They Did It!

The Denver Broncos -- 

        Super Bowl Champions.  

All right, guys!  You got it...because you worked for it. 

Congratulations.

Superbowl's Tomorrow...

Go, Broncos!! We're rooting for ya!

Even if you're not a fan, you might want to take advantage of one of these fast food deals, to celebrate the Superbowl. (Although most of these, with the exception of Papa John's, don't seem to be that 'special.')

(Castle Rock, CO star photo from KOAA5, via Facebook)

Pantry Challenge: The Final Week (And Final Thoughts)

The Pantry Challenge has been a favorite of bloggers everywhere...me included. I hope you've been trying it, too.

The aim: to live just on what's in your refrigerator, freezer and pantry for a month -- implemented on a little extra, if any. In my case, I aimed to stay within $5-10 weekly, to cover milk and dairy stuff. 

Except for one week (and I blame Safeway for that), it's been a success. 

My final receipt:   $7.88. 

      That paid for two gallons of whole milk ($1.99 each) plus a pound of butter. (Just started the second gallon on the final day, so technically, I guess I could argue it doesn't count.) The milk got stretched with the addition of 4 cups of water in each gallon, turning it into 2%, instead.
     The difference between that and the ten-spot meant I covered the Brick's purchases.

Meals done --

Breakfasts
     oatmeal
     boiled or scrambled eggs with toast (butter and peach jam), bacon, ham or bratwurst
     monkey balls  (roll dough pinched into balls, rolled in butter, then a mixture of sugar & cinnamon, and baked. The name's origin? It's from 'monkey bread'...but the Brick jumped to a different conclusion.)

 
Lunch/snacks/dessert
     the rest of the brownies, flan (from a box), a spice cake (from a Depression Era cookbook -- coming soon to the food blog), ice cream, oranges, cookies (spice thins, from a package in the Brick's Christmas stocking),  frozen burritos, popcorn, leftovers

Supper
    Chopped/sliced potatoes, carrots, celery and cheese sausage, simmered in chicken broth and topped with a big spoonful of sour cream (delicious, by the way)
    Hamburger Helper 'cheesy enchilada,' made with venison
                    (not so good -- but the chickens loved it)
    Split pea soup (goodby, hambone) and homemade rolls
    Wet burritos -- made with the remainder of the pork/green chili/tomatoes dish from last week, topped with enchilada sauce and cheese, then baked    (the Brick's contribution - wonderful)
     Leftovers
 
Tonight's meal:  spaghetti with sliced celery, onions and canned clam sauce. Plus crackers and a can of shrimp/salmon pate...which looks surprisingly like cat food. (Charley the dog thinks so, too...but he'd eat anything.)

Our shelves are looking a little empty. Our freezer is definitely looking less crowded. We had a healthy leftover balance in the checking account, once bills were paid, as well. 

     So what did I learn?

*It's easy to trot off to the grocery store when I need 'a little something.' Which often turns out to be more. Operating under the "tomorrow" philosophy helps. ('I'll get that tomorrow, if I really need it.')

*I am more of a packrat, grocery-wise, than I would like to admit to. Some of the box mixes, especially, were a year or more old. Which also points out:

*I seem to be growing away from using ready-made sauces and mixes. They grow old on the shelf while I'm fooling around with sour cream, cheese, spices and the veggies I have on hand. (The exceptions: nasi goreng, an Indonesian spice mix that does incredible things with hamburger, and Trader Joe's green curry sauce. My family would kill for that sauce.)

*Canned soup, on the other hand, is a godsend. Whack it open, heat it up -- and with a sandwich or cheese & crackers, you've got a satisfying meal.

*The venison's tastier if it simmers for a while. In a strongly-flavored sauce, or with hours of cooking, it's great. If I try to fry it up at the last minute...not so good.

Who...me?

*The potatoes are finally receding. Our dumpster-diving neighbors regularly bring by five pounds or more of these tasty tubers...and they start to add up. Eating a lot of potatoes this month has helped. So has microwaving and taking them out to the chickies. (They loved them.)

*We eat a LOT of eggs. But when they're coming from your own backyard...why not?


I'll probably keep on watching my grocery purchases for a while -- there's still more to use up. But I feel much better about wasting even less of our available Stuff. As cousin Joy says:

It's all good.

 
 

 
 

Superbowl's Coming...

Back in 2014, Children's Hospital in the Denver area sponsored a Broncos song contest...

the winner was a 14-year-old named Daniel Halpern.

Here is his song.

Goofy, but dedicated -- that's us Broncos fans! 

See if You Can Watch This Without Giggling...

I know...I should have saved it for Valentine's Day.

Snow, Snow, Snow...and the Broncos

Day #3 of this blizzard...we're currently up to about 2 1/2 feet, and I wouldn't be surprised if we got a few more inches tonight before the storm moves on. 

from lolzbook.com

(Actually, Punxsutawney Phil didn't see his shadow...so we're supposed to have an early spring. 
           Uh huh. Sure.)


The snow is pretty, light, fluffy stuff -- and very, very cold. The chickens refused to come out at all today. But at least they're still laying. The drifts were way higher than our boots, but at least, I didn't fall down in it. (I did drop a couple of eggs, though, and had to fish them out.) 

While we're shoveling out, here's some inspiration for Sunday:

Go Broncos!!

Monday Stuff: Here We Go, Broncos!

We may be in the throes of a snowstorm, but hearts are warm here:

The Denver Broncos are going to the Superbowl! 

Castle Rock's star-on-the-rock is Broncos orange and blue. 

This is the Rock in the daytime - see the star frame on top? (From Wikipedia)

We had a big rally last week on the Capitol steps. 

And of course, there are lots of goofy memes making fun of our boys. Like this one, comparing Peyton Manning and Others. (Poor guy -- wait, there will be more!)




Fortunately, the Broncos don't seem to be getting a big head over all this fuss. Which is great: the Panthers have been outstanding this season. If the Broncos really want to win, they'll have to work very, very hard.
     Meanwhile:


I just got another phone threat from 'Officer Brian Schneider of the IRS.' According to this esteemed individual, the IRS has issued an arrest warrant for me, my property is under investigation -- and I'd better Call Back Right Now.
    Needless to say, we do NOT owe money to the IRS. (Yet, anyways.) If you get a call or e-mail from a scammer creep like this (ours was from area code 510), sprint to this website and file a complaint. You'll feel so much better.

Libby Lehman finished a 1000-piece puzzle...a big step forward in our mutual buddette's recovery.

Eight interesting ideas for shoe storage via IKEA. You could use these ideas for other stuff, too. I can only wonder -- who in the world actually has room to store shoes like this? Don't they have books, clothes and collectibles, instead?  (From Apartment Therapy)

This is probably the best of the batch...

A fake Rothko...sold from a distinguished gallery?  Now its purchaser is suing for big bucks. The guy is chairman of the board at Sotheby's...oops, wrong person to try to defraud. (From Appraiser Workshops) From the article:
    Being chairman of Sotheby’s does not require being an expert on art, he said. 'You need to know business.”"
     (As my dad would say, 'Oh yeah? Oh yeah? Oh yeah?')

Rethinking brown. And orange. From Wombat Quilts.

Origami folded fabric ornaments -- a step by step tutorial. Good for scraps...and a start for next year! (These would be cute for everyday decorating, too. From Ami Simms's blog, Through the Eyes of A Quilter)




Just what you want to see...an act of kindness given in kindness.

A very funny Hormel 'natural' commercial...

How I tripled my income in 2015.  (From Stefanie O'Connell)

A ton of free downloadable quilt patterns. (Thank you, Bear Creek Quilting Company, for putting these together.)


Have a great week. GO BRONCOS!!