The Week that Was 13th August 2017

The Week that Was 13th August 2017

I had lovely long chats with Annabel and Wendy this week, via messenger of course, as we can't easily get together in person. If someone had told me 22 years ago that I'd be so comfortable with technology that I'd be chatting to a friend in another state or one who lives about 25 minutes away in another suburb I'd have laughed. Back then I couldn't program the VCR (I still have a bit of a problem with double recording on the DVD recorder today!).  So, other than paying for our usual monthly internet connection, those chats were free. It really is good to be alive in 2017.

I did lots of baking to feed the hungry hoards, fill the freezer and keep the house warm. Cup cakes, chocolate slab cake, coffee cake, sausage rolls and four loaves of bread fed us this week.

Simplicity Coffee Cake

Made 30 Minute Buns for our hamburgers last night. This was a new recipe that I adapted to suit our tastes and it makes great burger buns. I'll be posting the recipe soon.

Made burgers "with the lot" for tea last night. Burgers at our local fish'n'chip shop are $9 each! I made the five burgers and a side of wedges for less than the price of one. That's $41 we didn't spend on takeaway food, plus the cost of petrol to go and pick them up. And my burgers really are better with my secret burger sauce :)

Juiced more lemons and froze the juice in ice cube trays.

Fresh lemons waiting to be juiced

Used lemon peels to make lemon scented cleaning vinegar. Using this vinegar to wipe over benches and bread boards, baths and basins, leaves a lovely fragrance through the house and it costs nothing extra to make, you use the peels from lemons you've juiced.

Used lemon peels to make lemon scented air freshener (just add clean lemon peel to a bottle of rubbing alcohol and let it steep for 3 - 5 days). I love the fresh smell of citrus, especially lemon, in the house. It's wonderful during winter when the windows and doors are mostly closed and the fresh, cold air is blocked.

Dried the washing by the fire on Monday, then outside in the wind and sunshine on Wednesday and Thursday. The wind leaves the washing so soft, even the jeans are softer when they're line dried on windy days.

Opened the windows and back door on Thursday when it was warm to let some fresh air into the house. It was windy, so they weren't open wide, but the breeze was lovely and really freshened inside.

Worked on some crochet projects for the present box.

Some crocheted projects for the present box

Made 12 cards for an order. They were a combination of easel cards and twist'n'pops.

Gratefully and happily listened to the rain on the roof. It filled the rain barrel I use to water the garden, watered the garden of course, and softened the ground which made weeding and digging so much easier.

Cooked all our meals from scratch.

Stuck to my grocery challenge and bought just milk this week.

Hannah and I went op shopping. Oh the bargains we could've had if we'd taken all our spending money with us!

I splurged on four large Moccona coffee jars for $1 each. I couldn't believe the price, these jars are getting almost as expensive second-hand as they are new and full of coffee. They went straight into the dishwasher and then into the present box. I really like these jars because the seal comes off the lid if you are very careful, so you can get the whole jar clean before you gently put the seal back into place. I also bought some linens and a basket I had asked the ladies to put aside for me.

Combined a few errands into one trip on Friday. It took about 3 hours all up, but I was able to cross all errands off my list and get in a few extras. This was a time saver, as well as a petrol saver. If I hadn't combined the trips and done a loop, there would have been six separate trips next week! It pays to think and plan ahead, even for shopping and bill paying.


What did you do to save money, time and energy this week?