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I follow a woman on Facebook who from time to time, has some excellent recipes. She posted one for baked rice and chicken thighs that I hadn't made in quite awhile, so I decided on it for our Sunday night dinner. The grocery store had chicken thighs on sale for .99 per pound so I paid $2.62 for 8 thighs! .89 for rice, .05 for an onion, spices and garlic at home. Most expensive item was the chicken broth. Anyway, was a really good reminder to me how cost efficient chicken thighs...
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I love to see what others spend on things like groceries, home decorations etc...and yes sometimes it makes me so envious...you have so many choices to buy in the US and prices for groceries are quite a bit cheaper than over here (aust) same with movie tickets we pay the cheapest $11 a ticket (on special deals) for one person...buying a econd hand car over here starts at $10,000 for a half way decent one...but then I think of our healthcare where we don't pay for surgeries (or...
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One would think it was January or something here in the Midwest. Cold is a four letter word as is snow and I'm not saying either with deep affection. We received some of both this weekend and I guess colder will be the keyword by the middle of the week with wind chills in the negative double digits. I'm dreading the power bill after this month.

We went thrift shopping yesterday. We normally go on Fridays, but since it was so cold, we waited a day for it to warm up to 30 degrees....
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We went out yesterday...and spent some money.

My husband bought a 3 pack of boxers, these were a need. $15
I bought two birthday cards and four Valentine cards. $7.32

I needed a pick me up for the house. So the following were mental health pickup purchases. Not needs, but reasonable investments in things that we will use.

2 large Boston ferns ($5 each) and a smaller plant ($1). Did get a 10% discount, so spent less than $11 after taxes added in.

2 placemats for...
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Yesterday I went to the Spiderman movie with GS2. The price for the two of us was $16. DIL provided some bootleg popcorn and candy bars. DS gave us a ride and went to see an advance showing of the new Lego movie with GS1.

Variables are at 26%.

Today is the day before another big chill and a big snow. Sigh. I need to get out and go to the gym, and to the library, before I am locked in. I am worried about my car. Last night I heard someone spinning their tires, stuck...
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My month in review

Well it looks like January was a great month. I crunch the numbers using my MS Money and I actually came in under budget. I did spend over in a few categories such as dining out and gifts 🙄🤦🏽‍♀️ but over all things were good.

The software isn’t sharing with me how much I paid down CC9 for this last budget period. I’m not sure why it’s not appearing on the report, strange. At any rate I’m going to log in and check my account later....
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While I was away, Lime scooters were introduced all over town. They cost nzd20 an hour. I don't think they'll solve the energy crisis for anyone but the ablebodied well to do,

Add the e-scooters to the kids riding regular scooters, students riding bikes and skateboards and hooverounds, pedestrians have to keep alert on the sidewalk now. Maybe they should rename it the sideride.

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Yesterday was payday and it was the day of our big two week grocery shop. We got started late. Really late. Normally I hate to do things in the late afternoon and evening because the traffic is nasty and the stores are packed. But due to one thing after the other, we didn't make it to do the banking until 4:00.

I noticed how light the traffic was on the way to credit union #1. As we pulled in, there was only one car in drive-thru, but two lanes open so I was able to pull...
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Frugal choices this week:

- I lost my sunglasses (not frugal, but it happens). I bought a new pair at Target for $14 (100% UV protection) rather than the very enticing pair of super-expensive Ray Bans I saw online; I need the sunglasses - not optional here in the high desert!

- My friend who is moving (wahhhhh!) gave me a book on back pain and a foam roller. I am going to try it out after I finish this post.

- Got a new book from the library by Liane Moriarty who I love!

-...
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Well my mom lives 5.5 hrs away from us but is moving to the same city as us to be nearer to the services she needs (she is 80) she is also raising a 13 year old (great grandson) so better schooling for him...well she has been trying to do everything herself and she tripped over a piece of wood from her bed that had been taken apart and hurt her arm...when I called her she told me that she had fallen and hurt her arm I finally convinced her to go to the hospital...which she did...
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I sold a few things from this lot already, just hadn't had time to get them posted yet.



Black and Decker Blender (Bought 1)
Regular Price $? each
Our Price + Tax = $9.59 each
(Marked $20.00 for rummage sale)
*ETA - Sold 1 for $20.00 on FB on 3/29/20
Profit = $10.41

Doc McStuffins Nursery (Bought 2)
Regular Price $91.67 each
Our Price + Tax = $30.89 each
(Marked $60.00 for rummage sale)
*ETA - Sold 1 for $40.00 on FB on 10/13/19

Farberware Pressure Cooker...
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I got a great deal on these pullovers from lids.com. I like to check them out every once in awhile and see if they have any good clearance items.
These were new for $60.50 and I got them on clearance for $11.96! Plus free shipping! These will sell awesome next football season!



Vikings Pullover (Bought 6)
Regular Price $60.50 each
Clearance to $11.96 each
Final Price + Tax = $12.74 each
(Marked $30.00 each for rummage sale)
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At this very early stage post-surgery, dad is doing well: he is fully cognizant of what's going on, had a good first try at sitting up and standing with a walker and is, God willing, going to heal well.

I'll be headed over there later this afternoon with a salad I made for him full of antioxidants: red bell pepper, beets, walnuts and wild Alaskan salmon, along with a green smoothie I made for him using kale, fresh pineapple, probiotic cashew yogurt and a ripe banana. And because...
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As you all know the significant other is still here. I can’t believe it and I want to fall out of my chair but he’s provided all his bill money in advance. Twice (January and February).

I don’t know if me asking him to leave did it but I’m just shocked. Really shocked.

I pay my bills as soon as I get them, first week of the previous month, so by time he gives me his portion, week before due date, everything is already paid. I’m okay with this so long as I get...
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I didn't go out yesterday, although I did run some laundry in the basement, and I took the garbage out, so I got a taste of the cold weather. It's even colder today, so I'm staying in today, too.

No spending, other than the laundry and my phone bill hitting my credit card.

My painted footstool looks so nice in the bathroom, I've decided I'm going to paint a little freestanding shelf unit in the dining room. I have enough paint to mix together a make a nice brick red, I...
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Really had to get a new cabinet for our dvds so went to my favorite shop only to find that they are retiring and closing down...they make really good heavy furniture so bought a cabinet instead...spent most of our savings but worth it I think and it will last for my lifetime...other than that no spending!
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I am still a little jetlagged, so spent most of the day snoozing.
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$22,500.00 Balance Forward
-__,500.00 Payment Made
------------
$22,000.00 New Balance

That's $3K knocked off this month.
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I lost my Fitbit months ago. I thought I must have accidentally flushed it down the toilet, because I couldn't think where else I might have possibly taken it off besides the bathroom. Turns out it was in his truck, so it had to have fallen out there. He had to clean the truck out because he is taking it to be fixed this weekend and he found it on the floor.

I almost never ride in the truck so I never would have seen it on the passenger side and he wouldn't have found it...
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Wow, I was too busy to really check the blogs for two weeks, and it sounds like there was some drama with them all disappearing! Glad they didn't; it would have been so horrible to try and come back and have lost you all.

Anyway, I reached an equilibrium where travel is done for now, I'm mostly caught up at work, and personal life isn't too busy, so I wanted to take a few minutes to check in.

As you might have seen, this year I'm working on "intentions" instead of goals....
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