Monday Message

"Those families will be fortunate who, in the last days, have an adequate supply of food because of their foresight and ability to produce their own." (Ezra Taft Benson)

I say keep working on building those skills. Things will continue to go higher in price and things will continue to get worse.

We had a huge snow storm hit.

I am ready for winter to be over with for sure.

By the time you read this in two weeks, I hope all the snow is gone.

I was able to get four of these dishcloths made out of the cotton yarn I got for .99 from Salvation Army. And I still have some of it left so that makes each less than .25.

We must all try even harder to be more thrifty than ever.

https://www.littlehouseliving.com/15-frugal-habits-that-add-up-over-a-year.html

We are still struggling with meds and health insurance costs. I do not see this improving.

So be actively working on building your storage.

Now is not the time to let up on this. I think we must keep being actively engaged. I feel that things will continue to worsen.

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/2006/03/random-sampler/food-storage-for-one-year?lang=eng

https://www.homelandsecurity.ms.gov/sites/mohs/files/MOHS%20Files/EmergencyPantryChart_Color2.pdf

https://www.thirtyhandmadedays.com/1-year-food-storage-challenge/ - this will help give a list of foods for storage.

Watch for sales.

Get your core staples - things you can use to make many other things.

Try to learn to plant a garden, even if you can only plant in pots.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnYGCCiOSx4

https://thehomeylif3.com/homemaking-skills-for-the-housewife/

https://www.foodstoragemoms.com/40-lost-homemaking-skills-that-need-to-be-refound/

We should not wait to build skills. It is harder to learn when you are going through the hard times.

Try to think if your hard time comes tomorrow - will you be ready to feed and care for your family? When you want to go "shopping for fun".....ask yourself that very question.

We need to stretch everything.

Be working on those skills!

Missy says please put food in your storage!

Tippy Longstockings says beef up your skills.

Monday Message

"Start now to create a plan if you don’t already have one, or update your present plan. Watch for best buys that will fit into your year’s supply. We are not in a situation that requires panic buying, but we do need to be careful in purchasing and rotating the storage that we’re putting away. The instability in the world today makes it imperative that we take heed of the counsel and prepare for the future." (L. Tom Perry)

Rotating is huge and use it as well. Use, replace, buy an extra one.

This is how you make it grow and rotate as well. On that note, today I pulled a tomato soup to use and it was bloated. I always wondered what those pop top cans would look like bloated. You definitely will notice as the top of the can goes like an upside down bowl. There will be an occasional can go bad no matter how well you are at rotating. This one was old but I have had current dates go bad, so it is all part of it.

Many things last way longer than those dates, so don't throw away those canned goods if they are not leaking or bloating, they are still good. And if you throw them away, it is bad for the environment plus many people are in need of food right now.  

We are having spring type weather here right now but I know more winter is yet to come. We get huge storms in March and even into April but they don't last long.

That said, continue to think how you plan to garden this year? What do you plan to put in it?

The celery is growing very well. You can get free celery by planting the bottom part of the celery that normally gets cut off and tossed, so don't throw them out.

Continue to find joy.

One thing I do is find ways around my house to have things set so all I have to do is sit down and do. Since I don't have space, they are all around.

This is set-up in our bedroom.

This too is in our bedroom.

The sock machine is also in our bedroom.

This is in the living room.

These both share a room.

This is how I have things set up for me, not the most attractive, but with fibromyalgia it is better for me not to take things out and set them up.

Missy and Tippy Longstockings say you find joy and work on your skill building.

How are you coming with skill building? Leave a comment below.

https://www.creeksidesimplicity.com/25-homemaking-skills-you-should-know/

https://frolicandfare.com/homemaking-skills-values-and-routines/

https://healthhomeandhappiness.com/70-skills-every-holistically-minded-homemaker-should-know.html 

These are some lists that you can see if there are things you would like to build for skills. This last one has different things, I am interested in how to become unbusy... hmmmmm.

https://food.unl.edu/article/basic-foods-checklist-how-stock-your-kitchen-simple-meals/ - this has a good food list for your pantry.

https://extension.usu.edu/preserve-the-harvest/files/Food-Storage-Booklet.pdf - this has some food storage information.

https://www.pinterest.com/ideas/meal-planning-template-free/895461494297/ - this has some examples of free templates for menu planning.

Keep working on stocking items for your storage. Remember, a little extra works great - you can do this!

Look at what you have in storage. Can you go one month incase of unexpected medical bills like us? Things happen so try to have enough to be able to go one month with what you have on hand and build on that.

Missy says she is shocked prices keep going up, so be putting in the basics for your storage.

Tippy Longstockings says she knows times are hard but look for joy. Do not let things get you down.

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) 

How is everyone doing?

I know these are hard times we all are going through. We must not let this beat us down. We must find joy! 

Get creative with what you have. You can do this - yes, you can!

This is a getting-no-groceries month here to pay medical bills as I mentioned in past blog.

Today, I made bread, which I would do anyway, and I made yogurt, which I would also do anyway.

https://frugalmeasures.blogspot.com/2023/12/monday-message_11.html - this is my favorite way to make yogurt.

https://frugalmeasures.blogspot.com/2024/11/monday-message_11.html - in this post, one of you mentioned doing this freezing the yogurt cubes for a starter - that's the best tip ever! It saves sooooo much money!

I mentioned before how I use the leftovers for TV type dinners, this stretches things very far.

The other thing I mentioned was when I last got groceries, I had no idea that this would be a no-groceries month. But I bought groceries like I knew that but I didn't. I just thought what should I get if I wasn't able and shopped like that. I'm so glad that I did as it is helping us now.

So look for ways to be more frugal. We just have to be willing to do a bit more work.

I continued to spring clean this week. Going through things and better organizing it has helped a lot.

What things are you finding on frugal ideas? Share in the comments.

Also, what things are you doing to find joy?

I just can't stress enough to put extras into storage. Hard times hit everyone in one way or another. I don't think anybody thought they would be losing jobs - a lot of secure jobs have been lost. I never thought that the medical safety nets would be cancelled either. But here we are with things looking to get worse. So please, take some time to learn basic skills, such as:

How to make bread

How to mend clothes

How to darn socks

How to sew

How to knit

How to crochet

How to can food

How to make jam

How to dry food (I have a bowl of apples that I will be drying tomorrow) use what we have to make things last!

Learn ways of being zero-waste, for example: did you know the bottom part of celery can be planted? It will grow more celery.

https://frugalmeasures.blogspot.com/2022/08/monday-message_15.html

https://frugalmeasures.blogspot.com/2023/02/monday-message_13.html

There are more things like that we can do (P.S. those orange rolls to die for, yum!)

How to cook from scratch

How to piggyback meals

How to make mixes

How to vacuum seal food

How to make your own cookies, scones, muffins, bagels, cakes, donuts, hamburger buns, hot dog buns, cinnamon rolls, pecan sticky rolls, pasta, and much more!

This list could go on and on. You don't need to learn it all at once, just one step at a time.

Learn, then do it.

Think before you throw anything out, can you use it for something else? Let's say you need a storage box. First walk through your house to see what you have - plastic crate, basket, even a box, you can put fabric on a box. We just have to be willing to think of what we have that will work.

Remember, put hard copies in a binder as it is hard to find things again. Plus, as in the hamburger helper recipes, they just took it down. I am thankful for my hard copy in my binder.

Remember to use your library. 

Remember, as bad as things seem for you, there are others who are worse off, so kindness is needed more than ever.

Missy says be kind, even to grumpy people. We are all in this together around the world and we need to lift others.

Tippy Longstockings says a smile can go a long way and is free.