What's For Dinner: Experimental Vietnamese Tofu Dinner

Yesterday I had planned on making a Vietnamesy stir-fry with some tofu and cabbage but the day didn't go as planned. Instead I ordered in Pizza Hut- it was one of those days. Around here (and probably in many homes with small children) the hours between 4-6 pm are known as 'crappy hour'. You know... when the kids are climbing the walls, you're tearing your hair out and you're lucky to get dinner on the table. Big Girl briefly suggested that we eat my homemade granola for dinner and I almost took her up on it. In hindsight it would have been a lot cheaper than Pizza Hut but I'm trying to conserve milk so I don't have to run to the grocery store until tomorrow.

Anyway, the forlorn chopped and ready tofu and cabbage got tossed into the crock pot this afternoon on top of a pile of rice, carrots, seasonings (bouillon, cilantro, salt, pepper, sesame oil, soy sauce, lime juice, and ginger). and water. I'm hoping it comes out okay but if not I'll pull out some of our extra pizza leftovers.


** update- Well, this wasn't a hit and not a complete miss. We did get a meal out of it but Hubby begrudlingly choked it down and begged me not to make him take it for lunches. The cabbage and rice came out too mushy. Oh, well, now I know.**

Make it yourself: Detergent and Granola

We eat a lot of cereal here during the week and my stockpile is starting to wear thin. I have enough ingredients in my cabinet to make this recipe.
I don't know if the Little Guy will like it as much as he likes fake cheerios but we're going to see.

Also, I am about prepared to make my first venture into making my own laundry detergent. I am on my last box of sale detergent. After that it's find another sale or use up those samples I hoard for using on vacation. I have pink zote in my cabinet and I've been itching to try it.

I'd better go tackle the granola while the the little one is napping.


Here's the finished product. I gave Little Guy a raisin and he promptly spit it out on the floor. Oh well. Maybe I'll get to enjoy my homemade granola and he can keep on eating those Trader Joe's and Aldi's cheerios.

A Return to Coupons

Lately I have not felt like clipping, sorting, organizing or using coupons. Call it laziness or whatever but since I don't normally buy name brand products anyway it just hasn't seemed worth it to me.

That was until this weeks coupon bonanza in the paper anyway.

Wal-Mart has the electrasol gel packs and tabs on sale for 2.66 a box for 20 in my area. I used the 2.25 coupon and spent .41 cents for a box of 20 tabs. That takes the cost from .13 cents a load to .02 cents a load.

I also used the $1.00 Johnson & Johnson coupon and got a free bar of soap for my kids. I may have to rethink my previous ideas about couponing.

Coupons Galore today

If you don't take the paper but use coupons today might be a good day to buy one. There were five coupon inserts in my paper today. The best coupon I found was for $2.25 off Eletrasol tabs/gel packs.

A healthier start

Well, it's the New Year and I guess it's that time when everyone starts to reassess their diets and health anyway. For me it's just that the tin of holiday fudge is almost empty and I want to jumpstart our grocery budget by forgoing junk food.

Two of my favorite bloggers Bye, Bye, Pie! (formerly of Bye,Bye,Buy) and Vegan Ruthie have inspired me to re-think my previous purchasing decisions in the grocery store. Vegan Ruthie has been showcasing her lunch packing talents lately and I'm jealous.
So, today with a planned trip to the regular grocery store to fill my prescription I stalked the aisles in search of healthier alternatives to snacks. I also perused the produce aisle in search of healthy new fruits and veggies for my family.
It was interesting but I see why people say buying health food (especially organically) is too expensive. I ended up buying fresh asparagus, a head of green cabbage, a bag of organic apples, an organic avocado, and a carton of organic grape tomatoes. For the snack I bought some cucumber dill dairy spread, roasted soy nuts, whole wheat crackers, and low fat soy milk. I don't drink milk. Before kids my husband and I used rice milk for cereal and cooking. But, I need something for myself to make a low-fat smoothie or to put in my coffee. I also need to bulk up my protein because the bulk of my diet is from junky carbs and I just don't feel all the good because of it. I also bought the requisite veggie sausages and 'meat' supplies. I'd like to try my hand and making my own vegetarian 'meat' products though to reduce sodium and cost. Vegan Ruthie, any pointers or recipes for me?

There was nothing new or unusual about the stuff I bought. I didn't go out on a limb to try something new (although the artichokes were tempting. Is 2.00 a good price for an artichoke? I doubt it.). I am not sure what to do with the cabbage. I think I'll shred half of it and make some Asian style dressing for it. The rest I'll probably chunk and put in a pot of soup.
The asparagus will be washed, tossed with salt, pepper and olive oil and roasted for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees. I'm not a big fan of Rachel Ray, but, YUMMO. This was one of her recipe ideas and boy howdy it sure is a great way to get my hubby and Big Girl to eat asparagus.

It's a start anyway.

Birthday Party dilemna

Big Girl talked me into another big birthday party this year even though I told myself I wouldn't do it like that two years in a row. She requested the same party as last year. I gave in because the idea of planning a birthday party for 38 people at my house the week before we have house guests and leave on a week long overseas trip gives me hives. She also has to share the birthday party with her little brother who turns 2 a week after her birthday.

The party is only for twenty people- 10 kids/10 adults. There are 13 children in her preschool class and we have another two or three families to invite. And grandparents if they want to come. There is an additional charge for each person over that 20 mark.
I don't want to risk offending any of the preschoolers by not inviting them. I don't want to leave our family friends out either. What to do? Suck it up and pay for it? Limit the number and risk offending someone?

Even with the added charges if everyone comes that we invite it's still cheaper than the other two birthday party options outside of my own house. Plus, all I have to do is supply a cake, candle, and a serving knife.

I unsure I'll attempt decorating my own cake. I might go with the giant Costco sheet cake like we did last year. Goody bags will be simple affairs with a water squish ball (ordered in bulk), clearance candy, and maybe a few other toys. Since it's a swimming party the only activity I'm bringing is pin the tail on the donkey.

It feels like I'm giving up on any frugal/creative ways to celebrate their birthdays but someday I hope to achieve the $25 Dacyczyn birthday blow out with a homemade birthday cake but- not this year.

Happy 2008 and a lack of resolutions

After years of setting New Years resolutions and then giving up on them within days I've decided I'm not doing it this year.

Oh, I mulled over an ever growing list of things I'd like to try- flossing every day, keeping the house clean and organized, weight loss, cash envelope system, and a complete spending halt on anything we already had on hand (no stock up buying).
But, the more I thought of all the things I wanted to do the more I got overwhelmed.

I need to start small so I'm picking one thing I think I can manage. I'm not spending another penny on personal care products until I am absolutely out of a thing I need (like shampoo or soap). We have such a stockpile of hotel soap, shampoo samples, lotions and potions that I could probably go a year without buying anything. So, that's what I'm going to try. That plus it helps out with getting rid of the clutter in my master bathroom.

I'd also like to finally hang curtains in all the bedrooms, put up the pictures that are still in the closet wrapped in the moving companies paper. In essence I'd like to make our house more homey.