Small Successes! Operation Bake a Lot Completed!

I got very busy right out of the gate (or bed, as it really was) this morning. After a hearty breakfast of poached eggs and toast with bacon on the side, it was time to get down to business! Having pre-made the pepparkaka dough Friday night, I was ready to roll (figuratively and literally)!

We got the cookies rolled and cut (polar bears, gingerbread men and stars)... Then I made shortbread and next ginger sparklers! Then we were off to the big box craft store to get all the things I need to put together the "Christmas in a Box" decorating package for the playschool raffle. I swear that took longer than the baking. I was so undecided - you know what it's like when you get a vision in yoru head and everything you see doesn't match that vision? Well, that's what my trip to the store was! I was so frustrated and TroubleMaker was "sooooo bored!!!". I finally settled on a few things - a centre piece and a mantle swag with a few other bits and bobs to round out the package. The only thing i forgot was "the box"... So at some point, I'll have to figure that out too!

Tomorrow is the big assembly and pepparkaka icing and packaging. And then, I'll be free!!! Well, that is until the next big thing I cook up to do!

52 Weeks of Organizing: Week 10 - Our Dresser!

Wow - week 10! This week I was a little slow getting my organizing done but as my son played with his friend earlier this evening, I tackled another one of my infamous toppling towers...

Our dresser.

Now I should truly thank and probably point a finger at my husband for both putting up with the ever growing pile of stuff on our dresser and also to say "HEY! I didn't put that box of calendars on our dresser!" Or if I did, I probably forgot and I owe you a chocolate cake... :)



So yes, it is a mess. And yes, I am embarrassed by it but I suppose there is something to public shaming that motivate a person like me... I started wading through the pile of junk and wondered why I put the basket of bibs TroubleMaker quit wearing a year and a half ago on our dresser... And then I wondered if I'd dusted the dresser since last year... I must've right? I found my watch (it needs a battery), my other glasses, $0.25, a nose for Winnie The Pooh, a key and several dinosaurs. There were five story books, the Trudeau biography I started reading before Christmas, To Kill A Mocking Bird (I finished reading it for the 20th time in November) and the lotion that matches my perfume.

I dusted the dresser once I'd emptied it, made a trip to the garbage and the recylcing bag and the four other rooms to return stuff to it's proper place. I was a little (ok, a lot) surprised when I uploaded the 'finished' picture... Look at that wood shine!



I know, right? I wonder how long it will stay like that...

It got me thinking about the questions Laura posted on her site on Week 9...

Do you know what your “good enough” is?

Yes, I think I have an idea... I just want a tidy home that I can manage. I'm tired of being ruled by my possessions and I'm tired of having my 'things' take over my life and home.

Are there areas you are struggling with in this challenge

Yes - keeping the momentum going and I think the biggest thing is struggling with the 'things' I mentioned in question one. I love my stuff - it gives me comfort and security and status and parting with anything is like giving up a part of me. I've been working on parting with stuff and some stuff, I'm ok with... Others, it's like trying to give away a part of myself - especially when it comes to my craft stuff... I decided to give away a bunch of my craft stuff this weekend - no organizing involved, just simply parting with some of the things I've not touched in ten years...

For more super inspiring organizing goodness, check out everyone participating in the 52 Week challenge! Thank you for stopping by and visiting me!

MPM # 44 - Menu Planning Saves!

Last week, I mentioned checking our grocery habits for the past couple of months.

I'm going to run a report on our budget for groceries to see how our month added up with the careful planning and scheduled grocery shops.

So I've compared January & February 2010 to January & February 2011 - I planned in 2010 too but I've tried to be more consistent and better organized in 2011.


January 2010 $959.54
January 2011 $709.55
Savings: $249.99
February 2010 $737.68
February 2011 $665.84
Savings: $71.84

I have to admit, I'm disappointed but I also know that the cost of food here has increased a lot lately (Milk has gone up $0.50 per 4L (1 gallon) in just the past six weeks). I've also been trying to introduce more (fresh) vegetables into our menu planning - we always have vegetables but generally, it's the 'boring' things like peas, corn and green beans (all frozen).

One thing I've never quite understood of the pioneers who settled here is why they did... We are so far from any place warm that there is no "fresh" produce here other than the months of July and August. So as you may well imagine, anything I buy "fresh" right now is a premium as it's being imported from every where but here (I think the closest place of import is California). I bought a pound of strawberries last weekend - and it was a great price - $2.99 - and only one was rotten! I can get nectarines - from Brazil or Chile - but they are hard, woody and $4.99 per pound.

But I digress, there is a decrease over both months and that is a good thing. There are also a few too many shops at the local bulk store and I know that I kind of overdid a few things. I like tightening my belt, but it's really easy to get off track (and harder to get back on). We'll keep tracking and planning carefully. In an effort to reduce our grocery bill even more, my husband and TroubleMaker braved the crazies and shopped on 10% (off your total grocery bill) Tuesday... Normally, I wouldn't insist on shopping on that day, but running the numbers, we just aren't seeing the savings I was hoping for! I guess I need to adjust my expectations - we aren't going to eat a healthy, well balanced meals for $200 per month!

So perhaps my expectations were a little off - so I did some digging and found some information. It seems that my fellow Canadians spend about what we do on groceries - somewhere between $500 & $600 per month - some statistics suggest $250 per person per month. Phew... That makes me feel better - but it encourages me too - I don't want to be just average, in this case, I don't even mind being a bit below average!

Here's what we've got planned for this week - how about you?

March 7 to March 13

Monday KD and Fish Sticks (TroubleMaker's pick)
Tuesday Tacos
Wednesday Zesty Chicken and Rice Skillet
Thursday Egg Wraps with Tater Tots
Friday Nachos with refried beans, salsa and sour cream
Saturday Pizza Party
Sunday Crock pot meat balls and gravy

For more great menu saving planning ideas, check out all the people posting and sharing their menus at the Org Junkie's Menu Plan Monday!

52 Weeks of Organizing: Week 6 - Cookie Sheets, pans & cutlery? Oh MY!

This weeks challenge has proven elusive. Many of the things on my list are large areas that require more time than I've got on any given weeknight. Additionally, my Mom & niece are coming in this afternoon (thus terminating my desire to do anything tonight).

I'd love to tackle my cookie sheet cupboard - it's a bit chaotic in there and it frustrates me every time I need something from it. But after seeing this post at the Org Junkie, I really, really, really want the storage racks... But I'm writing on route to work so I've got no time to shop today!



I am tempted, very tempted, to just wait until I have the "right" supplies or hide behind the 'I have company' excuse. I know getting off track will just lead me back down the old familiar path (of being the leader of the disorganized) and I'm really committed to making a change.

After running around after work, making dinner and getting the cookie dough made for the Valentine's baking day tomorrow, I looked at the cookie sheet cupboard and felt guilty... So I did what any motivated woman would do...

I enlisted the help of my son and my niece. Because, you know, you're never too young to learn good habits! So I sat back (camera in hand) and provided direction. My niece declared she loves organizing and TroubleMaker loves anything she does, so he helped too.



They had the space emptied in record time and nothing got broken! My niece took three of my seven ice cube trays and offered to take my 1L wine carafe for flowers (I firmly said "NO!" because, well, I don't know why but I'm just not ready to get rid of yet). I offered my Mom a set of nice mixing bowls (that I never use because I have another set) - but being inspired by my recent organizing frenzy - she politely declined.



My niece organized and started placing everything back in the cupboard. She kept asking why I had garbage in the cupboard (lids from disposable containers I no longer have, a grocery receipt, and a liner from some disposable cookie sheets). I had no answer - laziness, always in a hurry, it was so messy it ate things like a black hole...

My niece did a fantastic job of sorting and organizing and with a little bit of direction, my cupboard turned out super-duper fantastic!



So even though I didn't have the fancy racks I wanted and I didn't have a lot of time, the job still got done... Albeit with a little help from my friends! So this week, I must really thank my darling niece (isn't she pretty?), not only for her super organizing ability, but also for having the patience to work side by side with her little cousin - who kept hitting her with a barbecue basting brush..."But Mama, it was on axi-dent!" TroubleMaker claimed.

Inspired - for sure. Great job - for sure. Proud - without a doubt! Young or old, big or small - organizing is for everyone. We all felt great when the job was done and I realized that even cleaning and organizing can be quality time - if you do it with those you love.

Have a great week and for more inspiration, check out all these other lovely folks organizing their way to happiness with the Organizing Junkie!

Recipe Swap Thursday: Alberta Beef Cheesesteak Subs

Since I started seriously blogging in May, one thing came to my attention: I wasn't creating very much in the kitchen. I'd defaulted to a few tried and true recipes and opted for simplicity instead of creativity.

A few months ago, I decided to take that leap back to kitchen creativity and 94% of the things I've attempted have been really good. The other 5% were 'good'. This weekend, I created that one dish, that rare and elusive 1%, that is unbelievably fantastic, sell it to a restaurant good. I'm a good cook, of this I have no doubt, but this weekend, I excelled to Awesome Cook. I might have to make myself a badge...

This idea came to me as I didn't want what I'd planned. A quick trip to the bakery for fresh sub buns and one half hour prep and cooking time (plus Garlic Chipolte Mayo chilling time), and it was an easy, simple, have on hand dinner.

Without further self-adulation, I'm very, very pleased and proud to present...

Premium Edmonton Cheesesteak Subs with Garlic Chipolte Mayo



Ingredients
Filling:
1 pound Sirloin Steak (or the most tender cut available to you)
1/2 red pepper, julienned
1/2 green pepper, julienned
1/2 yellow pepper, julienned
1/2 medium white onion, sliced into rings
4 very large mushrooms, halved and then sliced thin
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 tsp parsley
1/4 tsp Seasoned salt

1 tbsp olive oil

Mozzarella cheese

Garlic Chipolte Mayo:
1/4 to 1/3 cup Miracle Whip Dressing (or mayonnaise)
2 tsp minced garlic or 2 to 3 fresh cloves, minced
Dash + of Chipolte Seasoning

Method
-Toss steak in freezer for up to 40 minutes to firm it up before slicing thin. (when I made ours, it was mostly frozen as I decided late in the day to make this dish)
-While steak is chilling, slice vegetables and set aside.
-Combine mayo, garlic & Chipolte seasoning in a dish. Refridgerate 1 hour (or more), then remove when you start cooking to allow it to blend. Stir occasionally.
- When steak is sufficiently chilled, slice steak into thin strips
-Heat olive oil in a cast iron pan. When very hot, toss in all your steak. Pan sear, then turn down heat. Add mushrooms and onions. Saute 2 to 3 minutes. If steak is nearing 'done' (meaning just a thin thread of pink), add peppers and seasoning. Toss and continue cooking on med-low. Cover with a lid.
-Slice buns and put on a cookie sheet. Preheat broiler to "low".
-Spread a generous amount of Garlic Chipolte Mayo on bottom half of bun and a thin layer on top.
-Toss meat mixture and then divide equally onto three sub buns. Top meat size with thinly sliced mozzarella cheese.
-Place under broiler until cheese melts and starts to brown.

Remove, close, slice and serve. Makes 6 servings (1/2 a sandwich each).

Part of what made this meal absolutely fantastic was the Premium Alberta Beef we are able to get at our local butcher, Beverly Meats. As a former vegetarian, I can tell you that if you start eating meat again, seek a local butcher who sells locally grown product. You cannot go wrong. We've never had a tough cut and his prices are competitive with, if not better, than the local chain store price and the quality is out of this world.

Reflections of a job well done

I've had a few days to sit back and really enjoy my revamped back entry way. It's so much easier when we leave the house - coats are easy to find, keys aren't falling to the ground as we try to get the right set for the car. The nice thing is TroubleMaker has seemingly learned that we take our shoes of nicely and place them together, as a pair, on the boot mat. He has done it with whatever pair of shoes he is wearing, every time! Prior to this, he'd stand and kick his feet until his shoes would go flying and our tempers flew with the shoes!

It is definitely a fantastic bonus to see our little boy making an effort to keep the back door tidy! I noticed Hubby even wiped Max, our 10 year old Standard Schnauzer's feet when they came in from working in the wet yard! And we are all making an effort to not dump our tissues or random slips of paper on the closet shelf.

So I've learned that organization = willingness to keep it clean. Or at least it seems that way so far!

With Mother's Day approaching and my eventual return to work, I realize that I've not made much more progress on my quest to clean and tidy the whole house. When I started down this road, I'd just left my job of six years and was starting three weeks vacation. At that point, three weeks seemed like a lifetime to get everything done (I had a list of 15 things before I even started the first day and then the 'organize your life' campaign came into my head). Now that I'm 1.5 weeks away from starting my new job, I feel like I've got very little accomplished - except of course being able to spend so much extra time with my son, which is worth more to me than any clean and organized space!

I'm heading out of town to my Mom's for a few days to share a couple of family birthday's and Mother's day but I will be thinking and formulating my next spree of clean... The spice cupboard!