Frugal In Florida

Bleck. Lets face it. They just are not for me. Remember my true confession ? Well, I am still plugging away, trying to get more veggies in my life. The other night, I cooked up some squash and zucchini that I sliced longways, and seasoned with Mrs. Dash and tossed on the georgy grill to go along with the chicken. I tried folks. I really tried. 2 bites. 2 smaller bites. A piece with a piece of chicken. A small piece that I ended up slugging down with a big swig of Heiniken lite. Ick. Can't do it. No way. Sorry. I am hoping my buddy Johnny will take the rest of the squash & zucchini I have in the fridge as it's going to waste if he doesn't and you all know how I feel about that!

I feel like I've been scrounging for food the past few days, even though I know that's not true (here, take a look at these pics over in this post: http://recipesfif.blogspot.com/2009/06/pantry.html and I think you will agree). But, I am running low on stuff, and running OUT Of stuff (like dishsoap. I have NO dishsoap, having to use the dishwasher every day ...) And running low on stuff puts a little anxiety in my life as I've already come clean and admitted that I am a food hoarder. Now, when you look at those pics, you KNOW that there is no way in heck I can't feed my family (all 3 of us plus the animal) for another week, or perhaps two. BUT. We have friends back in town. We also have boating every weekend again (woohoo!!!!) which requires food during the day ... that can't be just leftovers, or a plate of tortilla chips with cheese melted on top. AND. Well. We have JULY 4th coming up and I'd really like to do a little BBQ that day. Which of course, requir...

Nice title, don't you think? As a kid, we didn't have dental insurance. I can remember my FIRST time going to the dentist. It was actually the guy who gives you a shot & pulls your teeth all out, not a dentist. I had 3 cavities that were so bad, my parents just decided it would be best to have them pulled. Owww. Not a good intro to a dentist. I was, oh, 14 or 15? Must have been 14, hubby was not in the picture yet. But it was December. And I had a Christmas Dance to go to (back when they were called Christmas Dance, not Winter Dance) and just so remember the humiliation of looking like a chipmunk, bad breath and not being able to eat. Uggg. Then I also had the issue with BIG teeth, and a somewhat small mouth. My eye teeth were up high so I looked like I had fangs. Ugggg. So, my soft spot is my teeth. About 15 years ago, hubby and I agreed to do the braces. We had dental insurance, and it would cost us like $90 a month. Yeah, I know, that's alot for that long ago, but...

I just can't call it a farmer's market, it's not. It's Penn Dutch. Been around forever. A little icky but heck, its one of the best fresh produce stores around. Plus they have the meat dept with GREAT prices. I went to get, primarily, the ground turkey for $1.19 a pound and the b/s chix breast for $1.69 a pound. Did NOT the turkey. It was not turkey breast. But now I think I should have gotten it anyway. It's got to have less fat than the cheapest ground beef and still at least 70 cents cheaper a pound. Grrr. Live and learn. I did get TONS of produce. They also had 8 ounce packages of "imitation crab" for 89 cents each. Hubby used to LOVE this stuff ... I hope he still does. Need to go pull some recipes as it's been awhile since I've had any around. So, $40 later, that was pretty much my grocery money for the week. Oh but look! It's Thursday already and my new week starts Friday! Woohoo! I really almost made it a whole week!

When I go to Target, I love to do a quick (yeah right) walk through the home goods, particularly the kitchen area. These were $19.99. I picked them up about 2 months or so ago. Hubby complained, constantly because I left them on the countertop, smack in the middle of the work area. And really, did we need ALL 6 of those bowls? Well, matter of fact, we do. I wash at least 2 if not all 6 each and every day. They are used by sonny boy to beat his eggs for breakfast. Hubby uses them to reheat leftovers for lunch (weekends), I use them to mix everything for meals. When I make tacos, they are great for the fillings (largest one gets all the shredded lettuce, next size is for meat, then cheese, then tomatoes, then onions, and so on .... So there you have it, I saw them, thought they looked "cute" and "bright" and "cheery", paid $19.99 and look, they get the most use probably of any other item in the kitchen!

Really. A real, bonafide confession. I do NOT like vegetables. I do NOT serve vegetables. I have never forced my children to even try something, if they had this belief that they would keel over and die if they tried a food on their plate. I am a bad mother. Oh heck, look at Princess. There. It's out in the open. WAIT. Princess was caught once eating a head of brocolli like an apple right out of the fridge one time. And I seem to remember having to remove her from an appetizer table as she sat there and ate all the veggies from the trays, double dipping no less! Sonny boy on the other hand, is an extremely difficult kid to feed. I have given up for the most part. 16 and a half years later, I pretty much tell him this is what I'm making, if you don't like it then go make something else. And don't forget to do the dishes when you are done! I DO try to incorporate veggies into my diet. I mean, I eat salads. I eat some veggies, mushrooms, peppers and so on. But don...

Hubby is traveling this week, Monday thru Thursday (comes home on Thursday) which means it's just me and sonny boy, and the animal, if you want to count him too. Since princess is no longer here, I am starting to cut down on the amount of food I prepare, which means less leftovers, and really, less food that I FEEL I need to be eating (a little reverse psychology there). So, sonny boy & I are having: Quesidilias Ravioli (freezer) McDonalds (49 cent burgers) Then Thursday, hubby comes home, but not til later in the evening grilled chicken & pasta burgers and fries Steak & taters pasta & garlic rolls (will make dinner rolls & sauce from scratch) Of course, we were to have had the steak & taters this last Saturday, but went boating, forgot to take steaks out of freezer, and we were exhausted so ordered 2 pizzas for $30. What are you all planning to eat this week??

We took the boat out all day long on Saturday. Was glad that sonny boy opted to come along, even though his sis (whom he invited) couldn't come and none of his friends wanted to motivate that early ... we went south to haulover inlet which is an absolutely gorgeously clear water area ... and a nice ride too to be sure the boat is running well. How do I know it's running well? Look at this: Says we were going 32 knots and using 27.9 gallons of fuel per hour. Anyone out there want to do the math for me? Haulover inlet is about 20 miles south of the dock. Ah heck. Forget it, don't do the math, it just takes all the fun out of the day. Then, we saw this going over the las olas bridge when we were on our way out in the morning, but I've never seen it in the water: This is a huge tourist attraction (I guess) and actually kin dof cute, when you think about it. We beeped the horn at them & everyone started quacking. Kind of cute in a real corny way...

After a long and busy week, I am sitting on my patio, enjoying a Corona Light with some celery sticks, carrots and cucumbers to munch on, and hope that the healthy snacky stuff will offset the few beers (ha!) that will be consumed this weekend. I just lit the grill while hubby finishes up a phone call to an old friend. We will make, at last, the pork tenderloin that was to have been Wednesday night's dinner. Ah heck, better late than never, right? So, the Grill. Yes, capital G. When hubby was out of work a few years back for 18 months (just long enough for us to exhaust the COBRA insurance option and he is non-insurable) he figured, what the heck and splurged and bought this Grill. Oh. And the new icemaker (which died, oh, 18 months ago but is still in the bar area as a reminder).... anyways, back to the Grill. We've always bought the $99 ones from Sears. They lasted a year (we live in south Florida, near the ocean, lots of corrosive stuff going on around here) and he would...

The menu for week has been pretty much followed so far, with the exception that Thursday was the sandwiches since we put the boat back in the water, which means this evening will be the Island Pork ... yummm We finally have the boat back in which means more fun stuff on the weekends, so long as we don't get hurricanes and / or rain. Keeping my fingers crossed!! I've been working on a post about the American Dream. Someday, I'll finish it and post ... but it's really a personal opinion and a reflection of my attitude of the economy and general mindset of how we got there in the first place. Oh well. Since I am in the real estate industry, I see first hand how the financial and housing market started sliding. You think someone would have put the screeching brakes on well before this. Ok, off to work. Got a closing package waiting for me, I hope, otherwise I will have to deal with an irrate realtor. Don't get it, the buyer and seller are perfectly fine with closing...

Well, here’s what I plan for the week, but sometimes, life interrupts. And then I get these mangos ... so now I'm thinking I need to incorporate these in to the menu somehow, but who am I kidding? Sonny boy & hubby will NOT eat them and Princess would devour, if only she was around. Uhhh, we aren't going to talk about that now, are we? Sunday – hot dogs with cheese and cukes and tomatoes and whatever else you want, baked beans Monday – Shrimp (possibly on grill if not raining) and rice pilaf with broccoli Tuesday – tacos (taco salad for me and playing with the idea of using 1/2 of the boca meat crumbles with ground beef) Wednesday – Island pork (P90X recipe that's pretty tasty!) Thursday –leftovers Friday – sandwiches & salads Saturday – steak & crashed red taters (I'm thinking of leftover for Monday lunch as the evil jungle salad with some mangos) Sunday – burgers & brats I am trying to eat more fruits & veggies this week and also drink more wate...

Seems that everyone’s mango tree is ripening up right about now. My neighbor forwarded me 2 on Sunday. This morning, my one attorney brought in a bag from his FIL tree. I promptly grabbed one out of the bag & just about gave my other attorney a heart attack when I put it up to my nose to smell. Apparently, a LOT of people have allergic reactions to the skin and sap. Hives. Itching. Swelling. Etc. Huh. Who would have thought? So of course, now I’m itchy, chewy, scratchy. All psychological, thanks to the big boss for that! Purelled the heck out of my hands but that didn’t really cure the feeling! Mental note to self: use plastic gloves when cutting. Of course, anyone who has ever cut open a mango knows that this is going to be dangerous as hell, they are slimy, slippery, juicy little things and now I’m throwing on some plastic gloves? Someone better pre-dial 911.

1. Have you ever been doing something & think "I really need to clean this out"? I have this dilema with my tupperware drawer. Its a huge deep and wide door (think the size of a dishwasher) that holds all my lids, bowls & whatever else gets accidentally tossed in there! 2. Hubby finally finished his boat project (maintenance & wax) and we will hopefully put it back in the water on Wednesday. Well, providing it is not some horrible rain & wind like we've been having lately! 3. My legs are sore.... and hopefully will be motivated this evening to continue (tried this morning but just could not do it, no energy and still tired). 4. Today is sonny boy's first official day of summer break. No clue what he has planned, but one thing I do know, he will be getting driving lessons. 5. The cat is going nuts with Mr. Mousey...shoving him under the fridge & pulling it back out, along with all the dust bunnies, pieces of food, glass, and I have no idea...

Just a reminder to check over here once in a while as that's where most of my recipes are going (trying to update a little more frequently to make it like my online cookbook!) and any kitchen related things ...

We've been very busy the past 2 weeks. Princess graduated from HS (woohoo, thank you God!) on the 30th, inlaws came in on the 27th, more people came in on the 29th and we just lived hard all weekend. Finally on Wednesday, we could breathe a little easier although it was a little sad. My princess has graduated. She is still not home. My family (inlaws) are back in Indiana. I miss them. This is probably one of the best visits we have ever had in all the 20+ years. Maybe because it rained so much every day that we didn't even do a third of what we planned, so we were couped up in the house, sitting around and just chatting. Really. Chatting. For 6 hours at one time. Wow. But the things we talked about :) I loved it ... really enjoyed it. And this animal: has stolen everyone's heart. He was so good, and didn't cause any trouble ... but the minute the company was all gone, he started with this: But that's ok. He replaces this ache in my heart: Not completely, but...