We also travelled to visit family this weekend. We had a graduation dinner in one of the private dining rooms at Houmas House. If you ever have the opportunity to visit, the gardens and home are beautiful (ask to take Miz' Judy's tour). If you stay for lunch or dinner, I highly recommend the crab and mango cake and the bisque of curried pumpkin, crawfish and corn was also delicious (we also had a mixed spring salad, filet and bananas foster that were excellent). The service was exceptional, they had two weddings and an couple of private dinners in addition to the restaurant and every course was cooked perfectly and was served at the correct temperature. Sorry no pictures -- my batteries were beyond revival. DS was running around with his little digital video camera, hopefully he got a few photos that I can share later.
I will be back soon with all my stitching progress -- just need to get reorganized.
The first step in my re-organization effort is Spring Cleaning - I am pulling out every item in every closet and drawer (and in the case of my DS under the bed). Some items will be repurposed (I have seen some great ideas on the blogs), "adoption" by friends & family or donation or (sniff-sniff) the trash.
My second step is meal planning, I have tried it before without much success -- I am a spur of the moment cook. But, I have been inspired by all you meal planning bloggers to give it another shot. I want to decrease my trips to the store and be more thoughtful about what we are eating since I have noticed more "convenience" foods sneaking into our daily diet. Here is my plan for this week:
Monday - Red Beans and Rice (a no-brainer in NOLA)
Tuesday - Smothered Pork Chops with rice and sauteed green beans
Wednesday - Chicken Enchilada Casserole
Thursday - Shrimp and Eggplant Jambalaya (a new recipe from a friend)
Friday - BBQ chicken and grilled veggies
Saturday - Grilled Veggie Lasagna
Sunday - Dinner at Mom's
I will let you know next Monday how well I adhered to my plan.
School lets out at the end of the week, wonder what that will do for my stitching??
Your kids are out of school at the end of the week already? Wow!! You must start much earlier than we do. My kids don't let out until the end of June. Let us know how you do with your menu planning. I keep telling myself that this is something that I need to start doing, but that's about as far as I get. Good luck with it.
ReplyDeleteHey Stephanie! I too try to cut down on extra trips to the store also. Doing so decreases the impulse buying which saves some bucks. Here, we have our local grocery store ads that are available online.You might check your area to see if your stores do as well if you haven't already. I will grab a piece of paper and a pen and log on to the sites and see what their current ads are. I can leave open the site while checking on if you have something in your fridge or pantry to go with the things that are on sale. Then plan meals around what's on sale instead of making out the menus first. I make out my shopping list at the same time.I think about what stores I will be going to and think about my other errends that I need to run and then go to those places in order of what makes the closest "circle" trip. Makes it easier, saves time and gas. I know you weren't asking for tips but thought I would share.
ReplyDeleteOK...YUM!!!! Can you mail me some of that food? :) Nothing like home cooked food...and it's hard to find here in Houston.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed your family week-end, that house looks amazing!
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the spring cleaning and meal planning.
Pam, Yes, we go back the first week in August -- it is soooo hot then.
ReplyDeleteSharlotte, Thanks for the tips. It is great to control those impulse buys. Most of our local stores have their ads online and they also come in the Thursday paper. I try to stick to the sale items and I am going to start going to the farmer's market on Saturdays to check out their produce prices.
Dianne, I'm trying to work going back into our budget. We had family from Houston there and they said it was better than some of the fine dining restaurants in Houston. I am looking forward to going back.
Elaine, It was a beautiful house. I totally fell in love with the hall tree. It was an actual iron tree (similar to a dogwood) -- it was a real work of art. We did not get to take the tour, but we plan to visit again this summer and take the official tour. I will share pics then.
Your comments really made my day today! Thanks!