Monday Message

All different shapes and sizes of reeds can be made to make the prettiest of baskets!

(James E. Faust, April 1986 General Conference)
“It is . . . necessary that each home and family do what they can to assume the responsibility for their own hour of need. If we do not have the resources to acquire a year’s supply then we can strive to begin with having one month’s supply.” 

http://everydayfoodstorage.net/about-food-storage/short-term-food-storage - I love this gal, she is easy to understand. Here she is talking how to get started on your three months supply.

In this message I have tried to help you understand what exactly provident living is…

http://www.simplyprepared.com/provident_living_and_the_relief_society.htm - this explains in a better way about provident living and why it is so important. Isn't this impressive? No one expects to know it all at once, but we all can learn something. Life is learning.  
No one is perfect and no one is better than another. We are here to help each other, to share things we have learned but life teaches us an awful lot. I feel like everything I have learned was through Relief Society and from good people and through life’s learning experiences.

It is through this calling that I share what I have learned. We have the choice to muddle through or we can choose to improve every day. I heard someone lately say "a homemade life"  I like that. We take what we have and do the best we can. Yes, things get in the way. Yes, though we do what is right bad things happen. It is a refining process. We can freeze up, we can be angry but I would rather find joy - it is like jello, you always have room for it! So if you have something happen, you have a choice, as I mentioned, choose to pick yourself up. If you can, lean on a friend if needed. Sometimes we need to use knee pads for lots of praying…nothing changes the fact that you have a Father in Heaven who loves you and wants the best for you.

I make baskets from time to time … http://frugalmeasures.blogspot.com/2014/09/backpack-baskets.html I use flat reed, some are thin and some are thick. The baskets are all pretty to me. If I take a reed out of my finished basket it would not be as pretty, it would not look complete. I liken this to all of us. Some are thin, some are not, each makes it all beautiful, each has something different to bring to the basket. We all have different talents and interests. Some of my reed is fine and smooth and pliable, some is not and yet others are hairy and old, but all make the whole. Some of us are young and some are old and gray.…but together we make something that cannot be matched.…poor or rich it matters not, without one it is not complete.

http://frugalandthriving.com.au/2014/advice-that-never-gets-old-47-frugal-tips-from-our-grandparents-era/ - some good useful ideas for our time too. I am not a fan of a few... bet you can find out which ones.… but there are many that are good.

http://www.maryjanesfarm.org/Recipes-Patterns-Instructions/make-do-apron.asp a free apron pattern, so you can use the advice in site above.

http://www.simplyprepared.com/gluten-free_four_grain_pilaf.htm for those who are gluten free

http://glutenfreeonashoestring.com/homemade-sweetened-condensed-milk/ - good info

*If you are too busy to cook consider doubling what you cook and freeze the extra
*utilize your crockpot, you can take three tinfoil wads and put on the bottom of your crockpot and set frozen chicken breasts on top of them. Cook on low all day, when you get home it is like a roasted chicken, either use instant potatoes or bake potato in microwave serve canned veggie
*make stuffing, put leftover chicken on top and cover with cream of mush soup
*make foods on the weekend for weeks ahead. I have a friend who makes chicken fajitas ahead and keeps them in refrigerator for fast lunches or supper, you could freeze leftovers
*hard to do but find time to learn something new like what i have shared on previous blog post on using the bread machine http://frugalmeasures.blogspot.com/2015/03/monday-message_16.html 
*learn your crockpot, learn the food processor... whatever you have learn it, you just might be surprised like I was that I could use the basic bread dough out of the machine many ways at such a fraction of time. Once you figure it out, customize it. You can put all dry ingredients and shortening in a bowl in the morning as I did today. I dumped the water in then the contents of the bowl, select dough, and then I went to the doctor, got home and waited for it to rise above the rim of the bread pail. I shape and put in bread pan, grease, cover with plastic wrap & let rise 20-30 minutes all the while having oven going so its ready to put in. Cook 40 minutes and you are done! It is way better than store or bakery bread. Today I threw bran and raw sunflower nuts in. When the loaf is cool I use an electric knife to slice all at once for appeal and convenience.

These are a few tips for the very busy. Do the best you can!