Thursday, March 1, 2007

Posted on Thursday, March 1, 2007 at 04:13

Well Happy Thursday everyone! The winds are baring strong and snow is falling although not as heavy as when I came in at eleven. I have to admit, although I am so ready for spring, I very much enjoy basking in God's creation every time it snows here. I am fortunate to live in an area with many pine trees and the white contrasting with the green is just beautiful. The mighty oak and maple trees holding up lines of white snow are a sight to behold. Mind you the clean up after a major snow storm - esp if its this really wet, heavy stuff - is nothing short of nasty work but I choose to look at the up side and thank God for blessing me with such a visual gift (not to mention a safe ride to work and back home again!!).

I didn't sleep to good yesterday as my mind was to focused on the weather so here I am, tired and 4 hours to go I did manage to wash a load of my scrubs and tackled Mt. Dishmore. I made an inventory of my spring cleaning chores as well. This weekend I will take inventory of my supplies. I like to do that every couple months to see how much I use and then am able to better plan for stocking supplies and planning my garden and such. I'm probably overexcessive but I inventory everything from TP to cans of tuna. Gives me a idea of how to budget my supplies money. Actually, I have it broken down quite nicely and I've been able to save quite a bit in the last couple years.

I ended up making a pancake for supper last night. I had made a turkey loin the night before with the plan being to make a nice, rich pot of soup with the leftovers. Not in the cards as my daughter ate mostly the whole thing. Then she had the rest for breakfast. I hadn't taken anything out and really didn't have the energy for thinking too hard. Had planned on leftover soup for dinner tonite too so will need to put some thought into what to fix. I think I'll look see what's left in the soup or stew dept. that I canned this past fall. I'm real hungry for soup. I'm thinking I'll make a huge batch this weekend and then can the leftovers so I can replentish what I've been using. I could also heat up a jar of BBQ. I have a couple rolls left that need to be used up. Hmmmmmmm. It is nice to be able to have a variety of choices.

I was blessed that my Grandmother (God rest her soul) and my Mother both canned food as I was growing up. My other Grandmother still does - she makes some awsome saurkraut and bread and butter pickles. I was never officially "schooled" in canning but when the time came, I came by it naturally and found it very easy to navagate the pressure regulations and time tables for each foods. It's an adventure for sure. I've been canning all sorts of fruits and veggies as well as soups, stews, meats, sauces - you name it, I'll can it.  It's saved my tushie a few times. I really like the Ball Blue Canning book. You don't have to have the exact recipe but can easily figure out the pressure and times for pretty much anything. If in doubt, I use the freezer. It really is nice to be able to simply pop open a jar and heat it up or mix it with a few other jars of something and end up with a fast and easy meal that is simply delicious.

Well, I'd better go tackle a few chores. I pray all are safe and healthy. I've got a call room for the morning to get a few hours sleep before my doctor's appt then will make the treck home. It's iffy if I'll make it in tonight - better to be safe than sorry although I've never missed a shift because of the weather.

Sending those warm fuzzies to everyone! Have a great Thursday!!!

Michele