Use It Up!

Don't forget about my giveaway here!!  Victoria Botkin's Curriculum Advice may be just what you need!


Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without!  That's a wise old adage that many of our grandparents or great-grandparents learned as children.  However, through the years as convenience foods became more available,  homemaking skills decreased, and moms joined the work force it seems that many of us today have no idea how to live or even want to live by this adage.

It is so easy to hop in the car for a fast food dinner, ask hubby to stop by Walmart on his way home from work for that single ingredient we left off our shopping list earlier in the week, or make a quick run to pick up a few necessary items for a project that if we had planned more carefully, could have been picked up when we were out for other reasons.

With gas prices inching up even as I type and the cost of groceries and other products going up right with the gasoline, it is even more important for my family to make wise decisions concerning where our money goes.  I thought I would share some of our ideas on saving money and energy today.

USE IT UP!   I am working hard to be more creative in using up our leftovers.  Through the years I have saved bits of meat and vegetables to make homemade soups, but now I am saving even more and freezing them.  When the container is full I then make a big pot of soup.  I did this last week and made so much that I was able to share a large amount with a family who just celebrated the birth of their newest member and froze some for my married daughter to take home with her.  We also had 2 meals off of this soup made with ingredients that many folks would have thrown out!

I have shared before about how I cook chickens:  I bake two whole chickens at a time and freeze one for another day.  That saves much time and energy, but after we have cut the meat from the chicken I then use the carcass to make a rich flavorful broth.  I put the carcass in a big pot and cover it with filtered water.  Add a splash or two of organic apple cider vinegar, garlic cloves, a couple of carrots, a quartered onion and some salt and pepper and I can create some fabulous recipes using this broth as a base.  I also use chicken breasts in the same way after we cut the meat from the bone for chicken strips or whatever we are cooking.  I used to freeze this broth, but am now canning it which makes it even easier and quicker to use.

One roast can become several meals as I divide it in half after cooking.  I serve one portion and freeze the other with the juices for another meal.  This week we had a smaller roast and we used the leftovers to make wonderful hot open-faced roast beef sandwiches.

WEAR IT OUT!  Hand-me-down clothing has always been a budget saver for my large family.  Most of my younger boys wardrobes consist of hand-me-downs---even those from their oldest brother who is 12+ years older!  I have purchased a handful of clearance rack items each year to give them a few fresh pieces to have as well.

Jackson has grown so much recently that he was ready for a larger bike.  Did we go out and buy one?  No, just headed out to the barn where there was a bike in just the size he needed.    Jackson's outgrown bike will be just right for Caedmon in the next year or two.  We'll just need to add a new tire and put the training wheels back on.

Toys and school items?  Yes, my little man and the grandchildren play with toys and puzzles that my oldest daughter played with over 25 years ago!  And they are not worn out yet!  I also have many manipulatives and handmade educational games that I made for my oldest daughter 23 years ago.  In fact, we even have some shaped crayons in our crayon bucket that she received as gifts when she was two years old!  She is now 27!  We also try to use as much of our curriculum as possible with all the children.  There are workbooks that we have that are reproducible that I have been using for over 20 years.

MAKE DO!  Learn how to substitute ingredients in the kitchen.  If you don't have one particular ingredient for a meal use another one that will work just as well or be creative and come up with your own recipe.

We have been making the raised beds for our garden from wood recycled from a deck that the boys dismantled two years ago.  When only small pieces were left, Jordan began making planters.  We used logs from our woods to make another needed bed or two as well.

If I have curriculum that is not fitting the learning style of one particular child, I find ways to tweak it to fit by adding in simple hands-on activities, changing the location of our lessons, or finding free materials from the internet.

Instead of buying mixes and instant foods, make your own!!  Grow and preserve as much of our own food as you can.

DO WITHOUT!    I think this will probably be the hardest thing to do!  We are taught that we deserve anything we want and only the best.  But really, we need to practice self-discipline and realize that there are many things that we can simply do without!  Do we really need a new pair of shoes or a new outfit for Easter this year?  Won't the same outfit we wore last year do and will anyone really notice or even care?   Is that junk food or soda really necessary?  Can we drink water for more of our meals instead of tea?  Can we stay at home and play a game instead of using gas to head to the park?   There are so many things that we can simply do without that will not really be sacrificing all that much and will probably be much better for us.  We are trying to do without running the air conditioner more often.  We are hanging out the laundry....hanging our clothing out on the clothesline does take more time, but it gets me outside and saves much money as we aren't using the dryer as much.  Turning out lights when they are not really needed.  Keeping electronics turned off and unplugged when not in use can also save money.

Stay at home more often when it is not necessary to travel.  Create a day or afternoon for all of your shopping, music lessons, and library trips.  It may make your day a little longer, but you will save money and time in the long run.

There are so many ways that we can use it up, wear it out, make do or do without.  What are some changes that your family is making as we face these more challenging economic times?  Maybe this is the way your family has chosen to live regardless of the world's economic situation.  I would love to get some new money saving ideas from you!

Linked over at Titus 2sday

Linking up at Raising Homemakers 

Making Laundry Detergent

We have been making our own laundry detergent for the last few months.  I love not having to lug home large containers of detergent from Sam's and I love keeping the ingredients on hand to whip up a large batch that will last for a while.  There are MANY recipes for laundry detergent and you can look here to find some.

I have made laundry detergent with several kids of soap.  Most people use the Fels Naptha soap and that is what we used in this batch.  It is designed specifically as a laundry soap, but to me it is heavily scented and I generally stick to unscented things as we have some who are sensitive to smells.  I have used Dr. Bronner's soaps that I can purchase at my local health food store.  They are made from all-natural materials and you can find unscented and those scented with essential oils.  I have also made some with my own homemade soap that was a plain unscented soap.  This is the method that I would normally choose, but I am out of my plain soap (will be making some soon and that will be another post!) so here we are.  The Fels Naptha soap runs about $1. 38 a bar.  Two bars grated will make three cups.

Kaelan grates the soap.

We also use Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda and 20 Mule Team Borax.  If you are local, the Barnes Crossing Kroger stocks all three of these ingredients in the laundry aisle.

Two bars of grated soap=3 cups

It looks like grated cheese!

To mix all the ingredients up thoroughly I add one cup of washing soda

to my VitaMix Blender.

Then I add a cup of grated soap.

Then I add a cup of Borax.

See?

I run this through for a minute or two.

And it then looks like this!  Using the blender breaks up the larger chunks of soap.

I pour that into my large plastic container I use to store the detergent.

And then I repeat two more times using up all the grated soap.  When I use my homemade soaps I add several drops of essential oils at this point and stir thoroughly.  I love using tea tree, but my husband thinks it smells like a nursing home.  I have also used peppermint and lavender essential oils.  I probably use about 25 drops for this triple batch.

As I said there are many different recipes  out there.  You just have to find one that works for you.  I like this because I just use the same amount of all three ingredients.  I don't have to think about it and neither do my helpers.

I use a heaping tablespoon in my front loader.  A top loader would take more.  Because we have horrible water here I also add a scoop of Oxyclean and a scoop of baking soda to most loads.  I also use vinegar in the rinse cycle to keep away static and soften the clothes.

Lifestyle Changes--Becoming Producers Instead of Consumers

We need to take new pictures.  This is over a year ago!

My family already lives a life that is much different from the typical American family.  How are we different?

1.  We have seven children with a 24 year age span.  (Just in case you are a new reader and think I miscounted:  There are 6 of my children in the above picture, but we have one married daughter with three children of her own!)
2.  We homeschool. (23 years now)
3.  We don't watch tv.  We do watch movies, though.  Much too often I am afraid....another change that needs to be made.
4.  The kids don't have electronic gizmos and games to entertain them.  They play.  They read.  They       work.  They write.  They draw.  They practice their instruments.  They build things.


Even with all these things that make us different we are continuing to learn new things daily that encourage us to be even more radical in our lifestyle.  We are trying to become producers instead of consumers.  We are trying to become more self-suffcient.   Some changes that we have incorporated over the years include the following:

1.  Using cloth napkins instead of paper.  I buy napkins on clearance for about 50 cents each, but would love to make some using the boxes of fabric that are stored in the attic.
2.  Rarely purchase baking mixes or boxed cereal.
3.  Made jars and jars of homemade fruit preserves so we are  not buying any from the store.
4.  Make a maple flavored sugar syrup for pancakes, etc instead of buying syrup.
5.  Making our own soap.
6.  Making laundry detergent using our homemade soap.
7.  Grinding grains to make homemade bread products.
8.  Line drying some of our clothes.

9.  Making homemade cleaners instead of using toxic cleaners.
10.  Learned to make yogurt and applesauce in the crockpot.
11.  Learned to purchase and cook using bulk foods.
12.  Making body scrubs and ointments.
13.  Make tons of granola to replace boxed cereal.
14.  Raise as many vegetables and herbs as we can.

Ready for planting with more boxes to build.

15.  Preserve as many of those vegetables and herbs as we can.

There are several other changes that we are trying to incorporate:  larger garden, bigger food storage, learning how to dehydrate and use a pressure canner for more food storage, learn about and make herbal remedies, and raising our own meat and eggs--chickens, cow and pigs.

Love this picture of chickens on a family farm in Iowa that Jordan took 2 years ago.

So are you making lifestyle changes these days?  Is the current economic situation forcing you to make changes?

It's Wednesday Already??

-This week is flying by so very quickly!  I still have a little one who is having an occasional struggle with his breathing and is/can be very grumpy as a result of his medicines.  But after not being able to do much other than take care of him for the last several days, I needed to get busy.

Yesterday we:
-Read our Proverbs for the day
-reviewed Bible memory
-reviewed our Greek and Latin roots
-read from Lives of the Signers (bios about the signers of the Declaration)
-read about the Boston Massacre
-did math
-typing
-reading
-literature
-worked with Jackson on phonics, Building Thinking Skills and sequencing
-sorted, washed, hung out and folded four loads of laundry
-had breakfast and lunch in there somewhere!
-errands-
-health food store for soap, essential oils and a special tonic for STRESS
-library drop-off
-dropped Aaron and Kaelan off at piano
-took Caedmon and Jackson with me to the home health care store for 3 new nebulizers
-picked up A and K from piano
-shopped with all 4 at Kroger (found some great meal deals)
-ran into another local grocery for more meat deals
-stopped at daddy's office for a potty and soft drink break
-stopped at  Burleson's roadside nursery on McCollough Blvd. for tomatoes, peppers, watermelon and zucchini plants
-came home
-unloaded all of the above
-made sure dinner was in process
-ran to WalMart to get more basil, thyme, sage, onions and Miracle Gro
-back home to finish dinner prep to find Jeff weed-eating, Aaron mowing and Jordan tilling the corn patch
-made homemade laundry detergent
-put a large pork loin in the crock pot to make BBQ for the freezer
-had dinner
-to the garden to plant 30 various pepper plants, 3 zucchini plants, and six various herbs
-back to finish kitchen clean up while others helped the little boys with baths
-family worship
-computer time while getting Caedmon to sleep while Jeff was recording
-bed

Today is another marathon with school and house work this morning (hoping to get some bread on during the morning as well), dentist this afternoon followed by a trip to Lowe's and hopefully, Sam's and then home to plant tomatoes, basil, onions, watermelon, corn and more sunflowers.

I'll be glad to be at home all day Thursday and Friday!  Life is busy enough for me without leaving my house!  The other day as I was hanging out laundry I was I was struck with how thankful I was that I had all of these clothes to wash.  I know one day I won't have as many to do, so I became grateful that my work as a mom and wife is really never done.  And then I walked into the house and saw lots more work that needed to be done and my little time of gratefulness shifted to the shadows--for a little while.   LOL!!!

Piano and violins are going, Jordan is doing his school work at his computer, Jackson has laid back down on the couch for a quick after breakfast snooze and Little Bit is sitting in my lap eating his gluten, egg, dairy, taste free raisin cinnamon bagel and making funny faces at me.  Time for me to get the laundry going, put the bread on and let Aaron have the computer for his math  and typing lessons.  Wednesday is flying by!!

A Day in the Garden (and the laundry room)

Today was an outside day and thankfully the sun was shining and the temps were cool! I was able to wash and hang out about 6 loads of laundry (maybe that will take the bite out of my air conditioners running constantly!) Jordan was able to re-till a couple of beds that we had prepared earlier for beans and corn. The tomatoes (36 plants in a large bed) are producing, but so were the weeds, so Aaron, Kaelan and I weeded and weeded and weeded some more. Then we covered the entire area with hay. Hope to keep the water in and the weeds down with all that hay. We were also able to get the green beans in the ground. If they actually grow, we should have plenty of beans. My mom always liked to put up one bag or can of each vegetable for each week of the year. I would LOVE to do that, but we'll see. I think I need to make an outdoor kitchen to do some of that as the house gets so hot when we are in the kitchen all day in the summer. Last winter we created a compost bin and added veggie scraps, egg shells, coffee grounds, grass clippings, leaves and apparently, last years tomato vines! Jeff put the compost in one of our flower beds and it is producing great looking tomato plants right in the midst of the crepe myrtles and hawthornes. I counted about a dozen there. We should have lots of tomatoes for canning and freezing. I would love to can spaghetti sauce and salsa.

Planning for the next school year is constantly in the back of my mind, but I haven't set aside the time to begin. We have purchased Teaching Textbooks for this next year and Jordan has already begun Algebra 2. We have a few NEW things that we will be trying out and I am eager to see how it goes. We will begin a two year stretch in American History starting with the explorers. I love American history and am eager to get back to it after spending the last 3 years in the ancients through the Reformation period. Maybe later next week I can actually get pencil to paper. I have printed out calendars and assignment sheets and would love to get new notebooks purchased as well. Hope to get some of the actual planning written out next week as there most likely won't be any garden work going on for me. I see the surgeon Tuesday afternoon regarding my gall bladder and I am hopeful that he can schedule me in later in the week. I will be "forced" to sit and read through curriculum and do nothing but plan for the next year..... and nurse Caedmon!

Now off to prepare dinner! Should it be spaghetti with homemade basil bread or country vegetables with cornbread? One child says no to spaghetti but the others say yes... What do I want?