Day 20:

So, I'm realizing how much meat we use in our dinners.  We went shopping again today and had to spend over $100 to get a free turkey.  I mean, who can pass that up?  Not us!  So, we got $125 worth of groceries; milk, almond milk, eggs, one yogurt so I can make more, ranch dressing, lipstick and cheese.  (Yes, I buy my lipstick at WinCo, and will continue to until I no longer have children who EAT it.)  All of the rest of it was meat of some sort. (Paul almost cried when I steered him away from the fresh fruit and veggies.)  So, one take-away that I've gotten from this experiment is that I either have to seriously beef up (*snort*) my TVP supply in my food storage, or we need to partner with a hunter.  (I'm actually scared to open the 5 or 6 cans of TVP that I already have, because I've never cooked with it before and I don't trust it to not be gross.  I should get over that.) 

When we were first married, we were so, so, SO poor, guys.  SO poor.  I got really good at making really cheap, meatless or near-meatless meals, stretching those whole chickens that I de-boned by hand over many, many meals.  So, I know I could go meatless again if I really had to.  But, I don't, and I really don't want to, so we're going to need some hunting buddies if the world blows up and we have to use our food storage for realsies, because it's a necessity and not just a fun experiment.  Any volunteer huntsmen or huntswomen?  I could swap you in wheat!  Wheat for meat; I like that.  I suppose I could learn to hunt myself...

Another thing I've learned, that I actually knew all along, but I re-learn it really frequently, is that I make WAY too much food at a time.  We have leftovers for days and days and days.  As in, my kids groan when I even touch it BEFORE any attempt to offer it to them for more meals.  I grew up in a family of 5 kids, and now have 6 of my own.  Cooking in small quantities has never been my forte.

I only managed one blurry pic of dinner tonight before it got snarfed by a kid.  We went to an uncle's funeral today where they begged people to take home the leftovers from the luncheon.  I have a feeling this is going to play into our breakfasts and lunches over the next few days.  For breakfast this morning, Paul whipped up some pancakes, including flour, dry milk and olive oil from food storage, all while I was out running (because he is fantastic).  It would be so much harder to do this experiment without his patience and support!  If y'all have a chance to marry Paul, you totally should. 😉😉😉