Poor man's dinner...with dessert!

No, we aren't exactly "poor". Were just "lower middle class" as the government would say. Right now were "there's money in the bank, but had to cancel the debit card because some idiot stole the number." So with no way to go and buy groceries (which really messes with my couponing today!) and not a ton left in the house, because it's grocery day, I was faced with the ol' "What's for dinner?".

I thank God for WIC in moments like these. There are cans of tuna, bags of beans, and brown rice filling my cabinets. And we had some leftover hamburger buns from last week...the yummy kind with sesame seeds all over them. :) This is what I did.

Tuna melts

1 (6 oz) can of tuna ($1.00 was free with WIC)
1/4 c of miracle whip (or mayo)(free with coupon)
1/4 c of finely chopped onion (.60)
handful of shredded cheese (1.25)

Mix all together in a bowl. Put on hamburger buns. Wrap in tin foil and bake on 375 for 20-25 minutes. Voila!

Homemade Brownies

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, melted
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped nuts(optional)

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 9-inch square baking pan.

2. Stir together butter, sugar and vanilla in bowl. Add eggs; beat well with spoon. Stir together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; gradually add to egg mixture, beating until well blended. Stir in nuts, if desired. Spread batter evenly in prepared pan.

3. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from sides of pan. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into squares. About 16 brownies.


And there was our yummy dinner and dessert! I'm guessing dinner would have been around $1.85 for 3 servings. I didn't calculate dessert because it was all staples that I keep on hand.

I've neglected you dear blog...

Yes, life got in the way again. With the addition of Miss AJ, the growings of H, and the pre-pre-teen fun of A I just don't find a ton of time for blogging...or anything else computer related. So, here is our new wee one.



Of course, she is quite a bit older now. 10 Weeks! So, here is a more recent picture. Looks like I have another mini-me of Daddy.



We will be moving again soon. It's crazy that I started this blog right after we bought this house and have rarely updated it. I promise, I'll try to do better. TRY being the key word in that sentence. We are headed back to North Carolina (yay!) and will be closer to my family, which is great. Still no word on where exactly we will live, but hopefully that will be figured out before we get there. The house here will be rented out. I'm working my butt off to get it ready for showing. I've painted the walls, cleaned the carpets, cleaned my bedroom *GASP*, and now all that is left is to organize and get rid of the little things that clutter up a house. Seems to me that another garage sale is in order.

While I do all of those things, posting will probably be as sporadic as before. Hopefully I'll get a few crafts done and find the time to show them off. But first I have to find the time to actually do them.

A busy busy day!

Since we have started our homeschooling for the year, we took today to go on a field trip! But first we had other things to do too.

Had my 30 week check up. Everything is decent, will have a growth scan in 2 weeks to determine whether baby Avaleigh will need steroids or not. She seems to be a wee one. Other than that, a pretty normal check up. They are going to wait 3 months or so after I have the baby to see how my gallbladder is doing.

Now on to our field trip! We took the kids to Chambrey's Blueberry Farm in Ravenel, SC since Will is on leave. It isn't very often that we do much as a whole family, so it was fun! A learned a lot including how blueberries grow (she had guessed vines), how a farmer would plant them to make them easier to pick, how they grow on the bushes, and we all learned that mosquitos LOVE blueberry bushes! LOL! Of course, I have a few new pics. :)

A and I going at it, trying to fill the buckets fast! It was HOT today!

H didn't want to be stuck in the stroller!

MUCH better!

A liked getting the lower branches....which was fine with mom!

I like the dirt best. :D

No blueberries here!

Filling the bucket.

A few of the berries!

Re-evaluation

That is what I'm doing with my life right now. I have had all I ever wanted, and now I don't want it any longer. I want things simple, uncluttered, out of the way, and I no longer want to be dependent on certain things. I no longer want to live paycheck to paycheck.

For this reason I will be changing some aspects of life. Unfortunately that means not so many road trips, not so many new clothes, no more new diapers for the kiddos. There is too much in this house already. I have no where to sit a drink down. Time to "downgrade" in the words of Ashley. I'm going to learn to do some things on my own. Knitting, sewing, all the neat stuff. I guess as I get older, accomplishing this on my own is a greater reward than paying some outrageous price for having someone do it for me.

I'm cleaning out once again. There is so much here that we don't use and I can't keep waiting on people who want it but never come to get it. One more big yard sale and the rest goes to goodwill.

And on a good note. We introduced H to the potty this morning! No, he isn't actually sitting there and using it, but the way he keeps stripping and peeing in the floor, I figured at least letting him see it, sit on it, feel it, all that good stuff would be a start. He actually likes it. He smiles when I sit him down on it...and then jumps off to pee in the carpet or by the door. Haha!

Heading out for some shopping! **updated**

Let's see how well I do!! **Will update when I get back! :D

Ok, so after 3 trips I finally made it into the grocery store. LOL! Here's my score. Not the greatest, but remember I'm just learning. ;0)

Kraft ranch dressing
Kraft italian dressing
Miracle whip
Kraft mayo X 2
BBQ sauce X 2
McCormick Steak Seasoning
Toasted Ritz Chips X 2
Snuggle dryer sheets 80 count
Canned biscuits
Ice cream sandwiches
Southern Home Spaghetti Sauce X 2
Southern Home 12 pks drinks X 2


10.05 pounds of split chicken breasts
Beef tip roast
2.82 pounds cubed steak
thick cut bacon X 2

Total cost before savings = 102.86

Total savings = 56.73

Total OOP with tax = 46.84

Now, could I face going out to a public place without having my family with me (I have a fear sort of thing going on), I could have eliminated about $7.39 of that bringing my total to 39.45. I'll get there someday I suppose!!

Here it is.....

Last post for today. Hopefully it will look better once I have time to fix it. Honestly tonight, I'm just done with hair all together. And apparently I was also interuppting DS time which doesn't sit well with an 8 year old.

For the family

They haven't seen me much this time and think I look very tired these days. Wonder why that is? LOL! So here ya go. See? I don't look that tired....that only happens when I've been up for a long time with a baby who doesn't want to sleep (make that 2 since A kicks at night). Sorry for the bathroom pics...still sort of hard to take pictures of yourself. Excuse the halfway finished paint job. Were in the middle of a remodel and the bottom half of the wall hasn't been painted yet.