Thursday Things and a Menu Oct 31. 2019

Planning the menu is one thing, keeping to it is another.  Last week, I changed it up several times.  Most of the time I already had the items on hand or my son-in-law cooked and he provided the groceries.

It all worked out, and we only ate take out one day.  We had a busy weekend with the kiddos and by Sunday, I was flat worn out and after a two-hour nap, we decided to get pizza from Little Ceasers.

Today we will be going to the kiddo's school for their Halloween Parade.  The students get to wear their costumes to school, parade around campus and outback for the parents, and afterward, there is a school dance for all the students. Their school makes it a fun holiday for them!

Last week's menu

• Wednesday: Chili Dogs and Tater Tots
• Thursday: Breakfast for Dinner Eggs and Grits Sandwiches
• Friday: Drive-Thru vs Grilled Salmon ( possible Disney Evening depends on weather) Spaghetti, Salad, and Bread
• Saturday:  Grilled Zucchini Grilled Pork Chops  TacoBurgers (Son In Law is cooking)
• Sunday:  Turkey Breast, Mashed Potatoes, Corn etc  Take Out Pizza

This week's menu 

• Tuesday:  Breakfast for dinner Eggs, Grits Bacon and Pancakes
• Wednesday: Large salad and grilled chicken
• Thursday: Sloppy Joe's and Tater Tots (Son in Law is cooking)
• Friday: Drive-Thru vs Salad and Grilled Chicken (possible Theme Park night)
• Saturday:  Grilled Salmon, Broccoli Grilled Burgers, Chicken and Salad
• Sunday:  Chicken and Fettuccine, Salad and Bread
• Monday: Grilled salmon, brown rice and broccoli  Take Out Pizza

The rest of the day will be the usual.  Working on eBay, listing and packing up a few things that have sold.  Chores around the house include clean the kitchen, mop kitchen floor (done!) and that is about it.

Tonight after dinner we will be taking the kiddos trick or treating in the neighborhood behind us. Our street only has 7 houses, it's dark, and the houses are set way back on properties.  Not very inviting for trick or treaters.  I kinda miss that, seeing the kids all dressed up.  

Do you get many trick or treaters? Do you hand out candy?

Wednesday Checking In and A Weekly List 10/30/19

CRAZY HAIR DAY AT SCHOOL 

The days go quickly with little projects to do around the house.  There are the everyday chores, dishes, cooking, laundry, cleaning that are important to maintaining my sanity and keeping the house
running smoothly.

My daily schedule for this week is as follows:

Walk the grandkids to the bus stop, and then continue to walk the neighborhood for about 1.7 miles with a goal to get up to 2 miles a day.  If I can get this consistent daily walking at least 4 days a week, I consider it a success. 

If needed, I pull and pack up eBay orders.  This can vary daily, as the sales are unpredictable.  Last week was incredibly slow (see my numbers here) After I run the vacuum, maybe mop a room a day, (maybe not) clean up the kitchen and if there are eBay orders I will drop them off at the Post Office.

At least a couple hours a day is spent listing items on eBay, which includes research and cleaning items.  After the items are listed, I put them away in the storage shed.  I keep the items in bins that are labeled and the item on eBay has that information in a SKU spot that is visible to the seller and not the buyer.

If there is yard work I will work that into the daily schedule.  Which includes mowing, weeding, sweeping off the porch and driveway.  Yardwork is my jam, I would much rather mow than clean house.

Laundry usually is about three loads a week and I also work that in the daily routine.  This includes sheets and clothes.

Figuring out dinner, well, that is something I try to plan but sometimes it just changes for whatever reason.  The son-in-law wants to cook, or we have a schedule change, or we just feel like something easy such as sandwiches.

Here is a list I have been working on this week:

• List 10 items on eBay daily (23 items as of last night)
• Mow Backyard  (Yard Mowed)  spray fence with cleaner
• Sweep off front Porch Done
• Clean up eBay packing Corner WORK IN PROGRESS 
• Work on Menu for the next few days

How is your week going?  

Friday and It's Raining 10/25/19

The rain is setting in. 

The weather is sketchy.  The Forecast was for a 30% chance of rain, but it is definitely 100% chance
of rain as the heavens have opened up.


  Mowing the backyard was interrupted with heavy rain and lightning detected 4 miles away.  ( I love my weather app)


We are going to squash the Disney plans today due to weather and after dinner, I will work on cleaning up my packing corner for eBay and try to get a few more items listed.  I shoot for an average of 50 listings a week, and yes I have enough stuff to list for at least 3-4 weeks.


  I sm still working through the items my friend gave me from her mom's estate.  There are two good size boxes of stuff to clean and list.

Dinner was spaghetti, salad, and Cuban bread tonight.  Since we nixed the Disney plans due to weather I made everyone's favorite. My son-in-law went to the store to get the hamburger and bread, I had sauce and I cooked.   This worked out, it kept me out of the store and didn't impact my food budget significantly.

We are working on eating at home record, today is day d and tomorrow my son in law is coming over to make tacos tomorrow so hypothetically, that will be 7 nights in a row.  That will definitely be a record haha.

The day is almost done, and it is still raining.  They say it will be like that all weekend.  Meh. 

Here is the list from Thursday which will carry over for the weekend.  

• Vacuum, Mop and Dust Master Bedroom 
• List 10 items on eBay ( 7 items listed Thursday, 0 on Friday )
• Mow Backyard or spray Fence with cleaner  Rained out on Friday
• Sweep off front Porch FINALLY DONE
• Clean up eBay packing Corner WORK IN PROGRESS 

 So my weekend chores are noted, and hopefully, the weather will cooperate.  Tonight will be TV and that's about it.  Not that productive, but there is always tomorrow.

Do you have any special plans for the weekend? 

Thursday Things To Do And A Menu For Rest of The Week

We had a break from the heat yesterday, it was in the high 70's with super low humidity.  It was an absolutely perfect day and many things were accomplished.


There is still the corner of the garage that I store all, well almost all of my eBay packing supplies. It is a hot mess.
And I may have USPS boxes stashed in two other closets in the house.  Yep, It will probably take a couple of days to get it back under control.

I am trying to use up what's in our freezer and pantry for the rest of this month.  If all else fails we can always have breakfast for dinner.  It is a go to meal when all else fails.


Menu for rest of the week

• Wednesday: Chili Dogs and Tater Tots
• Thursday: Breakfast for Dinner Eggs and Grits Sandwiches
• Friday: Drive Thru vs Grilled Salmon ( possible Disney Evening depends on weather) Spaghetti, Salad and Bread
• Saturday:  Grilled Zuchinni Grilled Pork Chops  TacoBurgers 
• Sunday:  Turkey Breast, Mashed Potatoes, Corn etc  Take Out Pizza

Today's agenda is what I  hope to get accomplished today.  It's a shortlist with a couple of big tasks.  Whatever does not get done today will get pushed to Friday.  Sooner or later, it will get done.
Keeping the house clean was barely getting done when I was working.  I know, a 6 hour a day job and I could barely get anything accomplished around the house.

30 years ago I was working two jobs, toting kids to different activities, and household chores .... I don't how I did it.  It is definitely age-related, comparing now to then.  So, we adust and do the best we can and make it work.

Thursday's List

• Vacuum, Mop and Dust Master Bedroom 
• List 10 items on eBay ( 7 items listed)
• Mow Backyard or spray Fence with cleaner NOPE 
• Sweep off front Porch NOPE
• Clean up eBay packing Corner WORK IN PROGRESS 

Lists keep me motivated and on track.  Do they work for you? 

Wednesday List of Stuff To Do

My work situation has changed and I am okay with it!  I resigned my position at the Elementary School and after working out my notice I am a stay at home grandma/online reseller.    Working out my notice was partially interrupted by a bout of the flu.  The flu is rampant at school, multiple classes had at least 3/4 of the class absent due to the flu.  It was inevitable that I would catch it, even after my flu shot.

We had the metal replaced on our outside shelter, and it looks so much better.  It took us a couple of months to find an installer to take the job.  We had a list of recommended installers that the sheet metal facility gave us, but the first 7 individuals we called were busy or did not return our calls. 

Last week, we finally had an installer actually answer the call and come out and give us an estimate.  We were happy with the price, within a week, the old metal was removed and the new metal was installed.  It looks so much better!

New Metal on the outbuilding 

I need to find  a before picture

Today's list of things to do includes:

• Kill weeds along the fence line 
• Clean out eBay packing material corner
• Clean Master Bathroom
• List 10 items on eBay
• Work on Menu for rest of the week

 Here is to a productive Wednesday!  

Pumpkin Dump Cake

We were hankering for a quick dessert with a bit of fall flavor.  There was this recipe that popped up
on my FB timeline earlier this month and since I had the ingredients on hand, it was a go!


The cake didn't last long and it will be on the menu for Thanksgiving.

Recipe credit Buns In My Oven
INGREDIENTS

• 1 can 15 ounces pumpkin puree
• 1 can 12 ounces evaporated milk
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• pinch of cloves
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2- ish box yellow cake mix if you'd like a more cake-like consistency, use more - up to the full box. If you'd like it to be more like a pie texture, use around 1/2 the box
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1 cup of butter melted

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick spray.
2. In a large bowl, beat together the pumpkin, milk, eggs, sugar, and spices until well combined. Pour into the prepared baking dish.
3. Sprinkle the top with a yellow cake mix. I prefer half of a box, but use more if you want it to be very cakey.
4. Sprinkle with the chopped pecans.
5. Pour the melted butter evenly over the top of the cake.
6. Bake for 60-70 minutes or until the top is lightly browned and the custard is set.
7. Serve warm or cold. Store in the refrigerator.