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| Cantaloupe Melon Seedlings |
Later in the afternoon, I picked up another grocery order. Once again, several items I requested were not available and I only authorized one substitution (a can of condensed cream of potato soup). I found out that the store policy is, if they had to substitute an item with one that costs more, then, they will charge the lower price! I had ordered the store brand soup because it was lower cost; they substituted the brand name soup, which costs more, but, charged me the price of the store brand! I am more than OK with that! LOL! I have one more free curbside pick up order left; after that, there will be a fee. Fair enough.
Friday evening, friend M brought me a bag of mulch and some plant food. He weeded the circle where the peach tree is growing and mulched it; he also fertilized the citrus trees.
On Saturday, I did a load of laundry and hung everything up to dry. Then, I opened a box of household supplies that I had ordered, which had been delivered a couple of days prior.
I generally stock up on household supplies (cleaning supplies, paper goods, etc.) and toiletries (soap, shampoo, etc.) on a quarterly basis, rotating the items I buy each quarter, getting about a four to six months supply of each item. One quarter, it might be toothpaste, laundry detergent, and shampoo; the next quarter, it might be toilet paper and paper towels; the following quarter, I might need to buy more toothpaste, in addition to dishwashing liquid, etc. No matter what, I try to keep a small stockpile and try not to wait until I run out of something before I buy, while trying to get things on sale, as well.
However, because I am not going to the shops in person, I decided to order a shipment of certain cleaning supplies to be delivered. I ordered some toilet bowl cleaner (I am on my last container from my previous stock up), some dishwashing liquid (again, on the last but one, which is a small container I bought on the last day I went to the shops), another box of dishwasher powder (I only have the one I am currently using), and two boxes of laundry detergent, even though I have one that I picked up on one of my last shopping trips. I didn't wait for a sale, either, because, after seeing the empty shelves in the grocery stores in early March, I thought it would be prudent to buy the items I needed while they are available and I bought enough to last me for at least six months, if not more.
Before I put the toilet bowl cleaners in the bathroom cabinets, I wiped the bottom of the under-the-sink cabinets in both bathrooms. I had cleaned them, earlier, but, it has been a few months since then, and I wanted to make sure there was no dust. However, I put away the dishwashing detergent in the kitchen cabinet without cleaning that! That is a project for another day!
Later in the evening on Saturday, I watered the garden and transplanted some of the cantaloupe melon seedlings. Most of the ones I transplanted earlier in the week had died because it got so hot right after I transplanted them. This week is a little cooler, so I am hoping the newly transplanted seedlings might fare better. The seedlings shown above are the biggest ones and I am going to leave them in place, as they might have a better chance of actually growing!
On Sunday, which was Mother's Day, I participated in an online retreat. But, that is for another post! I did enjoy it, although I developed a headache, later in the evening, which took some time (and a Tylenol) to go away!
I am grateful for:
- My daughter without whom I wouldn't be a mother
- Being able to pick up more groceries
- Being able to buy the household supplies I needed and have them delivered
- M picking up the mulch, etc., and tending to the garden
- My cantaloupe seedlings
How was your weekend? What were you grateful for, this weekend?
I usually buy my toiletries in bulk, usually once a year and I buy when there is a 3 for the price of 2 offer. Cleaning supplies I usually buy a replacement as soon as I open a bottle/tin to use. I don't have the space to keep too many spare toilet rolls so would normally only buy a pack of 9 as there is room to put those away in the bathroom cupboard. I've bought a pack of 24 this time though, so they will have to live in the spare bedroom!
ReplyDeleteI was grateful for the comforts of home during a cold, wet and very windy weekend.
My spare bedroom is slowly being turned into a stock room, as well, Eileen, as that's where I, too, keep the extra toilet paper and other items! But, that's OK. I can close the door and it's not like I have anyone coming to stay in the spare bedroom any time soon!
DeleteI am also one of those shoppers that likes to keep a small stock of the things I use regularly, like tine foil, dish soap. During this lock down I was so glad I did, because many items were in short supply. I count it a blessing that (1) I have the space to do this (2) financially can afford to do. How lovely to be anticipating melons grown in your own garden.
ReplyDeleteIn all my years of living in this country, this was the first time I've ever seen so many empty shelves in grocery stores! It was quite a shock! I used to keep a few extras of things in case of an earthquake, but, now, I can see how important it is to have a pantry and stockpile!
DeleteIn here Mother's Day is actually on 26 of May, so I will have to wait a bit for my celebration☺ So great to have a garden, cantaloupe sounds nice! Stay safe and healthy ☺
ReplyDeleteOh, I didn't realize you celebrated later in May! Well, hope you'll have a wonderful day, then! Hope all is well with you, too. :)
DeleteIt's a good idea to stock up on cleaning supplies when you can find them these days because they're not always available, as you have seen.
ReplyDeleteSmart idea leaving some of the cantaloupe where it decided to grow. Transplanting is always a risk, for me anyway.
I think the extra cost of buying them at regular price is worth the satisfaction of knowing I have supplies on hand. I was laughing at myself when I ordered the dishwashing liquid - earlier in March, I didn't buy a huge container of my favorite dishwashing liquid because it was selling at the regular price of $5.99 and I was waiting for it to go on sale at $4.99 like it used to regularly do. The next time I went to the store, however, the price had jumped to $6.99 and there wasn't a single container to be bought even at that price! Lesson learned! The containers I bought this time are smaller and cost more, but, I was almost out of dishwashing liquid and grateful that I could buy some. Growing up, we had an all-purpose bar soap that we used for laundry and washing dishes!
DeleteI haven't had much luck with transplanting seedlings, myself, either.
Looking forward to hearing about the online retreat. I am going to do a grocery order for pickup today, and I will need to add one household item that I forgot to put on my quarterly order at Target. My household supplies order was smaller than usual because I was digging through the pantry/closets making sure I was using up all the partial supplies which seem to end up all over the house in the various bathrooms especially.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the grocery pick up order, Susanne. I hope you are able to get everything you want. That's good that you had partial containers of household supplies to use up! :)
DeleteI usually keep a reasonable stock of items but I've never thought about buying household supplies on a quarterly basis. What a great idea. If I can figure out somewhere to store them, then I think I will try and do this myself. X
ReplyDeleteI find that it eliminates having to always remember to buy certain supplies. I hope you do find the room to store them.
DeleteI too keep a small stock of toiletries, cleaning supplies etc. I go to a warehouse store and buy in bulk.
ReplyDeleteI’m glad your headache went away after taking a Tylenol. This morning I woke up with a headache. It’s still lingering and I’m trying not to take an ibuprofen. Sometimes I give headaches a number, and if it’s 5/10 or higher I’d take a painkiller. 😊 Right now it’s about 0.5, so I hope it will slowly go away.
Yes, buying in bulk is the easiest way to stock up on supplies we always use.
DeleteI hope your headache goes off, soon. I go through a whole list of questions when I get a headache - is my pressure high? am I dehydrated? is my sugar levels low? is it tension? etc., before I take anything for it. Yesterday's headache was due to a combination of those factors, plus, a lack of sleep, and the medication helped.
Some people from Florida joined in yesterday's program and I thought of you! :)
I usually buy a lot of my household items at the dollar shop. I think they are open but as I've been limiting the number of places I've been shopping I haven't been. I am running out of some things, but thought that, just this once, I will probably buy at the normal shops and pay the extra. Hopefully next time I will be able to go to the dollar shop.
ReplyDeleteHappy Belated Mother's Day.
Glad you enjoyed the retreat.
Sharon, I, too, usually buy a lot of household supplies from the dollar stores! But, I am not shopping in person, yet, and the dollar stores don't offer curbside pick up or deliveries; so, for now, I am buying from the regular stores that offer these services (which is probably why their prices are higher).
DeleteThank you; hope you had a good Mother's Day, too. :)
I think the uncertainty of being able to find what is needed in the store or when ordering is a bit niggling. I came across a flyer for a local store, valid from Wednesday to tomorrow, and I saw a few things I would like to buy, but there is no guarantee they will be in the store. So I will just hang on until Wednesday and perhaps find something good on this week's special. We are managing on the tail end of 2 weeks and not doing without much at all.
ReplyDeleteYesterday we were out walking, and chatting at a safe distance with neighbours in the area. In the evening we Skyped with son and family. Today I enjoyed doing some raking after getting back from the mailbox, where I found a lovely hand drawn and printed Mother's Day card from our granddaughter! Much to be thankful for.
Yes, one never really knows what one might receive when ordering online, although the store that delivered did say they were out of certain items when you went to "check out". I think I might have done better with the grocery order if I had OK'd more substitutions. Next time, I'll know better!
DeleteSounds like you are managing well with the grocery shopping every 2 weeks.
How nice to receive a card from your granddaughter! She sounds like a lovely young lady (I forget how old she is now; I keep thinking she's 12, but, I think she's a bit older than that, now, isn't she?)
Yes, she is nearly 14!
DeleteOh, wow! I knew she had to be older than 12! :D How time flies!
DeleteI was lucky enough to do a big shop at Dollarama just before the stay at home recommendation (in fact it was a couple of days before my last grocery shop). I make my own cleaners so I just picked up a huge container of Javex disinfectant wipes, 2 bottles of Dawn dish detergent, a bottle of peroxide, and two gallons of bleach. I wasn't even thinking about the possibility of being sick, but I grabbed a new container of Tylenol because I knew I was out. I am still working on shampoos, conditioners and toothpaste that I get through the mail as samples. I can't remember the last time I bought one of these. I wish I had bought another laundry detergent, but I do have the makings for homemade detergent. I would rather make sure my allotted 20 items for delivery are reserved for food items.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you were able to stock up before you had to stay at home, Susan. I, too, picked up a few things on one of my last visits to the shops - bleach, peroxide,vinegar, etc., which could be used for various cleaning purposes. But, I wasn't anticipating having to stay at home for two months and longer and I didn't want to go over budget by a lot, either. In hindsight, I think I should have stocked up more than I did!
DeleteI'm glad to hear you had another successful pickup. That's a good policy - to only charge you the lesser amount the substitution is higher.
ReplyDeleteThe few stores close to me that used to offer pickup suspended that service temporarily so I've never tried it. I guess they were overwhelmed and not able to handle it.
The melon seedlings that are left seem pretty hardy. I'm glad you're leaving them where they are.
Thank you, Debra. Yes, I like their policy of charging the lower price if they need to make a substitution (with an exception on alcohol!) I had initially said no substitutions because I didn't know about this policy and I didn't want to be charged a lot more for substitutions! :)
DeleteYes, the seedlings that are in place seem to be doing well. Practically all the others aren't! LOL.
❤️
ReplyDeleteThank you, Regine. :) Hope all is well with you.
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