Meals and Other Boring Planning

DH started February with a shop. I can't say this one was rogue because he had showed me the Penny Pincher add and I checked off things that we would need. The fact that he bought twice as many things and spent twice what I thought he should was as part of his efforts. My February household and grocery (H&G) budget is $375.50, carrying the over spending from January of $24.50 into  this month. I plan to keep to an average of $400 per month this entire year. We had a Super Bowl gathering and brought a cheese dip and chips, and cookies. DD2 had a gathering and she was on chip duty, but I also had all the makings for Chex Puppy Chow, so she brought a batch of that as well. The chips and stuff for cheese dip were part of DH's shop. Still, no vegetables in his purchases, though I have a couple bags of frozen in the freezer and carrots in the vegetable drawer. I plan to stop on my way hone tonight to round out the groceries but am determined to  build from his purchases. We have a lengthy list of household items to stock-we are out or running low on everything, which means for food, I need to be particularly planful.

Because we desperately needed laundry soap and toilet paper, which, the nearby grocer had it on sale, I sent DH. Risky business. There were a couple other specials like 2 for $3.00 butter, juice and eggs, which I need for my eating plan. He sort of stuck to the list, forgot eggs; they were out of butter ( so he said but he bought a thing of margarine and quit frankly, I don't think he understood they're not the same) spending a total of $39.85 leaving me with a balance for the remainder of February of $246.20. With just shy of four weeks in the month, that gives us an average of $61.55.

Last week we stayed mostly to the list of meals I had suggested, except I still haven't made turkey meatloaf, the mock lasagna became just fettuccine and red sauce, and DH was hungry for chili dogs and ribs bought through his big spend. We ended up eating all the leftovers for lunch yesterday. My potential meals this week are as follows

Turkey Meatloaf with potatoes and vegetables
Taco bake with rice and corn
Chicken tender wraps with some kind of salad
Chicken Patty  sandwiches with something
Goulash with something
leftovers
Red rice and beans with some sort of vegetable, sausage

The calendar for the week includes DD2's orchestra-jazz band concert, reffing volleyball (a teen quit with two weeks left in the session and I agreed to help out), finalizing our Branson reservations for April, and decorating then working our own show choir competition and purging a minimum of 20 items for donation between the three of us. I have Friday off so hope to make it a productive day-nothing exciting, but productive.I've got a task oriented work week too, with again, nothing excited but hopefully highly productive for tackling over due maintenance needs. How is your meal plan and meals shaping up?

Menu Plan is Just a Suggestion

I  menu planned on Saturday. Clearly this was not a plan but  list of suggestions for me. I've changed everything up, including not cooking Tuesday at all really, making myself an egg wrap and cutting up a cantaloupe. I'm not sure what DH ate when he got home, but DD2 made a quesadilla with black bean and corn salsa (from jar) and some of the melon. Last night was supposed to be spaghetti but after a grueling commute home as road construction season is upon us, I wanted to just crash. DH made a frozen pizza, of which I had two slices, and I steamed a load of frozen stir fry veggies. A dash of soy sauce and they were delicious.

Despite setting my meal plan aside, it is a smart exercise to know what food I have and at least a game plan to start the week. Tomorrow may still be fish or maybe Wednesday's spaghetti. Maybe I'll make a meatloaf with the hamburger that was going to be in the sauce. If it helps me not buy take out and fast food or go out to eat excessively, I'll keep giving meal planning a go.

This meant I haven't had the leftovers for lunches that I had intended. DH ate all the bread as he came home for sandwiches. I've been bringing a yogurt, fruit, hard boiled eggs,  and cottage cheese. I even stuck a frozen entree in my lunch bag Tuesday, not great for my improved eating plan, but at $. 88, not bad for my budget. I'm going to scramble a couple eggs to bring for lunch today with an apple. I find with not eating as many starchy carbs, I need a bit more protein or I'm dragging mid afternoon. If you meal plan, are you strict with your planning or do you use more as a guide? If you deviate, what are the reasons why?

 

Eating an Elephant

"How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time." That's the saying and the advice I've received from countless folks on tackling the various overwhelming projects on my plate. At work, this is pretty straight forward for me, as I have extensive project plans, back dating the tasks from the deadline to start, ensuring all pieces are accomplished. I do great with deadlines. My office however has become quite cluttered. Too many piles of papers, unfilled documents, and just general untidiness. There is no deadline, so therefor I don't have a project plan. I am determined to take a couple bites from that particular elephant at the end of the day, giving my self my last hour in the office to focus on order. 

At home, next weekend is going to be set aside for DD1's former bedroom, my office. If I can get the furniture out and move what isn't staying, DH and I can pull-up the mangie carpet and tacking, and do a deep clean underneath of the floor before we put a new remnant down. I'd like to say we can find the remnant, and have it all ready to go down on Sunday, but don't want to over promise myself. It will be a few more bites at the house elephant, though realistically with our May schedule, we'll still be chewing until June. Did I really say June? 

I  need to put my work Sam hat on and treat my house the same way. DD2 is in school until June 8th. I'll use that as my project deadline. If I get farther ahead, I can give it a wrap early, but here is my grid. It is a work in progress, but you get the idea. This is a play on a tool I use regularly at work and don't know why I haven't applied it at home. I'm going to create additional grids for other areas, ones that do not need DH involvement such as our bedroom (I'm not moving out heavy furniture or pulling carpet-yet). If you have ideas or suggestions, please share. I hope I'm on the right track with my elephant house. 

Task	Resources Needed	Target Date	Completion Date	Notes
Clear Office –Store Furniture not going back
Purge Closet-old DD1’s items for donation or throw
Pull Carpet and tacking
Prep floors for new Carpet
Repair and paint walls
Lay new carpet
Put furniture back
Organize office for function		June 5
Office Complete		June 8

Little Notebooks

My daughter bought me this three volume set of little journals last Mother's Day. I've just started to dive into them, using the first volume, to jot down some plans, target dates, the lists of life stuff. I'm happy to be using the notebooks given to me by her as I think writing thoughts and ideas in a gift will motivate me more to action than just a random notebook. It has a unique little format, starting with the outside, with each volume being label Chapter 1, 2, and 3. I like how the inside has the months across, then numbers 1-31, so you merely circle the month, then date, and have a journal type entry. Pretty clever, and I've not seen one like that before.

Then, I have started fresh with this notebook. It was a freebie from one of the blogger vendors at the MN Blogger's conference in October. Note the front says, "Measure What Matter's." Ironic in that this is part of a quote I have always used in the work place since my job focuses a lot on data and analysis. "Because what gets done is what is measured, be sure to measure what matters most." I'm not using it for anything so profound, but did use it to do a freezer, fridge, and pantry inventory, plus a week meal plan. Since my overage in excessive amounts in December, I am driven to bring January grocery and household spending to a pittance, and avoid waste. I filled two pages with my inventory. I made a "what's needed" grocery list that should bring my weekly shop to under $30, most being fruit and veg. I plan to make a note in this notebook as to any left overs, and corresponding portion size. I think that will add to my tool kit to reduce food waste because as I menu plan, or cook off the menu plan, I'll know what is available to either bring into another week's menu, or use up for my work lunches, DH's lunches when he comes home, and quick reheat suppers when DD2 has to be fed fast.

While I admire those that can meal plan then cook everything from scratch, this is not me. I leave the house by 6:40 each morning, and usually am not into town until 6:00 p.m. Add the nightly running and I may be left with less than two hours (If I'd like to be in bed by 11:00), to fit household maintenance in. I'll use the second notebook to jot down things to remember, grocery items we've run out of and are needed, and note when I've stocked up on a convenience food that is particularly useful, how much, at what price, and where purchased so I can get an idea of when the next likely stock up sale will happen. This will also help me remember when I've bought something so I don't waste money buying more than we can really store. Stock up, yes, stock pile, probably not for me, unless something drastically changes in my whole organizational capacity. I will use my Friday's off though to make hearty soups and baking, from scratch, and with extras.

My little notebooks will be a new, or variation of tools, to help manage the fresh year ahead of me. They are small and fit in any of my purses, so easy to transfer from bag to bag. I need something right under my nose, so this method seems like it will have merit. 

Kicking the Can Down the Road No More

One of the the things so far I have appreciated in my job is I no longer hold authority without accountability. Instead, I am considered a “content expert”, providing information to others in objective ways, and let them make the decisions, for good, bad or indifference, leaving the accountability to whatever the fall out might be with the decision makers. It is a change in work style that many believed I would have a hard time transitioning to. However, they did not see that my previous position had eroded to the point where I was being stripped of the benefit of  using sound objective information (and often being told to manipulated data to support a predisposed set of assumptions) in exchange for preferences and erroneous generalization of anecdotes as trends and facts. I had little to no authority to make objective decisions, yet still held all the accountability when the “bad” happened. I was charged with making someone elses skewed vision become a reality and if I pushed back, or my team was not successful, I was labeled difficult or accused of not providing leadership. 

I noodle things over and over in my head, but once facts, options, and all considerations are put before me, I am able to make decisions quickly. The decisions I make now are what are the important things that are useful in decision making, and quite frankly, there is actually a lot of authority in that. Unfortunately, I am in a situation now that we are stuck moving forward until the powers that be make a choice, and put a green stamp on which plan they prefer. Time is ticking on our launch, and we have already lost a significant week, having wanted at least two full weeks before Christmas break, to communicate to our external stakeholders. I get it. No matter what decision is made, there will be a certain percent of unhappy people. Objectively, one option is clearly, backed with data, the right option. The right option also has the most current beneficiaries impacted negatively. However, it currently is an imbalanced and inequitably funded program, with negative impact long term, and a model that is not sustainable. Yet, instead of just making the hard decisions, the most senior leader just does not want to "fight" with those that stand to lose any of their current funding. A meeting to decide has been scheduled and rescheduled three times, kicking the can down the road. The organization suffers from decision paralysis.

I keep adding to my 2017 list of things I'm going to do or things I'm going to stop doing. While I am good with decision making and execution on the job, home is another thing. I procrastinate. I dawdle. I over think things, and move in circular patterns, knowing what's needed, but not just making a decision. No more. I see from a work perspective, how inefficient and annoying it is to those waiting on the decision. I'm not advocating for being impulsive, but when something needs being done, say taking care of the wet basement issue so we have a usable house, I'm going to make a decision and execute the remediation based on options available. Take my sectional. Had we just gone out, shopped, researched options, we would have known to find something of the right style and fit was going to need to be custom ordered, and take over eight weeks. Had I ordered in July, money saved, styled already known, measurements taken, I'd be sitting on a comfy space in front of a fireplace typing this. Oh, and speaking of fireplace, we need a new insert, that too could have been dealt with before winter, while waiting for the couch to arrive. Guess who is now on a waiting list for the furnace company? In 2017, I will be kicking the can down the road no more.

Hostess with the Mostess

Clean, clean, cook, cook. I'm on a quick twenty minute break to let some ibuprofen kick in before I keep on with my house cleaning and party preparation. Alas, despite my best efforts, there will be doors that we will just shut. As successfully as my purging has been, it is slow going, and items that we should have thrown, still are lingering and the clutter will need to behind shut doors. 

I thought I would share my menu for the confirmation dinner, and my costs. Keep in mind, I know I am serving a minimum of 23 people, but because my family often doesn't RSVP and treats things a s open houses (a pet peeve of mine and my sisters on both sides of me in age), I over shoot by 30%, so planned food for at least 30. Leftovers will be dinner Monday and Tuesday, as well as used for lunches. 


Appetizers (easy to put out snacks while I get dinner pulled together):
 Bacon wrapped little smokes, veggies and dill dip, strawberries, assorted  cheese cubes, hummus, and pretzel chips.

Entree:
Ham, cheesy hash brown potatoes, green been hot dish, coleslaw, dinner rolls, pickles, and olives. 

Desert:
Vanilla cheese cake, Turtle cheese cake, brownies

Beverages:
Beer, white and red wine, assorted pop, juice, water, and coffee. 

Grand total spent:  $223.87. This does not include the wine, as I used my own stash, but let's throw in $40 for the four bottles I set aside. Revised grand total: $263.87. At 30, that comes to $8.79 a person. More than likely I bought twice as much beer, pop, and bottled water than needed, so the left overs will be used to keep future costs down for weekend football watching. If I was more organized, I am sure I could have shopped better  and cut the cost down, but for three courses, plus "open bar",  I think I am entertaining on the cheap, but all should be tasty and no one should leave hungry. 

That's my timer.  Next room, my entry, and then to tackle the bathrooms. I'll put the food together either later tonight, or even in the morning since church isn't until 2:00.   I am really looking forward to tomorrow. Confirmations are very special to me in general, and seeing my youngest who was such a gift to us, affirming her own faith and the promises we made at her baptism, will no doubt make me a bit teary eyed. I hope you are enjoying your weekend. I'll give you an update on mine tomorrow.

Plagues Upon the Disorganized

Yesterday was even more beautiful weather wise than Saturday-not fall like at all but pure summer bliss. Did DH and I enjoy any of it though? Nope. Between ripping out carpet and finally tackling under the kitchen and bathroom sinks and drawers, we ate up our Sunday. We are the truly unorganized and only seem to start getting our shit together when faced with deadlines. This time, we may have bitten off more than we can chew in the short window remaining. It's not that our house screams hoarders, but it yells chaos and clutter. The amount of crap that had to be moved to pull up the carpet was obscene, and we didn't really do a thorough job of cleaning it out-just moved a lot of things around. I'll spend a few hours each night bagging, boxing, and hauling things to the garbage the garage, or Goodwill. Another problem though, the garage won't hold much more crap either. That needs to be gone through and purged, but will need to wait until spring. 

I have read and tested dozens of get organized books and have whipped this place into a nice state several times over the last two and a half decades, but we just don't keep it up. I see the plague the disorganization has on my household. When we finally tackle these jobs, I see the money waste. Rolls of t.p. and paper towels were crammed under the vanity sink, damp from something or other spilled on them, brand new but dried out deodorant sticks, and cleanser canisters that were a solid chunk, all useless now, as a few examples. The needless buying of items I didn't know we had. The DD's and I are stocked up on razors for a years based on what I found, if I don't manage to clutter up the drawers again. 

I envy the organized and feel like my plight in life is to be cursed with household mess. I've dabbled in the minimalist method, but the only hope for me would be to literally take it on in full, purging everything but the bare essentials. Honestly, I can't see that happening, but with a good clean in certain areas, I see the layers of our life plagued with consumerism and too much stuff. I think how would we ever be able to move again? .As much as I was giddy with my flip flop haul, it would be pretty stupid if come next summer I couldn't find any of the pairs.We need to downsize now. Who else out there is a chronic clutter bug? Does it impair your quality of life? Did you break your cycle and is there hope for me?

Whats for Dinner, Lunch, and Snacking....

After my massive shop at Aldi's last Friday, that I am counting on the June grocery budget, other than milk, juice, and bread, we didn't need groceries this week. DH has this weird obsession though with grocery shopping and when he got frozen pizza and ice cream post concert, he picked up other things. Then on his day off, he managed another shop, and I am pretty clueless now what we have causing the freezer to practically burst. On my schedule today is to do a good look through and hopefully do some batch cooking. With two soccer games wedged in with a hectic work week, and finals for DD before her last day of school, and preparing for an out of town tournament, attempting organization in the kitchen will be key. 

Batch cook
Chili-I have the fixings to make a super huge pot of it. Even with the warmer weather, we still enjoy it as a hearty and easy to pull together meal. 
Bean Burgers-I have several cans of chili beans, a drawer of onions and carrots, and can do a batch of 8, saving a few for later in the month when we'll see DD#1.
Chicken-I'll cook up the lot and then freeze some in diced portions for pasta sauces and stir fries and curry's, sliced for on top of spinach, and some in small cutlets that can be seasoned and reheated on the grill
Ground Beef-Same as chicken, cook it all up with the chili, but reserve some portions for pasta sauce and hot dish
Banana bread-I think the banana's are multiplying in my freezer. A double batch, using my mini loaf pans will be perfect for quick breakfasts, snacks, and to freeze for the tournament, and later in the month for the cabin.

I wish I had better a better storage system to create crock pot meals, ready to go, all laid out in my freezer. Maybe in another life but the prep above will help clean down the freezer, and give me bases to get a quick meal pulled together on week nights. 

We've had some additional expenses with fee's for concert tickets and the play,  plus upcoming costs of the hotel, more gas, plus a meal or two out  for the tournament. DD#2 is in desperate need of swimsuits as the bottoms didn't quite work anymore either.  Because of these cash flow items, I'd like to hit below $350 for total groceries, and use up household goods to keep that expense low as well.  We have the use of the cabin for three days at the end of the month and will have a few extra kids, and DD#1 so on top of the $350, I thought I'd add another $90, or $30 per day to accommodate teen appetites. I need to find receipts and do some math, but I am probably at $200 already in June with a lot of month left. However, becasue of the packed cupboards and freezers, I feel strongly I can do this. I might just  have to hide DH's wallet to get there.

Recipe for the Perfect Day Off

 Unless you are so phenomenally rich that you don't have to work for a living because your money works for you, I don't know too many people that do not look forward to a day off. Regardless if your work is outside or inside the home for a paycheck, or you are the main provider of your families care, feeding, and bill paying, and generally  responsible for the executive functions of the home, having an entire day off with no responsibilities to squash the feeling of freedom is rare. At least in my world they are. Most of this is of my own making with too many commitments, and silly me, having another child when my first two kids were approaching the age of independance.The other part is also still me-guilt about the things not getting done; the chaos and the clutter, That I ended up using a day off to scramble to get things done quickly, only to then exhaust myself-a pure recipe for a Netflix binge.

I'm going to work on a new recipe. This recipe will begin with me scheduling time each night on my calendar for a certain amount of home management, and honing my ability to be a ruthless purger. I worked hard the last two weeks getting parts of the home organized to the point I felt comfortable hosting a guest. It's not perfect, but the room feels almost like a sanctuary. There's a bed, a dresser and mirror, the built in nightstands and a comfy chair.  A few books, and DVDs plus a small t.v. and DVD player rounds it out. No clutter, but has all the room needs. If I spend 5-6 days a week with scheduled organizing, the 7th, and potentially the 6th as well can be free and clear for nothing but play. 

My perfect day off starts with sleeping until my body says it is no longer tired. Now, because of my racing mind, even though my internal clock wakes me up by 5:00, I know I'm still tired. I'd putter around for a while, still in my pajamas, blissfully enjoying my coffee, no where I have to be. Then, I'd get myself pulled together, and meet a friend for a late breakfast out. I don't mean a muffin.  I want biscuits and gravy, a couple eggs, hashbrowns, the whole full country breakfast. With or without friend, I'd wander off to explore somewhere. Depending on the weather, it could be a museum, a gallery, an antique mall, a walkable neighborhood, a good park, any kind of location can work as long as there are places to poke around and no one gives me a time limit. 

Much later, meeting up with friend and family for appy's and drinks would hit the spot, impromptu becasue my earlier outing was on no one's, not even mine, clock. Here's the newness of all my new decluttering time. Either or both the breakfast and happy hour can be in my own home, because I am now so organized, I can whip up both, enjoy, and have the evidence cleaned up as quick as driving somewhere. I'd cap off my perfect day off with a night with family and or friends. This could be a game night, pizza and poker with the girls, a sporting event,  listening to live music, anything that has a little action to it. Once I got in my bed, happy to do so because the day was so fulfilling, I'd sleep blissfully through the night again. 

What makes a day of play perfect for you? Do you feel like you are getting enough of them, or are your days, like I'm allowing mine to do, controlling you? This is my perfect day off, and I think it is about time to schedule one. A week from Friday sounds good. Who's up for joining me? I have a guest room now. 

Perfect deck of cards for an American Anglophile. 

No Fooling Around This Weekend-I Mean It

There is nothing on my calendar today and tomorrow short of a little carpooling DD#2, church tomorrow morning, and some light shopping to finalize preparations for her trip to Spain.  She leaves Thursday night. It's the lenten season, and it is unheard of to not partake in at least one fish fry on a Friday night, so that was dinner last night, complete with all the trimmings. I am still stuffed this morning. Coffee, then water, then a pick me up later afternoon with some tea, and perhaps some light lunch should be all I need to keep up my energy.

I am going to get cracking on the deep cleaning and organizing of my daughter's old room, turning it by end of the month into a proper guest room. I also have the regular chores of life to accomplish as well, with DD pulling her share of the load. No marathoning programs on  Netflix. No getting lost in each of your blogs, so apologies in advance if I am not the chatty Cathy I usually am jumping in on every topic. I've serious work to accomplish, and two good days to make progress. No fooling around, and I mean it. Cheers to you all and may you send me good thoughts on a productive weekend.