Friday, December 30, 2016

This Week's Frugal Tasks Saturday 31st December 2016

I hope you all had a wonderful week enjoying the Christmas festivities.   I've been quite busy this week doing lots of bargain shopping at the Boxing Day sales.  I've found so many bargains and made a big head start on next year's gift list.

At the moment we have Darren's dad staying with us.  He's bought his big telescope with him.  We'll be doing a little star gazing and planet gazing while he's here ( clear skies permitting ).

I received a new camera for Christmas from Darren.  The camera I'd been using was falling apart and I'd been struggling to use it for 18 months.  Due to all my shopping this week I'd almost forgotten to set it up and take photos for this blog post.  Here's what we've been up to and a few photos I've taken.

*  Sold two dozen eggs to a neighbour.

*  Fed the compost bin with kitchen scraps.

*  Baked peanut butter choc chip biscuits to give with birthday and Christmas presents.  I made a double batch of the dough and froze most of it for future baking.

*  I went to the Boxing Day sales at Fountain Gate Shopping Centre.  Jessica and I were there at 7.45am to get the bargains when the shops opened at 8 am.  I wasn't going to shop this year but I'd found lots of card making stickers and ribbons in the discount shops before Christmas.  On Boxing Day they were all half price.

*  Bought a pair of sandals at 1/2 price.

*  Used a gift card for Katies and bought two tops when they had their 50% off storewide sale on Boxing Day.

*  Saved lots of washing machine and shower water for each next load and to water some plants.

*  Emptied water bottles onto the mango plants.

*  Picked handfuls of raspberries,  strawberries and boysenberries.

*  Made lots of egg custard with leftover egg yolks from a dessert Megan made.

*  Bought a tester bottle of aftershave at a heavily discounted price on Boxing Day.  It comes in a plain box but doesn't look like it's been used.

*  We've had four days of humid weather here in Melbourne.  We have evap. cooling in our home so it doesn't work as well in this type of weather.  Instead of turning up the cooling,  we used electric fans to help keep cool.

*  Kept the curtains closed when it was hot.

*  Saved a piece of wrapping paper that can be used in card making.  I also save all ribbons from the presents.

Our first apricot growing

We have a couple of mandarins that have set.

The lettuce is ready to pick

Tomato plants are growing
 My Boxing Day Bargains bought at half price

Christmas dish cloths

Card making supplies

Christmas bling stickers

More ribbon $1 per roll

My father in law's telescope.

Our table setting

 A present from Jessica's boyfriend.
  
What was on your frugal list this week ?  Did you pick up some bargains ?

Tuesday, December 27, 2016

A Blogging Break

Hi everyone.

Just thought I'd let you know I'm taking a short blogging break to enjoy some time with my family.  My father in law is visiting us from Tasmania for a couple of weeks.  Darren is hoping to go on some fishing trips with him.

I'll be spending  time doing the family budget for 2017,  making crafts for my Etsy shop and getting a few blog posts written ahead of time.

I hope to post something each Saturday.  It might be the frugal tasks I do or a couple of links to previous blog posts that might be of interest at this time of the year.

Please feel free to read the other articles I've written or leave a comment.

I'll be blogging again towards the end of January  xoxo




Friday, December 23, 2016

Frugal Tasks, A Year In Review And Merry Christmas.

I've kept my days quite busy this week.  I worked two days cleaning homes,  then did a fair bit of sorting,  cleaning and organising around my own home.  The garden needed a little weeding and watering too. Here's what else I got up to this week -

*  Made a big batch of pita chips with pita bread that was given to us.  These will be great with dips,  cream cheese and camembert cheese over the holidays.

*  I went to Spotlight earlier this week.  They had 50% off all Christmas decos,  craft and material.  I stocked up on lots of ribbon for crafts and card making.  The ribbon was 60% off.

*  Saved the shower warm up water for the pot plants.  Saved the washing machine rinse water for each next load of washing.

*  Picked our first two peaches of the season.  We also picked boysenberries for the very first time ( just a few ),  lots of raspberries and strawberries.

*  Darren picked lovely pink roses from our garden for my bedside table.  They are the first thing I smell when I'm waking up in the morning and the last thing I smell as I'm drifting off to sleep.

*  Refilled the Miracle Spray bottles around the house.

*  Baked four loaves of wholemeal bread with extra goodness.  I used recycled bread bags to store the loaves in the freezer.

*  Gratefully accepted lots of bread bags from a charity bbq.  I turned them inside out,  decrumbed them and hung them on a clotheshorse in the sun to dry.

*  Darren and I picked up a few Christmas decorations last Sunday at 50% off.  They are a lovely light mint green and dusty pink / mauve color.  These will be the colors on our tree next year with silver.

*  Lined the bathroom bins with lots of recycled bread bags.

*  Made a batch of strawberry and apple jam using our strawberries,  lemon juice from our lemons and sugar given to us.

*  Refilled the foaming hand wash bottles with diluted shower gel.

*  Refilled a conditioner bottle and added water to the almost empty bottle to get every last drop out.

A Year In Review


Well, 2016 is coming to an end.  I must admit it's been a challenging year to get through. We lost a good family friend to cancer early this year.  Darren and I found it hard at times to keep going with our goals but we did manage to get a few things done. I'll be glad to start 2017.  It will seem like a fresh start.

Here are some of this year's highlights -

*  In January Jessica bought her first car.  She'd been saving since she started work at 14 1/2.  Her hard saving paid off and she paid cash for her three year old car.

*  Megan received her leaners permit  on her 16th birthday in January.  She's had fun driving to school and work on the weekend.

*  Cath and I travelled to Adelaide in February to help promote the opening of Aldi in South Australia. We had approximately 35 people attend our guided shopping tour.  We also had  fun catching up with Annabel,  Tania ( Outback Tania ) and a few Cheapskate Club members.

*  Jessica got her drivers licence in March.  That's when Darren and I started going even greyer.  It's hard to let our kids grow up,  but grow up they must.

*  During May I filmed a story for the Channel Nine News.

*  August came around and we had a new kitchen installed as well as new flooring throughout our home.  New lighting was installed too.  We were glad to say goodbye to bare light bulbs and hello to down lights.  Darren installed new colonial skirting boards too.  Our home was packed up and moved from room to room during these big renovations.

*  Towards the end of August a group of mums ( including myself ) set up The Crafty Mums Co op Etsy online shop.  We've been busy making and selling our cards and crafts.  Thankyou to everyone who visited our store.  Thankyou to our customers who bought our goods and for the wonderful reviews.

   
Once again I'd like to thank all of my blog and Facebook readers.  I appreciate all your comments and feedback on the topics I've shared.  We've become an online family who learn from each other.  I get a thrill to hear from overseas readers too.  We have quite a few readers from New Zealand,  America,  Canada and England.  The world seems quite small when we can chat and share our frugal tips.

May your Christmas be a joyful one shared with family and friends as we celebrate the birth of Jesus.


Ribbon bargains

Pre Christmas sales

In the garden

Our first peaches of the year


First ever boysenberries

Our Year In Review Photos

Soap making

Knitted dish cloths

Hand Towels for the Etsy shop

Jam making

Pumpkin soup

Darren's hot cross buns

Old kitchen

New kitchen


Crafts

Cards for sale on Etsy

Christmas crafts

Sunday, December 18, 2016

Planning A Christmas Menu On A budget


With Christmas just around the corner,I thought it would be good to repost this article I wrote last year. I'm sure you have all been very busy decorating your home and Christmas tree with special ornaments. Table runners, candles and Christmas lights can also bring the festive feeling to your home.   A couple of months ago I  started planning my Christmas Day menu too. Although I want this special day to be perfect, it is so easy to go overboard with the food.

Providing two meats, a couple of salads or roast veggies and two or three desserts is all that is needed to satisfy the hungry souls at your table. The more you have to choose from, the harder it is for the eaters to choose. How to fit it all on the plate ? There is only so much you can eat at one meal and many people travel from table to table ( family home to family home ) in one day.

Also, the more you provide, the more likely you are to be left with leftovers for a week. To avoid gastro,  food should be refridgerated between courses and consumed within 2 - 3 days of cooking. You are less likely to forget what is left in the fridge if it is consumed within a small time frame.

I've cooked traditional and casual Christmas lunches in the past. Here's what I've provided for my guests

TRADITIONAL

roast lamb served in gravy
roast chicken
roast potatoes, pumpkin and carrots
cauliflower and broccoli with white sauce and cheese on top
mint sauce
sticky date puddings in muffin size with caramel sauce, cream and icecream

CASUAL ( BBQ )

rissoles
bbq steaks ( cut into smaller pieces )
sausages
mushrooms and onions
bread stick
green tossed salad
potato salad
pasta salad
plum pudding ( no name ) with home made custard, cream and icecream
mini pavlovas ( home made ) with cream and berries


Both have been hugely successful and everyone is full and satisfied. The casual meal had a lot more leftovers. We just ate salads and sausages for the next two days. The best thing about these meals is that I have most of the ingredients on hand already so there are no grocery blowouts. The only extra expense is the meat and a few veggies / salad things. 







Friday, December 16, 2016

This Week's Frugal Tasks Saturday 17th December 2016

As we get closer to Christmas,  our days are getting busier.  There are last minute presents to wrap,  extra food to prepare for parties,  lots of work drop offs for Megan and general tidying around the home and garden.  Here's what else we got up to this week -

*  Dried most of the washing on the line.  A few things needed to be thrown in the dryer.

*  Picked approximately 920 grams of strawberries from our patch.  Picked a few handfuls of raspberries too.

*  Sold two dozen eggs to neighbours.

*  Sold a card from my Etsy shop.

*  Cut up a cereal bag to use as go between for chops etc.

*  Saved the shower water to water our pot plants.

*  Saved and washed some plastic containers from cobs of corn given to us.  These containers will be handy when I need to take baking to a party etc.

*  Saved all the washing machine rinse water for each next load.

*  I did the monthly food shopping this week.  Because I've been stockpiling for the Summer months on my $200 a month grocery budget,  I didn't need to buy too much.  The saved money is going into the grocery slush fund.

*  I only put in $15 worth of petrol into my car.  Petrol prices are so inflated at the moment so I'm just putting in a little bit of petrol here and there until the price drops then I'll fill up .

*  Jessica has started present shopping for 2017.  She's taking advantage of the sales and stocking up.

* Saved some colored cord from damaged gift bags.  I found a tutorial on Facebook that shows you how to make gift bags from wrapping paper.  The saved cords will come in handy when I make the bags.

*  Started writing out my list of wanted items for the Boxing Day sales.

*  Saved the plastic wrapping paper from a bunch of flowers Jessica received.

*  Jessica has been busy buying little presents for her friends.  He needed quite a few small gift bags to place then in.  after ricing them at the shops ( anywhere from 50 cents to $2 each ),  she decided to have a look at what we had at home.  She was able to reuse lots of jewellery gift bags that were the perfect size.

*  Cooked all meals from scratch.

*  Cleaned out my garden / household shed and donated some items to the op shop.  I received a discount stamp for the goods.  


Our "display" stockings

Strawberry haul

The boysenberries are slowly ripening.


The lettuce is getting bigger

Two mangoes have set on one of our trees.

Corn cob containers I saved.

   Has your week been busy ?  

Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Grocery Specials Wednesday 14th December 2016

I've noticed lately that the catalogues are full of rubbish food and overpriced Christmas goodies.  For this reason I will not be publishing any more grocery special posts until after the New Year.  If I see a great stockpile worthy item I'll mention it in the weekly frugal tasks posts each Saturday.

Here are this week's best grocery specials -

COLES -

*  Mars Maltesers 360g, M&M's Peanut 440g or Celebrations 300g1/2 PRICE Was $10.00, Save $5.00  Now $5.00 each

*  Cadbury Favourites or Mini Blocks Boxed Chocolates 320g1/2 PRICE Was $12.00, Save $6.00  Now $6.00 each

*  Sakata Rice Crackers 90g-100g1/2 PRICE On sale for 2 weeks.Was $2.40, Save $1.20  Now $1.20 each

* Arnott’s Shapes Crackers 160g-190g or Savoy Crackers 180g-225gOn sale for 2 weeks.Save $2.00  Now 2 for $4.00

*  Praise Dressing 330mL1/2 PRICE Was $3.50, Save $1.75  Now $1.75 each

*  Praise Mayonnaise 365g-410g1/2 PRICE Was $3.40, Save $1.70  Now $1.70 each

*  Sandhurst Pitted Kalamata Olives 500g1/2 PRICE Was $4.75, Save $2.38  Now $2.37 each

*  Fountain Tomato or Barbecue Sauce 2 Litre1/2 PRICE Was $6.00, Save $3.00  Now $3.00 each

*  Golden Circle Tetra Fruit Drink 1 Litre1/2 PRICE On sale for 2 weeks.Was $2.15, Save $1.08  Now $1.07 each

*  IXL Jam 480g On sale for 2 weeks.Was $3.50, Save $1.50  Now $2.00 each

*  Creative Gourmet Frozen Fruit 300g1/2 PRICE Was $5.65, Save $2.83  Now $2.82 each

*  Willow Cooler 25 Litre1/2 PRICE On sale for 2 weeks.Was $42.00, Save $21.00  Now $21.00 each.  These coolers make fantastic presents.

*  1/2 PRICE Bonds

*  30% OFF Nivea Womens Skincare

*  40% OFF OGX Haircare

*  Duracell Coppertop AAA Batteries 16 Pack or AA Batteries 20 Pack1/2 PRICE Limited Edition Christmas Bulk Packs.On sale for 2 weeks.While stocks last.Was $25.00, Save $12.50 Now $12.50 each

*  Cold Power Laundry Liquid 2 Litre or Laundry Powder 2kg1/2 PRICE Was $16.50, Save $8.25 Now $8.25 each

*  Morning Fresh Dishwashing Liquid 900mL1/2 PRICE Was $6.95, Save $3.48  Now $3.47 each

*  Streets Magnum 4 Pack-6 Pack 360mL-468mL1/2 PRICE Was $8.00, Save $4.01  $3.99 each.  Well worth buying a few boxes if you can hide them in the freezer.

WOOLWORTHS -

*    Lindt Lindor Balls 142-154g Now $6.25 each1/2 Price, Save $6.25

*  Golden Circle Drink 1 Litre Now $1.07 each1/2 Price, Save $1.08

*  Ferrero Collection 172g Pk 15 Now $6.00 each Better than 1/2 Price, Save $6.60

*  Raffaello Ballotin 230gWhile stocks last. Now $7.50 each 1/2 Price, Save $7.50

*  Filled Profiteroles Pk 8*Only available in stores with an in-store bakery.Now $2.50 each 1/2 Price, Save $2.50

*  10% off All Kogan

*  20% Off All Facebook, Spa & Wellness and Xbox Live 3 Month and 12 Month Subsciption Gift Cards

*  30% off All Decorations, Lights, Hats, Stockings & Woolworths Cards

*  McCain Frozen Peas 1 kg Now $2.14 each1/2 Price, Save $2.15

*  Nestle Choc Melts 290g Now $1.92 each1/2 Price, Save $1.93.  Well worth stocking up.  Also check to see if the choc bits are on sale too.

* MasterFoods Tomato or BBQ Sauce 500ml Varieties – Excludes Aussie Grown and Flavoure Sauce 500ml Now $1.42 each1/2 Price, Save $1.43

*  Always Fresh Pitted Kalamata Olives 670g Now $3.80 each1/2 Price, Save $3.80

*  Praise Traditional Mayonnaise 490-555g Now $2.10 each1/2 Price, Save $2.10

*  Paramount Red Salmon 210g Now $2.99 each1/2 Price, Save $3.00

*  Always Fresh Baby Cucumbers 350g Now $1.75 each1/2 Price, Save $1.75

*  Praise Dressings Varieties 330ml Now $1.74 each1/2 Price, Save $1.75

*  Moccona Caffitaly Capsules Pk 10 Now $2.75 each1/2 Price, Save $2.75

*  Schick Hydro 3 Razor Now $4.75 each1/2 Price, Save $4.75

*  Schick Hydro Silk Kit Now $7.50 each1/2 Price, Save $7.50

*  30% off All Maybelline

*  Pantene Shampoo or Conditioner 900ml Now $7.85 each1/2 Price, Save $7.85

*  Schwarzkopf Extra Care Shampoo or Conditioner 400ml Now $3.44 each1/2 Price, Save $3.45

*  Schwarzkopf Brilliance Hair Colour Now $7.19 each1/2 Price, Save $7.20

*  Energizer Max Batteries AA Pk 10 Now $6.58 each1/2 Price, Save $6.59

*  Energizer Max Batteries AAA Pk 8 Now $6.79 each1/2 Price, Save $6.79

*  30% off All Inspire Bakeware

 
 
 
 
 
 
   
                    

Sunday, December 11, 2016

Planning Your Boxing Day Shopping

I'm a planner,  thinker and list writer.  Most of all,  I LOVE to get a bargain. Getting the most out of your budget requires a little forward thinking to get the best deals.

I've been Boxing Day shopping for at least 18 years when Jessica was a toddler in a trolley while I scoured the half empty shelves in department stores on Boxing day.

I'm getting better at grabbing the best deals without mindlessly buying rubbish or going over budget. So before you get ridiculously busy with present wrapping,  parties and food prep for the big day, take a few moments to plan how you'll tackle the Boxing Day sales ( or stay at home ).

Here are a few handy hints I use to get lots of bargains -

*  Write a list of everyone you'd like to give a present to next year ( and further into the future ).  Don't forget to include anniversaries,  Valentine's Day ( if you celebrate ),  Mother's / Father's Day and Easter.

*  Write a $$$ amount beside each name making sure you can afford to buy for all the people on your list.

*  Are there any gifts you can make ?  If so,  do you need supplies to make these gifts.  Make sure you add the supplies to your Boxing Day list.

*  Start looking in the shops now as you do this year's Christmas shopping.  Are there items that you just know won't sell out before Christmas because the stores are over stocked ?  These items will be on sale on Boxing Day so make sure you add them to your shopping list with the store name and original price.

*  Christmas decorations are at rock bottom prices leading up to Christmas and on Boxing Day.  Do you need to replace old decos ?  Are you needing to build up your stocks ?  Are you wanting to try a new color next year ?  If so,  write the color on your list.  I've rarely paid full price for decorations. Most I've made or have been bought on clearance.

*  Serviettes, paper plates,  bon bons,  tea towels and hand towels should be planned for in advance to avoid paying ridiculous prices for something red and green.

*  Christmas material will go on sale with up to 75% off after Christmas.  Do you need new Christmas stockings,  table cloths,  table runners,  aprons,  place mats or bunting ?

*  Perfume will be cheaper after Christmas and the best deals can be found at chemists.  Who needs perfume and aftershave on next year's present list ?  Do you need to buy for general use as well ?

*  The discount,  cheap, $2 shops are great for Christmas craft ribbons,  decos and anything Christmas.  While most people are hunting out bargains in the big department stores,  you could be buying the best bargains ever.  Have a look now at what the cheap shops are stocking.

*  Keep an eye out for Boxing Day trading hours.  This can be a very important piece of information.  Plan which store you'll visit first depending on who is open first.

*  Gift tags,  wrapping paper and Christmas cards should only be bought on Boxing Day and the days after.  Are your stocks getting low ?

*  How many Christmas hams can you fit in your freezer after Christmas ?

As you get closer to Christmas,  your list should be forming quite nicely.  Just remember,  only buy what you can afford and what you can use in a reasonable time.  Don't forget to wear comfy shoes and take a water bottle and something to eat.

HAPPY SHOPPING  !!!








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Friday, December 9, 2016

This Week's Frugal Tasks Saturday 10th December 2016

I've had a productive week this week.  I had an order for two sets of aqua  / silver angel decorations. So I spent a couple of hours relaxing in the family room crafting away. Darren and I spent a few hours making Christmas cards together.  I'm proud to say that Darren made the star for the card, stamped the front and cut out the ribbons.  I did the assembling, gluing and stamping on the inside.

I've made a few trips to the shops for presents and a few trips to the post office to send off a couple of Etsy orders.  Here's what else I've been up to this week -

*  Bought six legs of lamb at $6.99 kg.  Each leg feeds the four of us for two meals.  This means we get roast lamb once a month for the next year.   Now I'm waiting for lamb chops to come on sale.

*  Picked up lots and lots of paint sample cards from Masters Hardware store.  As most of you know they will be closing down in the next week or two.  I asked at the service counter and the lady said I could take 5 - 6 cards of each color.  I only picked colors I could use in card making.

*  Netted our feijoa tree with some netting I found in my shed.  Suddenly the birds have taken a liking to the tree this year.  I don't know what they are doing in the tree but I don't want the flowers disturbed ( I want the fruit to grow ).

*  Sold two school text books.

*  Sold four Christmas angel decoration sets to friends.

*  Dried all the washing on the line and clotheshorses.

*  Sold a couple of items in my Etsy shop.

*  Saved the washing machine and shower water as per usual

*  Sold four dozen eggs to the neighbours.

*  Picked a small handful of raspberries each day.

*  Darren picked two bowls of strawberries from our patch in one day.  About four days later I picked another bowlful..

*  Kept the heater off for most of the week.

*  Jessica used a few recycled gift bags to put her friend's presents in.

*  Refilled the shampoo and conditioner bottles and added some water.  I also found a few almost empty shampoo bottles in the girl's shower.  I added the contents to the nearly full bottle.  My girls won't notice a difference.

*  Cooked all meals from scratch.

*  Took water bottles and muesli bars with me when I went Christmas shopping.

*  Made up a bottle of diluted Dynamo laundry liquid.  I also bought a big bottle at half price and diluted it straight away.

Darren loves his reindeers

Christmas angels I made for an order


Our Christmas card for 2016



From the garden.
What was on your frugal list this week ?

Sunday, December 4, 2016

Egg Custard

Egg custard has been a family favourite in my family since I was a little girl.  Mum loved to make it when we were recovering from an illness.  Wind the clock forward a few decades and I've continued to make this delicious custard for Darren,  our girls and myself.  We don't wait until someone is sick though.  If we have too many eggs or milk that needs using in a hurry then egg custard is our dessert of choice.

2 eggs
600 mls of milk
2 tablespoons of sugar
2 tablespoons of cornflour

Extra 100mls of milk


Add the eggs,  milk and  sugar to a medium saucepan and whisk well to combine over a low / medium heat.

Using the extra milk in a cup,  add the cornflour and blend well until there are no lumps.  Add this mixture to the saucepan and whisk in well.

Continue whisking the ingredients and bring to a slow simmer.

Turn off the heat when the custard thickens.

NOTES -

*  Be careful that the heat isn't too high as the milk will catch on the bottom of the saucepan and burn.  That's why I like to whisk continually while it heats.

*  This recipe can be doubled if you need to use up more milk or eggs.

*  Great eaten hot or cold by itself or with fruit.




Friday, December 2, 2016

This Week's Frugal Tasks Saturday 3rd December 2016

Thankyou for all the lovely comments on Facebook and My Abundant Life regarding our church's community day.   The day went really well.  We had more people this year coming in to receive toys and food.  Unfortunately we had less volunteers to help.  The good news is,  we had church families with primary school aged children who helped the adults restock the tables of toys.  They were such a blessing to us and showed great maturity.

Here's what else I got up to this week -

*  Baked four loaves of bread with extra goodness.

*  Picked the first raspberries of the season.  So exciting.  We are so glad we spent $15 per plant ( we bought 2 ) back in 2014.  We have recouped the costs a couple of times over with the fruit and extra plants to give as presents.

*  Kept the heating and cooling off for most of the week.

*  Dried the washing on the line.

*  Saved lots of shower water for the washing machine and saved the washing machine rinse water for each next load.

*  Mended holes in tow socks.

*  Made pizza for dinner using this recipe and bits and pieces we had on hand.  This pizza is so much better than anything we have bought.

*  A lovely friend leant me her die cuts ( for card making).  I spent many happy hours using them to make lovely shapes using paint sample cards and gifted paper.

*  Darren and I went to Masters ( again )  to buy a few bits and pieces at 60 - 70% off.  While we were there I picked up lots and lots of paint sample cards to use in card making.  By the time I took a few of each color I could use,  my bag was quite heavy.

* Gratefully received lots of rhubarb from a friend.

*  Jessica cleaned out her wardrobe and I scored a dress.

*  Hand washed the dinner dishes twice this week.

*  Cleaned the dishwasher using bi carb and vinegar.  Gave it a wipe out with miracle spray. 

*  Cleaned the kettle using citric acid.  I poured the boiling water onto some weeds in the hope they will die.  If they don't then I'll use vinegar and detergent.

*  I needed two gifts this week and was able to find lots of goodies on my present shelf.  One present was for  a friend of Jessica's.  This friend had arranged for a gathering of  old school friends but they all backed out at the last minute except Jessica.  We were able to give her a bag of goodies including  handmade soap I'd made earlier this year.  The other present was a last minute Kris Kringle.  In a gift bag I put a soap,  fancied face washer and some chocolates.

*  After church last Sunday Darren and I found four brand new timber pallets on the side of the road.  They were in our church's estate which is full of factories.  Some time soon we hope to make some outdoor furniture or a big box.  Stay tuned.

Our peaches are growing.


The egg on the right weighs 89 grams.

Samples from Masters

First raspberries of the season.

I've been busy die cutting for cards.

Free pallets

Daniel Morcombe rose

Christmas in our home.


What did you do this week that saved you money ?