This Week With Dee – where I share our menu, my planned home tasks for the week, what I’m reading, self care plans and more. I hope it will give you some ideas for planning your own week or at least a glimpse of one homemaker’s life.
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THIS WEEK WITH DEE
We are iced in today. The roads are terribly treacherous. Chris planned ahead for this and went out to his office yesterday before the ice started and got some things done there. He’s working from home today or at least until the ice melts. Our road is very slow to do so, however, and there are a couple of hills which are impossible to navigate in ice.
David dropped off his rental car after hours on Friday and had intended to bring in the keys this morning. But that’s not happening for awhile. (*Update: It’s now after 3 p.m and he decided to give it a try. He texted when he got to the end of our road to let me know it was okay. I’m going to guess there are still slick spots, though, so I’ll be glad when he gets back safely.)
Our other “kids” all work from home so this mama hasn’t had to worry about any of them out on dangerous roads. We are all just cozied up at home drinking hot drinks and doing our work.
MENU:
You’ll note a couple of repeats from last week. These were meals I didn’t end up making (Eggs Creole and the cabbage casserole). David was out of town a couple of nights which changed my plans.
Monday…
- Eggs Creole (YouTube)
- sautéed spinach
Tuesday…
- Lentil Tacos (The last time I made lentils I put up the extra in freezer bags so all I have to do is thaw and heat.)
- rice
- chips & salsa
Wednesday…
- cabbage/potato/smoked sausage and noodle casserole
- rolls
Thursday…
Friday…
- Ham Steak
- Scalloped Potatoes
- steamed peas
- green salad
- cranberry sauce
Saturday…
- leftovers
Sunday…
- French toast
- sausage links
- orange juice
IN MY HOME:
REVIEW OF LAST WEEK
Monday…
It was still very cold. David kept a fire going all day, which was nice and cozy. I wrote the “This Week” post and most of “A Dozen Dinners”. I watered house plants, vacuumed the family room and did two loads of laundry. For dinner we had hamburgers, french fries, and ranch style beans.
Tuesday…
I washed the sheets and remade the bed, folded a couple of loads of laundry, refreshed the bouquet of roses my thoughtful daughter had sent me, and did the usual home-keeping tasks.
I finished a blog post and shared it on social media. I also got some social media scheduling done.
For dinner we had our family favorite – tacos!
Wednesday…
David left for a short business trip to south Texas. I took him to pick up his rental car around 9:30 a.m. Later that afternoon I picked up a few groceries for my mom and took them to her.
Chris and I heated up the leftover taco filling and had it in flour tortillas along with grated cheese, green onions, lettuce, tomato, sour cream and hot sauce.
Thursday…
With David away, this was a good opportunity for Chris and me to have sushi for dinner (David’s not a fan). He picked it up after work. After dinner the two of us watched “Dance, Girl, Dance” starring Lucille Ball and Maureen O’Hara. It was enjoyable and once again I was reminded of how much I love the fashion of the 1940s.
Friday…
I did the usual daily tasks – made the bed, did a load of laundry, washed dishes and kept things tidy. I picked up my prescriptions and then picked up David at the car rental agency. It was getting close to 6 p.m. so I scrapped my dinner plans and we picked up chicken sandwiches from Burger King on our way home. It was nice to not have any kitchen cleanup!
I watched the first episode of The Gilded Age.
Saturday…
It was a pretty quiet day. I did put away the Christmas decor other than the tree. I’ll go ahead and remove the ornaments sometime this week and then decide if I’m going to redecorate for Mardi Gras or just go ahead and take it down. My daughter has hers decorated for Valentine’s Day. It looks great! That’s another option but I’d have to order some red/pink/white balls and some ribbon. Or I could just hang snowflakes on it. I bought a big package of them a few years ago. We’ll see…
Sunday…
I made our menu for the week. I also spent a bit of time comparing prices between my local grocery store and Amazon. I found that canned green beans, canned corn, cranberry sauce, and Hormel chili (no beans) are significantly less expensive on Amazon so I added them to my Subscribe and Save list. Interestingly, canned carrots and potatoes are more expensive on Amazon. It definitely pays to compare.
In my ongoing efforts to organize my entire house, I did one project this day. Aldi had a cabinet organizer for pan lids which I got on my last order from there. I wanted to use it for organizing the cabinet where I store cookie sheets, cooling racks, my pizza stone, my huge bread board and a few other items. The cabinet makers were supposed to have installed dividers in this cabinet but didn’t. And quite frankly, I was so tired of arguing with these guys by that point I just let it go. I figured David could do it. But 24+ years later it was still just an open space.
I thought this was going to be a quick fix and it would have been…if the organizer had been half an inch smaller. David took it out to the garage and using his grinder, he shaved off a bit on either side and even painted those spots so they wouldn’t rust. However, it was still a tiny bit too wide. He ended up bending it inwards a bit and made it fit. And trust me when I say that thing is NOT going anywhere. I had just enough red and white check shelf liner to cover the bottom of the cabinet. I wish I had thought to take a before photo but here it is now:
I had already decluttered the items in this cabinet a couple of years ago so the only thing I got rid of was a plastic lid for a baking pan I no longer own. I’m pleased with how it turned out and feel comfortable with the amount of items here. Just enough to suit my needs.
THIS WEEK
My homemaking plans for this week include cleaning the upstairs bathroom and my office. I also need to do a grocery order pickup. I’ll probably do that on Wednesday morning.
WORK
I have four Zoom calls this week: One on Wednesday, two on Thursday and one on Friday.
I’m still hoping to finish some blog posts I had intended to write at the beginning of 2024.
READING
I read The Gentle Art of Death Cleaning by Margareta Magnusson this past week. I had listened to the audiobook a few years ago. I bought a copy and re-read it because this is something I want to focus on this year.
Currently reading:
The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady ~ Edith Holden
This was a gift from my daughter and son-in-law for Christmas. I will be reading from it throughout the year.
An Incomplete Education ~ Judy Jones and William Wilson
I’ve had an old edition of this for ages. I’ve read parts of it in the past but decided to read through the entire book this year. If I read 2-3 pages a day I’ll finish it in a year.
I finished the lengthy introduction and am several pages into the text itself.
Celia’s House ~ D.E. Stevenson
I’m enjoying this one and should finish it in a day or two.
A Wedding at Mulberry Lane ~ Rosie Clarke
This is my current audiobook. I have about 2 and 1/2 hours left.
Our roadtrip book: Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West, an audiobook we began on our last road trip. We still have 13 hours left!
If you don’t already have Audible, you can get a free trial here. We’ve definitely been enjoying it on long drives.
SELF CARE
I had a pedicure on this past week’s self care agenda. I removed the nail polish, trimmed the nails and decided not to re-polish them. No one is seeing my toes in this cold weather and I think it’s good to give nails a break from polish occasionally. I also have been using a good foot cream each day to soften my dry heels.
This week I plan to give my fingernails and hands some extra attention.
HEALTH & FITNESS
I’ve been drinking a lot of hot tea and coffee in this cold weather but not enough plain water. I’m working on getting back to my summer levels of water intake.
FUN ACTIVITIES
My daughter recommended The Gilded Age series to me a few days ago. We had both loved Downton Abbey by the same creator, Julian Fellowes. I watched the first episode Friday night and was immediately hooked, just as I had been after the first episode of Downton Abbey. I need to ask David if this is one he wants to watch with me. That’s what happened with Downton Abbey. I watched the first episode and felt certain he would enjoy it, too. If so, I’ll encourage him to watch the first episode sometime this week and then we can continue the series together – maybe on Saturday nights.
I mentioned in last week’s post that I intend to do some type of “artist date” each week. I did a mini version Saturday afternoon as I started a new coloring page. I need to look at my list of ideas and select one for this week.
David, Chris and I keep saying we want to get back to our movie nights. David and Chris watch something together on Mondays, Chris and I on Thursdays, and the three of us on Sundays.
We are planning to do a family Zoom call sometime this weekend. We are each making bingo cards for our 2024 predictions and then we’ll share them. Should be hilarious!
And if we can find a good time, our friends that we do Zoom cocktail parties with want to do one after they return from their anniversary trip to Mexico. David sent them a picture of the ice this morning and recommended they wait until March to come home. They’ve been sharing pictures of a gorgeous, sunny resort. Yes, I’m jealous!
HABIT OF THE MONTH (JANUARY)
I decluttered a plastic lid for a baking pan I no longer own. I also pulled out two bud vases I no longer want. I’ll take them to our florist. They take them and give a discount card in return.
If you aren’t already in the group, here is the link:
LIFE WITH DEE
I’d love to see pictures of your challenge so feel free to share them in the group or on Instagram and tag me:
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What’s on your plan for the week ahead? Home tasks? Menu? Fun? What are you reading?
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10 Ways to Survive and Thrive This Winter
I find the Happy Belly brand of pizza sauce at Amazon to be very reasonable and it makes a good sub for canned/jarred spaghetti sauce in a pinch.
Thanks, Terri. That’s good to know. I’ve been seeing that brand but haven’t tried any of it yet. I did find that Amazon’s price on Classico spaghetti sauce is cheaper than my grocery store by quite a bit so I put it on Subscribe and Save. Aldi’s organic sauce is a bit cheaper but now that I’m doing all of my mom’s grocery shopping, I place most of my orders with the local grocery store (she’s got some pretty specific items on her list each week). I used to make my own pasta sauce with cartons of diced tomatoes, tomato paste and my own herbs/spices. It really doesn’t take much longer than opening a jar but since the pandemic began and we don’t eat out in restaurants like we used to, I’ve been allowing myself a few shortcuts. As it is, I feel like I’m always cooking or cleaning the kitchen – ha!