I cleaned out my pantry and found a give-a-way...

Alright, kids, I have finally determined that the time has come to clean out my pantry. I know I have a ton of food in there, but since I can't find any of it, I just keep buying more and compounding the problem. So this morning I decided to clean that bad boy out. Here's what it looked like prior to my efforts:

I'm almost embarrassed to show you how bad it looked, you couldn't even walk in there. But hey, we're friends, right? And friends don't judge. SO STOP JUDGING ME!

I found some really random things in there. Of course there was just a ton of old stuff that needed to go, including several packets of formula. Should I remind you how big Bean is and how long it has been since the kid drank formula?

Here's one of the other random items I found:

Really? Canned lychees? Not too sure why I have these, but I'm keeping them. Maybe I'll make some lychee martinis.....

Here's a holdover from Hurricane Katrina:

Yes, my friends, those are MRE's (Meals Ready to Eat) that we got from FEMA after the hurricane. Believe it or not, they're pretty tasty. However, they are also somewhere around 3000 each! Remember how people were complaining on TV after the hurricane that they were only being given one of these a day at the shelters? Yeah, there's a reason for that people, they have more than your recommended daily allowance for calories in each one. That's how they're designed and also what makes them pretty yummy. The oatmeal cookies were especially good. I think I'm going to continue holding on to these as well. After all, hurricane season started on the first and we generally tend to have a large target painted on our asses.

After about an hour of work (truthfully, I thought this would take MUCH longer, but then again, I didn't touch the right side of the pantry which is stuff like baking dishes, appliances and what-not), here is the result of my labor:

I did have to throw out more stuff than I like to admit. I really don't like throwing away that much food, but it was stale, expired or just kinda gross. But doesn't my pantry look a world better. I mean, there's a floor! How exciting!

Here's what I did hold onto:

And that's where the give-a-way comes into play. This is an assortment of stuff that I picked up at various stores while hungry and thought they looked good, that I would possibly make, or that I received in some sort of gift basket over the holiday season. None of it is expired (Oh wait, the Rudolph cocoa is, but I thought someone might like the tins, they're cute).

Here's a list of what the give-a-way consists of:

2 different cheese ball mixes

Mixes for Banana's Foster, Mardi Gras dip and some sort of Creole seafood sauce (I love these mixes, Hubby is finicky and doesn't)

Tic-tacs from my wedding. Yes, I know that was three years ago, but tic-tacs don't go bad and you can laugh at the cheesy label they have on them.

Chocolate biscotti (I kinda want to hold onto these, but I'm getting a little thick and bathing suit season is upon us)

The aforementioned cocoa mix

Red Velvet cake mix

Funnel cake mix

Two boxes of Creme Brulee mix

Two little jars of plum wine

A box of squash ravioli (I thought Lilly might like this, but then decided she probably wouldn't)

Some shortbread and also some lemon cookies that I have just burnt out on (and shouldn't be eating anyway. See previous comment about bathing suits)

Another thing of cocoa mix and some cappucino mix. I have a Flavia machine that I can use to make both of those, so don't need this.

And my two favorite items of the give-a-way: a bag of Rum-o-nade mix (The brand? Big Black Dick! Funniest name for a brand of rum ever!) and a bag of Glacier mints. Both of these are items that I would normally keep, but thought I might like to share with you guys.

All of these lovely prizes, should you win my give-a-way would be contained in the basket/wine rack you see on the table as well. All you need to do to enter is send me a comment and I'll randomly select a winner on Monday!