M.I.A.

So I've been M.I.A for a few days.  Sorry about that dinner consisted of left overs one night and burgers and chips another.  Nothing amazing at all.

For those of you who know me you know even though I was "born and raised" in southern California I was really raised back east.  Every summer as soon as school got out my brothers and I were sent to Chippewa Pennsylvania then to Pandora Ohio.  The combined population of these two towns maybe hit 1,000.

In Pennsylvania we visit with my Grandma and her husband John.  We spent most of our time on the Allegheny river with no AC and no TV and I loved it.  We cooked and fished and swam.  I miss those days.  I always got to stay longer there than my older brother.  He was quickly sent to Ohio to work on the family farm.  Where I was left to stay longer and got to visit Amish country!

In Pandora we stayed with our Great Grandma Bridenbaugh.  In the farmhouse my Great Grandfather built.  There was also a school house on the Farm from the 1880's as well.  You can google "bridenbaugh farm school house" if you want to see photos.  My Great Uncle has fully restored it.  The Farm was like a time warp and I regret not being there more now that I am older.  It was like being in the 1920's.  I should start out by saying my great grandparents were Mennonites- which is very close to Amish. My Great Grandma cooked all here meals from scratch. Amazing meals.  The only time were ever went to eat was after church we went to Dairy Queen.  The was the treat you looked forward to all week. 

During the week the boys worked hard bailing hay, tending pigs, and corn fields.  For lunch my great grandmother cooked for all the farm hands.  It was an all morning event.  We pick black berries, rolled dough and cooked.  All in a house with no tv, no ac, nothing but a beautiful farm house.  Why is life not that simple anymore?  Why cant I whisk my kids a away to a place like Pandora that is so small its not even called a town but a "village" when you look it up.

Anyways I've beena little emotional longing for this stuff lately.  I am sure its a combination of moving to Central Florida to have a simpler life for our family and the passing of my grandmother the one whos mother was the woman on the farm that washed her paper plates as to not be wasteful.

I think about all these great people and how they survived the depression and learned to make due with what God gave them and then I look at the situation now that our country is in despair but they keep spending money. Ok well this is turning into a rant so I will stop now.  I will be posting the pork chops I am making tonight and figure out a game plan for the rest of the week,

Next time I go to the store to shop in will be for a week on Mennonite meals!  Time to remember the greats!

One last question, whats your monthly grocery budget?  Ours is $200- just curious what yours is.