Elk Brown Stew

1 1/2 pounds Elk cubes for stew (you can use beef)

Flour about 1 cup

Salt and pepper to your taste

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon allspice

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon sugar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

2 cups tomato juice

1 1/2 cups water

4 small onions, quartered

1 1/2 cups diced potatoes

3 medium carrots, diced

3/4 cup diced celery

Dredge meat in seasoned flour. Heat oil and garlic in electric skillet at 400°. Add meat and brown well. Turn heat control down until pilot light goes out. Add paprika, allspice, sugar, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, tomato juice and water. Cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours or until meat is tender. Stir occasionally, adding more water if necessary. Add onions, potatoes, carrots and celery. Cover and cook 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Okay this is the basic recipe..... Now for the changes I made for today's dinner because I cant follow the same recipe all the time....

Today I doubled the basic recipe. I also added 1 medium onion because thats all I had, I didn't add celery because I am out. I added 1 1/2 cups red wine and 1 can of diced tomatoes, because I can. Also I added all the vegetables at one time after I added the tomato sauce, and dialed the heat down to warm so it can cook all day. Why you ask??? Just because it makes the house smell wonderful and I can sneak a taste now and then. Thats all.

Now we must move on to something sweet........

Once A Year Posting......

How in the world did a whole year pass by and I didn't post one new thing???

Could it be the new High Schooler? Maybe it was the Middle School Middle Child? (that is a whole topic in itself!) Perhaps its the Preschooler.... It cold be "Honey could you do_________, for me" list that is ever growing. Or maybe it's the fact that I have to volunteer any free days I have....

I need to fix this Once a Year Posting. I will work on it and get back to you....

See you next February!

LOL

Happy Valentines Day Eve.

I use to look forward to this holiday in the hopes of a secret admirer sending me flowers or chocolates. Even a card slipped under a door, but then I grew up and married a man who for the last 19 years has forgot this holiday even exists. The first few years I was devastated, the next few I was just mad, and now I have zero expectations that anything romantic will occur on this day and its just a fun time for the kids. It works for me.

This year since times are tight I had to get creative with my Valentines for the kids. I came up with this cute Idea. I found the cute little bear you see above on a google search. Then I printed it off on pink paper and attached a small dollar box of chocolates with a cute little valentine message for each kid. Total cost for the project $3.oo. I had a Walmart gift card with a 4 dollar balance so all in all it cost me nothing. I like that!!!

Another Month

I am amazed at how fast January went by! Life gets busy and time flies by without us even taking notice until its gone.

We have been very busy with the girls and Basketball Season. We have had a tournament every weekend this entire month. Needless to say one of us (the resedent 4 yr. old) have had enough and have firmly stated that they will stay with Aunt Kim and go to no more games!

Hubby has had no luck on the job front. There is just nothing out there! A few times he has went to places that said he was a day late.... Spring will be here soon enough and we will be back in the hay business and having no free time. I keep thinking, if we can make it through this winter, then we should be able to save enough money this summer to get us through next winter and if a winter jobs comes around next year it will just make it less tight financially.

Our grocery bill has went from 70-100 dollars a week down to 20! I have been able to do this using the WIC Program, and the meat we grew or hunted. That is a nice feeling.

I am trying to focus on all the things we have instead of what we are doing without. There are lots more people out there that are doing it well on much less. So I am counting my blessings!!!

January went by in a blur, I am going to try and make an effort to find something everyday in February to take notice of. Slow things down a bit and enjoy this life.

Christmas Vacation Is Over....

Today was the first day back to school for almost all of us here on the farm. I had to go back to work, Jesse and Boo went back to school. Shannon stayed home with daddy. She is feeling much better (Sick since Dec 26th) but I am a big fan of an extra day of rest once you feel better. My mom use to do that for us, and I really think it works.

I also started to get back on track with my eating and start this year off on a healthy new foot. I have a huge Sugar Detox headache, but like my daddy use to tell me at 5am building fence after coming home wayyyy after curfew.... YOU WANT TO DANCE YOUNG LADY, YOU HAVE TO PAY THE FIDDLER!

Well I have danced with Fudge, Cookies, Chips, Dip, and loads of other none healthy foods since Thanksgiving. Now its time to pay the fiddler.

On a lighter note...

On a happier note the girls are getting along so well it makes me wonder what they are up to?? Last night Jesse actually invited Boo to go into her room to listen to music and do each others nails…. Who are these people and what have they done with my kids?

$20.00 to my name and no payday until January, 30th

Breaks down, that’s five dollars a week. I did go to the WIC office to see if we could participate in the program and thank goodness we qualify. I got my first set of vouchers good from 12/30 – 1/11 here is what we get.

WIC Food Package

Milk- 3 gallons + 1 Quart
2 loaves 100% whole wheat bread, whole wheat tortillas or corn tortillas
36 oz cereal
1 dozen eggs
1 lb. cheese
1 lb beans or 18 oz. jar Peanut Butter
2 -64 oz 100% Juice frozen or bottled
$6.00 Voucher for fresh, frozen, or canned vegetables

With a little creativity I think I can make this last the month. I have powdered milk in the freezer, so if I make 50/50 milk (half gallon fresh milk mixed with half a gallon re-constituted powder milk) I can get 2 gallons from 1 gallon of fresh that will make 6 gallons for the month that will be little more than a gallon a week.

Since all the kids eat breakfast and lunch at school I think I will get it in tortillas so that I can make tacos, enchiladas, and other Mexican favorites the whole family loves.

I think I can get the most out of that $6.00 vegetable voucher if I am smart. I can get canned vegetables. Tomatoes, green beans and corn are pretty affordable. Cabbage, onions, carrots and celery are good staples that are usually at an affordable price. I did read that you can go over on your vegetable voucher and pay the difference with cash.

Making a dozen eggs and a pound of cheese stretch a month is going to be hard. I guess we just wont use as much as we use to. That is all we can do.

I checked the propane tank, we are at 30% it’s a bit low but if we only use it for hot water and cooking we should get by. I just need to make sure that we can get fuel in February.