30 days to an organized kitchen

Organizing Junkie is hosting a 30 day organizational Challenge. I decided to tackle the kitchen. My reason for picking that area is because that is my biggest challenges in this apartment. I love to cook but things are not organized they are stacked and often I am rearranging piles to get to things I need. The room is small but has quite a bit of stuff both food and things I use.

As I go through this room, I really do want to look for things that I can get rid of or maybe move to another place in the apartment. I think we might eat quite a bit of the food that we have around that we have not yet eaten.

My goal is to have an organized useful kitchen at the end of 30 days. I might have to get rid of some things to reduce the clutter and also buy a few containers to help keep things organized but I also want to see what I have around here that I can use.

Here is the current state of the kitchen.

This is actually a drawer. It looks like a junk drawer but that is just because it is not organized.
Technically the refrigerator is not in the kitchen but in the dining room but I decided to include that in the organizational challenge not necessarily the inside but the top and the outside.

This is under the sink. I have cleaning supplies, soft drinks, onions potatoes, and trash bags aka grocery bags.
This is the cabinet with the baking pans and my stash of almonds.

This is above where the stove would be so it is high up and you can see the vent. It needs some organizational help. I couldn't even turn the spice shelf last night as I think something was caught in the back.

It is almost impossible to get a picture of the whole kitchen. You can see the stove/oven, the place where a 2 burner stove would go and then the sink.

This is a bookshelf that fits along the wall that holds food and containers and my cookbooks. You can see how things are piled on there.

One more cabinet. You can to be careful when you open this one that things don't fall out.

A few of the challenges that I face in the room are the available space and the amount of things that need to go in that space. I do have to keep stocked up on things as you can't always find it at the grocery store.

There now the whole world can see my kitchen but I am planning that in 30 days you will see a new organized and clutter free kitchen.

March's Results

It is hard to believe that it is April already. Time to reflect on how I did on my goals for the year.

Read one book - I did it. The exciting this is I found a place where I can give my books away and know they are being used. I have a bag here to give to my friend.

Reduce - I used some more fabric making bags. I didn't buy any more fabric. I did buy some ribbon but that is so small. Paper - I scrapbooked 27 pages so that used some paper. I also gave some paper away to a friend who is beginning to scrapbook. I will confess I bought some new paper but it was just what I need for my Asian pages.

Exercise - I am walking with my walking partner when it is not raining. I will admit that I am not where I should be in that.

Quiet time - I am continuing in my Romans study and currently am in the middle of Psalms.

That was March. Now we move into April.

Menu 4/2 to 4/7

I sat down and planned my menu on paper and then drew arrows all around the paper as I moved things around because of various changes in our week.

Monday
Asian style beef stew which I made for lunch as Bo was not going to be home for dinner and we didn't have leftovers. I don't like cooking my big meal at lunchtime.

Tuesday
Thai meal out with friends

Wednesday
We have a lunch appointment and so for dinner we are going to have something easy
Lemon Asparagus with bow-tie pasta

Thurday
Chicken with potato casserole Need to make some sides and dessert as we are having company

Friday
Chicken stir-fry - I want to make a stir-fry once a week. My gas canister is the biggest one which tells me that cooking western uses more gas so I am going to try something new more Asian cooking

Napkins

I have had this fabric for too long. There is a coordinate fabric that goes with it but I don't have much of that left over. It is a beautiful French print actually produced there. I decided it would make great napkins so yesterday I cut and sewed 6 napkins. I still have quite a bit of fabric so maybe I will make them for gifts. I also did some mending, sewed a button on Miss K's jumper, sewed a button on my coat, and sewed up a hem that was coming undone.

Travel Swap

The scrapbook group that I am part of meets once a month and we often have a swap. April's theme is travel. I had some time this afternoon and wanted to see what I could create. I was pleasedwith the outcome. I started with a pocket envelope, then stamped a world map using the watermark pad and then used my fun travel stamps around the edges and then added some hint of colour with my chalks.

I made 12. I think that should be enough for the swap.

Need to Create

Yesterday I was feeling the need to create something. It seemed like life had gotten busy and I had not been doing anything creative. The easiest thing was to do some beading. I had fun with these two pieces. The one is pink and black beads with a bit of silver just perfect for for a pink and black skirt that I have. The other one is just blue seed beads with some other colourful beads that I have. I can always find something to wear with blue.

Carrot Cookies

Today's was the mom's group Easter party. I decided to make some fun cookies for the kids. I think I had about 45 in the box and would you believe I actually brought cookies home. Last night I taught Miss K how to lick the beater. Hey, it is therapy. That is one of the things that we special needs moms do label just about everything "therapy". I can find all kinds of things to buy as long as it is "therapy". Now if I could figure out how to have my scrapbook supplies considered therapy I would be set.

We are working on licking in speech therapy so I thought why not practice at home.

Menu week of March 26

I wrote the menu on Friday and ended up changing things around.

Monday - pizza with the leftover sauce from meatball sandwiches and fresh mushrooms instead of canned since I had those that needed to be eaten.

Tuesday - Chili con corn - I have the tomato sauce leftover from making the spaghetti sauce and everything else.

Wednesday - might be leftovers as I am going for tea with a friend in the afternoon. It is a buffet from 3:30 to 6:00

Thursday - Chicken and pineapple over rice

Friday - Asian beef stew only because we have not had beef for a while and this is one of our favorite beef dishes

Meatball Sandwiches

I was really hungry for a meatball sandwich. It is just a bit too far to run for a good V&S but if I were going for a V&S sandwich I would probably go for a ham and cheese. Anyway, I decided to make meatball sandwiches. First I made the rolls. I just made bread dough and shaped it for the rolls.Then I made the meatballs and added them to the sauce.
They were yummy. Now we have the sauce without meatballs and will have pizza this week for dinner.

Weekly Menu 3/19

We have been eating this week. I am getting back into posting my menu and doing a bit more planning.

Monday - Chicken with peanut sauce and couscous - it was yummy
Tuesday - pork chops, noodles and asparagus
Wednesday - meatball sandwiches
Thursday - enchilada chicken casserole - I am going to use up all the bags of corn chips that we have
Friday - Chili Con corne casserole

This week's meals didn't leave much in leftovers so lunch has to be created. We had quiche and then a few other things that we could find around here.

Pasta with pesto

This is one of our favorite quick meals. It is a combination of a recipe from a missionary friend in Italy and a restaurant entree in Asia.

Cook pasta. After a few minutes of cooking add green beans and cauliflower. Cook until done.
Drain. Mix pesto according to taste preference. Serve. If it is lunch, we just serve ourselves out of the pan.

Crustless Quiche

Yesterday, I tried a new quiche recipe and this is a winner in my book.

Ingredients

4 oz	Bacon
1/2	Yellow onion
6	Eggs
3/4 cup	Cream
2 boxes (10 oz	Each) frozen broccoli or spinach
1/2 pound	Shredded cheese
1/2 t	Salt
1/4 t	Pepper

Preparation

heat oven to 350

Butter a 10" tart pan or 9" deep pie plate, or muffin tin

in large skillet over medium heat cook bacon until crisp. drain on paper towels; coarcely chop.

Remove all but 1 T bacon dripping from skillet. Add onion and cook minutes until softened but not brown.

In large bowl combine eggs, cream, broccoli, cheese, salt and pepper. Stir in bacon and onion.

Pour mixture in prepare pan. Bake 1 hour and 15 minutes (tenting with foil if necessary to prevent over browning) or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes before cutting or removing from pan.

I found it here.

As usual, I made some modifications to the recipe. I didn't have any bacon and so I skipped that and fried my onion in a bit of butter. I used spinach and honestly just added some cheddar and Emmental cheese (it is some French cheese with holes).

Bargain Find

The other day I was in the grocery store and saw the Play-Doh Fun Factory and thought it looked neat but wasn't really going to pay the full price for it. They say that Miss K loves playing with play-doh at BSF but the last times she did it at home she ate it.

Well, later I was in the store and saw the crowds of people crowding the clearance bins and look what I found at almost 50 percent off the original price. I grabbed two one for Miss K's birthday and one for my gift box.

The results

It wasn't the best of weeks in a number of ways. Emotional up and downs and my steady husband was halfway around the world. His plane is supposed to land in about an hour and we here are excited.

So I did manage to get rid of probably 60 things. I took a bag of craft things to a friends house which probably had about 20 things in it. I gave lots of paper to two friends who were wanting to start scrapbooking. That was about 20 things. I did get rid of a few other things as well. I have a few things that are sitting here to go to clothing recyle and also to be mailed.

I was going to say that next week was back to normal but we have a staff conference the first few days and then we have Keswick that we want to attend. Oh, and I have been asked to bake for Keswick. I do enjoy baking. I made 9 loaves of banana bread already. They were just little loaves and my freezer is full.

February Results

It is hard to believe that it is the beginning of March already. It is time to reflect on how I am doing on my goals for the year.

Exercise - I found a walking partner. We go out 2 mornings a week. That is good but I still need to find 2 more times a week for some exercise. I really should get back to do Slim in 6.

At the beginning of February I picked a book to read and evaluate if it is worth keeping. I didn't start reading the book until the 26th or maybe even the 27th. I think I ready enough to know that I don't want to keep it. I did read a few good quotes but not enough to keep it on my shelves. I need to find some place where I can donate books.

Using & Reducing fabric and paper - I scrapbooked a total of 20 papers in February which used up some paper. I will confess that I orderd some Asian paper some of which I already have and some which I won't receive for another week so I guess paper is a wash as I used some but I also bought some. I used some fabric and didn't buy anymore even though I was tempted.

I am continuing to have my quiet time in the morning. I am in Romans and Psalms.

February was a good month. We had a big holiday in there and had company for a week. I am looking forward to March.

Carrot Soup

The inspiration for this soup came from a can of Marks & Spencer Carrot and Corriander Soup. Years ago I bought a can and loved the soup. I cut the ingredients off the label and kept that for years in my recipe box. Last year I had leftover chopped carrots. I decided to try to make carrot soup. I went online and looked at a few recipes but didn't find one that reminded me of the Marks & Spencer. But I was able to combine a number of things and come up with a recipe that maybe even tastes better than the Marks & Spencer.

Here is my recipe:

Saute onion in butter

Add chicken broth & chopped up carrots and cilantro

Cook until the carrots are well cooked

Put everything in the blender and puree

Add some whipping cream

Pepper to taste

Here is lunch. It was yummy. Now I am living in a Marks & Spencer city but have decided that I like my own soup better than a can. I do have a can on my shelf that I will need to eat.

100 in 10

We are moving again this year. It is not a simple move across town either but another move overseas. Don't ask where we are moving because we don't know. Knowing that we are moving has moved me to begin the sorting, decluttering, tossing, and basically getting rid of things.

So here it is Bo is traveling for 10 days and during that time I am going to get rid of 100 things. Hey, that is just 10 a day.

The things have to be out of my house. So if I am going to give it to someone, I need to give it to them. If I am mailing it, I need to mail it, etc. I want my house to have 100 less things when he gets home.

This begins on the 1st and ends on the 10th.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I enjoy baking but one of the challenges is if I use my hand mixer I have to mix things in the office. Okay, let me explain. My hand mixer is a 110w and our house is 220 but in the office we have a transformer that is huge and can handle our 110w printer as well as a few other things like my hand mixer. Bo doesn't mind when I use the mixer in there unless he is in the middle of a conference call but going back and forth can be a challenge.

I have a 220w food processor and so I decided to try it to make cookies. It worked. Yeah! I can mix up the cookies in my kitchen.

BBQ at the Beach

I know it sounded like a fun and maybe even a bit exotic to have a BBQ at the beach in February. In many ways it was an event for my husband's work. I will say it was a bit better than I thought. The hot dogs were good as well as the beef. It was a cultural moment.

Menu 2/19

This week is a holiday week and we have company so the menu is a bit flexible depending on what we are doing.

Sunday
Baked Ziti

Monday
Hoppin' Johns which is black beans on rice with lots of toppings eaten with corn chips

Tuesday
BBQ on the beach

Wednesday
Greek Night

Thursday
Lentil & Barley stew

Friday
planning to go out for the day, so we will eat out

Saturday
hmmm need to think of something

Pausing

and thinking. I just found a hotel room that is 200 square feet more than our apartment. Okay, at it costs 200 less a night than we pay in rent for a month.

In a way that is making me think that our apartment is small but in another way I like my small apartment.

Kababs

I have eaten Kababs but never made them before. I might have made them once with my mom on the grill but being totally responsible is something else. It was requested as a birthday meal so I pulled out my Betty Crocker cookbook and found a recipe. We added a bit more in vegetables because we like lots of vegetables.

They were good and were easy to make. I would do it again and put smaller pieces of onion.

Grocery Shopping

Where we used to live I was 5 minutes walk from 2 grocery stores and one outdoor market and a 10 minute walk from the baking/western grocery store. Now I am adjusting to a 20 minute walk to the store and 30 minutes walk back home. It is uphill and I am pushing a stroller with a 20 pound toddler and groceries hanging off it and falling out of the basket (don't tell my father it is over the basket limit.) Oh, that is usually only enough for 3 or 4 days so I do that twice a week. When you include the time in the store it is an hour and half.

This week I tried something new. I ordered my groceries online from the store where I usually shop. I got a cup of coffee and sat down at the computer and clicked away buying canned good, laundry detergent, drinks, fruit, veggies, and even milk. If I ordered by 2pm, I could have delivery the same day between 7-10pm.

It worked great. My groceries were delivered around 9:00. The sad thing was Miss K and I missed sharing the bag of chips on the way home. Oh well, without the walk I can't justify eating them.

They were out of stock on a few items -- Arnott's Mint Slice cookies, Organia, and BottleGreen Cranberry Presse. None of those were really necessary so it wasn't that important.

It was easy. I got everything delivered to my door, and I didn't have to spend the time walking.

"Look what I did" by Miss K

I told Miss K to get her jacket on as we were heading out to her speech therapy session. I got busy with something and turned around to discover that she had tried to put her jacket on. It looked good and like we just needed to straighten it .But somehow she got it a bit backwards.
I know moms celebrate the big and little things that our children do but in the case of moms of special needs kids we do more celebrating and we find all kinds of little things to celebrate.

Tai-tai's brag

Today is the day that I get to brag about my husband. The past week has not been an easy one for us as we are left picking up the pieces of a dream. We really don't know all of what is going to happen but I am thankful that Bo is at my side in all of this. Nothing real serious just some uncertainty regarding where we will be living.

I think back to when I met him one of the things that I loved about him was his passion for others. He had a desire to share truth. That continues even today. It is because of that desire that we are living where we are.

I think of how he complements me. No, not the words that he says but the ways that our personalities and talents work together. I am the quick, let's get it done who cares if it is spelled correctly or has all the little words that it needs. He is the one that ponders and carefully makes sure that things are presentable.

When I am feeling down, he continues to remind me that God is in control. I need his faith at times when mine is weak.

He makes me laugh. He helps with so many things. I am thankful to be his tai-tai.

So happy birthday to you, my husband.

A Beautiful Meltdown

I was having a creative moment this afternoon and decided to melt some crayons. I had seen someone show a picture of there jar of melted crayons and decided to try it. The best directions I found were here.

Since it was me doing it I mixed the colours in a civilized manner. I had this pan and rarely use it because it is so small. I decided to use it. They did just pop out.

I decided they were just too pretty. I am giving some as belated Valentine's to Miss K's speech therapist's children. It was easy and fun and so I made some more.

Black-eyed Pea Soup w/ miso

Someone asked for the miso recipe. I have not yet made this so you are spared any of my comments about this recipe.

This also comes from The Quick & Easy Vegetarian cookbook.

1 cup dried black-eyed peas
Rinse until clean
4 good-sized carrots, cut in 1/2 inch slices
1 large onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, cut in 1/8 inch slices
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
8 cups water
Place above ingredients in pot with black-eyed peas. Cook uncovered at fast simmer until peas start to become soft, about 50 minutes. Cover at this point so no more water evaporates
1/2 cup red, white and green pasta spirals
Add to pot and simmer until tender. Then remove pot from heat.
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast (optional)
1 teaspoon miso, softened in a few tablesppons of cooking liquid
1 teaspoon reduced-sodium soy sauce
Put in pot and stir until well mixed. May be reheated, but do not boil.

If you make this, please let me know. I bought the black-eyed peas and want to try it but I am not sure if it will happen this week as we have plenty of leftovers.

Borscht

Here is the recipe that I used. This comes from Extending the Table.

In Dutch oven or large pot, cook until tender:
1 lb beef or soup bone (500 g)
3 qt water

Chop meat or remove from bone and return to broth.
Add
6 potatoes, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
10 oz cabbage, chopped (300 g)

Cook until potatoes are almost tender, then add:
1 onion, chopped
1 small red beet, shredded
5 tomatoes, chopped or 3 c canned tomatoes, or tomato juice (750 ml)
dill and parsley to taste
2 t salt or to taste
1/4 t pepper
1 bay leaf (optional)

Just before serving, stir in:
1/2 c heavy cream, sour cream, or yogurt

There is the recipe. Would I make it again? Probably not. The contributor is from Russia so I am assuming that this is a real Borscht recipe. I didn't ask Bo if it tasted like what he had when he was there. For me the tomatoes made it a bit like a beef soup. We used yogurt. Oh, I didn't add it to the pan but rather we added it to each bowl. Oh, the fresh beets were too expensive so I added a can of beets and included the juice. Another thing I didn't add as many potatoes. This makes lots of soup. We ate it for dinner, lunch, lunch and lunch again.

What I will make is this:

Beet Soup

2 cups canned beets (I always chop a bit because I buy sliced beets)
2 carrots
1 medium onion
1 cup shredded cabbage
3 cups vegetable broth or water
1/2 tsp salt
few turns of pepper grinder
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Light sour cream or nonfat yogurt (optional)

Cut up vegetables coarsely and, except for the beets, put them in a pressure cooker along with the broth, salt, pepper, butter and lemon juice. Cook for 3 minutes. Put half of the cooked vegetables and beets in food processor with 1 cup of broth from the pressure cooker. Blend for 30 seconds. return to pressure cooker and keep on low heat. Serve with topping of light sour cream or nonfat yogurt.

This recipe is from The Quick & Easy Vegetarian Cookbook. "this soup may not have the authenticity of the steppes of Russia, but it evokes crusty black bread and other sturdy, nutritious, peasant fare. I usually make this when Bo is out of town because I didn't think he liked beets. Now he says he does.

My changes I don't have a pressure cooker and so I just do everything in a regular pan on the stove. I don't put it in the food processor. Oh, and in the following of my Eat Fat lose fat we have regular sour cream or yogurt.
Serves 4 to 6.

My Daughter - Grabber Gal

So the other week I bragged and told everyone how smart my daughter is. I guess now I should also confess her latest sin. Last week we went to town to run a few errands. I went to look in one store and Bo who was wearing Miss K went to the drug store to get some toothpaste. We met outside and I saw Miss K playing with a tube of toothpaste but thought that it was the tube Bo bought. Bo went to McDonald's for a drink and I went to another store. When I met them he told me that the tube of toothpaste that she had been playing with was the tube that she shoplifted.

It seems that when he bent down to get a tube she grabbed a tube and he didn't realize you have to check her hands when you leave a store.

I checked the baby book and for some reason they don't have a line for "first shoplifting experience".

Just in case anyone is wondering if she were older and had the understanding of what she did I would be talking with her and disciplining her but at this age she doesn't know except for the fact that we are working on not grabbing things.

Scrapbook Swap

I posted a picture the other week of what I made for the scrapbook swap. Here is what I received.

I think this is a great idea. Each month we have a theme. The coordinator lets everyone know how many people have signed up so we know how many to make. It is fun to be able to add some embellishments to your collection.

Menu 2/11

Sunday
Breakfast - banana bread and fruit
Lunch - out
Dinner - Russian Borscht soup

Monday
Breakfast - oatmeal
Lunch - leftovers
Dinner - Spinach & lentils

Tuesday
Breakfast - eggs
Lunch leftovers
Dinner - Asian Beef Stew

Wednesday
Breakfast - pancakes
Lunch - leftovers
Dinner - Enchiladas Bo's birthday meal

Thursday
Breakfast - bagels
Lunch - out for the birthday celebration
Dinner - Black-eye pean Miso soup

Friday
Breakfast - eggs
Lunch - leftovers
Dinner - baked ziti

Saturday
Breakfast - bagels & Fruit
Lunch - leftovers
Dinner - Kababs Aunt Bec's birthday celebration

The birthday person gets to pick the meal within reason. Bo wanted enchiladas which is his favorite and one of those that I don't make that often.

That is what we are eating this week. Now I need to put my grocery list together and also start thinking about next week as the stores will be closed the beginning of the week (I think).

I used some

Remember the paper that I had cut from the calendar. I used some of it when I did Miss K's first trip across the border. It was so fun to use it. I also used some on a family page that I did.

Celebrating Friends

Sallie has invited friends to join her in celebrating a year of abudance. I have been thinking about that and pondering overflowing blessings that I do have.

Last year we moved and that meant saying good-bye to many friends some of whom I will see again. We arrived here in September and we are slowlying meeting people and connecting with them but that is slow.

I am blessed to have so many friends but living in a transient society does mean that people are always coming and going which really means I have friends all over the world.

A few weeks ago a dear friend was in town but our schedules did not allow us to visit that day but she had the next morning free but she across the border. The previous week I had gotten my visa and so I was able to go and have breakfast with her. The funny thing is it takes me less time to get there than it does to get downtown where she was staying. We enjoyed three wonderful hours together eating, drinking horrible coffee but it was coffee, talking, laughing and catching up.

Then a week later another friend came to town. She stayed at our house and we enjoyed a wonderful weekend together shopping, exploring the city, taking and laughing. That dear friend invited me to a woman's retreat in her town.

I also think of new friends that I have met since moving here. L who lives in my village and has become my walking partner. The 45 minute walk goes quickly as we chat. J and her family who miss homemade pizza and so we are celebrating the abudance of our oven and having it tomorrow evening. We have been blessed to meet so many people since arriving.

I also have friends that keep in touch in various ways and even though I might not see them or be able to call them, Hey, I am on Skype now so you can always Skype me, we stay in touch.

I need to remember this abundance when I am feeling alone here in a new place. Friends are a blessing.

Living in a small space

Last week I had a conversation with my language tutor about housing. She was a bit surprised to learn that most people in America live in houses. I told her that I didn't know anyone in America that lives in a highrise. That caused me to think about how much space we have in America.

Currently we are living in a 700 sq foot apartment. I remember when I thought my 740 sq foot apartment was small and I was single. Now I am married with a child. Our apartment has 3 bedrooms and we have 2 bathrooms.

We have made some adjustments to living in this space. We have a double bed instead of a queen. We bought a love seat size sofa and it fits much nicer than trying to fit a full-size sofa in. Our table doubles or maybe I should be saying triples as a dining table, a desk, or a craft table depending on what I am doing. We went vertical so we have lots of tall bookcases.

I am learning contentment. I will admit at times there is a longing for more space. I am learning to be organized and creative in how I put things away.

Bo and I have talked that even is we return home at some point we would like to have a space place maybe a bit bigger because it would be nice to be able to get out on both sides of the bed.

Here are a few pictures of how space is used. I found this florist that is between two buildings in what looks like an alley. Most available space is used for something. Here are two 7-11's that are just a hole in the wall.

I'm so Happy

They are finished! Yeah! Our scrapbook group meets once a month and has a swap where each person makes a something to swap. This month's theme is Chinese New Year and I think because of that everyone wanted to get in on the receiving. We all have a need for Chinese embellishments.

This was a pretty basic thing considering I bought the double happiness and then just glued it on using my Xyron and then threaded the ribbon through.


I will try to post a picture of what I receive. Now I am ready to do some Asian pages especially as I have my calendar paper.

My daughter is so smart

I know most mothers say things like that. She continues to amaze us at what she knows both things we have taught her like putting her dirty clothing in the laundry basket and putting her dishes in the sink. The things that really amaze us are the things that we don't teach her but she learns and picks up.

The other Sunday Bo was brushing his teeth and so I just threw my brush on the bed since I couldn't get into the bathroom. A bit later he told me Miss K got the brush and pushed her way in to put it in the basket. I never said, "momma's brush goes here."

We had a banana flash card that had been the bookmark in the Bible story book but it was misplaced. Miss K found it and went to the sofa pointing to the shelf where the Bible story book was and knew that the banana flash card was to go in there.

As I ponder these things that she is doing, I am continuing to rejoice in all the many ways that God has been faithful in caring for her. At times her special needs do show but often they are hidden behind her sweet personality. At times her specials needs cause me to cry wondering how we will handle this but so many times I am reminded that God knew all along and none of this is a surprise to him.

I am sure there is more that I can add but that is all for today. I think I need to show a picture of this smart girl.

Menu 2/5

Monday:
Breakfast - eggs
Lunch - leftovers
Dinner - Skillet Casselot

Tuesday
Breakfast - bagels, fruit, and yogurt
Lunch - leftovers
Dinner - Vegetable Curry

Wednesday
Breakfast - oatmeal
Lunch - leftovers
Dinner - Baked chicken with apples (a new recipe)

Thursday
Breakfast - pancakes
Lunch - picnic or eat out (Bo's day off this week and we are going for a junk ride)
Dinner - Salmon (that is called bless your husband as it one of his favorite things)

Friday
Breakfast - oatmeal
Lunch -- hmmm, guessing we won't have leftovers, probably split pea soup
Dinner - stuffed cabbage

I added breakfast to the menu this week so I don't have to think what we will have. We don't eat cereal mainly because I don't like it. Okay, I like it the sugary stuff that isn't good for you so instead we don't eat it.

Everyday Lentils

That was last night's dinner. We never ate much Indian food until we moved here and the only restaurant in town that we can afford is the Indian restaurant. My new favorite cookbook is Expanding the Table. I had found bags of lentils at the store for a good price for here. We like lentils but 6 pounds we were going to have to eat lots of lentils and rice taco style or the few other dishes I would make. I decided it was time to try some new things.


Everyday Lentils is a dish from India. I loved the spices. The big stick of cinnamon as well as the whole cloves are some that a friend gave me from Indonesia. It smelled yummy while it was cooking and tasted delicious.

Look

A contest with a prize -- 5 Minutes for mom is having a contest I love contests.

I agree contests are fun. This has a neat prize. Looks like lots of fun.

I love bags

Here are two of my latest bags. I really am enjoying making these so if you want a special color you better let me know.

New Scrapbook Paper

We had a beautiful Chinese calendar that we were given last year. In the middle are various verses. I just couldn't threw it away. Here is a picture of the 2007 calendar. Hopefully I will be able to wait until July when I can start cutting this one apart.
I had tried earlier this week to order some Asian scrapbook paper from an online supplier and was disappointed that their website wasn't working espcially since I had a 15 percent coupon that was valid until the 31st. I then remembered the calendar and so I cut the pieces into various strips to make borders and all kinds of things.

Now I am ready to scrap our last trip.

February's Update

It is hard to believe that the first month of 2007 is gone already. I still wrote 2006 on a check the other day.

I did read one book in February -- Tim LaHaye's book, I love you but we are so different. I can't say that there was anything in there that made the book a keeper. It was all about the four personalities and how you marry a different personality. That book is going in my give away pile. I have already picked February's book and am beginning to flip through it.

Getting rid of things -

Bo took a bag of clothing to the clothing recycle yesterday. A friend was in town and I gave her some of my clothing.

I didn't buy anymore scrapbook paper thanks to the website freezing when I was trying to place an order. I want to order some Asian paper for my scrapbooking of local events. I did buy some ribbon for scrapbooking so I added a bit of that to my collection. Paper is the worst. I am not a strict has to be acid free person. I love adding too many other little things along the way. I had a pretty 2006 calendar that had Chinese verses on it with Chinese art so I decided to cut the borders and now I have all kids of scraps for borders and Asian scrapbook pages. I will try to post some pictures of that.

I have been sewing some bags which uses the small pieces of fabric that I have around. I have fun making them and so I made a list of all the people that I am going to make one for this year. I made a shoe bag for a friend's birthday with fabric and ribbon that I had around here. I didn't buy anymore fabric!

Exercise - The good news is I found a walking partner. Knowing that someone will be standing at the corner at 6:00 am waiting for you it motivation to make sure that you are up and walking. We are going to go twice a week. Now that means that I need to do something on my own two other times a week. In grading this goal I would give myself a "needs improvement".

I am continuing to get up early and have the quiet time. We are studying Romans in BSF and I am continuing to read through the Bible. I am in Psalms. No, I didn't start January 1st and read that far.

Now let's see what I get done in February.

Final Outcome for January

I tried to post along the way of how I was doing in only buying items I need. I did buy a few things that didn't fall into the need category.

Overall we spent 13 percent less (if my math was correct) and in the groceries we spent 34 percent less. Yeah! the grocery area is one that I control primarily so seeing 34 percent savings there is a good feeling.

I am going to continue to watch my grocery money and hopefully I can continue to keep that low.

Spanokopita

Spanokopita is one of Bo's favorite things. It was one of those things that we thought you had to buy in a restaurant until today. I was flipping through Extending the Table . . . A World Community Cookbook looking for some lentil recipes when I found Spinach Pie aka Spanokopita. I can buy phyllo here so I decided to try this. It wasn't really that much work and it was a blessing to my husband. Miss K loved them. She ate 4. I figured it would be something that she would like as vegetable dumplings are one of her favorite things to eat.
Cook in a little water until tender, about 3 minutes:
6 c fresh spinach, chopped or 10-oz package frozen spinach
Draing
Mix with
1 c feta, Gruyere or cheddar cheese crumbled or shredded
1 c cottage cheese
3 eggs, beaten
1 oinion minched
2T fresh parsley, choped or 2 t dried parsley
1 t dried dill
1/2 t oregano
1/2 t salt
dash of ground nutmeg (optional)
Melt 1/2 c margarine or butter

The recipe gives directions to make one big pie but I decided to make individual ones. Cut 12 sheets of phyllo into 3-inch stripes, place a teaspoon of filling at one end of stripe and fold corner over to make a triangle, continue folding strip from side to side in shape of triangle. I did use butter to glue them closed.

You can freeze those and bake as needed.

Bake covered, 25 minutes at 350. Unocver and bake 5-10 minutes until golden brown. Let stand 10 minutes. Since I made small ones, I baked them for 20 minutes and then uncovered. You really do need 10 minutes to get them brown.

Our favorite Greek restaurant has Grandma's recipe and it includes a bit of spearmint. I thought I had spearmint but discovered it was peppermint. I did add a bit of that and would have added more if it were spearmint.

Bagel Baking

I made bagels a few months ago. When I made them, Bo didn't think that it was something that could be done at home. He liked them but I have not made them. I bought the raisins and decided to make them. Once again they were a hit. Making the dough in the bread machine is the easy way.

Menu 1/29

We have been eating this week but I forgot to post my menu.

Monday - leftovers which we had plenty of
Tuesday - Chicken broccili casserole
Wednesday - Chili Con corn pie
Thursday - Spinach Pie aka Spanokopita. I found a recipe and found phyllo. This is one of my husband's favorite things to eat and so I am blessing him by making this.
Friday - Just Miss K and I so it will be leftovers or mac 'n cheese
Saturday - Lentil something probably a new recipe for Lentils & Spinach Indian style
Sunday - Pizza

Needs Only

Here is a quick update. I had a friend in town for a few days which was fun but she needed to do some shopping so of course I had to take her because otherwise she would get lost.

Yesterday I did buy 2 J. Crew skirts for 65 cents at the market. Okay, that is a good deal. I am not sure if I really needed them or not. I am trying to wear more skirts so I could possibly say that for that reason I need them. I had seen this Little Me frog outfit when we were home this summer but for about $1. I decided to go ahead and get it.

I am glad the month is almost over. It has been hard at times but the good thing is when I look at what we spent this move we did save some money. The big area where so far we have saved is on groceries.

Broccoli Pizza

One of my favorite little pizza shops makes a yummy white pizza. I used to go there most days for lunch when I was working in that town. Well, now I am a long way from there and have created my own recipe for broccoli pizza.


Saute broccoli, onion, and garlic.
Put a bit of olive oil on the dough, add some Italian spices and some Parmesan cheese. Add the broccoli mixture and top with cheese and bake.

As you can tell, we had already eaten half of this by the time I remember I wanted a picture.

Household Meme

I decided to join the fun that Sallie at A Gracious Home invited us to join. A meme about your household

Aprons – Y/N? If Y, what does your favorite look like?
Yes, right now my favorite is a denim one from San Francisco. I have a cute Raffles apron and a Laura Ashley one I found in an outlet.

Baking – Favorite thing to bake
Cookies - chocolate chip of course

Clothesline – Y/N?
I have a drying rack and also a hanging clip thing for all the socks.

Donuts – Have you ever made them?
As a kid, it was a snow day activity.

Every day – One homemaking thing you do every day
Dishes

Freezer – Do you have a separate deep freeze?
No, but you would surprised at what I can fit in my tiny freezer.

Garbage Disposal – Y/N?
No

Handbook – What is your favorite homemaking resource?
I would probably say the internet.

Ironing – Love it or hate it? Or hate it but love the results?
Hate it but love the results.

Junk drawer – Y/N? Where is it?
Not really - not enough drawers here to allow one to be a junk drawer

Kitchen – Color and decorating scheme
I have cabinets that are a light beige colour. I have a big bookcase that holds the cookbooks, food, plastic containers. I have an oven which is unusal to find in kitchens here so that is a conversation point. I don't have a decorating scheme.

Love – What is your favorite part of homemaking?
I love cooking, finding new recipes.

Mop – Y/N?
Yes - dry and wet. I use the dry one often a few times a day.

Nylons – Wash by hand or in the washing machine?
I am almost tempted to say "What are nylons?" but I do have a few pairs. I usually throw them in the washer.

Oven – Do you use the window or open the oven to check?
I open the door. The window doesn't do much.

Pizza – What do you put on yours?
Pepperoni and mushroom or just a delicious white broccoli pizza

Quiet – What do you do during the day when you get a quiet moment?
My quiet time or catching up online

Recipe card box – Y/N? What does it look like?
I have a basket that the 3x5 cards fit in. I have two notebooks of recipes and documents on my computer.

Style of house – What style is your house?
Village housing -- middle floor of a 3 storey house. Ours is a year old so it is new. The typical 700 sq feet with 3 bedrooms.

Tablecloths and napkins – Y/N?
No, tablecloth as the table is also my desk, my sewing table, my craft table or whatever needs to be done. Yes, to cloth napkins. I fell in love with them when my option were single ply pink cocktail size napkins.

Under the kitchen sink – Organized or toxic wasteland?
Organized in a messy way. How is that.

Vacuum – How many times per week?
I have a Shark and right now we are waiting for a new battery. I wash the floor about 3 times a week.

Wash – How many loads of laundry do you do per week?
6 to 7 - I try to do one a day

X’s – Do you keep a daily list of things to do that you cross off?
I love being able to cross things off. I usually have a list on paper at sometimes it is just in my head.

Yard – Y/N? Who does what?
We don't have a yard.

Zzz’s – What is your last homemaking task for the day before going to bed?
Turn out the lights but I am trying to pick up a bit.

Needs Only Update

I have avoided the Gap, Old Navy, and OshKosh sweaters that are just $4. Twice even. That should count for something.

I have only really been buying groceries and for the most part stick to my list which are the things we need.

Oh, confession I went to the fabric district yesterday. I am searching for an idea and then supplies for the February scrapbooking swap. The theme is Chinese New Year. I found some ribbon and have an idea. I also found some other scrapbooking things, ribbons and embellishments. I don't know if I really needed all of those but it was a case of I have spent the 45 minutes to get here which was actually on my way home from Bible study I don't want to come back next week.

Just a few more days of this. It will be a test on Friday as a friend will be in town and we will spend a part of the day shopping.

Menu Week of 1/22

I know I am a bit late in posting the menu this week. It was one of those weeks that I just had a hard time thinking of what we were going to eat.

Monday - leftovers and whatever we can find
Tuesday - Three Bean soup
Wednesday - Scalloped Potatoes and Ham
Thursday - Lemon Chicken
Friday - probably out
Saturday - hmm, friends visiting so we will make something here because we can't go out 2 nights in a row

Meals Week of 1/15

Monday - Spaghetti Broccili - On Mondays I need a quick easy meal as Bo goes downtown for men's Bible study and has to leave around 5:45.
Tuesday - Ham slices, baked sweet potatoes, and asparagus
Wednesday Sausage and barley soup
Thursday - Beef with snap peas
Friday - Lentils & Rice taco style tacos (If our company comes then I will add some shredded chicken)

Granola Bars

My husband, Bo, wanted me to buy granola bars. I am cheap at times and so instead of paying $26 for a imported box of granola bars I paid $26 for 1kg of oatmeal. I also bought honey. I came home and tried a recipe. We decided they were a bit too sweet. I made another full recipe today which was declared just right and Bo said I could sell it. I told him I would charge him.

Here is the recipe I started with

Chewy Granola Bars
1/2 to 1 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup light corn syrup or honey
1/2 cup margarine, melted
2 tsp vanilla
Mix together until well blended
Stir in
3 cups quick oatmeal
1/2 cup coconut
1/2 cup sunflower nuts
1/2 cup raisins
1/3 cup wheat germ
2 tbsp sesame seeds
1 cup chocolate or butterscotch chips

Press Mixture in a greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes, or until lightly borwned. Cool complete. Cut in 24 bars. This is from Mennonite Country-style recipes.

Okay, so here are the changes I made - a bit less than 1/2 cup of sugar, less honey. I used butter instead of margarine due to my preference of butter and also the fact that you can't buy margarine here. Skip the coconut because that is something I don't really like. Skip the sunflower nuts because I didn't have any. Add salted peanuts because I had them. Put the raisin in half because I am not a big raisin fan. Skip the sesame seeds. Keep the chocolate chips though I added less than a cup. I just broke it into pieces.

It does make a great snack and much less than the hard to chew granola bars that you buy in the store which for us are imported.

Day 9 & 10 Needs Only

Yesterday was Day 9. I went to the grocery store and bought some snack gifts for friends we will be meeting later this week. I also bought sticker books for the children with an extra for Miss K. The extra might not have been a need.

Today is Day 10. I again went to the grocery store but before I stopped there I stopped at an outlet store and bought a purse/bag that I didn't need but liked and it was a good price. Well, that left me with a limited amount of cash for the grocery store so I had to be careful -- bought grapes, laundry detergent, wipes, and some necessities that I needed.

I also picked up information on the Money Back program that is starting at the grocery store. Yeah, you don't need your Resident ID which I don't yet have hopefully we will get that soon. I don't know how much I will get back but since it is free I will join.

I will just add that the store is also doing that "special" pricing for members. I always hated it when the stores in the USA did that. Well, that has caught on here. I really do need to get a money back card. I have the form and will fill it for the next time I go to the grocery store.

Day 6, 7, & 8 Needs Only

Saturday - I went to the market, grocery store, and household store and stuck to my list - groceries and rechargeable batteries and a recharger.

Sunday - We stopped at the grocery store on the way home and I added a few things to my list - a little bag of chips because I was hungry and a bag of alphabet pasta for Miss K. I know you could say "it will be there next month" and that might happen but around here that doesn't always happen. The sweaters at the market were a one day deal. So sometimes you do have to buy it when you see it.

Monday - Stayed home. Did good except for the bid on ebay. I didn't win so maybe someone else will bid higher and I will lose. That also means that I didn't spend anything today.

Menu Week of 1/8

Monday - Pasta with Pesto
Tuesday - leftover Haystack
Wednesday - Chicken taco soup
Thursday - out for Chinese food
Friday - invited out for dinner

Day 4 & 5 Needs Only

Day 4 - It is easy not to spend money when you stay home. That is what I did yesterday. The one thing I did was offer to make a sandwich for my husband as he had some meetings and some errands to run. He took me up on that offer and we saved about $10 as that is what he normally spends for lunch. My husband like that I am doing this but he has not completely bought into this idea.

Day 5 - Again I stayed home. We did go out for dinner but our friends treated. My money saving venture today was to get the cloth diapers out that have been in a box since we moved and start using them. Maybe if I use them during the day I can make the bag last the rest of the month.

I will admit that I am doing some window shopping and starting to think of what I will buy in February.

Day 3 - Needs Only

If I stay home, I am not easily tempted but I had to go out. I had an appointment with the naturopath. I love, love Peppermint Mocha which is only available for a short time during the holiday season. There is a Starbucks in the same building as the naturopath. Peppermint Mochas area already gone. I checked and was even planning to get one which is a double no because I don't need it and I am also supposed to be doing a 14 day elimination of coffee, tea, sugar, and chocolate.

In the end I just paid for my visit, bought vitamins, and more tincure. Those are all needs.

Day 2 - Needs Only

Yesterday was easy. I didn't go out so I wasn't tempted to buy anything that I didn't need. Well, this morning I went to the grocery store. I had a list and did good buying what was on the list and what we needed. Okay, maybe we don't need all 3 Chicken broths this week but it was cheaper to buy the 3. Well, maybe it was cheaper because it has MSG -- aghh I didn't think to read the label.

Worketh Willingly

One of my projects yesterday was to make 20 notecards for a friend. She wanted them to fit in a business size envelope. The stamping was easy. Cutting all the paper and trimming it to fit the smaller size card was a bit of work. I am pleased with the finished product. I am also glad to be able to do these for my friend.

New Year's Goals

I know it is the time of year when everyone makes those resolutions. I decided to make a few goals.

Household
Read 12 books and determine if they should be kept.
Reduce craft supplies through use or donating. Currently 3 boxes of fabric and approximately 1200 sheets of 12 x 12 paper.

Spiritual
Continue early morning quiet time

Physical
Exercise 4 times a week

There are more things but I am trying to limit this.

Meals Week of 1/1

Sunday, 12/31 Hoppin' Johns

Monday, 1/1 Pork & Sauerkraut

Tuesday, 1/2 Risotto

Wednesday, 1/3 Carrot Soup with bean dip & chips

Thursday, 1/4 Asian style beef stew

Friday, 1/5 Dinner with friends

Saturday, 1/6 Lentils & Rice Taco Style