The last of the crop and quick veggie freezer pockets.

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We've been having an unusually warm week for almost mid October. It was 78 degrees today! After a very wet September and a pretty cold first week of this month, it's an unexpected and pleasant surprise!

I've been picking the last few offerings of the summer crop. I didn't spend nearly enough time in the garden this year but we were still blessed with an abundance. That's what we got last week:

Look at this Japanese cucumber!! It's bigger than the zucchinis! Good thing, everybody in our family loves the cukes :)

And since it was 39F last week, I also picked all of the rest of the green tomatoes (some of them cracked from all the September moisture):

As you can see, many of them have already turned red. I do it every year before the frost and let them slowly turn red at home. Last fall we had enough homegrown tomatoes to last us until mid-December. Won't happen this year but we should have enough for the next couple of weeks. And they taste so much better than the store-bought.

And since I'm on a freezing gig right now, I thought I would share with you something that my Grandma taught me to make many-many moons ago - quick veggie freezer pockets. I still remember her chopping their garden veggies in front of the open window every September...

I used peppers and tomatoes from our garden. I like to use roma tomatoes because they are a little more meaty. I just chop everything but carrots. I like them grated better. Or, and I forgot to add an onion to the picture but, of course, I also chop about a half or a whole onion to the mix:

Then mix together and separate into 1 cup each. I like to wrap each cup into plastic wrap before putting it in the freezer for easy usage. These pockets can be added to soups, crock pot meals, when you make pasta sauce and in many other meals. So easy and practical! Don't even need to be defrosted. Just unwrap and use. They will last for a couple of months in the freezer.

Food waste and a menu, week 8/18-8/24.

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Because we spent a good portion of last week on a vacation, we didn't have that much food waste. Would be nice if we didn't have any but alas. These were bagels from our trip that got moldy before we had a chance to finish them:

I also threw away a bad potato from our potato basket and a small box of raspberries. That was the saddest food waste because we all LOVE raspberries here. They looked really good but, I think, they were already getting moldy when I got them :( Meee...

I do want to try extra-hard to avoid food waste this week. When we came back home, my first impulse was to go and buy some fresh produce because we left our fridge literally bare before the vacation. But then I went to our garden and realized we had more than enough in our own back yard:

Definitely won't need any produce for a few days:) My tomatoes are coming in very slowly but I picked enough for a salad this week. We also have plenty of kale to add to the salad too.

Our goal in the next couple of weeks is to work through a good portion of what we have in the freezer. I want to make a bunch of freezer meals before the babies come. I did it with my second, and it was life-saving for us! I already started to line up the recipes on Pinterest (yum!!).

So this week on our menu so far:

Mon.- breakfast for dinner (eggs, hash browns, turkey bacon, smoothies)
Tues.- vegetarian burgers, potato chips (leftovers from the vacation)
Wed.- pasta with ham, mushrooms and peas (almost everything from the freezer)
Thurs.- fried potatoes with chicken, green salad
Fr.- Church picnic
Sat.- leftovers/ zucchini mini-quiches
Sun.- salmon, rice, stewed cabbage

What are you eating this week? And what is your favorite frozen meal recipe?

Living an abundant life...

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Some of you might remember the times when the original name of this blog was "Frugal and Thankful". And even though I changed that name since, it didn't influence what I believe in. Being thankful is a huge part of how I see life. There are times when the plate is overflowing, and it's hard to find things to be thankful for.

But if you slow down and look around, there are so many things, moments, people, experiences that can fill your heart to the fullest with gratitude... Really, so much in life depends solely on our attitude.

I read a quote the other day that really inspired some pondering here:

We can't direct the winds but we can adjust the sails... In the past few days I tried to put in extra effort to see good in life. And I was amazed at how many blessings I've received.

1. Peace. I'm not going to lie, this is not exactly a peaceful time in my life. There are so many things I worry about, scared of, not sure how to deal with, that it gets overwhelming really quickly. But this past week I tried to find a few minutes every morning to squeeze in some Scripture study and spending time in "sweet hour of prayer". It's not always easy to do with two kids and a hundred and two responsibilities but it definitely brought that peace into my life that I so longed for. Whether religious or not, there are many things we can do to gain extra peace and comfort...

2. Friends. I was amazed at how many friends reached out to me in the past few weeks. Some brought physical blessings  -like books on multiples - really made me happy - baby stuff, offers to babysit so we can find time for each other or extra cuddles for when babies are here so this tired Mommy can take a shower. Or this blessing to make our life truly "abundant":

Others just brought hugs, encouragement, extra laughter and much needed grown-up interaction. Friends truly rock!

3. Family. I have to say, I am not on perfect terms with all the members of my or my DH' s family. Some of those relationships have been a bit rocky lately, and not necessarily because of something we've done. But other family members have been such a tremendous help that my heart swells with gratitude. My FIL has helped us with so many doctor's appointments (since I have a lot more of them than ever before), my sister-in-law is always willing to babysit even when she has her own hands full beyond capacity. My other awesome SIL just celebrated her own Birthday but decided to make it a very special day for the kids instead. She and her husband rented a gigantic bounce house with water slides, and the kids had a blast - and Moms a break!! It was amazing!

And of course, my Mom and my sister are such a blessing in my life. The other day I spent more than two hours Skyping with my Mom and we chatted about everything and anything in the world as if the borders and miles between us didn't exist. I wish I could also squeeze her tight through the screen but it still amazes me at what we already can do thanks to some technology achievements.

4. The bounty of earth. And of course, it wouldn't be right if I didn't mention how grateful I am for the abundance that we get from our garden. Just picked this morning:

I don't spend nearly as much time as I should in the garden but it's still blessing us above and beyond anything I can comprehend. Love me some free and organic produce!

So what are you thankful for on this beautiful Sunday evening?

A little garden update... Or a big update on my tiny garden...

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Well, hello there!

How have you been, my friends?

For the past few weeks I really neglected my vegetable garden. My husband was watering it for me but I would go there maybe once a week. But as I'm slowly bouncing back to being my normal self, I knew it was time to show it some love. We got a few days of beautiful rain about a week ago (after weeks and weeks of heat and drought), and my plants really enjoyed it. I also used a mixture of epsom salt and water (dilute 1 TB in a gallon) and sprayed peppers, tomatoes and zucchinis to give them a boost. Apparently, it's supposed to majorly boost your crops within ten days. I was skeptical at first but let me tell you - it's for real!!! Everything like doubled - both in size and amount. I suddenly have about 20 peppers coming, a bunch of new tomatoes and I should pick at least two of my first zucchinis by the end of next week:

This year I ended up with five zucchini plants. I've never planted more than 4 and it was the plan again this year too. But two of my plants were really struggling. Then one died and the other one looked like it was going to follow very soon. So I got another plant but didn't put it into the ground right away. In fact, a week later it was still sitting in my green house. But in that week the "sad" plant decided to start fighting for life... I have at least ten beginnings among those five plants, and I know it's only the beginning. Now I need to figure out what I'm going to do with all of them. Maybe, I'll try this recipe this year or this one. Yum!

And let me introduce you to the first tomatoes of the year:

OK, I'm totally boasting here :) I'm just too excited about these little guys. They taste so much better than any store-bought cherries I've ever had (OK, I might be just slightly too bias...:)

And a few peppers. These are the gipsy kind but I should have a bunch of green and red peppers by the end of July:

But something that makes me especially happy is this particular plant (or a couple that I have):

My beautiful basil. Oh, I love thee so... Why am I so excited about a basil plant? Well, it's actually my third attempt to plant basil this year. The first four plants (I planted two each time) were eaten by an evil nocturne creature that was skillfully hiding from me (OK, I do have a suspicion it was a slug of some sort but I could never get it, and it drove me insane). It literally devoured my plants within about 3 days... I was desperate. And then I remembered a trick about planting marigolds in the garden to prevent the "evil creatures" from attacking the tender leaves. I gave it the last try... I bought two more basil plants and two wilty marigolds (since the season for them is pretty much over). And as you can see, the slugs are GONE!!! Not a single hole on the leaves and the plants are thriving. Yes, it might be a bit silly to be that excited and jump up and down here right now but, hey, I think I have every right to be.

Or maybe it's just the hormones?...

So do you have a garden? How is it doing this year?

What made you happy today...

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Last week one of my friends started a picture series "100 days of happiness". Every day she posts a new photo of what made her happy that day on Facebook. I decided to snap a few pictures of my own, of what made me happy today:

FOOD:

A delicious pork stir fry I made in an attempt to save some leftover veggies (food always makes me happy :)

Crepes! The true Russian crepe should be paper-thin and have lots of holes in it. I think, I succeeded this time :)

BLOOMS:

Remember the lonely flower hiding under the leaves that I shared the other day? Look at this blooming bush now. Isn't it gorgeous??

MY SON'S LOVE FOR MUSIC:

My 4-year old and his beloved guitar. I really need to look into some classes for him...

So what made you happy today?

Gardening season is here!

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I apologize for being absent for a few days. This time it wasn't lazy me, unfortunately, it was our Internet again. It's been on and off, and it's so annoying. Ironically, we had a salesman stop by today tying to sell us OUR Internet service, and to my question why it's not working all he could mumble was that we could upgrade to a better speed for more money. Yeah, right... We have a decent speed already... when it works... So, thank you but no thank you.

So forgive me for skipping my usual Monday post. I'm pretty sure you will survive without looking at my compost feed this time around :)

Instead I want to talk gardening today because I'm so excited about this season. This year I've been slacking on it, mainly, because we wanted to re-do our raised beds. The old ones weren't really raised and I would get all kinds of junk and clippings inside. And yes, clippings are great for the actual lawn, not so much for the vegetable garden (since we try to keep our garden organic). Sorry, don't have any before pictures but these are the after (don't pay attention to all the weeds, I still need to tackle them):

I got some parsley back from last year and I have onions but that's it in the beds so far. But I will use them mostly for tomatoes and squashes. I also got the green house I really wanted:

So far I planted peppers and cucumbers in there:

On the other hand, my container strawberries are all blooming:

And look what I found today hiding under the branches:

The first rose of the season! I'm so excited about it! The garden season is definitely here and it's on, baby, it's on!

Do you have a garden? What have you planted so far? What do you plan to plant?

How can I stay at home??

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I'm ashamed to say but for the past couple of days I can barely make myself stay at home or touch the computer... The weather has been so beautiful with temperatures in the mid-seventies. And spring is definitely here:

Gorgeous blooms are everywhere:

I just feel like running around with the camera all day snapping, snapping and snapping beautiful pictures:

Did I mention before how much I love spring??

Even in my pathetic garden that desperately needs some love, the herbs are happy spring is here too:

I love color everywhere - in my clothes, in our home, on the plate, but nothing amazes and inspires me more than God's beautiful and perfect creations...

Has spring finally arrived on your side of the world???

"Foraging" and canning...

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No, I didn't really go foraging. I remember when I was little, my Grandpa and I would go together to the woods to pick berries, wild lettuce and mushrooms. Yes, even mushrooms :) And they were delicious, by the way. I miss those times...

We live in a cute suburban neighborhood but there is not much wild life (or even a naturally green patch) anywhere in close proximity. But when my neighbor and I went for a walk, we stumbled upon some grapes that didn't belong to anybody:

They are wild but so good. I picked up about a pound for the kids, and they really liked it :) There were still plenty left for somebody else to enjoy. It's nice to get a little surprise like this once in a while...

What was not a surprise is the huge box of pears that I ordered from a friend of a friend a few weeks ago:

It's not my first year to order them, and they are just so good! But it also meant that I was canning today:

I made twelve quarts of sliced pears. Don't these cans look so summer-y? :) Yum! And just because I can never stop, I also made some cinnamon apple-pear sauce for the kids:

The big quart of sauce on the right is actually made from the apples in our back yard (free is always good, right? :) They are not quite ready to be picked, and, honestly, this year the apples are not very good. For those of you who might be new here, we share a tree with our neighbors. It's technically on their side but lots of branches hang over our fence and they are OK with us picking them. The apples I used were the ones that fell on the ground. They were in pretty bad shape, so I had to cut around a lot. I didn't seal this can. It will go in the fridge for the kids to enjoy right now. But I'm still planning on canning at least 30 pints of applesauce before the season ends :)

And as I was passing our garden today, I also picked up a few zucchinis to freeze for winter for breads, quiches and meatballs:

Now I'm beat but almost ready for the colder season. Almost :)...

And how was your day???

Food waste and a menu, week 8/19-8/25

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Hello, hello, everyone!

How's your Monday been?? Last week was an unusual one for us. I mentioned that my husband was out of town for a few days. What I didn't mention is that a few days was actually from Sunday afternoon all the way to Friday night. Well, forgive me that I didn't want to admit to staying home alone with the kids for the whole week out loud on the web :)

But as you can imagine, we didn't stick to our menu much. It's much easier to feed just the kids when the head of the household is out of town :) On the other hand, we were pretty good finishing up all the leftovers and bits and pieces of food in the fridge, so we had zero food waste last week. Wohoo!! I like weeks like that (minus the fact that Hubby was gone...This I didn't like a single bit!!)

And because I don't have any food waste pictures for you, how about another small harvest from our garden:

We finally started getting plenty of tomatoes and peppers. It's nice to have some fresh produce right off the vine! Our cucumbers are pretty slow though - it's just way too hard for them. We haven't had a single rain in the past six weeks, and I'm getting really tired of it. Oh well, two months from now I will complain about wet weather too :)

Instead, that's what we are eating this week:

Mon.- sandwiches (well, we were planning something different but I really didn't feel like cooking. We'll see how much we will actually stick to the whole menu thing:)
Tues.- crock pot bbq pork ribs (thank you for all your awesome advice last week!), salad
Wed.-  IKEA dinner
Thurs.- stuffed zucchini (thank you, Cindy for the recipe :), grilled chicken
Fr.- eggs, hash browns, smoked sausages
Sat.- leftovers or soup of some sort
Sun.-  pork roast, cut up potatoes, salad.

Our oldest is starting school on Wednesday, so we decided to go to IKEA. A long time ago we promised to take him out for his first day but right now it's out of the question to go to his favorite salad-bar place. Instead we offered IKEA because they have a deal when a family of 4 can eat for only $9.99. Considering you don't pay tips in IKEA, it's the best deal in town right now!!

And what's on your menu this week?

Beef and zucchini meatballs.

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I promised you a recipe for the meatballs I made the other day (to use up yet another zucchini from our garden :). I realized that it was, probably, a little confusing, so I want to explain myself : the recipe does have quite a bit of ground beef in it, and not just zucchinis, so sorry to all of my vegetarian friends :) They do taste pretty good, even for those of you with some picky kids (like mine!)

So here's what you'll need:

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 lbs. lean ground beef
• 1 medium zucchini, grated
• 1 large egg
• 1/4-1/2 onion, nicely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 cup old-fashioned oats
• 1 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 1 TB each of fresh parsley, oregano and basil ( or 1 tsp. each dry)
• dash of red pepper flakes
• 1 TB vegetable oil

HOW-TO:

1. Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Cook onions in 1 TB vegetable oil until soft and translucent 
3. Chop herbs nicely, then set aside. I used fresh herbs from our garden (one of my favorite things about having a little garden) but you can definitely use dry herbs from your spice cabinet

4. Turn oats into oat flour by pulsing it in a food processor a few times. Combine all the ingredients together

5. Mix everything until evenly blended, then form 1 1/2 inch meatballs

6. Bake for about 20-25 min. or until no longer pink inside. Cover with your favorite pasta, bbq or marinara sauce and serve with rice, pasta, in meatball subs or just some colorful veggies on the side

Bon appetite :)

I shared this recipe with these awesome parties:
Blissful and Domestic, Sumo's Sweet Stuff,  Frugal Foodie Mama  Homemaker on a Dime   I should be mopping the floor   By Stephanie Lynn  The Shabby Nest     My Turn (for us)  Tatertots and Jello  Love Bakes Good Cakes 
Fluster Buster's party   Frugal Follies 

Food waste and a menu, week 7/29-8/4

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Hello, hello! How's your day going?

I never got to post yesterday because I was cleaning and organizing my kitchen. After we came back from our vacation, we brought back quite a bit of leftover food. Our fridge was really stuffed with food. And it's awesome, I'm not complaining! But the downside of it is that I didn't exactly know what we had. And it lead to more food waste than I wanted. Like this yummy bread:

Also this leftover salad:

Unfortunately, it's not all. I also threw away a handful of blueberries that got lost in the produce bin, a bad apple and a cucumber (not my fault. It was already bad when I bought it but it wasn't visible until I cut it). And after cleaning both of our freezers I found a couple of packages of very old and freezer-burned sausage links and a bag of nasty mixed veggies. Yikes! That's the most food waste I've had in months.

On a good note, now everything is clean and organized, and I'm ready for the week. This month will be even tighter for us budget-wise (more on this tomorrow), so we are definitely eating what we have. Our little garden will really help with that too. Almost every day I pick something. This was yesterday's haul (I didn't pick over the weekend, so it's technically for 3-4 days):

We still get plenty of zucchinis . We shared quite a bit with our friends and neighbors already. But our tomatoes are a bit slow this year. Oh well, it's still nice to have all this delicious, organic produce straight from our back yard.

And here's what's on our menu this week (subject to change, as usual):

Mon.- stuffed turkey peppers
Tues.- Salisbury steak, mashed potatoes, steamed broccoli
Wed.- rice, beef and vegetable stir-fry
Thurs.- crepes with jam (kids' request)
Fr.-zucchini mini-quiches, cut up veggies
Sat.- zucchini pasta
Sun.- tuna sandwiches, salad

And what are you eating this week?