Meal Planning on a Budget

I know everyone has noticed how our grocery bills have gone up over the last few years.  I'm preaching to the choir. I know! I know! And there are so many ideas on the internet on how to save money on meals that it seems overwhelming to even know where to start.  Well this month I've decided to bite the bullet and really I mean really budget my grocery bill.

First off shop my pantry and freezer.

I was surprised at what I forgot I had. I planned the week using what I had on hand as a starting point and then found recipes that included those items.

First on the list- frozen ham bone from Christmas.

So tonight ham and lima bean soup!

 

 

I have never made this before. I probably should have called my mother but the internet made it look so easy.  LOL

I have been slow cooking the bone and beans all day. Just 4 quarts of water the ham bone and 1 lb of frozen lima beans.  Now that it is cooking and making the house smell so wonderful I wish I had thought to get the ingredients to make cornbread but we had crackers in the pantry.  If its as good as it smells I will definitely remember the cornbread for next time!


What are some tricks you've learned to help stretch your dollars when it comes to meal planning?  Let us know in the comments below.   I would love to hear from you.

Newborn Bunny Photo Prop

Is this winter getting you down?  I thought  Punxsutawny Phil said we were to have an early spring this year?  It's so cold and windy here in Texas and up north there are record braking blizzards that just won't seem to stop!

With all this cold and being stuck indoors I was glad when a friend of mine who has a photography business commissioned me to make a bunny newborn photo prop.  I was glad for the work because it helped get me out of my winter time blah mood. I got the pattern from Snassy Crafter at Etsy.com You can click HERE to see her shop.   It turned out better than I thought but when I saw it actually on a newborn I was wowed by the cuteness.  My friend really did a great job with lighting and positioning.  She now wants a ladybug for her collection of props and I can't wait to get started! Just the thing to keep those winter blues away.

 

 

 

DAR George Washington Luncheon

One of the best parts of being a member of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution is attending events that stir up patriotic pride.  I love the swell of emotion one feels knowing we belong to one of the greatest nations on earth.  Today I attended our chapter's George Washington Luncheon.  The decorations were so cute and festive.  I love seeing the ladies who wear period costumes and the men also.  I would love to attempt making my own someday.

 

After our traditional opening ceremony of the pledge to the American flag, reciting of the America's Creed and Preamble, the singing of the National Anthem and pledge to the Texas flag, our regent gave a brief introduction to the event

 

 

 

George Washington, our first president, was born in Virginia on February 11, 1731, according to the then-used Julian calendar. In 1752 Britain and all its colonies adopted the Gregorian calendar, which then placed George Washington's birth on February 22, 1732.  Beginning with the 100^th Anniversary of his birth in 1832 citizens of the United States have been celebrating the birth of our first president in some manner, as we are doing today

 

Then Linda gave a brief history on toasting of our first president and we all joined in a toast of our own.

 

 

 

After lunch we sang Happy Birthday and then our guest speaker a former CIA member told us the story of our first spy Nathan Hale of his capture and famous saying

 

"I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country"

 

It was a wonder day and I look forward to next year.  Maybe I'll even have my own costume by then too.

 

 

 

National Margarita Day and Happy Birthday George!

As a huge fan of Jimmy Buffett (aka parrothead) I was well aware of National Margarita Day today but as I glanced at the calendar I also noticed it is our first president George Washington's birthday!  And though Im sure Washington never had the pleasure of this tropical drink (his favorite was a sweet porter) I raise my glass and say thank you George for setting the bar high and being an awesome first president helping to make this country the great country it is! May I never take for granted the sacrifice of the lives and fortunes of our patriots which gave us the rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness which of course includes a great margarita!

Happy National Margarita Day and Happy Birthday George!

The Feel of Spring

You would think with all the cold weather keeping me inside I would be so on top of my blog posts and handmade projects for my shop. Wrong! There must be some truth to the correlation between low amounts of sunlight hours and depression.  Of course I'm not depressed but just feeling blah a lot of time and have taken way too many naps and watched way too much TV.

So anyway I was at the salon today getting that pesky grey colored and flipping through all the new March issues of my favorite magazines.  It was just what I needed to put that spark back in my days. I'm all excited about getting a garden started and making all kinds of cute spring bright colored projects for my shop.

My first project is a bunny outfit for a newborn. And the second is a baby quilt for a dear friend who's having her first baby in May.

Can't wait to show you the finished products!

So what are you doing to help bring spring a little earlier to your life?
Leave your comments below.  I'd love to hear from you.

 Happy Crafting!