Happy Sunday all. Good-bye to July. I just am having a hard time realizing that we are getting so much closer to fall already! Goodness.
We have lost a lot of daylight time this month. It won't be long till I am going out in the dark every morning again! I think that is the one thing I really hate.
This morning is lovely. I heard some birds that I have not heard before this morning. I am not at all sure what they were. You just never know around here!
Speaking of which!!! My neighbor called this week and said 'come out back now'. Out I go and he is looking to towards the alley and then points in an upward motion. I walk back and look up and holy cow - what do I see?????? A turkey buzzard!!!!!! Then he points again and there are 2!!!!!!
Never in all my years here have I seen that! I have seen them out in the country, but never that close to home. The things are huge and ugly! Kind of an ominous feeling!!!!!
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I guess you just never know what you might see around here anymore!!!! LOL! I need to learn to not be surprised!
We had rain last Sunday and again on Wednesday. It rained basically off and on all day Wednesday. Loved it. It filled my barrels again. We ended up cooler for a few days - less humidity. It will be warm again this upcoming week. I can handle the heat -- it is the humidity that gets me. My kitties have sure been enjoying the cooler weather!
My week:
- Told you about racoon wrangling last Sunday!
- I washed the Blazer with rainwater from the barrel - no spotting!
- I 'found' a $100 GC I forgot all about having!! Looks like maybe some free groceries coming up
- Froze okra
- Harvesting. A did get a couple cukes, okra and tomatoes. Cherry tomatoes are nuts! I eat them like candy!!!! Getting regular tomatoes as well now.
- I finally mowed! Mowed and trimmed the entire yard. The grass really didn't need mowed, just all those spindly weeds.
- Paid everything I had here
- Worked on cleaning out the big perennial bed - it was a mess of browned lily leaves and weeds.
- Worked on the flower bed behind the house and also worked on the back fence area (mornings when cooler)
- I did go to Kroger - SIL called and told me I need to go! I told her I didn't need anything, and she said GO - you can get some deals on clearance. Yep, I did. On top of the clearance, I got a cantaloupe, milk and a few clearance potatoes. I spent $48 - my monthly total for July!!!!!
- I fix a squirrel feeder that came down this week. It has been up for years - so reinforced that.
- Used dehumidifier water in laundry
- Toasted a couple stale hotdog buns and made cinnamon toast
- Used food from home and leftovers.
- Doing all the normal stuff we all do.
Meals this week:
Bacon burger and fresh veggies
Cream cheese and veggie roll-ups
Loaded baked potato
Beef and cheese nachos
Tuna patty and fried green tomatoes (had one fall off!) YUM
Breaded pork steak and zucchini/rice/cheese, sliced tomato
Pork chops, 1 potato and a couple small carrots - all cooked together
SNACKS - fruit, yogurt, cinnamon toast, a few bites of candy
How is your weather? I know many are still so hot and there is floods and fires all over. So sad. I hope you are all well and safe.
Any deals this week? Garden goodies? What is happening in your neighborhood?
I would like to thank you all for the wonderful comments on my home this week. That was not my intention at all but appreciated. I was just hoping to show someone that you can make a nice home on little money. New doesn't make it better or worse. Just use what you have and what you can afford.
I hope you all have a wonderful week ahead. Blessings from my humble little home to you and yours.
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a downcast spirit dries up the bones.
Proverbs 17:22
A man of understanding sets his face toward wisdom, but the eyes of a fool are on the end of the earth.
Proverbs 17:24
A wonderful section of Proverbs to study!!
Dear Lord, help us each one to choose joy over darkness. Help us to each spread smiles and happiness each day. Let us be Your window of hope and goodness to others. Let us reflect Your love. Let us all be messengers of goodness and peace, not despair.
Amen
I have tomato envy. The tomatoes are slow this season and I'm doubtful that there will be the usual harvest. No worries. A friend has 60 plants (!) and I'm sure she will share the excess. Isn't that the way with garden harvest? I preserved 8 qts of rhubarb juice; very refreshing drink with some bubbly soft drink. I also preserved 11 pts of green beans. There should be one more picking. Only one social outing this past week - lunch out for a birthday celebration. If it weren't for these celebrations, I wouldn't eat out. I had a flatbread with meat, feta cheese & peaches, something I could replicate at home. I ate leftovers last week - veggie pasta salad, egg salad sandwiches, grilled steak & vegetables. The last of the steak was used in a stir fry. I'll be glad to start from scratch. What to cook? I've been thinking of a taco salad. Looking forward to a camping trip with my son & family. I remember the first time I saw turkey vultures. They are quite the creature.
ReplyDeleteMy tomatoes are just starting - don't know how many I will get - but grateful for any! I sure hope you get some.
DeleteRhubarb juice sounds very tasty! Good going on the green beans as well.
I get an outing this week! I don't ever eat out - so it will be a treat. You keep busy with your outings!
Mmmm taco salad is always a treat in my book! Oh how nice on the upcoming camping trip. Sounds like fun.Have a good week.
Our tomatoes are just starting to produce, as well. We had a very slow start due to all the rain. Maybe we'll get a late season that meets up with the lettuce for some good fall salads! One can wish!!
DeleteThank you for the shared verses and prayer this morning, Cheryl. Very timely! We've been so inundated with rain that we had a flash flood on our front 1/2 acre this week. I'd never seen anything like it in person. One long stretch by the house lost at least 4 inches of soil. I was afraid the shed would get carried off in the fast moving, muddy water, but it didn't. Last night our son came over, because all the rain had his septic system backing up and a plumber told him to use house water sparingly.
ReplyDeleteIn order to take advantage of grocery sales and markdowns, we're going to get a small chest freezer. The fridge freezer is quite full. I read this week beef farmers are sending their breeding cows to slaughter to thin or (in some cases) eliminate their herds due to increased costs and weather. 2023, they said, will bring less available beef. If you can stock up on meat, now is the time to do it., as less beef will drive the prices of all meat up.
Anyway, just trying to cling to gratitude for our many blessings and keep a positive outlook. Grandma Griff used to say her favorite bible verse was "And it came to pass." She lived to be 100. Wishing everyone a serene Sunday! --Elise
Just wanted to add, no despair here. Stuff happens. Weather happens. And the sun comes out again! --Elise
DeleteOh how scary on all the rain. I sure hope there was rain and run-off close to Lake Mead. They sure need water there. It seems those who don't need it get and vice versus. I am hopeful you can get you yard back in order soon. Hoping you son's home is OK as well.
DeleteI think a chest freezer is an excellent idea. It is wise to stock on as much as needed for a while. That will be a wonderful investment for you. Have a fantastic week.
Never thought you were disparaging at all. Agree, stuff happens, and we just go with the flow. Indeed, the sun and cool and beauty always returns!
DeletePicked up a new 7 cu. ft. chest freezer today at an amazing price. It just perfectly fit in the back of our crossover, and also into a corner of the kitchen. Feeling blessed!
DeleteAs for the yard, since there was no landscape, there was nothing to lose except dirt. LOL! This has been a wetter than usual monsoon season; I, too, hope Lake Mead is filling up.
It's cool here this morning, after a storm in the evening brought the temperature down several degrees. We've had lots of rain and now I'm wishing for more heat. Of course, it is the long weekend here in our province so the weather isn't great. Just the way of it. :)
ReplyDeleteHave a good week!
Love cool mornings. You sure have had a difference of weather over the past month or so. You must have a government holiday there. I hope you get to enjoy it some.
DeleteHave a good week.
Oh I hate turkey buzzards! Sometimes we see a dozen or so in the field near our neighborhood and it makes my skin crawl. We saw Robins here last week which is an odd time of year. I wondered where they were going. It is seems that everything is upside down and mixed up.
ReplyDeleteUgliest birds ever! Somehow, they make you feel something scary is about to happen! LOL. I watched too many scary movies as a kid!
DeleteI noticed this week that the robins are still here. It is kind of amazing to me.
I guess the birds know better than we do. My hummingbirds were quite late this year - so I have no clue.
Have a good week.
Earlier this week, the geese had returned to the pond across the street, feeding in the lily pads and then up on the grassy area above the shoreline and along the sidewalks. My original thought was that it was kind of early for their return and wondered how that relates to the forthcoming winter. Things really are topsy turvy! I've not gotten much from my garden, but my one pepper is ready to be picked and there's swiss chard and the last picking of buttercrunch lettuce ready. Herbs are ready for a haircut and into the dehydrator. It was a busy week of putting up savory jams for a fundraiser -- peach habanero and a copycat Harry & David's pepper relish, to go along with strawberry and raspberry-peach melba from the week before. This week will be busy too -- a trip to SW Michigan with my daughter, for a day with her uncle and his girlfriend, along with a stop at my Mom's. I'm hoping to get fresh produce while there (or at least see what's ready). Later in the week, my chef-friend and I will get produce for canning. He wants to do plain roma tomatoes, I need to do some spaghetti sauce. My daughter wants plain tomatoes and sauce, and I think we all want to do some pickles. Peaches will be coming on soon, too. So, let the madness begin!
ReplyDeleteI am not sure quite what to make of the birds this year. Staying longer, showing up early or late - I guess they know what is up!
DeleteHow fun that you are taking a trip with your daughter. That will be nice. Enjoy your visit with you mom.
It sounds like canning will be the theme at your home for a while. Good for you. I love that you are all working together on it. That is neat. Sounds like you have made some wonderful goodies!
Have a lovely week.
Sounds like a really good week, Cheryl I’m glad you finally got some rain. Those turkey buzzards are HUGE! I had one lift off in front of me on the road one day and it’s wing span was as wide as the windshield my car. They are huge!
ReplyDeleteHuge and creepy looking!!!!! I am glad for the rain as well. It was sure needed - we are still over 4" low. I am glad you weren't around all that terrible flooding.
DeleteHave a wonderful week.
Please, keep a watchful eye, on your kitties. As I have seen, such birds, and owls, prey on them, in my area.
ReplyDeleteWill do!!!!! Thanks. Usually they go after dead stuff. My kitties stay pretty protected all through the day. Under the deck or car or in the greenhouse or behind things. (out of sun)
DeleteI imagine the lady that has chickens, may have had something die - she has done that before and just thrown it in the weeds!!!!!! Imagine why we have racoons and opossums! Grrr. She is weird, so no one approaches her!!!
Have a good week!
Buzzards are quite common here, especially on garbage day. We see them soaring over often.
ReplyDeleteYou got some good deals at Kroger! I think I have Kroger envy! The nearest one is 25 mi away.
After the electricity came back on Sunday evening, it was an uneventful week. I cleaned out the fridge freezer and tossed some old things (I need to do better on using frozen leftovers) and reorganized. Replaced the ceiling fan/light in my bedroom with a ceiling light. The ceiling is really too low for a fan, and I was tired of it blowing directly on me at night. Took Husband for a hair cut. Weeded the flower beds, pulled the pea vines, and mowed and weed whacked. The rain barrels are full.
Picking zucchini and cucumbers with plenty to give away. Picked the first cherry tomato.
Quit feeding jelly to the orioles because the wasps had taken over the feeder. Seeing lots of hummingbirds this past week since they are tanking up for the long flight to Central America. My mother in KS said that most of their robins left two weeks ago before the 100F weather. I hope this doesn't portend an early winter.
This week I need to go to Aldi, Husband wants to go to the bank (to flirt with the tellers LOL!), and I need to pick up library books. Otherwise, a nice, quiet week is planned.
Cheryl, I really enjoyed your home tour. It is so cozy! You have inspired me to get to work on a couple of ideas I have to make my home more cozy (and less shabby and dirty looking).
--Frances in the Trailer Park
I can get some pretty good deals at Kroger most times. I like it.
DeleteGlad you got all the frig cleaned - it is hard to find all those freezer things sometimes. Sounds like your garden is doing really well.
I still have my robins and the hummies came later this year. Not sure what to make of it.
Hey, let your hubs flirts - that is kind of cute. Bless his heart. Sounds like nice quiet week.
Thank you - my house is just my style and size. I bet your house is lovely. We all like to make changes now and then.
Have a good week.
Rain! 2 1/2 inches yesterday, about flooded things out, it all came down at once.
ReplyDeleteTurkey buzzards do such useful work. Imagine dead things just lying around until they stank and rotted wherever they were. Ugh. Buzzards are not interested in my garden produce, nor my bird feeders, and I've never seen them attack a living animal like hawks will. But boy oh boy they are *big*!
I have a flock of wild turkeys wandering through my yard here every day or so. 2 hens and about 12 young of varying sizes, scratching in the mulch and eating whatever they find. :) This morning there was a large possum passing through and cat was very interested.
MaryB in NC
Sounds like you have the critters too! I have hawks show up now and then and yes, they go after the little birds. Buzzards are BIG and ugly - but, yes they are useful.
DeleteHow cool on the turkeys - that would be something to see. My cats are so used to seeing possum, they don't even look anymore!
Have a nice week.
Aw, you leave the poor turkey buzzards be! They're great for the environment. Didn't anyone else see the silly one on WB cartoons back in the 60s? I was thrilled when I saw my first real one!! In fact, I was more excited to see a real one of those than I was when I saw many celebrities during my L.A. youth lolol!! They are much bigger than they look, for sure! And, contrary to popular belief, they prefer fresh meat. Several years ago, we came up on a whole mess of them, maybe a dozen, on a road at the KS/Neb border. It looked like a comic strip set up.
ReplyDeleteI read about a new budgeting system that was going around tic TOC or something called Cash Stuffing. Intrigued, I tracked it down only to find it was the envelope system lolol. Silly youth rabbits! That's an old rabbit trick!
Of interest, we took a slow look-see around Trader Joe's last week. We usually have a set list, but it wasn't crowded so we took our time. A dozen large eggs was only $2.19, compared to $3.50ish everywhere else. A 16 oz size of the softest body lotion was $3.99. I have excema and most lotions flare it up. This one doesn't. I got the prettiest little flower bouquet that is made for a mason jar for $3.99. will absolutely remember that for a giftie. I wish I had written everything down because there were some great deals. Lastly, I got to spin the wheel and won a big pack of gummies. There's half of an autumn birthday gift for free! They have some great and unique spice blends. I'm going to make a Christmas gift of those for some friends in a place without TJs. In a basket with homemade napkins.
Reading this week...
On my nightstand - Designated Daughters by Margaret Maron, part of the Judge Deborah Knott series set in rural NC.
In my craft room CD player:- The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (a young adult book that was recommended)
With my Bible study - Beautiful in God's Eyes by Elizabeth George.
By my reading chair - Foxfire. I'm on the section about families. I'm enjoying it a lot. It's a BIG book!!
Husband's vacation is over so this is gonna be a tough week of adapting to early early mornings!!
Oh they are necessary for sure. We used to go driving out at Crown Hill cemetery - a very huge and historic cemetery and set in a wildlife habitat. It is a gorgeous place. There were always tons of buzzards on the outer edges of the woods. I even saw one perched on top a big angel monument - I have a pic somewhere.
DeleteI have never been to Trader Joes. None close by, so I don't make an effort to go. It sounds like a neat place.
There are about 12 or 13 Foxfire books on different stuff!
Good luck with your early mornings!
Have a nice week.
Those are big birds! I guess they all have their jobs to do.
ReplyDeleteYou did good on your Kroger run. Your SIL was good to alert you to the bargains.
We had zoodles with eggplant on top for lunch. The thing I want to can are in short supply, despite planting plenty. The Urban Farmer found a big tomato that the varmints didn't touch and we had turkey BLTs for supper again.
There are things at Trader Joe's that we like, others not so much. Their spices are good and inexpensive. The dogs love the organic chicken treats. It's more like a real grocery instead of selling everything under the sun.
We have a fellow coming to pick up the four Leghorns so we can put the Rhode Island Red in the big chicken house and run. There are eight of them so they need the room. He sent me a picture of his hens and he must have forty of them. City says you can only keep 12...oops...
I have a few people that call and let me know of deals. That is nice.
DeleteI keep thinking about making zoodles - it just sounds good with some sauce on top or just butter and parm.
I didn't know there was a limit on chickens - hmmm - need to keep an eye open on the weird neighbor! At least your girls will get some room to spread out a bit. (I assume yours are girls)
Have a great week.
I think, everyone, knows what Buzzards do.
ReplyDeleteNo need for everyone to correct.
It was mentioned, as it happened to one of my kitties. Unbeknown to me, one of the outside cats, was injured, still alive, but...not moving much. Buzzard's swarmed, and pecked at the cat. Thankfully, I was able to intervene.
As far as Owls, yes, they will attack small animals, such as kittens, etc...One grabbed, a kitten, nothing I could do. With that...no need to keep rehashing about buzzards.
So sorry that happened to your kitty, that is horrible. I have heard that about owls - that is another thing I have not seen here, yet I know they are in the area.
DeleteThank you for sharing. Huge hugs!
I don't know if you have a cell phone or not, but I am really enjoying the bird app put out by Cornell University and it's free. You can push a button to record the birds outside and they will identify all the ones it hears. So fun! We found out we had a Carolina Wren that we didn't know about. It's called Merlin Bird ID in the app store.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info. - but no, I just have a flip phone. I am sure that will help someone reading, so thank you very much.
DeleteHave a good week.
Hello frugal friend, I haven’t been able to comment on most blogs in months but I think tonight I finally cracked the code. I’ve been reading you most days but couldn’t reply. So hello again!
ReplyDeleteHello there! Glad to have you here. Please feel free to share your frugal ideas with us.
DeleteHave a great week.