If you have read my blog for a bit, I have been whining on about the high cost of everything, including groceries. Anyhoo, on Saturday and Sunday Shopper's Drug Mart was having a bonus redemption event, so instead of only getting $170 worth of free product when you cashed in 95,000 points, you got $200 worth. So I decided as I had enough points to redeem for $200.
My shopping cart was overflowing and I had to explain to numerous people that I was cashing in my points and had a lot of coupons, so go to another cashier, as I knew it would take a while for me to cash out and it did. However I ended up getting $270.98 worth of "stuff" for $18.02......I used $52.96 worth of coupons to bring it down and used my points for another $200 discount.
Can you believe that; I was so pleased, mind you of that $18,02, $15.10 was taxes :0( Still I am stocked up on some things for a while.
Then when I was in town I popped into Zehrs to stock up on half price bread for the freezer. While in there I spend $50.94, but saved another $41.32 with coupons and 50% discounts.
So all in all I got $363.24 worth of "stuff" for $68.96. I wish I could shop like that every week!!
Some other ways I saved money this week:
I didn't use my dryer to dry the clothes, just hung them on the clothes horse to dry overnight.
Washed the laundry in cold water, using cold water laundry detergent.
Took advantage of a 10% of sale and ordered the carpet from a local store for the attic.
Used the toaster oven instead of the main stove oven to cook some meals.
Paid cash for the banisters to be installed, saved taxes and got a reduced hourly installation rate.
Got gas for the car at Canadian Tire, as it is at least a cent or two cheaper pre litre and you get Canadian Tire money back.
Had plumbing work done and paid cash for that as well.
Only went out twice in the car this week, combining a few errands at once.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Whiplash Harry.......
Whiplash Harry is ds and why I am even talking about this is that we got the car insurance annual renewal form in and they have upped our insurance rate by $50 a month {SIGH} Why, because people are making more claims and larger claims. The average claim used to be $20,000 and now it is $60,000, so we have to pay for that despite us not having any accidents........
Actually that statement is not exactly true, as we got my car in around June of 2002 by August ds had smashed in the front end of the car and we had to have an insurance claim as there wasquite a bit a lot of damage.
Ds was one of those teenage boys that didn't understand the meaning of a speed limit or other safety issues when driving a car {{SIGH}} However I do have a bit of a funny story with ds and me and my car. When he was in university he used to work at dh's work in the summer holidays, which happened to be on the way to my work. So I would drop him off on the way to my work.
Most of the time I would let him drive to give me a break from driving, oh and it gave me a chance to @itch and complain about his driving.....LOL We went down this road which was quite twisty and turny and every morning when we got to his work I would be green, I never ever had car sickness until that year. He used to fly around these twists and turns I swear on two wheels......I know that is a slight exaggeration but that is how it felt.
One thing that was also very interesting was that he used to listen to a particular radio station that was geared up to the younger crowd. That summer and every summer after that I learned more about sex, drugs and strange music that I ever needed to know. I had to on more than one occasion ask the guys at work what certain things meant that they were talking about, as I was totally clueless. Now by the look of the smirk on ds face, he knew exactly what they were on about!!!
One summer we had to take one of the apprentices with us from dh's work as his car broke down. I saw him at the Christmas party, he is now a fully qualified electrician and we were just reminiscing about those good old days and the look on my face when I actually clicked what those radio dj's were actually talking about. I will say I felt everyone of my years plus a lot more during those summers!!!
Pleased to say ds driving has got better with age and even better when he bought his own car......he is now driving a Lexus, so he has to drive better as that is an expensive car to smash up!!
Actually that statement is not exactly true, as we got my car in around June of 2002 by August ds had smashed in the front end of the car and we had to have an insurance claim as there was
Ds was one of those teenage boys that didn't understand the meaning of a speed limit or other safety issues when driving a car {{SIGH}} However I do have a bit of a funny story with ds and me and my car. When he was in university he used to work at dh's work in the summer holidays, which happened to be on the way to my work. So I would drop him off on the way to my work.
Most of the time I would let him drive to give me a break from driving, oh and it gave me a chance to @itch and complain about his driving.....LOL We went down this road which was quite twisty and turny and every morning when we got to his work I would be green, I never ever had car sickness until that year. He used to fly around these twists and turns I swear on two wheels......I know that is a slight exaggeration but that is how it felt.
One thing that was also very interesting was that he used to listen to a particular radio station that was geared up to the younger crowd. That summer and every summer after that I learned more about sex, drugs and strange music that I ever needed to know. I had to on more than one occasion ask the guys at work what certain things meant that they were talking about, as I was totally clueless. Now by the look of the smirk on ds face, he knew exactly what they were on about!!!
One summer we had to take one of the apprentices with us from dh's work as his car broke down. I saw him at the Christmas party, he is now a fully qualified electrician and we were just reminiscing about those good old days and the look on my face when I actually clicked what those radio dj's were actually talking about. I will say I felt everyone of my years plus a lot more during those summers!!!
Pleased to say ds driving has got better with age and even better when he bought his own car......he is now driving a Lexus, so he has to drive better as that is an expensive car to smash up!!
Friday, March 11, 2011
You know when your mother told you........
"If you have nothing good to say, don't say anything,"
Well that's how I feel today. Nothing good to say, totally fed up with the doom and gloom happening in the world at the moment............
Well that's how I feel today. Nothing good to say, totally fed up with the doom and gloom happening in the world at the moment............
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Bzzing about Multibionta™ and a video to confuse the heck out of you.....
Well at the moment I am trying Multibionta™, which is a multi vitamin with more benefits than a regular one.
It comes in two types one for everyone and one for over 50's. I have been taking it for a couple of weeks and to be honest with you I am not seeing any difference. However I think like most things, you need to take it over a longer period of time to see the benefits of this. I will continue with this after I have used to free samples as it can't do you any harm and if I can benefit from any of the benefits stated that's a plus.
I have some free product coupons and money off coupons if anyone in Canada would like one? If you would like one, leave me your email address in a seperate comment, and I will email you for your address. They are only for use in CANADA though, sorry.
One thing I will confirm is that it annoys the hell out of me when people ask me if I am Scottish.......I am English through and through, I am not Scottish, Irish or Welsh......though I am Canadian as well............with an English accent......LOL I am fortunate to hold dual citizenship of both Great Britain and Canada, or is it the United Kingdom and Canada. I am now going to have to watch that video again to see what is what..................LOL
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Some photos........
Took these photos on Tuesday afternoon. As you can see we still have a lot of snow. However the sun was shining brightly on Tuesday.
We were out and about on Tuesday afternoon as we had to go into town. The winter has been hard on our poor roads and they have heaved a lot, causing it to feel as though we are on a roller coaster. I only hope when the frost gets out the ground, the roads will get back to normal, otherwise it is going to cost the province/county/township a lot of money to repair them.
One thing I found interesting was all the footprints of the animals over the snow covered fields. We have had a couple of sunny but cold days which has sort of frozen the snow that came down on Saturday night. We are in for more snow over the next few days {{{SIGH}}} Guess I'll just get on with staining and varnishing........
We were out and about on Tuesday afternoon as we had to go into town. The winter has been hard on our poor roads and they have heaved a lot, causing it to feel as though we are on a roller coaster. I only hope when the frost gets out the ground, the roads will get back to normal, otherwise it is going to cost the province/county/township a lot of money to repair them.
One thing I found interesting was all the footprints of the animals over the snow covered fields. We have had a couple of sunny but cold days which has sort of frozen the snow that came down on Saturday night. We are in for more snow over the next few days {{{SIGH}}} Guess I'll just get on with staining and varnishing........
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Another book review and a busy day
"Stars Collide" by Janice Thompson
"Kat Jennings and Scott Murphy don't just play two people who are secretly in love on a television sitcom--they are actually head over heels for each other in real life. When the lines between reality and TV land blur, they hope they can keep their relationship under wraps. But when Kat's grandmother, an eccentric star from Hollywood's golden age, mistakes their on-screen wedding proposal for the real deal, things begin to spiral out of control. Will their secret be front-page news in the tabloids? And can their budding romance survive the onslaught of paparazzi, wedding preparations, and misinformed family members?
From the soundstage to a Beverly Hills mansion to the gleaming Pacific Ocean, Stars Collide takes you on a roller-coaster tour of Hollywood, packing both comedic punch and tender emotion."
This is a really good book, as it points out all to clearly that even Hollywood stars are human. Also it touches on the issue of Dementia in older people; and that aspect of the story is dealt with really well in my opinion.
There were a couple of twists in this book that even I didn't guess and I loved them. It also gave you an insight into Hollywood back in the golden years and now. I loved the way the Grandmother was able to remember all the old movies and how the granddaughter made a game out of remembering them also. This was a book that was a light and easy read and it made you smile.
Stars out of 5: I would say at least a 4.5 and would recommend it. It is one of those books to sit and read while you are on vacation or have a couple of days of doing nothing.
"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group".
On Monday I started to stain the banisters. It is a pig of a job as it is so fiddly. I only got half of it done, and that took me three hours. I plan on getting the rest of it stained today and then I'll make a start on the varnishing. The only problem is that it is so cold, that we can't really have the windows open and the smell is quite strong.
I can't wait to show you all when it's all finished as it's really nice. I had a guy come over on Monday to give me a price on carpeting the attic, and he was admiring the new banisters as well. I can finally see light at the end of the tunnel regarding this attic. We hope to have it completely finished by the end of April. Wish both me and dh luck with that goal.......
From the soundstage to a Beverly Hills mansion to the gleaming Pacific Ocean, Stars Collide takes you on a roller-coaster tour of Hollywood, packing both comedic punch and tender emotion."
This is a really good book, as it points out all to clearly that even Hollywood stars are human. Also it touches on the issue of Dementia in older people; and that aspect of the story is dealt with really well in my opinion.
There were a couple of twists in this book that even I didn't guess and I loved them. It also gave you an insight into Hollywood back in the golden years and now. I loved the way the Grandmother was able to remember all the old movies and how the granddaughter made a game out of remembering them also. This was a book that was a light and easy read and it made you smile.
Stars out of 5: I would say at least a 4.5 and would recommend it. It is one of those books to sit and read while you are on vacation or have a couple of days of doing nothing.
"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group".
On Monday I started to stain the banisters. It is a pig of a job as it is so fiddly. I only got half of it done, and that took me three hours. I plan on getting the rest of it stained today and then I'll make a start on the varnishing. The only problem is that it is so cold, that we can't really have the windows open and the smell is quite strong.
I can't wait to show you all when it's all finished as it's really nice. I had a guy come over on Monday to give me a price on carpeting the attic, and he was admiring the new banisters as well. I can finally see light at the end of the tunnel regarding this attic. We hope to have it completely finished by the end of April. Wish both me and dh luck with that goal.......
Monday, March 7, 2011
Book Review and salad
"A Heart Most Worthy" by Siri Mitchell
"The elegance of Madame Forza's gown shop is a far cry from the downtrodden North End of Boston. Yet each day Julietta, Annamaria, and Luciana enter the world of the upper class, working on finery for the elite in society. The three beauties each long to break free of their obligations and embrace the American dream--and their chance for love. But the ways of the heart are difficult to discern at times. Julietta is drawn to the swarthy, mysterious Angelo. Annamaria has a star-crossed encounter with the grocer's son, a man from the entirely wrong family. And through no intent of her own, Luciana catches the eye of Billy Quinn, the son of Madame Forza's most important client. Their destinies intertwined, each harboring a secret from their families and each other, will they be found worthy of the love they seek?"
This was an interesting book for me as I wasn't aware of the historical aspect of this period, the early 1900's in the United States. The three main characters were interesting and I really "got into" two of the characters Annamaria and Luciana and really liked their stories. However I found the character Julietta very annoying and didn't like her storyline. It wasn't the easiest of stories to get into and I didn't feel the need to have to read the book to see what was going to happen next.
One good thing about the book is that I didn't totally guess the full outcome of the story. A couple things I knew what was going to happen, but generally it kept me guessing which is the way I like it. One thing I will say I loved the cover of the book, that dress is just gorgeous with all the detail work.
Stars out of 5: Probably 3.5 the story was a bit slow but I did enjoy the historical aspect of it.
"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group".
I decided to make some salads for us to eat for supper's and for dh to take to work for lunches. I made potato salad, coleslaw and rice salad.
I don't really have a recipe for the rice salad, however here is sort of a recipe.
cooked rice (I used leftover from the other day)
olive oil
white vinegar
salt and pepper, or seasoning that you like to use
frozen mixed veggies
put rice in bowl, sprinkle a bit of olive oil and vinegar, add seasoning and mix well. Have a taste to make sure it's okay. Mix in the frozen veggies a cup or two will do. I tend to make this in the morning using frozen veggies right out of the freezer and by supper time all the flavours have mixed together and the veggies have defrosted.
"The elegance of Madame Forza's gown shop is a far cry from the downtrodden North End of Boston. Yet each day Julietta, Annamaria, and Luciana enter the world of the upper class, working on finery for the elite in society. The three beauties each long to break free of their obligations and embrace the American dream--and their chance for love. But the ways of the heart are difficult to discern at times. Julietta is drawn to the swarthy, mysterious Angelo. Annamaria has a star-crossed encounter with the grocer's son, a man from the entirely wrong family. And through no intent of her own, Luciana catches the eye of Billy Quinn, the son of Madame Forza's most important client. Their destinies intertwined, each harboring a secret from their families and each other, will they be found worthy of the love they seek?"
This was an interesting book for me as I wasn't aware of the historical aspect of this period, the early 1900's in the United States. The three main characters were interesting and I really "got into" two of the characters Annamaria and Luciana and really liked their stories. However I found the character Julietta very annoying and didn't like her storyline. It wasn't the easiest of stories to get into and I didn't feel the need to have to read the book to see what was going to happen next.
One good thing about the book is that I didn't totally guess the full outcome of the story. A couple things I knew what was going to happen, but generally it kept me guessing which is the way I like it. One thing I will say I loved the cover of the book, that dress is just gorgeous with all the detail work.
Stars out of 5: Probably 3.5 the story was a bit slow but I did enjoy the historical aspect of it.
"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group".
I decided to make some salads for us to eat for supper's and for dh to take to work for lunches. I made potato salad, coleslaw and rice salad.
I don't really have a recipe for the rice salad, however here is sort of a recipe.
cooked rice (I used leftover from the other day)
olive oil
white vinegar
salt and pepper, or seasoning that you like to use
frozen mixed veggies
put rice in bowl, sprinkle a bit of olive oil and vinegar, add seasoning and mix well. Have a taste to make sure it's okay. Mix in the frozen veggies a cup or two will do. I tend to make this in the morning using frozen veggies right out of the freezer and by supper time all the flavours have mixed together and the veggies have defrosted.
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