Friday Fiscal Wellness Check July 11, 2025

               

    I copy the previous week, delete the old and updated as I go along the week as a way even when busy and not in a blogging mindset I'm accountable to myself. Here's my recap of Friday, July 4th to Thursday, July 10. These start getting long, so feedback if you think less is more. I just sort of list things as they come up, then edit before publishing. 

Avoiding Spending/ Saving on Needs

• Ate all leftovers from various celebrations from weekend. 
• Stretched groceries out to yesterday though my plan to shop on route back changed and I still went to Sam's Club and Aldi for major stocking up. I avoided Trader Joe's temptations. 
• Did not use the car Saturday to Thursday this week. Walked to local store  to use the post office box.
• Chose not to go pick more strawberries. I've enough for both a batch of jam and two strawberry rhubarb pies or a large crisp, or strawberry -rhubarb jam. There's still two portions of cherries ready for jam ( plus for pies or crisps)and (see next bullet) raspberries are coming. I'd like to fit in blueberry picking too. Even gifting, there's only so much jam I need or want to make! 
• First (free) raspberries of the year. Picked these Monday and have been getting about the same 1 1/2 to 2 cups each day with more still coming. This is the same original plants bought back in 1991 that had sort of withered, but my son retrained them two years ago and they seem to be thriving again. I relearned to pick in the early morning or at dusk and not stupidly mid day. (heat, bees, horseflies)

We'll eat some as as they come but I've started a freezer container for jam. 

• I've been feeling the urge to eat out...maybe because my lunch date got cancelled and the coffee meeting turned to a Teams and I ate out so much in June it became too expected. Instead, I tried upping the quality and presentation of lunch a few days. Here's my spicy tuna salad  with dill pickle spear wraps (on small tortillas), with fresh fruit. I've also taken to eating outside on the porch out of the sun which blazes in the backyard between 11 and 3. 
  
  
  
• I ignored Amazon Prime days! 
• My daughter found these two pieces at Goodwill, $5.50 each, down from $8.99 and $10.99. One is a desk and the other we learned is a Martha Washington Sewing table. Both are all wood, and a bit scruffy, but she did a great job on a piece before, so am confident in our combined effort. We'll tackle these together and see where they best fit, whose house, and where. 

  

  Martha Washington Sewing Table and could make a really good bathroom storage piece
  as the sides would hold extra TP, towels and drawers' other things. 

  
  

  

  We're leaning towards this being a writing desk and used on my daughter's front porch. Her office gets very hot in the summer months and she could use this alternatively. 

  
  
• One more find by me for younger daughters apartment at the Goodwill near Sam's Club. This two piece storage unit is solid wood and she liked it when I sent a picture. $7.50 after 75% off. 
  
  
  

Spent Intentionally

• Paid all bills on time. 
  

Opportunities to add Funds/Windfalls 

• Updated the HSA reimbursement to just cover daughters. This will both extend reimbursement longer, but also help me budget better now for when the severance bonus is depleted. 
• The meeting on a possible contract went well and there seems to be a perfect fit for what they need and my skills and availability. I'll learn more next week and negotiate terms.

Miscellaneous things that don't quite fit in other categories 

• I was miffed to see that not only did I have a $75 fee for missing books ( recorded as lost) but I was blocked from reserving a book. I forgot my daughter used my card and books were found at her place and returned. I'm out of library jail and can resume services. 
• All this new to us furniture and Little Miss decided she needed a new spot to rest. I hope my sister didn't want her container returned because, "if I fits, I sit" .
  
  
  

Then, there are often other things that impacted my check book that came up without much planning or notice, or an all-out splurge.

• Nothing thankfully this week! I didn't even have coffee or lunch out as plans changed. I "splurged" on a snack/ lunch at Sam's Club, $1.50 including tax, hotdog with all the fixings and a Diet Dr. Pepper. 

     Daily Dinner Diary (Friday 7/4 to Thursday, 7/10). 

• Fri - 4th of July party foods
• Sat-  leftovers, grilled chicken
  
• Sun- leftovers, including dal and basmati rice 
• Mon- "pizza" lasagna, using up bits of sausage, and pepperoni 
• Tues- Leftover lasagna and salad ( I ended up freezing a sizeable portion)
• Wednesday- Grilled mammoth sandwiches on sour dough with ham turkey, cheddar and mozzarella and tomato soup
• Thurs- Butternut squash ravioli, mixed vegetables (Son ate, as my late hot dog was filling, but I had a snack bar, raspberries and watermelon.) 

        I have minimal plans this weekend, just a graduation party for a great-niece on Saturday. I am making a double batch of brownies for my niece to serve as part of the dessert station. I got cash yesterday so no reason to leave the house other than for a walk. Sunday as well is wide open. We may get rain today but the weekend is supposed to be gorgeous. How was your week?