Just Having So Much Fun

Time for a goal check-in. Summer has always been my time to ruminate on these things, usually from a beach chair or poolside.

One of my big goals when I started this new iteration of the blog around this time last year was to really jump start my savings  and start thinking about retirement. I would give myself a B on this. I’ve done about as much as I can do to steadily save money. Is it as much as I wanted to save? No. I would have to make a major life change (career switch, sell one of the kids) to make any more headway. I still go back and forth about whether buying the car was a good decision. Part of me thinks I could have pushed that off longer or else bought a scooter or a bike.

On the subject of spending less money on crap food, I’d give myself a B minus or C plus. I know there’s room for improvement. I could be cooking more. I could be preserving more food, for sure. This is the time I should be preserving. But there have been many successes. I think we have all cut way back on fast food. When we do order out, it’s generally from local pizzerias, whose quality is above McDonald’s. I also have cut back on processed food from the grocery store. Psychologically, I still associate takeout or restaurant food with fun. It’s a guilty pleasure. But I don’t find it quite as pleasurable as I once did. The satisfaction of pulling together a good meal on my own, being able to make a meal just how I like it, and not having to jump in the car — that’s carrying more weight.

Not buying stuff, particularly new stuff: A. I don’t buy hardly anything that isn’t a necessity. I am already thinking of ways to deal with T’s dorm room needs. The college made a point at orientation to tell us that there is a Target and a Walmart nearby for dorm room furnishings/forgotten items. No thanks!

Improving my skills, self-sufficiency: I haven’t done much on this front. I can’t think of a new skill I’ve learned recently. Maybe I should learn canning or relearn crocheting. D.

Gardening: A. My garden looks fab and I eat from it.

Homemade products: C. I keep making citrus-infused vinegar for cleaning. And I make my own Italian seasoning with dried garden herbs. That’s about it. I pooped out on the bread-making with the onset of the heat, but I will get back to it!

Recycling/green living/composting: A. At least for composting. Every blessed scrap goes into the compost.

Sometimes these goals collide. Take the lemonade that I bought today (see below). I could buy lemons in bulk when they are cheap and freeze the juice (pretty sure at least one of the homesteaders I follow does that). Then I could make my own lemonade in the summer when I crave it. I have the recipe, I’ve done it many times before. It takes a little planning ahead and the willingness to spend money on something that won’t be used til later. Because of the savings goal, I’m usually only trying to spend on what I need now. But I could save money and forgo buying yet another plastic container and make the lemonade to my own taste, if I did it the frozen lemon juice way.

If my calculations are correct, those grades leave me with a 2.6 GPA for my life. Not very good lol.

Ah well. At least, “I’m just having so much fun,” as my MIL used to say about her many projects that made her happy (growing roses, making jewelry, taking pictures of dogs in Christmas outfits).

This week in the garden, I picked my first tomatoes!

I also did a lot of weeding; added netting where I had planted cilantro and carrot seeds; and planted some lettuce in cups inside. Not sure if I mentioned it already but I planted broccoli and Brussel sprouts inside and those sprouted very quickly. Those will go in the ground about the first of August. Hoping to have some nice fall crops. Today I had my first basil and mozzarella sandwich of the season. The basil really took off; it’s a supermarket “living basil” that I planted outside. I picked a bunch of it along with parsley, marjoram and sage yesterday to dry.

Out front, the volunteer pumpkin (one of three) has some fruit, and the zinnias bloomed.

Meals this week:

Monday: Rigatoni Bolognese and garlic bread

Tuesday: tacos

Wednesday: roasted potatoes (from the garden), carrots, green beans, corn off the cob and garlic, served cold with a drizzle of Caesar dressing. Delicious!

Thursday: toasted ravioli

Friday: pizza at the pool

Saturday: a graduation party

Lunches: packed leftover pasta and salad on Tuesday; worked from home Wednesday; packed tuna on Friday and also bought some soup.

Today, I washed, sliced and froze some leftover strawberries. F and I went to the Haddon Heights farmers’ market for grapes, cherries, bananas, and pears in a jar. Then at Sprouts we got yogurt, granola, a rotisserie chicken, gelato (Sunday treat!), carrots, turkey lunchmeat, fresh mozzarella, rolls, lemonade, and sourdough bread. I love Sprouts. I plan to hit the pool later and just have a light dinner after.

Thursday was orientation at T’s college. He got to meet some people in his major. We didn’t stay the whole day so we missed out on the dorm tour, unfortunately. It’s a nice campus and I’m excited for him. Friday night, I got to spend some time with friends at the pool. Saturday, F and I made a Wawa trip for breakfast. This, like fast food, has become more of a once in a while treat. I was craving an iced caramel latte. Then I did some garden work and walked the dog before we had to head to a graduation party.

And here’s Rocco and I walking on Tuesday night, or should I say swimming through the humid air: