Christmas done but still smiling!!!

Well we had to postpone Christmas until late last night, about 10pm. One of the unfortunate things about hubby working for the railroad..is you never know when he is going to be home, He is on call 24 hrs, 7 days. We had a really nice, non stressful night last night, Everyone seemed happy and content, It was really really nice. We had a ham and scalloped potato dinner with pumpkin pie, green bean casserole, spinach dip with veggie tray. I had all ingredients on hand so no running to the store......YEAH.
Today I spent cleaning up, I kicked everyone out ( Sent them to the bowling alley) and cleaned cleaned cleaned. OHHHH the house looks so nice, I had an extra hour before they got home to just enjoy the cleanliness. I was very happy to see they took extra care tonight to keep it clean for me. All in all this was the best Christmas thus far. Nothing really notable, Just quiet, content, laid back. I miss it already!!!!!! Hope you all had your best Christmas thus far too !!!!!

Getting ready for christmas

I am getting ready for Christmas today, I want a very laid back no fuss Christmas this year. I have given myself permission to be free. I cleaned the house this morning, A shortened spring clean type clean. Scrubbed every little corner. I am done. I will not do much until December 27th. I have the last load in the dryer, all sheets and blankets have been washed too. I will spend tomorrow making up some of the food that can be made up ahead of time. Then just the big stuff will need to be done on Christmas eve and day. I really really want to enjoy this year and not be caught up in the fact that everything is perfectly perfect. I never live in perfectly perfect and this year I am gonna enjoy the mess. Of course, no one will see me on Dec. 27th, Cause I will be back in mode come 7am, And I will curse myself hourly for "letting this house go" ahhhhh, (sip of coffee) I know myself so well!!!!!!! MERRY CHRISTMAS TO MEEEEEEE

Is there anything better then goulash????

I make goulash atleast 6 times a month. We love it!!!! I make it on the stovetop, or sometimes I put it in the crockpot. It is really filling, So the only I ever serve with it is homemade applesauce, or tonight was homemade applesauce and throw those pears in that are gonna go bad sauce!!! I always feel complete when I make this, Maybe that is why I make it so much. Everyone gobbles up and wants seconds. It is so cheap and so easy, I love it love it love it.
Goulash (stove top recipe)
1 lb hamburger
1 can tomato paste( 1 large can or 2 small ones)
1 can tomato sauce(1 large can or 2 small ones)
water
celery
onion
salt pepper
macaroni noodles or any darn noodle you have on hand.
Sometimes If I remember a can of corn.
Fill up pot about 3/4 way with water ( I use a stockpot)
bring to boil, crumble hamburger into boiling water, add celery and onion. Boil until hamburger is no longer pink. Add tomato sauce and paste, Stir till dossolved. Add macaroni noodles, cook till done. Salt and pepper to taste. Right before you serve this you can add a can of corn, I add liquid and all.
I do sprinkle in a pinch of sugar in anything I serve with a tomato base, tomato sauces, spaghetti sauces give me acid, and the sugar cures that for me. It is not enough to taste, but does the trick for me.

What someone's waste would buy me

I was just reading emily's post over at www.under1000permonth.blogspot.com about wrapping paper ideas. I posted about seeing a woman spend $79 just on wrapping paper. Every time I see this type of spending, I can't help but think what that could buy for our family. I do this everytime I see something wasted, I can't help it, I have an illness, hahahaha. So let's take that $79 wrapping paper amount and see what we could buy that is actually useful......
$79 would buy our family
#1- 30 gallons of milk
#2- 5 huge boxes of powdered milk
#3- my amazon.com wish list-apple peeler corer, food dehydrator, root beer making kit, -my $20 gift cards from swagbucks, and I could add a bit more to that list.
#4- enough paint to paint every room in our 2500 sq. ft. house
#5- @.99 lb when on sale for pork chops, 79 lbs.
I sometimes don't even realize that I am doing this, I just see things and my mind thinks, maybe too much sometimes.
Wrapping paper to me is just wasteful spending. It is something that most just throw away. I just keep everything, and use it the next year. I have a huge bin full of bags, wrappings, ribbons etc., enough to last years, then I just keep adding to it. If by chance I used it all, I still would not buy new stuff, I would use newspaper or whatever I had that would work. I know my kids would rather have something else they needed then expensive wrapping, I took a poll, not one kid or hubby or I would want wrapping instead of something else we really wanted or needed, Well the 2 year old just stared at me but I took that as a no, :). What waste have you seen lately and what could you buy your family with that?

Going to the store during the holiday's makes me sad.

I purposely get my stockpile at it's largest during the holiday season, To avoid the stores. Plus I do not have the same ability as my hubby does to go in, get only what is on the list and leave. He does not mind going and getting them for me, and this saves us money. Well he had to work today, and I had to get some milk, Been pumping out yogurt just as the kids are gobbling it up. It made me rather sad, I know this sounds crazy, But every year when I go to the store so close to Christmas it makes me sad. Sad for a lot of the people that are shopping. Sometimes I want to run up to them and tell them, I know I have been there, But you can't buy their love. Some of them, just seem to grab things randomly, piles and piles of STUFF. They seem in a trance, like not even realizing what they are buying. Am I nuts or does anyone else notice this and feel bad for them. The funniest part is they look at me in the express lane with my brood and probably think, How sad she can only afford milk!!!

Day of reflection

I have been reflecting alot today, about the past year or more. I want to make some real big changes this next year or two. I love learning, I will never stop! There is nothing I don't want to do or learn, Well within reason and law. I have learned alot this year, I learned how to make my own yogurt, Which my family hated store bought yogurt but loves homemade. I make all my own breads. I cut my paper towel use down by more then half. I have tried to get more organized, This will take me longer! Lots of things I did. This next year, I want to learn better ways of dealing with my 5 year olds, (adhd), I want to recognize that having twins with it, seems at times like it is worse than it is. I want to enjoy them more, as much as I do the baby. I want to make amends with my 14 year old, if there is such a thing with 14 year olds. I want to be a better wife to my husband, I am critical, and after 15 years together this coming march, I need to recognize that he is safe. I brought alot of baggage into our relationship, two kids, Just coming out of an abusive marriage, Parents who were less then loving. I think that the hubby thing must be top priority and then maybe the rest will fall in place. This will be a year of letting go of that baggage, of letting myself go and be vulnerable. Surely if I can get milk to turn into yogurt, and dough to become bread, I can do this, Learn this. With god all things are possible, And I know he will be right there with me just like he always has, Even when I didn't know it. Yes a year of learning and changing and great things.

Is this house ever clean????

Ever spend all day cleaning, Sit down maybe 5 minutes during the day and at the end of it all, Everything looks dirty!!!! Ugghhhh I had that day today. I cleaned and cleaned, Felt at times like I spring cleaned!!! I sat down tonight and everything just looked a mess to me, no different then when I started. I thought and thought and thought and then thought some more. Why? I started to look around and really notice things, Although I have been delving further and further into frugalness and wasting less, I have been trying to reuse-reuse-reuse, It seems like more is coming in then going out. It also does not help that I have been watching to new show on A&E Hoarders, Not that I am a hoarder, I am not emotionally attached to anything. My problem is that I am a great organizer, I really am, I have all the tools, all the knowledge to help me organize. My problem as I see it is I just move things around. So I am adding to my New years resolution list. Organize to reduce stress. I omit steps of organizing rules, even though I know I shouldn't. Like, having the boxes for donating and throw away and storage. I tend to always think I will use that some day I am sure, Or I will have a yard sale, Which I might add I have not had in 10 years, Because I hate having them. So I have my list ready, When the Christmas stuff comes down, My organizing the CORRECT way goes in to effect. I will have my boxes, give away, throw away, keep. I have it quite lofty at a 30% reduction in stuff. I have given myself in my timeline/outline 3 months to do this, With the side note that nothing comes into this house, Unless...
#1 I am out of it.
#2 It is a food product, or my general stockpile.
#3 Christmas or birthday gifts.
#4 If say I get a new couch, The old one goes. I get a new crock pot, The old barely working one goes.
Wish my luck, give me suggestions, No doubt I need em.
Helppppppp me be free, free of stuff that has no meaning or use!!!!!!!