Wednesday Checkin 1/31

I have still been rotating between Wii and Pilates daily, but I have not been diligent with journaling my journey. I have not weighed myself again, but already my pants are looser, what a joy.

This past week I have not only been purging the weight, but the house as well. Projects that I have procrastinated on are getting done. Yesterday, for example, the boys and I went through their room and started tossing old/broken toys. Some of which the boys want to try to sell to earn an extra buck or two. I still have some details to take care of in their room, but that must wait until I can get to town.We have found that 3 and 5 gallon buckets are ideal for their toys, and I need to get a couple more. They also need new curtains and some shelves on the wall. (they are lego buffs and we need a place for some of their finished projects.)

Today I concentrate on the princess room (she is anticipating moving to a larger room, so the more we can get rid of the less we have to move.) She has already started purging some of her toys that are to young, she also is interested in selling some of hers. I am not sure if we will save it for a garage sale, or if we will just list on craigslist.

Meals have changed. The kids are still loving home cooked breakfasts. Yesterday, princess made banana bread that they can have with juice. Last nights dinner is a good example of our change, back to basics really. Baked Chicken breast with steamed broccoli and cauliflower and a slice of homemade bread. Princess also baked brownies for dessert, which I passed on (and that is saying something with my love for chocolate!)

I look forward to getting our tax refund in, for on the agenda is a 1/2 beef from a local rancher as well as lamb. I wont buy storebought beef as it is vile, no flavor and to much fat! I am also hoping to locate a local place that sell chicken in bulk so we can fill our freezer. I also look forward to trying my hand at canning some of it. (I already have canned beef and venison, so I don't think it will be much different)

My darling wanted to know why I can some of it. We purchased 1/4 a cow from a local rancher (wont be getting from them again) the meat was too tough. By canning, it tenderizes it beautifully. It also makes for homemade convenience foods. I can dump it in a pot, and veggies and homemade broth and we have stew for dinner. It is quick because the meat is already cooked. This makes sense since we are inclinded to have power outages in bad weather. I told him that when we get the 1/2, I want the bones as well to make home canned broth. If we can get chickens I will do the same thing there. (my goal is to freeze 1/2 and can 1/2)

All in all, a good week!