When I got dressed, this morning, I chose some clothes from my closet and had to smile, because I tallied the cost, and considered what I was wearing.
I chose a like-new pair of J Crew jeans, a Ralph Lauren t-shirt, and an Eddie Bauer cotton cardigan. Total cost $3.88, plus tax! All came from Goodwill. All were purchased at a GW sale. All look new.

I was there yesterday, and a woman and her mom were looking for clothing for a little girl. They had loads of Gymboree, Osh Kosh, Gap, etc. and all were between .99 and $1.99 each. They were beautiful articles of clothing. They were well dressed, and looked upper-middle class. Smart shoppers.
Smart shopping!

Not a no-spend day, but I had a lot of fun for not a lot of money. I bought five books,(the kind of paperback that cost about $12.00 each, and will give more, in credit at the used book store, than I spent), a vintage Pyrex refrigerator dish, with lid,(that matches two others I had) a Pyrex baking dish, 12 new cloth napkins (for a gift), and a Ralph Lauren tee shirt for under $15.00 at Goodwill. It was my splurge for the week.

I have the weekly menu planned, and have all of the food in the freezer, so will have to purchase milk, only. I make our bread.
So, this will be a "low-spend" week.

So, I kind of blew it today, purchasing Valentines, candy and putting a little cash in each card. With five kids, and eight grandkids, any holiday gets expensive. Now, I need to remember to budget for Easter!

I dislike platitudes, and I'm not a "Pollyanna" by any stretch of the imagination, so this entry is just to remind myself that I have a lot to be grateful for.

I wrote an earlier entry, complaining about my high property tax bill, very high utility bill, etc. and mysteriously, half of it disappeared when I hit "save and publish".
I think that was good, because complaining doesn't change a thing. I chose to delete the entry.

I am grateful that I have the money to pay the bills, the discipline to save $450.00 a month for property tax and home owner's insurance, the ability to budget for the winter's high utility bills, doing my own "budget billing", so the high winter bills don't cause a setback. I am grateful that I have learned how to save money, be frugal, know how to live well without spending a lot. So, I will try to keep a positive attitude, and when I write out the checks for the high property tax and utilities, etc., etc., etc. I will remind myself that life is good, and I don't have much to complain about.

I heard on TV that Goodwill is having a 50 per cent off sale tomorrow, but it is across town, and I had to go that direction today, so I stopped in to see what was available. I have been keeping the thermostat down, so would like to have a few more sweaters. Well, all white tagged items were 50 per cent off today, and I found three great sweaters with white tags. They ended up costing $2.50 each! All are expensive brands, Liz, Rico hand-knit, and Bushwacker.
I also found a pretty vase for a dollar, and bought it for a gift. My big "splurge" was $8.50, and I am thrilled with what I bought.
I love spending $2.50 on something that someone else probably spent $75.00 on!

In keeping with the frugal mode, I am making a double batch of homemade spaghetti sauce, and will freeze a quart of it for another day.

Life is good!