2024 plans and this week's menu

To start the New Year on the path we want to follow we sat down today and talked this out.

Do you have goals, plans etc. for the coming year?

 Menu :

 Christmas day: baked ham, baked sweet potato, asparagus(from freezer) and applesauce.

26th : Great northern bean soup with chunks of ham, fried potatoes and corn bread

27th: Bfast bfast for dinner, probably waffles or pancakes, bacon and eggs

28th: EAT OUT, have mid-afternoon medical appt and then drop off kids' Christmas and bday cards. Probably will eat between appts (depending on their work schedule) or on way home. 

29th: My Nonna's deep dish pizza bakes in cake sheet pan with bacon, ham, sausage, pepperoni, onions, bell peppers, mushrooms, black olives, and mild peppers covered with tons of cheese. 

30th: Leftover pizza 

31st: Pork butt , kraut and mashed potatoes. Cranberry celebration salad.

Jan 1st.... depending on if we are well, if family is well, we might go to niece's home for lunch. Everyone is to bring finger food or finger food desserts. Will still eat finger food at home if ickies are still floating through the family. 

Jan 2nd. Blue plate special...hum... meat over mashed potatoes covered with gravy with cole slaw and some fruit or dessert. Probably will be pork but I could see beef also.

Jan 3rd. Last one of spaghetti squash, maybe meatballs instead of meat sauce or alfredo sauce with poultry.

Jan 4th.: fried cabbage, fried potatoes, corn bread.

Jan 5th: Mackerel patties, boiled potatoes (with butter or paprika or both) and peas.

Jan 6th: Sloppy joe pie (sloppy joe in pie plate ( probably 6 inch pie plate so we don't have leftovers), covered with corn and then mashed potatoes and baked. Top with shredded cheese before serving.) Depending on if I have been to store, might add lettuce salad or if not then sunshine salad (shredded carrot in orange jello)

Jan 7th: dried beef gravy with toast, scrambled eggs, fruit.

Goals and projects:

Eat healthy and from pantry.  $ 0

Update will and all those items. $2500 ( Will be checking out snug for do it yourself) 

Pay extra every month on mortgage. EVERY PENNY WE CAN

Save money to replace Silverado. Half of extra savings

Replace steps on south end of kitchen porch, already paid for and here.

Pour concrete at base of ramp off front porch. ? Depends if E can help or not

Straighten yard clothes line that is now leaning.$0

Install tarp door on basement ramp, already paid for and here.

Continue cutting wood for stoves. Have 2 loads of wood to come in during Jan. $250 total and should give us enough wood for NEXT year.

Finish wood shed. E and his boys will be helping as it's putting the roof on. Paid for and here, will pay E and his boys $10 an hour. E said about 4 hrs.

Finish placing metal garden beds in gardens and running drip line. Paid for and here.

Complete decluttering of home. Gas to take things to drop off for donation.

Complete organization of home. ?? depending on what I can reuse for organization.

Declutter barn. Gas to take things to drop off for donation.

Organize barn. ?? depending on what I can reuse for organization.

Prayers for peace

Blessed be

Merry Christmas eve, Merry Christmas and Happy Boxing Day (Dec 26th) or what ever you are celebrating or not celebrating

 What the house looks like from the road lit up.

Woke up this morning at 12:30 due to herd of deer grazing through the asparagus patch where E had cut asparagus ferns (or what ever they call them) down for us. Hubby had not burned them yet. Charlotte barked at them, they looked at her like they were waiting for her to come join them. Was not happy when I put the flash light on them... decided to go over and eat E's corn stubble instead and then back across the road to eat what is left of the bean field. 

Have 4 of kids' families down with flu and upper respiratory crap and one has covid also. Was warned to stay away over Christmas. Right now the only ones not sick are the sons.

Hubby wanted to know what we saved in Dec. Over $429. and then I decided to NOT go to the grocery store even though I have coupons expiring for things we WOULD eat.... we have plenty without it so if NOT spending it in the first place (would have had to spent $85.64 to save $14.05 about 15% savings) then add the $85.64 to what is saved. I told him after New Year's I would go down to the butcher shop and get ground beef. It's local meat only so helps our farmers. It is the only meat I need and it's not a I am out  of it and I know we have prime rib today and tomorrow I will bake the ham. Plenty of leftovers for the week. He is still deciding between ribs, pork butt, pork tenderloin or pork chops for New Year's eve and New Year's day. I figure he will go on the lighter side. I have canned pork (I canned it) that I could just add to kraut, add mashed potatoes, have greens and blackeyes peas the next day and call it done. 

M and E had their baby, Susie *named after 2 aunts and 2 cousins* was born the 23rd at 10:06 pm. She is the 11th child, 6 boys and she makes 5 girls. Her mother in law was midwife. M was thankful Hubby went over to bring her home so she wasn't out in a rough buggy ride or having the baby in the cold rain with wind that came in that morning. Plus he got to hold the baby while E helped her in the truck. Came home bragging he got to hold her before me.

Hubby got a bill from medical office. Was flipping out (lovely dementia) that he had his deductible met, gave them his medigap coverage info blah blah blah ... took me twenty minutes of saying CO PAY not deductible was due to finally click what the bill actually was (we had co pay and deductible with his old ins from employer). Then he came back and told me he couldn't remember his username or password for his bank acct to pay the bill. Number one, I really don't want him messing with finances with his dementia flaring... HA HA and number two, this man has not paid the medical bills in over 25 years. I just told him to show me the email he got. I pointed out it was not due until Jan 15th so I would take care of it when I paid the rest of the bills and we would talk to the bank about him forgetting his username and password (I have them but it calmed him down as he knew the bank was closed). 

I have noticed since it is really dark (it didn't get light until almost 8:30 yesterday morning due to rain coming in, even E mentioned it as they are burning more lamp oil than usual) and it's dark at 4:30 pm, his dementia is flaring more than it usually does. I started turning on lights at his desk where he sits most evenings while he watches the news, checks his computer and does sudoku. He seems to have calmed down. I also am making sure we stay as close to routine as possible as I know that can flare things up.  We stuck pretty close to the menu for the week. I don't know if the routine of what we eat during holidays kept that part stable or the fact I wasn't trying to put a lot of food on the table since it is just the two of us and neither of us is eating a lot at one time. 

He has already asked what we are doing with the leftover prime rib, that depends on how much walks out the door with Son 1, he did laugh when I reminded him of that. I did mention Philly cheese steak subs and or pizza which both are favorites of his. He then asked about the ham, he would like some fried potatoes, beans and ham and corn bread. That is doable also. We already know we will be eating out on the 28th, between medical appt for him and dropping off Christmas and Bday to the kids we won't be home until closer to 7 pm. We can go eat after appt while waiting for kids to get home from work since we will be about 30 minutes from them. Kids are passing the stuff on down to the grandkids as trying to get everyone  together is impossible any more. 

Round up this morning as all the kids was up at 3:30 (even single sons). All the girls and their kids have some sort of icky and the Sons do not have anything at this time. SIGH. 

Take care of yourselves. There are ickies out  there LOL

Merry Christmas 

PS I miss the snow, we didn't get any snow... an inch would have been nice. Doesn't seem like Christmas without snow. I live in the north for a reason, SNOW for this season LOL