Groceries!

This morning has been super busy and I haven’t done any stitching or sewing on Addie’s pillow or stocking yet.

Today is trash pickup day andwith Vince here, he’s in charge of that. When I was here by myself, I got it all together on Wednesday evening so all I had to do on Thursday morning was push the cart out to the street. They come around noon, though it’s 1:30 and they haven’t been here yet. Vince figures if he has it out by 11:30, that’s good and it probably is but until he gets it out there, I’m worried that they’re going to come before he gets it out there. Just do it and get it over with. That’s the thinking that causes me to check everything for tomorrow’s dinner today and get everything out and by the stove so I don’t have to worry there’s something I don’t have. And that’s what caused me to season the steaks this morning, scrub and wrap the potatoes to be baked, rinse the broccoli and get it in the steamer with the water so all I have to do is hit “start”.

The dishwasher repairman was scheduled to come tomorrow so I cleaned up the kitchen. My kitchen is always clean “enough” but there’s almost always a crock pot, the Instant pot, the grain mill on the counter. The top of the stove is always full of cast iron that I heated to dry and left to cool and never removed. Empty jars are almost always on the bar that need to go downstairs. Honestly, I like to wait til there’s a dozen and I can take a whole box full at once. I usually empty a dozen jars in less than a week. But I know it all looks cluttered when someone walks in. So, I got that all cleaned off, then to further cause me to dislike the diswasher, the repairman called to tell me he’s overbooked and will have to scheduled for next week. No! Addie will be here. We’re going to make cookies and candy and whatever day he says he’s coming, the time frame is either 8 – 12 or 1 – 5. I don’t want us to be sitting around wasting a day when we need to be making cookies and candy and just about any time next week, I’m guessing the kitchen will be a disaster. I asked them to reschedule our repairs for after the first of the year. Who wants to be dealing with that during the holidays – especially since the dishwasher is working – just making some crazy noise.

Vince loves shopping of any kind – groceries, tools, flea markets – you name it. He goes to the grocery store and he buys so much like cookies (I can’t even remember the last time I ate storebought cookies!), crackers, cheese, olives . . and even though he buys a lot, he never knows what we already have, and he doesn’t buy the things needed to cook a meal. For instance, today I had a Walmart grocery order delivered and I had bought cream cheese (for cookies and icing), whipped cream cheese because Addie loves it on bagels, and sour cream. Vince took the car to get aligned, went by Aldi and because he had seen that cream cheese was in short supply, he bought some blocks, and he bought whipped for Addie and he bought sour cream because we’re having baked potatoes tonight and he knew we were almost out last time. I love that he loves to grocery shop. I used to like it . . when I did it alone, but now, he can do all the shopping but he’s going to have to start checking his list with my list. I kinda feel like since I’m the one cooking all the meals, he needs to let me buy the groceries or at least get a list from me if he wants to do the shopping.

Anyway, I placed my Walmart order last night and had it delivered today. They drop it all off just at the edge of the garage and I bring it all in and put it away. This was my big grocery shopping before Christmas. All I’ll need between now and Christmas is maybe milk and letltuce and other ingredients for a salad.

By the time I got finished putting it away, I was tired and very thankful that I hadn’t had to walk up and down the aisles finding all that stuff, then check out, then put it all in the car, AND put it all away when I got home.

It’s sad the cost of groceries. It was over $150 today and the only meat was a package of chicken breasts for Rita’s food and a package of Ball Park franksf or hot dogs. There were things I don’t normally buy unless Addie is here.

• Pineapple juice – she loves pineapple juice so I buy it frozen and make it for her.
• Cottage cheese and potato chips – together! I figure if she’s going to eat cottage cheese, I’ll buy the chips.
• Frito scoops – we’re having chili at least once while she’s here. She likes her chili mixed about equal parts with grated cheese and she scoops it up with the big Fritos . . more like a dip.
• Lunchables – I bought two. I usually take one with me in the car when I go pick her up because she wants a snack after school. This way we don’t have to stop and get food, then come home and cook for Vince.
• Roast beef deli meat – On the days she doesn’t like what we’re having, she can have a roast beef sandwich. She loves the “dark meat” on her sandwich .. which is roast beef, with baby Swiss cheese.
• 4 dozen eggs – Addie will be here two weeks and she loves a big breakfast. With an egg for Addie, an egg for me, two eggs for Vince and an egg for Rita, a dozen eggs barely gets us through two days. Some days it omelettes, some days it ham and egg sandwiches on bagels, some days it’s scrambled eggs, then we have cakes and cookies to be made.

Groceries are all put away. I’m headed down to sew.