Friday, August 30, 2013

Dinner 8./30

Since I have all this frozen bread ends that the kids don't like, I think I am going to defrost these hidden gems. I am going to make french toast, using some milk, eggs, and vanilla. Just mix the three things together in a bowl, dip the bread into the mixture, and fry on a griddle until golden brown!!

We are going to have grapes and sliced banana with it!!!

The bread is using up some space in the freezer, has been lurking around, and needs to go! It prevents me from having to throw out food. I hate to throw away anything that can be used for another meal.

My kids are funny. They won't eat the ends of the bread for sandwiches, but love it as french toast.

Grocery Shopping

So, yesterday I took out 125 dollars from my savings account. I went to Sharp Shopper and bought the following:

a gallon of milk 3.99
deli ends of cheese 2.99 lb
motzerella cheese 1.00
2 lb grapes 1.49 lb
3 lb bananas 0.49 lb
deli pepperoni ends 2.99 lb
corn dogs 4.99
a small pork roast 2.49 lb
chicken thighs  0.89 lb
10 lb potatoes 2.99
generic mini wheats 1.99
4 lunchables (discounted 50 cents each)
4 gallons of juice 0.99 each
butter  1.49
 16 jello 2.99
Parmesan cheese 1.49
eggs 3.29
shredded hash browns 4.99
oatmeal 1.00
flour 0.59 lb
pancake syrup 0.50
cookie mix 2.50
strawberry jam 0.99
baked beans 0.50
taco kit 2.00
2 lbs of penne pasta  0.79 each

I spent 78 dollars, and split the remainder into two cars for gas. My husband has half a tank, and I have a little under half. We both have enough to get through until I get paid again. I will have to reimburse my savings account at some point.

My kids are still packing their lunches!!


Thursday, August 29, 2013

Results of our crock pot chicken...

The package of chicken thighs had seven pieces in it. I put all seven in the crock pot. My kids, husband, and I had dinner. I took the left over chicken off the bones, diced it up, and mixed the Arby's packets of BBQ sauce in it. This "BBQ" chicken will be put to good use. We will use it as sandwich filling.

I still have a cup of diced carrots that will be eaten tomorrow. We have two containers of stock, holding about two cups each. This will be put into the freezer, dated, labeled, and put aside for future meals.

It prevents waste, adds to our daily meal plans, and gets rid lurking items.

Life

Ever get the feeling that maybe things can work out in your favor? I feel that some costs are getting higher, containers are getting smaller, and things just don't seem to stretch like they used to. I'm glad that I have a savings account (which I am using some of the cash to get the store, and put gas in the car), and can maintain my family on what I am able to provide.

But sometimes, life is rough. Life tends to get the best of you and rocks you to your core. My sister asked me to borrow money (an unknown amount), and asked that I send a check to her. I told her that I would send the check to one of her creditors, landlord, or who ever, but I wasn't going to send it directly to her. I don't know where or what the situation is, but I am not going to send money to someone and not be able to account for it. This has caused a huge uproar in my family. I had told my sister that she would have to pay it back within 90 days.

I am not made of money. I live a life that is sustainable and maintains a certain life style. My family is upset with me. But none of them are able to assist. I feel that if we all worked together, that we could have come up with a plan.

I don't feel that I was wrong in my offer to send the cash to one of her creditors/land lord/ monthly obligations. For the record, I did offer to send a grocery gift card, but was told "Food is not a priority".




8/29 meals...

My kids left for school, and they had scrambled eggs for breakfast. They are packing lunches, and took a sandwich, a granola bar, a fruit cup, and a bottled water. I'm hoping that they continue to pack, as I send in lunch money and it goes quickly.

Dinner tonight:

I took out our last package of chicken thighs and placed them in the crock pot. I added three stalks of celery (our last), and 6 chopped up carrots. I put sage, thyme, onion, garlic, poultry seasoning, and parsley into the crock pot and one bouillon cube. I added about 1 cup of water to make a stock. I will steam some corn (not all three kids like carrots), and make some jasmine rice.

We are running very low on pantry/freezer/fridge supplies. Most of what I have posted on the blog is almost gone. We may be looking at a grocery trip this afternoon. I am almost out of lunch supplies for the kids' school lunches.

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

8/28 dinner

Well, this is my first night at home all week. I've been working the past three for 12 hour shifts. I am very tired and making dinner. I finished off the last of the spaghetti, some of the frozen sauce for the kids tonight, along with some teamed "carrot/cauliflower/broccoli" mix.

That's dinner folks.

Inventory as of Aug 28th

I took an inventory of what we had in the fridge, pantry, and freezer. I'm hoping to get through a good portion of the month with the items we have.All three kids are going to be going to the dentist for September. I am going to have to increase our gas usage and costs to get my kid to her LFCC classes.

I really need to learn to use what we have prior to going to the grocery store again. It's a lesson in the works. A lot of the items starred are lurkers that are almost gone.

Pantry:
1 container of old fashioned oats
1 container of olive oil
1/2 small container of veggie oil **
2 boxes oatmeal
1/2 container of honey**
1 container of onion soup
2 corn muffin mixes
1/4 bag of  long grain rice**
salt**
baking powder**
tea bags**
sugar**
brown sugar**
powdered sugar**
5 various cans of tomatoes
2 pumpkin bread mixes
hot chocolate**
popcorn kernels**
ice tea mix**
Jasmine rice
one box of generic keebler butter thins**
flour tortillas

Left overs:


Fruit Bowl:


Open Condiments:
Ketchup**
salsa**
blue cheese dressing**
apple butter**
pickles**
mustard**
BBQ sauce**
cream cheese**
take out soy sauce**
take out chili sauce**
take out arby sauce**

Fridge Items:
3 onions**
1 yogurt
chip dip**
4 lb bag of carrots**
2 heads garlic
a few slices of cheese
1/2 stick of margarine
2 dozen eggs**
celery**
water bottles

Freezer offerings:
1 package of chicken thighs (5 lb each)
2 hot dog rolls**
various bread crusts**
2 beef ribs
cream cheese
5 single hot dogs**
6 whole wheat pizza crusts

Frozen Veggies:
2.5 lb of Italian veggies
2 lb broccoli
3lb corn
2 lb peas


Hidden Suprises:
chicken stock 2
Raspberries
Strawberries
Spaghetti Sauce 5


The starred items are things that are opened, or close to being used up. I will work hard to get these items used in a proper manner. It will help decrease my grocery costs for the month. The hospital is getting rid of all overtime. It's cutting costs to prevent any adverse financial difficulties to all facilities. This means that they are flexing out overtime first. I work four shifts a week, and was called at home, and told to be "on call". I do get paid call time, but no actual overtime unless they need me to come in.

8/27 dinner

My husband made dinner, as I was to be at work two hours early for a staff meeting. He took the pork chops out of the freezer, and baked them in the oven with BBQ sauce. He steamed some corn and our last package of "farmer's blend" veggies.

Monday, August 26, 2013

8/26 dinner

Night two of four at work in a few hours, and the kids went back to school today. We need a quick dinner, with little prep time.

I'm steaming black beans and rice, and cutting up two "chicken apple sausages" to add to the rice mixture. This will help stretch it out to feed the five of us, and I will make a small salad to help fill everyone up.

BTW, the kids packed lunches today for school. We were buying for a very long time, but I went to the store yesterday and bought a few containers of lunch meat, sliced cheese, bread....and they even packed water bottles. Life is good. Hopefully this continues.

Sunday, August 25, 2013

8/25 dinner

We are going to have home made Belgian waffles with real blueberries tonight. This will hopefully finish up the fruit, flour, some of the veggie oil, and the last of the pancake syrup. These items have been lurking, and I want to finish them up to get them out of the pantry. I don't want to throw them away.

Original recipe makes 6 servings

 2 eggs
 2 cups all-purpose flour  (I have self rising)
 1 3/4 cups milk   (I will use powdered milk)
 1/2 cup vegetable oil
 1 tablespoon white sugar
 4 teaspoons baking powder  (Don't use this, as I have self rising flour)
 1/4 teaspoon salt
 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat waffle iron. Beat eggs in large bowl with hand beater until fluffy. Beat in flour, milk, vegetable oil, sugar, baking powder, salt and vanilla, just until smooth.
Spray preheated waffle iron with non-stick cooking spray. Pour mix onto hot waffle iron. Cook until golden brown. Serve hot.

8/25 Inventory

I took an inventory of what we had in the fridge, pantry, and freezer. I'm hoping to get through a good portion of the month with the items we have.All three kids are going to be going to the dentist for September. I am going to have to increase our gas usage and costs to get my kid to her LFCC classes.

I really need to learn to use what we have prior to going to the grocery store again. It's a lesson in the works. A lot of the items starred are lurkers that are almost gone.

Pantry:
1 container of old fashioned oats
1 box bran cereal**
1 container of olive oil
1/2 small container of veggie oil **
1 container of pancake syrup**
2 boxes oatmeal
1 3/4 empty container of honey**
1 container of onion soup
2 corn muffin mixes
1 lb black beans and rice
1/2 lb long grain rice**
salt**
baking powder**
tea bags**
flour **
sugar**
brown sugar**
powdered sugar**
5 various cans of tomatoes
1 lb spaghetti
3 pumpkin bread mixes
hot chocolate**
popcorn kernels**
ice tea mix**
Jasmine rice
powdered dry milk**
one box of generic keebler butter thins**
one box of sea salt crackers**
flour tortillas

Left overs:


Fruit Bowl:


Open Condiments:
Ketchup**
salsa**
blue cheese dressing**
apple butter**
fudge topping**
pickles**
mustard**

BBQ sauce**
Catalina dressing**
cream cheese**
take out soy sauce**
take out chili sauce**
take out arby sauce**

Fridge Items:
3 onions**
1 yogurt
chip dip**
4 lb bag of carrots**
grape tomatoes**
2 heads garlic
a few slices of cheese
2 sticks margarine
cucumber**
iceberg lettuce**
2 dozen eggs**
celery**
water bottles

Freezer offerings:
1 package of chicken thighs (5 lb each)
2 hot dog rolls**
various bread crusts**
2 beef ribs
cream cheese
one package of pork chops (plan for September)
one package of apple sausage
family size package of hot dogs**
6 whole wheat pizza crusts

Frozen Veggies:
1 package of a farmer's blend
2.5 lb of Italian veggies
2 lb broccoli
4lb corn
2 lb peas
1/2 bag of blueberries**

Hidden Suprises:
chicken stock 2
Raspberries
Strawberries
Spaghetti Sauce 5


The starred items are things that are opened, or close to being used up. I will work hard to get these items used in a proper manner. It will help decrease my grocery costs for the month. The hospital is getting rid of all overtime. It's cutting costs to prevent any adverse financial difficulties to all facilities. This means that they are flexing out overtime first. I work four shifts a week, and was called at home, and told to be "on call". I do get paid call time, but no actual overtime unless they need me to come in.

Saturday, August 24, 2013

8/24 dinner

C.O.R.N.

We have the following for meals tonight:

two servings of pasta (one plain, another with homemade sauce on it)
three chicken thighs
carrot/corn/celery mixture
two servings of cous cous
hot dogs

stuff to make a small salad.

That's dinner tonight. We did have Chinese food, but the kids finished it off last night.

Friday, August 23, 2013

Spaghetti sauce...

The crock pot fit an amazing amount of spaghetti sauce. It fed the five of us, and we had about 1/2 serving of pasta left over. The pasta was placed in the fridge, and the sauce was divided into five one cup servings for the freezer. The containers are labeled, dated and contents are known.

That's how we keep expenses low.

Chicken from last night

So, I coked 8 chicken thighs. We had three left form last night. I put them in the fridge, with the left over veggies, and cous cous. The kids finished the rice, there was nothing to claim as left over. I took the chicken and veggies and put them in a container. I strained the stock off, and put it in the freezer for another meal. The cous cous was placed in two cup containers and in the fridge. I'm thinking that Saturday is left overs.

Inventory

8/18 Inventory
I took an inventory of what we had in the fridge, pantry, and freezer. I'm hoping to get through a good portion of the month with the items we have.All three kids are going to be going to the dentist for September. I am going to have to increase our gas usage and costs to get my kid to her LFCC classes.

I really need to learn to use what we have prior to going to the grocery store again. It's a lesson in the works. A lot of the items starred are lurkers that are almost gone.

Pantry:
1 container of old fashioned oats
1 box bran cereal**
1 container of olive oil
1/2 small container of veggie oil **
1 container of pancake syrup**
2 boxes oatmeal
1 3/4 empty container of honey**
1 container of onion soup
2 corn muffin mixes
1 lb black beans and rice
1/2 lb long grain rice**
salt**
baking powder**
tea bags**
flour **
sugar**
brown sugar**
powdered sugar**
5 various cans of tomatoes
1 lb spaghetti
3 pumpkin bread mixes
hot chocolate**
popcorn kernels**
ice tea mix**
Jasmine rice
powdered dry milk**
one box of generic keebler butter thins**
one box of sea salt crackers**
flour tortillas

Left overs:
three chicken thighs
mixture of carrots/corn/celery
Chinese food

Fruit Bowl:


Open Condiments:
Ketchup**
salsa**
blue cheese dressing**
apple butter**
fudge topping**
pickles**
mustard**
mayo**
BBQ sauce**
Catalina dressing**
cream cheese**
take out soy sauce**
take out chili sauce**
take out arby sauce**

Fridge Items:
3onions**
1 yogurt
chip dip**
4 lb bag of carrots**
grape tomatoes**
2 heads garlic
a few slices of cheese
2 sticks margarine
cucumber**
iceberg lettuce**
2 dozen eggs**
celery**
water bottles

Freezer offerings:
1 package of chicken thighs (5 lb each)
2 hot dog rolls**
various bread crusts**
2 beef ribs
cream cheese
one package of pork chops (plan for September)
one package of apple sausage
family size package of hot dogs**
6 whole wheat pizza crusts

Frozen Veggies:
1 package of a farmer's blend
2.5 lb of Italian veggies
2 lb broccoli
4lb corn
2 lb peas
1/2 bag of blueberries**

Hidden Suprises:
chicken stock
chicken stock
Raspberries
Strawberries

The starred items are things that are opened, or close to being used up. I will work hard to get these items used in a proper manner. It will help decrease my grocery costs for the month. The hospital is getting rid of all overtime. It's cutting costs to prevent any adverse financial difficulties to all facilities. This means that they are flexing out overtime first. I work four shifts a week, and was called at home, and told to be "on call". I do get paid call time, but no actual overtime unless they need me to come in.

08/23 dinner

Since we are all home together this evening, I am making spaghetti sauce in the crock pot. I cut up a small package of five italian sausage links and put them on the stove to brown. After, I put them in the crock pot, and sliced up the last green pepper, a large whole onion, and two garlic cloves. I let this saute in the same pan as the sausage, then dumped the goodness into the crock pot.

I opened two large cans of crushed tomato, and one large can of diced fire roasted tomato, and put these three things into the crock pot.

Later I will cook some pasta. That's dinner folks!

Thursday, August 22, 2013

8/22 dinner

I have a package of 8 chicken thighs in the oven, with some diced carrots, celery, corn, onion, and lots of spices....we are going to steam some long grain rice for kids, and some cous cous for the two adults. YUMMY!!!

Been working...

working the past three nights, and finally, I am off for three. I go back to work Sunday, but it's an over time shift, so it's not guaranteed.  I have to look back into my blog to see where the last posting was, and work to get caught up.

Blogging my experience has made me be accountable for my lifestyle.

Monday, I made a beef chuck roast, with carrots, celery, potatoes, onion soup mix. I was hoping for left overs, but my husband and kids finished what was hanging out after I went to work.

Tuesday, OMG I ordered Chinese food. ACK!!!!!!!!!!!

Wednesday, my husband bought a frozen lasagna and heated that up. It was awesome.

While we did get some take out, we also washed laundry in cold, hung it up to dry, cleaned house, and tried to stay home. My daughter has a birthday party to go to, she had an unopened puzzle (300 pieces) and made a card to give her.

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Medications for Pets

So, our cat needed some insulin and srynges. We dropped the prescription at Costco (no membership needed for prescriptions) on Thursday. We called, and the stuff is ready. We picked the insulin and supplies up, cost 163 dollars. Holy Crap.

We paid cash.

Monday, August 19, 2013

8/19 dinner

It's been a few days since we had a "meat" dinner. So tonight's the night. My husband bought a beef chuck roast (a week or two ago, he sells things on the internet, then uses the cash to buy things) not to long ago. A pretty priced one too. This wasn't on the mark down self in the meat counter. The sticker said 9 dollars and some odd change. YIKES!!

Well, I put six thin carrots, two stalks of celery, the last two potatoes, a packet of lurking onion soup mix, and the roast in the crock pot. I added some pepper, garlic, thyme, and rosemary to it.
We have some green leaf lettuce, a few grape tomatoes, and a small bit of cucumber left. I will make a small salad to go with it, and steam some peas (frozen).

Dinner will be done at 4, just enough time to get Sarah from her classes at LFCC, and for me to get up and moving for work tonight.


Sunday, August 18, 2013

8/18 Inventory

I took an inventory of what we had in the fridge, pantry, and freezer. I'm hoping to get through a good portion of the month with the items we have.All three kids are going to be going to the dentist for September. I am going to have to increase our gas usage and costs to get my kid to her LFCC classes.

Pantry:
1 container of old fashioned oats
1 box bran cereal
1 container of olive oil
1/2 small container of veggie oil **
1 container of pancake syrup**
2 boxes oatmeal
1 3/4 empty container of honey**
2 boxes of onion soup
2 corn muffin mixes
1 lb black beans and rice
1/2 lb long grain rice**
salt*
baking powder*
tea bags
flour **
sugar**
brown sugar*
powdered sugar*
8 various cans of tomatoes
1 lb spaghetti
4 pumpkin bread mixes
hot chocolate**
popcorn kernels*
ice tea mix*
Jasmine rice
Cous Cous
powdered dry milk**
one box of generic keebler butter thins
one box of sea salt crackers
flour tortillas

Left overs:


Fruit Bowl:


Open Condiments:
Ketchup*
salsa*
blue cheese dressing*
apple butter*
fudge topping*
pickles*
mustard*
mayo*
BBQ sauce*
Catalina dressing*
cream cheese*
take out soy sauce*
take out chili sauce*
take out arby sauce*

Fridge Items:
2 potatoes
5 onions
1 yogurt
chip dip*
5 lb unopened bag of carrots
grape tomatoes*
2 heads garlic
1 lb sliced cheese
3 sticks margarine
cucumber*
iceberg lettuce*
cheese ends*
2 dozen eggs*
celery*
water bottles

Freezer offerings:
3 packages of chicken thighs (5 lb each)
2 hot dog rolls*
various bread crusts*
2 beef ribs
cream cheese
one package of pork chops (plan for September)
one package of Italian sausage
one package of apple sausage
family size package of hot dogs*
6 whole wheat pizza crusts

Frozen Veggies:
1 package of a farmer's blend
2.5 lb of Italian veggies
2 lb broccoli
5 lb corn
2 lb peas
1/2 bag of blueberries*

Hidden Suprises:
chicken stock
Raspberries
Strawberries

The starred items are things that are opened, or close to being used up. I will work hard to get these items used in a proper manner. It will help decrease my grocery costs for the month. I don't get paid again until the 22nd of this month. The hospital is getting rid of all overtime. It's cutting costs to prevent any adverse financial difficulties to all facilities. This means that they are flexing out overtime first. I work four shifts a week, and was called at home, and told to be "on call". I do get paid call time, but no actual overtime unless they need me to come in.

Dinner 8/18

I have to work tonight. This is night one of four. I'm not to thrilled. We are having waffles for dinner.


 2 eggs
 2 cups all-purpose flour
 1 3/4 cups milk
 1/2 cup vegetable oil
 1 tablespoon white sugar
 4 teaspoons baking powder
 1/4 teaspoon salt
 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Check All Add to Shopping List
Directions

Preheat waffle iron. Beat eggs in large bowl with hand beater until fluffy. Beat in flour, milk, vegetable oil, sugar, baking powder, salt and vanilla, just until smooth.
Spray preheated waffle iron with non-stick cooking spray. Pour mix onto hot waffle iron. Cook until golden brown. Serve hot.








Not a nice surprise

Waking up to ants in the kitchen....my husband is the hero this morning. A big can of spray, a call in to our pest control people tomorrow morning, and I am about to cry.

Saturday, August 17, 2013

Been busy....

My daughter had college orientation today from 10-2 at the local community college we enrolled her in. She's taking classes part time, and we think that she will be attending full time come January.

I've been so tired all the time.

Dinner tonight is homemade mac and cheese. My daughter is making a white sauce, with adding deli cheese ends. I am boiling the last of our rotini that was lurking. We are also having grilled hot dogs with onions (again for hot dogs, oh well).

It's a quick painless meal and has little clean up.

Dinner 8/16

We had a rough day, lots of tired people, crankiness, and just lack of planning.

KFC was dinner.

Thursday, August 15, 2013

Happiness is....

opening the windows
shutting off the AC
having cash to pay for the cat's stuff
clean house
helpful kids
a nice stock of school supplies from previous years

and most of all....all the kids have sneakers that still fit.

Easy afternoon

We got home from the vet, and started the yard work. I pulled weeds, and cut the grass in front and the back. My husband and kids started the housework. We made an easy lunch.

Fried hot dogs
baked beans
corn bread


That's it. We are thinking about going out tonight. The kids asked to see a movie, and I would like to get some dinner out. Haven't made any plans yet.

Cat vet appointment

So, we picked up Butterscotch's prescription for insulin and syringes. Costco lets you fill prescriptions with no membership card. We can pick them up on Monday. We were charged for the littler glucose strips, and the new cat food. Cost 37 dollars, and don't know yet how much for the insulin and equipment until Monday.

I have to find a cheaper place for the vet diet. 7 cans of the vet food was 11.50. This is only a weeks worth of food! Half a can twice a day, well....CRAP!! It's going to cost about 50 dollars a month to feed one cat. HOLY CRAP!!!!

Mid August Inventory

I took an inventory of what we had in the fridge, pantry, and freezer. I'm hoping to get through a good portion of the month with the items we have.Mary and Kevin are going to need some school supplies (we have a bunch left form last year though, may need to just get each a new pair of sneakers), kids are going to be going to the dentist for September. I am going to have to increase our gas usage and costs to get my kid to her LFCC classes.

Pantry:
1 container of old fashioned oats
1 box bran cereal
1 container of olive oil
2 small containers of veggie oil *
1 container of pancake syrup*
2 boxes oatmeal
2 small containers of honey*
2 boxes of onion soup
2 corn muffin mixes
1 lb rotini*
1 lb black beans and rice
1/2 lb long grain rice*
salt*
baking powder*
tea bags
flour *
sugar*
brown sugar*
powdered sugar*
8 various cans of tomatoes
1 lb spaghetti
4 pumpkin bread mixes
hot chocolate
popcorn kernels*
ice tea mix*
1 can of pork and beans
Jasmine rice
Cous Cous
powdered dry milk
one box of generic keebler butter thins
one box of sea salt crackers
flour tortillas

Left overs:


Fruit Bowl:
 1 Peach
 Plums
 1 Banana

Open Condiments:
Ketchup*
salsa*
blue cheese dressing*
apple butter*
fudge topping*
pickles*
mustard*
mayo*
BBQ sauce*
Catalina dressing*
cream cheese*
take out soy sauce*
take out chili sauce*
take out arby sauce*

Fridge Items:
2 potatoes
5 onions
1 yogurt
chip dip*
5 lb unopened bag of carrots
grape tomatoes*
2 heads garlic
1 lb sliced cheese
4 sticks margarine
cucumber*
iceberg lettuce*
gallon of skim milk*
cheese ends*
2 dozen eggs*
celery*
water bottles

Freezer offerings:
3 packages of chicken thighs (5 lb each)
2 hot dog rolls*
various bread crusts*
2 beef ribs
cream cheese
one package of pork chops (plan for September)
one package of Italian sausage
one package of apple sausage
family size package of hot dogs
6 whole wheat pizza crusts

Frozen Veggies:
1 package of a farmer's blend
2.5 lb of Italian veggies
2 lb broccoli
5 lb corn
2 lb peas
1/2 bag of blueberries*

Hidden Suprises:
chicken stock
Raspberries
Strawberries

The starred items are things that are opened, or close to being used up. I will work hard to get these items used in a proper manner. It will help decrease my grocery costs for the month. I will buy milk, bread, and fruit for the kids.

I don't get paid again until the 22nd of this month. The milk is almost gone (we will have powdered for cooking and baking). The strawberries and raspberries I bought were picked through and I put the rest in the freezer to prevent any wasted fruit.

School supplies...

It's that time of the year again....in June, on the kids last few days of school, we started having them bring home all the notebooks, folders, pens, pencils, crayons, rulers in their lockers.

I went through all of the stuff that the three kids had collected. We threw out the folders that were broken, debilitated, and we not salvageable. The pens/pencils/crayons/colored pencils/markers/highlighters were kept in a box at home. The notebooks were looked over, and the used pages were torn out (leaving more than 3/4 of a decent unused notebook), and look like they have never been used.

My oldest is starting community college in a week. She received her last pay check part time job (yes, she quit...) and bought some supplies, despite me telling her that we had more than enough stuff at home for her to use.

Mary will use what we have at home. Since she's a junior, there's nothing specific for her. She can choose what binders/folders/notebooks from the stock of what we have here. She can choose some pencils/pens/markers/highlighters, leaving things like glue sticks and crayons at home for projects.

Kevin is a special ed kid. He will be using what is at home too, with the exception of anything specific that his special ed teacher requires. He's a freshmen in high school

My kids may need sneakers. We will not be shopping for clothes this year for the first time. My kids live in their shorts all spring and summer. They don't wear jeans or pants until the later part of Fall anyway. They have tons of clothing to choose from.

The kids all have lunch boxes. Sarah will eat at home (since she will not have a pay check to get take out with) before she goes to class. Mary and Kevin like to eat at school. I give them 40 dollars for a two week time period. That's it. They have to make due with that, or pack something from home. We have a collection of lunch boxes to choose from.

8/14 dinner

I am late in writing this. Last night we had soft boiled eggs, or scrambled (your preference), and buttered toast. I was off, but worked a 12 hour shift, got home at 8 am, then had to be at a freshmen orientation for my son. It lasted four hours. We got home, I took a nap, and woke up at 5 pm.

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

8/13 dinner

We are going to have pasta and sauce, with a small salad for dinner tonight. I am sure that we will use up some of those bags of opened frozen veggies too. The pasta I have is lb of rigatoni. I have a open bag of rotini but it's not enough to feed the five of us. It's less than a cup of pasta total. I have a half jar of Prego in the freezer that I took out to thaw. I will make a salad with some lettuce, grape tomato, a few slices of green pepper, some onion, and slices of cucumber. We have this lurking salad dressing that is almost finished that we can use up tonight I hope. We don't have enough bread at this time to make garlic bread.

Tonight's my last night of work for the week. I do tonight, then I'm off until Sunday. It's a blessing.

Monday, August 12, 2013

8/12 dinner

This is my night two of three at work. My husband picked me up this morning on my way out of work, and we thought about having dinner tonight. He made some chili. He put it in the crock pot this morning.

He went to the store and bought a lb of ground beef and a lb of ground chicken (his money, as I don't count his in our grocery expenses, as I can't rely in it for a regular source of income). We used one large onion, finished the bottom of one container of honey, some of the lurking bbq sauce, one can of tomato puree, and two cams of diced tomato, and a large can of kidney beans.

Awesome to wake up and have dinner made. That's how we roll folks!!!

Sunday, August 11, 2013

Working night shift....

I love working night shift. What I don't care for are the hours between 4-615...AKA dinner time. I would like to say that in a perfect world, we eat dinner every night, a home cooked meal, when I have to work. I would like to say that I always pack my lunch (85-90 percent of the time I bring leftovers from dinner).  When I don't pack or there is not enough for leftovers, I tend to walk down to the cafeteria and use my badge swipe to get dinner.

If my husband has the desire (cough cough, gag, gag) to make dinner on the nights I work, that would be a bonus. Sometimes, my kids will make dinner, sometimes, we order out. It depends a lot on how HIS day is going. I am usually sleeping from 830-400 after a night shift. I tend to work my three nights a week in a row to get it over with.

Usually the first night I make dinner in the crock pot. The second night is IFFY, and the third needs to just go away. LOL. Sometimes, my husband will make enough dinner for the second shift and the leftovers are for the third night. I refuse to cook a meal when I have to work, and have four able bodies that can chip in when needed.

Since there's just enough chicken, steamed white rice, carrots/onion/celery for dinner tonight. I am packing my lunch. I brought some deli cheese ends, a few crackers, a yogurt, banana, and a peach. I also have Tylenol, ibuprofen, tea bags, and some hot chocolate in my lunch bag for those moments when nothing else helps.

Do you pack a lunch, if so, what do you like to bring.

Do you buy lunch, if so, what do you like?

Which is easier?? Honestly, there are times when buying is so much easier.

Inventory Post Shopping

I took an inventory of what we had in the fridge, pantry, and freezer. I'm hoping to get through a good portion of the month with the items we have.Mary and Kevin are going to need some school supplies (we have a bunch left form last year though, may need to just get each a new pair of sneakers), kids are going to be going to the dentist for September. I am going to have to increase our gas usage and costs to get my kid to her LFCC classes.

Pantry:
1 container of old fashioned oats
1 box bran cereal
1 container of olive oil
2 small containers of veggie oil *
1 container of pancake syrup*
3 boxes flavored oatmeal
2 small containers of honey*
2 boxes of onion soup
2 corn muffin mixes
1 lb rigatoni
1 lb rotini*
1 lb black beans and rice
1/2 lb long grain rice*
salt*
baking powder*
tea bags
flour *
sugar*
brown sugar*
powdered sugar*
10 various cans of tomatoes
1 lb spaghetti
4 pumpkin bread mixes
hot chocolate
popcorn kernels*
ice tea mix*
1 large can kidney beans
1 can of pork and beans
Jasmine rice
Cous Cous
powdered dry milk
one box of cheese its
one box of generic keebler butter thins
one box of sea salt crackers
flour tortillas

Left overs:


Fruit Bowl:
Peaches
Plums
Raspberries
Strawberries
Bananas

Open Condiments:
Ketchup*
salsa*
blue cheese dressing*
apple butter*
fudge topping*
pickles*
mustard*
mayo*
BBQ sauce*
Catalina dressing*
cream cheese*
take out soy sauce*
take out chili sauce*
take out arby sauce*

Fridge Items:
2 potatoes
5 onions
2 yogurts
chip dip*
a few  eggs*
5 lb unopened bag of carrots
grape tomatoes*
kielbasa
2 heads garlic
1 lb sliced cheese
6 sticks margarine
cucumber
iceberg lettuce
gallon of skim milk
1 lb of deli cheese ends
2 and a 1/2 dozen eggs
celery
water bottles

Freezer offerings:
4 packages of chicken thighs (5 lb each)
2 hot dog rolls*
various bread crusts*
2 beef ribs
1/2 lb spaghetti sauce*
cream cheese
one package of pork chops (plan for September)
one package of Italian sausage
one package of apple sausage
family size package of hot dogs
6 whole wheat pizza crusts

Frozen Veggies:
1 package of a farmer's blend
2.5 lb of Italian veggies
1/2 lb of Italian veggies*
1/2 lb Brussels sprouts*
2 lb broccoli
5 lb corn
2 lb peas
1/2 bag of blueberries*

Hidden Suprises:
chicken stock


The starred items are things that are opened, or close to being used up. I will work hard to get these items used in a proper manner. It will help decrease my grocery costs for the month. I will buy milk, bread, and fruit for the kids.









8/11 dinner

Since I am going back to work tonight, the crock pot is in use. I thawed out a small package of chicken drumsticks (6 in the package), and diced up some celery and used the end of the shredded carrot (FINALLY, this was given to me a while ago), and used the half onion that was in the fridge. I placed everything in the crock pot with some poultry seasoning, celery salt, and thyme. I added 1/2 cup of water. It will turn into a plate of wonderful at 5 pm.

Saturday, August 10, 2013

Dinner Mishap

I stated earlier today that we were going to have fried potatoes/keilbasa/eggs AKA hash. Well, I slept most of today due to utter exhaustion. My husband ate the left over blackbeans/rice/keilbasa and was still hungry. He ate the left over keilbasa that I diced yesterday to go with dinner.

So, we are having fried potatoes and scrambled eggs.

Collection of plastic grocery bags...

We seem to collect grocery bags quite a bit. At one point in life, we were using cloth green bags, but I guess we've veered off that path. In order to keep the limit of bags to a reasonable one, we use those grocery bags to line the little trash cans in the two bathrooms, and use the bags when cleaning up dirty cat litter. We also use them when bagging up "bones"...IE chicken scraps...we bag them twice and knot the end to prevent Sadie, our dog, from tearing it chicken bones. When we clean the vehicles, we use the bags to keep the car free of trash on long trips. Sometimes, when we run out of 13 gallon bags, we will use them for regular household trash collection.

What do you use those collections of plastic bags for??

Dinner 8/10

Since I only used one keilbasa link last night in our black beans and rice, I am going to use the second one this afternoon. I am going to dice up five potatoes, with some chopped onion, and dice the second keilbasa link. I will take those three items and fry in a pan until the potatoes are browned and soft. When it's finished cooking, I'm going to add some eggs (maybe 5, so one a person) and make a hash of sorts. I am slice some peaches, and add some raspberries to them and serve this on the side. That's dinner folks.

Friday, August 9, 2013

Savings account...

I have 2,148.30 total in my savings account.

I'm looking for 1,000 emergency fund. GOAL!!!!
I'm looking for 5,000 for living expenses.

Thinking that by the end of 2013 I may have my 5.000 goal met.

I put cash in every two weeks. I made a 300.00 dollar deposit this morning.

Shopping trip

I went to the grocery store this morning. I bought the following:

8 lb bananas
2 quarts strawberries
2 pints raspberries
5 lb carrots
1 large head lettuce
1 cucumber
2 lb peaches
2 lb plums
gallon of milk
70 water bottles
1 lb bag of tortilla ships
20 flour tortillas
1 lb jasmine rice
32 ox ketchup
6 whole wheat pizza crusts
2 lb sausage
30 ct hot dogs (oscar myer)
1 lb celery
1 lb deli cheese ends
one box of cheese its
one box of generic keebler butter thins
one box of sea salt crackers
2 and a 1/2 dozen eggs
tube of toothpaste


I spent 80.32. Total for month 300.00. I have 207.11left for August.

8/9 dinner


Dinner consist of black beans and rice. I will steam this in our rice cooker. I have two kielbasa links that I will dice up and add to the beans/rice mixture. Adding to this, I may warm up one of the many packages of frozen veggies in the freezer. We have Brussels sprouts that need to go, along with some mixed carrot/bean/cauliflower, which is almost gone.

Updated August Offerings 8/9

August Offerings
I took an inventory of what we had in the fridge, pantry, and freezer. I'm hoping to get through a good portion of the month with the items we have.Mary and Kevin are going to need some school supplies (we have a bunch left form last year though, may need to just get each a new pair of sneakers), kids are going to be going to the dentist for September. I am going to have to increase our gas usage and costs to get my kid to her LFCC classes.

Pantry:
1 container of old fashioned oats
1 box bran cereal
1 container of olive oil
2 small containers of veggie oil *
1 container of pancake syrup*
3 boxes flavored oatmeal
2 small containers of honey*
2 boxes of onion soup
2 corn muffin mixes
1 lb rigatoni
1 lb rotini*
1 lb black beans and rice
1/2 lb long grain rice*
salt*
baking powder*
tea bags
flour *
sugar*
brown sugar*
powdered sugar*
10 various cans of tomatoes
1 lb spaghetti
4 pumpkin bread mixes
hot chocolate
popcorn kernels*
ice tea mix*
1 large can kidney beans
1 can of pork and beans

Left overs:


Fruit Bowl:


Open Condiments:
Ketchup*
salsa*
blue cheese dressing*
apple butter*
fudge topping*
pickles*
mustard*
mayo*
BBQ sauce*
Catalina dressing*
cream cheese*
take out soy sauce*
take out chili sauce*
take out arby sauce*

Fridge Items:
8 potatoes
3 lb onion
2 yogurts
reconstituted dry milk
chip dip*
a few  eggs*
2  carrots*
grape tomatoes*
kielbasa
2 heads garlic
1/2 bag shredded carrot*
1 lb sliced cheese
6 sticks margarine

Freezer offerings:
4 packages of chicken thighs (5 lb each)
2 hot dog rolls*
various bread crusts*
2 beef ribs
1/2 lb spaghetti sauce*
cream cheese
one package of pork chops (plan for September)

Frozen Veggies:
1 package of a farmer's blend
2.5 lb of Italian veggies
1/2 lb of Italian veggies*
1/2 lb Brussels sprouts*
2 lb broccoli
5 lb corn
2 lb peas
1/2 bag of blueberries*

Hidden Suprises:
chicken stock


The starred items are things that are opened, or close to being used up. I will work hard to get these items used in a proper manner. It will help decrease my grocery costs for the month. I will buy milk, bread, and fruit for the kids

Got paid...

I am off work until Sunday evening...it's a blessing. I got paid yesterday and wrote out some checks to the monthly obligations.

We have the cell bill paid, the vet costs, our pest control (I'm afraid of bugs!!), my daughter's therapy paid, our cable/internet bill, the third installment in my daughter's tuition, and I bought her last textbook. I have 300.00 to put into my savings account!!!!

I have paid everything current for August, and with my next pay check, I will start rolling with September's numbers. I managed to put 700 dollars total in my savings account for the month of July and August. Awesome!!

Thursday, August 8, 2013

Vet Bills

We have three cats...Cecelia is three, Pepper is one, and our old man, Butterscotch is 11.5 years....We get the cats to their annual visits in January every year, and get all the immunizations up to date.

We took butterscotch to the vet yesterday, had some blood work done. He's losing weight (1 and a half pounds since Jan), and found a small growth on him. Well, the blood work came back with great kidney function, great liver function, no s/s of infection, no cancer....but he does have DIABETES!!!!

It cost me 269 dollars yesterday. I  paid with my debit card and it came right out of my account. I'm waiting on the vet to call me back with a prescription for insulin. I didn't think cats could have diabetes. At least I'm a nurse and know how to check his glucose and give the injections.

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

8/7 dinner

Since we had to take Butterscotch our cat (11 years old) to the vet this afternoon, we stopped at the local pizza place and made a take out order. What a bunch of lemmings.....LOL. I have to be at work for 6 for a mandatory meeting, and start my shift at 645....

Pizza it is, and pay day tomorrow AM!!

Thanks for reading....

I gotta say to everyone, thanks for reading my blog. When I started this adventure, I was telling my husband that since I read a lot of blogs, I should start one and see how it goes. It was a little project to keep me accountable, something I would have access to when I needed some motivation to keep my head up and keep going. I just want to say thanks for reading.

I mentioned to someone the other day that I was "tired", and wishing that my mortgage was paid off. The person I mentioned this to was not very empathetic, knows the family, and understands that my husband does not work. There's five of us, three cats, and a dog....life gets hard sometimes.

I work three 12 hour shifts in a row, all nights, get paid every two weeks (YEAH it's tomorrow ASAP after clocking out in the AM), and I manage with my obligations and am disciplined for the most part. The person I mentioned this to was responding to me in such a way that I was taken back, as they are supposed to be my friend. I was told "A lot of people would like to have a mortgage, and be in your shoes, so stop complaining". WOW!!! Really, I was amazed.

Let me put it to you this way. I am tired because I work hard, keep my family going, make sure that the kids are taken care of, and that my husband is able to maintain his mental health without having any schitzophrenic moments (meds are very expensive, but work wonders). Yes, he does stay home to care for the kids when I'm working. He does clean up the house, makes dinner occasionally, washes clothes, etc etc etc when I'm working. Our lively hood depends on my income!!

When I am off work, we do things together. We clean the house, make meals, have time with each other and the kids, and we do go on dates (even if it's to a walk downtown). My friend spends a lot of her money. She is only supporting herself, as her kid is gone and living on her own. She's not married, and lives with several four legged babies.

Empathy form my friend, non existent....

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Dinner 8/6

I'm working three nights in a row. This is night two of three. I woke up at 4, had a bowl of raisin bran, and a cup of tea. My husband and kids are going to have some left over Shepard's pie. Last night at work, I brought some Shepard's pie and the last of the salad that I made earlier in the day. That's dinner folks.

Monday, August 5, 2013

Dinner 8/5

I still have ground beef in the fridge from when I made meat balls the other night. I'm going to make a Shepard's pie this morning to serve for dinner tonight. Since I am working, this is an easy prep ahead meal.

I am go cook the ground beef with half an onion, some soy sauce (those take out packets remember) and two cloves of garlic. I will drain this into a container in my fridge to harden (I don't drain meat into the kitchen sink, it will clog the drains). When the fat hardens, it goes into the trash and out to the landfill. After this cooks, and drains, I will put it into a casserole dish. I have half a bag of corn opened in the freezer that I will use to place over the ground beef. I will boil a few potatoes and them hand mash them to place on top of the corn. I will add some spices (basil, paprika, onion and garlic powder), and top with some cheese (I think all I have is sliced, in which case, I won't top it). I will bake this in the oven at 325 for an hour until it's warmed up. We will have a small salad on the side (the last of the green leaf lettuce, some grape tomatoes, a small amount of sliced onion, and some shredded carrot).

Sunday, August 4, 2013

Frugal Day

So, I had a frugal and productive day. I've used a few things that were lingering around in the kitchen. I used up the blueberry/blackberry container of fruit, lingering garden veggie spaghetti sauce, motzerella cheese, and various baking supplies (flour, yeast, sugar, oil, salt), a few eggs, and even used up some reconstituted dry milk.

Now, I still have some baking supplies, and reconstituted milk in the pantry.

I went to the store and bought the following:
one gallon of skim milk 3.59
2 marked down boxes mac and cheese for the kids .99 each
7 count marked down package of pork chops (bone in) 5.27 or 1.49 lb (for the freezer, plan on using in September if possible)
loaf of sliced white bread 1.07

Total of 12.57.
I have 300.00 dollars for the month of August. I would like to be able to stretch this amount as far as possible. Meaning that I keep myself out of the stores as much as possible.

I have 287.43 left for August.

Updated August Offerings 8/4/2013

Updated August Offerings

August Offerings
Ok, since we are going into August, I took an inventory of what we had in the fridge, pantry, and freezer. I'm hoping to get through a good portion of the month with the items we have.Mary and Kevin are going to need some school supplies (we have a bunch left form last year though, may need to just get each a new pair of sneakers), Sarah has her third tuition payment for LFCC, and three more books to rent, and the kids are going to be going to the dentist for September. I am going to have to increase our gas usage and costs to get my kid to her LFCC classes.

Pantry:
1 box raisin bran
1 box mini wheats *
1 container of old fashioned oats
1 box bran cereal
1 container of olive oil
2 small containers of veggie oil *
1 container of pancake syrup*
5 boxes flavored oatmeal
2 small containers of honey*
2 boxes of onion soup
2 corn muffin mixes
1 lb rigatoni
1 lb rotini*
1 lb black beans and rice
1/2 lb long grain rice*
2 sleeves Ritz type crackers*
salt*
baking powder*
tea bags
flour *
sugar*
brown sugar*
powdered sugar*
10 various cans of tomatoes
1 peanut butter *
1 lb spaghetti
4 pumpkin bread mixes
hot chocolate
popcorn kernels*
ice tea mix*
1 large can kidney beans
1 can of pork and beans

Left overs:


Fruit Bowl:


Open Condiments:
Ketchup*
salsa*
blue cheese dressing*
grape jelly*
apple butter*
fudge topping*
pickles*
mustard*
mayo*
BBQ sauce*
Catalina dressing*
cream cheese*
take out soy sauce*
take out chili sauce*
take out arby sauce*

Fridge Items:
10 lb potatoes
3 lb onion
1 gallon punch*
2 yogurts
reconstituted dry milk
chip dip*
lettuce*
2 dozen eggs*
3  carrots*
grape tomatoes*
kielbasa
2 heads garlic
1/2 bag shredded carrot*
1 lb sliced cheese
6 sticks margarine

Freezer offerings:
4 packages of chicken thighs (5 lb each)
2 lb ground beef
2 hot dog rolls*
various bread crusts*
2 beef ribs
1/2 lb spaghetti sauce*
cream cheese

Frozen Veggies:
1 package of a farmer's blend
2.5 lb of Italian veggies
1/2 lb of Italian veggies*
1/2 lb Brussels sprouts*
2 lb broccoli
5 lb corn
2 lb peas
1/2 bag of blueberries....we opened these this morning to make muffins.

Hidden Suprises:
chicken stock


The starred items are things that are opened, or close to being used up. I will work hard to get these items used in a proper manner. It will help decrease my grocery costs for the month. I will buy milk, bread, and fruit for the kids

Dinner 8/4

Dinner tonight is going to be home made pizza. I'm going to put the ingredients for a crust in the bread maker. I have that "hidden surprise" left of homemade veggie garden spaghetti sauce that I'm going to give a whirl through the blender (to puree it, so my kids cant' tell it's that NASTY HOMEMADE STUFF THAT MOM MAKES), top the crusts with the sauce, and use the motzerella cheese that I have in the freezer. It's an 8 ounce package. It may be enough to make two cheese pizzas. SHHHHHHHHHHHH...don't tell the kids about the pizza sauce!!!

We will also have a small salad (green leaf lettuce, some grape tomatoes, shredded carrot, and sliced onion) with dressing. Dessert will be some left over ice cream cake!!!

Muffins

One of those hidden surprises I have in the fridge that need to go is a mixture of blackberries and blueberries from the garden. I found a recipe on allrecipies.com to use them up this morning. I don't think I am going to put the "topping" on them. My kids had enough sweetness yesterday from Kevin's two day birthday celebration.

  • READY IN45 mins

Streusel Topped Blueberry Muffins

Read Reviews (489)
"This is a really moist muffin if you don't overwork the batter. I'm a 'muffin snob' and I find myself making this same recipe over and over again! You'll never want to make a boxed blueberry muffin again." —  
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Ingredients Edit and Save

Original recipe makes 1 dozenChange Servings

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease 12 muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners.
  2. Combine 2 cups flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in medium bowl. In a small bowl, sprinkle 1 to 2 tablespoons flour over blueberries, and set aside. (This simple trick will keep you from having "purple" batter)
  3. In a large bowl, beat 1/2 cup butter with 3/4 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, and stir in vanilla and lemon zest. Fold in dry ingredients alternately with milk. Fold in blueberries. Remember, fold gently, don't stir. Spoon batter into prepared cups.
  4. Combine 2 tablespoons flour, 5 tablespoons sugar ,and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in a small bowl. Cut in 2 tablespoons butter with fork or pastry blender until mixture resembles course crumbs. Sprinkle over batter in muffin cups.
  5. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire rack. These muffins freeze really well, and re-heat in the microwave successfully. Hope you enjoy!!