Monday Message

"Our Heavenly Father created this beautiful earth, with all its abundance, for our benefit and use. His purpose is to provide for our needs as we walk in faith and obedience. He has lovingly commanded us to ‘prepare every needful thing’ (see D&C 109:8) so that, should adversity come, we may care for ourselves and our neighbors, and support bishops as they care for others." (All is Safely Gathered In pamphlet)

This year just seems to be slinging disaster after disaster at us all over the world. It is more important than ever that we store some items ahead.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yu4X9WFtCA - I love this gal, she shows you how to do a three months supply of food storage.

There is no set rule to what is in your storage, just what your family eats. I stress you start with the basics and build from there.

We finally have fall weather!

I had some apples to use up and made a pie.

I have also made a big pot of chili using up some tomatoes that needed to be used.

So keep being safe, we are by no means over this virus.

Also, for those who pray, I think prayers are needed for the people who are suffering with the virus, and the wildfires, and the hurricane victims...the list goes on and on.

Gus says we need to keep building our skills at this time too.

Here is a brief list for you to check off:

Sew on buttons

Hem

Mend

How to darn a hole in clothes, socks, even couches, etc.

How many different seams can you sew on your machine?

Can you do maintenance on your sewing machine?

Do you know how to clean your sewing machine?

Can you bake bread?

Can you cook from scratch and do you have supplies on hand to do so?

Do you know proper ways of storing food?

Do you know basic first aid?

Can you make cookies and cakes and pies from scratch?

Can you nuke a burn pile of green branches? :p  (I am working on it, I really am)

Do you have hard copies of your recipes?

Can you knit a hat, scarf, and mittens?

Can you crochet hot pads?

This list is endless, you can probably think of lots more than what I came up with.

This year with the high risk that we both have, we cannot go out and mail things so I have been working on a skill for things that I can mail.

What are you planning to do for gifts?

Missy says make preps, winter will be here soon enough and all of you be safe.

Monday Message

"A cardinal principle of the gospel is to prepare for the day of scarcity. Work, industry, frugality are part of the royal order of life." (Bishop Keith B. McMullin)

I think it is no longer “if” something happens because 2020 has shown us it most certainly can happen.

With the virus numbers on the rise here in Iowa, I feel like we need to stick with our safety plans, review them if needed. Make more masks. Continue to teach your children good practices.

This sure has been a difficult time for so many...we need to continue to build on our skills.

No doubt you are doing things a bit differently than before the pandemic…you proved you can do it.

https://www.thriftyfrugalmom.com/frugal-pantry-staples-to-help-you-cook-from-scratch/ - this site has some great ideas.

Be sure to stock up on basics, as we need the basics to build on.

Just recently I watched a podcast where this lady said not to store flour as it goes bad - this just isn't so. You can easily store flour for three years and if you have a basement five years is what I am finding.

I store twenty-five pounds in a food grade five gallon bucket that I have washed and dried and I leave the bucket to air dry overnight, the lid too. Once dry I fill the bucket with flour that I dump out of the bag. I then put two bay leaves on top, put on the lid then label and date it and put it into rotation.

Yeast is starting to get back on the shelves so when you see it, get it and store it in the freezer. The way I’ve done it for years is that I buy yeast in the one pound bags (two usually sold together at Sam's Club). This is the more frugal way for me. Then I freeze one and the other goes in a quart jar that I keep in my refrigerator - this is my using jar.

Salt, baking powder and baking soda, some sugar and oil…you saw how fast all these items flew off the shelf. Waiting till the last minute to get them is not such a good idea.

If you have a bread machine, dig it out!!!

I do not like how bread turns out baked in the bread machine but I love making dough in it.

Check out the post we did on our good friend Liza's bread recipes to see all the yummy things you can make - http://frugalmeasures.blogspot.com/2019/08/monday-message.html

If you do not have a bread machine, no problem! I can get the same results by doing it by hand as well.

https://butterwithasideofbread.com/homemade-bread/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySOj0fFWo1U - how to knead by hand.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCZBQ25zfa8 - she doesn't knead.

So there you have different ways to make bread.

https://www.pbs.org/video/sewing-nancy-solving-pattern-fitting-puzzle-part-one/ - one of the best sewing videos and most helpful I have ever seen were on making fitting patterns easy.

Part 2 - https://www.pbs.org/video/sewing-nancy-solving-pattern-fitting-puzzle-part-two/

Gus and Missy say not to forget to practice self-care, their version is curling up for a nap!

Monday Message

“Preparedness, when properly pursued, is a way of life, not a sudden, spectacular program. We could refer to all the components of personal and family preparedness, not in relation to holocaust or disaster, but in cultivating a life-style that is on a day-to-day basis its own reward.” (President Spencer W. Kimball)

Making it a way of life helps with rotation as well as makes it easy to have what you need when you need it.  When you have your storage up it is just a matter of use, replace, and rotate.

I think that having some storage is a good idea with all that is going on. I don't know if you are feeling like there is no time to catch a breath between catastrophes but I do. Clean-up is still ongoing at our house. I am very tired of playing lumberjack. For an old lady who hates outdoor labor this year has been only that and no fun. I loved pick-up sticks as a girl but I hate this kind of pick-up sticks.

Sometimes hard times hit and we have to work harder at things and normal chores become harder to do because you are more tired. So take that into account. In your storage have some ingredients on hand that make easy fix meals. It seemed like we had so many things collide - it was hot, we had no electricity, and having to work on clean-up. It was compounded for sure. My heart goes out to those hit by hurricane Laura, they have no water and too much water added to that list.

You can imagine the clean-up has taken most of my time so being flexible is important, don't be upset with yourself for not being able to get things done.

I have been doing little things here and there...

I organized my knitting books (pictured at the top) and my sewing books. I did not do them all at one time, it actually took three different times because of the heat we have had and dragging branches for an hour wore me out the rest of the day.

I wasn't sure I would like organizing the books by color but I love it. One night I couldn't sleep as I hurt too much and didn't feel up to sewing so I organized the sewing books and really like how calming they are to my eyes now. Then I thought do I want to even tackle my knitting books? I liked how I could find my books easier this way so I had to do it with other books I have.

I decided it was harder for me to flip through the baggies to find the right sewing foot so I changed to doing it this way and it works much better for me.

This old bread box was perfect to house the boxes of feet and in the top are the feet and tools that came with machine and my magnetic pincushion which by the way is magnetically stuck to the box, I really like that it, makes it easier to use.

I ordered this book over a month ago before the derecho but it got caught in the mail slowdown and the derecho came and hard work was going on, it took a month to get it. The sad thing is I have had it for a week now and have not yet had time to look at it, mostly too wore out from dragging branches. All the feet in those boxes are in this book with details of how to use them, so I am looking forward to curling up with Missy and Gus and reading it....as you can see they have a head start.

With sadness, my mother-in-law passed away this last week from Covid-19. It is so very contagious, once it got into her facility 51 people got it over a very short time even though precautions were taken. She was my mentor, I learned so much from her. She was the best mother-in-law one could have. We will truly miss her.

I know I have heard so many say Covid is a hoax, I am here to say it is very real and very sad so we must try very hard to be safe.

Monday Message

"Let us be in a position so we are able to not only feed ourselves through the home production and storage, but others as well." (President Ezra Taft Benson)

It is a good thing to have enough to share in our storage because when the need is great so is the suffering.

We still are in clean up mode here, still branches to drag and big pieces of wood too big to mow over plus burning the burn pile has been hard as the wood is green.

Through it all I needed to keep working up the produce from the garden, before the storm and some after. Here you see I am using a tomato slicer, a neat invention. I put these slices of tomatoes in the dehydrator.

I won't lie, doing both are hard and I am pushing through but putting up the food is so important.

Gus is catching up on the news, he missed watching TV when we had no power. At first he used to be scared when I would watch a podcast on the tablet and would run away but he is a curious cat and now he comes running to watch the podcasts. He has watched me so closely that before I can stop, he stretches his arm out, spreads his paw wide out then like a flash he slides my screen.

Gus says if he could learn a new skill like the computer you can learn a new skill too...and he doesn't mean playing pick up sticks which is no fun at all but is all the rage now in Iowa.

https://extension.usu.edu/sanpete/ou-files/ez-plug/Soup_or_Sauce_SOS_Mix.pdf - I made up a double batch of this, it was time to. I do not add the Italian seasoning to mine though it was an option.

We are getting that heat wave so trying to eat meals that are cooler.

Pandemic, derecho, heat wave..I think it is time to be done with anymore heaping on trials.

I think each trial we have makes us learn more about what we can do to prepare for anything else that is heading our way.

Learning how to make-do in any of these things is a worthy thing.

Making-do means figuring out how to manage and using our brain to think up ways that would be helpful, ways that would streamline the chores at hand.

Things are never so bad that they can't get worse...

We need to be as prepared as we can and doing it safely. When your budget is tight and you cannot stock up, learn skills.

Can you make bread?

Can you cook from scratch?

Can you make repairs on clothing?

Can you stretch what you have?

Can you make some home repairs?

This list goes on and on...

So learn a skill that will help stretch your family budget. Be a student of how to do this. Again, in a challenging time is not when you want to be learning a skill.

Keep positive even though things are going to pieces around you. This can be hard but kids stress, this would be a time for my chocolate cake...

Click HERE then scroll down for my recipe!

Always keep on hand the ingredients to make stuff that would be fun for the kids and us as well.

You know I find with all that is going on we are stretched more and more but we all can make it through.

Missy says keep doing the things that make you safe!