The Frugal Farm

Update your links

2008-01-28T19:01:00.000-07:00

I am finally getting into the groove of blogging at my new site. My internet access is back and the kids are back in school. I know some of you have me linked on your sites, so don't forget to change the links!

I'm moving!

2008-01-11T16:54:00.000-07:00

To another domain! I managed to snag thefrugalfarm.com and I'll be posting over there from now on. I'm currently planning to leave the archives over here.

p.s. I stocked at Majestic yesterday!

A Random Christmas Meme

2007-12-20T15:41:00.000-07:00

I've been tagged by Erika (who, by the way, makes some fantastic stuff. I love her diaper balm and her fiber lover's hand balm and for a barter she dyed me some yarn, too, that I can't wait to knit it!) Plus she is a really great friend, too!

13 Random things about me and Christmas

1. My all-time favorite Christmas music is The Roger Whittaker Christmas Album. When I was a kid, my parents would always put it on first when we came into the Christmas tree to open presents. When I was a grown-up, I bought it on CD and my kids like it now, too.

2. The year I was 12, it got really cold where I lived (in Houston!) and our pipes froze and burst. We didn't have water for 3 days. My mom was really sick with a virus of some sort, and I remember wrapping a lot of the presents for her and then a plumber came on Christmas Day and fixed the water. Those are the kind of Christmases you don't forget.

3. Fake trees don't offend me. We have a pre-lit slim tree since our house is small.

4. My youngest child is 2 and I still haven't sewn her stocking yet. It's cut out, but not sewn. She uses my old one in the meantime.

5. I don't like raisins in cinnamon rolls. My mother made them both ways to eat on Christmas morning.

6. The last couple years I haven't started wrapping until Christmas Eve when the kids go to bed.

7. I got married 2 days before Christmas. (Happy Anniversary honey!)

8. I like to eat ham for Christmas dinner.

9. It's harder than you think to come up with 13 random Christmas things.

10. In fact, so hard that I started writing this two days ago and couldn't get past 2.

11. Tomorrow I have to go shopping and get the last gift. It's hard to hide a bike for a 7-year-old.

12. We have one of those Fisher Price Little People Nativity sets. Three Christmases ago when we got out the decorations, baby Jesus was missing from the set. He's never turned up, so I finally bought a new one the year before last. I imagine that someday, I will find baby Jesus behind some shelves in the garage and I will have a really good story about "How I found Jesus."

13. We have colored lights on our tree. And usually on the outside of the house. But other projects have pre-empted the outdoor light installation this year.

I can't in good conscience tag anyone this close to Christmas, so do it if you want and leave a comment so I can come read!

When being frugal bites you in the backside

2007-12-07T11:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I spent half the day making a triple batch of egg rolls and then I also made beef and broccoli stir fry. I deep fry the egg rolls and make sweet and sour sauce and they are SO good! And I put 3 meals worth in the freezer. Plus the stir-fry is also to die for. The downside is it makes a lot of dirty dishes. And it makes a mess of the stove.

Last night as I was cleaning the stove and the drip pans and washing all the dishes, I realized that being frugal once bit me in the backside.

My long time fans will remember that this house came up for sale the same day that we got an offer on our old house. When we bought this house, we closed on it 3 weeks before we closed the sale of our old house to give us time to move stuff over gradually. Once I came here to do some deep cleaning and I took the drip pans of the stove home with me to the old house to clean there. I have this great trick to clean them; I put them in a pot with some dishwasher detergent and boil them on the stove for a while. When you take them out, the grime just wipes right off. As I walked into the house from the garage, I dropped all the drip pans and three of them got dents on the edges and the paint chipped off. I priced replacements at the home center and they were 5 or 6 dollars a piece. I didn't buy them, and figured I could find them cheaper elsewhere.

Well, I was wrong. I never found them cheaper elsewhere, and now, four years later, I can't even find the same color drip pans. So every time I clean my stove and see those chipped edges, I am reminded that I should have just forked over the $20 to get new ones.

Has something like that ever happened to you?

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

2007-12-06T10:11:00.000-07:00

Over at Majestic Congo! All of today's items just went live, so go snatch up some soft-soled leather baby shoes or some beautiful stitch markers or some hand dyed yarn!

Good, better, best

2007-11-21T22:51:00.000-07:00

I have so many interests and hobbies (and children and animals and chores) and I am trying to find a balance, where I can get the things that need to be done finished, in addition to doing something that I want to do.

In October general conference, Dallin H. Oaks gave a talk entitled Good, Better, Best where he talks about how we need to choose the best things to grow closer to God. There are a lot of good things in the world, but they aren't always the best things to occupy our time.

I have know for quite a while that the internet is a huge time-suck for me. I try to show good self-discipline but I often waste time online. The last few days I've kept my computer off and spent my time doing other things. I'm not giving it up completely, but you'll see a lot less of me from now on. Don't forget to check the renovation blog for updates and every two weeks I'll be stocking my leather shoes and other handcrafted goodies at Majestic Congo. My past items will be available at my Etsy shop until I get my website up and running.

On a related note, we stock at Majestic on Friday at noon eastern. Come check out the hand-dyed yarn, beautiful stitch markers, leather shoes, diapers, and other great items made by these talented women whom I am glad to call my friends.

More cloth shopping bags.

2007-11-10T21:18:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of creative, humorous blogging. I did take a picture of my new shopping bags, though.

Shoes, shoes, shoes

2007-11-07T12:13:00.000-07:00

I have joined the Majestic Congo at Hyena Cart. We stock Thursday November 8th at noon eastern. Come see what all these talented mamas have to offer! I know all these women personally and they have become a wonderful support group. Keep watching my website for when I get it up and running.

Reusable Shopping Bags

2007-11-04T10:33:00.000-07:00

Though I take my plastic shopping bags back to the grocery store for recycling, I still hate bringing them home! Last week I sewed up a dozen cloth shopping bags.

Tomorrow I'll put them to good use when my favorite grocery chain opens a new store just 10 minutes from my house. So long to 30-minute-drives to the store. I will actually be able to buy frozen foods in the summer without taking a cooler packed with ice.

For a tutorial on how to sew cloth shopping bags, visit my Flickr tutorial.

Who doesn't want to be a winner?

2007-10-24T21:14:00.001-06:00

I know I posted about my new vacuum and totally trashed the Dyson, but hey, if I win one, I'll have one to keep in the basement of the new house so I won't have to carry my Hoover downstairs. Go here to enter. Thanks to Stacy for the link!

A Cheesy Title

2007-10-24T16:50:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I made a quick trip to the grocery store and while there, I waltzed by the deli aisle to check for markdowns. Sometimes I find cheese marked down to $2 a pound because it's close to its pull date. I found 5 2-lb packages of Cache Valley Medium cheddar for $1.99 each. That's a dollar a pound, people! I don't know if I've ever bought cheese that inexpensively. It's pull date was today, but the packages were still nice and tight, so the medium cheddar will probably be sharp cheddar by the time the last of it is eaten, but sharp cheddar costs more, so my savings will just increase!

Dog vomit and dead chickens

2007-10-19T09:31:00.000-06:00

I really enjoy reading Meredith's blog Like Merchant Ships. She exudes positive energy as she practices cheerful frugality. It's blogs like hers that help remind me that no matter what happens, your attitude can still be positive and you can be happy.

So, despite the fact that I was awakened multiple times during the night by a crabby 2 year-old, it's raining (and mud is being tracked into the house constantly) and by 9am I had already cleaned up dog vomit and disposed of a dead chicken, I know it's going to be a good day.

We've got roof trusses and roof decking going up as I type, and I promise to update the renovation blog by the end of the day.

Alias

2007-10-16T14:49:00.000-06:00

This meme was on my friend Erika's blog (go buy some of her diaper balm...it is the best stuff on earth!) , and I thought it looked like fun. Do it if you want and leave a comment so I can come read yours!

1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet & current car) Tawny Sienna

2.YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (fave ice cream flavor, favorite cookie) Chocolate Ginger Snap

3. YOUR “FLY Guy/Girl” NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name) MBut

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal) Pink chicken

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, hospital where you were born) Nada Midland Memorial (I don't have a middle name!)

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first) Butmo

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (”The” + 2nd favorite color, favorite drink) The Purple Sprite with Lime

8. NASCAR NAME: (the first names of your grandfathers) Kelly James

9.WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother’s & father’s middle names ) Nada Floyd (again, Mom with no middle name!)

10. TV WEATHER ANCHOR NAME: (Your 5th grade teacher’s last name, a major city that starts with the same letter) Watkins Wilmington

11. SPY NAME: (your favorite season/holiday, flower) Autumn Tulip

12. CARTOON NAME: (favorite fruit, article of clothing you’re wearing right now + “ie” or “y”) Strawberry flip floppy

13. HIPPIE NAME: (What you ate for breakfast, your favorite tree) Muffin Maple

14. YOUR ROCKSTAR TOUR NAME: (”The” + Your fave hobby/craft, fave weather element + “Tour”) The "all things fiber" snowstorm tour...As in Tawny Sienna and the All Things Fiber Snowstorm Tour!

Ok, some of them were kind of hokey, but it was fun!

Squash harvest 2007

2007-10-12T15:31:00.000-06:00

Works for me!

2007-10-10T14:22:00.000-06:00

Works For Me Wednesday!

I realized that if I sit in front of the towel cupboard (my kitchen lacks drawers) and fold the towels and put them directly into the cupboard, I save myself the task of putting them in a basket and carrying them to be put away. This also works with my cloth diapers. It makes it a little easier to accomplish the job.

October

2007-10-08T15:24:00.000-06:00

Is breast-cancer awareness month. Take a minute to do your self-exam, and then go enter to win a free digital camera at 5 Minutes for Mom.

Mommy, will you play with me? Or, how to trick your kids into working

2007-10-04T20:57:00.000-06:00

Last week the two older kids had a day off from school because it was parent/teacher conference days. Frugalgirl2 is used to being at home by herself (well, Frugalbaby is here too, but she's not the same caliber of playmate as the older kids). Frugalgirl wanted to play Barbies but her older sister was doing something else and wasn't interested. Since I had to go the school for a conference with a teacher, I was trying to get as much housework done as possible before I left. She came into the kitchen and said "Mommy, will you play with me?"

I said, "Sure, what are we playing?" The answer was Barbies. So I took the dolls little arms and pinched them together around a spoon from the drainer and said that she was helping me put away dishes. To my surprise, Frugalgirl2 thought this was pretty funny and started using her own doll's arms as tongs to put away utensils. After we emptied the dish drainer and moved on to the dishwasher, I said Barbie was tired from all the work and laid her down in the utensil rack.

Then I decided that there was no way I couldn't take a picture.

Is it really free?

2007-09-25T12:36:00.000-06:00

One of the only classes I ever got a B in while going to college was Economics. The whole concept of opportunity cost always perplexed me. But as I've gotten older and had more life experience, the idea of opportunity cost is becoming clearer to me.

A couple weeks ago the phone rang. It was one of those surveys. The gal wanted to know if anyone in the household smoked, or had allergies, and what kind of vacuum we have. And that I was entered in the weekly drawing.

Then last week, the phone rang again and it was someone telling me that I had won the drawing! My prize was a set of kitchen knives and a free vacation for 2 adults and 2 kids. The catch? I had to let a guy come over for an hour and give me a sales pitch for an air cleaner.

While the renovation is making this house dirtier than ever and I'm doing my best to keep up with the dirt, the thought of sitting for an hour listening to someone try to convince me to part with my money for something I don't have room for that will surely cost something to maintain.

I told the lady on the phone that I wasn't interested.

I wonder how many people turn down their prizes? Some people will take anything that's free, even if they have no need for it nor a place to store it. Other people don't value their time. While I don't profess to be someone who doesn't procrastinate, I certainly know that I don't want to listen to an hour of sales pitch only to decline the offer.

Then this morning on Frugal Hacks, Kim posted a free offer for pearls from Overstock.com. It turns out that you actually have to sign up for the email notification club from Overstock. I happen to own a strand of pearls already that my parents gave me when I graduated from college. So, since I don't need another strand of pearls, and I'd just delete every email that Overstock ever sent me, I didn't sign up. Just because it was free, it doesn't mean it comes without a cost. If I needed a gift for someone or I really liked ordering from Overstock.com, then maybe this would have been a great deal. But for me, trying to cram 6 people and a dog into 1400 square feet in the midst of a remodel, the last thing I need is more stuff to do and more stuff to take care of.

I've noticed that when I don't see the sales flyers from places like Target, I don't see things that I "need" as often. When I'm living my day-to-day life and I notice we're short on tissues, I write it on the shopping list on the fridge. Then, if I happen to be shopping and find a sale on tissue, I stock up. If we run out before I find a sale, I buy one box at a time until I find a better deal. It's dollar-cost-averaging.

Frugal living doesn't just mean finding the cheapest price on anything and everything. It's about deciding what you really need and what you can live without. I can live without a new strand of pearls, and I can live without a set of kitchen knives. I like the knives I have, thank you very much.

And my heart skipped a beat

2007-09-24T09:30:00.000-06:00

Late last night I went outside with a bucket of food scraps to dump in the chicken coop. I noticed that the water was empty but since it was night, I resolved to go out early in the morning and fill the water up.

This morning about 7:00, I heard a chicken making a racket outside. Often after they lay an egg, they cluck and cluck until I go out and give them some encouragement (Good chicken! Thanks for laying an egg!), but they will often make a racket if they are out of water. Some neighbors of ours once ignored an early-morning chicken racket and went outside to discover that the coop door had been left open and all the chickens had been eaten by raccoons. Since I knew they were out of water, I dragged my bum out of bed. In the back of my mind, I was worried that a raccoon was out there terrorizing them. Just yesterday two chickens had squeezed out of the tiny hole in the chicken wire where the water dish is. I turned on the hose and went around to the coop. I filled the water bucket, fed them, and then counted. And counted again. Checked the roost and the egg boxes and counted again. We were short a chicken. It was Midnight, a Black Star who lays brown eggs. I started looking around for her remains. I was sure that if she was out, that raccoons would have gotten her for sure. Frugalboy came out and I told him she was missing. We looked over near the addition, and there she was! Strutting around, oblivious to the fact that she had nearly met her demise. The dog was out with us. Tawny is an excellent chicken herder. Unlike Border Collies or Cattle dogs (heelers), she doesn't nip at what she's trying to herd. She can usually round up the chickens and send them back to their coop without even touching them. For a while the chickens were trained to head back to the coop if they even saw the dog outside. I haven't let the chickens out at all this summer though, to preserve the harvest in the garden, so Midnight was out of the habit of heading home when she saw the dog. Instead of going back to the coop, she hid in a juniper bush. I was able to pick her up and carry her back to the coop.

I made an attempt to secure the water dish in the opening of the chicken wire and I hope that no more chickens try to escape. These hens are kind of like pets. They all have names, and to think of losing one made me panic just a little!

Which brings me to my dilemma. We got 5 chicks last spring to replace a few of the older hens. Ideally, I'd have 6 or 7 chickens, maybe 8, but not 10. It is too many eggs for us to eat without getting tired of eggs. I haven't decided which older chickens will be the first to go, because they all seem to be laying. In the meantime, I'm feeding 10 chickens. we've been going through about 100 pounds of feed in a little over a month. I am sure that it is more expensive than buying eggs. I don't keep track of egg production, nor do I raise chickens to save money on eggs. I raise them more for the self-sufficiency aspect. But to spend $20 a month of chicken feed seems to be a little expensive! Right now I feed them Purina Layena because it has the calcium in it to help the shells be hard. A lot of commercial feeds don't provide the calcium so you have to supplement with oyster shells or something else. When I raised chickens for meat, the man who did our processing recommended that I drive to a farm town about an hour away to their local grain mill and buy what was called 4H pig feed. The mill blends it especially for the local 4H kids and it was just a mix of wheat and corn with a protein content of 17%. We mixed the pig feed with the meat grower ration and it lowered our feed cost for raising the birds. It slowed their growth down enough that we could put off processing for a week or so. I also think it made the chickens taste better than the year before. It is much cheaper (almost half the price) and comes in 100 lb sacks. I guess I need to do some research and find out if I can feed that pig ration to the laying hens as long as I throw in some calcium. Anyone have some experience and could you offer advice?

After

2007-09-16T16:31:00.000-06:00

Here's a picture of before, and here is after.

It's not perfect, but every time I walk by, I want to sit down and sew.

I've been tagged...

2007-09-10T22:46:00.000-06:00

by Lena.

MY HUSBAND

What is his name?

Frugaldad

How long have you been together?
almost 12 years, married almost 11

How long did you date?
just under a year

How old is he?
33

Who eats more?
Him

Who said I love you first?
Honestly, I can't remember!

Who is taller?
He is.

Who sings better?
Me

Who is smarter?
I am pretty dang smart but he is smarter

Whose temper is worse?
his

Who does the laundry?
Me

Who does the dishes?
Me

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed?
him

Who pays the bills?
Both of us do

Who mows the lawn?
usually him

Who cooks dinner?
Me

Who drives when you are together?
Usually him

Who is more stubborn?
Me ~~Him~~ me

Who is the first to admit when they are wrong?
Him

Whose parents do you see the most?
His

Who kissed who first?
He kissed me

Who asked who out?
It's kind of a complicated story, so I don't know.

Who proposed?
Him

Who is more sensitive?
Me

Who has more friends?
Probably me, but he has more "old friends" from the past. I have lost touch with most people

Who has more siblings?
me, I have 4 and he has 3

Who wears the pants in the family?
We share things pretty equally but he's the big bad boss

I don't know if anyone reads my blog who hasn't already been tagged, so considered yourself tagged if you read this, then comment so I can come read yours.

Another Yogurt Update

2007-08-31T08:18:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I successfully cultured vanilla yogurt! I am so stoked. Before I stirred the milk into the starter, I added sugar and vanilla extract. It's quite sweet so I'll cut back on the sugar next time, but I added 1 cup of sugar and 1 tbsp vanilla extract to 1 quart of milk. Next attempt? Lemon.

Yogurt tutorial

2007-08-30T14:28:00.000-06:00

I added pictures to my instructions on how to make yogurt.

Lately I've been making whole milk yogurt because it makes such delicious smoothies. They are almost like milkshake made with ice cream!

Finally growing up

2007-08-20T18:53:00.000-06:00

It's about time. Maybe it's because I turned 30 this year. But I'm finally able to can and have all my jars seal, sew things that don't look homemade, and be satisfied with my handwriting.

I can't think of a good title for this one

2007-08-18T16:36:00.000-06:00

But I know I've been a slacker blogger lately and it's because I have been too busy to upload photos and spend time writing clever blog entries for you to laugh over.

But, in a nutshell, I have been canning green beans, supervising construction, picking a bushel of peaches, playing referee to 4 kids, keeping up with the laundry, not keeping up with the dishes, trying to pawn off extra zucchini, and moving hoses around my parched yard.

Two and a half weeks until the three older ones are in school, and we still want to make it to all the touristy things we haven't done yet this summer.

Amateur photography

2007-08-10T23:07:00.000-06:00

A couple days ago we discovered a pair of fawns waiting for their mother in one of our neighbor's yards. They stayed there all day! I saw them again tonight and went home and got the camera. They weren't as close to the road as they were when I first saw them, but I think I still got some decent shots.

playing with the sepia feature

New Flickr uploader

2007-08-10T23:03:00.000-06:00

I just uploaded 19 pictures to flickr and it was SO much easier than it ever has been. I'm not excited about downloading free software that might corrupt the hard drive so I'd never used the uploading tools before. Wheee!

Filling The Hollow Tree

2007-08-07T10:05:00.000-06:00

I'm adding the Hollow Tree back to the sidebar. I am teaching some of my friends to can this summer so I planted extra green beans to share. I'll add the teaching-to-can sessions to the Hollow Tree list but the jars will be going home with the "students."

Let's get to the short of it

2007-08-01T15:35:00.001-06:00

In the midst of all the renovation going on, we made a quick trip over to eastern Idaho last weekend to see my sister's first baby be blessed in church. I made significant progress on these shorts for Frugalbaby and it took me over a week to knit the last inch and get them finished. The yarn is Kool-aid dyed by my friend Sarah and I received it in our recent Magic Yarn Ball swap. Heidi detailed the events over at her blog. If you scroll down to Tami's picture you'll see the yarn I did, which there are pictures of up on Flickr but I never got around to blogging it.

Frugal Farm Footwear

2007-07-30T10:19:00.000-06:00

How to Can Green Beans

2007-07-25T22:25:00.000-06:00

8 weeks to the day after I plant green bean seeds, I am usually able to go out and harvest beans for the first time. Every few days in the summer I end up canning beans. Want to know how? Read on. Make sure you follow the direction for your own pressure canner, though, and for your own altitude.

First, you'll need one of these. For low-acid foods like vegetables and meats, you have to use one. It gets hotter than boiling so the food is preserved properly.

You'll want to read through the directions that come with your canner to familiarize yourself with them, but they are all similar.

Then, I get some clean jars in the clean sink and let them sit in hot water until I'm ready to fill them. If the jars are hot, they are less likely to break when you add hot liquid. I didn't use to do this until one summer half of the beans I did didn't seal. I don't worry about it for fruits, though.

Then you'll want to put some water in your canner and start heating it up. Mine wants about 3 quarts.

You'll also need some vinegar and some salt. The vinegar helps white mineral deposits from parking themselves on your jars when you pull them out of the canner (especially if you have hard water like me) and the salt is for the beans. You'll want canning/pickling salt because it doesn't have the anti-caking agents that table salt has that can make the liquid in your jars cloudy.

Before you start all this other stuff, you'll want to prepare the beans. Wash them, snap off both ends, and break them into the lengths you want. Smaller pieces fit better into the jars but take longer to prepare. Mine are about 2 inch pieces.

You also want to get a big pot of water on to boil. This is for filling the jars with after we put in the beans. This method of canning is called raw pack. The beans are raw when we put them in the jars. Hot pack would be if we cooked the beans in water and then packed them in the jars.

The next pot you need to get on the stove is a small pan with a little water in it and the flat lids. Follow the directions on the package, but typically you bring the water to a simmer and let the lids sit until you're ready for them.

Canning really heats up the kitchen. Look at all these pots!

Next you want to start putting the beans into the empty jars. Shake them down a little as you go to fill in any big pockets. But then leave an inch of room at the top. This is called headspace and will help the jar seal.

After you have all the jars filled, put some salt in each jar. I use 1/2 teaspoon per pint. You can use less or more or none. That is one of the nice things about preserving your own food.

I put the salt in after the beans so I know which jars have salt in them. Also, if you preload the jars with salt and you've under- or over-estimated how many jars you'll need, that's another thing to remember.

Now add boiling water to each jar, leaving about an inch of headspace (it's not critical to be exact at this point). You can use a wide-necked funnel but when it's just water, I don't mind spilling. For sticky stuff I definitely use the funnel.

Next you'll take a thin plastic utensil--either a knife or the handle of a spatula (there is a special tool made for this, too, I think) and run it around the edges of the jar to release any air bubbles that may still be trapped. Plastic won't accidentally break a jar like metal could.

Now measure your headspace again. It needs to be an inch. If you need more, use a spoon to borrow water from the next jar over that looks like it has too much. Or ladle more from the big pot of water. If you have too much, spoon it out.

Almost done! Now get a clean rag or washcloth and get it wet and wipe the rims of the jars. This makes sure that nothing gets in the way of the seal.

Now it's time for lids. If you don't have one of these nifty magnetic wands, use some tongs or something because you will burn your fingers.

Center the lid on the jar.

Don't forget that you need to work quickly but don't rush and forget something. Screw the ring on over the lid. When you start to meet some resistance, give it a little more twist. Don't screw them on tight or the air can't escape and let the jar seal.

Now put the jars into the canner that has the boiling water in it. These jar tongs are very helpful.

All the jars in the canner. In a pressure canner, it's all right if the jars touch each other. You can even stack small jars on top of each other. I had to cram these in to get them to fit.

Now I put the lid on and twist it so it locks. Your canner may be different but it will be similar.

When the steam starts coming out of the vent in a steady stream, set the timer for 7-10 minutes. This exhausts all the air out of the canner.

When the time is up, you put the pressure regulator on. This will allow the pressure to build up inside. The little button on the lid of this canner pops up to let you know there's pressure in there.

The dial will start turning. When it gets to 12 pounds, I start the timer. Most instructions in canning books are for 10 pounds. Then you add pounds to adjust for altitude. Here in the Boise area we can at 12 pounds. Set the time for 20 minutes. If the dial should happen to go below 12, stop timing and restart again when it gets back to 12. I always reduce the heat because the dial keeps going up. I haven't perfected it yet to keep it at 12, but too much pressure is fine.

When the timer rings, remove the canner carefully from the heat. Now let it sit until the dial reaches 0 and the little button drops, indicating there's no pressure left in the canner. Don't try to let any pressure out by tipping the regulator or cool it quickly by putting it in water. You'll just break the jars and probably burn yourself.

When the pressure is gone and the button drops, remove the regulator and carefully open the canner away from you.

Lift the jars out one at a time, trying to keep them level.

Put the jars on clean towels at least an inch apart so they can cool. Leave them until they are completely cool.

Now let them cool for up to 24 hours. Usually I wait 10 or 12. They'll be room temperature.

When they're all cool, wipe the jars off if they're dirty (not usually with beans, but peaches will practically require a bath) and write the date on the lids. If you did more than one batch in a day, label the batches with numbers or letters so you know which is which. Also check to make sure that the center of each lid is down (it doesn't pop up and down when you press it) to check the seal of each jar. I have found that the longer it takes me to get the jars out of the canner, the better they seal. I had to run a quick errand while these beans were depressurizing so I didn't take them out right away. They had all sealed before I even opened the canner. But if you rush to get the lid off, then get them out quickly, they are more likely to not seal. So go check your email before you take the jars out of the canner. Also, before you store the jars, remove the rings.

If you have some jars that didn't seal, you can either re-process them with new lids and rings or you can put them in the fridge and eat them in the next couple days.

When you're ready to eat them, as an extra precaution, it is recommended to boil the beans for at least 10 minutes since they are low-acid. I add a pat of butter and serve them to my hungry kiddos!

Another Birthday!

2007-07-24T15:06:00.000-06:00

Back on July 9 the first Frugalgirl turned 7! She had a butterfly cake.

I promised her that the next thing I sewed would be a tutu just like her sister's, but I haven't had time yet to sew anything.

I've uploaded tons of demolition photos to flickr and I'm stealing a minute here and there to update the renovation blog. Soon, I promise!

With a capital C

2007-07-17T15:48:00.000-06:00

Life around here is about to get c.r.a.z.y.

With a capital C.

In the morning, my excavator guy is coming to dig a new drainfield for our septic system.

When he's done, he's going to use his backhoe to pull down our existing family room, and dig a basement.

The next day, a concrete guy is coming to pour the footings and foundation for said basement.

Then, Frugaldad and I will work during every free minute to build and enclose the addition before the winter.

I created a new blog for updates. Check it out!

Snack update

2007-07-15T14:02:00.000-06:00

After a week of my new snack program, here's my opinions.

Three yellow snack tickets per day is way too many. Some of the kids used them up exactly but some had some leftover. I did notice that they were much more aware of their snacking habits and it was easier to limit portion size (i.e., 2 graham crackers per ticket), they had enough yellow tickets that they never ate green snacks. After a trip to the grocery store on Thursday, there was a lot of fresh fruit so Frugalgirl1 often chose an apricot instead of something else, but for the most part, they didn't change their eating habits.

The number of red tickets that I handed out was perfect. I gave them each three for the whole week. We usually have what we call "candy bar Friday," where they get to have a candy bar in their lunch box or for an afternoon snack. I told them they had to pay for their candy bars, so they had to keep one red ticket in reserve for the whole week.

Tomorrow when I dole out the tickets, I am reducing the number of yellows by half. They'll each get 10 tickets to last until next Monday. They'll still get 3 red tickets. The hardest part for me will be keeping the green snacks appealing by having ripe fresh fruit, but in the summer that is a lot easier to do.

Making something from nothing

2007-07-13T17:01:00.000-06:00

These days I feel like I spend so much time washing dishes and wiping counters, and weeding and moving hoses, which allows for a lot of introspection but not a lot of time for blogging. After I made dinner a couple times this week, I realized that I had been creating something out of nothing. Saturday afternoon I hit the grocery store to look for some dinner inspiration and boneless pork chops were on sale for "buy one, get one free." This made the per-pound price only $2 which is a bargain for any type of boneless meat these days. I picked up two packages, put one in the freezer, and left the other in the fridge for Sunday's dinner (what did I get for Saturday's dinner, you ask? BOGO tilapia fillets which I fried up in a pan. Came to $3/pound which might be the cheapest tilapia I've ever seen) Sunday night I sauteed the pork chops and made a creamy gravy with the drippings. There were two chops left over, plus some sauce, so I thinly sliced them, put them in a container with the gravy and put them in the fridge for a future dinner.

The designated leftover night arrived, and I cooked the remainder of a package of fettucini that I found in the pantry (I weighed it and it was a little more than 5 oz). Then I mixed the sliced pork and gravy with a can of cream of celery soup, about 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese, and the cooked noodles. I put it all in a greased 10x8 baking dish, sprinkled more cheese on top, and baked it until it started to bubble on the edges, maybe 20 minutes. It turned out really yummy!

Then the next night, I happened to have leftover cooked shredded chicken in the fridge, as well as a bag of mixed greens from the garden. They had been in there for 10 (!) days but had been washed and spun dry, so they were still crisp and fresh. I also cut up some tomato, cucumber, and onion, and had some pita bread so we ate chicken salad pitas for dinner. They were delicious. And there was enough left that I got one for lunch the next day.

Both of these dinners were created with leftovers that were used in a completely different way than they had been served the first time. I certainly don't expect you to ever be able to reproduce them (I'll never even be able to reproduce the pork casserole because I didn't measure anything when I made the gravy or the casserole) but this is the sort of living that reduces waste and encourages creativity with what you have. And I think that is the definition of being frugal.

Snack Attack!

2007-07-09T11:12:00.000-06:00

About a month ago I had this fantabulous idea about how to encourage my kids to eat more healthy snacks. One day I had given the kids a granola bar for their morning snack, and Frugalgirl1 (who is turning 7 today! Happy Birthday!) had the gall to ask me "How many granola bars can we have?"

I had always limited things like that to one per day anyway, but I had a brainstorm that I finally put into practice today. I'll report back on the progress.

I've divided up snack foods into 3 categories--green, yellow, and red. Green snacks are unlimited. At snack time, they can choose any green snack. Green snacks are fruits and veggies. Now, some people may disagree with my choice, but I have also included cheese and bread in the green snack category. The bread can't be covered in jam or honey; it has to be plain or with butter.

Yellow snacks have to be purchased with a yellow snack ticket. I have alloted the kids 3 yellow snack tickets per day. I handed out a week's worth. I am encouraging them to limit their yellow snacks to 3 per day so they will still have yellow tickets at the end of the week. Yellow snacks include almost everything. Granola bars, crackers, popsicles, muffins, etc. They are generally healthy foods but not the best choice.

Red snacks are the things I don't want them to have every day, like candy, marshmallows, cupcakes, etc. I have given them 3 red tickets for the whole week.

Maybe I should have given out fewer yellow tickets to begin with, but I am kind of hoping they learn to eat fruits and veggies instead of crackers.

on to other random topics...

We had the hay cut, baled, and sold in a period of 4 days.

This picture was also taken on July 3 and this morning I picked the first zucchini. There will be more in a day or two. Let the grilling of vegetables begin! I can't even wait!

Babywearing

2007-07-07T23:32:00.000-06:00

Why on earth would anyone need more than one way to carry a baby around?

This is what I used to think, until I was introduced to all the fabulous ways to wear your baby. I have sewn two ring slings, a pouch, a gauze wrap, and I'm itching to do a Mei Tai.

Now I've found another one...and it will be even better if it's free! Go enter here to win a carrier made by Jenn of All Natural Mommies. Thanks to Erika for the heads up on this contest!

Knee High by the 4th of July

2007-07-07T22:31:00.000-06:00

Better than fruit snacks

2007-06-15T09:34:00.001-06:00

What more could you ask for?

All a flutter

2007-06-14T19:03:00.000-06:00

This picture is to tempt Heidi, who won the contest. As soon as I get these adorable little shoes packaged up, they'll be in the mail!

Tweet!

2007-06-05T14:55:00.000-06:00

These shoes were also a gift.

I have been sewing for more than half my life, and more than half my stuff turns out looking sloppy because I hadn't really learned how to make it look neat. But I am figuring it out!

What's up?

2007-06-01T11:07:00.000-06:00

I love walking out to the garden to see what has come up since yesterday! Since I last reported, here's what's up:

Cucumbers
Yellow squash
Zucchini
Pumpkins
Watermelons
Butternut squash
Cantaloupe
Beans
Lettuce
Chard
Spinach
Onions
Corn

The only thing that hasn't come up yet is the honeydew. This morning I planted cilantro, basil, and parsley in the herb bed. I can hardly wait!

Yooooooou're out!

2007-05-30T18:13:00.001-06:00

These adorable little shoes are a gift for a friend of mine who recently had a baby boy.

One more picture, and a contest!

2007-05-29T09:31:00.001-06:00

Here's one more shot of something growing in my yard. The first person to correctly identify it wins their choice of a pair of soft-soled shoes or a skein of hand-painted yarn. The only hint I'll give is that those buds are about to be flowers, not fruit. Good luck!

eta: not to sound confusing, but the flowers will be fruit eventually, but to me the picture looks like berries right now.

A Birthday!

2007-05-28T22:01:00.000-06:00

I can't believe she's four! She wanted another Barbie cake and volunteered her own doll for the cake when I told her I didn't have one.

And has been asking for months for ballet clothes, so that's what she got.

What's up?

2007-05-28T21:52:00.001-06:00

Radish seedlings, the first of the summer garden!

The garden. Go to flickr for details.

What's growing...
pears

raspberries

peaches

irises

strawberries

Promises

2007-05-24T12:12:00.000-06:00

The problem with having so much to blog about is I'm too busy to actually blog about it.

I know I've been scarce lately. It started at the end of April when Frugaldad went to Singapore for 12 days. Since I'm not crazy enough to announce to the internet when my husband is out of the country, I kept my mouth shut. There were no major medical emergencies (one of the girls kicked the other in the mouth the last time he was gone and I almost had to make an emergency trip to the dentist) and no major catastrophes (I even started two irrigation turns all by myself), but by the end of his trip I was really tired of being the only responsible adult around here. I was mostly tired of doggie duty.

I have some great pictures of the stuff that is starting to grow in my yard, and I have spent the last couple weeks working in all my spare minutes turning my garden from a weed-infested wasteland into a beautiful plot of seed-planted goodness. I tell you what, it is a crying shame that I didn't take any "before" shots, because it was almost too depressing to even start the job. Thanks to a Mantis, and some carefully placed sprinklers, I was able to get all the weeds out.

I hate to toot my own horn, but this is the first year in seven that I have had my entire garden planted this early in the season. Usually something gets pushed to the bottom of the list and either doesn't get planted until mid-June or doesn't get planted at all. This is also the first year that I did ALL of the work myself. Frugaldad usually helps with at least the bed prep, but between the trip, the illness that plagued him when he got home, and taking Frugalboy on the Father/Son camp out last weekend, he wasn't available. So I did most of the work during the heat of the afternoons because that is when I was home. I got all the weeds out. I raked all the beds smooth. I put hay down on all the pathways (well, I guess Frugalgirl2 helped me a little one morning with the hay) I spread all the mulch (minimal kid help there, too) and I planted all the seeds (I guess the girls helped a little with that, too. But in all honesty, it would have gotten done faster if I had done it myself, so I ought to get extra points for letting them help me.) And in seven years of gardening, for six of those years I have started in either new ground, or rearranged the planting beds enough that it was like starting over. We decided to change the direction of the beds again this year, so I was starting over. Again.

I have worked hard, and I am proud of myself! And I know I will be even gladder in a couple months when I am able to start eating beans and squash.

Tuesday was Frugalgirl2's birthday and she is quite a beautiful ballerina.

Stay tuned for pictures!

Saving time and money

2007-05-06T16:55:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I mixed up seven pounds of meatballs. I froze them individually on baking sheets and they'll go in ziploc bags in the freezer to be used as I need them. I used my Bosch mixer with the dough hook to mix them up really quick, and a scoop to portion them out. So basically, in the time it took to make one dinner, I made seven. This will save me time in the future, and also some moo-lah because I won't have to order a pizza or drive through McD's. I just threw them together without a recipe, and they turned out pretty good.

Meatballs
For each pound of ground beef, use one egg, about 1/3 cup of either bread crumbs or oatmeal, a couple tablespoons of dried minced onion, 1/2 tsp salt, and some pepper.

To cook them, I either put them in a baking dish and pour some sort of sauce over them, and bake them at 375. Or, I put them in a skillet, start to brown them, then pour in the sauce, cover, and simmer them until they are done. I use an instant-read thermometer (160 degrees) but it takes around 25-30 minutes total.

For sauce, you can use sweet and sour, barbecue, or tomato. My kids love them almost every way.

Busy hands

2007-05-03T21:17:00.000-06:00

I've been busy, lookie, lookie!

I am so pleased with how these shoes turned out! They are actually getting swapped, though, to Stacy.

I made two versions of Katja.

The pattern is actually quite flawed, however. A quick search of a couple knitting forums has confirmed that everyone had the same problem. Basically the garter stitch at the top of the body gapes because of the nature of the stitch gauge. I compensated by weaving elastic through the stitches. There's a couple more pictures of both tanks on flickr. When Frugalbaby wears them, though, it's as a top layer over a shirt. I'm teaching modesty at a young age. No bare shoulders at the Frugal Farm!

I'm also attempting to get back into my household cleaning routine, and attacking little household projects one at a time. Monday I reorganized the laundry room cupboard and today I did some pantry organization. One of these days I might even get to the sewing table.

Make your own yogurt

2007-04-21T10:31:00.000-06:00

While I still buy those outrageously expensive individual cups of yogurt on occasion, I almost always have a quart or two of homemade yogurt in the fridge. I use it mostly in fruit smoothies. Some frozen fruit and some yogurt, blended up, makes a delicious and nutritious breakfast drink. It is super easy to make your own yogurt, for a fraction of the cost of store-bought.

Things you will need:
Milk
Saucepan
2 tbsp plain yogurt (with active cultures) per quart of milk
candy or instant-read thermometer
quart jars and lids
small cooler
dish towels

Heat up the milk in the saucepan until it is 180 degrees.

Then move it off the heat and let it cool until it is about 115. Yogurt needs to incubate at 108 degrees, so by the time you get the starter mixed in and the milk poured into the jars, it will be the right temperature. Put your plain yogurt into a bowl. (the picture shows the jar)

Spoon a little of the warm milk in to bring the yogurt's temperature up. Then pour the yogurt mixture into the milk, stir it thoroughly, and pour it into your jar(s).

Put the lid(s) on loosely. Put the jar(s) into the cooler, pack the extra space with dishtowels,

then put the lid on, and let it sit for 5-8 hours. Voila! Homemade yogurt, so little work!

What kinds of milk should you use? Any kind. The higher the fat content, the creamer and richer the yogurt. I recently have been making whole milk yogurt because it makes the smoothies very rich and filling and almost like milkshake. But I also make skim milk yogurt from powdered milk. When making it with powdered milk, I often add extra powder to add extra protein. The advantage of using powdered milk is you don't need to heat it up and cool it. I mix the powder with 120-degree water and proceed as usual.

To flavor your yogurt, stir in some jam, or some vanilla or lemon extract and a little honey or sugar.

Want organic yogurt? Use organic milk. It makes your cost savings even more!

When you get to the end of the jar, save the last 2 tablespoons for your next batch. It's called chain yogurting. You can chain yogurt for a long time before the yogurt won't set up well. If you buy a big container for your starter, you can freeze the excess in ice-cube trays and thaw them when you need fresh starter.

Finally! Off the Needles

2007-04-12T15:36:00.000-06:00

I cast on Flirty Skirty so long ago I can't even remember. It was at least two weeks before we left on vacation. Then one afternoon, it was a Tuesday, I had walked the 1/4 mile to the corner to meet the kids' school bus. I brought my knitting with me to knit in the few spare minuted before the bus got there. When the bus pulled up, I carefully set my knitting in the back of the stroller. I didn't have point protectors on my needle tips. Should have, though. Frugalboy got off the bus, shoved his backpack down on top of my stuff, and started pushing the stroller home. Well, when I pulled my knitting out, at least 5 stitches had come off the needles and started unravelling. The lace pattern at the bottom is kind of complicated, with yarnovers and knit-2-togethers and I was very distraught. I didn't have time to sit and fix it for a couple days. I was able to fix all but one column, and on Friday morning I went to my LYS for some help. The lady was able to fix it, hurray! But I was like 4 days behind.

I planned out my trip knitting because I knew I'd have 60 hours in the car. I knew I wouldn't be able to knit the entire time, but honestly, I thought I'd get more done than I did. On the trip, I barely got halfway done with Flirty Skirty and I started a sock on the day I got to the part where I needed lots of light and no bumps to pick up waistband stitches. So even after all that driving time, I did 2 inches of sock ribbing and didn't even finish the project I took with me. Well, this morning I finally finished Flirty Skirty. It's drying now. I'm a little disappointed that it turned out so large. "Didn't you knit a swatch?" you ask. Why yes, I did. And if you measure my gauge on the finished project, it's right on. So it's just big. Whatever, she'll grow.

I took a skirt-knitting break for a couple days last week, though, and knit this up for Erika's baby shower. I love this yarn. It's TLC Cotton Plus. The drape of the fabric is so nice. It's a cotton blend. The burp cloth started as a bib, but I cast on more stitches than I wanted to, and I had recently checked out a book from the library with a blanket pattern that had hearts and stars, so I used the star chart to put the star in the middle. I think it turned out pretty good!

Today I cast on Katja in more Cotton Plus. It is already turning out to be a quick knit.

What I did on my Spring Vacation, Chapter Two

2007-04-11T15:24:00.000-06:00

We left our house at 8:22 on Friday morning. Saturday, Sunday, and the following Friday, and Saturday, we also left at 8:22. It seems that it takes us approximately 82 minutes to get ourselves going in the morning! Because we all wake up naturally around 7. The only reason we didn't leave at 8:22 the last morning, was we went to breakfast. But we actually left for breakfast at 8:23.

Riding in a van with 4 kids is quite an adventure! We have a portable DVD player and we strap it up on the ceiling of the van with velcro. It fits perfectly in the storage compartment with a flip-down lid that is there (where a factory-installed DVD player would be). We bought 8 new movies for the trip. I left the seat next to the baby's empty so I could climb back there to sit by her. (If you are a car-seat nazi, quit reading now.) I would take her out and nurse her and cuddle her and then put her back in while she kicked and screamed. (ok, you can start reading again. And don't judge me...it's actually legal to nurse a baby in a moving car in some states, and I don't do it in cities, or when there is traffic, only on the highway)

We drove about 600 miles each day. The first night we slept in Moab, Utah. The next night we slept in Vega, Texas, which is a little before Amarillo. Between the 90 minute stop in Albuquerque to see my sister and the time change into Central time, we just didn't feel like going all the way into Amarillo. Sunday night we arrived in the Houston area around 7:30pm.

Let's talk about climate. Here in Idaho, it's barely spring. This morning I had to remove ice from the chicken's water and I'm afraid we may have lost fruit blossoms. The peas in my garden are barely coming up. In Houston, we just about suffocated from the heavy humid air, and we didn't stop sweating. It was only in the 70s, but my parents keep their thermostat at 78 and we were still accustomed to our house at 67 degrees. Finally on the third day, my mom had the air conditioner people come and do their inspection so she could turn on the air for us. My aunt told me later that she and my uncle felt sorry for us because my parents always keep their house so warm! It was better with the air, but it was still humid.

Monday we took the kids to the park near my parents' house. Can you believe the size of this play structure? I have never seen one so huge. But then again, everything is bigger in Texas.

One of the things I like about Houston is it's always so GREEN! We live in a desert and are lucky to see 12 inches of precipitation in a year, so it's a stark contrast.

That afternoon we went to the arboretum. It's a garden-type place with lots of labelled plants and koi ponds and stuff. Cool place.

A lizard I saw on the pathway

Tuesday morning we drove downtown to go to the Houston Museum of Natural Science. We went to the Cockrell Butterfly Center and to the current Frog exhibit. It was really cool. Here's the pictures we took. If you want descriptions and stuff, go to flickr.

On the way home from downtown we saw this car in front of us. Thought it was strange that they weren't using their own cars for the shuttle service.

Wednesday morning we spent at this place called an antique mall. It's a big warehouse with booths where different dealers sell their stuff. Didn't find anything we couldn't live without. When I was a senior in high school, my mom and I found this set of antique china in a little shop is Groene, Texas. It was a huge set, 100 pieces, and was only $425. I didn't love the pattern, though. It was a pretty plain set, though the flowers were pink roses if I recall correctly. We didn't buy it since we didn't love it, and have regretted it ever since! So I am always on the lookout for a fantastic deal on antique china. I don't have any fancy dishes at all and someday would like some.

Then Wednesday afternoon, we got lucky enough to get a personal tour of a historic farm. The area my parents live in was originally settled by German immigrants and a lot of their land was donated/sold to the school district so lots the schools are named after Germans. My aunt is a docent at the farm and though she usually only gives tours to 4th graders learning Texas history and it's only open to the public one Saturday a month, we got to come and see.

Thursday we drove to Galveston. It is almost a 2-hour drive from where my parents live. My kids had heard that "there is a BEACH by Grandma's house??" so this day was what they had been waiting for. We started the day at Moody Gardens in the Aquarium Pyramid. Now, you all know that I am a tightwad. I love a bargain. And tickets to Moody Gardens are not cheap. I had found coupons for $2 off the adult tickets and the two younger kids were free, but it still cost our family $47 to get in for the day. But it was worth every penny. We don't have anything like this anywhere near us in Idaho. It was such a cool place. We saw all sorts of tropical fish, seals, penguins, sharks, turtles, rays, and starfish, err, sea stars. It was interesting for all the kids, and for the grown-ups, too.

I am not even an amateur photographer and I don't have a steady hand for the no-flash shots, so this one is blurry, but there was a big seal swimming behind them.

In this one, the kids are wet because they had just stuck their hands in the water to feel sea urchins and sea stars (which we were informed by this weird dude that worked there, they are NOT starfish like everyone incorrectly calls them)

After the Aquarium we ate lunch at Benno's. The fish was great. Then we shopped a little on the Strand where we saw a cruise ship in the port. Then we went to the beach.

They aren't the cleanest beaches, but the kids didn't know the difference. They each filled up a plastic cup with shells and played in the surf a little.

Frugalbaby made it a full-body experience.

Right before we were about to go, a big wave knocked Frugalgirl1 down and soaked her to the bone. She didn't even complain!

They really had a good time. Everyone had a bath when we got home and we managed to not get too much sand in the van!

We left to go home the next day. I was so glad we were in Texas during the bluebonnet bloom.

It had been flooding the night before in area of North and East Texas, but luckily we missed it. But boy, did it rain. I spent a lot of that afternoon scanning the horizon for tornadoes. Seriously. There were warnings and watches all through the counties were driving through.

One of the flooded areas we drove by.

And here's one of those you just can't resist.

We ended up driving 750 miles the first day, and about 600 the second, so we got back home in time to retrieve our dog from the boarding kennel, which closed at 6. We got there around 4, and everyone was glad to have the dog back!

All in all, we had a great trip. We put almost 4000 miles on the minivan but hopefully it will be a trip that the kids remember for a long time.

Zoom zoom

2007-04-11T14:07:00.000-06:00

Last night Frugalboy competed in his first Cub Scout Pinewood Derby! It was combined with a cake decorating contest. He unfortunately lost all his races by a nose but still had a good time. And the cake turned out great.

What I did on my Spring Vacation, Chapter One

2007-04-09T19:24:00.000-06:00

Before we left on our trip, I thought it would be cool to take picture of the signs at the state borders all along the way to document the distance. Frugaldad said he'd had the same idea, but hadn't said anything because we'd be sure to miss one and then we'd be mad. But after our first few hours in the car, I had great success. Nah, of course we won't miss one!

The next day, though, when we were heading east out of Monticello, Utah, into Colorado, I was in the back seat with the kids, and I didn't have the camera back there with me, so I totally missed the sign. Oh well, I guessed we'd catch it on the way home.

A little while later, when we drove into New Mexico, I was ready with the camera, but was unable to get it to focus and snap at the proper time. Grrrrrr.

When we were heading into Texas that evening, I was ready with the camera but it was getting dark, so here's that attempt.

Well dang it, if I can't get the "welcome to Texas" sign, maybe I could get the "thanks for visiting" sign on the way out. Yeah, right.

That is the "Welcome to New Mexico" sign, because I couldn't get it to snap in the dim light and rain in time for the Texas sign.

But finally, success again heading north!

And right after that:

I didn't get the "welcome to Utah" sign again because I already had one, and I guess I forgot to do the Idaho one, but since we live here, it's unnecessary, isn't it?

Special Delivery

2007-04-06T11:26:00.000-06:00

The postal employees must think it's strange when people order live chicks through the mail! But look how cute!

(and I am still planning a marathon blogging session about our vacation! I am in the process of uploading photos to flickr so go take a peek!)

Coming (sometime) soon...

2007-04-03T10:23:00.000-06:00

The account of the thrilling adventures of the Frugal Family as they drive 4000 miles together in a minivan.

Not only do I have four kids, I have five chickens, too.

2007-03-13T13:27:00.000-06:00

When I let the chickens out of their coop and start walking, they follow me. I am their mother hen. I noticed a strange thing in the coop the other day (you'll see in a minute) and when I came back outside with the camera, the chickens gathered at my feet.

Here's our chicken coop. This design is also called a chicken tractor, because you can drag it around from place to place and the chickens turn up the soil.

The strange thing I saw? Check out where this egg ended up.

What will she get into next? or, Do you want some spice with that?

2007-03-08T22:46:00.000-07:00

Some other things she has done during the last 3 days...

-climbed up onto my bed and squirted lotion all over my duvet
-found her sister's leftover hot chocolate and dumped it all over herself and the floor
-snuck out the back door multiple times to try and jump on the trampoline

I'm not quite sure how the next 17 years are going to turn out, just cross your fingers for me!

Pictures of the baby hat

2007-03-06T18:15:00.000-07:00

Don't you love how most of my knitting pictures have my nice 1975 formica countertop as a background? Let me tell you, I loooooove this kitchen!

The whole gift. What new mom wouldn't appreciate handmade goodness?

Baby hat pattern

2007-03-06T16:22:00.000-07:00

I made a hat for my sister's baby (the one who is also getting these shoes) and it knit up so quick, it may be my new "new baby" gift. I made up the pattern because I didn't feel like I had time to search the internet for exactly what I wanted. I had one pattern from a book so I cast on the same number of stitches and that's where it ended. I am sorry I haven't got a picture taken yet, but I'll get one soon.

Baby Hat

1 ball Laines du Nord Dolly Maxi yarn 100% superwash wool, 50g/95 yards (I used color 908, a denim blue color)
US 7 double point needles

Stitch note: 1x1 twisted rib is k1p1 ribbing, but knit each knit through the back loop and do the purls in the regular way

Cast on 64 stitches.

Work in 1x1 twisted rib for about an inch.

Work in St st until hat measures 5 inches from CO edge.

Work decreases as follows:
Round 1: (k6 k2tog) to end of round. 56 stitches
Round 2: k6 k2tog, (k5 k2tog) to end of round. The last stitch will use the first stitch from the beginning of the round. This is ok. 48 stitches
Round 3: k5 k2tog, (k4 k2tog) to end. 40 stitches
Round 4: k4 k2tog, (k3 k2tog) to end. 32 stitches
Round 5: k3 k2tog, (k2 k2tog) to end. 24 stitches
Round 6: k2 k2tog, (k1 k2 tog) to end. 16 stitches
Round 7: k1 k2tog, k2tog to end. 8 stitches
Round 8: k2tog all around, put all stitches on one dpn. 4 stitches

Work a 4-stitch i-cord for 2-3 inches. Break yarn and thread through all 4 stitches twice, pull tight, and thread tail down through the i-cord. Tie the i-cord in a little knot. Weave in any ends remaining.

Men's Hat Pattern

2007-02-28T21:40:00.000-07:00

Frugaldad does not have a small head, and he has a lot of hair, so if your man has a small noggin, this will be loose or else you should cast on fewer stitches.

Men's Hat Pattern

Almost 100 g worsted weight yarn (I used Paton's Classic Merino 223 yards/100g skein in Deep Olive)
size 7 16" circular needle and double points or size to make gauge
8 stitch markers

gauge: nearly 6 st/inch knit in St st in the round

Cast on 120 stitches. Join round and place marker to mark start of round. Work in k2p2 ribbing for 4 inches.

Work in St st until work measures 8 inches from CO edge. (K13 k2tog Place Marker) until end of round.

Knit one round.

Repeat decrease round by knitting each stitch until 2 stitches remain before marker, then k2tog.

Knit one round between each decrease round. Switch to dpns when too few stitches remain for circular.

When 8 stitches remain, break yarn, remove markers and thread tail through last 8 stitches. Pull tight and weave in ends.

Contrary to popular belief

2007-02-28T19:12:00.000-07:00

I have not been buried in a snowdrift or fallen in a deep well. I am, however, finally recovered from the virus that would not die.

Tonight I took some pictures but they are not uploaded yet, so stay tuned. I finished the hat I was working on and since I made up the pattern, I'll post it and pictures soon too.

Spreading germs at an exponential rate...

2007-02-21T17:56:00.000-07:00

The day after I posted last was Valentine's Day. That morning, as I was making lunches for the masses, I suggested to Frugaldad that I pick him up after I picked up Frugalgirl2 at preschool and we could go out to lunch. I even shaved my legs and painted my toenails red in honor of the day of love. We went to lunch, stopped at a couple stores, and I was home by 2:30. Not too much later, I came down with fever and chills and body aches.

A week later, I still get light-headed if I stand up for too long. It seemed to be a gender-biased virus at first, because over the weekend the three girls and I laid around in a fever-induced stupor. Then Tuesday morning, both the male residents of the household were on their backs.

I'll spare you the gory details. Just know that it involved dozens of loads of laundry, a Steam-vac, Bac-out, and Febreze. As I type, two of my children are asleep in their beds. During the day. The girls are getting well enough to be crabby instead of just lethargic, but I imagine Frugalboy will miss the whole week of school.

I can't wait for the day when I don't feel sick anymore. I haven't even been able to knit.

Like you really want to see more pictures of the bread

2007-02-13T09:32:00.000-07:00

I tried the no-knead bread again. This time I ground up some rye and used 1 cup of rye flour with 2 cups of white flour. It probably needed some more white flour because it was very sticky and didn't rise as high. It still tasted delicious, though, and Frugaldad said he'd like even more rye flavor. So we'll try it with more rye and maybe add some vital wheat gluten, too.

Try it, you'll love it.

When the baby sleeps, sew shoes!

2007-02-12T21:16:00.000-07:00

As promised

2007-02-11T16:28:00.000-07:00

Pictures of some sewing. I finished these night-time pants one pair at a time so it was quite difficult to get a picture of all four of them together. I have tried to make cloth pull-ups like 4 times and have never really been successful. I had resigned myself to sposie pull-ups but Frugalgirl's bum has gotten really dry and chafed. So I tried again and these are working. Way, way bulky, but working. She wears them only because they have cute appliques. Made from the New Conceptions Training Pants pattern. Windpro fleece outers, microfleece and suedecloth inners. Soakers are snap-in, made of hemp fleece with a top layer of buttery soft bamboo/cotton velour.

Bed-wetting is a strange phenomenon. Frugalboy wet almost every night until he turned 5. Frugalgirl1 was dry at night from the day she turned 2, even though she wasn't potty trained. Frugalgirl2 was potty trained at 22 months but doesn't stay dry at night. Every child is so different no matter what other things stay the same.

Must...make...more...tiny...shoes...

2007-02-08T12:55:00.000-07:00

The picture doesn't even do them justice, nor do they match her socks or clothes. But they will look adorable with her plaid jumper on Sunday. I'll snap a picture when she's all dolled up for church.

100th post!

2007-02-06T14:47:00.000-07:00

This is my 100th post! I couldn't think of anything clever to write about, though, so you'll have to settle for pictures of what kept me busy this morning. My sister found out that she is expecting a baby boy so this cute pair of shoes is for her upcoming bundle.

Made from the free pattern by Heather Bailey.

I finished my 2nd Chemo Cap. This one is the Irish Hiking Hat from Nik's Knits. It's Red Heart Soft Yarn, which has a really nice sheen to it.

I committed to making 3 hats and the third one is on my needles, and I expect to make significant progress as I sit in the school parking lot for 20 minutes waiting in line to pick up my children, so that Frugalboy can be on time for Cub Scouts (versus being late and riding the bus). My knitting time usually consists of a stitch here, or a row there, so 20 uninterrupted minutes? Blissful. At any rate, I forgot to take a picture of the first hat before I handed it off to Heidi, who is organizing our charity knitting.

We expect that Frugalbaby and Tawny, the Frugaldog, will be fast friends their entire lives.

This message brought to you courtesy of Chubby Checker

2007-02-04T14:54:00.000-07:00

C'mon baby, lets do the twist!

As per Heidi's instructions, I bring you bread.

messy sewing table

2007-02-02T10:27:00.001-07:00

messy sewing table
Originally uploaded by frugalmom.

This is what happens when you have too many hobbies and too little time.

and look, I finally got me a flickr account! So long super-slow-to-upload-pictures-to-blogger!

The Bread of Life, or Everyone Else is Doing It, You Should Too

2007-02-01T15:14:00.000-07:00

Back in December I saw a recipe for No-knead bread on Farmgirl's blog. I guess there was an article in the New York Times and everyone who's anyone is making this bread. Then I saw the creator of the recipe on the Martha Stewart show sometime in January (maybe it was a rerun?) and I knew I had to try it. But you have to think ahead 24 hours. But it's worth it. It is the most delicious crusty artisan-style bread. The bread itself is has a delightful chew and it's moist and oh.so.heavenly. We ate the whole loaf.

Cold enough for you? And miscellaneous photos.

2007-01-26T12:17:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago we had a really cold snap. I took this picture one morning in the family room. The top temp is outside, the bottom one is inside. That room typically stays about 10 degrees colder than the average house temperature. That's why we're planning on tearing down that room. It leaks like a sieve.

That ice is on the inside of the sliding door. This door freezes shut and if you want to get out, get the hair dryer. We just used another door most of the time.

The eggs froze so solid if one happened to get left in the coop overnight, that they expanded and cracked when they froze. This egg sat on the counter for a couple hours because I forgot to take care of it when I brought it in, and the top half of the shell lifted right off when I picked it up.

These pictures were all taken the same day.

And for the miscellaneous pictures...(not from the same day)

Occasionally Frugalbaby will pull the little potty out from under the bathroom sink. I encourage this sort of behavior but thought it was funny when she bent over as if she were praying to the plastic gods.

The advantage of being short is you can crawl into the dog's house to get her toy to stuff a treat in. But sometimes the dog decides she is ready to go in her house before you have a chance to get out. You're really lucky if your mom left the camera close enough to grab in time to get a picture.

Off the needles

2007-01-26T12:10:00.000-07:00

I stayed up an extra half-hour last night to finish these socks. I meant them for Frugaldad but since the pattern was "one-size", they are too small in diameter and I know that I'll need to cast on more stitches for him. So these went to the Frugalboy. I knew they were too small before I even finished the first one so I knit them to his foot length. They are knit in Wool-ease, just like the pattern calls for. But I wouldn't recommend this pattern. It has mistakes and parts that are very unclear. But I managed to knit the socks up without any mistakes. They look great and Frugalboy wore them to school today.

Waiting for a ride

2007-01-24T19:08:00.000-07:00

Hey, isn't anyone going to come pull me around the yard?

The One Where She Rambles On and On

2007-01-24T12:22:00.000-07:00

Late last night I finally had a chance to sit down at the computer and catch up on my blog reading. I posted a comment on Kerflop and Jessica replied via email immediately so I sent her another message really quick and it made me feel special like I had a new friend. Then I read a comment on my own blog from someone I didn't recognize and I went to her blog and saw that I was listed on her "Favorite Reads" column and gosh, if that didn't make me feel special, too.

Then I started musing on how I was starting to have blog readers who I didn't actually "know" and it made me feel a little pressure to have funny, interesting content. And how in high school how I wasn't part of the "popular" crowd for whatever reason. Was is because I was a Mormon, because I made good grades, because I didn't hangout and party with the in-crowd? It doesn't actually matter to me, not that it did then, either, especially because I still feel like I'm on the outside when it comes to most groups. I've never had a big circle of friends and I think that's just part of who I am.

But at any rate*, I started thinking about new and exciting posts for my little blog and thought I could do something like "Frugal Things I Did Today" and that sent my mind to one of my favorite books, The Tightwad Gazette. There is actually an article that talks about this very thing. Amy mentions how people were always wanting to come to their house to do photo shoots, but she had a hard time thinking of "poses" for them to do. Because most of being frugal is not things that you DO, it's things that you DON'T do. So I thought of some of the things that I didn't do recently.

On my birthday, which turned out to be a rotten day, partly because I had high expectations for the amount of things I would actually get done and then didn't because I ended up running unplanned errands, I had planned on getting takeout from a local barbecue restaurant. The owners are fellow Texans and their food is great. I got on the phone at dinnertime to call in my order and got their voicemail, and they were closed still for the holidays. So my fabulous non-cooking birthday dinner plans were shot. I didn't want to call the local Chinese place because I had tossed the menu in a decluttering attempt, and I wasn't dragging 4 kids there to wait for 20 minutes for my food. I didn't want pizza and everyone was getting hungry. I called Frugaldad and told him to pick up Baja Fresh but then changed my mind because I didn't know what I'd feed the kids from there without complaint. So I found corn dogs in the freezer and stuck them in the oven.

So by cooking corn dogs I saved like $30.

(And by the way, I skipped dinner, and the second I had all the kids in bed I joined my cloth diapering group for our monthly MNO and I ate a sandwich at IHOP while I knitted my frustrations away.)

When I run out of milk or bread, I mix up a gallon of powdered milk or bake up a batch. So I save like $20 because if you're anything like me, you can't walk all the way back to the milk without picking up anything else, since you're already at the store. So by not going shopping I save money, pure and simple.

Another thing that happened yesterday was I went to a church luncheon. Once a month a different woman hosts a pot-luck lunch at her home to give the ladies a chance to visit. There was another mom there with a baby who was wearing a pair of Robeez shoes. Frugalbaby was wearing a pair of knock-offs from Target and I mentioned how great these soft-soled shoes are, and that I had found some patterns online and had also bought some leather and was going to make a pair. Another woman said something to the effect of "You are so crafty. Is there anything you don't do?" The answer to that is yes, because I don't do the things I don't do well. I just happen to be interested in a lot of different things, and hate to pay retail for something I can make myself. So I pile up project after project and all these supplies and then nothing ever gets done**. But I'm working on it, and as the baby gets older it is both easier and harder to do things. Easier because she not attached to my boob all day long, and keeps herself occupied, and harder because she's transitioning to one nap and that leaves me with less time.

Anyway, did I ramble enough? Post a comment, if you haven't, so I know who is reading!

*When I was a junior in high school, my English teacher was Mrs. Thompson (who happens to be Dan Rather's sister) and she was a funny lady who would ramble on, and on, and on. Then when she was ready to get back to her lecture, she'd say "At any rate". My friends Rachelle, Jenn, and Lanny and I had a tally in someone's notebook to keep track of how many times she said "At any rate," and I think the record was like 12 times in one day.

**It's not completely true that I don't do anything. I am actually stash-busting some of my diaper fabric. Last week I made some night-time pants (Pull-up style) for Frugalgirl2 and last night I cut out 3 more pair since the first ones were a success. Pics to come. I am down to only 1 yard of hemp fleece after starting with 7, and I used up the entire yard of Windpro that I bought.

More soup for you!

2007-01-18T18:41:00.000-07:00

I felt like I was coming down with something this morning so after lunch I made up some soup for dinner tonight. It turned out really yummy, and if I don't record the recipe, I'll never remember it despite my best intentions.

Not Your Average Chicken Soup
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 small to medium onion, finely chopped
2 large carrots, diced
3 celery stalks, sliced
1 cup brown rice
4 boneless skinless chicken thighs
3 quarts water
1 tsp dried basil leaves
3/4 cup alphabet pasta
2 tbsp flour

Melt butter in a large soup pot or Dutch oven. Add vegetables and cook until onions are clear. Add rice and saute for a few minutes. Add chicken thighs and water. Bring to a boil and let simmer for several hours (I did about 4 hours) Add basil and salt and pepper to taste after a couple hours. Break up the chicken thighs with your spoon. Bring soup back up to a boil and add pasta and cook for another 10 minutes or so until pasta is done. Mix flour with a small amount of water and add to soup and return to a boil.

I served this with the Quick Wheat Rolls from my mom's upcoming cookbook. They are more like muffins with a crunchy exterior and were a hit with the entire family. They mix up really quick.

No soup for you!

2007-01-18T13:55:00.000-07:00

Frugaldad and I can quote most of the Seinfeld episodes. We can also think of a Seinfeld episode to fit almost any situation. So anyway, I made some soup last night. I started out with Kerflop's recipe but I changed it. Here's my version.

Tangy Potato Soup
6 medium to large russet potatoes. Peel 4, leave the skin on 2, and dice into 3/4 inch pieces
2 cans low-sodium chicken broth
1 8 oz package cream cheese
2 tbsp dried minced onion
1 1/2 cups milk
2 tbsp flour
1 cup cooked, crumbled bacon (I used the precooked kind I buy in a big bag at Costco, about 12 oz bacon cooked would yield a cup of bacon)

Put potatoes, chicken broth, cream cheese and onion in a big soup pot. Bring to a boil. Add milk which has been mixed with flour to dissolve lumps. Simmer until potatoes are tender (15-20 minutes). Season with salt and pepper. Add bacon and serve.

The cream cheese gives it a delightful tang.

A Good Investment at $5.99

2007-01-12T12:26:00.000-07:00

If you want to buy a hand-knit soaker online you can expect to pay at least $40 or even more. So the $8 I spent on the yarn plus a few hours of my time seems like a pretty good deal. Until the soaker starts looking like this, and it doesn't look like it's worth anything at all.

The fabric starts to get fuzzy and pill and doesn't look so great. So I trekked into Target and bought a battery-operated sweater shaver for 5.99 and put it to work on the soaker. Now it looks like new!

And here is the fuzz that came out of the lint trap of the shaver.

It was definitely worth the money. I also shaved the striped Curly Purly. It also looks great.

The Clean Machine

2007-01-10T12:30:00.000-07:00

This is the vacuum I got. It's not a bagless. I hear they're a pain and messy to empty. This one is easy to maneuver and has good suction. It was the top rated vacuum in the most recent Consumer Reports vacuum reviews so that was part of the reason I bought it. Plus it's half the price of a Dyson, which doesn't even rate that well on the CR tests. Even if everyone I know says they love their Dysons. Sorry, Charlie, I'm Frugalmom.

Oh my heck

2007-01-09T10:21:00.000-07:00

I have to post something just to get my whiny birthday post from getting top real estate!

Random events from the past few days...

Frugalbaby weighs 24.4 lbs and is sticking consistently to the 50- 75%ile growth curves.

I knitted up this sweet little soaker in an hour the other night. It's already being put to good use. On my keychain!

The Frugalboy got to spend his first day at the Challenge Center, which is our school district's gifted and talented program.

I got a new vacuum. It really sucks.

Once a year

2007-01-05T10:51:00.000-07:00

Today is the one day that I feel slightly justified in feeling a little sorry for myself.

I still have to cook, clean, wash and fold clothes, get up before anyone else and make sack lunches, take the dog out, and referee the fights.

The only way I'll get a break is if I work super hard in advance, order take-out for dinner, and keep the kids from taking out a single toy.

It's my birthday. This year is a big one. Except for the fact that I am tired all the time, I'm 40 pounds heavier, and I have gray hairs, I still feel the same as I did when I turned 18, despite the fact that I'm thirty. Thirty, people.

My older sister turned 30 last year and she was so glad, because she was getting tired of people telling her that she was too young to have 3 kids. Ummm, I have 4 and I've had 4 since I was 28 and I don't recall anyone telling me I'm too young. She lives in a big city, rather than in a place like Idaho where people actually have family values and don't believe that 2 kids is too many.

I'm not quite sure how I feel about being thirty. I don't care so much about the number though. What ticks me off and makes me feel sorry for myself is that I'd like the day to be different for once. Sure, my kids are 8, 6, 3, and 1, so it's kind of hard for them to understand and actually remember to be nice to me for an hour, let alone a whole day. I'd like for them to remember to obey me the first time I ask them to do something. I'd like to not pick up shoes, jackets, and backpacks out of my path all day.

I'd like for my visiting teachers to not bring store-bought cupcakes with kelly-green frosting with plastic trinkets on top. Instead I'd like them to bring a pint of ice cream just for me, preferably something chocolate.

I'd like for people to remember my birthday because they care, not see it on the church newsletter that day and wish me a happy birthday just because they realized it happened to be that day.

I'd like to not be guilted into any activity that someone thinks I should want to do on my birthday, just because that person wants to do that activity on his/her birthday.

It's my birthday, and I want it my way.

But unfortunately that's never the way it happens.

30 Things You Might Not Know About Me

2007-01-05T10:20:00.000-07:00

In honor of the big day

1. When I was in high school I was in the musicals Brigadoon and Showboat.
2. I graduated Cum Laude from the Marriott School of Management at BYU.
3. I got married when I was 19.
4. I have the same birthday as my sister. She is 4 years younger.
5. I rode my bike in the MS150 when I was a senior in high school. It was 168 miles from Houston to Austin through the hill country.
6. I am the ward choir director.
7. When my first child was born, I still had great-grandparents, so I have a 5-generation picture.
8. I don't like green olives.
9. I love Mexican food.
10. I play the piano.
11. Last year between October 1 and December 31, I read all 6 Harry Potter Books, 12 Lemony Snicket Books, a half-dozen Roald Dahl books, and the entire Book of Mormon. All with a newborn.
12. I was a Marketing major in college.
13. I dated Frugaldad after he dumped my roommate. I think she's forgiven me by now.
14. I love to sew.
15. I have always wanted to learn to play the cello.
16. I like grapefruit but I'll only buy the kind that's grown in Texas.
17. I was born in Texas.
18. Texans have a lot of state pride.
19. I had a big Texas flag in my window in my dorm.
20. I have a bumper sticker up on my fridge that says Native Texan.
21. It is stuck up with a magnet that says "Life's too short not to live it as a Texan."
22. I haven't been back to Texas in almost 5 years.
23. I scored a 5 on the Music Theory AP test in high school.
24. I wrote a song that won first place in a contest. It is a women's trio set to the words of the Pledge of Allegiance.
25. I can say the Pledge of Allegiance in French.
26. I also took 2 semesters of German.
27. I graduated from college when I was 6 months pregnant with the Frugalboy.
28. I took German because I needed more credits to graduate. I didn't waste any time getting my major requirements finished.
29. I never had a cavity until I was about 25.
30. I never needed braces, and neither did Frugaldad. All of our siblings did. We're crossing our fingers for our kids.

A Story

2007-01-03T12:43:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time there was a pair of dark blue socks. On the first laundry day, one of the socks came out of the dryer without its mate. The laundry lady didn't worry because sometimes socks get found under beds or at the bottom of laundry hampers, or even inside of pant legs. They usually turn up by the next laundry day. So the laundry lady put the sock on top of the dryer. On the second laundry day, the blue sock was still lonely. Its friend never turned up. The laundry lady started looking for the sock. She didn't find it under the bed, and she didn't find it behind the washer. Then on the third laundry day, she found it on the dresser at the foot of the bed where she sorted the laundry. She tossed it on the pile with the rest of the dark clothes. When it was time for the dark clothes to be put in the washing machine, the laundry lady carried a laundry basket to the bed and put all the dark clothes in it. As she walked away, she noticed that the blue sock had fallen onto the floor and almost missed getting washed. She put the dark clothes in the washer and started it. Then when the load was almost finished, she went to the washer, and found the blue sock on the floor in front of it.

That sock must have been afraid to take a bath.

Happy New Year!

2007-01-03T10:25:00.000-07:00

Christmas Nirvana

2006-12-27T15:05:00.000-07:00

For the third year in a row, I have achieved what I like to call Christmas Nirvana. This is what happens when you thoughtfully choose your childrens' gifts, and don't give too few or too many.

There is a fine line when it comes to how many. Too few, and they won't have enough to keep them busy. Too many, and they think they got short-changed because they started feeling entitled to lots of gifts. Plus, they get overwhelmed and don't know what to play with first.

I am afraid that I have reached the turning point with the Frugalboy, though. He's getting old enough that his gifts aren't just toys. They are things like fishing poles and tool boxes so he doesn't have as many things to "play" with on Christmas morning. He's complaining of boredom already, and wants to go shopping to spend the rest of the money from his grandparents.

The girls are completely content playing with their dolls and dress-ups. I carefully gave them complementary gifts so they could play together.

But the days are long and rainy and there's only so long until they get bored.

There's only 6 more days until they go back to school. Not that I'm counting. What I am counting the minutes to is Saturday, when I get to go out without any children and sit and knit and chat with the ladies in my cloth diapering group. Saturday. At 11:00. Did I mention that the kids are staying home?

On the knitting front, on the needles right now I have a Lilac Perdita for my sister's birthday. With cream crochet cotton like in the picture. On another set of needles I have some corn that I gave up on for a Christmas gift because I wasn't getting it done fast enough. I hope to get the bracelet done soon, because her birthday is January 5, and start on some longies for Frugalbaby in the softest merino I've ever felt!

Back in my younger days, and where NOT to eat

2006-12-26T21:39:00.000-07:00

I was much skinnier, and I didn't have any gray hairs. We got married in the Salt Lake City Temple and we were sealed by my grandfather. I honestly don't remember much from the ceremony.

But I do remember that I had arranged for us to stay in a honeymoon "suite" in the Doubletree Hotel that was next to the Delta Center (I don't think it's a Doubletree anymore, though.) Our room was supposed to come with a bottle of complimentary champagne (I asked if we could have soda or something else instead and they agreed) and there were supposed to be chocolate-dipped strawberries, too. We were also supposed to get a free movie in the room, and free breakfast. Well, we never got our soda, our strawberries, and they charged us for the movie, so we decided to cut our losses and didn't even try to get breakfast. I wrote a letter demanding justice and got a reply that they were sorry for the inconvenience. Whatever! Oh, and the hotel was having plumbing trouble, because the jacuzzi tub in our bathroom was full of rust-colored water when we tried to take a bath.

Despite it all, we still managed to do what every engaged couple can't wait to do. (insert wicked grin and wink)

The next day was Christmas Eve, and we spend the night in Idaho Falls at the round hotel that overlooks the river and the Idaho Falls Temple. Much nicer room, and the breakfast was free, and the room was much cheaper, if I recall correctly!

We spent Christmas and the next couple nights at Frugaldad's parents' house and had our first reception. We had reservations at a lodge in Jackson Hole to spend a couple nights. Well, there was this huge snow storm and an avalanche on Jackson Pass. The roads were all closed that direction, so we decided to just head back to Provo early. The next day was New Year's Eve and we decided to head to Southern Utah for a drive through the mountains and we rang in the New Year in a motel in Cedar City. Then we flew to Houston the next day for the reception with my family.

Looking back at the foiled attempt at a honeymoon, our attempt at having some time together on our tenth anniversary just went along with everything else. We arranged for all of the kids to play with their cousins for a few hours while we ran errands and went to lunch. We started at the fabric store (I know what you're thinking. We really go all out for big events like our tenth anniversary) because I needed a couple small piece of rip-stop nylon to repair some tears inflicted by the Frugaldog in two coats. I should have known things were headed south when they were short-handed at the cutting counter. After waiting for what seemed like an eternity, I finally got my two 1/8 yard pieces cut and paid for (sixty-seven cents), and we headed to The Cheesecake Factory for lunch. (I'm not even going to bother linking you to them. You'll see why.) We arrived shortly after 11:20. They told us it would be a 20-40 minute wait. Surprised, we agreed hesitantly, because we didn't really want to go somewhere else. We took our little pager and headed next-door to the mall. We didn't even make it to the doors, however, when our pager buzzed, and we were taken to our table. I thought, but looking back I should have known better, that since we were seated so quickly that lunch would be a breeze. We had never eaten there before, and were a little surprised at how close the tables are to each other. They really have you elbow to elbow with the neighboring table. Our waitress came after not too long and gave us the menu. Which was huge. It is spiral bound and at least 1/4 inch thick. We decided on an appetizer, ordered it, replied that yes, we'd like bread too, and we waited. Then we ordered our lunch.

And we waited.

And we waited.

The people next to us got their food.

And we waited.

The people on the other side of us, who ordered their lunch right before us, got their food.

We mentioned to the waitress that we were still waiting on the appetizer. She said she'd check on it, and then the manager came out and tells us that he just checked and our appetizer would be out shortly.

Which it was.

No sooner had a waiter put down the appetizer, that another one brought our lunch. The lady at the neighboring table, whom we were starting to be close friends with, you know, with the proximity and all, said that we should say something, that the appetizer shouldn't come at the same time as the food. Which we agreed with. Somewhere along the line, someone dropped the ball. Whether it was the waitress or the kitchen, ultimately the waitress should have done something about it. We ate the appetizer while we ate our lunch, but didn't finish it. And didn't box it up to bring it home because we knew it wouldn't reheat well. We thought we should order dessert because after all, we were at The Cheesecake Factory. The waitress asked if we wanted menus again. When she finally brought them like 5 minutes later we were getting really tired of waiting. She left us alone again for a really long time. We decided that we should just skip dessert after seeing how long it took the tables on either side of us to get their cheesecake. We asked for the bill. It came to $38.57. Since we knew we'd be there until dinnertime if we waited for her to process our credit card, we left $4o cash with the bill and got out of there as quick as we could.

I can't decide if it's even worth my time to write a letter in complaint. I know I'll probably end up with a free dinner or something, but I'm not sure I want to even go there again.

Then we wrapped up our hot date with a trip to the grocery store.

The day wasn't a total loss, though, as Frugaldad gave me a gold twisted-rope necklace that he bought when he was in Singapore in September and managed to keep hidden from me.

Marriage certainly isn't always what I expected it to be, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

Happy Anniversary Frugaldad, I love you.

Ten years ago today...

2006-12-23T15:09:00.000-07:00

Frugaldad and I got married. I don't think we even imagined that we'd be where we are today. I am not ready for Christmas yet but soon I will come back and post some wedding pictures.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

2006-12-22T09:27:00.000-07:00

Our first significant snowfall this season.

There's nothing like celebrating the first snow with a good bounce on the tramp. (yes, the frame is bent from the tumble across the yard--we plan to buy a new one in the spring)

Teeny Tiny Bag

2006-12-16T15:45:00.000-07:00

Frugalbaby loves to carry around my almost-a-Booga Bag. But she is too short to keep it from dragging on the ground. With the yarn I had leftover, I knit her a tiny replica. (I did the handles differently from the pattern by doing a 3-stitch i-cord instead, and didn't do the flap.) The colors, of course, turned out completely different and I am jealous, because I would love it if my bag looked like this too. I used every last bit of yarn, so there's some frugal knitting for you. Pictures are pre-felting, during blocking (sucker for size comparison), alone after blocking, and with the original bag.

And for my knitting friends who read this--the bag is in stockinette stitch but is bound off with a k2tog bind-off (instructions are in the pattern). The edge doesn't roll at all now that the bag is felted. And the bind-off was really easy, too. (My knitting reference book describes the k2tog bind-off differently but I followed the pattern instructions). My Sophie bag that is done with a basic bind-off still rolls a little, but I did a crocheted bind-off on the second Sophie that I did and it didn't roll as badly. This bind-off is the best so far. The big bag above didn't roll because I did over an inch of seed stitch at the top.

Sew glad to be finished!

2006-12-12T17:03:00.000-07:00

My latest batch of sewing is finished. I did 76 baby wipes, 4 diapers, 4 diaper covers, and 2 waterproof bags. Most are for gifts, but two of the Christmas diaper covers are for Frugalbaby. Sometime I'll tell the story of the lost Christmas diaper. I am also keeping some of the wipes that are mostly white.

The diapers are Poopockets, which are a one-size diaper. I make them with a snappi-friendly fabric on the outside because I hate pins.

The bags are made with Procare from Wazoodle.

The diaper covers are from my own pattern, which fits a lot like a Bummis Super Whisper Wrap.

My size tags come from One Stop Diaper Shop, and I don't know why I ever sewed diapers without them. I put them on covers and pocket diapers.

The wipes are all two layers, one of flannel and one of 80%cotton/20%poly stretch terry. I love these wipes. The blue and pink are intended for diaper wipes, and the white are for hands and faces in the kitchen (with the food print).

edited to add the photo I found from after I cut out the wipes

GAWSH!

2006-12-12T10:24:00.000-07:00

I may be the last person on earth (besides Frugaldad) to see Napoleon Dynamite. I had baskets upon baskets of laundry to fold yesterday afternoon so I popped in the DVD. We have owned it since it came out on DVD but never watched it. Frankly, I was a little disappointed. I had heard that it was a hilarious movie. I thought it was pretty dumb. Sure, there were a couple funny parts, but I honestly can't even remember what they were. There was so little actual dialogue or plot to the movie. I'm glad I didn't rush out to see it, or rush to watch it. I definitely would have rather watched Martha on the DVR.

Better late than never

2006-12-11T16:24:00.000-07:00

I took this great series of photos last spring and never got a chance to post them. We happened to go to the library for storytime on Arbor Day and they were handing out free tree seedings. So that evening, Frugalgirl2 and Frugaldad went out to the corner of the pasture to plant her tree. There were already 2 trees just like it planted there from the previous Arbor Day, so hopefully in 20 years it is a nice shady corner.

Ruffles

2006-12-05T10:10:00.000-07:00

I finished a soaker over the weekend. It's a Curly Purly soaker and I did those fancy leg ruffles to make it look really girly. It's the Kool-aid dyed Wool of the Andes that I did back here. (though I had intended it as just waistband and cuff yarn, I learned that one skein was enough for an entire soaker).

I've also been sewing. Pictures to come when I finish.

Edited to add: this was a gift, so I have yet to see it modeled on a baby. I couldn't mention that it was a gift until it was given. Maybe Heidi will post pictures sometime next summer when this soaker fits her upcoming arrival.

The Magical Age of Eight

2006-12-05T09:58:00.000-07:00

We had a momentous occasion at the Frugal Farm this weekend. I mentioned the Frugalboy's birthday before. On Saturday he was baptized a member of the Church. Everything went well. Frugaldad's parents and all his siblings and their families came for the weekend. I bought the Frugalgirls matching winter dresses. They were adorable. We (the girls and I) sang the opening song at the baptism. Well, the girls mumbled and I cried. Oh well. I shouldn't have said I would sing, and when we were practicing and I couldn't get through the song without tears, I should have known better. I guess they just won't ask me to sing anymore?

Frugaldad and Frugalboy before they headed to the church for the baptism

Frugalbaby won't hold still for a picture yet

Portrait

2006-12-04T10:19:00.000-07:00

When I go to bed at 1 am

2006-11-30T21:36:00.000-07:00

I am not such a nice mom the next day.

That is all.

The Thanksgiving Virgin

2006-11-23T21:04:00.000-07:00

Before today, I had never cooked a Thanksgiving feast. We've always visited family or had an invitation to go somewhere else. This year, though, we didn't go anywhere and didn't have anyone over. So I cooked. And man, did I cook. Everything turned out perfectly. I was so full by the end of dinner. (You'll note that there is no silverware on the table. We did not, much to your dismay, eat with our hands, I just snapped the picture before I grabbed the flatware.)I don't have any fancy schmancy dishes, and I didn't even use a tablecloth. But I let the kids drink from glass glasses and everyone got a napkin folded by their plate.

The Menu

Turkey, before and after. It was so flavorful and juicy.
Mashed potatoes (the real kind, made with cream and butter)
Gravy (strained because it did get a few floury lumps)
Sausage Dressing (tradition in the family dictates that the men cook this one, so Frugaldad made it and it was delicious)
Cranberry Sauce (freshly made) and Cranberry Jelly (from a can, because you have to have both kinds)
Green Beans (home canned from the garden)
Green Bean Casserole*
Olives (because everyone needs olives on their fingers at Thanksgiving)
Rolls
And for dessert, pumpkin pie with whipped cream. I am still full.

*The Green Bean Casserole was actually leftover from Tuesday night. I found a recipe in the November/December issue of Cooks Illustrated and it looked good. I had never in my life eaten green bean casserole but thought I'd try it for T-day. Then I realized it would be a lot of work for something my kids probably wouldn't eat because of the mushrooms. I had already purchased all the ingredients so I made it on Tuesday night. It makes such a big pan that we (Frugaldad and I, the kids wouldn't touch it) ate half and I warmed the other half today. It is so good, I will never eat any other green bean casserole. I don't want to type up the recipe but if you can, find yourself a copy of the magazine or sign up for a free trial at Cooks Illustrated and try it out.

Not to throw my elbow out patting myself on the back, but my Thanksgiving dinner turned out awesome.

Frugal Farm Mysteries of Life

2006-11-20T09:15:00.000-07:00

How Frugalboy can wake up the instant his nose starts to bleed during the night, often keeping his bedding completely clean, but is unable to wake up before he vomits all over his bedding and carpet.

Why I have to apply anti-acne cream to parts of my face immediately before I apply anti-aging cream to other parts.

Why Frugalbaby is going to have to be sleep-trained again, darn molars.

Almost a Booga Bag

2006-11-17T14:35:00.000-07:00

This bag was knit from this yarn.

It's almost a Booga Bag but I cast on a few more stitches, and did some seed stitch at the top to keep it from rolling.

It's all in the presentation

2006-11-17T11:14:00.000-07:00

That's what all the top chefs say, isn't it?

Every kid likes pasta, right? Not the oldest Frugalgirl. She'll eat macaroni and cheese but if you put any other kind of pasta on her plate, no matter the sauce, she complains.

But last night, it was different. With regular spaghetti sauce, I served Campanelle instead of spaghetti. I advertised it by saying, "Look at these pretty noodles. They kind of look like flowers, or bells. Aren't they pretty?"

And since my girls love all things pretty, she ate 3, or even 4 servings. And she asked if I would serve the pretty noodles every time we had spaghetti.