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WIS, WWA | in the midst of unrest

I’m not gonna lie; I feel a little silly writing ordinary blog posts in the midst of what’s going on in Ukraine.

A ginger cat with white paws.

But like I said on Instagram last night, I have pretty limited power (ok, zero power) to fix problems of this magnitude.

Kristen with a shelter cat on her lap.

I don’t know what the future holds (Are we heading into another world war??), so I am defaulting to what I always do when I feel helpless:

Pray and then keep doing the next right things in my life: make meals, parent children, correct math lessons, do laundry, feed rescue cats, do my A&P homework, and so on. 

(Which has kind of been my default mode since the pandemic started as well; I manage what’s in my domain and I try to leave the rest in God’s hands.)

Anyway. In light of that, here is the rundown of the food situation here this week.

What I Spent

I spent:

  • $20 at Safeway
  • $20 at Harris Teeter

What We Ate

Saturday

We were here and there and everywhere (I picked up my parents from the airport, Lisey and Zoe were out together doing some birthday shenanigans, etc.), so we all fended for ourselves.

Sunday

I made French bread, baked ziti, and a green salad.

baked ziti in a steel skillet.

Monday

We had enough leftovers from Sunday to make a repeat dinner on Monday. Easy-peasy!

Tuesday

On Tuesdays, Sonia and Zoe have a class that spans the normal dinner hours, so dinner is a little unusual those nights. We ate some soup from the freezer, but not all at the same time; I am not about eat my dinner at 8:30 pm! 

Wednesday

Fish cakes (here’s my recipe), baked sweet potatoes, and steamed broccoli.

fish cake sandwich

Thursday

A mish-mash because Thursday is another class night for the girls…some of us ate leftover fish cakes, and some of us ate grilled cheese sandwiches. 🙂 Green salad on the side. 

Friday

I’m going to try a new recipe for a Thai red curry chicken noodle soup. It’s made with rice noodles, coconut milk, and red curry paste, so I am optimistic about how delicious it will be.

I am also happy that it will use up a half-package of rice noodles I have had in my cabinet forever!

What did you have for dinner this week? 

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Disnna

Sunday 27th of February 2022

I am grateful for your blog as a refuge during these very difficult times.

Hawaii Planner

Saturday 26th of February 2022

It's hard not to feel hopeless right now. I'm focused on being kind, donating where I can, and doing all of the things I need to do to support our family.

We were skiing this week, so it was a bit of grab & go at our condo. -Spaghetti & meatballs + garlic bread -Costco street tacos (leftovers shells & cheese used for breakfast burritos the following day) -Frozen pizza (x2) -Nachos & beer (soda for the kids) apres ski one day -Tacos -Chicken & pasta -Leftovers

JEG

Saturday 26th of February 2022

I was trying to find your crab cake recipe because I do like crab cakes. Although it may be as affordable for me to buy the two pack for me at the grocery store. About $5. This week I will get the clam chowder that we like, which is an inexpensive dinner for 2 at $8. Even if I fancy things up, it can be dinner for two under $20.

I am estimating my spending for the month at $350-$375. A bit of that is coffee I buy from a local roaster so it can be a little more expensive but I don't buy coffee at a coffee shop. I make mine and fill my thermal cup.

Last Saturday we were to have the annual birthday dinner for my older daughter and me. Usually we celebrate the 3 birthdays together or we celebrate my husband when Superbowl Sunday falls near his b'day. But his celebration dinner was earlier in the month. My older daughter could not come because she realized as she was preparing her portion (the main course) of the dinner at her home, that she could not smell the garlic and onions cooking. It then occurred to her that she had contracted the virus. That was a little concerning because I had been there Thursday. Daughter #2 quickly pulled together a dinner of chicken parmesan. Sunday: Burgers Monday: I had 1 pork chop from the Harvest Box. As I was coming home from the g'daughter's soccer game, I stopped at the store to get bread and found a box of Uncle Ben's Stir Fry rice. I cooked that up and I sauted the chop and several vegetables and that became dinner. Tuesday: Chicken patty sandwiches and leftover fried rice. Wednesday: Soup. It was the offering for taking care of my g'son while g'daughter went to soccer. Thursday: Instant pot short ribs with carrots and onions over garlic mashed potatoes. I had a package of 2 short ribs from our Harvest Box. The only thing I needed was potatoes and some red wine. I did some pre-snowstorm errands and found a quiet grocery store to get the potatoes. (At one local'ish store, the parking lot was insane.) I had learned that day about a wine produced in my town, so I gave it a try. Who knew in my town where there are no vineyards that someone could make a good wine. His story about how wine production came about is very interesting. Short ribs are expensive for the cut of meat it is, but at least these were very meaty. This was perfect for 2 in lieu of making a larger pot roast. The sale price for meats is usually for 3+ lbs. I will have them cut the roast in 2 for us to have 2 dinners--not the same dinner all week. Friday: Chicken pot pie from my daughter. We did not venture out because we did not need to. It was slick on the roads. Just stayed home. I had made pizza dough, which I will use for Saturday night.

Kristen

Saturday 26th of February 2022

So, I don't think I've ever actually posted the crab cake recipe I use! But the fish cake recipe I've posted is exactly like my crab cake one, except you'd use a pound of steamed crab meat in place of the pound of cooked fish. :)

Homemade Fish Cakes

Suzan

Friday 25th of February 2022

I have to agree that this situation is beyond crazy and there is little to do but pray.

This week I have spent a fortune on groceries. I stopped counting at the $300 (AUS) mark. I have added butter and chickens to the freezer. I bought plenty of fresh vegetable and fruit. Meals have been simple. Lamb stew, roast chicken, burritos and so on with a rotation of left overs. Breakfast are yogurt and home stead fruit or oats and blue berries.

Jessica

Friday 25th of February 2022

Your blog is the only one I follow. We are not even frugal people. (Well, i tend to be, but my husband is definitely not.) I read your blog because you seem to live by my mantra: In a world where you can be anything, be kind. Thank you for being kind, being real, and sharing your family with us. Best wishes from Michigan.

Kristen

Saturday 26th of February 2022

Aww, that is such an encouraging thing to hear! Thank you for taking the time to tell me.

And now I am curious; how did you find my blog, since you were not looking for anything frugal?

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