Friday Things, Some Frugal

So today I had my "come to Jesus moment".  As I sit here after a day's worth of errands, I ask myself why in heaven's name I am walking around all day-especially when for the most part I could be ordering for delivery or at least for store pick up and cut my timing, and my walking down by about eight percent. 

Because as some of you know, walking (for exercise) or working out is not the same as walking on various hard surfaces, getting in and out of the car (even one at butt height), standing in line on hard surfaces and just general errand misery. Said after arriving home and downing two Tylenol arthritis, water and elevating my feet a teeny bit (I find I do better with footstool type elevation than recliner style).

And then to ad insult to misery, I came to look at one think I bought to get it in other colors, and one thing to see the online price before I bought it. Both were at least to forty percent less online with free in store delivery. Which might not be worth the cost for someone in the country, but I just add that to things like my clicklist pickup and get said errands done in an hour instead of five.

Meanwhile, this week on the mainly frugal front.

1. After reading this, I downloaded three coupons to my Sprouts app. Tomorrow I can now pick up a free bag of mini peppers, a free frozen creme brulee, and a free bag of cookies. Now when I go to pick up my lamb at 4.99 a pound, I'll also pick up these freebies! Sprouts can be a very expensive store, but they have really good sales on meats. Especially on lamb, wild salmon, and chicken tenders (which we substitute for breasts).

2.  To date I have NOT purchased all the fabric that was listed on my local next door. I can always use fabric, certainly. But (and there is one more huge box not shown and some more thread) eighty bucks for pieces of fabric that I am not sure of the size seems a bit hefty. She said if I didn't want it she would put it out at her yard sale tomorrow, so I may invest in a few pieces then without grabbing the whole pile. 

3. Depending on the energy level after today's debacle, I have two free local events tomorrow. The Paris Flea Market at my local outdoor mall (which really has crafts and food and everything, including fleas) and a huge Farmer's market nearby. Cheap self entertainment as  well as meeting my goal of a festival or farmers market every week.

4. One of the advantages to belonging to groups (and organizations I guess) is that besides the socialization, it's a chance to learn new things. For free or really cheap with membership. Next week we are going to learn how to crochet necklaces together in my knitting group on Wednesday, and my quilt guild (which has an annual fee), has an upcoming quilt show (free entertainment if I don't by from vendors), and a lecture and workshop on making the quilt shown below. 

5. On the unfrugal front, today's groceries (more on my monthly shop idea later) included an order from Schwan"s (chicken pot pie, crag cakes, shepherds pie, and so on).  This is my week to be in charge of the food and hosting when the Family Promise homeless families sleep over at my church, which leaves no cooking time at home except for the son's day off when he will cook burgers and such.

6. I finally opened the umbrella over the patio. And realized I had ordered a seven foot umbrella that had to be pushed up, rather than a crank. I can no more open a push up seven foot umbrella than I can cook paella (though I sure can eat it), so back to the store went the umbrella, where I picked out another one with a hand crank that was twenty dollars more. Still frugal, because something you can't use is wasted money. I had to settle for blue stripes rather than multi stripe.

7. I drove right by the Krispy Kreme across from Hobby Lobby and Kohl's. A win for my health as much as my wallet, and I took my weakness instead to A&W where I had a plain hot dog and diet root beer float (yes, there is such a thing). 

8.  More of a downsizing thing than a frugal thing, my daughter told me today that she would love my eight piece set of Christmas dishes. They've been sitting around for years since I no longer host Christmas and for the rest of December I prefer to use my pottery dishes and Christmas colors. Frugal in the sense of getting stuff unused out of the house and into good hands.

9. I spent an hour today and yesterday on the swing, while the dogs played. We have a new family behind us with four, count em four dogs, and so the dogs visit with each other for hours on end. Me, I didn't do so much as read today. And no, this has nothing to do with frugality, good or bad.

This weekend I plan to start on that patriotic thing (a table runner for the plant table by the window), wander out to the farmer's market and festival, bake something my brother's been asking about (that kinda sorta egg tart thing-totally unhealthy), and read the next book in the Nevada Barr Anna Pigeon series. Oh, and start posting on either Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook on a regular basis.

With luck, Making it Monday will have some finished and partially finished projects to share.

Happy weekend.