Freezer cooking works!

The freezer cooking has worked!  I'm thrilled- my prep time has been cut down tremendously, and it's great for getting meals on the table when I'm tired, and just want to go out to eat!

Freezer Cooking!!

I joined Weight Watchers two weeks ago.  I'm so tired of being overweight, and decided that THIS WAS IT.  So to that end, I've been looking at freezer cooking a bit harder recently, because I like the idea of being able to portion things out properly while I'm not rushing around for dinner, and then I can just pop the meals in the microwave or in the oven, or whatever. 

So my BFF and I were at Red Robin last week, and we decided that we were going to start doing freezer cooking, she hates cooking for 1, and wants some variety, and I need the portion control that it gives me.  If I'm giving her half, then I know that I only have 3-4 servings.  So that's what we're doing on Sunday.  We're going to make Mexican Casserole, German Style chicken, and Tex Mex Chicken Rollups.  I'm also making Vegetable Lasagna with Gruyere cheese, since next week Lent begins.  We shall see how it goes, I did a decent stock up this morning, purchased $20 worth of meat, and got about 20 meals out of that.  I've already portioned them out for the family.  I'm going to purchase more this weekend, because we'll need it for this weekend.  I also want to help with the portioning with CB, so that she can buy a huge thing of meat, and it'll be good for her. 

Mozzarella cheese

I've been thinking about making cheese- my sister in law has made cheese in the past, but she made it in a crockpot, and I'm just not into that for some reason.  Anyway, I was reading a magazine today, and they were talking about making fresh mozzarella cheese!  WHA??  I'd never heard of that, and I immediately thought that it'd be too hard.  But the pictures were crazy easy, and I found a place that sells mozzarella cheese curds via the internet.  So I'll be purchasing some here soon to try to make some.  I will post pictures when I do it.  I'm so excited about making it- that means we'll have fresh, homemade caprese salads/sandwiches/pizza this summer!  :)  We're growing our own basil, tomatoes, and then we'll make our own cheese!  Whoo!!

Seeds!

I went to Meijer the other day, getting some stuff for the weekend, and saw that they had put out 1 set of seeds.  Whoo hoo!  So I bought 7? packets.  :)  I am so excited- mostly herbs, but one packet of jalepeno peppers.  So now I just have to do a Gurney's order, and a Burpee's order, and I'm good!  :) 

Have you ever....?

heard that a book was SO AWESOME that you just had to read it?  So you went to the library, checked it out, and started to read it...and was so incredibly bored you had to stop reading after 50 pages?  Well, I am a VORACIOUS reader- seriously to the tune of 8 books a week, and it's honestly only happened a few times with me.  The New Moon Series (sorry, tween girls who might be reading this blog!), the Clan of the Cave Bear Series, Eat Pray Love (oh my GOD, I don't think I made it past page 15!) and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.  I have no idea why on the last one, I was recommended it, with all the back to basics stuff I'm working on.  But I checked it out 3x from the library, and COULD NOT get past Chapter 2.  Maybe because I don't like Barbara Kingsolver's tone when she writes.  I'm a Biology nerd- I can't deal with flowery extra words.  Which looking back, might be why I hate the previous books! 

I've been reading some other books that I can deal with in terms of language.  Radical Homemakers and The Backyard Homestead are just two of them that I'm currently in love with.  I cannot wait until we're in a house of our own, so that we can implement some of my ideas. 

Speaking of houses, one of my favorites came back on the market.  They want a lot more than what the old owner was asking- the prior owner was trying a short sale, and it didn't work.  Now it's just on the market.  I'm still leaning toward it, but it's got no land, and it's in an HOA, so not at all what we were looking for.

Awful weekend

I shouldn't say that, but we had Sicky McSickerson move into the house this weekend.  Boy child started puking before dinner, and didn't stop until Saturday afternoon.  Ugh!  On the bright side of that, we threw a lot of stuff out this weekend.  Boy child slept most of Saturday and Sunday, so after he stopped puking, we could actually get stuff done around the house! 

I've been having lots of arguments with myself about a house.  I've always been the one to have to have a basement.  But, there's this one house on almost 8 acres, for a reasonable price, but it's a modular.  I've told hubs that if we bought it, we'd immediately be saving to build another house.  My whole feeling is that I could deal with it for a little while, but am I getting so caught up in the house fever that I'm not making a good choice for us (and me?)

I borrowed The Pioneer Woman Cooks from the library.  I liked it so much, I ordered it off of Barnes and Noble this morning.  :)  I am such a cookbook freak- I own over 200, and keep buying/swapping for more!  Junior League Cookbooks are my downfall.  I own close to 100 of them- from all over the country.  And when we go on vacation, I always end up picking up more from used book stores. 

Happy January!

It's been a bit of a mixed bag here recently.  Great holidays, lots of time spent with family, got offered a permanent position, but am feeling a little....out of sorts I guess.  The money situation is getting me down, and I'm trying my damnedest to earn extra money, but it's hard.  Also, I've been feeling that I don't really belong anywhere- I have all these interests, but I don't fit in with any of the groups I'm involved in.  And at times, I feel like I'm a square peg trying to fit into a round hole. 
  My job is great- love it.  However, I'm one of the few that has a college degree, and used to have my dream job.  Everyone else is working crap jobs trying to make ends meet, no college, whatever.  So I don't fit in there- I feel like they have no idea why I'm working there.  Make sense? 
  The organization that I belong to- everyone is professional, very few SAHM's, and those that are are so professional and polished.  I feel like I stick out like a sore thumb there.  I'm the one that comes to meetings in yoga pants and a tshirt. 
  I want to be a farmer, and raise chickens and bees.  I want my son to be in FFA and 4H.  That totally doesn't fit in with either of the two things that I've described above.  I'm me, and I'm unique, I get that, I just wish that sometimes, I didn't feel like I was the only one who had all these diverse interests.  I think if I told anyone in my organization about my farming dreams, they'd laugh at me.  The other job, probably not, because there are some people who do live on larger acreage, and would understand my dream.  I don't know.  That's what I keep coming back to- I don't know.  I'm probably not supposed to know yet either.  And I'm fine with that, I'd just like to know a direction! 

Christmas is coming....

And I actually feel in the Christmas Spirit this year.  I don't know what it is, but we didn't get the entire tree set up, and I'm completely fine with how the house isn't decorated.  And I'm happy- relaxed, actually.  I got all the Christmas presents shopped for, except my dad's, who is getting purchased tonight or tomorrow after work, and 2 that I'm still working on.  I'm hoping to have them done by Christmas, but if not, definitely New Years Eve, since we'll be back in the area again then, and can just stop by and drop off! 

I think we've finally hit a breakthrough with the house situation.  I finally feel like we've got a handle on it, and have narrowed down our focus a bit more, and are more calm about waiting for  the perfect plot of land and home on it.  Whether or not we have to fix it up or not even doesn't scare me- which is great.  :) 

Still haven't heard about being more than seasonal- I'm not thinking I have anything to worry about though.  I'm assuming I'll be hearing in about 2 weeks or so.  Mid January? 

Reading a book....

called The Joy of Raising Chickens.   It's really good, and giving a lot of information that I didn't think about, but at the same time, knew.  What I'm finding awesome is that the author gives a ton of information about the different breeds, which is great- and what I need to know.  Hubs and I have talked about it, and we've decided that we should go with one animal per acre, so that we don't overload the land, when we actually get some.  So chickens are defintely going to be first, and then bees will be on the second acre.  Little man wants rabbits, which I think would be cool, if for nothing else, we can make our own fiber- which would be awesome!  :) 

Work is going really well, I'm hoping to hear that I'm permanent there soon.  I'm also hoping that I get another job I applied for, which will allow us to bump up our payments on debt, and save money for an actual vacation this year!  Hubs actually brought up Disney this year, which I'm SO excited about! 

Christmas

is coming.... Ugh- in my constant quest to pare down, I've got our list down to 27 people.  Craziness, yes, I know, but it's including bus drivers, teachers, subs, etc.  Plus, hubs can't afford gifts, so I'm paying for those as well.  Hence 27.  At least the boy is done, including Santa's.  We got him 4 gifts- something he wants, something he needs, something to wear, and something to read, so we got him a game, polar fleece sheets, a pair of pj's, and a sponge bob learn to read book.  And then Santa got him a train set.  So it'll be fun.  :)  Hubs still has to get something, but I don't know what yet, perhaps just another pair of pants, since he's lost a crapton of weight since last year.  And then, I'm buying myself a few gifts.  :) 

I'm having issues....

And I don't know how to say something without sounding like a witch.  So maybe someone can help me out here!  I would like to suggest stopping the adult gift exchange with my husband's family.  It's just gotten to be too much of a pain in the butt.  The parents can still give, but I'd like to stop purchasing gifts for my huband's family.  Any ideas on how we can gently suggest stopping it?

Happy Thanksgiving!!

As Thanksgiving draws to a close, I am reminded of how much we have to be thankful for.  I would be negligent if I didn't mention a roof over our heads, a full belly daily, a vehicle to get from point A to point B, our health, our families, and each other.  I am so grateful for everything God has provided us with this year, even if it's not exactly what I thought/wanted.  But, God doesn't give us what we want, He gives us what we need-whether we realize it or not. 

Recycling and other dirty things....

I am a huge fan of recycling.  We recycle almost everything- we live in an apartment right now, but we recycle what we can.  My parents also help us recycle by saving their aluminum cans, and we take them to the local recycle place to turn in for a bit of extra cash.  So today, our 55 gallon bin was full, and I decided to take our cans in.  I ended up having 13 lbs of cans, and we still will be getting more- we still have almost 2 full cases of pop around the house!  It sure looks nice though on our back balcony- it actually looks clean! You can recycle for cash in your neighborhood as well- simply google recycling for cash, and see what comes up!  It's a great way to make a bit of extra money as well!  We put our $7 that we got today in our house fund, but some people save it for vacations, or every couple of months they will take the family out to dinner or something else that everyone enjoys!  It's also great for getting out and getting some exercise!  Take a plastic bag (great re-use for all those plastic bags if you're not using reuseables yet!), and go on a walk with the family!  Collect cans as you go through your neighborhood!  Yes, definitely take plastic gloves with you!!  And we put each bag into our 55 gallon garbage can, and when it's full, we take it in!  If you've got young kids too, let them get into it, and help- allow them to wear sneakers and then smush the cans to fit more in each bag! 

We also save our paper to donate to our local school or church (whichever one we feel like taking the paper to!)  This is awesome- it gives the school/church money, and it allows us to recycle our paper as well!  I remember going to a recycling place when we were kids, and having our entire back of our station wagon filled with paper.  They don't do that anymore, or at least I can't find a place that pays for paper recycling.  It was just a lot of trouble, so I don't mind donating for a good cause!

The only things I don't recycle yet are plastics.  And as we get closer to getting a house, we will start looking into recycling those plastics.  Right now, it's just not feasible, in terms of space.  Unfortunately. 

Friday's Fragments

* Today was my son's Thanksgiving Feast at his school.  How cute was it to see 75 kindergarten children in their turkey hats!  I'd post a picture, but I'm not cool with my son's picture posted all over the internets!  Suffice it to say, it was the most adorable thing ever!!  :)  They had pumpkin pie, cranberry jello, and cornbread- each made by one of the classes!  It was so funny though, because they came in, sat down, and 15 minutes later, they were gone!  One of the other moms made a comment that she wished her Thanksgiving could be so fast!  :)  I agree!!

* I'm struggling through Chelsea Lately's latest book.  I don't understand her appeal at. all. She's kind of like Oprah to me, I don't like them, and I feel like I should but I don't, and I can't make myself.  So I just kind of ignore them, and every so often I'll try again, and still won't like them.

* My job is going well.  :)  I like it a lot, and I'm keeping up with the people who have been there longer than me.  I'm also doing way better than the guy who was hired the same time as me- which is good.  :)  I've been doing line, and it takes him 30 min. to bowl out a flat.  In that same time, I can bowl out about a flat and a half, if not 2.  Last time we both bowled, I ended up taking 1 of his overloaded flats and bowling it out for him- in the same amount of time it took him to unload 1 underloaded flats.  I'm definitely still hoping they'll keep me there after the holidays, which is looking pretty likely!  Whoo!!

* I've GOT to get cracking on Christmas presents.  At least write down what I want to get people, so that I can start making them, and getting them wrapped.  We're coming up on about a month until Christmas!  Argh!!  Which scares me- I have to finish more than 1 project a week in order to get presents done for people.  I promise, next year, I'll be more organized!  Yeah, right, I say that every year.  And every year, I fail! (Or at least not do as well as I could!!)

Thankful Thursday

With Thanksgiving coming up soon, I've been counting my blessings.  Moreso now than ever.  I'm coming up on 2 years of being cancer free.  I was diagnosed with Stage 1A uterine cancer on December 2, 2008, and had a complete hysterectomy along with ovary and lymph node removal on Dec. 28, 2008.  I decided that I didn't want to wait, and have it grow/get worse if I waited.  Ever since then, I've been having a follow up every 3 months, and after this last time I can start finally going every 6 months.  Yay!  But I'm so grateful that I'm healthy, and it was caught so soon, and I don't have to worry about it anymore (even though I know I always will!).  I get to watch my son grow up, and I'm looking forward to sitting on the front porch swing with my husband when we are both old and gray.  :) 

Wordless Wednesday

Meal Planning/Freezer Cooking

By far my favorite way I've found to reduce waste in our kitchen is once a month cooking.  Now, I don't only cook 1x a month, but I do a large amount of prep work once a month, and freeze it for use later in the month.  For example, I will cook 3 lbs of hamburger meat, and divide it up into 3 freezer bags, and then have it throughout the month- simply remove and dethaw!  Wha-lah!  Ready to sprinkle taco seasoning onto, or mix with Spaghetti sauce or whatever else you want to use it for! I love doing this, because I mess up the kitchen, use every pot and pan in the house, for one Saturday or Sunday per month, and when I'm done, I have most of the meat for the month done!

Lots of time I will also prep out entire meals- simply prep them to the cooking point, and freeze!  Or you can cook them, and then cool/freeze- but I prefer prepping to the cooking point, and then freezing.  Cooking then cooling just takes too much time, I find, but that's just me!  I love it- when my son gets off the bus, I pop dinner in the oven, and my house smells wonderful when my husband comes home from work!  No mess, no fuss, and the only thing we have to decide is what vegetable we're having! 

I know you're also thinking, yuck, I hate casseroles!  I agree to a certain point- and when I refer to casseroles, I don't mean chicken, rice, and vegetable mixed together with a can of soup poured over and frozen.  You can freeze stuffed peppers- prep them, put in a dish, and pour tomatoes over them, and freeze.  You can also freeze stuffed cabbage or baked macaroni and cheese.  And, now with all the sales on baking supplies, you can make cookie dough and freeze it, but more on that in another post!

Dave Ramsey rocks my socks!

So a few years ago, I found Dave Ramsey.  I have no clue how I did, I just remember hearing about him, and then checking out The Total Money Makeover from the library, and being totally on board with his plan-immediately.  So we knocked out a few debts to the tune of about $8,000, and then it all came to a spluttering halt.  We moved, health issues, etc, etc, and three years later, we're finally getting back on the plan.  It's not completely how he would do it, but it's close enough, where we feel we can call in one day and scream "We're debt free!!!"

For those of you who don't know who Dave Ramsey is, he preaches freedom from debt- no credit cards, no loans, no nothing.  Pay cash for everything and save up for what you want.  It fits in nicely with our overall goal of living more simply.  He definitely has a take no prisoners sort of approach to his debt reduction goals however- get gazelle intense.  And live like no one else, so later, you can live like no one else! 

He also is a strong Christian, and is very proud of that fact.  He often interjects with WWJD type questions- and always has a great opinion about what we should do.  It's funny, because we usually end up asking each other, what would Dave say?  Or what would Dave do? 

Search continues for body of murdered Carmel teen - 13 WTHR

Search continues for body of murdered Carmel teen - 13 WTHR

God, how horrible is this? This young man met a man online, and he was murdered during the encounter. I know we tell our friends/family not to meet people online, or at least be careful about it. I just wonder if this young man was ashamed to say he was homosexual, that's why he didn't tell anyone he was meeting the older man. Scary though. I'm teaching my son not to be ashamed of who he is, and if he happens to like men, I'm fine with that. I don't know- I know I'm all over with this, but I'm so bothered by it on so many levels. Not least of all that no one is really talking about it.

Friday's Fragments

*I am SO tired.  I got up at 3am, and went to work.  Granted I'm done for the day, but I'm still dragging.  I'm just in that area of "I have no clue what I'm doing, but I'm trying to be helpful." Which sucks, but hopefully that will go away soon.

*I have got to drop stuff off at the post office, and the library.  Some of the stuff should have gone out earlier in the week, but I had NO cash until now.

*Diet Coke is heaven!  I just finished a giant Diet Coke, and YUM!  It tasted so good!  I know it's not good for me, but who cares?

*I had NO idea that breast feeding had so many accoutrements!  Silly me thought that all that was required for breastfeeding was.... a breast!  And a child, but nothing like nursing pads, cloths, creams, bags, pumps, tubes, and all sorts of other stuff!  And believe me, I found out all this this morning while I was stocking infant stuff!

*Thank Heaven's it's Friday!!!  Tomorrow is our son's school's pancake breakfast.  :)  Yum!