QFC Grocery Basket 7/9

Have you ever been flocked??  Me either.  I got up Saturday morning, let the dogs out, started the coffee, and opened the front door to let the cat out and this is what I was presented with.  Cool, huh??  It seems that the Chimacum Cheerleaders are doing a fund raiser.  The deal is you get flocked by someone.  Then you fill out the form, insert money and designate who you want to be flocked next.  I chose Mr SuperGenius and he was really thrilled.  Here is his front yard:

Okay - let's talk pork prices.  In an earlier post I noted that pork butt prices had really gone up this year.  I ended up paying double what I paid last year at $2.99 per pound for the meat that I use for the pulled pork dish that I serve at my 4th of July party.  I did a little research into this and discovered that not only were the piggy herds suffering through the drought but they were also hit with a virus that was killing them off.  This means that we will be paying more for our pork chops and bacon...probably forever because you rarely see prices go down but once the herds are back up we should see more sales.

So - let's look at the ad this week.  Here in the Pacific Northwest we have been having the most amazing warm weather which means our veggie gardens are going great guns.  I have lots of tomatoes which will be ripening soon and I should be eating green beans by the first of the month.  And the potatoes!!  Crazy this year.  If you don't have a garden consider buying your produce from one of the local stands because QFC sure isn't putting theirs out for summertime prices.  What gives??

Also I was talking to Mr CutiePie the other day and he was saying that Mid-Channel will be opening up soon but you can take only one salmon per day this year.  I remember the days when my favorite ex-husband fished out there and supplied all of our friends with fresh salmon.  Those days are gone but you can get good salmon from QFC as their fish market is the best in the area.

Here are my suggestions for "real" food this week:

Franz Bread - $1.99/loaf
Fage Greek Yogurt - $1/7oz
QFC Large Eggs - $1.99/18ct
Tillamook Butter - $2.99/lb
Nature's Bounty Vitamins - BOGO
Draper Valley Split Chicken Breasts - $2.79/lb
Fresh Alaska Sockeye Salmon Fillets - $10.99/lb
Fresh Wild King Salmon Fillets - $16.99/lb
Boneless Flank Steaks - $6.99/lb
Driscoll's Strawberries or Blueberries - $2/16oz pack/pint
Green Onions or Bunch Radishes - $ .50/ea
Medium Avocados or Mangos - $ .99/ea
Rainier Cherries - $3.99/lb
Red Cherries - $2.99/lb
Red or Black Plums - $1.99/lb
Colored Bell Peppers - $1.50/ea
Nectarines - $1.99/lb (these have been very good this year)
Zucchini or Yellow Squash - $ .99/lb

My first bouquet of dahlias this year.  The way to keep your dahlias coming until the first hard frost is to keep deadheading them and or picking lots of bouquets for the house.  I've also been watering them with a solution of 1 tablespoon of Epsom Salts to one gallon of water which is good for our poor soil here because it is lacking in magnesium.  Actually I've been dousing everything with this magic potion.  Miss PeggyRae puts it on her deck pots and I've never seen more beautiful flowers.  I told her she should take pictures and send them to Fine Gardening magazine because they are truly spectacular.