, with split mini croissants and split mini Hawaiian rolls, plus sliced pickles and a mayo-mustard mix in a squeeze container.
an antipasti tray of cheese cubes and olive mini kabobs, rolled salami, and pepperoncini
baked (actually microwaved) brie topped with apricot preserves and chopped toasted almonds, along with crackers
hummus and pita chips
rosemary-garlic cream cheese spread and crackers
a vegetable tray of cherry tomatoes, radishes, baby carrots, broccoli florets, with dip
a platter of strawberries, with whipped cream dip
cookies
chocolates
mixed nuts
mini cupcakes

blackberry lemonade
water


My menu needed to be all finger food, and things that could be eaten while standing. No silverware, and no worries about finding places for people to sit.

Basically, I was thinking of everything that I could make with the greatest ease. The vegetable tray will be put together by me, but with already washed and cut vegetables. I have some ranch dressing mix to make the dip.

The strawberries will be easy, just rinse, dry and set on a tray. I'll whip the cream and sweeten in the early afternoon. This sounded easier than putting together a fruit platter with cut fruit.

I thought of pre-made small sandwiches, but I think a do-it-yourself meat/cheese/bread tray will save me time, and should be easy enough for guests to help themselves. Opinions on this? The sliced meat and cheese is a good price at Cash & Carry. I can assemble a tray myself in 30 minutes or less, for half of what a meat/cheese tray from the grocery store deli charges.

The brie is a super easy thing to do, but tastes amazing and looks "gourmet."

I will buy the mini cupcakes and cookies. And the chocolates will be drugstore boxed chocolates set on a nice tray. (I think Russell Stover's is pretty good for a drugstore chocolate, and the boxes are buy one get one free at several stores right now.)

I can buy already cubed cheese at Cash & Carry, so the mini kabobs will be easy.

Having only cold beverages eliminates my need to make more or reheat coffee/tea throughout the afternoon. The blackberry lemonade will be homemade, using bottled lemon juice and frozen blackberries. The water is bottled spring water which I bought in a large dispenser, but will decant into 1-litre repurposed glass sparkling cider bottles, and chilled (looks nicer than a large plastic dispenser on the table).

Even though I'm using mostly prepared foods, my overall costs are a fraction of what it would cost to cater a reception. And I think it will all be lovely and delicious. One money-saving tip -- veggie trays are cheap, and so are crackers. Make a couple of veggie trays to set in different locations. Ditto on crackers, especially if using a less-expensive spread or dip, like homemade hummus or cream cheese spread.

I have 4 food stations planned for the house: the kitchen table, the dining room table, a side table in the living room, and the game table in the family room. This should prevent a bottleneck around the dining room table. I'll set up a beverage station on either the dining room or the kitchen table.

In addition to planning the menu I have been sprucing up the place, and removing unnecessary furniture to allow easier movement with a crowd. I finally got some art work hung, found lightbulbs for every fixture with a burned out one, rearranged some seating, and did up the front entry to the house. I've been using this reception as an excuse to get our house all gussied up for summer. What's been on your calendar lately?

May 2018 Grocery shopping journal

May 1. Senior shopping day. It took me 3 and 1/2 hours from leaving my house to finishing putting everything away.

4 boxes whole wheat saltines, $1.07 each, cake mix (using a coupon), 75 cents, 5 boxes vanilla wafers, $1.43 each, 1-lb frozen wild blueberries, $3.14, canned biscuit dough, 45 cents, 12-oz frozen orange juice concentrate, $1.34, 18-ct box granola bars, $2.69, 7 8-ct packages hot dogs (for weekly cookouts, beginning this week), 75 cents, 5 boxes graham crackers, $2.15, 5 packages turkey bacon, $2.06, 1-lb butter, $2.20, 24-ct string cheese, $3.59, 2 boxes 12-ct granola bars, $1.81, 2 10-ct flour tortillas, 89 cents, 5 loaves whole wheat bread, $1.38, 30-ct corn tortilla, $1.16, 4 qts fruity yogurt, $1.34, 6 individual soy yogurt, 89 cents, 2 qts soy yogurt, $6.49, 5 dozen eggs, $1.79/dozen, taco seasoning, free, 3 48-oz bottles vegetable oil $1.49 each, 3 jars applesauce, $1.79, 1/2 gallon soy milk, $1.57, 4 packs top ramen, 25 cents, 3 bags oyster crackers, 71 cents, 3 gallons milk, $2.33, 32-oz maple syrup, $12.14, 16 bananas, 49 cents/lb, The "one thing" that each of us chose for ourselves included: a box of funfetti cake mix, for 75 cents (one daughter really wants to have cupcakes all month long), a package of salami, for 90 cents, a package of thin-sliced turkey lunch meat for $1.57, and 3 pot pies for $2.67.

Total spent $140.98


also bought whole wheat burger buns, $1.07, 10-ct homestyle burger patties, $8.10. This amount came out of a Mother's Day budget, in lieu if eating out.

I was tempted to buy boxed donuts or some other bakery treat. Instead, I bought a bag of frozen wild blueberries for making scratch blueberry muffins, waffles or pancakes 3 or 4 times. I saved some money over buying a ready-made treat, but more important to me was that I will be able to control the ingredients in scratch muffins. You might have noticed a lot of crackers this month. I had coupons to use on top of sales. I stocked up and hopefully will have a couple months' supply.

May 17. Getting a gallon of white vinegar ($2.29) at Fred Meyer. While there I also buy 1 gallon of 1% milk marked down to $1.29. Total spent $3.58

May 25. Dollar Tree for marshmallows and Hershey bars for making s'mores over the weekend. Spent $3

Total spent for May -- $147.56

I had a total of $173.93 for the month of May. I came in under by $26.37. That will roll into June's budget.  I won't write down what all I bought by category. I'm too tired.

I'm still here. I'm busy, stressed, tired, and old. I'll write more about what I'm up to very soon. I have a busy, busy week next week -- one daughter is graduating! Yay! I'm super-duper proud of her.
I hope you're all doing well. Have a great weekend!

Working soil from dead potted plants into my vegetable garden beds

You know those pots of soil laced with the dried-out root systems of dead plants, sometimes former houseplants, sometimes last year's annuals? I recycle the soil from these dead potted plants into each season's vegetable garden. Our garden soil is clay-like, here, while potted plants often have a loose soil structure. The nutrients may have been leached out, but texture of these pots of soil is good for my garden. I dump the pots out onto turned soil, add whatever coffee grounds we have for the week plus 2 large handfuls of plant food. I use a shovel to turn this all in, breaking up the root systems as I go, and rake it smooth for planting.

If perchance a pansy or geranium were to come to life in my veggie garden I would count that as a bonus. But for the most part, this is just a soil texture amendment. My garden needs some sort of texture amendment every year. My alternative would be to buy soil amendments for the garden. So I save a few dollars by recycling the soil from my dead potted plants.

Another bonus, my chives are about to come into full bloom. I'll begin making chive blossom vinegar over the weekend. Just in time for salad season! If you grow chives in your yard, be sure to use some of the blossoms. They have a delightful garlic-onion flavor and are wonderful broken over soups and salads.

Making a couple of gifts of thyme vinegar while I wait for my lunch to cook

I've mentioned making herb vinegar before, using garden fresh herbs, white vinegar, and repurposed bottles. Today I'm making small bottles of thyme vinegar. These 8-ounce bottles are from sparkling apple cider leftover from a wedding at our church where I served dinner and washed dishes. I usually make herb vinegar in larger bottles. This time I thought I'd make a couple for gifts for friends, and 1 for our household. The smaller size seems very gift-able, don't you think? The labels on the bottles came off easily with a soak in warm water, then rubbing with a dish rag. To seal the bottles, I'll use corks. As the bottles are repurposed, and the herbs are perennial in my garden, my only cost was the white vinegar, which was bought in a 1-gallon jug.

Tackling a chore outside of my area of experience

I am so proud of myself for attempting to fix something that is completely outside of my area of experience. I had to rely on myself this morning to take care of something necessary. One of my headlights has been out for a few weeks; I have been avoiding driving at night as a result.

Whelp, I couldn't avoid taking care of this any longer as I promised my daughter I would attend a theater thing, then give her a ride home late at night afterward. I changed the burnt out headlight bulb on my own. This may not sound like much of a feat for some folks, but for someone who lacks car-stuff experience, this was very good for me. According to RepairPal I saved between $26 and $56 in labor, and likely a significant up-charge on the part had I gone to an auto repair or the dealership to have this bulb changed. Who knows? Now that I have done this small task with my car, maybe I will tackle something even more intimidating next time.

Making a frozen block of spinach more user-friendly when I need just a little

So, I buy those jumbo 3-lb blocks of frozen spinach which are packaged for institutional use. And I may be the only person, here, who does that. But, I think this tip might be useful with those family-sized 10-oz blocks of frozen spinach.

I like to keep several small chunks of frozen spinach, wrapped individually, in the freezer. After chopping/sawing a 3-lb block into 4 12-oz chunks, I then take 1 or 2 of those chunks and cut into 2-3 ounce pieces. The same could be done with a standard-sized, 10-oz frozen package of spinach.

This smaller size is ideal for adding to a pot of vegetable soup, a casserole, or a frittata for the family. A bread knife works well for sawing frozen spinach. Then I wrap the small chinks in plastic, and pop back into the freezer.

April 2018 Grocery Journal

Last month I was over by $36.07. So, for my $210 budget that means that I have $173.93. I'm an optimist, so I think we can do this. We'll see.

March 30. I already calculated last month's spending, so this will go into April's budget. 6 lbs of butter on sale at Fred Meyer, for $1.99/lb, and 5 bananas for 49 cents/lb. I also picked up a freebie of a nutrition bar. Total spent -- $12.85.

April 3. Senior Discount day at Fred Meyer.I stacked coupons, both paper and e-coupons, on top of the discount. I bought 4 18-ct cartons of eggs (1.88 each), 2 cans of biscuit dough, for making mini donuts (45 cents each), 1 package of hot dogs for a cookout ($1), 4 half-gallons of milk (89 cents each), 2 large jars unsweetened applesauce ($1.39 each), 3 12-oz cans of frozen orange juice concentrate ($1.34 each), 15 store-brand individual yogurts (36 cents each), and 1 Oui yogurt (free with coupon), half-gallon of soy milk ($1.47), 3 large containers soy yogurt ($5.17 each), 4 individual soy yogurts ($1 each), 24-oz string cheese (4.49), 12 large Satsumas ($4 total, about 4.25 lbs), 2 boxes graham crackers (2.51 each), 1 box of 12 granola bars ($2.06), 2 boxes whole wheat saltines ($1.34 each), 1 18-ct box of granola bars ($2.69), 5 loaves of whole wheat bread ($1.35 each), 1 package whole wheat hot dog buns ($1.07), 1 rope of kielbasa sausage ($2.25), 3 packages of turkey bacon ($2.06 each), 2 packages ramen noodles (25 cents each), 2 10-ct packages flour tortillas (89 cents each), 3 bags of oyster crackers (71 cents each), 3-lb bag of yellow onions ($1.29), 1 head of Romaine lettuce (1.49), 10 bananas (49 cents/lb), 2 cans tuna fish (71 cents each), 1 large cucumber (79 cents). Also, I allowed every one to choose 1 thing just for themselves, again. One chose 3 Cliff bars (90 cents each), another chose Capri Sun drink pouches (2.59), the third chose a box of cereal, Rice Crispies (1.61), and the last chose 3 meat pot pies (89 cents each). Total spent today -- $104.35
I also bought next years Easter candy at half off, but that comes out of a different budget.

Total spent so far this month -- $117.20

April 22. Out of milk, mayonnaise, fresh produce, and a bunch of other items. I had put off that drive to Cash & Carry long enough. At C & C I bought 2 5-lb bags of pink lady apples ($2.68 each, or 53 cents/lb), 3 heads of green leaf lettuce ($1.29 each), 1 gallon mayonnaise ($6.98, equivalent to $1.64 for a 30-ounce jar), 2 3-lb bags of boiling onions (86 cents/bag), 3-lb box of frozen spinach ($3.08), 5-lb bag frozen green beans ($4.58), 5-lb bag of white rice ($3.29), 5-lb block of medium cheddar cheese ($10.98), 32 oz bottle of imitation vanilla extract ($2.99), institutional-size packet of Ranch Dressing mix, enough to make 2-gallons (but not all at once! That would be a lot of Ranch dressing/dip -- spent $2.67), fresh cauliflower florets, 3-lbs ($5.98), fresh broccoli florets, 3-lbs ($4.98), large head of green cabbage ($1.43), 3-lb box of grape tomatoes ($4.08), 4 19-oz blocks of tofu ($1.59 each), 4-lb bag raisins ($9.37), 2-lb box of strawberries ($3.98), 17 bananas, at 59 cents/lb, 2 gallon box of 2% milk ($4.73), 10-lb bag of potatoes ($1.86), 10-lb bag of carrots ($3.58). Total spent -- $93.50

Total spent for the month -- $210.70

What I bought:

Meat
1 rope kielbasa
1 package hot dogs
3 packages turkey bacon
2 cans tuna fish
3 meat pies

Dairy Case
6 lbs butter
6 dozen eggs
2 cans biscuit dough
4 gallons milk
1/2 gallon soy milk
16 individual yogurts
3 large containers and 4 individual containers soy yogurt
24-oz string cheese
5 lbs cheddar cheese
4 blocks tofu

Produce
32 bananas
2 large jars applesauce
36 oz frozen orange juice concentrate
12 Satsumas
9 lbs onions
4 head lettuce
1 cucumber
10 lbs apples
3 lbs spinach
5 lbs green beans
3 lbs broccoli
3 lbs cauliflower
1 head of cabbage
10 lbs carrots
3 lbs grape tomatoes
4 lbs raisins
2 lbs strawberries
10 lbs potatoes

Pantry
nutrition bar (freebie)
3 Clif bars
1 package hot dog buns
5 loaves of bread
30 granola bars
2 packages ramen soup
20 flour tortillas
3 bags oyster crackers
2 boxes saltines
2 boxes graham crackers
1 box cereal
1 box juice pouches
1 gallon mayonnaise
5 lbs white rice
32 oz imitation vanilla extract
very large package of Ranch dressing mix

Saving money when shopping

You know what this is? This is 20 cents. Many municipal areas now enforce a ban on free bags given with a purchase. In Seattle, merchants must charge a minimum of 10 cents per bag. If it's just a small item that I'm buying I can put it in my purse, and skip the bag. If I am grocery shopping I bring a bunch of bags with me. But if I am out on foot, like in the city, or hopping from store to store in a large shopping complex, I am unlikely to be carrying a stack of bags with me. And if I am buying more than I can easily manage in my hands, or that will fit in my purse, I need a compact way to carry a couple of plastic bags. 

The above photo is of 2 plastic grocery bags, folded very flat with air pressed out, and kept in a ziploc baggie. All together, this bundle is the size of a deck of playing cards, and tucks nicely into the side pocket of my small purse. I just keep them in my purse, so I don't have to even remember to bring a bag when I'm running errands.

Even when I'm not in the city, many suburban retailers offer a credit of 5 or 6 cents per bag that you bring in yourself. I was in Target the other day picking up a couple of necessities, and I saved myself 5 cents for using one of my own bags. The inspiration for this compact bag storage was those net shopping bags, which come in their own pouch and sell for $7 or $8. Using what I already have, I made my own version. True, not the pretty colors of the net ones. But these are free, and that's a good thing.

Cheater's pecan sticky buns

A yummy Saturday breakfast treat for a rainy day.

I used 1 can of biscuit dough, cinnamon-sugar blend (1/4 cup sugar to 1 teaspoon cinnamon), 1/4 cups raisins, 1/4 cup chopped pecans, 2-3 tablespoons butter, and 1/4 cup brown sugar.

Butter an 8 X 8 baking pan. 

Cut each biscuit into quarters, and dredge in the cinnamon-sugar. Place in the baking pan.

Sprinkle with the chopped pecans and raisins.

Melt the butter. Stir together with the brown sugar. Spoon over the biscuit dough.

Bake at 350 F, for about 20 minutes. Ovens vary, so check a minute or two before, or you may need to go over by a minute or two. Mine took about 19 minutes. They are done when you can cut into a center biscuit and see the biscuit has a baked, not doughy, texture.

Allow to sit in the baking dish for 5 minutes, then loosen the edges with a knife and turn out onto a plate.

A different birthday (yes, we have a lot of spring birthdays, here)

This time, it was my birthday, a little over a week ago.

A few weeks ago we talked a bit about frugal beauty. If you wear cosmetics (or like to try nice skin care products) and you have a Sephora nearby, they have a birthday club. During the entire month of your birthday you can go into one of their stores and pick-up your birthday freebie. You usually get to choose between a cosmetic sampler or a skin care sampler. I usually choose the cosmetic one. It's totally free, and at least at the store near me, there is never, ever, any pressure to buy anything.

You simply go up to the cashier and give them your identifying information (phone number or email).  They hand you a nicely packaged gift bag with tissue and wish you a happy birthday. You need to sign up, online or in the store, well in advance of your birthday, so that you are in their system. Then once you've signed up, your good to go for as long as Sephora continues this freebie.

In past years, I've received lip stick, lip balm, mascara, blush, lip pencil, and eye pencil. This year, the cosmetic option was a lip stick, lip pencil, and those two small pellet-looking things are a lip scrub and a lip balm.

Of course, they are hoping you will like the products enough to buy full-sized versions. And, yes, that did happen for me once. I really loved the mascara that came in one year's birthday gift, enough to ask for a Sephora gift card the following year for a Christmas present so I could buy more. So, with a gift card, I have purchased something in their store. In addition, I have also purchased gift cards to give to women in my family. I guess you could say they've made a customer out of me through this freebie.

It's always fun to get some new make-up for free!

We had another birthday in the house

So, a while back we talked about using gift bags that have a tear in them as gift wrap. I wanted to show you just how much of a torn gift bag I was able to rescue. I didn't think to take a photo before cutting the bag up. But here is what I salvaged.

This was a large bag with two tears near the bottom of one side section. I cut the bag along that torn side, and cut the bottom completely off, leaving me with one large sheet of decorative paper.

The body of the bag was in large polka dots (used for the large package on bottom), and the top 4 to 5 inches was a coordinating striped trim (used for the small package on top). In addition to enough wrap for the 2 packages, the little gift tag that comes with the package had not previously been used, so I used it this time, with the wrapped gifts. And that cord that is tied around the small package is one of the rope "handles" to the gift bag.

Gift bags turned gift wrap makes one last use of something destined for the recycle bin. I am slowly cleaning out my stash of gift bags and wrapping paper, while saving a bit of money at the same time.

Easter dinner without any additional trips to the grocery store

I am not a fan of grocery shopping right before a major holiday. I can imagine the stores are mobbed the one and two days before Easter, Christmas, and Thanksgiving. Count me out of that experience, please.

So, here I am, creating an Easter menu without extra trips to the store. Fortunately, I did pick up our Easter ham 9 days ago. If I hadn't bought the ham my plan had been to roast a whole chicken. That's what we did for Thanksgiving and it was tasty and plenty for the 6 of us. So, all I have to come up with are the sides and dessert. Should be very do-able. Listing my on-hand ingredients helps me generate creative combinations.

What I can use:

Produce
carrots
raisins
peas
cabbage
yams
pumpkin
canned tomatoes
onions
orange juice

Starches
potatoes
cornbread stuffing mix
brown rice
pasta

Extras
pecans
almonds
cream cheese
olives
sparkling cider
baking staples
canned crescent roll dough
pickles
cheddar cheese

And what I came up with:

Have a happy Easter!

March 2018 Grocery Journal

I was over last month by $25.08. I'm going to need to readjust our budgets and come up with more for food. We're cooking and eating a bit differently, and this just costs a bit more. I have increased our grocery budget to $210 per month. So, in theory, I have $184.92 for March.

March 2. Cash & Carry. I bought 10 lbs carrots ($3.75), 1 gallons canola oil ($7.29), 64 oz salsa ($4.49), a pint of toasted sesame oil ($2.28), 5 lb bag of fuji apples ($3.19), 3-pack of celery ($1.67), large bag of corn tortillas, I think 72-ct ($2.37), jar of chicken soup base ($3.18), 5-lb loaf of mild cheddar ($11.19), 3 19-oz containers of tofu ($1.59), 2 5-lb bags of petite peas ($4.48 each), 3-lb bag of dried cranberries ($7.59), 1 head of cabbage ($1.52), 6 bananas (59 cents/lb), 4-lb bag raisins ($9.37), 1 lb bag cumin ($5.69), 15 lbs red potatoes ($2.25), 50-lb sack all-purpose flour ($11.59). Total spent -- $91.97.

March 6. Fred Meyer for Senior Discount Day. (so disappointed, they no longer bribe me with free coffee, cookies, and flowers on Senior Day!)What I bought: 4 12-oz cans frozen orange juice concentrate ($1.35 each, enough for 192 ounces juice), 2 gallons milk ($2.34 ea), 2 10-pks flour tortillas (89 cents ea), 2 large jars applesauce ($1.79 ea), 2 heads of cabbage (49 cents/lb), 2 boxes of graham crackers ($1.79 ea), 1 18-ct box of chewy granola bars ($2.69), 3 1-lb boxes whole wheat saltines ($1.52 ea), 1 12-ct box of crunchy granola bars ($2.06), 2 half-gallons soy milk ($1.62 ea), 8-ct whole wheat hot dog buns ($1.06), 7 loaves of whole grain bread (79 cents ea), 2 half-gallons chocolate milk (89 cents ea), 8 bananas (49 cents/lb), 2 10-oz bags oyster crackers (71 cents ea), 2 large cucumbers (69 cents ea), 2 jars peanut butter ($1.61 ea), 3 cans tuna (59 cents ea), 4 packages ramen soup (25 cents ea), 2 packages hot dogs (80 cents ea), 2 "ropes" kielbasa sausage ($2.25 ea), 2 packages turkey bacon ($2.06 ea), 24 oz string cheese ($4.14), 16 individual yogurts (34 cents ea), 1 tube crescent roll dough (67 cents), 3 large containers soy yogurt ($5.84 ea), 1 lb asparagus ($1.49/lb), 3 18-ct cartons eggs ($1.87 ea), 8-ct box donuts (99 cents), Clif bar (freebie), Lindt truffle egg (freebie), bag of jelly beans (90 cents), .11 lb of dried blueberries for oatmeal ($1.65), 3-lb bag clementines ($4.99), 5-lb bag onions ($1.49), and something for each member of the family. I told every family member that they could choose 1 item that was theirs and they didn't have to share. 2 chose lunchmeat (salami, 90 cents/package), 1 chose a head of lettuce ($1.49), and 1 chose 3 cup noodles instant lunches (3/$1). Total spent today -- $111.48.

March 17. I had to go to Fred Meyer for gas and gift cards, so also thought I'd pick up a green pepper (79 cents) for fajitas and tortilla chips which were a freebie. I also bought a container of layered guacamole/salsa dip on markdown for 79 cents (will go well with the free tortilla chips). Total spent on food -- $1.58


Total spent so far this month -- $205.03

March 22. Fred Meyer to get our Easter ham. $1.27/lb for spiral sliced ham (spent $14.91). I also bought 6 bananas, at 49 cents/lb, and picked up my freebie of an Oreo Cookie Bar. Total spent -- $15.96

Total spent for March -- $220.99, which is $36.07 over my budgeted amount. I think I will come closer to budget next month, though, as we have a lot of leftovers going into April.

We're at the end of the month and one of our freezers is looking bare, another about halfway filled, and the third is still packed to the gills. I will take this month's list of what I bought and modify it to create next month's shopping list. A few of the things I won't need to buy again (like the Easter ham), but much of what I bought in March will also work for April. In addition, there are a couple of items that I will need to buy, coffee (and decaf), for one. I may tweak the amounts a little, such as by buying about 5 extra pounds of long-keeping fresh fruit, such as oranges or apples, and 1 extra container of tofu. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for April.

What I bought:

Produce (foods that are primarily produce, or that we use to fulfill fruit and vegetable requirements)
10 lbs carrots
64 oz salsa
5 lbs apples
3 bundles of celery
10 lbs green peas
3 lbs dried cranberries
3 heads green cabbage
20 bananas
4 lbs raisins
15 lbs potatoes
48 oz of frozen orange juice concentrate (enough to make 192 oz of juice)
2 large jars applesauce
2 large cucumbers
1 lb asparagus
.11 lb of dried blueberries
3 lbs clementines
5 lbs onions
1 head lettuce
1 green pepper
1 container of guacamole/salsa dip

Dairy Case (where in the store I find the items, not that these are all dairy foods -- I think I realize that tubes of crescent dough are not "dairy")
5 lbs cheddar cheese
24 sticks of string cheese
3.5 lbs of tofu
2 gallons milk
1 gallon chocolate milk
1 gallon soy milk
16 individual yogurts
3 large containers soy yogurt
1 tube crescent roll dough
4.5 dozen eggs

Meat
3 cans tuna
2 packages hot dogs
2 ropes kielbasa sausage
2 packages turkey bacon
2 packages salami
11.70 lbs of ham

Pantry (shelf-stable foods)
1 gallon canola oil
pint sesame oil
72 corn tortillas
20 flour tortillas
jar of chicken soup base
1 lb ground cumin
50 lbs all-purpose flour
2 boxes graham crackers
3 boxes whole wheat saltines
2 bags of oyster crackers
30 granola bars
8 ct. whole wheat hot dog buns
7 loaves whole grain bread
2 small jars peanut butter
4 packages ramen soup
8 donuts
Clif bar (freebie)
Lindt truffle egg (freebie)
bag of jelly beans
3 Cup of Noodles instant lunches
1 bag of tortilla chips (freebie)
candy bar (freebie)

Getting extra mileage out of a gift bag

four white chocolate rabbits and four chocolate-coconut egg nests

Do you ever cut up gift bags to use as wrapping paper? Sometimes a gift bag will have a tear in it, but much of the bag is still in good shape and makes nice gift wrap. Other times, I figure I can wrap several smaller gifts with one bag, by cutting the bag into squares and rectangles. That's what I did with one of the cellophane Easter bags -- cut up and wrapped chocolate-coconut egg nest candies. I was able to cut one small cellophane bag into 4 pieces, just enough for the wrap for 4 candies.

For some of my gift bags, I feel they are just too nice to cut up, and prefer to keep them whole to reuse multiple times. But some bags seem more single-purpose, and suited for cutting into gift wrap. For this job, wrapping candies for gifting, I thought the cellophane had a nice, finished look.

Making more Easter candy

I use these copper bunny molds as decoration in spring, but they also double as candy molds. I've had them for about 15 years, and gotten a lot of mileage out of them.

I prefer making white chocolate bunnies over milk or dark chocolate ones, as the white chocolate doesn't show "bloom" (that whitish coating that sometimes develops on homemade chocolates).

It can happen on commercial chocolate, too, but is more likely to happen when DIY without sophisticated equipment.

Tips for making molded chocolate:

• measure the volume of a mold by filling a mold with water, then pouring that water into a measuring cup
• throughly wash and dry the molds
• after melting chocolate, fill each mold and use a table knife to push the chocolate into the corners of the mold 
• top off thin areas, then put the filled molds into the fridge to harden

Okay, so mildly entertaining for you, right? But without cute bunny molds you're out of luck, right, for making molded chocolate. Here is another way that I have made chocolate bunnies, using an unbroken Hershey chocolate bar and a mini bunny cookie cutter.

that's a tiny rabbit cookie cutter on top of the Hershey bar

Unwrap the chocolate bar and place it, printed side down (smooth side up) on a sheet of waxed paper. Soften the bar, very, very slightly (but not melted) in the microwave, about 10 seconds. The chocolate should be "cut-able" with a firm downward push on the cutter. Work quickly to cut out as many shapes as you can. I have had to re-soften the chocolate in the microwave for about 5 seconds, part way through making small rabbits. As you make the bunnies, push them out of the cutter onto a sheet of waxed paper, then allow to harden. If you turn the bunnies upside down, you'll see part of the Hershey name and the markings for squares. My kids never minded that. 1 regular bar yielded 5 mini bunnies for me.

Alternatively, you can melt some dipping chocolate and spread onto a sheet of waxed paper, allow to firm up, then cut with a cutter, in lieu of using a Hershey bar. Anyway, when my son was small, and I didn't want to buy large bags of chocolate just so I could put a few pieces into his Easter basket, these homemade miniature, Hershey bar chocolate bunnies were a pretty good deal. At that time, I could buy a chocolate bar for about 39 to 49 cents on sale. I would use the same cookie cutter to make him a baggie full of bunny graham crackers.

For the white bunnies, I rummaged through my stash of Easter-related bags and papers and found these cute cellophane bags. As you can see from a mold placed into one of the bags, they are just the right size.

Back to the white bunnies that I made -- after chilling in the fridge for about 30 minutes I find they pop out of the molds best if I then put them in the freezer for 10 minutes. Freezing helps the chocolate pull away from the sides. If one breaks, it's usually because I forced it out of the mold or didn't allow it to freeze long enough. With a metal mold, hardened chocolate should fall out of the mold when it is tapped on the backside. With a broken bunny, I simply remelt the pieces and try again for that one.

here's a finished bunny

Forgot to mention, these were 3 ounce bunnies. Since I already had the molds, each one cost me 35 cents to make, plus the cost of the plastic bag (got these at Dollar Tree a couple of years ago -- 30 bags for $1, or 3 cents per bag).

Cheap & Cheerful suppers for the last 10 (oops, make that 11) days

noodle bowls from Friday

Tuesday
Tuna casserole (I used 2 parts cooked brown rice to 1 part cooked noodles, as I had leftover rice to use)

Wednesday
overnight French toast casserole (I used the last of a bunch of fry bread, the last of the jam-flavored cream cheese, some jam, and instead of syrup I melted some jelly for a topping -- very delicious. The bread was hard so allowing to stand in the egg/milk overnight really helped.)
turkey bacon
tangerines

Thursday
baked beans (from the freezer) topped with hot dogs
corn bread stuffing (using a leftover piece of cornbread combined with some packaged cornbread stuffing mix, along with onions and celery sauteed in the fat from Wednesday's bacon. I kept the sauteed veggies in a container in the fridge overnight.)
sliced cucumber topped with ranch dressing
assortment of pickles

Friday
chicken and vegetable soup (from the freezer) to which I added leftover cooked rice, tofu, garlic, chives and sesame oil
oyster crackers

Saturday (birthday celebration dinner at home)
fajitas
tortilla chips and guacamole/salsa
carrot and celery sticks and 1000 Island dip
birthday cake and ice cream
sparkling apple cider

Sunday
sausage and vegetable soup
biscuits
leftover cake

Monday
leftover soup
cheese and crackers

Tuesday
tuna sandwiches
leftover soup

Wednesday
toast
boiled eggs
applesauce

Thursday
chicken and dumplings (from the freezer)
sliced cucumber salad

Friday
meatball noodle bowls

Easy all the way this past week and a half. Do you make noodle bowls? These are so easy, take about 15 minutes tops, and rather cheap. They require a skillet and a small saucepan. For 2 servings, I used 1 package of ramen soup, 8 frozen cooked meatballs, some cabbage, onion, and green peppers. I seasoned the noodles with about 1/4 of the seasoning packet that came with the ramen, and the veggies with some garlic powder, ginger powder, splash of soy sauce, and 2 teaspoons of plum jam (going for the plum sauce taste).

I used the frozen meatballs because I had them, and they're quick to cook. But you could also use potstickers, chunks of rope sausage, any leftover meat, or tofu added to the veggies, or a fresh egg topping each bowl or sandwiched between the noodles and veggies. Any veggies that you would normally use in a stir-fry will work. I used the cabbage, green pepper, and onion because that is what I had.

Here's how it all went down.

In the saucepan, I used just a portion of the water called for with the noodles, about 3/4 cup of water (a packet of ramen soup calls for 2 cups of water). I brought the water to a boil, then added the package of noodles and 1/4 packet of the seasoning.

While the water was coming to a boil, I sauteed the onion, pepper, and meatballs in a little bit of oil in the skillet. When the meatballs were heated through (these were previously cooked and frozen) I added the garlic and ginger powders, splashes of soy sauce, and plum jam, stirring all together. When mixed in, I added the sliced cabbage, and cooked until just tender.

When the noodles were cooked (about 3 minutes of boiling), I scooped them and their liquid into  individual bowls. I topped the bowls of noodles with the cooked veggies and meatballs. I like a noodle bowl that is not so soupy. If you prefer more liquid, then use 1 to 1 1/2 cups of water, and about 1/2 of the seasoning packet.

I had made one of these for my late lunch on Friday. I thought it was good enough to make for my husband and one daughter for dinner that night. Both of them thought it was delicious, too. Something that is cheap and easy, using supplies from an end-of-the-month pantry and fridge.

It's been 2 1/2 weeks since I did my big, monthly stock-up shopping, with 1 1/2 weeks until my next big stock-up

. . . and I think I may have bought just the right amount of most things. I was afraid that we would plow through the produce and boxed items (crackers and granola bars), but we seem to be pacing ourselves. I tucked away a portion of the treat items, and brought them out just this week (at the half-way mark). And I did go to Fred Meyer on Saturday to pick up a green pepper (while there also got a free bag of tortilla chips, and bought a marked down container of guacamole -- 79 cents), and again this morning to get our Easter ham, 6 bananas, and a freebie candy bar. That's just 6 items (2 of which were freebies) picked up in the last 2  1/2 weeks. No other grocery shopping since my stock-up. Variety will surely dwindle as the month nears its end, but I think we'll do okay. We even have enough milk to get through till the next shopping.

Overall, this is very good news. I have our Easter ham, and enough other ingredients to put together a nice Easter dinner. I also have a good sense of what I need to buy at April's stock-up shopping.

The last week of the month is a stretch for many. It seems that the variety dwindles and we have to get creative to make interesting dishes. And sometimes meals just have to be less-interesting, and that's okay, too. Do you have a favorite tip for making that last week of meals interesting, when variety in your supplies is all but gone?