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
MENU:
Monday…
- pork chops
- baked potatoes
- broccoli
- apricots
- leftover rolls from our takeout meal last night
Tuesday…
Wednesday…
- spaghetti and meatballs
- peas
- salad
- garlic bread
Thursday…
- out to dinner at Potrillo’s Mexican Restaurant
Friday…
- grilled hot dogs
- potato salad
- baked beans
Saturday…
- takeout
Sunday…
- soup
- grilled cheese sandwiches
IN MY HOME:
REVIEW OF LAST WEEK
Monday…
I picked up our weekly grocery order and took Mom her groceries and food I had cooked for her.
I also wrote a blog post.
We had Spicy Black Bean and Potato soup for dinner. I hadn’t made this before but it was excellent and we all enjoyed it. I added some frozen corn to it and served it topped with a little sour cream and grated cheese. We had crusty French rolls hot from the oven alongside.
Tuesday…
The tile installer came out this morning to take a look at the bathroom David is remodeling. He’ll be giving us an estimate as soon as we make a definite decision on the tile.
We had hoped to get out of town around noon but it was closer to 2 p.m. after we dropped off things at my mom’s and ran another couple of errands. That meant we didn’t get to Beaumont, Texas (work trip for David) until almost 10 p.m.
We weren’t exactly thrilled with our hotel room but they were sold out. David had checked in early via the app but didn’t realize they had assigned us to a handicap accessible room. The main issue was the shower. It had a handheld shower head that was mounted in the middle of the wall and unless you were holding it, it sprayed straight out. The shower curtain was a good 8 inches off the floor and the water drained into the middle of the room, between the door and the toilet. I had to mop up the floor with a towel every time we showered or risk slipping on the puddle when using the bathroom during the night.
The other issue was that the bed was VERY low to the ground. Our bed at home is quite high. Getting out of bed during the night when muscle memory expects the floor to be a couple of feet further away was a rather “jarring” experience. But as I told David, at least the air conditioning worked very well. I can deal with most anything as long as I’m not too hot during the night.
Wednesday…
David left early and was back to the hotel around 3 p.m. Neither of us had had lunch so we planned to have an early dinner. However, we started watching HGTV and before we knew it, it was nearly 6 p.m.
I looked up area restaurants with outdoor dining and found one on the Neches River – Neches River Wheelhouse. The view was lovely and the food excellent. David had beef tips and I had shrimp and grits, their most popular menu item. It did not disappoint. We might have had dessert, as well, but just as we finished our entrees the mosquitos came out. Next time we will go earlier!
Thursday…
We left the hotel around 10 a.m. and headed home. David had a conference call at 2 p.m. and needed to find a place to park with decent cell service. The timing was such that we ended up in the parking lot of a rather sketchy looking liquor store in a town of about 450 people. But at least we had cell service!
We got home around 6:30, unloaded the car and I followed David to town to drop off the rental car. I had no plans to cook at that point and after listening to an audiobook in which there were many descriptions of Asian meals, David decided we needed Chinese food for dinner. He called in the order before we headed to town and it was ready by the time we had dropped off the car.
Friday…
David took off work a little early. He needed to send a FedEx package and I wanted to get some mums and pansies. We texted Joy to ask if we could pick up Charlotte and take her with us to look at plants. Of course Charlotte was happy to see Gramma and Grampa and we were delighted to spend a little time with her.
We went to the nursery and wandered around looking at plants. It was a gorgeous, sunny day. I had her help me pick out 6 pansy plants plus one for her. We also bought a shrub to replace one that had died, plus two large pots of mums for the front porch. There were also some pumpkins so we told her she could pick out a little one. She then asked if we had a knife. She loved carving a pumpkin at our house last Halloween and obviously remembered that. We’ll wait until closer to Halloween to get a big pumpkin to carve.
Back in the pickup, I asked her if her pumpkin had a name. She said, “It’s not real”. I told her she could still name it if she wanted to. She promptly decided its name would be “Duck”. Or maybe “Doug”? 😉
Since we hadn’t been home on Tuesday, I made our usual weekly tacos this night.
Saturday…
I’ve decided to change up my schedule a bit and wash sheets on Saturdays.
I spent quite a bit of time making new graphics and scheduling social media for the blog.
For dinner we had Mediterranean Style Chicken and Vegetables plus a spinach and tomato salad.
Sunday…
David moved some of the plumbing in the bathroom and needed me to watch for leaks as he turned the water back on. He was doing copper lines which require soldering and since this was in the floor of the bathroom, it was kind of awkward to get to. He had to do some additional soldering a couple of times but it’s done now. Most people use PVC pipe these days but he learned from my dad (who had a plumbing license in California) who preferred copper.
I spent a fair amount of time looking for items for the bathroom. I did find the mirror to go over the vanity and got it ordered.
I also wrote out our weekly menu, placed my grocery order, and scheduled social media.
THIS WEEK
Monday…
I had hoped to get up earlier but since it was close to 2 a.m. before I fell asleep last night, that didn’t happen. However, I did do my long-neglected morning exercises as soon as I got up. This is a habit I’m determined to get back to on a daily basis. I had previously been up to 20 pushups but sadly, today I could only do 8. It’s very disappointing how quickly one loses momentum and muscle.
I had a Zoom call at 1 p.m. and then made some food for my mom before heading to town.
I picked up our grocery order at Pruett’s then went through Starbucks for an iced London Fog Latte. I figure I deserve a treat on grocery day!
I then drove across town to our church to pick up the latest daily devotions booklet. I had picked one up a couple of weeks ago when I had taken Mom to her pedicure appointment and when she saw it in the car she asked if I could get her one. I gave her mine.
I went to Braum’s to get Mom the chocolate shakes she loves. I buy her four of them, she puts them in the freezer and then has one every other day or so. After my “food gathering” I went to Mom’s to bring her her groceries, food I had cooked for her and some cat food I had ordered from Amazon.
I got home a little after 5 p.m. David helped me carry in our groceries and I put them away. He had a firefighter meeting at 6 p.m. so dinner wasn’t until nearly 7:30 p.m. tonight.
We had a really tasty meal. We had smothered pork chops, baked potatoes, broccoli, and canned apricots. David and Chris both raved about the pork chops. Here is how I made them:
I put a little olive oil in a large skillet and as it was heating I prepared the pork chops. I seasoned them on both sides with garlic salt, black pepper and onion powder then lightly sprinkled them with flour. I started browning them in the oil while thinly slicing half an onion. I added the onions to the pan around the pork chops and let them cook a bit. I mixed some Knorr Chicken Bouillon powder in 2 cups of water and poured this into the pan to deglaze it. I then let this simmer gently until the pork chops were tender and cooked through. Toward the end of the cooking, I added a little Kitchen Bouquet, mostly for color. The pork chops were tender and the gravy was so flavorful.
Tuesday…
I have a Zoom call at 1 p.m.
I need to get a rather belated monthly newsletter out.
Plant the pansies I bought last Friday.
Instead of our usual tacos, I’m planning to make Taco Frito Salad, another family favorite.
Wednesday…
Write the weekly grocery haul post and finish scheduling social media for the week.
Chris will be out of town so this is a good night to make one of his less favored meals – spaghetti. I had frozen leftovers for my mom last week and she loved it. So I’ll make a full recipe and package up several small portions for her.
Thursday…
I have an Azure Standard order to pick up and we are going out to dinner out at Portillo’s, a local Mexican restaurant. I want to take advantage of the nice weather. Soon enough it will be too chilly to eat outdoors.
Friday…
Since the weather is still warm I’ve planned to grill hot dogs for dinner. I’ll serve them with homemade potato salad and baked beans. Soon enough it will be chilly and our menu will shift to cold-weather meals so I’d like to enjoy a few more “summer dinners”.
Saturday…
Wash the sheets and clean house.
Sunday…
Prepare for the week ahead and do some extra reading.
READING
Finished…
New Dawn Over Mulberry Lane (#8 in series)
Currently reading…
Trust by Hernan Diaz
I’m almost finished with this one. I’ll be done tonight.
Tom Lake: A Novel by Ann Patchett
This was a LWD Book Club selection but I’m just now getting around to reading it. I’m actually doing the audiobook version because it’s read by Meryl Streep.
Other books ongoing…
The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady ~ Edith Holden
An Incomplete Education ~ Judy Jones and William Wilson
On our recent trip to South Texas, David and I listened to an audiobook on Audible:
Around the World in 80 Trains: A 45,000 Mile Adventure by Monisha Rajesh
This was SO interesting and now we really want to take a long train trip one day. Not in North Korea or India but maybe across Canada.
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 didn’t get around to coloring my hair this past week so it’s still on my to-do list. I also need to do a pedicure.
It’s still quite warm here but I know that as it gets cooler my skin gets dry and itchy. I’d like to head that off this year by starting a daily habit of using a rich lotion all over after my shower every night. I figure if I get in habit before my skin gets dry, I’ll be ahead of the game.
This is the lotion I’ve fairly recently discovered and really like:
When my daughter was a baby she developed eczema and her pediatrician recommended Eucerin (the original version). Last Christmas I bought these for the kids’ stockings and I keep one in my desk drawer for my hands. I highly recommend this!
HEALTH & FITNESS
With cold and flu season on the horizon, as well as high levels of Covid, I want to make my health a real priority. That means more rest, more consistent exercise and a focus on good nutrition. I want to make a daily checklist for good health habits and really focus on being consistent.
FUN ACTIVITIES
We should have several clear nights this week so I’ve got some stargazing on my “fun list”.
I really want to get back to coloring, too. I have a couple of new coloring books that I haven’t even started yet.
HABIT OF THE MONTH (October)
LWD October Challenge:
If you aren’t already in the Life With Dee Facebook 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?
You may also enjoy…
LWD Book Club ~ Tom Lake: A Novel
What a lovely menu you have for the week! And my goodness what a busy week you had last week! I’m tired from just reading all of that. Hope this week finds you able to slow down a bit more.
I do have a question for you regarding lettuce and veggies. Do you tend to wash and prepare veggies when you get them home from the store or wait until you’re going to use them for a recipe? I’m especially interested in the storage of lettuce. Also do you own a salad spinner? If so, is it worth it? Thanks!
I usually wait to prepare veggies just before using them as they seem to last longer that way. If I’m just using part of a bell pepper, I cut down the side, leaving the core intact and then put it in a plastic bag. I keep meaning to buy and dice several for the freezer. Peppers and onion both freeze well.
Lettuce is so perishable that I just haven’t had success prepping it in advance. And yes, I do have a salad spinner which I use every time I make a salad. I’ve had it for ages and keep thinking about upgrading to a better version.
I should also add that by the time I get groceries, take Mom hers and get ours home and put away, I’m generally too wiped out to even think about prepping veggies at that point. Ha!