Author: thefunkyfrugalista

I live in a cozy old home in the Piney Woods of east Texas. This is my journal Follow me on Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/stacy.kappelmanbruce Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefunkyfrugalista

Kitchen Clean Out

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn OrganizingLeave a comment

Yesterday’s weather was crazy. I didn’t have our television on all day. I was in the kitchen and heard a crash. This is what I walked out to.

It had been pouring and the wind had kicked up, apparently very strongly. I found out later, when Donny got home, that there had been tornado warnings.

I, however, had decided that I was going to clean out and reorganize the kitchen. I cook, roughly, 95% of our meals. I hate spending money eating out when I know that I can make the same meal at home. This means that I have A LOT of kitchen stuff. One of the drawers that gives me the biggest headache is the “gadget” drawer. I like to be able to just know where everything is and be able to grab it quickly. This is how it looked before.

And the after:

My “baking” cabinet was like playing Jenga every time I opened it. There are certain things that I use several times a week which is my blender, funnels, sifters and cheese grater. I don’t know why I never thought to put the panini press in the back and pull every thing else forward, but it makes so much more sense.

I cleaned out the bakers rack. The top shelf is where I keep most of the ingredients I use when I bake. The middle shelf is bread items and the bottom shelf is chips and stuff.

My main reason for doing this reorganizing was to find a place for the new cast iron. Because the giant pot wouldn’t fit in any cabinet I just put it on top of the fridge.

The double griddle was able to be slid in the side of the pots and pans cabinet. It’s still easy to get out, but out of the way also.

I did get rid of several water bottles and just stuff I don’t use. We don’t have a lot of cabinet space so we have to get creative. Unfortunately we have to use a whole set of upper cabinets for a pantry.

The top left is back stock and the top right is baking ingredients.

So that was my kitchen.

I’ve decided to post my dinners on here so that I can have a visual of what exactly I’ve made. I sometimes actually forget and if the family likes it or doesn’t I’ll have a record of it.

Last night I did tacos. I love the little griddle for my tortillas.

Super easy meal. Everyone was happy.

I’m trying to actually meal plan more. I normally have a vague idea, but I’d rather it be more concrete that scrambling at the last minute to try and figure something out. My mantra for this upcoming year is going to be “no matter if I’m tired and don’t feel like doing something, I just need to do it anyway because I’ll feel better about doing it in the long run”.

Breaking It In

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn Home lifeLeave a comment

Today we woke up to fog rolling in. It was just a foggy muggy start to the day.

We hadn’t planned on really doing anything, Donny and Hannah were both off. We decided, at almost 1:00, that we should make breakfast. I decided to try out the big griddle for bacon and sausage and the smaller round griddle for french toast.

I think I may have had the heat up too high because the house filled with smoke from the bacon although it turned out good. I love the smaller griddle to make french toast. We kind of had a mess everywhere. One thing I love about cast iron is that the clean up is pretty easy. Just scrub, scrub, scrub and if something is stuck on, use salt.

Donny and I had to run to Drug Emporium and when we got home Hannah was outside drawing on the chalkboard. We have now made her the official chalkboard artist and she will now be handling what goes on it.

I love it when she takes the time to do her drawings. I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next.

For 2025 I’m going to be doing a whole house clean out which means I shouldn’t have purchased what I did at Drug Emporium, but it smelled so good I couldn’t resist.

It’s a new line they are carrying and this was only the second tester I tried, but I knew right when the fragrance hit my nose that it was the one. It smells so good.

Tomorrow I am going to start the clean out on the kitchen. I need to find a place for the huge pot I just got for Christmas. I figured while I’m doing that I might as well do the whole thing.

Has anyone else started season 2 of Squid Game? We just started episode 4 and so far it’s been really good. I also want to recommend Black Doves. We were really impressed by it.

Back To Normal

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn ChristmasLeave a comment

I don’t know if anyone else is like this, but once Christmas is over I want all of the Christmas decor packed up and put away. This morning I ran to the shed between huge claps of thunder, trying to beat the rain that was coming. I made it just in time before the clouds opened up and it stormed the rest of the day.

I am happy to say that our home is back to normal. Well, as normal as our house gets.

Christian Frog keeping us honest back on his perch.

The shelves are back to normal.

The stereo is Christmas tree free.

I feel like I can breathe again. I really like normalcy.

Christmas Day

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn ChristmasLeave a comment

I know I said that I miss Christmas when the kids were little, but I must say, Christmas with teenagers is much more mellow. Donny was the first to wake up. He made coffee and then I woke up. I filled the stockings and then popped the cinnamon rolls in the oven that i’d made the night before.

Jackson was next to wake up. This was about 9:45. Still waiting for Hannah to rise. Finally at almost 11 Hannah woke up. No one was in a rush to open presents. We did our stockings, had some food and then started on the presents.

Each person received 5 gifts. That was the perfect amount. Everyone was very appreciative for what they got. Jackson, who gave me a very detailed list (he actually sent me the websites) was actually surprised by one of he presents. I found him a Tyler the Creator Golf hoodie.

Donny is the best gift giver and got me exactly what I wanted even though I never outright told him or gave him a list.

I love cooking with cast iron and he finished completing my set. I cannot wait to start using it. He also got me the cutest boots and little red truck. He is always so thoughtful in his giving.

The rest of the day was spent watching football and cooking Christmas dinner. I did Kevin Ashton’s hot honey glazed ham and au gratin potatoes. Oh so good!

I hope everyone had a great Christmas!

Christmas Eve 2025

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn ChristmasLeave a comment

The house is quiet. Hannah and Donny are both at work. Jackson is in his room on his computer. I’m tidying up and prepping for tomorrow’s breakfast and dinner. What a change it is from when they were both little and the excitement they had that Santa would be arriving some time while they slept. I miss that, but knowing what good humans they have grown up to be, makes me very happy.

We did get to drive around and look at Christmas lights last night. Their were some really festive neighborhoods. Would it even be complete without an inflatable Buc-ee beaver in one yard. We actually saw 3 of them on our drive.

I always pack up the Christmas decor on the 26th, so here are some of our favorite ornaments before they are wrapped up and stored until next year.

My parents had this funny ornament on their tree growing up. It used to have a little sign that said “pinch my cheeks and I’ll give you a kiss” and there would be a chocolate kiss inside.

Of course the vintage glass beetle

My mother gave me a set of 12 of these blown glass hearts. I only have 3 left because they are so fragile.

Hannah has one on the tree also

Our festive shelves.

Our Christmas tree is celebrating its 20th birthday this year. I bought it on a whim for $10 at Big Lots. It has held up well. I guess you could say we got our money’s worth.

What a magical time of year!

P.S.

The little kitten is getting closer and closer to us.

Sad Things on Christmas Eve Eve

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn ChristmasLeave a comment

Well, this sign went up today.

I have shopped at Big Lots for so long. It’s my go to for just about everything. The people that work there are just so nice and I feel so bad that they are losing their jobs very soon. Jackson and I went in there, for what will probably be the last time, and it was SO crowded and just not the same organized store that we have grown to love.

This morning one of the stray feral kittens was hanging around our patio. There are two kittens and I have been trying to get close to them for months now. This little one was on the table, then on a chair then laying very close to my feet while I was having coffee.

I was so excited that he was becoming so friendly. Our laundry closet is right off the patio and I opened the door to put a load of laundry in. That’s when I heard movement behind the dryer. It really freaked me out because sometimes if the skunks get spooked they will run into that room. I moved a broom out of the way and a little grey head popped out from behind the dryer. It was the other cat’s sibling and it was scared to death of me. He tried to climb the wall (that didn’t work). Then I moved the scraper tool and the little kitty took off like a rocket. It now explains why the other cat was hanging around so close. I hope it realizes that we are nice and comes back around.

When the kids were little they used to fight over who would move the candy cane to the next day on our Christmas countdown calendar. And by fight I mean screaming, hitting, going nuts. Now the calendar gets moved my me. Jackson did realize I was a few days off and moved it this morning. I told him that I miss the arguing over moving the candy cane and we had a laugh about it. We also talked about how Donny and I used to tell the kids that the smoke detectors were Santa cams and that they were being watched to make sure they were behaving. Sounds a bit creepy when you type it out, but it worked. We also talked about telling them about restaurant police that only work in restaurants to lock up children that don’t behave while they are eating. I promise they think it’s funny now.

I cannot believe that it is Christmas Eve Eve. Maybe tonight we will finally get to go look at lights. Hannah and I both zonked out last night even though that’s what we all were planning to do. We’re running out of time here.

This guy will be here soon

Retail

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn ChristmasLeave a comment

Hannah has her first retail job. She actually really likes it, but the holiday hours before Christmas day can be rough. Friday night she was scheduled to get off at 12:10, but ended up actually leaving close to 1 am. I don’t mind waiting for her to get out, but I had taken my supplements right before I left to get her, with not enough water, and ended up with the worst heartburn and nothing to drink. Then neither one of us could go right to sleep when we got home so it was a late night.

The next morning she had to be at work at 11:00, but since it was Saturday, and Donny has to do his store meeting, he needs to leave the house by 8:30. Since I was already up making breakfasts and lunches for everyone I decided to go ahead and bake some cookies. This is what I walked by into when I got back from dropping Hannah off.

Still hazy from cooking bacon even with the fan on.

This morning she had to be at work by 6 am. That means we got up at 4:30 so I could make her breakfast, bag up her lunch and get her there on time. We did make it, but I know we are going to be dragging by tonight even though I want to go look at Christmas lights. We’ll see how that pans out.

Because I was really tired yesterday, I made the easiest dinner. I had roasted some chicken breasts the night before. I cut up some carrots and roasted them with soy sauce, garlic powder and honey. I cut up the chicken breasts and heated them up in the Korean Chicken sauce we picked up at the Asian market. I cooked some ramen noodles, drained them and added the spice packets. It was so good. The whole family liked it. I don’t really like chicken so I just had the noodles, carrots and green onions.

I also went from not a single present wrapped to all of them wrapped. I do not like wrapping, but it had to get done. We only got the kids 5 gifts each. One big one and 4 smaller ones. I think they will love them.

And here’s one of my favorite Santas. I love weird art.

Only 3 more sleeps until Christmas!

Family Brunch

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn familyLeave a comment

Today was the last family brunch that we will be attending at Jackson’s school. They always have it the day the kids get out for Winter break. It’s always outside (it’s a small high school and there isn’t any other place to have it) and it’s always cold. There is always a huge variety of food always brought by the parents and it’s always good. I hadn’t eaten breakfast so I was starving and it didn’t disappoint.

The dessert table was also amazing. The kids and parents always have such a good time.

Jackson hanging out with his friends.

It always ends with the superintendent giving a little speech. He is such a great inspiration for the kids. I never seen a school where every member of the faculty genuinely care about the students. We will miss this place when Jackson graduates in May.

On the way home we stopped by La Michocana grocery because I was almost out of vanilla. If you have never tried the Mexican vanilla it is truly the best there is. It took me a couple of years to get through the bottle.

We also picked up this amazing treat. They are sooooo good.

I cannot tell you the relief I felt when we got home and this was waiting for us. It’s Hannah’s big gift that I thought wasn’t going to make it in time.

To top off the day, at 4 pm, Jackson came into the kitchen and told me that his computer chair had snapped. I have been after him for a few months to find a new one because his was getting so raggedy. He kept telling me that he liked it and it was broken in just right. We decided to try to find a new one after we dropped Hannah off at work. She works next door to Big Lots and all they had were gaming chairs. He didn’t want those so we went to Office Depot. Fun fact, it’s in the same strip as TJ Maxx, Michaels’ and Burlington so the parking lot was insane. There was ONE chair that he liked in the whole store. ONE. It happened to be $199. A little steep for less than a week before Christmas. I googled the brand and style of the chair and found it online for $89.99 with free shipping. I also found a coupon for $5 off. No wonder office Depot was completely empty. I’m glad we were able to get a deal even if it won’t be here until the 30th.

Juggling

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn JournalLeave a comment

All day today it has felt like I’ve been juggling balls and every now and then another one was added just to keep me on my toes. Donny was off so I let him sleep in while I fed the cats, let the chickens out of the coop, rolled the trash cans out and made sure Jackson made it to school an hour early to start finals.

Donny ran Hannah to work at noon while I got ready so we could go run errands. I had to go to Sally’s, then the Asian Market to pick up some sauces for dinner, then to Aldi to shop for the rest of the items we needed for Christmas dinner.

When I got home I needed to bake the cheese Krispie crackers I had made the dough for last night and that took a whole lot longer than expected. I still needed to color my hair, so I left the last tray in and let Donny get it out while I started on my roots.

Since I still needed to prep dinner, (the Asian chicken wasn’t going to happen tonight) I changed gears and chopped up leftover chicken, made some quesadillas and threw together a Caesar salad. Donny went to pick up Hannah while I quickly blow dried my hair. I made Hannah’s coffee, sweet tea and cleaned the extremely messy kitchen. In between that I also got the food outside for the skunks, raccoons and possum. I am just now sitting down.

As parents we learn to multi task and go with the flow when plans change. I was chatting with a life long friend today about this very subject. We know 2 woman, who are married, but chose not to have children, which is completely fine. However, both of these woman do not handle change well. They are both very rigid with their schedules. If you ask them, spur of the moment, to do something they just can’t. One of them cannot even have an impromptu call. She has to schedule them. She is semi retired, yet if I call her, she won’t answer but will text me back with a time she will call me back.

So even though today made me a bit harried and a little overwhelmed, I’m very glad that I AM able to roll with the punches and not take things so seriously.

And because there is no photo evidence of my day here is exactly where I am right now getting ready to watch the Survivor finale.

New Fave + Dollar Tree Find

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn product reviewsLeave a comment

Around here everyone has “their” breakfast that I make them. Hannah”s choice is two sunny side up eggs with a sausage patty. Jack has two, either a breakfast on a Bun with sausage or a breakfast taco with sausage, egg and cheese. Donny has two slices of bacon, 3 scrambled eggs with cheese and hot sauce. I have never really had a favorite, must eat this, breakfast until now.

On my last trip to Aldi I picked up the thick cut Appleton bacon that I always buy. When I pulled it out this morning to make Donny’s breakfast I noticed that I had picked up the maple bacon. I always either get the peppered kind of just the normal one. I didn’t even know that this company even made maple bacon.

After I made Donny’s breakfast our house smelled SO good. I love the smell of maple. It’s just that cold weather cozy smell. After I dropped Jackson at school and walked back into the house I could still smell it. It’s like we had a maple candle burning. This, of course, prompted me to want some of that bacon. I am not a huge breakfast eater. I love breakfast foods, but I normally don’t eat in the mornings. Not this morning though. I decided that nothing would go better with bacon than some sourdough french toast with maple syrup. I was not disappointed.

This is 100% my favorite breakfast. Thank you, Aldi because everything came from your store. I cannot wait to have it again tomorrow morning.

On another note, I was in Dollar tree last week. Our dollar tree does not have a lot of products that I’ve seen people showing online. I don’t know if everything just sells out and I miss something because I rarely go into that store. When I was there picking up candy for the stockings I happened to walk into the kitchen side of the store and found this product on one of the shelves, completely misplaced.

I am extremely leary of dollar store beauty products, but this one checked all of my boxes.

And one of the best things is that it’s…

I don’t know why the picture is blurry, but you get the idea.

Now, all of this doesn’t mean a hill of beans if it doesn’t work, but this stuff really works. I just spray it on my hair, especially the ends, and blow dry. It makes my hair soft and shiny. I don’t like to use heat on my hair, but during the colder months, I can’t have a damp head or else I’m freezing all day. If you find this at your Dollar Tree it’s definitely worth a try.

And just because, here’s Monkey napping. She won’t come inside during the hot months, but rarely leaves the kitchen during the colder ones. Such a strange little cat.