Saturday: Blossom the Beagle has joined our family. Bess brought her bed, food and leash with her as well as biscuits. Blossom has been quite happy over all and she and Maddie have played a good bit. She's done well today with Bess gone. I've got my fingers crossed that the transition to country dog is so fascinating she doesn't have a period of adjustment.
Despite it being Sabbath I ran a full load of dishes.
John washed a full load of clothes and hung them out to dry.
Josh wet through his clothes last night. We took the pack and play outdoors to dry in the sunlight. I'll spray with Lysol too, but the sunshine should really help with any aroma.
Our meals consisted of leftovers. Leftover bagels I found in the freezer. Leftover chicken and dumplings for dinner. A mix of leftovers for supper. The only item made fresh today was popcorn for a snack.
Packed the non-perishables in John's lunchbag to save time in the morning.
Visited my Target shopping cart...I put several items in it a couple of weeks ago planning to place an order but decided to wait. I found that I didn't really want the items after all and I emptied the cart.
It got a little warm but we left the AC off until mid-afternoon.
Sunday: Made John's breakfast, packed up his work lunch.
Used homemade bread for our toast this morning. Yummy.
Indulged in my tea cups of coffee ritual this morning. It seemed unfair to claim the pot yesterday morning when I knew Bess would want coffee, too, lol.
Focused on kitchen clean up today. I took every single thing from the fridge and wiped off the shelves then lined with the clear ridged plastic shelf liner I just bought. It did just what I hoped it would do: let's the light shine through but it looks so clean and neat and should prevent scratching the glass shelves. I need another large basket or two for organizing things but that can wait until later this week.
Swapped a blue basket from the fridge for a white one that was in the bathroom cabinet.
Lined drawers with paper towel. I used to use newspaper but the newsprint these days just leaves dark smudges on things.
Cleaned up the garbage can I pulled out of the junk pile and fixed it up for Blossom a dry doggie shelter. We mean to do this under the shed for the two dogs as well, using old trash cans that we have on hand.
Ate leftovers for my dinner.
Have leftovers for my supper.
Jotted down a few brainstorming ideas I've had today as I've worked.
Started a shopping list of things that I am out of and must pick up at sewing/hobby/craft store/area.
Worked on bill box. With half payments now showing up from our third pay period in August, I was able to come up with half the current medical bill that is due.
Monday: Oatmeal for breakfast but pretty sure John needed more food. As it happened I was quite right. They had worked steadily all night long and he'd been without even so much as a snack. I made toast and heated him up some Polska Kielbasa.
Made soup from leftovers of broth, wild rice, and chicken breasts. It was very good and made more than one meal's worth. I'll be happy to have the leftovers the rest of this week for my suppers.
Very little to do today. Weather doesn't allow for outside work, and the inside work is almost done.
John repaired the guest bath toilet. He did so using a toilet flapper kit he had on hand. He knew this repair was upcoming so he bought a replacement for this kit the other day.
Tuesday: After breakfast, we quickly took care of housework and got ready to go down and pick up John's pay. We took trash with us to drop off at the dumpsters, picked up mail and dropped off bills, as well as did our banking while we were out.
I made out short list and Bess had a short list that we stopped at the grocery to pick up.
I found gallons of 2% milk on sale for $2.19, so I bought two gallons, which will likely be all I need to go through the pay period.
There have been a couple of snack items I've bought in the past week that cost us a bit over $5. Honestly? One item for sure, I can buy in bigger packages and dole out into serving sized bags if I'll buy myself a food scale (the sort that weighs ounces, not pounds). I mean to look into getting a scale shortly. The other was a certain brand of filled crackers that John really likes. I bought a 'case' which was 10 packages. They've gone quickly this week with work, snacks at home, etc. I think in future I'll buy only a packet or two and set them aside for use especially in John's lunches. When we're at home we can easily make our own peanut butter crackers from the good crackers we keep on hand. Silly to spend so very much on snack items, even if they are treats to us.
One item I don't regret buying is the 4 ounce cups of ice cream. It costs no more than buying a couple of pints and there is exactly as much ice cream in them. We never eat a whole half gallon before it's icy and burnt no matter how carefully we wrap it and try to keep it fresh.
Made the Moroccan Chicken and Autumn Vegetables for our dinner. I left it cooking while we were gone. I didn't have a whole chicken but had breasts, which I put in the pan under the vegetables in an effort to keep them from drying out. Despite cooking an hour and a half at 350 (the recipe reads for a whole chicken, so I lowered the temperature) the breasts were just done and the vegetables were still a bit hard. I cooked for another half hour at a higher temperature. Consensus on mine and Bess part was that the spice mixture was a teeny bit hot, excellent on the sweet potato but overwhelmed the cauliflower. Poor John said he couldn't taste a thing anyway.
I packed up leftovers to serve as a meal for me Thursday.
I gave John a new medication which has reduced his cough and is helping to break up the mucus. Poor dear has really had a time getting over the allergy season this year.
It was rainy and cool outdoors, stuffy indoors. I hate to have to turn on the AC to balance the air but eventually you just must do it. One degree was all the lowering I did and it helped tremendously.
Wednesday: Saw Bess and Josh off and then we spent the morning cleaning. We did two loads of clothes and hung some of them out to dry, despite the heavy humid air and dark clouds. The breezes blew them mostly dry and John finished them off in the dryer.
I washed a full load of dishes this afternoon.
Totaled Checkbook and as usual on a short pay week, there is no extra for fun unless we pay for it from our allowances. I must go carefully over my grocery list and insure we buy all we need to carry us through the full pay period this time.
My fun day has been sidelined. With all the company, catching up on housework, etc., I must attend to getting two labs done tomorrow as well as grocery shopping, filling prescriptions and running errands. Sigh. Perhaps I can plan a fun day for next Friday.
Thursday: Went over my grocery list this morning and reminded myself of all the 'cuts' I'd made before I left home.
Took off trash, picked up mail on my way out this morning, as usual.
Oh I nearly forgot the other usual thing: Made John breakfast, packed his lunch/supper for work.
Went to have two different labs done. I managed to figure out a more direct route to all the places I needed to be today.
I was disappointed that despite great care I was out of money after Aldi. I cut out so many items on my list and didn't even look at many items. Nevertheless, I had to spend more money at Publix. I cut hard on that list and let my 'splurges' be under $6. What did my extra $6 buy? A lovely autumn bouquet for $4 and a loofah bath pad. I've determined I'll pay for these two items from my allowance.
I refused to consider a smaller bag of cat food today. The sale was the best buy at $9 for 12 pounds of food. 3.5 pounds cost nearly $5 in the same and comparable brands.
I was determined to wring a bit of fun out of the day. I stopped at a thrift store that is always good for a bit of treasure. I found a sugar bowl for Katie. I think she'll like it. I found a lovely old fashioned milk jug for myself. I paid for these items from my allowance.
In the mail today: a stack of vintage magazines from Dale. The note on the envelope said they were for wintry days. Hooray! I also received a free reusable grocery bag, a $.49 forever stamp, an offer for free shipping from a company I like to buy from now and then.
Bess left some strawberry yogurt, which is not Josh's favorite flavor. I don't eat full sugar yogurt. I mixed a few spoonfuls into my plain Greek yogurt. It was just the right amount for flavor without tasting overly sweet.
I sliced the last two small pieces of banana into my yogurt.
Friday: Made egg salad for sandwiches over the weekend.
Prepared Cheese burgers and oven fries at home rather than run into town to our local place.
Cleaned both porches and the storm doors well this morning.
Repotted some African violets and potted three that I'd rooted myself. I put two leaves that broke off the other plants into water to root.
Cleaned the kitchen windows.
Prepped foods for the weekend after I made out my menu plan. Set out meat to thaw for sandwiches tomorrow night, since our dinner will be light on meat and consists of leftovers with added vegetables.
Encouraged John to take the dollar store generics of the same cold medicine he kept telling me we should go buy. He started feeling relief soon after taking the first dose.
Took coffee on the back porch this afternoon.
Enjoyed my nice clean home this afternoon and appreciated that I had the evening meal planned ahead.
Put two servings of the Chicken, Mushroom and Wild Rice soup into the freezer.
Added a small amount of meat to my beef soup bag.
Made slaw for tomorrow's dinner using broccoli stalks and a bit of cabbage.
Diced potatoes to make into hash browns or potato salad first part of next week. I covered with water and put in the fridge.
Washed grapes and cut the long stems into serving sized pieces so we don't over eat.
For snack this afternoon, I cut an apple into slices and served with a spoonful of peanut butter for dipping.
Reviewed my savings pages I wrote up earlier in the year and made notes on things I no longer need do or which I should really attempt to bring into practice.
I bought two hoagie rolls yesterday for Sunday dinner. We'll use one of those rolls tonight for Shabat bread. I told John to be sure and pinch off the end of the bread, lol.
I had a great cheerleader the other day when I felt worn down by things. Today I was able to repay that and be John's cheerleader. I'm so grateful I slept last night and had enough rest behind me to really be the support he needed today.
Rearranged some things on my desk this morning, bringing out a few old creamers I am especially fond of. I love displaying pretty things instead of keeping them hidden away.
6 comments:
Oh, you are making Suffolk Puffs! Lovely x Rose
Terri, sounds like you have been busy and accomplished a lot.
Hope John feels better soon. Have a blessed weekend.
Whew what a lot you got accomplished in a shortened week! You are amazing!
I think it was you who mentioned the program Home Fires. I watched the entire first season online this week and loved it. The bad part is now I have to wait so long for season 2 to come out!!
It's the weekend and I've managed to do my grocery shopping tonight after work. I didn't need a whole lot of things so that helped tremendously. It has rained here literally all day long. We needed it but it made for a day where I'd rather have been home pottering around than at my desk at work.
Several things to take care of tomorrow - oil change in my car, laundry to do, some decluttering in the bedroom.
Hope you have a wonderful weekend!
I enjoyed reading about what you did each day. You accomplished a lot! Good for you! What will you do with the fabric cuties you had in the picture at the top of your post?
I found a good food scale at Aldii's for 10 dollars. You can, also, find good ones on Amazon.
I really like having a digital scale. It is very helpful in portioning out meat for the freezer and cooking just the right amount of pasta for two.
Have you considered doing a meatless meal or two each week to cut the grocery budget? My oldest daughter cut her grocery bill from $150 to $85 a week by going to only one main meal with meat a week. She feeds many extra people most days because her husband is an outreach pastor and he brings people home with him most days. I am not interested in doing that at all but we don't mind a beans and rice meal or other vegetarian meal every week. And it is good for us!
The incessant rain here is keeping us from getting outside work done and I had to cancel having the window washers come next week because we are not ready for them. I found a company to do the outsides of the windows for $8 each. We have 10 windows that have to be done on a 24 ft ladder and each window has 15 panes of glass to be cleaned. Worth every penny of $8 each to have them done. It keeps hubby off the ladder and he does not have to do it. Standing on a ladder half the day and moving it all those times is brutal. I don't know when we can reschedule now. I wanted to get them done before all the holiday company but I may just have to get over it.
I have been picking up good deals on Christmas gifts and now it is time to really get to work. I need to get out there and shop one day a week and get it done.
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