some good….. one not so good.
Burnng computer….not good.
I was burning a candle and I guess one of the boys pushed it a little too close to the computer… so when I pushed the monitor back to take the glare off the screen, I pushed it right over the flame… not long after I smelled something. Strange, but it registered really fast what it was. Thankfully, nothing on the computer, aside from the case was damaged. OOPS!
Sewing….good…
Feeling crafty… I had decided early in October that a couple of the gifts I wanted to give this year were going to need to be sewn. I don’t have a sewing machine so I planned to use my friend Jenn’s. But when I was looking for something in one of the closets in our basement home, I noticed a couple sewing machines tucked away. I asked Diane if I could use one. I need to stop here and tell you that I have only sewn a few times in my life and always with my mom’s help. She would always wind the bobbin and thread the machine for me so all I had to do was point and sew. Well, this sewing maching had no thread on the bobbins and the machine itself wasn’t threaded. So I found the manual online and following the directions I wound the bobbin and threaded the machine myself…. and it even worked. You would be proud mom. I didn’t even get frustrated. I didn’t have a pattern for my project ( a couple of bags to hold the gifts I am giving my nephews) so I started out and just did it. Each one is different and imperfect (hopefully no one looks closely) but it sure felt good to get it done. It was fast too. There really is something about successfully tackling something you have always felt really incompetent at. Lots of things that my mom had told me during our brief sewing sessions came back and I created something out of nothing.
Didn’t realize that the pattern was going the wrong way until I was already done, but it was so easy I may get some more material and start again, but then again maybe not. Don’t judge.
Large bag to hold the duplo legos we bought for Sean for Christmas off of ebay… cheap, but with no lego container.
Frugal Dinner……good
I have been really working on cutting back our food budget and trying to use things we have on hand to create our meals. This months experiment was to make a menu plan for the month shop once and live off of the food for the month. It worked pretty well and ultimately I think I saved money, but I did have to go to the store every week for things like fruit/veggies and milk. I didn’t keep track of the specifics so I can’t say for sure about the savings. I will probably do this again (plan for the month) but I will keep out some money so that each week I can buy the fresh stuff we need. I really enjoyed having all the meals planned out (I planned 19 dinners, froze some breakfast items, planned lunches) and having all the ingredients on hand allowed me to pick what sounded good that day. Keep in mind that pretty much all I planned had to be cooked in an electric skillet or in the crockpot. Having the menu planned kept the stress off of daily needing to come up with something to cook, which is often the worst part of cooking in general.
So on to tonight’s dinner….
BBQ beef sandwiches- roast was buy one get one free and I cut them in half and frozen them. Probably 2.00 a half. BBQ sauce- Free (part of a white elephant gift from B’s christmas party)
Rolls- .89 clearance after Turkey day- frozen/then thawed- still good
2 Cans of green beans- .39 a piece- like my hot plate?
Jello singles with little M&Ms- yes they are in repurposed yogurt containers (I don’t have very many bowls and cups out) – .50 I had a coupon- M&Ms about .97. The boys thought it was a fun treat. Except for Eyob who wouldn’t eat his beans and so didn’t get the dessert. So that was a pretty cheap and tasty dinner. Sure it lacked the fresh veggies, but you win some and you lose some.
All in all, it was a productive day, except for the computer. See you tomorrow!
I’m so proud of you! What fun things you are making – and without a pattern! The more you make, the more you’ll learn – mistakes are valuable teaching tools. 🙂 I look forward to seeing more of your creations…and…eating your yummy dinners.