Goodbye January! ....by Jessica

So January came and went in a flash. I don't think the whole not buying anything new has really been much of a challenge this month. I have been shopping at the thrift more than usual and have been finding things for later in the year that I will need; some play-doh and games for the kids, some summer clothes for myself.

I've also really enjoyed the cookbook challenge. I'd say the hardest part for me is making sure I have all the ingredients that I need to make something different than the usuals. I feel like I'm making a lot more little trips to the store which ends up being so much more expensive. I'm going to really try this month to get what I need on my big shopping trips so I don't end up running into Anstead's every other day.

I have cooked 14 of my 177 recipes, leaving me with 163 to complete. I really need to veer away from the Asian recipes, get my pantry stocked up on some Italian and American items and make some of the pasta and meat dishes.

Like Juli, I'd have to say that my project cheating has come in the form of the wasteful coffee cup. I got two cups of coffee in Zack's re-usable coffee mug (which I hate. It smells like plastic, it doesn't fit in my car cupholder, and I don't like the lid. I'm REALLY picky about beverage containers though and may never in my lifetime find one that fits my endless list of criteria.) I also had two cups of coffee bought for me, and I bought one cup for myself and did not use the coffee mug. So I threw away 3 disposable coffee cups. Not too bad. A LOT better than if I hadn't been thinking about it, that's for sure.

Hello February! I hope you bring me lots of good finds at the thrifts and good recipes in my cookbook!!!