July 2023 Frugal Chatter Thread

[Frugalbigmama]

Good Morning Everyone,
Slept in this morning, it has cooled down here and were supposed to get rain all day. This overcast day is not helping with my ambition but hoping this cup of tea I just made might find my ambition. Maybe it is more of a get some of the things done vs getting all of the things done type of day.

Yes, Body Wash has also gone up, we use Ivory and got lucky a couple of months ago someone had it for $3.99 so I grabbed 4 which will last us for a bit.

Working on next week's meal plan. Right now I am more focused on easy meals vs new meals in an attempt to get us back on track with Dinners. We did really well this week. But not going to lie some nights were like "Dinner, again? really?"

Now I need to work on lunches, I grab some sandwich meat so we can make sandwiches but won't be enough to last all week.

I gotta say, some days this food thing is so hard. This is why I need to get back on track and have things prepped and ready in the fridge.

Happy Saturday Everyone.

I hear ya on the food! I had popcorn for dinner last night. (leftovers were available but I came home at lunch and made a taco salad so I didn't want that again)

[walkonby]

I'm done. Nap time will soon follow soon.
DS had his dental appt for 9.m. so I dropped him off and hit NF. Didn't I TOTALLY forget that I had limited time to get in and out in order to get back to pick him up?
Almost at the end of the last aisle with a full cart and I suddenly remembered my DS!! Things never go smoothly once you try to hurry.
He had a small grin on his face as I pulled up and swore he was only out there about 5 minutes. That was sweet, what a liar! ha ha

[harbie]

Don’t feel bad @walkonby . On Thursday I was supposed to pick up Dh since I had the car (which I normally never take when I’m off). I was busy around the house and heard my phone going off with his ringtone and grumbled “ just come in and get your smoothie, I told you I wasn’t wanting to go to NF”. I decided to check the voicemail in case there was an emergency. Turns out I found to get him and he was worried I was in an accident. It was 4:15 and he was off at 3:30 . Oops . It happens lol

[coupon girl]

Doing the laundry -sheets today .

Having my younger brother and his wife over on sunday maybe bbq or takeout we will figure it out.
I must dust today also ,just finished a puzzle so away that goes.

[harbie]

Ok, need some opinions.

Produce. How do you prep it / store it to get the longest life span possible?

Do you wash immediately? Wash only when you’re about to use it? Cut up and stored in fridge?. Fancy “special” containers or just ziplock bags? Just want everyone’s opinions.

We obviously eat a vegan diet so everything is basically vegetables and we generally don’t have very much waste since it’s all we eat but I’m curious as to what others do.

I’m curious about things like:
Broccoli
Lettuce
Mushrooms
Apples
Green onions. Those types of things……

[SassyAshley]

@harbie , this is what I do:

Broccoli is cut up into bite-size pieces and put into a Container or Plastic Bag with a piece of Paper Towel to collect Moisture.

Lettuce is cut up, washed, dried and put in a Baggie with 2 pieces of paper towel to make sure there is no moisture.

Mushrooms are cleaned with a Paper Towel and put in a Paper Bag with a piece of Paper Towel.

Green Onions, I peel off any outer layers that look questionable cut off the ends if they are damaged and roll them in a Paper Towel in a baggie.

I find most produce stored in the fridge if it is cut up a piece of paper towel is the key to longer life as it absorbs the moisture which is generally what makes them go bad. I do use baggies generally for fridge space but also for lettuce I do not have a container large enough and for green onions, I do not have a container long enough. I will say if using a container a good air-tight container is key. I have Rubbermaid Stacking one I like to use and I have slowly as they go on sale started buying the Rubbermaid Brilliance Containers but they are $$$$.

I do not like pre-chopping Mushrooms or Onions. I find Mushrooms dry out, it is a texture thing for me. Onions I find just make the whole fridge smell. But I will pre-chop, Broccoli, Carrots, Peppers, Cucumbers, Lettuce, Celery, Strawberries, Pineapple, and Cantaloupe in the fridge so it is ready to go. For the most part with Veggies, I am looking for dump and cook on those busy nights.

I know you are vegan so does not apply to you but I do the same with meats, they are pre-prepped before they go in the freezer because I find if it is dump and go, I will cook. If I have to chop and prep everything then I turn to take-out or simple meals.

[harbie]

Thanks @SassyAshley I generally do the same as you but wrap a damp paper towel around the ends of the green onion roots or sometimes I’ll just cut them up so they’re ready for a meal.

I have some of those containers (probably not the Rubbermaid brand, I can’t remember) but Dh uses them for lunch or I use them for leftover storage so that’s a bit of a pain.

I’m always curious as to how people store things (fridge or freezer what humidity levels for the crispers, etc…) A friend told me she cuts up her green onions ( when sh has a garden abundance) and places them in the freezer for use later in the year. Never done that before.

[coupon girl]

Harbie i have cut up regular onions and freeze them for my soups later on when i make it.

I use a paper towel also after i wash my leaf lettuce ,berries etc.

Millers lite has been bought (boy beer is not cheap,we dont drink that often) and i bought a few vodka coolers peach,iced tea and tahiti treat(i use to drink that pop when i was a teen ,so excited to see this with vodka in it.)

Almost have the house all cleaned ,just have to dust and wash the floors on sunday morning.

Picked up my pills at rexall this afternoon and got (2) pkgs of 2 pairs of socks secret socks for $2.25 each =1.13 a pair and they are the roll down ones -for in with gifts for xmas .

[HermanH]

Ok, need some opinions.
I’m curious about things like:
Broccoli
[snip]
Apples

I spritz my broccoli with vinegar, to try and kill any fungus. I am cheap and should probably wash it in vinegar, for better results. I then put the broccoli/cauli in brown bags to wick moisture.

I have been told that a spritz of acetic acid helps them from turning brown. I just blend cut apples with fruit like pineapple, to share the juices. It isn't long-term, but it seems to keep them from going brown for a day or two.

[Angela273]

Our twins are having their birthday party tomorrow. It took a fair bit of doing, but 5 children are supposed to attend. Our twins turn 8 on Monday.

We’re planning to have the garage sale starting on Thursday. I was considering travelling for August long weekend to visit family but my older brother just took possession of his house and my younger sister’s grandma-in-law was recently diagnosed with terminal cancer.

[SassyAshley]

Good Morning Everyone,
Where did July go? I was working on my Bullet Journal and Budget Journal yesterday only to realize I need to start setting up next month's pages.

I am hoping to make next weekend an extra long weekend but I might get called into work. One location is concerned that they may end up short-staffed on Friday so if it happens I will get called in. As well another location asked for help so I considered just working but they worked it out and have coverage.

I got some random things done yesterday. I need to clean my house from top to bottom but to be honest I am thinking of just doing what has to be done and giving it a good clean next weekend when I have more time. I do have some work I need to get done as I was no one got back to me on a few things but they have to be done by Monday so guess I am doing what I think I should do.

I so did not feel like making dinner last night but we did not have any leftovers and I wasn't ordering take-out so I was going to make Sausages with Sweet Potatoes & some sort of veggie but my Sweet Potatoes weren't any good. So plan b, kept the Sausages, made Roasted Potatoes instead and decided to cook up the Corn I bought.

I will admit for the longest time I would not buy corn on the cob because I hated cooking it. I would always end up cutting it off the cob so I figured why not just buy frozen instead (which I do, that Costco bag lasts forever). But the last few times I have bought corn on the cob I have cooked it in the oven and OH MY game changer.

I need to finish up my grocery budget for the month, I know I am over on my stock-up budget my last Costco trip was bigger than planned. Those Cleaning Supplies and Pharmacy sales get me every time and put me over budget but at the same time, you cannot beat the price. But going to see if I have some extra in my Grocery Budget to grab a few "extras" like another bag of Sweet Potatoes and a large bag of Rice. If I have "extra" I will put them under July's budget instead of August's.

I am hoping for a Sale on Potatoes soon, I need to stock up.

Happy Sunday

[coupon girl]

Morning -just cut the front and back hubby did ,i whipper snipped the back .Still have to wash the floors .

Sassy i have not seen potatoes on sale for awhile i just paid 4.99 for a 10 pound bag .I liked when fortinos had them as a personal offer for 3.99.

Every one have a great day the sun is shining and it is not humid ,so i will enjoy our company later.

[lilo0003]

We saw the house Monday. It’s bigger than what we have now and needs some work but the location and the yard are perfect. Much of what is needs is cosmetic and will wait until we sell the Ontario home. We did run into a hiccup with the water test as it’s a well and the water failed so we need to make some calls to see what it will take to fix it because we need to renegotiate with the seller. I did pick up a few things for the kitchen Friday when Canadian Tire had a points event on. Then today I found a Corning ware French white casserole dish for 5.00 in perfect condition with the plastic lid as well and I know what these things cost so I scooped it up.

[HermanH]

Salvaged 4x pounds of Black Chana from the dump. It was bought in bulk bags and food banks won't take unsealed items.

Also found a couple of dropped onions in the RCSS parking lot.

[HermanH]

Cleaned up my mother's basement and found a can of Campbells vegetable soup. It must be 30+ years old. It is a size I've never before seen. 227mL. I opened it and it smelled okay, so brought it to a roiling boil for 10 minutes and down the hatch it went. If you never again hear from me on this board, you'll know that I did not survive the test.