Goodwill Finds

It had been a while since I'd been to my favorite store--Goodwill.  Most of the time, they have just what I'm looking for.  Sometimes they have items that I'm not necessarily looking for (like the books above), but some I just can't pass up!  For the books I paid between  $0.75 and $1.25.  Some of them are classics!  The prices for the appliances were: $5.95 for the ice cream/sorbet maker and the crockpot on the right, $7.95 for the programmable crockpot on the left.  It was a good day of shopping!  Anybody got any good crockpot recipes?

Same thing different person?

Well, Shelby was better on Thursday, but Friday, after feeling quite droopy all day, she suddenly barfed all over the (fabric!) couch. I cleaned it with some spray stuff, then DH took the cushions outside and hosed them off. The cushions spent the night and following day outside and now there's no hint of the mess. The next day, Ava came down with some feverish thing and today, I'm under the weather. I haven't even had a cold in probably a year! I'm miserable and writing under the influence of Nyquil, so this might be more interesting than I intend.
So I'm on a new quest of frugality. Thank God I like my job, but I hate that I have to work. I'm not sure DH knows this and I haven't told him. No worries, he doesn't read the blog. We have minimal debt (house and 2 loans) and I really think we could live on one paycheck. DH says he's on board with this plan, but I'm not too sure about that. A dollar in his hand is a dollar spent. Although, I must say, he has come a very long way and the dollar he spends is usually on the house. The Nyquil is really kicking in. I'll tell you more in my next post. In the meantime check ou this awesome blog I just duscovered!

Home Made baby Food

From L-R: Apples & blueberries, squash, spinach/cauliflower/potato, carrot/potato, red lentil with mixed vegetables.

I make my own baby food for several reasons, the main one being that is saves sooo much money! Cooking is an act of love and I don't think Delaney should be the only one in the family I don't do it for! I like knowing exactly what's in her food, and adding this or that to boost nutritional content and flavor. All I do is steam whatever, run it through the food processor (a couple of months ago I'd strain it, but she's a big girl now), sometimes I'll add some breast milk or vegetable stock (form the vegs themselves, not store bought, if it's a little too thick) and put in ice trays to use later. I still buy jar baby food, because it's convenient when we're out all day or out of town, but not often.

Delaney has food allergies (milk), so that's another reason. A lot of jar baby food contains milk or milk derivatives. I'm able to feed her a varied diet without stressing over what's in it. And what keeps me doing it is the fact that she loves it!

Frugal Fashion

Here are the girls with their cousin Q. I bought the dresses at Goodwill for $2.60 each. The green one is embroidered velvet, the purple one's skirt is velvet, not sure about the bodice fabric. When I bought them, they looked like they'd never been worn!