Today is chilly and rainy. Joe had an appointment in Barrington, so I was on my own for most of the day. Do you know what I did? I finished my clothes...trying on T shirts and capris to see what was worn out and what still fit. When will I stop looking at clothing I wonder? My mother loved clothes until the day she died. She and Dad would go to the mall just about everyday.They could walk and get their exercise. They'd go out for lunch and then Dad would sit and people watch, while Mom shopped. She kept her eye on things. She knew exactly when something she wanted was the right price and then she snatched it up. I was always on the other end of the phone, when she would call, to tell me her latest deal. I'm not like that at all. I can count on one hand, the number of times I've been to the mall since I have lived here...almost 11 yrs. Online shopping and the Ogle County Hospice thrift store are my way of shopping. Last year I decided to toss about 1/2 of my clothes. I donated them and sent them to the thrift shop. My closet looks pretty bare and I want to keep it that way.I have two wardrobes downstairs and I could get by with one. I emptied all the bins, so clothes are easier to bring up the stairs. This year I accomplished the switchover in about an hour and a half. This morning I was washing a few things and putting some in the dryer to fluff them. My everyday gardening clothes are pretty much the same as other years. This year, I have some bright new bandannas to wear......so I will have some color. Do you think my neighbors will recognize me? Well, that's enough about clothes.
I made some, what I call, goulash for dinner. It was a favorite of my family during WWII .I chopped the onion and peppers, browned the gr. beef, added the onion mixture, fried and seasoned it, cooked the elbow macaroni and added to the meat mixture, added a can of tomato soup, added 1/2 of a lg.can of tomato sauce, added 1/2 pkg grated cheddar, (oh, I needed mushrooms, but didn't have any, and heated it in an iron skillet...tasted it and seasoned it again. It tasted so good to me. Joe came home and thought it was Hamburger Helper...sometimes you just can't win.
Balisha
The Hamburger Helper made me laugh. Sounds like something my better half would say after I made something from "scratch."
ReplyDeleteYour goulash recipe sounds just like my mom's. I think she used Velveeta though and no mushrooms! Thanks for the memory of goulash!
Come to think of it....Mom used Velvetta too. We didn't have mushrooms either...I added those to the recipe later on. It was just the basics during the war.
ReplyDeleteI'm afraid planting here is going to have a late start, too. The weather is awful! Either too cold or too rainy, or both. All I have so far is a basket of pansies on my porch, some chives in the herb garden, and two pea plants waiting to go in the ground. You sound like me with clothes and shopping...and I hate malls. I haven't been in a mall in years. Most of my clothes are from Goodwill and a few are from free-standing stores such as Kohls or TJ Maxx. I've been weeding out my clothes too and have a bunch to donate. Less is more. My mom used to make a similar Goulash recipe when I was growing up. She didn't use tomato soup, but instead used a can of diced tomatoes. It was actually one of my dad's favorite recipes!
ReplyDeleteThe goulash that I made came from a very old recipe. I'm older than you Melanie....so it was before diced tomatoes in a can. Many recipes called for a can of soup back then. I had diced tomatoes in the pantry but held true to the recipe. That tomato soup gives it a different flavor. This recipe was made by my whole family....each woman adding a touch of her own creativity. In later years Mom would add chunks of cheese instead of grated and sliced black olives....this was my brother's favorite.
DeleteOh Joe! Made me laugh. I too dislike the foliage from the Grape Hyacinths--as mine is just starting to green up and not purple flower in sight. We here in Michigan sure are way behind in our blooming and growing this spring.
ReplyDeleteWe aren't ahead of you much....I see other blogs near here with lots of things blooming. Well, our time will come.
DeleteWe have 1/2 of the "hamburger helper" left over. Guess I'll freeze it. I still cook for an army.
Balisha
I thought that the price of plants had gone up a bit this year, too. I keep forgetting to shop for hens and chicks plants. I've been wanting some for a few years now. I keep getting distracted by the annuals. It seems like it has been windier later into the spring this year than I remember in past years. I find it wearing to work outside if it is windy. Saturday, April 19, I thought that I had the perfect day to plant my harvested from last years zinnia seeds, marigold, and bachelor button seeds. My flower bed soil was all ready and waiting, I had slightly dampened it with the hose, and had my chicken wire ready to cover the beds with after planting. It was so sunny, and warm, and calm out. As soon as I finally got everything all ready to sow my seeds, the wind came out of nowhere and I could barely get my seeds sown before it was blowing them away. I ended up having to bend way down (I should have been lower, but my knees don't bend like that anymore) and sow the seeds a few at a time and pat them down onto the damp soil and cover them with fine soil immediately before they blew away. Even with that wind, it must have been a good day to plant because most of my zinnia seeds have already sprouted. I lost a few where the squirrel got in under the edge of the chicken wire and dug around. Do you have any ideas how to repel squirrels and keep them from digging in flower beds and planters?
ReplyDeleteYour goulash sounds good. I make something similar to that except I layer with cooked egg noodles.
My knees don't bend like that anymore either :) We are so desperate for warm weather that we make ourselves stay out in the garden. Hang on to those seeds!!
ReplyDeleteBalisha
OMG LOL I just bust out laughing at the end about Joe and Hamburger Helper!!
ReplyDeleteI wasn't laughing :)
ReplyDelete