To do for June

We have a 60th birthday party that is 3 hrs away, 12 doctor appts/ medical testing and 2 days for Ham Radio field day, not counting going to see our parents (2 trips) and our kids  this month as 3 need help around their homes and 1 is having surgery on her shoulder.

We have lawn care (4 hrs each time) and gardens which is averaged at 3 hrs each time not including harvest and processing.

Hubby going to have to go to work to rest.

I had to get right up on the window (notice I remembered to move the screen up last night) and zoom in when he started drinking...this is Baby Hummer... he (as he is getting bright green feathers like his Daddy. Mommy is a greenish gray color)Baby Hummer is almost as big as his Mommy. We eat our bfast and watch them come and go.

I am half way through my classes and should finish up this month and hopefully finish or come close to finishing great grandson's afghan at same time.

We need to weed, plant last of plants and seeds and harvest last of rhubarb (grateful for rain even with the problems it's causing of getting into the gardens)

I need to flip warm weather clothes and cold weather clothes

I need to finish flipping warm weather curtains and cold weather curtains

I need to flip out warm weather bedding and furniture throws and cold weather bedding and furniture throws.

Which means I NEED to winds to drop down to around 10 mph with gusts under 15 instead of the 15 mph and the gust over 20 as everything in storage or in use like furniture throws need washed and dried

I need to put the swing together. Older daughter gave us back the old set we had gave her but the swing was in too bad of shape to use.

I have a few pumpkins and winter sq that is STILL good that I need to process

I need to clear the area beside the garage that has became the drop it and deal with it later of misc stuff that needs hauled to junk yard or limbs to be burnt.

I need to finish stocking the root cellar for emergencies .

We need to take 1 load AT LEAST every 2 wks to thrift shop...I just love it when I send a pic to my kids's cell phones and they ask me why I've held on to something of theirs and the answer is BECAUSE you put it here>>>DUH.

I have my son's wardrobe and a small cabinet he asked me to refinish and I've dragged my feet on it.Both simple and maybe only 20 hrs together. Time to get that off the list also.

I have been doing Home Storage Solutions 101 Declutter 365 since Jan. I'm ahead sort of.. I'm down to 71 of the "to do's ) but these 71 will most likely take me the rest of the year. My goal is to do 6 this month. Four of them has to do with flipping season clothes.

Set goals have a better chance of being done that just thoughts/wishes on the air.

Blessed Be

Frugal end to May

Rascal was messing around the climbing rose bush and got this stuck on him some how so I put it in the vase for my dining table.

It's been a rough week emotionally, 2 different tornadoes was within 1/4 of mile from our son's, worried a lot as he has no basement, he had some limbs down but no real damage, then  our dog Miss Kira  passing and Hubby , who is an EMT at work having to do CPR on a co-worker for about 10 min and said he didn't think the guy was going to come back...THANKFULLY , he is recovering and now out of ICU. I gave Hubby the last of the grocery money to get gas to go see him and to donate some to help the guy as his wife and him are raising 3 young grandkids. My emotions triggered my Crohn's and then we had a 2 hr drive (1 way) to Hubby's brother's wedding the day after Miss Kira died, rough leaving Rascal here alone. We used Kroger points and Speedway gas cards to save on gas.

The Gardens have been soaked repeatedly that I am not sure if I will be able to finish planting or get in to weed what was planted.  I keep moving the potted plants off the porch to the yard when it's going to rain to not have to water them .I did plant some scarlet runner beans in the front flower bed, more for the blooms for the hummingbirds than for the beans. I was given under size tomato plants that need to be repotted and allowed to get bigger before planting in the garden.

Sorry, I keep forgetting to raise the screen in the mornings so I can get better pictures LOL. This is Mommy Hummer... Daddy Hummer usually uses the other feeder ...this morning (when I didn't have my phone) Baby Hummer came by himself to feed at this feeder. The other day he was with Mommy Hummer.

I have been listening to my online classes through our health ins (we have earned enough pts that if Hubby doesn't retire this year, his health ins will be free next year and mine will be $1.50 a week.Plus we save $ on the copay and deductible and have a 90-10 plan instead of the 80-20 plan with larger payments,co pays and deductibles. We are planning on him coming out this year BUT you just never know what life is going to throw at you. I work on the afghan I am crocheting for my great grandson. Over half way done. On the days I don't have class I do Swagbucks videos for the same length of time.

I mixed equal amounts of 20 mule team borax and sugar for the ants.


I harvest thyme (twice), garlic scapes (twice), chives, garlic chives, lavender and rose petals.

We ate most of what was on the menu, the leftover was what Kira (and Rascal also even though he ate 3 bowls of dry dog food also) was eating as she could no longer handle dry dog food.

Electric bill came in $50 under budget.That will go back up as I had to turn the dehumidifier on because it's 90% humidity in the basement pantry.

While I was in the root cellar during tornadoes I made a list of what was still missing and plan to have it finished by July. Part of it I think I can find stuff we have to work (like plastic to keep things from getting wet if the house gets blew off it's foundation), so that's the focus of this week.

We also started listing what we use daily so I can makes sure that is stocked for the 4 months we go without income. Our neighbors that farm and run a construction business said they thought they could give us some off and on work, that was nice for the offer even if they can't do it at the time because construction and farming slows down a lot during the winter.

Do the same routine with opening curtains (binder clipping tops to limit sun coming in) and opening windows. Run fans when we are the room. Hubby uses the ceiling fan when he sleeps during the day. We do have a room AC that he also uses if it's too hot for him to sleep so we don't have to use the Central air. When we do use the central air it's at 76.

Hubby needed new shoes( he does one pair for yard work, one for dress..yard work need to go in the trash), there is one pair that is the best for his feet. We priced it at a big shoe store while killing time before the wedding and it was running about $150...OUCH. He was talking about just finding something else. I found them on Amazon for $90... Since they will last him for at least a couple years (yard work pair is over 4 yrs old) it's a price we are willing to pay. I found the shoes I wear at Walmart so used my swagbucks to order through so I would get some back. Also ordered 3 blouses that were on clearance as I wasn't finding anything to go with 4 skirts I bought at yard sales and thrift shops and am down to 1 outfit to wear to weddings and such. We can wear jeans to church.

Blessed Be

Grief

Friday(5/26/ 17) morning at 8:30 I lit this candle on behalf of my older dog Miss Kira. Hubby was taking her to have her put to sleep as she had stopped eating on her own and only ate a little from my hand as I tried to get her to eat. She gave me a kiss instead and I let her go...with heartbreaking and fighting denial that made me want to pretend she would be instantly cured of the tumor or better go in her sleep....

I stayed home with Rascal, he was only 6 wks old and hadn't been with his mommy due to his mommy fighting to live after being starved while she was expecting. So Kira was his doggy mommy when I am just mommy.... I side tracked him so he wouldn't get upset with her getting to go in the truck with Hubby and him not. (her favorite thing to do was ride in the truck with her Daddy without Rascal and me) When Hubby brought her collar home and put it with her leash in the mudroom. Later when the breeze changed direction her tags made a sound and he ran to the mudroom to see her.. with tears running down my face I took the collar and let him smell it. His eyes became sad and his head dropped and walked away and hide between my foot stool and the couch where she hid when she wanted to be left alone. He knew she wouldn't be without that collar,

But life goes on as we grieve . I have her lamb that she rested her head on, at time Rascal and I both need to smell it to smell her one more time. I know her scent will fade with time, and so will the  grief...Walking the perimeter for me is hard, she was my perimeter buddy and her cute prance brought a smile through the worst of weather we walked in. I remind myself she isn't in pain, wasn't when we let her go. She's not stuck in a perimeter and can roam to her heart's content. Her ashes will bring joy to others as they were mixed with wild flowers and sprinkled in a meadow. She loved walking through my flower gardens and smelling the flowers several times a day.

My Hubby grieves, she loved him the most and made that clear. She would sit in truck for hours with him. He said he needed to be the one to take her, to tell her to go on as she stopped and looked back at him as she left him.

Rascal is withdrawn and we try to let him have his time of grief but encourage him to eat, to play to go outside though one of us usually go out with him so he doesn't feel so alone. His routine and habits will change as he is now "top dog" as Hubby calls him. He finally slept on the loveseat and then on the couch that she had claimed as hers. He now lays beside Hubby's chair at the dining table where she laid instead of by me like he did... He's not playing unless we push the issue with him. I get him out to play 10 (10 throws of the ball) and am lucky to get 1 at this point. He will go out with me when I can bring myself to walk the perimeter but doesn't walk with me even if I take the ball to play 10, he will catch the ball and then go back up to the drive to watch me but not be with me.  I hope some day that he will walk with me.

I grieve, I just grieve. She had brought me out of sever depression when I got her out of the shelter 7 yrs ago. Spent 5 yrs of her life in the shelter ( first 2 owners lost their homes and gave her back).Now I fight the depression without her. I fight it in honor of her, to be there for Rascal as she would want me to .... I try to keep in mind she's better, she's free, she's happy...

I told Hubby I am not sure I could handle losing one of the kids, grandkids or great grandson. I nearly starved myself to death when I lost my younger brother...the grief just hits harder and harder as I age.

Hold your love ones a little longer today, call. text, whatever, the ones you can't hold and let them know you love them.

Life is too short, far too short, and shorter when they walk on 4 legs.

Blessed be  my baby girl..Miss Kira

Your last walk baby, I love you. I miss you ...baby girl

 

this week

started out being really frugal.

Monday we went to Wagner's IGA and hit the clearance cart to go along with the few odds and ends I didn't want to pay the Kroger's prices. Did a huge score on different breads and sweets for the freezer.Plus points for fuel and 5¢ each for bringing my own bags.

I stopped a FISH thrift shop and got 2 pillows to recover,scarf,2 skirts(one which be use to recover the one pillow)5 nightgowns of the style I love but never want to pay the price for and 1 pair of shorts for a total of $11.

I went to doctor appt... I had dropped my A1C from 6.4 to 5.8 (GO ME) and my cholesterol below 200, WITHOUT the statin ..haven't seem that low in a decade. Doc took me off 4 different meds as my blood work showed I was finally up to normal. Doc changed my one med from 90 days to 360 and sent it to a certain pharmacy because they sell it for half the price of getting it every 90 days for a year.. Saved me around $50.

I went to CVS to pick up Hubby's meds and the clerk caught I had been bumped out of the rewards for prescriptions so she put me back in.

I maxed out on May's pts at Walgreen as my FITBIT tracker is connected to their app. I now have a $10 credit but 3000 pts away from having a $20 credit.

I went to Ollies as they had fans in and  I had a 15% off coupons. I picked up 4 fans of different sizes and styles for 1/4 th less before the coupon than I had priced elsewhere.

Hubby called our phone company and complained that the credit we were suppose to get from April when both our land land and internet was out for a week wasn't on the bill like it was suppose to be. Took him 2 hrs to get it dealt with which didn't put him in a good mood at all but as I reminded him it got the credit If it's not on the next bill he will go through the roof.

I requested a credit from my GI office as they had charged me for her to file out family leave and she doesn't do that unless you are having a procedure and the front desk didn't know that as she had just started...also I found out my ins PAYS for that to be done so I shouldn't have paid anyways.She lets the hospital doctor do that instead. BUT Hubby's employer wants it filed in Jan so my primary was able to do it since he does all my blood work and meds to fight the malnutrition the Crohn's causes.  They were suppose to credit it to the Jan bill , then when that didn't happen it was send a check and then when I went in April it still hadn't been credited or sent . My GI nailed the billing office and stood over them until she saw that is was credited to my bill from April... GOOD DOCTOR.

I made potato salad, after I boiled the potatoes I just lifted them out instead of dumping the water and added some cold water and then put the eggs in to boil them.

Tuesday we had chiro appt and dogs went to vet.
I scheduled a manicure (not my norm) for Friday when we go in for another doctor appt at the salon across from Chiro. Since I'm not getting a gel just a regular manicure it wasn't as expensive as I thought it would be. This is my Mother's day present from the kids...it's going to cost them $5 each including the tip.
Our chiro was less than $6 for the two of us thanks to our ins now covering that .

AND THEN OUR WORLD FELL APART

Took the dogs to the vet to get their nails clipped (takes 3 of us to hold them down and clip). I always get the dogs weighed. Miss Kira...our older dog...about 100 yrs in dog years...had dropped another 3 lbs in one month... she did that in April and we didn't think anything of it as she was starting to run the perimeter more with the warmer weather... but this time I knew it was bad we had another dog, Cookie do that when she got cancer..Miss Kira has a tumor in her spleen/intestines that is already the size of a baseball. Doc felt it pretty good and she didn't moan, yelp or anything while he did it so she's pretty much pain free at the moment. She jumped down from the table that is 4 ft off the floor which bugs the crap out of me but shows she's stable in that area. No sense of doing a MRI as I wouldn't have her operated on at her age and there is a possible chance of the tumor exploding when they cut her open. Her quality of life means more to me. We almost lost her the spring of 2011 right after we moved here due to someone tossing rat poison out and her getting a hold of it. Almost put her into kidney failure even though I got the package away from her and her teeth was only through the cover on top. Law said the package had been coated with grease so everyone was watching out...our landlord had his dog poisoned a couple years ago and they never found who did it...anyways...she's moving slow,her perimeter walks are closer to half the perimeter in the morning and not much during the rest of the day. Her eating is slowing down unless it's people food then she can out eat me. Good thing we scored on bread as that with eggs is her favorite and french fries...She's eating grass at the edge of the garden pretty much every time she does go out. AND she finally didn't look away when I took her picture yesterday.

She is getting her way pretty much with what few weeks we have left with her. We know from Cookie that 4-6 wks will pretty much be the end and we won't let her go into pain . She still lays on her tummy so we know when she stops that or we can see the shape of it in her belly like we did Cookie it will be time to let her go... MEANTIME she has scored extra rides in the truck from her Daddy...

on the other hand Rascal... who loves getting his picture taken.

Yes he is begging,that's about as far as he raises his front feet unless he is wanting a hug. He has stayed close to me, he isn't trying to get her to play any more. isn't swiping the chew bone from her to get her to chase him. He is smelling her more instead so I know even though I haven't picked up the odor YET he has.He isn't playing 10 (fetch the ball) with me, just wants to be close but not play. When I walk the perimeter he stays with her most the time now. Protecting the weaker of our pack.

I did the wash on speed wash, tap water cold, homemade soap and then dried everything on the clothes line. She laid in the house on the hassock to watch me out the window (she didn't want out as I left the door open so she could come out whenever she wanted) and he laid under the tree watching her and me.

Hubby told me to feed her whatever she would eat. He didn't want her to feel hungry and she does let me know when she wants something but I think the dog food isn't going to be what she eats much longer. Rascal will definitely eat her share.

Blessed Be

being frugal May 19 2017

In our home being frugal is a lifestyle that changes with life.

I had a friend tell me how frugal they are and how little it costs to run their home until I started playing 20 questions with her and then she realized they weren't being frugal at all.

Spending $200 a week for two people at Krogers and doing the survey for another 50 pts so you can get $1. off 35 gals of gas, is not frugal. Keeping the curtains shut ALL the time and then run the furnace because none of the sunlight can heat the house and have to turn on ALL the lights (not just in the room they are in either) isn't being frugal. I did talk them into using LED light bulbs, Not opening windows and doors when it's warm out and there is a breeze and turning the AC to 70° (when they heat the house to 78° during the winter) isn't being frugal. Using the dryer as an iron because they left the clothes in the dryer and they got wrinkled not frugal. Buying the latest and newest of anything and then not using it is not frugal. Buying clothes or anything because they are on sale and you have coupons and then never wear them or use them is not frugal.Carrying 15 store credit cards and just making payments instead of paying them off.I didn't say anything to her that it wasn't being frugal, she realized it with just telling me about it.

Not carrying life ins and not having a will is going to be a huge problem for those you leave behind especially if you don't have your funeral and burial expenses paid which they just found out AFTER he didn't keep the life ins that he could have had when he retired.By time they got the funeral and burial arranged and paid for the two of them it was over $30,000 that came out of their assets instead of the life ins that wasn't costing him more than $39 a month that would have paid those bills.Even if you don't own anything , get a will, otherwise it goes through probate ($$$)when you die in most states. Your family or friends have to file in court to deal with your bills and funeral etc. Get POD(pay on Death) on all checking savings accts make sure you have beneficiaries on everything IRA , 401k life ins ...list two if not 3.

Getting trees trimmed, fence and locks on gates around pools or pets if they bite , repairing sidewalks, cleaning out the rain gutters have them drain AWAY from the foundation (add the hose things if needed), using septic cleaner (ridx most common around here) and cleaning the filters in the septic system.Her husband put a lock on the gate around their pool and their house ins dropped $50 . They just spent thousands repairing their foundation because the downspouts drained there. They had to pay for their son's car to be fixed after their tree that is into the driveway dropped a limb on his brand new car.

Sometimes it's pennies you are saving...and they do add up to dollars. AND sometimes you have to spend the dollars to save the hundreds or thousands.

It can be doing the laundry on short cycle with tap water and homemade soap or cheap that isn't brand name.

Using the clothes dryer on sensor, drying rack, clothesline or combination of all.

Eating from the pantry that I have spent time matching sales and coupons or hours growing, tending, harvesting, processing and then cooking for our meals OR eating out with coupons combined with specials or during bfast or lunch time when it's cheaper. Using senior citizen discounts is another one.

It's listing what we need, what we want and what we are willing to pay and then searching for substitutions that are cheaper and then  waiting for the sale (or Menard's 11% rebate).

It's thrift shops , yard sales and networking for things.

It's making do, using it up, wearing it out and sometimes doing without. Like the trimmer that just died and I'm using scissors to trim with the things that took 30 min with the trimmer.

BUT it's also about having beauty in our lives of 2 dogs, hummingbird feeders, birdhouse, flowers table cloths, oil lamps and candles...and my 100 plus herbs and spices that I use on a regular bases (that is sometimes a negative from my cheffing years LOL) I grow most of my herbs, half of my teas and have a source through an Amish store for the spices.

It's about sitting outside and enjoying it and not focusing on the trimming that isn't getting done (our friend is trying to find us a used one that is in our price range), the gardens that are starting to get weeds already or the storms that are gathering west of us AGAIN.

It's not about not buying, as the huge outlay of money we spent just this week will tell you...but the over 1/3rd savings when everything was totalled up shows the frugal. Things we need to run this home, maintain it bought at the lowest price we waited for. The amount I budgeted was 50% higher than what we paid.

It's about talking to our car ins guy about us renting a car when I need to get my dad instead of owning an old gas guzzler with full coverage when we don't need except for when I get Dad, We need a truck, or even two would be a lot better as one vehicle isn't doing well for us,.It's about looking at a secure credit card that is based on our savings to pay for the car rental instead of just a credit card that we can run up another bill. If the car rental took debit cards I wouldn't even bother with that.

Frugal can have some negative also...Using cash only ( 7 yrs of cash only) no credit cards or loans means our credit score is low...that's not a good thing when we will be buying a house, on the other side we will have the cash to pay for a house with in reason Our finance guy is still working out which way is better with our tax guy. Lucky for us, both are FREE. as they are close friends .

It's about needing clothes (Hubby has lost 20 lbs and is continuing to lose and I am not out in the workforce and chef jackets and dress clothes don't do well in gardens) that wear well with the hard manual work we do. Used clothes is fine, under clothes socks and Hubby"s work boots are new. I can usually get shoes off the grandkids as they outgrow my size. That benefit is going to end this year as the youngest is about to pass me and the great grandson isn't even one yet.

It's about turning off fans when you aren't in the room, turning off the lights when you leave the room. opening the curtains for light/warmth closing them when it's hot out to keep the house cooler.

It's about turning the central air on (which I don't like AC to begin with ) because the old dog (around 100 in dog years) throws up when she gets to hot and dehydrates when I can turn on the central air to 76 keep her cool and not run up the vet bill which is twice what I pay for running the Central air if I only run it during the hottest part of the day. We will run it if it is raining and the fan can't keep the house cool enough,

It's about using the outdoor grill instead of the stove and heating up the house when it's hot out. Using the oven when it's cold in the winter

Using leftovers to make more meals, eating more legumes and less meat. It's about doing my own nails even though I LOVE getting a manicure and pedicure.

Being frugal in your choices is good. Being frugal as a lifestyle will reap more rewards.

Blessed Be

What I bought the month of May

We have a few things we will get the rest of this month but not much. Yes the bill was huge , but about 1/3rd less than what we budgeted for when we waited for coupons, sales and rebates.

This was what the list was

Dollar General
Advil Allergy and Congestion BOUGHT
Sensodyne toothpaste BOUGHT (STORE BRAND)
Super Glue BOUGHT
hand soap BOUGHT LG REFILL
Corned beef hash BOUGHT

CVS
Xlear nose spray BOUGHT

Make up.BOUGHT WHAT WAS ON SALE WITH REWARDS

Menards (at 11% rebate)
dog food BOUGHT
dog snap treats BOUGHT
house water filter BOUGHT
Water pitcher filters BOUGHT
softener salt BOUGHT
dryer vent kit (daughter) BOUGHT
hummingbird nectar BOUGHT
canned veggies for emergency supply BOUGHT (done)
clothes line pins (mine are worn out) BOUGHT
regular canning lids BOUGHT
hardware for daughter's clothes line Hubby is making her (BOUGHT)
ground clear (usually get this from landlord but he ran out himself) BOUGHT
garden hose (one got a huge hole) BOUGHT
garden hose sprayer (old one got ran over) BOUGHT
kitchen brush (for my cast iron) BOUGHT
25 cu ft of potting soil( as I gave  my kids what I had for their pots) BOUGHT


Food.. BOUGHT
milk
Greek yogurt
lunch meat
apple
onions
green onions
mushrooms
bell peppers
celery
radishes (hopefully the last)
milk bone small biscuits for the dogs 
soup: cream of chicken, cream of mushroom and tomato
tomatoes, vine, Roma and cherry
strawberries as our is not doing well 
asparagus
broccoli
cauliflower
coles slaw
water for the emergency supply
lunch meat ham and turkey
tortilla wraps (still not time to make these and they are a quick meal for us)
kleenex
body soap
thin bagels 
mini blueberry bagels
lemons 
limes
foot long hotdogs
foot long hotdog buns
bananas
ice cream topping pineapple, strawberry and caramel ( will be getting the ice cream at local store due to being cheaper and I like banana splits just smaller than what I can buy at local ice cream place)
egg rolls (dinner and leftovers for bfast on the go)
potstickers (dinner and leftovers for bfast)
canned pineapple 
avocados
lean pockets for Hubby's lunch
yellow sq and zucchini
Fritos (walking taco salad, "nachos" and veggie dip)
Potato chips...Hubby gets 2 bags a month and when they are gone they are gone. Used to be 2 family bags a week. 
Starbucks decaf ground coffee...not for us but for my Dad that just went to decaf and complained he is drinking brown water with his milk .I left him some when we were there and my brother had him make him a pot to try it. Dad told him he thought it wasn't decaf because of the taste but wasn't going to tell me that he liked it better because he knew the price of it. Brother told me anyways as we all figured Dad wouldn't let me know because of the price. Man is 90 yrs old, buying his coffee is no big deal.

I will be glad when the gardens start coming in so the fresh veggies being bought will be lower

Blessed Be

When the day to day rolls over you

Home from the auction and unloaded in front of garage. I got the flowers we wanted and a few more as Hubby did the opening bid on some flats and no one bid against him. Oh well 36 flowers for $5 isn't bad and what I didn't want, I passed to 2 of my daughters. Got tomato plants, bell pepper plants and candy onion plants . I had to pick up eggplant over to the hardware store.

I've put in almost 40 hrs and still have some to plant.... BECAUSE I had a friend give me their extras LOL

I did put in this new flower garden. I will have scarlet runner beans on the trellis as the Hummingbirds love the red flowers on them, the green beans they produce is a side benefit for us. We had a baby hummingbird the other day. I wished I could have gotten a picture.

IF the winds we keep getting don't kill it off is should be a decent garden. We have went from floods to freeze to frosts to storms with winds 30-60 mph in the last 10 days and that train of storms is still rolling through this week. Temps have been to almost 90°.

We went over and saw both set of parents and spent some time with them.

Then made 2 trips down to the kids and realized we forgot somethings so will be going back down.

We ate mostly from the menu which was from the pantry. Leftovers got made into other dishes so I didn't fix a couple meals.

We hauled another 2 loads to thrift shop and 1 load down to kids.There are big holes in the farrowing house.

I should not have to buy any more green onions at the store as mine is starting to come in. The snow peas and Lincoln peas are up and look to have survived the nasty weather. Rhubarb is about to run me over. That's a priority this week.

I got laundry done on the day I could use the clothesline even though the winds were around 20 mph I was able to keep it on the line and not have to rewash anything. Sure did dry fast.

I haven't gotten around to baking...going to have to change my schedule to add that in along with the sewing I want to get done.

Blessed Be

Menu to this coming week

I am horrible at planning menus for just Hubby and me. For work as a Chef, no problem, as a mother that had over 7 at the table, no problem...just Hubby and me BIG PROBLEM.

We like variety...we like different cultures , types, etc  it is the negative side of being a chef.

I have also learned after noting what got threw in the garbage this past month that the 4th serving gets tossed... I eat bfast for my lunch... We have 2 servings at dinner and then Hubby takes the 4th for his lunch. Some things I am able to cut down to 3 servings or divide the four into 3 others not so much.

I used to freeze it for my Dad but he can't swallow solid food any more and then I gave it to our son but now he's on a special diet for his weight and that doesn't work either. When Hubby retires we decided to just plate it and cover it for the next day and both of us would eat it for dinner... meantime I need to quit tossing food.

We decided if it's something that has to be made as 4 that I have something else for him to take to work and we eat the last 2 servings the following day's dinner.

This week's menu
Dinner only

one pot green beans, potatoes and ham from freezer  and cornbread

Hobo packets , smoked sausage, celery , carrot, onion , potatoes, cheddar cheese and ice cube wrapped in a packet of foil and baked at 350° for 20-30 min with crescents

American chicken and broccoli stir fry and rice. I will pick up some potstickers and egg rolls from the freeze dept as I have coupons and they are on sale this week when I get out of the dentist office (no special trip to store)

Steak and potato ( not sure what kind I will fix depends on weather) and salad

grilled chipped chopped ham and cheese sandwich and soup as we will be spending the day at the Amish produce auction and I won't be up to fixing a meal after that.

Prime rib roast...veggies unknown at this point. I will probable make hash with the leftovers possible some soup if enough is left for both.

first 8 days of May

We celebrated with my Dad that turned 90. Took him to Bob Evans and which point about at the halfway point of my eating my meal he leaned over and told me I had ate enough and to box up the rest. He didn't forget that the last time we went out to eat I told him instead of being quiet about me eating too much or the wrong thing to tell me, to share his wisdom of being a diabetic for 30 yrs and still only taking 1/2 of a metaformin daily to control it. I was a good day as he walked through his "memory lane" while showing me the items he wanted to share the story about in his home.

His love of sausage gravy and biscuits continues through down to his great grandkids and most likely will another generation as the great great grandson is starting to reach the stage of being able to eat soft foods.

We did a stop by a viewing of a classmate and nephew of a old childhood friend of mine...very sad.
Triggered some of the old feelings of when I lost my late husband.

Then we can home to this

Right to our driveway,, grass was  a tiny strip on this side, no grass on the other side and it only got worse before it got better.

THEN there was a FREEZE... I'm not sure if the peas and spring crops made it yet as we have another cold morning tomorrow before it starting warming back up. I did cover up what I could.

We flopped the truck with daughter as she has my car to go get Dad as he can't get in the truck. Cheaper to flop than to rent a car, she did say if we sold her the car she was willing to flop it with us to go get him instead of us buying a car that I won't drive all that much. We will see.

We ate from the pantry through the week and then ate out most of the weekend. Got a Philly cheese steak pizza and chef salad that feed us 3 meals over the weekend.I'm not going to crab about it with how the days have been rolling.

Lawn is mowed but the trimmer was broke and Hubby couldn't fix it so a friend did. I got it back today.

I've been sorting through the farrowing house that has became our storage unit... Took 2 loads already to the thrift shop and have another one loaded to go tomorrow.

I made a list of the breads etc that we like and want me to start baking... AND I listed the time that was needed to do so so it's not "Oh let's have this bread" and then realise it uses a starter that need began the day before or it's something that takes 4 hrs. I did tell Hubby if it's a 4 hr bread I could start it before I started supper and it would be done before I went to bed. We will see.

What I am buying the month of May

I've wrote the buy list over 6 times...then let it lay and come back and think ...no

Dollar General
Advil Allergy and Congestion
Sensodyne toothpaste
Super Glue
hand soap

Check prices for :
Dawn
corned beef hash
corned beef
cream of chicken soup
V8 Fusion (doctor told me to add this as my body doesn't absorb nutrients like it should)
Carnation Essentials Low sugar

CVS
Xlear nose spray

check prices for:
 make up that needs replaced to see if it's on sale

Menards (hopefully at 11% rebate)
dog food
dog biscuits
dog snap treats

Food
milk
cottage cheese
Greek yogurt
lunch meat

apple
onions

Amish produce auction
 I am hoping to buy the following
tomato plants
bell pepper plants,
eggplants
flats of flowers (for two of our daughters and myself)
I might buy some other plants...depends on what is offered and what the price is.