It was all about food preservation this week!  As you can see, it’s starting to crawl toward the edge of the counter–but I’ll let you know I took care of it before it fell off!

I did several more batches of zucchini dill chips.  I did 2 jars of cucumber dill chips, using the same recipe,  and 1 pint of dill pickles.  I finished and canned the sweet pickles.  It’s a 4-day process, with something to do both morning and evening for the 4 days.  Rob and I canned 7 quarts and about 22 pints of green and yellow beans.  I froze peaches and made peach jam.

I picked tomatoes, dill, basil, cilantro, potatoes, cucumbers, a lemon cucumber, numerous zucchini, snow peas, green and yellow beans, lettuce, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and a few carrots from the garden.  I picked peaches at my sister’s house, along with some wild blackberries.  She also gave me a small cabbage and some jalapeños.

I got bulk dill seeds for a much lower price than the little jars cost.  It did take 3 different stores, but I finally found some at Natural Grocers, of all places.  It was 3-4x the amount of dill seeds in the bulk package for less than 1/2 the price of the jar I passed up at the other stores.  I refilled my mustard seed from a large bulk package I’ve had for some time.

I got the KIND bar at Fred Meyers as my Friday Freebie.  At Safeway, I got a Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice packet for free.

Safeway had bone-in chicken breast for 79c/lb.  Ever since Jeannie, at GetMeToTheCountry blog told about canning chicken, I’ve been dying to try it.  I seized my opportunity and bought the 4 allowed packages.  As she did, I cut the chicken off the bone for Rob to load into jars, and boiled the bones with water to make broth.  Then, he watched the canner for the 75 minutes that were required, and we had 18 little jars of canned chicken.  We also canned 7 quarts and 6 pints broth. Broth is done in 25 minutes, but he still sat there and watched every minute.  That’s what we do when we are using the pressure cooker.  I was very low on broth, and was delighted to get that.  This was our first time canning chicken, but I’ve done broth numerous times, and I love having the convenience of canned broth on the shelf.  I don’t love paying the price for what is basically water and salt boiled with bones–it’s much more economical to make my own.

I used all the little jars Rob got for free last week at a garage sale.  There were way more than the 20 I estimated–probably closer to 35 or 40.  In the same box, I had not noticed the 3 boxes of small-mouthed jar lids.  I happily used them as well.  There were lots of rings, too, and many of them are nicer than the ones I had.

We watched Jake 3 days, and Michaela 2 days.  Among other activities,  I helped him make cupcakes and cake from a mix and some sprinkles that had been around for quite some time.  He had fun, and I was glad to send most of it home with him. Rob took Michaela to her volunteering activity and some other errands, and we took them to the YMCA to swim.  I let Jake play in the sprinklers with Patsy, and you would have thought I had taken him to the zoo or something, he had so much fun.

Watching the kids meant that we did the picking, most of the processing and especially the canning with the pressure cooker when they were not here.  So, I put in several early mornings and late nights.  I paced myself and did part of a job one day (like snap beans) and the rest the next (like the actual canning).  I have a couple of days to re-coup as their older sister, Caitlyn, wants to spend a couple of days with them while their parents are out of town.  She has the time, and misses them.  They were all here for lunch today, and we mapped out the week.  Once she goes back to work on Wednesday evening, Rob and I will take over, and it will be busy, busy, busy for the rest of the week.

We had stir-fry at least 5 times, with various veggies at times, but it always included zucchini.  We had chicken several times.  When I was in a big hurry, I just chopped off some of that not-yet-canned chicken breast and stir-fried it with zucchini and onion.  I used the last of my store potatoes to make mashed potatoes today because Alissa requested them.  I will use garden ones next. Lovana made zucchini cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and chocolate zucchini cookies.  I made a crock pot of Marinara sauce, using frozen peppers from previous years and canned tomatoes.  I used it 2 times with frozen chicken meatballs the needed using up.  I still have a bunch left to serve or freeze in the next couple of days.

I mended a swimsuit for my sister.  I have some more sewing I’d like to start, now that my machine is out:). I also have extra cleaning I’d like to get done.  There may be a little more preserving to do, although Rob has been gently asking me how many zucchini dill chips I think we need..even when some will be gifts:).   It’s still blistering hot, for a couple more days, so I’ll be glad to stay inside tomorrow.

Do you have any preserving or other money-saving projects you hope to do this week?

I continued cooking up a storm this week.  This morning I used the last of some clearance mushrooms in omelets for breakfast.  I put a little basil from the garden in with the eggs to give it a little different flavor.  Rob wasn’t sure what it was, but he liked it:)

We got gluten-free bread for $1/loaf at a salvage grocery store. We bought several.  I froze a few, and gave a couple to my sister.  (Mom, be warned–I’m sending a couple of loaves up to your house one of these days–hope you have freezer room).  At the same store, I got Enjoy Life gluten-free, dairy free chocolate chips for $1/bag.  If you need them, you know what they are and how much they usually cost–usually around $5/bag.  I’m not dairy free, but they work fine in cookies regardless.

I made a sandwich with the gluten-free bread, garden lettuce, ham, and some of those zucchini dill chips.  We opened and ate the first jar, because I don’t want to make them again if I don’t like them, but they were very good. They will improve with time, so should be terrific.   I’m glad, because the zucchini bushes are still producing heavily out there.  I picked them extremely small for these pickles, so bought myself a couple of days that I don’t have to pick any.  (I mean, over 35 in one week?  What’s next week going to bring with the hot temperatures we will have–either lots more, or they will slow down in protest.  Either way, I’m happy)

We were able to get together today for Family Sunday Dinner for the first time in a while,  due to vacations, etc.  Rob made brisket from the freezer, and I made coleslaw from cabbage my sister grew, zucchini and other veggie stir fry, sliced garden tomatoes, and canned corn.  There was also watermelon and drinks from others.  It saves us at least $100 every time we eat as an extended family after church vs. going out to dinner, and I doubt we could have taken the 14 people that came today out to dinner for that amount.  My sister’s family used to eat out a lot on Sundays, and is thrilled that we all do this now.

I will go grocery shopping sometime later in the week, but never found the time on either Friday or Saturday, my normal weekly shopping times.  The few items I picked up mid-week were enough. Since we are making out just fine, I’m concluding that I really didn’t need those other items on the list quite yet, so am just hanging onto the money until I really need them.  Having so much garden produce is really helping me stay out of the regular grocery store.

We have been pulling meat out of the freezers that has been there for a while and using it up.  This week, I used some very old turkey drumsticks and pork chops, along with the not-so-old meat and other items we also ate.  Both older items were just fine.

We continue to enjoy flowers from the yard and garden.  Patsy especially enjoys making bouquets.

Rob got a box of jam and jelly jars for free at a garage sale.  There are at least 20 in there. I usually give jam as gifts for Christmas, so am glad to have more jars for free.  The included pectin was from 2009, so I’m going to throw that away.

He found some items at yard sales that he has already listed and sold and made a small profit.

He also spent hours on the phone again, getting the insurance corrected–our new cards came with our old insurance still listed as an option on them–oops!  He was on hold for 2 hours, but prevailed and it’s all supposed to be fixed by tomorrow.   Once that is done for sure, he will spend the time needed to change our doctors.  The new insurance doesn’t cover our old primary care physician, and so we need a new one.  All of this is taking lots of time and effort, but is necessary for us.  We are very thankful to have insurance.  Between working with the kids, going to yard sales, and all these phone calls, he’s keeping busy, which is good.

We also spent a good amount of time cleaning in the shop one morning, and where we cleaned looks awesome.  We want to spend some time out there again very soon.  Whatever we find that we don’t need, we are getting rid of.  If we collect enough, we will have another garage sale.  If not, we will send it to charity.  He cleaned so much last winter that I don’t know if we have enough good stuff for another yard sale, or if what’s left would be better sold another way, or is just trash.  There’s only one way to find out!

I wouldn’t actually pay someone to sort my things at this point of my life, but am sure I am saving money by doing it myself vs. paying someone.  It does, however, make me feel very calm and cheerful when I get things cleaned up and tidy, and that’s worth a lot to me in other ways, all money-saving aside.  It’s part of thriving for me.  In fact, on Saturday, I cleaned the front room so well that Lovana thought we were having company!  It gives me a certain peace to sit down in a clean room.

How did your week go?  Did you get anything cleaned, sorted or any food preserved or grown?  Or do something else that you count as thriving or brings you peace?

I went to the garden with a large bowl, and picked every beet that was of good size.  I was hoping to get a big batch of pickled beets.  I got 2 pints:). Sometimes it turns out that way.  I am glad to have the 2 pints, though, and there are more beets that will grow larger.  It was odd because the ones that were large were getting quite large, and were needing to be used, and the rest were super tiny.

I used strawberries that were frozen in 2015, plus the small amount I picked from my bushes to make a batch of jam.  I am only picking a handful of berries at a time from my bushes right now, so will freeze them when I get them for smoothies next winter if they don’t get eaten on the spot. I was happy to use up the older berries in a yummy way.

I processed 40-50 lbs cherries into pie filling, canned cherries, cherry jam and frozen cherries.

I picked and froze more raspberries, blueberries and blackberries.  I weeded and hoed.  I planted a few more lettuce, snow pea and fall zucchini seeds. Towards the end of summer, my zucchini often succumbs to the powdery mildew so I usually plant another bush or two that will come on then and just pull out the bad ones.

We had a simple 4th of July celebration at home, and my aunt and niece came over for that.  We bought a very few fireworks, and my niece brought some, too, and the girls had a great time lighting them off.  Then, my niece was still wound up from the excitement, and didn’t want to take her dog home while others were still blasting off fireworks, so she, Patsy and I watched the movie, “Heidi” until 11:30.  We really had a good time.  I was a little tired the next day…..I’m not as young as I once was:)

We had a wonderful birthday breakfast with my Mom yesterday.  Rob and I went to a few garage sales later in the day.  I found several things that were on my list:  very small Rubbermaid containers with lids for 10c and 25c (somehow they have disappeared, probably due to the amount of lunches we take places and the fact that they are sometimes put in the microwave), a large tea ball that I will use for spices when I make relish and so on for a quarter, and some children’s books for 25c.

I got a dress for Patsy for $2. I’m very pleased with how far the clothes money I set aside last spring is stretching.  I got her a sweatshirt and 2 tops down at the beach last week, which were new and on great sales, but the rest have been from yard sales.  

The best find of the day, though, was a hiking backpack and mat for $10.  This will go to our niece, Alissa, as she was using a borrowed pack on the last trip and it was not adequate for the hike.  It was more like a day pack, and this one will hold enough items for the 2-night hike she is planning on joining in on next.

I am still searching for a few things, but am super glad with what I found so far.  It is taking time, but right now, I have more time than money.

I am very happy to report we now have health insurance.  My daughter actually had a need to go to the doctor, so that happened just in time.

This week will be pretty calm, as my kids are going to camp, and I will not have my niece and nephew until Wednesday.  I hope to get a few projects around the house done tomorrow and Tuesday.

I took Patsy to the library and they are no longer going to charge money to borrow DVD’s.  I’m super excited and will be checking their movies out ASAP!  We only saw the sign as we were checking out, so hadn’t even looked at them, as they have been $1 each to borrow the entire time we have lived here.  At our old house, we didn’t have hooked-up t.v. for 10 years, but instead used library videos because they were free there.  I’m going to check out their selection here and see what they have.

Yesterday, we had an open house for J’s graduation.  She bought this dress to wear with some birthday money she was given, plus her big sis paid for 1/2 of it as her graduation gift.

My sister and niece made fresh donuts, fried on the spot in the outside porch area.  I’ll take everyone’s word for the fact that they were delicious since they were made from wheat flour:)  Other family members brought food, as well, and I spent a few hours on Friday cooking up a storm.  Besides this dessert table, there were rolls, lunchmeat and cheese so people could make their own sandwiches, pasta salad, veggie tray, pickle rolls, and punch.  The new recipe I tried for mint-chocolate fudge was a real hit.  It was SO good, and used up a lot of powdered sugar.  I am still working through the 25 lb. bag that was purchased on accident last summer when Rob was in a real hurry one day.  (He was tearing through Cash and Carry and only saw the word “sugar” on the bag, so…..). It has ended up being handy for icing for birthdays, and now this fudge uses it.  I love having a good stockpile when I’m entertaining.

The croquet set got a good workout before the heavens opened up and it began to rain extremely hard.

It was so nice to see many family and friends, some of whom we have not seen for a long time.  After our party, Rob took Ja’Ana around to parties for 3 more of her friends.  I stayed home with Jake, and cleaned up.  (After arriving that morning, he informed me he would much rather stay with me than go with his parents to the 4-5 parties they were making the rounds to after our party–it worked for me and he loved playing with a little boy that came). We have a celebration to attend for 2 more girls next weekend, along with a birthday party for little Danait, our friend who is turning 4.  So, party season is in full force, but winding down, and my hardest part is now done.

Most of the week revolved around the graduation on Thursday, and the party yesterday, but we did put a celebration for Patsy’s birthday in there as well.

Michaela and I made cupcakes, and I cooked Patsy’s choice for dinner—spaghetti with sauce from a jar, with salad from the garden (that was my choice–she would have been happy with a huge pile of pasta alone).  It ended up being a meatless dinner, because I was in such a hurry, so accidentally more frugal than usual.

I did a lot of shopping, and was able to utilize sales, and also got some Ibotta dollars from my purchases.  I have yet to cash out any Ibotta money, I’ve been much too busy to figure that out, so I have just left it all in there, and will have a nice payout when I do.  I bought more eggs, even though I had lots at home because they were around $1/dozen.  They keep a long time.  I was approached by a fellow customer in Fred Meyers while I looked at strawberries for dipping, who told me not to buy them–they were much cheaper at Safeway.  Since I was headed there next, I held off and bought them there for 99c/lb.  No worries, I bought plenty of groceries at both places and got my free Friday item.  I used dipping chocolate I had gotten on the Whoo-Hoo rack after the holidays.  It’s gone now, but I was so glad to have it to make the celebration nice. I got strawberry cream cheese for free by shopping a sale and using a coupon.  I got mark-down blocks of cream cheese for $1.09/block, and got a 25c rebate from Ibotta for each one.  I got the 5 they had.  They keep a long time, too.  I found my favorite Good Earth Sweet and Spicy Tea for 1/2 price, and got 4 boxes. I found plain bagels marked down and froze them for Jake.  There was also a marked-down package of ciabatta which I got and froze for Michaela.  I got Yoplait yogurt for 3/$1 and had a coupon for a few cents off on top of that.

We received news on Thursday that Rob’s contract will not be renewed at work.  He and another lady from his class were not renewed due to “budget constraints.”   At least we know, and are not in limbo any more.  He has been applying for other jobs, and has an interview next week.  It took 80 applications and 10 interviews to get this job.  I’m not holding my breath, yet, but do trust that he will find the right job with the Lord’s help.

We are fine through the summer.  He has his part-time summer job, and we planned for the summer off.  I have my work, as well. Insurance is an issue, and I will work on that this week.  This insurance ends June 30.  God has given me deep peace about this.  I mean deep, firm, heart-filling peace.  I’m grateful for that.  So, we are continuing our summer as planned, but will be pinching pennies a little more than usual until he gets some more work in case it takes a little longer than we wish for him to find a new job.

I made 4 pizzas, and froze 2 for future meals.  2 ended up being combination and I used all the odds and end in the fridge of things like sausage with olives added, and the other 2 ended up being Canadian Bacon and Pineapple.  I made popsicles from the leftover pineapple juice, and the last few pieces of fruit in the can.

I made “egg muffins” which are basically quiche fillings, baked in muffin tins.  They can be heated up quickly in the mornings for a quick breakfast for Rob or myself.  He still has 3 days left, then he’s off.  I also made brownies, cookies, soup, and all that party food.  Today we ate leftovers.

I haven’t had much time to think about a menu plan, but want to make one up targeting the food that is now beginning to grow in the garden.  I have many plans of things I want to organize around here now that I don’t need to teach school.  I will have several hours a day that are now free for those kinds of activities, and I’m excited about that.  I will also be working more hours, as Michaela is out of school now, and Jake will be out on Wednesday, but there will be plenty of hours left over to organize with…..I hope:)

I picked the first small picking of snow peas.  The bushes are covered with blossoms and tiny pods.  I suddenly have lots and lots of great lettuce to use. I picked and used a whole handful of green onions in my cooking this week.

The raspberries and strawberries are just starting to ripen. My niece picked them during the party yesterday, and I let her take them home. There are many more coming ripe, and I thought it was so thoughtful of her to pick them.  They will produce more, and none will be wasted that way.  Other things are growing well, but are a ways off from harvesting.  We got a soaking rain today after heavy showers yesterday.  It was badly needed.  I can just see the plants perking up and can almost watch them grow.  It’s going to heat up again, and they should just grow and grow.

So, I will leave all of you with a picture of Jake in his new suit.  His mama got it for him on Tuesday for a choir concert he was in.  Sadly, I missed it, as I had car trouble on the way (that’s another story for another day).  He won’t stop wearing it.  He’s worn it to school daily since he got it, to Ja’Ana’s graduation, and to church.  He loves, loves, loves it and I think he is so cute in it:).