June Goals

most of May's goals didn't get done either due to down pours of rain or scheduling. Me being sick hit us hard in that area also.

SO June's goals...

HUBBY
go deep sea fishing with BFF who just retired.

trim the entire property (got it mowed but not trimmed)

remove old owner's dog house. E is going to use it for kindling.

Gravel for deck laid

Deck built

put a gate in fence at mudroom door

getting spouting changed in cubby hole area

transport stuff that was Dad's to Daughter 4 and Son 2

do odd jobs at Son 2

put up tower and antenna (HAM radio not tv)

SMOKER put together.

Straightening the fence line at road has been moved to Aug.

MINE

STOP BEING SICK AND GET WELL ENOUGH TO START BIOLOGIC

Change how kitchen is set up. I am walking to 4-6 places to get stuff to put a meal together (which means it doesn't get put together if we are both tired or I am sick which I am still sick). I used to have a prep counter that held what I used daily and a "basket" in the frig from my containers of dice onion, celery, carrots, bell peppers.I need to change this kitchen to get that back together.

Clean, repaint and set up old computer desk in front room for my computer. That clears 1 1/2 x 4 ft off the bfast counter that I can use for appliances. We sit at the table and use the bfast counter for my computer or any project we are working on.

 nag Hubby about smoker on rainy days

GO over finances as we meet with our financial guy in a couple weeks.

clear garden shed

get house ready for energy audit

SUMMER CURTAINS

Sand and wash area of wall to do apply test paint for contractor that has to redo 4 rooms (half the house) due to bad paint... which actually the paint company said it's not "bad" paint but the contractor didn't specify that I wash walls (I repeatedly told them I did) so they use a middle of the road paint where if they had said something to the paint company they would have told them for the deep pigmentation I choose AND me washing the walls, they would need a higher level of paint.. Lessons learned. The section I am doing the test paint on is about 4 ft by 3 ft. so it's not a big area but still takes time to prep, paint, sand between coats etc.

Finish cleaning pantry (1 1/2 shelves and 3 deep freezers)


BOTH
Finish getting garden in (please no rain for 3 days in a row would be GREAT)

join a gym... looking at Anytime fitness or YMCA. IF we do YMCA we could also go with Hubby's parents at their YMCA.

Join Son 2 on motorcycle rides.

One thing after another... Air fryer also

Rain every other day, ground is now like bricks from the beating. Couldn't even get the tiller to break it up... so Hubby spaded up holes for some of the plants and we put compost and potting soil in the holes with the plants. The beans are not going to make at all. Popcorn is still iffy...At least we didn't lose them in the 2 inches of rain we got in 90 mins or the constant daily down pours ... yet... Neighbor E lost the entire front garden they had just planted with seeds.... haven't been able to get back in it to replant. He lost the hay he just planted and might lose 2 fields of corn that aren't being able to dry out.

We cut the last of the asparagus and left the tall ones to become ferns and gave it to H and his family as their asparagus didn't do well and they got 3 meals out of it.

The day before the tornadoes came through we had wind damage...

This is looking out my bedroom window. Winds took the roof off the basement ramp... thankful there was no damage to house and a few blocks knocked loose that can be dealt with a temporary fix and this area is on next years to completely redo.

It landed at the end of kitchen porch,

Got stopped by the crabapple tree.

Hubby tied it to the tree and the porch brace to stop it from going anywhere else until the winds calmed down.

Next day he cemented the blocks back that had shifted and fixed the roof and put it back on.

He added braces to it that should stop it from being able to be lifted even though it weighed about 200 lbs. It's closer to 300 now with the braces

Tree didn't get damaged, not even bark knocked off.

Since Hubby had to go get cement for the basement ramp, he fixed the yard clothesline that the deadman came out of ground and let the pole lean in when he went to tighten the lines so the sheets wouldn't drag. Said it was dried before it rained (tornadoes went through but didn't damage anything here or around us) But he needs to drive the tractor over the dirt to pack it down when the yard isn't a mud puddle.

this is in what we call the cubby... area between the two porches... babies are getting ready to learn to fly... I never can get a shot of them sticking their heads out. AND since this is an area that the dogs can get to  I put up fence so if the birds fall to the ground they have a chance to get back up before the dogs get to them.

Since the water hose valve is there I put a big flower pot there with 3 stones to keep it weighed down, turned another flower pot upside down inside it and then put one of my hanging planters on top of it. We can move the pot when needed and yet the dogs won't mess with it. I am glad we keep this stuff around.

Then

I started cooking in the air fryer... May 19th....

Hand pies were good and will be on the menu more often

So I decided to try a pork loin

and heard a pop and then watched the inside glass break... I emailed a complaint through Amazon to the seller. I did acknowledge that I knew this was a supplier issue and would like a replacement instead of a refund.  I was thinking I wouldn't get an answer back,until Monday. Sunday night they responded...
Monday they let me know they contacted their supplier of that safety glass and Tuesday they shipped this

I did NOT have to nag, battle or anything else... 1 email and it was done and I had heard there was issues with their customer service. I didn't have any, if anything I would say it was the best customer service I've dealt with in the past months.
SO after cleaning, heating, cleaning and reheating it (it's coated with protective oil on inside) I cooked this

10 mins and it was on the platter and on the kitchen porch table for our snack.

Memorial day we had this

Steaks on the grill with

onion rings and broccoli fries.... CRISPY in 15 min. I did rotate the trays every 5 mins.

IF you noticed in the picture I have a wood cutting board under it and on the end of the bfast bar. It does produce heat on the bottom and I don't want heat on my counter top. It's on the end which was due to space but I can tell you it helped with the heat coming off it. The air around it came up 10 degrees.... yes I measured it. I made sure there was NO paper or anything that could catch fire close to it (think stove). I like it that it's big... I could get 4 trays in it with 2 being onion rings that take more space so had to adjust to that.

Not sure what I will pop in it next.

THEN I went to the doctor for follow up due to getting bronchitis hoping I was good to start my biologic...

NOPE... I am borderline bronchial pneumonia ... different meds along with inhaler 6 times a day do deep breathing exercises every 30 mins.. and go back the 18th of June.  AND then if I am HEALTHY I can start my biologic.

Hubby has had to turn down a couple jobs, they don't want to pay him even his costs and he's not going to lose money to get work. E asked me what was going on and I told him , the other guy's truck is gas and Hubby's is diesel which costs more plus Hubby's livestock trailer is bigger so uses more fuel to pull and he's not going to lower to match someone else and lose money. E said it's like him using 6 horses (more oats and hay ) to pull his equipment where his brother N uses 3 horses (less oats and hay) . Yep you got it.

Monday morning...hum drums

This is Charlotte. She will be 2 on June 17th. She is trying to get me to move out of my chair on the kitchen porch which she now has decided is HER chair.

Then it was fine, I will go over here and sit in Daddy's chair and pout.

I shifted in the chair and she was looking to see if I was out of HER chair yet.

The temp is 60 and that is the warmest it is getting today as we to drop in temp all day until it's 45 tonight. Furnace is back on.

 I have laundry rolling and I will clean out the frigs and some more of the pantry as trash goes to the road tonight.

I pinned a sheer curtain that will go on the French doors. I will have to sew them by hand as my sewing machine hates sheer fabric and I don't care to fight with it. I can do the hand sewing while watching cook shows on tv in the evening.I don't usually watch more than the news but Hubby started watching them and asked me to watch some with him. We get a kick out of Nick Stellino as he reminds me of my brother. British bake off is interesting also. Others he watches are Simply Ming, Martha Bakes, Patti's Table, Lydia's kitchen,and Rory O'Connell if he is on.

I really really just want to go  back to bed and lay there. Don't care if I sleep, just lay there. Depression and I are old friends, I think he is a cousin to Crohny (my Crohns).

Even with everything we did in the garden to help bring the soil back up, I don't think it was enough. Rain coming in every 2-3 days isn't helping. Neither will this cold snap.  In GOD's Hands is what I keep repeating to myself, I do the work, keep the faith and leave it in his hands.I only have half in which is a concern,I don't have the flowers planted at the windmill either. I told Hubby it was going in this week even if I have to mud it in. E and M don't have anything in and E said over half of their church (180 families) don't have anything in or what was in has flooded and rotted.

Deck isn't getting done due to the rain also. We did go out and mark the area. Which was good as after I mentioned we would be standing in front of the door trying to grill like we did on 245, Hubby moved the deck 2 feet so that wasn't going to be going on. It will allow us to change the down spout to drain farther away from the house also. E is going to put an awning on for me and he is doing it so when it rains I can still have the doors open if we ever get the deck on.

Can't get to the dog house, it's a muddy swamp where it is, chicken coop hasn't been moved for the same reason. Can't clear the garden shed until AFTER we take furniture to Son 2, Daughter 4 and maybe Daughter 2 as she is thinking of taking the last of the furniture as that's where the garden stuff goes. I have 4 boxes of Daddy's stuff left to go through.

Hubby's schedule and Son's 2 schedule has not worked out as Hubby wants to haul the furniture down and do the odd jobs at the same time. Daughters have kids in and out so someone is usually home so they don't care when we bring it down to them

Hubby trims the day after rain and tries to mow the entire area the following day.

Last week he got slammed with work even with having one person cancel 2 jobs...actually turned out better as he picked up 4 jobs for the same time and now has plenty of money for his fishing trip. He said his goal is to have one of the 3 trailers "paid off" meaning the money is back in the investment accts. He also was able to give me money to give to our grandson that is graduating. BUT because he was "working", he wasn't able to do all he wanted after yard work and garden work..

I look at all that is NOT done and don't see what is done....

I don't see that I cleared the southeast corner of the front room and moved the radio Son 2 got us for Christmas into the dining room where we will actually listen to the local news in the mornings while having coffee like we did growing up. Which now allows me to bring in another small table to sit my computer at and take it off the bfast bar in the kitchen. I can then use that section for canning supplies when I am canning. Hubby said I need to paint the table before bringing it in.

I don't see that I moved all the grow light cart plants out to harden off. Have 2 that is going to end up in pots as they aren't doing well out in the wind and sun. I want to declutter a basement area , (the last area in the basement to declutter) and move the  grow cart there for next winter.

I don't see that the pile that is commonly at the basement door is not there.

I don't see that I have my sewing area set up except for the sewing table that Hubby found me last night. Wednesday and Thursday are suppose to be rainy days so that's a good time to be sewing. SO he is planning to have the sewing table put together by tomorrow.

Son 2 called last night to let me know he would be bringing friends up to see us probably this coming weekend... figured I would like a week's notice as he already knows the house isn't company ready. I do like to dust and clean the floors of fur before I have company. THEN he mentioned us feeding them and he would pay for the groceries...  deep breath... okay.I will watch the weather after Thursday and see if we will grill out or cook inside before making the decision of what to get.

Washer buzzing, next load to the line.

savings this week/month

I scheduled the energy audit for mid June. IF we do any of the work they suggest and provide receipts we can be credited up to $50 on our electric bill.  I asked if he could estimate how much propane I would save by doing $50 of what ever... close to $100 savings of propane as an estimate.I do need to do some preparing for the test.

Hubby has been driving the Jeep for anything that does not require a trailer. He said he figured out he saved $80 in the past 2 weeks.

I finished one summer curtain for the laundry room as it faces south and the heat is starting to warm up that room and my bedroom.

I turned the furnace OFF... might have to kick it on during the night a couple times this coming week but it's off. By doing this I also might fingers crossed make this tank last until June so it's filled on the summer fill which is CHEAPER fill

I refused to turn the central air on...told Hubby to open the windows (he had to remove winter storm windows anyways on front room to install the screens ) turn on ceiling fan when he is in the room and I turned on a small rotating fan on low for Wilbur and Rascal (who is black), both are old dogs and can't handle the heat during the middle of the day when it's over 80. After supper the fan is turned off until lunch the next day. Rascal will nudge it with his foot when he wants it on LOL.

I had bought screen repair that was suppose to be self sticking but wasn't. Hubby told me to throw it away and he would go get new...nope I super glued the patches to the screen. Amish guy that was stopped looking for Hubby asked how I fixed them as he had some spare screen but not enough to replace his entire window screen.

Our softener salt lasted 9 days longer than regularly. I've been using the cistern water to water my plants. Better for them also.

I used my digital dollars at Amazon to order a book for my Kindle.

I used my Rakuten rebates,Swagbucks points and Pine Cone pay to order 2 new roasting pans that have racks and handles on the pans. Hubby and I both are having trouble lifting roasting pans (especially turkey) without handles.I used American Test Kitchen to decide what I wanted.

I didn't go to the store until today. I limped us through. BUT today I bought for a basic grocery list AND for the airfryer we bought for testing how it does this week. My brother, sister,Hubby's best friend, and 3 of the kids are interested in how it does.

In the end with how I saved, we have over half of July's budget in savings. So Hubby can go on his fishing trip without worrying how to make up the loss of income when he gets home.

Being frugal while sick....winter sowing

The rose my oldest sister(of my heart) has bloomed.

You would never guess it's been raining pretty much every other day here with the way this soil looks. My beans are planted here.With in  1/2 inch of the top soil it's mud. The quality of the soil is bad. E said the guy the owed it before his brother just kept planting the same crops in the same spot and never added compost or anything. N only lived here 1 yr so he wasn't able to get it turned around before we bought it.

Tomatoes, peppers, marigolds and rosemary... lots of compost in the holes and fertilizer later.

The gourmet potatoes in the grow bags are doing decent

The winter sowing I did the first round did very well

The second round did hardly anything but the weather was colder than normal and we got twice as much rain as normal so I think that was the why they didn't do well.

I am getting about 1 16 ft section done at a time before I have to go hack and cough while I work in the gardens looking like this

My allergies went nuts and I went in to bronchitis the day before I picked this up at drug store

I now have bronchitis GRRR... now I can't take it due to being sick and on antibiotics... waiting until I am cleared by primary doc and then I can start. SIGH

Since I was sick and I have no flowers (didn't buy any at auction either) I cut some crabapple blooms for myself.

So while out for doctors' appts we stopped at a store the Amish had mentioned. It's called Stites. It's a discount variety store, had some coolers for marked down dairy etc. but mostly dry goods. I got bfast bars for 49 cents a box, face masks I wore in garden (50 in a box for  less than $2), I got a bottle of chipotle molasses marinade for us and Son 2 for 50 cents. I got 1 birthday gift, 3 Christmas gifts and a sign to hang over our archway between dining room and front room for 1/4th of what I had priced else where. Reminds me of the old Odd Lots aka Big Lots.

We stopped at Menards and used rebate check to get fertilizer and weed killer during 11% sale.

I have still not went to grocery store because of this...

After reading bloggers, reviews, talking to others including daughter 1 who has an airfryer  and knowing it dehydrates also (I need another dehydrator as 1 died end of last year and this was the same price)... we broke down and ordered it.

It came in yesterday while I was in the garden and Hubby was trimming and mowing around wet areas.

I unpacked it today, cleaned it and read all the instructions (please do if you buy one READ ALL OF IT) and we decided we were going to pick out some of the recipes and do the "test drive" of it this week.

Meantime I am going to take another round of meds for this bronchitis and go find a table in the barn for my sewing machine as I found the scissors finally.

Is it really May 8th?

Grandson P said yes, he should know because it's his birthday and he reminded me  that in 1 yr he will be a teenager. SIGH.

Hubby mowed part of the yard twice...will need to do it again and he hasn't trimmed at all.

He planted popcorn on Monday.

I went through 4 boxes.

I finally got all the hoops jumped for my Humira ONLY to have a glitch that caused the delivery to not be made but is suppose to be by tomorrow (May 9th)

The paint issues are settled, paint company is providing new paint , contractor chose a store credit over being paid (he got more "money" that way) and I chose to have it done late summer, early fall and one room at a time since we have to move furniture.It can be done in combination of fall cleaning.

FINALLY all the GI doctors and PA's are on the same page of my treatment. I chose to have my primary doctor monitor my heart failure (he already does now) instead of getting a Cardiologist and paying another doctor who will run tests my primary already ran. I have left sided heart failure, not a lot of anything they can do at this point, I am on meds for it. I am glad to see there is experimental surgeries that look to be helping left heart failure.

I found the straight pens to start on the curtains... now I can't find the scissors. GEEZE.

We spent hours in the asparagus patch (4 ft by 120 ft) pulling weeds especially thistles and crab grass the last couple days, almost done, probably if we worked together we could finish it in 1 more round.

I transplanted some volunteer strawberries that had came up in what was the old strawberry patch we took out due to blight. These didn't show any signs of blight.

We went to produce auction and bought 2 flats of candy onions, 1 flat of cabbage, 1 flat of cauliflower and 10 of 4 1/2 pots of tomatoes.

We then went to the local green house and got 1 flat of broccoli, 1 flat of Amish paste tomatoes and 2 flats of marigold that had not bloomed yet.

I have plants in the grow lights cart that needs harden off starting this week.

Looks like we can be planting what we bought this afternoon after Hubby gets backs.

I told Hubby I would pick up milk when I got get my Humira. Then we don't have to make another trip to town for it this coming weekend.

Goals for May

On top of working and running the house etc we have decided on the following goals

Save and earn enough to pay July's bills.

ONLY buy dairy or fresh produce needed this month.



Hubby

put deck on which will also finish the gravel

delivery what ever furniture Son 2 takes that was Dad's

do the odd jobs he has been putting off to do with Son 2

Yard mow or if it keeps raining it might be bale hay.

Get the garden in

Straighten the fence along road

remove old doghouse since the other neighbor decided he didn't want it and E said he could burn as kindling.

Put the smoker together to stop his wife (ME) from nagging.

Mine

nag Hubby about smoker.

go through 2 boxes a week minimum of stuff... that makes it done in a year but I really see me doing more.

Contact ins about processing biologic

Contact Paint co about dealing with this bad paint

schedule energy audit

defrost and organize 3 deep freezers

finish cleaning the last 2 1/2 shelves in pantry

clear garden shed so E can move it to his place.

clear old chicken coop so H can move it to his place.

plant flowers at windmill

get garden in

find straight pins so I can sew the warm weather curtains.

sew warm weather curtains.

Frugal at store May groceries

First... the old trailer has sold so that covers June's bills. So we are working on July which is NICE since Hubby will be deep sea fishing during a week in June.

Since May's bills are paid including what medical bills were in, I think there is 2 left going through ins still.... I had EXTRA grocery money. We together checked what we had and talked about what we wanted.

We decided against freezing asparagus. Don't like mushy asparagus and we know we don't like canned unless it's pickled... So I am pickling asparagus we don't eat fresh or give to family.

Since we were over to Sidney yesterday for doctor appt we felt we should go to Aldi's for groceries for May's groceries. Hubby stopped over and said something to E & M asking if they needed anything. The WHOLE family as in parents, 6 adult children and spouses and all their kids was coming over to have a work day, cutting wood, making repairs, sewing etc. We ended up with a list (Thanks to M it was on 1 list not 7). Hubby took care of their list. I did ours. Since we have been asked repeatedly what Amish buy at Aldi's... veg oil, saltine crackers, powdered sugar, celery .iceberg lettuce,cream cheese and butter if less than $2.60/lb. I have seen them get bananas and whipped topping.

I got :

Milk, sour cream, cottage cheese, and 3 "bars" of cheese. I got Greek vanilla yogurt that less than a gallon of milk which would make the same amount of yogurt.

lemons, limes, oranges, kiwis , and a pineapple, strawberries(to make Daddy a strawberry rhubarb pie for his 92nd birthday on the 3rd) bananas, mangoes and fresh figs. Avocados.

Cherry tomatoes (anti pasta salad) Roma tomatoes for salads(cucumber tomato salad etc) and tomatoes for BLT's

Hamburger for taco meat

Thin chicken breast for satay

Chicken breast for the grill for me

Chicken thighs for the grill for Hubby

Prosciutto and speck for a couple recipes Hubby wants to take to a cookout at end of month.

Waffles and pancakes and hash brown patties...not something I normally buy but Hubby asked for them since we just finished what I had fixed for the freezer and it's not something I normally fix at dinner time during the summer.

Celery, carrots, potatoes, garlic (completely out of what I grew), radishes, broccoli, green onions, cauliflower, cabbage, lettuce and mushrooms. I really think I need a "green house or hoop house" for winter/early spring growing.

I bought bread products that I will freeze and bag in servings for us instead of the whole package. Hubby feels at this time with dealing with all the boxes and stuff on top of gardens that my time is better put towards those items and not towards baking all our breads. I got 1 loaf of sliced bread (as Daddy calls it) 2 pkgs croissants, 2 pkgs of bagels, 2 pkgs of English muffins, 2 pkgs of sub buns, 2 pkgs of hamburger buns,and 2 pkgs of hot dog buns. Actually that should last most of the summer. Tortilla wraps... 8 inch for wraps/enchiladas/burritos   and 6 inch for tacos .

total came to $292.24...