Thursday, June 25, 2020

Free Kindle Books for Today 6/25/20 and What we Bought at the Amish Store!


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I thought I would make a post on our grocery shopping trip yesterday before I forget the details. Sorry if this is too long.  

Yesterday we took a drive to what I like to call the Amish store to get some deals and to get out of the house together (yes we were alone-yeah).  We try to go to two stores, one is a Old Order Amish Scratch and Dent (no central heat, no electricity,  and outdoor bathrooms) and the other is a very modern Mennonite Store. It takes about an hour or a little more than an hour to get there.  According to our maps it's about $6.00 in gas to get there and back.  

I wanted to let you know that the first thing we noticed on the road were trucks!  I heard them a lot yesterday morning on the expressway not far from us but it really didn't hit me till we got going on the road.  Back in early March I remember saying to my husband, "all the trucks are gone."  Of course then it became  I don't hear the trains and where are the airplanes.   It's all come back but the airplanes are few and far between.  It's funny  but when I see a airplane now I say, "look everyone, there's a plane!"

Amish Scratch and Dent

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We decided to go to the Amish scratch and dent store first.  They only carry canned and packaged dry goods then we went on  to the Mennonite store that has fresh meat and frozen food.  Although it felt like the temperature never went past 70 degrees we didn't want anything to thaw out.  We also had one of those cooler bags in the trunk to help us keep things cold. 

One of the things I missed when we were in the first stage of the  lockdown was just wanting to have candy bar ready for the grand kids and us.  Oh, we had them here and there (probably really enough) but now I'm stocked up. During these times listen we don't know what will happen so I still stock up when I can.  It's not looking very good for a lot of us in the U.S.  

These candy bars were near or a little past date.  Some of these were 3 for $1.00 and some were 2 for $1.00.  The cheapest candy bar that I can find at a regular store is $1.00 a piece. I hid them in the bottom drawer of the dresser in the guest room and  covered them up with a beach towel (now you know).  These are great for rewards for doing schoolwork, cleaning, being good, or making them smile.

We also bought groceries like spaghettio's for 50 cents a can, pinto beans for .50 a can, a big bag of dried kidney beans, big boxes of cereal for $1.33 a box, and  4 small bags of White Lilly (1 lb packages)  self rising flour for $1.00 a piece.  I haven't been able to find White Lilly here at all, so even though I feel  this wasn't the best price I grabbed it up!  Now I'm not saying White Flour is not here but I haven't seen it in the stores I've been to.  You see I try not to go out and hunt for stuff, we just decided to make do.  Let me say King Arthur flour will do but if I can find White Lilly I grab it (if it's a reasonable price).

You have to really look at the dates at this store and determine if you think it's ok in your mind about the expiration dates.  If they are too far out I won't buy them, no matter how cheap they are.  Most of what I buy is at or very near date.

There is no electricity in their building so your pay by cash or check.  They also use a old fashioned cash register so it all just rings up grocery. We spent $40.  Really, if we don't find anything here (which has never happened), we love just looking.


Next up the Mennonite store: The meats



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Back in the modern world at the Mennonite store we stocked up on Jimmy Dean sausage.  The links were 2 packages for $4.00 and the roll was $1.79.


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I made sure to buy English Muffins so I could make Sausage Cheese Muffins to go in the freezer.  We had one sandwich a piece when we got back for dinner with the beans I had cooking in the crock pot. 

I figure the cost of each sandwich might be at the most .40 a piece (I'm not exactly sure how to figure out the price of single slices of the bulk cheese I bought a couple of weeks ago).  These are nothing like Mcdonald's sausage and cheese Mcmuffins, they are hearty slices of meat and cheese.

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We bought 3 packages of frozen Cod.    You know, we have changed how we eat quite a bit.  Oh we still have a few pork chops in the freezer but we haven't bought anymore and  I think we've seen  the last of the steak on the grill for awhile.  The availability and price of both are out of reach.  

So, now we have fish at least once or twice a week depending on if I can find a good price.  This also includes tuna sandwiches... which by the way just might happen today. With a side salad made with lettuce from the garden, I'll call it a great meal.   It's simple, easy, and good.   

We also bought two, 3 lb packages of polish kielbasa for $6.99 each.


The price for everything including vegetables was $104.00.   I just looked at the receipt again and realized I had it wrong earlier.


Because we spent a lot for us, I would like to say we won't go back to our grocery store  next week but we will have to get essentials like milk and bread.  We did buy a gallon of milk here to tide us over but it wasn't the best price.  

What is happening in your neck of the woods today?


The Loneliest Cottage (Alaskan Hearts Book 1) by [Melissa Storm]

A Pony Express Romance (Wyoming Mountain Tales Book 1) by [Misty M. Beller]

Life On The Water by [Jean L. Kuhnke]


Solving Deer Problems: How to Deerproof Your Yard and Garden by [Peter Loewer]


The Hungry Man's Cookbook: Hearty Main Meals for Hungry Men by [Christina Tosch]

Cheap Recipes Cookbook: Delicious Cheap Recipes That Can Feed the Whole Family  Without Breaking the Bank by [Thomas Kelly]

Squish Squeeze and Smash by [Mr. Vinny]


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17 comments:

Lana said...

Those are great prices and I am sure you had a great time being out of the house and doing something you enjoy. I am not sure why the discount stores are so well stocked with sausage but every one here has it and for cheap. I would think with everyone home it would have been bought at the regular grocery stores. Yay on the White Lily flour! You are all set for sausage gravy and biscuits. My Mom hid candy bars in the produce drawer in the fridge. Of course I did eventually find them and she told me I could have one if I did not tell my siblings about the stash. Have a great day!

Vickie @Vickie's Kitchen and Garden said...

I'm glad for the sausage Lana but I don't understand the way of things either. Yes too tired today so tomorrow the big breakfast for dinner.
The produce drawer is a perfect place to hire the candy. No one ever looks there. Your mom was smart!

Kathy said...

Great deals! Your breakfast sandwiches will taste much better than mcdonalds.
I'm glad you enjoyed your day out.

Cheryl Kimbley said...

One of these days I'll make it back to the Amish store south of here. I always love the prices on candy - I always bought and stuck them in the frig or freezer.
Pork is still quite well priced here. Whole pork loins can be purchased for 1.99/lb. or less. Chicken quarters are super cheap too. Luckily I have not purchased meat in ages.
You got some good deals.

Jenny said...

You found some great deals!

I've learned to try to keep some fun treats or easy foods as much as I can. I bought a case of granola bars a few weeks ago from the Little Debbie store because it's one of the few things my 2 yr old grandson will eat. They expire in July so I put most of them in the freezer & they should keep until we can eat them.

What a great deal you found on sausage! Meat is the hardest thing for us too, especially since it's the main food for my husband. Most cheaper foods he just cannot eat. I've been making tuna salad one week & chicken salad every other week to have for snacks & lunches. So I'm buying a lot of canned tuna. I stocked up on it this morning...I didn't go into a store this time...I just did pick up. They had everything in my order this time. No substitutions or empty shelves..at least what I'd asked for.

My fumble this week: I start my grocery pick up order at least 4 or 5 days or more before I plan to pick it up to be sure I get the time slot I need. So last night I was going over the order I would pick up this morning. My husband noticed I had charged the groceries to our HSA (Health savings account) card!..which happens to illegal. He had ordered some medicine through the mail & I did not notice our HSA card in the account when I ordered. Ugh

I told him I could cancel & start over...I did NOT want to. I asked him what he thought & he said...'Would you rather cancel & reorder or deal with the IRS?" So I cancelled. But good news! Walmart saved my cart! In less than 5 minutes I deleted the HSA card, reordered the cart & still got my time slot for this morning. Whew! All that drama. I'll know next time to be more cautious.

Margie from Toronto said...

You got a lot of really good buys!
I made sure that I had a chocolate stash as lockdown loomed and this morning I added 4 large bars of Cadbury chocolate as it was on at a good price and I was all out! I happened to go by one of the Lindt chocolate shops that are very popular here - the bins of umpteen different kinds of chocolate balls have all been sitting out in these shops since March 17 when lockdown happened very quickly and it had crossed my mind a couple of times to check on how long the BB dates might be. It must be getting close as I noticed that the sign on the door said that everything was 90% off! These shops in a mall have only been allowed to open as of yesterday and I was too early as they didn't open until 10am but I'm going by an early open one tomorrow when I head into the office so may just stock up a bit.

I managed to get a 5kg bag of Whole Wheat flour this morning - first bag of flour other than All Purpose that I've seen since lockdown!

Fish is very expensive here - I usually buy mine from the St. Lawrence Market here in Toronto but not quite sure how they are managing things there as it is usually very busy. Nova Scotia frozen scallops are on for a good price (relatively speaking) this week at one particular store so I may check one out in a day or two if I can get there. I have very little room left in my freezer so no other meat is on the shopping list.

I was like you yesterday! I was out walking with a friend when I heard a strange noise and got all excited about spotting a plane! This is a big deal in Toronto as we have the biggest airport in the country and planes don't usually even get a second look!

Enjoy your treats.

Rhonda said...

I haven’t shopped much at all in stores, just Walmart pickup, and I’m afraid that’s going to continue as Covid is very active in Oklahoma.
But you got great stuff and I enjoyed reading about your good deals!

Thanks for the books, I got 3 of them

Vickie @Vickie's Kitchen and Garden said...

Thanks Kathy we had a great time..well as good as a time that we can have right now LOL.

Vickie @Vickie's Kitchen and Garden said...

Cheryl, Maybe I should put them in the freezer and hide them in the back. They won't melt though but they will probably stay fresher longer.
It's funny the different price and availability of the meat in the states.

Vickie @Vickie's Kitchen and Garden said...

Oh man I'm so glad you got your cart back. Let me just say Jenny this virus is a hassle! My daughter still does pick up and she makes her list way ahead so she can get her time slot too.
Chicken salad sounds so good -I'll make that next! It's like I need a variety of different foods now. Thank goodness chicken is still cheap.

Vickie @Vickie's Kitchen and Garden said...

I'm sorry to hear OK Covid is very active. In Michigan are cases went down but our now heading back up in spots that have reopened. I'm just now getting brave enough to go to the store but it sounds like I'll be picking up my orders like you again if this trend continues.
I'm so glad you got 3 books-hope they are good ones.

Vickie @Vickie's Kitchen and Garden said...

Isn't that funny about the planes Margie? Who would have ever thought we would get excited to see one!
I hope you get your chocolate, it sounds delicious! I hope you get it for a great price too!
Certain kinds of fish are very expensive here too and not available. I'm so glad we were able to find that cod.
Wish we were near the shore like you -your fresh fish would be wonderful. Be safe and stay well.

Anonymous said...

Well done on your great deals Vickie :) .

Like you there in Australia the cost of meat such as steak, pork chops and mince have gone through the roof so we are being choosy as to what we buy to meet our budget. We are searching for markdowns mainly on meat and purchase them when we see them to top the freezer up.

I did a staples order restocking back from when this all started in mid march as a lot of items I had let run low due to purchase restrictions in place then. Happy to say that the purchase restrictions on groceries in our State have all been lifted.

I topped up on items we through experience going through this time thought we didn't have enough of and chocolate was one of the things on the list as well as tinned tomatoes and vegetables.

Using Gift card discount of 5% and a $14 saving, A $10 off promotion, taking advantage of weekly specials of saving $40 and getting another $10 off using our grocery rewards card we saved $74 on our recent grocery order.

So for free we topped up on -
- 12 tins of tinned tomatoes.
- 12 tins of corn kernels.
- 12 tins of sliced mangoes.
- 8 blocks of chocolate.
- 2 x packets of jelly babies.
- 2 x packets of wheat biscuits cereal.

Re Covid I am going on information on reading up on the Spanish Flu and would say there will be resurgences 3 months after most restrictions are eased. One state here is holding their restrictions 3 months after and are now seeing a surge in cases in that State and have also reinstated grocery purchase restrictions after more panic buying.

Have a great week ahead.


Lorna.

Anonymous said...

I have to do grocery delivery since I'm high risk. For the first time in 3 months I got the chicken I asked for yesterday. Yes, I think I did a little happy dance. Curious question, general area where these stores are. When this is over, I'd like to go since we live in the same state as you. Ann

Vickie @Vickie's Kitchen and Garden said...

Ann, These stores are near Marlette. One is called Yoders discount and the other is Country View.

I'm so glad you got your chicken! I would do a happy dance too!

Vickie @Vickie's Kitchen and Garden said...

Lorna, what great deals on groceries! Love all your savings. It does sound like we are in the same boat with the groceries. I'm so glad you are able to buy what you need. I have seen restrictions in some stores still on meat but the Mennonite store didn't have any.
I have canned peaches and jam but I really need to stock up on canned fruit more too.
That covid comes back with a vengeance that's for sure. Some states might have come back too soon from lockdown. Michigan is also seeing a slight resurgence and we are not going on to the next level of easing up. I hope this is all over soon.

Anonymous said...

Thanks. I'll check those out when my doctor says I can be out in the world again. Ann