This Week In My Home: Marching Forward


Well...uhm...last week?  I made ONE meal from that menu I posted.  One.  John asked for a special meal one day, bought dinner out another.  He asked to use the baked potatoes I'd cooked ahead for hash browns, and I decided that we really should have some chicken so made Chicken Curry.  I didn't purchase a thing for any of the meals we made, used only what we had here at home.  Still...so much for planning, right?  Well it gets worse.  I didn't do even one task on my job list.  Not one.  I moved the duster from the living room to the bedroom.

I'm just going to admit that February, while pleasant enough, was a bit of a bust where work and plans were concerned.  However, I feel much better and I think I will be able to get back on track.
We'll start in the kitchen.



The changes made to the menu last week, meant I used a LOT of meat. I did put three meals in the freezer from that extra meat but I want to correct that this week.  I started it with today's meal.  The recipe called for a pound of sausage.  I used 12 ounces.  I had leftovers enough for two more meals.  That is a help to setting the grocery budget back on track.  I have plans for dinner tomorrow which will cook while we're at church.  I expect leftovers from that dish as well.

15 Bean Sausage Soup, Cornbread, Lemon Cake
I hadn't planned to cook the whole package of beans at first, but decided to go ahead.  This soup was so good.  The recipe was found on the package of beans.  I put two quarts of soup into jars to freeze for future meals.  Leftover cornbread will go with tomorrow's dinner.

New England Boiled Dinner, Cornbread, Lemon Cake
I bought a corned beef this past pay period and kept it in the fridge since I planned to cook it last week.  I'm glad those things are cryo packed.  I'll start this in the crock pot before we leave for church.  The cabbage is washed and cut into wedges, the potatoes were cut in pieces and put to soak in water in the fridge, the carrot is trimmed and cut into pieces.  I put broth in the freezer from the last corned beef and have it thawing on the counter.  That will be the liquid in today's corned beef.  I expect to get this meal, sandwich meat for later this week and put meat in the freezer for a future entree.

Twice Baked Potatoes, Green Beans, Sliced Tomatoes, Green Salad
I've a big bag of russets so no loss in baking more potatoes to make a meatless meal.  This is one meal I can serve John without him asking if we're going vegetarian, lol. It's satisfying on many levels both appetite and budget wise.  I'll bake extra potatoes to use for soup.

on my own

Porcupine Meatballs, Mashed Potatoes, Butter Beans, Pineapple Salad
If I find I have green bell pepper halves in the freezer, and I expect I do, I will make stuffed peppers.  I always use the same recipe for Porcupine Meatballs anyway.  This is a good meat stretcher since I use only 1/2 pound meat.  I'll have leftovers of this one, too. 

Barbecue Chicken, Cream Corn, Black Eye Peas, Coleslaw, Biscuits
I'll thaw and cut up a whole chicken and likely use the leg quarters and wings for this dish.  All the vegetables are in the freezer, plenty of cabbage left for coleslaw and I'll make biscuits from scratch.  Some of the biscuits will be breakfast the next day.

Cream of Potato Soup, Reuben Sandwiches, Pickles
I think soup a second time will help swing the budget back into balance.  I have no need to buy a thing this week to make these meals, so my grocery money will go towards pantry/freezer stock, fresh fruits, paper products.

Jobs This Week



I've confessed I did not get a thing done on my list this past week.  No matter.   I've made my plans for this week and I suspect I'll get more done than not.  This month I plan to focus on our bedroom and bath.  This will be a month long list but I'm putting down every job I hope to get done in these spaces and will mark them off as done.

Clean under sink.
Clean out tall cupboard.*partially done
Sort linens and toiletries.
Clean walls and dust room well.
Freshen decorations.

Clean bedroom windows.
Dust blinds.
Sort out linens in trunk.
Cull books on bookshelves.
Clean out house clothes drawer.
Go over sweater drawer.
Straighten and organize costume jewelry.
Dust room, clean and polish furniture.

Clean closet.
Organize and cull clothes.
Sort out pictures I want to send to Amie.

5 comments:

Rhonda said...

Thanks for the reminder about porcupines. We like them too, I've got several packs of lean ground beef and an oven meal will be especially nice during this cold weather.

I haven't made a to do list in 3 weeks but I plan to write one out starting tomorrow.

Grammy Goodwill said...

This post brought a smile to my face and so did Rhonda's comment. My mom always fixed porcupines, but I've never heard anyone else call them that. Thanks for the memories.

Manuela@ A Cultivated Nest said...

I haven't really cleaned my house in weeks and all I've done today is wash my hair and make scones! :) Sometimes it's just like that. Don't really feel like making dinner - but thankfully I defrosted boneless chicken breasts - they're quick to cook!

My husband decided to take this week off so there go my plans. Tomorrow we're going to the movies early in the day and out to dinner. We had a no spend month in February so it'll be our first time eating out except for our daughter's birthday.

Manuela

Anonymous said...

This past week was a bust for me too. I did stick to my meal plan, but I think the only thing I marked off my list was 'bathe my dog' and that didn't do a whole lot of good with all the rain. But I had a family member call and ask me for some help and family comes first so everything else will be here when I get to it. Have a great week and enjoy this weather.

Unknown said...

I love finding out I am not the only one who carefully writes out a menu & then life happens & it goes out the window. Major plumbing issues meant a take out pizza I had not planned on but was necessary. But that is life too. Major vet bills caused change in budget too. Colleen

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