Menu Plan Monday:

 WELCOME TO MENU PLAN MONDAY and MARVELOUS MENUS!

Frugal tip this week: Make granola!

SATURDAY:

- oatmeal
-Taco Casserole, leftover pinto beans, herbal tea
- Chili, chips, and cheese- Butterscotch Haystacks
snacks- buttered popcorn, graham crackers and peanut butter

SUNDAY:

- kids choice
- Creamy Chicken Spaghetti, sweet potatoes, green beans w/onions, leftover Haystack cookies
-Lemon Pepper Tilapia, sugar snap peas w/Parsley Butter and turnips & greens from the garden, Almond-Joy Balls
snacks- buttered popcorn, graham crackers and peanut butter

MONDAY:

- kids choice
-Creamy Chicken Enchiladas, romaine salad, Pumpkin Cakes
- BBQ chicken legs, potato wedges, lima beans, Blueberry-mango smoothie
snacks- Apple-Juice Sherbet, Apples and Peanut Butter

TUESDAY:

- Peanut Butter Granola and milk
-(turkey) Polish Sausage Skillet Dish, sliced tomatoes, Pumpkin Cakes- Monkey Meat on Flatbread, black bean salsa, frozen (leftover) smoothie pops
snacks-almonds, raisins, Basic Vanilla Granola

WEDNESDAY:

- Apple Pie Smoothies and toasted Breakfast Bread
- Corn Chowder w/ Turkey Ham, Yogurt Rye Bread, Dandelion jelly
-Grilled chicken breasts, romaine salad, turnips and greens from the garden, juice pops
snacks- toasted rye bread and jelly, sliced apples, lemonade

THURSDAY:

-Granola and milk
-Frugal Stir Fry, brown rice, cranberry slush (from freezer berries)
- Turkey Patties, peas and carrots, seasoned brown rice, homemade brownies
snacks-sliced apples, Blueberry Smoothies

FRIDAY:

- oatmeal
-Pinto beans, cracklin' cornbread, homemade ice cream
-Pinto Beans, greens from the garden, cornbread, fried apples
snacks- Dried Cranberry Muffins, sliced apples

Tales from My Backyard - Tour the yard

These are Balloon Flowers in the front yard and Tiger Lilies that were given to my by a neighbor when she needed to thin them. They multiply quickly! They usually bloom later in the summer.

 

I put rhubarb in 3 places. I tried it before in another part of the yard and it didn't make it.

The field on the other side of our fence is usually cut for hay, that's why it's so tall.

 

3 grapevines grow on the fence in front of the garden. 2 green and 1 red.

The garden is giving me turnip greens, romaine, and green onions right now! There's also tiger lilies in the corner and the neighbor has them running down her side of the fence. Pretty!

I have 6 blueberry bushes that actually have about a handful each of blueberries this year! Can't wait til they turn blue! They are loving the coffee grounds and splashes of vinegar!

 

This is my fruitless plum tree. So pretty- but fruitless! It had one tiny plum but it dropped.  :-(

Remember the pretty little orange flowers I showed you last year? Well, turns out they were Trumpet Honeysuckle! I'm letting it grow on the back fence but considering tearing it out and putting in more grapevines eventually.

Potatoes. I have 3 little rows of 3 different kinds. Red, purple, and gold. The potato beetles are terrorizing them right now. I hope I can fight them off but boy do they multiply quickly.

Closer shot of the grapevines. Can't wait to make them jelly!

This is a raspberry bush and hopefully you can see that I have a couple of the branches bent over and planted. I'm hoping to they will root and I can have more bushes! (Brandy taught me this!) I had 2 of these but one died this year, my guess is due to soooo much rain.

This is one of 2 blackberry bushes that I have. These do very well here (considering we have lots of clay); I'd like to put more in since they do so well. They both look like they will have enough fruit for a nice cobbler!

This is one of 2 sick, peach trees. They both have leaf curl but since treating, they are looking better but have dropped most of their fruit. I hope they'll get stronger this year and the fruit do better next. 

They are very pretty trees, almost tropical.

Here's a shot of what I call the "mini orchard". There are fruit trees in other parts of the yard but this is the majority. I have 2 kinds of pears, peaches, 4 kinds of apples, plum, 3 kinds of cherry, apricots, and one fig (I had 2, one hasn't come back this year).

Underneath these Tiger Lilies is Echinacea. I've planted more seeds and hope to have several more come up this year! They'll make a nice tea!

Here's the other blackberry bush at the side of the house. I pick and it keeps growing more! Gotta love a bush that'll do that!

 This is the ONLY cherry this year. My cherry trees have struggled. Something seems to like their leaves as much as I like their fruit! But I have high hopes they'll grow big and strong one day.

Wish my camera could show you a better pic of this deep purple flower. It looked like velvet.

These Iris grow in 2 places in the yard. They were also given to me by a neighbor who's relative had pulled them up. Love free flowers!    I've planted them under 2 of the bigger maples. We have maples and willows in the yard for shade and privacy...oh and climbing! ;-)

Menu Plan-

 Welcome to MENU PLAN MONDAY  and Marvelous Menus!

My frugal tip this week: But a box of ice cream cones for .99 (24ct) and make a big batch of homemade ice cream. Your kids can have a sweet dairy treat every day! (For about $4!)

SATURDAY:

-Cream of wheat
- ham salad sandwiches, bananas, graham crackers
- Polish Sausage-potatoes-onions-peppers, lima beans, turnip greens from the garden, cream cheese bars
snacks: homemade pickles, sliced apples

SUNDAY:

- kids choice
- Cheeseburger Macaroni, steamed broccoli, Oat Bran Muffins, jelly
- Monkey Meat on flatbread, homemade ice cream +(choc syrup, sliced bananas, canned pineapple, sprinkles)
snacks: juiced oranges and apples, buttered popcorn, Soft Wheat Orange Peel Bread (sorta like this)

MONDAY:

- Soft Wheat Orange Peel Bread and cream cheese
- Turkey Goolash, romaine salad, corn, ice cream cones
- Lemon Pepper Salmon, green salad from the garden, sliced tomatoes, lima beans, pineapple
snacks: chips and salsa, sliced apples

TUESDAY:

- oatmeal
- Taco Casserole, black bean salsa, green salad from the garden
- Pinto Beans, cornbread, potato wedges, turnip greens from the garden, ice cream cones
snacks: sour gummy worms, sliced apples

WEDNESDAY:
- oatmeal w/ home-dried coconut
-Chili from leftover beans, crackers, ice cream cones
- Hamburger steaks, BBQ potato wedges, romaine salad from the garden, Butterscotch Haystacks
snacks: sliced apples, peanut brittle

THURSDAY:

- French toast sticks from the freezer
- Leftover Chili and chips, juice pops from the freezer
- Turkey patties, purple hull peas, romaine from the garden, sliced tomatoes, Applesauce Pudding
snacks: apples and peanut butter, carrots and dip

FRIDAY:

-kids choice
- frugal stir fry, brown rice, Apple Pie Smoothie
- Sliced Roast Beef on Homemade Buttermilk Buns, Tutti Fruity Compote
snacks: natural candy, sliced apples

Once Upon a Time....

 

A man came home from work and found his three children outside, still in their pajamas, playing in the mud, with empty food boxes and wrappers strewn all around the front yard. The door of his wife's car was open, as was the front door to the house and there was no sign of the dog. 

 

Proceeding into the entry, he found an even bigger mess. A lamp had been knocked over, and the throw rug was wadded against one wall. In the front room the TV was loudly blaring a Cartoon channel, and the family room was strewn with toys and various items of clothing. 

 

In the kitchen, dishes filled the sink, breakfast food was spilled on the counter, the fridge door was open wide, dog food was spilled on the floor, a broken glass lay under the table, and a small pile of sand was spread by the back door. 

 

He quickly headed up the stairs, stepping over toys and more piles of clothes, looking for his wife. He was worried she might be ill, or that something serious had happened. He was met with a small trickle of water as it made its way out the bathroom door. As he peered inside he found wet towels, scummy soap and more toys strewn over the floor. Miles of toilet paper lay in a heap and toothpaste had been smeared over the mirror and walls. 

 

As he rushed to the bedroom, he found his wife still curled up in the bed in her pajamas, reading a novel. She looked up at him, smiled, and asked how his day went. 

 

He looked at her bewildered and asked, 'What happened here today?' She again smiled and answered, 'You know every day when you come home from work and you ask me what in the world do I do all day?' 'Yes,' was his incredulous reply. She answered, 'Well, today I didn't do it.