Frugal Happenings for the Beginning of November

All in all last week wasn’t a bad week.  It wasn’t a no spend week by any means, but everything that was spent was planned for.

Sunday October 28th
• We went to the library. I checked out a Christmas cookbook and handmade gift book.  I also checked out two books with information about glaucoma.
• My husband used to love a Hardees’ bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit.  I made him a homemade, gluten free version that he could actually eat.  He was so happy!
• I went to Walmart Neighborhood Market and picked up a few fill ins like milk and garden salad ingredients.  While I was there I noticed they had pimentos, which I haven’t been able to find for a while.  I picked up two jars for the pantry.
• I baked some cookies from our freezer slice and bake cookies.  I am pleased that I “guesstimated” about right on the amount I needed for October.  I have one roll left in the freezer.  Given that we were traveling one week, I’m supposing if we had been here we would have cooked those as well.

Monday October 29th
• We did a Sam’s Club run.  Not inexpensive, but I waited for their sales to start and picked up several items including two coffee pots that were on sale.  These were not from the food budget — one is for a Christmas gift and the other is a gift for my daughter for her first apartment — coming in next few months on both accounts.  Time’s flying.  I’ve already had experience with a less expensive version of the single cup brewers and it literally melted the top of the pot….so I consider this to be my best price for what I wanted.  I also picked up some household supplies in this run.
• I saw the eye doctor.  Surgery is scheduled for Wednesday on my right eye.
• We ate leftovers for lunch and then pulled a frozen pizza from the freezer for an easy supper.
• I ran the dryer for quilts and bedding.
• I started a new season of a mystery I watch on Acorn TV — a splurge for myself, but far cheaper than cable.

Tuesday October 30th
• I pulled some home canned items from the pantry for the last bean dish for the month of October.
• I spent the morning making out the November menu and preparing a grocery list.  Even though I know things will vary — that is life — I find we stick to the spirit of the menu if not the letter.
• I paid bills online saving on postage.


Wednesday October 31st
• In anticipation of surgery, I put stew in the crockpot.  I used my home canned pork, some home canned potatoes, and some frozen mixed veggies along with spices from the cabinet.  Normally we have a family chili night that my sister hosts so I was a little bummed about missing that.  I put an Aldi brand GF cornbread mix out (along with the needed bowl/pan/measuring utensils/etc) so my family could pull together a quick bread for us.

Thursday November 1st
• I really didn’t do much of anything this day.  Lunch was leftovers and we had a simple supper of pancakes and bacon.

Friday November 2nd
• I was feeling much better and worked on some light household chores.  We went out to vote, opting to go to the closest location to save on both time and gas.
• We cooked the last roll of cookies from our freezer prep session.
• We opted for a quiet night of BritBox mysteries, and I was asleep quite early.

Saturday November 3rd
• We picked up groceries from Walmart — taking advantage of the free pickup service.  We are set for the month other than a few fresh items and dairy.
• I ran laundry and hung what I could to dry.
• I put on dried black eyed peas in the Crockpot early in the morning. I served them with leftover cornbread from earlier in the week.
• I used the air fryer to make some homemade Doritos — an experiment using  food storage cheese powder and various spices.
• I made us a late night snack of pepperoni and cheese biscuits (think similar to Red Lobster type biscuits) in the air fryer.

The Bottom of the Bowl

We tried our hand at using the air fryer to make homemade Doritos.

They need a little tweaking before I share the recipe, but they weren’t too bad.

November’s Supper Plans

My eye surgery went well, but I’m still glad I planned a simple supper for tonight.  The next surgery will be Tuesday, and I may be switching that day out with something else.  Perhaps I’ll trade it with the day before.