Saturday Thoughts.

Lots of things are going through my mind today. So even though they may not be frugal thoughts they are still my thoughts that I want to share with you.

Today we went to a funeral. My sister's aunt died on Monday which happen to also be my sister's 43 birthday. This was her mother's sister. My sister and I share a father but have different mothers. Our mom's are so different. Her mom is still so involved in our family still. She visits our aunts and grandma (on my Dad's side). She is so good to my son and I like we belong to her. My mom on the other had is still so bitter. I have tried hard to model myself with my ex's family after her. After all I divorced the man, my son has not divorced anyone. Well on a good day me! LOL

The service was so nice. I know that sounds so werid, but it was uplifting and gave me things to think about. There was a man who sang and has a CD coming out soon. I will be buying it. I have to get the name from my sister.

My son was suppose to be in Chicago this weekend visiting my sister. Last night on the news one of the Greyhound buses was pulled over and there was a stand off with police since there was a bank robber on there. God works in misterious ways. I would have freaked out had my son been on that bus. I would have just gone crazy. Instead he was home safe with me.

One of my aunts came to the funeral. She was very close with the woman who passed. My aunt is not in good health and has problems breathing. So afterwards she could not go to the repass (I think that is what we called it) So I sat in the car with her and we talked for a good hour. It was great. I have not had the chance to just talk to one of my aunts in a long time. It really made me feel good and I learned a lot too.

I wore a bracelet that was given to me for Christmas. I don't wear it often and look forward to going back into the Corporate world where I can always wear it. Last year our theme for Christmas was a family is always together and never ends. So us women and girl (my niece) all received bracelets. My son and Dad each where given a watch. Today when I was wearing it I was thinking how much I love my family and just how lucky I am that they are always there for me. I had these thoughts during the service when the man I mentioned earlier was singing. About the joys we have and how they don't belong to us, but they were given to us.

The preacher mentioned this: It is better to know the Lord and never need him, then to need him and never know him.


I hope you all had a good weekend. Even though mine was not a joyous occassion I sure did learn a lot.

I am a purse freak!

I love purses and use to buy one or two every season. Heck every time I go to the mall I stop and look at the purses. I only buy off the clearance racks. But I check them out all the time.

Now since October I have not been able to buy a purse. Oh I have seen some I like and did buy one. But I came to my senses and returned it.

The other day I was sick of the bag I was carrying. Nothing wrong with it but I wanted a new purse. So I went shopping in my closet and went back to using the purse I had been using earlier this year. I love this purse and when the zipper pull broke I went to the sewing store and paid $2.00 for a clip. Now my purse is fine. In a few months I will want another purse. I will be right back to my closet shopping for the bag to use for the next few months.

I have to say it feels good to not waste money on something I do not need but rather something I want. I wish that worked well with clothes too but no such luck in my closet. Not that I have bought any for me. I did get my son some shorts and t-shirts but that is all. Next stop will be back to school clothes for him.

Now before you buy that new item shop your own home for the item - you may already have a few.

Frugal Doings

My mom needs me to put in her air conditioner. Nope have not put mine in yet. Maybe tomorrow we shall see. It really is not to bad in here so if we can do without then we shall. My son is not complaining either.

So I asked if I could wash some clothes. I said only wash not dry...she said I could dry them too, but I told her not a big deal since I hang everything. Yep again I heard in her voice -- My daughter has 3 heads. LOL! So tomorrow morning I am going to wash 2 loads of clothes at her house. So that saves me $2.00. Since I am very broke that works in my favor.

I also have a 20.00 gift card a friend sent me. So I am going to use that tomororow at Target. My mom needs to go to Home Depot which happens to be right by Target. So I save $1.75 at least on busfare. COOL! Going to get some fun stuff... milk (which we really need) and powdered drinks and my son asked for pretzels. So those are the fun items.

Back to work for me tonight. Doing a double more or less. Did 7-3 this morning and then 7-10:30 tonight. Basically means someone called in sick. We have no extra people since we lost 3 and even though we hired 2 they are not trained.

Tomorrow and Sunday even though I have to work. Work on finding some things for my hearing. I still have not gotten my food stamps back. My freezer is going to be empty soon. I think I might have to leave it that way for the summer. Since I don't think I can run the freezer and air. I know we won't use the air much but if we get a week of HOT HOT weather I might have to. Make a budget for July....I can't believe it is almost July.

Summer school starts on Monday. So I am going to be packing my son a drink and snack for the morning. I know him well he will eat that on his way... but at least then I know he will eat something.

Oh and my cell phone is going and I am going to prepay. I don't want the bill ever again. I am so sick of paying bills. That the more I can get rid of the happier I will be.

P.S. I have new garden pictures and will try and get those up this weekend. I am thinking of still planting lettuce and maybe squash. I am also reading about a fall garden. We don't get our first frost till late Oct. So they should make it.

Have a great weekend.

A little digging -- Saved me 13.00 a month.

I was online reading about ATT and the services. There has to something cheaper out there. Well I found out that because we get food stamps, medical insurance and my son gets free lunch we can save almost 9.00 a month on our bill. Also I am getting rid of the unlisted number too at 5.00 a month. That is a savings of 60.00 a year. We have caller id so we can just look to see who is calling. Besides if someone really wants your number they can get it one way or another. Now to check if the gas company has some type of discount.

Beer Bread -- Tastefully Simple recipe

Doesn't this look yummy. This is a copycat recipe of Tastefully Simple's Beer Bread. Next time I am going to added grated cheddar cheese.


Here is the recipe in case you are interested:
Beer Bread

3 C flour
4 and 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 and 1/2 tsp salt
3 TBSP sugar
12 OZ beer or other carbonated beverage

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Mix all ingredients well. Place in greased loaf pan. Bake for 55 minutes.

Rub finished loaf with butter or margarine while it is still hot!!


HAPPY BAKING!!

How my pantry challenge is going? -- and other frugal doings

Well tonight I was not sure what to do about dinner? I have a ton of turkey left over but B is getting tired of it. So how can I fix that. I found this Pork Fried rice dish by Hamburger Helper in the cupboard. He loves it...I hate it. So I made that just added turkey. He also asked for corn bread... good thing I still have some powdered milk. So I made that for him.

For me I made turkey salad on toast. I made some extra so tomorrow I can have a sandwich for lunch. I love chicken salad so why not make turkey salad. I think I might even make egg salad for this weekend. We are going to have a HOT HOT weekend. So I am not going to be cooking much.

Tomorrow is corn beef in the crockpot. Now can anyone tell me how to make corn beef hash...the child is asking for it. I try to please him when I can.

I can't wait to finally get my food stamps back. I am making a list of staples that are needed....as you can guess Powder Milk is number one.

I am seriously thinking of NOT using my air this summer. Although July and August are the hottest months here. I figure if I can sleep then not a big deal. This weekend I guess will be the test when it is 90 out.

Just in case

In case I stop posting it is because of computer problems. I don't ever plan on giving up my blog. So if I disappear hang tight I will be back.

Tuesday cooking -- Almost threw in the towel

Today was Turkey Day. I bought a Turkey back in Nov. It was in my parents freezer and then moved to mine when I got it. So make a whole turkey. We will eat some for the next few days. Food Saver some and we have meals for later on.

I had to run to the store for a few potatoes, celery, buttermilk and a soda. So that is another 6.00 out of my 50 for food. Still no food stamps.

I get home to make the dressing - have to cook the cornbread....no eggs. UGH! Why does my child leave the empty carton in the fridge. So I run and pay 99 cents for eggs. I get home and start the cornbread and .....guess what.......NO MILK! Did I check before I left nope. So I decide I am not paying Walgreens prices for milk and was going to put the cornbread in a baggy for later. Then the light bulb went off.....I have powdered milk in the fridge. So I jump online to www.hillbillywife.com since I know she has instructions to make the powder milk. So I make my 1/3 of cup of milk. And make the bread. So far so good .... turkey cooking, corn bread done and then I want to make rolls. Darn it...I need milk again. So I do the powdered milk trick again. BINGO it works.

So from now on I will be cooking and baking with powder milk. You can not taste the difference and a box will go a long way in this house. So try it if you cook and bake a lot with milk...go for powdered and save yourself some money.

Now anyone have any ideas of what to do with the packets of powedered cheese I have? It is like the mac and cheese powder.

P.S. I even used it in Mashed Potatoes. No one was the wiser and believe me if my son does not like something he will happily let me know.

Need your help -- Father's Day

For Father's Day I want to make my Dad a card. This card is going to include candy. My creative juices are just not flowing right now.

And example of my idea is this:

Dad you are always there in a "snap" to help us out -- A bag of snaps will be included.

I have already thought of his present for next year. I just need time and pictures to gather. I am going to make him a History Book about what happened the year you became a father...the Grand Finale will be a picture of my sister, since she was born first and then an ending phrase saying.... your first daughter gave you so much joy.. you did it again 3 years later and a picture of me.

So if you have any ideas....send them this way. Thanks!

Ch-Ch-Changes -- How I have changed?

In the past few days I have been thinking how much I have changed in the last few years. A lot of changes have come in the last 6 months, or the changes where there but they really surfaced after October 2005.

My son was born almost 15 years ago. Yet I look at him sometimes and see that baby I use to cuddle with. When he was first born I was living with my Dad and Stepmom and broke. I had left my abusive husband and had to figure out how to take care of a baby and make it financially.

Growing up I did not come from a frugal household. My mom was a single mom and she spoiled me. I am not going to say I got EVERYTHING I wanted but pretty damn close. Sometimes I would have to wait a bit, but sooner or later I got it. When I got my first job at Cousin's she made me save half my paycheck. She did not cook we ate frozen processed food or went out to dinner. My clothes came from the good stores (not Target). Hanging clothes and cooking from scratch was not something we did or would have considered. I remember my mom going on vacation Labor Day weekend and leaving me with her close friend. This lady had at least 6 kids. I still remember waking up Labor Day morning to her baking fresh rolls and peach cobbler for a picnic later that day. I was just in awe....and loved that roll I ate warm out of the oven. I love my mom a lot but she shaped my views and I in turn shaped my son's in not such a good way at times. I don't fault her with my upbringing. She raised me alone and at times my Dad did not help and she went to school full time to get a better education. She finally realized how bad things were for her when her car died and she had so much credit card debt.

When I was finally able to move into low income housing. I had no furniture. My son had a bed but other than that we had nothing. My mom's answer....go and buy a new couch and give me the old one. She let me take my bed too. I had some things like a table for the kitchen and dishes from when I was with my ex. A lot of things I lost just trying to get the hell out of an abusive relationship. So finally I was on my own with not much furniture, no tv and a baby. I was in college so really did not need much of anything else. We got up so early that we went to bed very early too. On Christmas Eve I had been living there maybe a week. My boyfriend at the time stopped over. He said well I really want to watch the Packer game. I said that won't happen here. He left and went to his car and brought us a small 12 inch TV. So we now had a borrowed TV.Before this I would listen to the TV on the radio. We can get one TV station here on the radio. I was fine with that. We would get a TV when I could afford one.

During this time...I had no computer but we did have them at school. One day I found a site called Frugal Moms. I read some of the things they did and was just shocked. I thought these people were nuts. And imagined everyone living in a small town on a farm. City people did not do these things. I sure could not be doing these things. Had I known what I know now I could have lived so much cheaper when I was at my poorest state. I was living off of 440.00 a month - paying 49.00 in rent. I should have been hanging laundry. I did not even know they made dryer racks. Cooking from scratch - not that I had a clue. Now I can look at things and figure how to do that from scratch. My mom bought all my son's clothes while I was in school. She should have been at the resale shops or not buying them at all. She bought him more clothes than he could wear so I did not have to do wash all the time. Only problem is he did not wear them all and now he thinks he should have that many clothes.

I should have been container gardening to cut down on the food bill. I had a great porch and lots of sun. I could have planted a ton of plants. Even now this year planting the few I did will double or more next year. I realize now I should have saved the money and bought a small chest freezer. Kept in the corner of the apartment by the porch ... It was such a useless space anyways. Should have used a closet as a pantry. I could have saved time and money by doing this.

The biggest thing I could have done was learn. Learn how to live life in a more frugal way. I know my son does not care if I hang clothes. He just cares if he has clean clothes. He does not care if I could from scratch or buy processed food. He just cares he has food to eat.

Now I look at the dryer as this money guzzler. I see the high price and unhealthy processed foods and don't want to buy them. I love getting up in the morning and checking to see if my plants are producing veggies yet. I try and see how can I do something or get something cheap or free. I don't need a new purse every season or just because I want one. I mend clothes instead of throwing them out and buying new ones. I make sure we use leftovers and shop for sales on meat. Before I would just buy food, if on sale great if not oh well. I don't buy what I can not afford. Can you believe I use to buy from Finger Hut and pay those awful prices. I don't have to keep up with everyone and don't care that I don't have a car. Okay in Jan. when it is 40 below I care but sometimes then I just stay home.

Looking back I could have done so many things differently but at this point in my life I am glad I am open to change and trying new things. If they work for us great and if they don't well at least we tried. One thing I am working on with my son is we pay bills first and then look at getting the things we want. Savings is important and doing things you may not like but if it keeps the roof over your head and food in your belly than you do it.

Starting a new habit

Now everyone knows you should pay off your credit cards every month. I will admit that I do carry a credit card balance. I am working on paying it off but I am also training myself to use my cards wisely. So if I use them I have to make my payment and any charges I made that month. Right now I as I paying off other bills I am only making the minimum payment plus what I charge monthly, so I am not creating more debt. Some people may find this to be not the smartest move but I want to use my credit cards to help build up my credit. So I have to make myself use them in a responsible way. I hope to be working at a higher paying job at the end of the summer and knock out the credit card and medical debt ASAP.

Up early before work

I got up early today! I was up and coffee brewing by 6:15 am. Now I would not normally get up this early on a Saturday morning, but I have to be to work at 2pm and work till 11pm. So it is either get up or let my house get out of control. I prefer to get up early.

This morning I cleaned up the kitchen. I will say I am doing a much better job of keeping my kitchen under control. In the past when I would get busy or work to much things would get out of control. The dishes would be rinsed and stacked but pile up till I felt overwhelmed and stopped cooking. Now that was wasting way to much money. So I try and get to them every day or have my son do them. Keeps us eating at home.

Here is a frugal tip: I have a swifter actually I think I have 2. One that is called the Swifter Max but it is impossible to find the clothes for them. So I don't use it and the regular one that everyone knows about. Not the best frugal cleaning appliance but those were the old days. So today I noticed my kitchen floor needed a quick wipe down. It was not really dirty but could use a touch up. So I thought of the swifter - but have no cloths. So I thought I would use a rag out of my rag bag. It worked -- the floor is wiped up and I spent no money doing. The rag is in the wash and will go back in the rag bag when washed. Next time I have to dust up the walls and ceiling I will put another rag on there. No more swifter cloths for me to buy.

Sometimes we're so use to buying things we use, we don't think of ways that will work and save money. If we work on finding reuseable things there is less to throw away. A friend of mine recently spent $5.00 on a garbage can that she can reuse the plastic bags she gets from the store. She no longer has to buy kitchen garbage bags. She is reusing bags she gets free (well she did buy something to get those bags) Many people bring their own bags into Walgreens so they are reusing bags and not filling up more land with useless trash.

I take my son's old clothes that are no wearable any longer and cut up into rags.I keep a bag under the sink. I use these for cleaning or to wipe up spills. I still use paper towels but go through a lot less. I think right now we have 5 rolls and those will last until the end of the year.


So in ending this entry I have a request. If you believe in the power of prayer. Please pray for my Grandma who had a heart attack on Thursday.

Thank you.

Frugal Wednesday here

Started the day off going to Allergist to get skinned tested. 50 sticks on the back and 10 sticks on my arm -- led to the fact that I am allergic to ragweed, trees and grass. All the things right outside. At least now I have meds to make it a bit better although the worse is over for now.

Stopped at the bank to get my 2 week supply of laundry money and a cashier's check for my rent. I don't have to pay for the checks if they are over $500.00. This way the rent is paid and I don't have to wait for my slow landlord to put the check in the bank. I did pick up Kool Aid packs while I was there for 2.11. I have not seen the kool aid packs on sale as of yet. When they do I will do a major stock up. Mailed the rent in a FREE envelope - so all I paid for was the stamp.

Since we had a great breeze I went ahead and got a load of towels washed and hung outside. I love those nice breezy summer days. Here is a picture of the "toy" basket I found on sale for 21 cents. It is perfect for a load of wash. I would some day love to replace all my baskets with these of differnt sizes. They are perfect for an apartment dweller. Since they fold up and can be put away. My son has a hamper size one in his room.



Out of the $50.00 I have alloted for groceries only $3.10 has been spent. The above Kool-aid and some eggs. Since today was pay day after paying the rent we have 54.00 left. However I did sell some cologne that I had here for $15.00. I paid less for it so made money on that. I also cashed in the change I had in my Mickey cup. There was 12.00 in there. I put everything but quarters in there -- the quarters go in the laundry jug.

Here are two of my favorite frugal kitchen appliances.




My toaster oven and my 4 cup coffee maker. The toaster oven is big enough to cook a chicken that is under 4 pounds. I have not made a chicken in there but tonight I made mock chicken legs (they are pork with bread crumbs on them shaped like a chicken leg) I have also done corn bread, potatoes and other stuff. Tomorrow I am thinking of making breakfast puffs. They are suppose to taste like doughnuts and I am sure B will love them. I love that I can bake in my toaster oven. So in the warmer months when I need the oven, I can use a smaller version and not get the kitchen to hot. I could if cooking time was a long over an hour, put it outside. This is one of my most used appliances in the house. We use it to make toast (ha that was a given), heat up leftovers and cook in it.

The coffee maker of course is for coffee. I also make my ice tea in it. The 4 cup brews the tea base for my ice tea. I make at least a 2 quart pitcher at least once a day. I love the tea and it is saving me a bundle in not buying soda. I notice that I am not drinking a ton of coffee right now, but did manage to drink a pot this morning to get my dragging butt moving. It did the trick.

Tomorrow is going to be another frugal day. Heck might even get those breakfast puffs done and take a picture to show you.

New garden picture

This is the new garden picture. I got the containers free from Cousins Subs. Should have thought of that earlier. I will use the ice tubs next year for flowers. Never thought I would want to plant flowers..but I will.

The one thing I love about the buckets is I can move them..in or out of the sun. Since the back deck gets morning sun till about 3 pm or so. I think it is perfect to have them there. I also think the containers are high enough to keep the chipmunks out of my plants. They do like tomatoes.

A few things to share!

I want to thank everyone for the kind comments about my camera. It has been "found" I had a basket of laundry in the living/dining room that day. Well today when I was putting away the wash. It was in there...I know I did not put my camera in the laundry basket. But I have my camera so I am HAPPY!

Next I just sold 2 movie tickets I got in the mail from buying Procter and Gamble. I need the cash more than going to the movies. Of course most people that know how stressed I have been would say I needed to go to the movies. LOL

Since I sold the movie tickets I have made $25.00 towards my $100.00 goal for June. This money is going on my credit card.

Got a letter about my food stamps that makes NO sense. It says don't discontinue but you may discontinue if the certification has ended. Now that confuses me....so I am going to wait it out till June 9. Then reapply if I have to.

Today replanted my garden. I could KICK myself. I should have thought of that earlier and saved some money. I can still use them for flowers. Maybe next year I will just plant some flower seeds and see what happens or use it for lettuce. I am gueesing they don't need down space as much as up space. I needed deeper planters. So I went to a local Cousins store and asked for mayo buckets. I replanted my cucumbers and pepper plants. They needed more room for the roots...so I hope they still grow. Next year I will get more of buckets and plant that way from the beginning. If anyone has tips about the peppers or cucumbers I would appreciate it. Never tried to grow them before. I will take a new picture soon so you can see how they are doing.

Dinner was leftovers since I was out replanting most of the evening. I have to agree that gardening is relaxing even if they are only in the containers. Still have not boughten any food. Only 30 more days to go to keep it under $50.00.

Frustration

Last night I had a breakdown. I called my sister and told her I was so upset and that I am so tired. I feel as if I just keep getting kicked down no matter how hard I try. Yesterday I am looking for the camera and can't find it. I asked my son where it was and he knew nothing. I know the last time I used it. So then to come to find out he let some kid in the house he hardly knows. Left him alone in the living and dining room....last place my camera was and now POOF! I can't replace it and knowing that someone was in my house and stole just makes me so mad. I had taken out the memory cards so I have those. Thank goodness my Disney Pictures are on them. I know I have told him this before, since a few years back one of his friends stole my jewelry.

I did sit my son down and tell him that we are very broke. The money that is missing was for food for the month. I also told him I am barely keeping the bills paid. Maybe I should not have shared so much but at almost 15 he needs to understand that we need to work together to stay afloat. And letting people in who steal are not helping.

This week I plan on spending any free time job hunting and praying. That is all I have left to do. I am not keeping anything of value out, not that there is much left unless someone wants to walk off with my TV.

Off to make money today and to spend nothing. More frugal ideas coming soon.

Sunday thoughts

I met one of my neighbors last night. We have always said hi and waved but did not really speak to each other. When I was coming she was outside planting, so I stopped and we started talking. She is planted vegetables and some flowers. We got to talking and she was telling me how she would love to homestead some day. WHAT? someone who thinks about the things I do? Most of the people I know look at me like I have 3 heads when I talk about some of the frugal things I do. So we had a nice chat and nice to know someone things the way I do.

Today was going to be my day off but since one of the guys quit yesterday morning I quickly grabbed up his hours. So I got 5.5 extra hours this week and 3 of those should be OT. I am tired but I wanted the extra money. I also sold a grill and some pants of B's. So that money will go in my cash stash bucket till I get to the bank later next week. I will be making a payment to the credit card with that. I hope to be able to make some more money this week selling some other clothes we have here and right on the CC it goes. I already have my Dad's father's day gift and going to have a picture made for my sister's birthday. I got a frame very cheap so the gift will cost me under $4.00 and she will love it.

Doing well with eating here and using up food. I took out banana bread that I had frozen a few months ago for breakfast today and have a ham to cook later today. My son slept at his friends house so he ate there. Still have not spent any on food this month. I know I can keep it at or under $50.00 for the month. With school getting out next week just have to make a plan for lunches. I will be putting a note on the fridge with items he can eat for lunch so he is not wondering what is in there.

I still have not put the air conditioner in the window. It was HOT memorial day weekend but we did okay with out it. So I am hoping to hold out till July or August. When I think about it the HOT season is so short here -- July and August are our the months when it gets hot here. I mean in the high 80's and above. It is the humidity that gets us. I am hoping we do not need it much at all this year. I would love NOT to use it at all but I am sure that is not an option.

June Tight Grocery Month.

Since one of my employers failed to return a form on time to the state. My food stamps for June have stopped. I did write a letter which is suppose to kick them in for the month. Although as of right now it does not show in the system. So I am taking the information I have and assuming that we will not be getting them for June.

In that case we will be eating out of the freezer and pantry for the month. There is going to be limited money for food. So I am going to have to plan meals out so that we use up everything we have and don't waste food. Not that I try to waste food on a normal day.

Tonight I made brats on the grill. We don't have buns but have bread. My son is not a huge bread eater anyways so he won't care. We have watermelon which was free from a friends. They give us a ton all summer. Also I have baked beans which my DS loves. I also took out a ham for Sunday dinner. I know I have sides to make with it.

I hope to keep the whole month of groceries to $50.00 or less. So far for June $0 spent.

Saved $20.00 today.

I belong to a paid frugal group called Frugal Families. There is a link to the group in my side bar. I have been a member for a few years. It does cost $10.00 a year but so worth it. I am amazed at how they molded me into the frugal person I am today. I have tried so many things because of this group. Today is a good testmonial of why I belong there.

I had posted... earlier this week to see if anyone owned a Mr. Coffee Ice Tea maker. I love ice tea but it is costly. I got 200 tea bags for cheap thinking I could make my own. Well that was just not working out to my advantage. So a few people mentioned they have them and loved them. I have seen them at Walmart for $20.00. I was really thinking of getting one. One member posted that I could do this with a drip coffee maker. Here is the recipe she posted...

You can use a drip coffee maker to do the same thing. Put the tea bags 3-4reg or 1-2 family size bags in the coffee carafe fill water half way and hit the 'on' button. When the tea looks like 'strong coffee' put the hot tea in a 2 qt pitcher and add 3/4 to 1 cup of sugar-stir to dissolve sugar THEN add cold water to the top of the pitcher. Make sugar to add the sugar BEFORE the cold water or it will not dissolve right!

Note: I only have a 4 cup maker so I made 4 cups of brewed tea.


So as I am typing I am enjoying my ice tea brewed with the coffee maker. And saved 20.00 right off the bat, not to mention the upcoming savings. I will now fill a thermos I bought at Walgreens on clearance for $3.00 with tea and no longer buy drinks at work. Although next time I will use 3/4 cup of sugar...a cup was to much for my taste. To fix that I reused the tea bags and add more brewed tea.

Now that is being frugal and once less thing I have in my house.