Thankful Sunday--March 31, 2013

I am thankful for Easter

because it reminds me that all things are possible.

Good intentions

You may remember a while back I commented that my friend said she could definitely taste the difference between the red M&M's and the others. I had never noticed this before and wondered if it were really true for her and maybe others also. I thought of various ways to test this idea and decided that it was a really complicated hypothesis to test considering the number of variables involved and the number of taste memories our brain can hold at any one time. Nevertheless, the experiment held too much potential for fun for me to dismiss it. I came up with a couple of different test methods, and while they wouldn't hold up under close scientific scrutiny, I thought I could gleam some information from them. So I had a plan in place, but first I needed to try it out on a few people (Ward, me, and the boys) before I tried it on others.

With high hopes of an interesting experiment, I completed the first step. I bought two bags of M&M's. I even made it to the next step of sorting them by colors. Well, I almost made it through that step. It seemed that every time I sat down to work on this part, I got called away. And as I was leaving, I grabbed a handful of candies to eat, and scooped the rest into the bag so that cats wouldn't play with them while I was gone. And you know what? After two weeks of this, I ran out of M&M's before I ever got to any testing.

So I guess I will have to start this experiment all over again. I plan to do that as soon as I finish the taxes or when I want some more M&M's to eat. Wanna take a bet on which will come first? :)

 

Food Waste Friday and True Food Confessions--Mar. 29, 2013

  It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money. Also, I am using this public forum to encourage us to eat out less which includes better meal planning. You can follow how we are doing in this endeavor by reading True Food Confessions.

This Week's Food Waste

 
We had more waste this week than usual. First there was a bag of cucumbers that turned slimy. Even though the first couple from the bag had a bitter taste, I fully intended to finish them. Or maybe subconsciously, I didn't. Oh well. Out they went. I also found a piece of pepper jack cheese that was moldy. I don't like this kind of spicy cheese, but I buy it for the rest of the family. I don't know if it suffered from out-of-sight, out-of-mind in the cheese drawer, but unfortunately it had to go. I guess that this week's waste is not too bad in the big scheme of things, but I don't like it. Next week will be better.

This Week's True Food Confessions

We had an unusual week last week as far as eating goes. We were gone for the weekend, and we have also been focusing on other things.  Nevertheless, one night we baked chicken with roasted carrots, and another night we had a spinach pie with steamed asparagus. We also had a rotisserie chicken yet another night. I get one of these whenever I go to Costco because I can get a freshly roasted chicken for just five dollars--better than I can do cooking it from scratch. Wally also brought home burritos from California Tortilla for us. Ward has been wanting this for about a month, so Wally treated him.  

We didn't have time to try a new recipe, but I have high hopes for the week coming up.

Until next time...

A Second Look--March 27, 2013

We had a couple of snows this week. One was a dusting and one resulted in several inches. But because it's Spring (or so the calendar says), they melted pretty fast. While I'm ready for warmer weather, I do love the beauty of the snow so that is what I featured this week. It may be the last time for several months before I can show snow again (I hope).

Here's what I saw this week during a Second Look.

Taxes, Taxes, Taxes

or What is a Cost Basis and Where Do I Get One 

on Stocks Over 50 Years Old?

Nothing says togetherness like working side by side on taxes.

The end is not in sight. :(

Timing

We saw ice on the side of the road, but the roads were dry.

This is what one of the areas that we drove through yesterday looked like. Today it is covered with 12 inches of snow with more falling. Timing is everything.

Thankful Sunday, March 24, 2013

(Aaaaakkk!! I have lost my post. I'm not doing well remotely.)

In the meantime, that means that I am visiting my parents for which I am thankful.

Food Waste Friday and True Food Confessions--Mar. 22, 2013

 It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money. Also, I am using this public forum to encourage us to eat out less which includes better meal planning. You can follow how we are doing in this endeavor by reading True Food Confessions.

This Week's Food Waste

Zilch

This Week's True Food Confessions

Not much cooking this week, although we did make a good broccoli cheese soup and a nice salad to go with our frozen pizza. The rest of the time was leftovers, frozen burritos, and peanut butter cookies.

It was a week during which we struggled with our cooking and eating. We had take out pizza one evening, that was planned, and Subway another night that was not planned. The rest of the time we had leftovers and stuff found after rummaging through the freezer. There have been a lot of other things going on and the focus has not been food. It was a little scary how easy it was to slip back into the old ways.

Didn't seem to get my own picture of our pork chops.

However, we did manage to try a new recipe this week. It was Pork Chops with Balsamic-Honey Glaze  that came from Cook This Not That! Easy and Awesome 350 Calorie Meals by Zinczenko and Goulding. The carnivores of the family were excited with this choice since we were having "real" meat two weeks in a row. Theodore and Wally made the recipe which involved a simple glaze of vinegar, butter, honey, rosemary and red pepper flakes on grilled pork chops. The recipe was supposed to be an alternative to the Cheesecake Factory Grilled Pork Chops and save 1628 calories over those.

The results.  Everyone liked their pork chop, but wasn't thrilled by it. The meat was a little tough and the flavor kind of bland. We will not be making pork chops this way again. Next time, we are looking for recipes that involve cooking the chops in the slow cooker or the oven. We have enough meat left from the package to have another meal, so we will be doing this soon.

As for next week, there is still a lot going on and we'll be gone for the weekend. We'll see how things go.

Until then...

Papers, papers, papers

I have a love-hate relationship with paper. I love the feel of it. I love reading old-fashioned books and newspapers made of it. I love receiving a letter actually written on it. But I hate the way it multiplies. It seems no matter where I turn, it taunts me. From the desk. From the floor. From the files. From the shelf. From under the sink. (Actually, we don't have much under the sink, but I thought that made a good dramatic point.)

And if you want to read between the lines from above, you will discover what I really mean is that I hate paperwork. And if you want to read between the words of the last line, you will discover what I really mean is that I hate doing the taxes. Someday, I will finish. Someday will not be soon enough. 
 _____________________________________________________
 Actually I am working on both our taxes and my parents taxes this year and everything is quite complicated. I will should be spending less time on my blog until they are all done.

 

A Second Look--March 20, 2013

Here's what I found this week during my Second Look.

Crocus

Grey squirrel who had just snatched some bird food.

Crow among maple buds

Bluebird on new bluebird box. We hope he comes back and builds a nest.

Junco among emerging day lilies

Some of our daily visitors among wild cherry trees and wild roses.

Chickadees

Daffodils (no full blooms yet)

Spring

Even though Spring will officially be here later this week, it seems as if it's taking forever to fully arrive. Or maybe I'm just impatient. Or maybe I'm not. Per happenstance, I was comparing pictures taken today and a year ago today and here's what I found.

This year where I am seeing just buds on the trees, last year they were in full bloom. This year where I am seeing just buds on the flowers, last year they were in full bloom. In fact the crocus are the only thing in bloom so far this year where there were at least a half dozen types of flowers in bloom last year. So I'm not impatient. Spring is coming slower this year. However, I hear good things come to all who wait.

A few comparisons are below.

Thankful Sunday--March 17, 2013

I'm thankful for trail mix.

I'm thankful for trail mix because it gives me 
a healthy way to eat M&Ms. :P

Today...

Today, I'm going to seize the opportunity 
wherever and whenever I find it.

I'm going to try to be more like Lucky who immediately took advantage of this opportunity when he saw it. I laid down a few jackets and sweaters that I was going to hang up in the adjacent closet. I left for a few minutes and came back to find Lucky all snuggled in on top of them. He knew a good thing when he saw it and didn't hesitate to seize the opportunity to enjoy it. I want to be more like that instead of someone who overthinks most things and sometimes misses opportunities because of it.

Are you one who seizes the moment?

Food Waste Friday and True Food Confessions--Mar. 15, 2013

It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money. Also, I am using this public forum to encourage us to eat out less which includes better meal planning. You can follow how we are doing in this endeavor by reading True Food Confessions.

This Week's Food Waste

Popcorn and onion that had to go.

This week I was experimenting with the popcorn button on the microwave and the experiment didn't turn out so well--meaning I burnt the popcorn. However, I put it outside and it disappeared quickly. I think the squirrels enjoyed it. Also, I found a little bit of onion that was rotting in the fridge. I thought it had already been used by Wally, but I was wrong. So out it went.

This Week's True Food Confessions

 It was a busy week with people coming and going at various times from late nights at the office and evening meetings. It was catch as catch can, but we did cook a few things that were available for grabbing as you went by. These included broccoli cheese soup, guacamole, Sloppy Joes, salad, and French toast. We also had takeout pizza.

The new recipe for the week was Yankee Pot Roast that Wally and Theodore made. We only have a roast about once a year or less, so the carnivores were especially pleased. It came from a cookbook that I have checked out from the library and is copied below. 

Wally and Theo mostly followed the recipe except that they added the entire 6 oz. can of tomato paste instead of just a tablespoon. The switch up was nothing more than a mistake. However, the dish was still great. The meat was very tender and gravy around it was flavorful. The only problem with the vegetables was there weren't enough, and surprisingly, everyone even liked the turnips.

Procedurally, we didn't have a large enough dish to hold everything. We had to put our dish into the oven on a cookie sheet because it was boiling over. Theodore is working on this problem with some thrift store shopping. Hopefully, he will be able to find something acceptable.

There are a lot of ways to do pot roast out there, but I highly recommend this one. I think this will become our new standard (but next time, we will only use 1 tablespoon of tomato paste to see how we like it that way.)


From The Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Sixties Cookbook by Rick Rodgers and Heather Maclean

 Printer friendly version

 Yankee Pot Roast

3 tablespoons or bacon fat or vegetable oil
1 (3-pound) rump roast
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 medium carrots, 1 chopped, and 2 cut into 1-inch lengths
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 medium celery rib, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
⅓ cup all-purpose flour
3 cups canned reduced-sodium beef broth
1 cup hearty red wine
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
3 medium red-skinned potatoes, scrubbed but not peeled, cut into halves lengthwise
2 medium turnips, peeled and cut into sixths


1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325 F.

2. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in Dutch oven or flameproof casserole over medium-high heat. Season roast with 1 teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Add to the Dutch oven and cook, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer roast to plate.

3. Add remaining 1 tablespoon of oil to the Dutch oven. Add the chopped carrot, onion, and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 6 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Sprinkle with the flour and stir well. Stir in the broth, wine, tomato paste, thyme, and bay leaf and bring to simmer. Return the roast to the Dutch oven and cover.

4. Bake for 2 hours, turning the roast over after 1 ½  hours. Remove the Dutch oven from the oven. Add the cut carrots, potatoes, and turnips to the pot, submerging them in the cooking liquid. Return to the oven and cook until the meat and vegetables are tender, about 1 hour.

5. Transfer the roast to the deep serving platter and let stand 10 minutes. (Keep the vegetables warm in the gravy, covered.) Slice the roast. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the vegetables to the platter. Season the gravy with salt and pepper. Spoon some of the gravy over the roast and vegetables, and pour the remaining gravy into the sauce boat. Serve hot.

A Second Look--March 13, 2013

It's been a good week with more days of sunshine than rain and more days of warmth than cold.  The crocus have started to bloom here and there, and their sparseness makes each one of them a treat to find. I think the groundhogs have emerged from hibernation because I found digging at one of the groundhog holes. I also found my mandatory bones. Both were very leached, so it was hard to tell what they were. However, I think one of them used to be a dog's chewing bone, and the other one belongs to some kind of mammal--maybe it's pelvis.

Here's What I Found This Week During a Second Look.

White Crocus

Purple crocus

Yellow crocus coming up through moss.

Purple striped crocus sharing spot with dandelion.

Female cardinal

Daffodils coming up through mulch.

First digging I've seen at this groundhog hole this year.

The snowdrops have finally opened a little.

Blue jay feathers

Crow

Bones

Boys vs. Girls--camping

Before I had kids, I thought that each child was an individual, and didn't believe much in gender stereotypes in children. Little boys ran and jumped a lot because that's the kind of games they were taught. Little girls played with dolls because that was the kind of toys they were given. I thought that if all kids, regardless of gender, were exposed to the same things, they would have the same tendencies. Then I spent some time in the real world of kids and figured out that I was wrong. Possibly there were some differences between boys and girls. From time to time, I'm going to share some of my experiences that led me to this conclusion. However, so as to not bias you, I'm going to let you guess, who are the boys in the stories and who are the girls. 

Today's Story

When he was 11, Wally and I were discussing Boy Scout and Girl Scout camps. He was telling me what he had done at the camp that he had just returned from, and I was reliving my days at Girl Scout camp when I was about the same age. Among other things, we were comparing tents, cooking, and swimming. One of us swam in a lake and one of us swam in a pool. When one commented that there was a long hill that they walked down to go swimming, the other one said, “Did you race down the hill to see who could get there first?” To which the reply was, “No, we stayed in a group and sang songs.”

You chose: Which was the boy and which was the girl?

 ______________________________________________________

Answer: I was the one going down the hill singing songs with the other girls. It never occurred to us to race. However, that was the first thing Wally thought of when I said that had a long hill to go down.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

But Wait, There's More:

I didn't provide answers to the other Boy vs. Girls stories and some have been asking. So here they are if you want to play catch up. 

Boys vs. Girls--the Stuffed Animals 

Answer: Lily was the one cuddling her animal and talking to it. Wally was the one dragging his animal on ground and generally not paying much attention to it unless he hit something with it. It was very clear that Lily had a baby, and Wally had a toy.

Boys vs. Girls--Wally's Valentine Party 

Answer: The girls were the ones carefully opening each valentine and reading the messages. The boys ripped any candy off the valentines they got, then started playing with one of the party treats--Red Hots cinnamon candies. Each boy would put increasing numbers of candies in his mouth until it got too hot for them. They were definitely trying to out do each other during this game.

  (Of course, we all know that each person is a unique individual with their own set of special characteristics. No one is all boy just as no one is all girl.)   

From Head to Toe

Our town museum opened a new exhibit that I am participating in. Or I should say, my grandmother's hats are. The exhibit is called From Head to Toe and features hats, shoes, and accessories among other things. Several of my grandmother's antique hats are on display, and I'm sure that she would have never dreamed that that would happen. My sister and I had a good time as we got them ready for the exhibit. We tried to imagine her wearing each hat and where she got it. We never knew her as the fancy Italian hat wearing kind, so it was an interesting exercise.

One of the best parts of having a local museum, besides being able to participate in the exhibits, is listening to others tell stories about what they have brought for display. One person associates hat shopping with her mother as a happy time which wasn't always the case. Another person wore hats and gloves when she went shopping and to church. The stories abound and maybe I'll tell more of them another day. In the meantime, below is a sampling of a few things from the exhibit.

The museum is in a small, portable building. Some day they hope they can raise enough money to have a permanent place.

My grandmother's hats. Also, notice the hat box on the end and how the word "Exclusivery" (Exclusively) was translated from Japanese to English. That box is from a hat Miss Landers got when she was living in Japan.

This may have been the fanciest hat there. Certainly, one of the most colorful.

 

This Beaver Hat came with a very fancy cushioned hat box. All of the hat boxes I knew about before this were made of cardboard.

The dapper man who wore the fancy beaver hat above probably carried this fancy umbrella with a mustache comb in the handle. The other side of the handle had a mirror.

If these shoes are any indication, our feet have gotten a lot wider over time.

These two ladies may be dressed in their finest hats, but it didn't look like they were taking the situation too seriously.

Apparently, one size does not fit all.