Category: MISC

HAPPY HOMEMAKER AND MENU PLAN MONDAY

Our week did NOT go as planned, but ended up being just as productive as if it had, so ALL is good. LOL I spent most of yesterday sorting through ALL of our holiday decorations (including those things from both grandmothers) trying to reduce and decide on whether we keep it, donate it, toss it or if there is enough sentimental value to call family members to see if they want it. I can’t believe how much time this takes.

WEATHER OUTSIDE
The weather the past few days has been GORGEOUS! But all good things come to an end and today looks like it’s going to be one of those days, oops I mean weeks. It’s going to be warm, humid and stormy most of the week.

TO DO FOR THE WEEK

  • I will be spending most of today finishing the sort through Christmas ornaments and doing some much needed paperwork.
  • Tuesday we will be painting the spare bedroom and bathroom as well as installing the vanity in the spare bathroom.
  • Wednesday we will be ordering the new washer and dryer as well as picking up the sink for the spare bathroom.
  • Thursday-Saturday we have decided we need to have a few days to finish ALL the little bits and pieces.  There are several areas where we have had to wait for parts to arrive so moved on to something else and now it’s time to double back, etc…  If this goes smoothly on Thursday and Friday we hope to put the final coat of paint on the master bath Saturday.

CURRENTLY READING

TELEVISION / DVR
Not looking forward to much this week.  We have been catching up on a few movies and seen some recently that were pretty good or at least thought provoking:

CRAFTS & PROJECTS
Not much going on this week.  I have been working on some sketches for a few new ideas.

MENU PLANS FOR THE WEEK with their recipe links
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
BREAKFAST
YOGURT & FRUIT
SCRAMBLED EGGS & CHEESE
FRUIT SMOOTHIE
YOGURT & FRUIT
MAPLE OATMEAL & RAISINS
FRIED SPAM AND EGGS (HUBBY’S REQUEST)
PANCAKES
LUNCH
FRUIT & CHEESE
SOUP & CRACKERS
SANDWICH
OUT
MEAT & CHEESE
LEFTOVERS
SANDWICHES
DINNER
7UP STEAK & BAKED POTATOES
C.O.R.N.
C.O.R.N.
DESSERT

SUCCESSFUL RECIPES and their links FROM LAST WEEK

INSPIRATION

Be sure to link up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom for Happy homemaker Monday and with Laura at I’m an Organizing Junkie for Menu Plan Monday.

RUSTIC GARLIC JALAPENO CHICKEN & GRAVY

I love this recipe! It is so simple and is a fantastic recipe for company. I LOVE FRESH herbs, but let’s face it with just 2 of us it is difficult to buy them in small enough quantities that they don’t go bad before I use them all and some just aren’t available the way I want them.  I WILL GET MY HERB GARDEN GOING eventually.  In the meantime I’ve been using LITEHOUSE freeze dried herbs and they are really good.

RUSTIC GARLIC JALAPENO CHICKEN & GRAVY
2 tablespoons avocado oil
6-8 chicken thighs
1 head of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons Litehouse Freeze dried Red Jalapenos
1 tablespoons Litehouse Freeze Dried Chives
2 tablespoons Wondra flour
3/4 cup white moscato wine
1 cup chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
2 tablespoons butter
Fresh Ground Salt and Pepper to taste

  • Preheat oven to 400°.
  • Add chives and jalapenos to the chicken broth so they can reconstitute. Set aside.
  • Heat the avocado oil in an oven proof skillet over medium high heat. 
  • Pat dry the chicken thighs and brown in oil for about 8-10 minutes, turning regularly until well browned.
  • Remove chicken to plate and reduce heat to medium.
  • Add garlic and saute’ until it begins to brown.
  • Add flour and whisk until smooth.
  • Add chicken pieces back, cover and bake for 15-20 minutes until chicken is cooked through.
  • Remove skillet from oven and return to the burner.  CAREFUL it will be hot!
  • Remove chicken pieces to plate. Tent with foil to keep warm.
  • Add in wine and whisk until smooth.
  • Whisk in chicken broth, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Reduce heat and simmer until sauce thickens.
  • Turn off heat and add butter, whisking until smooth.
  • Add chicken pieces back into skillet and coat well with sauce.
  • Serve with mashed potatoes or buttered noodles, spooning sauce over top.

HAPPY HOMEMAKER & MENU PLAN MONDAY

We had a busy but productive week and then a relaxing weekend so I’m fresh and ready to go this week with high hopes of a lot more progress.  We even decided to take Tuesday off and go play – so much easier to do mid week when everyone else is at work!

WEATHER OUTSIDE
It’s absolutely gorgeous this week and I’m hoping it lasts for several more weeks after this!

TO DO FOR THE WEEK

  • Start putting up the tin kitchen ceiling.
  • Remove the LAST bit of old carpeting from the spare bedroom.
  • Paint the spare bedroom.
  • Hang ceiling fan in studio.
  • Finish vinyl flooring if they have gotten it back in stock.
  • Plant Lantanas.
  • Take a day off and go play at the beach!

CURRENTLY READING

TELEVISION / DVR
I enjoyed the Country Music Awards last night, but have just not been too interested in most TV these days.

HOUSE PROJECTS
I HAVE BEEN AVOIDING DOING THE SHOWER IN THE MASTER BATHROOM FOR QUITE AWHILE NOW.  1) THE REFINISHING KIT IS AN EPOXY AND I HATE EPOXY ANYTHING. 2) I KNEW IT WOULD BE MESSY!  I cannot tell you how glad I am that this job is over.  It looks amazing, but what I did NOT know is that I would be down for 2 days after finishing it.  This epoxy paint is horrible.  Despite the exhaust fan, a room fan and the windows and doors open I was definitely feeling the effects of the fumes – ended up dizzy, with a sore throat and headache.  My recommendation if you need this done is to hire a professional.  Some jobs are not worth saving money on.

BEFORE
AFTER

CRAFTS & PROJECTS
Still hoping to get to a few things soon, but nothing seems to have gone my way in that department recently.

MENU PLANS FOR THE WEEK
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
BREAKFAST
YOGURT & FRUIT
SCRAMBLED EGGS & CHEESE
FRUIT SMOOTHIE
YOGURT & FRUIT
MAPLE OATMEAL & RAISINS
PANCAKES
LUNCH
FRUIT & CHEESE
SOUP & CRACKERS
SANDWICH
OUT
MEAT & CHEESE
LEFTOVERS
SANDWICHES
DINNER
PEANUT BUTTER BURGERS
C.O.R.N.
GLAZED STUFFED PORK CHOPS
CHICKEN & NOODLES
ORANGE CHICKEN & CHOW MEIN
DESSERT

SUCCESSFUL RECIPES and their links FROM LAST WEEK

FAVORITE PHOTO FROM THE CAMERA

This is a favorite photo for a weird reason. This is what fell out of gram’s washing machine as we rolled it out the back door.  It also means we are committed to purchasing the new ones this week or visiting the laundromat LOL. (The washer dryer set I want is on sale through Tuesday, but I have no idea when it can be delivered). After they hauled it away, I realized we probably should have taken it apart to see what else was in there.  We may have just thrown away a thousand dollars or winning lottery ticket.

INSPIRATION

Be sure to link up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom for Happy homemaker Monday and with Laura at I’m an Organizing Junkie for Menu Plan Monday.

PREACHER’S DELIGHT

I have been going through a bunch of old files and ran across this recipe.  I wish I could tell you where I found it, but I just can’t remember!  It was REALLY good though and I have made very few changes.  It ends up like a mock lasagna.

PREACHER’S DELIGHT
SERVES 4-6
3 cups egg noodles
1 tablespoon avocado oil
1 small onion (sweet or red), minced
1 small red pepper, diced small
1 pound quality ground chuck*
1 can tomato sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon Colorado Plateau Citrus Pepper**
1 teaspoon sea salt
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup sour cream (NOT low fat)
1 cup grated sharp white cheddar

  • Preheat oven 350°.
  • Grease 9×9 baking dish.
  • Prepare egg noodles in salted water just short of al dente – they will cook more in the oven. Drain and set aside.
  • Heat avocado oil to medium high. Add onions and bell peppers, cooking until soft – about 4-5 minutes.
  • Add beef and cook until completely crumbled and the pink is gone – about 5 minutes more. The original recipe did NOT call for draining the fat, but I find it works so much better if you do.
  • Return meat to pan after draining. Add tomato sauce, sugar, salt and pepper. Simmer for 5 minutes.
  • Mix together the cream cheese and sour cream until smooth. Fold in noodles.
  • Layer half the meat mixture into the baking dish.
  • Top with the egg and cheese mixture and spread smooth.
  • Spread the remaining meat mixture on noodle layer.
  • Top with grated cheese.
  • Bake 25-30 minutes.
  • Cool 10 minutes before serving!

*I use a grass fed from the butcher and it does make a difference.  You end up with more meat, less fat and it breaks apart much more smoothly.

**Plain Black pepper works just fine, but we like a little oomph.

HAPPY HOMEMAKER & MENU PLAN MONDAY

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter Sunday. Ours was strange to begin with and then became life threatening in a heartbeat.  We had volunteered to host this year, but after my aunt’s fall a couple months ago that shattered her kneecap, the subsequent surgery, rehab and her invasive Aspergilius allergy (only 4% survive after this allergy is detected in this type of situation) that she barely survived when they implanted her pacemaker 12 years ago, the subsequent stroke topped off by her having Alzheimer’s we decided I’d still cook, but at their house so she could be in her home and comfortable.  She was great when we got there at 2, but by 3 she was disoriented and had a 104° fever and we ushered her to the hospital. They determined a massive bacterial infection and she was rushed into emergency surgery.

WEATHER OUTSIDE
We’re supposed to be clear and warm with the threat of scattered thunderstorms most of the week.

TO DO FOR THE WEEK

  • Refinish shower
  • Sort books
  • Unpack remaining boxes
  • Laundry
  • Grocery Shoppping
  • Start backyard
  • Drop off donations

CURRENTLY READING
Nothing this week.

TELEVISION / DVR
Not much this week.

MENU PLANS FOR THE WEEK
For the next few weeks I’m going to be trying links for recipes I’ve bookmarked from around the web.
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
BREAKFAST
YOGURT & FRUIT
SCRAMBLED EGGS & CHEESE
FRUIT SMOOTHIE
YOGURT & FRUIT
MAPLE OATMEAL & RAISINS
LUNCH
FRUIT & CHEESE
SOUP & CRACKERS
SANDWICH
OUT
MEAT & CHEESE
C.O.R.N.
SANDWICHES
DINNER
C.O.R.N.
DESSERT

HOMEMAKING TIP

If you’re like me you save boxes for the electronic items since they need the added protection in case you move. I want them out of the way though and don’t want them to collect tons of dust.  So I slip them into large trash bags from each end and secure them with masking tape before placing them into the attic.  When you need to use them you’re probably moving anyway so now you have trash bags at the ready also.  For the extra large items I buy the extra large Christmas wrapping bags in January when they are 75-90% off.

FAVORITE PHOTO FROM THE CAMERA

I tried the silk tie way to dye eggs method that has been circulating all over social media. These were old ties I used and I think it worked relatively well.  You can even make out the Tobasco bottle on the top egg.

INSPIRATION

Be sure to link up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom for Happy homemaker Monday and with Laura at I’m an Organizing Junkie for Menu Plan Monday.

GREAT START TO THE WEEK!

Thought I would do a short update before I do my normal Monday blog hopping. I have high hopes for the week and Monday did not disappoint!  The studio floor that started out poorly yesterday went lickety split today with hubby’s help. We even got the hallway done also.

This is where I began yesterday.
This is where I ended yesterday.
This is where we ended today – the floor ALL in and the furniture in place.  I even got all the felt pieces under the furniture as we went.
The hallway meshed up with the living room, bathroom and spare bedroom well.  We’re not sure yet whether we can salvage the carpet in the spare bedroom, but we’re sure going to try.  It’s in good shape except for a couple “unknown” stains.
It finally feels a bit more like a house!
When we bought the flooring they only had 10 boxes which is 13 square feet LESS than we calculated that we needed.  Fortunately we had VERY LITTLE waste and this is all we had left!

HAPPY HOMEMAKER & MENU PLAN MONDAY

We had a good and productive week. I even had a productive Sunday… until… a stupid fall. I have been climbing all over this house, ladders, the roof and I trip over a hammer while carrying a heavy box – just too ironic.

 I spent the rest of the day with ice, a blanket, my book, a nap and the Nascar race.

WEATHER OUTSIDE
Fortunately our weather has returned to a more normal spring time level.  Thank goodness as I am NOT ready for summer in ANY WAY, SHAPE or FORM!

TO DO FOR THE WEEK/HOUSE PROJECTS

  • Finish the flooring and organization in the studio.
  • Paint spare bathroom.
  • Install spare bathroom floor.
  • Install spare bathroom vanity.
  • Drop off next load of donations.
  • Cook and prep for Easter.  I’ll be cooking at our house and then transporting it to my aunt and uncles as she is still under the weather.

CURRENTLY READING

TELEVISION / DVR
Not much except what comes our way at the end of each day.

CRAFTS & PROJECTS
I’ve been working on my studio and hope to have some new crafts next week.

MENU PLANS FOR THE WEEK
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
BREAKFAST
YOGURT & FRUIT
SCRAMBLED EGGS & CHEESE
FRUIT SMOOTHIE
YOGURT & FRUIT
MAPLE OATMEAL & RAISINS
EGGS in the CLOUDS
BACON & EGGS
LUNCH
FRUIT & CHEESE
SOUP & CRACKERS
SANDWICH
OUT
MEAT & CHEESE
LEFTOVERS
SANDWICHES
DINNER
CRISPY PORK CUTLETS with BUTTERED NOODLES
SMOTHERED STEAK TIPS
C.O.R.N.
SAKE CHICKEN and BROCCOLINI
BROCCOLI CHICKEN QUINOA
PAN SEARED WINE and HERB CHICKEN
ADULT STRAWBERRY LEMONADE, DEVILED EGGS, TROPICAL PORK ROAST, POTATOES AU GRATIN, RITZY BROCCOLI AND CARROT CASSEROLE,  CHOCOLATE BERRY BASKETS
DESSERT

SUCCESSFUL RECIPES and their links FROM LAST WEEK

RECIPE FINDS TO TRY LATER
I took a bit of a fall yesterday so I took the afternoon off to ice my leg and finally caught up on many of the cooking magazines that I unearthed the other day and found a BUNCH of great recipe to try!

  • Fresh Pineapple Cake with Candied Carrot Ribbons
  • Purple Potato Soup 
  • Glazed Grilled Roasted Chicken
  • Slow Cooker Sweet and Sour Ribs
  • Swedish Cocktail Meatballs
  • Moravian Sugar Cake
  • Beer Batter Cheese Bread
  • Cider Baked Ham
  • Potato and Caramelized Onion Gratin
  • French Chicken Stew
  • Chocolate Malted Milk Cake
  • Butter’s Carrot Cake
  • Broken Dumpling Soup
  • Parmesan Pepperoni Chicken
  • Mississippi Mud Brownies
  • Creamy Chicken and Biscuit Bake
  • Pasta with Lemony Chicken and Asparagus
  • Rum Glazed Grilled Pork Tenderloin
  • Pan Seared Cod with Herb Butter Sauce
  • Sweet and Spicy Pork Chops
  • Sesame Green Beans
  • Sauteed Lemon Chicken Strips
  • Drunken Steak
  • Chicken and Mushroom Fricassee
  • Apple Dapple Cake

HOMEMAKING/COOKING TIP
A tip to making your baking pans non-stick is to whisk together equal parts of cooking oil, shortening or butter and flour. Using a pastry brush to coat your pan(s).  Your baked goods will not stick!

FAVORITE PHOTO FROM THE CAMERA

INSPIRATION

Be sure to link up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom for Happy homemaker Monday and with Laura at I’m an Organizing Junkie for Menu Plan Monday.

HOLIDAY FRENCH TOAST

I originally found this recipe in the December/January 2008 Cook’s Country issue. As always I made it as written the first time. I did then trim the time and enhance the flavors to my family’s taste.  This recipe is so sweet we changed it from their original Sunday Brunch French Toast to Holiday French Toast and make it as a special treat for the kids on holidays.

HOLIDAY FRENCH TOAST
8 slice sourdough sandwich 
6 large eggs
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup whole milk
1 tablespoon PURE vanilla extract
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt 
2-4 tablespoons butter
8 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons REAL maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

  • Preheat oven to 475°.

  • Trim (optional) and toast bread. 

  • Place 2 tablespoons of the butter on a jelly roll pan and place in oven to melt. When melted use a pastry brush to make sure the entire surface is well coated.

  • Whisk together the eggs until smooth.

  • Add the whipping cream and milk, whisking again until smooth.

  • Add vanilla, lemon juice and salt, whisking again until well blended. 

  • Pour into a shallow dish.

  • Dip each piece of toast into egg mixture, coating both sides well.

  • Place toasts on jelly roll pan.

  • Bake for 8 minutes.

  • In a small mixing bowl use a fork to mix together the brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and maple syrup until your consistency is wet sand.

  • Remove pan from oven and flip each piece of toast.  At this time add more butter if necessary.

  • Sprinkle sugar mixture over toast pieces and return to the oven for 6 more minutes or until sugar is deep brown and bubbling.  

  • Let cool for 2 minutes. 

  • Top with butter and maple syrup.
Sprinkle with sugar mixture just after you flip the pieces.
Notice all the beautiful caramelizing bubbles!

NOTE: If you don’t like crispy edges, trim crusts before toasting.
*The original recipe called for “hearty white” bread, but we prefer the sourdough flavor.
**The original recipe called for 1/4 cup vegetable oil, but I changed it to butter for flavor preference.

BYE BYE YELLOW, HELLO CRISP GREEK VILLA

So far it has been a VERY productive week.  We decided to take a break from flooring today -since we need to go buy more flooring plus it’s getting hard to scoot around on our butts day after day.

So hubby worked on the spare bathroom and a few odd projects while I started on the studio paint.

I could NOT wait to get rid of this horrible yellow in my studio.  Don’t get me wrong, yellow is a perfectly acceptable, bright and even pretty color.  BUT, it belongs on flowers and such NOT walls!! And of course this room needed the most patching so it also took the longest! It took me ALL day, but the entire room and ceiling has now had 2 coats and ALL the yellow is gone! Now to find the right flooring for here!
Have you ever seen this trick?  I taught hubby today and he thinks I walk on water now.  He was putting up the Wainscotting in the spare bathroom and came across an area that had 3 cut outs.  You can measure and draw it all out, but I read somewhere that if you use lipstick and then put your wood up against so you’ll know EXACTLY where to cut.
I don’t normally pay much attention to other people’s trash, but this mirror that my neighbor was throwing out caught my attention the other day.  It was actually quite ugly, but I figured painted it white it might just be what we needed for the spare bathroom.
So I taped up the actual mirror and started on all the crevices with canned air to clean it up. Then 3 coats of white paint later we have a winner for the spare bathroom. It was getting humid outside so I brought it in to finish drying, but forgot to get a better picture before I set it aside to finish drying.
But the true high point of the day was my dining room rug was delivered! We just LOVE it!
And a sure sign of spring, my air ferns started blooming!

MID WEEK UPDATE

So far we are getting quite a bit accomplished this week.  Yesterday we FINALLY started on the laundry area.  LOL we had to since we wanted to finish the kitchen floor and the old laundry area “framework” was in the way.  To make things funnier we ran out of flooring today before we actually got that far.

This wall has been a sore spot for quite awhile and was the first thing opened up after they stared the foundation work because of the plumbing they broke so we’ve been anxious to get this done.  At first glance it doesn’t look so bad, but there are SO MANY things happening here – like the rotting header above and the collapsing water heater base below.
If you look close you’ll see 2 white PVC pipes.  If you look even closer you’ll see that the yellower one connects to nothing LOL
Looking a little better, but so far yet to go.
After I opened the outer wall I found this mess.  At least this rat’s nest really was old and abandoned, but got really freaked out by the egg shells below.  Needless to say I took a really long and really hot shower as soon as we were done with this area!  Today was trash day also so everything was bagged and out of here ASAP!
I just don’t understand how a professional installed this new water heater 2 1/2 years ago and did so on this rotted collapsing base instead of bring it to code.
New header and temporary ceiling.  Finishing this area will be a multi-stage process involving the electrician and plumber, but at least it is ready for the next step now.  The water heater closet is getting moved to the far right behind the door. To the left of that will be a stacking washer and dryer set.  To the left of that will be 3 feet of base cabinet and 3 feet of upper cabinets to match the rest of the kitchen.
Back to buy more flooring, but so much better than the slab we’ve been walking on!

HAPPY HOMEMAKER & MENU PLAN MONDAY – #11 2016

Can you believe we’re on Monday number 11 for this year? I can’t wait to be finished with this remodel and be able to do more things that I truly believe will make time seem slower.  We did take half of Saturday off and go to the rodeo.  I’m so glad we did, it was a lot of fun and the weather was gorgeous!  We did get quite a bit done on the house too.  Unfortunately I did find another OLD and not recently LIVED in rat’s nest when I demolished one of the laundry room walls.

WEATHER OUTSIDE
It’s supposed to be quite warm the next few days and then back down to normal on Thursday along with a new storm system.  Fortunately this is supposed to be a minor system compared to the 15 inches of rain we received in last week’s system.

TO DO FOR THE WEEK/HOUSE PROJECTS
I have FINALLY and AGAIN begun work on my studio.  But first this week I will be helping hubby with the dining/kitchen floor and laundry area for the next couple days and then the studio is ALL I plan to work on until it’s done.

I did get the walls patched yesterday as well as 80% of the carpet, padding and tack strip removed. There were quite a few cracks around the window in particular from before the foundation work was done.

I CANNOT WAIT UNTIL THIS YELLOW IS GONE!

 I love that patching is now pink and dries white!  Makes it so easy.

IF ALL goes well I’m hoping that we also get the master shower refinished and the majority of the spare bathroom completed this week.

Then of course I have the standard grocery shopping and errands to do.  I’d say laundry, but that all depends on what we find doing that area.  Cross your fingers that there are no more surprises.

We did get the new lights hung in the kitchen and dining room on Saturday.  They are called Saturn lights and use LED.  Supposedly each light will only use $1.93 of electricity per year! We also put one in the master bath and I LOVE IT!  You can actually see in there!

I just CANNOT figure out why it looks like there was a woodpecker in the kitchen ceiling.  My cousin had an industrial fluorescent light in the kitchen and the only thing I can figure out is that she couldn’t find a stud to mount to.  Oh well, what’s another dozen holes to patch?  Thank goodness for good caulking and paint.

CURRENTLY READING
I’m still reading and hope to finish this week:

TELEVISION / DVR
I finally watched the AGE OF ADELINE and really enjoyed it.  Redbox makes catching up so easy! I’m also looking forward to the new Gary Sinise Criminal Minds Beyond Borders that begins this week.

CRAFTS & PROJECTS
I did get a couple of “models” made for a few of the items I’m making for Christmas gifts this year.  Not the greatest picture, but you get the idea.

I’m really loving the beaded wire crosses and the wind chimes which are made from old antique lamp glass prisms and antique silver pieces.

I’m also hoping to try and make some home made dryer sheets with a recipe I found on pinterest using non-chemical ingredients, essential oils and fabric squares.

IMAGE CREDIT

MENU PLANS FOR THE WEEK
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
BREAKFAST
YOGURT & FRUIT
SCRAMBLED EGGS & CHEESE
FRUIT SMOOTHIE
YOGURT & FRUIT
MAPLE OATMEAL & RAISINS
LUNCH
FRUIT & CHEESE
SOUP & CRACKERS
SANDWICH
C.O.R.N.
MEAT & CHEESE
LEFTOVERS
SANDWICHES
DINNER
C.O.R.N.
DESSERT

FAVORITE PHOTO FROM THE CAMERA
This cow from the rodeo had the prettiest eyes!

INSPIRATION

Be sure to link up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom for Happy homemaker Monday and with Laura at I’m an Organizing Junkie for Menu Plan Monday.

HAPPY HOMEMAKER & MENU PLAN MONDAY

We had quite a bit of progress on the master bathroom this past weekend and I’m looking forward to refinishing the shower on Tuesday. Once the shower is finished the only thing left to do will be the last coat of paint, at least in the master bath!

WEATHER OUTSIDE
It is WAY too warm for the first week in March!  I’m hoping we cool down a bit for actual spring when it hits.  We are supposed to get hit with a HUGE storm thus week.  As of now they are predicting over 3 inches of rain each day on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, but today is just overcast and getting a bit windy.

TO DO FOR THE WEEK
Today I will be running ALL my errands for the week, so it will be a long day.  I also want to go see my aunt today. She is home from the hospital (which I think is a mistake, but Medicare will only pay for 2 weeks of a rehab facility despite the doctor saying she cannot put any weight on the leg for 8 weeks).  Rehab now comes to her and my uncle is left with trying to keep her off her leg.  With hr Alzheimers this is a difficult task for him – she just plain forgets.  With the storm they are predicting I don’t want to be ANYWHERE out in traffic this week.

CURRENTLY READING

TELEVISION / DVR
Whatever happens our way as we collapse in exhaustion each day.

CRAFTS & PROJECTS
I have been acquiring the parts to make some beautiful wind chimes, decorative wall crosses, personalized pillow cases, homemade dryer sheets and fun pincushions.

HOUSE PROJECTS
This week we are hoping to finish painting the last coat on the living room, install the new living room fan and do the walls in the spare bathroom.  I have tons of “detail” work to finish in the master bathroom, but we did finally achieve running water, a flushing toilet and even a door this past weekend.

KITCHEN WISHES
The washer and dryer are REALLY on their last legs.  I’m praying they hold out another month so they can be part of the April budget, but we found our new ones by accident on Saturday and wish we were more ready for them, but we still need to do the walls, ceiling and move the water heater to bring it to code and that will take time and money.  I didn’t used to be fond of stackables, but these I think I will like.  They will also give me 36 inches more of kitchen counter space!

MENU PLANS FOR THE WEEK
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
BREAKFAST
YOGURT & FRUIT
SCRAMBLED EGGS & CHEESE
FRUIT SMOOTHIE
YOGURT & FRUIT
MAPLE OATMEAL & RAISINS
EGGS in the CLOUDS
BACON & EGGS
LUNCH
FRUIT & CHEESE
SOUP & CRACKERS
SANDWICH
OUT
MEAT & CHEESE
LEFTOVERS
SANDWICHES
DINNER
C.O.R.N.
C.O.R.N.
C.O.R.N.
POTATO CRUSTED BEER BRAISED CORNED BEEF & CABBAGE
SMOKY ROAST CHICKEN
SPAGHETTI CHILI
DETROIT CONEY DOGS
DESSERT

THINGS THAT ARE MAKING ME HAPPY

  • NOT having to go to the other end of the house to use the bathroom in the middle of the night.
  • Completed projects

FAVORITE PHOTO FROM THE CAMERA
I was in need of some spring color and LOVE Lantana so bought a couple to plant near the front door.  They grow and spread so fast, are easy to keep pruned and are ALWAYS full of color!

INSPIRATION

Be sure to link up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom for Happy homemaker Monday and with Laura at I’m an Organizing Junkie for Menu Plan Monday.