Our Family Life

Saturdays on the Porch

Welcome to the porch! Let’s chat!


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Thanks for joining me on the porch today!

It’s been a pretty busy week for us.

Last Friday my daughter and I went to the animal shelter. She has been looking at dogs on their website for months now and finally found 2 dogs that were corgi mixes. However, by the time we got there they were both gone.

Stephanie, the very sweet lady that works at the shelter, asked my daughter what she wanted in a dog. She told her she wanted a big dog that was active but not too active. (She is a teenager afterall.)

Stephanie showed us all the dogs that were similar to what my daughter wanted and that were also good with cats. (We have 3!)

When we had seen all the dogs, Stephanie asked my daughter if there was any that stood out to her that she might want to visit in the play yard. My daughter said she couldn’t remember his name, but there was one that she just felt a connection with right away even though he was in a kennel.

My daughter spent some time visiting and playing with Balto (the dog) and the next thing I knew I was filling out an adoption application. Since this wasn’t exactly planned, I didn’t have anything prepared – no dog food, leash, toys, nothing – they held Balto as “pending” until they opened back up Tuesday and we could take him home. Which was super sweet because they normally don’t hold dogs like that.

So Monday we spent the day “dog stuff” shopping and got everything he would need. (And tear up immediately.) Plus, an anonymous person came into the shelter one day and sponsored several dogs. Batlo was one of them, so we only had to pay the adoption fee, not the neuter fee. That saved us $40! So whoever sponsored Balto, thank you!

So here’s how my Tuesday went in photos:

The day started off with Mrs. Cat Litter and Amber hanging out on the stairs looking out the front door.
After Balto’s arrival, Amber ended up on the kitchen counter trying to hide behind small bowls for the rest of the evening.
Later that afternoon Balto arrived.
And Mrs. Cat Litter ended up climbing the ladder somehow. I still have no idea how she got down.

Needless to say, we didn’t see the cats for the rest of the night. I didn’t get a picture of our other cat, Oatmeal, but we later found her hiding in my daughter’s bathtub.

It took a few days, but they’ve started coming back out and looking around. All three cats hide upstairs all day. I think they are starting to realize he’s an okay dog and he’s not going to bother them. Either that or they think he’s the biggest and ugliest cat they’ve ever seen.

So far Balto’s been the sweetest dog. And other than ripping the head off his stuffed owl, he’s been good. He’s already protective over my daughter as if he knows exactly who rescued him.

Home Update

Nothing to report on the home this week. We’re still waiting to hear back from the contractors, of course.

My daughter is planning her bathroom remodel and is trying to decide between paint colors right now. There’s not a lot to do in there except paint and add some shelves. I love simple projects like that!

What’s on the menu this week:

  • Monday: Chicken sandwhiches; Onion rings
  • Tuesday: Grilled cheeseburger wraps; Oven fries
  • Wednesday: Subway
  • Thursday: Spaghetti; Butter bread
  • Friday: Ravioli; Salad
  • Saturday: out
  • Sunday: Pepperoni Pizza; Salad

No special dessert this week because I made breakfast burritos to freeze for the upcoming weeks.

These are so easy to make! I put green peppers, sausage, egg, and cheese in mine.

All I did was dice the green pepper and put it in a pan with some oil to saute for about 3 or 4 minutes. Then I added 1 pound of sausage to the peppers. While the sausage was cooking, I put a dozen eggs into a large bowl and whisked them up with a little bit of pepper. Once the sausage was cooked and crumbled, I poured in the eggs and let them cook.

While that was cooking, I laid the burritos out on pieces of foil. Once the sausage/egg mixture was done, I put about 1/4 cup on each burrito, then added a little bit of shredded cheddar cheese on top of each one. When they were all cool, my daughter and I wrapped up all the burritos, placed them in freezer bags, and stuck them in the freezer.

Whenever I want a burrito for breakfast, I just wrap it in a paper towel and stick in the microwave for 1 minute and 15 seconds. It’s so delicious!

We were getting the 12 pack of El Monterey breakfast burritos at Walmat, which are $11.94. That comes to be about $1.00 per burrito.

Making them myself, I got 16 burritos (but you can easily get 20 by spreading the mixture a little thinner on each burrito). I got everything at Kroger and together the ingredients were $8.62, which comes to $0.54 per burrito. Quite the savings! Plus, they have a lot less sodium.

Frugal household tip of the week:

Save money (and the environment) with reusable products

Save money by using reusable paper towels instead of regular paper towels. Reusable paper towels can be washed and reused instead of being thrown in the trash. And if you have a sweeper mop, they will fit on those, too!

Reusable paper towels can be used anywhere you use regular paper towels. But instead of being tossed in the trash, you can just wash and resuse them! Not only are you saving money by reusing them, you’re also helping the environment.

Other great reusable products to save money include:

Positive Story of the Week

This story of a mom looking for a dog for her sons was just so sweet! She went to the local shelter with the idea of adopting a new family pet. At the shelter was her own dog that she has lost over 2 years ago! And he even remembered her! The pictures of her with him just melt my heart.

via Good News Netword

Fun Photo of the Week

While we were sitting in the kitchen one night, my husband happened to notice that we had a visitor peeking through the window at us. My daughter and I found it pretty cool, but my husband hates snakes, so he didn’t think it was too cool.

Deal of the Week:

Old Navy is having an epic clearance event going on right now with clothes up to 75% off. What a great way to save money on back-to-school clothes! Or even if you just need a wardrobe refresh like I do.

Your turn!

What have you been up to this week? I’d love to hear what’s going on in your life!

Thank you for sharing!
Michelle

Michelle lives on a small homestead with her husband, daughter, 6 silly hens, 1 crazy rooster, 2 lazy cats, and 1 rescue dog. She loves DIYs, frugal living, crocheting, and reading. She's also a full-time proofreader.

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  • Oh my goodness I love love this post!! Over the moon happy that your sweet girl chose to save an adorable fur baby!! We did with our Bentley and he’s been an absolute blessing!!

    Balto is just the cutest and I’m sure your kitties will make friends in no time!!

    • Thank you so much! He's been a pretty good dog, except for making a mess daily. ? The kitties are finally starting to come back downstairs so I think they're slowly warming up to him.

  • Best dog joy I’ve had is with two rescues and I hope your family has the same joyful experience! Yay!

  • Good luck with the new puppy! You'll love it! It's so exciting! I'm glad things are getting better in many ways!

  • Aww Michelle, Balto is adorable! You've got your hands full over there my friend. The photos of your 3 cuties being very suspicious of this new creature made me chuckle. :D They were taking no chances!! That little orange face looking through the spokes of your staircase melted my heart! ♥ And wow - what a gift that anonymous person gave for these adoptions. That's amazing!

    Your positive story of the week is definitely a heartwarmer. It's such a powerful reminder of the love we share with our pets. They really are family and they love us more than we can understand! Even when the catitude is in full effect, ha ha!

    And your breakfast burrito idea...brilliant! Dang Michelle - that does sound good. Plus, like you said, what a money savings! Especially when the day is busy and you're hungry but don't have the time to deal with anything, that's perfect! Grab and go. I love it. You always have the very best ideas.

    I'm loving your reusable household items too. Like you, we got the reusable K-Cup for the Keurig and love them! We like supporting Grounds for Change coffee and those allowed us to keep doing that. Plus, like you said, those Keurig pods are ridiculously expensive!! Buying your own favorite brew and using the K-Cup is cheaper by a long long shot.

    Sending love as always. Thank you for being you & for being such a kind friend! ♥

    • Balto is such a sweetheart. With some of his behaviors I'm starting to think maybe he was abused. It breaks my heart! We're trying to love him as much as possible so he knows he has a good family now.

      The kitties are slowly and cautiously starting to come back downstairs. I'm hopeful they're all best friends by Christmas. ?

      Thank you! The breakfast burritos are so good! Sometimes I even have one for lunch instead of breakfast. Haha!

      That's great that you bought the reusable K-Cups so you can continue to support your favorite brand. I'm in love with McCafe coffee right now. ?

      Aww..thank you! You made my day! ? Sending hugs and love your way! I appreciate your friendship so much!! ❤️

  • What an adorable pooch Balto is! Love to hear your weekly roundups. Fingers crossed your hear back from the contractors soin.
    Thanks for sharing :)
    Aimsy xoxo
    Aimsy’s Antics

    • Thank you! I'm glad you enjoy the posts. Balto is a sweetie! ? Thank you for joining me on the porch!

  • I am sorry I didn’t get a chance to comment yesterday. It was a busy day. Congratulations on the new addition to your family. Balto is so handsome. And your cats cracked me up. I seriously need to try the grilled cheeseburger wraps and the breakfast burritos. Funny you should send a link for glass containers with lids, because I was thinking how I needed some of those!

    • That's ok! No worries. Life gets busy, which is why I'm so late responding. ?
      Thank you! He's quite the mess.
      The grilled cheeseburgers are my favorite!
      How cool! I hope you get your glass containers soon. ?

  • Welcome Balto!! What a cutie!! Congrats on the newest member of the fam!

    (Wow, that snake photo is a bit spine-chilling to me!)

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Michelle
Tags: family life

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