cheap organic pumpkin

Amazon is having a sale right now. This caught my eye as ALL eight of my quart jars of pumpkin I canned last season were ruined when we moved and they got misplaced. I only found them after they were warm.

You can pick up a 12 pack case of organic pumpkin puree right now for $12 shipped w/prime or $10 and change if you sign up for subscribe and save. Redeem a $5 Amazon gift card from Swagbucks(see below for signing up!) and you'll pay less than .50 a can. 

A Cold Toddy

I don't review things that frequently here at SOR. The reason being that it's hard to get a good idea of something just because someone else said so. I'm a very tactile person, I think that's why I do so much crafting and farming. It's all got to do with my hands and senses being engrossed in the experience.

But I digress from the point of this post. I have something I want to show you. It's called a Toddy Cold Brew Coffee Maker. (see left)

I had a fall out with my hot electric coffee maker and since my engines run on copious amounts of caffeine, well, that just wouldn't do. I bought a stove top percolator but to be honest haven't been able to figure it out and it's now just a kettle for other hot water needs.

I also don't like hot coffee. In a state that averages 325 days of HOT I just can't cope with hot coffee early in the morning. So, I'd have to hot brew and refridgerate it anyway.  

I don't get that burned taste with the Toddy because you literally can't burn it. I can make coffee with no electricity which is fabulous. I can make a weeks worth at once which is genius. The flavor is smooth, less acidic and the longer you soak the beans the richer and blacker your brew. I have been using it exclusively for months thanks to Jess at Homeschooling in Heels recommendation.

It takes more prep time than traditional hot machine brewing but I think it's completely worth it.

New Lines

When we were out buying more wood for the Recycle Pallets into a Deck project I picked up some retractable laundry lines. I had quite a few lines up before but we had to take them down to build the bunny hutch and with the new walkway we, well...clotheslined ourselves on the hanging ropes. Often. 

I bought 40' lines (there is very little chance we will ever use all forty feet in this house, mainly because our property is only 30' wide but they can be taken down and moved with us) and put them up this afternoon.

It came with screws I felt were grossly inadequate for the job. See shiny screws on left? Bad. See my replacement screws on right? Much better.

I had to predrill holes into the hundred year wood that holds our house together. I stood on a chair to get the lines up high enough to walk under but not so high I needed a stool to put up the laundry. I also hung them above the airconditioner so when it kicks on the hot air will serve an actual productive purpose.

On a side note, I'm resisting the urge to paint them to look like fish. Tell me I shouldn't.

All in all, it took about fifteen minutes to screw in all three lines and the hooks on the opposite side. I also predrilled a hole into the fence before screwing in the hooks. I really love my power tools.

It was rainy today; sprinking off and on. So I have to wait to try them out. These give me a ton more linear feet of drying space than I had before and they retract. A huge bonus when various spiders spin webs across lines every single night. I used to take a stick and swipe it across the lines every day last summer before I could hang clothes. Some looked like tiny crabs with red spikes on their backs. Eewe. Plus these lines are coated so they won't get mildewy or wet.

I'm very pleased with the quality of the retractable lines even if they cost about a bajillion times more than the simple loose hooks and length of rope I initially had in place. Hopefully tomorrow I'll be airing my clothes outside!

Another Constant Reminder

I printed out photos of our property through Snapfish to post around the house. Visitors might think it odd to have such a picturesque landscape scotch taped to the bathroom window and the kitchen cabinet but it's our way of reminding ourselves what's important.

Sometimes it's easy to get caught up in the rush of life. The very real needs and wants of seven people can override the dreams we share. I see these when I'm getting ready to go to the store. It helps me to remember what we're supposed to be doing. To keep us on track.

I see these and I think "Maybe we don't really need all those groceries...", "Maybe we shouldn't go to both stores." A tiny, gentle, yet poignant way to tell myself to stop unnecessary spending. Money is the key to our dream. Even if we get things recycled, second hand or flat out used, chances are they're not going to be free. Though we can hope, we're realistic too. From what I've read about others building their own homes mortgage free and by their own hands, everything you think costs one price is usually double and takes twice as long to do.

I can accept that and I can work towards being finacially okay with it too.

Another day, Another dollar

With the impending arrival of the New Year just a few short weeks away and the onslaught of grotesquely bright and colorful ads shouting the merits of spending my money I thought it would be a good idea (before everyone redlines the credit cards) to talk about that horrific topic of Money.

We want a farm. That's no secret and it's no small order. We've wanted one for years. Sometimes the wanting is so bad I can taste hay on my tongue. That's it over there in the right. Gorgeous, isn't it? I can see the animals mulling around, hear the kids freely racing about, feel the hot Florida sun beating down on me as I kneel in a garden, smell the tang of fat ripe tomatoes so red they look surreal. I feel like a crack addict for something I haven't even had yet, just jonesing for a hit of that virgin land sitting three hours away. If we're going to get it, changes have to be made.

Those changes have to start being made or we're never going to get there. It's all well and good to talk about change but if it's not implemented it's just hot air in an already humid wind. I think impulsiveness is the detriment to any plan. With Money you have to have a plan. The economy is so upsidown right now I don't think anyone really knows what's going on. Debt is the harbinger of failure.

While we’ve been slowly modifying life to attain our goal, I’m happy with the progress we’ve made but we backslide. Too much. This last vacation we did well, kept the spending to a minimum and cut corners where we could but that necessary budget breaking food kept getting in the way. But there’s this little voice that says all that money would have made a great down payment on the skoolie. Even now, as we shuffle into the Starbucks line that little voice in the back of my mind that says we need to stop. I know we need to. This year we will.

This coming year is going to be rough. I know it is going to be hard, especially for the kids but looking at that land and knowing what we’re going to do is heady stuff. Makes a person not care so much about those skipped overpriced lattes. Makes you think twice about a lot of things.

Even if you're tasty dream isn't a farm but some other want you long for just as bad, I think you know what I'm saying. I’m not saying anything that hasn’t been said a million times over by a hundred different people. I’m not an expert. Merely a girl with a dream she wants to see fulfilled.

I’m sending that photo over to Target today. It’s getting blown up to ridiculousness and printed out on high quality glossy paper. We’re going to post it in the house somewhere we’ll see it every day. Probably the bathroom. We’re going to bolt down a budget later this week and Gorilla Glue that sumabitch in place. I can hear the little voice cheering for us. We’re not buying groceries anymore but provisions and staples. No more spur of the moment travels or trips. If we don’t have it on hand I’m sure we can make due. We have plenty around here to keep us busy. The seed catalog is coming out and expansion for next year is underway.

Maybe one exception to the budget will be a megaphone for that little voice.

Cloth Diaper Experiment

I posted before about how I've gone back and forth about cloth diapering and how we've reintroduced CD's back into the household. I was basically just trying to let everyone know that it's not an all or nothing thing.

To elaborate on that post I've decided to do a thirty day experiment. I JUST opened a new small package of diapers for both Emmy and Max. Both packs cost approx. $6 each though Max's are Pampers and Emmy's are Target brand, I'm not sure if that matters but if it seems one is using more or having more issues, we might do a second experiment in more controlled conditions. I'm not a scientist, I'm just playing one on this blog.

We already have cloth diapers on hand but I'll try and break out the cost of what someone would have spent on the same set up. I use prefold diapers, snappi closures and a variety of waterproof covers. I bought everything except the Snappi's from www.cottonbabies.com. I got the Snappi's through Ebay and I think it was like 3 for $7 or $8. I did get some with the beginner pack from Cotton Babies too though. I just put a new order in today but that was for fun stuff and the very much needed diaper wet bag that'll hang on the door to the laundry room. I needed one before anyway.

I'm approximating the diaper covers since I have some fancy ones and some very plain, less expensive ones. They all seem to work exactly the same so far, though i personally prefer the ones with extra gussets around the thighs. Some were $8 and some were as much as $13 so I'll put $11 as the middle range and we'll leave it at that.

Premium sized unbleached Indian prefolds  $2.00 ea. x  22  = $44
Snappi diaper closures $3.95 ea. x 8 = $31.60
Waterproof Diaper Covers $11 ea. x 11 = $121

Remember, I'm diapering a 9 month old and a 2 year old with these figures. If it sounds scary and you have one kid; divide. I do not buy special detergents, washers, sprays etc. I make my own laundry soap which I'll post about later. I also stay away from the all-in-ones which can run up to $25 a piece, four changes a day and you're looking at a richer investment.

So basically, for one month I've spent $12 on disposable diapers and $196.60. What I usually spend in a month on disposables? About $72 on 4 cases of diapers (rounding to $18 a case, 2 cases per mo. per child using coupons, sales or store brands). Plus the odd $10-12 pack of pull ups since Emmy is trying hard to train, and $6 for 2 bags of disposable doublers to get me through nights.

First month disposable/cloth hybrid = $208.60
One month disposables = $90

Remember this is for TWO children. I'll be posting more about wipes, cleaning costs, storage and useage, links for folding and more.

So breakdown: We're taking a thirty day challenge to introduce cloth diapers more than half time and see if we can get buy using only ONE SMALL package of disposables. If this works I should be able to reduce our diaper use the following month by at least $75 a month, reclaiming our investment price within three months of use.

Stay tuned and sign up to follow our Diaper Experiment.

Dehydrated Yummies

In an effort to maximize the use of fresh fruits and veggies we consume, I got turned on to dehydrating by the lovely gals (and guys) over at Homesteading Today. I actually have a food dehydrator Rob picked up at Harbor Freight for about $15 a while back. HF is like Rob's mecca and I actually enjoy going there too. Lots of fun, cheap stuff.

So, back to dehydrating...

One issue I have in our house is overbuying fresh produce that doesn't get used before it starts turning. Nothing like going to get a fresh ripe strawberry to find they're squishy! Some people deal with it, I don't. Dehydrating has been a great way to fix this problem.

Basically, I've found three ways to do this that fit my family. One is to over buy in season produce and just go dehydrate it then, another is to wait until they're just a bit too ripe and then suck them dry and the last is to use the remnants of cut/used food. For instance, the leaves and discarded parts of celery, the ends of an onion, that last bit of pepper that didn't get used, etc.

From those ways, I've established quite a little pantry of dehydrated foods. I used the mason jars I wrote about in the Soy Candle post.

The benefits of dehydrated foods are quite vast; they retain their nutrient value, no electricity goes to storage, the jars can be opened and resealed with use of O2 packets, you can keep foods on hand out of season easily.

I used my dehydrated red peppers and tomatoes as additions on homemade pizza. The other day I threw in a few hand fulls of dehydrated corn and celery into matzo ball soup. There are some great cook books out there too that utilize dehydrated foods and it doesn't stop with fruits and veggies, even meats can be dehydrated after cooked.

Check it out, dehydration might be a new addition to your pantry!