Week #41 Try, Try Again

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

Boy this blogging thing is no joke. I hit a bit of a hiatus early this year. Often life happens, and family is first for this ol'gal. But, I'm back and ready to share with vigor once again.  

Collecting God's bounty has been a family tradition for generations.

This is a picture of my mother. If it wasn't for the date stamp I would have sworn this was a picture of my daughter. Spitt'n image, down to the nose crinkle.  One thing I am grateful I have learned from Nana is how to recognize the bounty of the land. She taught me that provision is all round us, all we have to do is to collect it. That is true for so much more than food.

Literally

I haven't been apple picking since I was a girl. I tried to persuade my husband and teenage daughters to participate to no avail. After a couple of weeks of planting seeds all seemed fruitless. Than I woke one fated Saturday morning and had an epiphany, I don't have to take everyone along with me. My little fella was all to excited to go on the adventure with me and we had a glorious fall day. We picked a 1/2 bushel of various green apples, a 1/2 bushel of various red apples and a peck just for Nana & Papa.
That's a bushel and a peck!
Now, what are we going to do with all these apples!

Fall ='s APPLES!

Just for fun, and cause I had a rainy day with no solid plans, I tried my had at applesauce, apple "skin" jelly, baked apple donuts, and an apple beef stew. 

The sauce is fab but the jelly quickly turned into hard candy the instant I poured it in into the jars.

The snack and stew went over well but I still have 2/3eds of my apples. 

I'm gonna need to get creative here folks.

This Week We Purchased The Following: 

milk, cool whip, balsamic vinegar, gallon Ziploc bags, sour cream,
2lb onions, pepperoni, black beans, yellow cake mix, green peppers, 
granola, frozen corn, tomatoes, cream cheese

The total spent was $28.11

Our allotted budget is $130 but the goal is to stay under $100

How did that happen you ask? I played "Old Mother Hubbard's Cupboard"

Knowing what you have on hand and not blindly purchasing at the store
is a big budget lifesaver!

Breakfast Options For The Week

Cereal/Oatmeal 

Bacon Egg & Cheese Biscuits (use left over biscuits from Mon)

Apple Sausage Breakfast Casserole 

South of the Border Donuts 

Easy Apple Fritters

Fruit & Yogurt

It just so happens to be a rainy weekend
here with no big plans, so I thought I'd find
some ways to use up all these apples.
More cooking then usual for me.

Monday:

Lunch - Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup

Dinner - Crock-Pot Boston Butt Shoulder for Pulled Pork,
Gravy, Side Salad, Biscuits

Tuesday:

Lunch - BBQ Pork Sandwiches (use LO)

Dinner - Grilled Chicken Chiptole Sandwiches, Side Salad

Wednesday:

Lunch - Mini Pizza Bites

Dinner - Pork Pot Pie 

(just like Chicken but use LO)

                                (also I make the filling and pour it over biscuits - quick n easy)

Thursday: 

Lunch - Egg Salad Wraps

Dinner - California Halibut Bake, Side Salad

Friday:

Lunch - Egg Drop Soup OR PB &J

Dinner - Marinated Beef Kabobs, Au Gratin Taters (with sweet potatoes), Side Salad

Saturday:

Lunch - Fabo Pizza, Pizza Dough

Dinner - Chicken Chiptole Bites, Sweet Potato Wedges, Steamed Broccoli

Sunday:

Lunch: Fridge Dive

Dinner: Missional Group - Pick a Snack - I'm thinking Cheese Ball

Snacks:

• Apple Granola Bars  
• Cinnamon Apple Cherry Cheeseball w/Sliced Apples
• Hard Boiled Eggs
• Honey Granola Crunch Bars  
• Apple Pie  
• Apple Crisp & Vanilla Ice Cream
• Popcorn

Drinks:

• Coffee and Hot Tea
• Water - that's a biggie here
• Hot Chocolate
• Apple Cider (Hot or Cold - Yum)
• MYO Arizona Green Tea 
• MYO Lemonade Concentrate 

I Don't Leave Home Without It

I generally plan on Wed when I have 30 minutes before mass chaos begins.

I shop on Fri so our family menus (posted on the fridge) run from Fri to Thur.

How do I keep it all straight without pulling my hair out? I use Pepperplate.   

This site/App keeps all my recipes, super easy to upload from other sites, 

my shopping list which automatically uploads, my weekly/monthly planner, 

AAAND  (with best infomercial voice I can muster)   So Much More! 
(Nope I didn't get paid to say that either.)

Romans 8:26

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.