The Challenge - Extra Challenges...

I thought it only fair, after covering many of the assets I'm starting with, to mention the extra challenges or, if you will, liabilities.

The most immediate and obvious challenge that I see is quite simply the fact that we love good food. Our tastes tend to run along the fresh, organic, expensive lines. For example, a family favorite is a fillet mignon with bacon and/or t-bone steak, garlic and sauteed/caramelized onion mashed potatoes, sauteed fresh mushrooms, grilled or steamed fresh asparagus with a garlic-butter sauce, and rolls. Are you drooling yet? I am! Like I said, we love fresh. We love meat (which is not cheap these days), and we love bacon!

We also adore sugar. Chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, and craisins are staples around here. I'm going to have to try to realign our mindset, however little I care to myself, to knowing full well that these items are not necessities.

I also face a couple of practical challenges that are somewhat more difficult to overcome. First, our grain mill is in about 3-4 different pieces. It still works, unfortunately (if it didn't, we'd have gotten a new one by now!), but you have to hold all the pieces together and feed the wheat in very slowly in order for it to continue to work. Budget-wise, I guess it's good that it still works, but the fact that it's broken is a huge deterrent to milling the 300-400lbs of wheat we have.

We, as I have probably already hinted at, live in "the middle of nowhere." Okay, not really, but the closest town that has any groceries is a good 20 minutes away, and the closest Walmart is 40-45 minutes. Costco, Target, and the coupon meccas (CVS and Walgreens) are even farther than that, I think. While in some ways this is good - we can't run off and grab a few groceries in 5 minutes - it can be inconvenient - we can't run off and grab a few groceries in 5 minutes. Thankfully, Daddy works in one of the more major middle Tennessee cities and, if it's absolutely necessary, can grab what we need on his way home. Going to try to avoid that as much as possible though!

Another potential planning and budgeting challenge is our love of hospitality. We often host families and groups around here, and it's always a delightful time of fellowship. We wouldn't have it any other way. Feeding large groups can be a budgeting nightmare though! However, of all these extra challenges, I think I'm looking forward to coping with this one the most!

Then there's also the fact that I essentially don't have any meal plans done... My fault, of course. I'm going through a more than usually uninspired phase, which probably means I should find some time to peruse my favorite cooking blogs, sites, and books. "Food and Wine" magazine (and maybe Epicurious.com) is strictly off-limits though! That sort of inspiration is way beyond the initial budget!

All of the "liabilites" are relatively minor compared both to what they could be and to the assets I have. So, I think we're good! The family's on board with the project - if slightly worried that I'll feed them on beans and rice or cornbread for the next 365 days, and the project officially begins TOMORROW!!! Yikes! (Where did this month go?!?!)