In Pursuit of the Hospitable Home: Upgrading the Appearance of Bagged Breakfast Cereal

Yesterday I had a dental appointment. It sort of knocked me off of my regular activities. I need more work done, unfortunately. Okay, back to regular life.

Keeping bagged breakfast cereal

I thought that I'd share this with you because I've been so pleased with how it looks and works in our household. This past fall I began buying bagged breakfast cereal. Up until this past year we haven't really been cereal eaters, but instead have opted for toast, muffins, and other highly portable breakfasts. For some reason I can't explain, one week I bought cereal at Dollar Tree. When I was shopping at WinCo later on, I discovered that WinCo's house brand of bagged cereal was less expensive per ounce than Dollar Tree's off-brand cereal. So I began buying bagged cereal. My family seems to really appreciate having this as an option at breakfast time, and it appears that we now have cereal about half of the time. (I still prefer cooked breakfasts, but will eat the cereal when I wake up tired.)

I know there are special plastic containers for storing cereal. I even have one, given to me by my sister-in-law. My container is currently in use holding paper grocery sacks in the trunk of my car, as it's the exact size to hold a stack of folded-up grocery bags to use at WinCo (where they give me 6 cents rebate for every bag that I reuse). So, I was looking around the kitchen to see what I could use for storing cereal and I came across my glass cookie jar, which I don't really use any longer. An image of the breakfast set-up at an inn at which I once stayed flashed through my mind.

The two glass containers just off-center on the buffet held cereal. I recall the breakfast buffet as being a very lovely way for the host to share the breakfast items with the guests. The glass jars were much more inviting than plastic dispensers. Although, I understand the practicality of plastic, and the need to keep food dispensers sanitary. But for home use, a large glass jar, such as a cookie jar, is a nice way to both store and display the cereal.

And here's our home cereal jar which has a permanent home on the kitchen counter. That's a shallow measuring scoop in the container for serving -- we leave it in there all of the time. This is just one of those little things in my kitchen that makes me smile.

Yesterday's Lunch: Letting Nothing Go to Waste

Since I don't plan to spend as much as usual on groceries for this month, I am making use of every leftover that is possible. For breakfast yesterday, I had the leftover serving of potato casserole that one daughter didn't finish. Usually, I won't eat someone else's leftovers. You know, germs and all of that. But hey, we are family, she did grow inside of me long ago. So, to get over the hurdle of "germs," I changed the casserole serving into a fried potato dish. Quite good. Lunch, though, is really where I excelled at using the leftovers.

This is what I used from our assortment of leftovers for my lunch yesterday. On New Year's day we had a ham dinner with asparagus (and that potato casserole). When I prepare asparagus, I break the bottom of the stems off at the tender point. This is the portion that many people discard. At almost $3 per pound, I was not about to throw these pieces away. So I saved the tough ends of the stems in a plastic container in the fridge.

Yesterday, I peeled the tough ends and was able to salvage all but the bottom half to one-inch of each stem after peeling. That bottom bit was still too tough to cut through easily, so those bits went into the compost, figuring their stringiness would be unappetizing.

Still, I had a nice pile of asparagus ends to steam and accompany my lunch. Going back further on the calendar, Christmas Day dinner was homemade pizza. I had mixed up a pizza sauce for the occasion, using herbs, seasonings, and tomato paste. There was a small container of this leftover sauce lingering in the fridge. Pushing the limits with how long to keep something, I wanted to use this up right away.

I took 3 whole English muffins from the freezer and made 6 mini pizzas for my week's lunches. I also used more of the wrinkly green pepper plus sliced olives that were lingering in the fridge to top the pizzas. There was also a bit of soft tofu leftover from our tofu and chocolate pie dessert on New Year's day. The tofu was bought on markdown and was past its expiration date, so I knew it was use it or lose it time. I melted a small amount of chocolate chips in the microwave and pureed the tofu with the chocolate, adding in some honey and vanilla extract for a creamy chocolate dessert.

My lunch made use of several of the lingering foods in our fridge, and it was very delicious, to boot!

Roasted Red Peppers for Half Price

A couple of weeks ago, my daughter was asking if we could buy roasted red peppers. I checked our local Fred Meyer and they wanted $4.69 for a 16 oz. jar (about 29 cents per ounce), while Walmart wanted $2.29 for a 10 oz jar (about 23 cents per ounce). I told my daughter that we'd make roasted red peppers when we find a good deal on the peppers in the produce section. Then, last week, I found a $1 bag of 2 green peppers and 1 red pepper on the markdown rack at FM. We used the green peppers on homemade pizza and in burritos. As promised to my daughter, I saved the red pepper for roasting. The pepper was getting a little wrinkly, but it was still okay for roasting.

I used my oven for the roasting, baking at 400 F degrees for 20 minutes, turning, then baking another 20 minutes. (Fortunately, I had other items in the oven baking along with the pepper.)

Immediately after removing the baking sheet from the oven I put a glass bowl over the pepper to steam it for 15 minutes.

When done with the steaming, the pepper's skin slipped off easily.

I sliced the skinned pepper into strips, put in a canning jar, and covered with a 50/50 blend of olive oil and vegetable oil. The jar of roasted red peppers will keep for 5 days or so in the fridge.

As a bag of peppers was $1 on markdown, the red pepper cost 34 cents. I used about 1/3 of a cup of oil to cover the peppers, for a cost of about 50 cents. I would estimate the my half-pint jar was about 5/6 full or about 6  3/4 ounces. My cost per ounce, then, is about 12 cents, about 1/2 price from the jarred red peppers. If I had wanted to use the peppers immediately, then I would not have needed the oil to cover, and my cost per ounce would have been around 5 or 6 cents. By the way, the oil will not be wasted but will be used in salad dressings and to saute meat and vegetables.

January Spending to Save Big Later in the Year

Although I am trying to keep a grip on spending this month, there is one kind of spending that I am allowing because it will save me big bucks later. That's gift spending. In the past 10 days, I have been stalking websites and brick and mortar stores for gift-ables to use for birthdays and Christmas 2019. This is how I can afford a few sort of high-end gifts for my family. In very early January, many retailers have not only their holiday clearance sales but also have their annual or semi-annual sales. Deals can be found both in-person and online. In addition, by shopping online, I also targeted department stores that are not even in my area. I upped my savings by signing up for email lists to get an introductory discount to combine with sales at various online retailers. On a variety of gift items, ranging from bath and body products to cashmere accessories, I saved between 40 and 75% off of the regular retail price for everything that I bought. I now have gifts for spring and fall birthdays, Easter, and Christmas for most of the people on my gift list. I will fill out my gift closet throughout the coming year and add items that become favorites as I hear about them.

I am careful to buy gifts that are versatile, in that they could change recipients if needed, avoiding sized items. For example, a cashmere wrap could be a gift for many of the women in my family, and it would fit any of them (although, for the time being, I have it earmarked for one specific female). In bath and body products, holiday gift sets, such as sets of travel-sized, assorted scents of hand cream or shower gel, are often deeply discounted. These can be given, as is, during 2019's holiday season, or they can be taken out of the holiday gift box and presented in a sheer fabric bag for a birthday gift. These gift sets can also be broken up for smaller gifts, such as for Easter, Valentine's Day, or a small birthday gift for a friend. While it may sound like my purchases are primarily female gifts, I have also bought several men's gifts, such as sweaters and men's grooming products, as well as some couples' gifts, such as household and holiday items.

In addition to gifts, I stocked up on gift wrap, tags, and boxed Christmas cards for 50 cents a package at Dollar Tree's clearance sale, and next year's Christmas candy for the family at 50-75% off retail price from several grocery stores. As a bonus, one of the candy items (truffles wrapped in red foil) will be used for Valentines Day treats for my family.

I think I mentioned this before, but I keep a log of all of the gifts that I have bought and who is to receive them. By shopping in advance, and tracking for whom things are intended, my gift-giving has less last-minute spending, which in my experience has always been the most expensive kind of gift spending. Plus, birthdays and holidays are less hectic, and I feel more organized going into any gift-giving season.

I know, by January, most of us just want to put Christmas behind us. For me, as our family continues to celebrate Christmas through Epiphany, the gift-shopping is just one extension of the holiday season, with the added perk of the charge that I get when I know that I am saving our family money. So, for me, this works.

Those Holiday Leftover Odds and Ends

I could not coax anybody to drink that last cup of eggnog. It sat and sat in the fridge for days and had developed a hint of a sour taste to it. So, what do you do with leftover eggnog or flavored coffee creamer? Two of our favorite uses for leftover eggnog are these Eggnog Scones and eggnog pancakes. As I was making dinner last night, I also cooked a batch of eggnog pancakes for today's breakfast. I used the last cup of eggnog in place of some of the milk and added a 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, and a bit of butter flavoring in a regular pancake recipe. They turned out delicious and were a great use for that last bit of eggnog.

Pumpkin Spice coffee creamer can also be substituted for some of the milk in pancakes or waffles. The Peppermint Mocha coffee creamer is a little more difficult to use in recipes, as the main flavor notes are mint and cocoa. However, I think this creamer would be a tasty substitution for milk in a fudge frosting for brownies. We've also been using it in mugs of cocoa and may try the last of it in a pot of mint-chocolate pudding or freezing it in small single-serving containers for use some time in the future.

I don't normally buy flavored coffee creamers. However, having these at home kept my seasonal coffee drinking costs to a minimum. The creamers were on sale for $1.99 each. I used a couple of tablespoons in a cup of coffee, making my cost for a Pumpkin-Spice Latte or Peppermint Mocha Latte about 10-15 cents per cup. A single, green mermaid seasonal coffee cost more than the entire bottle of flavored creamer. I think it was a pretty good deal for me.

Welcome 2019!

Happy New Year, friends!

I love new beginnings. I feel optimistic about life, about my place in this world, and about my prospects for the next season. North American weather may indicate that it is winter. However, in my heart it is spring. Local grocery stores must agree, as two stores that I visited yesterday were selling tulips.

On the topic of grocery stores -- on my list of accomplishments for yesterday, the fourth item was sticking to a budget while grocery shopping. The 1st was Senior Discount day at Fred Meyer, so I turned the morning into my major grocery shopping day for the month. One daughter and I stopped into three stores to pick up deals. I was prepared. I had a list and coupons, and I had read the ads. In the grocery department, January is notorious for a lack of great deals on food items. I have found that  in the lean months of winter, the best way to combat this situation is to shop multiple stores and focus on loss leaders, clearance items, seasonal produce, and price-booking the staples. This is exactly how I tackled the stores yesterday. It's difficult to say what was my biggest score, as I did well on several items. On the list of my great deals: blocks of cheese for $2.24/lb, milk at 89 cents/half-gallon, eggs at 99 cents/dozen, flour tortillas at 89 cents/package, and hot dogs at 75 cents/package. I also bought some produce, bread, ground beef, coating chocolate, tofu, yogurt, peanut butter, and sparkling cider, spending just over $90.

While picking up groceries, I found some clearance items to use as gifts for the 2019 holiday season.
Yes, the holiday 2019 shopping season has begun. I shop year round for birthdays and holidays, keeping my stash of gift-ables in a closet. It would be easy for the gift stockpile to get out of hand, and it has in past years. In anticipation of such a situation, I have a couple of pages in my journal dedicated to how I intend to disperse this amass of gifts. As I pick up items, I enter them both in a general list, as well as in an index with the names of the intended recipients. With these two lists, I can readily see types of gifts that I have in abundance as well as types that I am lacking. I mention all of this as it is a system that works well for me, and could possibly be of assistance for you, too.

If this week's shopping is any indication, 2019 appears to be a promising year for my budget. Here's to new beginnings, budgets that will balance, and a year to be well-lived! Have a great day, friends!

The Finished Treat Tower

This is the finished treat tower. It turned out very nicely, if I do say so myself.  I had most of the ingredients and all of the decorative items on hand, needing to buy just a few items to complete some of the contents. And it is heavy! At least 5 pounds, maybe more. It should be a real pleaser for the recipient.

At the top of the tower, I attached an ornament that was in the free box that I picked up near the end of summer or beginning of fall.

My daughter helped me make the popcorn this afternoon (so it would be fresh, as the tower will be given tomorrow), and I wanted to show you how it looks. It's very delicious! She emphasized that the popcorn flavorings are about half the price at Walmart and WinCo, in comparison to other grocery stores, and she says that Walmart has more flavors. So, definitely do check around, if you're ever looking to buy the popcorn flavorings.

I also wanted to wish you all a very merry Christmas.  May you feel the blessings and joy of this special day.

Filling the Tins: Cookies and Candy

The last tin

This last tin is medium-sized and holds cookies, foil-wrapped chocolate candies, and candy canes. I only have half of the cookies ready -- the Nutty Caramel Bars, but I will finish the other cookies tomorrow -- Chocolate, Chocolate Chip, and Peppermint Drop Cookies. One daughter wanted to help with the baking, so I'm waiting until she can be home.

For the cookies, I put each one in a mini muffin paper. With the caramel bars, this keeps them from sticking together, but also improves the presentation, I think. I'll do the same with the drop cookies.

Here's how the Spiced Nuts turned out. I lined this tin with plastic wrap, then rolled the excess so that it fits neatly inside the tin.

I topped the nuts with a circle of waxed paper, to hold in freshness.

Those are the filled tins. There are 5 tins altogether, holding Nacho Cheese Popcorn, White Chocolate and Peppermint Pretzels, Drinking Chocolate, assortment of cookies and candies, and Spiced Nuts. When I get them stacked and held tight with a ribbon, I'll post the final picture. I think this is a very nice gift. I know that I would be very pleased to receive it, so I am hoping the recipient will feel the same. I took a couple of shortcuts, but by and large, the tin contents are homemade. My total cost was about $11 or $12, not including the leftovers which will become the holiday treats for my own family. A typical snack and treat tower of similar size and variety costs about $35 to $45, retail, if purchased through a company such as Harry & David.

Filling the Tins: Drinking Chocolate Mix

I took the easy way out on this one. I bought Nesquik in single serve packets. It is pre-measured for both the cocoa and sugar, and the cocoa in Nesquik does not clump at the bottom of the mug the way baking cocoa does. Other than the Nesquik, I used powdered instant milk, powdered non-dairy creamer, chocolate chips, and mini marshmallows, all of which I had on hand for our own cocoa mix in a jar. The Nesquik came from Dollar Tree. These cute cellophane cones were in my stash from a previous year.

The total hands on time was about 15-20 minutes, and my cost (including ingredients that I had on hand) was about $1.70 for two cones, each making 12 ounces of rich drinking chocolate.

I like the layered look, so I made up each cone separately. Working with the cone in a drinking glass (to keep it upright), I first scooped in 1/3 cup of instant milk. On top of that, I added 2 tablespoons of non-dairy coffee creamer. Then, I poured in a packet of Nesquik.

I chopped 3 tablespoons of semi-sweet chocolate chips for each cone, spooning in on top of the Nesquik.

I wrapped about 1/3 cup of mini marshmallows in a piece of plastic wrap and placed on top of the drinking chocolate mix. These cones are secured with a twist tie.

My goal with the tins is to average about $2.00 to $2.50 per each tin. So far, I'm under that goal, leaving some extra in the budget for tomorrow's tin. 

Cocoa mix in a jar or baggie is a great last-minute gift idea or stocking stuffer that doesn't take much time or expertise. 

Filling the Tins: Peppermint and White Chocolate Covered Pretzels

No baking skill required.

These sweet pretzels will fill one of the medium-sized tins in my tower. A batch of 60 pretzels took 30 minutes of time and cost about $2.00. The pretzels and candy canes were from Dollar Tree, and the white chocolate was a combination of white baking chocolate and vanilla candy coating (I had the two items in my pantry). I used less than half the bag of pretzels, about half a bag of white baking chips, and 11 mini candy canes. I also used Crisco shortening to obtain a good dipping viscosity to the baking chips.

I prepared my candy cane pieces by laying the canes in the individual packages on the counter, and I broke them up with a hammer.

When I was ready to sprinkle the candy cane bits, I simply snipped the end off of each package and poured out.

I melted the baking chips in a shallow dish in the microwave, adding the Crisco in small amounts until it was the right consistency. A fork works well for tossing and removing the dipped pretzels.

I worked on 15 pretzels at a time. Dipping, then placing on a waxed paper-covered baking sheet.

Next, I sprinkled them with peppermint bits, then I began another 15 pretzels. Once the baking sheet was full, I slipped it into the fridge.

While the pretzels firmed up, I prepared the tin by lining with waxed paper. Do you know how to make a sheet of waxed or tissue paper fit a box or tin near perfectly without cutting? This is a little trick I learned in a gift-wrapping job when I was young. 

You hold the sheet of paper over your empty tin or box and fold up a portion, in the very center of the paper, until the near and far edges of the paper fit the opening. Then you crease the paper into place.

This is half of the batch. I'll add a couple more when the second tray comes out of the fridge, and there will be some leftover for our family.

I made these with white chocolate because that is the type of which I have a surplus. Semi-sweet chocolate is also delicious on pretzels, with or without candy cane bits, and it's even easier to get to the right dipping consistency. White chocolate has a higher sugar content than semi-sweet and care needs to be taken when melting it, lest it scorch. Use brief bursts of time in the microwave, and remelt the dipping chocolate as needed during the dipping process.

Filling the Tins: Nacho Cheese Popcorn

I thought I'd show you what my plans are for the tins that I spruced up about 10 days ago. I have already mentioned that the smallest tin will be filled with spiced nuts. For the largest tin, my daughter is going to make her fabulous flavored popcorn. This daughter is particular about popcorn. She likes the flavored ones, like what you sometimes receive in a large tin as a gift. She made some two-cheese popcorn a few weeks ago that I sampled and thoroughly agreed that it was delicious.

She uses a couple of products -- a butter-flavored oil to pop the kernels in, popcorn salt, and cheese popcorn flavoring. She says that the popcorn flavorings are least expensive at WinCo and Walmart (much more expensive at Fred Meyer and other grocery stores). While plain popcorn is much cheaper, these flavorings take the popcorn up a notch, making it a great gift, if bagged up or for filling a tin, or for a party treat that is comparable to something like Chex mix or chips but much cheaper. Anyway, cheese popcorn will fill the bottom and largest tin of the tower.

My daughter follows a procedure that a friend who works in a movie theater suggested. She pops the kernels in the butter-flavored oil mixed with some of the popcorn salt (we buy Flavocal popcorn salt at Cash and Carry). After the popcorn is popped, she tosses it with some of the white cheddar seasoning and nacho cheese seasoning. I mention her procedure as it never had occurred to me to pop the kernels in oil with the salt. Previously, we always sprinkled the salt over the popped kernels.

So, that's the largest tin's filling.

I Love the Savings

Many supermarket receipts include a savings amount for your current shopping trip. This is nothing new -- stores have been including this information for a while. What is new is the receipt from the library for the two videos that I checked out this past week. Below the information about the titles of the dvds it says, "You just saved $49.98 by using your library. That is the suggested retail price of the items checked out."

I just thought that was a cool reminder of how much money our library saves us. I should start a running total to see how much I save in one year. While it's true that I likely would not have bought all of the items that I have borrowed from the library this past year, I did consider buying a copy of the Christmas movie that I checked out. So, I guess you could say that I really did save about $25 with this recent visit.

Hot Flashes 2.0

In the spring, I mentioned reducing the frequency and intensity of hot flashes by cutting out caffeinated coffee, tea, and sodas. My hot flashes began in January of this year and making this huge reduction in caffeine brought those flashes down to a minimum, overnight. My primary source of caffeine was brewed coffee. I cut back to half caffeinated/half decaf brewed coffee, then went to all decaf brewed coffee. In late summer, wanting to reduce my caffeine even more, I switched from brewed decaf to instant decaf. The amount of caffeine in either preparation for coffee sounds insignificant, but when you figure that a person (me) may be consuming 5 or 6 cups of decaf per day, the amount of caffeine can add up to that of one or two cups if caffeinated coffee, over the course of a day. Some individuals are more sensitive to caffeine and every reduction possible is beneficial. This was the case for me.

To get an idea of how much caffeine is in various preparation methods and roasts, healthline.com provides some data. So, I live in Coffeeland, USA. Starbucks Pike Place Roast Decaf (the standard Starbucks decaf for my area) has about 20 milligrams of caffeine per 12 oz. cup. Home-brewed, supermarket coffee-in-a-can grounds have around 7 to 8 milligrams of caffeine per 12 oz. cup. Grocery store instant decaf granules (the kind in a jar, not the Starbucks single-serve packets) provide about 3.1 to 3.8 milligrams of caffeine per 12 oz. cup. The choice for instant coffee now saves me about 85 milligrams of caffeine per day, in comparison to the brewed decaf that I had been drinking all winter and spring. That is about the amount of caffeine in an 8 oz cup of caffeinated coffee. For this period in my life, this is important for my comfort. My hot flashes are rare, now. This may in part be due to my body making the adjustment to reduced estrogen levels. I am unwilling to experiment with a cup of caffeinated coffee to see if hot flashes resume. (I like not feeling sweaty.)

I do drink a lot of decaf coffee each day. I enjoy the flavor. So, I made the maximum concession, while still finding enjoyment in the activity. It was a matter of weighing benefits against costs. As long as I felt the benefits (no hot flashes or heart palpitations) outweighed the costs (sacrificing some of the pleasurable flavor in brewed coffee), I was willing to make this change. In addition, the heart palpitations that I had lived with for decades practically vanished. I had a brief spell of an irregular heart beat two or three evenings in a row, last summer, but that has been it. I don't know what caused that aberration, but I do associate the near-cessation of palpitations with cutting out caffeine.

There are some bonuses to drinking instant decaf, now. It's quicker to prepare. There are no filters to buy, and no basket or filter holder plus carafe to wash out. The counter space where my coffee set-up previously sat is now freed up for other kitchen activity, or just a cleaner-looking space. I can take my instant coffee granules with me when I go to food courts and similar take-out counter-service restaurants, asking for a cup of hot water to go. I  fact, when I was at the airport recently, I walked up to the Starbucks counter and asked what the charge for a cup of hot water would be. They said it was free. I took my hot water to a table near my gate, mixed in a spoon of instant granules and made a "free" cup of coffee for myself. I wouldn't do this in a restaurant where I sat at one of their tables. That would just seem tacky to me. But in a take-away situation, I don't see why not, if the establishment is willing to provide a free cup of hot water.

Anyway, I am glad to be able to wear fleece again. The occasional hot flashes that I do experience are limited to specific scenarios, such as an anxiety attack or a fever. I am working on calming myself during anxiety attacks. It's similar to a biofeedback process. The feedback comes not from electrical sensors, but from the hot flash, itself. You know the saying, "every cloud has a silver lining?" Well, the silver lining of my hot flashes has been finding ways to live a physically and emotionally healthier life.

How I Made $83 an Hour

First, let me say this, I was super reluctant to take this route. Really, there are some things for which I don't like to compromise my comfort or convenience. When traveling by air, I like the convenience of arriving at the airport by my own car, which entails the expense of high parking rates at the airport. Nonetheless, I am willing to pay for parking, either at the airport proper or at a discounted, off-site parking location, just so I can be more comfortable getting there.

I recently went out of town for a few days. My departing flight was super early in the morning, and my returning flight was late at night. I am especially not a fan of the off-site parking joints when it means I have to get up extra early for a flight or be there long after dark (kinda sketchy area near the airport). So, I had talked myself into paying the full rate at the airport, which would have cost about $140 for the days that my car sat parked. A few days before leaving town, my car began acting up. I didn't have time to get it looked at, and I was very concerned about driving the hour and fifteen each way to the airport. In addition, I didn't have anyone that I could ask for a ride. (Due to the distance, I consider a ride to the airport to be a pretty big favor.) I looked into shuttle possibilities, but as both of my daughters were coming with me, a shuttle would have cost close to $200. After spending a weekend on the fence about driving, taking a shuttle, or daring the public transit, I made a last-minute decision to take a series of 2 public buses and 1 stretch on light-rail for my transport to and from the airport. We had to walk a mile to the bus stop (with heavy backpacks, and yes, it was uphill part of the way) and ride public transportation, which took 2 hours. However, it was worth it, as our cost was $25.50 in total for the 3 of us to get to and from the airport, yielding a savings of $114.50. The additional time, compared to driving to/from, was about one and a half hours. Going on these figures, I estimate my hourly savings' rate at about $76.33. But wait, it gets better. Gas for my car to get to and from the airport would have cost about $10, giving me a total savings of $124.50 or $83/ hour for my time. Of course, I had to get both daughters on board with this crazy plan. So I offered each of them an incentive, $25 to spend any way they wanted while we were out of town. When you're young, beautiful, and broke, $25 sounds pretty enticing (or at least it did for my two daughters). They said, "let's go for it," and we did. With "sharing" that awesome hourly rate (bribing offering an incentive of $50 total to my daughters), my hourly rate for a little inconvenience dropped to $49.67. That's not bad, and I think it was worth the inconvenience.

I also like to remind myself that when I "earn" money by saving what I had planned on spending, those "earnings" are not subject to income taxes. If I had taken a paid job for that same amount of money, income taxes would have eaten into the earnings, and I would have had to work more hours to earn that sum. And truth be told, my area of expertise is in a very un-lucrative field. Convincing someone into paying me $83 per hour would be a tough sell.

Who knows, maybe my car would have made it to the airport and back, or maybe it wouldn't have. I'm glad I didn't chance it. It's in the shop now, and I'm hoping the repairs are not too exorbitant. The good news, though -- now that I've done the bus and rail to the airport, and discovered it wasn't bad at all, I will take this route again. The bonus is we all got a bit of exercise before sitting on a plane for a few hours.

You know, when we travel, I think nothing of taking public transit in other cities. And I take the bus whenever I want to go into Seattle. So, I'm kind of surprised that it took me this long to take transit to and from the airport. I guess I just need a little push in the right direction every now and then.

How about you? Has there been something that you've were reluctant to try, but you did and were glad for the push to get you into that experience?

A Wonderful Box from Last Summer's Free Piles

One late-summer or early-fall evening while driving home, my daughter and I spied this box on a free pile. I snagged it without thoroughly looking through the contents, as I could see it was filled with nice Christmas crafting material. I put it in my trunk and left it there until last week.

Wow! This is full of wonderful material. There are spools of ribbon, several grapevine wreaths and balls, vines, silk flowers, pine cones, ornaments, pots, florist foam, and other tidbits. The stuff was all jumbled together, with tangled ribbon holding everything in large masses. After untangling the ribbon and separating items into piles, I could see that I had found a treasure trove of crafting material.

I have already begun using some of the contents, as you saw on the lid of the tin that I spruced up. So much fun to have new supplies! We'll be making wreaths later this week, and I have a kissing ball in mind with one of the grapevine balls, burgundy ribbon, and silk roses. Lots of fun times at no cost to me.

I had the opportunity to meet the woman who kept her free pile stocked all summer, when she held a garage sale in early July. Apparently, she and her young family were moving out of the area and, therefore, were lightening the load of what to bring to the new house. Not only does she have an interest in crafting, but she also shares my passion for studying art and artists. Their home was just a few blocks from ours, and I was so sorry to discover this kindred spirit just as she was leaving the area. She gave me a few of her art books for my own library, which I'll treasure as mementos of this chance encounter.

Super Easy, Garlic Cheesey Bread

This was a great accompaniment to a pot of homemade soup, this past week. Four ingredients, minimal effort, and very yummy.

1 can of biscuit dough
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
4-6 tablespoons shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8 X 8-inch baking dish.

Melt butter and stir in garlic. Cut biscuits into quarters and dip into the melted butter/garlic. Place in prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with the cheese. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until golden.
I used Parmesan (what I had), but I think these would be delicious with cheddar -- more melty and gooey.

Serves 4.

The Finished Tins

So, yesterday I showed you the assortment of tins that I chose with which to build a treat tower and the results of spray painting 2 of the tins gold. Here's what I did to finish those tins.

The lid of the small round tin has an embossed design.

I covered that lid with a wreath of faux greenery, berries, and blossoms, using a hot glue gun.

I also hot-glued a red ribbon around the bottom part of the large square tin, so it would harmonize with the other tins. Here is a side view of the stack. (The lid does fit properly on the bottom tin. I just didn't want to press it on just yet -- waiting for the paint to harden.)

And here's what the top of the stack looks like. I think it's pretty. I could spray paint all of the tins gold, but I like the way this looks as it is. What do you think?

Reminder of what the tins looked like before.

My total cost for these tins? Nothing. The tins, spray paint, faux greenery, ribbon, and glue stick were items that I already had. I'm pretty pleased. When I make a gift, I try to make it as attractive as possible, so that even finicky recipients will be pleased.

The Treat Tower: The Tins

I've seen these in catalogs for years and always wanted to receive one. I know. The crazy things we wish for, right? Anyway, as mentioned yesterday, I am putting together a tower for a gift, using some of my stash of tins. Here's a photo of the tins that I think will work.

There are 5 tins altogether. The top one and bottom 3 (the poinsettia 2 are side by side) are vendor tins. The bottom and top one have labels on them, while the 2 poinsettia tins just say "Happy Holidays." My thought is I only need to paint the bottom and top tins in the photo, as the other 3 will look fine, as is. I'm using some gold spray paint on those two. I've just sprayed the first coat and will do a second coat in a bit. If any of the design shows through, I'll add some extra trim, like ribbon or spray "snow." The top tin has a raised design on the lid. I plan on covering that with a silk blossom, wreath of silk leaves, or large bow, hot-glued onto the top.

I just checked the tins, and the paint is looking good. Here are the bottoms to the tins. The color is kind of off in the photo. They are definitely gold, and not coppery.

No printing shows through, but I think I will wrap a band of red ribbon around the bottom tin to thematically tie it into the rest of the tins.

On spray painting tins -- I cleaned the interiors with soapy water and dried well, using a toothpick to clean out the crack where the base meets the side. I also used rubbing alcohol to thoroughly clean the exterior, so the paint would adhere evenly. I did not do anything else to prepare the tins. I place the tins, upside down, on boxes, in order to spray the sides evenly, without getting paint inside. I plan on leaving the tins open for a week or so, before putting lids back on, to let the paint thoroughly harden. I am very pleased with how the tins painted. As far as I can tell for now, this is a great solution for sprucing up tins.

Old-Time Spiced Nuts

This is one of my mother's recipes that she found in a ca. 1950s' cookbook. The original recipe called for pecan halves, but I've always used mixed nuts. If using salted nuts, reduce or omit the salt in the recipe. In addition, as there is egg white in the recipe, you may find the info on the foodsafety.gov to be reassuring. The recommendation is to heat an item containing raw, unpasteurized eggs to 160 F degrees. These nuts are baked at 250 degrees for an hour.

Here's the recipe:

Spiced Nuts

2 tablespoons cold water
1 slightly beaten egg white
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups nuts

Preheat oven to 250 F degrees. Butter a large, shallow baking sheet.

Add water to slightly beaten egg white. Stir in sugar, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and salt. Let stand 15 minutes, or until sugar is dissolved.

Dip the nuts into the mixture. Spread on prepared baking sheet. Bake in a slow oven (250 F degrees) until golden, about 1 hour. (You may need to reduce the baking time slightly for previously roasted nuts.)

That's it! Super simple and makes a delicious holiday treat with less sugar than cookies or candies.

I am making these nuts for a gift. (I'll make sure to make enough for leftovers for our family!) I am putting together a treat and snack tower, using holiday tins. Something along the lines of the below photo:

My tins are a motley assortment, so I plan to spiff a couple of them up with a coating of spray paint. (I have gold paint at home.) The spiced nuts will fill one of the top, smaller containers.

The Festive Holiday Foods that I Found in My Fridge and Freezer

One of my goals for the next few months is to use up everything in the fridges and freezers, saving some money on grocery purchases in the bargain. Here is what was lingering that I can turn into some festive holiday dishes:

• fruitcake fruit -- yes, I actually like fruitcake and intend to honor my mother's memory by making her recipe
• pecans and almonds for baking and Swedish Christmas rice pudding -- a Christmas Eve dessert
• almond paste for homemade, Christmas morning Danish pastry
• smoked salmon -- even though it's been frozen, when thawed and mixed with cream cheese it makes a good spread
• frozen mounds of whipped cream -- good for homemade eggnog
• frozen croissants
• a variety of sausages -- I'll use some in a savory New Year's Eve pie
• several types of homemade pickles, jams, and marmalades
• frozen berries -- the frozen, wild blackberries make a good pancake syrup for cold winter mornings
• cream cheese -- good for pumpkin cheesecake (my daughters make this and it is soooo good)
• mixed nuts -- I plan on making spiced nuts as a gift and for ourselves with these
• baking chocolate, dipping chocolate, and chocolate chips
• peppermint oil for making peppermint patties
• phyllo dough
• lots of standard baking supplies, such as flour, butter, granulated and powdered sugar, spices, extracts, oil, and crisco

With so many wonderful ingredients already in the house there is little I need to buy at the grocery store for holiday treats.

Today, I am . . .

• making pizza from scratch for my family's dinner 
• wrapping Christmas gifts with gently used wrapping paper, ribbons, and bows
• making gift tags out of the fronts of Christmas cards from years' past
• making new bows out of scraps of ribbon
• listening to Christmas music that I downloaded for free through our library's connection to Freegal
• number 5 on the holds' list at the library for a favorite Christmas movie
• wearing pants and a top that I got at the thrift store
• recovering from a busy but fun and frugal weekend
• enjoying the Advent calendar (new and in sealed package) that I bought last January at Goodwill for 25 cents
• back!

How's life been for you?

The Coin-less Sofa Cushions

My two daughters had a late night on Saturday, watching movies in the family room. They pulled the sofa cushions off of the sofa, to use on the floor in front of the tv. Anyway, on Sunday morning, one daughter was putting the room back to rights as I was passing the doorway. She asked why we never find money in our sofa, under the cushions. I wanted to answer with something quasi-humorous about us being so poor that even our sofa has no money. But that wouldn't be true. The answer is that we are simply so careful with our money that we take care with even the dimes and pennies. That doesn't mean we don't have an occasional unplanned expense or splurge. But it does mean that we are mindful with our money. We set some aside for those emergencies or repairs, and add an amount into our budget for splurges. And every penny is counted.

Perhaps it would be shocking for you to know that lately we have treated ourselves to lunch out after church each week. We have felt the need to connect at least once per week, as a way of bonding our family and enjoying time spent together. But we also didn't want to burden any one individual with meal prep or planning activities. (Plus, if we do something in our home, it is just too easy for one or more family members to excuse themselves from the group, in order to tend to something else.) Despite spending a little bit of money on this weekly treat, we are still keeping that expense pretty low. We frequent non-tipping restaurants, use coupons, and order judiciously. I think we all realize that it would be pretty spoiled of us to complain about any aspect of our frugal way of eating out. This once-per-week treat is accounted for in our budget. It is never a break-the-bank sort of outing. Yesterday, we spent about $14.50 for four of us to have burgers, fries, salads, and a parfait. The point of our outings is to connect, not gourmet-dine.

Back to the poverty of our sofa. I think if we ever so much as found a penny under its cushions, we'd mount it and hang it on the wall. I've found toys, hair ties, and scraps of paper under there, but no coins. This is a good thing for us, I think. It means that we continue to plan for the future and our expected/unexpected needs, watching the coins as well as the dollars. By doing so, we are still enjoying a treat, here and there, and able to give generously, where ever it is needed.

Cheap & Cheerful Suppers for Mid-October

Saturday

• nachos platter with chips, beans, rice, beef, peppers, tomatoes (no cheese -- all out)
• apple wedges
• celery sticks

Sunday

• oven-roasted sausage, vegetables, potatoes

Monday

• pumpkin and sausage soup
• brown rice or crackers

Tuesday

• waffles with blackberry sauce and yogurt topping
• bacon
• applesauce

Wednesday

• a delicious casserole of leftovers -- bacon, sausage, mushrooms, rice, zucchini, green onions, and turkey stock. You can't go wrong when leftovers are bacon and sausage.
• steamed cauliflower
• pecan pie

Thursday

• beef and bean chili from the freezer
• baby carrots, celery sticks, olives, ranch dip
• toast

Friday

• looks like it will be another Friday night, frozen corndog and sweet potato fries dinner tonight. It's easy, quick, and had minimal cost. I'll also add some steamed cauliflower.

As this third week of the month winds down I am turning to treats hidden in the "secret" pantry, frozen goodies, and canned items. I bring a couple of packaged treats out of that secret pantry once per week. Yesterday I pulled out a box of granola bars and wheat thin-type crackers, as well as a can of frozen pomegranate juice concentrate from the freezer. We still have a lot of tasty foods in the house, so all is well. 

Anything especially good on your menu this past week? Have a wonderful weekend!

Trading Early in the Week Evening Relaxing Time for Easier Supper Prep Later in the Week

Do you have a day of the week where you have more energy than the other days? I seem to have more energy on Mondays than any other day of the week. My energy quickly goes downhill as the work week progresses. Last week, instead of telling myself that I didn't have energy to cook on a Thursday or a Friday, I harnessed my Monday energy and prepared a couple of meals for the freezer, after everyone was done with dinner. When Thursday and Friday rolled around, I got the night off from cooking. Then this week, I continued with this program of late-evening cooking, and it looks like I will have another easy end of the week. The bonus was that I was able to use up more perishable ingredients before they expired.

I was thinking about what I would have done with my Monday evening. I likely would have read stuff online, played solitaire, or watched a show. I'll have other chances to do those kinds of activities later in the week. For now, I'm really glad that I spent my Monday evening cooking ahead. Curious what I made? I made a cheese, green pepper, and mushroom pizza and a rice, mushroom, and beef casserole.

Going Old-School with the Garage Door

My upper arms could use a work-out anyway. Our house was built in the late-1970s and has the original electric garage door opener. One problem, the handheld remotes are both broken. We bought a soldering gun several years ago, and I have been soldering a key wire into place, repeatedly. It breaks off, I solder it back on, etc. That worked for years. Not so, this past spring. It broke off and even after soldering it back on, the remote doesn't work. It looks like the contact pad is plain worn out.

For several months, I used the interior switch for the door openers, opening the garage door from inside the garage, backing the car out, getting out of the car, closing the garage door from the inside of the garage, going out a back door of the garage, around the house, and to the driveway. That works, but it was far from convenient.

The remotes are no longer available for our very old model, and now is not the time to buy a new garage door opener and have it installed. So, what to do. My daughter had some time this summer to do some jobs for me. So, she and I picked out some heavy-duty handles from Home Depot's website (for about $7.50 each), she went to the store, then came home and installed handles on both doors. Afterward, she unhooked the brace which attaches the electric opener to the door. We now open and close the garage door just as my parents did when I was a girl, with our muscles. It's actually a good stretch for me everyday. And I think it was a valuable lesson for my daughter to work with me on a workable solution to our problem that would not cost us a bunch of money, and didn't require any expertise to achieve.

So, is this any less inconvenient than using the interior switch inside the garage? I would have to say that the old-school way is slightly better. Obviously, having a working electric garage door would be preferable. But for now, we have a solution with which we're satisfied.

Cheap & Cheerful Suppers for October

Friday

• frozen corn dogs
• sweet potato fries
• cinnamon applesauce

Saturday

• scrambled eggs
• *roasted potatoes
• *tomatoes, *zucchini, and Brussels sprouts sauteed together

Sunday

• *vegetable and bean soup
• crackers
• plums 
• lettuce, cucumber, and *tomato salad

Monday

• peanut butter and *strawberry jam sandwiches
• *apple wedges
• lettuce, cucumber, and *tomato salad

Tuesday

• ramen, vegetable, and egg soup
• crackers
• applesauce

Wednesday

• sausage, pumpkin, mushroom, sage sauce over pasta
• *tomato and cucumber salad

Thursday

• homemade hamburgers on buns, with *tomato slices
• coleslaw
• *winter squash

*indicates item is from our garden

Late at night, when I couldn't sleep, I calculated the cost of our homemade burgers. (I know, some folks count sheep. I count dollars and cents.) Anyway, I used 1 pound of ground beef, at $2.24/lb, 4 buns, on markdown for 35 cents/4, tomatoes from our garden, some seasonings, dried onions, and garlic powder, at about 10 cents. So, for 4 quarter-pounders we spent $2.69, or 67 cents each. That's a super deal!

Do you ever calculate the cost of your meals? If so, what do you think is an especially high-value meal to make at home?

Update on Remanufactured Ink Cartridges for Home Printers

It was just about this time, last year, that I posted on buying remanufactured ink jet cartridges for our old, but-still-running-well, printer. I bought a 3-pack for about $10 dollars per cartridge. (This post.) We have had a very good experience with these cartridges. They lasted about as long as full-priced ones from Office Depot (currently selling for $53.99 each at OD), and the problems have been minor and may have been the fault of the printer and not the cartridge. The issue we had was an ink smear on a couple of pages, and like I said, this may have been the fault of the very old printer (from c. late 1990s). Otherwise, the remanufactured cartridges worked as well for us as the HP brand.

In the comments of that initial post, it was mentioned that HP printers have had a "dynamic security feature" for the last 10 years or so. This "feature" renders no-name brand cartridges ineffective in more recent HP printers. However, older HP printers are some of the most durable printers made, continuing to work for decades (ours is a prime example -- about 20 years old, and going strong). I occasionally see HP printers at thrift stores. So, if someone is needing a printer for basic home use and only wants to spend a few dollars, buying a used HP at Goodwill or the like could be very affordable, especially when combined with remanufactured ink cartridges. It would be advantageous to check HP's website for info on a model sold second-hand, to see if that model had the "dynamic security feature." Here's a link to HP's site which indicates the models with the feature that prevents the use of remanufactured cartridges. At the bottom of that page, there is information on removing the security feature for printers which are listed.

I bring this all us because this week I had to order another batch of cartridges. Amazon was out of the 3-pack, so I bought a 2-pack for $18.74, including tax. That's less than $10 per cartridge. They're due to arrive in a week, so I'll let you know of any issues. If this batch works as well as the last, then the savings will be over $40 per cartridge. I think that's pretty good.

Don't You Just Love Free Piles?

One evening this past summer, I was driving out to pick up my daughter from her bus when I spied a nice-looking, very large basket on the ground. This corner of our neighborhood is known as the "free pile corner." It sits adjacent to the little library box (which is also awesome) and is known to have some good free stuff. The large basket caught my eye. I could tell there were more items; however, it was dark, and I didn't have time to stop.

After collecting my daughter, we decided to grab that basket, then check the rest of the pile. Oh, the free pile was awesome! In addition to this great big basket, there was a large flashlight (with functioning battery), a Sony portable radio, a pair of glass candlesticks, multiple candles (pillar and taper), a bunch of cleaning supplies, and some other stuff that we didn't need. We took all of the above-described items with us. When we got home, I discovered that amongst the cleaning supplies, that there was an almost full bottle of Mrs. Meyer's Lemon Verbena spray, toilet cleaner, and window cleaner.

I am most thrilled by the Mrs. Meyer's spray as it makes the bathroom or kitchen smell so nice when I'm using it. The candles had all been previously burned, somewhat. But, you know, who cares about that, really. It's not like we're going to be eating them. Previously-used candles for free is great. (One daughter has been using the pillar candles when she takes luxurious baths.) The radio, flashlight, and glass candlesticks will be nice to have. And the basket has become the catchall kitchen basket. We actually have room for a large basket on the floor near the kitchen table. So, when I'm clearing the table of clutter (usually the junk mail that I still need to sort), I can pop it all into the basket. Our kitchen table is reclaimed for dining.

I am saddened that with the rainy weather comes an end to the free piles. Until next summer. . .

Weekend Morning at the Pumpkin Farm

Thank goodness I wore my retired sneakers, because the mud was a bit squishy in the pumpkin field.

The four of us made last-minute plans to visit the pumpkin farm, as everyone had the morning free. (It's rare when that happens for us. You probably have a similar situation), and the weather for Saturday looked promising, after a rainy Friday. The plan was to walk out the door by 9:00, and we did pretty well, leaving about 9:15. We've been to this farm before and remembered that their prices on treats were kind of high -- a buttered ear of corn on a stick for $3.50 and a cake donut for $1.00. So, en route, we stopped at Fred Meyer and bought a six-pack of Pumpkin-Spice donuts for $2.29 (or 38 cents each), less than half the price of the pumpkin farm donuts. And really, could you get any more appropriate with the donut flavor, than pumpkin for a trip to the pumpkin patch? On top of the donuts, we were each responsible for our own snacks and beverages (cheese, bananas, coffee, milk, or juice).

Admission to the farm was free, but there are a whole slew of activities for a price. You know me, we skipped any activity that had a charge, but we enjoyed the baby animals, looked through the gift shop, ate the free samples, and walked through the pumpkin field (yes, it was muddy), for free. We stopped by the fresh produce stand where my daughters each picked out a mini pumpkin for fall decor for their rooms (75 cents each), and then headed home.

A fun family outing that wasn't too expensive. We kept our costs down by bringing our snacks and beverages from home and buying a box of seasonal donuts from the grocery store. While I could have spent less on the mini pumpkins by buying them at the grocery store, this was an expense that I thought would create a nicer memory-impact, by actually choosing their little pumpkins at the farm. Of course, the cashier asked if we were waiting till later in the month to buy our jack-o-lanterns, and I replied that we grew pumpkins this summer and have them from our own garden. (The farm wanted between $2 and $25, depending on size, for pumpkins!) In past years, I've bought winter squash at this farm, inexpensively. Not so, this year. I'll just wait for a good deal at the grocery store, later in the month.

Morning was definitely the right time to go, as there was plenty of parking and little traffic. And at the far end of the pumpkin field, it felt like we were the only ones there. For someone who dislikes crowds, this was a perfect time to make family memories.

Will you do anything special to create autumn memories with your loved ones this year?

Shopping the Ethnic Food Aisle

I know I mentioned this before, concerning buying spices in the Hispanic section, you can often get great deals in the Ethnic section of the grocery store. Well, this past week I tried some cookies from the Hispanic section. I have to say, these are delicious. They are a lightly sweet tea cookie. For 65 cents a package, they are a steal. I had been buying a similar cookie in the Kosher section. But the price on that brand has gradually inched up to 85 cents a package (about same size as the Hispanic ones). These are a bargain and I will definitely be buying more.

I bought these at Fred Meyer. I didn't think to check the same section at WinCo, but my guess is they are even a few cents less there.

Do you shop the ethnic food aisles? If so, what products or types of products are a good deal for you?