Saturday: I had wondered what on earth we'd do for our dinner today. I didn't take a thing out of the freezer to thaw yesterday, didn't do any prep work, etc. Well it was easy enough to decide. We brought home half a steak each from our anniversary dinner out. I had leftover tossed salad. I had just enough frozen French Fries for two. Normally I would put those in the oven to crisp but it was far too hot to consider that nonsense, so I fried them on top of the stove. I don't deep fry anything very often, but I had added incentive: That big bag of sweet Vidalia onions John brought home the other week. I fried up a batch of onion rings and that all made a very good dinner...And I did end heating up the oven but not for very long, just long enough to warm our steaks through.
Went through the stack of magazines in my basket. I only get one magazine by subscription anymore and when it's expired, I'm done. Sad when you think that I've been a subscriber for 40 odd years but if a magazine no longer applies to your life, well...it's time to let it go. For my money, the vintage magazines bring me more lasting pleasure and interest me far more than any of the modern day ones. Besides, most of the modern day magazines can be seen online, if not the current issue, the back issues are usually available to view.
Pulled the curtains on the sunny side of the house, especially in the afternoon hours when the temperatures really get hot. We didn't make it up as high as they predicted (100f) but close enough (98f). Anybody else think it's just gone beyond hot when the temperature tops 100?
I set aside some chicken broth and scrapings from the pan when I cooked sausage the other morning to make pupsicles for Maddie. Mr. Rufus doesn't care about pupsicles, but Maddie enjoys them and I suspect that River might as well. I've got to make room in my freezer so I can set up a pan with little paper cups of broth in them for those girls.
John and I 'took a cruise' via YouTube this afternoon. We really enjoyed the views and the excursions they had on the trip. Breakfast looked great too but we never did see a dinner on the boat. We were interested enough in the southeastern cruise to go look up the cost of that online. Good thing someone filmed it for YouTube is all I've got to say. We could do the Caribbean for far less. Seems I just destined to be home for this anniversary, lol.
Sunday: I've been careful after dark to open the shades on the western side of the house. Otherwise, our bedroom stays so deeply dark that I can snooze past 9am which is rather ridiculous when I've had a great night's sleep already. I opened the curtain nearest my bed in the middle of the night last night and was awake at the reasonable hour of 7am.
Had coffee on the front porch with the dogs and cat. A nudge the Maddie and a lick from the littlest dog and the cat were my reward.
Made breakfast for us and unloaded the dishwasher while I waited on the foods to cook. Loaded it up again with yesterday's dishes.
We headed off to church this morning, taking trash with us to drop at the dumpsters and picking up mail on our way out. I turned the AC up a couple of degrees before we left home.
After church we went into Publix. I had a short list of sales items I wanted to take advantage of...Spent all my remaining budget ($40 officially) but I'm not mad at myself about it. We got 6 packs of soda (buy 2 get 2 free), berries (on sale), blue cheese salad dressing (on sale), a packet of Cabot's Seriously Sharp Cheddar (on sale), a bag of shredded coconut (something I didn't see at Aldi the other day) and a box of fried chicken (sale). John got a newspaper for himself and a bottle of unsweetened tea for me. I shouldn't need to make another stop for any item in the next week. I'm sitting smack on $300 for the month which is where I wanted to be.
It was another of those 'taste test' days at Publix. I dutifully tried everything that appealed (brookie, granola, green tea) and filled out my card to turn in with my favorite items on it. I received a wooden cutting board and the pencil I was given to write out my choices as a prize.
We had chicken for lunch today with 3-Bean Salad and Challah. Time to start keeping a can of 3-bean salad in the fridge. It's such a handy little side to have ready chilled and is so refreshing for summer meals. The Aldi store brand is quite good by the way, and not pricey.
Monday: John doesn't have to work today but he will receive 8 hours holiday pay. When that comes through on pay check I'm planning to push it over to savings, not into subaccounts.
I called for the boys to come over as soon as I got up this morning, shortly after 7am. I don't usually have them so early but I figured they'd eat breakfast here anyway, even if they had just eaten at home. I kept them here until past 1pm and took them home after they'd finally finished lunch. Marshmallows are something the boys enjoy as a treat and I actually remembered to buy them this past pay period. Such an inexpensive and simple dessert for two sweet boys.
Lunch was PBJ and pretzels and strawberries. I wouldn't normally serve sandwiches for lunch but it's what they are accustomed to and I figured it wouldn't hurt John and I. I was sure ready for supper tonight though!
Katie stopped by after lunch and visited with us. I think she must have been out of lettuce at home because she came in and made herself a salad. Well, if lettuce is the best call I have on her at present so be it. We enjoyed catching up with her.
No chores today, except picking up toys and loading our few dishes after meals.
Tonight's supper was a big bowl of salad each. I cooked a few pieces of turkey bacon and shredded some turkey luncheon meat I don't much care for into the salad. I don't notice the turkey slices so much in a big mix like this salad.
John reminded me that he isn't working but ONE day this week...So I'm going to try to get as much done as I can tomorrow before I leave to spend time with Mama. I hadn't realized that he was going to be home for the bulk of this week. I'll have to be prepared for spontaneous plans.
Tuesday: Sent John off to work fed, with lunch bag and coffee in hand. He only works one day this week and plans to come right in tomorrow morning and mow the lawn. He's being very ambitious!
I really wanted to go back to bed this morning but it's been hot and I also wanted to get some baking done. I'd meant to make bagels as well as a bread but I just made two loaves of banana bread instead. The oven was going to be on for an hour and I had 4 large bananas that were very ripe to use. So two loaves, using the same oven. I'll put one of the loaves in the freezer for a future need.
Happy to use all the bananas at once.
I washed a full load of sheets and towels and then washed a full load of dishes. I hung the sheets and towels to dry and let the dishes air dry.
I put clean sheets on the bed, and set out fresh towels and cloths and guest towel in our bathroom.
Checked the mail when I came back home. No mail waiting. Does that mean no mail or does it mean "such a heavy load of mail from holiday weekend that mail carrier is terribly late"?
Brought the clothes in off the line. Oh those sheets and towels smelled so nice! I'm so glad to have soft water; our towels never dry crunchy and hard. They are just lovely soft and smell so fresh.
Took Mama out for a birthday luncheon. Brought home half my meal. I could have ordered less but the half chicken plate was only $1 more than the quarter chicken and I knew we could always eat the leftovers here at home. We drove up to a ?? I'm not sure what you call it. It used to be a peach shed and now it's a strawberry orchard and corn maze etc. Too big to call a fruit stand... anyway we got strawberry ice cream cups for dessert. It was so good. I love fresh made ice cream!
It was so icky hot when I left Mama's that I just couldn't bear the idea of getting in and out of my car for anything, not even the much needed makeup I'm out of. Ugh. AC couldn't get cold enough to offset the heat in the car.
John texted me that he has a meeting tomorrow morning and won't be in until late. I replanned my morning for tomorrow. What I haven't done today will surely get done then!
Wednesday: Silly me. I over-planned today. In every way. First I planned to sleep in because John
was going to be at a work meeting. Silly me. John texted me at 7am. I should have known he would. That was that. I was wide awake and not going back to sleep.
I planned to do a load of work outdoors. I got a load of work done but not nearly all I'd planned. I over planned there, too. What I did: Cleaned off front porch, moved the dog house, put two pink chairs on the patio with the table. Hung my birdhouses on the gate behind the ironing board, moved a table from back porch to front (easiest job today!).
Cleaned patio. I didn't even attempt to move the blocks.
Repotted an Angelonia, a pot of dianthus that were looking pretty rough and the lemon thyme. All three were apparently starving and unable to hold water at all. I filled pots with the moisture control soil and planted and watered them in. I moved the Angelonia and dianthus to the bed in front of the back porch.
Peeved when I opened the bag that contained the Stella d'Oro daylily I'd bought at Walmart. It was all dead roots and not one tuber at all. BOO!
Watered plants while I was outside.
Sprayed weed killer around the house and three flower beds.
At this point I was just plain tired. So I was silly again. I came indoors and worked too hard at the house work. Sigh.
I vacuumed the majority of the house. I cleaned the kitchen. I cleaned the master bath. I made tuna pasta salad and cleaned the fridge. I unloaded the dishwasher and reloaded it. I made the bed and folded clothes and put away clothing. I swept. Worked up bills for payday next week. I was t.i.r.e.d. So I stopped and sat down.
John had a work meeting after his shift ended today. 30 hours total he was at his job...Sheesh. At least he got paid for the extra hours the meeting added to his day. He was sure a tired man when he came in.
Made some broth into pupsicles for Maddie. I was going to use the little paper cups, but realized that just putting the broth in the muffin tin would work fine. Once frozen I'll run water over the back to release them. I'll store in a Ziploc bag.
I reordered Clinique exfoliator and moisturizer last Friday; both arrived today. The two items totaled to an amount just over that required to receive the 'free' bonuses. One was samples of a day and night cream. The other free gift was a pretty good haul. A trial size mascara, a full size eye liner, a full size chubby lip pencil (love the color! Super Strawberry). I took a time out mid-chores to try on the new makeup. I don't typically do my face just so I can work at home, lol. I've been very pleased with the way the facial care products are lasting and super happy with the lack of scent and the way my skin feels overall.
Decided to scroll thru a clearance section of an online catalog I receive. I found a wonderful present for Rosa and ordered it for her. It was less than half price and well within my spending limit. I need to find something for Josh...and I need to send money to several others. Which reminds me. I decided that this month it was best to double up on birthday sub account amounts because honestly the five weeks from the last week of May to the end of June just kills my budget in that area. February is bad enough but June! Zowie. And here I've forgotten Father's Day entirely. Back to the dollar store for MORE cards.
Thursday: I'm going to sound like a broken record this week. I'd thought I'd sleep in...
I don't know just why I want to sleep in but apparently I feel I could use it. However, this morning 7am on the nose, John started up the mower and that was that, sigh. So I got up. I did NOT push myself to jump right to work this morning. Instead I took a big (BIG) cup of coffee and a glass of water to my kitchen chair and sat there watching vlogs while I sipped my coffee. When it was finished I did my Bible study and then I got up and went to work. I did so much yesterday that little was required today but my guest room needed attention. I have a lot of stuff that needs to go out to the shed but I didn't feel like making multiple tricks back and forth across the yard with heavy loads today. So I put everything that is going to go outdoors in a neatly stacked pile. It's clutter, yes, but it looks better than having this on the table and that on the floor and those on the bed, etc. I put away everything that is meant to stay in the room.
I partially restocked my kitchen cabinet from the pantry.
I cleaned up the kitchen.
I gave myself a pedicure and a little later, I did a manicure.
When John finally came in from the yard we had breakfast.
I made taco filling and decided to extend it still further. I had meant to make lentil taco filling. I'd opened a can of fat free refried beans earlier this week, though and I knew I'd never use it up if I didn't plan to use it up. I browned hamburger and then added about half a can of beans to the filling. This extended the meat nicely and will net us a second meal of tacos this weekend. I have about a serving of beans left yet. Must plan to use those.
While grating cheese for taco toppings I went ahead and grated more to make pimento cheese. I found I was out of pimento. I did have roasted red peppers on hand. Just as good though not the same. Now we have a sandwich filler in the fridge.
Ran a full load of dishes in the dishwasher.
Remove the frozen broth discs from the muffin tin and put them in a Ziploc bag. They easily came out of the muffin tin when I ran warm water over the back of the pan.
Unloaded the dishwasher and put away the dishes. I really dread this task and I've no idea why. It's always over far more quickly than I think it will be.
That's all I've done today and that's all I'm going to do. It's not that I haven't more tasks I could tackle. I could indeed. But this is why I work as hard as I do some days. I can do quiet work here at the computer or watch a movie with John. This relaxes him. If I'm up and busy running around from one task to another he doesn't enjoy his leisure time. My goal is not to make him feel he should be up working at anything or to make him nervous because I'm flitting around.
Friday: Ugh. I won't say a word about planning to sleep in this morning because I didn't plan to. I did do something foolish last night and had a half a bottle of soda with my supper. Well that little bit of caffeine was too much for my body. I had a hard time going off to sleep and a hard time staying asleep. I had planned to get up early this morning but not at 5:45...
John was up even earlier. He started a load of clothes washing about 6am.
I got myself together and had a leisurely shower and cup of coffee and Bible Study. We planned to go out today for breakfast and then to go into Walmart. We wrote out a list last night.
We went to Cracker Barrel for our breakfast. I always want a BIG breakfast and while it as reasonable I sure didn't eat all of it. I don't much care for leftovers of breakfast foods. I walked around the store and looked at just about everything but came away empty handed. I saw lots of pretty things and lots of things that interested me but I knew Walmart was going to take a chunk of our money and I figured I could live without anything from Cracker Barrel.
Over at Walmart we purchased about half the items on our list. I think we both just wanted to get home so we sort of hurried through and got the things I deemed most important. Makeup foundation, concealer and primer but no make up box though mine has really deteriorated to trash over the past two weeks. No gardening gloves, no spray bottle, no deodorant for John (he just opened one and has a spare in the cabinet). We bought printer ink but it has to go back as it's the wrong number for our printer. Then we bought more of the Dave's Killer Bread. Noted that the difference between our local store's price and Walmart is 2c...I told John it's not worth the price difference to buy it there. We did like the Aldi version of Dave's Killer bread though. It was about $1 a loaf less.
I also bought a toaster oven. I'd liked the Black and Decker model online and I read good reviews about it as well as had one or two of you mention it. I chose a smaller oven. I don't want to roast a whole chicken but to heat a pot pie or fries or broil a steak or heat taco shells will be nice. I thought it very reasonably priced. I'll let you know if it's a deal or a dud.
Home we came and on our way I told John "I've really nothing to do today..." "Then read a book." said my man...I explained to him, "It's not that I have nothing to do, just nothing I want to get tied into." "Then read, " he said again. Who am I to argue?
Hope you all have a great weekend. Share your week with us.
14 comments:
Work,work, work. Errands, more work. Still not caught up. Neighbor boy helped Hubby redo the French drain and it was money well spent to have him dig the big hole. Our Cracker Barrel is terrible. I have a $50 gift card received for Mother's day from our youngest son. I think it will be used when traveling. We can't find a better breakfast than the Greek restaurant we have eaten at for more than a decade. And they are a third less in price than everyone else. I have a toaster oven on the shelf in the garage. Maybe I will bring it in and see if I use it. I wish they didn't get so grimy and have so many little places to clean.
I'm gonna be all over the place because I have so many little comments lol.
Marshmallows for the boys. My Grandma used to buy these wonderful marshmallows with toasted coconut on them. I loved when she gave us one of those delicious things for dessert. I'll bet I haven't seen those in 40+ years.
I love crunchy sheets and towels lol. I know I'm an oddity. I've always lived places with hard water and I think I got used to it. My dad puts about 3 dryer sheets in with his towels. They feel slimy to me and make me sneeze! I haven't air dried towels for several weeks now. We have had so many storms and the air is just dripping with humidity.
That's a bummer about your daylily. We have loads of them in our borders because they can handle the brutal Kansas heat quite well. Every one of them was given to me from someone thinning out theirs. I have the Stella d'Oros mixed with purple Iris along one wall. And across the back of the house, I have orange & rust= no idea what they're called. The rust ones remind me of tiger lilies because they have black dots on them. The one thing I desperately want to plant is Hollyhocks. I've always loved those and they should do well here.
I sympathize on your birthdays in one month. My family & friends were kind enough to be born/have kids in December & January. When the last card/gift goes out in late January, I breathe a huge sigh of relief. It's a big expense between Christmas & birthdays so I pretty much double my savings to do both.
I've had a Cracker Barrel gift card since Christmas. We love their breakfasts, but like to go early to avoid the crowds. My husband loves that he can get a big piece of meat with his breakfast! If I could make my own combo there, my ideal breakfast there would be one egg, one piece of bacon, one sausage pattie, a little bowl of grits with butter, & one pancake with strawberries on top. And that's a big breakfast. If I get more than one pancake, there's no point in getting anything else! I always think about what I once heard a comedian say, "Why does IHOP do 'all you can eat pancakes'? Why don't they just call it '3 pancakes'?" I have to agree.
We have never had a toaster, but always used a toaster oven. Lana, if you read this, they're really easy to keep clean if you line the bottom in foil and brush out the crumbs with an old tooth brush. I clean the glass with a Mr. Clean spongs and then wipe it with water. I do that once a month and it's always looking clean.
We got really warm today so I planned a cold pasta salad loaded with diced tomatoes & tuna melts for dinner. The pasta will make a nice side to lunch tomorrow, as well. I'm craving a taco salad so I'm planning to run by the market and pick up the fixin's for that.
Sorry this got so long!!
Teri, my library has free magazines on line. Check with yours, they may offer this service, too.
Terri, I am jealous of your soft, air-dried towels! Even though we put salt in our water to soften it, I can never hang towels outside as they get so crispy and stay crispy!
You sure did work hard again this week. It’s always motivating for me to follow suit. My husband doesn’t like me vacuuming or doing a lot of housework when he is relaxing and it seems he feels the way your husband does...that he can’t fully relax with me working. Glad you got a toaster oven. With your hot weather, I’m sure it will be put to good use and save some money too. We got a bigger one to hold a 9x13 pan and I use it a lot. We don’t have a microwave oven and the boys use it a lot to warm up food or snacks.
Well, I thought it would never stop raining and it has been a cooler May than usual. Today is our 22nd anniversary and my husband said that the sun would finally come out (the year we were married was a very cold and cloudy spring and finally the morning of our wedding day...sun!). The last two days have been so beautiful and I have fully enjoyed swinging on my porch swing and looking over my front yard. The lilac tree is just starting to bloom and the crabapple is in full bloom. I told my husband that I think it’s finally safe to put the snow shovels and snow boots away. He looked at me with a raised eyebrow stating he wasn’t sure. I washed our winter fleece sheets and am taking a leap and putting summer sheets on the bed tonight. I didn’t dry outdoors as the pollen is high. I think we can plant tomatoes and peppers in the garden, as well as cucumbers.
I am finishing the week with the housework mostly done, but no deep cleaning. I have to wash the boys’ sheets, put away the winter coats and boots and take out the summer sandal box. We need to fertilize our raspberries and fruit trees. I bought some chicken poo pellets from my natural food co-op and find that it is excellent fertilizer along with our homemade compost. We are traveling to a nearby nursery tomorrow morning as they had a clematis sale and two of my clematis hit the dirt with the cold winter so we are picking up two “Nelly Moser” clematis, which are supposed to do better in part shade than most clematis.
Today was my last official day of homeschooling for the year. My 3rd son graduates in a week and my youngest has a bit of math and science to finish so I will just have to help him with that. I am very much looking forward to a relaxing, peaceful summer full of gardening, time on my porch, reading, making soap, walking (winter weight...ugh!), spending time with the family, and going about my homemaking in an unhurried way. Our 2nd oldest son is visiting and it has been a lovely visit. A healing visit. He turned 19 last week. I have been trying to make his favorite foods and will be making fruit tarts tomorrow for Sunday dinner.
I have been reading your archives for a while now....a few every night. Thank you so much for this beautiful blog and for letting us into your daily life. It’s inspiring to see how you look to God for guidance and strength. Well, off to warm up fish tacos (a new favorite) and my husband and I are going to watch the movie RBG (Ruther Bader Ginsberg) that I picked up at the library. We need to plan a day out to celebrate our anniversary, but both of us are beat tonight and this will be good for now! Have a lovely Shabat Terri!
Debby,. I love those coconut marshmallows! My grandparents used to buy them, too. I will try your suggestion for the toaster oven. Thx
Karen, We watched 'A Matter of Sex' about RBG. Best movie we have seen in ao long time. It is at Redbox.
Lana, I forgot one of the most important parts lol. Make sure you put the little tray under where you're brushing to catch the crumbs. I also line the tray. So, when I clean it all, I just bunch up the old foil and toss the whole thing.
Hi Terri - enjoyed the visit with you
❤️
I had all three kids on Tuesday for half the day. We delivered Layla about noon. Later in the afternoon, the boys and I went bowling. I registered for www.kidsbowlfree.com this year. They get two games free each day at our local bowling alley. We certainly won't go every day, but I'm shooting for once a week at least.
Wednesday was the first summer afternoon matinee, so I worked from 9 - 4, then Silas had a ballgame at 5 in a town about half an hour away.
Thursday and Friday were mine. All mine. I painted in the laundry room and put up the German schmear on the faux brick. Then I worked last night.
Slow going today and I'm not getting much done but thinking about work. LOL. A wedding in a couple of hours will take up my late afternoon and evening. Then work all day tomorrow and we can start over again on Monday.
I must have been replying in my mind to you all...I came over to reply to Tammy's post and saw I hadn't posted a single reply! lol I do that sometimes, I think of what I'll say to someone and then discover I just thought about it.
Lana, we haven't had a favorite breakfast place in years. Cracker Barrel in the town where we planned to shop is the best of the two within 30 miles of us. But mostly it was convenience. I think John would have been a lot happier if we'd gone to IHOP. I wish we could find a diner that has a good breakfast menu and atmosphere to eat at. I don't like IHOP because it's SO crowded. I always feel I must tuck in my elbows and squeeze myself up into a tiny space.
Debby, according to my search you can get toasted coconut marshmallows at Walmart.com but they come in packs of 5 packages which is a bit much. I wonder if they have them in the stores too?
Sparky, I really need to check and see if my library card is even valid anymore. Our public local library is full of new books by authors who produce masses of books. Being fond of older ones I tend to skip my library hence my card keeps expiring!
Karen, I'm so glad your son came home to visit! My toaster oven is big enough for four pieces of toast so it's smaller but it's just right for us. I figure if I need to make a big pan of something it's an indication the family is here and I'll just crank up the big oven anyway.
Rhonda, I just ran by your blog and caught up with YOU earlier this afternoon, lol.
Tammy, I love that "mine all mine"...I so appreciate the feeling behind that remark. Can't wait to see the laundry room reveal.
LOL! IHOP makes me feel that way too! And I get a migraine every single time I eat there. So they must be loading everything up with MSG or something. When we travel we ask Google on our phone for the ten best breakfast places in whatever town and we have found some great places. But, there is the occasional dud. Always look for lots of cars in the parking lot. The thing about those little places is that you feel so conspicuous the first time you go and sometimes the experience is hit and miss. But also just ask around because lots of people have their favorite breakfast place. My Mom and Dad's favorite is so tiny that people sit with perfect strangers and it is a fun kind of community atmosphere. Our favorite place started out very small and has moved to a larger restaurant about the size of Cracker Barrel. But the food is the same and we can still eat for $13 including tip and everything is fresh and homemade. I hope you can find a place too!
I've "lurked" for a long time, so I want tell you how much I enjoy "visiting with you" through your your posts, Terri. I am curious as to what titles of vintage magazines you've purchased/hung onto. Other than 1 quilting and 1 self-reliance magazine, I've let everything else lapse because I can either borrow them through the library and/or so many current ones aren't worth the price or even the time to read. Do you get your vintage mags from antique stores, ebay,etc? I love the older cookbooks, too, and have a number of them from the 1940s that I'm trying recipes from because they don't call for prepackaged foods or odd ingredients. Thanks again for sharing!
We actually went on an Alaskan cruise for our 25th anniversary last year. It was our first cruise and it was wonderful. Definiely a once in a lifetime trip for us.
Hope you were able to sleep in one day. Sounds like a busy week. What a sweet grandma to stock up on marshmallows for a treat.
Hope you have a good week.
Jill, I get most of my magazines from ebay sales. Lot sales are usually pretty good but postage is crazy high because magazines can not go either media or library post. Silly rule on the post office part. I have Woman's Day, Family Circle, Better Homes and Gardens, Woman's Home Companion, Ladies Home Journal and McCalls. I love the war years and mid to late 1950s Woman's Day magazines best. I once had several issues of Mademoiselle and Glamour from the mid 1940s and I miss having those. Every now and then I come across magazines in an antique or thrift store where they are valued pretty low.
I agree that one bonus of the older cookbooks is that it's real food. My favorite (I'm on my third copy! is The Culinary Arts Institute Encyclopedic Cookbook by Ruth Berzolheimer. It's been in print since the early 1910's and periodically is reprinted.
Kathy An Alaskan cruise would be nice. Getting John to move beyond Florida for much of anything is a real problem, lol.
Thanks for the magazine list, Terri! I'll have to check out some of those titles/date spans on ebay and elsewhere. Woman's Day used to be one of my favorites, but now WD, Family Circle, and Good Housekeeping aren't nearly as useful/sensible as they used to be.
I had to chuckle about your love for the Culinary Arts Institute Encyclopedic Cookbook by Ruth Berzolheimer. I have a 1976 edition of that one, a copy my FIL gave me when hubby and I married in 1982. I believe he gave it to me as a joke, but the joke was on him as that's one of my all-time favorite cookbooks!
Post a Comment