Feeling a bit lost...

I've been MIA from the blog for several reasons lately. First, we had a German exchange student for 3 1/2 weeks that kept me pretty busy. Second, we had Spring Break and a trip to my daughter's college choice for a dance audition (she was accepted and received a scholarship from the dance dept) which involved 3 trips in 3 weeks and was exhausting. And finally, our beloved puggle puppy was killed when she was run over by the mailman's car this week. We're very sad about that.

Now, the house is empty and quiet. The German student has returned to her family. We enjoyed her visit very much and learned a lot from her. It was great to have her in our lives. Our youngest daughter is very busy working and preparing for prom, graduation and her trip to Germany. So, she's not home very much. And, the oldest daughter is still off at college.

And now I understand what an empty nest feels like. It's quiet.

This post has nothing at all to do with frugal living. I'll get back on track with those thoughts soon enough.

What I'm writing about today is giving ourselves permission to grieve. I'm grieving several things right now. Of course, the loss of my little buddy but also the changes occuring in my life also cause a sort of grief. I'm grieving the loss of my family as I knew it; the loss of my future as I dreamed it (that's a whole 'nother story... just trust me that things have changed drastically enough to warrant a bit of grief there).

I think too often we try to be strong and tough, letting life's difficulties seemingly roll off our backs when really we just want to curl up and cry. It's okay to cry. Sometimes we should cry. It's even okay to allow yourself to get hysterical and scream and shout about the ridiculously unfair cards we've been dealt in life. I don't have to pretend to be tough when it seems my world is crashing in around me.

I think we minimize grief because it's tough for others to watch. It makes other people uncomfortable when we cry and/or scream. Because of their discomfort we tend to try to stuff our own feelings down and deal with them quietly. This week, I've not dealt with it quietly. I've screamed, shouted, bawled and wept. I don't feel bad about it... I've given myself permission to feel it all to not censor my thoughts or feelings but to just let them be for now.

It seems to help. Each day is a bit brighter than the day before. Soon, I will be looking for frugal ways to occupy my time and fill the quiet voids in my day. I know this. But, right now... I'm grieving.

Spring Cleaning Complete... Now What?

Okay, so I finished the big Spring Clean yesterday. Ahh... I'm revelling in my clean house! It's sparkly, shiny and smells so good. I'm thrilled with how well just plain hot water and vinegar worked for most jobs. I even used it to rinse the carpets after shampooing them and it seemed to pull up any residue left from the soaps.

Now, what to do?

Well, in cleaning I gathered a large pile of t-shirts and jeans to re-purpose. Today, after taking care of household business (paying bills) I will go through them and search the internet for ideas on what to do. Now, I'm not frugal to the point of saving everything. That just becomes clutter and I forget what I have, where I put it, etc. If I can't find something meaningful to do with this stuff... it will go out. I removed a truckload of old clothes and other items to charity and several bags of trash. I probably could cull even more, if I could get hubby to go through his things!

Sometimes, I think people use being frugal as an excuse to hoard things. Or, maybe they start on a mission to be frugal and become hoarders. Really, how many ziplock bags and bread bags must one keep on hand? It's okay to throw things away if you have no meaningful purpose for them and/or no room left in your house! Personally, I only re-use ziplock bags that have had cookies or such in them, never raw meat or even prepared foods. I'm too afraid of foodborne illness and it's easier to just toss them than to sanitize them properly. I don't use them that much to begin with. I much prefer sealed containers. But there again, if you have too many butter tubs... it's okay to throw the excess away or give them away (if anyone wants them).

I don't want my frugal life to end with me surrounded by mountains of carefully saved aluminum foil, plastic bags, butter tubs, etc which my heirs will come in and promptly deliver to the dumpster. I've seen this happen all too often with the Depression Era generation. I've cleaned too many little old ladies' homes when they needed to move to long term care and found the same thing several times. Years of collected "stuff" stored and kept "just in case", much of it no longer of any value or use, had to be tossed out.

So, my mission today is to look at the items I didn't toss out during my cleaning marathon and determine if I have meaningful purposes for them. One only needs so many aprons, grocery bags, pot holders, etc. I'll look for ideas to create gifts also. Then, in the next few days... I'll get to work on some fun projects. Re-purposing is very gratifying work. I'm looking forward to starting on some projects and posting the results here.

Power Outage, Cleaning and Potato Soup

So, yesterday we had a lot of snow. No school. And, the power went out for a total of about 4 1/2 hours. It was off, then on, then off, then on.

Without the distraction of electronics, my daughter and I set to work with the continuation of our spring cleaning/de-cluttering project. She tackled her closet and bedroom and I did the same. We made a lot of progress. Of course, our living room is now a total wreck because it has become the repository for everything we are hauling away.

Using just plain hot water with vinegar we dusted and cleaned. The ceilings, walls, trim... everything got a wipe down. Ah... it's nice! Today we hope to finish the majority of the project. We'll load the truck with items to donate to various organizations. My husband's clothes will go to the men's shelter. My daughter's and mine will go to the women and children's shelter. We'll take old plastic shopping bags to recycle.

I have a stack of things to look at re-purposing. Mostly old t-shirts and jeans. I'll spend some time looking at them and decide if I will really do the work. Then, I'll toss out what I won't use.

Tomorrow, I will shampoo the carpets in the bedrooms. We have wood floors or tile everywhere else. Once everything has been cleaned and dusted, I'll pre-treat the stains and spots in the carpets with diluted Shout. Then I'll use my home steam cleaner. It's not as good as a big rental, but it's less expensive, does the job and is much less hassle to use!

While the power was out yesterday, I tossed some potatoes in the wood stove and baked them. Then I made a delicious baked potato soup from them for dinner. The power had come back on, but I proceeded with cooking as if it had not. It's nice to have this back-up in place.

With the big spring clean and de-clutter project almost complete, I'm looking forward to sitting down at the sewing machine and starting on some re-purposing and gift projects. I've had to force myself not to get distracted by these projects until I finish my cleaning. It is so tempting to just go whip this up and have it finished... but, the reality is that it's never that quick and simple for me. So, it's much better that I stay on task and finish. Then, I can enjoy my clean, clean, clean house and my new projects!

Full Scale De-Clutter Mode

Yep, I'm in a complete clean, organize and de-clutter mode. I just hope I can keep up the momentum!

We will be entertaining a German exchange student for three weeks. For me, there's nothing like the idea of a stranger in my house for three weeks to motivate me to tackle projects I've put off for some time.

I'm ready to do it anyway. With both of my daughters moving off to college (next one leaves in August), I'm ready to re-claim some of my space and have some satisfaction knowing it just might stay clean and orderly for a while! Let me dream. It's simply time to go through everything. I've been working on it slowly, but with our guest's arrival in five days... I've kicked in to high gear.

I've gone through my office completely. The only thing I haven't touched are my hubby's old filing cabinets. Those are his to sort through.

I've removed two boxes of books I no longer need nor want. If hubby will go through, his we'd lighten the load on our bookshelves and make room for more books! We love books. It's hard to sort through them because they were all invited into my home for a reason... but for many they've served their purpose and I no longer refer to them. So, it's time for them to find a new home. I'll list them on my Amazon.com merchandise account. If they don't sell in a short time, I'll donate them somewhere. After all, the point of de-cluttering is to remove the items.

I've sorted through my craft cabinets and organized my supplies. I now know what I have on hand for creating home made Christmas gifts this year. I'm pretty well stocked. I also organized my gift wrap and gift bags. Everything is easier to get to and because of this I won't spend money buying things unnecessarily. I have plenty of gift bags which I can re-use. I was also pleased to see that I have plenty of Easter ribbon and such for Easter baskets this year.

I'll be going through my closet next and will probably have a few bags of old clothes to donate to the local charity. Who knows what else I may find in there? I noticed some silk flowers poking off the top shelf a bit ago... perhaps they could go into an Easter basket...

So, it seems that my cleaning and organizing is coming at an opportune time. Not only am I preparing for our guest, but I'll also be able to conserve expenses by knowing what items I have available for various purposes. And, freeing up space... which just feels better than disorganized clutter chaos lurking behind cabinet doors. When I reach the pantry, I'll make out a menu list based upon the items I have on hand and then just shop for the few things I may be missing.

I think maybe I should do this more frequently.

Or... not.

Home-Brewed Root Beer

Today I decided I needed to do some fun things to break up the monotony of day-in, day-out chores. So, I will make some home brewed root beer. I've made it with my daughters in the past but it's been a very long time. I have root beer extract, yeast and some great gallon plastic juice bottles on hand.

We only purchase soda occasionally or as a treat. It's not healthy and it's not within our budget to provide it daily. So, not only will the making of the home brewed root beer be fun, it will also give us a nice fizzy treat, for just a few pennies!

There are several recipes available on the internet, but all of them are simple. Water, sugar, rootbeer extract and yeast. You clean the bottles well, sanitize them, mix up the ingredients, pour it into the bottles and then wait for about 10 days. I plan to make 4 gallons of it today.

Home Brewed Root Beer
makes 2 gallons

1/2 tspn yeast Use either regular yeast or champagne yeast, if it's available.
2 oz or 4 tbspn root beer extract
4 cups sugar
Water (fill to 2 gallons)

Thoroughly clean and sanitize plastic soda bottles! In a small bowl dissove yeast in warm (98 - 110 degrees) water. Mix thoroughly and let stand for a few minutes. Shake bottle of extract well. In a clean, sanitized pot containing 2 gallons of water add 4 cups sugar and 4 tbspn root beer extract. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Add the dissolved yeast and mix thoroughly. Use a clean funnel and fill bottles to within 1 - 1 1/2 inches from the top. Seal tightly and turn on side to check for leaks. Leave alone for 3 -5 days in fairly warm space (72 - 75 degrees). I place them on top of my refrigerator at the back, where it is warmer. Then store in a dark place for at least a week, two weeks improves the flavor. When the soda is ready the bottles should be firm to the touch. Refrigerate before opening. The quantities can be easily adjusted to make smaller or larger batches. Small batches are recommended when new to home-brewed root beer.

Almost Spring Slump & Earthworm Rescue

Well, I didn't post in over a week. That's very unusual for me. I just couldn't think of anything interesting about which to write. It's not that I took a break from my frugal life for a week. Quite the contrary, I went shopping at the bargain store and had some amazing finds. I continued to de-clutter, clean and organize (though, I must admit it's going slowly). I have a stack of things for re-purposing.

I just got in a bit of a slump in general. It happens. A good friend advised me never to waste time or energy beating myself up for getting off track, going into a slump, having a blue day, whatever... but rather to recognize it and then move on. Okay, so moving on...

We had a brief break in winter weather that brought us springlike temperatures for two days. So, we made the most of it. We knew as we worked that the break would be followed by a very cold week. I planned to retreat back inside and return to cleaning, decluttering, organizing and repurposing (does it ever end).

Over the weekend, hubby and I cleaned our yard somewhat. At least we got a pretty good start on the big spring clean. We have a large yard by most standards (2 acres) and a lot of trees. Which means a lot of leaves. Even with raking in the fall, there are a lot that continue to fall throughout the winter so we have to do another pass in the spring. This means a lot of compost material for the garden.

Hubby has started his seedlings for this year's garden. He is the expert on growing all things organic, heirloom and delicious. That's his blog over to the right (John's Garden Blog)... visit it if you really want to know more about our garden efforts. I'm just excited to hear what he's preparing to plant and can't wait until we have the fresh bounty.

Yesterday it rained... and rained. And, then, it rained some more. As I walked to our mailbox down our gravel road, I saw earthworms everywhere. They were escaping the saturated soil. However, they are not fortunate enough to be able to visit weather.com and see that this water was about to become ice and they would be frozen on the road. So, I donned my poncho and went out with a bucket and began the earthworm rescue. Okay, now my family thinks I'm certifiably nuts.

But, we had just created two huge new compost piles of leaves and I knew they would make the perfect home for our earthworm friends during this weather event. The compost pile would certainly benefit as would the earthworms. So, I rescued... maybe 40 or so earthworms, from being squished under the tires of a vehicle or frozen. I carried them to the huge pile of leaves and dumped them on top. I stood and watched them begin to crawl into the leaves and smiled as I went to tell my hubby what good deed I'd just finished for his garden.

My oldest daughter called because my mother told her she saw me rescuing the earthworms and that I had officially lost it. When I explained why I was out in the cold rain rescuing earthworms, she laughed and said, "okay, Dali Mama."

I think I should be nominated for gardener's wife of the year for my efforts! :)

Lovely Legumes

hmmm... it's Friday, where has my week gone?

I cooked with two different legumes this week and made several meals for very little expense. Legumes are a great way to extend the protein available in your diet while keeping meal costs affordable. This week I used lentils and pinto beans.

I only used one cup of lentils and have plenty left for other meals. I chose to sample a new recipe shared on Frugal Village, a frugal living message board, Sloppy Sam's. The Sloppy Sam recipe was quick and easy. The result was delicious. Though, I wouldn't exactly compare it to the meaty Sloppy Joe version. This dish is very good served in a warmed wheat pita with shredded cheddar cheese.

Sloppy Sams 4 servings so says the official recipe, but I got closer to 8 servings from this... it's very filling!

3 cups water
1 cup lentils, rinsed
salt to taste (optional)
1 cup chopped onion
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chopped tomato [I used 1 can diced stewed tomatoes]
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1/2 cup ketchup
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1 tablespoon chili powder
3 tablespoons molasses
1 dash Worcestershire sauce
salt and ground black pepper to taste
4 hamburger buns, split

Combine water and lentils in a saucepan; season to taste with salt if desired. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until tender, about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, cook onions with the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat until the onions have softened and turned translucent, about 4 minutes. Add tomatoes and garlic, and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, ketchup, mustard powder, chili powder, molasses and Worcestershire sauce; simmer 5 to10 minutes until thickened. Drain lentils and reserve cooking liquid. Stir lentils into sauce mixture, adding cooking liquid or water as needed to obtain the desired "sloppy joe" consistency. Serve on buns. It's even better after sitting in the fridge over night... one of those recipes that actually tastes better when served the next day!

I also chose to prepare an entire bag of pinto beans. This makes much more than my small family (three at home) can reasonably consume before spoiling. So, at least half of the batch will be used to prepare refried beans, which will be frozen for later meals. A batch of cornbread, rice and fried potatoes will accompany those not mashed and refried!

The lentil recipe was a bit more spendy than just preparing the pinto beans, but overall I saved significantly versus using other available protein sources. Beef, chicken, pork, fish are all rather high in cost right now and I doubt the price will drop.

One way to cope is to stretch the weekly food budget by adding more meals featuring lovely legumes. There are many recipes available through searching the internet. Preparing legumes is simple and the instructions are usually very plain. Lentils are wonderful because they can be prepared quickly and do not require soaking. They also last in your pantry forever.

In order for legumes to act as complete proteins, they must be combined with other foods. The sloppy sam's need to be served with grain in order to be complete. Once placed inside a pita with some cheese or on a bun, you have a complete protein and a healthy meal. Other examples of legume combinations resulting in complete protein are: red beans and rice (or any legume and rice), pinto beans and cornbread, hummus and pitas, peanut butter sandwich (any legume and grain).

My husband is an avid gardener, and I would be remiss if I didn't mention the agricultural aspect of legumes. They are easy to grow and can grow (but not as productively) in poor soil. The plants are high in nitrogen and are beneficial biomass to improve the soil. Simply till them into the soil. By growing your own legumes you have a very inexpensive protein source and an equally inexpensive organic fertilizer for your garden!