Last week was nothing but rough! It was so cold and snowy and icy.
Thankfully we never lost power or water and the conservation things we did like keeping the water, gas and electric usage as low as possible, were not fun but we made it.
Melanie asked about our meals - before the coldest weather came, I cooked several entrees and we reheated portions in the microwave as it used the least amount of power.
We also had sandwiches.
Below is a recipe we tried from Joanna Gaines.
I divided it by 3 for just my husband and I. But made as the recipe is written, it would be super family style meal.
The salad was so good and so simple. I made the salad a second time and we had it again last night with a different meal.
The salad is a diced English cucumber, tomato and onion with just a little olive oil and lemon juice for the dressing.
Apparently the weather got Walmart all out of whack and I could not get a grocery pickup so I went to the store Saturday.
There were lots of bare spots but I found everything on my list except the caramel sauce.
Walmart normally sells maybe 50 kinds of sliced bread but on Saturday, they had only 3 kinds. We liked 2 of them so that is what we bought.
And we ended up buying the ice melt at a local cleaning supply business.
Our house was very much in need of a good cleaning.
I didn’t vacuum or steam mop when we were watching our electric usage and the floors were extra dirty because of tracked in snow and ice melt and grands being here.
I also didn’t do laundry.
So I made my to do list on my iPad this week and I’m so happy most of it is done.
Today, I’ll work on laundry.
When we went to Walmart, we also went by a thrift store. I saw a vintage metal tole lamp on their Facebook page and I was so happy they still had it for sale,
I’ve been changing the lamps in our home from lamps with cloth shades that get so dusty and are hard to clean to lamps with metal or glass globes that can be cleaned easily.
Apparently I’m not the only one as these are listed at high prices on EBay.
That’s the exact same lamp!
Ours was $9.99 and my husband spent $17 on some new lamp parts to improve it.
I’ll take some photos and show how nice it looks in our living room soon.
I helped 3 grands with their virtual school the first part of the week and now they are in actual classes at their school 2 days a week.
However 2 grands that have been going to in person classes most all this school year are back in virtual school because the town is have water problems, not weather related but a pump failure. They should be able to return to school as normal next week after being out for 2 weeks.
Seems like since the virus arrived, it’s always something, isn’t it?
A holiday to plan for 😊
And I think this Instagram post sums up my feelings during so much of this last 12 months.
❤️ Rhonda
Hi Rhonda, glad to see you all made it through the storms OK. Very smart to have those freezer meals and then be able to microwave them. I package up things like soups and chilis and stews in freezer containers mainly for Brian to take to work, as he works 12-hour shifts.
ReplyDeleteThat simple salad sounds so good and refreshing. I can't wait to make more salads like that in the summer when tomatoes are home-grown.
I think we're all getting Covid-weary. Unfortunately, one of the things media isn't really addressing is the mental toll this pandemic is taking on people. Mental illness issues - anxiety, depression, overdoses and suicides - are way up.
I have found one thing that helps is to engage in conversation with people when you are out. Of course, masked up and at a social distance. I think we're all feeling so out of touch with human contact. For example, this morning when I had my cat at the vet's office, I had a lovely conversation with two other women that were in the waiting room. We were all masked (as required by law here in IL) and easily 8 ft away from each other, but we had a great convo about our pets. When we all went our separate ways, we all wished each other a wonderful day. It boosted my mood and I hope it did for the other ladies, too.
We didn't loose any utilities either and I was so thankful. Glad you made it through the storm. Spring is on her way!
ReplyDeleteI really hate metal lamp shades, so avoid them. Light is focused not diffused. So, the room is darker. But, getting on for $9.99 is a deal.
ReplyDeleteVery glad you made it through the storm with minimal difficulties.
ReplyDeleteThought about you with this weather. I make a salad when the cukes and tomatoes start in the garden. It is cucumbers, tomatoes, onion, mayo,sugar,vinegar, salt and pepper. One of our favorites. But I want to try with this dressing.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you kept power and water. My sister in central TX got through it without losing either as well.
ReplyDeleteThere are many days when I feel like I'm hanging on by a thin thread until we can get vaccinated and resume a normal-ish life. We'll still wear masks when out in public, and not gather indoors with a bunch of people, but we can have our son sit at the dinner table with us instead of across the room on the sofa with a tray, and I can hug him again. I so look forward to that.