5 thing Friday - planners, wreath, purging piles, sheets, rotisserie chicken

Last week I pulled down the box full of planners I store in my closet, just to have a look through them.

And I thought "What if I didn't keep these?  What bad thing would happen?"  And I had another epiphany:  holding onto these planners is like holding onto the past.

I sat in my office with the recycle bin and shredder on one side and the planners on the other side.  (Some of the planners had info in them that needed to be shredded.)

RIP planners from 1992 to 2023.  I actually might have shed a tear.  Looking back through them one last time I thought about how different my life is now, in both little and big ways.

The comically large wreath on my door.  It didn't seem this huge in the store; it is a big pop of color, for sure. I just wanted something colorful, on sale, with no crafting on my part. I got it.

Another round of purging and more things I don't want.   I reserved a bulky pick up with City of Austin and got Bubbie to help me haul it all to the street.  In another donation pile I still have: a steel table, BBQ charcoal, a microwave, camp coffee pot, and a silver tray.  I don't want money for them.  I simply want them out of my life. I'm going to find people to offer those to.

I bought myself some new flannel sheets.  They are silky soft and soothing, the perfect color, and were on sale.  We are currently experiencing warm weather in Austin, but I know that February usually brings us a bit of icy weather.  I will be snug and ready.

What's the first thing you do when you bring home a rotisserie chicken?  I eat the drums almost immediately!  Then I portion and store the rest, making stock with the bones.  HEB now has these for $4.97 and I had to grab one up for some easy meals.  Next week I will not post menus, and I am figuring it all out.  I feel like a college kid who just got her first kitchen - what do I feel like eating?  Besides rotisserie chicken, that is!

Gina

Monday menus #109 - the last one

I ordered a tap light bar that fits perfectly on the pantry door frame. 

It doesn't light all of the shelves, but enough so that I can pull baskets out a bit and look through them.  It also adds a bit of ambience to the kitchen when I don't want the overhead lights on, but mostly I keep this door closed.  Either way, me like.

Monday - kitchen closed

Tuesday - One Pot Chili Mac (cook once, eat several times!), kale salad {start my February home project list*}

Wednesday - Calamity Chicken (never made this 2 weeks ago), twice baked potato, spinach

Thursday - Classic Greek Salad (add chicken sausage cubes) {replace air filters}

Friday - One Pot Chili Mac (freeze the rest in containers), kale salad {payday}

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed 

I think this may be my last menus post. I have posted my Cannary Family menus for the last few years and there are literally hundreds of them, shaped by whatever was happening in our lives and how many people I was feeding!  I am cooking far less than I did when I had a full house, and I would like to focus less on the planning/shopping/cooking aspect of my life now. I may post about it from time to time; I like to try new recipes and foods, so we'll see what direction that takes me!

Gina

*prune the crepe myrtles, get the dryer vent cleaned, spiff up guest bathroom, touch up paint in guest room}

5 thing Friday - crockpot pork, baking, new filing cabinet, thrifting, books

Its been a long week. I'm glad its Friday.

Last week I put a bunch of pork shoulder in my crockpot and froze at least ten meals of around 5 oz each of the most delicious pork.  I seasoned it with S&P, cumin, chilies, garlic, onions.  I'm going to eat it in tacos, on salads, and mixed into various other things.

I also found a can of pumpkin from the holidays and made some moist pumpkin bread. One loaf went into the freezer and the other has been slowly disappearing. I also used up the last of the chocolate chips on cookies for Bubbie and me.

Last Friday I found exactly the right size filing cabinet I was looking for at Habitat Restore - $5.  They even loaded it into Brigid for me!

The one I had was just too large for my purposes.  The top two drawers were mostly empty and the remaining drawers had plenty of space.

I removed all of the files, pulled the tall cabinet out, then cleaned up the area and added an extra shelf. My plan is to go through all of my files before I put them back - I'm sure I will have plenty to shred.

I will sand and seal the shelves, paint the walls, then make a space for my stepstool and "new" file cabinet to live here.  I will show it when its all done!

Thrifting last week also netted me this Snoopy mug for $2. I got rid of all the kids' Christmas mugs, so now I have room for Gina mugs.

And my favorite little Goodwill now prices all of their books at $2 each so I got some new things to read.  Right now I am halfway done with The Things They Carried.  Its been a week of introspection and organization here at Camp Rustown.  I am ready for my workweek to begin!

Gina

Monday menus #108

One day last week,  I wanted muffins but I also wanted to add sausage, and food prep it for the weekend, so here's what I came up with: 

I buttered three small dishes, added 3 Brown & Serve sausages to each, then poured over some muffin batter and baked until browned on top. I packaged 2 of them up for easy work breakfasts.

Monday - kitchen closed {but this has become my Chik-fil-A day}

Tuesday - BBQ Pork Chop, twice baked potato, green beans {telehealth appt., meeting a friend}

Wednesday - Steak Bites, salad with bleu cheese dressing {to Starbucks to journal}

Thursday - Coconut Shrimp, Fried Rice (make two meals) {PCP appt. day}

Friday - Seasoned Chicken Drums, Chopped Salad, a healthy dose of self care {Mark's Birthday}

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed

How are we this close to February already?

Gina

5 thing Friday - jewelry repair, home spaces, Friday Soup, journaling, furniture plans

 Whenever I take jewelry in for cleaning or repair, it makes me feel like I am getting brand new things.

It was great to get my birthstone ring resized, the gold and silver puzzle ring straightened and soldered, and the small gold toe ring repaired.  The jeweler also fixed a silver Greek key bracelet for me, taking out a link.  And he's going to work on a lapis ring and bracelet that I inherited from Mom.

What to do with this space?  Almost exactly two years ago, I was about to turn it into a sewing and crafting space, then Scout needed to come home, so I left it as a guest room.  I want to replace all of the carpeting in the house, so I may wait until then to decide.  

When my mother was working in Saudi Arabia she would make "Friday Soup" each week, stretching her food dollars and using up dibs and dabs of leftovers.  Tuesday cold snap was the perfect time for me to make my own Friday Soup!

In my mini crockpot I put two small boneless chicken thighs, the rest of a package of frozen corn, some frozen chickpeas, a too-ripe tomato, a cubed potato, some frozen broth, and seasonings.  I let it go all day, then made butter dip biscuits to go with and it was very comforting.

A friend gave me a Starbucks gift card so I have been taking myself to coffee once a week.  I also sit and journal in my Shutterfly freebie notebook.  Cheap thrills and it gets me out of the house. Plus, journaling helps me organize my thoughts.

Another space to spiff - my office.  I would love to paint the desks this year, to make it look brighter and more cohesive in here.  I'm looking at Dixie Belle paint colors.  The space functions well for me, but I might also add a different seating situation in here so I can still use part of the room as my reading nook.  Gradually, all of my home spaces will fit my purposes!

Gina

Monday menus #107

First cross stitch of the year completed.  Next up is a punch needle kit. 

And I'm still working on my 1500 piece puzzle and powering through some new books.  Last year I read 34 books - hopefully I will increase that this year.

Monday - kitchen closed

Tuesday - Calamity Chicken, small baked potato, green beans {on call}

Wednesday - Shredded Pork Tacos with pico de gallo {on call}

Thursday - Crockpot Chicken Chili {doing some purging in the garage after Scout's move}

Friday - Shrimp Ramen Soup {payday, clean fridge and freezer out}

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed

Dessert this week is Berry Cobbler

Gina

Little project: kitchen pantry

 In a little over a month I am going to be an empty nester!

No time like the present to clean and organize this pantry.  There are several aspects of it that I needed to spruce up.

The red gingham shelf liner is several years old and showing some major wear and tear. I wanted to replace it with a neutral color.

This shelf is where I would like to put long term food storage. Right now it is home to baskets of Scout's stuff.  And I wanted to find another place for those things on the very top shelf to make room for Mom's antique enamelware.

The baking shelf needs some organization, and I want to move away from using the enamelware for food storage (onions and potatoes).

Its also pretty dark in there.

I started by pulling everything out, including the old shelf liner, and wiped down the shelves.

On the very top shelf, I placed all of the smaller enamelware - there are larger pieces hanging in the garage.  I even hung several of them, as well as the rattan placemats. Might as well make something pretty to look at!

I gave the shelf edges and walls a quick touch up with white semi-gloss.  (I like Rustoleum Painter's Touch - easy to use, quick drying, water-based) I also removed a couple of command hooks I no longer use here, and found a different way to store the firepit kindling.

I tried to group things together best I could, but I still need to get a canned food storage system in here instead of using those plastic bins.

I'm also thinking of adding a rechargeable motion detector light.  And I want to keep the floor area clear of clutter.  For now though, the whole pantry is cleaner and brighter, making it easier to see what I have and what I need.  Another small January project done!

Gina

If you are here, thank you

 My blog is my little corner of the web where I write about my family and home - the two most important things to me.  Its not meant as an example of "how to do it", rather a place to share my family's life with whomever cares to read about it.  For that reason, you will notice it is not monetized or sponsored in any way.  I love all of the positive comments I get and I love following other blogs, too! 

So if you are here in my little corner of the world, cheering me on and celebrating life with me, thank you! You will likely have noticed that the focus of my posts have shifted as my life has. I think its interesting to write about how a family changes over the years, and that's the title of this blog after all.  I also write a blog about my thoughts at It's Just Me, Gina, where I do a fair amount of rambling.  Read along if you like, don't if you don't want to.  I am thankful to have had a platform to journal about my life for all these years.

Warmly,

Gina

Monday menus #106

Shutterfly keeps sending me freebies, so I oblige them. 

A beautiful photo that Scout took years ago on a campout became a mousepad for my shared desk at work.  When I'm not there, my hope is that my co-workers feel inspired by it as well!

Monday - kitchen closed {freebie chicken nuggets and kale salad from Chik-Fil-A!}

Tuesday - Green Curry Pasta with Shrimp and Spinach {telehealth appt.}

Wednesday - Italian Chicken and Rice (two meals), green beans {meet with dietician}

Thursday - Brisket Salad with spring mix, purple onion, tomato, jalapenos, pickles, and lo-cal Ranch

Friday - Eat out {Scout moving to new apartment!}

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed  {Happy Birthday, Firstborn!}

Gina

5 thing Friday - deer, books, thrifting, sink project, shoes

 Its very hard to see below, but those are a dozen deer staring me down from a neighbor's yard while I was on my walk.  That's a big nope for me, so I turned around.  Did you know that whitetail deer may actually chase you? At Highlands, they would snort and stamp and you knew to give them a wide clearance.

In NW Austin where the population of deer are so high, they are no longer afraid of humans and have acted aggressively, chasing joggers!  I would rather take the avoidance tack.

After my dentist appointment, I took myself to Half Price Books and got three new reads and a puzzle, then ate a KFC chicken sammie in my car while I watched a Brene Brown video.

Conveniently located next door is a Goodwill, so I stopped in and found this pretty Coldwater Creek long sleeve blouse for $6.  A kinda fun day.

The situation under the kitchen sink.  Not terrible, but I have wanted one of those vinyl cabinet liners for a while now.  There is some shelf liner down there, but any water spills can still cause problems (ask me how I know).

The vinyl liner has a lip to hold spills in and is the exact size of the space.

I pulled everything out of the cabinet and gave it a wipe down.  I'm just going to leave the shelf liner in place as the subfloor to this cabinet is warped and ugly.  Some of the things got tossed or went to live elsewhere.

Then I placed the new liner inside, with all of the stuff I use often. Neat! Literally.

Someone take my credit card away.

I ordered myself THREE pair of shoes this month.  One pair to replace the disintegrating ones.  Then two more pair of casual shoes to help me with outfits I already own.  The thing with my foot (bursitis?) is still happening, so comfortable well-supportive shoes are a must. Its a good thing I worked some overtime over the holidays.  That, and being so darn cute.  Ha!

Gina

Monday menus #105

 On New Year's Eve, I decided that it was as good a day as any to take down the Christmas decor.  I got everything organized and stored, house cleaned and smelling nice, then took myself to get Chinese take-out.  I would say it was a pretty good New Year's Eve.

And then on New Year's Day, I worked, and it was quite pleasant.  We are off to a great start at Camp Rustown - just gotta keep our heads up and our eyes straight forward.

Monday - kitchen closed

Tuesday - 5 Ingredient Cranberry Chicken, (freezer) masheds, salad

Wednesday - Taco Rice Bowls {dentist appt.}

Thursday - Steak for One, zucchini

Friday - Rotisserie Seasoned Chicken Breast Strips over chopped salad {payday}

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed

Gina

5 thing Friday - Mesmerica XL, Boomer, hearts, winter prep, puzzle progress

 The week before Christmas I took myself to a show at the Bob Bullock Museum in Austin:

This was the screensaver as we were seated - you wore 3D glasses for the show and couldn't take photos.  I don't know how anyone would anyway - it was mesmerizing.  I went to a late show and the garage parking was free.  If you are in Austin, I highly recommend!

I haven't been here in years - it was one of the field trip locations I took my kids to in the summer.

I had zero issues with traffic making my way downtown, parked easily, and had a good time - all solo.

The therapy dog that comes to see us once a month or so on Mondays has his own name badge WITH an award pin.  He goes directly to you and leans against you for pets and love.  We love on him for about 20 minutes then pass the lint roller around.  Worth it.

After I put Christmas up, I did a tiny bit of purging.  These vintage-y glass hearts were from Pottery Barn from at least 20 years ago.  They will find a new home with The Girl.  Six was our lucky number!

I noticed this flap of gutter guard about to fall and I sincerely hope its not because a squirrel decided to nest in the gutter.  It is on my Friday list of things to deal with.  I got the faucet covers put on and I think the plants are safe for now.  Winter usually begins for us in January.

Slow progress on the puzzle, but there's no deadline.  I will look for smaller ones at Goodwill next time I go, but this one was a gift from Scout and I turn off my mind and listen to music while I work on it.  So much better than doom scrolling!

Happy Weekend,

Gina