Getting Rid of the Old...

So lately I have been on a mission...

A de-cluttering my house mission.

I started last week...lol, if I didn't KNOW better I would say that I am nesting (DH has a vasectomy) because that's what it seems like.

Anyhow, so far I have freecycled a bunch of file folders that I wasn't going to use, a tote full of books that I will never read, and I have a huge box of clothing that doesn't fit anyone. I am going to pull out the really nice clothes (as in look new) and take them to the consignment shop down from my house and the rest I will freecycle. They are all in good condition, just some are better than others. I wouldn't donate something I wouldn't put on myself, my husband or my child.

Anyhow, I am on a mission. I am sick and tired of my house being messy and clutter being everywhere. This may have something to do with the new meds that I am on for my bipolar disorder, but hey, if it is, it isn't a bad side effect.

I want a home that is pleasing not only to God, but that is also pleasing to my husband. I think I am well on my way to obtaining that.

Wish me luck! :)

Product Review: Ragu Classic Alfredo Sauce

A couple weeks ago I was able to pick up Ragu sauces for 1.25/jar on sale. Since this was almost a dollar off the regular price, I picked up a few of the spaghetti sauces and one of the Classic Alfredo sauces.

I had been wanting some good fettucine alfredo for a while, so I figured that this was an easy way to get what I wanted for a lot cheaper. Normally it costs me around 6.00 just for the ingredients to make the sauce, so for 1.25 I was game.

So last night I cook up the fettucine noodles, steam some broccoli, shread some chicken and whip up the dish using the jarred sauce.

Now normally I will doctor the sauces to taste, but going on a friends recommendation I didn't this time.

Boy do I wish I had.

The texture of the sauce is perfect. I will give them that..it isn't too runny and it isn't too thick..its just right.

BUT!

The taste is horrible. Not horrible in the "Oh my I wish I'd never eaten that," but horrible in the "I'm eating cardboard" kinda way. It is about 90% tasteless. Every so often I would get a bite that had a little bit of flavor, but for the most part it was bland and tasteless.

Final thoughts? It wasn't worth my 1.25 to buy it. If I was in a pinch I MAY buy it again but it would take A LOT of doctoring to make it taste good.

All in all I give it a 3 star rating.

Menu Plan for the week of June 5 to June 12 and some updates.

A few updates first...my bipolar disorder recently went to a place that I don't like to be. I am considered to be full blown manic right now. I managed to get an emergency appointment at the doc's on Tuesday and they changed all of my meds. Basically if I am manic and on meds, then said meds were not doing what they were supposed to.

I could use ya'll's prayers.

Damon has decided that it is time for us to go back to church. I would have been going myself, but to be honest, my mental health issues make me paranoid of new people and new places so I cling tight to Damon whenever I am in a new situation.

Please keep us in your prayers that we will be able to find a church home that works for both of us. We are both Baptist, but our views on things differ somewhat and it can make it hard to find a church.

Okay, now to the menu...Some of these are just repeats from last week. When my mind took its little walk, things were kinda messed up so Damon and the monkey child (4 y.o) kinda just grabbed and growled.

Meal #1-Meatloaf, Mashed taters, Mixed Veggies

Meal #2- Garlic Cheddar Chicken (this will be a first for us..will let you know how it turns out), broccoli casserole,

Meal #3- BAS (breakfast at supper) Sausage gravy and biscuits (I only use the gravy recipe posted here, not the biscuits...also, I use regular sausage instead of maple...turns out great!)

Meal # 4- Spaghetti, garlic bread, lettuce wedge with dressing

Meal #5- Hamburgers, french fries, homemade Mac and Cheese (this mac and cheese recipe is awesome!

Meal #6 Lasagna, garlic bread and salad

Meal # 7 Chicken fried steak (also a new recipe for us), fried taters and green beans

Wow, we are trying a lot of new recipes this week! I will let you know how they go.

Do you like to menu plan? Need ideas for getting started? Check out Menu Planning Monday at orgjunkie.com!

Menu Planning Monday

So, since I shop Friday to Thursday, I am late getting this up...ah well, maybe next week will be better.

Here's a quick rundown of the meals planned for this week. I have decided that no meal will have a specific day b/c frankly...I am not that organized yet..lol.

Meal #1-
meatloaf,
fried taters,
veggie

Meal #2-
goulash (we ate this today)
veggie
bread

Meal #3-

Fettucine Alfredo (cheating and using jarred sauce..got it for 1.00 the other day, cheaper than making my own)
Garlic Bread

Meal #4-

Chicken and Homemade noodles
mashed taters
veggie
bread

Meal #5-

BAS (breakfast at supper)
Sausage gravy and homemade biscuits

Meal #6-

Chicken fried rice (this is an awesome recipe that can be adapted to use chicken, pork or beef...use your best judgement on the soy sauce tho...)

Meal #7

Herb Rubbed pork chops (will post my recipe after I figure out exactly how much of each spice I use)
veggie
sweet cornbread


Do You Plan A Menu? If so, join us at orgjunkie's Menu Planning Monday. Over 300 ladies post their menus...get great ideas and great new recipes to try!

The Wonders of Accupuncture

As most of you know, I have fibromyalgia. (For more info, click here ) We have tried a lot of different treatments since my diagnosis in 2007, but really, none have worked all that well. Pain meds don't really help, meds specific to FMS haven't helped, soaks in the tub, etc...nothing was working. So out of desperation I asked my doc about trying accupuncture.

Trust me...this was a big step. I HATE needles. I will run from someone with a needle. I would really like to just shoot the person who invented them. So for me to ask about this meant that I was tired of treatments that didn't work...tired of hurting...tired of fighting.

Anyhow to make a long story short (it actually took me almost 3 months to get the first treatment), I would like to say *climbs up on my soapbox* that accupuncture is the greatest thing to have ever happened to me.

I have had 3 treatments as of this writing and I don't hurt. I don't deal with the stiffness in the mornings, I don't have the headaches as often, simply put...I feel 100% better.

The treatments are bad at all. The needles are one piece, where the bottom of the needle is straight and then it sorta weaves into a spring. They don't hurt going in, most of them I don't even feel and the ones that I do feel, hurt less than if someone had pinched me. I love the practitioner that I see...he's got a great sense of humor and is gentle with me since he realizes that even the slightest jarring of the wrong place at the wrong time can put me down for days, he's just a great guy.

And then there's the added benefits. I am (usually) much more calm after the treatments. I mean who wouldn't be after lying in a dark room with a heat lamp shining gentle heat on you and beautiful chinese music playing softly in the background for 20 minutes? Lol. Its great.

So...if you are having a hard time with stress, pain or whatever, I would recommend getting yourself some needle treatment. :D

Just do yourself a favor...make sure that the person you are hiring to do the job is actually certified. I'm told that a person could really mess you up if they didn't know what they were doing.

Ha! I rule!

Lol...

Every so often I get sick of the clutter around my house and I de-clutter. Guess where I am right now? LOL

So I decided to start where I was. My desk.

It has taken me an hour, and there's still one shelf and 2 drawers that are bothering me, but I can get them here in a bit after I take a break.

I wanted to share my progress so far tho.

Got rid of a bunch of junk papers, cleaned out my daughters bookshelf and straightened it up...still gotta hunt down the books she is missing, got the top shelf (dh's), cleaned out my bookshelf getting rid of a lot of books I will never use (craft and cook) posting them on freecycle, dusted the entire desk (minus the shelf I haven't done yet and the 2 drawers), and wrangled the gazillion ink pens floating in hyperspace..lol.

Here are some pics to help get you all motivated. Yes, my pc monitor is huge and old, but I love it, lol.




































Hope you are all having a great week. I still haven't made out my menu for next week, but I am getting to that later today. Will post it when I get it ready.


Happy Weekend!


OH! If you are wondering about the website that I have on the pc in the pics it is orgjunkie.com. Its a great site for organizing tips!

Wow!

It's been a while since I have posted. Things had gotten really hectic around here for a while. We had b-days and graduations and more..lol.

So...here I am again.

Our family is doing really well. Both of my daughters (17 step and 4 bio) have graduated their respective grades. The 17 year old is planning on going to college near here and majoring in early childhood education. My 4 year old will be heading to kindergarten a whole year early. IF we can get her adhd under control.

We just recently found out that she does have adhd. We are just learning how to manage it, so if anyone has any tips, we sure would appreciate them. We are going to try and control it without medication, but if thats what it takes, thats what it takes.

Have finally gotten back to menu planning. I realized that if I had just bought what I actually needed for meals this week that I would have only spent like 65.00 at the store. So, next week we will try to only buy what we need.

I am not posting my menu for this week as my planning week is almost over, but I will get back to posting it again on Thursday.

Hope you all are doing well!