Hola?

Steph0871

Anyone awake yet?  It's perfectly sunny outside this morning.  Just in time for us to leave, of course.  I'm procrastinating on packing up.... I was going to try and keep all my 'dirty' clothes in a separate bag in my suitcase, but I realized they all smell and feel damp anyway.  Exciting morning I've had.

I'm also putzing with budget stuff, looking at the 'year in review' stuff on mint.com.  It's a little sickening how much H and I spent on food this past year.  We really need to be better about not eating out so much. geesh.

number55

I am so jealous of your time in the DR Steph - sorry you have to leave.

I need to do some marking today, as usual, and go to the gym. This afternoon we go 'up north' a few hours to see DHs friends from university for the night. And I get to spend the night feeling ancient because I don't drink a lot anymore. 

J&K10910

I'm up.  I'm at work.  Yay.  I feel like I'll be SO productive this weekend

My boss gave me the most godawful schedule for next week.  I think I'll take a day off.  I don't think we have a policy about not using PTO during notice. 

J&K10910

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_hola?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:17Discussion:c2cebf4d-9358-47e4-a639-ba5e7f45a268Post:6aef5398-ecad-41e7-ba2c-c55fe5836ca0">Re: Hola?</a>:
[QUOTE]J, at least you're following through on the 2 weeks. We've had a lot of people put in 2 weeks and then we never see them again. Steph, we eat out about 27-28 days a month. It's hard to cook for just 2. I end up spending just as much at the grocery store to cook as we would eating out.
Posted by jcbsjr[/QUOTE]

1.  The only reason I'm following through is because I'm more professional than my boss.  I assure you just not showing up again did cross my mind, but that would make me just as bad as her.

2.  You  must not meal plan.  I promise you that it's possible to cook for 2 and spend less on groceries than eating out.  But it takes some practice and trial and error for sure.  Eating out is more fun though!  Haha.

J&K10910

She actually had the schedule done before I gave my notice.  I see how much she "truly appreciates [me] as an employee."  I do.  I see it.

I guess I'm biased, because I can't imagine NOT meal planning (I hate the grocery store and I refuse to go daily or every couple days) and we waste far less stuff by planning, but it was definitely tricky to get the hang of.  If you ever want to give it another shot, I'd be happy to help

katiewhompus

I need to meal plan but it never seems to happen. I am happy though because we haven't eaten out at all this week which is huge for us.

I have to get new tires on my car today which is ridiculous because it freaking snowed two days ago when I needed the new tires. But it just snowed on my house and thats it. It took me 20 minutes to drive the two miles to pick up dad, then we got 5 miles away from my house and there was no snow in sight. Wtf is that?

We're also activating our new phones today! If everything works as planned we'll be saving about $700 a year now.

SarahPLiz

Hidey Ho Good neighbors!

I've been up for over an hour but thought it would be weird to post at 6am (CST) on a saturday. THe boy is down for his morning nap so I can type with both hands now.

We have a busy day planned. When he wakes up we'll go get my allergy shot, go to Target for a present for his little friend and pick up breakfast because I'm out of both eggs and oatmeal. At 1 we have a 1st birthday party for his little friend (DH's coworker's kid). At 6 we are meeting DH's BFF and her FI for fancy BBQ. I hope I can get all my steps in or I'll have to take a long walk tonight. 

We spend too much eating out too. I need to meal plan better, especially for breakfast and lunch. It can be as easy as fixing dry oatmeal baggies for the week so I can just grab one to take for work, but I just get so tired I don't do it. 

number55

We eat out a lot but there is no way I wouldn't spend more eating out that much compared to meal planning. I probably meal plan mostly because I am trying to lose weight but even if I weren't, as JK said, it helps to avoid food wastage. I love it mostly because I am anal and like to plan though.  I too am happy to help you.

J&K, I never got around to congratulating you in your thread about your new job so CONGRATS...I am sure you can't wait!

J&K10910

Sarah, how long have you been getting allergy shots?  Can I ask what allergy(ies) you get them for?  Do they really help a lot? 

J&K10910

Thanks, Number!  I'm pretty pumped

MRSBJS

Morning ladies!

I'm trying to drag my butt out of bed - I have to get my girls ready for dance, and then we're off!

Congrats on the new job, J!! 

number55

jcbsjr - I am a Sunday girl, so I plan out what we are going to eat for the week on Saturday (or Sunday if I am lazy) and then we shop of Sundays. Then on Sunday afternoons/evenings I do a 'big cook' if I need to (pre-cook what I can/need to) and I package out all our lunches (snacks mostly, DH makes his sandwiches the morning of and I bring salads).  Dinners are usually planned around how much time I have too cook depending on gym schedules and what not. 

A typical week might look like this:

Breakfasts: three options: cereal with milk, english muffins with PB, yogurt with granola (so I just make sure we have those options in the basket on Sunday)

Lunches: sandwiches for DH (so he picks out bread and deli meat), salads for me (so I pick what I need for that), then yogurt, fruits, veggies, and hummus for snacks.

Dinner (I am going to use this week as an example)

Sunday: left over Chicken Tortilla Soup from Friday

Monday: Chili (frozen in freezer from a previous 'big cook') 

Tuesday: Baked Chicken with asparagus and mashed cauliflower bake

Wednesday: left over CHicken Tortilla Soup (in freezer)

Thursday: Pork Tenderloin with brocolinni and mashed cauliflower bake

Friday: Steak with sweet potatoes and asparagus

Saturday - usually eating out/socializing, so I leave it open

I have all the meat I need and frozen stuff already made in the freezer so I know that I need to buy:

FOR DINNERS: one bunch of asparagus, one bunch of brocolinni, some kale and some spinach, a bag of frozen mashed cauliflower, a couple of sweet potatoes

FOR LUNCHES: buns and deli meat for DH, berries (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries), 3 green apples, 6 red apples, a bunch of bananas, 2 green peppers, a bag of baby carrots, a bag of snap peas, 2 containers of hummus, 2 pre-packaged salads (mostly spinach based), 2 cans of tuna, an avocado, 2 tomatoes, a cucumber, eggs, yogurt, cheese (cheddar for DH, feta for me).

FOR BREAKFASTS: english muffins, yogurt

I think that's it. See, now my shopping list for tomorrow is done (yay!)

J&K10910

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_hola?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:17Discussion:c2cebf4d-9358-47e4-a639-ba5e7f45a268Post:8cc8429f-1efa-4baa-b645-37dfe8f757b0">Re: Hola?</a>:
[QUOTE]I'll take any help that I can get. I don't know that I have the discipline tbh. But any tips? Yeah, I'll take em. Do you do it on Sunday's? I mean, grocery shopping. I don't mind the store to get fresh stuff. However, we have to shop different stores for different stuff. Our closest store is for staples like diet coke, flour, soup, smart chicken, etc. but we go to Whole Foods for fresh veg, meats, & the like. So it's kind of a PIA. Ugh. But I think if I could get it done for 1 week to start, that would be awesome. Oh, it's the staples store thats close. I think if WF were closer, it's be easier b/c I like fresh veg/meats.
Posted by jcbsjr[/QUOTE]

Well, I shop on Mondays now because I usually have Mondays off and I can't handle the store on the weekends or in the evenings.

But yeah, I have it fairly organized at this point.  I have a 3 section white board on the fridge.  Sections are "This week's meals" "Meal requests" "List".  So with a little prodding, H now knows to write any meal requests down and anything that he needs or we're out of on the list.  Then I write my meal ideas for the week down.  On the list part, I go through meal by meal (I write out the main dish, sides, etc) and I check the pantry and fridge for ingrediants and write down any I need (I go meal by meal so I don't forget anything).  Then I copy the list into my little notebook, organizing it by section of the grocery store (because I'm Type A and totally weird).  I try to do any prep work that I can ahead of time for my busier days (veggie chopping, etc), so I really don't have an excuse to make it.

And it's good to plan meals to use up extras.  So...say you're making sloppy joes and need half an onion.  Well then I'll also plan something else that uses the other half of the onion.  That was the hardest part for me, but once I got the hang of it it really helped cut down on wasting things, especially expensive fresh produce.

SarahPLiz

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_hola?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:17Discussion:c2cebf4d-9358-47e4-a639-ba5e7f45a268Post:52b49f08-1504-439e-8280-f0143eeaf8fb">Re: Hola?</a>:
[QUOTE]Sarah, how long have you been getting allergy shots?  Can I ask what allergy(ies) you get them for?  Do they really help a lot? 
Posted by J&K10910[/QUOTE]
Ive been getting them for 3 years. Im down to twice a month but I havent been in about 6 week for one reason or another. I am allergic to every grass, weed, pollen, dust and animal they test for, some more severe than others. I used to get horribly ill every year and combined with my mild astha it would turn into pneumonia. II havent been sick more than just a stuffy head occaisionally since I started them. 

J&K10910

Thanks BJS!

Oh, I also try to be realistic about whether or not I'll cook.  So on a day where I work 3-11, if I have errands to run before hand, I'm not likely to cook, so I won't plan a meal for that day, and we'll plan either on leftovers, or every man for himself.  Or if H is off work he'll cook.  I know my recipes well enough that I know which ones give us leftovers for lunches and later in the week, or for freezing.  That's another thing that just comes with time.  If I'm not sure if I'll cook or not, I'll plan a meal for that day with things that are easy to freeze, last longer, and/or are non-perishable.  That way just because I don't cook, it doesn't get wasted, and I'll just shift it to the next week or later in the week.

It all seems really overwhelming at first, but I promise, it was more work for me to type all this out than it is for me to meal plan now that I've got it down.  Once you get used to it, it's like second nature, and it seems terrible to me to NOT meal plan. 

number55

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_hola?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:17Discussion:c2cebf4d-9358-47e4-a639-ba5e7f45a268Post:03a04155-aca8-46a5-a157-19b13f28e3e4">Re: Hola?</a>:
[QUOTE]Thanks BJS! <strong>Oh, I also try to be realistic about whether or not I'll cook.  So on a day where I work 3-11, if I have errands to run before hand, I'm not likely to cook, so I won't plan a meal for that day, and we'll plan either on leftovers, or every man for himself.</strong>  Or if H is off work he'll cook.  I know my recipes well enough that I know which ones give us leftovers for lunches and later in the week, or for freezing.  That's another thing that just comes with time.  If I'm not sure if I'll cook or not, I'll plan a meal for that day with things that are easy to freeze, last longer, and/or are non-perishable.  That way just because I don't cook, it doesn't get wasted, and I'll just shift it to the next week or later in the week. It all seems really overwhelming at first, but I promise, it was more work for me to type all this out than it is for me to meal plan now that I've got it down.  Once you get used to it, it's like second nature, and it seems terrible to me to NOT meal plan. 
Posted by J&K10910[/QUOTE]
 <div>Yes!  When you look at my plan you can see the days where I am actually 'cooking' and the days where I am just 'reheating' food...On Monday I have hot yoga at 7:30 - so I am not going to cook, I am going to come home to chili that was in the freeze, that will already be defrosted in the fridge, and I am going to dump it into a bowl, into the microwave and then dump some cheese on it - a ten minute meal max, maybe 5. Same with Wedneday, DH has volleyball and I go to the personal trainer. There will be soup in the fridge, defrosted from the morning, and we will each eat whenver it works for us. </div>

J&K10910

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_hola?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:17Discussion:c2cebf4d-9358-47e4-a639-ba5e7f45a268Post:35d6c6a9-0d8c-4058-a6ea-1bcf62956bdc">Re: Hola?</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Hola? : Ive been getting them for 3 years. Im down to twice a month but I havent been in about 6 week for one reason or another. I am allergic to every grass, weed, pollen, dust and animal they test for, some more severe than others. I used to get horribly ill every year and combined with my mild astha it would turn into pneumonia. II havent been sick more than just a stuffy head occaisionally since I started them. 
Posted by SarahPLiz[/QUOTE]

So do they work for seasonal allergies too?  For some reason the thought of getting shots never occurred to me, but I get really, really terrible seasonal allergies in the late summer/early fall (the weeds kill me man), where I take allergy meds 3x a day (yeah, the "24 hour" stuff) and still suffer.  And of course, triggers my asthma.

Of course I haven't seen a doctor specifically for my allergies, but huh.  I'll have to ask after I get officially allergy tested. 

number55

I won't buy fresh veggies and fruit for more than a week's worth of a plan.  The rest of the stuff we can stock up on but veggies and fruits, except for maybe onions, always seem to go off and then it just seems pointless. 

J&K10910

You can do it, jcb!   I love shopping during the week, but I probably won't be able when I start my new job.  Maybe, it depends on my (self created eeeeee!) schedule.  BUT it's totally worth it to have all my weekends off and not have to work overnights anymore.

Nebb

I just just frigging around on pinterest and I clicked on my vintage photography board, one of my oldest boards that I have had to sub catagorize multiple times because it kept getting too big. It only has 12 pins in it. It should have well over 200 pins and theyre gone. Theyre just fucking gone. I know its just a website but I put so much effort into that and I feel sick to my stomach. I dont even know what to do - I emailed the site and complained on their facebook but I know those dont get answered. Im so upset.

maratea

Morning! I am going shopping for some new work clothes today and H and I are going out for a super fancy dinner tonight, but only because we got a gift certificate for the restaurant.

We usually try to go grocery shopping really really early on Sunday mornings or really late on Sunday nights. Those times seem to be off the typical weekend shopping schedule for everyone else.

J&K10910

nebb, I've had pins disappear before and then come back.  Maybe that will happen.

Nebb

I have no idea, but it doesnt show them there. http://pinterest.com/samanthamean/vintage-photography/ see?It shows 12 frigging pins. I dont even know where to begin to get them all back because ive spent the last 5 months collecting them. I feel like crying.

Nebb

If they dont im just going to cancel my whole frigging account because I just cant handle that. I have spent time putting all of those together for it to all just randomly disappear without notice? Eff that. Seriously, eff that site. They cant make it work, they cant tell people whats going on, and its a waste of time being on there but an even bigger waste of time when everything youve done on there disappears.

sb9411

Nebb, I hope it's a glitch that gets fixed. I would be super pissed. Speaking of pissed... my H's friend, who I despise called him at 12:30am (we were sleeping), and 7:30am this morning (we were also sleeping). I already despise him, so this didn't help the situation. Aren't there still parameters as to when is an appropriate time to call someone? Granted, H will be turning his phone to silent during the night, but still... have some respect.

J&K10910

Yeah, once you're out of college, 12:30am phone calls are acceptable in an emergency only.

Nebb, I hope they come back! 

Speaking of Pinterest, I really hate when people spell it "Pintrest."  Guys, it's like "Interest" with a "P" in front.  "Intrest" isn't a word.  (Granted, neither is Pinterest, but come on.)

sb9411

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_hola?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:17Discussion:c2cebf4d-9358-47e4-a639-ba5e7f45a268Post:621428e5-12bd-43c6-b130-05c039a9d8fc">Re: Hola?</a>:
[QUOTE]<strong>Yeah, once you're out of college, 12:30am phone calls are acceptable in an emergency only. </strong>Nebb, I hope they come back!  Speaking of Pinterest, I really hate when people spell it "Pintrest."  Guys, it's like "Interest" with a "P" in front.  "Intrest" isn't a word.  (Granted, neither is Pinterest, but come on.)
Posted by J&K10910[/QUOTE]
Definitely isn't an emergency, and we're definitely 7 years out of college, haha!  OY!

J&K10910

Sounds like a good plan, jcb!  You can totally do it.  I say give it a full month before you give up on it.  I think that's how it took before it stopped feeling like a chore, and then just a few more weeks after that was when I started enjoying it.  Yup.  I enjoy meal planning. 

Steph0871

I'm late (I gave up waiting for you all and decided to go soak up another two hours of sun... sans sunscreen. oops.)

J- not sure if you're still around, but have you tried the Our Groceries app yet?? You can catagorize every food into custom categories.  Then you can order the catagories however you want.  Mine are by every two aisles in the grocery store (plus produce, meat, dairy.)

LesPaul

Good morning, ladies.

I'm on the 'really need to meal plan' train.  I have great intentions, but the follow through is lacking.  We do cook on Sundays to have leftovers for lunch, but my planning isn't good.

Anna uses juice in her sodastream - sounds good.  I want one, but DH would give me hell about another gadget.

I'm at work - boo.  Tis the season!

J&K10910

I tried it and I didn't like it, Steph.  I prefer to do it by hand.  I'm weird like that.