Cath's Meal Plan 20 - 26 March 2016

A stash of sandwiches in the freezer, ready to toast make a very easy meal

This coming week, in the lead up to the Easter holiday, we'll be eating from the freezer to keep meals easy and to stop the urge to just buy something ready made. Life here is still hectic with visiting Mum twice a day so I'm opting for anything easy. All these dinners are in the freezer, even the sandwiches - they just need to be toasted. If it's cool there's soup in the freezer we can have with them.

I try to keep a stash of made sandwiches in the freezer ready to just put in the sandwich press or under the grill. They're handy for quick lunches or easy dinners.

Some of our favourite fillings are:

cheese
chicken, cheese and pineapple
ham, cheese and mustard
chicken, sliced brie and cranberry sauce
chicken, ham, corned beef or roast beef with coleslaw, cheese and sweet chilli sauce

If we want tomato we add it to the sandwich before toasting, it goes soggy in the freezer. The coleslaw is fine to freeze if it's dry - if it has dressing on it add it just before toasting the sandwich.

This week we will be eating:

Sunday: Roast Lamb

Monday: Salmon quiche & salad

Tuesday: Lamb fritters with sweet chilli sauce & salads

Wednesday: Nachos

Thursday: MOO Pizza

Friday: BBQ steak, salad

Saturday: Toasted sandwiches

Cath's Meal Plan 13 - 19 March 2016

Sorry for the late posting everyone, it's been a very hectic few days and going to get busier methinks. My mother collapsed on Thursday morning,she's had a mild heart attack and developed a severe infection and I've been with her at the hospital most of the time since then.

That of course means that some of our meals have been completely off the plan. Tonight I bought a chicken and some coleslaw for tea as we have visitors staying this weekend, thankfully they like freezer meals because the last three days have cleaned up the freezer meal stash :)

So this week we will be eating a modified meal plan:

Sunday: Ham and salad

Monday: BBQ sausages and salad

Tuesday: Spag bol using sauce ready made from the freezer and garlic pita

Wednesday: Tuna Surprise

Thurday: Moo Pizza

Friday: Fish cakes (freezer) and salad

Saturday: Muffin Surprise

The ham, sausages and spag bol sauce are in the freezer. Tuna Surprise is easy and whoever is home at tea time will make it. Last time I made fish cakes I tripled the recipe, made them just a little smaller and was able to freeze the leftovers - enough for three meals. They just need to be thawed and warmed. The bacon for the Muffin Surprises is in the freezer too.

There are plenty of vegetables in the fridge and pantry to round out the meals. I won't get any new baking done but there are muffins and a ginger slice in the freezer if anyone desperately needs a sweet hit and thanks to a generous friend the fruit bowl is full to overflowing with delicious fresh fruit.

This week has shown me yet again that having a meal plan and well stocked pantry, fridge and freezer is worth it. It would have been very easy on Thursday and Friday night to just buy tea on my way home from the hospital, but it would have cost close to $50 for all of us - $100 for two dinners is about my monthly grocery budget at the moment and just not going to happen.

The chicken I bought tonight was marked down to $5.60 and the coleslaw was marked down to $3, so while the cost wasn't planned it wasn't outrageous and with extra salad veg and some bread it was a really nice meal.

With a modified and simplified meal plan in place everyone will be fed and I won't need to spend any extra money either. Meal plans and stockpiles are wonderful.

Cath's Meal Plan 6 - 12 March 2016

Corn fritters - cheap, quick, easy and tasty, just right for an easy dinner

We are a family of four at the moment, so I've been able to cut back on serves. I've trimmed my recipes back to four serves instead of the five I usually make. This means we haven't used as much food as we normally would, a great saving for the grocery budget and the stockpile.

The timing is perfect, as we're having visitors over the long weekend and because I've been able to cut back for two weeks I won't need to buy anything extra to cover extra meals over the long weekend. The stockpile and grocery budget won't suffer :)

This week we will be eating:

Sunday: Roast Beef, baked veggies, broccoli, corn, gravy

Monday: Corn fritters & salads

Tuesday: BBQ sausages, salad

Wednesday: Pan-fried sandwiches & salad

Thursday: MOO Pizza

Friday: Haystacks

Saturday: BBQ & salads

2016 31 Days of MOO No. 3 Rosemary Salt

Smashed potatoes with rosemary salt, garnished with fresh rosemary

This is one of my favourite ways to preserve the bright flavour of fresh rosemary. Rosemary salt takes about five minutes to make and can be stored indefinitely at room temperature. Try it on roasted potatoes, chicken and lamb.

Rosemary Salt

Ingredients:
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
2 tbsp rock salt, slightly crushed with a mortar and pestle (or use Kosher salt if you have it)

Method:
Mix together the finely chopped rosemary and the salt.
Pack into a clean glass jar.
Cover and store at room temperature away from direct light or heat. Shake the jar every couple of days. The salt is ready to use after two weeks.

31 Days of MOO No. 2 - All-Purpose Glue

This is a great all-purpose glue that isn't toxic, making it ideal to use with little ones. It will stick paper and card like a charm and washes out of clothes.

All-Purpose Glue

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons glucose syrup
1 teaspoon white vinegar
2 tablespoons cornflour
1 cup water x 2

Method:
Place 1 cup water, glucose syrup and vinegar in a pot. Bring to a boil. In a separate bowl mix the cornflour with 1 cup cold water and mix well. Slowly add the cornflour mixture to the boiling mixture. Stir constantly until thickened. Remove from heat to cool completely.  Store in an air-tight container and the glue will keep for approximately 7 days.

31 Days of MOO No 1. Veggie Burgers

Have you priced veggie burgers from the deli or the chiller cabinet at the supermarket lately? They are expensive - over $3 each! This recipe makes six for less than the price of one. It's quick and easy too. Best of all you can make the patties ahead of time and keep them in the fridge until you're ready to cook them. They'll keep for two days covered in the fridge, perfect for those busy days.

We love them as burgers with salad and grilled pineapple, but they're good as a savoury part of a meal, hot or cold. If they're hot I make a gravy to go with them and sever them with sweet potato chips and broccoli (no idea why, did it once, everyone at it all so I've kept doing it) or cold with salads and a sweet chilli mayo. They're great for the end of your shopping cycle when veggies may be looking a little sad and limp - use them up and turn them into something delicious.

Veggie Burgers

Ingredients:
2 slices wholegrain bread, crumbled
Several leaves of fresh Italian parsley, chopped
1/2 cup fine, dry bread crumbs, plus extra for coating
3/4 cup grated tasty cheese
1-1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped green or red capsicum
1/2 cup frozen corn kernels
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon chili powder (or less to taste)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup solidly packed mashed sweet potato
1/3 cup ricotta
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup plain flour
Egg wash

Method:
In a medium-size bowl, mix together the crumbled bread, parsley, bread crumbs, and grated cheese. Set this aside. Heat the oil in a medium-size frypan over medium heat, then add the onion, pepper, and corn. Sauté the vegetables until soft, about 7 minutes, stirring often. Mix in the garlic and cumin and cook it all for another minute. Remove the pan from the heat and spoon the contents into the bread crumb mixture.

In a large bowl, mix together the egg, sweet potato and ricotta. Add the bread crumb mixture, stirring thoroughly, then season with the salt and pepper. Flour your hands, then shape the mixture into six 15mm thick patties, using about 1/3 cup for each one. Dredge the patties in plain flour, then egg wash, then in bread crumbs and refrigerate them for about 1-1/2 hours.

Melt the butter in a large frypan, transfer the patties to the pan and fry them over medium heat until they turn golden, about 4 minutes on each side. Remove them from the pan and serve right away. Makes 6 patties.

Note: The crumbled wholegrain bread is essential to the texture, and prepared bread crumbs shouldn't be substituted. Put the bread slices out for about 30 minutes to air-dry, then crumble them by hand, with a serrated knife, or in a food processor.

Super Easy, Super Cute Easter Baskets

Use them for Easter, for birthday parties, to hold small gifts - these very cute, super easy little baskets are quick and inexpensive and a great way to use up that stash of paper or cardstock you have.

Make them larger, from 30cm cardstock, line them with a paper doyley and they're perfect for delivering a gift of home baked muffins or biscuits too.

You will need: 
18cm square of heavy paper or cardstock
1 x 30cm  strip of paper or cardstock 2.5cm wide (handle)
2 brads
Fancy scissors (optional, but they give a pretty edge to the baskets)

Step 1. Score your paper into three columns 6cm wide. Then score three rows 6cm wide. You'll have a grid of nine squares on your paper (see the template).

Note: You can make these baskets any size, as long as your square can be divided into nine equal sections.

Step 2.  Cut the decorative edge along the edges parallel to the red lines (see the template).

Step 3. Cut on the red lines.

Step 4. Fold the paper on all score lines, with the decorative side to the outside.

Step 5.  Punch a hole in the centre of each end of the basket handle about 2.5cm from the edge. Punch a hole in the centre of each end of the strip of paper for the handle about 2.5cm from the edge.

Step 6. Fold the two corner squares so they overlap each other and the centre square on one side of the basket. The centre square should be on the inside of the corner squares.

Step 7.  Punch a hole in the centre, through all three layers, about 2.5cm down.  Put one end of the handle between the two corner squares and the centre square, and attach a brad through all the layers. Repeat for the other side.

The Week that Was 28/02/2016

I haven't spent any money - or rather any of my money - this week. I have had a shopping fix though - AJ wanted new clothes and of course I took Mum grocery shopping on Thursday. Looks like I'll end No Spend February with only 5 days of spending!

Finished the trim on three face washers for the bathroom.

Sprayed the pavers with white vinegar to keep the weeds down. Used the outdoor broom to sweep away the dead weeds.

Dropped off and collected the ironing from Mum. Gotta love a free ironing lady :)

Called Medicare re a refund that hasn't come through after almost three weeks. It appeared the next day. It pays to keep an eye on things like this. It's easy to forget to check when they're supposed to go straight into your bank account. This was a considerable refund too - $78.

All the washing was done in cold water, using Cheapskates Washing Powder and line dried.

We all caught the cold water in the showers in buckets. I used it to water the pot plants and the fruit trees - no rain last week.

Sprayed the citrus trees with MOO white oil.

Picked, washed, processed and bagged zucchini, capsicum and eggplant from the garden and froze for winter.

Finally managed to make fig jam.

Finished making pasta sauce - all done now for another year or so - 61 packets of pasta sauce in the freezer.

Trimmed the tomato plants - they're still flowering so I'm reluctant to pull them out just yet.

Pulled out the zucchini plants.

Made Whole Orange Cake into cupcakes, choc chip muffins and a boiled fruit cake.

Filled the car up with petrol when it was 93.7c - total spend $57 for the fortnight. Put $13 into the petrol slush fund.

Made a few more cards before I packed the craft things away.

Collected an empty box from the supermarket to use as a template to make storage containers for craft papers. Square containers large enough to take the 30cm papers are up to $43 each! Even the $2 containers from cheap shops are out of my budget so these cartons may be the answer.

Sorted, tidied and cleaned the craft drawers without spending any money on storage containers. I re-purposed some I already had and scrounged others for free. Donated a big bag of excess craft materials to the op shop.

Bought lots of grapes @$1.99/kg and more bananas @ 50c/kg for the fruit bowl. This is a big saving, when there is fruit to eat I don't need to bake. The fruit seems to sooth everyone's sweet tooth and it's better for us.

What I hope to accomplish this week:

Sort and tidy the spice cupboard - this is a priority job, it really is out of control (I seem to have a mental block about this chore, it just keeps hanging on)
Plant mini cabbage, mini cauliflower, broccoli seeds
Stocktake both bathroom cupboards - Done with inventories!
Start getting winter clothes ready and summer clothes ready to be put away

Please don't Feel Sorry for my Family

To the couple who recognised me in Coles this week, I'm sorry you chose to make snide comments behind my back rather than introducing yourself and chatting. I don't bite, I love to meet new people and I would have been very happy to chat to you for a few minutes and perhaps show you that my family hasn't missed out on a thing through living the Cheapskates way.

So please don't feel sorry for my family, there's absolutely no need.

Instead, turn your "sympathy" to the families living with the stress of debt, who are struggling to make ends meet; to the mothers who work because they have to and not because they want to; to the children who spend more time at day care than they do at home because their family can't survive on a single income and to the people who've never learnt to control their spending and therefore spend their lives a slave to debt.

I can assure you that yes, I am a Cheapskate, but my family has never suffered for it.

Our children were educated in private schools.

They all played sports.

They had music lessons.

Hannah had art lessons.

They were always well dressed, often in brand name clothes and shoes.

Our children always had Christmas gifts and birthday presents. They always received an Easter egg (or two).

They didn't miss out on school photos or excursions or camps.

They all went to youth group at our Church and participated in the activities.

They had birthday parties every year until they were 18.

So far both boys have had 21st birthday parties (Hannah turns 21 this year and is already planning her party).

Both boys have completed university without any debt at all. They own their degrees clear. Hannah is still training and finishes in July this year and will be debt free.

They had their mother at home when they were home. I was able to drop them at school and pick them up in the afternoon. I was able to help out in the classroom and tuckshop and go on excursions.

We always managed to have family holidays.

We live in a home we like, in a suburb we chose because we like it.

We are now a two car family - my daily drive and Wayne's 4WD.

We eat very well - better than a lot of far less frugal families.

My family hasn't suffered because I'm a Cheapskate.

Instead, they have had things and experienced things that they never would have if I had a different attitude towards our money.

We made a deliberate decision to change our attitude to money. We took a long, hard look at our lifestyle and realised that there were lots of things we didn't really enjoy or want that we were spending money on. Then we made the decision to ditch the things that weren't important to us so we'd have the money to enjoy the things that are.

It was important to us that one of us, as parents, would always be available to care for our children.

It was important to us that we spend time together as a family, doing things that would make lasting, happy memories.

It was important to us that our children have the education we wanted them to have.

It was important to us that we create a family home we wouldn't want to leave.

Have we made sacrifices? I suppose so, if you call not eating out or having takeaway every week a sacrifice. Or perhaps not having pay tv (we don't miss it at all). Maybe you think owning our cars and driving them for years instead of updating every two years is a sacrifice. We don't. Perhaps shopping for quality pre-loved clothing is a sacrifice - it's not. AJ had Billabong jeans he picked up for $12 from the op shop - the same style was still selling at Ozmosis for $110!

Maybe you feel it's a sacrifice to eat home cooked meals, prepared from scratch with fresh food. My family loves my cooking, they can tell when something isn't homemade and they let me know they don't like it.

But perhaps you believe is the biggest sacrifice is to live on a budget; you haven't yet realised that you should  control your money, it shouldn't control you.

So please don't feel sorry for my family because I'm certain that they're feeling sorry for you.

Cath's Meal Plan 28/2 - 5/03/2016

Yummy vegeburgers: healthy, delicious and cheap

This week we will be eating:

Sunday: Roast Chicken

Monday: BBQ & salads

Tuesday: Mexican meatballs, rice

Wednesday: Meatloaf with BBQ sauce & salads

Thursday: MOO Pizza

Friday: Sweet & sour chicken & fried rice

Saturday: Vegeburgers & salad

​Cash or Debit? Depends on the Total

When I go shopping for anything I wait until the total is rung up before I decide to pay by debit card or pay cash (sometimes I know beforehand). If the amount is rounded up when cash is paid, then I pay by debit because it is an exact amount and I therefore pay less. If it would be rounded down, then I pay cash. This saves me up to .02c every time I purchase....not much but it adds up. Living the Cheapskate way has meant that because I am so conscious of spending now I virtually don't have big issues to worry about. As the old saying goes "Look after the pennies and the pounds look after themselves"....well nearly.
​Contributed by Wendy

Upcoming Blog Posts

I've been inundated recently with requests for blog posts on all sorts of things. Everything from starting a stockpile to growing winter veg to creating shopping lists and tackling bulk freezer cooking. Wow!

I've created a list and I'll be working my way through it over the next couple of months - and yes, it will take me that long, but I'll get there and you'll have the posts you've requested.

Here's the list, in no particular order, and they probably won't be written or published in this order either:

Banana-less banana bread recipe
Recipes for a Really Tight Budget - or what we're eating this year
Baked Rice Custard recipe
How to Start a Stockpile on a Tight Budget
Restyled Leftovers
Eating out without going broke
Sauce tomatoes and what to do with them
Please don't feel sorry for my family
Am I Australia's most boring grocery shopper?
Crumble
Freezer cooking on a budget
How to write a shopping list that works
Making meal plans fit the food budget
How my OCD tendencies save us money
Card making for beginners on a budget
Is it cost effective to make soap?
Is it worth your  time? Hourly rate v cost
Writing a first spending plan
How to dry onions
How to save when there's no spare cash
Easy soap recipes that are safe to make at home
How to decide what veggies to grow and how many
Living on a low income without feeling deprived
The Best way to get Started Bulk Shopping
How to shop monthly and make the fresh food last
Best cheap skin care and make-up on the market
Camp Oven Cooking
Go with the Flow

There will be no particular schedule for these posts, they'll appear as I get the time to work on them, but now you know what's coming up.

If you'd like to see a post about some other aspect of living the Cheapskates way, let me know in the comments below and I'll do my best to oblige.

​Not So Flat Batteries

​
Batteries are the bane of my life!

OK, that's probably an exaggeration but they always go flat at the most inconvenient moment and then seem like such a waste of money to me. As a family we don't have too many battery operated items these days:

• the mouses for our computers
• the kitchen clock
• the loungeroom clock
• my labeller :)

There are batteries in our cameras too, but they are rechargeable (thank goodness, they cost a fortune to replace). And of course our phones, again rechargeable.

We swapped to wind-up torches and a wind-up radio a few years ago and they're brilliant. We have a torch in each of the cars, one each in our camping bags, one in the camping food box and Wayne keeps one in his tool box in the car. We use the wind-up radio when we go camping and feel the need to catch up with the rest of the world (doesn't happen often though :) ).

When the kids were small we had a few battery operated toys and we switched to rechargeable batteries for those. We asked for batteries and a charger for Christmas one year and Wayne's Mum gave us one of the best gifts we've ever had.

Now they're grown up and we don't have toys in the house any more so our battery use and cost has gone down considerably.

Next time the battery in my mouse needs changing I'll keep it for when one of the clocks slows down and try Lynette's tip.

Not So Flat Batteries

Approximate $ Savings: $4

I have been throwing out my batteries to a light I have in the toilet, I had a idea this last time to try them in my wall clock and my clock is still working a month later with the same battery I would have thrown out. Then my alarm clock needed a new battery so I used the other "flat" battery and it is working fine two weeks later. I have saved buying two batteries. My next lot of batteries I will keep are my from my small torch to see if they will work as well. I am amazed that instead of throwing them out I have them still working in another item.
Contributed by Lynette Stewart

Creamy Pasta Salad

A post over on the Saving Revolution FB page reminded me of this recipe. I make it on average once a week during summer, my family just loves it. Hannah takes it to work for lunch and it's good enough to eat as a stand-alone salad.

Best of all it's so much cheaper than the Mrs Macs pasta salad sold at the supermarket deli counter.

I'm sure I've posted it before because I have a photo, but it could be in the Recipe File rather than on here. Anyway, here it is. It's really good, really tasty and can be as inexpensive as you want it to be - just adjust the veggies to suit what you have in the fridge.

Creamy Pasta Salad

Ingredients:
250g uncooked medium sized pasta
1 med size carrot, grated
1 stick celery, chopped
1 medium spring onion, white part discarded, finely chopped*
1/2 red or green capsicum, diced
2/3 cup grated tasty cheese
1/3 cup finely chopped parsley
1 x 300ml bottle ready made coleslaw dressing (Praise traditional*)
3 heaped tablespoon sour cream
Add or delete whichever ingredients you don't like
 
Method:
1. Cook pasta in boiling salted water, drain and chill
2. In small bowl, combine the coleslaw dressing and sour cream
3. Combine pasta, vegetables, cheese and coleslaw dressing mix
4. Season and Chill and VOILA!!

*I use either Kraft Coleslaw Dressing or Zoosh Coleslaw Dressing - they're almost identical in taste and they give the salad a really nice flavour.

*If I don't have spring onions, I use brown or red onion finely diced.

A Really Tasty, Really Simple Pasta Sauce

Bulk homemade pasta sauce using tomatoes fresh from the garden

I've been making pasta sauce for the last week. I've had a batch in the slow cooker every day and night, there was even a batch cooking during our card making day. So far I've bagged 49 two-cup packages of pasta sauce, almost enough to last us a year. And, because I've been using my own home grown tomatoes, that 36 litres of pasta sauce has cost under $8.

The recipe I used is below, a bulk version of my Sensational, Simple Homemade Pasta Sauce. It's for a six litre slow cooker and you will end up with around five litres of pasta sauce.

Bulk Sensational, Simple Homemade Pasta Sauce

Ingredients:
3 kg tomatoes, peeled and roughly chopped*
1/2 cup olive oil
3 tbsp crushed garlic
3 tbsp crushed basil
3 tbsp oregano
3 tsp salt

Method:
Heat the oil in the bottom of the crock pot and sauté the garlic until it is golden.  Add the tomatoes, basil and oregano and stir. Put the lid on and cook on HIGH for 8 - 10 hours**. Stir. If the sauce is thick and rich, it is done. If not cook for another 30 minutes and stir again.  Let the sauce cool. Use a stick blender or food processor to puree the sauce.  Portion it into sterilised, saved jars, freezer containers or zip lock bags and freeze.***

This makes the equivalent of 4 jars of commercial pasta sauce.  The cooking time will depend solely on your slow cooker. Newer slow cookers are actually very fast compared to the original models, so watch your sauce and when it reaches the consistency you like it's ready.

I use this sauce as the base for other pasta sauces, adding additional seasonings depending on the recipe. It also makes a lovely pizza sauce and is delicious with just a sprinkling of mozzarella and grated parmesan cheese.

Notes:
*Tomatoes - I use our home grown tomatoes so I know they are pesticide free (or as close to as I can get, I don't use chemicals on my garden) so I don't peel the tomatoes. I wash them then chop them roughly and cook them down. The skins are then softened during cooking and disappear once the sauce has been pureed.

**Cooking time will depend on the tomatoes - sometimes they are really juicy, sometimes not - and your slow cooker. Modern slow cookers actually cook a little faster than the older models. When the tomatoes have cooked down and the sauce is thick enough to stick to your spoon it is done.

***Storing: I bag in two cup lots in ziplock bags and freeze. You can bottle the sauce  and process in a hot water bath if you prefer shelf safe storage.

The Week that Was - 23/02/2016

I didn't post an update last week, it was a busy week, with the Adelaide workshop happening on top of  a lot of other things. Let's just say it was a very busy week and I'm glad it's over.

This past week has been busy too, but usual busy.

I've made lots of pasta sauce. So far I've cooked 30 kilos tomatoes and bagged and frozen it in two cup lots.

We've continue to save shower water for plants, or adding to the washing machine or washing the floors. Someone asked me about using cold water to wash the floors - it's not! It goes into the steam mop to do the kitchen, bathroom and laundry floors on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. On the other days I either tip it into the washing machine or use it to water the pot plants.

Cooked all our meals from scratch.

Bought broccoli for 99c/kilo. Five kilos blanched, portioned into meal sizes, vac sealed and into the freezer for winter.

Bought bananas for 39c/kilo. We're eating them this week instead of the other fruit. The apples will keep in the fridge for another week.

Bananas for 39c a kilo, a welcome bargain and blessing for our grocery budget

Used my mad money to buy a leg of lamb from Tasman. At $6.99/kilo it's the cheapest lamb has been around here for a long time. And it was a treat for Wayne. Sliced and froze the leftovers in gravy for another roast lamb meal next month.

Gratefully accepted some rosemary from Joy. I used some on the lamb roast and it was delicious. I keep opening the jar and smelling it. Freshly dried, it smells so much better than what you buy from the shop.

Carol brought us a big bunch of rhubarb and made Wayne's day. I used it to make a rhubarb crumble last night and Wayne has called dibs on the leftovers.

Wendy brought two big bags of groceries with her on Saturday. Some yummy cereal for me (and I'm keeping the single serves for when we travel for workshops ;) ), and my favourite tea (no longer available in Australia :( ) and a real treat that the boys just loved - kabana.

A gift of groceries from Wendy, including my very favourite tea that's no longer available in Australia

Maureen very kindly brought Wayne a gift of a Puffing Billy DVD, a train magazine and a beautiful model steam train that was her father's. He's still overwhelmed at her generosity and kindness and he's watched the DVD twice already. I know it will get at least another screening when his Dad arrives in a fortnight :)

Spent the day on Saturday with six wonderful friends, lots of talking, drinking tea, and laughing and a little card making done.

Some of the cards made at the February card making day

What I'm hoping to accomplish this week:

Pull out zucchini plants
Process any zucchini that are left
Trim the tomatoes
Finish making pasta sauce with tomatoes from garden - done at last!
Baking - whole orange cake, choc chip muffins, Lunchbox Cookies, boiled fruit cake
Make fig jam - waiting on figs from Mum's fig tree
Trim the roses along the driveway
Sort and tidy the kitchen dresser. Donate unwanted/no longer needed items. - done
Sort and tidy the spice cupboard - this is a priority job, it really is out of control
Sort and tidy the craft drawers - started. I keep getting distracted by ideas for blog posts and stopping to jot them down!

February Card Making Day

I've given in - no more straight sentiments on my cards :)

Last Saturday was the second card making day for 2016 and it was full on.

We started at 10am to give everyone time to work on current projects, do some embossing, punch some shapes or use the die cuts.

Pamela as always did a brilliant job of teaching us how simple materials we'd normally throw away can be turned into the most beautiful embellishments or even stand alone gift cards and tags. Maureen's were just gorgeous and she's posted photos of them in the Members Forum.

We had grand plans to get four cards made - oops.

I think we all managed to make at least three, including this cute pop-up balloon card. It was so easy to make, and quick too the second time. I've made three all together, that's how easy they are. No special tools required although a balloon shaped punch helps.

I've since finished this card with a stamped "happy birthday" sentiment on the inside

The scrap cards are anything but. They may be made out of scraps but they all looked sensational. I loved Carol's fan shaped card and have copied her idea using up scraps of pink and green paper I had. It's easy to do, just rectangles cut in half on the diagonal and stuck to a card starting at the centre and working out. Once all the paper pieces have been stuck on trim the edges with scissors or a blade. Add your embellishments and a sentiment and it's done. Working quickly it takes less than 10 minutes, working slowly you'd be hard pressed to stretch it out to 20 minutes, perfect for those times you need a quick card.

I've added a sentiment and some bunting to this card to finish it off - I'll post an updated pic soon.

The swap table was overflowing this month. Joy brought some beautiful rosemary that I used on Sunday night, our lamb was delicious. I keep opening the jar to smell it, much nicer than bought from the supermarket.

Anne gleefully received a huge salad/mixing bowl Carol put on the table, I can still see the smile on her face.

Pamela was able to take some glasses for her grandchildren (and I was glad to see them go, so much more space in the cupboard now).

Lots of groceries courtesy of Wendy.

Joy and Maureen brought lots of coloured paper and off cuts of cardstock and I think we all took a share.

Lots of embossing was done. Wendy and Pamela brought their Big Shots and I had the Cuttlebug out. Everyone brought along punches and dies to share. I think that may have been the most enjoyable part of the day for a few of us ;)

But really the highlight of the day was Maureen's sponge. We all enjoyed it and Wayne was a little excited to see there was some left that he had for dessert.

There were only seven of us this month, but we certainly produced a lot of work, especially considering the amount of talking and laughing we did.

I think this "scrap" card is my favourite from the day

And now I'll be waiting patiently for the March card making day, I'm just busting to learn some new techniques courtesy of Pamela.