Five Frugal Things -- I Try Out Chipotle's $5.70 Kid's Meal
1) I spent $5.70 of my $15 American Red Cross gift card on a Chipotle kid's meal. (You can read about my most recent platelets donation HERE.) Unfortunately they forgot to include my "sides," (corn salsa and fajita veggies) as well as the the milk I'd chosen through the app.
My plan had been to bring the milk home to use in tea, as my drink was a reusable water bottle filled with a refreshing "Arnold Palmer." I didn't want to waste the included beverage. Now I need to go back and complain, which I hate to do as I worry I'll come across as a liar.
They did include my tangerine, which was a fun treat, as grocery stores don't package them individually, and I'm past the point in my life where I want an entire bag at a time. Unnecessary packaging, but that's out of my control.
Having said all that, it was actually a delicious and satisfying meal -- well worth the $5.70. I can see myself picking these up on a car trip or while out and about running errands.
2) I sent out a $35 offer and sold on my garbage picked Rejuvenation Lighting ceiling fixture.
Click HERE to see the listing.
It came from this box of random items that a neighbor set out on their parking strip. Ironically to someone else in Portland! This doesn't actually surprise me, as Rejuvenation's lighting, (especially their older fixtures) are designed with Portland houses in mind.
In retrospect, I should've also grabbed those lightbulbs. What was I thinking?!
3) I finished reading my library copy of Lisa See's Daughters of The Sun and Moon and have picked up Homebound, by Portia Elan as my next read.
Set in the present, with the narrative moving all the way to the year 2586, it'll qualify for the "Set in the distant future or distant past" box in my Powell's Books "Summer Reading Challenge" bingo card.
I understand that my sideways handwriting is hard to read, so here are the books I've read so far this summer:
- "The Wedding People," by Alison Espach
- "Daughters of The Sun and Moon," by Lisa See
- "August Lane," by Regina Black
- "Beasts of a Little Land," by Juhea Kim
- "Cherry Baby," by Rainbow Rowell
- "Actress of a Certain Age," by Jeff Hiller
- "Maybe in Another Life," by Taylor Jenkins Reid
- "City of Night Birds," by Juhea Kim
- "How to be Okay When Nothing is Okay," by Jenny Lawson
- "Time Loops and Meet Cutes," by Jenny Lau
- "This Time Tomorrow," by Emma Straub
- "The Overdue Life of Abby Byler," by Kelly Harms
- "A Cosmic Kind of Love," by Samantha Young
- "Atmosphere," by Taylor Jenkins Reid.
- "The Time Pirate," by Lily Brooks-Dalton
Luckily, Powell's reading challenge goes until December 31st, as I'm going for the "full blackout," which'll earn a second $5 Powell's gift card.
4) I went to my mother's house to help her refresh and rearrange her bedroom and came home with a book and some bubble wrap.
5) I drove past Trader Joe's on my way home from my mother's house and stopped in for bananas and bought . . . bananas!
I know this shows up repeatedly in the blog, but lifelong frugality is often about the boring stuff.
Now your turn, what frugal things have you been up to?
Katy Wolk-Stanley
"Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without."
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1. Well my walking an hour a day in my neighborhood is boring but it is what I do to avoid a gym fee!
2. I made turkey meatloaf to eat after I get home from my new job that is starting on Monday.
3. I made turnip greens and rice with the turnip greens from a can because I really don’t trust any type of fresh leafy greens right now in the stores. Plus I have multiple cans I need to use and didn’t want to spend any money on fresh greens.
3. I am cleaning my house.
4. I hope to clean my car this afternoon.
5. I want a nap between no. 3 and no. 4. I also have not driven anywhere today.
P.S. major frugal fail. I spent $28 on two bags of tomatoes about 12 medium sized tomatoes, and an eggplant at the Farmer’s market. I am still in shock. Half the tomatoes were for my ex and for his birthday. We try to do consumables. He also requested bread from the bakery at Publix and two loaves were $11. He was very appreciative but this was NOT a cheap gift in my opinion. I am still trying to recover my shock over the cost of the tomatoes bc the regular farmer’s market I go to would have had those tomatoes for less than half that price. I am sticking with Aldi from now on…….
Big ol' YIKES on those tomato prices!
A nap is pretty much the most frugal activity!
We need some foundation work to our house, which is expensive but necessary. Thankfully we have the cash for it, and we got a 5% discount because my husband served in the military.
For the last time, I saved 25% on a hospital bill by paying in full. From now on it will be 10% if you pay in full within 30 days.
My husband needed new sneakers, and we just happened to shop the first day of back to school tax-free weekend when there’s no tax on clothing, so that saved us almost $9.
We went away for a couple days and combining Rakuten plus credit card rebate I should get 13% back for the hotel stay. Also found a dime in the hotel parking lot.
While on vacation I got to shop at a used bookstore and picked up 5 nonfiction books I’m excited to read for just $17.
Oregon doesn't have a sales tax, so I kind of forget that it's an issue for other states.
Kids meals can be such a great way to get a meal on the cheap! My husband and I try and mix and match deals on the (rare) occasions when we eat out. We like discussing the places we eat and how we might replicate something at home or what we can add ourselves to make something tastier without paying an arm and a leg. We decided to try and do more trial and error at home and do our best to recreate dishes or go without when the Panda Express kids meals started to creep up to the cost of what we had been paying for a regular bowl.
We were pretty boring here today: ate the last of the leftovers in the fridge, used the windows and fans to get fresh air circulating inside, warmed up peanut butter and mixed it into some vegan vanilla ice cream for a treat, made popcorn on the stove, finished an audiobook. I'm a big fan of boring and mellow after all the running around we've done during the week so it suited me just fine!
1. I just did my last commute home from work apartment until September, so I'll save about $250 for the month on gas and tolls in August.
2. I cleaned the apartment before I left, as a friend will borrow it for a long weekend, and she usually gives me about $100, so passive income except for the electricity that they will use.
3. My partner hit the CSA jackpot at work! He gets a free produce/veg box, but he can also take home any box that folks don't pick up. This week, the extra that he brought home: 1 large produce box (gave to neighbors), 1 small veg box, 1 corn & peach box, 1 berry box (all raspberries and blueberries), and 1 sunflower share! He froze all of the berries, and I'm about to process the corn, zucchini, and onions also for the freezer. I'll wait for the peaches to ripen a bit before figuring out what to do/make, and that leaves a bunch of cucumber/Armenian cucumbers and eggplant, so I'll base the next several days of meals around that.
4. I picked up a mystery shop for deli meat, and I ate some for dinner last night, and my partner will use the rest for a sandwich lunch tomorrow.
5. I downloaded the 19th book in the Duncan Kincaid & Gemma James book series from Hoopla, used fans instead of AC, had free coffee and lunch at work yesterday, and I finished my lettuce-cucumber-avocado-yogurt-cilantro soup, filled up my gas tank at the BJ's in Chicopee, which seems to be the cheapest gas in Massachusetts (at least on my route) between home and work apartment.
Amazing CSA box haul. I get vicariously excited when your partner scores and extra csa box, what an great work perk!
Husband went recliner shopping this morning (he’s got to test run and sit in lots of them! LOL) and asked me to go along and we’d eat lunch out. I declined and said I planned our lunch at home, after his shopping, to use up things that needed eating:
1) four frozen hash brown patties, the last of a package from the bottom of my freezer;
2) finish off a box of buttermilk pancake mix;
3) finish off a bottle of maple syrup;
4) finish off a small leftover seasoned chicken breast which we split;
5) some leftover sautéed kale;
6) I made some scrambled eggs.
It was frugal AND yummy! Cooking at home for the win!
How satisfying!!! I love it when I get to finish off stuff from the fridge in a meal for the family.
I always thought I was the only person who got practically giddy using up things! Nice to have found my "people"!
Alice, me too!
I haven't done a full FFT in a while. It's been a busy time for me, and Katy's recent posting times in PDT haven't coincided with the times in EDT when I've been able to sit down with my laptop. But excuses aside, here's FFT, Recent Highlights Edition:
(1) I had the delight last Monday of a brief visit from DH's and my favorite nephew (DH's sister's younger son), whom I haven't seen since his 2003 wedding in California, and his oldest daughter, who is now 17 and college-shopping. And imagine my joy at discovering that the daughter is not only a "great reader" (to quote Miss Bingley), but a Jane Austen fan who has actually READ THE BOOKS and not just watched the movies! Naturally, I whisked her upstairs to view my three bookcases of JA-related books and ephemera, and naturally, I told her all about JASNA and how to join. The thrill of discovering a Janeite great-niece = priceless!!
(2) I took delivery on Tuesday on the new rocker/recliner I bought at a local furniture chain's "we're closing this store" sale a few weeks ago. My friend Mr. Fix-It, heaven bless him, not only helped me carry the poor old recliner out to the curb, but helped me bring in the new one and set it up--thereby saving me the $139 carry-in/set-up charge. And to polish his halo further, he fixed the persistently dripping tap in my basement sink, which required a trip back to his house to get the right kind of specialized washer from his Ali Baba cave of supplies. Whatever would I and a couple of his other widowed friends do without him?
(3) On Thursday, I took delivery on the 1/4 steer I order annually from the friends who raise the animal. Cost = $600, but that's still astonishingly low (for example, I can't afford to buy beef at Wegmans any more, even at Reduced for Quick Sale prices). The friends and neighbors with whom I share the beef at my cost appreciate this equally. Also, the husband of the couple was in a chattier mood than usual (he's a taciturn guy) and shared that this year's steer was named Donald because he had a notch in one ear. 😛
(4) I took a trip to the west side of town today to return two bags of NYS deposit containers at the Wegmans there (I picked up an additional 75 cents' worth in the parking lot) and to visit my favorite of our only two Goodwill stores here. Needless to say, I envy Katy's numerous finds at her Goodwill bins. But this store is one of my lucky spots, and it didn't disappoint me today: a Corning Ware dish and a Pyrex measuring cup in sizes I was looking for, a bag of 60 tealight candles, two Good Seasons salad dressing cruets (= my favorite vases for my homegrown zinnias and other flowers), several other odds and ends, and a CD by a local musician who's a personal acquaintance, for $20.
(5) And I'm not a great big baby who's throwing tantrums because he can't get his way on everything from the war in Iran he started himself to the Reflecting Pool disaster he also started himself.
The chipotle kid meal is my go-to on road trips because it’s the right size, I don’t want to deal with leftovers, and it feels like a healthier choice than other fast options.
That said, I’m very confident that the rice and beans pictured are your two “sides” and you get just two sides. Fajita veggies and corn salsa are also sides. If you chose 4 sides on the app, then it must have a bug. If I ordered 4 sides in the store, they’d upcharge for them.
Will you use your mom’s book for hat embroidery inspiration?
They do forget to include things sometimes. I had that experience this morning when I bought a big breakfast at McDonald's, and -- no utensils! I was eating in, so it was no big deal to ask.
So yes, I splurged on breakfast out. I was low on food supplies at home, due to the power outage, and I was on my way to grocery shop, but I was too hungry to wait. I did bring home the hash browns to use in something else.
My Aldi order was $33. I bought a bag of spinach, granola, sliced ham, salsa, Swiss cheese, crackers, coffee creamer, half & half, mayonnaise, apples, tuna and oatmeal cookies. I plan on making quiche and ham and cheese sliders this week.
Then I went to Jewel, where I used a birthday coupon to buy Fairlane milk for only $1.
At Aldi I returned a cart that someone else had left out, and I passed the quarter along to someone else.
I found four receipts in addition to my own.
It's cool and rainy, and I'm enjoying it!
I think it's wise to eat something before a grocery trip, be it at home or on the way to the store. From past experience, if I walk into a grocery store hungry, EVERYTHING looks good and finds its way into my cart. Aaarrrggghhh! Maybe you even saved the cost of the Big Breakfast.
I know! That was on my mind, for sure.
I remember one occasion when I went to the grocery store thirsty and I bought just about every kind of beverage they had.
Umm -- You should check your Powell's card in case I'm mistaken, but it looks to me like you have to turn it in by August 31 and then the coupon expires 12/31/26.
I don't live in Portland, but was curious so I checked out Powell's website and it looks like you're right. There are a few places where they say the summer reading challenge ends August 31: https://www.powells.com/list/summer-reading-challenge#terms-and-conditions
"Back from Vacation Edition"
1. I am feeling quite pleased with myself that I shopped at the hometown local independent (aka cheaper) grocery store and hauled my food to the tourist-town vacation spot so I didn't have to pay exorbitant prices there.....AND accurately estimated our appetites for the trip so we were able to pretty much eat-down-the-kitchen in its entirety prior to leaving at the end of the vacation. I made quick grocery trips for a few fresh things while in tourist-town and my jaw dropped at the prices.
2. On an airplane trip mid-vacation, we took advantage of a "children's pizza" that was half the price of the regular pizza, but was actually the same item. Nice of the airline to empathize with the costs of feeding pre-teen boys, though I fear that once someone in corporate realizes what is going on, this deal will go the way of the Dodo.
3. I finally sold a Facebook Marketplace listing that had been getting moldy (figuratively).
4. I discovered a silver lining to being involuntarily unemployed - my youngest is not eligible for after-school care because I am not employed, so I will save hundreds of dollars per month...and reap the benefits of hanging out with my child more, of course 🙂
5. I took advantage of Safeway's "$5 Friday" sales and snagged a few items I would not usually purchase. Mixing up the meals a bit will hopefully help to avoid tastebud fatigue with my usual (repeated) thrifty meals.
It has been a fruitful week of scavenging for me. Most of the items I give away but I usually find a few things I can use for myself.
1. I was perusing a dumpster while on my evening hike. I found 3 cartons of cherry Polar Seltzer, 2 cartons of Waterloo sparkling water, 18 Canada Dry ginger ales, around 20 loose bottles of water, and 7 packages of Jalapeno Poppers (whatever those are). I went back with my car to retrieve them. These all went to the 12 step groups across the street. I washed to bottles & cans off & put them in the fridge there. The church that hosts the groups sell the drinks & snacks for $1 dollar each.
2. At the beginning of the week I spied four 1/2 gallons of 2% milk that were still in date & icy cold. I also found 8 large cold bottles of Simply Orange juice that were out of date. I sampled one of the juices & it was good. I gave most of the OJ & 2 jugs of the milk to the maintenance man at my condo. I don't know his salary but likely it is not much. He also has a family to feed.
3. Speaking of lightbulbs I found some at the top of the dumpster. I used my grabber to get them. I tested them at home & around 6 of them worked. I also found a pen of correcting fluid that I needed and a pair of Foster Grant reading glasses. The glasses are a men's style but I don't care. The glasses were new & part of a 2 pack but one pair was missing.
4. I wanted a take out dinner last night but it got late before I realized it. I found some soup in the freezer & ate a bowl of that.
5. My lifelong friends sold their condo near me. Two of them are coming in Sept. to stay at my place & to retrieve some things they stored here. I told them come anytime & stay as long as you want. I have some teaching work lined up so I won't be there. When I get too feeble to go back & forth I will likely sell mine too. It is not a good time to sell property in FL right now. I plan to wait until the market is on the upswing. I feel blessed to own a summer home on a teacher's salary. When you do not spend money on unneeded junk you often can buy something of value.
texasilver, I never cease to marvel at your dumpster finds. I was already pretty much retired from dumpster diving--and now the Dollar General down the hill from me has closed, so my opportunities are even more limited. But keep getting out there and doing it; I'm cheering you on!
TY for kind words. This blog is where I can tell of my scavenging. Not something I share much w/ others. I think they would be creeped out. I found this week's items in a Walgreens dumpster. There is no Dol Gen near my condo.
texasilver, I always look forward to hearing about your amazing scavenger finds. It's so great that we can share things here when we don't have others in real life to share them with.
Yes bananas! I'm the only one eating bananas in our home.
So, if someone decides to have one... I'm lost!
I could buy a couple extra next week. But will someone eat that extra banana?
Not likely!
I dropped off a bag of donations at the craft thrift store, and a tub of donations at Welfare League. I am SO happy to have these out the door.
I finished the alteration on the gingham blouse from Salvation Army.
Sold a bike for $125 and a motorcycle jacket for $90. Both items had been given to us for free.
Listed 5 more items on fb marketplace and vinted. I'm working really hard to clear stuff out.
Did you enjoy The Wedding People? It's one of my favorite books.
I really did, a much different book than I expected, but in the very best way!
I especially enjoy the Chipotle kids meal when we eat there as the full veg burrito bowl entrees end up being split into two meals and so I feel I need to eat all the lettuce day one (don't love reheated lettuce). I get crispy tortillas, black beans, guac, and salsa. We are limited to two toppings/sides. And usually my husband enjoys part of the generous portion of guac it comes with.
Used up corn on the cob with a carb fest dinner tonight. Ah well.
Our governor has stopped collecting the gas tax for the past few months to make it seem like the gas prices are lower and that ends in a few days. So we'll top off/fill up the two vehicles tomorrow. I do usually use the Meijer 10,000 mperks for $1 off/gallon but will wait until we can get almost the 30 gal limit (including in two 6-gal gas containers).
Stepdaughter is hosting a cookout with us on Monday afternoon and I'll bring pasta salad, veg kabobs, beans and oatmeal raisin cookies. They're not vegan but they will enjoy all we bring anyway. Then we all go meet our grandson's teacher that evening for back to school night at his request.
Because we are thrifty, we can swing buying some of the grandkids clothes for the next season - Sam's had boys Levi's for $11 on sale and picked up a couple pair of those. The same are $34 at kohls I believe in a quick cross-check.
Finally started ramping up listings on eBay and sales have improved. Nothing high value but every bit helps.
1. Received six tomatoes, a lemon and cut flowers from an acquaintance.
2. Went to Happy Hour with friends and had tap water and a 25 percent off appetizer.
3. Gently slammed on the brakes for a free pile where I picked up a bin to hold dog food and four beautiful variegated hostas that were sweltering in 90 bazillion degree heat. They are thriving in their new home.
4. Bought an outdoor throw pillow from a consignment shop to spruce up the bench by our front door.
5. Used a $4 Menards rebate credit on an HVAC filter.
I had to be a non-Non Consumer to solve my TV dilemma. Since insulating the west window, the TV was not picking up all the over-the-air broadcast stations it had previously gotten. So I ordered a brand new jazzed-up indoor antenna from Walmart. I put it together today and found it had a computer plug but no power plug, so I also used an old cellphone charger I'd bought at Habitat ReStore for 3 bucks several years ago. I had bought a few of them for Xmas gifts, as well as for my own use, and this was the last one in my gift closet. The charger plugs in to an outlet and has the correct sized USB outlet, too, so I could plug the antenna in to that. It also has a long enough cord to stretch to the TV and electric plug. Anyway my rigged-up monstrosity works! It has a magnet so I attached the antenna part to the curtain rod on the front window (the one we did not insulate); it said for better reception, put it near a window and as high as you can place it. I strung the cord halfway across the room, but it reaches the TV. I had to reposition the antenna a bit but I finally got it to pick up the station 30 miles south and the substations broadcasting 40 or 50 miles west of here. Sadly, it's not getting anything from DFW -- but then again it did not do this before. But I can once again enjoy my programs without having to pay a monthly fee. So I consider that a frugal win.
I will see if the old antenna can be hooked up to the old stereo from college to get some FM stations, but that is for another day.
1) The produce section is jammed with fresh, unrecalled but apparently unsellable Taylor Farms greens, marked way down. I stocked up on baby spinach and kale at about 80 cents/lb, perfect for Instant Pot saag, because I hate food waste - especially in those giant plastic clamshells - but after seeing the CEO in action, won't buy anything they sell again (look for the TF code near the expiration date). Organic strawberries were $1/lb, macerated with brown sugar and lemon for the freezer. The clearance shelves have been spotty, but I picked up multiple bags of poblanos to be roasted for the freezer, mangoes that are ripening perfectly, and squeeze pouches of organic low-sugar fruit preserves that will be perfect for baking for $1.23/ea.
2) Received a cluster of settlement payments - a data breach, ATM fees, beef - and a check for several online mystery shops last month that paid well and didn't involve ratting out a demoralized retail worker for failing to say an awkward corporate catchphrase. Also, a few research interviews that paid in the hundreds. All together, just over $2000 in a couple of months. I also picked up a very simple shelf shop through Micromoola that paid $100 on top of reimbursement; there's very little information about the company online, and they paid via Paypal with the goods and services insurance fee, so I'm a bit wary.
3) A little obsessed and still buying the odd item on Vinted as part of a general wardrobe refresh. It's easier to let go of what doesn't work when I already have a replacement, probably an artifact of growing up poor, despite mom's incredible resourcefulness with free and thrift clothing. I miss thrifting, but don't have the spoons to go often enough, and it's already hard to find quality natural fiber plus-size clothing at the thrift. At these prices, the also-rans can be given away or consigned, and I'm only keeping what checks every box. An embroidered linen blouse that I really liked had been miscategorized and wasn't my size, so the seller refunded it and I planned to donate, but it fits my son beautifully and is the perfect missing piece for his Ren Faire costume. Shipping is still free, so it makes sense to list some of the lower-priced items that wouldn't sell on eBay, and they've bumped the referral bonus up to $50 - new sellers get $20 to list three items and another $30 for the first sale. https://www.vinted.com/invite/revisionist
4) I signed up for some streaming deals, and the reminder emails just arrived, so I'll sit down tomorrow and cancel everything.
5) I didn't waste gobs of taxpayer-supported salary dragging a world-class infectious disease expert through a kangaroo court while lying to my constituents about his work.
Amen to #5. Shameless, stupid, and frankly, bewildering. How do people like this get elected?
The reason I quit mystery shopping was just what you said -- I refuse to say I didn't get good service because someone didn't mouth a phrase that obviously pushed on them. I know what good service is, and it isn't that.
Sorry, that WAS obviously pushed on them.
You mentioned "quality natural fiber plus-size clothing ." Since much more of the U.S. is plus-sized (in my observation), I wonder why plus sized clothing doesn't show up at thrift stores as much as smaller sizes.
Do plus-sized people wear their clothing longer, because it is harder to find, and thus it isn't in good shape to donate? Smaller people buy more clothing and thus donate more? Smaller clothing is prettier, younger, and easier to market, let alone keep on the hanger?
Is this a carry-over from the overall prejudices against large sizes in the clothing industry? It amazes me how much this market is ignored.
I was plus sized until the last few years and my answer is yes. I always found a huge lack of pants. Shirts not as much. I think they are kept longer because they are so dang expensive if you go to a store like Catherine’s (now only online) or Lane Bryant. Also for me, I kept mine forever because I had trouble finding the styles I liked. Remember when embroidery on the back of jeans was so popular? I didn’t care to have my behind be even more noticeable. lol I wanted plain jeans. When I was “extended plus size” (size 32 for me) I couldn’t even shop at Walmart or any of the cheaper stores. I had fewer pieces and I wore them out, especially pants where my legs rubbed together. I was also able to sell some nicer pieces of extended sizes that were still in good condition on eBay as opposed to donating. They cost a lot so it was nice to get some money for them.
I tend to find plus size shirts at the thrift, but not much for bottoms.
Pants are either too big in the waist or if the waist fits they're way too short. And I don't know why most of the plus size shirts are loud patterns - I just want something simple!
Most of my clothing is second hand, and I wear everything until it falls apart, so its not good enough to donate.
I wonder if this is also regional, to an extent. When I lived in the south, and did a lot of reselling, I would often pick up plus size clothing to flip, as it always sold well. But now , I don’t find as much of it, and usually dresses.
Agreed with another commenter that the only thing missing from a standard chipotle kids meal was the drink. They only fill up those little spots in the container with whatever your choices are for sides.
You are correct on the Chipotle kid meals - the "build-your-own" comes with the shells, meat & only 2 add-ons allowed. I typically get black beans & fajita vegies. For the side, I choose the fruit. Our Chipotle does not have a drive through, so I don't miss getting a drink but typically have to request it when I do in-store pick up. For added value, as a rewards member I only order a kid meal when I have a reward that I can bundle like my current "free chips". The rewards items require a $5 purchase which is how I figured out the least expensive way to redeem those is buying a kid meal. And as a pre-diabetic, the amount of carbs equates to 2 meals & because they are packaged, they are convenient to take to work.
Forgot to add that my work around for lack of toppings for the kid meal is simply to take salsa, sour cream, cheese & Romaine from home to enhance usage as a work lunch.
1. I helped a friend/neighbor move, passing on a ton of things to our BN group. I did get to keep some things for myself including first aid supplies, batteries, a basket , bag of baking soda , small scooter for my toddler, and other misc odds and ends.
2. Clipped and dried some oregano and basil leaves from the garden.
3. Took our toddler to a free car show yesterday. We did buy burgers and popsicles, but total spent was 12 dollars so not complaining ! He won two new hotwheels and I won a puzzle that I’ll gift in our BN group.
4. Enjoyed a nice evening in with homemade pizza last night in our pizza oven (we do buy dough from a local restaurant), followed by an evening walk with the dog.
5. Washed all of our pillows and taking advantage of the 99 degree day to dry in the sun.
I needed something for my lunch for the next few days and made a pan of Italian sausage, orzo, butternut squash cubes, spinach, cherry tomatoes from the garden, and the last handful each of green beans, onions and sweet peppers. This used up three long-frozen sausages, all the open bags of veggies from the freezer, and the last of the orzo. It turned out so yummy.
Used a sanding block to erase some glue that did not quite come out of a pair of sweat pants. The pants are a heathered gray, so the final result of them being slightly lighter in that spot is not noticeable.
Emptied out the lovely leather handbag bought last year at an antique mall and gave it a good wipe down inside and out and conditioned the leather. Maintenance is frugal! Although the bag is not new, it's still being made and costs $260. I paid $20 for this one.
Made a pitcher of iced tea and discovered a bonus 25th tea bag in the box of 24 quart-size bags.