This Week on the Dining Table

The "The Boy is Home" Edition ........

Went to pick him up on Saturday.  Stopped at Quaker Steak & Lube for lunch.


For the next week we are an eating family of 3 again.  Fun.

 

Here's what was planned last week.......

1.  Beef Stroganoff, rice, veggie
2.  Salmon, Squash casserole

3.  Pasta with meat sauce, salad or soup

4.  Pork filet or Country Fried Steak(diners choice), Steak fries, leftover squash casserole
5.  Pizza, Salad

6.  Leftovers or Soup & fresh bread
7.  Ginger garlic duck & veggie stir-fry, rice

 

And this is what actually happened--

1.  Beef Stroganoff, rice, veggie
2.  Salmon, Squash casserole

3.  Pasta with meat sauce, salad or soup

4.  Leftovers
5.  Pizza, Salad

6.  Leftovers or Soup & fresh bread
7.  Ginger garlic duck & veggie stir-fry, rice

Everything went as planned except because of extra leftovers we didn't have the pork filets meal.

Last week I made 1 trip to the grocery store(but I have that last trip in Feb. on this month's tab), so I spent  $51.24 OOP on $104.74 worth of reg. retail groceries.  I had 1 transaction at Rite-Aid(but I have 1 trip after I closed out the books on Feb.)and spend $1.38 OOP on $59.06 worth of toiletries, so $52.62 total spending on $163.80 worth of products last week.

$52.62 spent of my $300 March food budget, leaving us $247.38 for the month.

Leftovers going into this week are asparagus/leek soup and ham/bean soup and 1 helping of squash casserole.

Here is the plan for this week.........

1.  Leftover Pasta with meat sauce, Collards
2.  Roasted Turkey Breast, Stuffing, Corn, Cranberry Glop

3.  Lasagna, Salad or Soup

4.  Pork filet or Country Fried Steak(diners choice), Steak fries, Veggie TBD
5.  Corned Beef, Cabbage

6.  Leftovers
7.  Leftovers or Take-Out

 

What I need to buy for this menu......celery, milk, cabbage and corned beef.  That should come in about about $14 but there are few things on special I want to pick up this week as well so I am figuring about $100 for all.  This also includes some snacks and foodstuffs for College Boy to take back to school with him.

If course my entire menu could end up being totally different from this plan if College Boy wants something different.  Yah, now that we only see him infrequently I tend to cook his favorites when he is home.  8-)

 

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?    

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten that week?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week?

Sluggy

Giveaway Winner

There were 119 valid entries.
I numbered them and then had Random dotorg pick the winner.

And the lucky person the website picked is.........

rondah s February 26, 2015 at 12:15 AM

Would love to win!
rjs_13 at yahoo.com

 

Congratualtions Rondah S!

 

Please email me within the next 2 days with your full name and mailing address and this chocolate will be winging it's way to you.

 

Thank you for everyone who played along and another Giveaway will be coming up this Spring so stay tuned!  ;-)

 

Sluggy

Last Chance for the Giveaway!

Ok, today is the last day to enter my current giveaway.
Go HERE or use the link on my side over there  --->

I have learned one thing over the past few giveaways.....if you want lots of people to enter your giveaway, give away nail polish and/or chocolate.  8-)))

Go enter before midnight tonight(Eastern Daylight Savings Time) if you are interested in winning free stuff! 

You could still be the winner.  Last giveaway someone who only entered once and on the LAST DAY won.
Take a chance.......

Sluggy
 

Good Financial Things

Well it's been a good few weeks around here financially--

First, hubs got a raise(rah!)so the biweekly paychecks are a bit heftier so that gives us a little more to tuck away into savings each month.

Secondly, hubs had his annual review and his bonus arrived in the last paycheck for February.  It's less than last year's bonus but still a goodly sum.  Now to figure out where to allocate it and soon, so that if anything will go into long term savings I would like to get that earning some interest asap.

Thirdly, the Feds accepted our tax return(rah!)and the refund was deposited into our account earlier this week.  I am still in a state of shock that I didn't screw up the Education Credit forms for the first time ever! this year.
While the tax refund was smaller this year(even with giving away TWO CARS to charity!!)we are thrilled to get anything back.  We did realize this year that hubs still had 4 deductions on the withholding from when our daughter was still a dependent so we dropped that down to 3.  Since hubs income was more last year with his bonus than it will be this year this will all be a wash in terms of refunds going up or down next tax season.

Fourthly, we have stayed out of stores(other than grocery types)the last 2 months so the credit card bill(which "cuts" on Monday or Tuesday next week)is under $300 so far, with no spending planned before then.  Now if only this fricking ARCTIC COLD would leave and stop playing havoc with our electric/heating bill, we could have a STELLAR month for lower expenses!

Fifthly(is that even a word?lol), we have satisfied our healthcare deductible as of a few days ago, due to all those tests I've had recently.
While this means we have $1,633.60 hemorrhaging out of our FSA(which is NOT a good financial thing in itself), it now means all my prescriptions and DME restocks will be at our 10% copay.  Yes, paying $35.00 for something is much better than paying $350.00 for it.  ;-)  I just hope the pre copay bills arrive in a staggered fashion so we don't empty out the FSA in one fell swoop, since I need some cash in it to pay for copays on Rxs later this month.
Having satisfied the $4K deductible also means that my cataract surgery in 2 weeks won't be paid fully OOP(or should that be OOFSA?).

Sixthly(yes it IS a word!), the quarterly dividends for our paltry stock portfolio should be arriving by month's end.  I'll throw these into wherever I end up putting a chunk of the bonus money.  It won't make much of a difference but it beats a poke in the eye with a stick.  8-)

How are your finances doing lately?

Sluggy

More Genealogy.....Finding Ancestors in the Most Unusual Places

So I will start off tracing a line of my family tree and veer off into a tangent and then get fixated with someone.
My fixation this week was Fannie Foster.

Or rather her full name--Parthena Frances "Fannie" Foster.
Fannie is my second cousin 5 x removed.

One of the first people I communicated with an Ancestry after joining was Jimmy.  We are related in that his cousin, Janet, married my 1st cousin 1 x removed, Donnie(Donnie is the son of my grandfather's sister.).
Anyway I was working on my maternal FOSTER line(this one is primarily through my mother's mother's mother's mother's line but I also have Foster relations through my mother's mother's father's line since a Foster relations also married my mother's cousin's mother on my mother's mother's father's line.).
See what I mean about confusing!? lolz

Anyway, let's just say I was working on a distant branch of FOSTER relations, one which linked to this Jimmy's LOCKE family.
An Edward LOCKE married a Cora Green FOSTER, the daughter of Gideon FOSTER and Mary Ann Wright VAUGHAN.
Lots of info and people with info on Cora and Edward's family. 
Cora had 8 other siblings--Charles W., Susan Ann, Parthena Frances, Howerton Somerville, Luella R., James M., Mary W("Mollie") and Gideon Calvin.
Only Cora and Howerton are fully "fleshed" out however.

Their mother, Mary Vaughan FOSTER died in 1894.
Their father, Gideon FOSTER....the last record I can find of him is the 1880 Fed. Census.  He is 69.
I have yet to find any indication where he is buried or when he died.  Since he disappears after 1880 he may have died before Mary FOSTER his wife, the mother of these children.

As for the children--

* Charles-the last record for Charles, he is married to Emily WALLACE with 5 children in 1880.  I find city directory info indicating that he and Emily are living in Lynchburg, VA in 1908 and 1920 but no further Census records.

I see many family trees on Ancestry has him dead in 1871.  Funny because he marries Emily in 1871....so how can he be fathering 5 children after 1871 if he is dead?  Makes no sense....either he didn't marry Emily and have these kids OR, as Monty Python would say, he's "not dead yet" in 1871.




* Susan Ann-appears in the 1860 census, 8 years old, and nothing after that.  Probably died young or married young and can't find her married name yet.

* Howerton Somerville-well documented.  Dies in 1936 in Cabell, WV.

* Luella R.-appears lastly in 1880 census, 19 years, living with her parents, single.  She may have married, she may have died between 1880 and 1900 census, don't know yet.

* James M.-appears in 1880 census with parents, then next appears in 1900 census, single and 37 years, living with 2 grown sisters(Mary "Mollie" and Parthena "Fannie")and youngest brother Gideon Calvin.  Nothing is seen of him after 1900.

* Mary W. "Mollie"-living in 1900 with 3 other siblings, and in 1910 she is found living with the same siblings(without James though)and the addition of George LOCKE, her older sister Cora's son, who is 22 years, single, and working at a sawmill.

* Gideon Calvin-last found, single and 38 years, living in 1910 with his two older sisters and his nephew, George LOCKE.

* Parthena Frances "Fannie"-In 1860 and 1870 she is found with her family/parents in those censuses.
But in 1880 she is missing from the family household.
Hmmmm, she would have been 24.  Perhaps she married?  Perhaps she was living elsewhere with relatives?  I don't know yet.
Then 20 years later in 1900 census records she is back, living with her 3 grown siblings and all are single.
In 1910, she is found living with her younger brother and sister and their nephew, George.  Fannie is 44 years and the household is in Charlotte County, VA.

This is where Fannie has lived her whole life thus far to he age of 44......where the red tack is......

 I found her death certificate and she died here in 1927......between State College and Altoona, PA, right near Tyrone, PA.....

After finding that death certificate I found a 1920 census with Fannie in it, living in Spruce Creek, PA.

So sometime between 1910 and 1920 at the advanced age of between 54 and 64 years old, Fannie moved almost 400 miles from the place she had lived her whole life, Charlotte County VA, to Huntingdon County PA.....

It may take someone almost 6 hours to drive it today via Interstate, but back in 1910-1920 with less and more primitive roads, I am sure it was quite the adventure.  She probably made her way to the Keysville, VA train station by horse and buggy, then by train to Richmond, VA to Washington D.C. then Baltimore MD then to Harrisburg, PA and then more travel by train or horse and wagon.

Fannie is listed in this 1920 census as being an "Aunt" in the Edwin Stover household.
So far, I can not find a Stover line connected to this Foster line.
But why leave your home and move so far away?

My theory at this point is that at the age of 54+ years, with all her siblings either marrying or dying off, Fannie found herself without a means of support or a home in which to live.  She was living off her youngest brother Gideon Calvin in 1910.  I don't know yet if he died before 1920 or married.
Perhaps Fannie, being a woman of intestinal fortitude, answered an ad in a newspaper for a live-in housekeeper/nanny and that is what took her to rural Central PA?  Edwin Stover is married to Margaret and they have 2 children in 1920, an infant and a 2 year old.

Fannie is buried in the Graysville Cemetery near the Spruce Creek Presbyterian Church in Graysville PA.  We take a route that goes right by Tyrone, PA when we visit our eldest son in Pittsburgh. 
I suspect that given her circumstances in life and that this cemetery is already 80% photographed and Fannie wasn't listed yet as being in there when I went to look on Find A Grave, that there will be no headstone marking her grave.  I'll send a letter off to that cemetery's association for more information as they would have the plot # and might have listed whether there is a headstone.
At any rate, the next time I go visit my son, I'll stop in Graysville and get a photo of Fannie's headstone if one exists or just stop and pay my respects.

It's the least  can do.

Sluggy