Diary of a Homemaker's Week: Catching Up

 

Saturday:  The week was bound to take a toll on us.   We were so weary yesterday evening after Sam picked up the kiddos (I fed everyone supper).  John and I were cleaning up and I could tell from the way he was vacuuming that he was 'mad' cleaning.  I know it well, as it's a common method for me to clean when I am really upset over something.  He was overtired, I was tired, there was a lot of work we'd ignored all week long, and we were both a little sad that our granddaughter had gone.  And we were overwhelmed with all we needed to do, and the start of this week is a busy one as well.

We stopped, sat down in a cool place, and had a quiet talk about all that was bothering him.  Yes, it delayed housework but it all got done in the end.  Restoring our peace was the most important thing we could do at that moment in time, and it paid off.

This morning, we have been busy getting the house back into shape.  I puttered in the kitchen, the one thing I didn't do much of at all this week since the girls were rarely here for meals.  John and I pretty much ate salads, sandwiches, and leftovers from last weekend.

After I'd stripped the beds and baths, John did laundry while I remade beds.  I discovered that I have only one set of sheets for the guest bed. I vaguely recall a bottom sheet tearing when Katie moved out...I never replaced it.  I think it's because it is my desire to put twin beds in that room rather than the full-size bed we currently have.  And honestly, I'm just as reluctant now to buy an extra set of sheets because I still hope to change the bed in that room.  In the meantime, we seldom have guests and really don't need a second set of sheets, at least not new ones.  I'll lay odds I can find pretty, quality cotton sheets at the flea market in town that are full sized.  I think I'll go in soon and look.

I cleaned and reorganized one set of pantry cabinets this morning.  They're all out of sorts presently.  I found expired dry milk powder, and UHT milk.  The milk powder smells and looks just fine.  I know the UHT milk can turn a rather nasty color, so I'll make it a point to jump right on opening and using those if they are still good.  

As I go through the rest of the cupboards, I'm going to start pulling out the cans and bottles of things that should still be good but are expired and make it a point to use them.  At the same time, I want to assess why I have them and if they are actually worth the expense of purchasing again.  The UHT milk is lactose-free.  I had that on hand for Caleb, so he would have milk even if we couldn't find it in town.   That is not something I'll replace.

I also did a quick organization of the fridge and found the zucchini I'd bought from the clearance produce rack.  Two of the three in the package had gone bad but one was still firm and nice.  I tossed the spoiled ones in the compost and will cook the last one as part of my supper tonight.  

I made up a jar of Shakers lemonade for us today.  I used all but one of the peaches to make a lovely peach cobbler.  I used some chicken tenders that have been in the freezer for a little while to make salads today for our lunch.   For supper tonight, I'm barbecuing Pork Chops, and I will have a zucchini gratin, while John will have the rest of the potato salad I made yesterday evening.  

I'd opened the other pantry cabinet and noted right away the 'off' smell of a potato going bad.  I actually found four potatoes, three of them salvageable.  I washed all the rest and left them to dry fully but before putting them back in my potato box with a fresh section of newspaper to line the box.  I'll have to use all of those potatoes this week though, or I'm going to have them all go to waste.

Tomorrow will be a busy day.  

Sunday:  Katie had been looking forward to our visit this weekend.  We ran by last weekend and found her in tears of overwhelm.  Last week she managed to knock out all of her continuing education units and has renewed her licenses, do all of her work from home job, entertain her niece and keep two toddlers happy.  Super woman, right there.   It left her feeling very well indeed.

I felt our new grandbaby kick good and hard today.  That set the three children off, as they wanted to feel him kick as well.

John and I carried in fried chicken and Katie's requested birthday treat of Key Lime Pie.  Katie made the sides and cut up cantaloupe and honey dew melons.  It made a lovely lunch.  

The children were most anxious to eat pie and nearly drove us mad asking if they could have pie yet.  They were so sweet singing Happy Birthday to Katie.  Caleb was especially keen and sang multiple verses to 'my dear Mama'.  When the left the littles were yawning and whining mightily.  

John and I are tired.  When we got home this afternoon, we both took a nap.

I should be working in the kitchen.  I need to make fresh bread.  But it was 102 this afternoon.  This is the time of year I either buy bread at the store or I bake it in the bread machine.  I'm not keen on that squared loaf of bread and neither is John as it's awkward to store and awkward to cut neatly.  But I still prefer it over the taste of store-bought breads, and when it's as hot as today, even the heat of the bread machine isn't very welcome.

The dishwasher needs to be unloaded and refilled.  I have to plan meals for the week ahead.  I haven't even made my bed today.  I've gotten as far as sorting out what we might have for supper tonight...that's not cast in concrete, though.

Monday I must go sit with the kids very early in the morning so that Sam can get some maintenance work done on his car.  I plan to take the kids to the library either Monday or Tuesday.   It's so hot, I wish we could go in the morning, but the one in Butler doesn't open until 1pm and the one in Reynolds doesn't open until Wednesday afternoon. There are no fun events offered this coming week until after they have left on their trip.  I told Sam I'd return all their current books and let them pick out two each to take on the journey with them.  I've printed out the list of books we all need to return, all of which are currently past due.

Our library has ceased collecting fines as of June 2024.  The librarian told me they'd done a study which showed they didn't collect enough fines to benefit the library and that those who weren't going to return a book simply wouldn't return it at all.  They're counting on the patrons to be honorable in their intent to return. We are.  I just got sidelined this past week with the girls here.  

I have briefly entertained the idea of making the kids each a bag of travel goodies...Not foods but of something to entertain themselves with when riding and game machines pall.  That's one more added thing to do this week and I don't know if I can even do anything reasonably.  I'm hoping to get a chance to do a bit of dollar store shopping.  We'll see how that goes.

This last week of June promises to be as busy as the whole month has been thus far.  I'd thought I'd have time at some point this month to write a few posts to have in reserve for July, but I didn't.  

Gracious...It's time to start getting supper together if we are going to eat tonight so I'm off to the kitchen to at least attend to the necessities in that.  

We ate lunch with Katie today.  We carried in chicken.  She made mac and cheese for the children, and stuffing for us.  She cut up Honey Dew and Cantaloupe.

later: I cannot for the life of me remember what we ate for supper.  Perhaps leftover Pizza...

Monday:  Up early this morning so I could enjoy a cup of coffee prior to going over to stay with the kids. I was at Sam's before 7:15 and sent him on his way to get his oil changed.  Millie was up and spent time with me.  The boys didn't appear until nearly 9am.

The children were not in the best of moods.  The weather outdoors was heavily overcast, and Millie kept complaining that it was 'still dark'.   We had several rain showers, which came in sullen fits, a lot like the children's behavior this morning.  Generally, they are fairly even tempered but lots of moody sulks today from all three.  I wish I'd felt up to being the stern Gramma, but I just looked at them in turn and sighed and told them, "Go sulk it out and then come back."  All in all, they managed to find a better mood until they felt the need to sulk again.  At least they took it in turns.

Sam didn't get back until lunch time.  I was so hungry and rued not eating breakfast before I left home this morning.  The kids weren't hungry but were offered breakfast multiples of times.  

When I returned home, John and I ate sandwiches.  I also rued not taking time yesterday evening to prep ahead for today.  Lesson learned.  

I've been busy all afternoon here at home, cleaning and clearing.  The rain lowered the temperature a good bit, so I'm making bread this afternoon, too, but it will likely be the last I make in the oven this summer. I'll either buy bread or use the bread machine to bake it.  It's going to be 100F all the rest of this week.  Tomorrow we're promised a 'feels like' of 111F... Yep.  Definitely not the weather to bake.

Skipped breakfast.

Ham sandwiches with chips for lunch.

Fried Chicken, Stuffing, Butter beans, Cranberry sauce.  I had chicken in the freezer that needed to be eaten, used the last of the butter beans from the freezer and boxed stuffing that had expired.

Tuesday:  I played in the closet this morning, after I'd cleaned the kitchen.  I put together some really easy casual tops with necklaces and about five dressier sort of outfits.  It's that time of year when the days turn boiling hot.  Frankly, I'd rather stay home and not dress to go out at all.  At home I can wear capris and tissue thin t-shirts.  Out and about, I feel compelled to look nicer.  Fortunately, this year I have invested in three maxi dresses.  I ordered a third one this month.  They are so light and lovely to wear.  I have pulled all three to be used frequently this coming month.  However, there are times that a dress is a not what I want to wear. 

I received a Stitch Fix box today.  It's the first I've gotten since March, I think.  I returned every item in that box.  This time I'm debating on two items, definitely returning one and keeping two for sure.  The stylist had selected a small crossbody bag which I declined.  I explained that I needed a larger bag.  She sent me an equally as small crossbody bag with the excuse that it would look 'cute', though she acknowledged I'd asked for a larger bag.  I feel a bit irritated over that because I want my purses to be a practical size and I'd specifically stated that any bag I got should be large enough to hold a bottle of water and possibly a book as well as my wallet.  I find it frustrating that she paid attention to what I'd said but ignored it in favor of her own personal taste.  

I went over the checkbook, looking to see how best to handle our upcoming insurance renewal.  Should I borrow from savings and pay the six months at once?  It would save me a little each month to do so.  But it's a chunk to take from savings.  I've looked at 'borrowing' from other categories where I have a bit of a balance.  Repaying those categories will take finagling.  I'll have to put this to prayer.  I know our next quarter of house insurance is coming due, too.  I have that fee set aside.

I am taking the children to the library this afternoon.  I'm packing water bottles and a bottle of ice to keep them cold.  I thought I'd let them play for a little.  There are no programs this week until Friday.  They will be on their trip then.

I'm looking forward to having a couple of days 'off' after this.  It will be nice to plan my day according to what we choose to do instead of around an appointment or visit or childcare.

I've been thinking about what July might look like. Thankfully nothing near as busy as June has been for us...and just the opposite for Sam!

Meals:  Eggs, Sausage, Toast

Stuffed Potatoes, Broccoli.  I found an idea online for using leftover roast beef: diced roast beef, caramelized onions, sour cream and cheddar.  Yum!  I had roast beef that was cooked in January and there's enough for two meals.  We ate generous portions for lunch.

Hot Dogs, Sauerkraut, Pickles, Oven Fries.

Wednesday:  I was up before 7am this morning.  I wanted to get outdoors and water plants.  I'd noted that the Asiatic lilies were burning so I moved that pot to an area with dappled shade.  I told John if these high temps keep up (currently it's 100F) I'd have to move the patio plants to other areas to keep them from burning up...Or resign myself to losing all of my potted plants entirely.  

John decided to go ahead and mow our lawn this morning.  He was all done in about 2 hours, and it was fairly nice outdoors then.  By 10am when I left to go shopping it was already 94.  This is the season when my cookery changes.  No more baking or using the oven.  It's all appliances from now until we have a significant cool down and that means purchased bakery items (bread and sweets).  Fortunately, a loaf of bread will last us a week and only John is eating sweets so those stretch quite a bit.

After I had a lovely breakfast, I got ready to go shopping.  I had to have cat food.  I went over my budget though.  Not in the least sorry.  The reduced-price meat case was packed with quality packets of chicken thighs.  I got four.  I told John if we'd had a second freezer I'd have gotten a lot more.  One package had a coupon for $1.50 which the cashier noticed and scanned.  If I'd had freezer space, I'd have turned and gone right back to the counter and looked for every package with that coupon because it made the thighs less than 12c each!

I also got a good bit of produce from the clearance produce rack.  Today was tomatoes, potatoes, avocados, green onions and bell peppers.  I wish I'd bought the onions I saw too but I didn't, so there we are.

Instead of stopping for lunch, I headed home and planned a meal from what I knew we had on hand here in the house.  

And I remembered the cat food!  Hooray, lol.

Meals:  I had yogurt with blueberries and toast.  John had two boiled eggs and toast.

I made myself a low-carb wrap.  John ate a sandwich of the same ingredients.  We had chips and topped the meal off with a frozen treat for me and ice cream for John.

I kept a package of those chicken thighs out.  I plan to do something with them.  It's 4:30 and I haven't yet decided what 'something' is.  Perhaps panfried with potatoes and served with a Dijon cream sauce, a side of green beans and a green salad.  That sounds pretty darn good.  I'll go with that.

That's really all I've done today.  We are pet sitting for the next week and must go feed the nine cats and 1 dog twice a day, though I told John I'll not be feeding the dog twice a day.  His food bowl is outdoors and he's going to be locked in the house all night long, so why put food on the porch for some other critter to come up and eat?  I see no point at all.  I'll make sure he's got a water bowl somewhere.  

Thursday:  The day has flown by.  I didn't do a lot, and that's the absolute truth.  I went up this morning very early to feed the cats and let the dog out.  Poor Sheldon.  He stood on the porch and made crying motions with his mouth.  I think he's missing his family.  Poor doggy.  I took extra time this evening and loved on him.  

We had rain today.  I was flabbergasted.  It not only was predicted, it started when they said it would!  My gracious!  Someone hire that weatherman/woman and give them a raise.  The rain was most welcome.  John went out and started setting plants under the eaves of the house to get water.  You know it must be terribly dry if he's aware of how desperately the potted plants need water.  We sat on the porch and just enjoyed it.  It smelled so lovely and fresh and clean.  It lasted quite a little while, too.

The rain brought cooler temperatures with it.  Our high today was 82.  Gosh but that feels a lot nicer than 100F.

Meals: Toast

Chicken Pot Pie, Squash, Peach Salad

Mongolian Chicken Noodles with stir-fried vegetables

Friday:  I'll keep this fairly brief.  It's later than usual for me to finish up a post.  We've spent the afternoon watching Caleb while Katie went to a longer appointment.  She's now at the point where her OB appointments are every other week.  The countdown begins.

Caleb came out to greet us today and told us he'd been a 'little bit bad' today.  Well, I guess he decided to keep it up because he was a little bit bad for us all afternoon long.  Not horrid, but definitely not his best behavior.  He told me sincerely that he wanted to be good, that he didn't know why he must act bad.  I suspect he needed some sunshine and outdoor activity, something that is hard to come by when Katie must work at her desk and there is no safe space to turn him outdoors.  

At this moment, I'm calling June at an end.  Yes, I know there are two more days but I'm ready to have this month at an end.  It was absolutely a great month.  I'm not wishing to shut it down early because it's been hard.  I'm just tired.  I need the next two days off in order to face the month coming in.  The calendar is slowly beginning to fill in.  Not like June's but there are enough dates that we'll need to consult the calendar before we say 'Yes' to anything more.

On the way home we stopped and picked up take-out at my request.  I was ready for a break from cooking, didn't want to go through the struggle of figuring out what we'd eat and then preparing it.  I should be thinking about meals for the next couple of days but not right now.  

The one thing I have to do at present is go tend to pets at the other house.  And then I can honestly call this day 'done'.

How was your week?  Come tell us about it!

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