......still sick.....................sorry. 

How to Survive the Flu
......I've been working on this since Saturday
Hope to be back to blogging soon and figuring out why no one can comment.
Have heard from some of you that something is disabled.
I am sorry.
Hope all is well with all of you.
K~ 

How to Make a Fluffy Omelette
I had about 1/3 of this week's tomato tart (Tomato Tart, February 22, 2013) left over so I saved it, of course, for this morning's breakfast.
I made an omelette and put the leftover tart inside the eggs as they cooked, for a filling.
 It was delicious, quick, easy, and cheap.

Making omelettes seems to scare people off but I have been making them for years.
Believe me, they are so quick and easy especially with leftovers or bits of this and that added as the filling.
They can be savory or sweet.
And they are great in a pinch when you need a meal quickly.
Here's what I do:

Omelettes

• Crack two eggs per person into a bowl. Whisk or use a fork to mix together the egg white and the yolks.
• Pre-heat a large pan---I prefer well-seasoned cast iron---into which a small amount of oil is added.
  Non-stick sprays work okay, but oil is better because you want the eggs to kind of float atop the oil.
• When oil is kind of bubbly but not smoking (if it is smoking it is too hot, remove from burner, wait a few seconds and then add eggs, then put back on the burner). You want the pan pretty hot so that
  when the eggs hit the pan they sizzle but don't burn. You can test this by dropping a very tiny amount of egg mixture from the fork or whisk into the pan---if it sizzles but doesn't burn it's ready. On my old range top I need it on high but a lower temp may work better for your range.
• Working quickly, take your metal spatula/pancake flipper (whatever you call it) and begin pushing the cooking edges, as they form, to the middle of the pan. If you are doing this correctly the pan will have no egg residue on it since it will be floating on the oil. Immediately after that, tilt the pan so that the uncooked egg fills the part of the pan you just pushed the eggs from.  If the whole omelette base moves you have added too much oil. Cook a little longer if this happens or just barely tilt the pan. Continue to repeat this process working around the edge of the pan over and over until it is almost thoroughly cooked. This makes for a fluffy omelette instead of just a cooked egg base which I prefer. It is much more moist and tasty than just slow cooking the eggs then adding the filling. It has a more rustic appearance and will be a little lumpy instead of foamy and cooked through.
• Add whatever you want----to the middle of the egg mixture in small pieces so they warm up or melt quickly. 
• Fold the egg part in half over the ingredients. Don't worry if it doesn't flip neatly, just take your spatula to reshape it and flip it over---serving "bad" side down on plate.
• When it is heated through and the filling is melt-y or warm it is ready to be served
• I like to add some shredded lettuce or sprouts, diced tomato and/or avocado on the plate side. Cooked potatoes, toast, or any stir-fried veggies could also be served along-side. If making a sweet omelette add slices of fresh fruit or whatever goes with your omelette. I like to make it look attractive. "Decorate" your plates before you start cooking the eggs so they are ready to serve.
• You can also serve with any sauce you wish if you have some leftover, or sour cream, gravy, salsa, syrup, fruit sauce, pudding. Whatever you like---be creative.
• If you are making several you can keep others warm in the oven on low or use a very large pan and divide into servings. This morning I put 1 double-yolked egg and two others mixed together into the pan at the same time for my husband and I. When done I just cut it in half.

Filling ideas: Leftovers are the best and easiest fillings:
any meat, cheeses or anything with cheese in it.
Asparagus is wonderful as are mushrooms, peppers, onions, leftover stir-fried veggies or potatoes.
Chili or refried beans are great especially served with salsa on top
and some green onions or raw red onions diced.
Leftovers from a Mexican dish are my favorite.
That last enchilada or tamale chopped up,
leftovers from taco or burrito makings, anything that sounds good to you! They are also good filled with something sweet as a quick dessert. Some examples are apples, berries, pudding---home made of course! That last piece of pie or crisp, crumbled up inside, chocolate chips, nuts, dried fruit and coconut, homemade cookies with chocolate, granola----served with drizzled chocolate, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, syrup, yogurt, sweetened sour cream, or cream poured over top ---whatever you like and have on hand. Be creative and enjoy  "...the incredible, edible egg." 

Kathi~

Tomato Tart
....with enough leftovers for breakfast!

On the menu this week was a tomato sausage tart that our oldest daughter used to make. I believe it was originally a 4-H cooking project. I no longer remember the recipe but then, as you know if you've read my blog, I don't use recipes so this was not a problem!

I had gotten, much to my dismay, an eggplant in our co/op Italian pack. Both my husband and I have always disliked the vegetable. I have cooked it every way I can think of and we've never liked it. Not wanting to just chop it up for the chickens I became desperate and did the unthinkable. I looked for recipes! Not finding anything out of the ordinary and not having the ingredients for anything else that sounded different, I decided on one from a Vegetarian Cooking book my husband got me. No, we aren't vegans, but do love vegetables.
So, earlier in the week I dredged thin slices of raw eggplant with some spices---no, I didn't follow the recipe but just had fun with the idea of what to do with it.  We had it with a salad dinner and mug of leftover soup. When I went into the kitchen to do the dishes I noticed we had only eaten about half of the egg plant. I had planned the tart but hated to make crust, so I laid the cooked pieces of coated eggplant in the bottom of a pie plate. When it came time to make the tart, and after I found our natural food store was out, again, of their natural sausage, I had to tweak what I remembered of the recipe. This lends itself to creative cooking quite easily. Just use what you have on hand and enjoy!
Here is what I did:

Eggplant, Tomato Tart

• Place coated fried egg plant slices in bottom of pie plate.Fill entire bottom single depth but
  slightly overlapping. I used leftover eggplant but you can start with this.
• Slice tomatoes thinly and place on top of egg plant and sprinkle with dry basil and granulated garlic
• Saute onion rounds and slices of mushrooms in pan with olive oil
• Place above mixture onto tomatoes along with its carmelized juices
• Slice or just crumble black olives on top of mushrooms and onions
• Sprinkle very lightly with balsamic salad dressing or with some olive oil and balsamic vinegar
  I used my homemade dressing which was gone except for the spices and Parmesan at the
  very bottom of the container.
• Grate natural cheese of choice on top (I crumbled leftover previously-frozen cheddar) 
• Bake at about 400 degrees until cheese is bubbly and you can see liquid from the veggies
  bubbling on the bottom. 
• Leave to cool and set up for a couple minutes

It is delicious, very savory and even better if you have added natural sausage to it. I served it with an Italian salad I made and with a fresh batch of my salad dressing. There is enough leftover to be filling for omelettes for a nice Saturday morning breakfast!

Have a great rest of the weekend!

Yummy, Healthy Dessert

After dinner my husband asked about dessert. Chocolate cake was his desire.
But it was late and I knew he'd be happy with a chocolate "hit" instead of a cake.
I scooped Greek Yogurt into bowls, I added fresh blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, pecans,
and dark chocolate chips. I topped that with a tiny dab of sour cream and unsweetened, flaked coconut.
It was delicious!
He smiled.
That was easy!

"...like a woman."

Many years ago we took part in a program that asked families to host someone from a different country in their homes for three weeks. Our children were pretty young and we thought it would be a good experience for them to learn about different cultures as my husband and I did when he was in the USMC in the early '70's when we lived in Okinawa.

A 31 year old woman named Catherine from France was chosen to stay with us. It was a very memorable experience.

Over the years since then, something she told me about herself has come to my mind very frequently.

She once told me that she would love to serve us some authentic French meals while she stayed with us. But then added, "I do not cook like a chef.  I cook like a woman".

She cooked many things for us and I hope she enjoyed what I cooked for her.

Many things about her stay with us stand out, but...."...I cook like a woman."  stuck with me. I thought about what it meant to cook like a woman. I thought about what it meant to do anything like a woman, not just cooking.

Ideally,  a woman considers the health, likes and needs of her family in planning her menus. She works within the budget, or certain parameters, when she buys food. She delights in serving her family and  making guests feel at home. She makes things attractive but not fancy necessarily---although that can be lots of fun! The heart of the one who cooks is humble and that of a servant who takes pleasure in what she does. The one who cooks like a woman may not have all the right knives for each task, gadgets or certainly the skills a chef might have and probably not the time in her busy day that a professional chef does. But she cooks for her family and does the best she can with what she has and is able to do.She makes cookies with her children, she works with them in the kitchen. She loves when her husband grills for them or tries his hand in the kitchen. This is cooking like a woman. Edith Schaeffer in her book The Hidden Art of Homemaking encourages women to create art in their homes in how we decorate, how we do just about everything including cooking and serving meals. I highly recommend this book if you need a kick-start in using your God-given creativity in every area of living.

But we do not always love cooking. We get tired. We get in recipe ruts. We have hard days after which we do not feel like cooking----or eating. It can be a struggle to provide good food for our families much less feed others and help the needy or infirm. This is reality.

I do not believe that we need to be "Suzy Homemaker" all the time, slapping a fake smile on our worn faces, smiling when we feel like crying or yelling at no one in particular.But we need to be aware that our children and others are watching. We need to be real, but if you do not find joy in the things God has called you to do as a woman, wife, mother, homemaker then you must cry out to God to give you that delight in your calling.

Consider the ramifications of what you do, how you approach being a homemaker. Because whether we know it or not,  we are influencing others.

While we are shopping for, preparing, planning meals, and maybe even gardening, we are teaching our children. Are they learning that it is a joy to do those things? Are they learning creativity?  Do they get the idea from watching you that being a good steward of what we are given includes not only making wise  spending choices, but also encompasses nutrition, food preferences and not being wasteful?

Or are they learning that Daddy doesn't make enough money, God doesn't provide enough, nutrition doesn't matter, shopping is an inconvenience, cooking is a nuisance, it doesn't matter what you eat, you put on the "dog" for company but eat badly when it's just your family.

As women, we have the power and influence to teach our children so much by our mere actions. "Do as I say, not as I do" is dangerous. It teaches hypocrisy. Are your girls going to want to grow up to be wives and mothers who serve and take care of their families? Or will they learn, from you, that there's no joy in it. Will they learn to distrust God and men? Will your boys look for a woman who is  "...just like the girl that married dear, old Dad" as the old song goes?  Or will they learn that being "just a housewife"  is brainless drudgery or worthless instead of  the high calling that it is?  Will they find young women who desire to be homemakers uninteresting? Will they disrespect or not allow their wives to stay home to be homemakers and full-time mothers because of what they have learned? Oh, ladies, we must be careful. We have so much power and influence.

Don't pretend with your children. Be real----let them know it is hard at times---or maybe for you, all the time. If you really struggle with this, pray for God to give you delight in what you do. Focus on the results of cooking, having a clean, reasonably orderly house, clean clothes neatly put away (by them!) and clean bathrooms to use-----show them that aspect of homemaking.  You will teach them reality. Some tasks just aren't pleasant but necessary and when done give pleasure and a sense of satisfaction. In every job there are hard times and unpleasant tasks. Do yours out of love for God and for those you love----and even those you don't particularly love.

Cook, clean, shop, plan, create and love like a woman. In it you will find joy. Seek it.......... Your family may well one day rise up and call you blessed---then again, they may not.  Do all as unto the Lord.

Time to get dinner on the table..... the meal I cooked like a woman cooks.
I just love being a woman, I hope you do too!

Kathi~

Leftover Threads

I am dressed, wood stove is stoked, purse is packed, made my list, got my water/tea mix in my bottle,  laundry's started, dinner's started and waiting in the fridge'. I have scoped out the sales, coupons, my refrigerator, freezer and pantry to see what I need to use and what I need to buy.

I am ready to go to town for my weekly shopping. I find I don't need much since last week we shopped really big at sales and because we ran out of everything all at once, and couldn't get out to shop as planned the week before. And we still have our co-op order to use up.

Here are the meals we had for dinner this week and what we will have over the weekend
and this Sunday:

• Sunday: big salad dinner---spring lettuce, romaine, Roma tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, red  cabbage, spicy sprouts, cukes, avocado and slices of cheese with natural cottage cheese.
• Monday:  Pizza at our daughter and son-in-law's house for our second grandson's birthday.
• Tuesday: Crockpot soup---ground turkey, home-grown frozen onions, broccoli, cauliflower, green cabbage, carrots, spaghetti squash (rinds and seeds and pulp was fed to the chickens), Roma tomatoes, mini-summer squash, spaghetti squash and
  org. tomato paste
• Wednesday: mugs of leftover soup with crumbled remainder of  blue cheese, big salads with all of the above veggies, dredged/fried thin slices of  our co-op eggplant served on the side of our salads.
• Thursday: tonight we will have a tomato tart since I have  some fried eggplant leftover and more Romas from our co-op. The eggplant will be the "crust", it will contain sliced tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, cooked and crumbled organic/uncured apple wood-smoked sausage, topped with crumbled cheese and olives, with a dinner salad
• Friday: vegetable, pecan, stir-fry in a sweet and sour citrus glaze made from the citrus we got at our co-op almost two weeks ago, corn starch, honey and pureed soup left from Tuesday.  My husband will have the last steak in a package of three that I splurged on for Valentine's Day freezing one for later, and I will have a chicken breast (package of two---I'll cook both and save one for Sunday's salads). Served with a Julienne-cut  raw veggie salad: cukes, carrots, broccoli and red onion, sprinkled with a little balsamic vinegar. I'll make more of the salad to use the leftovers for tomorrow.
• Saturday:  no-meat lasagna---I will serve one, and freeze the other half for a "freebie" meal. And all the leftovers from making the lasagna and what will be left from tonight's lasagna will be frozen to use to make lasagna soup next week. Served with romaine lettuce and topped with a marinated (in my balsamic vinaigrette) mixture of olives, garbanzo beans, red onions and any leftover veggies from last night's salads.
• Sunday:  big salads for lunch after church with chicken breasts (left from a package of two that I cooked Friday) and a small breakfast for dinner if we are still hungry.
  
  Well, that's it for another week. The meals are not as big on savings as the threads usually are. But certain things lend themselves better to planned and disguised leftovers than other things do. I had a lot of things to use up and not waste. This thread has little leftovers that I incorporated into meals in a smaller way than usual. I love that we do not waste anything. Well, I did have a big bag of broccoli go bad on me a few days after purchase----but the chickens turned that bag into more eggs for us and our customers.
  
  Next week there will be a chicken thread and a couple  "freebies" served from the freezer.
  
  I hope this gives you some ideas for your own creative and  yet inexpensive menus!
  
  Off to town..........aw, the sun just came out---love it! How nice.........
  Kathi~

           

Quick Saving Tip: Cutting Hair at Home......before you run for the scissors

please read this waiver/warning:
I am not responsible for any cut ears, pinched skin, hair in the eyes, or
humiliatingly bad hair cuts.
You have been warned!
Do this at your own risk!
Ha!

I am sure many of you already do this.
And I am sure all of you know this:
A lot of money can be saved by cutting your family's hair at home.
A lot of humiliation can be suffered by your family if
you do not know how----are not very good at it.
So, let's just say, it isn't for everyone.

I cut our children's hair when they were little----bangs and trims are easy.
Our son's hair which was jet-straight until he was about 16 and who has a cowlick just
a ...um, hair...off-center was a bit of a challenge.
And after the time that I thinned it out waaaaay too much making him look like a
bad hair transplant customer, we started taking him to a barber .
If it had been curly like it is now, it would, no doubt have been far easier
for me to cut.
The girls too went to stylists as they wanted more intricate hair styles.

I have cut my own hair since I was about 13. The few times I did go to a professional
my hair was butchered.
I have very curly hair which I have straightened chemically and which I now use a flat iron on after blow drying it. It isn't frizzy, but has ringlets all over. I'd leave it that way since so many ladies pay a fortune to have it permed like that. But since my hair has turned almost totally white
it does not look good that way on me.
Very few people seem to know how to cut naturally curly hair and even fewer will listen when they cut or style it when I tell them that my hair shrinks several inches once dry
or can't be curled with a small barrel curling iron or, in the olden days, a small
curler.

I suffered severe humiliation when given a Vidal Sassoon style cut when I was in college
which was covered almost immediately with a wig until it grew out.

After my husband got out of the U S Marine Corps I began giving him hair cuts and still do unless he is really busy and just goes into his favorite barber who does a really nice job.
His barber works much more efficiently and quickly than I do so my husband gets
impatient.
That reminds me. He needs a trim badly.
He just got home early........
Oh, HONEY???????
Where ARE my scissors?
Snip, snip.......
Kathi~

Organizing to Suit Your Family......and lifestyle.

Have you ever noticed that when remodeling, moving in, or reorganizing that some things that sound like a good idea end up not working out?

I loved the way our kitchen looked when everything was re-organized, but some things that look nice don't work well. The 7 quart crockpot looked great on top of the book case that I put on its side. However, my husband pointed out that some chocolate chips that I put in his cereal had melted to the side of the jar I keep it in. Ha! The crockpot was also awfully hard for me to reach and heavy for me to lift down. And when down on the counter it was awfully close to the edge. Being a grandma of eleven, many of them still little, I think of dangers to children------or adults.

So, I moved it replacing it with my 2 quart crock pot and some new soup bowls with handles.

Our pot holders I moved to a  location nearer the stove top. But they  are in a cabinet drawer that is a pain to bend over and get into every time I need a pot holder. There are a few other things that need to be changed, but that's okay, I guess......  

Nothing will look quite as good as they did.........but then we are not living in a magazine page.

About 20 years ago, our family was visiting relatives. We were in the home of my husband's uncle and aunt.  I noticed their house, though always spotlessly neat, was not exactly decorated like a home on HGTV or out of  the pages of House Beautiful.  The colors were turquoise and various shades of brown and there was a lot of dark red brick and brass. The furniture, though in good shape, was dated. The chairs they sat in were vinyl turquoise which TV trays sat beside and pointed at the TV. The kitchen was of no particular color that I can remember. Lots of plastic and lots of things sitting, though neatly, but out on the counters.

I had been there many times before and noticed that nothing had changed over the many years. I love interior decoration but what struck me that night was not the fashionable-ness of the home, but that they were comfortable and happy in it....and so were we, as guests!  They loved to travel as much as they loved to be home and have guests.  Whether they visited us here or we were guests in their home we always had a wonderfully memorable time.

I am not sure when it dawned on me but I came to realize that everything about their home was about them and their guests. They were more concerned with being hospitable, having a good time,  than whether their furnishings were the latest fashion. And they lived within their means, doing the best with what they had.

Family pictures were in every vacant space on the walls and atop furniture. The newspaper folded on the table that sat between their two chairs, the afghans neatly folded over the arm or back of each chair, the coasters that sat on either side of the lamp on the table, the TV Guide, etc. was for their comfort, their lifestyle. The things on the counter in their original packagings were for their ease---they both loved to cook so things that were used often sat out, neatly, but out. I came to realize that this was what a home was truly about---the enjoyment of those in the home whether the inhabitants or those that were drawn into their home.

It made me take a second and third look at our home. The doillies that always got pushed aside, the fancy table runners that had work papers and tools set on them, the black rug that the cats and dogs always left hair on----were they worth the frustration, not to mention time spent, straightening them? Were they in the way of .....living?  Was the charm of the antique coffee jar worth having to fill it twice a week?  I came to see that while there is nothing inherently wrong with these things, if they made our lives less comfortable they were not worth it. I am still in the process of making the house more comfortable, more simple and useful for my husband and I. And my husband is rethinking the outside of the house making changes and plans for more changes to refocus our lives on living rather than spending all our time on upkeep.

Whenever I change something I now think about that. I don't think I have to go out and find turquoise vinyl chairs or keep our coffee can out on the counter. (I keep the antique jar filled and we use coffee out of its store container which is in a cabinet.)  I work toward making our home useful to us and comfortable to guests.And except for rare occasions I keep things reasonably neat and clean.

What good is a home furnished with things  that everyone is too afraid to use for fear of breaking or soiling.  I think of our aunt and uncle often and strive to make our house a home, an oasis from the world, a retreat.

I still like things to be fashionable but I do think you can accomplish both with some creativity and, as always, doing the best with what you've got.

Enjoy your home!
Kathi~

Computer problems-----may be gone for awhile until we can get someone here with a new modem. 

Money-saving Vegetable Juice
I love tomato juice and especially tomato vegetable juice.
I have a problem with salt, even natural salt.
I do not like to spend a lot of money.
So, I make my own vegetable or tomato juice.
Tomato juice labels state that they contain tomato paste, water and salt.
Tomato paste usually has only tomatoes listed on the label.
Tomato sauce has all kinds of ingredients on the labels
Tomato sauce used to be just tomato paste, salt and water.

But have you ever read the labels on the cans of the tomato/vegetable juices?
Yeah, after drinking one of those, in an aluminum can perhaps,
one day I hit myself on the forehead, saying
" I coulda' made that myself!"

It is so simple, has salt only if you want to add salt.
I do not believe good salt is bad for you, I just can't have it in the amounts
that is in already prepared juices.
Three ingredients make a pitcherful in a couple of minutes.
Here's what I do:

Quick Vegetable-Tomato Juice

• I buy organic tomato paste in a box of 24 cans. I use one small can for a pitcherful.
• If  I have homemade tomato sauce or paste I use that.
• I put the paste in a glass pitcher.
• I buy no-salt organic seasoning which has many vegetables, spices and herbs in it. 
• I use a whisk to mix the two together with water to suit my taste.
• Refrigerate a little while for the seasonings to soften
• That's it! 

I like mine a little thin, over ice with a couple shakes of hot pepper sauce and some 

black pepper. My husband likes a couple squeezes of lemon in it too.
That's it. It tastes amazingly like the "real" thing.

Now, if you want another idea for that kind of juice only spicy, this is what I do
to sort of kill two birds with one stone:
When we have had a garden and have lots of tomatoes I like to make
salsa. I make a cooked salsa---if I want raw I make it right when I
plan to use it. I have not liked the outcome of
canning or freezing raw salsa. We get many pounds of tomatoes from our
25 to 100 tomato plants (depending on the size of our garden each season) so we have to use
a lot at one time.
Here's what I do:

Kill-Two-Birds-With-One-Stone Spicy Vegetable Juice

• Following a safe recipe I add all the ingredients for my salsa in a large non-aluminum pot. I simmer it until the tomatoes turn red and I've skimmed off the foam. I used to cook this for hours in order for it to be the right consistency but got tired of that and discovered what I do now. 
• Once the batch has turned dark red I turn off the heat. This takes several minute depending on pan size.
• I get out 2 canning jar funnels, a strainer that fits in the jar funnels, a ladle and a soup spoon.
• I take out two of my sterilized canning jars in any size I wish.
• I ladle the sauce into the strainer which is in the funnel which is in the jar.
• I use the soup spoon to stir the sauce around in the strainer so it drains better.
• I put what is left in the strainer into the other canning jar. I do this as often as the strainer gets
  plugged up.
• I end up with more thick sauce than the thinner juice. 
• I can them as per recipe and following the most recent directions for canning safely. Your County
  Extension Office will send you, free of charge, information on the most recent safe-canning info or you may be able to download or copy their information online.

When we want vegetable juice we just take a pitcher, 

pour the homemade, homegrown juice in it, add tomato paste to thicken if it needs it
which it usually does. Pour it over ice or chill it first to 

enjoy a nice spicy vegetable juice. 

We just love this juice and it has the added advantage of quickening the cooking
time for the salsa, which preserves nutrients, it handles freezing well,
and it is inexpensive.
It's also great to add to soups and sauces or add pasta or rice to, heat it up and
have as a mug of soup!

So, you can save money, only spend a little time, preserve nutrients, avoid aluminum,
omit artificial flavorings, sprayed produce and excessive amounts of salt.
 and added only what you like.
How good is that?
Hope you enjoy this!
Kathi~

Quick Hair Tip

As I type this I am mayonnaise-ing my hair.
A long time ago a friend of mine told me she put mayo on her hair to condition it and combat dryness.
I remembered that in the 1970's I used to use a hair repair that was pretty expensive and
which I always thought  looked like mayonnaise.
I also remembered that back in the 1950's as a pre-teen it was popular to use raw egg as a shampoo and when I was a little girl my mom always did a vinegar rinse on my dark brown hair to make it shine and to condition it. In college I gave myself hot oil treatments that were also a little spendy.

Mayo ingredients, among other things, are eggs, oil and vinegar.

So now, from time to time as my hair seems to need it
I "mayo" my hair.

Of course if you are allergic to any of the ingredients in mayonnaise don't use it. Try it on a little patch of your
head---very little----to make sure it doesn't make you itch or break out.
I take a big spoonful and put it in a bowl---amount depends on how much hair you have, its density and thickness. I rub my hands together slightly and apply it to just my dry hair, not the scalp. The hair gets kind of
stiff and you can wrap it up in a bun on top of your hair using a little more on the ends to stick it down----of
course this also depends on length and density of hair. You can put a shower cap on or wrap it in plastic instead if you like. And/or you can wrap it in a large towel. I do this on a day when I am unlikely to get visitors or when I'm not expecting a delivery of some kind or a repairman. But as a safeguard I carry a towel with me so I can wrap it up in case someone does come over. I also apply some to my face, lips and neck and rub what got on my hands into my hands and forearms, rinse right away with warm water and pat dry.This leaves them very soft and shiny and not the least bit greasy.
I have left it on for hours or for minutes. I recommend somewhere in between. When you wash it you may have to do it more than once. I have thin, fine hair that is medium short and I have to shampoo twice. Let warm water run on it before adding shampoo to get the oils to rinse off your head, as much as possible.
Make sure you buy real mayo----not fat-free or egg-less---you want

 all those ingredients to nourish  your hair.
This makes hair very shiny but not greasy if you shampoo it enough.
You can also make your own mayo----it's pretty easy and will have nothing
in it that's harmful if you are not allergic to the ingredients.

Another great tip for shiny hair is a cold water rinse. I turn the faucet or shower---pointed away from my body---brrrr----so that it only goes on my hair, not even the scalp which can be a great shock to your system. You can even use something to pour cold water over your head in a more controlled way. I can feel when it has done its job of sleeking down the cuticle of the hair. It just feels different.When you feel that difference you're done. This only takes a few seconds. I have read that it closes the cuticle which has been opened by shampooing it and gives it a very shiny look and a feeling of strength to the hair shaft. I must admit though that I rarely do this during the winter time!
Vinegar is good too---for conditioning. I have heard it restores the natural pH balance of the hair.
Not fond of the smell but I always had shiny hair as a little girl when Mom used to
do this to me as her mother had done to her when she was a little girl!
My great grandmother swore by vinegar rinse as an anti-peeling remedy when you got too much sun.
Never worked for me but did sting and I did peel which I rarely do.

Some old wives' tales are great, others----not so much!
There are lots of good sites and books out there about using natural products
for health and beauty. Fun reading and you may come up with some other ideas.
Pinterest is a great resource too!

Hope this helps!
Time to rinse this stuff out. It is getting stiff!

Have a great Monday!
Kathi~

O Day of Rest and Gladness
...... a hymn that was on my heart last night and this morning


O day of rest and gladness
O day of joy and light,

O balm of care and sadness,

Most beautiful, most bright,

On thee the high and lowly

Before the eternal throne

Sing, "Holy, holy, holy,"

To the great Three in One.

On thee at the Creation

The light first had its birth;

On thee for our salvation

Christ rose from depth of earth;

On thee our Lord victorious

The Spirit sent from heaven,

And thus on thee, most glorious,

A threefold light was given.

 Thou art a cooling fountain

In life's dry, dreary sand;

From thee, like Nebo's mountain,

We view our Promised Land;

A day of sweet reflection,

A day of holy love,

A day of resurrection

From earth to things above.

 Today on weary nations

The heavenly manna falls;

To holy convocations

The silver trumpet calls,

Where Gospel-light is glowing

With pure and radiant beams

And living water flowing

With soul-refreshing streams.

New graces ever gaining

From this our day of rest,

We reach the rest remaining

To spirits of the blessed.

To Holy Ghost be praises,

To Father, and to Son;

The church her voice upraises

To Thee, blessed Three in One.

~

Christopher Wordsworth, 1808-1885

Quick Tips
.......post-holiday shopping deals

I went into town yesterday.
I had some birthday shopping to do and wanted to check out the post-Valentine's Day leftovers.
After wading through aisles of bunnies, baskets, plastic eggs and marshmallow candy I found
aisles of half-off Valentine leftovers.
I was able to pick up adorable stuffed animals that were
 not at all Valentine-y.
I got paper cupcake/muffin holders, stencils for Christmas stocking stuffers for the grandkids.
I grabbed the last pretty pad of paper that did not say, "Be Mine"  on it for list-making .
There were a few other fun things purchased for upcoming
birthdays throughout the year.
And while pilfering through a huge bin of DVD's for 96 cents each
I did mange to find three that were okay for families and children
----or anyone for that matter!
There were things that could have been purchased, but I was in such a hurry
and didn't want to overspend or buy things I really did not need.
As I've said before, it is important to
plan what to buy, weighing each decision even though the amount of money
spent may be very small.
Just as saving even a little all adds up so does spending
even a little too much.
Being in a hurry without a plan can be a counter productive to wise shopping.
Things that are cheaper are only a good deal if you need or commonly use them in the first place.
I resisted gift bags, tissue paper, tins, mittens, hats, books,
 giant pencils and coloring books, perfume, toys and lots of
candy as well as other cute stuffed animals.
I do wish I had gotten more stuffed animals though.
With eleven grandchildren, some of them being little ones with birthdays coming soon
and with baby showers I might be invited to, I could really use more.
I love to put some clothes or another gift  in a bag with a stuffed animal sticking out the top of the bag!
If I catch a good sale on these cute little critters I can buy them for what it would
have cost me to buy some ribbon and tissue paper!
When looking through the stuffed animals after holidays
check the stitching on holiday ribbons and  big stuffed hearts that say "Be Mine"
and other such things.
I have found that they are usually tacked on with just a few easy-to-snip stitches. You can do the
same with Easter bunnies and chicks and just about every holiday animal.
Save what you cut off for giving on the actual holidays for which  they were originally designed.
Save the ribbons for gift wrapping, hair bows or crafts.
 Just get them after the holiday or season is over when
they are marked way down.

Here's some tips for doing this kind of shopping:

Think "colors" when post-holiday shopping.

• Bright colors, shiny black, flash and sparkles for New Year's Eve
• There's lots of red, purple and pink for Valentine's Day
• We all know about the "wearin' o' the green" on St. Patrick's Day along with more white
• Easter is a great time for pastel colors that you might use for baby or bridal showers
• Pinks and purples for Mom on her day
• Father's Day? Hmmm......maybe dark greens, blues, or browns?
• All sorts of typical school colors at Graduation time
• Red, white and blue of course for Independence Day
• Orange and black even for those of us who don't celebrate Halloween
• All the Fall colors are available at Thanksgiving
• And of course red and green along with sparkly things and other colors are easy finds after Christmas

If there is no room in your budget to stock up then hopefully you can find something you need now and can be happy that you got it for less. I have been "there" before but have been able to enjoy
this kind of stocking up for years now and enjoy that it saves me a lot of money in the long run and
since we are no longer living hand-to-mouth.

I hope this encourages you to plan ahead and be creative.
Goodnight.
Kathi~

Guest Post: Tips for Picky Toddlers

This is from our youngest daughter whose birthday is today!
Happy Birthday!
Love you!
And thanks for sharing!

Ideas to get your picky toddler through the no-veggie stage. I like to make a veggie sauce and pour it over whatever meat we are having that night.  You can also pour it over rice, pasta, pizza, or on a burger!  Steam some veggies (never microwave as this will kill most nutrients in the food, and they have recently discovered that the food changes molecularly too).Then put them in a blender along with something like chicken broth, rice milk, or just water, and add some spices if you like.  If your child won't eat anything green then use light colored veggies.

Here are some pictures of the meals I have served
to my toddler. She loved them!

#1 Pizza: home made whole wheat crust, ground cauliflower, homemade pizza sauce, 

chopped spinach, cheese, chicken.

(shown on top of a dessert plate-sized stone bread warmer)

#2 Turkey burger on a homemade whole wheat bun, ground spinach and green beans 

on top and bottom of patty, cheese. French "fries" baked w/olive oil. 

Avocado and tomato.

#3 Brown rice, chicken, steamed/diced green pepper, cheese, and white sauce (rice milk, broth, corn starch, spices: usually garlic, onion powder, some sea salt and pepper )

#4 Whole wheat pasta, ground turkey, steamed/diced broccoli, and beets.  

~More Ideas~

You can also steam some veggies, then dice them and mix them with other foods, small enough so they can't be picked out too easily! I recommend always giving them some whole veggies to try, you never know when they will change their minds and eat them. My daughter surprised me tonight by eating steamed cauliflower and green beans! Something she hasn't done in months! If all else fails and your toddler still will not eat these things go for a smoothie! Kids love them! Only add enough fruit to make it taste better, remember the point is to get more greens in them!  Here is one of my favorite recipes: Green Smoothie for your toddler banana---small amount strawberries or other berry----small amount spinach or kale green beans carrot flax seed almonds---make sure to use a good blender so there are no pieces they can choke on! coconut oil rice milk You can also add stevia if you think extra sweetness will help! Sorry, I do not have exact amounts, it just depends on how much I want to make, and what I have on hand. You can always freeze these and thaw as needed. Be creative, and remember you can hide a lot of healthy things in a smoothie ---- so make it count! Kathi's note: all of our grandchildren have been started on healthy foods. Organic when possible, raw veggies and fruits, homemade food and other nutritious things. But even for a child raised that way there are times when they go through a picky stage and refuse the foods they have loved and  been used to eating. I think these great suggestions will help those dealing with little ones who are in this picky stage get through it. I encourage new moms to start their kids out on veggies with some fruit. You'll have a very hard time getting kids to eat in a healthy way if they were started out eating only sweet things. Fruit is great and we need it but in moderation. Let your kids get used to the way foods really taste and they will love them---maybe not all of them and maybe not all the time---but they will not have been trained to eat only sweet or salty foods. Very good suggestions, thank you for writing this for me! Mom~

~The Cake~

This is the little cake that my husband bought, 
which
we enjoyed on Valentine's Day
and 
will enjoy again tonight on the anniversary
of our first 
date! 
And which we will enjoy one last time
for our daughter's birthday!
~
"Hazelnut Wine"
from
a local bakery
through our local
natural foods store.
Yum!
And, it's even healthy!
~Goodnight~

Blast from the Past
.....he remembered!

The day he got his head shaved before boot camp.
Before and After.

Leave after boot camp.

Christmas Day. Three weeks after we became engaged.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Forty-two years ago today at a nice steak and lobster restaurant where my husband was a line cook and I was a hostess, both working our ways through college, my husband asked me out on our first date.

 We had been watching each other for the five days I worked there and he had been teasing me unmercifully and.....well, there was a lot of smiling going on as he grilled steaks and as I sat diners at their tables.
I fell ----not for him, not yet. I fell because of him---splat----right on the floor, missing a step in the dark sunken dining area as we exchanged smiles yet again.
This sent him into waves of  laughter as I got up unhurt except for my pride!
I had decided I did not like working there so I had given my notice and this was my last night.
My husband asked me on this night how I liked working there and I said not much, I quit.
He stammered as if trying to figure out what to do and asked if I'd like to go out after work.
Well, I was a junior at a nearby college and had a term paper due.
I should have said no and gone home to finish my paper.
But going out with this blue-eyed, auburn-haired guy with an enchantingly crooked smile
was awfully tempting and had the added perk of not working on my term paper.
This decision was a no-brainer.
I said yes.
This was the first in a long string of dates
Days later he was inducted into the USMC because of a long line of mis-information,
mis-understanding and mis-communication. 

He had to postpone (for four years) transferring to the out-of-state university
at which he was accepted and due to attend just six weeks later. He did
eventually get to go to the university and graduated from
there with a degree in Wildlife Biology and Forestry.
In the flurry of activity we were together every day until he left taking care
of things before he had to leave.
In those few days there were no nice restaurants, no date-manners, no dressing up.
We ran around doing normal things that had to be done and I loved that.
I was usually at his house because he wanted to spend time with his parents too.
When I went home at night I shared all that was going on with my parents with whom I still lived.
We got to know each other well because
what we were doing was real life stuff, not date magic.
The day he was inducted into the corps we were together in Los Angeles for 12 hours.
I cried when he left. I had fallen by this time for sure!

This morning he started some laundry for me and I am going to do some computer work for him.
After I found out he did the laundry I leaned over, kissed him, and said,
"I'm glad I said yes 42 years ago."
He smiled but looked puzzled as he said, "But this isn't our anniversary."
And then, before I could respond, he said, "Oh, our first date!" We smiled.
After all these years he still remembers.I love that. 

He may need me to ask, what date this is,  he rarely remembers such things
on his own, being a guy---it is we "gals" who mark such occasions.
And this man who can never remember where he left his glasses, cell phone or
tools much less find anything in the kitchen------remembers things like this.
I am blessed.

Now, that doesn't mean that those of you who have
husbands who forget such things
 are not blessed.
My husband does have faults as we all do. This just doesn't happen to be one of them!
Look for the things in your spouse that you love. Don't focus on the
things that drive you crazy.
Remember, you have things that drive him crazy whether you know it or not.
Thank him for what he does for you and your family.
My husband always thanks me for dinner---always has.
He also thanks God for providing the food when he prays before we eat.
That got me realizing that I never thank him for what he does.
So, I started one night a couple years ago thanking him. He wasn't sure

what I meant, so I told him how I appreciate him working so hard 

and putting food on our table. His eyes sparkled and he smiled.
God provides and He usually uses means.
I am the means whom God uses to prepare what God has provided through the
means of my husband working.
We are always thankful to God but we should let the "means" know we are thankful
for their faithfulness in doing what they are called to do.
So at night when my husband leans over to take the dishes
to the sink----this is something he started doing a few years ago----he kisses me and
thanks me and I return with a thank you to him. We both smile.
It is nice to be appreciated.
My husband once said to me early in our Christian walk that
it was weird (nicely so) that the better he treats me the better I treat him.
Doesn't matter who begins it---it is a circle----it is how it is supposed to be.
This is how marriage should work.
We are not responsible to make sure our husbands do the right thing (in our own eyes).
We are responsible for our own actions.
Comb the scriptures----it doesn't take long to discover this principle.
So, go on a treasure hunt.
Look for the things that are exemplary about your husband, the things that
endear him to you.
Ask God to help show you things about him and to
learn to appreciate him even more.
Kathi~


 

Valentine Dinner

Though we didn't go out for dinner for Valentine's Day,
we did splurge a little  for a nice meal.
at home.

My dear husband had to go to town today and so stopped at four of the six places
I needed to go.
I still have to go in tomorrow but now I only have two instead of several places to go.
He went to Costco and our natural food store.
He also told me he didn't want me to have to make a dessert tonight as I usually do, but
that he'd pick one up for us.
So, while he headed north I went south to do our normal grocery shopping.
Cantaloupes were on sale as were a few other items. We only needed a few items

from all the stores combined so I used some of the extra money on my husband's
favorite foods. I picked out some New York steaks which were on sale, marked down
even more and enough for three meals for us. I picked out a favorite red wine and got the
natural sourdough our market sells. I picked out a small container of blue cheese which
we like crumbled on our salads (my husband's is shown above) served with my
 homemade balsamic vinegar dressing.
The blue cheese goes farther being used this way.

Everything turned out great. We had a nice time relaxing together
and having a slice of  the all natural Hazelnut Wine cake Jim bought at
our natural food store with a sip or two of  red wine.
Very nice day. Relaxing and simple.

Today is the anniversary of our first date 42 years ago.

Valentine's Day Memories
This is the first Valentine's Day since Popa died that I have not sent my mother
a bouquet of flowers.
She passed away late last year leaving a big hole in my life and heart.
Holidays are especially hard because she had always made them so special.
She was gifted at hospitality, was a great cook  and was
very creative.
And fun!
As a young girl I longed for the day that I could do the same.I enjoyed calling her on special days as well as every few days just to chat.
It became harder to talk over the last couple of years but I loved hearing her voice
and enjoyed her indomitable sense of humor.
I miss laughing together like giggly girls.
I also loved sending her little notes or things I'd see and want to give her.
That gave me such pleasure. I miss that too and still find myself, as I did the other
day, seeing things and immediately thinking I want to buy it for Mom or
tell her about something.
It is hard to stop what has been a habit my whole life long.
On holidays along with sending flowers and maybe a stuffed animal or something,
 I would pick out candy and/or other fun things for everyone else who worked or lived there. 
I had no idea that this would give Mom such pleasure.
She believed she had gotten those things for everyone and took great joy
in telling me what she bought, and how she placed them at each person's place
at the dining room table.
It was as if she was entertaining or having company again.
I had never even thought of that before.
The administrator told me, how she would open the box and put the things out
 decorating the dining room table with them happily as she went.
The guest home where she lived made a big deal of events like Valentine's Day
also, ordering a special dessert, making special dinners, hiring dancers, singers or

other entertainers to come to the house and inviting everyone's families.
 Mom made each holiday or other family event very special so this was perfect for her.

I know as she aged, especially after Popa died, that she missed being able to entertain.
Every single year she would tell me what her plans were for each
holiday.She always wanted family at her house.
But she tired and the family grew so, it became too much for her. This always

bothered her even though she enjoyed and would tell me all about the
get-togethers.  She was always included in whatever the family who still

 lived near her did.
But even that eventually became too difficult for her.
So, to think that the packages I sent for holidays gave some of that back 

to her made me very happy.
This is the first year in a very long time that I cannot send her anything.
The email reminders from florists to send her flowers make me sad.
I am so thankful that I had a mother for whom special occasions were so special.
Much of the wonderment of my childhood was because of her.
My love of such things is because of her.
So, I miss her even more on these special times.

I encourage you to make special memories for  your children.
They are watching what we do and they may have no idea how you have influenced them
until they are much older and do the same things in their families.
What a wonderful legacy to leave
as you do all with joy, gladness and because you love them.
It doesn't have to be expensive. Be creative.
They will remember your joy and love more than what you did.
Thanks, Mom
I miss you!

~Happy Valentine's Day~

I hope you all                                          have a lovely day.
Valentine's Day can be fun, romantic, delicious---whatever you
want to make it. My husband surprised me last night with a lovely flower
arrangement in a pretty vase. He gave it to me a day early so that I could enjoy it
 longer. He bent down, kissed me and told me he loved me---- twice! He had the most winning
grin on his face. I wonder how big he'll grin when he eats his homemade cheesecake tonight. We have been married going on 41 years and this is what we always do.  He brings me flowers,I make his favorite dessert. It is good to have traditions. Tho' we should not save romance for one day per year.............I like Valentine's Day. I like the little things of the day. I do not want a diamond ring, expensive perfume, a car, candy, one of those giant bears or little girl pajamas.For me it's what comes from the heart, the simple things. A dear friend while speaking at our church's Ladies Luncheon shared the day her husband, who had been working in the woods, brought her a 

comb which he had carved for her on his break. He also gathered a bouquet of buttercups
for her. This showed her that he had been thinking about her while he was working. She
told me she still has it and was looking at it fondly remembering and missing the buttercups
he used to bring her when he still worked in the woods.  She encouraged us not to
take lightly the carved combs and buttercups we get from our loved ones.  
I remember fondly and with chuckles the Valentine's Day that my
husband brought me an elk heart. He had a special hunting
permit that year and came home on Valentine's Day.
We didn't have much in those days and
it was in no way romantic. But it did
show me he thought of me, and 
loved me. We laughed and
laughed that day.
It's the small things.
Have a lovely
day!


Remember, doing the best with what you've got extends into many areas of life
Do not be beguiled by what the world tempts you to expect.
Expectation kills love.
Take joy in the little things of life for they are real. 
Be content with and thankful for what you have.
Give love and you will receive love.

And, above all, remember God loves you and will never leave you.
If this is ALL we have now it is much more than we could ever hope or dream of having.
May God bless you always.
Kathi~

More Little Ways to Save
..... it all adds up.

• Paper napkins
  I know paper napkins don't cost much, but they are an easy item to cut out entirely
  and even little savings add up. I have made my own from scraps of fabric I have leftover
  after a sewing project and I have made sets that match.
  
   I often buy them at store sales after holidays are over. They are super cheap then as are many items.
  They can also be bought brand new still in the package, or if they are in pristine condition, used, at places like Goodwill.
  
  As they wear or get stained I use them as reusable rags. Once you get used to using cloth  napkins you will not like having to use paper ones again. They are so much nicer, not to mention attractive.
  
  I do use paper napkins if we are having a large crowd over. I stock up on these and other things after holidays, and at the change of the seasons. It is amazing how inexpensively you can get red and green plain napkins after Christmas. I have a collection of all sorts of paper napkins in packages in my entertainment cabinet. I also buy dishes after holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. I scope out the stores when they first put these things out to see what I hope they have left after the holidays and then buy them for as much as 75% off. I also have collected serving pieces used.  Punch bowls are easy to collect and cost less used than disposable plastic or metallic servers.  I have eight identical punch bowls  that I paid a dollar or two for which I used at our kids' wedding receptions for salads or punch and many other events and many of my friends have borrowed them--but more on how to save on weddings and other large events later.
  
  So, be on the lookout for sales of non-seasonal items that stores are trying to get rid of. Good time to buy candies for weddings, etc. and put them in your freezer. Our oldest daughter got married in the spring but her colors were purples with red roses. I collected many decorations and candy after Christmas and Valentine's Day in those colors. This is good for collecting napkins, candles, ribbon and other decorations. For my husband's military retirement I took advantage of the post Fourth of July sales!
  
• Plastic wrap and baggies
  Invest in some re-usable containers. I would steer clear of plastics. I know they keep coming
  out with new "safe" plastics but they later turn out to be no more safe than their predecessors.
  So, though I am not done yet, I am converting to glass.
  
  Waxed paper and bags (even unbleached ones) are still on the market but I have found that they do not keep food very fresh. Try to buy baking dishes that have glass lids so you don't need aluminum foil. Using plastic is not as bad if the food is dry and does not have ingredients that can leach harmful chemicals into the food.  Beware of old plastic containers, not only do they tend to be scratched making them more toxic but you won't know what kind of plastic the items were made of  if they are very old. I use my old plastic containers for storing non-edible, dry things. When I bake something and let it cool and want to cover it I use a clean kitchen towel or up-ended bowls or plates. Cloth prevents the gooey-tops that so many covered baked items get and keeps bugs off in the summer time. There are lots of ideas about storing food. Check out the internet and places like Google and Pinterest.
  
• Paper plates
  Yes, there are times I use paper plates, but rarely. I have what I call the "dish gene". I love dishes, especially vintage ware,  and collect them.  I have more than enough for even large dinner parties. I have inherited many from my grandmothers and my mom and mother-in-law----things they have left me. I think they are my favorites because they have memories attached to them.
  
  I have our wedding china---gotten back in the days when no self-respecting bride would be without china, crystal, sterling silver flatware and serving dishes. I still have all that too. But, that's not what I'm talking about----I collect dishes. I buy partial sets at second-hand stores. I have collected and sold restaurant ware. I adore blown glass plates, glasses and bowls. And I love to mix and match. Over the years I have also purchased dishes by the piece to make sets and I have been gifted a large neutral set of dishes one Mother's Day. I also have many tablecloths for all different seasons, moods, colors, holidays with napkins that either match or complement everything else.
  
  I have mix-and-match placemats too---sets that can be used alone or for big groups. When I collect such things I make sure they match or complement what I have at home. Some of these are inherited, some were given me, some are from second-hand stores or yard sales and some were purchased off-season, new at stores.
  
  So, I don't need paper products and enjoy so much using what I have. If I had a huge kitchen I'd have even more dishes. I think I just heard my husband shudder!  I feel that eating at a nicely set table is not only fun and calming but good for the digestion.
  
  I also have those rectangular or oval serving sets---I forget what they are called--that are usually clear, non-colored glass with a large section, sometimes another section or two and a cup that fits into one of the sections. Oh, just remembered what they are called, "Hostess Sets".   Some of the ones my mom and grandma gave me decades ago have a little dip in one section to hold a cigarette. These make me laugh and are not big enough that anyone really knows what they are. These are very nice for hors d'oeuvres parties or showers where only dessert and maybe fruit are being served. I love to set a buffet table with different stacks of coordinated plates that do not match but rather, they meld. It is another way to be creative in homemaking---making something pretty or fun. I do get paper plates if we are having a huge crowd over. So, same rule applies----when buying paper plates collect them and keep them on hand after holidays, etc. They are also great to have on hand for emergencies or when you are sick. We burn them for starting fires instead of just throwing them away after they have been used---they work great and get one last use out of them that way.
  
• Tissues
  I have tons of handkerchiefs inherited by the ladies in my and my husband's family. They are lovely, look pretty stacked in a china dish or tied with ribbons for decoration. Some are over 100 years old. They are fun to sew together for a quilt, edge pillow cases, make doll skirts or curtains---sentimental to carry in a wedding.  But blow your nose on them---I don't think so! This grosses me out on several levels which I won't go into here. I  use the "they're not sanitary" excuse if anyone asks. But no one has! I stock up on tissues at Costco or buy them to coordinate with a room's decor or a holiday. I never buy the ones with lotion or whatever in them. I prefer not to put this stuff in my nose and I don't buy ones that are too cheap which are often  lint-y which makes me sneeze and need more tissues.
  
• Diapers
  When our first child was born, disposable diapers had just come out. The hospital she was born in didn't even use them. There was one brand which is still around today and there was another one that didn't last long on the market. They were bio-degradable and if you didn't get to a wet diaper right away you would find tufts on your baby's bum because they were already bio-degrading! The popular brand made all three of our babies break out in rashes. So, cloth was my only option. But even if disposable was a choice, I would not have bought them. It was not a huge chore to wash diapers. I liked the soft cloth without chemicals added. I liked that they, worn with rubber pants, did not leak as badly as the first disposables (without elastic) did. And I loved how the babies didn't slide off my lap like they did with the slick outer surface of the disposables back then.
  
  After a whole generation of disposably-diapered babies have grown up never having even seen a cloth diaper I realize the idea of switching to cloth can be disgusting. I remember when baby wipes first came out---now, those are nice. But I still would worry about the chemicals in the cleaning solution. Years ago they used little washcloths, which is hard for even me to imagine. Gone are the days of soakers which my mother told me were wool outer pants that soaked up.......well, you get the idea.  I remember old bread bags filled with dirty and wet diapers and plastic pants in the diaper bags of all the moms who left babies in church nurseries. I remember cleaning dirty diapers in the toilet---flush, flush with sometimes an "oops" as one got away. I remember the diaper pails too. I remember all that---fondly, but with a little stifled gag.
  
  Disposables are nice but expensive. So are some diapering systems that are out now but the expense is only one time and not weekly. The ecologist in me worries about the trash disposables create, the mom in me worries about the chemicals that are bombarding baby bottoms for 2-3 years. If  I were a new mom now, I'd see what's out there. I hear FB friends talking about different kinds of cloth diapers and of course now, there are a bazillion brands of disposables. Just keep it in mind. As times get harder disposables may be something that has to------um, go?
  
• Pre-mixed foods and spice packs
  I have never understood paying so much for pre-mixed foods. Foods that often contain pasta, pre-cooked and treated rice, dehydrated veggies and spices with a ton of salt. Foods that take just as long to cook as if you made them from scratch. You still have to add the most expensive item---the meat. Pasta and rice are inexpensive. The only reason I can see for buying such a product is if you have no imagination and can't think of something to make, have no cookbooks and no access to the internet---oh, and no friends! Who doesn't love to share her favorite recipes? How much time does it really take to make a cake from scratch----store-bought mixes still require the addition of usually oil, shortening, water and eggs. So, really all you are paying for is flour, sugar, leavening and salt. But you get much more----colors, artificial flavors, and who knows what else.
  
  Spice packets just make me angry! They usually contain mostly salt and they have artificial flavors and fillers, and sugar, etc. So much cheaper to buy your own spices and herbs or if you must have a mix---and they are handy---make your own. Lots of recipes out there for those kinds of things.
  
• Juice and some smoothies
  Realize that when you serve juice, even natural, even organic, even made from your own fruit, you are ingesting a lot of fructose (fruit sugar) and spending a lot of money. Look up how many oranges it takes to make one glass of orange juice, see how much sugar, natural yes, but sugar nonetheless, one glass contains! We all know the dangers of the commonly used, but being phased out, high fructose corn syrup in drinks, baked goods including bread, and in a lot of health products also. But even natural sugars in excess can wreak havoc with your and your family's health. Among many other things, sugar depresses your immune system so you may be defeating  the very purpose you may be taking them.  Water is better especially if you have safe water. I love herbed or fruited water. But make sure you wash the fruit first before adding it to water to drink. I buy Just Juice and add say a fourth of a cup to a tall tumbler of  water which has been, if necessary, stevia-sweetened, (for non-sweet juices like tart cherry, pomegranate and cranberry).   This is very refreshing and you get the benefit of the fruits without too much fructose using juices to which nothing has been added. They are more expensive, but last a long time and of course I buy them on sale. Lemonade, limeade or orangeade are great when you use the juice of half a piece of the citrus fruit squeezed into a sieve and add stevia  if needed---great served over crushed ice or hot. Use honey for the sweetener if you have a sore throat or cold and drink while warm.
  
• Pens and pencils and paper, oh my!I love Fall and one of the things I have always loved most was buying school supplies. These things come on sale and even though I miss buying them for my kids I still buy all I need for one year at these pre-school sales. I buy packs of pencils, pens and spiral-bound notebooks and anything else that is school-y that I might need. Notebooks at Walmart are usually around ten cents each for 70 pages college-ruled. I get at least a dollar's worth for my husband's business, church notes, my lists, and several other categories in different colors for different uses. Pens are about a dollar or less for a pack of ten. I get black and red packs. Report covers are about a nickel each and I buy them in colors that I use to identify categories of things I need to file or for putting Landscaping proposals into to give to those who have asked my husband to bid on a job. I buy lots of these. I also buy some things for the grandkids to use when they come here and stocking stuffers for Christmas at this time---stencils, funny erasers, brightly colored rulers, crayons, colored pencils, markers, construction paper, glue sticks, etc. I like to go early in the sale to avoid everyone and, literally, their mothers!
  
• Junk Food
  No, I'm not asking you to give it up. Why not make your own junk food? Hamburgers, fries at home, home-fried or baked crunchy chicken, ice cream, healthful drinks that taste wicked good, burritos and tacos, pizzas. There are ways to make these at home that are actually healthy. There are also lots of new pre-made products out there that are organic and made with natural ingredients. Some are really healthy, some are just healthier than eating junk. Making them naturally at home is cheaper than buying out. Junk food in small doses infrequently will not kill you. Just don't make it the bent of your life. I will do a blog on substituting good ingredients for bad in cook books, etc. It's fun and challenging but very satisfying.
  
• Cleaning products and toiletries
  There are so many ideas out there for natural and much cheaper household cleaners, laundry products and toiletries. Some are healthier choices others cheaper. Almost all of them are both. I have made some of my own and love them. Search on Google and Pinterest. I have some on my Pinterest boards.
  
• Note paperI do sometimes buy note paper from Goodwill or yard sales that is in decent condition. But mostly I use junk mail and envelopes or used lists that are blank on the backs. If an envelope has no personal address or other info I do not want to keep I cut it in half or put it whole into the top drawer of our office desk in an organizer. Sometimes I just tear the used papers to fit the organizers. This is right next to an organizer bin of the pens I got on sale. It is very handy and when we are done with a note we put it with the envelopes that have our or return addresses on them and other things to burn when we start fires.
  
• Count the costI mean not just financially but health-wise. While healthy eating won't make you totally illness or problem free I do believe that you, yourself, will be healthier (and save more money in the long run) than you would be if you didn't make better choices. So, count the time you spend in doctor or dentists' offices. Count what you spend in over-the-counter medications. Count the times you cannot do what you need to do. Watch the differences in your children's behavior, your and your husband's moods.
  
  Changing what you eat or your lifestyle can be difficult on many levels. It was for us at first.  I believe changing is a journey.Some started it long ago, some are just questioning things now. I remember when my husband suggested not long after we got married that  I start buying whole wheat bread and natural peanut butter rather than the shortening and sugar kind they toss a few peanuts into. Well, I was raised using real peanut butter so that wasn't hard. But that brown bread----never tried it but it sounded gross to me. I did try it though and actually liked it. Those were the only changes we made for about a year. But by the time our oldest girl was talking she was excitedly telling me about eating lunch with a friend who had sliced bread in a bag----I made our bread. And I will never forget when she told her little friend that her mom makes whole wheat cheese! So, we started out slowly and now are seeing so-called "new" things become popular that were "new" when we were just married! The terms may have changed but most are how people used to cook and eat. 

• Look around your house and decide what you don't really need to do or what you can change that will not only save you money but maybe improve your health or help you stay healthy.
  
• Hope this has helped give you some ideas!
  
  Kathi~

Tasty Tuesday
.......cleaning out the refrigerator day

Last Saturday we brought home quite a bit of produce from the co-op we are members of.  It is always a scramble to figure out where to put all the food and especially this time because we ordered some extras.

We got a regular box that is half fruit, half veggies which came with a head of cauliflower, oranges, 3lbs. of small very crisp apples, avocado, spinach, 4 green bell peppers and some bananas.  We also ordered an Italian pack which contained an egg plant, onion, garlic, basil, mushrooms, rosemary, parsley and what looks like thyme. A citrus pack was included in our order which was a box with lots of murcotts (honey tangerines), blood oranges, navel oranges, a giant Pumello, and a few lemons. One of my daughters and I split a huge box of Roma tomatoes----we each got about 45, very nice, very large tomatoes. That is alot of produce considering I had just gone to Costco and our natural food store and bought produce, holding off buying some things we would probably get in our co-op order.

Saturday I started to feel sick and my husband wasn't well either. It was all I could manage to do to put the more perishable items in the refrigerator. Today is the first day I have gotten more time and felt well enough to go through everything. This afternoon after doing some paper and phone work, I put water in my crockpot, put it next to me, turned it on and started cleaning veggies and fruits.

Anything that was a little wilt-y I put in the crock with the rest of a bag of carrots that was frozen, a leftover onion from a couple days ago and any of the Romas that looked like they were ready to eat I dunked  in scalding and then in ice water to get the peels off. I put the peels in our chicken bucket as well as other pieces of veggies I cleaned. Then I cut the tomatoes and put them in the crockpot.

I had just purchased mushrooms and had gotten another half pound from the co-op.  My mom's recipe for Chicken Cacciatore called for mushrooms which was a great way to use some of them up.I sauteed them with onions adding fresh basil and tomato paste with water at the last minute. I added the leftover BBQ-like sauce the chicken cooked in the night before, and sliced the cooked chicken breasts that were leftover into medallions, adding them to the sauce. This all only took a few minutes except to boil the pasta. It was  served over spaghetti----although' you could use any pasta.

 There were still a lot of mushrooms left ----they were huge this week. I got enough to use them for being stuffed. I washed them and took out the stems, cleaned them up and crumbled them into the crockpot soup. Oddly, they look like shredded chicken!  The tops of the mushrooms went upside down in a greased baking dish. I had seen a picture on Pinterest of eggs baked whole in large mushrooms. Looked good but way too many eggs for the two of us. So, I just kept the baking dish next to me as I cleaned produce waiting for ideas to pop into my head.

Two of the green peppers looked wrinkly this morning so I cut them very small and put them inside the mushrooms with some starting-to-get-wrinkly grape tomatoes. I cut some mozzarella cheese into strips and put those on top of each mushroom and will cover and refrigerate these until I am ready to use them at which time I will scramble our eggs to pour over them to bake and be served maybe with a little of that yummy natural sausage from our natural food store. Another idea just popped into my head. I will make a sausage, tomato tart. One of our daughters used to make it all the time. I'll see if I can find her recipe----crust, sausage and tomatoes layered with spices and maybe topped with Parmesan---not sure, but I do remember the taste and it will use up more tomatoes and the other half of the package of uncured sausage. With a nice, big salad and some wine that our friend made us---great meal.

The red Swiss chard and the co-op spinach had gotten a little limp as had the basil and parsley. I cut off the stem ends and put them in the chicken bucket and the rest in ice water which made them perk right up. Those that didn't were put in the crockpot. Some of both leafy veggies will be saved to be cooked for a recipe a dear friend gave me. It's a layered sole, spinach, shrimp and cheese dish---very good, so easy and delish. I have the sole in the freezer from when it was on sale and all the ingredients but the shrimp. I can get a  small amount of shrimp very inexpensively. And it is good even without the shrimp.

I am taking a break from the kitchen but I still  have to find room for the citrus fruit. I am going to use some of the oranges for a wonderful recipe for a rice flour cake with orange juice and zest that I made over Christmas time for one of my grandsons who is allergic to wheat.

So, while I cleaned produce to put away I made two meals and came up with ideas for two more. I love cooking this way. Ideas just pop into your head as you work and that makes it fun! It also saves precious time---multi-tasking. Instead of figuring out menus for the rest of the week, cleaning and putting away fruit and veggies and cooking I do all three at once. It may seem harder at first but for me after all these years and having a brain that kind of works that way, it is so easy!

Have fun! Be be creative, ladies!
Recipes to follow either tonight or tomorrow---whichever day from which  I find it easier to steal a few minutes.

Kathi~