Friday, March 19, 2010

More Posts In The Future

I have not taken the time to post for quite some time. Yeah, it has been over a month. That may change soon. A friend of mine has asked me to do some posts on meal planning and saving money on groceries. So, after a day or two I should be starting that series. Just how it will play out is yet to be decided.

On another topic, we have been able to replace some things that have been breaking down and wearing out around here. We now have a new upright freezer, a new mattress and box spring, a new microwave, and Jon and the boys are out right now picking up our new dishwasher.

Our old freezer's seal would not seal. Within a couple days of the last time I defrosted it, the frost on the top shelf was pushing the door open. We used duct tape and the lock to keep it closed. I can finally stock my freezer back up! I didn't dare before.

The girls got our old mattress and box spring to share (the older girls switch between an A-frame bunk and the bed underneath. Our old queen size replaces their old full size (which also used to be ours) that was falling apart. We are sleeping a lot better these days.

Our old microwave, which was not very old, just quit working one day a while back. It was strange because we really don't use a microwave very much. We've had it since Monday and I just used it for the first time to warm up some leftovers for a snack today.

The dishwasher that came with our house just redistributes the soil on the dishes. We have had to rewash many dishes after they have gone through the dishwasher. Most of the time we just wash the dishes by hand just to avoid the frustration. However, our other six dishwashers do not work very well either. Time I spend on dishes or supervising the dishes is not available to spend on other things. Our hope is that having a new dishwasher will lighten the work load a little.

We are really enjoying our new additions to our home. I can hardly wait to try out the new dishwasher. I hope the children will be excited about it for a while as well. Enough excitement to get them into a habit of helping more with the dishes would be wonderful!

I am thinking about taking a tour of Aldi's soon. I keep hearing that people save a lot by shopping there, but I'm skeptical. The last time we shopped there we did not find much that was a better price. The prices I was able to find online were not better prices with the exception of tuna for $0.49 . If I make it to Aldi's, I'll post about my experience.

6 comments:

Tam said...

wow, glad you were able to replace all that stuff... I would absolutely LOVE to have a dishwasher, I'm trying to figure out if there's anyway I can manage it, and if I'd have a place to put it/install it... I'm thinking the answer will probably end up being no on both counts :/

I haven't had much luck with Aldi's in the past either. Grandma used to love going there (there's one in Wilmington), but I never saw it. I get their ads, I've just never been impressed. I think mostly because they don't usually have any brand name stuff, so can't use coupons. Maybe it'd be good for bread and the fresh stuff, dunno.

Brandi said...

Tammy, there are small stand alone dishwashers that are on wheels and hook up to your kitchen sink.

Tam said...

I think I'd be more likely to find a way to put one under the counter (left side of sink maybe) than the stand-alone... with that island in my kitchen it'd be hard to get it to the sink, and I don't know where I could leave it that it wouldn't be in the way of using my chair

Brandi said...

Hmm...Jon's mom had one that didn't wash more than one meal's dishes and I think she had it set on a cart. It was very small. She had some problems with it, but I'm not sure if she got it new.

Here are some links:

This looks pricey!

http://www.viewpoints.com/GE-Dishwasher-Spacesaver-review-4ddc0

These aren't as costly, but the price is still nothing to sneeze at.

http://www.amazon.com/Haier-HDT18PA-Compact-Countertop-Dishwasher/dp/B00005O64S

http://www.usfreeads.com/1377237-cls.html

http://www.etronics.com/p-13387-haier-america-hdt18pa-space-saver-compact-dishwasher.aspx

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1629665/haier_hdt18pa_space_saver_compact_countertop.html?cat=6

Tam said...

ugh it occurs to me that if I put a dishwasher in the cabinet spot I was thinking of there wouldn't be room for the door to swing down lol

hrm

stupid island is in a bad spot for me, but I imagine I can't move it without leaving a big hole in the flooring... I'll have to check on that, maybe it's screwed down on top of the linoleum. maybe I can find a dishwasher on craigslist cheap, I certainly can't afford any of the new ones, full sized or compact. Thanks for the links.

Brandi said...

You're welcome.