Prep Genrl WEEKLY PREP THREAD, Mar 23-29

[prudentwatcher]

Couple of little stops today to get things--some canned veggies (sale and coupon), lots of candy bars (sale and coupons), toilet paper (coupon), picked up a prescription, some more cat food and prescription dog food. Found some more coupons for the cat food, but will probably have to wait until Sunday to get them.

Both the car and truck are topped off, I'm on the second load of laundry, and we have some guys in the front yard trimming up a tree that is mess and is tangling in electrical wires.

I'll just keep my open for other things this week as they come up. What is everyone else up to?

 

[willowwind]

Went to family dollar today and noticed that they were pulling a lot of the family dollar brand stuff and putting it on the clearance section even though they weren't changing the price. This makes me think that they may be getting ready to increase their prices again.

I buy their brand of black trash bags,flip top tie 28 of the 30 gallon size. They sell for 3.50. They had pulled them and the spot they usually are was left empty. I bought 10 boxes, figured if they do up the price I will save a little money if they don't I will use them eventually anyway.

They also had all the dollar days section marked 75 percent off. They had those pocket hair brushes that fold down like a compact for a quarter. These are great space savers for camping,car ect. They work well and last a long time.

 

[moldy]

DH hit the discount grocery yesterday on the way home for a few items - coffee, oatmeal for DD, some convenience mixes. I need to go do a little banking today and maybe run a couple errands. Mostly we're just trying to get over the cold/allergy/flu gunk we both have.

Note to self: stock up on decongestants and cough drops!

 

[2 Parrots]

Batteries

I found some good deals on batteries. Wegman's brand AA 20 count for $7.99, C 4 count $3.49, D 4 count $3.49 for our Luminara candles. I love these candles. They have a timer on them. Also, ordered 100 N-RGY alkaline AA batteries from Amazon for $19.99. We haven't tried them yet, but it was a good deal. And, stocked up on ground beef for $2.28lb! Going to make meat loaf, mashed potatoes & gravy some peas and home made bread. Oh, and Goya chick peas for .69 cents a can.

 

[SAPPHIRE]

Bits and pieces are about all I'm finding lately.....a few jars of extra light olive oil...17oz. for $3.49.....I use it all the time........will pick up some organic cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soup for $1.69 a can......that's cheap in my area.........some clearance otc pharmacy stuff.and TP....of course......will look for bargains but it's mucho hard to be "there" when the markdowns are brought out at local stores.........

 

[Deena in GA]

Went to a couple of Goodwills in the Atlanta area yesterday. Found a pair of Harley Davidson boots for our teen son that look brand new and only paid $29 for them! Woo hoo! Also a nice Timberland backpack for only $6. Both of those are things we can always use.

Hoping to get our garden tilled up this weekend and start planting. Also planning a run to Aldi's tomorrow and Publix to stock up on bogo's.

 

[ReneeT]

Did sort of a repeat of the deal I did on Sunday at CVS, with my co-worker Buddy's card - he had some ECBs that were going to expire and wanted me to use them:
1 - pkg CVS diapers @ $6.99
Total: $6.99
Used:
1 - $3 ECB
1 - $2 ECB
Total: $5
Paid $1.99 plus tax; got back a $3 ECB

Bought:
2 - boxes cereal @ 2/$5
1 - pkg CVS basic paper towels @ 79 cents
Total: $5.79
Used:
1 - 79 cent Basic paper towel scanner coupon
1 - $1/2 General Mills cereal coupon
1 - $3 ECB
1 - $1 ECB
Total: $5.79
Paid: tax only; got back a $2 ECB on the cereal.

Gave daughter a $1/2 boxes General Mills cereal coupon and she did the above cereal and paper towel deal, using a $3 ECB that she had on hand; she paid $1 + tax and brought home a $2 ECB.

Have $5/$30 coupon for Walgreen's and 2 - $5/$25 for Dollar General this week and can't find a thing I need either place; no good coupon deals that I can find. I will drop off the Dollar General coupons by the store for others to use. Coupon deals just weren't very exciting this week.

Daughter called me last night and said "Do you still have those landscape blocks you aren't going to use?" I said that I did; and she said that her friend was looking for some. I'd used the blocks to make a block and gravel path to the side door of the machine shed, but, of course, they heaved out of the ground with the winter freeze/thaw cycles. I'd had a choice of putting them back level each year, risk tripping over the uneven blocks and breaking another bone (lousy bone density thanks to cancer treatment), or pulling them up and putting down straight gravel - I'm too busy in springtime to mess with taking up and putting back down, and definately DON'T want to break anything else, so had already replaced them with straight gravel; the blocks were left stacked by the shed door - in the way. So I was happy to give them to daughter's friend ~ however, she wanted to pay for them, so today I got a cute new haircut for summer - and just in time as I was about ready to take the sewing shears to myself lol!

Boss surpised me with 2 - $10 Wal-Mart cards Tuesday morning at work; it was a bonus for the extra shift I'd come in for on short notice (and no sleep!) I wasn't really expecting a gift card, and certainly not $20 worth!! I gave one to each of the younger grandsons; LGS picked out a small Hulk figurine (poor baby has mostly hand me down toys lol!) and bottle of juice today; MGS has yet to take his shopping but told me he wanted 'new supe-hero underwear'; practical, that boy is LOL!

Speaking of those two, I think they've finally fallen asleep for their nap! Time for Grandma to sneak in a nap of her own!

 

[SAPPHIRE]

No offense, ReneeT, but where in the world do you put all this stuff??? I live in a shoebox......and it's mighty tight spacing due to "boxomania"..........Two small closets, one small hall closet, and next to no cabinetry........and no extra $$ or transportation for thrift store shelving, etc.......

At first my DH was not happy 'bout the situation....but as prices continue to climb he's glad we have a hedge...........

 

[ReneeT]

None taken, Sapphire. I'm blessed in that Hubby and I live in the home my father and I built together; it was built to serve a 3 generation household and those who came after; as well as being planned to have enough room for family as needed - including a very large main floor kitchen with plenty of room for canning/family gatherings - it's not unusual to have 40 or more folks at a family dinner. It's not a huge house by any means; just a standard cape cod, story & a half, plus a full finished basement, so room for storage. Since my daughter bought her own home and my father passed away, both in 2006, Hubby and I rattle around in here like 2 bb's in shoe box! We'd love to pass this home down to daughter and grandsons, and build a smaller one for ourselves here on the farm, but daughter ~ silly girl ~ likes living in 'town' (all of a 2,100 population). I'll leave this farm when they carry me out the door feet first, so I suppose we'll continue to rattle for a while; in the meantime, I have a full bedroom (daughter's) down basement that I've put 2'x4'x6' shelves around two of the walls, and then have boxes of home canned items stacked by variety in the center of the room, along with storage tubs marked as to items held for those things that don't shelve easily; and future clothing items for the boys are in stacked storage tubs along the 3rd wall; a closet taking up the 4th wall that is full of daughter's stuff she didn't take with her when she moved. The closet in the guest room /now grandsons' room was converted to a pantry for current use items; another, smaller closet over a stairwell in that room is used for their clothing, the diaper stash, and one 4' long bookshelf that holds smaller pantry items. I'd have a lot more room for storage if I could find time to sort through and get rid of some junk...

 

[SAPPHIRE]

You are very fortunate..................and so are your family members!

 

[moldy]

hit Safeway after work yesterday and got $150 worth of groceries for $98. I signed up for their emails, and it has links to add coupons to your card. Works pretty well... for a few minutes of clicking, I saved over $15. Strawberries were on sale for $1.50/lb, which is probably the cheapest I'll see them this year. I bought 6 lbs and will freeze them today. Also got some ice cream - havent' had any since summer, and I was just hungry for some! Bacon was $10.99 for 3 lbs and we always seem to run out of that before it's time to butcher again - so I picked up 12 lbs. DH has said he may have to go get another card for himself, so we can do better on the deals. Walgreens here hasn't had much for ages; and they used to have such good deals.

We are pretty limited. In the local 2 towns, we have 2 independant grocers, Safeway, and Walmart. We also have some convenience stores and Walgreens - that's about it. If I want something more, I have to drive a minimum of 45-60 minutes. Needless to say, when I have to go to the big city, I stock up bigtime!

Today, I need to get caught up on housework, plant some things I got from Stark Bros, and take care of some other preps. Even with money being REALLY tight, I have got to get more livestock ordered - bees, chickens (meat and layers), and pigs! I am having a heck of a time finding pigs!

OTOH, I have a co-worker that also owns a cafe. Yesterday, she offered me all their scraps (and plate scrapings) for pig food. it wont' be a big deal - the cafe is 2 miles from the kids' school, so they can just pick it up after class a couple times a week. I'm so excited!

I need to also start on my next story... God has just really placed it on my heart to redo my first story I ever wrote. I've been fighting it a little, because most of it is autobiographical, and it's painful to relive. However, He pointed out to me that one of the reasons we go thru difficulties is to help others that are going thru the same thing. Sigh. When I told DH I was arguing with God, he just laughed and said 'So how's that going for you?' I'm so glad I am bless with a truly awesome wonderful man.

 

[Kathy in FL]

Moldy, upick farms around here are selling for .50/lb and I wish I could go but after those 10 flats of strawberries I just finished with it would be ridiculous overkill and I don't have the time anyway. Still, I love strawberry picking. Nostalgic for when Mom and I could do things like that together. She can't do it with her back and emphysema though now.

 

[blueberry]

A setback this week with prepping. Last night, just as I was going to bed, I noticed a strange puddle in front of my upright freezer. Yep, it had died many days ago and everything in it was a warm, soggy mess.

I am posting this as a reminder to check your freezer often. If I had discovered the problem earlier, the roasts would be in strips, marinating to be made into jerky. The fruits and vegetables would be in the dehydrator and the chicken would be in pint and quart jars. But no, because of my negligence, all that food is in the dumpster.

So if you have not checked your freezer in a while, at least go listen and make sure it is running!

 

[summerthyme]

Ok, that officially sucks!! PLEASE, people- if you use freezers for anything more than a couple cartons of ice cream and some frozen pizzas, BUY A FREEZER ALARM!! They are set to go off if the interior of the freezer goes above a certain temperature... and will save horrid surprises like blueberry's..

They're around 20 bucks, too- CHEAP insurance

Summerthyme

 

[Kathy in FL]

Blueberry you have my sympathies. What a mess. I've lost a freezer full and so has my mom. Makes you want to sit down and cry ... at the loss and the mess. Or go kick something. Really, really hard.

 

[blueberry]

Shows what I know .... not much! I did not know about freezer alarms. You can bet I will get one when I get a new freezer.

Still, I blame myself. The freezer was not in the garage or an outbuilding - it was in a small room off my kitchen. I should have noticed it was not running many days ago, and probably could have saved most of the food.

 

[etdeb]

Alarms are great , but still check your stuff. the freezer full of stuff I lost about 3-4 weeks was in a freezer with alarm. The freezer did not go off so the alarm did not.
The door leaked air and the stuff in front I guess went thru semi melt. The door was fixed but the stuff developed mildew . I had to toss the whole 22 ft upright contents.

 

[SAPPHIRE]

oh no! So sorry blueberry............that's a kick in the gut kind of event...........just 'cause it's so unexpected........IMO.....

 

[summerthyme]

etdeb- the alarms I'm talking about have a small sensor wire that goes inside the freezer- it reads the temp of the freezer and alarms if it goes above a certain preset temp. There are other alarms that will tell you if your freezer gets unplugged (happened to my youngest son after he'd just put a quarter of beef in the freezer- his wife unplugged it to use the plug for something (in the basement, where they've only got one plug) and forgot to plug it back in. That REALLY sucked...

But the temperature alarms will also work if it gets unplugged, so we stick with them...

Summerthyme

 

[etdeb]

summerthyme, this freezer has built in alarm and a digital reading on the front. I guess the sensor maybe is in the back and that never reach the temp to alarm.
I hope to can more this summer and get away from the freezer all together. This is the 3 one lost in two years between my daughter and I. both Sears, both door gasket failed, one twice just 4 months apart and I made them give her new freezer. We have extended warranty but hers was still under original 1 year. They made 4 service calls replaced gaskets and even complete doors when the last one failed that was it. She had insurance but 250.00 was just a drop in the bucket and that was only on first loss. She trusted it being repaired and lost more food when she used it,
I think added a second alarm like you talk about the checks near the door would be good. Since the frost free feature in the modern freezers already has the door temp lower than the back.

 

[psychgirl]

Yep, been there too, Blueberry (Summerthyme probably remembers me talking about it). I lost an extra freezer, full of MEAT a couple of years ago right when I needed it most; I just lost my job and was counting on that meat to help out. We kept it at husband's mother's house, right next to us, but since noo one was living there I only checked the freezer every couple of months. MAN, did THAT hurt! I think I cried a little as I was filling up those trash bags....then last summer I got a brand new, beautiful, extra freezer for my very own as a gift from hub. It sits proudly in OUR basement where I can keep an eye on it. I wish it was full, lol...but I'm workin' on it!

 

[summerthyme]

I would have cried, too, psychgirl! It's hard to see God's hand in some of this stuff, but I'm convinced that at times he allows it so that we put our trust in HIM, not in our "preps". (don't get me wrong- I believe it's within His will to prep, but we shouldn't forget that His will is what will allow us to survive or not)

And oh, Lord- don't get me started on verdamnt Sears and their crap!! We bought a 28 cubic foot upright freezer (Kenmore brand) after our house burned in 1980. It died the first time at 4 months old; they had to completely re-model the thing, adding a compressor on the outside, because the moron who designed them had put EVERYTHING inside the walls.

It quit the second time 7 months later. (out of warranty). This time, the idiot serviceman showed up, but couldn't do anything because he only had tools for repairing heating systems (it being winter!). By the time he came back, we had moved everything out of the freezer and into an unused doghouse outside, and had piled all the snow we could find around it. Naturally, that was the week we had the traditional January thaw, and temps were in the 60's all week!!

When I mentioned the issue to the repairman, he just said "oh, you'll just have to throw it all out"- as if a full beef plus our entire harvest of freezable vegetables was nothing more than a partially eaten pizza or something!

We were blessed that nothing thawed in the ELEVEN DAYS it took them to fix it that time- when we shoveled the snow off and removed the black plastic we'd draped over the Rubbermaid containers full of frozen food, it was still rock hard frozen.

The freezer quit for good the next year, and we didn't even bother calling Sears. (BTW, their "24/7 service" means that you can get an answering machine to leave a message any time after 9-5, and someone may call you back the next time they show up for work!)

And we NEVER bought another Kenmore appliance, and never will

Summerthyme

Oh- a brief warning. The new freezers will NOT work in temperatures under about 28°. Found that out the hard way, when a small (7.5 cf) chest freezer we bought at Sam's Club for the overflow when we were butchering chickens) died at 13 months (one month after the warranty expired). We had it in our old, completely unheated heifer barn, in a grain room that allowed us to shut the door and keep it from being damaged.

We had our son who has an HVAC degree check it out, and he couldn't find anything wrong with it, but it simply didn't run.

The next summer, I plugged it in just for the heck of it- and it ran perfectly!!!

So, if you only have an unheated garage or similar to keep the freezer and you live in a place where winters get cold, you'll have to find an alternative spot for the freezer in the winter months. One more fun thing to thank the moron Greenies for.