Special Treats

Two weeks ago Publix had one pint Starbuck's ice cream on sale BOGO. Heather and I dug through our coupon binders and came up with six Starbuck's ice cream coupons: 3 were for $2 off, and 3 were for $1.50 off. That meant the ice cream averaged out to 10 cents a carton! Six coupons meant just enough to go around in our family, one per adult. I handed out a list of Starbuck's ice cream flavors and asked everyone to note their favorite (or guess their favorite in case they had never actually eaten Starbuck's ice cream before.)

Once at the store, I discovered Publix was completely out. No prob. I got a raincheck. Several days ago I was able to redeem the raincheck and get each person their very own carton in their favorite flavor. To keep things clear and fair, I wrote each name on their carton with a Sharpie marker.

I highly recommend the Caramel Macchiato!

Two Yard Bargains

I found TWO great deals for our yard this past week. First, I found a black iron arbor for the side gate at Pike's Garden Center ~ half off. David helped me install it and The Professor helped me choose vines to climb over it.

A red climbing rose will grow up the right side, and a yet-to-be-planted clematis will grow up the left side. Many years from now they should intertwine at the top of the arbor.

On Friday I found a black iron patio table and four chairs on clearance at Target. I have been dreaming of a set like this for years, so I'm very excited to finally have one. It really should have 6 chairs to seat our family, but I bought all the chairs that our Target had. I plan to look at other Target locations for two more. If I can't find two more, I'm not worried. Many manufacturers make patio furniture in this black mesh style. And two chairs that are a bit different will look fine with what I have.

The Great Flatware Mystery

I discovered a mystery in our home last week: Whatever happened to the rest of our silverware? I searched the whole kitchen, then the house, and this is all I found. I have two very similar patterns; the one on the left is supposed to be eight place settings, and the nicer one on the right is supposed to be 10 place settings. So, where are the missing pieces?

Free in June

I like to keep a list of what I get free, or costing me just a few cents, every month. This is a great reminder to me of how God blesses us in my efforts in being a true Home Economist. Here is my list for June:

Publix Mystery Coupon Items:
Publix cheesy shells
sliced cheese

Rolling CVS Extracare Bucks:
Clearasil daily face wash
2 Nivea for Men face wash
Old Spice body wash
J&J body wash
Gillette Fusion razor
Crest Pro Health toothpaste
2 pkgs lens cleaning wipes
wrist insect repellent
2 Softsoap body wash
Oral B twin pack toothbrushes

Rolling Walgreen's Register Rewards:
Revlon 1875 watt hair dryer
Coconut-lime soap pump
3 bottles St. Ives body wash
Ecotrin
Aquafresh toothpaste
2 boxes envelopes
3-pack pencil lead refills
4 lb honey
2 cans white tuna
Snickers bar

Great Sale Prices Combined with Coupons:
2 boxes Kelloggs cereal
2 Sunsilk conditioner
3 Suave deodorant
3 Oikos yogurts

Full Rebates:
Reynolds wrap

Free Deals:
bagel at Einstein's
2 huge boxes Hefty kitchen bags

Given to Me:
4 heads lettuce
2 yellow squash
radishes
2 lb pulled chicken, buns, bbq sauce and beans

Trash Pickin'

I'm not usually bold enough to pick over other people's trash on trash day, especially during daylight hours, but today....

How could I resist?

As I was walking this morning I saw one of my neighbors had put this wicker settee out for the trash. It is dirty and the paint is worn, but nothing much is wrong with it. A little of the wicker on the back top edge is coming unwoven, but that's it. I ran home to call Greta out of bed to help me carry it home. After a scrubbing, a little paint, and some cushions it should look just fine.

What color do you think I should paint it? It is currently black and the previous dark green paint shows through in various places. My few pieces of existing patio furniture are a creamy white iron bistro set and a dark green cushioned lounge. I could go with the creamy white, or I could paint the bistro set and the settee black. Or bronze. Or I could paint only the settee dark green. But I'm not leaning toward that at the moment.

Filling the Freezer Bit by Bit

Diced onions and peppers for the freezer; six of each. These freeze beautifully if you first flash freeze them on a tray before bagging up for longer storage. I lined the tray with parchment paper for no sticking.

My Great Garage Sale Find

I made one of my best-ever garage sale purchases on Saturday: a chest freezer! In all our 30 years of marriage, I have never had a freezer other than the one above (or below) the refrigerator. I was sooo excited to find this one. I got it from my next-door neighbor's "over the back fence" neighbor. I scrubbed it up and started filling it with sale items this week. I still have lots of room for future sale items. (Picture will come later when I round up the camera batteries.)