Out with the old, in with the new

A clean slate.  It's the best thing about the new year even though in reality nothing really changed, it is a definitive end of one thing and the beginning of another.  So what if my imaginary list of resolutions from 2010 remains unchanged, just make a new one!  I had some pretty high hopes for 2010 and each was met with reluctance and resistance.  For every hope I had there was something standing by with the intention of smashing it. In the end though I feel we came out at the top regardless of all the disruptions we had.

I may not hold a candle to Julia Childs, or Betty Crocker.  P-dub would probably be embarassed of all the things of hers I attempted that resulted in disaster.  Alton Brown would scoff at my claim of being a scientist.  Its OK though! I became a better cook, I am more conscientious of the origions of my food, I have taught my children the importance of eating "good" food.  With all that being said, I did change up my blog a little, I will have to take the time to figure some of that other stuff out.  But I like the new look, it is definately my style. 

So here's to the new year! New friends, new house, new cooking fails and successes, new semester, and most of all new hope. 

Hello? Remember me?

I know I don't have a ton of readers, and hopefully someday that will change, but I think that to earn more readers, I need to write more.  As I'm sitting here, I am thinking about many many things.  I find myself here, nearly a year after the first time I posted, once again watching Julie and Julia.  This is what inspired me to blog, its also partly what inspired me to start cooking.  I can honestly say I am a much better cook now than I was a year ago yet there is so much more I want to learn.  I have decided that I need to give my blog a new look, and between now and the new year I will totally overhaul my blog.  I will try to enlist the help of my computer savvy husband and by New Years I want to launch my brand new look. If there is something you think will improve my blog PLEASE shoot me a message and give me advice. 

This blog began mostly as a foodie blog, but it has turned into a few other things.  I'd like to make a distinct seperation within my blog for the things I would like to talk about so it doesnt seem so random.  I will do some linky link-ups to make my blog flow better and direct you to previous topics.    Overall I just want it to look nicer and flow better.

Meanwhile, here is my life in a minute:

I finished my third semester with an A in one class and probably a B in the other, We are getting the boot for the second time in 8 months because of owner foreclosure and will have to find a new place to live yet again and even though we want to buy I am not sure if we will be able to, I dislike my job very much and want nothing more than to get a job in a different field yet I stick with it because it pays well and its usually pretty easy, My husband and I got a Kitchenaid mixer (more on that later) and it has become a fixed appliance in our kitchen and it helped me to successfully make good dinner rolls for the first time ever, I have a to do list a mile long of things to accomplish while on Christmas break, among these are create my own personal cookbook with all my tried and true recipes, clean my house, organize my finances, spend time with the kids, begin packing, and hopefully bust out the old sewing machine..whew, I'm tired just writing that.

Please stay tuned for my reveal and launch of the new Tales From a Misfit Housewife blog a couple of weeks away.  In the meantime.. tomorrow my bird hunting enthusiast husband is going to attempt to bring home some duck.  If I haven't learned many things, I have learned this... each bird brings its own challenges.  So this means I will have to learn to cook a duck.  Not to mention learning to eat them.  I have so far loved all the different kinds he has brought home; hungarian partridge, quail, dove, pheasant and chukar, so next up will be duck and geese.  Results to follow at some point.

Regrets

Well I havent updated on our eating misadventures lately so I figured I was overdue.  Easily enough to say, I have not really tried any new recipies lately.  I have stuck with the tried and true and the quick and easy.

What has not gone as well is our quest for total wholesome eating.  On January 1st we pledged to change the way we eat and for the most part we have made some major changes and stuck with them.  We have bought much better meat, eggs, produce.  Cooked more, dined out less, experimented with new foods.  We went out of town a few weeks ago and were faced with having to go out to eat one night.  We only had 2 options and we chose the least expensive of the two.  It was the first non-deli-or-pizza food we had purchased since the beginning of the year.  All I can say about that is regret.  It did not make me feel well at all.

So today we were out with the kids and went out for Taylor's b-day dinner.  Not only was there nothing on the menu that looked good, but the thing I did order was one of two things.. undercooked or overheated.  They were little rubber pieces of chicken.  Gavin didnt want to eat his pizza, Spencer didn't touch his chicken and overall it was not a great experience.  On top of that the sticker shock that I got after recieving a check for 7 people is enough to make one remain abstinate from restaraunts.  From here on out I pledge to refrain from those types of establishments.  We haven't been missing out on anything at all these last 9.5 months.  In fact, I find it a bigger treat when I make a large meal and we sit down at home to eat.

So we have some decisions to make.  We did order a pig from one of Brent's friends for the beginning of the year.  Our beef is almost all gone aside from the ground beef that is left.  We really need to order another 1/4 beef now while we can get it at a discount but that might have to wait.  Luckily hunting season is upon us and I am hoping for a freezer full of upland game bird and some Elk and Deer.  That would really help us with the food bill for sure.

On a lighter note and a future blog topic, I did learn to can these last couple months.  I have made blackberry jam and pickles.  The kids love the pickles and well, the jam was good too and we have enough to last for a while and I have 7 more gallons of berries to turn into jam.  That will keep me busy.

A day in the life of me

This day is coming to an end.  I am having my "evening" cup of coffee and will head to bed soon.  Wait! you say?  It is 2 am.. why are you having coffee at 2 am and why are you just now going to bed?  Well my friends.. today was one of those days where it starts very early and ends very late and these days are becoming very common.  I am thankful that it is not due to studying though, I am getting along fine in that respect, even got invited to join the honor society.. who knew I had it in me?  As for the coffee, well I learned it helps me sleep.. for me it is a relaxant, not a stimulant and if I do not have it before bed, i do not sleep well and wake with a headache.

Today was my 10 year old's birthday.  I just cannot believe it.  I honestly remember little about her babyhood, besides her crying all the time.  She was only about 9 mths old when I was pregnant again, so the last 10 years are a blur.  I don't like that feeling.  Our busy lives caused us to miss out on some things, but we were able to raise her and not rely on others so that is good.

So my day started like this:
7:15 stumble out of bed, go down stairs, make kids and hubby sandwiches, make three littlest ones breakfast, kiss the older girls out the door, urge Gavin to finish and take him to school by 8:30.  Note:  NO coffee yet.

Home by 8:45 make coffee, start making treats for Taylor's class since it is her birthday.  This required making 2 batches of Fruity Pebbles Krispie treats. 

10:30 pick up Gavin, come home, feed all three little ones lunch so Nat can go to school.  Cut up rest of treats, brush hair, meet UPS to grab a package that was mailed to wrong address, Take Nat to school...late...because we could not find shoes.  She insists on riding her bike but it was oh so hot, Gavin draggin his feet whining, had to go to office, then find Taylor, pass off treats and begrudgingly walk home again in HEAT.

Home around 12.  Load kids directly in car, go to WinCo because I did not plan a cake for my daughter (terrible mother I am) Find a cake, get candles, pay, go to car and realize I didnt get my newspapers I bought but with kids in car and ice cream cake melding in car, I had to leave without them.. and those papers my friends.. had a ton of coupons.

Home by 1:30 I decide to eat!

2:30 leave to go meet girls after school.home around 3.  Put poor baby to naps..finally.  Who I am thinking might have mild chicken pox.. it is TBD still.

Give out snack, put on entertainment since older girls are not allowed to watch TV M-Th. THOUGHT I was gonna rest.. but no.. Had to make dinner early so I could eat with them and have cake and ice cream.  Picked up house a bit, did the birthday stuff.. and off I was.

At work by 6.  work was, well work.  It sucks.  But its a job and it pays decent so who am I to complain.  I don't usually reflect on what I have done in a day.  Its my life as I chose it and its what has to be done. Finished work at 1 am.

So after work I had to get a couple things, for instance I want to make these for the kids tomorrow morning (but likely won't happen til Sunday) and I needed a few things.  THEN I went to WinCo to get my coupons baby cause with those coupons I can get some stuff I need for nearly free this week and I cant miss out on that.  So this.. is why I am sitting here at 2:30 blogging, drinking coffee and not in bed yet.  I must wind down, that takes time.  I'm pretty exhausted, and in 12 hours I will be back at work again.. *sigh*.. someday this will end, the chaos will cease.. but hear me clear.. if you ask how I am.. just expect me to say "tired".

Harvest

I love fall.  It is by far my favorite time of year, with the crisp air, crops being harvested and the leaves changing.  You can just feel the seasons change.  From spring to summer, like this year, there wasn't much of a transistion.  It was like BAM, hot, hot, hot.  But from summer to fall, you can feel the difference.  It is a gradual transition, the days get shorter, the nights cooler, the wheat gets harvested.  Before long there will be snow on Bogus Basin again.

When my raised garden bed didn't pan out because of our impending move I was pretty sad.  I let my seedlings die because part of me wilted when the chaos began.  After the shock was over, I did plant a few pepper plants and a tomato plant in some pots.  They all started growing fairly well and then we moved out here.  With this house there was an existing garden area that was semi-cleaned out.  There were a few tomato plants still here and we thought they were volunteers and probably wouldn't produce but left them anyways since they were covered in flowers.  I picked up a few other plants at work and planted them in hopes that they would mature before the cold season.  I chose zucchini, yellow squash, and cucumbers.

Two days ago, I picked my very first zucchini.  My Roma tomato plant in the pot didn't make it.  I think plants just do better in the ground.  I picked one red chili pepper and 4 jalapenos.  I think they are done producing for the year.  As for the "volunteer" tomato plants, well they turned into a massive tomato bush covered in sweet 100 cherry tomatos.  I have been able to pick a handful every couple of days and there have been many that I never managed to get. 

That little garden spot has brought about a few more surprises.  There are 4 mammoth sunflowers that are on the verge of blooming and about 10 tomatillo plants that are beginning to bear fruit.  It has started to cool down so I am uncertain as to how well they will do.  None of these plants were here other than the tomato plants and the others just sprung up on their own.

I have so many plans for when we get our own place.  A garden is definately on this list.  I remember the garden my dad had when I was young.  It wasnt a huge garden, but it was still fun.  We also had a compost behind the house.  As for now, I am looking forward to next spring when I can plant even more of a variety of vegetables.  It is a form of satisfaction that can not be replicated. 

So as I say goodbye to summer, I say hello to fall - events, craft bizzares, haunted houses, trick or treating and autumn colors.  I love fall. Happy harvesting!