Thrift and Observations: Dec 2 - 8

 

Dec. 1  I had to go pick up dog food and something else (What?  Can't remember) at the grocery.  John opted for the local store.  We checked the clearance racks and grabbed more marked down candy to stash at home, then we wandered down the meat aisle to look for clearance meats.  We got a nice package of 2 center cut pork chops and John chose a package of Boneless country style ribs.  We bought two packages of hamburger on sale.  I spent more than I went in to spend, partly due to the added stuff that Caleb and John decided we needed as well as the meat we'd picked up and the pricey tiny bag of dog food.  Pet foods are always very expensive in my town, even if you are getting lower end products.

It was lovely to get out of the house and drive about the county running our errands.  Caleb stayed dry and enjoyed the time out as well.  He' far more social than I am, and he enjoys getting out and going places.

We came home and made burgers, with some of the on-sale ground beef we'd purchased.  I love the way fresh ground beef smells when it's cooking.  I remember that Grandmother used to make burgers when he'd just picked up ground meat and the wonderful aroma of it.  I thought truly that beef no longer had that good smell but turns out it does.

 Dec. 2  We decided for lunch today to use the grill. I'd frozen all the meat that I bought except the country style ribs.  I made a quick homemade stovetop Mac and Cheese to go with them and John grilled.  I made BBQ sauce though I have plenty of bottled sauce in the back.  Truthfully, I prefer the homemade stuff and that's what I wanted.  I'm thinking this may be something I stop buying in the future and make my own at home.  Not necessarily a savings but quality is better in my opinion.

I'm glad Cody showed us how to use that grill.  That meal was so good.  

We mostly just relaxed here at home all day long.  We were supposed to meet with the contractor, but we never heard from him.  We were aware that might be a possibility, but it was a letdown just the same.

Dec. 3 We went for haircuts after church.  Keeping my hair as short as I do and John keeping his cut so very short now, we have agreed that we must consider haircuts every three weeks.  

This is going to be an additional expense in the year ahead.  Duly noted.  My tentative budget worksheet for 2024 has already acquired a number of alterations.  Isn't it funny how what seems to be set in November can take a turn in December?  

I've not spent allowance all month long and so I offered to treat us to lunch out today.  We went to the new favorite Mexican place.  Meals were delicious as usual and portions huge.  We brought home food enough to feed us again.  We're figuring average cost per meal out at $5 which is cheaper than a burger and fries anywhere.

We got back home and spent the rest of the day sheltering from the rain.

Dec. 4  Renovation work did not start today as we'd hoped.  That will be tomorrow.  Figured while the oven was hooked up, I might as well plan to use it to make meals today.  Reheated leftovers from Sunday.  Those ended up feeding three and half, so lowered our costs per meal still further.

I took chicken from the freezer to thaw and then had no idea what to do with it.  I found a new to me blog and the woman had a tab for recipes, so I thought I'd just check to see what she had.  There was a simple chicken dish that looked good, so I took her recipe and then added my own touch (of course).

Simple Chicken:  I had boneless skinless breasts I'd bought on clearance, a premium brand.  These are always consistently and evenly thick.  That's one thing I like about that brand.  

I cut the pieces in half because breasts are so very large.  3 breasts made 6 pieces.  I mixed salt, pepper, whole grain mustard and yellow prepared mustard and coated the breasts all over.  Then I crushed homemade croutons (you can use dry breadcrumbs, I was out) and sprinkled that over the top of the breasts and then I baked in a slow oven for about 40 minutes.   

This chicken was so delicious, moist, tender.  Katie, John, and Cody, all told me "Don't forget this is a repeat recipe!"

I decided to do rough mashed potatoes, and my easy creamed cabbage recipe as sides.   For the cabbage I sliced into thin shreds, then fried onions and cabbage in bacon grease until just tender.  This went into a baking pan, and I poured half and half over that and baked it along with the chicken.  This creates a sweet, very mild cabbage dish and I find that even those who are not cabbage fans like it.  I usually top with breadcrumbs as well, but I skipped that today.

Dec. 5  Kitchen reno started.  I pulled frozen sandwiches to reheat as well as an entree to put in the slow cooker.

I took some sandwiches from the freezer (marinated sandwiches) to put in the toaster oven for our lunch and a Turkey Tetrazzini I'd frozen in September that can also bake in the toaster oven or heat in the slow cooker.

Read an article this morning from shefinds.com about Seven Foods You May Not Be Able to Buy in...2024.  I wanted to give you all a link to it but can't find one online.  I read the article on my phone.  I was going to list the seven items, but I decided not to.  Essentially the article said if you eat anything much then it's not going to be available, and if it's protein or dairy they suggested plant-based alternatives.

I'm curious about one thing...Why are plant-based alternatives more viable crops than produce, fruit and grains? Does drought not affect the crops used to make plant-based alternatives?

Frankly I think the article might have been a tad skewed. If I'm going to share something, I'll try to source it from somewhere else.

The Christmas tree stand came in the mail today.  John's very happy with the sturdiness and stability of it.

Dec. 6  Thawed soup to make tonight' dinner.  I realized as it thawed that it was very low on meat.  I knew we'd be left feeling a bit hungry if that wasn't remedied.   Fortunately, the freezer inventory had revealed a portion of meat loaf not large enough for a meal, too much for two to eat comfortably.  I took it from the freezer and added to the soup pot.  I added a can of green beans and as the afternoon goes on, I will add something else to 'beef' it up and make it a less soupy soup.  later:  I added a bit of rice, and this made the soup slightly more filling.  It was quite good in the end and perfect for a day that had grown steadily colder.

While Caleb was out of the room and John gone, I set up the tree in the new stand and fluffed the branches.  The cord is too short to comfortably reach the extension cord that is meant to reach it.  I'll have to choose between the tree and the lamp...Hard choice?  Ha, not at all!

Dec. 7   Happy Channukah...Or so it shall be tonight at sunset.  

The world was white with frost this morning, but the sun has been lovely and warm.  Caleb went out about noon and played for a good little while.  He was tired of being cooped up indoors due to the chill wind we'd had.  He's been quite good overall, but this noon gave us some difficulty with lots of resistance when requested or told to do anything.  I'm sure it's because he's had to NOT do so much this week.  And he has been very good, overall.  

So, I took him out this morning.  The wind yesterday had been cold, and it was unpleasantly so.  Caleb went out but had no desire to stay out very long.  Today, though the night had been extremely cold, the sun was shining and warm and the air still.  It was really quite lovely, especially if you chose to sit in the sun, as I did.   I brought out a box of Kinetic sand we'd found on sale at the end of summer, and he played happily there in the sun for quite a little while.

But that little boy longed to see the power tools that were making such an awesome noise, see the men working, etc.  He would edge steadily over to where they were working, and I'd have to call him back.  He got very frustrated with me and eventually he just stopped coming back when told to do so.  Fortunately, it was very near lunch time, and he was ready for quiet time.

The day passed.  Work on the kitchen continues.  Meals in my temp kitchen have gone very well, surprisingly so.  All that thinking beforehand about how to manage cooking during this time paid off nicely.  

Tonight's supper: a Pot roast, but not the usual.  I had a chuck roast that was frozen, which I put in the slow cooker.  I chopped onion, added garlic, some salsa and a bottle of taco sauce to it, along with a bit of salt, cumin and oregano.  I served it with black beans, corn, a green salad and whole grain tortillas. 

Katie came in this evening and started wrapping gifts.  I'll have to move them tomorrow, but for now they are under the lit Christmas tree.  She said it made it feel more like Christmas.  It does look nice, but I'm not quite ready for the full-blown Christmas at the moment.  My mind is pre-occupied with all that I must do over the weekend, namely moving all the things from the bathroom because they will start that job next week.  I am so caught up in the lists within my head that I realized we'd completely forgotten to even light the Chanukkiah tonight at about 8pm.  

By way of a celebration of sort I opened the Christmas Fruit Cake.  It was spicy and rich and moist and delicious.  John opted for a favorite candy bar.  He i no fan of fruitcake.

Dec. 8  Our regional Kroger store are not even offering the current round of digital deals at all...Jut another wrinkle in trying to navigate the grocery store game!  I get the preview ad for the coming week on Tuesday.  I typically jot down wanted item and then when the new deal are current, I'll go load up the coupon, especially the digital deal.

But when I went to do that this week, few of the items on my list of deal corresponded with what our store offered coupons for. To say the least it was confusing.  I tend to jot down only those things I think my family will want or which I know we need, so it frustrated me. 

I have done more and more of my shopping at Kroger of late because the deals are often better than sale prices at Aldi.   However, with the lack of rain checks for outage (no longer do they do this for any item that is a buy 4/5/6 get a discount, nor for their loss leaders...and I'm not sure what that leaves to get a raincheck for...but they also do not offer substitutions.  Now we find they aren't even offering the items in the ad at all...what next?

I checked back today jut to be sure there was no glitch in their system.  Apparently not.  o do I continue to hop at Kroger?  I don't know.

Caleb and I worked in the yard this morning.  We picked up two wagon loads of limbs that had blown from the tree.  I ripped up all the old weed mat that Seneca had dug up and left in tatters.  I replaced the block in their proper places.  Then we went around back and worked in that area.  I made the bed about the Sweet Gum a little smaller which now has netted me almost enough blocks to finish the bed.  Funny how much easier that job is in 55F weather compared to105F.  I didn't even get warm, and the task was finished in under 10 minutes. 

Caleb and I shopped locally once more.  I spent just over $30.  I got bread, cheese, bacon, half and half, bagel, bananas and chips.   The grocery had steady business.  I told John I'd noted that the gambling machine are back, but they are in a side room that is not right up in your face.  I don't like it, but I do appreciate the owner at least attempting to make it less visible.

We went on to the local diner to pick up some lunch.  Town was hopping. I had to wait quite a little bit for our food.  I'll say that eating locally might be good for the local economy but it's not the best thing for mine.  Food for the three of us, just enough to feed the three of us, was more than our dinner out on Sunday and there was no leftovers.  And we're not getting a rounded meal, jut a protein and fries...