Menu Monday

 

A new month has arrived and it has brought with it very cold weather. Time to have tummy warming meals a bit more often, even if I am trying to use up the many packages and containers of leftovers in the fridge freezer and the chest freezer. 

Monday

Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and corn. I might rip up what remains of the salad and have just a salad made of lettuce and sweet peppers.

Tuesday

Leftover Ham made into a casserole along with what is left of the lettuce mixture and carrots.

Wednesday

Leftover meatloaf, fried leftover mashed potatoes with onion, and peas.

Thursday

Leftover ham casserole, and a salad.

Friday

Scrambled eggs on toast. Perhaps some hash brown patties if I can find a good sale.

Saturday

Soup and sandwiches. Probably the Mexican soup that I have a few containers of. Sandwich wise, not too sure as of yet.

Sunday

Chicken Parma, mashed turnip/rutabaga, and a salad.

This should help clear out the freezer just a bit more. Trying to make room for any leftovers once the boys are home for Christmas.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Sunday Ramblings

 

Here it is the end of the month and heading into the last month of this year. Surprisingly it seems the older I get the faster the years slip by. 

Tomorrow I head in for my CT scan to check on the growth in my lungs or perhaps it is on my lungs. I will probably hear from my doctor within a few days of the scan. 

Today we went to Mass in the bitter cold. It was -20C, but with the windchill it felt like -32C. It hasn't warmed up that much either throughout the day. The SUV is now plugged in so as to make sure it starts tomorrow morning. Would hate not to get to my test on time. 

It is the first Sunday of Advent and the start of the Liturgical year. We are in Year A in the Catholic church. Today we also lit the first candle of Advent. 

This candle represents Hope. During this week we hope for the coming of Christ. 

Got the cinnamon buns baked after Mass, but of course I got them into the freezer before I got a picture. This was done because Harvey was eying them constantly and I was sure he would have eaten more than the one I told him he could consume.

I also got the tree decorated. It needs a few more small red balls which I will see if I can get when I go shopping.

I did find a few more after this picture was taken, but it definitely needs a few more.

Off to visit with you all and then crawl into a nice hot tub to relieve the back ache from all the bending and climbing of a ladder. I hope that over the next week I can get the remaining decor done.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Saturday Roundup

This week has been more of a use it up, and moving items to their proper place kind of week. 

The loom has been moved out of my living room into the sewing/craft room, the tree brought upstairs and set up ready to be decorated, work on projects has continued and will take place even through the beginning of December. 

I have started my Christmas baking, which will be less than other years. Probably a good thing for our waistlines, but there will still be enough to share with Kurt and Kris. 

Leftovers from the fridge and freezer are being used. I made an error this week and didn't use my brussels sprouts soon enough, which caused them to spoil. I hated to waste them, but they had too much spoilage to even cut off. Not going to make that mistake again. 

I have made my extra cleaning list, and my projects/goals list for the month of December. I have also started to add things to the budget sheets for the month of November (the budget will be done totally tomorrow). 

The shopping list for next week has been started and should be finished tomorrow as well. A few items are necessary even if they are not on sale. This one is much shorter than the last couple.

The $5.00 pantry thing is that each week one should take $5.00 and purchase one or more pantry stable items for their emergency pantry. This pantry stock is totally separate from the regular pantry stock up.  

Today it has been quiet, and restful. Other than my weekly call to baby brother (who happens to be in his early 60's) things have rolled along slow and easy. 

Harvey has been working on a project downstairs which used up some of his stashed lumber. Always happy when he can find something to do that keeps him occupied and happy. Pretty sure he will start to decorate his man cave this upcoming week for Christmas. 

Off to get the table set and then visit with as many of you as possible before I need to start supper.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Simplicity

My simple life is growing by leaps and bounds, thus in fact helping my frugal life as well. 

In Canada over the past few years there has been a push for Black Friday sales in many of our stores. Heck probably in all of the truth be told. Today I looked at some of the sales fliers and was not in the least tempted to go out and purchase more "stuff". Fact is our sales will continue into next week, much like our Boxing Day sales. 

I am finding the more I really think about what is a need or a want, there is really very little I need. I will of course purchase replacements for things that are wearing out, and those items that will make decluttering so much easier, like the silicone molds I have purchased nothing that is no longer necessary will enter this house. 

I enjoy cooking from scratch and trying new and interesting to me recipes. If they verge on vegan that is great, this is probably healthier for Harvey and I as well. 

I have been reading many blogs and watching many YouTube channels that ask how long you could feed your family on what is in your pantry and freezers/fridge. Pretty sure we could manage many months with just going out to purchase dairy, eggs, fruit and veggies. Still I feel the urge to stock up even more. I think this is because prices have kept right on going up. Purchasing while costs are lower just makes sense to me, and I do have the room to store everything I do purchase. It is one way of keeping to my budget. 

Rising prices don't matter as much if you have a well stocked pantry. I am also considering doing the $5.00 Emergency Pantry thing that some talk about. 

I was asked for some links to the lentil recipes I use so here they are.

Brown lentil soup

www.recipecommunity.com.au/soups-recipes/tomato-and-brownlentil-soup

Red Lentil Moroccan Soup

www.acedarspoon.com/moroccan-red-lentil-soup

Red Lentil Curry

www.allrecipes.com/recipe16641/red-lentil-curry/

Hopefully there will be a few more as I try more lentil recipes.

Everybody have a wonderful evening. 

God bless.

Thrifty and Frugal Thursday

Thrifty and Frugal  

Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate the holiday.

Once again the weather is such that staying home is actually helping with my thrift and frugalness. If I don't go out I don't spend. 

1.  This week should see me adding 5 no spend days onto the number I have already been able to accumulate. 

2.  Fixed a pocket in one of Harvey's coats. 

3.  Using up items from the fridge freezer for our suppers (or what those in the UK would call tea, I believe).

4.  Used up one tin of Mint Salve to help with my arthritis pain, instead of using pain meds.

5.  Used up the remaining warp on my loom. Very little warp went to waste.

6.  Used up the rubber shelf liner as a no skid backing on the rugs I fashioned. 

7.  Using up leftovers from the fridge freezer.

8.  Baked two loaves of bread, and a cake for dessert this week. Stuffed the oven as full as possible so as to save on energy.

9.  Harvey is getting better at turning off lights in the basement when he is not in the room.

10.  Reading free or very discounted books on my ereader.

11.  Paid all bills online once again so no driving. 

12.  Walking in the house for exercise.

13.  Decluttered a few items this week.

Everybody have a wonderful evening. 

God bless.

Midweek

 I am no longer really surprised at how quickly the weeks pass by. Rather I am surprised that Christmas is only a few weeks away. At least now the weather is a bit more Christmassy now. 

This is what it looks like outside right now.

We are having some lovely ice depositing fog, which makes me even more happy to stay home and work around the house. While I did spend money today I did not leave the house. Bill paying happened and it was all done online. No running around the city to the various places (well it would only be two places but one is on this side of the city and one on the other side of the city). No having to face the crazy drivers who seem to forget what driving is when it is icy and there is snow on the road. Really scary here the first part of winter.

Maebeme asked me if I had any lentil recipes, so here goes. All of these are online and are relatively easy to make. This is also one way we are beating rising costs. Lentils are a great source of protein and much less expensive than meat at this point in time.

Lentil Curry is one of our favs. Mediterranean Red Lentil Soup is another. I have also added a few lentils (like perhaps a handful) to Spaghetti Meat Sauce to stretch that out. I made a Brown Lentil Soup that was very good as well. Those are the best ones I have used so far. I did make a baked lentil meal, but that did not go over very well so never made it again. I also made falafels once and they used chickpeas and lentils. Not our favourite meal at all. 

I know people who make taco's with lentils and really like them so that will be the next recipe I try. 

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

 

Tidbits and Stuff

 

A day spent inside, baking bread, making granola and doing the usual household tasks normally done on this day. I did not venture outside at all. A lovely and quiet day here on the Phillips homestead.

This arrived last night.

Snow fell for most of the evening and into the early hours of the morning. Kind of a wet snow really, and so this morning when I woke up the roads had become icy. It really is nice not to have to head out for work, or to actually pay bills or shovel. Still I will be outside to pick up a parcel that is hopefully delivered at some point. But the roads being as bad as they are I am not too sure what I am looking for will really arrive. 

I continued on the straightening of the linen closet in the hall and picked up a few items in the hallway leading downstairs and put them in their proper place. 

There could be a bit of time spent in the sewing/craft room picking up a few items in there. I can never understand how that room gets so disorganized in just a few days. 

I am sleeping better and the pain in my back and hips has pretty much disappeared. Now that the temperatures are not going up and down in giant swings things will be much more manageable. It can now be controlled once again by changing positions or walking a bit every so often. 

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.