snapshots

hello, Martha.

 u-picked strawberries, hand-whipped cream, and shortcake from scratch.          Uh huh.

Lunch in Ethiopia

Today Mady and I had an amazing experience. We were invited to a neighbor's home for a traditional Ethiopian feast, along with some other homeschool families.

As we walked in, the smell was incredible. Mulu, our neighbor and hostess, was roasting raw coffee beans in an everyday saucepan on her stove. They began as small, green beans, and roasted into dark, oily, slightly larger ones. Mulu ground them, and added them to an Ethiopian clay pot filled with hot water to steep.

We were served the hot coffee in tiny cups by an Ethiopian girl - part of another homeschool family, that had been adopted just three months ago. Faith's sisters were also adopted into the same family. It was awesome to hear Faith and Mulu talking in their native language. The coffee ceremony is the  traditional greeting into someone's home.

Next we split into three groups, and we each helped to make one of the three dishes we were going to eat for lunch. Mady and I worked on a potatoes and carrots dish, with lots of spices, including berbere. The other dishes were a lentil stew and a cabbage dish. (Lucky for us it was probably a "fasting day" - in which only vegetarian meals are eaten).  Mulu made the injera - the spongy crepe type sour bread that is served with each meal. It is made from a fermented starter, similar to sourdough. It tastes much more sour though!

Once the dishes were all ready and after almost two hours of conversation, we feasted!

I think I had probably known of this before, but hadn't thought about it for today's lunch - but in Ethiopia, they do not eat with utensils. I think Mulu said she didn't even have any forks! So eat with our fingers we did! The injera bread is a good mop for scooping everything up. Stew without any spoon or fork, and tons of turmeric in the foods. Can you imagine us? Yellow fingers and messy face. It was so neat to experience that! It was all delicious and unique.

After our meal, the recently adopted Ethiopian girls spontaneously sang and danced for us. We were in awe! Even the little five year old had moves! It was a very distinct dance, and Faith's voice was amazing. Amazing! It is hard to describe other than she sounded like three people singing at once all together, because of so many tones and inflections. It was beautiful. It made Mulu emotional, and then everyone else got teary too. It was an excellent fit for Mady's Cultural and Community Exploration study!

And of course I took about fifty pictures. Apparently using the SD card that I ran over at Christmas. :( If I can figure out a different way to read the card, I will be sure to post photos. To read a bit more about the culture, go here.

decadence.

Remember how the Month of Contentment was going to be not boring? Wrong. This weeked we were totally bored. But it didn't occur to us that we were so bored, until a few hours ago, with not much time to rectify the lameness. I am pretty sure it wasn't related to the spending-fast, it was just that we neglected to plan anything.

Don't you worry about us though, because I finished up the weekend by making pie. A very lovely, decadent, pie. If you ever get bored (or just hungry) you should try it.  Super easy. I recommend just using the store bought crust. It's like a chocolate chip cookie in a pie, what could go wrong?

Toll House Pie

• 1 cup butter

• 2 eggs

• 1/2 cup flour

• 1/2 cup sugar

• 1/2 cup brown sugar

• 1 cup chocolate chips

• 1 prepared pie crust (pastry, not graham cracker!)

Preheat oven to 325F. Prepare a pie crust (or use a store bought). Melt butter and allow to cool. Beat eggs with mixer until foamy. Add flour and sugars. Blend in butter. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour into pie shell and bake 1 hour. Recipe from Mel Lucht, a Mops mama from a few years ago.

Meal Plan Monday

Monday: Breakfast - plain cream of wheat. Lunch and Dinner - beans and rice.

Tuesday: Breakfast - plain cream of wheat. Lunch and Dinner - beans and rice.

Weds.: Breakfast - plain cream of wheat. Lunch and Dinner - beans and rice.

Thursday: Breakfast - plain cream of wheat. Lunch and Dinner - beans and rice.

Friday: Breakfast - plain cream of wheat. Lunch and Dinner - beans and rice.

Saturday: Breakfast - plain cream of wheat. Lunch and Dinner - beans and rice.

Our church is participating in The Micah Project. It's an effort to reach out, give, love, and gain empathy. (In my words). There are four parts to the Micah Project -

1.  Visit the World Vision Exhibit about life in Africa.
2. Endure the sustenance diet for 6 days.
3. Give to the food pantry at our church or elsewhere (local action)
4. Donate and assemble caregiver kits to be sent to Africa. (global action).

It is nice to have little faces to put to the hunger, pain, and poverty of the people in Africa. (Kody, a friend of a friend who was recently brought home from Ghana, and my friend Renee's three children from Liberia).  Can you imagine any of those sweet kids with nothing to eat? I am very excited to visit the exhibit and learn more about day to day life in poor Africa. I expect it will be so impactful! Particularly with our economy right now, and feeling like our own family has had a rough time - we have no idea what a rough time is!

I have been so abundantly blessed by God and the love of very good friends, lately in particular. I know this challenge of the Micah Project will be completely eye opening about what true need is. I think our American problems will seem insignificant and trivial.  Yet the theme is the same - love for one another, loving others as yourself, helping to carry others' burdens.

Go here to learn more about the "The Micah Project". After the challenge, I'll interview my friend Belsa who is also participating, and my daughter Mady. Check back to see our new, skinnier selves. :)

bountiful

Local, un-sprayed, u-pick blackberries.

$0 per/lb.

Perfect. I'll take twenty pounds, please.

(What to do with all of them? This recipe is easy and, so I have heard, delicious, even with the sometimes sour berries.)

she sells seashells

 

 
Seashore themes continue around here, happily. For more muffin tin lunches, check here.

muffin tin monday: alfresco

(Contents: raisins, blue corn chips, kissables, string beans from the garden, green flax seed chips, celery from the garden, bread with mustard (to make a sandwich), hard boiled egg, oranges, cheddar, turkey slices, strawberry).

I used to love doing this many years ago for Mady and a little boy I nannied for. I was so happy to be reminded of it! (Remember how I said I was sort of a slacker mom these days?) I am sure I read it in an early childhood development book or something like that. Offering your child lots of things to nibble on, in hopes that they might like to try something new because of the sheer novelty of it. We like it alfresco.

Today's challenge was rainbow themed. I will say, last Monday they ate all of their food, this week, not as much. Who am I kidding? There was no chance they were going to eat raw celery or string beans. Oh well. Here's what they had last week...

 

To see a whole unruly gang of muffin tin moms, go here.

Cutting Grocery Bills

All was not lost.... after I left the bread in the oven for double the baking time, I made it into delicious croutons! (Hazards of playing gymnastics-flip-me-over-the chair-Ta-Da! game with Ruby while simultaneously making bread).  The delicious and easy recipe for whole wheat bread came from this sweet girl. For croutons, cut the loaf into cubes. Heat a 200F oven for about twelve minutes until bread feels almost dried out and crouton like. Pour a small amount of melted butter/margarine over bread cubes, and stir well. Sprinkle with garlic powder and dried herbs of your choice. Bake another few minutes until they are crouton-ly crunchy.

Other ideas I am trying, in order to save some grocery money:

• stock up on sale and loss-leader items. buy as much as you think you will need before the product's expiration date. example: big jar of applesauce was on sale for $1, but expires in one month, so I only stocked up on three. for toilet paper at a great price, I'll buy as much as my budget allows. I am storing the extras in bins, away from my kitchen and pantry.

• bake from scratch. homemade whole wheat bread is far healthier and much less expensive than store bought. try to incorporate other inexpensive, relatively wholesome, foods into meals. (homemade cornbread, muffins, pancakes, bread sticks, etc.) Skip convenience mixes and make it from scratch. You can make ahead and freeze most bread items.

• incorporate potatoes into your meals as often as you feel is healthy (depending on how you cook them). Potatoes are dirt cheap. Mashed potatoes, baked potatoes, potato salad, home fries, potato cakes, potato soup. Look here for lots o' recipes. 1933 of them, to be exact.

• if you don't already have a vegetable garden, consider planning a small one for next summer. one packet of lettuce seeds will probably be enough to harvest salads all summer. I find that because I can harvest as I need, I have very little produce waste. zucchini harvests could feed a small army. zucchini recipes here.

• make more meatless dishes. protein is in so many foods, a full vegetarian diet is both healthy and earth-friendly. you might already know several vegetarian dishes without realizing: homemade macaroni and cheese, vegetable pasta salads, bean and cheese enchiladas or tacos, big dinner salads, spaghetti with marinara, veggie or cheese homemade pizza, and many ethnic dishes are often vegetarian, especially indian, greek, and mediterranean.

• keep track of your fridge. don't let foods spoil.

• eat "out of the pantry" by utilizing what you already have on hand. use this site to help you figure out how to turn those random foods into yummy meals. spend the saved money to stock up on those loss-leader foods for later.

• batch cook. buy foods in bulk quantities, cook many servings, and freeze the rest for later. try any of these sites for help.

• make your own household cleaners and laundry soap. very easy and super cheap.

• we have made the decision to fore go most organic items (with the exception of the dirty dozen) for right now, even though we'd prefer mostly organics. you have to do what you have to do what you have to do sometimes.

• stretch your meals by adding eggs, rice, or beans. each are quite inexpensive and healthy. buy large quantities at a restaurant supply store. (often much cheaper than warehouse stores).

• have "breakfast for dinner" every once in a while. my kids love it, and it is really inexpensive to make pancakes and omelets. (or waffles, scrambled eggs, quiche, french toast, etc.)

• plan, plan, plan your menus, and take a list with you to shop and keep on track.

What do you do to save grocery money? Please share!

Summer Plans and Activity Ideas

Each spring, just before summer gets into full swing, we make a list of all the things we want to do in the summer months. Then we fill it all into a calendar, just to make sure we get to do everything we want, without the days slipping by.

{To make your own list, start by looking in the Sunday papers for ads of local events, and then look to your Parks Department for free activities and community events.} Click on the links I have added, there are lots of great ones!

Here's our '08 list:

1. go camping, at least twice. (tips here.)
2. make smore's in our backyard firepit.
3. birthday parties for Jenson, Mady, and Frank
4. have a memorial day bbq (recipes here.)
5. go to Jetty Island
6. spend a day at Forest Park, including swimming and petting zoo
7. road trip to Ocean Shores to use our timeshare 'bonus'
8. use our timeshare 'bonus' in Lynden at Homestead
9. many trips to Bloedel for beach play
10. trip to Granville Island
11. Whistler business trip
12. read books in the backyard on blankets with iced tea
13. garage saleing to hunt for fun outdoor toys
14. make our own ice cream
15. go for drives in the MGB with the top down
16. Birch Bay Discovery Days parade
17. Buy candy and snow cones at the C Shop
18. waterslides (my own childhood favorite!)
19. participate in the Barnes and Noble summer reading program
20. Participate in the public library reading program
21. go to a couple outdoor movies
22. go to the free Regal children's movies
23. have an Alex's Lemonade Stand
24. Square Foot Garden
25. picnics at out local water spray parks
26. many walks along Taylor Dock, with treats at Woods Coffee
27. Faith Academy camp
28. Relay for Life
29. plant more trees in the backyard
30. shop farmer's markets
31. go to the zoo
32. play horse shoes at Cornwall park
33. Park days with our Mops group
34. Edaleen Dairy for the famous 35 cent cones
35. pick strawberries, blueberries and raspberries locally
36. take many beautiful photos
37. Children's Art Festival, a yearly tradition
38. chalk art festival
39. many walks to Starbuck's with Jen
40. Brown Bag Children's Concerts
41. trip to Tahoe! (aunties, when do you want us?)
42. watch my uncle Johnnie play. He's a rockstar, you know,
43. swim in Lake Tahoe (aka - lay on the beach like sea lions at Skylandia)
44. 4th of July picnic and fireworks
45. invite myself to harvest lovely flower starts from my 'adopted mom's' garden
46. take our little raft out in Lake Whatcom
47. try lots of new recipes for 'summer' foods with our SFG harvest
48. hike
49. day trip to Friday Harbor
50. summer art projects

out of one rut, and on to the next

Mmmm, layering....

I made these Lime Meltaway cookies too. Martha's recipe is here.

I have a really great future husband in the makings here! He can make pancakes entirely by himself, while intermittently tending to his sick sister.  He's quite handsome, too.  I think he'll also be a good provider. He spent the first part of the morning sorting his money, and then asked if I had any chores he could do to earn more.  Some girl is going to be very lucky in a few years.

Edited: He cleaned up too.

all things crafty + a giveaway

Cookies aren't technically crafty, but I take great care in the frosting process. It should be considered crafty.  Notice the many shades of green for the trees?  Notice I had brown frosting right there but forgot to do the trunks?  Granted, it was probably midnight.  (And in case you were wondering, the kids got their own to do, but ate them all before I took the photos.  Mine are in the freezer, ready to be added to the cookie plates.)

Here's the finished, stuffed soft trees.  I still want to do a tall skinny one, and some with added buttons and such.  These were my practice guys. Allison, the pattern can be found here, and there is a flickr group for them too. Side note: Little Birds, where the pattern is from, used to be my favorite blog!  She stopped in April, but you can still read all the archives. It is just lovely. Especially November and December. And all the rest. I have been going back through it lately and loving it all over again. I didn't really get into the button wreaths last year, but now I think I might do one. Side-side-note: she is half of 3191, a very cool daily photo blog.  Also, her artist sister has this blog.

Some people read in bed.  I prefer to make stuff.  This is a hybrid pillow.  Not really handmade, not really store bought.  ...You get a placemat (this one is from Target) for about $3.99. Seam rip one side apart, about four inches.  Stuff it with poly (or wool?) and stitch it back up.  So easy, like half an hour, mostly spent in stuffing.  I was taught to add fill in tiny bits so that things aren't lumpy. So this one is already wrapped and under the tree, for Mady.  I came across the idea on someone's blog a couple days ago, but can't figure out where, to credit her. Great idea, who ever you are!

Also crafty, is Kari. :)  This was at Paper Party this weekend at Treasury.  Popular place that day!  (Hi Chantel, Stefanie, Hillary G., Naomi, Hilary, Kristie, Quinn, and Angela!  Did I forget anyone?) Paper Party is held each month at Treasury, and is completely free.  Usually it's the thrid Saturday of the month, at 10, 11, or noon.  Just call in advance to reserve a spot.  At this one, we made transparency winter mini-books. And since I'm not an employee anymore, I can brag all about Treasury and not be cheesy. :) If you are new to scrapbooking and paper crafts, it is a great way to start learning stuff. Did I mention free?

And my final craftiness this weekend are these little mini-tissue holders.  They hold the tiny packs of Kleenex, for in your purse or whatever.  These two are my trial-run testers.  They turned out ok, but maybe slightly off-center.  I am going to be a tissue holder factory this week. Do you want one?  I'll give away these two slightly off-center ones.  Just leave a comment and I'll randomly pick sometime next week. How can you resist my tester craft?  One day when I am famous, they'll be worth millions. Like the coins that have misspellings and stuff. 

Leave a comment. All the bloggers like comments. Even if we don't kow you are reading.  It's not weird, you're invited to read! :)  {Click where it says 3 comments, or however many, at the bottom of the post.  It will take you to the comments section, where you can read other comments, then leave one.  You can do it by just entering in your first name, then your email address.  You don't have to fill in the URL part.  Then just submit the comment, enter in the code they show you, and you're done. Easy!}

Recipe for an Indian dinner

Yay for Trader Joe's!  In honor of the opening, here's one of my favorite recipes using their products.  And unless you like mosh pits, you might want to wait a couple days before your shopping.  It was nuts!

Indian Dinner:

1 jar of Trader Joe's punjabi sauce, 1/2 c. plain yogurt, 1/2 cup (or less, to your liking) brown sugar, cooked jasmine rice, 1 cup sliced mushrooms, touch of olive oil, tofu or panner (I love the Paneer from Appel Farms, but I can only find it at the farm, not in the supermarkets). Paneer is Indian cheese.

So, brown the mushrooms in the olive oil in a skillet. Add the Punjabi Sauce, and heat through.  Add the brown sugar to taste - it cuts down the spiciness quite a bit.  Add cubed tofu or cubed Paneer.  Turn the heat to low, and add the yogurt.  Serve over cooked jasmine rice. I make my own Naan and raita, but those are available at Trader Joe's too. If you aren't vegetarian. just substitute chicken for the tofu or paneer if you want.

Lemon Snickerdoodles

Baking adventures a few days ago, Lemon Snickerdoodles. Delicious!

1/2 cup butter, 1 cup sugar, 1/4 t. baking soda, 1/4 t. cream of tartar, 1 egg, 1/2 t. lemon extract flavoring, 2 drops yellow food color (optional), 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 2 T. sugar (for rolling).

Beat butter for 30 seconds until soft, then add the 1 cup sugar, baking soda, and cream of tartar.  Beat again.  Now beat in egg and lemon flavoring, and if you'd like, a couple drops of yellow food color - makes them look lemony. Next, add in the flour.  Cover and chill, about an hour, or 15 minutes in the freezer.

Preheat the oven to 375F. Shape the dough into little balls (about a tablespoon size or so) and roll in white sugar.

Place TWO INCHES apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake for 9-10 minutes, being careful not to overbake.  (Just until edges are set). Let cool. ENJOY!

Meal Plan Monday: Food Edition!

Hey guess what?  No odd medical conditions to report like last week and the week before!  Instead, Meal Plans!

I had a very long weekend of work. Before I left on Sunday morning, I asked my husband if he would mind getting some groceries - just basics, so I 'd have something to work with.

And when I got home last night, there was this.

He menu planned for me!!  This was almost the best part of my day! He did a good job, don't you think? He even put stir-fry on the night I work, since I don't like it. Smart guy. And crab cakes with mango salsa! And eggplant parmesan!  Nice!  Anyone need to borrow him?

Meal Plan Monday

Look what I came home to on Sunday!  My sweet friend Margo was a little vegetable fairy!!  Nice!  She's also a pretty good massage-er if you're looking for that.

My car accident case settled this week, so I am pretending that she brought me this vegetable bouquet instead of the usual celebratory flower bouquet. :)  She spent a lot of time rubbing away my pains over the last two and half years.  Also, when I get massages in her home office, she has lots of lovely little things to admire.  Like hooked rugs that she made herself, the very best set of vintage dishes I have ever seen (Franciscan 'Sunburst', right Margo?), and a 50's dinner table and chairs.  So anyway, courtesy of her sweetness, new vegetables to work my menu around. Yay!!

Still doing great on the budget - I haven't shopped for the few things I need this week though.  But at this point, $191 left for the month.  I'll definitely have some to roll into next month's.  I worked hard to use what I had in stock already.  Also, I had a lot of fun helping a friend do the same!  If you are interested in how to do it (not rocket science!), I'll tell ya...

First, with paper and pen, take an inventory of everything you have, and write how much approximately you have of it.  I make it in two lists, one perishables, one non-perishables, where I also include the frozen stuff.    Once you have your list, sit down with some good coffee or tea, and decide which ingredients must be used soon so that they don't spoil.  (On my list this week, that would include a ton of hoagie rolls, my vegetables, and fresh fruits).  Base your meals on those ingredients first, and then work from there.  You can get pretty creative, and find out that you can make quite a few meals without buying much.  I do this every once in a while, whenever I want to stretch my budget, but then obviously after a while you'll need to stock up on things again.  I think some of this meal planning and food using - stretching is habit from owning restaurants, too, but totally adaptable to home kitchens.

Once you've inventoried, if you have a hard time figuring out how to fit it all into meals, I came across an excellent website that does it for you!  You create an "e-pantry" of whatever you have on hand, and it spits out bunches of recipes that include your ingredients. It'll tell you if you have 100% of the ingredients, and then work down, if you have only 70% of the ingredients or whatever.  You could use it to come up with some ideas, then substitute your own favorite recipes.   http://www.recipematcher.com/  Their little video is worth watching, it explains how to do it. OK, on with my menu...  based on what is mostly in my pantry already, so it's not overly exciting this week.

Monday - quiche for the vegetarians, leftover ginger curry chicken for the meaties, and green salad.

Tuesday - Hoagie sandwiches (we like these with bell pepper and onion slices, deli meat or no meat, assorted cheeses, and BBQ sauce, then heated until the cheese is melty.  It is better than it probably sounds!  I also like to add letuce to mine after it's heated and a touch of vinegarette on top of all that). Also, cut fresh veggies and homemade dill dip.

Wednesday - Pretzel-crusted tilapia with fresh mango salsa, rice, and salad.

Thursday - (Jenson's birthday, and his choices...) Grilled salmon, "those brown beans that we ate at Relay for Life" - (baked beans), "plain bread with butter", and sticky rice. Ok then!

Friday - "White Enchiladas" - pretty high-fat, but so good!  Flour tortillas filled with a mixture of cream cheese, monterey jack, and sauteed chicken pieces with garlic (or we use mushrooms instead). It gets put into the baking dish, and topped with green enchilada sauce and 1/2 cup or so of heavy cream, then baked.  We top it with shredded cabbage and lots of fresh pico-de-gallo to lighten it up a bit, plus not really huge portions...

Saturday - leftover white enchiladas

Sunday - Swiss Dips, (with ground beef or Gardenburgers), hoagies, swiss cheese, grilled onions, and au jus for dipping, with green salad.

Breakfasts - leftover quiche, oatmeal, cereal, smoothies, wheat toast with homemade strawberry jam, cocoa and coffee.  (We're using up the winter cocoa supply for breakfast.  It has instant milk, so my kids are getting calcium there instead of using more milk at breakfast.  Not the super-healthiest for long term, but seems ok for a few weeks til we use the cocoa up!)

Lunches - Sandwiches all week!  On haogies. :)  Oh, another tip, check your city for a restaurant supply store.  Our local one doesn't require you to own a business.  For some things, prices are way better than Costco.  The difference is that it is in huge packages intended for restaurant use.  I buy 5 lb. bags of parmesan and shredded mozzarella, and divide it up and freeze it.  This is where I found the 18 hoagies for less than $3.

Enjoy your week!  For other menu plans, check out Organizing Junkie%3

Meal Plan Monday

Wow, do I have a lot of vegetables to use up this week!  Lots of local farmers market produce to work into the meals.  Unfortunatley, a poor container of alfalfa sprouts was found deceased this morning. Rest in peace my little crunchy-but-slimey friends.  Other than that, no fatalities in the food waste goal. This week is going to be a big challenge, though.  If you aren't getting your five a day, just stop by our house around dinner time.

As for the sticking-within-a-budget, that's going well.  I have $223 left for this month, and I'd love to have some leftover to roll into next month's for....  lots of my family visiting!!!  I can't wait!!   Ok, on with the menu...

Monday -  grilled teriyaki chicken, stir-fry veggies (and lots of them!), and sticky rice.  Prepped and ready for them to cook while I am away tonight.

Tuesday - fajitas (veggie or chicken) with onions, peppers, mushrooms, green onions,a bit of shredded carrot, a dash of zucchini (you get the idea - lots of veggies!), and freshly made pico-de-gallo.

Wednesday - Chicken / Veggie kebobs, rice, green salad.  Loads of veggies hidden in here, too!

Thursday - Pasta with yogurt-fresh basil-pesto sauce, primavera style, with - more veggies! Roated red peppers, squash and zucchini, purple scallions, basil, tomatoes, broccoli, leeks, mushrooms, onion, and garlic.  Caesar salad.

Friday - Grilled pizzas with veggies, salami for the meat-eaters, green salad.

Breakfasts and lunches - yogurt parfaits with fresh berries, oatmeal, homemade waffles with berries, cereal, fresh fruit, whole wheat english muffins with strawberry jam...   and for picnicking and home lunches, sourdough sandwiches (with -big surprise- veggies!), fruit & yogurt smoothies, quesadillas, pb&j on wheat, and leftover pasta. I don't actually plan out this stuff, just use up what needs used.

And I'll be gone all weekend.  They'll likely eat leftovers or something meaty. :)  In addition to my menu, here's a bonus tip for you mamas! - Try cutting your tortillas into smaller circles for the kids, by tracing around different sized mugs, or little plates.  It's way easier for their little hands to hold a taco, and you don't have to fill it with so much for them, so less waste overall.  With the extra tortilla, slice it into random shapes or strips, and put it on an ungreased baking sheet at 350F for about ten minutes, and you'll get low fat, non-greasy flour tortilla chips.  

Tuesday's Meal Plan Monday

                                                      

Man, grocery prices are jumping up fast!  The milk I have been able to buy for more than a year at Fred Meyer has gone from $1.99 to $2.99.  Cream cheese was always 93 cents, and now is $1.29.  Store brand mayo was 99 cents, now $1.29.   Has anyone else noticed this over the last two months? ( The dairy part is the result of corn and ethynol, but many other items are up too).

So I decided to get serious, again, about planning our family's meals, and to stretch our income.  (Renee and Hilary have been doing this for awhile).  I cook mostly "from scratch" type meals, an occasional bag of Lipton Spanish Rice because I have never made a good version on my own.  The kids eat cereal sometimes, and I do buy pretzels and tortilla chips and occasionally real chips for my husband's lunch.  But overall, we eat somewhat healthfully, with lots of fresh ingredients.  I have been baking a lot lately too.  Anyway, my point was, that I don't buy a ton of processed foods, and still, grocery prices are high!  Right now I am focusing on not wasting foods. You know, leftover half a bunch of cilantro, bell pepper that went bad, cucumber that got mushy...

I always wonder what other people eat and how they plan and what their food budgets are.  So I'd thought I'd share ours.  In my searches, I came across this blog, with many people signed up that also post their weekly meal plans.  Being the nerd that I am, I find it highly interesting!  So I am on board to post my weekly menus for a while too.   

I am attempting to do this on a budget of $400 a month, to feed a family of five, and occasional meals to others in need.  My budget also includes eating out and household items like cleaners, pull-ups, and paper goods.  I'll let you know if I stay under budget. :)

So here's this week's dinner menu...  (oh, and I am feeding two vegetarians, three not)

Monday: (I had to work, but left a meal prepped in the fridge for my husband to cook) - Korean food (bulgoki, sort of a beef stirfry), sticky rice, lettuce for wraps, and asian cole slaw.

Tuesday: soft tacos (with or w/o ground beef, cabbage, fresh pico de gallo, cheese, sour cream and guacamole) and sweet corn bread.

Wednesday: (supposed to be a really hot day) chef salad

Thursday:  dinner at family's house to celebrate a birthday

Friday: fish tacos with grilled halibut, fresh mango salsa, cilantro sauce, and cabbage (it sounds repetitious of Tuesday, but it's a totally different flavor, yet uses up remaining tortillas, cilantro, cabbage... you get the idea!)

Saturday: grilled gardenburgers and hamburgers, veggies & dip 

S'more firepit love

And a fun time was had by all.  The kids gathered the firewood, built and lit the fire.  Lots of smores were consumed, and then we all went to bed smelling like chain-smokers.

weekend review

Thursday was a typical day, at home with the girl.  A lovely day for bubbles.  Keston's technique involves blowing through her teeth, which was quite creative and reasonably efficient.

On Friday, last minute preparations for the Mighty Max 20-hour Crop were underway.  By 8am I was refining food schedules and details, then picking up donations, and heading to the event.  What a great time!  Not much sleeping involved, and personally not much scrapbooking either, but a really great time!

To top it off, some fabulous raffle prizes...

My sweet friend Kristy won a huge package of restaurant gift certificates, movies, and entertainment.  And in keeping with my theme of being lucky, I won an impressive package with a kids theme!  Tons of stuff - adorable rain gear from Wild Blueberries, certificates for bowling, swimming, pizzas, smoothies, and passes to the Children's Museum.  And a session for this, too!  And some art supplies, book, and games. Pretty amazing, and so great of all those places to donate the items for the raffle.

After finishing with the crop, we had a good sunny Sunday.  It's just starting to feel summerish - kids on the swings, kabobs on the grill, and playing with worms.

Finished it off with some kids crafting. And finally, a couple DVR'ed Dog the Bounty Hunters, and lots of sleep!

Is it just me?

Or does anyone else want to know what other people eat?  That is my favorite nosey question to ask people...  what are you making for dinner?

At our house, we usually are together for dinner every night. It's really important to me to have that time.  I think our children learn a lot from it.

So in an effort to be more organized, I'm writing out weekly menu plans.   It makes my day so much easier if I prep my meal in the morning.  (Except for this morning, in which case I minced my thumb in the process. Duh.)  Are any of you like me?  Do you want to see what we're eating?  In my family, two of us are vegetarian, two aren't, and one is just a toddler. So, pretty much I am making three versions of each meal.  I've done that for so long, it seems easy to me, but maybe not for everyone. On the nights I work, it's usually a meat based meal, then Mady has to add some other type of protein to her plate instead of the meat.  So here's our menu this week.

Monday: pizza. oops.  hadn't made a plan yet.

Tuesday: indian food.  ginger curry chicken / ginger curry tofu + mushrooms, naan, raita, rice, mango chutney.

Wednesday:  southwest salad (with or w/o grilled chicken), corn bread

Thursday: italian sausage (or not) penne, garlic bread, green salad

Friday: honey-glazed chicken, rice, salad (Warehouse Gourmet - batch cooked previously)

Saturday: grilled cheeseburgers + gardenburgers, chips + salsa

Sunday: steak kabobs + veggie kabobs, herb rice, fruit   

And of course, my thoughts and prayers are with those in Virginia who have suffered such horrific losses. I am sure those parents would give anything for one more meal with their kids. So very sad.

Spring Tea

We continued with the theme today, another tea party. The kids were home early from school, and it is a dreary raining day, so we cheered it up with this!

The menu...

• apple + grapefruit slices
• peanut butter + honey finger sandwiches
• cream cheese + cucumber sandwiches
• warm scones with peanut butter chips
• assorted tea

Easy Drop Scones

2 c. flour, 1/3 c. sugar, 2 tsp. baking powder, 1/4 tsp. salt, 6 Tbs. cold butter (cut up), 1/2 c. milk, 1 egg

Heat oven to 425F. Grease a cookie sheet.  Pulse flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and butter in food processor until it is the texture of fine meal.  In a mixing bowl, whisk egg and milk together. Add flour mixture, and stir until moistened.  Add in any ingredients you'd like, such as chocolate chips, craisins, lemon zest, etc.  Drop dough by heaping tablespoons onto cookie sheet, 2 inches apart.  Sprinkle with a little sugar.  Bake 12-14 minutes.  Makes one dozen scones.

Also in the picture, my useful thrifted Kromex tiered tray, and my thrifted (from Reno!) dishes.  We love the dishes!  All of them survived the airplane ride home except 2 pieces out of the 68, thanks to my Auntie Druann's helping me pack them so well.  I was probably quite a sight, with a purse loaded full with a butter dish, salt + pepper shakers, platters, and tea cups, in addition to the stuffed carry-on, and two checked luggages, all full of dishes. :)  With 12 teacups and saucers, how could we not have tea parties?

Hello!  Haven't posted in a bit, due to a missing in action camera charger.  What fun is posting without photos?  What fun is life without photos?  Not much, I tell ya.  Anyway, thought I would share this instead...

I have guilty feelings about buying dip for $5.  Even really delicious dip, that seems to be offered as a sample every time I am in the market.  So, I decided I'd feel less guilty if I purchased said dip as research material. 

Got the dip, took the dip home, disected the dip, made a recipe for the dip.  I am sharing the fruits of my labor with you. 

BLT Dip

• 1 block cream cheese
• 2 Tbs. bacon bits (not imitation)
• 5 whole sundried tomatoes (either in oil, or reconstituted)   
• 1 Tbs. mayo
• 1 Tbs. chopped green onions
• 1/4 tsp. dried dill weed
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. pepper

In a food processor, blend the cream cheese and sundried tomatoes, leaving little bits of tomato, so not thouroughly blended.  (You could just chop the sundrieds and mix in by hand, but you wouldn't get the same lovely color).  With a spoon, mix in the remaining ingredients.  Chill for about an hour to firm up.  I like the dip best with crackers that aren't too salty, because the bacon makes the dip salty enough.  Enjoy!