Month's End

January has seemed to both fly and drag at times for me.  Not sure why.  I never feel my best this time of year and I'm sure that has some to do with it.  We've also had a lot going on and that will continue to be the case for a while.  No worries though -- just part of normal life around here.

On the Eat Down the Pantry Challenge we did fairly well.  I picked up a few odd things during the month, but nowhere near our normal spending.  It was nice to rotate some things out, too.  We used up bits and pieces from the basket.  I used up odd bits of condiments in the fridge.  We uses up all the bread flour, which amazed me.  (to be fair I still have 10 lbs of all purpose flour, cornmeal, and a five gallon bucket of wheat)  Daughter tried new dishes and liked some (like beef and broccoli) but didn't care for others as much (like the enchiladas).  However, she did say she'd like the enchiladas better with beef than sausage...go figure!

Even with 2 meals of eating out we came in at under half our budget.  To be fair, I have a pretty generous budget.  I, however, don't separate out animal food, cleaning supplies and miscellaneous supplies so I have a hard time telling you an exact number for just food.  It's okay though...this system works for us and that is what life is about -- finding what works for you.

Today is the last day of the month and neither daughter nor I are feeling well.  We didn't even make it to town yesterday since she got up with a fever and sore throat.  (We're going next Thursday instead.)  Turned out to be good because by mid afternoon I was alternating between hot and cold.  Even with cold medicine at bed time I tossed and turned most of the night -- in part I'm sure to the howling wind.

I talked to hubby about extending the challenge one more week and he was fine with that.  Although he did stop and pick up a dozen eggs for me.

With all that in mind, I put on soup in the slow cooker this morning.  I'm completely out of carrots and celery and was at a loss as to what to use to season the broth when I remembered that I hadn't used my soup bag.  My soup bag is just a freezer bag that I pop all those odd bits in -- like the ends of celery, carrots, etc-- that nobody wants to eat.  I normally make them into broth separately, but since I didn't have the foresight to plan  I've added that bag, some bouillon, and two chicken breasts to the slow cooker.  Added a few seasonings like garlic, onion, etc.  and I'll let them cook together for a while.   Then I'll simply drain the veggies out and chop the chicken.  I haven't decided if we'll be having chowder or if we'll be having chicken and rice soup, but I have a little time on that one.