Frugal February - day 17

Good Monday morning to you all

My house is in need of some cleaning this morning and I am working on that. 

It is warming up so I planted cherry tomato and flower seeds in the egg shells I've been saving.

The pigs and elephants are from Dollar Tree. They have tiny solar panels on their backs and when they are in sunshine, the pigs flap their wings and the elephants flap their ears. Dollar Tree makes them for some holidays. Last sping, their were dancing daisies and in the fall, their were scarecrows.

They are silly and make everyone smile when they see them wiggling.

The egg shells are just in old egg cartons on a thrift store tray to catch the water that spills. 

Part of my housework today is laundry. For 2 reasons, I am hanging some of the laundry to dry, either on a drying rack or in hangers in doorways.

It is cheaper (very little electricity used)

Our air is so dry right now, I hope as the clothes dry that it will moisturize the air.

We have an outdoor clothesline  but the wind is gusting to 40 mph today- so indoor drying is best right now.  

Before I air dry, I add liquid fabric softener to the final wash rinse and then the clothes get fluffed in the electric clothes dryer for 10 minutes. Even air dried, our laundry is soft and wrinkle free this way. 

Getting ready for a new decade

well, actually, I am just getting ready for the new month. I don't have a crystal ball to know what will happen in the new decade, but I am pretty sure that in January, I will be feeding my family.
I've been reading about the Eat from your pantry challenge and I think it is a good idea. I will be on a plan that works for us, just like Money Saving Mom says.
My goal will not be to just eat from the pantry, I like keeping a pantry stocked and hope I don't empty it. But I will be trying to stick to a $100 a week budget - yes, that is higher than some families spend but it works with our income and saving goals just fine.

So, I spent some time this week cleaning out, inventorying and rearranging the pantry.
One area I do plan to use down is our frozen food. We don't have a big freezer, just the freezer space on top of a normal size fridge and a small extra fridge. I made a list of everything frozen and was amazed at how much is in them.


I think we have plenty of nuts and dried fruits....

Aren't these old-fashioned jars nice? I got 8 of them from my son that likes to thrift-store shop.

My eat from the pantry guidelines
use up the frozen items
eat from the pantry as much as possible
continue eating our normal amounts of fresh produce and dairy
stock up if a great sale comes along
$100 a week budget

So, who is else is doing their version of the pantry challenge?

My homekeeping schedule

Because I like to craft & sew & blog, and I also like to have a clean, organized home, I came to the conclusion that I need some sort of a plan or schedule to keep me on track.
Sometimes I have been deep working on a sewing project, and then starting wondering about homekeeping chore and felt guilty for sewing when maybe I should be cleaning a bathroom.
I started looking online for a house cleaning schedule but did find any kind of printable schedule. Then I remembered that Sharon at Keeper of the Home has a her schedule on her blog. So I started with hers as a guide. But her home and goals are not exactly like my home and goals so I used added and deleted and customized a plan for me.
I've been working on it for about a month, trying to find a balance and an order.
None of the days are too full that if I miss a day or two, I can catch back up or even work ahead.

So, here's my plan as it works for me right now

homekeeping schedule

Monday
Clip and organize coupons
Laundry –clothes, towels - ironing as needed
Kitchen – deep clean and declutter
Errands if needed

Tuesday
Bathrooms – deep clean and declutter both
Vaccuum and mop all floors
Dust all furniture as needed
Baking and freezing as needed

Wednesday
Pay bills every other week
Dust and clean craft room-computer area
Empty all trash cans
Bank and errands if needed
Water plants

Thursday
Trash to curb
Laundry – clothes, towels
Plan menus, shopping list – Errands if needed

Friday
Laundry – sheets and remake beds
Bedrooms- dust
Floors – vacuum and mop as needed
Bathrooms – touch up
Bath for Theo depending on how stinky he is and weather permitting

1st week of month
windows and window seals as needed, shampoo carpet as needed
2nd week of the month
clean all appliances and set oven to self clean
3rd week of month
garage and vehicles
4th week of month
corners and baseboards

This schedule is just for the chores that keep our home running smooth. I don't schedule in things that I do everyday like dishes, cook supper, exercise, Bible study, things that I just do without reminders.
And if you are looking for a schedule of your own, please just use mine or Sharon's as a guide and work out one that works for you and your family. We are all different with different family sizes, home sizes, different incomes, different preferences - but I hope this plan can help get you started if you are looking for ways to get things done.


this is a picture of my Grandma, age 86 or so here, and my daughter Nina.(Nina is 25 now) They are both shelling peas - young and old. And can you see all the peaches in the background waiting to be put up?
I come from families on both sides that have always been busy and got lots of things done.