Meal plan for November 12th - 18th, and the weekly bout of verbal diarrhea

Happy Sunday!  Troy is sick, so I spent last night on the hide-a-bed so that I wouldn't catch his plague, and so I can get some sleep.  Troy snores and is annoying to this light sleeper on a good day.  When he has a man cold, I pretty much spend the night awake, plotting to murder him.

Jack and I are hanging out on the hide-a-bed eating breakfast and watching cartoons.  It's a nice way to spend a morning before we head off to church.

Something super silly happened a few weeks ago and I totally forgot to write about it.  I'm taking Cultural Anthropology through a local college this term.  My plan is to eventually go to grad school in a few years, and I'm taking a class each term to beef up my GPA.  I don't really want to go to grad school, but I've pretty much reached the top of where I can go in my field without further education.  If only I could become a professional blogger...HA

Anyhoo, my instructor gives us a practice essay before the real test and lets us write up a sample and send it to her for review.  Last test focused on the founding of cultural anthropology, and had a ton of names and terms that needed to be included.  I received my essay back with her comments, and I giggled so hard at one of the comments.  I had written about Daniel Radcliff-Brown, and she made a note that said "he usually goes by his first initials A.R.".  After looking at that for a second, it hit me.  Daniel Radcliff is the kid who played Harry Potter!  Whoops!  Good thing my instructor has told us she doesn't watch TV or movies, or she would think I'm a huge idiot.  I ended up getting a 98% when I wrote the formal essay for the class, but I still laugh about including Harry Potter in my practice essay.

Tuesday, Jack and I set up his little table (which belonged to my sis and I when we were little) to watch the election results.  I don't think he really "got" it, but he didn't yell for me to turn it to cartoons, so that's a win.
The drinks are our favorite flavor of water kefir soda - blackberry!

Thursday we took Jack to the pediatrician because of his really loud snoring.  His doctor looked in his throat and yelled "oh my gosh"!  Homeboy's tonsils are touching his uvula.  We've been referred for a sleep study so that they can test to make sure he's not losing any oxygen when he is snoring.

Jack is 75-90th percentile for height and weight.  She said he has the spatial ability and vocabulary of a 5 year old.  And apparently the tonsils of one!

Last night we were having a couple over for dinner.  The menu was: roasted chicken, roasted brussel sprouts, dutch oven bread, and apple pie.  So naturally, our oven decided that morning to break.  I was preheating the oven for the bread yesterday morning and heard a weird noise, saw a flash, and watched the element in the bottom of the oven flare, flash, and break.  Sadly, I found out that you can't just buy one of these from Lowes; you have to order them.  Lowes was having a huge sale, and I got a case of the "gimmes" when I found a $1,000 gorgeous convection oven on sale for $599.  I can't believe I was even thinking about it!  I'm much rather have a new fridge than a new stove (our fridge is the devil), but man I was tempted.

We ordered the element and should have a working stove again by the middle of next week.  Total cost, $45.  A bit more frugal than a whole new oven!  And thanks to a well-stocked pantry, fridge, and freezer, we were able to pull a BBQing dinner out of our butts.  Hamburgers with salad, grilled potatoes, dilly beans, and banana splits with homemade whipped cream, topped with cherries that I had canned in the summer.

The irony of all this is that last Monday I told Troy that I wanted to start saving for an eventual wood stove that also had an oven in it.  He laughed at me and said "why"?  Troy is very paranoid and always is looking out the window when he hears a noise.  I like to say "is there a kid on your lawn old man"?  He jokes that "some day my paranoia will save our lives", to which I say "yes, but we'll be able to eat and survive because of my (canning/prepper) paranoia".

I explained that the wood stove would help heat the house, and should (and when) the zombies attack, it would be nice to be able to have some hot food.  So naturally, the oven exploded a few days later.

We have an enormous mason jar the size of a toddler in our bedroom that we used to fill with spare change.  Troy kept stealing it for soda money (major side eye from me), so I stopped putting money in there.  It is now off limits to taking, and we're saving up for the stove of my dreams.  It's the black one in the middle of the page without the soap stone.

Thankfully for this week we have enough food that can be made on the stove, so we can survive being oven-less for a bit.  Despite Washington legalizing pot on Tuesday, our menu for the week is very much "unbaked".

Monday:: arroz con pollo, black beans (from the freezer), and fruit.

Tuesday:: I'm working late.  The boys will have quesadillas, fruit, and if god is on my side, Jack will eat a carrot stick.

Wednesday:: We're eating at my in-laws before soccer practice.

Thursday:: Tortilla soup from the freezer, garlic bread, and fruit.

Friday:: Popcorn dinner!  Popcorn, sliced cheese, fruit, veggies, etc.

Saturday:: Homemade pizza, salad from the garden, and fruit.

Sunday:: Family dinner at my parent's.

This week I spent $55 at Trader Joes for stocking up, $30 at the grocery store, $7 at our local butcher, and I'll be buying raw milk ($3.50) and hopefully eggs ($8) at our local farm later today.

How about you guys?  What are you eating this week?


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