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The Big White Farmhouse

intentional living, little by little

October 15, 2021

No.577: A List of October’s Frugal Accomplishments

+ J needed a new pair of sneakers. I had the hardest time finding the style he wanted that was also in his size! Thankfully, a quick search on ebay found just what I was looking for and at a comparable price. And bonus for being able to support a small business!

+ I used up all of the old, leftover wrapping paper I had saved from last year before buying new rolls.

+ I cleaned my dishwasher with vinegar using this tutorial.

+ I unclogged both of our master sinks and one of our bathtubs with my go-to recipe.

+ We turned off our air conditioning on the first day of fall (September 22) and I am anxious to see how long we can go before having to turn on the heat!

+ We have a bad habit of keeping cell phone and laptop chargers plugged into the wall.  Apparently these still use “phantom energy” so I’ve tried to change my habits and unplug them when not in use.  (We now unplug the toaster and other kitchen appliances too.)  Not sure how much we’ll actually save on our electric bill, but every little bit helps!

+ I’ve been asking myself, Can I get one more use out of it?  I’ve seen the benefit of this simple question both from a frugal standpoint as well as just general waste reduction.  A couple of examples:

  • I cut a notch on the back end of my toothpaste and got three more days of use!
  • I use almond milk in my morning coffee.  One morning, I realized that I was nearing the end of the bottle, so I used a little less than normal in order to give myself one more serving later on.

+ I buy Bonne Maman jam so that I can wash and repurpose the glass jars.  They are the perfect size for little bits and bobs.  Also, did you know that Classico pasta sauces are poured in mason jars?  You can wash them and then add your typical lids and bands for further use.

+ We weren’t planning to buy our pigs until the spring, but couldn’t pass up the great deal!  While they were already a great price, if we purchased three or more, we could save even more.  In other pig news, we took apart our chicken tractors (we have a new plan for next spring) and reused the lumber to build a pig shelter.  It’s not particularly pretty, but it’s free.

+ I bought little pumpkins to decorate my kitchen, but went with the pie version so we could also make puree later on.

+ I had some points and store credit on ThredUp so decided to check out their clearance section for next year’s clothes for my daughter.  I was able to find nine pieces of clothing (all name brand bottoms, tops and a hoodie) for less than $50.  A great deal.


Previous Frugal Accomplishments
2019: JULY  //  AUGUST  //  SEPTEMBER  //  OCTOBER  //  NOVEMBER  
2020: JANUARY  //  FEBRUARY // APRIL  //  MAY  //  JUNE  // JULY
2021: WINTER  //  SPRING  //  JULY //  AUGUST

October 13, 2021

No.576: The Wednesday Five #23

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Happy Wednesday!

A QUOTE

Beauty assures us that goodness is still real in the world, more real than harm or scarcity or evil.  Beauty reassures us of abundance, especially that God is absolutely abundant in goodness and in life.  Beauty reassures us there is plenty of life to be had.  I believe beauty reassures us that the end of this Story is wonderful. – Get Your Life Back: Everyday Practices for a World Gone Mad, p.33

TABS OPEN IN MY BROWSER RIGHT NOW
  • Rocky Mountain Oils // researching essential oils again and am happy to find a non-MLM option
  • DIY Bathroom Soap Scum Remover // hoping this will help (I have this post with more tips saved as well)
  • Dehydrating Potatoes // learning a new skill this week!
  • Pumpkin Bread // this sounds yummy
A BEAUTIFUL PIECE OF ART

“Book Characters Coming To Life As Boy Reads” by Walter Beach Humphrey (found here)

NON-JUNK CHRISTMAS IDEAS

I’ve been making big progress on the kids’ birthday and Christmas gifts!  (Little side note: I found a lot of awesome things for the younger kids on Fat Brain Toys.  They have reasonable shipping charges and fast shipping.  Highly recommend!)  A few of my finds:

  • Mega Marble Run Marathon // we keep all of the pieces in an organizer bin to keep it from getting crazy
  • Magna-Tiles // my kids use these often, so I bought the car pack for P’s birthday
  • Loopdeloo Friendship Bracelet Maker // this will be under the tree for my daughter this year
  •  Art Supplies // my teenage boys are really into art, so I buy most of their supplies from Jerry’s Artarama
A THOUGHT-PROVOKING READ

I recently read a blog post from The Frugal Girl called “Soap is cheap.”  From the post: “That put Grandma…on my brain, and I was reminded of something she once told me: ‘No matter how little money you have, you can at least keep your things clean. Soap is cheap!’”  I loved the advice and her readers’ comments at the end were so interesting as well.  We have lots to learn from our ancestors!

October 12, 2021

No.575: TBR Tuesday // The Booktube Spin, Round Four

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I’m late to the party (as usual) but wanted to participate in the fourth round of The Booktube Spin! With this challenge, you pick 20 books from your TBR and list them by number.  This time, I copied Krista at Book and Jams and chose 10 of the highest rated books on my Goodreads TBR shelf and 10 of the lowest.  My one caveat was that I had to have the book already on my shelf.  Here’s my list:

1. The Power of Silence: Against the Dictatorship of Noise by Cardinal Robert Sarah (4.44 rating)
2. The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom (4.41)
3. The Brothers K by David James Duncan (4.38)
4. This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger (4.38)
5. Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing (4.36)
6. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (4.32)
7. Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis (4.32)
8. The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay (4.32)
9. Dear and Glorious Physician by Taylor Caldwell (4.32)
10. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (4.31)
11. The Red Leather Diary by Lily Coppel (3.41)
12. The Wilder Life by Wendy McClure (3.48)
13. Ursula Under by Ingrid Hill (3.71)
14. Hidden America: From Coal Miners to Cowboys, an Extraordinary Exploration of the Unseen People Who Make This Country Work by Jeanne Marie Laskas (3.82)
15. The Last Runaway by Tracy Chevalier (3.82)
16. Still Life by Louise Penny (3.89)
17. Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson (3.89)
18. What Every Body is Saying: An Ex-FBI Agent’s Guide to Speed-Reading People by Joe Navarro (3.89)
19. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt (3.92)
20. The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujata Massey (3.93)

The creator of the challenge spun a wheel and the arrow landed on…number 8!  For more adventurous readers, he spun a second number and it landed on number 5.  The challenge is to read one or both books by December 31.  I’m excited!

October 11, 2021

No.574: Homemaking Notes on a Monday // Vol.15

This post contains affiliate links.

The weather outside is //

As I look outside my window // I can see our newest additions to the homestead: four sweet little Berkshire/Tamworth pigs!  They are so darn cute and are slowly warming up to us.  We’ll be keeping two to breed and bringing two to processing late next spring.

As I look around the house // I’m feeling a little overwhelmed – everything seems to be breaking or suddenly falling apart!  Financially, it’s not a great time (is it ever??) but that’s home ownership, I guess.  Hopefully I’ll be able to DIY/Youtube video my way into fixing most of the problems.

On this week’s to-do list //

– call Miss Utility
– bake pretzel rolls
– give the little boys’ haircuts
– find a good shower glass soap scum remover DIY recipe
– wrap birthday presents
– try to figure out what’s going on with the vacuum cleaner
– figure out the dishwasher issue

Currently reading // 

  • Fiction: Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry
  • Nonfiction: Get Your Life Back: Everyday Practices for a World Gone Mad by John Eldredge
  • Religious: Reclaiming our Roman Catholic Birthright by Peter Kwasniewski

On the menu this week //
Monday: homemade nacho burgers and chips
Tuesday:
Sicilian chicken soup
Wednesday: Refrigerator Cleanout Night
Thursday: chicken leg quarters and a side vegetable (TBD)
Friday:
bean and cheese burritos

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The 10 Year Reading Plan for the Great Books of the Western World

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