Another Angel Food Box...

I picked up my Angel Food Box this past Saturday.  I think I'm going to try and do more "couponing" and grocery gaming this month.  The fridge is basically empty but the freezers are full.

 

So March is another "Month-of-Almost-Nothing"

• 2 lbs hamburger steaks (These are HUGE!-8oz each)
• 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts 
• 2 lbs macaroni & beef entree 
• 1 lb boneless pork chops 
• 1 lb ground beef 
• 1 lb crunchy fish wedges 
• 1 lb smoked sausage 
• 1 lb corn 
• 1 lb green beans 
• 1 lb sugar snap peas & carrots 
• 15 oz diced tomatoes 
• 1 lb kidney beans 
• 1 pkt chili seasoning 
• 8 oz buttermilk biscuit mix 
• 10 instant oatmeal packets 
• 32 oz shelf-stable milk 
• 1 dozen eggs 
• 8 oz chocolate chip cookie mix
• 2 lbs breaded chicken chunks
• 1 1/2 lbs fully cooked Salisbury Steaks (without gravy)
• 1 1/4 lbs Tyson natural chicken breast tenderloins
• 2 lbs cream of broccoli soup
• 2 lbs tomato basil soup
• 24 oz natural cut fries
• 7 oz apple cinnamon muffin mix

The menu will follow shortly.  As far as last months menu went....pretty well.  I rearranged a few days, but basically had the same meals.  There was only a day or two that I hadn't really planned well and had to come up with something which for the one day was a frozen pizza from the freezer and the other day was a "leftover smorgy".

Out to dinner

So 40 has...started to....turned around.  We spent the evening with cherished friends.  We all went out to Red Lobster for dinner while Boy spent the evening with his favorite girl and her sister (their girls).  Then the ladies went to Hobby Lobby and the guys went to Lowes.  We met back up at their house and enjoyed a rich and delicious cherry cheesecake with candles on it for my birthday.  AWW....how wonderful!! 

Thanks guys for making me feel so loved!! <3

The Blessing of Family...

My sister and I have never really been close.  The age difference, living in different cities, and everything seemed to cause that.

This past holiday season, I thought that it needed to end.  So she came out for Thanksgiving...and then for Christmas.  Since then she (and her dog, Buddy) have been coming out and helping me with various areas of the farm.  She is a great motivator.  She works really hard and we get going on a task and it gets done.

Whereas Boy will not listen to his mom, he will listen to his Aunt.  His Aunt listens to what I'm trying to get through to him and then SHE says it and he listens....oh well, whatever it takes!

We've helped clear up some space in the woodshop for Man.  We've recycled 2 truck loads of metal.  And today we tackled the storage room of the barn.  What.A.Mess!!!  I should have taken before pictures, and then after.  We aren't done, but now we can walk through the storage room.  We have big plans for a spring BARN SALE.  And hope to sell lots of stuff to get it out.of.here!! (and the cash will go to the debt fund!)

Next week she and her friend are going to be helping with some improvements to the shop.  And I will have to motivate myself....sigh.  My goal is to get the pump house organized.  It is full of random boxes of computer stuff, homeschool stuff and boxes and boxes of jars.  Plus a bunch of stuff we "inherited." I have a bunch more homeschool boxes of stuff that need sold.  First will be the barn sale, then in June is our curriculum fair for our homeschool group.  Hopefully, someone can use all this stuff.  But in the meantime, it needs to go SOMEWHERE besides the kitchen counter and the top of the deep freeze.   It makes food prep a bit difficult!

Then, once I have a place to put all this stuff while we wait for the sale, the next big goal is the homeschool/scrapbook/JUNK room.  Right now, honestly, you cannot walk through it.  I am so ashamed.  I need help! 

Anyway, Thanks Casey for the help and motivation!!!

My Birthday....

I've been asked...what was my birthday like?  Not what I expected!

The not so nice but still a blessing is that the electrician came today to put in a new breaker box and fix the wiring in the house.  We didn't have power for 8 hours...but the wiring is safer.  We will have to wait until spring when they can come in with a trencher to get power back out to the outbuildings.

It looks as though we may have lost the majority of our bees this winter.  It's been a really.really hard winter. But we will see once it warms up.  Supposed to be mid 50s later this week!

Cooked my own birthday dinner...but fixed my favorite...Chicken Chimichangas. YUM!

Had a beautiful message on my cell phone from my Mommy!  She sang me Happy Birthday.  I'm such a sap it made me cry!

Found out that  two of the scrapbook stores that I have recently been to (and they gave no indications while there) went out of business in the first week of February.  But a Hobby Lobby opened up where I drive at least 3 times a week.

Then, the "heathens" I work with threw me a birthday party!  I've been making brownies or cake for various friends at work and they all decided to pay it back.  One brought brownies, another brought me a planter with flowers, another my favorite kind of cookies, another punch,  yet another brough 4 kinds of chips and 2 different dips and 2 bottles of pop!  Finally one slipped me a dollar and said he wanted to treat me to a snack in the vending machine but didn't know my favorite.  How's that???

Even when things aren't great...it's all in how you look at it.  I was made to feel very special in a place where I like to be the least.  Things are flipped around crazy right now and I'm trying to make sense of it all.  Personally, in the areas that I should feel confident and loved...I don't see it.  So, I realize this is a crazy post, but I'm confused and trying to sort it out.

I see my blessings...but right now things that I felt were the blessings in my life, have had some of the glimmer rubbed off and the banes of my life today became a joy.  Hmmm...

I can't say I have my health...I've had some serious issues come up in the last 30 days (besides the sinus infection).  I do have my family, but after being in the house for 11 days, I think they need to see less of me. (grin). In recent weeks, I've disconnected from many of the people, things, and activities that I hold dear.  And I miss them...but.....

It was a BAD week!

I missed 6 days of work this month...which for me means that for February...the first day I worked was the 13th!!

It started with the big ice storm mentioned previously.  So...I couldn't get out of the yard on Feb 1-4. At the same time...Boy was sick January 25-28, then Man was sick Jan 30-Feb 3rd... Then on the 5th...Man & I's 18th anniversary..when I was sure I had dodged the bullet....I got sick.  Really.really.SICK!  UG. Then finally on the 9th, I made it out of the house and out to the doctor.

On Feb 11th..it was a really. REALLY. BAD. DAY!  First Boy was supposed to be having a sleepover with one of his best buddies..who's family now all had the flu.  We called another friend..he has strep throat and mom is sick also.  Finally managed to arrange a afternoon with another cherished friend after homeschool gym. ..then...after going to town to check the mail, we headed out to go to gym and ....I crashed my car.  Not bad...for the people.  The car slid on a sheet of ice going down a hill under the Interstate and the driver side wiped out a mailbox.  Mind you...when we stopped I was facing the wrong way on the road.  There was only a little dent near the top of the wheel.  So I set about heading for home...somewhat dazzed and trying to comfort Boy.  The car was acting totally weird.  The horn area of the steering wheel that should be horizonal when going straight was verical.  Then we hit more ice and the dumb car was all over the place.  We drove the 1.5 miles back home.  And asked Man to look.  He was such a rock and so sweet.  Didn't get mad or yell or anything.  Looked under the car and the rod that holds the tire out...was bent in half.  One wheel was going straight the other was turning the corner.  Boy was shook up...but more upset that we were going to miss gym and the promised play date. 

Man had us go down in the delivery van.  Through the crash, out of 12 dozen eggs waiting for delivery...only 3 eggs were broken.  So then, I called insurance and set up for the tow truck to come get the car.  SIGH.  Not great for the debt resolution.  We have a $500 deductible.  But yesterday, I picked up a rental car after another HORRID day. and went to work early (how's that for a bad day?)

FINALLY, I've decided that it wasn't that 2010 was a bad year. (It WAS) and now the yuckiness was leaking into 2011...it was that 39 was my bad year.  Today was my birthday.  I've shook the BAD off my shoes of the previous year and am going to make 40 the best year.  And yes, I said it out loud.

 I.am.40!

The miracle of the power line!

Two weeks ago, we had an issue with the power line that goes out to the security light, the coop and the barn.  Keep in mind our farm house is 105+ years old.  When they put the power in, it was somewhat random.  On the circut that has the outbuildings also has the sub-box that is in Boy's room that runs ALL the lights in the house (and many of the outlets).

On that morning, I was getting things together to take to my dear friend's house (and one of Boy's BFF).  She had a beautiful baby boy the previous week and we were taking over meals and belated Christmas gifts and "stuff".  Then *poof* power out.  We checked the breaker box...and the one would buzz and then pop.  What???  Now if you are going to lose power, I suppose this is the way to do it.  We heat with wood, so that wasn't an issue.  The blower for the woodburner was running....so was all the appliances and the deep freezer, so no lost food.  And the breaker for the woodshop was running so Man could still work.  We had ONE outlet that would still work so we could get the computer up and a lamp.

So, I left a message with the landlady and went on my way.  Two days later the electrician came out and seems that there is a problem with the line going out to the outbuildings, so that was cut off and the rest of the house was restored to power.  We knew that the line going out was somewhat unsafe and had asked our landlady to look into having it upgraded over the summer.  Apparently it was too expensive because after the electrician came out in July, we didn't hear any more about it.  Now it's freezing or below and it has to be addressed.  The lines come out above our kitchen and run parellel out to the light post.  It looks as though the insulation on the lines are gone and they are only a foot apart....perfect for arc-ing. 

OK, long story, I know...if you know me...have I ever told a short story??? :) Fast forward to yesterday.  A HUGE storm came through and left about 3/4 inch of ice on everything.  Followed by high winds.  Nice combo, eh?  So during the night the power went off and on a few times.  Luckily we are in a very small rural electricity co-op and so things get restored fairly quickly.

However, we awoke to many tree limbs (large) down all over the yard.  Including one that came down over the power lines between the house and the light post!  One of the lines was pulled out of the house and was laying on the roof of the porch....over the ground...over the wooded picket fence....over the wooden wishing well....out to the post.  The other has the branch still hanging from it.

Had it been two weeks earlier, that line would have been live and because of the bad shape it was in with the missing insulation....our house likely would have caught on fire...and did I mention our house is 105+ years old....old wood...instant kindling??  Yep...there is the blessing and the miracle of us losing power two weeks before everyone else did. 

The line is still laying on the roof....waiting for above freezing weather and well, the ice to melt before getting taken care of.