Feather your Nest Friday,17 July, 2105.

It has been a cold and wintery week with lots of rain. This is good as we need the rain and its great for the garden and the farm. Also I get lots of crafts and cooking done in weather like this.

Just at the time I have lots of free citrus I also have yellow climbing roses. It is just a happy accident that they always come at the same time. So one of my money saving things this week was to make my Winter Sunshine Cake and top it with roses from the back fence...

I have non spectacular cake decorating skills so I always use fresh flowers and the color is just right!

(This recipe when cut looks equally yellow... the recipe is in the cooking section here.).

Other ways I saved money and built up the nest this week were:

Trying some shops outside my normal ones and comparing, buying some great specials and mark downs.

Finishing another Christmas present bringing my total to three!

Making roses. In part for the tutorial I am working on and in part for a gift and for a vaseful for the house. While I do it I am surrounded by roses which is so lovely! Even the mess of this going on is a pretty mess!

I made up moth repellant bags to out in  the wardrobes as Andy has had a couple of tiny holes in jumpers... so I have my suspicions. These are cloves, bay leaves and cinnamon.

Every month IKEA send me a voucher. As Chloe had things she wanted to purchase I was able to get $15 of free stuff which I put to really good use! Dividers for my crock pot! (will post soon in a side dish crock pot post).

I found cheaper ways of sending gifts in the mail and mail generally. I need to change my ways with post parcels basically.

I was able to add to my pantry and cellar. I would say now my pantry is the best ever and is looking good. This feels like progress!

A cookbook I don't like but that has beautiful photography is being turned into cards. The photos are glorious so that's what I decided to do as the recipes all have thirty ingredients like eye of a gnat that I am never going to buy.

Around the house I have been having a re arrange. This has had a domino effect and seen a few messes but using things I already had in new ways things look fresher and I love it! Of course then as you move things you clean and so it goes. But overall effect is great and no cost improvements.

Chloe printed me some more jar labels onto sticker paper. The Internet is full of free stuff that can be used or made into gifts. Jess on Strangers and Pilgrims on Earth has gorgeous printables. She has pantry lables, canning labels and the most gorgeous seed packets.

I discovered some great new things. I seem to be on a steep learning curve as far as cooking, pantry skills etc go and much of it is thanks to the beautiful letters and comments I get. Teri is preparing a lesson just now on saving money using powdered milk ie in cooking.... and Glenda is working on lessons as well! These ladies, like Vicky, have years of experience in canning, drying and "putting up" food in all kinds of ways. I am soaking up the information.

Heidi asked what are good websites for learning more... I suggested A Working Pantry, Strangers and Pilgrims on Earth, the blogs on my side bar...  and also companies like Ball Canning have great information web sites. You tube tutorials can be fantastic teachers if you search what you are looking for. Free lessons on anything! 

I still have lemons, limes and oranges. Lemon Butter is next as I do not want to waste any of these. I have found that if I mainly use lemons I can add limes or an orange and use these up too and it still works out just fine with a slight variation! All going well I will get this done today.

I hope you had a wonderful week. How did you save money and build up your home? It is so nice to look over what we achieved. I do have a couple of things still on my list but if I get moving I will hopefully get them done! 

Several times this week the same thing has been highlighted... Vicky said it and Mimi wrote a beautiful post about it... if we treat saving money and our homes and families as our job we achieve so much. I am not a lay on the lounge watching daytime tv person and never have been as I think I have work to do and it is my job!  There is so much to do and never enough time!

Saving that I have learned I achieve much more if I pace myself through the day. I stop and have cups of tea and a lunch break. Kind of as you would at work. And then off I go again in a burst of "getting stuff done".  If we worked out all our savings it would be mind boggling!

Have a great weekend. I think I will have my rose tutorial up on Monday. xxx

Pantries and Preparedness. How to build up your pantry with not much money.

This has been such an interesting week! It is even hard to pick a subject and stick to it! After over six months of weekly pantry posts I thought maybe I would be worn out and run out of things to talk about! But no. I am just learning! Even today I have about six things in mind that I want to get to!
But in the main I want to talk about how can we build up our pantries when already groceries are costing us a lot. How are we meant to ever have enough spare money to do this? It can seem a huge task and impossible.

We have really established (or I have!) that a pantry with a good amount of supplies is really important. After six months I am getting closer to a stage where I can feel more secure with what we have.
One thing I have learned from Patsy, Teri and others is that you get there step by step, little by little and by consistently doing what you can with what you have.

The photo's today are of Magnolia Trees all flowering just now in Adelaide... we have about a dozen on our block and next street over. I love them and they are all pink! The flowers are huge!

Some time ago I invited everyone to send in their pantry pictures, stories, tips etc. (This still stands I love to see your pantries and hear how you did it!) Teri's pantry was just a joy to see. And I have some more to post and others coming in shortly which will be wonderful!

This week Vicky wrote to me. Her letters inspired me enormously as she has covered why she built up her pantry, why she thinks it's important and some of the ways she did it. I will let her do the talking here....

 "I know lots of people have no pantry whatsoever they shop for dinner daily. I know people who don't worry because they think the government is going to take care of them. A few ladies have told me they don't want the "clutter" of a well stocked pantry. Since my husband lost his job in January I am grateful every single day that I have my pantry. And I feel that it is our jobs to make sure that our families are fed."

(I have heard comments like this too Vicky! Also several ladies have told me they have had negative comments about preparedness. This is a funny one. If a person has a collection of 1000 DVDs or something no one says a word. But staples that keep people alive, that is a different matter! Interesting isnt it?)

"When we decided years ago that I would quit my job to be a stay at home mom I decided it would be my full time job to save money and that is kind of how I got started. Then I got serious about my pantry and preparations due to feelings I was getting almost like I was driven and not sure why. So one night when I went to bed I asked God am I doing the right thing or am I just being nutty? Well that very same night when I was watching tv 2 different preachers were preaching about preparing and having food and water. I took that as a sign that I was on the right path.

That was years ago. I wanted and needed to learn to be a good steward of our resources.

I am so very thankful now that I maybe have forgone some things, stuck to a budget and put a lot of effort into my endeavor. Over the years I was able to give a little help to those who truly needed it and the big one my husband lost his job in January and we are mostly living from our pantry and along the way we are almost debt free!"

I asked Vicky about affording to add to the pantry when money is tight....

"After doing the normal things like shutting off lights and t.v.'s and cutting back cable and things like that I really started to pay attention to things. Like what? Ok I will tell you.

I stopped letting my kiddos be grazers! I was finding half of this and part of that in the trash and half full glasses that never got finished so I changed the house rules to meal time and 1 snack and only a half a glass of anything at a time since half was getting dumped anyway!

I stopped being a short order cook! Your choice is what is put on the table or a pb sandwich and a glass of milk and I would tell them what was on the dinner menu and they opted for the sandwich I adjusted the amount I cooked.

I simplified meals. Who says buttered noodles and green beans isn't dinner! When money is really tight it can be, but I made simpler more economical meals that didn't drain a week's worth of food in on sitting. Fried cabbage and noodles, more soups and stews with bread, etc.

For newbie moms this can be important or not depending how you look at it but, kids don't know what sugar tastes like if you don't give it to them. None on the oatmeal, cream of wheat, cheerios none! Apple juice was a treat all until the age of 5 or 6. Why that age? They started school enough said. Honestly though if I cut them up bowls of different fruits they were in heaven! Yep no sugar or whipped cream on strawberries either. I always encouraged them to try and enjoy foods as they are; carrots and potatoes that taste like carrots and potatoes not covered up. And the money you save during those years is a big plus!"

I thought this was excellent! Thank you so much Vicky you have made so many good points! 

I LOVE what Vicky says about making saving money her job! There is so much we can "make" this way! And the way Vicky saves in other areas in order to build up her pantry. To me this hits the nail on the head!

If we think we will find extra money and then we will stock up it might never happen! But if we try all kinds of things to save and channel that into our pantries then big things happen!

Gradually we have covered a whole series of ways to build up a pantry. Preserving what you have or bargains you might find, purchasing major specials and stocking up when the price is right. Bartering with what you have. Learning new skills, gardening, gleaning, gathering and everything we can think of. Making the most of opportunities! 

The way my brain works I do better if I have a plan. ie if I think an effort will save me a few dollars and then I will have a few dollars I really don't find that exciting. But if I find a way to save and I think "I can add to my pantry with this!" I find that exciting!  Because of this I have so many challenges going and some completed that are helping me build up supplies. 

One recent one was a use it up freezer challenge. That used up lots of bits and pieces. We do need to rotate what we have stored. For three weeks my grocery bill was much lower. I added a lot to my pantry in those weeks with the money saved. That was a win/win challenge!

My make all my Christmas presents challenge is doing the same. I can build up our pantry and emergency fund with the savings.

Any swap or challenge that will work for you can hugely add to your supplies! 

We are all different. Giving up something that is unhealthy and expensive can be a huge win all round... like soft drink or take away or something. Converting a weekly cake and coffee was mine. That $7 became part of my pantry fund. You can do a lot with that! If I choose half price items, things we can and do use, that becomes around $700 a year worth of groceries in my pantry. And that was just one way I found...

We have talked a lot about scripture and the Proverbs 31 woman not being afraid of the winter as she is well prepared. Others I love are about working hard in summer to store up for the winter and ants being wise and hard workers. The ant comparison I have always loved! And it does not go unnoticed... Patsy has an ant on her blog header and on her E Book. Because it is entirely appropriate!

Now this all ties in with what we are talking about here. I thought I really understood the verses about ants. I had it that,yes, they are very hard little workers, always busy! They are strong and industrious! They know when winter is coming and you can see them out working like little troopers getting ready! It is truly amazing!

So I thought I "got it" and I loved it. Working hard, bit by bit... diligence and consistency! 

Then this week by complete chance (or something else?) I saw this clip. It only takes a couple of minutes to watch it is very...

Eye opening!

In order to understand the references to ants please take a minute to watch this!  It is not boring! It is truly an eye opener and it spoke to me and my understandings and shook them up! There is so much in this!

Can you think of some ways that you can creatively add to your pantry? How do you manage to add, build it up and make progress? Our little ant buddies follow the bit by bit, keep at it method and it works!

I hope you are having a lovely week! It is wet and stormy here but I am enjoying the Magnolias!
With thanks to Vicky for sending me so much helpful information.xxx

Crock pot series. Super easy Cheesecake.

This is so good it deserves a post. I have found any desert that needs to set (rather than rise) works so well in the crock pot.

I put this on and went to the shops. All I had to do was cool it when I got home and a fancy desert was done. Also I gave away slices to the girls and we had three nights of a lush desert!

There is not much to this. Other than to say if you feel at all the Cheesecake is at all fancy and you have not made one try this as it is soooo easy.

You could use any baked cheesecake recipe. If you have one you love then use that.

All you need is a dish, cake tin, that will sit flat in the bottom of your crock pot.

Line this bottom and sides. I use non stick baking paper.

Make sure it fits! Place a couple of cups of water into the bottom of your crock pot.

My recipe is this:

One and a half cups of biscuit or cornflake crumbs. (I had sweet biscuits and I belted them senseless with a rolling pin in a large plastic bag)

3 tablespoons melted butter.

Mix these two together and press into the pan as your base.

Make the edges look neat as it will look nice!

Then soften up 3 blocks cream cheese.  (8oz or 226 g)

When soft blend in 3/4 cup sugar, a large teaspoon of good thick vanilla extract, 3 eggs, Blend until smooth as silk!

Pour this into your dish and smooth the top.

Put this into the crock pot then top up the water level to come up 3/4 way of your pan.

Turn on, cover top with a clean kitchen cloth and put on lid. (I have shown this in previous posts, towel goes under the lid to catch moisture)

On high this takes about two and a half hours. 

Test it with a skewer. You can see it is firm not liquid. 

At the end the top may be moist. I blotted it lightly with a paper towel.

Remove when you are happy with it. Let cool and as it cools it becomes solid and can be removed like you would remove a cake from a cake pan. If in doubt refrigerate it and remove it once really hard.

Decorate with berries or a glaze or whatever you like. Imagine a great pile of fresh berries!

This is rich, it cuts perfectly. It is rich enough that I think fruit with it is necessary.

A Cheesecake looks fabulous on a cake stand. It could be a lovely birthday cake. Also it is quite stable and would be good for taking to a function or as a lovely gift.

A ribbon tied around it would look beautiful!

It was a bit of a treat last week for us. 

Next week I will get back to the gift making. I am working on a tutorial to make roses. I have been making roses for years. If you love them as I do this is for you! Bouquets of these look beautiful in vases and bowls and make into bunches, wrapped in tissue paper and a ribbon, are wonderful as gifts. They are really easy and super cheap to make. To send a bunch of roses to someone here is easily $100.  A bunch of these will look pretty for years and cost you about $6  (for a dozen or so).  Just now I have a large case I am wanting to fill with flowers so this is my project. I thought they would be a good thing to teach as they look lovely and many of us are lovers of pretty things and flowers!

Have a wonderful week! xxx

Feather your Nest Friday, 10 July, 2015.

Today I am staying in, it is cold and raining. We need rain so this is good! And I have done all my running around for the week. I am cleaning and lots of "finishing things off" jobs.

It was a good week! I have had several weeks in a row where I feel I have got ahead a bit. It's a good feeling. Some weeks you can be busy the whole time and really you're just staying afloat. However thats better than sinking! Other weeks, well, we all know about them. That's why a getting ahead week is a good thing!

This week I had orchids bloom. This is a great long spray of orchids that just suddenly there they were! (long after thinking "this thing is NEVER going to flower")

Really it is gorgeous and enormous! Just lovely.

Some ways I saved money this week:

I washed up all the jars my aunt gave me ready for sterilizing when I make jam or relish in summer. I love having a good supply of jars ready. My jar cupboard is looking healthy = Happiness.

Jes had a tutorial on making plum sauce. I will be trying this in summer. Look at the color! (here)

I found a rain barrel so I can increase out water supply for free!

This week I found some great specials and went to a store I don't often go to for some comparisons. I came out with several big savings.

I made a cheesecake in the crock pot. This is such an easy way to make a cheesecake and it was yum. I was able to share portions around...

I will include the recipe in an upcoming crock pot post. Basically, anything that needs to set like a custard, cheesecake etc is a dream in the crock pot.

Pumpkin was on special so I made heaps more soup. 

Also... I made and finished two Christmas presents! I will do photos next week of Christmas presents so far. This is good, it feels great and I am so pleased with them! 

Some ways I feathered my nest this week:

I brought the orchids inside.

I helped Lucy with a nice meal and Chloe build her pantry.

We added the rain water barrel. I include that as it is security.

I added to my pantry and cellar.

I found out about the after hours Doctor and emergency medical appointments.

And I learned much more about drying foods and also found some on going savings.

I hope you had a really good week! 

How did you build up your home or save money? Just know the difference you make in your home with all that you do. It is all worth more than diamonds! xxx

Building up your pantry with dehydrating. By Teri.

FOOD DEHYDRATION

  I’ve been canning, freezing and drying foods for years, to add to our food storage.  I was also taught not to waste extras and use food that was on hand.  These ideas all work for us, plus I’ve “gleaned” ideas from others over the years!

Investing time now will save time later.  (When you have too much of any one food to use, dehydrate the rest for later)!  This saves time and money.  “Waste not, want not” is a saying I’ve heard all my life!  So, I hope the following tips will help each of you:

1. Make your own bread crumbs by drying leftover bread.  Use a small processor to grind the dried bread or use a rolling pin.  Add dried herbs and seasonings, if you want.  (I like to keep a big container of crumbs in my pantry/freezer and then season only what I take out).Many of you already do this I know but it’s worth repeating!  J 
2. Dry lemon peel, grind and add to black pepper for your own lemon-pepper mixture. (You can also add citric acid for a more “tart” taste but I don’t do this).
3. We grow a variety of herbs in our garden and I dry them to use plus give for gifts.  Even if you buy fresh parsley or other herbs, use what you want fresh and dry the rest. (I’ve also bought bulk herbs/spices from San Francisco Herb Co., Bulk foods.com and WinCo, which has bulk spices for very reasonable prices).
4. Celery leaves can be dried and used in soups, stews, etc. And, I also chop up celery to dry. I make my own celery salt (celery leaves, some spinach or lettuce and salt. Be sure the dried veggies are ground first).   (When using dehydrated veggies in soups and stews, re-hydrate first unless you are using a slow cooker). I use a small bowl, microwave the water with the veggies in it for about 1 minute, and then let it sit on the counter. By the time I need them for dinner, they are rehydrated.
5. Cabbage, chopped; summer squash and zucchini, diced or sliced; green beans and carrots all work well when added to soups, etc. (I blanch green beans and carrots first). Cabbage darkens a bit over time but is still delicious rehydrated and added to casseroles, soups, stews, etc.
6. Also, potatoes can be sliced and dried, just blanch them first.  Otherwise, they will turn a very dark color.

When I open a bottle of fruit, we often drink the juice and I make fruit leather in my dehydrator with the mashed up fruit, unless we eat itJ. When I open a bottle of cherries or peaches, I dry the fruit, if we are 

1. not using it for another use.  I also add applesauce and spices to my fruit leather.  Applesauce takes on the flavor of any fruit and thickens.
2. Store your dehydrated foods in recycled, clean glass jars; zip top storage bags; plastic cans or canisters. (I like to use my recycled glass jars for dried foods but plastic bags or tins work too.

1. Also, keep in mind that bargain foods can be purchased from the grocery store in large quantities, when the cost is low and fruits and vegetables are in season.  The harvest of summer gardens, and produce from roadside stands, also offer foods to buy and “put by”.
2. Dehydration Made Simple by Mary Bell is the book I use most, and I have a book by Deanna DeLong titled How to Dry Foods.  There are many books about canning, freezing, dehydrating and food storage that have wonderful information.  I use my Ball Blue Book for many canning recipes and one called Food Storage by Carol Happing and the Rodale Staff.  Both these books are full of information.  All of these books have “tons” of information for putting food by and I’m sure the library has many books also. Of course the internet has useful information too.
3. When you start dehydrating, I would suggest fruits such as bananas or apples.  (You may want to pre-treat them). Sprinkle some cinnamon sugar on them prior to drying, if you want a yummy treat!   Always rotate your trays and turn each piece of fruit every couple hours.  Fruit leather is easier with leather trays and pureed tomatoes can be dried on leather trays and then ground to use for seasoning soups and sauces. (I dry my extra tomatoes and grind them, unseasoned, for tomato sauce and using in spaghetti sauce, meatballs/meatloaf, etc.)
4. There are several ways to dry food.  Besides a dehydrator, an oven can be used (although more expensive).  I often use a sunny window for small amounts of food.  I recently dried my citrus peel this way.  Window screens can be using outside with netting/tulle to cover the food.  Just bring your food in at night.
5. When drying onions, broccoli, mushrooms, cabbage etc., I put my dehydrator outside on the porch or in the garage.  These smell very “fragrant” and I prefer the smell to stay outside!  lol 
6. I have been making my own dry onion soup mix for years.  There are many recipes but this is the one I use:  4 teaspoons beef bouillon granules/powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 8 teaspoons dried, chopped onions and about 1 Tablespoon of dry parsley, crumbled.  Mix together and store in a small glass jar.  (I double, triple or 4x this recipe and I like to powder all the dry chopped onion.  I measure it into a small food processor and chop/grind it.  I use beef cubes, as it is less expensive than granules/powder, and run them through my coffee grinder first, then add to the onions in the processor.)

1. Another dry mix that I always keep in my pantry is the Soup or Sauce mix (SOS) I referred to in my first pantry post.  Annabel linked to it in that post and it’s a great way to save money, handy to have, shelf stable and can be used in many recipes.  This is how I make my creamed soup, “hamburger helper”, etc. I adjust the dry herbs to our liking and for the bouillon powder; I run the cubes through my coffee grinder. 

1. When our kids were home, they enjoyed cauliflower/broccoli with cheese sauce.  At that time, I bought one #10 can of dried cheese powder to make a quick cheese sauce mix for the pantry.  It was cheaper than the packets from the supermarket and I knew it could sit in the pantry.  It called for butter powder which I could not find at that time, so I would just add a pat of butter when I made the sauce.  I noticed Brandy, at the prudent homemaker blog, put cheese powder on her grocery list for July.  It can be used in many recipes, so I will need to check prices again.
2. Drying your own food and then using it daily, will save you money, trips to the store, less waste and helps build your pantry! (After cooking a whole chicken last week, I put the bones, seasonings and dried veggies in the slow cooker to make broth. (Later, soaked pinto beans will go into the strained broth for more economical meals)! It’s so easy to pull jars from the pantry and add all my veggies!
3.  Adding a variety of dried fruits, vegetables and herbs to your pantry will make mealtime enjoyable and tasty!!  Keeping the spices your family uses on hand also makes meals/baked goods, etc. taste yummy.  Rotation, labeling dates and using our food storage are all very important!
4. Because it requires water to rehydrate food, it’s a good idea to store extra, so you will have enough for drinking, cooking and rehydrating.
5. If you find packages of frozen veggies on sale at your supermarket and don’t have freezer space (or just want more shelf stable food), put them on your dehydrator, no blanching necessary.  I’ve also done this with my excess frozen veggies that I’ve blanched. And, recently, I drained my own canned zucchini and yellow squash, blotted dry and dehydrated.  These were ground into powder and added to my veggie mix in the pantry.  (We didn’t care for the squash canned as a vegetable, so instead of tossing them, I dried them.)  Waste not!!       

To me, the possibilities are endless and so worthwhile.  What better way to add to your food storage and feed your family snacks and meals with far less additives.  While drying food will take up less space, remember to re-hydrate it when cooking (each recipe will be a little different).  Dried fruits are a great snack and can be mixed with nuts to make a “trail mix” or tossed into a bowl of granola. Experiment!  That’s what I have been doing for years.  Some things work, some don’t but you are learning a new skill or adding new ideas! I hope this helps each of you!  And thank you for all your wonderful, encouraging comments!!  J  Teri

(Thank you so much Teri! I am going to be dehydrating many more things. I am sorry the numbers are out of whack, they would not cooperate no matter what I tried!) xxx

Pantries and Preparedness. Support networks.

First of all a bit of an update...

After my recent chance to chat with the manager of our local largest supermarket (that I reported a few posts ago) I ended up with more questions. The main was that if there is nothing stored out the back then do they have a central warehouse here in Adelaide that does? (and the same for other states). Do they have some massive storage facility that supplies all the stores and where there is in fact a back up of goods should a supply chain fail?
I heard that there is a massive warehouse at Gepps Cross. So I thought this is possible. Surely this is filled with goods and this would serve as some kind of back up right?
And so as luck would have it I bumped into the poor unsuspecting manager again. lol
So I said to him I had been thinking about what he had said and battered him with another round of questions :)
The short answer was NOPE. The big warehouse is big alright but it runs on the same "just in time delivery system" and it is not a storage facility. Things are all timed to come in ready to go out to various stores pretty much immediately.  So we are back to the 12 packs of candles and no reserves reality!

I did say to him that surely this system is very vulnerable to one thing going wrong ie power down, computer glitch, fuel shortage, truckie or staff strike and so on. And he said "it sure is" and that it was like dominos if one thing falls over the whole supply ceases. I asked if this gives him a headache and he said "it sure does" and that there isn't anything he can do about it.

So there you go...

The flowers in this post are from my Aunts garden. See her the size of the flower in comparison to her hand!?

Next thing... I found a rain barrel on the side of the road!  It was next to a compost system which I looked longingly at too... but I picked up this barrel which is 100 liters and was a fantastic find. Especially given I had said on Patsy's blog that adding to our water storage was my aim for the week.

Our supermarket has added notices to the baby formula shelves. Half are in English and half are in Chinese. There are no other notices in Chinese anywhere in the store just here. I took a photo...

Previously they have stopped more than four cans being sold at the check out, now they have added rows of these notices along each shelf. If the Greek crisis persists it would be entirely possible that Australian Greeks will be posting baby formula to relatives with babies in Greece. Just as I would do if I had family there with a baby. We will see but I think if their problems are not solved and they already have shortages of imported goods and medical supplies etc this could happen. Will be watching the shelves carefully.

When I visited my aunt we had a conversation that started when she said that in a crisis you really need friends. This got a whole subject going right there! I would put it that we all need a support network. And in a crisis of any kind we need it more than ever. Building up our support network is as wise as building our pantry. At any time people helping each other and wathcing out for each other is such a help in life. I am very lucky with a supportive family and friends. But all sorts of things can get in the way... what if we have no family or they are far away? What if we are isolated in some way?

There might be a few steps we could take to increase our support systems and this is a good idea anytime but a good investment as well. In an earlier post we covered writing up all your emergency numbers somewhere as well as having them on your phone. All the numbers you might need on hand is a start. I have the local police number, after hours Doctor number, poisons information etc all listed (apart from 000 which is our version of 911) Also usual contact numbers need to be written somewhere in case you lose your phone.

Some simple steps to increase your backup might include getting to know your neighbours. Even if your neighbours will agree to a "I will keep an eye on your place and you keep an eye on mine" this is helpful. You would think it goes without saying but I know people who dont know their neighbours. And some neighbours maybe it's better not to know lol. We are pretty lucky. Of one on each side and two over the road two of these families would help us in a crisis, watch our place, pick up or mail etc. One would feed the pets , water etc if we are away. And we would do the same for them.

If we needed somewhere to stay, other than home, we would have a fair few choices.  And the same goes if we were in dire straights of any kind.

But how can we build up a network, a backup? If you don't have a family around a church family might help in this way. It is worth thinking about, even a really self reliant person is going to need help sometime. Back in my own home town I knew of two scenarios that scared me badly. One was a woman who had a child seriously ill and in hospital for some time. She had no one to take care of her other children and they went into foster care. I didn't know her but when I heard this I felt ill over it. And another time there was the reverse, a woman who had no one and she stayed home with her children while the little one was in hospital alone for a week. Again this just made me want to cry.
I examined my life then thinking of "what ifs" but I realized I had several friends who would help me and several Church families at the very least and all apart from my parents who would have my own children in a crisis anyway. That was a good scare for me though to always have plan A, B, C and D!

Thinking about this subject last week I made a few discoveries that actually increased our back up system in just a couple of days. Just by asking questions I found some things I never knew! One of these was that our doctors surgery (clinic) has an after hours number. Calling that will get you a Doctor who will come to your home at any hour and it is free. I never knew this! I knew there was an after hours number but I assumed that would come at a cost that would be worse than the disease you were calling for. But it is bulk billed and a wonderful service.
The next thing I leanred is that if you can't get a Doctors appointment (which is the case it is usually a few days wait at least) then you just go in and say you are worried and ask to see a nurse. If the nurse sees you and thinks you need to see the Doctor then you will! And I never knew that. I have been on deaths door and waited.
So this little bit of information is helpful to us.  It added to our support systems.

In day to day life friendship is such a big thing.  I have to say I have found that you can have friends far and wide thanks to the interent.That has been a huge blessing to me.

But in times of unemployment, sickness, storms etc family and friends might be life savers. Imagine the help of a neighbour who will give you  a hand, a friend who will mind the baby, simple old fashioned things like sharing the produce off the lemon tree! The things we normally manage all on our own we may not. We may need help.  And vise versa we might know others who are usually just fine but they may need our help.  It is like checking on your elderly neighbour in a heat wave. We need to keep an eye on each other!

Having a few good friends, the type who will drop everything to come to your rescue is a huge thing. I have been lucky this way. The kind of friend you can call in the middle of the night who will arrive minutes later in their pyjamas with a jumper over the top! Money can't buy this kind of help!

It is just worth thinking about. We can be very determined to manage on our own. But the reality is the wheels fall off for everyone sometimes. Things happen. In a crisis or hard times having a bit of a network could be a life saver. Can you think of ways to build up relationships both in friendships and professional ones that would be mutually beneficial?

In my life we have had some miraculous friendships that made all the difference. My Dad's best friend is a Consulting Physician. That is like a specialists specialist. He is a brilliant man and literally medical specialists come to him with their problems. One time Dad had a heart attack. In the country, hours from anywhere. It was all looking like the end of the line for Dad. An air ambulance flew him (eventually) to the city and as that plane landed and the door was opened guess who was there to greet him with his own medical team? Yes, the best friend!

Possibly this is a tough act to follow! But contingency plans, emergency plans, Plan B, C and D and good things to think about. Friends who are Doctors or have other useful or life savings skills can't hurt  either nor can friends with farms or good pantries!

Actually think if you were out of action who might step in? If emergency services were too busy to get to you who would help you? If we were living in Greece right now who would support and help your family? Those kind of questions... getting back to the days when people helped each other.

We have developed our own little support community. I know any question I have someone will help me with it. But we also need to think when the power is out, notthing is working, who nearby is out network of support?

Just take some steps to increase your back up plans. Think of it as part of your pantry and preparedness.

How have you build up your pantry this week? And what can we do to built up our support networks?


Tomorrow we have a post by Teri! This will be how to increase your pantry by dehydrating your own goods and different methods to do it. A big help as each way we preserve food that is not the freezer we both save freezer room and add things that are going to be just fine in a power outage. Also dehydrated foods take up very little space.

I hope you are having a great week! xxx

A gift and a new week part 4. (Final!)

Part Ten. Consider gifts of time or help.

  Sometimes the best gift is a gift of help. 

Other times the a gift could be making a special meal for someone and a general fuss of them. Here I gave the gift of a special little afternoon tea to a young girl. And she loved it!

Another time I sat a table outside for dinner so my husband knew it was special and cooked him a beautiful dinner and served it outdoors. He really loved it. If you make someone feel special and loved you have pretty much succeeded! 

Part Eleven. Presentation and giving.

When Christmas time comes and the Birthdays that roll around enjoy giving and wrapping. And appreciate the work you have put in. Be proud of youself and note what you might have saved over the season. I hope it means a reduction in strain for your family and an increase in security instead!

Wrapping and presenting your gifts is the final process. You want them to look wonderful In many ways wrapping is so important. First impressions count!

I use a lot of tulle. Tulle is much cheaper than buying ribbon and looks very luxurious. Another one is using lace curtains. I have bought lace curtains in op shops, washed them and cut into strips for lace ribbons and used them to wrap things. Miles of lace for a couple of dollars.

I also use a lot of brown paper, I think it looks really stylish and is pretty inexpensive. 

Last year I crocheted flowers and made chains to embellish parcels. These were my favourite and I was able to use bits of yarn up in this.

An idea I have for this year is sea shells, string and brown paper. Or gum nuts, string and brown paper! A lot of natural elements make amazing embellishments. Again think of what is available to you. If you have beautiful gum nuts from a tree use them natural or spray paint them silver. If you have poultry save feathers, they look amazing on brown or black paper tucked under string. Tiny pinecones stuck in a cluster, your babies footprints all over a parcel (or your puppies paw prints) Peacock feathers, dried roses from the garden. Look at what you have and what is around you and collect. My uncle had a Holly bush and he tucked bunches of Holly under the ribbons of parcels at Christmas. How lovely! 

Part Twelve. Repeat.

After Christmas and the dust settles it's time to begin it all again. But here is the thing. Crafts and handiwork, gardening and giving are good for us. Busy hands really do make happy hearts. I notice that when I am absorbed in handiwork I am content and happy. It keeps my mind on nice things.

You may soon be in a position to share your skills with others and help them reduce their costs and enjoy the happiness and contentment that working with your hands brings.

And you never know. Some of the things you produce might be considered treasures and heirlooms someday and serve as reminders of your love. 

What could be lovelier than that?

I want to thank everyone who bought my E book last year and supported me. I hope it helped you have a wonderful and inexpensive Christmas last year. 

I have felt that the idea of using our own resources and talents to make things is timely now. These things also give us things to trade, things to sell, as well as gifts.

I really hope that working through each stage you will come up with lots of ideas. You can have so much fun with this and save such a lot. If you have something and just don't know what to make with it then ask! One of us will have an idea.

You really can have a wonderful Christmas,  give lovely gifts and also spend so much less than usual. I hope this will be a help to you! 

Have a really good week.

xxxx