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

Good Christmas

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn ChristmasLeave a comment

We never really have big Christmas plans because we have always had to work the day after Christmas and this year was no exception. That means we have a laid back, easy going holiday. Christmas Eve Donny made steaks. I think the cast iron was a bit too hot and it ended up smoking out the kitchen.

I don’t know if you can see the haze in the picture but it was pretty bad. The steaks were really good though.

After dinner we all went out to the fire pit. The weather has been so warm during the days but it has been cooling off at night.

Jackson and I hung in for as long as we could before giving up and heading for bed, but Donny and Hannah stayed out pretty late.

Before we knew it, it was Christmas morning. The thing about having teenagers is they like to sleep in. They finally roused at about 10:00 so we finally got to open presents. Donny and the kids did so good. Donny actually went to the mall by himself and picked out these super cute pants and overalls. Because Hannah was sick he was sending her pictures to see if she thought I would like them.

He also got me some binoculars. I could lie and say that they are for bird watching. Nope, they are for spying on the feral cat colony and my loud neighbors that live at the end of our street. What can I say, I’m nosy.

My big gift was actually the spoon ring bender that I ordered (yes, Donny knew about it) for myself. That’s actually all I wanted because I cannot wait to start making spoon rings and cuffs. I have a ring I wear every day that is from the 1950’s Jubilee pattern.

We went to Harbor Freight so that I could get my bolt cutters and sanding tool.

We finished off the day with a shrimp boil. It was so good. Gavin came over to watch the new episodes of Stranger Things with Hannah. It was a very good day.

I don’t know about anyone else, but the day after Christmas the tree and decor come down. Once the presents are opened I am ready to pack it all up. So that’s exactly what I did on the 26th. It just feels so good to have our home back in order. I also watched Stranger Things. It’s going to be interesting how the Duffer Brothers tie everything up in the finale on Wednesday.

Tonight I made gumbo. I was very excited because I had found a gluten free all purpose flour. Reddit said that it can be used in a roux. If you have ever made a dark roux you know that it is a labor of love. It’s 40 minutes of stirring, stirring, stirring. Donny had to bring me a stool so I could see into the pot. (I used my big catering pot) I was skeptical because it wasn’t thickening like a normal roux. I finally got it to the chocolate brown color. Y’all, it turned out so good. I did end up adding two cornstarch slurries just so I had the thickness I prefer.

If you read here you know how I thought the TV in our bedroom was just way too big. I wish I could explain why I got Donny a Roku tv for our bedroom IN THE EXACT SAME SIZE. The legs were different so we used the floating shelf from Jackson’s room to set it on.

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I’m so annoyed that it never entered my mind that it’s just too big for the space. Oh well, at least it doesn’t show the light bulbs through it like our old one did. I’m sure I’ll get used to it.

Christmas Adam

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn ChristmasLeave a comment

I have never heard Christmas Eve Eve called Christmas Adam before, but I like it. We have had a sick house as of late. Friday Donny and I made a quick trip to Dallas to visit his mom and drop of presents at Nikki’s. Hannah had come down with the virus that is hitting everyone so Jackson stayed home with her.

We were making good time, trying to get home before dark. Unfortunately there was a wreck and we were at standstill for an hour. I passed the time doing interpretive dances to songs on the radio. I’m sure Donny was extremely happy when we were finally able to start moving again after an hour.

Today I decided to put Jackson’s shelves together because I did not want to be doing it Christmas Day.

Ikea’s directions are actually pretty easy. I got both of them put together pretty quickly. They look so good in his room. He hadn’t put it all together when I took the picture.

I loved the shelves he had in him room before. We picked them up at an estate sales years ago.

I decided to put them in our dining nook.

I absolutely love them in here. It’s so much better than what we had before.

To celebrate Christmas Adam we got Rotolo’s. I’m super picky about eating out and don’t trust many places, but Rotolo’s is on the good list.

Best cauliflower crust around.

Also, I got my hair cut. It had gotten WAY too long for my taste.

Before

So much better!

How To Torture Your Cat

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn Home lifeLeave a comment

This weekend I noticed that the wound that Milo, our tuxedo cat, had on his lower spine was not healing as fast as I’d like it to. I had been doctoring it, but on Monday when I went to look at it I noticed it felt spongy. I was moving his hair around and it started oozing. I doctored it some more decided to give it a day to see if it was any better. By Tuesday I decided to call our vet. They asked for me to send in a picture so the vet could look at it and make a decision if we needed to come in or not.

Because his hair is thick and black it was hard to actually see what the wound looked like. The vet called and said it would be best to bring him in, especially with his wound history. (that’s how he became our cat. He wandered up with a horrible neck wound that almost killed him)

I got an appointment for 3:40 that afternoon. At 3 I got out our cat carrier. Because Milo is SO docile I thought, for sure, he would go right in with no problem. Boy, was I wrong. It was like trying to get a angry octopus in a bag. I had the kids try to help me. We took the lid off and put him in. Nope, he almost broke the carrier. Jackson suggested tipping it over and dropping his through the opening. That sure didn’t work. By this time it was 12 minutes until my appointment. I called the vet frantic because I didn’t know what to do. They said just put him in anything that I had. Say less. I remembered a Chik-fil-a catering bag that I had.

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To say he was not happy would be an understatement, but I got him there. He actually did so well at the vet. The vet and I agreed that he caught his back going under the chain link fence. The vet shaved the area, flushed it out and gave him an antibiotic shot.

He just chilled out the rest of the night.

Guess who did like the carrier?

I’m glad because after Christmas she’s going in to get spayed.

For What Ails You

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn RecipeLeave a comment

There is a virus that went around the kids college. Jackson missed a few days of school and many students were absent because of it. Well, it hit Donny yesterday. It’s a really bad sore throat and cough. The kids were out all day with their friends doing a clean up at the college and then while I was grocery shopping Donny texted me to tell me that the kids were going out to get Chinese. Perfect because I wanted to make a big pot of vegetable soup.

Donny doesn’t really like soup where as I could eat it every meal. The one I made is so easy. You just use vegetables that you like, add some broth and let it simmer for about an hour.

I chopped up an onion, celery and garlic and sauteed that in some olive oil. Then I added about 4 carrots, a yellow squash, a calabaza squash and sliced mushrooms. I poured in a a whole box of vegetable broth. To season I added quite a bit of turmeric, some celtic sea salt and a generous amount of pepper. When it had simmered about 20 minutes, I threw in about 3 handfuls of spinach. That’s it.

I added a squeeze of lemon to mine and Donny added hot sauce to his. He loved it. It was so good and flavorful. I think I’ll just always keep soup in the fridge because for these colder days it’s perfect.

Bits & Bobs

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn Home lifeLeave a comment

It has been a hot minute since I’ve posted anything. We are just trying to get Christmas shopping done and get everyone well. The kids finished their Fall semester and have registered for Spring. Luckily they have classes at the same time so there won’t be any big gaps like there were this past semester. On Mondays and Wednesdays the week before last I had just been taking Jackson at 8:30 then coming back home, getting stuff done around here and then taking Hannah back at 1:00 for her class. I then just hung out in Kilgore. That tends to be dangerous for me since I don’t like retail shopping, but love thrifting. On the last day I found some cute things.

I found these 2 light weight sweaters in the colors I like to wear.

I know this one is very summery, but it’s so cute I couldn’t pass it up. It’s also suppose to hit 70 this week. I love a good cream long sleeve and this one fit the bill.

These candles were from 2005 and I just love the colors. I will pick up anything that looks rustic and celestial.

Donny and I took Friday to go get the grandkids gifts. That meant going to Target, one of my least favorite stores. The saving grace was a peppermint mocha. Even Starbucks can’t mess that up.

We didn’t find what we were looking for at Kohl’s (my second least favorite store) but we did find Donny some sweaters and a shirt for work.

I talked Donny into going to Ollie’s. That’s on his least favorite store list. I always hit the book section and Donny was thrilled to find my doppelganger.

We made a trip to Academy where we found the last gift. Thank goodness because shopping wears me out. The kids were at an art gallery for the evening so we decided to go get some nachos and an adult icee at Fuzzy’s.

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I’ve been so disappointed in the weather apps. This was the sunny day that was on all of them.

I’ve also found two new favorite foods. Beans on toast because I like to pretend like I’m British. LOL

It’s like the perfect brunch food and it really sticks to your bones. I don’t eat breakfast but prefer brunch.

I found this recipe on Tiktok. Baked sweet potato with a yogurt sauce (plain yogurt with olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and dill) topped with roasted chickpeas. This is the bomb and I made enough to have it again tomorrow.

I let the kids pick out their gifts this year because it’s just easier and they actually like it. Jackson has been after me for a while to get new bookshelves for his room. He wanted certain ones from that certain Swedish store. Well, since we don’t have an Ikea close to us I found some, almost the same, I thought were better bookcases. Nope he had his heart set on these certain ones. I did an online order because, guess what, they deliver now. My bank immediately cancelled the order. So I had to call and make sure it didn’t go through so I could pay again. I guess they thought what stupid moron would pay more for shipping than the actual items cost. Hi, I’m that stupid moron. I think it would have been cheaper to rent a U-Haul and drive to Grand Prairie and pick them up. I know it’s what he has really been wanting so it’s okay. Maybe. I don’t know. I’m still freaked out especially because we will be driving right by the store a week from Friday.

But, even with all of that, we are nearing the end and I am ready for that. I’m not into the hustle and bustle of the holidays. I’d rather just sit around and watch Christmas movies. Maybe on December 26th.

Spending Time In Kilgore

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn thriftingLeave a comment

On Mondays and Wednesdays Jackson’s classes start at 8:30. Hannah’s only class that day starts at 1:00. Gavin will normally pick Hannah up on those days because he does some work in Kilgore. Yesterday he couldn’t so I decided to take Hannah later and do a little shopping while they were in class. Of course it was just some thrifting. I hit up Hope’s Closet first. There is one here in Longview and I can always find some good deals, but I really like the one in Kilgore. It’s smaller, cozier, still has good stuff and the staff is incredibly nice.

I went to Goodwill next. I’m not a huge fan of either the Goodwill in Kilgore or Longview, but I did find a few things.

I found these Dear John Giselle jeans in a color I don’t have. They fit perfectly.

I picked up two basic tees for myself and this Luckenbach shirt for Donny.

I also found Hannah and black crocheted poncho, pleated lined miniskirt and some Democracy dark plaid jeans. She loved everything.

I have been needing a trivet for the airfryer tray and I just love this one. It was only $.99.

I also found this 2015 Starbucks mug. I am not a fan of Starbucks, but I really loved this mug.

I washed it and had my coffee in it this morning. I also picked up this wooden tray for my candles because the plate I had just wasn’t large enough.

The tray was $4.99 and the mug was 99 cents.

I rushed to the school to pick up the kids and they were with their advisor registering for next semesters classes. I can’t believe it already that time. I had some time to kill so I went into the art building to see the new exhibit they have up.

This is my hair stylist. Her friend is the artist.

I love this little truck that I see all over campus.

It was so dreary yesterday and it looks like the same forecast for today.

Hannah and I always say that this particular spot is Fall.

Remember the tent bed I got for the cats that only Monkey slept in for ONE night only. Well, I put it outside and covered the extra entrance with a heavy curtain. Milo has claimed it now. He got out of it last night and O’malley climbed in.

As soon as O’malley got out Milo excitedly climbed back in. Cats are funny creatures.

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Day In The Life Monday Edition

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn Home lifeLeave a comment

Maybe I’m just nosy, but I always like taking a peep into people’s life. My life is generally pretty ho hum, but this is what my typical Monday looks like. It’s the day that I try to get everything done for the week ahead. I know a lot of people do this on Sundays, but Sundays are Donny’s short days so I save all the big stuff for Mondays.

I wake up every day between 5:00 and 6:00. Today Milo woke me up at 5:00 because he needed to go outside. He is my only cat that tells me when he needs to go do his business. The other 3 cats use the litter boxes.

Next I made coffee and fed all of the cats. We have a feral cat community that neighbor across the street and myself feed daily. They will be waiting for me in the mornings. Today it was nasty cold, windy and rainy but two of them were waiting for their breakfast. I’ll sit outside and love on them while everyone is still sleeping. Once Donny is up I go get dressed and start making breakfasts.

Today Hannah wanted a quesadilla and Jackson wanted a breakfast taco. Once they are fed I start on Donny’s food. He eats the same breakfast every morning, eggs and bacon. I also pack his lunch. He’ll eat both at work.

I always make sure I make extra for dinner so he can take the leftovers. Today for lunch he had Korean beef and rice.

The kids and I leave the house at 8. Today it was pouring rain so it took us a little longer than usual. On Mondays Donny has a meeting at 9 so he was ready when I swung by and picked him up. By 9:15 I’m ready to start my day.

I knew I had to go to get groceries but first I had to start the laundry (there was a lot) and get the fridge cleaned out.

I put a load in and started on the fridge clean out.

I had forgotten that we had some hummus we got at Rottollo’s last night so I had some of that for breakfast.

The rain had died down so I decided it was now or never to go run errands. First I had to change shoes. I decided on a hat so my hair wouldn’t completely frizz out.

I headed to Walmart first and picked up cat food, flea medication, coffee and some Christmas gifts. Right as I was checking out the sky opened up and it started pouring again. I debated if I wanted to go to Aldi, but I knew I couldn’t put it off. The rain had let up a little bit. I got a very close to the door parking place. Again, as I was checking out, the rain started full force. I loaded the car as fast as I could and headed home.

Even Aldi’s prices have gone up considerably. This is what $160 will buy that used to cost about $130.

I separated the meats, washed the fruit, and by this time I was hungry.

A honey crisp apple and a pepper with cream cheese hit the spot.

I switched out and folded laundry, cleaned the bathroom, hand washed the dishes that couldn’t go into the dishwasher and by this time it was 2:00 and time to head to Kilgore to pick up the kids. On the way home I realized I had forgotten to get Donny Listerine (he is getting a sore throat) so we headed to Drug Emporium. Look what I found there.

I cannot wait to try these flavors.

It’s 3:00 now so while I’m folding laundry and putting it away I take a juice break. It’s about 1/2″ of cranberry juice and the rest water.

At 4:00 I bake some blonde brownies and make Hannah’s coffee drink.

While that was baking I have a snack.

More hummus because it was so good.

Time to start dinner. I put the ham in the oven and start on the potatoes. (Aldi has these small hams that are so perfect for our family of 4 with enough leftovers for Donny’s lunch.) Everything is just keeping warm while I leave at 6:55 to go get Donny.

I cleaned the kitchen and am now getting ready to fold the last load which thankfully is towels.

And that is a typical Monday. Kinda boring but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

Christmas All Day

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn ChristmasLeave a comment

When I woke up I knew that today was the day that I’d put out all the Christmas decorations. I started by just setting up the tree. It needed to be fluffed out and we also wanted to see how Baby Ruth would react to it.

She was very interested in it but never tried to climb it. I felt better knowing that.

I was separating the ornaments by breakable ones that I knew needed to go on upper branches. We have never had a themed tree. It’s more like just put it all on, the gaudier the better.

When we decorate for Christmas I have to pack up and store our normal decor which makes a lot of work.

Poor Mary, I think Joseph went out for milk. But seriously, he’s somewhere in the house.

Baby Ruth loves the candles and will just stare at them.

I was really wanting to get everything out and then get all of the totes back into the shed. It was so windy all day that I thought I couldn’t get the lights outside put up. The wind finally died down about 3:30 so I was able to get the lights up and still get all of the boxes back into the shed.

One thing I did not think about was the projector lights.

Because guess who thinks it a toy for her?

Since I had been going non stop all day we decided to go get Rotolo’s when Donny got home. Best cauliflower crust around.

Everything goes back to regularly scheduled program tomorrow because the kids go back to school.

A Little Crafty Time

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn CraftingLeave a comment

We woke up to a cold, gray, drizzly day. The perfect day to do some craft projects I’ve set aside for a while.

First I wanted to get some oranges dried.

I used my mandolin to get uniformed slices. Only a couple got a little dark. They turned out pretty good.

Next I made some cinnamon ornaments.

They smell so good but I can tell they are going to take a few days to fully dry out. I want to make a garland with the oranges and these.

I also wanted to make some orange pomanders. I only had enough cloves for two, but these also smell so good.

After a quick kitchen clean up I finished the episode I started last night.

I did end up finishing the episodes this evening. I am not a fan of breaking the season up into two blocks and then having the finale on January 1st. I wish they would just stream all of the episodes. It’s so good though. I think it is one of my favorite seasons. Donny doesn’t watch Stranger Things, but he is a good sport and when it hit Netflix on Wednesday he asked me if I wanted to watch Weird Stuff before bed. He only lasted about 5 minutes before he was sound asleep.

The kids and I did go back to the mall so Jackson could use his coupon at MiniSo. I was happy to say that there were quite a lot of people. Our mall is small but mighty. It was about to go under until Dillard’s and another investment group bought it. There are more stores and now more people. Progress!

This is the second night my cat Monkey has given me a heart attack.

Suprise Surprise!

Black Friday

On By thefunkyfrugalistaIn Home StuffLeave a comment

I woke Jackson up around 8 so that we could go to the mall after I dropped Donny off at work. He works less than 2 miles away and the mall is a little under 3 miles. I was surprised that it wasn’t super packed. I think that every time Entertainmart has a sale we are a bit disappointed. It was buy 2 get 3 free on red ticketed items. The thing is, you have to look everywhere to find a red ticketed item and it gets frustrating. We looked around there for a while and then headed into the mall.

JCPenney always has some pretty decent deals. I found some bath towels that I really liked. I cannot stand fluffy towels. They also cannot be soft. It just grosses me out. I found the perfect ones on sale for $2.99. I only got 4 because that’s all I needed to replace.

I also found Donny some shirts and pajama bottoms for Christmas. Next Jackson wanted to go to Hot Topic. It was buy one get one half off. He found a belt and a shirt. I got Hannah some Christmas gifts there also. MiniSo was actually having their Black Friday sale tomorrow so we’ll go back because there are some items the kids want to get their friends. That’s all the shopping we actually did because a designer that Jackson loves was having a sale that started at 10 am. Some people might think it’s weird to let him pick out what he is getting for Christmas, but designer clothes aren’t cheap and I wanted to make sure it would be something he would definitely wear. Even though he knows what it is the clothes will still go under the tree.

After Jackson and I got home we ran to the thrift store because I needed to get a plate for my candles. I did find one and I also found some burlap for $2.00.

I had wanted something to put on the back of one of my bookshelves. I always use a dark walnut stain and because I have a lot of dark items it’s hard to actually see them. I measured the area, cut the fabric and used spray adhesive to get it to stick.

I think it turned out pretty good.

I also put together my candle plate.

I’ll end up switching out the candles as they burn down but it adds such a happy glow to the kitchen area.

The weather has also gotten much colder so that means bringing in all of my delicate plants from the patio. It’s supposed to be near and below freezing until the 10th. Winter in our home means it’s going to get a little plant crowded. I brought in one of my shelf tables from outside so that I had a place to put them.

We just always have to make it work.

Does anyone else cut up old sweat pants to make dusting rags? I swear they are the best rags. Jackson had a pair of sweats that didn’t fit him anymore so I cut them up.

I like to use the legs for ceiling fan dusting. Saved from the landfill and given new life.