tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62885569790120314982024-02-19T05:28:02.506-08:00Dice, Slice, Spice...Nice!This blog is about my struggles...good and bad...to try to run a Christian household. Meal planning, cooking, sometimes cleaning and just trying to make it work.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.comBlogger32125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-17317764245994430112015-11-10T12:25:00.000-08:002015-11-10T12:25:01.145-08:00Tough Week Already.So...it is already shaping up to be a tough week. <br />
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Have not done very well at creating and sticking to menu plans, but have not been eating out as much either. This week we I fixed two new recipes. <a href="http://allrecipes.com/recipe/216756/baked-ham-and-cheese-party-sandwiches/" target="_blank">Ham and Cheese Sliders</a> and <a href="http://www.chelseasmessyapron.com/autumn-crunch-pasta-salad/" target="_blank">Autumn Pasta Crunch Salad</a>. It is so hard to prepare supper these days, daughter's work schedule changes weekly and son's schedule has just been changed to a split shift (plus he was talking in to going back to work part time at the restaurant he used to work at) so I never know if I am cooking for 2, 3 or four people. Casserole type dishes don't really matter, but since the family is not really keen on them I try to not make them too often. Also we are attempting to cut back on carbs, so cutting pasta, rice and potatoes. In other words, the cheaper eats. Throw chicken in there, because I am the only one that likes it. However, I am the main cook, so am going to cook what I can eat most of the time and then cook for hubby's taste a couple of times a week. Son is a bit of gourmet snob, don't know where he learned that from because he grew up on basic country home cooking. However, he has said that from time to time he will take any left overs to work with him. Really trying to cut back on the cost of groceries around here, especially since the family is shrinking a bit. But, they don't seem to really go for the cheap stuff so much anymore so I am having to try some new things. I am working on budgeting for the whole house, not just the groceries though. Coupons don't work around here, and I took advantage of a local grocer on their daily markdowns but they are closed now.<br />
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Recipe review. The sliders were...okay. Not great, not terrible. My biggest complaint was that the bread toasted a bit too hard. If I make this again I think I will cover with foil for the first half of the cooking time. The pasta salad was...okay. I actually enjoyed it, but I didn't read the recipe correctly and left out what I feel were a couple of important steps. Also, when I make this again...and I will make it again...I will cut down on the amount of dressing. It really didn't seem like it was that much, but in the end it was. For my taste, it needed a little more sour to it. Maybe it is just me...but today's vinegar just doesn't seem to be as strong as it used to be.<br />
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So...here is what the <b>menu plan</b> looks like for the rest of the week.<br />
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<b>Tues</b>. - probably going out to the Crest, a neighborhood restaurant (both kids are working there part time) because it has been a really tough day. Besides, I set two whole chickens in the fridge to thaw yesterday morning and they are still froze solid. Also, Tuesday is Minestrone night at the Crest (the restaurant I mentioned) and they absolutely make the best.<br />
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<b>Wed</b>. Chicken - trying two recipes. One I have made before - beer can chicken (in the oven instead of on the grill) and the family actually does like that one. The other is a kind of take on that, using a bundt pan.<a href="http://www.justapinch.com/recipes/main-course/chicken/bundt-pan-roasted-chicken.html" target="_blank"> Bundt Pan Roasted Chicken</a> from <a href="http://www.justapinch.com/" target="_blank">Just a Pinch</a>...because anything from that site is just good. I am making two chickens with the purpose of having cooked chicken ready for some other dishes.<br />
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<b>Thur</b>. Pork Tenderloin with a couple of sides.<br />
<b>Fri</b>. Some type of beef dish.<br />
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I love looking at <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/" target="_blank">Organizing Junkie's</a> site and especially on <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/category/menu-plan-monday" target="_blank">Menu Plan Monday</a>. Check it out if you need some inspiration. Hoping to take advantage of grand kids being gone to get some cleaning done and better organized meal plans.<br />
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Having our first winter storm...nothing much to it for my area except temperature change. Enough to have my bones really aching. This time change is hard on me too, the early darkness (we are on Pacific time, it get's dark about 5 now, by Jan. it will be totally deep dark by 4:30) is so depressing.<br />
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Just when I plan out some major chores, around keeping grand babies, something happens and changes it all. I know that you all have had that experience. At any rate, my heavy cleaning plans have been put off by a couple of days...no big deal...just need to accept it and go on. On that note, it looks like my youngest daughter will be moving out this week end, so may be able to actually empty out one of the storage units. YEAH, cuts that cost in half. I plan to turn her room into a play room slash den. The grand babies will use it during the day and I can just put a gate up to keep the youngest safely in check while I do my chores and maybe even a bit of sewing. (Hopefully, praying for this) then in the evenings I can use it as a room to hang out in away from all the sports that floods my television. LOL I am daycare for the youngest two grand babies (age 2 and 4) during the week so a room for them will be so awesome. I can get all the toy clutter out of the living room.<br />
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Okay...on the list for major cleaning.<br />
1. Master Bedroom - it is full of clothes that need to be put up or washed and several boxes of misc stuff that I just can't seem to let go of. I am hoping to get it all cleared away and then will be able to bring in my dress form so I can actually work on my "old West" or "Victorian" wardrobe for our cowboy action shooting matches. I have some crochet projects that need to be finished up so I can get the yarn put up. Also hope to weed out some clothes and shoes and such for donation or for yard sale.<br />
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2. Living room/dining area - I need to move all the furniture and clean out the toys from underneath, vacuum the furniture to hopefully get rid of a lot...I MEAN A LOT...of cat hair. Dusting, cleaning walls and floors, mopping as well.<br />
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3. Bathroom - have tried everything I have seen on the web and several commercial products. NOTHING works. The bathtub is old, original to the house (1985) and really just needs to be replaced. Am working on nudging hubby to start on that project.<br />
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4. Kitchen - need to clean out cabinets and pantry again. There are a lot of things I just don't use taking up room and some things I need to be using more (vegetable steamer) that is still boxed up in storage from when we remodeled the kitchen...almost two years ago. My pantry is so jumbled up that I have no idea what I have and what I don't have...and so much it makes it hard to use the pull outs because cans and boxes are constantly falling over or the weight causes the pull up to fall down when pulled out. Need to clean out the freezer and organize it as well. Also have an extra fridge that is mainly used for beer, soda and extra milk. Hubby has told me I can go ahead and get rid of all the beer because it is so old. He is convinced that the fridge is costing us an extra $30 to $40 dollars a month in electricity. I am not, but am willing to empty it out and shut it off...after holiday meals. LOL<br />
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5. Holidays - have to figure out what we are doing...where we are doing it...for the next couple of months.<br />
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6. Organize - I am great at making plans, writing list, just not on execution. If I can finally get #1 & 2 done, I can actually be able to get time to plan out meals and such.<br />
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WELL...guess I got on a bit of a rant there. Especially since this was supposed to be posted yesterday, but after my little venting episode about Paleo Diets (Nov. 8) I should just cut it off and post already. <br />
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Thank you for visiting and please come back again.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-28427894044299280082015-11-08T17:20:00.002-08:002015-11-08T17:31:43.765-08:00My Take on the Paleo Diet Plan.Wow, best intentions and all that. Nothing has gone as planned for many...many...months now. I am hoping to do better, and I guess considering it had been almost an entire year between my last two postings, guess a little less than a month is an improvement. So here goes.<br />
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Okay, we need to make some serious changes (have mentioned that on the blog before but have not followed through) so that is #1 on my list at the moment. Cleaning has moved to #2 because the changes in diet and lifestyle are hopefully going to change my...and my family's...health and that has become a top priority. I have spent several hours going over different food plans. Not going to say diet...that is a bad word that kind of defeats me before starting. I know that is all in my brain, but you know...the brain runs the body so guess I will humor it. At any rate...I have side tracked so back on the trail of thought. <br />
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I have seen so much about Paleo diets, that I just had to investigate it a bit. OH MY GOSH! I don't want to be a negative Nancy here, but come on people, that is so TOTALLY beyond rational. I am not going to slam anyone that believes in it and is following it, but here are my reasons for crossing it off of my list.<br />
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For one, it is way too confusing. I mean, the sites are so random in their information that the only thing I found consistent was the fact that they all agree your food intake, or your meals, should be that of what a caveman would eat, based on what was available to them at that time. That is the only consistent point. I find through my limited amount of research (because it just all started running together in my brain) that I had some serious questions come up in my thought process. Here are some things I just don't agree with and why.<br />
1. Early man was healthier. Okay, how can we know this when the life span for them was 34 years for the man, 30 years for the woman. They worked too hard and didn't live long enough to develop obesity or problems related to such. They died - according to what scientist have found in fossils and bones - of broken bones, starvation, infections, animal attacks and exposure to the elements. If the Paleolithic peoples had the technology in medicine, farming, engineering and weaponry of even the middle ages, much less modern today, they would not be extinct. <br />
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2. Eat low amounts of meat and high amounts of vegetables. Those people ate what they could find. They hunted, so probably was large a mounts of meat. They didn't farm, so the general view is that all cereals and grains would be out. I know that archaeologist have found proof of ancient tribes that ground corn and grasses into some type of loaf or biscuit to eat, it carried well in their travels. True they didn't eat bread, muffins or pastas as we know it. For one they hadn't figured out how to farm and stay in one place at that time and also, they barely had figured out fire, much less ovens to bake in. This point also brings me to some recipes that are supportive of the Paleo diet and I just don't understand a few things. How can potatoes be Paleo friendly? Their origins are with the Indians of Peru, around 8,000 to 5,000 BC, and not really even cultivated until the 1500's. Much later than the Paleolithic period. Cauliflower is another allowed vegetable, however, it wasn't until the 12 and 13 century that it started showing up in the form as we know it when it was brought from Syria to the Brittanys.<br />
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3. A couple of sites suggest eating lots of fats, such as butter - but dairy is not allowed due to no domestic cattle in the Paleo world. So the suggestion of duck fat I get, even rendering boars down for their fat, But butter and oils...no way. I just don't buy it that they knew how to process corn or olives in to oil...if they even knew what corn was.<br />
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I could go on and on, but I won't. My head is already about to explode due to overload. I will conclude with this. Hamburgers are not Paleo friendly, even if you wrap it in lettuce instead of a bun. 1. Beef was not hunted<br />
2. Cheese was not processed<br />
3. For years tomatoes were considered poison.<br />
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Based on my research...and I am in NO WAY a professional researcher, dietitian, nutritionist or historian...Paleo diet is just not for my household.<br />
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So, I keep on searching for the plan that fits us best. I readily admit that we need to make some huge changes in our eating, I just don't know which direction that needs to go. For now, I will be easing us in to some changes. Less processed foods, more whole vegetables and fruits, less sugar and smaller portions will be the focus at present.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-84991002695984026422015-08-17T13:30:00.001-07:002015-08-17T13:53:07.445-07:00Life Gets Crazy Sometimes.My life has been so chaotic the past few months, almost a year now, that I had not even realized how long it had been since I posted. I will be getting back on track with that soon. Actually I am working on getting every thing cleaned up and back on track with planning and cooking and cleaning and such by September 1. That is the goal anyway. <br />
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I made <a href="http://lecremedelacrumb.com/2014/09/easy-chicken-gyros-tzatziki-sauce.html" target="_blank">Chicken Gyros with Tzatziki</a> sauce for lunch yesterday and they were a hit. It was really cheap as well as being very quick and easy. I cheated a bit and bought the sauce already made from a vendor at the farmer's market. I am going to try and make a batch next week as it looks simple and would be much cheaper. So, total for meal $2.93 for four servings - not including the sauce - which is about .73 which is pretty darn cheap.<br />
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I had scored a big purchase of mark down meat at the local grocery store. Spent less than $50 and have enough meat for around 22 meals, depends on how the left overs go, may even be more. I pulled out the foam tray and bagged up in recipe portions using my vacuum sealer. Left the price and weight tags in it for two reasons: 1. I can know what the meat is, and 2. I can know how much it weighs and the price I paid so I can figure cost of meals better. Fixed just over a pound of chicken breast, had half of it left over, will use it later in the week for chicken enchiladas.<br />
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So far, the menu plan is still a little sketchy as I am trying to get adjusted to new schedules for everyone around here. The grand babies (am daycare for them during the week) started preschool three mornings a week now. Youngest daughter gave up her temp job and is now only working her primary job which the hours change a lot in. Next week I will post what I actually made. Tonight we are having something out of ground beef. I have it fresh but need to use it as it has been in fridge for a couple of days already. Was going to make burgers, but hubby had that for lunch - so did I but we won't tell him that. Thought about tacos, a favorite around here, but we had mexican last night. I would love to have some spaghetti, but hubby doesn't like pasta. He may just have to eat the sauce on bread - which he usually does - or just have cereal. I have some handmade pasta from the farmer's market, so may make stroganoff. Who knows.<br />
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I am hoping to get the house all cleaned up and do a little purging so I can make room an get rid of clutter. Now that we are fully in to our new hobby of cowboy action shooting, also known as SASS or Single Action Shooting Society.<br />
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You have no idea how much room I need to store these old west clothes and matching accessories. Guys have it lucky, pair of pants, shirt some suspenders and they are good to go. Women, we have hats, purses, frilled up dresses with thousands of yards of fabric, corsets, petticoats and that is just for a dinner party. To actually shoot (we compete in SASS sanctioned shooting competitions), it is a plain skirt and blouse, maybe a corset, then leather holsters and ammo belt on top of that. The clothing is expensive and I hope to be making some for myself soon.<br />
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I am not as bad as a hoarder on the tv shows, but getting alarmingly close. I have two storage units and once our weather cools down a bit I am hoping to get rid of at least 30% of it and go in to one unit. Would really help save some money.<br />
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Well, thanks for dropping in and hopefully will be seeing you next week. If you need some help with planning meals, check out all the great cooks linked up to <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/category/menu-plan-monday" target="_blank">Meal Plan Monday</a> each week.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-63547959300431615822014-11-24T08:41:00.000-08:002014-11-24T08:41:04.226-08:00Menu Plan 11/24 Wow, has it been a week or what? Grand kids and their mom have been sick, I have been sick, youngest daughter, Miss Zebra turned 18 this past Friday and had a party in the back yard...man cave...what ever you want to call it, and we had our Thanksgiving this past Saturday.<br />
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If you are visiting from <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/" target="_blank">Organizing Junkies</a> page for <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/category/menu-plan-monday" target="_blank">Meal Plan Monday</a>, welcome. I do my planning a little differently for the blog, I post what we had for the week as opposed to what we are going to have. Still trying to organize a system that will work for me with my crazy home life. I love all the inspiration on the MPM links and I love all her other info about organizing, storage, time management and such. So, here we go.<br />
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I have to say, I can't remember what all I cooked this past week, will have to do better about that, but know that I did cook at home. I take that back, <b><u>Tuesday</u></b> hubby got stuck at work late and I had one of my stupid little heart episodes (at least no emergency room this time) and since I was all by myself I went over to the Crest Bar and Grill. Tuesday is there Minestrone night so I had a bowl of that with a baked potato on the side.<br />
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On <b><u>Wednesday</u></b>, I do remember making Chile relleno quiche. Hubby loved that one. <br />
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All I remember about <b><u>Thursday</u></b> was spending most of the day, literally hours of the day, defrosting and cleaning my deep freeze and fridge. I had to make room for all the stuff I intended to make ahead and get a jump start on the turkey dinner. OH MY GOSH! I bet I bagged up and threw away at least $200 worth of meat and vegetables all freezer burnt and I knew my family would not touch it. It makes me physically ill when ever I do that, feels like such a TOTAL waste of good money. Something I am DETERMINED to change. More about that later.<br />
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As I said, <b><u>Friday</u></b> was the party, we had pizza and cake. <br />
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I don't normally buy bakery cakes likes this, but since it was her 18th birthday, I splurged. She's worth it. I was however very disappointed at how dry and crumbly the cake texture was. Especially for the reputation that particular bakery has as being the best in town. Costco cakes are WAY better.<br />
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<u><b>Saturday</b></u>, I got up early, did my grocery shopping (three stores I walked through) for the Thanksgiving meal and for the house for the next week. I am proud to stay I stayed with in my budget. We got paid on Friday so it worked out great. Except for the fact that either I have some new ailment going on or I am so terribly out of shape that I can barely function. By the time I did the shopping, put it away, did the cleaning and cooking, I was one done chick. I honestly can't remember hurting so bad before. I was actually limping by feet hurt so bad. To add grief on top of all the work I was doing, I found out (when we cut in to the turkey) that my stove is not heating correctly. I had it set on 350 degrees, the turkey was still raw, the sides were not cooking, so we ended up eating an hour and a half later than planned. EEK GADS, I have so much food left over. Seems by then no one was much in the mood to eat, two of my kids were having stomach problems as well. On the menu for our Thanksgiving dinner...a few days early...was turkey, dressing, gravy, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, fruit salad, pistachio salad, buttermilk pie, cranberry sauce and a relish tray with Hawaiian rolls.<br />
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<u><b>Sunday</b></u> I slept in, did dishes, hubby helped me do the laundry, played computer games, and took some boxes to the storage unit. We had lunch at Wendy's...since it is in the parking lot of the Home Depot and we had just finished up a little shopping in there...OH MY GOSH it was totally HORRIBLE. I ordered the Asian chicken cashew salad...first they didn't give me any dressing, then there was not a single cashew in it. Will not be going back there. Hubby grilled steaks for supper and I made seasoned new potatoes, and we grazed on left overs.<br />
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Thanks for stopping by, I hope you have a very happy Thanksgiving Day.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-72670656227666517132014-11-17T09:07:00.002-08:002014-11-17T09:07:30.456-08:00Last Weeks Hits Everything just kind of fell apart around here, and I do mean everything, as far as cooking, cleaning and organization. The goal this week is to get back on track and hopefully do a mini cooking session for the freezer as well.<br />
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I wanted to get back on track with posting to <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/category/menu-plan-monday" target="_blank">Meal Plan Monday</a> over at <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/" target="_blank">Organizing Junkie</a>, but don't have a plan for the week as yet. So...I figured maybe I would just share some recipes I tried this week that were hits.<br />
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<a href="http://www.theslowroasteditalian.com/2014/04/maid-rite-copycat-loose-meat-sandwiches-recipe.html" target="_blank">Maid-Rite Copycat</a> - or Loose Meat Sandwich. OH MY GOSH!, this was crazy good. I had never heard of these, guess they are a mid-west thing. The ingredients sounded like something the hubby would like, I am focused on trying some new things, so I gave it a whirl. It is a hit, the only change we will make is eating them in a tortilla instead of a bun.<br />
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<a href="http://allrecipes.com/recipe/authentic-german-potato-salad/" target="_blank">Authentic German Potato Salad</a> - Really great for a little bit of a change.<br />
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Here are few other dishes. Don't have recipes for them, but can tell you how to make them.<br />
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Honey Buttermilk Bread...okay, so it stuck to the top of the bread machine, but it was still good.<br />
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Cheese enchiladas, Spanish rice, pinto beans and Frito salad.<br />
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Fry bread tacos.<br />
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Ham steak, sweet potatoes and green beans.<br />
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If you live here in central to southern California, enjoy the fallish weather and pray for needed rain. If you live in the rest of the country...stay warm and safe. Thanks for stopping by.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-22386402432301351292014-10-29T10:48:00.002-07:002014-10-29T10:48:23.417-07:00I am so behind.I am so terribly behind with my blog post. Might as well just say I have abandoned it all. Kind of feels that way to be honest. <br />
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I have a famous, or maybe infamous is a better word, at any rate I have a "to-do" list. You know the one. All the things that need to be caught up? I should be taking advantage of the break from taking care of my two grand babies, but it just ain't happening. I won't get side tracked on that subject, want to stay on track with this.<br />
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Okay, so this is the food part of my blog. Here it is in a nutshell. All my grand plans for being organized, all my plans for grand cooking sessions, is all out the window. I can't remember the last time I planned a menu, although I have been cooking more and eating less processed meals. I am still terrible at resisting the urge to go out to eat, but working on it.<br />
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Here are my goals for the rest of the year.<br />
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1. Get back on track with menu planning.<br />
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2. Clean out freezer. Purge what is no longer any good.<br />
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3. Eat out less.<br />
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4. Cook more.<br />
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Sounds simple, but for me it is not. I really need to work very hard on getting back in control of this house.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-41531905245303717462014-03-10T09:53:00.002-07:002014-03-10T09:53:48.813-07:00Finally On The Mend - MPM 3/10-16I can actually say that I am finally...FINALLY...on the road to recovery. Still having coughing bouts at the stupidest of moments, but they are getting few and far between. Am I ever glad, because it seems the older you get the harder it is to hold in the bodily functions when you are coughing, sneezing, and coughing. Makes for a lot of laundry. Grand babies are doing great and for that I am very thankful. Would rather it be me that is sick and miserable than them.<br />
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Once again I am linking up with <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/category/menu-plan-monday" target="_blank">MPM</a> over at <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/" target="_blank">Organized Junkie</a>. If you haven't looked it over, there are over a hundred blogs linked up all sharing what their menu plan for the week is. Some are even thoughtful enough to post the recipes or links to the recipes. I don't have recipes or links today, but am hoping to post some through the week.<br />
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So far, this is the plan for the week.<br />
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Mon. - Rolled Meatloaf, green beans, mashed potatoes<br />
Tue. - King Ranch Chicken casserole, corn, beans<br />
Wed. - Meatball tortellini soup<br />
Thu. - Tilapia, rice, broccoli<br />
Fri. - Beef tips and noodles<br />
Sat. - Waiting to see if we will be in town<br />
Sun. - Steak, potato, salad<br />
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This is not set in stone, but it is the general plan. I have the freezer stocked well with a variety of meet. Local grocery had ground beef (93%) on sale for $2.99 a pound, which is a savings of $2.50 a pound. I loaded up, brought home just over 12 pounds and divided it up and packaged it in one pound packages for the freezer. Sunday may change if I end up having a family dinner, I have a big ham but was planning on it for Easter. The family has no clue, but I am implementing the "slash" plan this week. "Slashing" fast food, bad food by cutting portions a little but cooking healthier and more from scratch. "Slashing" spending as well. I have gotten cash for my budget for the next two weeks. Will be recording every penny I spend on a spread sheet to see where I am spending the most so I can figure out where I can cut the easiest. "Slashing" time wasters as well. At least where I can given that my day revolves around caring for a toddler and an infant.<br />
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This past week was pretty good as far as meals.<br />
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Slow cooked brisket. Man have I missed this. Still have a big portion in the freezer, already cooked, just waiting to be eaten. <br />
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Rotisserie chicken and noodles with butter cracker crumbs. My mom fixed this a lot when I was growing up and I was feeling a nostalgic so I made some. Of course I was the only one to eat them since hubby will not eat pasta of any kind.<br />
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My oldest daughter sent this box of heaven to me. A really sweet note telling me she had some good memories of me and wanted to thank me.<br />
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I made roast beef sandwiches one evening as well. They were good too.<br />
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No really great cooking went on, I was still a bit under the weather and it was a strange week with the little ones. However, no meals out, nothing brought home, hubby is happy we had home cooked meals each night. Okay, so the chicken was brought home from Costco, BUT...I can't buy chicken and spices to cook it up for less money than I buy one, and there is always some left over for other dishes.<br />
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Well, that is it for today. I have a huge stack of recipes printed out that I want to try so have to figure out how to throw them in the meal plan. I have some bananas that have for sure seen better days so am hoping to get them made up in to banana bread or muffins in the next day or two.<br />
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Thanks for stopping in, hope you enjoyed the visit. Come back soon to visit again.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-6108888352149516292014-02-25T14:03:00.003-08:002014-02-25T14:03:57.047-08:00Crazy Times.So, I finally get my kitchen back up and running and here I am sick as can be. So...this is going to be a short little posting just to make myself stay more current with my blog. Hopefully.<br />
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First of all, my bulb garden (the store's word for it) is doing wonderfully. <br />
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It smells so good when I go through the front door now. Not sure just which one, or if it is a combination of several, but the flowers fragrance really is divine. They are all still alive, except for the yellow tall ones (well the plant part is alive, the blooms have died off) and for me that is something.<br />
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The weather is starting to warm up finally and EVERYTHING in the town is budding, blooming and erupting with pollen and signs of life. We have all been under attack from our allergies, not to mention this cough and flu crap, so we just keep passing it back and forth.<br />
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The menu planning has been going pretty well. It has been fun finding all the gizmos I had put away for when I had my kitchen back. I was selling Pampered Chef, things got really crazy around here with the kitchen remodel, holidays, travel and illness I haven't been able to do much with it, trying to figure out if I want to continue with it, considering I am my best customer.<br />
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This is called a "salad chopper". You put a bunch of lettuce or spinach and stuff in a bowl, use this like a pair of scissors to chop up everything, right in the bowl. I saw a video where the demonstrator placed the chopper blade part straight in a can of tomatoes and just cut/chopped away, very interesting. However, I have to admit, I have not used it like that yet. I had a small bunch of green onions that I needed to slice for a recipe I was making, and I really hate chopping or slicing those little buggers, so I tried this gizmo on a whim. It worked WONDERFULLY! I will definitely be using this to chop those onions from now on.<br />
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Now this little gadget is called a julienne peeler. Also from Pampered Chef. I LOVE this thing. Those are zucchini and carrot strips in the bag, ready for stir fry. This thing just peels off a layer and cuts it in to strips at the same time. I will have to experiment a bit and see what other veggies this thing works on.<br />
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On the subject of menu planning. I have come to the realization that my current schedule is such that posting the menu plan for the coming week is just not going to work. One of the posters to the <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/category/menu-plan-monday" target="_blank">MPM</a> site list what they did have for the week and that seems to work well. I will be trying that next week.<br />
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Thanks for stopping by, come back and visit often.<br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-49550017265684343762014-02-10T06:51:00.000-08:002014-02-10T06:51:01.501-08:00MPM 2/10 - 14 Finally...A Working Kitchen...All NewFinally, I am so thrilled, I have a working kitchen again. My all new kitchen. The remodel is finally complete. I will add the photos shortly. I am just so happy it is all completely finished and it has turned out so much better than the one in my head. <br />
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First, getting back to a normal routine. I am going to link up with <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/2014/02/menu-plan-monday-feb-314.html" target="_blank">Menu Plan Monday</a> over at <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/" target="_blank">Organized Junkie</a>. I have not really had time to create the menu plans the way I wanted, but now that the kitchen is back up and running and I have my pantry, fridge and freezer all stocked pretty well, I will be working more on that. My main obstacle is the mess I face in my sewing room slash office. I can't even find the desk, have no comfortable chair to work out of, so that will actually be my priority this week. Nothing is going to get done today, I am taking a day off for my birthday. I know, kind of silly but just being honest. Another one of my goals for this year, honesty and being more realistic in my plans. So, that being said, this is my plan for the week.<br />
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Mon. - Steak, baked potato and salad. Hubby is grilling for my birthday tonight.<br />
Tue. - Chicken enchiladas, beans. (using left over rotisserie chicken being)<br />
Wed. - Roast, carrots, potatoes, green beans. <br />
Thu. - Stuffed peppers, corn casserole<br />
Fri. - Teriyaki Chicken and rice. (this is actually Hawaiian chicken that was on sale at Costco)<br />
Sat. - Burgers and fries.<br />
Sun. - Ham, broccoli cheese casserole, carrots, rolls.<br />
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This week end is Valentine's which has a totally different meaning for me than others. I will share that story another time. My son and his wife are going to a marriage retreat those days so I will have the babies all day and over night as well. Miss Zebra will be gone with the church youth to winter camp those days as well. I have had Mr. M overnight, when his little sister was born, but have not had baby girl over night. It will be a rough weekend for sure, but am glad that hubby will be here and son and daughter-in-law really need a little get away.<br />
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Now...drum roll...the new kitchen. Here is the post with all the <a href="http://blairblogcooking.blogspot.com/2013/11/remodeling-kitchen.html" target="_blank">before</a> photos. If you want to see the journey, just look back over the old post. I will start out with one photo taken before we started to show what the old kitchen originally looked like.<br />
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Before, you the bar with the tan tile counters that divided the kitchen from the dining area. Notice the great glass door cabinet? I hated that thing after about the second year of living here. <br />
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One thing I did not plan on, or rather did not fully understand, was the fact that these cabinets were 15 inches deep while the new standard is 12 inches deep. The whole layout flowed very poorly. The pantry was next to the stove, but the only counter space to prep anything was by the sink and the bar area. Which by the way, the bar was the only space large enough for pots and pans but the stove is across the room. Granted, it is not a large distance, but still very awkward to work in.<br />
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Now, after moving the pantry to the opposite end of the kitchen, creating more prep area, moving the fridge to the opposite wall and end of the kitchen, centering the stove on that wall a bit more, moving the dishwasher as well, I now have a wonderful new kitchen.<br />
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Hubby finished all the trim and the nobs on his day off. I have only had it fully working for a couple of weeks. The last week of January I got the glass tile backsplash installed, so it has been kind of working and not working as the last of the work was done.<br />
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I have to say, I just love my new tile backsplash. The brown colors just feel so warm and inviting to me. I may be wrong, but it just doesn't feel so dated either.<br />
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The original window was a total mess, it is very strange to be able to see out once again. <br />
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And, as you know I have added a few new small appliances as well. Hubby was very skeptical of the Keurig, especially since I don't drink coffee I just wanted hot cocoa quickly. Have to say, he is getting in to the whole K-cup experience though. He had to go out of town for a week, work related, and he called to tell me he wished he had taken some pods with him because his hotel room had a Keurig machine in it.<br />
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This is the view in to the dining area now. The camera kind of played a trick here, making it look like a very small space between the walls. The fridge and pantry could both have the doors extended and have walking space for a couple of people between them. After all, the floor tiles are 12 inch tiles and there are six of them (6 feet) between.<br />
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The glass front china hutch is my newest purchase. It has all of my mom's glass ware that I ended up with when she passed away. Found out that one of the china trays dates back to 1840. It was my great grandmother's, passed to my grandmother, passed to my mom and now to me. I only knew these ladies through my mom. The smaller hutch was built by my father and it has some little vintage odd pieces from my child hood and my souvenir coffee cup collection.<br />
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As I said, I have only had the functioning kitchen for a couple of weeks, but OH MY GOSH, WHAT A TOTAL DIFFERENCE. It really is a pure joy to work in this new kitchen, the new design flows SOOOO much better. I have to admit also, it is a lot more fun to clean up, now that I don't dread walking in it. Still have to fine tune a few things, change up a few cabinet contents as I have found that some things that I use more often than I thought are located to high to comfortably reach often. I am bound an determined that I only have to use the step stool occasionally to reach a pan or such instead of every day, which seems to happen now. I will get it figured out though.<br />
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Okay, now for a couple of other photos to share. Remember I told you about that window? Well, the original window was a double pane. The seal had deteriorated which made the glass milky between the panes. While I could still see out, it was like looking through a window that had been smeared with white paint or such.<br />
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This is a closer look at the new window. My little gnomes hanging out happy in the new window sill, my new cactus balls and now I have some colorful wind chimes hanging in front of the window to look at as well.<br />
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Aren't these just the cutest little things. Should be very easy to care for as well and they are grown for indoor settings so don't need the heat and total sun that you think a cactus would. I just love them. The top one has a purple stone in it, so I naturally thought of my birthstone - purple amethyst - for February. The bottom one doesn't show it clearly, but the red spot is actually a little lady bug. My wonderfully bright grandson, Mr. M of course, noticed the bug first thing and wanted to be lifted closer to see it. So funny.<br />
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Speaking of plants. My front entry way is my on going new project.<br />
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It was a little bland. I just wanted to dress it up a bit. I had an old computer desk that is built to go in a corner that was no longer being used. In fact, it will probably not last long at all on the porch, it was the victim of a flooding incident so the bottom wood is all warped, but hey...just couldn't toss it to the dump just yet.<br />
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I moved this old birdhouse out to it, added a wind chime bell, which Mr. M is totally fascinated with and won't come through the door until he has rang it a few times.<br />
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And then I purchased this "bulb garden" which is supposed to be a house plant but the florist told me that if it were in a protected spot with indirect light it would be fine. She was right. I need an updated photo, but all the little yellow flowers have bloomed out, the purple and red flowers have spread through the bottom of the stemmed plants making a flower carpet almost and the other two bulbs are about ready to have their blooms all open up. Eventually there will be a lot more plants on this shelf unit, I hope to really load it down actually. I need to get some more nails in the rafters to hang some plants from as well. At the moment, we have had a little cold spell come back to us, so it is good that I don't have too much out there yet. I do love seeing the pop of flowers every time I walk through my front door, kind of like that little bit of spring that hints at how wonderful summer will be.<br />
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It has been so dreary with the weather and the remodel that I just couldn't resist some fresh flowers for the table. It was a really cheap mixed bouquet, but the colors are so vibrant and warm, just really love them.<br />
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Goodness, this posting has gotten long. Thank you for stopping buy for a visit and please come back again.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-25735659136596125132014-01-06T11:45:00.002-08:002014-01-06T11:45:53.390-08:00Week 6 - Kitchen RemodelSo, here we are in to week 6 of the remodel. Still about two or three weeks to go.<br />
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The neighbor surprised me while we were gone for Christmas and installed the new window. Still have to do some trim work on it but man is it nice being able to look out and see things once again. Last week we had some warmer weather during the day, so it was nice to be able to open the window for a change and let some fresh air in. Well, fresh as can be for our area. Ha Ha<br />
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We are slowly getting there. The stove in the photo has been replaced. The dishwasher is hooked up and working so I can at least wash dishes. Still have to take them to the bath tub to rinse them off. LOL The vent has been replaced as well. This past Tuesday the guy came and did the final measure for the counter tops. That paper work hit the New Year holiday, so was finalized this past Friday. I was waiting for the call from Home Depot, knew that I would have to go pay a bunch more before they could start on them. I originally paid for a color A price (A being the lowest price) and top mount sink. Decided however to go with an under mount sink, which is an additional charge. Then changed my mind several times on the color, ending up with one that was in color D price range (the most expensive group) but was on sale for the color B price, so knew that I would have to pay about $400.00 difference. Well, after he did the measure, found out my designer measured heavy, then find out that the price of the counter top has gone down even more, I ended up getting about $25.00 refunded. YIPPEE!<br />
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I had purchased a Hamilton Beach Toastation (is a toaster oven with a slotted toaster on top) thinking it would save counter space having two devices in one so to speak. It was great when I first used it, the first few times actually. Toaster slots worked well, had to do two cycles to toast a bagel, so was okay with that part. The oven part worked great the first few times, then, the door quit working and became very difficult to open or close. Best I can figure out, the brackets that move the shelf in and out as the door opens and closes was not made of metal strong enough to endure prolonged (more than 3-5 minutes) of higher heat temperature. It would warp or bend just enough to keep the door from functioning. I took it back and purchased just a toaster over. Half the price, works ten times better. Now to figure out if I am going to keep the big Faberware Toaster oven that I originally bought. It works really well, has a rotisserie function, but am having a devil of a time finding bake ware to fit in it. It is really too large for the regular toaster oven bake ware, but about a half inch short of smaller pans for a regular oven. I guess I really should take it back and get my money back, but am really wanting to try that rotisserie function first. OH MAN, would it be great to be able to cook rotisserie style chicken at home. Although, they are really cheap to buy already cooked from Costco. At under $5 bucks, can hardly buy the hen and spices for that. AND, they are sooo good.<br />
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Actually, I have several small appliances that I am waiting for my counter tops to come in and the back splash installed to determine what I will be leaving on the counters. Once I have that figured out, I will then determine where to store the rest and then possible get rid of some. I am a gadget obsessed hoarder to be sure. I have grills, waffle stick makers, processors, pressure cookers, rice cooker, steamer, I even have a slider grill that I have used twice. It works really well, as I love those little burgers, but it is heck to clean up and since I am the only one that likes them I just wait until we eat out to have them. I swore I wouldn't buy any more such appliance gadgets, but during Christmas Walmart put out there odd little things, like chocolate fountains, for customers to purchase as gifts. NO...I did not buy the fountain. Thought about it, but knew that it would sure be a bear to clean. I did however buy a doughnut maker (makes four cake doughnuts) because it seemed healthier than fried ones. But then I bought a funnel cake fryer. I will be taking it back, no one eats them around here, we are trying to cut back on fried food, but it is so cute in it's little blue size. Besides, Miss Z would probably have fun using to make up some funnel cakes during a super bowl party or something. If I ever get counter tops and sink back in the kitchen. <br />
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Oh, and we won't talk about the new deep fryer and bread maker that I bought and hid in the RV until the kitchen is finished. I know it is terribly wasteful, but I did buy them just because I wanted new stainless steel ones for my kitchen. I know, fried food, but some times a girl just has to have her fried okra and tater tots are so much better fried than baked. <br />
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We have all been sick with the crud, even the grand babies - poor things, and thought we were getting over it, had a few nice days, then BAM! it has all come back. Miss Zebra is done down with it in a huge way. I am still, after four weeks of this battle, coughing like I smoke and those coughing fits lead to little accidents which lead to a load of pants being washed each night. I am really seriously thinking about wearing a pad, if it weren't for the fact that the stupid things break me out. Bad enough during "that time" but just not wanting to add fuel to the fire so to speak.<br />
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Since I only have a partially functioning kitchen, my meal planning has been put on hold. While I can cook anything I want now, cleaning up and prep work is holding that back. Am cooking very simple things, not many pans, not a lot of prep. Hubby was sweet and has temporarily gotten me a piece of plywood over the dishwasher, so that helps some, plus we needed it to keep the dishwasher from tipping when we opened the door. I took some old shelves and have then placed around the stove, they are not very big, but it at least gives me something to work on, leave a spoon on and such.<br />
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I am still in a quandary as to where to put everything back in the cabinets. Not to mention all the Pampered Chef serving ware I went a little crazy on when it hit the clearance price. I have way too much stuff and as I posted earlier, the new cabinets are only 12 inches deep where the old ones were 15. Makes some of my platters not fit and I am having a hard time figuring out where to put plastic left over dishes. That is in the works for today, to empty a few more boxes of kitchen ware and then take what I am not using to storage for a time. You see, I have two children going in to an apartment possibly in the fall and I just can't let go of some of this stuff until I see if they will be needing it or not.<br />
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Thanks for stopping in, please come back again. If I can get myself organized, I will be posting at least once a week here. That is the goal anyway. See you next time.<br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-50486443214019472402013-12-12T12:11:00.002-08:002013-12-12T12:11:52.522-08:00Week Three of the Great Kitchen RemodelWell, week three has come and not much head way has been made. We are kind of at a stand still waiting on some things.<br />
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My appliances have all arrived.<br />
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Stove and microwave have been installed. Microwave is awesome. All kinds of pre programmed settings for snacks and a kid's menu setting (chicken nuggets, hot dogs, French fries, frozen sandwich) as well as a snack setting (nachos, chicken wings, potato skins, cheese sticks). My favorite is the soften/melt (for chocolate, butter, cream cheese) and the defrost. Of course it has a popcorn (all though all the popcorn packages state to not use the preset timing), pizza, potato and veggie (love this for frozen veggies) sensor setting. I am just glad to cook something...anything...in the kitchen once again. I have the old microwave set up in the garage, but man is it cold out there.<br />
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Stove has been very disappointing. First of all, picked this particular model because it advertised a free griddle. When it was delivered, no griddle, is a rebate you have to send in. Personally, I think rebates should be illegal. Way too much time to fill out the forms, give them all kinds of information then wait and hope that you actually get it. I am waiting on one from Kitchen aid now. Any way, back to the stove. So then, after learning I have to send in a special form from Home Depot (would have been nice to have gotten it when I bought the unit instead of an extra trip to the store to find out why I didn't get it) we found out while installing the stove last night that the inside frame was damaged on both sides. <br />
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Enough so that the door won't seal for the oven so keeping any type of even temperature is out of the question. Also, the little storage drawer will not open correctly either so it totally useless. I have taken the issue up with Home Depot store manager, who pretty much told me I was out of luck because I accepted it that way. I explained that I questioned the delivery guy about the drawer not working, he just told me it was because it wasn't level. Then I was told because it had been longer than 48 hours there wasn't much they could do. I explained that we found it with the 48 hours, but that they were already closed. He then took me to the appliance department to see if it could be repaired. I didn't say anything, but really wanted to when the store manager asked me if the stove still worked properly. He kind of changed his tune a bit when the appliance guy told him that since the door was unable to seal, because of the frame damage, the heat would escape and could possibly catch the cabinets on fire. I had not thought of that, very scary thought.<br />
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Finally, after over an hour of discussion, Maytag is sending me a new unit to replace the broken one. It will be here next week. At least then I will be able to cook, although I have no place to prepare the food, no place to wash the dishes and no place to sit down and eat the food.<br />
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We also ran in to a little time delay regarding a problem with floor tile. Had to redo and then redo again differently. Just had to wait for it to all set up before walking or moving any appliances or cabinet bases on it. So, that delayed our counter top measurement, which delayed the counter top. However, maybe it was meant to be. Here is why.<br />
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I have to have the faucet when they measure for the counter top. I had originally decided to go with a stainless steel faucet and sink. Then I found this one, then found those cabinet knobs to match. Then I found out that I could get a brown sink. So...since we had to delay the measure appointment, I took it as a sign to go ahead and get the brown sink. It cost a little bit more because the counter top people offered a free one with the installation. When you look at the big picture, it really isn't that much more money considering what I have already spent. So, now there is no way to have the new kitchen going by New Year's day, but soon after.<br />
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Now that the floor is fixed and the appliances are here, hubby can finish up the installation of the cabinets. Was waiting for the stove and dishwasher to arrive so he could see how much room he would need. Once the dishwasher gets put in place, the cabinet next to it that houses the refrigerator can then be moved in place and attached to the wall. I am looking forward to all the cabinets being finally installed so that I can start loading the cabinets.<br />
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I spent the whole day yesterday just loading the pantry. I have come down with a stupid chest cold on top of everything else. As I loaded the new pantry, expiration dates were checked and any date passed or that will expire in the next month or so was discarded. An inventory was made of all products on hand so that I can start menu planning again. Plus, I also placed a couple of empty containers in the shelves for future use. I spent a small fortune in storage containers, guess I am turning anal in my old age because I wanted all the baskets to be white, all the plastic containers to have the same color lids. Also, all the trays are the same color in each drawer, although not all the drawers are the same. In the largest drawer, I have a mesh expandable organizer for cooking utensils. In one drawer I put a bamboo expandable divider for all the silver ware. The rest of the drawers have black containers to hold the rest of my cooking utensils, knives and snacks.<br />
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Now, today, I have to pick which drawer I want to designate for foil, plastic bags, wax paper and such. Depends on how all the cookware goes, may place that stuff in a hall pantry. Now starts the task of choosing what to keep and what to get rid of. I still have plenty of cabinets, some deep drawers and such. Once hubby gets the set of bottom cabinets attached to the wall tonight, I will be able to see how many pots and pans I will be able to store. I have surfed the internet and found some great sites that suggest the essentials needed for a well stocked kitchen. I mean really, I don't need 14 skillets, 5 sets of pots and pans, 6 glass baking dishes and so forth. I really need to downsize a bit. I not only have 30 years of married life collecting kitchen ware, my Pampered Chef items and I now have what is left of my mom's kitchen ware as well. You see, that gives me about 4 sets of mixing bowls. I don't really like my metal ones, but hubby likes to eat cereal out of them for some insane reason. Then, once I get my kitchen all back together, I will be looking in to purchasing a glass front china hutch or curio cabinet to display some collectable glassware. This would be so much easier if I wasn't a border line hoarder.<br />
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Well, enough of a break. Off to see how many boxes I can empty out by loading the new cabinets. Thanks for stopping by, come back soon to see how the great remodel is going.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-38045420930874699722013-12-09T06:53:00.000-08:002013-12-09T06:53:07.609-08:00MPM - 12/9 - 15 Week Two of Kitchen RemodelWow what a week. Look back over the last few post to catch up with the new kitchen remodel.<br />
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Now, for <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/category/menu-plan-monday" target="_blank">Meal Plan Monday</a> over at <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/" target="_blank">Organized Junkie</a>. I have to be honest, I have no menu plan for this week, here is why. I don't have a kitchen at the moment. I have tried to cook, really I have, even bought a fancy toaster over that is also a rotisserie cooker as well. Still trying to decide if I am going to keep it though. At any rate, the problem with cooking is not really the cooking part, it is the prep part and the fact that I would have to wash all the dishes in the bathtub which kills my back. The sink will not be hooked up until after the counter tops are installed, which is about three more weeks at this point. Which hits during the week of Christmas, so if they can't deliver by the 20th, they will have to wait until after the 30th. <br />
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However, I do have the old microwave hooked up in the garage so can use it now, which does help. My new appliances are being delivered today. Hubby promised to install the stove and microwave this evening. Also, the new fridge as well, it will need to run a while before I start putting food in there. Here are some photos of how we have progressed.<br />
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There is actually a dining room table at the other end of these boxes. It is loaded down with small appliances (can opener, coffee maker, toaster oven) absolutely no room for any prep work for a meal.<br />
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First, the cabinets all arrived. All the boxes were stacked in my dining area. What a mess trying to live around these boxes. I am just thankful that it was only for the week. Hubby was waiting for his days off. I am so thankful for his willingness to be my labor and for him to have the skills to be my labor. He has some installing of appliances, repair to floor tiles and paint touch up yet, but actually for the most part he is finished until the counter top is installed (installation was included in the price) which thankfully, Home Depot was having a sale on.<br />
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And, hubby decided to let me know how he felt about my taking a picture and the labor he is doing.<br />
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I would be more than happy to help, if I just knew what to do and how. AND...if he would let me.<br />
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Hubby was hard at work Saturday morning, putting doors back on. Notice the space between the wall and the cabinets? They listed it as a 3in. space, added in a filler piece. This just shows that they do not look at these computer generated design diagrams (the designers turn in a set for each customer's job) all that closely, because there is not 3 inches of space left so hubby is having to cut down the filler board. There is one other wall that the same thing happened with. Actually, the bottom set of cabinets I just told hubby to leave the filler out completely. There is such a narrow amount of space left that we just moved the cabinets all the way to one end and just left a little space between the cabinet and the doorway. The counter top will still come all the way to end so it won't be noticeable at all.<br />
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So, how many people does it take to work on a sink base? Several when you find out your home's wall is bowed. Actually, the man in the yellow is our next door neighbor, he is a construction contractor and kitchens and bathrooms are what he does for a living. We were so very thankful that he gave up a little of his time and popped over to show hubby some pointers and help get through some rough spots.<br />
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My daughter's cat is checking it all out. You would think that with two cats in the house there would be no mice. Not so, we have one that the remodel forced to relocate, unfortunately it is in the wall of our bedroom and making it's presence known at all hours during the night and early morning. I have no idea how we will be able to get rid of the thing.<br />
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Measuring to cut out the back of the cabinet for access to the plumbing and electrical outlets to install the sink, dishwasher, garbage disposal and water line for refrigerator.<br />
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I think it is coming along so nicely. Now, today, I get to position the cabinet shelves where I want and can start loading the food in the new pantry and what ever I am locating in the upper cabinets as well.<br />
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I plan to go to Home Depot this afternoon and see if I can exchange the faucet I bought for a different that I think will look much nicer with the over all design. I have to have the faucet here tomorrow when they measure for the counter tops, so if they don't have it in stock I will just keep the one I bought. I even have decided on the knobs that I will be putting on the cabinets and have already purchased all the outlet plate covers as well. Was very lucky there as I found some that totally match the wall color and the glass tile for the backsplash which all matches the counter top I ended up going with.<br />
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Check back in a few weeks for the finished kitchen. This is the old fridge, but I just love the new design of the kitchen. You can check older postings for the before photos. Yes, once we get the floor repaired, some paint touch ups, the lights put back, new appliances installed, the counter tops and back splash all installed. NEW KITCHEN will be done. I am hoping to christen the new kitchen with New Year's Day dinner. Wish me luck.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-8653593498198852992013-11-25T08:47:00.000-08:002013-12-02T08:48:48.930-08:00Week 1We officially started the remodel on Nov. 22 and have now reached a "sit and wait" phase.<br />
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Can you see in the corner all that dead space that could be used for storage? That is where the big corner lazy susan is going.<br />
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Starting pulling off the old tile to find that the builders had used cement board instead of wood for the base of the counter tops. Very cheap way to go, makes a huge mess. Even the cat had to explore.<br />
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Then, the old bar had to be removed.<br />
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Yeah, it is finally gone. Out of here.<br />
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And, no more cabinets. <br />
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Backsplash is gone, damaged sheet rock cut out, a couple of rodent nest removed, replaced worn out outlets and leaking pipes. Moved some plumbing around as well.<br />
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Can you see the left corner empty spot. Would seem that the builders did not have room to put sheet rock behind the tub enclosure. That is the main bathroom on the other side of that wall. Did the cat ever have a grand time popping in and out of there. Also had the gas line moved over as the stove is moving to a more centered location to allow for more cabinets and counter space.<br />
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That was week one. I doubt that I will ever get the dust out of the living room and dining room, but will keep cleaning away. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-23959593898466225292013-11-22T10:29:00.000-08:002013-12-02T08:49:49.694-08:00Remodeling KitchenFor years I have wanted to redo my kitchen. I have over the years updated to stainless steel appliances, all by the over the stove microwave. The original kitchen did not have one, only a range hood. Did not have a dishwasher, we could tell where previous owners had cut out a cabinet and chipped out a little counter top to install one. Refrigerators were not so big back then either. The house was built in 1985, which for house is not that old, not even vintage yet really. But...for today's time and today's technology and the way I cook, the kitchen just didn't flow. Dead space that could be utilized for storage, a big bar that while it gave counter space and storage, made the kitchen even smaller. So, I came up with a design that gives me way more storage, larger counter top areas for working and opens up the kitchen more.<br />
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Here is the kitchen as it is now, we bought the house in August of 2000.<br />
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The cabinets under the bar are the only ones wide enough to hold pots and pans. I have to literally sit down on the floor, crawl half way in to find a pan most times. There is a door on the other side to get in to the space by the wall. I also hate the old porcelain sink. It is hard to keep clean as well.</div>
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As you see, not a lot of counter top by the stove to use while cooking. The bottom cabinet to the left of the stove goes all the way back, but they put a 9 inch door on it so you can not get anything much in there. The dishwasher door will not open all the way down because of the handle on the stove. And, the over the stove microwave is the last of the almond appliances that came with the house. Notice the dinosaur of a toaster attached to the bottom of the cabinet to the right of the stove? It is literally a <a href="mailto:B@$#%">B</a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null">@$#%</a> to clean.<br />
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This is my pantry. Big, but once again, to get to the bottom two shelves I have to sit down on the floor and do a little crawling. I have to use a step ladder to get to the top two shelves. </div>
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The one thing I do like about the bar is the pull out cutting board. Have that covered in the new kitchen design.</div>
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This is the short wall the fridge is located on. That little bit of counter space to the right ends up catching clutter. Bags of chips, snacks, bottles of soda. It is too small for much of anything else.</div>
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This is a view of the whole kitchen from the open end. It looks like a lot of cabinets...until you start trying to put things away. Also, we have this weird shelf above the kitchen. Thankfully it gives the kitchen an extra three feet. The kitchen measures 10 x 12 feet.</div>
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This also shows you the "china hutch". I hate the thing. It is small, hard to work in, the doors have to be taped shut because they won't close. Notice the big square ceiling light? I hate it. </div>
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<span id="goog_875073762"></span><span id="goog_875073763">Now you see the original kitchen. Probably the cleanest it has ever been as well. It does make you think 80's. I also absolutely hate the tile counter top. Even with my pastry rolling sheet, the grout still leaves marks and the tile is textured so is uneven. </span><br />
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So, with much thought and the help of a wonderful design lady at Home Depot, I came up with a totally new design. The fridge is moving to a different wall, the dishwasher is moving to the opposite side of the sink, a big lazy susan is going in the corner and the bar is history. The pantry is also moving to a different spot to allow for counter top and cabinets by the stove. Which, is moving a few inches over to make room for the lazy susan and a large set of drawers on the left side.<br />
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Now to get it started.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-56492533371113372202013-11-20T08:26:00.000-08:002013-12-02T08:27:32.384-08:00Cabinets All EmptyMajor work, emptying the cabinets and finding temporary homes for everything in the kitchen. Oh my, makes me feel that I have way too much food and cookware, plates and glasses. Had an entire drawer full of condiment packets left over from eating out. Am thinking that we do that way too much as well.<br />
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My little grand son, Mr. M, that I keep during the day was sure there still had to be some food in there somewhere.<br />
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Not to start pulling everything out and get ready for the new.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-63553058936608164502013-11-06T14:43:00.002-08:002013-11-06T14:43:52.570-08:00Oh My, It's November.Well, October sure went by in a blink. Not much of anything done to really be considered an accomplishment either.<br />
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On the other hand, some accomplishments have happened. The kitchen remodel is paid for. All the decisions on color, wood, counter top and design have been finalized. I am so excited and so ready to start emptying and tearing out cabinets. I have had both grand babies several days this month so have not been able to get too much done as far as house work.<br />
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To top all that off, on Tuesday evening before Halloween my daughter, Miss Zebra, came home and informed me that she needed a priest or monk costume for the play this weekend and 100 cupcakes for Thursday morning. So, being the great mom that I am, I spent Wednesday morning running around picking up ingredients for 100 cupcakes. You know, mixes, powder sugar and Crisco for icing, paper baking cups, two more muffin pans so I could cook more at one time, decorations to put on cupcakes. Plus, since it was the day before Halloween had to go to two different shops to find the costume. Then came home, ate lunch put Mr. M down for his nap and got started baking.<br />
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This is the first of three batches of white cakes, made one batch of chocolate. Each batch was 4 dozen, but being the wonderful math wizard that I am, didn't realize when I was counting that 24 is actually 2 dozen, not 1 dozen. I over cooked a bit. I bought some white cardboard boxes to put the cupcakes in, each held 35 cupcakes.<br />
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I made the orange ones, daughter made pink. Those are molded candy melt bats.</div>
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I swirled these out as well. One row has caramel and sprinkles, then the caramel bag busted.</div>
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At 1:15am we flat wore out. Our energy and ability just left. We also ran out of icing and I was just not up to making a third batch of butter cream icing. Really great tasting butter cream icing, if I do say so myself. Now the bottom photo is the box Miss Zebra decorated, she has a thing for molded chocolate and made mummies, bats and jack o lanterns. Not all of the molded decorations made it on to a cup cake.<br />
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Here is a little closer look. We used the Wilton spray color, the yellow, silver, green and gold worked fine. The purple and black not so well. I can tell you this much, the Wilton cake decorating class that I took with Miss Zebra sure helped. We didn't get as fancy or creative as we had originally planned, especially since reality of time sunk in, but we did a pretty good job. I still have one box of cupcakes that have not been iced, but she took 3 boxes (35 in each box) so ended up with 105 cupcakes. It was a food sale at school with the proceeds going to her school club. I donated the ingredients and such for the cupcakes, would much rather spend $20 on something that they sell and get 100% of the earnings rather than buying a candle or cookie dough that is over priced and only gives them about 40% of what they make.<br />
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I bought a large star tip, thinking the larger tip would let me ice the cupcake quicker. I was pleasantly surprised to find that instead of a rigged swirl it makes a swirl that looks a lot like a rose.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYAijVXyZqNs8SyhQammHf_vTMFCwJJWahdByUFf_knawNOEUVPkiosjrk2Fyg3mpZzLMSyft_RE9Cq4RDgaNlFcnWoMCdzf8-c7ew3zXAugdXfc3L-tz80_3yZd1rv15q9gh6BfMZ_BA/s1600/Jessi2close.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYAijVXyZqNs8SyhQammHf_vTMFCwJJWahdByUFf_knawNOEUVPkiosjrk2Fyg3mpZzLMSyft_RE9Cq4RDgaNlFcnWoMCdzf8-c7ew3zXAugdXfc3L-tz80_3yZd1rv15q9gh6BfMZ_BA/s320/Jessi2close.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
I love this tip, will be using it a lot more. Maybe next time, make a little smaller swirl and add some leaves. It all turned out any way.<br />
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This is Miss Zebra working. About midnight she pulled the stool up to the counter. OH HOW HAPPY I will be when the new kitchen is done and I have more counter top space for doing things like this. It was really hard for both of us to work in there at the same time. She set up there because that is where the microwave is. I ended up moving to the dining table.<br />
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Along the lines of the kitchen, I bought a new gift for me.<br />
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Isn't it just so pretty. It has a bowl lift which is supposed to be easier to add ingredients with, a quieter motor and a soft stir setting to help the ingredients mix together a little before starting a mixing cycle which helps keep the dust cloud down.<br />
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As you can see, it is a step up from I already had. Which still works just fine. I just wanted an upgrade and different color to liven up the new kitchen. All my kitchen appliances are stainless steel so the grey would look good on the counter. In fact, will be going back to Costco to buy the Kitchenaid 13 cup food processor as well.<br />
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Thanks for stopping in, come back soon. Please feel free to leave a comment, it is always nice to know that some one out there reads this.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-75812483066918780282013-11-02T11:02:00.001-07:002013-11-02T11:02:41.960-07:00Buttermilk Pie - My mom's recipeScroll to bottom for the recipe if you want to skip the story behind the pie.<br />
We have a family tradition, several actually, but one that is always kept is the making of Mom's Buttermilk Pie. She would make about six of these pies up in the summer and then freeze them for the holidays. Some times it would be enough, most times not. Life has a way of changing it's course and running along new directions which really tend to make the new voyage a bit apprehensive until one manages to get a new set of landmarks that then become familiar enough that the traveler can once again navigate the road. One such journey is age. My mom was living alone and after thinking it over she decided she would let us move her to the town we live in so she could be closer to me. This is a woman that was strong enough to leave everything she knew, for the last 30 years or so, behind and starting over in a new home, new town, new people all around. Her last few months of that journey was spent living in a bedroom in my home before she peacefully went on her final journey. But, some memories, some traditions, just keep on going because they are a comfort to those who grew up with them. This pie is one.<br />
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Now, as I go older and found the internet, and then Google, I had occasions to do a search for this recipe. I am notorious for not being able to keep up with a recipe card, a written piece of paper, or even the local church cookbook that thankfully has Mom's recipe printed in it. I was not really surprised at all the versions of this pie, you know the only thing different is in the ratio of the ingredients. I was however surprised to discover that this is a southern dish. I grew up thinking every one had buttermilk pie for Thanksgiving and Christmas. My brother in law, a Texas native, Hispanic in ethnicity, had never heard of this pie when he joined the family. He went crazy over it, once he tasted it. Funny how the word buttermilk turns so many people off. Now we live in California and my youngest two children have made it there personal mission in life to introduce this sweet dish to as many people as possible. I was quite shocked to find that of all the searches I ever did, I never came across a recipe like mom's, which was passed down from her family. I had actually come to the conclusion at one point that my Aunt Vera must have given her the recipe and just left out a few ingredients (which she was famous for, that way you could not duplicate her dish exactly as she makes it) but I was never able to find out just which side of the family that recipe actually came from. Mom's recipe has no salt and no flour. I believe that the German Amish roots is where it comes from, but pure speculation on my part. At any rate, Mom's recipe works, everyone loves it, so why try and change it?<br />
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For those who don't know, have never heard of it, never tried it, buttermilk pie is a custard or chess type pie. Don't let the word buttermilk scare you off either. While some of my worst tasting memories are of my dad pouring me buttermilk in a glass instead of regular milk, in a recipe buttermilk imparts a rich creamy sweet taste that is actually low fat. My parents were born in the 20's, lived through the great depression, and both lived in the country. That generation of those type of people grew up drinking buttermilk. My dad grew up in West Texas, ate anything that they could grow or get cheaply. His dad was a farmer, not a very successful farmer as he had was would be termed "wonder lust" as he liked to move around a bit. My mom grew up in South Texas, near Victoria, her dad raised turkeys. They also always had a few steers, hogs and chickens they raised for personal use as well as a big vegetable garden. Her only experience with moving was during each school year as she would live with one of two sisters each school year and then summers back with her dad. They lived too far from the local school for her to attend, she came a long late in life so the sisters were all much older than she was and her mother passed away when she was about 2 years old. Now that you have had the history lesson behind this dish, here is the recipe. It is still made, by me, for all holidays, big family meals or just when one of the kids wants some fork fed comfort.<br />
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Mom's Buttermilk Pie<br />
Makes one pie<br />
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1 pie crust, unbaked (deep dish works well)<br />
1/2 c. buttermilk<br />
1 1/2 c. sugar<br />
1/2 stick good grade oleo, melted<br />
3 eggs, added whole and mixed well<br />
1 tsp. vanilla<br />
1/2 tsp. cinnamon (if desired)<br />
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Blend buttermilk, sugar, and oleo. Add eggs whole and mix well. Add remaining ingredients except cinnamon. Pour in to unbaked pie crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until firm.<br />
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Notes:<br />
Oleo is the same as margarine - definitely use a good brand for this. It does make a difference - do not use butter.<br />
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Preheat the oven. Watch the pie, it is easy to brown the crust too much.<br />
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In my opinion, eggs are getting smaller, so make sure you have 3 good size (like x-large) eggs.<br />
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The cinnamon is gently sprinkled on top before putting in the oven, can be left off. We like it with.<br />
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If you use a spoon to sprinkle a bit of sugar across the top of the pie it makes a nice little crispy layer that my kids seem to like. I have make it both ways.<br />
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Enjoy.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-31298014072838846602013-10-09T09:31:00.000-07:002013-10-09T09:31:02.035-07:00Fall, Football, Cakes...Craziness!Hello all. I have been so busy lately that I have really neglected menu planning. It shows in the household too. I have been making more clutter and mess than I am getting cleaned up. Oh well, nothing but a thing I guess. I will eventually get my house totally clean, fixed just like I like it, meals planned, projects finished, and then just fall over dead from shock.<br />
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I will once again try...no will...hook up with <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/" target="_blank">Organizing Junkie</a> and link this post to her <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/2013/10/menu-plan-monday-oct-713.html" target="_blank">Meal Plan Monday</a>. Great place to get some ideas. I am doing my meal plan a little differently for a while. So here is what is cooking this week.<br />
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Ground beef, round steak, chicken, pork chops and steaks with various side dishes.<br />
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I know you are thinking that this is not a plan, but it is. Let me explain. By the end of the week I will have finalized plans for the grand kitchen remodel, in other words will have paid the money and it will be starting. I have for months gone back and forth over cabinet style and color, countertop material and color, paint color, tile color. It is now time to put it all together in a contract and get it going. So...this means that I will be cooking out of my pantry in an attempt to downsize my inventory so that I will have less to deal with when I have to empty out all the cabinets so we can demo the current cabinets and counter top. I have no idea what to do with all of my kitchen stuff while we are in the middle of this, or just how I am going to cook even. But it will SO BE WORTH IT. I will post photos along the way of course.<br />
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In fact, one set of cabinets is going to have clear glass in the door so that I will be able to put my collection of mom's glassware in there to be stored and still show off a little. Some of her crock bowls as well. I have a hall storage closet that I am working on emptying out so that I can put some food stores in there along with the every day pots and pans. All the extra stuff, that isn't used every day, along with all my cookbooks and small red appliance collection will go to the storage unit. When we are completely finished, I will just bring back a box at a time and see just how much I can actually get rid of. I mean really...do I need 18 coffee cups...in a house that only one person drinks coffee and he has his travel mug that he uses? No I don't. Do I need 7 glass pie plates? No, but 4 or 5 where my mom's. Do I need 5 sets of mixing bowls? No, but one is from my grandmother that I never knew and one can be put up for youngest daughter Miss Zebra for when she gets her first apartment. The other three...I have to admit, I do use them regularly, depending on what I am making.<br />
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Speaking of Miss Zebra...we finished up our Wilton Basic Cake Decorating Course 1.<br />
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<span id="goog_1281109412"></span><span id="goog_1281109413">This is her cake for the final class. I think she did extremely well. Even if she did jack my denim blue icing. I know the photos are kind of yellow tinted, but that is what my kitchen does to things for some reason. In fact, Miss Zebra was so proud of herself that she has now approached her school club leader to have a bake sale for their fundraising. She has offered to make decorated cupcakes...10 dozen...lots of cupcakes. Pretty sure I will end up helping to finish them up. At least cupcakes ice our quickly.</span><br />
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This is mine. We were late getting to class because Miss Zebra had play rehearsal so the instructor asked another student to let me use her icing for the border. I had a terribly time with crumbs on these two cakes for some reason. At any rate, that course is done and Monday we start course 2 which is gum past and fondant. Am really looking forward to that one.<br />
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Got to go meet for another design session for the kitchen. Wish me luck. Thanks for stopping by and come back soon.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-38397658845929157482013-09-24T13:21:00.001-07:002013-09-24T13:21:32.882-07:00Good Intentions - Yeah Right.I really did have the best of intentions. Long about Thursday or so I keep thinking that I need to get my menu plan for the week done. I start looking over Facebook, Pinterest and various blogs for inspiration, which I get, and by the time I figure out a few things to cook it is 2 in the morning. Then, something inevitably comes up over the week end that seems to prevent me from putting that illusive menu plan on paper.<br />
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This past week end for example.<br />
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We kept the youngest grand babies so that our son and daughter-in-law could have a little anniversary trip over the week end. Obviously with a two year old and a two month old in the house, my attention was better spent on other things as opposed to menu plans.<br />
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Along with all of this, I did get started cleaning out kitchen cabinets. My pantry just absolutely looked bare once I got it cleaned out and organized up. I had to go get a few groceries, just couldn't stand it any longer. I then started on the other cabinets, trying to force myself to purge as much as I possibly can...regardless of sentimental attachments. Actually, once I cleaned out some clutter (plastic cups, glass jars) I am amazed at how much room I am finding.<br />
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See that little open cabinet in the back...to the left of the stove? That is my biggest peeve with the kitchen. Storage space I cannot use well. That little cabinet door has a opening of 9 inches. NINE inches. The storage space is 24 inches door to wall and 36 inches from stove back to other wall. Yes you get the picture. Huge space, all of this plastic ware was stuffed up in there, along with about a half dozen glass jars. Not to mention I found a single serve blender, complete with travel lid so I can take that healthy smoothie with me, still in the plastic wrap. I hate the new trend of green smoothies. Rave about it all you want, but throwing some spinach and avocado together with ice cubes, flax seed oil and fruit, does not make a tasty drink. Un uh, no way. There is also a brand new in the box mix and go battery powdered gizmo that makes drinks using protein powder. Do we use protein powder? No, hot hardly. But this is the type of crap I find lurking around the house. The harder part is the bake ware and glasses. Some of them I got for a wedding gift, just can't seem to make myself let go of them. I know, if it has a chip in it then it is dangerous. I am working on it. At any rate, the cabinets all have to be cleaned out so I know what I have, before the remodel starts.<br />
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Speaking of the great remodel...it hasn't even started yet. I have gone through several layout designs, and have finally settled on one that I believe will give me all I want from the kitchen. Plenty of storage, should say useable storage, flows easier, and more room. Just a few final decisions remain. One being whether or not I will get a stove or built in range and oven. I would like to upgrade to five burners, and if we go with the built in's that will change counter space and lay out a bit. Also have a wall that I am wanting to open up a little bit by putting a pass thru counter top that could function as additional sitting for a eating, or just as a space to prep dishes. Would also be where we put the food out when there is a big family meal. We kind of eat buffet style for most meals. Every one fills their own plate and then sits at the table to eat. I am really excited about finally get to make this kitchen not only look better but function better for my type of cooking. I am no where near what would be considered gourmet or chef style, I cook home style meat and potatoes type of dishes. But...I would like to be able to chop my onions and such close to the stove, not have to set something on a bar at the other end of the kitchen to cool. No, the kitchen is not that large, only about 12 x 10. Am hoping to increase that about six inches on the length part by moving things around. My hubby was going to do a quick fix job to the RV and then clean out the garage so we would have a place to work on things or put things while we worked. Then we could start removing the existing kitchen.<br />
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HOWEVER...some lazy little ass wipe stole his pick up last week. Now, he is having to work on a little truck that wasn't running to see if he can get it going to drive back and forth to work in. Effectively putting the kitchen remodel pushed back about two weeks. Or more.<br />
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My daughter and I are taking cake decorating classes together. I am not really interesting in the first part of the courses, but you have to take them in order to do the course on gum paste and fondant, which I would really love to learn. Daughter is however extremely excited by all of it. For an early birthday present I bought her the Wilton deluxe kit, got to use a 40% off coupon which made it even better. It was expensive, but the best value in the long run because it has all the equipment needed for all four courses and then some, plus a big tote to carry it all. <br />
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This is my class work from last night. Flowers on cupcakes. Their was a slight mishap with the carrier, so a couple of them are squished. Now, I don't have any grand designs or plans for becoming a paid cake decorator on the side, that's for sure. I was talking to a lady that now has her own cake business that she runs from her house. She has a booth at the local farmer's market where she sells cupcakes, cake pops and the cakes in the push pop things. She has cookies and brownies as well. He stuff was nice, but not a WOW kind of thing. I am sure that what she does on special orders would be. She was talking to my daughter and I about how taking the classes got her started. My daughter mentioned that she likes decorating and has the patience for it, I mentioned that it drives me crazy to take so long decorating one cake. The cake lady then told us that it takes about three days to do a small wedding cake. I am not going to spend three days to decorate some cake, not even for my own daughter's wedding. Well, unless she asks me to when the time comes. I just want to take cute cupcakes to the church carnival, for my turn at bible study, a nice birthday cake for a family member's birthday or holiday. That is all. I just don't want to spend $20 dollars for a dozen cupcakes that only have a fancy swirl on top. Or, $3.50 a piece for some rich decadent little cupcake that I can make myself. As you can see by the photo, I have a lot of practice to do. But the main thing, the one thing I hadn't really considered, was how good it feels to just spend a little time with my daughter. Just the two of us doing something together. You should see the way her face, her whole face, lights up when she clicks with something the instructor has shown her.<br />
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Next week is a cake.<br />
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As for the budget plan, it has worked fairly well so far. The last few weeks was pretty tough, only because my youngest son, Joe College, has been staying with us over his school's summer break. He and his cat. They went home, back to college, last night. Now, as soon as I can finish up some major cleaning projects, my house is back to being my own. Don't get me wrong, I love having my son here, would even be fine if he had to live here again. It is just that with the grand baby, I had gotten in to our comfortable little routine. Then came the baby (his sister and a girl), his mom went on maternity leave about a week before the birth. We went on this huge vacation, expensive vacation, worth every penny too. So, things are now finally feeling like things are ready to settle down. My daughter's cat is going through mourning and depression...running around here trying to find to find him. At least now I can clean up and the creator of massive hair balls, wads of hair, every where. Not to mention the worst litter box there ever was. But hey, at least it was in a litter box.<br />
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I have got to get something to eat in me, I am literally dozing off as I type. Thanks for stopping by and check in with me again...in a few weeks.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-51874452011982009062013-08-26T07:04:00.001-07:002013-08-26T07:04:19.351-07:00Meal Plan Monday - 8/25Well, first week of school is behind us. I am back in daycare mode as well. Now, here it is time to plan the menu again. One of these days I am going to get about 8 weeks worth created so I don't have to do it each week. It is not really hard, I just am in such a blue mood lately I just really don't want to do anything but sit and watch television or play computer games.<br />
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As for Menu Planning, I was a hundred percent successful, but made it closer than I have before. Monday and Wednesday I actually cooked. Tuesday was a very last minute trip to Red Robin and Thursday I ended up taking all the kids to Olive Garden. Friday was as planned, the meal was a hit with the group. Saturday was just a crazy kind of day so we ended up just eating what ever at home. Sunday we made the Beer Butt chicken, had hubby cook two of them so that I have chicken cooked to make some casseroles and such this next week and then some for the freezer for later. He was about to throw away the carcasses after cutting the chickens apart and I grabbed them and bagged them for the freezer to use making some chicken noodle soup later in September. Nothing goes to waste any more around here. I also made some Garlic Red Ranch Potato, my own recipe, and you know it is good when hubby makes the effort to walk down the hall to tell me, and I quote, "those are the best potatoes I have ever had by far".<br />
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This will be pulled off the bone and bagged. Carcasses and bones will be cooked for stock that I will jar up and put in the freezer.<br />
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Beer butt chicken, garlic new potatoes and coleslaw.<br />
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Menu planning! Once again I will link up with <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/" target="_blank">Organized Junkie</a> to link to her post for <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/2013/08/menu-plan-monday-august-2613.html" target="_blank">Meal Plan Monday</a>. Looking through my pantry, I see that I am LOADED down with tortillas, corn and flour. I am not sure how this happens, but ever so often it does. Part of this overload of tortillas is from going on vacation though as we seem to brought home more than we took. At any rate, I told hubby that we will have to have lots of Enchiladas and casseroles with tortillas in them. Knowing that the flavors of Tex-Mex food will get old quick, I will probably just try to freeze some of them for later on.<br />
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On the Menu this Week.<br />
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M - <a href="http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Bacon-Cheeseburger-Pasta" target="_blank">Bacon Cheeseburger Pasta Casserole</a><br />
T - <a href="http://www.melissasbargains.com/fabulous-baked-chicken-chimichangas/" target="_blank">Baked Chicken Chimichangas</a><br />
W - <a href="http://www.cooks.com/recipe/s44k237/quick-and-easy-western-meal-in-one.html" target="_blank">Easy Western Meal</a><br />
T - <a href="http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Seafood-Enchiladas/Detail.aspx?event8=1&prop24=SR_Title&e11=crab%20enchilada&e8=Quick%20Search&event10=1&e7=Home%20Page&scale=8&ismetric=0" target="_blank">Seafood Enchiladas</a><br />
F - <a href="http://www.crystalandcomp.com/2012/03/beef-recipes-indiana-chowder-a-30-minute-meal/" target="_blank">Indiana Chowder</a><br />
S - French Bread Pizza - Stouffer's brand bought at Costco, because I want it out of the freezer.<br />
S - C.O.R.N. smorgasbord<br />
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We also hosted the Dinner for 8 group we belong to from our church. This is a group of four couples, ranging in age, and we meet once a month to socialize. Each couple takes a turn hosting. I am hoping that this is also the before and after view for my kitchen with them as the plan is to have the new kitchen done by the time we host again. PRAYING that it happens any way. <br />
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Have also put on my budgeting hat. I am going to cut the obscene amount of frivolous spending I do down as much as possible. To do that, on Monday I am starting a spending and food journal, writing each every thing I buy and eat. One, it will make me accountable for both. Another reason, I feel that some of my physical issues may be due to food allergies or sensitivity. When I have really bad days and especially nights, I can go back and look to see if I ate anything that was in common for those days. You know, did I load up on wheat products, milk maybe, or processed foods or sugars. I need to loose weight and am paying for a gym membership for my daughter and I that we aren't using and that needs to change. <br />
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Hubby and I wanted to help out our kids a little bit, so we went to Costco, had a coupon for Huggies brand diapers, good for $6 a box off, up to 2 boxes, and bought a box of size 1 and 5 for the grand babies. The coupon is good to the end of the month, so am going to go back and get two more boxes while I can still get the savings. Only, this next time will get a box of size 2 and 5. Little Miss C is growing and will be going in to the next size very soon. Her last doctor visit they switched her over to soy based formula, going to buy some of that tomorrow to give to them tomorrow as well. <br />
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I cleaned like crazy Friday, guess what I found...a bedroom in all of that mess. A really nice large bedroom. Still have a ton of clothes to put away, two tons of wash to do, but it is getting there. I should have gone to the grocery store and to the farmer's market on Saturday, but I just stayed home and lazed out. I must be really out of shape because two days of cleaning, one evening of hosting a party completely wore me out. Also, my pantry, fridge and freezer are so loaded that I would not be able to get anything new in it. On the good side of that, I have plenty of food to work with. <br />
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Thanks for stopping by and come again soon for a visit.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-44623029958692264302013-08-19T07:13:00.001-07:002013-08-19T07:13:28.837-07:00Meal Plan Monday - 8/19/13Hello all,<br />
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I am back...I think anyway. Things have been so crazy around here, you can read about it on my past postings. In a nutshell, I had dental work that went wrong (still having trouble with my jaws and it has been over 2 months), my oldest grand son came to visit us, my first grand daughter made her appearance, we left for a huge vacation, took oldest grand son home to Texas, got home and slowly, very slowly, trying to get caught up. <br />
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My youngest daughter, Miss Zebra, starts her senior year of high school today. It is kind of bitter sweet. I know I am supposed to be all sad that my baby is growing up and all, but she is the youngest of four. In a way, it is feeling like it is kind of time for her to be grown up. She will be home with us for a few years though, she will live her while she goes to college to be a nurse.<br />
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So, trying to get back in to the groove so to speak, I am working on menu plans. It just makes life roll along so much smoother. I will be linking up to <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/" target="_blank">Organized Junkie</a> to post on <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/2013/08/menu-plan-monday-august-1913.html" target="_blank">Menu Plan Monday</a>. Because I have no idea which days I will have the baby too, and because it is still so hot, I am planning a lot of meals for the crock pot. Much cooler, don't have to really keep to close of an eye on it, easy clean up and I can get it all prepped and going before I get little ones. I am in a good shape for cooking as I am really stocked as far as meat and pantry, not too many fresh veggies, but will get what I need as the week goes. Well, here goes, this is what is on the menu for this week.<br />
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M. - <a href="http://getcrocked.com/2013/08/06/crock-pot-homestyle-chicken-and-noodles/" target="_blank">Crock Pot Homestyle Chicken & Noodles</a> - New recipe.<br />
T. - Beef Stroganoff, green beans and carrots. - Using left over roast.<br />
W. - <a href="http://acowboyswife.com/crocktober-all-in-one-crock-pot-meal/" target="_blank">Crocktober - All in One Crock Pot Meal</a> - New recipe.<br />
Th. - Baked Chicken Chimichanga - New recipe.<br />
F. - Hosting dinner group - Steak, baked potato, salad and ice cream.<br />
S. - Will be something quick and easy - grocery day, farmer's market too.<br />
S. - Beer can chicken, grilled potato packs, salad.<br />
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NOTES:<br />
<u>Monday's</u> recipe, I am cutting in half, although I am not to sure how to half a can of soup. Friday we host the dinner group from church. Hubby wanted to grill steaks as kind of an end of summer dinner. Here, it is by no means the end of summer though. Sunday, will cook two chickens, one for our meal and one for left over meat for casseroles.<br />
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Here in the town we live, I recently found out a company called the <a href="http://grapery.biz/home" target="_blank">Grapery</a> that has their product available at a local bakery shop called <a href="http://sweetsurrenderbakery.com/" target="_blank">Sweet Surrender</a>. They have developed a couple of new types of grapes that are just out of this world.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0uBQinaI9ZHzBSaO6TETgid2W_LBU3S3FzaTjEhooJBsU1rDp7A0NjLotVxlGgsERC5fSBqDvjwJDqDCq6eeohtwmCMTPaiZsor7bFvz1ItwRSabhaOj0uQTcM3obpWbDkTz-cQGUz9I/s1600/cottoncandygrapes.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0uBQinaI9ZHzBSaO6TETgid2W_LBU3S3FzaTjEhooJBsU1rDp7A0NjLotVxlGgsERC5fSBqDvjwJDqDCq6eeohtwmCMTPaiZsor7bFvz1ItwRSabhaOj0uQTcM3obpWbDkTz-cQGUz9I/s1600/cottoncandygrapes.png" /></a></div>
These really do taste like Cotton Candy. They are nice and big, plump and juicy with a really sweet flavor. I don't know how they do it, all done with breeding, but they are wonderful. Of coarse I just love cotton candy. My oldest son doesn't like them, he said that when he bites in to a food it should taste like that food. LOL I like the unique fruits though, apples that taste like grapes and such. But honestly, these really are in my opinion out of this world good.<br />
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These are a mix of two breeds, and called Witch Fingers. They are just a really flavorful grape, reminds me of Thompson grapes that we used to grow when I was young. Maybe a little like the Red Globe as well. The shape makes one think peppers, and to me that is what they look like, little chili peppers but they are sweet.<br />
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Also, really praying that by the end of the month we will start the kitchen remodel.<br />
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This is the before view. Hopefully it will all be gone soon and my new kitchen will be born in it's place. As I said, I can't wait.<br />
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Thanks for stopping by, come visit often.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-20772627869527938422013-08-18T17:04:00.000-07:002013-08-18T17:04:32.124-07:00Summer is Over.I have been cleaning like crazy and not feeling like I am getting anywhere. But, I have swept the living room, dining room and kitchen, along with hall. I will mop it all later this evening when there is less traffic running through. I also cleaned up my kitchen, getting rid of a lot of clutter. Cleaned the fridge out as well, cleaning the shelves as threw out all the old left overs (as well as to go boxes) and as bad as I hated throwing away the money, I threw out anything and everything that was expired. Hubby had a little stomach upset and he swears it was because of bad lunch meat. I have a terrible time keeping up with that stuff. It is hit or miss whether my family will eat sandwiches, so I try not to buy very much. I hate to admit this, but I probably threw out enough food to feed some homeless guy for a month. In my defense though, we just came back from two and half weeks in the RV so had more on hand than normal.<br />
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Now that the grand baby is here, vacation is done, I hope that hubby comes through and we actually get to start on the kitchen remodel.<br />
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This is the before photo. I know it looks fine, but it really does not flow well. And...while it looks like it has a lot of storage, the majority of the cabinets are too small to hold much. The exception is the left hand corner cabinet, to the left of the stove. The cabinet itself goes way back and would be great for a lazy susan or pull out system...if the door were wider than 8 inches. Can't even get a large size pitcher in there easily. However, that is all hopefully about to change. <br />
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Another view of the kitchen. The far right is my pantry, stuffed full of can goods, cereal, baking items, and all sorts of food. Between the fridge and that pantry is a doorway. Mr. M loves it, he runs circles around it for us to chase him. I am arguing with hubby about it though, because I want to close it off to give us more space in the kitchen.<br />
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This out dated, too small, glass front china cabinet is going away as well. It opens to the dining room which I don't like. I have an idea for this area that will utilize the space for cabinets in the kitchen and give me some display shelves for all my cookbooks and some of the antique pieces I have from my mom.<br />
I have lots of photos saved from all over the internet, each with an element I want to incorporate in to my new kitchen.<br />
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OH HOW I WISH, I could get these two things in the new kitchen. I am waiting to see if I can even find the tiles to make the rooster decoration, then to see how much room it actually needs. My kitchen has a combo microwave exhaust fan over the stove so very little wall space there. I am thinking if I give up the cabinets above it, move the microwave up a bit, maybe it would work. But then I am thinking that it would be really hard to reach the microwave at a higher level.<br />
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The stove would be a dream come true, but it is a commercial grade stove and that would not be in the budget since I want a new fridge more. However, I really think that depending on the prices I find, I may just bite the bullet and spend the money and upgrade to a five burner stove that would have the griddle/grill plate with it. May just take measurements and leave a space large enough to allow for the larger stove and purchase it next year. It all depends on how much it ends up costing for the new cabinets and counter tops, molding trim, new shelf set, replacement window, new sink and new lighting. I have a budget set, and will see what is left over after that. <br />
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I am hoping tonight I can sit down and come up with a menu plan for the next few weeks. I am going to be working out of my pantry and freezer stores as much as possible. Kind of wanting to trim down what I have on hand, will be less to box up while the work is done. It will be hard to prepare meals when the remodel actually starts up. What a mess we will have with food stores, cook ware, dishes and such all in boxes. Not to mention no stove for a few days. But, I have a grill, Coleman stove and several crock pots. Hubby said that he will do his best to work around the fridge and stove so we can keep them functional while all of this happens. It will so be worth it and I pray it all happens soon. If he keeps dragging his feet, I may just start ripping out the cabinets myself. The new neighbor next door is a construction guy, am going to get an estimate from him. It may be worth it to pay a little more and get it done. <br />
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Thanks for stopping by, I need to go get a little more done in the house and then settle in for some TV viewing and working on the menu plans. Hoping to get back on track with my Meal Plan Monday postings and actually sticking to a menu plan. Check back tomorrow to see if I succeeded or not.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-30210221527380991042013-07-16T13:53:00.001-07:002013-07-16T13:53:32.610-07:00Cooking up PinkThe last few months have been totally crazy. First of all, let me show off.<br />
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My newest grand baby arrived. Pink this time. She was just hours old in this photo.<br />
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I am so happy, so thankful to God that everything turned out so well. She was full term, healthy, and her mom is doing great as well.<br />
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Miss C arrived July 14, 2013 weighing 7 lbs. 12 oz. and 21 inches long. She has lovely long fingers and long toes and a long little foot as well. Not sure if the hair will be blonde or brown yet, but she has quite a bit. After three grandsons, am so happy to have a grand daughter to dress up.<br />
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Life is still really busy around here with all the cleaning, remodeling and catching up I have to do from being sick and some dental work that went a little wrong. We are soon to be heading out on our big vacation adventure as well.<br />
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We are hosting a small dinner party in August. Since we are soon to start the kitchen remodel we wanted to have our turn as host since it will be a few months before it will all be worked over. It will be a kind of good bye to the old kitchen and then on with the new so when we host again the couples will get to see the before and after experience. OH I AM SO EXCITED to get this project going. I know it will take a long time as we are doing the work all our selves, but the savings will be well worth it since I am putting that savings toward some new appliances. Hubby doesn't think I am capable of doing any physical work, but I will be PROVING him wrong because I can, if nothing else, be cleaning up behind him while he is at work. My dad was the world's best handy man and taught me to swing a hammer and such so I know that I can be of help. Besides, the new design is all in my head anyway. <br />
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Some of the cabinets will be repurposed for the new laundry room and storage/pantry room. But otherwise, we will be gutting the entire kitchen and putting all new cabinets and countertops in, new back splashes and a new window as well. Not much has to change with the flooring, but little does change we still have boxes of tile left over from when we did the kitchen floor so matching and repairing will be simple.<br />
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I made a Churro Cheesecake, which was very good but not much eaten. I really need to work on learning to half a recipe or find somewhere to take the other half. LOL<br />
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I will be working on getting back on track with my budgeting and menu planning when we get back home. My oldest grandson Mr. T has been visiting us for the last few weeks. He lives in Texas with is his little brother Mr. W and his mom (my oldest daughter) and dad. Since I normally get to see him once a year, for about 3 or 4 days, this month with him has been a real treat. However, not being around him often, it is hard to know what he likes for meals so menu planning went totally by the wayside. But, since I am really determined to start cut our spending...every where...and since I can make the biggest difference or cut the easiest with the grocery and household spending that is where I will start. That and cutting out the eating out. I am terrible about wanting to eat out because it is my favorite thing to do. But I will just have to think about the big picture, which is the money saved, and I will be able to do it. It is just insane that any more for our family to all go out to eat it cost close to $200.00 including a tip of course. But, then again when we usually go out to eat, we usually go out with our oldest son and his family and usually pay for them as well. Still, it is obscene to think that I am enjoying one meal for what I can feed us on for at the very least two to three weeks. Healthier food as well. I will also be taking advantage of the week before oldest daughter starts back to school that she can watch the little guy for me so I can do some bulk cooking sessions. This has one obstacle to achieving, that is the freezer is stuffed with meat. I am hoping that the spaced freed up by cooking the meat will generate enough space for the meals I am cooking ahead. I have also purchases some aids in organizing the menu plans to make them a little more easily accessed. I just need to make myself sit down, plan it and implement it. That is my number one goal, actually doing it for a change.<br />
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Also forcing myself back in to weight management mode as well. I plan to schedule some gym time, just like I would schedule a manicure. I need to renew my efforts to control my portions, cut my sweets and boredom snacking, and get moving. I am not taking all my recipes and such to menu plan, but will be taking some notebooks to work on creating cleaning schedules to actually make myself clean, and an activity schedule for my bible study, writing, computer time (blogging and facebooking) and sewing. I find that I tend to get focused in on one thing or one project and neglect all else until I finish it. In fact, I also get so easily distracted by one thing or another, that I wonder if I don't have adult ADD. Have to add that I also have to get myself better organized as to my Pampered Chef business and getting my Etsy site up and running and actually some things to offer in it. WOW, I am overloaded, but I need to be more productive and less Facebook gaming. <br />
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Got to go for now, so will be back in August and hopefully in full swing with all my sewing and crafting. Wish me luck and check back in August. Thanks for stopping in and come back soon.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-37250767945225948242013-06-18T13:39:00.000-07:002013-06-18T13:39:10.499-07:00CollectionsEvery one has a collection of some type. It makes us feel good to gather the things we like. I find this a fascinating insight as I watch my youngest grand son, Mr. M, not quite 2 year old yet. He will sit on our couch and pull all of his little toys on to the couch around him. Like he is holding court over all of his little cars, stuffed animals, action figures and such. It is so cute.<br />
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At any rate, from an early age we have this desire to collect the things that touch us in a special way. Be that silly giddy feeling we have by just seeing an item, or maybe a particular item causes a smile to cross our face for no apparent reason. My mom collected decorative plates from all the places she travelled. She also collected photos, lots and lots of photos, of all kinds of things, for years and years. I had one aunt that enjoyed the beach and collected all kinds of things that she would find on her walks. One aunt collected salt and pepper shakers. I would love to collect them, have absolutely no room or way of displaying them.<br />
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I have random collections. Depending on the mood I am in during that phase of my life. At one time I collected cows, angels, thimbles, miniatures and such. The last two I still pick up from time to time when ever we go on a vacation. Thimbles, like shot glasses, are small to carry and display and also cheap as far as souvenirs go. One thing that I have always collected as been cookbooks. All kinds of cookbooks. Loose recipes, printed recipes, internet recipes, hand written recipes. My favorite kinds of cookbooks are actually the fundraiser kind. Like for a church or school or club. Members submit their favorite recipes, then they are published with their name in the book. I have a weakness for church congregational cookbooks. I have lost count of how many cookbooks I actually have. I am so excited that when we remodel the kitchen I will have some shelves to display all my books. At the moment, they are tucked away in a closet, very hard to get to when I want one. <br />
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I have over the years been really fascinated in old cookbooks. The older the better. My mother's side of the family comes from Germany and it is rumored that her father's family were Pennsylvania Amish. This hasn't been proven by genealogy but based on the amount of family recipes with Amish influence, it would seem to be true. My dad's side of the family all cooked what you would call "home-style" or "country". Both sides of the family were farmers. Different crops as they were in different parts of the state, but they still cooked with recipes that were carried down to them, and they grew up and started their families during the depression era so going to their home was like eating a meal from the old days. At the moment cookbooks, recipes from the 30's and 40's are of great interest to me. More on that later.<br />
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So...on with my story. Recently I had purchased a copy of "My Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook" that had been published in 1936, the seller described it as having loose hand written pages with recipes on it included in the book as well as some handwritten notes on some of the book's recipes. Those are the best kind. My mom would write in her cookbooks "Good" or "Never Again" or "Excellent" depending on how the recipe turned out. Back to the story though. I received my package, all excited, only to open it and find the wrong book inside. The seller had accidentally mixed up the two shipments, sending my book to another buyer and his book to me. Doing the right thing, I repackaged the book and sent it to the correct buyer. Sadly, the other buyer has not been so kind. He has refused to send me my book, has ignored repeated email request to do so. Thankfully the seller was a very honest person and not only refunded my initial payment, but refunded me the cost of shipping for my sending the other buyer his book. I was understandably disappointed as it is really difficult to find the old cookbooks still in decent shape, when you do, they are sometimes pricey. I am not willing to put a lot of money in to my addiction. I was however fortunate to find a copy of the same book that had been listed, but published in 1938. I really didn't care, it was still in the time period I was looking for. I purchased it quickly, and it was even cheaper than the first book I had ordered.<br />
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It arrived today. I was pleasantly surprised that the book was in such excellent condition for its age. Some water damage has caused the last few pages to stick together, but they are all blank pages included in the book for writing notes or recipes in. I don't really need them. The biggest surprise however was when I opened up the cover to find that the book was published in 1930, not 1938. So happy.<br />
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The thing that I am drawn to the most about recipes from this time period is the simplicity of them. No fancy techniques, no expensive ingredients, no bias toward red meat or for organic. Things weren't processed back then the way they are these days. Especially looking at where my family roots come from, farmers, they were working families that lived in rural areas. They needed meals that fed their body. They ate to live. Now days it seems that people live to eat.<br />
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Here is a part of one of the pages in the cookbook, it explains how to plan a meal that is nutritious. Yes, the food pyramid or what ever they call it these days, has changed over the years but to look at it makes total sense. I love that they suggested a quart of milk a day per person. Of course, now a days about the same amount is suggested, if you add up the consumption of all things dairy...milks, cheese, yogurt. Also included are some suggested menus. <br />
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Once again, the simplicity strikes me as appealing. Their life style is reflective as well. Dinner or supper is the main meal. Fresh fruits, vegetables were the norm for daytime. The dishes prepared for a meal was also reflective of the season. They were experts at making use of the growing seasons. Remember, they didn't have chemically preserved foods. They canned and preserved the vegetables while they were fresh and in season to have during the months that wouldn't be available. Total pioneers of "sustainable" food sources long before it was the fad.<br />
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I wish often that I could back to that time and live there. As long as I could take my electric washer/dryer, mixer, computer and sewing machine to name a few. Life and all it's expectations were more simple, purer, back then. Families took care of families, people had morals, had ethics, believed in church and country.<br />
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Enough of my ramblings. I have to get to the store to pick up a 10 inch iron skillet to make a recipe I found from the 50's for tonight. I had something else planned for tonight, but have a lot of ground beef left over from the party last night since only a third of the invited showed up. So...off I go. Thanks for stopping by and come back often.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6288556979012031498.post-20130619276179264582013-06-16T23:38:00.001-07:002013-06-16T23:48:52.592-07:00MPM 6/17 - 6/23Wow, this is going to be a really crazy week. I have had the last two weeks meals planned out, has not worked out for one reason or another. However, I have stayed on budget and have for the most part only used what I had already on hand. Honestly, I have not really cooked in several days. Mainly because I had some dental work done and that has not turned out well at all. I have been on a very soft diet, hardly eating much at all. Hubby has been great at helping out with the cooking. You know it has to be bad if I don't want to even thing about going out to eat or even think about food.<br />
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So, here is the plan for this week.<br />
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Mon: burgers and dogs, chips, dips, brownies, cookies (daughter is hosting a Stanley Cup party)<br />
Tue: C.O.R.N - Cleaning out refrigerator night.<br />
Wed: Del Monte Hamburger Upside Down Bake<br />
Thu: Chicken and Dumplings, salad<br />
Fri: Depends on how my mouth is doing, get the stitches out.<br />
Sat: Eating out - picking up grandson from airport.<br />
Sun: Eating out brunch.<br />
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The Del Monte Hamburger Upside Down Bake is a vintage recipe from 1956. It is a new recipe from <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MccallumVintageRecipeDivas?ref=tn_tnmn" target="_blank">McCallumVintageRecipeDivas</a> on Facebook. If you are in to Facebook, this is a fabulous page.<br />
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Since my cast iron skillets are in the RV, I have to go buy one for the house before I can make this. Am pretty sure I can use a baking dish, but want to make it with the recommended pan the first time. Of course, what kitchen from those days, and earlier for that matter, didn't have an iron skillet in their kitchen. My grandmother had several sizes, a dutch oven as well.<br />
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Hoping that this week works out a little better. <br />
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My beautiful youngest daughter, 16, Miss Zebra. She had an ice skating competition this past Saturday. She received a 2nd place medal, best of all she made it through with out falling. This was a first. She is so beautiful and graceful out on the ice.<br />
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The song she performed to was Red High Heels by Kelly Pickler.<br />
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Also on Saturday, my youngest grand son, Mr. M, had his 2nd birthday party.<br />
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His birthday is actually in July, but since his little sister Miss C is scheduled to arrive in July as well, they went ahead and held the party a little early. We have entered in to new territory here, since Mr. M came 7 weeks early, she is going through things that didn't get a chance to happen before. She is due July 16, and we have to leave for our vacation on July 20, so am praying that she does not come late. I will be very sad if I miss her arrival. We have two other grand sons as well. The oldest Mr. T is flying in on June 20th to stay a few weeks with us and going on vacation with us.<br />
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Today, since the swelling had gone down a bit, and was feeling a little better, I went to the local farmer's market. I went to just buy some berries. I came home with blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, orange honey, plums and duck eggs. Have been told that duck eggs are very rich, buttery and velvety when cooked. We will see how it comes out.<br />
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I did receive my "new" old cookbook. This was my second choice, my first choice was a different cookbook that I had purchased from a seller on Amazon. The seller had accidentally mixed up the shipment, sending another buyer's book in my package and my book to that person in his package. I did the right thing and sent the book to the correct buyer, but unfortunately that person has not done the same. The seller made it right, giving me not only a refund for my payment but also refunded me the cost for shipping the book to the correct buyer.<br />
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Thanks for stopping buy for a visit. Menu planning is very important to help you organize your time, save you money, and help to plan better meals. I am linking up with <a href="http://orgjunkie.com/category/menu-plan-monday" target="_blank">Meal Plan Monday</a> over at Organizing Junkie. Hundreds of readers post their menu plans to her site and it is great inspiration when I get stuck. Come back soon, tomorrow I hope to do some baking, or as soon as I am feeling a little stronger, will post when I do.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13883276453614044524noreply@blogger.com0