Food Waste Friday and True Food Confessions--Nov. 14, 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. (Thanks to Jo from Simply Being Mum for sponsoring FWF this week.)

This Week's Food Waste

Who knows?

I don't remember any waste but we're into day 21 of our construction and I've hit the wall. Meaning living in cramped quarters with near constant loud noise is wearing on me. Trying to keep on schedule, the workman have been working into the night. I really appreciate their dedication, but nevertheless, it's wearing on me. However, the good news is that we now have level floors which is what started this whole thing.

 

After the floors were leveled, we had oak put down so that the entire downstairs has the same flooring. Above are some before, during and after pictures of this.

 

This Week's True Food Confessions 

Amidst the noise and the dust, we've just about given up on cooking at home. Eating at home now means eating Chinese takeout in our basement instead of at the restaurant. However, we did manage to cook bacon and eggs one night in the microwave, and we've had a few frozen dinners and bowls of cereal at home, but that's about it.

On the other hand, I had the best veggie burger I ever remember having at a new burger place we tried (Kraze Burger) and we had a decent meal at a grocery store one night. Over the weekend while we were out of town for the day, the whole family went to IHOP for their fix of pancakes and sausage. Not sure what the upcoming weekend holds, but the counter tops and sink are now scheduled to be installed just before Thanksgiving.

Until next time...

A Second Look--November 12, 2013

Even though I was shivering in near freezing temperatures with a damp wind blowing, I enjoyed doing a Second Look this week. The trees were definitely past their peak and most of the leaves were on the ground. This provided a perfect opportunity to crunch through them while smelling their fragrant earthy smell. I had forgotten how much I like that fall smell. The dark colors of the trees were more apparent without their summer leaves and provided interesting sculptures to see. However, in the midst of the dark and muted colors, there were still some bright flowers and leaves popping up here and there  I always thought that I didn't like fall much because it brought the beginning of cold weather. Maybe I'll have to reconsider after the Second Look I did today.

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

The pansies are one of the few things that haven't been affected much by the colder weather.

With most of the leaves off the trees, it's easier to see into the field behind us. However, the cattle were not grazing there today. They are there most of the summer, but are in other fields most of the fall and winter.

There is one mum among the bunch that has not faded in the cold.

Crunch, crunch, crunch.

The Japanese maple with its brilliant red leaves.

The dwarf Japanese maple still has most of it's brilliant red leaves also.

This is what many of the flower beds look like these days.

After the Second Look in my yard, I went shopping and saw this interesting sunset in the parking lot.

The Water Flows Freely

or I'm Happy

We live in a house that uses a water well so we have a pressure tank to manage the water pressure through our pipes. The tank is usually set at moderate pressure which I am told is best for all of the pipes concerned. However, moderate pressure really means low. At least that's what we thought when we moved here and switched from city water to well water. The "moderate" water pressure in our new house took some getting used to.

However, time went on and we adjusted. We still enjoyed taking a shower at a hotel or a friend's house with city water, but mostly we didn't notice anymore. That is until recently. The pressure seemed to be decreasing. First we attributed it to air in the lines from the water being turned on and off by the workman working in the kitchen. But after a week or so of trying to explain the decreased pressure away, we knew it was real. The shower was not flowing much more than a trickle, so there was no doubt now. There was definitely a problem.

Yesterday, however, my hero arrived--a local plumber who knew a lot about wells and pressure tanks. He tested the well flow, he tested the pressure tank, he tested the electricity, he tested the water neutralizer, and he cleaned the filters.  And by the end of it all, the water flowed freely. We had the best water pressure we've had since we moved in 16 years ago. I immediately jumped in the shower and was able to get wet all at the same time. What a luxury. A wonderful luxury that we can enjoy while we're still saving water with our "moderate" pressure. :)

I am thankful for the beauty of the earth.

"For the beauty of the earth

For the glory of the skies

For the love which from our birth

Over and around us lies

Lord of all to thee we raise

This our hymn of grateful praise"

From the hymn: For the Beauty of the Earth

I am thankful that I have gotten to see this beauty both at home and away.

Lake at the Biltmore, NC, 2011

Sunset this week as seen from our front door.

Albuquerque Desert, NM, 2013

Daffodil last spring in our backyard.

Yosemite National Park, CA, 2012

Sandia Mountains, NM,  2013

Ice in our backyard last March.

Yellowstone National Park, WY, 2010

Dusk last August--view from our side yard

Teton Mountains, WY, 2010

Food Waste Friday and True Food Confessions--Nov. 8, 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

Cole Slaw 

Aunt Martha gave us some extra cole slaw last week that we didn't quite finish before it needed to go. I think that was because I was the only one eating it. It was very good but I could only eat it twice a day for so long before I needed to give it a rest. Too bad. I hate to waste anything especially a food gift. However, that's how it goes sometimes.
 
 

This Week's True Food Confessions

While we still have no floor or appliances, this little bit of finished work is exciting. It shows a  promise of good things to come.

It is Day 14 of construction and the work is progressing well although certainly not ahead of schedule. The basement is our main center of activity including our eating as our midlevel is in upheaval.

Highlights from last week:

--The foam cooler "refrigerator" is working well. We change out a gallon jug of ice every morning and the milk and other things we store in it are kept very cool. Once a day or so, we uncover the regular fridge from it's hiding place in the living room and restock the cooler. 

--We are getting better with the dish washing procedure after the drying rack fell into the clothes washer and a plate broke. Now we use towels to drain onto instead the washing machine tub. 

--We made another mistake when we put very ripe bananas in with the rest of the food like cereals and bread. They are in a plastic storage box to protect them from mice that occasionally get into the house this time of year. (And yes, one little mouse can sometimes escape four cats.) The banana smell was strong enough to flavor most of the other food in the box. Now stronger foods get their own box.  

--We've had breakfast burritos, hot dogs, bagel pizzas, spinach, and cereal to eat this week. We also tried out a new diner one night when were out choosing a light fixture for the dining room. I had a huge serving of tuna salad that was enough for 2+ meals and Ward had a New Orleans burger that he gobbled up entirely. (You know how those carnivores are.) I also made some trail mix for snacks to justify eating the last of the Halloween M&M's in a healthy way. :)

--We are certainly not suffering by eating in the basement. However, the lack of prep space and kitchen tools make things awkward.  We'll see how next week goes.

Until next time...