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So, I've been reading up on once-a-month shopping. I made my whole month's list of meals and rounded up my list, looked through my fliers, and headed out.
I had only me, which I guess was nice, except I had to haul out a load of groceries to the van and hop back in for the second half. If I could have only fit it all in one cart, this experience would have been a lot cheaper, because I couldn't have put all those extras in....
My problem is that I always buy more than what's on my list. I know that discipline is key to staying on budget, but when I find stuff on sale, I think, "oh, that would be great for _______" (food storage or school lunches, usually.)
Today my downfall was cereal. I noticed our supply was getting a little low and I must have come home with a dozen boxes. Oops. Then, I noticed a few mistakes on my bill and had to go back to the store for corrections (which worked out to over 9 dollars, so totally worth it.) The downside? I went back with the kids, and by then I was really hungry, noticed chips on sale, which of course when you're famished, just don't seem like they're going to hit the spot without some dip.(I know the cardinal rule of grocery shopping: don't go when you're hungry. Should've had a snack before I went back....) And then on the way to the check-out, we noticed toaster strudels on sale. Really? I think I've bought those once in the kids' existence. So, nine dollars in, and then $27 dollars out for a net loss of 18 bucks. Sheesh. I am the worst grocery shopper. BUT, at least I think I'm set for the month, so hopefully I won't have to step foot in there for another month, because, as you can see, I cannot just go in for a jug of milk. It's a jug of milk, and five things that are on a great sale, and then 60 bucks later I've overspent.
So, this month's shop was a little under than $250 less than last month's once a month shop. So, it's progress, right? Truth be told though, I still spent about 100-200 more than I was hoping for. And now I have to put.it.all.away. Yawn.
I have decided that next month I will have to take only the amount of cash I want
to use and if I overspend, I will embarrass myself by pulling stuff
off the bill. Maybe that will teach me??
What's you're grocery budget per month? How often do you shop? Do you stick to your list?
Showing posts with label kids. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kids. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Saturday Musings with a side of Apple Fritters
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Ok, so last post I said I would let you know how my little "schedule" went. I think it lasted about a week, Darn it. I realize now, that since the Beast starts kindergarten in a little less than two weeks, I'm going to have to revamp everything. For instance, now that all of the kids will be in school, I will be able to go every week to the meeting at my brokerage. (Oh, yeah, for anyone that didn't know, I spent part of my blogging hiatus getting my real estate license. If you or anyone know needs a Realtor in or around Winnipeg, I can help. If you live further away, I can refer you to a great realtor; you want to make sure you've got one looking out for you, not them.)
Anyway, back to the subject. I have a really hard time getting my kids into their own rooms for quiet time by 7:30. Maybe it was a pipe dream, but if I was seriously going to go to bed at 10, I need my downtime without my kids for a bit. Are you with me on this, or am I on another planet to think that I might get some time to myself that didn't require me to workout or clean? Cuz, really, I hate both of those. Not my idea of a good time!
Guess I'll have to rework it a bit, but hey, it's a starting point. Have I mentioned that I am kind of dreading the first day of school this year? It's like a glimpse of what empty nest syndrome is all about. I'm getting misty eyed just thinking about it. This is why I got my real estate license--so that I won't be wallowing in my sorrows that all of my kids are getting too big for my liking. :*(
Right now all of the kids are outside. Bean has a friend over. The are making "dinner" in the yard-grass, apples, dirt. Well, whatever, at least I won't have to cook tonight, right? And, it's giving me time to blog. Win-win, I say.
I did make them a little snack today. Bean wanted some apple fritters. A long time ago, I printed this recipe from allrecipes. I adapted when I first made it and they were delish! Second time around, I did it a little differently. They didn't turn out as well, but I know why. I'll fill you in as we go.
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt*
2 eggs
1 cup of milk
about 2 quarts of oil for deep frying**
4 apples, peeled, cored, and chopped***
*I just realized as I was writing this, that I forgot to add the salt in today. I won't omit it again; I think it really improves the flavour.
** I use good ol' canola oil. It doesn't import a lot of flavour into the finished product, and it works well at high temps.
*** The original recipe called for them to be sliced to make rings. I figured that it would be hard to keep the batter on the rings, so instead, I saved myself the headache and just chopped them. Make sure to chop them small. I made the mistake of cutting big chunks today. I will definitely remember to cut them into much smaller pieces next time, so that they can cook and not end up with raw apple.
(The original recipe calls for dusting them with powdered sugar. I have a hard time doing that without making a mess, and the kids end up looking ghostly after they eat, so instead I make a glaze.)
Glaze:
1 cup icing sugar (confectioners/powdered/whatever. It's all one in the same for those newbie bakers out there)
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
2 Tablespoons water
Mix the icing sugar and cornstarch together. Add the water. Stir until smooth. Set aside until apple fritters come out of the pan and drizzle how you like.
Directions:
1. Chop the apples into small pieces. I like to mix up a bit of cinnamon with some sugar and coat the apples before I put them into the batter. Today I used about 1 Tbsp. sugar to about 1 tsp. cinnamon, but do what looks good to you. It's not a make it or break it step. I can't be sure this was the ratio I used last time.
2. Pour oil into a medium to large saucepan. Turn to medium heat and wait until temp is 325-350 degrees.*/**
3. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, spices and salt.
4. In a separate bowl, crack the eggs, and stir in milk. Stir until blended.
5. Stir milk into flour mixture until smooth.
6. Stir apples into batter.
7. Drop by spoonfuls into heated oil. fry a few at a time. Turn them once, and when they are golden brown all over, pull out with a slotted spoon and place on paper towels. Dab excess oil off. Place on plate or in tray and glaze.
7. Eat as soon as they are cool enough to not burn your mouth but still warm. They are best warm.
*(I have a pot set that has three or four sizes and then a giant one for pasta n' stuff. I don't use the giant one, but the largest of the "smaller" ones, so that I get a good sized circumference, but not so deep that I will burn myself trying to get things out.)
**Be watchful of the temp of the oil. If you don't have a thermometer, just put it at medium and when the oil spits when you put a drop of water in, it's ready. (Although, full disclosure here: I have never remembered to put the oil on at the beginning. I am not sure that it will heat to the desired temp without putting it on high for at least a little while. Try it, and let me know, would ya? Thanks!) The original recipe calls for 375 degrees, (which I started with today) but the fritters come out really dark and have a slightly burnt taste. I've found 325-350 to be much more favourable.
All in all, today's batch were not as good as the first time around. I am sure it is because:
a. I forgot the salt.
b. I cut the apples way too big.
c. I waited too long before I turned on the element, and then got it too hot.
The family still liked them, but I'm pretty sure that there are a few left, whereas last time, I literally could not cook them fast enough.
Well, I'm hungry, and this post is far too long. If you got to the end--well, I'm sorry I took up so much of your time, but I hope you enjoy the recipe!
Guess I'd better go find out what kind of exotic concoction the kids came up with for supper.
Anyway, back to the subject. I have a really hard time getting my kids into their own rooms for quiet time by 7:30. Maybe it was a pipe dream, but if I was seriously going to go to bed at 10, I need my downtime without my kids for a bit. Are you with me on this, or am I on another planet to think that I might get some time to myself that didn't require me to workout or clean? Cuz, really, I hate both of those. Not my idea of a good time!
Guess I'll have to rework it a bit, but hey, it's a starting point. Have I mentioned that I am kind of dreading the first day of school this year? It's like a glimpse of what empty nest syndrome is all about. I'm getting misty eyed just thinking about it. This is why I got my real estate license--so that I won't be wallowing in my sorrows that all of my kids are getting too big for my liking. :*(
Right now all of the kids are outside. Bean has a friend over. The are making "dinner" in the yard-grass, apples, dirt. Well, whatever, at least I won't have to cook tonight, right? And, it's giving me time to blog. Win-win, I say.
I did make them a little snack today. Bean wanted some apple fritters. A long time ago, I printed this recipe from allrecipes. I adapted when I first made it and they were delish! Second time around, I did it a little differently. They didn't turn out as well, but I know why. I'll fill you in as we go.
Here's my version of Apple Fritters:
2 cups of all-purpose flour
1/3 cup white sugar 1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt*
2 eggs
1 cup of milk
about 2 quarts of oil for deep frying**
4 apples, peeled, cored, and chopped***
*I just realized as I was writing this, that I forgot to add the salt in today. I won't omit it again; I think it really improves the flavour.
** I use good ol' canola oil. It doesn't import a lot of flavour into the finished product, and it works well at high temps.
*** The original recipe called for them to be sliced to make rings. I figured that it would be hard to keep the batter on the rings, so instead, I saved myself the headache and just chopped them. Make sure to chop them small. I made the mistake of cutting big chunks today. I will definitely remember to cut them into much smaller pieces next time, so that they can cook and not end up with raw apple.
(The original recipe calls for dusting them with powdered sugar. I have a hard time doing that without making a mess, and the kids end up looking ghostly after they eat, so instead I make a glaze.)
Glaze:
1 cup icing sugar (confectioners/powdered/whatever. It's all one in the same for those newbie bakers out there)
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
2 Tablespoons water
Mix the icing sugar and cornstarch together. Add the water. Stir until smooth. Set aside until apple fritters come out of the pan and drizzle how you like.
Directions:
1. Chop the apples into small pieces. I like to mix up a bit of cinnamon with some sugar and coat the apples before I put them into the batter. Today I used about 1 Tbsp. sugar to about 1 tsp. cinnamon, but do what looks good to you. It's not a make it or break it step. I can't be sure this was the ratio I used last time.
2. Pour oil into a medium to large saucepan. Turn to medium heat and wait until temp is 325-350 degrees.*/**
3. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, spices and salt.
4. In a separate bowl, crack the eggs, and stir in milk. Stir until blended.
5. Stir milk into flour mixture until smooth.
 |
| This is where I realized my apple sizing mistake--of course, the moment it is too late. Those chunks do end up being far too big. |
7. Drop by spoonfuls into heated oil. fry a few at a time. Turn them once, and when they are golden brown all over, pull out with a slotted spoon and place on paper towels. Dab excess oil off. Place on plate or in tray and glaze.
 |
| This was way too hot!! They ended up being the really dark ones. As you can see, the oil is at 400 degrees. I had to pull it off the element. For me, just a touch to the left of five on the element dial seems to be the magic spot. I just always forget to heat at the beginning and then crank it to high to get it warm, and then wait too long to turn it back down. The temp keeps climbing for a bit before it settles out. |
7. Eat as soon as they are cool enough to not burn your mouth but still warm. They are best warm.
 |
| Can you see the difference in colour? The first ones on the towel were cooked at a lower temp. |
*(I have a pot set that has three or four sizes and then a giant one for pasta n' stuff. I don't use the giant one, but the largest of the "smaller" ones, so that I get a good sized circumference, but not so deep that I will burn myself trying to get things out.)
**Be watchful of the temp of the oil. If you don't have a thermometer, just put it at medium and when the oil spits when you put a drop of water in, it's ready. (Although, full disclosure here: I have never remembered to put the oil on at the beginning. I am not sure that it will heat to the desired temp without putting it on high for at least a little while. Try it, and let me know, would ya? Thanks!) The original recipe calls for 375 degrees, (which I started with today) but the fritters come out really dark and have a slightly burnt taste. I've found 325-350 to be much more favourable.
All in all, today's batch were not as good as the first time around. I am sure it is because:
a. I forgot the salt.
b. I cut the apples way too big.
c. I waited too long before I turned on the element, and then got it too hot.
The family still liked them, but I'm pretty sure that there are a few left, whereas last time, I literally could not cook them fast enough.
Well, I'm hungry, and this post is far too long. If you got to the end--well, I'm sorry I took up so much of your time, but I hope you enjoy the recipe!
Guess I'd better go find out what kind of exotic concoction the kids came up with for supper.
Time Keeps on Ticking
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So, a long while ago I wrote about falling off the blogging wagon. Well, I did it again. So much so that the wagon left without me and I had to start walking to find it. I did try out a new wagon, called wordpress, but you know, I just am not that tech savvy, and had no desire to figure it all out. So I posted once, and I'll post it here, just for consistency, but honestly, I did one blog in the spring and that was it. So it's here for you to read, and I'll update you in the next post!
You know those people who are always a ball of energy and seem to be able to get a massive amount of things done in their day? Well, I'm not one of them. I seem to be a low energy person; it's not depression, and it's not a medical issue (other than slight anemia, everything seems to be fine). I don't consider myself lazy either, most days. I just don't seem to have enough energy to make my body do all that my mind wants to. I'm trying to improve my eating habits, so maybe I'll make a discovery there. In the meantime, I just need to push along and do the best I can. Keeping in mind the balance that I'm trying to achieve, I've decided to figure out just how much time I have in a day and what I am wasting all of my time on.
I saw something on Pinterest today
that said, "Every day we decide on who we will be by the actions we
take." [A bit ironic that while I'm thinking of all the things I waste my time on, Pinterest quotes start coming to mind.....(where's that whistling emoticon when I need it?)] Well, I want to be an energetic person who can get everything done
on the to-do list in a day, and not waste any of the time God's given me. I
hope that I can figure out how to do it and not fall back into bad habits.
So, I need to figure out my time.
I think I sleep longer than I probably need to. It seems I am a bit of a slave to circadian rhythms. Once the sun is gone, I am sleepy. Thank goodness spring is here; I find myself waking up earlier! I should really try to get in the habit of being in bed by 10:00 and up by at least 6:00. That's a full eight hours. I find if I can get up in the morning, I'm much more productive.
I wonder if this can work:
6:00:
6:50
This is really where I have issues. I know that dinner should be ready by about 5 for them, especially when there are activities, but sometimes, we just don't get to eat until 6:30, or even 7! I mean, how can I expect them to start getting ready for bed at 7:30 when I haven't even fed them.
I just don't even think I can go any farther because every night is different with hubby's work schedule and kid's activities, but the goal would be to get them all ready for the next day and getting ready for bed, and family prayer by 7:30, leaving the girls to read for about half and hour and the boy going to bed then, and giving dear husband and I some time to ourselves, or me time to do showings, before getting up to do it all again the next day. This does not sound that hard, so why is the application so difficult? Anyone have any great advice?
You know those people who are always a ball of energy and seem to be able to get a massive amount of things done in their day? Well, I'm not one of them. I seem to be a low energy person; it's not depression, and it's not a medical issue (other than slight anemia, everything seems to be fine). I don't consider myself lazy either, most days. I just don't seem to have enough energy to make my body do all that my mind wants to. I'm trying to improve my eating habits, so maybe I'll make a discovery there. In the meantime, I just need to push along and do the best I can. Keeping in mind the balance that I'm trying to achieve, I've decided to figure out just how much time I have in a day and what I am wasting all of my time on.
I saw something on Pinterest today
that said, "Every day we decide on who we will be by the actions we
take." [A bit ironic that while I'm thinking of all the things I waste my time on, Pinterest quotes start coming to mind.....(where's that whistling emoticon when I need it?)] Well, I want to be an energetic person who can get everything done
on the to-do list in a day, and not waste any of the time God's given me. I
hope that I can figure out how to do it and not fall back into bad habits.So, I need to figure out my time.
I think I sleep longer than I probably need to. It seems I am a bit of a slave to circadian rhythms. Once the sun is gone, I am sleepy. Thank goodness spring is here; I find myself waking up earlier! I should really try to get in the habit of being in bed by 10:00 and up by at least 6:00. That's a full eight hours. I find if I can get up in the morning, I'm much more productive.
I wonder if this can work:
6:00:
- wake up, make bed (less temptation to get back in that way, right?)
- read scriptures for 20 minutes. That should put me on a good note.
- meditate for 10 minutes.
6:50
- put a load of laundry in.
- workout for 20 minutes. You workout gurus will tell me that that's not enough. Well, it's better than what I've been doing. Baby steps, right?
- put laundry in the dryer
- hit the shower, get dressed and brushed--who am I kidding--this will take more than 15 minutes, but I can overlap a few minutes to, say 7:45
- kids get up, so I need to help them stay on track.
- pull out laundry, fold, and put away! (ok, laundry is the bane of my existence. I can never find matches to socks. Ever. I have baskets of unmatched socks. I have tried to buy them all matching, but for some reason, it is hard to find a package of socks for kids that are all the same. Laundry baskets are always full of something at my house, and my laundry room floor hasn't seen the light of day in months. I.Hate.Laundry. So much so, that if it weren't for the cruel things gravity is doing to me, I would probably run off and join a nudist colony.)
- get girls off to school
- tidy from breakfast
- take the boy to school
- come home/ go to office and work
- go pick up boy from school
- feed boy and me lunch
- set boy up with some quiet things. (He needs to prep for kindergarten.)
- do some housework
- prep for supper
- since I'm totally getting tired already just looking at this, (I know, it's not a lot, but gimme a break!), maybe a nap would be in order here, or at least some quiet time.
- get supper ready to go. If it's an easy meal, maybe some more housework? (See, I'm already wondering what to do with all of my time. It seems I have so much!)
- file any papers that need to go away. (Ok, next to laundry, filing papers is the bane of my existence)
- get an after school snack ready for the kids.
- If I have more real estate work to do, now would be the time.
- I guess if I was really on top of things and had nothing to do, I could do something fun, like make some soaps or lip balms, or something else I might like to take up as a hobby. After I've completely de-cluttered my house, of course. Yeah, who am I kidding? Will I ever get the house de-cluttered??)
- kids come home. All sense of peace goes out the window.
This is really where I have issues. I know that dinner should be ready by about 5 for them, especially when there are activities, but sometimes, we just don't get to eat until 6:30, or even 7! I mean, how can I expect them to start getting ready for bed at 7:30 when I haven't even fed them.
I just don't even think I can go any farther because every night is different with hubby's work schedule and kid's activities, but the goal would be to get them all ready for the next day and getting ready for bed, and family prayer by 7:30, leaving the girls to read for about half and hour and the boy going to bed then, and giving dear husband and I some time to ourselves, or me time to do showings, before getting up to do it all again the next day. This does not sound that hard, so why is the application so difficult? Anyone have any great advice?
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