frugal friday 10.18.24

Only 4 things to report!

1. Make chicken and beef stock for my dogs – Our dogs cost as much as our kids. Seriously, both dogs receive heartworm and tick medication and an antihistamine supplement. One dog, Winston, is on Apoquel for his allergies. Tobey is on Glycoflex for his hip and elbow dysplasia. I decided to add homemade chicken and beef stock to their daily diet. Stock contains nutrients and collagen, which is good for bones, muscles, and joints in humans. Since Tobey already has dysplasia and a bone issue, and both are bigger dogs at 86 lbs, I thought stock would help both dogs. My stock is made only from bones since other ingredients like garlic and onions can be toxic to dogs.
2. Baking – I did some baking this week to use up items in our fridge. First, I made an applesauce spice cake, using the recipe in The Frugal Family’s Kitchen Book. I substituted apple butter for the applesauce, and used 50/50 lard and butter for the shortening. Then I made a double batch of vanilla yogurt cake, using up Cabot vanilla yogurt I had bought on clearance a few weeks ago. I have one container left. Finally, I made a batch of pumpkin cookies from The Joy of Cooking using up homemade pumpkin puree and the remainder of a bag of Lily’s chocolate chips.
3. Hang laundry – I bought 3 portable laundry racks about 2 years ago. I hang clothes on them regularly. I try to hang sheets, etc. on them, but sometimes I need to use the dryer. The bedding takes longer to dry on the racks, and I can’t put the racks in full sun without picking up some ticks.
4. Groom our Bernese Mountain Dog – yes, me, I groomed our BMD instead of taking him to Petsmart. Granted I’m not done yet. He has mats behind his ears because of our yellow lab. Winston loves to grab Tobey’s fur while they’re wrestling. It’s a slick move. However, it’s a slobbery move that creates mats. Blah. So, I grabbed my handy dandy comb and worked through those mats and then brushed Tobey. I also used a clipper on the bottom of his paws. BMD’s get fluffy on the underside of their paws which is good in snow, but not so good on slippery wood floors.