Double duty yesterday

I did double duty yesterday of course.  I diden't get back out of the house last night.  It seemed like everyone showed up at once of course.  Never fails.  Thank goodness it was after dinner was done.  The Convection over pulled thru for me yesterday.  Chicken on one rack and biscuts on the other rack.  Pluss mashed potatoes to go along with it all.  Dinner was about 3 dollars max for the both of us last night.  I like it when I am that cheap on dinner.  And I can get cheaper if I really wanted to.  So now the delema is to what's for dinner tonight of course.  I think that is in most major households anyway.  Becuase, nothing looks good for me today.  Even though meatloaf is in the planner for tonight.  I may just make a batch of homemade sauce today.  Pasta is one of the cheaper foods out there today besides rice.  It is going out and buying sauce that puts the strain on the budget if you do not make it from scratch of course.  Some times I just put a stick of butter or margerin in with the noodles along with the garlic powder or granulated garlic and theres a meal for me and leftovers for the next day.  Or there is chicken broth and throw alot of garlic in it and then make the pasta of course. There's so many options right at the moment that they all sound good right about now.  Maybe I am just hungery.  I am trying to come out and up with alot of really cheap possibilities right now becuase its nearing the end of the month as normal.  And for the next grocery trip I am going to be as cheap as possible and maxamize the meals to streach the dollar further in the household.  Pluss a ton of other things to go along with the streaching.  I know alot of people shake thier heads at me when I go and do something like this and say it can not be done in my household at all.  I just laugh about it now only becuase it doesent bother me at all.  Pluss I got to the point that I just do not care what other people think in what I do.  I have became creative in my own rights on how and why I do things the way I do them.  Now I do not split up the double ply toilet paper becuase it is just not worth the hassles to me.  I do split up meats to make them go further in my place.  Pluss there are times where I make real taters also.  Since there is only myself at times here in the place I will make instant potatoes.  The instant taters have came along way since I was a child.  And if you use powdered milk with them they are not so bad.  I do not go thru alot of milk anyway so it is easier for myself to make a quart of the instant milk than to run out and get regular milk and have it go bad before I can use it all.  And alot of people do not realize that I make the insant milk alot of the times.  I make it alittle stronger is all.  I laugh when they catch me makeing the powdered milk and then it dawns on them that they have been drinking it in coffee and on cereal.  That and I bake with it all of the time anyway.  Well the way I look at alot of things around here is that when the food is already prepaired for you it doesent seem to go as far.  Like lets say the Hamberger Helper boxed dinners.  They call for a pound of ground meat in the directions.  Thats just to much in my book.  I went to the half pound for one box and a full pound for 2 boxes.  I do not make that often.  I do mine from scratch most times.  There is a wanderfull recipie at http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/ that I really like.  The cooking from scratch thing just plain out tastes better.  And your household will thank you later.  Yes it takes a lot longer to do this at first.  Once you get the hang of it it goes quicker.  Becuase, of course you have some things on the counter in hands reach bu the oven.  Then you start with the spices that you normally have out then the others go in the cabnet or pantry for when you need them for some recipies that you cook once in a great blue moon.  Just like I use alot of garlic and onions in my kitchen.  Why you may ask me.  I like the taste and flavors of the both of them.  So I always have them on hand eather the fresh of the garlic and onions and or the dried of the both.  Cooking for me is like reaching for the sky and there is no limits for what I can really do.  Ok folks have play hard and safe.