‘Twas a great afternoon around here despite the dreary day. I got a lot checked (I just typed “chicken!”) off my to-do list and am just now settling down to relax a little.
When the rained cleared for a bit I went out on a walk to the shopping center near our house to run some errands. Remember the recipes I developed this summer? Well 3 of them didn’t pass the test kitchen ( 😥 ) so I am having to revise/reinvent them. So the few ingredients I picked up, while only about $6, were for the mystery recipes. I’m not sure I’m going to include them in the Challenge because I wasn’t planning on having to make them. I guess since we didn’t choose to spend this money, it shouldn’t count (and because I’ll be reimbursed). That’s what this challenge is all about: not buying food because you just want to but because you have a meal planned and actually NEED the food. Remember: I’m only doing this challenge for myself and our budget! I will note that Kashi crackers were $2.50 a box and MaraNatha Peanut Butter was half price and I DID NOT BUY THEM! It was tempting, but I didn’t. That was challenging. Part of our problem around here is stocking up when things are on sale and then just feeling the pressure to eat them.
When I got back from my walk (thankfully dry!) I found this in my mailbox!! Some coupons, a reusable bag and a toboggan! Can’t wait till it’s snowy out and I can wear the toboggan! And of course I can’t wait to try out some Oikos 🙂
MY OTHER RECIPES
Around 5:00 I had my yogurt + flax + jam from earlier – plus a crumbled small sliced of Gina’s banana bread and a bit of Barney Butter (in honor of the BB shirt I’m wearing again!)
I didn’t have dinner until 8pm!
The mystery soup…
Plus some toasted Dakota bread with butta
I can’t WAIT to go read my book!!! Still working on Nicholas Sparks The Choice. I take forever to finish books because I only read about 10 pages per night right before bed.
Hope the sun is out tomorrow 8)
I love all the books by Nicholas Sparks. Have you read Dear John yet?
That soup looks delicious!
I’m the same with books unless I’m reading them on vacation. I get so sleepy when I read!
Enjoy that book!! 😀
Wait–am I just being stupid, or did you call that hat a tobaggan??
Megan ,
I think I’ve read all of them, but now I can’t remember.
Katie G.,
Yup! That’s the south for ya. Wikipedia it and the second sentence confirms that toboggan is also known to some as a winter hat!
K
I will have to get that book, I’ve never read any of his books! Which one is your favorite?
I’m horrible with reading books. I can only do it in the summer when I don’t have class. Luckily I can at least bust through a couple during those months!
Hooray for packages!
Shelby,
Definitely The Notebook. Did you see the movie? If not, GO READ THE BOOK!! Then Message in a Bottle. I’m not his biggest fan, but I’ve been reading him since his first book and they’re all set in North Carolina so I feel loyal.
K
I made some special banana bread today – to be featured on my blog in the near future! You can’t go wrong. 😛
Excellent restraint on the crackers and peanut butter!
Kath,
I’m in charge of snack for my daughter’s GOTR practice 5k next week. Do you have any good ideas? I am sick of the usual boring stuff. Keep in mind that these are kids are won’t try anything too funky:) Thanks!
Yay for restraint against stocking up! I need to learn some of that for me. I tend to think that a nuclear war is coming some days!
It’s so hard to pass up a good sale! Fine use of willpower!
Enjoy your evening!
Your soup looks like oatmeal! =D
Congrats on staying strong and not buying out of want!
My husband and I try to eat frugally, and we are pretty good for how well we eat, but then we struggle with realizing that we do eat out of want, and not need. If we needed to cut back, we could always eat raman noodles and hotdogs and cheap white bread. Do you ever struggle with that?
Megan–i cried buckets while reading Dear John!! that guy was soo good! *sniff sniff*
This has absolutely nothing to do with your post, but I’m so happy – I finally found pumpkin butter and it is every bit as lovely as I imagined! It’s made by an Amish family in southern Ohio and it’s sweetened with fruit juice, not sugar. I’m in love!
yes we have the same nickname im not an obsessive stalker! haha it’s actually Katherine but ya know how the shortening name system goes…but i LOVE your site and lurk everyday and feel compelled to leave a comment today! I just got done reading Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks and just wanted to know how you like the book you are reading right now by him? I need a new read!
Anyway, love your blog!!
Your recipes didn’t pass the test kitchen?! How could they not?? They all looked so delicious!
Glad your challenge is going well! Hopefully it’ll help cut back on some of the “extra” spending in the long run!
Toboggan made me giggle, in Canada we call it a toque (pronounced tuke).
Nuts on a soup, interesting…
I’m sorry three of your recipes didn’t pass the test kitchen! Did you have others that did pass? I’m sure it is just a simple case of revise, resend, and accept! 😉
It is kind of like when we submit journals for publication…they can’t accept them they first time no matter how good they are. Just how the game works!
GREAT job on not buying those on sale items. that wouldv’e been so hard for me -_-
“checked” “chicken”…i guess i can see the similarity lol
Haha, when I think tobaggan I think of sled- I Love hearing local diction and seeing similarities/differences! I am such a sucker for sale bargains; congratulations on the will power, wish i had it when I was at the store earlier 😉 Have a relaxing night with your book!
I would love to have bread like that with every meal. I love bread!
haha it’s so funny that you call that a toboggan! I live in Victoria BC Canada and here we call that a touque, and a toboggan is like a sled 🙂
you know I have never read any of Sparks books, I should I loved the Notebook (the movie) mystery dinner looks interesting!
It is SO hard not to buy stuff that’s on sale! I’m a major stocker-upper normally.
Have a great night 🙂
Have fun reading the book!
Yay coupons! And LOL at southern terminology. I’m like, she’s going to jump on that hat and ride it to the bottom of a snowfield? It’s cute though,
That makes me think there’s chicken in your recipe …. Hmmmm….
i was wondering where the pic of the tobaggan was.. until i read the comments!
the little beanie cap is cute! sorry about the recipes- hopefully the second time around will have better results!
Kath you just made me squee and clap my hands! I call a hat a toboggan too! I’m not from the south though, PA. LOL However everyone always made fun of me or said things like, “What, so you wear a sled on your head.” *grumble* Thanks for confirming it for me! I shall now officially go back to saying toboggan.
And hooray on the package! Love Stoneyfield!
i’ve never heard a hat called that before– i call it a beanie 😀 i’m excited to get mine, too!!
hope you’re having a great weekend!
I remember my freshman year of college, I had a professor that called a hat a tobaggan and we all thuoght he was crazy! Until he brought in the dictionary!
isn’t that the absolute worst thing about being a grown up? by the time i settle down for reading time, i can barely keep my eyes open. 10 pages per night tops, and it takes forever to finish anything! meanwhile, my “to read” pile is getting bigger and bigger …
The mystery soup looks delish!
LOL i was looking for an actual toboggan in the picture and just couldn’t see it. i figured that when you said you were excited to wear it that it was either a typo or something (or you had never used a toboggan before!) then i realized that you really meant the hat.
regional linguistic differences can be interesting! (i’ve taken that dialect internet quiz many times and it always tells me i’m from the great lakes area, which is basically right on)
kwaze ,
I’ve done:
Apple
Orange
Banana
Trail mix in baggies
Baby carrots
Boxes of raisins
More oranges
Kashi honey flax bars (they got half each and didn’t like them)
Kath 🙂,
Hi! Welcome! I’m reading The Choice but have the newest one on my Xmas list.
Justy2003 + Oh She Glows ,
23/26 passed – it’s just these three.
Kath
No offense, Oh She Glows, but your comment doesn’t make much sense. Aren’t these recipes for Weight Watchers? It doesn’t seem like a big company like that would be playing games and rejecting things just because.
Kath, good luck with the recipes!
Enjoy those Oikos coupons, AND the toboggan!!