Baby Girl's "uniforms".
Hi everyone! First off, I want to make a special announcement. I will be hosting a monthly giveaway in my email newsletter, and I need your opinion on what the prize(s) should be! You can complete the 1-minute survey HERE.
1. Groceries: We went to Kroger for groceries this week and spent $31.73, plus $1.34 at Walmart. Total spent was $33.07. You can see my Kroger haul below:
1. Groceries: We went to Kroger for groceries this week and spent $31.73, plus $1.34 at Walmart. Total spent was $33.07. You can see my Kroger haul below:
2. Cooking: I made two batches of fruit leather, 1/4 lb. of cheese, and (drum roll please...) chicken sausage! One of my goals this year is to lower my food waste. Did you know the average family spends $1500.00 per year on food waste? We saw it on a billboard while driving home from church. I told Hubs, "I'm nowhere near that careless, but even I waste between $1.00-$5.00 on food every week." He was astounded (I guess I'm supposed to be more perfect than that?! LOL), but it's true. This week I threw out two quarts of frozen rhubarb and a handful or two of pretzels, plus probably some other stuff I'm forgetting.
That's where all of this week's cooking comes in. I made the fruit leather (more like chips) from strawberries that had been in the freezer for far too long. I made the cheese from the last quart of milk in our fridge, about to go rancid. And the "sausage" was made from a bag of chicken gizzards, hearts, and livers that I found in the freezer. I've always wanted to try making sausage. I knew that I would never, ever eat the innards as they were, so it was the perfect time to use the Kitchen Aid meat grinder I got for Christmas... in 2015.
It turned out pretty good, for the ingredients I had on hand. I added some wine vinegar, oil and spices to the ground organ meats, then cooked it up and froze it in muffin-size portions. We tried some on baked potatoes and in soup, and it wasn't that bad! I HATE the taste of liver, and to be honest, seeing it come out of the grinder grossed me out a lot. I wasn't sure I'd be able to eat it. Hubs likes liver, so he thought it was pretty good. I thought it was a tolerable way to eat organ meats.
That's where all of this week's cooking comes in. I made the fruit leather (more like chips) from strawberries that had been in the freezer for far too long. I made the cheese from the last quart of milk in our fridge, about to go rancid. And the "sausage" was made from a bag of chicken gizzards, hearts, and livers that I found in the freezer. I've always wanted to try making sausage. I knew that I would never, ever eat the innards as they were, so it was the perfect time to use the Kitchen Aid meat grinder I got for Christmas... in 2015.
It turned out pretty good, for the ingredients I had on hand. I added some wine vinegar, oil and spices to the ground organ meats, then cooked it up and froze it in muffin-size portions. We tried some on baked potatoes and in soup, and it wasn't that bad! I HATE the taste of liver, and to be honest, seeing it come out of the grinder grossed me out a lot. I wasn't sure I'd be able to eat it. Hubs likes liver, so he thought it was pretty good. I thought it was a tolerable way to eat organ meats.
Cooked "sausage", ready for the freezer.
I've already found another (smaller) bag of organ meats in the fridge to make into sausage. I think next time around I will put more actual meat in, and probably some fat as well, to balance out the organ meats.
I also put up a Youtube video about how I make hash in the Instant Pot. Hash is another excellent way to use up those bits and pieces and reduce food waste!
3. Clothing: Organized baby clothes. I've had a real problem with organizing hand-me-downs in an easy to access way. I needed an inventory to see precisely what I had and what I still needed. Last month I made a list of things I'm looking for, but I didn't have a list of what I already had.
I also put Baby's current wardrobe on hangers beneath her cloth diapers, for easier access. Then I used sandwich bags to hold socks, tights and/or pants for each outfit. My parents used to do this for my younger siblings, so they didn't come out of the laundry room, mismatched, wearing another sibling's clothes. My brother called them "uniforms."
When I organized Baby's clothes in a way that allowed me to SEE everything, I realized what she did and didn't wear. Hint: she wears the same five outfits over and over because those are the ones I like the best. Of course, I kept some extra outfits, but the least favorite ones went into the donate pile.
4. Personal Care: Scored some free toothpaste at Kroger with coupons. Yay!
5. Household: Lastly, I made some more reusable tissues. I've had the squares cut out for weeks, but procrastinated on threading the serger. Finally, I got around to doing it! Now I have one color plaid for tissues and another color plaid that I'm using for cleaning/paper towels. I keep a stack of both colors in the kitchen, and another in the bathroom, with a hanging wet bag nearby.
SO, that's about it for this week! If you haven't done so already, be sure to let me know what your favorite giveaway prize is by completing my survey.
Til next time,
Bethany
I also put up a Youtube video about how I make hash in the Instant Pot. Hash is another excellent way to use up those bits and pieces and reduce food waste!
3. Clothing: Organized baby clothes. I've had a real problem with organizing hand-me-downs in an easy to access way. I needed an inventory to see precisely what I had and what I still needed. Last month I made a list of things I'm looking for, but I didn't have a list of what I already had.
I also put Baby's current wardrobe on hangers beneath her cloth diapers, for easier access. Then I used sandwich bags to hold socks, tights and/or pants for each outfit. My parents used to do this for my younger siblings, so they didn't come out of the laundry room, mismatched, wearing another sibling's clothes. My brother called them "uniforms."
When I organized Baby's clothes in a way that allowed me to SEE everything, I realized what she did and didn't wear. Hint: she wears the same five outfits over and over because those are the ones I like the best. Of course, I kept some extra outfits, but the least favorite ones went into the donate pile.
4. Personal Care: Scored some free toothpaste at Kroger with coupons. Yay!
5. Household: Lastly, I made some more reusable tissues. I've had the squares cut out for weeks, but procrastinated on threading the serger. Finally, I got around to doing it! Now I have one color plaid for tissues and another color plaid that I'm using for cleaning/paper towels. I keep a stack of both colors in the kitchen, and another in the bathroom, with a hanging wet bag nearby.
SO, that's about it for this week! If you haven't done so already, be sure to let me know what your favorite giveaway prize is by completing my survey.
Til next time,
Bethany
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