Wednesday, December 20, 2017

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Quote of the Week

Christmas is not so much about opening presents, as opening our hearts!




Wednesday, December 6, 2017

Quote of the Week

Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful. - Norman Vincent Peale
                       
                                                             Beautiful Blessings,
                                                                       Lisa

Wednesday, November 29, 2017

Quote of the Week














November is auspicious in so many parts of the country: the rice harvest is already in, the weather starts to cool, and the festive glow which precedes Christmas has began to brighten the landscape.
                                                                          --   F. Sionil Jose

Tuesday, November 21, 2017

Last Week's Frugality

   Last week was pretty frugal!  Money was pretty tight so we spent only the BARE minimum!  I took my Mother to the Goodwill and spent nothing! Saved ???? Money!


  Went to the grocery and got the basics-eggs, milk,and bread and used a $5 Mperks coupon to bring my total down to $1.98!  Score!

  I did purchase a bag of cranberries to make cranberry juice.  I am a member of the Stocking our
Shelves Facebook page and someone put an easy recipe for making cranberry juice on the board.  I did it!!  I made 2 quarts of cranberry juice!  I spent  $.89 on the  berries and used a cup of sugar to make the 2 quarts.  That is a huge savings compared to the $3.49 a jar would have cost me!  Big savings for someone who loves cranberry juice and that would be me!  I hope to be able to find cranberries on clearance and make more juice for even less! Check out the Stocking our Shelves Facebook page--it is great!


 Used our Kroger points to save $5.00 on a tank of gas! 

 Well that is about it for my family--What have you saved money on lately?


Frugal Blessings,
Lisa


PS--Remember Wal-Mart has a dozen pint jars in the Black Friday ad for just $5.00!!  They are available starting Thursday night!











 



  

Monday, November 13, 2017

Last Week's Frugality

  Hello Dear Readers!


        Last week was a pretty frugal week.  I didn't receive a coupon from Big Lots so we didn't go--saved at least $10!!


       At the Goodwill, I found a very nice rubber spatula  and a metal spatula for $.50 each,  The metal one will be perfect for cookies next month!  I also found a teal glass bowl to match my Pioneer Woman glasses. We found a runner for my slate hallway(this was on my list to do to save money on the utilities).  The slate floor is always freezing cold on our tootsies so the runner will help keep us warmer. I only paid $10 for it so it was a great deal!


   My aunt gave me 2 pumpkins, so I spent Sunday cooking them, scooping the puree out and
freezing it.   I ended up with 15 2 cup bags of pumpkin puree.  This will probably meet my  family's pumpkin needs for the next year-  Pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, and pumpkin roll!  Thanks Aunt Jane!


  We still haven't used the furnace.  We use propane for heat and it is very expensive plus  we have to pay a hefty deposit for it up front and that is rough to do. We have however, used an electric baseboard heater in the living room and an oil filled electric heater in the kitchen when needed.   I know electric heat isn't cheap but we can pay monthly instead of money up front.  My DH and I have a wood burning insert in each fireplace but my Momma is on oxygen so they cannot be used. Bummer, heavy sigh!


  We saved $.60 per gallon of gas by using our Kroger points again!!

I also picked up my Free Friday Download at Kroger--a free cup of kefir, and used coupons and sales to save $19.00  at Kroger.


  I got our turkey for $.48 per pound.  Also used coupons  and sales to save $23.79  at Meijer.


What have you done to save money lately?  Pleas share in order to bless others!


Frugal Blessings,
Lisa


  


 

Friday, November 10, 2017

Baking Traditions at my House

Retro Image – Baking Mom / Wife
   I don't know how it is with your family, but our holiday's are filled with Food, Folks, and Fun! ( Sorry for the McDonald's tag line)  Lots and lots of food!  Think back on some of your holidays--they revolved around food didn't they?  See I told you!



  For example, it wouldn't be Thanksgiving at our house without Grandma's carrot cake or my homemade pumpkin pie!  I tried to take a short cut one year and bought frozen pies and you would have thought the world had come to and end! Geez....my kids were mad because the pies, and I quote "sucked".  We have never had store bought pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving again!! Lol!


  At Christmas time, we have KY stack cake (my favorite) that the recipe has been passed down thru the generations!  This is my year to make it with tutelage from my dear Momma! She is ever so particular about it!
 
Rum cake is another holiday favorite at my house.  It tastes and smells amazing due to the dark rum that it is made with.  If you want to send a cake to someone, this one ships well--the rum preserves it! This cake can be made early and placed in the freezer to save you time during the holidays!


  Then there is the  jam cake that is to die for!  My Momma likes to make it with blackberry jam, but I prefer it made with strawberry jam.  To make it even more delectable, she brushes wine on it for days before we are allowed to eat it!  Can you say HEAVENLY? 


  In the next few weeks I will be sharing some the recipes for our family baking traditions!  So start finding your own traditional baking recipes to share with us as well!

Traditional Holiday Blessings to you all,
Lisa

 
  
 

Tuesday, November 7, 2017

Deal Alert!

Hello Readers,
Prego® Alfredo
  If you are lucky enough to have a Meijer store near you there is a great deal this week!  The Prego alfredo sauce is on the Buy 5 save $5 sale.  Buy 5 and go here to print off your $.50 cent off of one coupon!  That is right $.49 pasta sauce!  Score!
Blessings,
Lisa

Monday, November 6, 2017

Last Week's Frugality

Hello Dear Readers!
    Last week was a pretty frugal week.  We stayed home for the most part and saved on gas.  We are pretty boring people actually! Lol!
 
   My Mother cooked a  half pork tenderloin and we had pork roast for one meal and  pulled pork BBq for 2 more meals.  Yes. we had pork tenderloin last week also, but when it is cheaper than hamburger, you eat it more often!  We stretched that $8 dollar tenderloin for 3 meals--not too shabby if you ask me!

  I received another $5 off $15 coupon for Big Lots!  I used it to stock up on spaghetti, and noodles.  I was able to add 4 lbs of spaghetti, and 2 bags of egg noodles to my pantry stash this week and all for free!!  Now you may be thinking that I had to spend $10 to get the freebies but I include that in my grocery budget and buy sunflower seeds, pepitos (shelled pumpkin seeds which I love) and we love the Bear Creeks Soup mixes which they carry! So it is easy to find things we like and use there!

  I used my Kroger points to get $.60 per gallon off!  Saved about $5 on a tank!  We accrue points from our pharmacy purchases-We take a lot of meds!

  I stayed in budget for my groceries this week!  It has been pretty easy to do since we have 2 stocked freezers full of meat!  We need to be using what we have so I can stock up on turkeys and ham during the holiday season!

  The weather was nice enough to not turn on the space heater!  Still holding off on turning on the furnace!!! Yeah!!

  I found a brand new game at the Goodwill for just $2.  I will be putting it in the the box for the family we have adopted for Christmas.  Also found a nice storage container for my pantry.  I'll be needing it as I build up my pantry stash at Big Lots!  It cost $1.

  Well, that is about it for for us, What have you saved money on lately?

Frugal Blessings,
Lisa

Please pray for the innocent people involved in the Sutherland Springs Texas church shooting.  Such a shame!





Saturday, November 4, 2017

Wedding Pic's

As promised, here are pics of my youngest's wedding!
The wedding cake
The centerpieces

the hall all decorated

Gatsby Theme!

uncooperative ring bearer!!

the bridesmaids

the groom and his groomsmen

Giving the bride away!
The father of the bride!


The Dessert Buffet!


Vows
First Dance


Cutting the cake!







I hope you enjoyed the wedding pics--photo credit Sandra Wuertz!

Blissful blessings,
Lisa

Thursday, November 2, 2017

Tuesday, October 31, 2017

Happy Halloween!!



My work Family!

From Cruella and the dalmations!

Scary Blessings,
Lisa