Comparing my Travel Mugs

So, yes, this is another post about hot beverages.  What can I say?  I like to drink hot things.  Even in summer.  An avowed tea lover must travel with her tea and so in this post, I wanted to talk about one of my favorite things:  travel mugs.  I have two insulated travel mugs which I love dearly.  Each of them has qualities that I really like. 

The first travel mug I ever purchased was the Contigo 16-Ounce Double Wall Stainless Steel Vacuum Insulated Tumbler.  (I have the green one, green being my favorite color.)  The best thing about this mug is that you absolutely cannot spill it (it doesn't leak at all) and having two young children, this is a seriously good thing.  It keeps tea warm for about 2 hours although it claims to keep hot drinks hot for four hours and cold beverages cold for 12 (but granted I have never tried a cold drink in it). Two hours is not bad but it's not great either.  Really, the only problem with this mug is that it's terribly difficult to clean the lid.  It's one solid piece so no matter what I do, it won't get totally clean.  The best I can do for it it so soak it in warm, soapy water.  I avoid putting coffee or other strongly flavored hot beverages (like the instant ginger tea I sometimes have) in it because I can't get rid of the taste.  

Now, just to show you how serious I am about my hot tea . . . 

One Saturday, I left my Contigo mug at work.  Not being able to imagine going a whole week without my mug, I went back to my workplace on Sunday to try to retrieve it.  Now, if you know me, you know I hate to drive but I was willing to make the trip for my mug.  As luck would have it, the building I work in was locked and I couldn't get in so there I was.  Stuck.  With no mug.  I decided to head over to Target and see if I could get something comparable.  I would have been happy with another Contigo but I was open because I was not completely satisfied with it.  

So I went to to Target and headed over to that section.  They had lots of options but I wasn't really familiar with the other brands (or they were lined with plastic which is a total no-go for something that will be used exclusively to hold hot beverages).  I ended up picking the Thermos Sipp 16-Ounce Stainless Steel Travel Tumbler.  I expected to pay about $25 for it but when the cashier scanned it, it rang up as being $12.  Far be it from me to argue.  I skipped out of there with my new mug thinking I couldn't go wrong with a $12 Thermos brand mug.  And I was right!  Heck, I would happily have paid full price for it.  It keeps my tea hot--really hot--for hours and hours and hours.  Even if I leave some hot tea in it overnight, it will still have some warmth to it in the morning.  I love the way the thing looks and since you can take apart the lid completely, it's very easy to clean.  When it's properly closed, it does not spill or leak--not even a little bit.  And that's perhaps the only drawback: you can spill it and I have a few times.  To drink, you have to depress a button at the top.   There have been times I've forgotten to press the button to close it again and the way the button is, it's difficult to tell sometimes if the top is open or closed.  Also, there are two slits on either side that you can drink from so you have to actually look at the top to make sure you're putting your mouth on the right place or else you can spill it on yourself.  Oh, and then there was that time I forgot to put the lid back together before screwing it onto the top of the mug and hot tea spilled all over the contents of my bag but that's hardly Thermos' fault.  So all-in-all, I have to be a bit more mindful when using the Thermos mug but I think I prefer it to the Contigo just because it works so well at keeping tea hot.  This helps me tremendously because I really like hot tea.  It makes me have to slow down and savor the drink which means that I am less likely to drink more tea which is good because I like to put a teaspoon of sugar and a teaspoon of French vanilla coconut milk creamer in every 16 ounce cup of tea I drink and that adds up in terms of Weight Watchers points.  Also, drinking tea keeps me from mindlessly eating.

So yes, in the contest between the travel mugs I currently own, Thermos wins but I recommend both of them.  

On another note, yesterday at the thrift store, I found a French press.  Now, before my coffee maker's decanter broke, I would not have had the faintest idea of what a French press does but since I had to do research on appliance-free ways to make tea, I discovered it.  It's the Shin Bistro by Bodum and I bought it for $4.99.  This morning I used it for the first time and we had the best tasting coffee ever!  I'm sold!  :)

Yay for hot beverages!!

Does how you keep your house really reflect your self-esteem?

Photo Credit

I think I was reading Shay's blog (BlackGirlinMaine--really well-done blog by the way) and she mentioned the book Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy.  I don't know but I'm always looking for "daily books", you know, books with an entry for every day of the year.  Maybe it's a holdover from the days when my family used to do morning devotions with Our Daily Bread (and later I did it on my own with Campus Journal which no longer seems to be in print.)  Anyway, I really enjoy Simple Abundance and I want to purchase it (right now it's on loan from the library).  The entries are not necessarily deep or heavy (especially compared to the books on Buddhism and meditation that currently sit on my altar) but they are thought-provoking and (perhaps this is why the book appeals to me so much) down-to-earth.  Practical.  Little reminders to find the joy and pleasure in life.  To get back to your authentic self.  And revel in it.

Today's entry focused on housekeeping, i.e. how we keep our home:

How we care for our home is a subtle but significant expression of self-esteem.

When I read this, I kind of balked and/or smirked and thought that how we care for our home is more so an expression of how much energy/time we have.  I got on the defensive--even though I keep a pretty clean and orderly house.  When most people visit, they say they feel comfortable and at home.  Now, my house would never make it into any home decorating magazines.  None of our furniture matches and many of our pieces and decorations we have because someone handed it down to us or we bought what we could afford (usually second-hand).  But I try very hard to keep the house tidy.  I have a housekeeping schedule that I try to stick to and while the windows could certainly use a good cleaning, I am meticulous about keeping the bathroom and kitchen especially very clean.  I never go to sleep with dishes in the sink and I sweep the floor every evening.  

Does this show that I esteem myself highly?  I am 100% sure that failing to do these things definitely does not make me feel good about myself.  But is that a good thing?  Some days, I am so tired and stressed that I really do need to let it go.  Instead, I feel just terrible about myself for not doing them.  Like I am not complete if I have not done the chores I set out to do that day.  And I drag myself to do them.  Where's the self-compassion?  Where's the self-love in that?

I also realize that my penchant for a neat and organized house comes from the fact that I grew up in a house that was the opposite.  Things were always scattered everywhere.  It was always cluttered.  And my mom, who suffers from severe asthma, had a very difficult time keeping it clean.  So my drive to keep my home this way comes from a serious psychological need to distance myself from that chaos and establish for myself a surrounding that I can enjoy being in.

So I don't know . . . what do you think?  Is your housekeeping a reflection of your self-esteem?  Or is it just what it is? 

Stove-Top Coffee

A few months ago, the hubby and I started having coffee together a couple of times a week. We stick to Ethiopian coffees.  We were introduced to it by our friends who lived in Ethiopia for some time.  I was re-introduced to it by my good friend who I went to visit last August.  Her husband is Ethiopian and they enjoy it pretty regularly.  

Before having Ethiopian coffee, I always thought I did not like coffee. Loved the smell. The taste?  Not so much.  But I like Ethiopian coffee.  It has a mellow and even flavor.   I still don't like it enough to drink it everyday plus I am an avowed tea lover.  But I really enjoy having it with the hubby. 

Photo Credit

Anyway, my dad gave me a coffee maker and I was making the coffee in there for a few months until I broke the decanter while washing it.  Well, when I went to find the replacement I realized it would cost almost as much as a new coffee maker!  We don't drink coffee enough to justify actually buying a coffee maker and I did not feel like going through the effort of asking on Freecycle.

My friends who'd lived in Ethiopia made their coffee on the stovetop.  Heck, folks have been drinking coffee for centuries without coffee makers.  So I decided to figure it out and lo, and behold, it's not hard at all.  

First I boil some water and steep the coffee grounds in a 1 tablespoon coffee grounds to 1 cup fresh water ratio for about 5 minutes.  I strain it (using the filter that fit in the coffee maker) into a pot.  I bring the coffee to almost boiling and then pour it into a Thermos so it will stay hot until we're ready for it.  It's pretty effortless and I think I prefer the way the coffee tastes when I brew it this way.  

I'm glad to re-claim some of my precious counter space and I'm actually pretty pleased at how easy it is to make coffee without an appliance.  I feel like I did after I lost the paddle for my bread-maker and figured out how to make bread using my stand mixer.  Liberated, in a way.  

Making it Work Better!

Our living situation that is.  We accomplished this recently by moving things around in our house.  

Let me see if I can describe the layout of our house. We live on a single floor. We have a front room which we call the cold room. We can't use it during the winter months at all. Next to that and moving towards the back of the house, we have a large room with a fireplace (which was the living room--Room A). Separated by French pocket doors, next to that (and continuing to move towards the back of the house) is the room that was serving as our master bedroom (Room B). Separated by a solid wood door, next to that (all the way at the back of the house) is the children's bedroom. 

Room A is bigger, has a fire place and guests can walk directly into it.  Also, it's two rooms away from the kids' room which is great for when I workout in the morning and the hubby and I can hang out when they go to sleep without bothering them.  The cons of Room A (mainly one) is that it is dark. We needed to have lights on in there are all times no matter how bright it was outside.

Here are the pros of Room B: it is very bright--4 high windows. Another pro is that it's closer to the kitchen where I spend lots of time and since it would have the computer in it, I would be closer to the computer.  Here are the cons of Room B: guests have to walk through the kitchen or through Room A (which would be the bedroom and ain't happening) to get to Room B, it's in the middle of the house, adjacent to the kids' room, and it's smaller than the Room A (some things would have to remain in Room A).

So we moved everything around.  We made Room A into our master bedroom and Room B into the living room and now our bedroom is separated from the kids' room by the living room.  This is a really hard adjustment for the kids who were used to me being right next to them as they fell asleep.  Every night since we re-arranged things, they have ended up in our bed due to bad dreams and monsters.  

I really like having Room B as the living room, though. A lot.  I think it will have to stay this way and hopefully my children adjust soon.  I love being able to read by the window and I love all the light.  Yes the bookcase is still in the bedroom, our library books stay in there along with DVDs and other media but it really doesn't bother me.  And I honestly don't care as much as I once did if people have to walk through the kitchen to get to the living room.  

I realize we'll probably be living here a long time. I get so happy when we do things to make this place more functional and more like home. 

Laundry, Laundry and . . .

More laundry!

I feel that for a family of four, I do a lot of laundry.  Now, I know my perception may be slightly skewed because I'm still washing diapers for Z2.  But honestly, the hamper gets full at least every third day which means I do laundry at about that pace (not counting sheets and towels).  I cannot abide a full hamper and bags of clean laundry laying around. I have to get them folded and put away.  I can't help it!

Our washing machine is in the basement.  And our basement is a neglected, dank, moist and dark place.  Z1 thinks it's an adventure to go down there.  So I don't really enjoy going down there to do laundry.  In my dream situation, the laundry room would be an inviting, clean and bright place.  But whatever, most days I give thanks that I have a machine in my house at least (and I don't have to go the laundromat) and keep it moving.

Well, after those torrential downpours we've had over the last few weeks, the basement was really wet and I had to put on my rain boots to go down there.  (Normally, you can't wear house shoes in the basement anyway but with all the rain, you really had to get on some serious footwear--the water was about 1-2 inches deep).  Anyway, I was f.u.n.k.y. about the whole thing.  Actually mad about having to go to the basement to toss clothes into a machine that washes them for me!  

Once I realized that I was being petty, I tried to change my way of thinking.  I started thinking about how doing the laundry would be different if I didn't have a washer and dryer.  Here are some things I thought of:

1. I'd have a dedicated laundry day where the whole day would be devoted to doing laundry and pretty much nothing else.  Preferably I would be outside and it would be very warm.  I then started to wonder how the early peoples in the northwest did laundry in the winter time.  
2. I'd spot clean a hell of a lot more.  The kids would wear their clothes a lot more before they finally made their way into the laundry pile.
3. I would have "play" clothes and "going out" clothes seriously separated.  Right now having separate clothes adds another step to the process of getting out of the house (because they'd have to change before we leave and we have problems getting out of the house as it is).
4. The kids would have a lot less clothing.

Okay, so most of the laundry I do is the kids' laundry, I realized.  It's amazing how grimy kids can get!  I know that being the mother I am, I absolutely won't let the kids go out with dirty clothes.  I feel like it's a reflection on me so it usually ends up that at the end of the day, whatever they are wearing goes in the hamper.  

 

But it's also amazing how even with technology to help us get these tedious tasks done, they still remain tedious.  I guess it's just the never ending nature of the chores. 

Anyway, as usual, I like to think about how I'd go about living my life happily without the modern conveniences of consistent electricity and appliances.  I think it's good to imagine these scenarios becoming our realities--to prepare, mentally at the very least, for what could be. 

 

Photo Credit:  "Dear Laundry' by DJ Lein on Flickr.com

Photo Credit:  "Laundry Lady" by Just B Cuz on Flickr.com

P.S.  The basement redeemed itself somewhat.  I had to go down there to try to re-start the boiler (which took on water and quit last Tuesday, got fixed for $50 and then proceeded to quit again on Thursday).  While I was down there, waiting to see if the thing would fire, I started looking around.  I found an addition Bingo game and a mancala game complete with the stones.  I carefully cleaned them off and they're in perfect condition despite having been down there for only God knows how long.  I spotted a sewing machine and a few other things down there but I didn't want to rile up my allergies.  The hubby says he's  going to totally clean out the basement this summer.  I mean, really.  If you're going to be dark and dank, basement, you shouldn't be cluttered too. 

Cast Iron Cookware is the Truth!

To say I love my cast iron cookware would be a huge, massive understatement. My cookware of choice is now and will probably always be cast iron. Some people say that cast iron is too heavy to use on a daily basis but I like to look at moving my cast iron pans and pots as an addition to my other weight lifting exercises. I don't mind it at all. See, cast iron is wonderful. It is the original non-stick cookware and there'll be no scary stories years from now about how the stuff that makes it non-stick will give you cancer or cause brain damage. Nothing sticks to a well-seasoned cast iron pan.

And of course, that's the next complaint folks have . . . taking care of cast iron is a pain. Well, no, that's not true either. Before using cast iron, you've got to season it. Here is a very simple guide to seasoning cast iron. I've never had to re-season my cast iron pans and I don't use lard or bacon grease to do it. I use vegetable shortening and it works well. You don't wash cast iron with soap. I use very hot water and a plastic mesh scrubbie--that's it. I don't let my cast iron air dry either. After I clean them, I just set them over a medium flame and drive off any moisture.

I bought most of my cast iron cookware at (you guessed it) the thrift store and I've really been able to build quite a collection with those pieces and ones that have been handed down to me or just thrown away. Really, even the rustiest of cast iron pans can be revived with some loving care. I did buy my largest cast iron skillet (12") at Bed Bath and Beyond and with a 20% coupon, paid just a touch over $20 which is really excellent considering the price of a top quality non-stick coated skillet.

There are so many good reasons to use cast iron including the trace iron that gets into your food. My cast iron cookware is versatile and, I think most important to me, basic. Your great great grandma may have used cast iron. It is tried and true and I love that.

From grilled cheese to braised greens . . . cast iron cookware is the truth!

Photo Credit: Simple Intergenerational Cookware by Zane Selvans on Flickr.com

One Fine Sauce

Recently I've come to realize that a great sauce really does make a great meal. So I've been making some of the sauces that are most popular in my household in bulk, i.e. enough to fill a large mason jar (which I scored a ton of on Freecycle last year). Some examples of sauces that I make large quantities of are gingery stir-fry sauces, sweet and sour sauces, pizza sauces, brown sauces, curry sauces and barbeque sauces. These sauces are highly acidic, either containing tomatoes or some kind of vinegar (white vinegar, rice wine or red wine vinegar), or lemon juice so they keep very well tightly lidded in the refrigerator for weeks.

How is making lots of sauce at one time helpful? Well, it actually makes it easy to throw together quick meals that don't take that much forethought, time or planning.

Tonight's dinner was made with the last 1/3rd jar of barbeque sauce I had on hand. The recipe I use for my barbeque sauce is based loosely on Louise Hagler's recipe in Tofu Cookery. I made oven-barbequed tofu using the method in Veganomican, which is the method I'll be using from now on. This morning I took the tofu out of the freezer to let it defrost and when it was time to get started, I made sure to prepare the tofu by pressing out as much water as I could (by wrapping the tofu brick in my specially designated tofu pressing towel and placing my heaviest cast iron cookware on top for fifteen minutes).

The dish turned out fabulously! On the side was roasted red potatoes (just a little olive oil, Mrs. Dash seasoning, sea salt and black pepper) and some lightly steamed broccoli.

We enjoyed out dinner very much tonight and I enjoyed the fact that I wasn't in the kitchen slaving away for hours. I think this is my most handy homemaking tricks (aside from letting doughs rise overnight for freshly baked breads in the morning).

House upkeep has been getting away from me

I've been keeping a fast pace of a different activity every day to make the most out of summer and keep the kids off the television and computer while the weather is nice out. I know that when it gets cold, we watch much more television and summer is my time to balance it all out. Unfortunately, in the midst of all the moving around and business, I've been finding it difficult to keep up with all the chores around the house. It's annoying but more so overwhelming when I end up having to do four or five loads of laundry at once or having to really do a massive scrub down of the tub or the stove instead of the light maintenance cleaning I prefer to do. I hate to admit it but . . . I could use a little help or I need to lower my expectations. The hubby is equally as busy if not moreso (he goes to work , does over-time shifts and takes care of the painting, yard work, etc . . .) so he can't really do much.

Well, today I managed to clean the bathroom and the second load of laundry is in the wash now although I might not get around to folding and putting away the clothes till tomorrow. I was hoping to get just one more load done today but Z2 just woke up. I guess I should remember that I could be washing clothes by hand.

Ready to give making soymilk and tofu a try

We had a soymilk maker that I returned because what I really wanted at the time was to make rice milk (which was a huge mess in the soy milk maker). Since I'm no longer as wary of soy as I once was and since we are eating tofu and drinking soy milk (in porridge and tea) regularly, I think I'm ready to give it another go. I think the hubby would be down for re-purchasing a soymilk maker (that's the link to the one we had before) but I'd like to give making it without one a try. I can get soybeans pretty inexpensively and I would need to find a tofu press (to get bricks of tofu as opposed to balls and other odd shapes) as well as an large inexpensive stainless steel pot (you need three stock type pots and I only have two). I may employ the hubby to think of some kind of homemade tofu press.

The process for making soy milk and tofu actually doesn't seem as daunting as it once did. However . . . this morning's workout was another bust since Z2 woke at 6 on the dot. Do I really want to add anything onto the hecticness of things right now?? We'll see. I'm really leaning towards it though. I think that would be a great step towards self-sufficiency especially if I could grow my own soybeans.

Photo Credit: "Tofu Press" by ashe-villain on Flickr.com

Another Great Workout!

Today I did Women's Health Ultimate Fat Burn and it was excellent. I felt like I really burned calories. The routine was never boring and I got to do work on every part of my body. It was long enough without being too long and I feel like my heart rate was elevated for a good clip of time. The cueing was perhaps the *best* cuing I have ever seen on any DVD to date. No fumbling. No false steps. Amy Dixon was right on point, always remembering that I was seeing a mirror image of what she was doing. Ms. Dixon was also not patronizing, not annoying and just encouraging enough that when I wanted to stop a rep, I just kept going. I really sweated with this workout and I enjoyed it a lot. I'm definitely adding this to the list of workout DVDs I'm going to purchase (One-on-One Training with Jackie is also on that list and I'm on the lookout for one more really good yoga DVD). I'm really having fun trying out all these DVDs and even when I've built a good home workout DVD collection, I'll still be trying different ones. It's so nice to switch it up every once in a while.
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On another note, it just occurred to me that since there are plentiful berries at farmer's markets, I should try my hand at making enough jam to last through the winter. If I bought enough berries every time I go to the farmer's market (I'm going to try to go weekly) to make 2 pints of jam, that would definitely last us through the winter. I'd love to grow strawberries myself but I don't want to be overwhelmed. Definitely, though, once we get the hang of the gardening, I will be growing flowers (both for beauty and medicinal purposes like roses for rosewater and calendula for calendula infused olive oil which I used to make for my children's diaper cream), herbs (both for cooking and medicine) and some kinds of berries.

Anyway, I'm feeling good today. I have a busy day ahead but I'm hoping for some things to come together. I'm just feeling light and easy. I wish the same for you.

Photo Credit: "summer preserves 1" by chotda on Flickr.com

Tomato, Tomato!

Even before I entertained the idea of getting a garden going (today we are going to pick up supplies, by the way), I've always thought of growing tomatoes especially after seeing my sister in law growing them easily in pots. I use a lot of tomatoes in my kitchen and I could easily spend $20 on organic tomatoes alone (just a couple of pounds at that). When we were part of a food coop, some weeks we'd get so much tomatoes I wouldn't know what to do with them. It was tomatoes this and tomatoes that. In fact, it was those tomatoes that made the whole coop worthwhile (actually the tomatoes and the fabulous eggs). Those tomatoes we got were some of the most delicious tasting tomatoes ever. They made store bought tomatoes (even the organic ones) taste like cardboard. I had always thought I didn't like raw tomatoes but those coop tomatoes? I could eat them like an apple. I wish I had thought about preserving and such back then. We could have enjoyed those tomatoes for so much longer. But now that preserving is where my mind is, I'm even more eager to get some tomatoes growing. I want to make tomato sauces and tomato pastes and I'm hoping to have enough tomato products to preserve for our use right through next winter. The Bell Blue Book of Canning definitely describes how to do it but you can also find great resources online for canning tomatoes.

One of my favorite blogs NYAM! Adventures in Cooking and Eating gave me one excellent tip about saving tomato paste. I would always open a can or jar of tomato paste, transfer it to a storage bowl and come back a few days later to find it moldy and unusable. What a waste! Last night I was using tomato paste to cook and once again thanked Anaylli for this wonderful tip. The tip? Put the remainder of your tomato paste into a freezer bag (Ziploc), try to eliminate as much air as possible, flatten the tomato paste, and then seal the bag. Store it in your freezer. It will keep a very long time. When you need some tomato paste for a dish, break off a piece. If you're making a stew, just toss the frozen tomato paste in. If you need soft tomato paste, just leave it out to defrost. Come to think of it, if had a deep freezer, I'd definitely be considering freezing as a good way of "putting up food".

Photo Credit: "tomatoes squaredcircle" by Muffet on Flickr.com

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This morning I did Denise Austin's Get Fit Daily Dozen: 12 Move in 12 Minutes. This DVD was just OK. I wasn't bowled over by it although I did get my heart rate up and sweat. I did two of the twelve minute routines (Cardio-Athletic Blast and Cardio-Kickbox Burn). I was going to add on the 12 minute yoga stretch but I was bored to tears. I like when I'm so into a workout that my eyes are not glued to the DVD timer counting down to when it's over. Overall, it's a good DVD especially if you're really tight on time and/or just starting out. The routines were varied, i.e. you weren't doing the same move for too too long. Maybe I'm just to used to Denise Austin to appreciate her anymore. Her Blast Away 10 Lbs., though, is still the best that she's done to date in my opinion and it's one of my favorites.

So I'm looking through . . .

The Ball Blue Book of Preserving which I bought to learn how to can some of the veggies we get from the garden, most especially tomatoes. A few weeks ago, I was able to obtain 3 dozen Mason jars without lids through Freecycle. I was curious as to why they were all lidless but I figured I could just purchase the lids at a canning supply store (which I am yet to find). Reading the book today, I understand: the book expressly warns against reusing lids. I'm a little annoyed at that. So in order to can, you have to constantly purchase lids . . . and do what with the old ones? I'm not interested in doing craft projects with lids . . . I want them to be useful again and again. I know some folks just reuse them anyway regardless of what the book says but I'm just surprised that by now with the whole "green movement" blah, blah, blah, there are no reusable lids on the market.

These folks are always, always thinking about ways to keep you spending more, getting more. Sheesh.

Photo Credit: "One 2 Quart Mason Jar" by Gzap on Flickr.com

Cooking and Baking from the Pantry

Like many others, I'm trying to find ways to reduce how much I spend on grocery shopping. For the past few months, I have not purchased any new ingredients to try new recipes but have focused on using what is in my pantry (except for some macadamia nuts I bought to make ginger macadamia coconut cake--I realized after that I could easily have use walnuts but the change of pace was refreshing and I'm on the lookout for recipes that use macadamia nuts so that they will not go to waste). I focus on stocking my pantry with basics that I can use in a myriad of ways and try to have at least a month's worth of food on hand at all time. In the upcoming days, I will be re-organizing the pantry and I will try to post a picture.

I borrowed Veganomicon from the library again just because I like to read cookbooks and not because I was looking for anything special to try and found a recipe for Orange Cranberry Walnut bread. The recipe calls for fresh cranberries but I had dried in the pantry. We have walnuts and we always have fresh oranges. The bread turned out fabulously. I immediately thought that this bread would make a fabulous holiday mini-loaf to maybe sell at the hubby's friend's restaurant come holiday season this year. I could sell a mini-loaf for about $5 each and do well (thanks to my sister-in-law who gave me plenty of mini-loaf pans a few years ago).

Anyway, everything I needed to make the bread, we had already. That was so satisfying and comforting in a very real way. Personally, I'm growing weary of how much it costs every time I go to the grocery store. I watch as the prices of things I buy by default, including some vegetarian convenience foods like veggie burgers and soy yogurt, go up. With a picky toddler, it's very difficult to put these things down knowing that I will have to jump through hoops to get him to eat something else. For example, last I saw they were trying to sell soy yogurt for $1.20 per 6 ounces. Insanity. Plain soy yogurt is actually cheaper and less sweet than the flavored kind. I've tried to add vanilla flavor and maple syrup to see if he'll eat it. No go. I've tried mixing in various types of fruit preserves. "Mom, are you bugging?" And smoothies? You might as well offer him kerosene to drink. It's tough to swallow as a mom but I simply cannot pay $5 for 4 veggie burger patties when I know I could make about 12 Perfect Tempeh Burgers for even less than that. I'm eternally grateful that Z1 tolerates these burgers even though he's doesn't request them.

So after making this bread, I began to fully appreciate how much peace a successful garden will give me . Everything I need right there. I'm even considering planting soy beans to make soy milk and soy yogurt and maybe even tofu and tempeh (I used to make soy milk and soy yogurt--even bought a soy milk maker and returned it--wishing I had kept it). This "pantry" bread has increased my enthusiasm by leaps and bounds and even the newly fallen foot of snow on the ground outside hasn't curbed it a bit!

Home is where the Heart Is

Just the other day, I was reading on Holistic Parenting from an Afrikan Perspective a blog entitled "Changing the environment in your home can change your child's attitude and temperament". Of course, I wholeheartedly agree.

I think one of the most significant benefits being a stay-at-home mother affords me is that I can create a home for my children that is inviting, warm and filled with love. It makes me happy to note that for my family, it is not a special event when the house is filled with the scent of freshly baked bread or muffins.

But aside from that, I realized a while ago that a neat, tidy, uncluttered house is actually a house where the house's youngest residents spirits and minds are generally neat, tidy and uncluttered. You see, children are very receptive. In fact, I think they have one foot in the concrete world that adults inhabit and one foot in the spirit world. They are open to everything and this is why it so important to guard their senses. [ Before I had children, I was staunchly anti-tv for kids and had it been up to me alone, I still would be. But for DH, t.v. was a cherished part of his childhood and so the compromise has been DVDs (i.e. no live t.v.). Even so, it's interesting at times to note how quickly kids pick things up. Z1 got a Diego DVD from the library and has been talking about humpback whales, jaguars and macaws and saying things in Spanish. All in all, I guess this is not a bad thing.] In Meditations to Heal Your Life, Louise Hay says that children's negative behavior is often in mimicry of adults' own negative beliefs--so we to have to extremely scrupulous about what we let in to our heavens. I avoid listening to or watching the news. I go to BBC.com to read about world events once a day and that is it. Read negative stories? Through reading blogs I get exposed to stories that make me sad. I immediately offer up a chant and prayer for those suffering. I really make an effort to avoid stories that offer no hope or redemption (although I slipped up with one of my recent Octavia Butler reads). Gossip? I try hard to keep my speaking honorable, differentiating when it is talking about someone to bring them down and when it is talking about someone only as it relates to me. Harbor negative thoughts? Well, it is a daily work. Stabilizing and organizing my own life and mind as a parent stabilizes and organizes my children's lives and minds.

My house is a simple and humble house. It is a work in slow progress. But I try very hard to keep it uncluttered and neat. I posted my housekeeping schedule a while back. I keep that schedule because, yes, it's nice to have a clean house but I just notice how much more relaxed and orderly everything and everyone feels when the house is put together. Even teaching Z1 goes more smoothly if he's put his puzzles back on the shelf and returned all toys to the toy bin. I encourage him to pick up his clothes and put them in the hamper. To put his winter clothes in the bins and on the hooks where they belong. Everything has a place and so I just really try to keep everything in it's place.

I notice how airing the house out and lighting incense and candles changes the atmosphere. How smudging the house with sage really does purify. How making the beds every morning and making sure to never leave a room without putting something in order just leads to an overall positive and warm energy. I chuckle because every time my sister visits, she immediately feels comfortable enough to fall asleep. I enjoy making my house a home.

I grew up in a house that was very cluttered and not the cleanest. My mother, a clean and meticulous person by nature, just couldn't keep up with the house, a job and her severe asthma. My father, messy and organized only in his own mind by nature, usually had papers strewn around everywhere in the house, stacks of books everywhere. To use the dining room table involved almost an hour of moving stuff from the table and stacking them on the floor. I can attest to how crazy living in the house made me feel. I definitely made up my mind that my household would be the opposite.

So there are things here in my house that I'm working on getting in order and every time I accomplish something, I feel the energy of the house lift. It is encouraging, yes, but also drives me to want to make the house better and better.

Because, after all it really is true, Home is Where the Heart Is. Doesn't the Heart deserve to be housed well?

New Completed Project

Well, I finally was able to use the cotton yarn I found at the 99 cents store for a project. I had attempted to use it for about two different projects but it just looked too busy. It was, however, perfectly suited for a star afghan. I'm very pleased with it.


I was digging around in the bin that holds other completed projects (at one time I made a whole bunch of things hoping to perhaps vend/sell on Etsy to make extra cash). One project that I found was this hat. It fits Z1 perfectly and, wouldn't you know it, I had knit another hat in the same yarn (Lion Brand WoolEase) and following the same pattern except smaller. It will be so nice to see the two Z's wearing matching hats this winter.

I'm not quite sure what the next project will be. I've got lots of odds and ends yarn but nothing that enough to actually make a whole project and yarn money is not exactly in my budget right now. Plus I don't really feel like knitting/crochet. I'm more into reading right now. Maybe in the next couple of days, I'll go through my yarn bin and surf Ravelry and maybe I'll get inspired. I know a good friend of mine graduates soon and I have an idea of something lovely that I might make her. We'll see.

In other news, I had my wisdom tooth pulled. It was a fairly straightforward extraction. I'm taking Advil (800 mg) which is keeping the pain at bay. Hopefully I'll be 100% in another day or two.

I'm starting to kind of look forward to returning to the workforce when Z2 turns 5 and goes off to kindergarten. There's some serious positives to getting my career in order. I wonder what the economy will look like when I'm ready to go back. I wonder if it will even be an option.

I canceled our Costco membership years ago when I was very strict about organic everything. I think I'll pay them a visit tomorrow to remind myself of the things that we could possibly buy there and I will probably become a member again. I'm hoping to get maybe some big bags of rice, flour (whole wheat and unbleached white), baking powder, sugar, canned tuna/salmon, and other staples that would be good to stock up on. We'll just have to see what they have.

A couple of things

Both the boys are asleep. At the same time. So I figured I'd take the opportunity to post a few things.

1. I cut my locks off. Right now, I think I look like a guy. DH hates short hair on women. And I can't seem to grow mine. If I had it, I'd go get some kinky twists or something. But I don't. And DH hates fake hair anyway. More later on how I feel about the whole thing.

2. I figured out how I'm going to cut my grocery spending. I've set a price limit of $480 per month. That means $120 a week. I will buy all fruits/veggies on one set day and all other groceries on one set day. I will limit my fruit/veggie purchasing to the 'hood (walking distance, i.e. no gas). All spending on organic food is on hiatus. I'll be on the lookout for the odd locally grown fruit/veggie. Whole Foods once a month for eggs (2-3 dozen) and other specialty items not found elsewhere. This trip will be combined with Zion's structured playgroup in the same town (no special trip to Whole Foods). I am giving myself $30 wiggle room. The last few month's overspending on groceries, the Vitamix and medical expenses totaled well over $1000. Not good at all. The next few months are going to be lean so that we can recover.

3. In reading a blog I began following called Muslim Bushido (excellent blog, by the way), I came across The Survival Podcast, an excellent resource for those of us serious about preparing for economic collapse.

4. I am considering getting a gun license and purchasing a gun (again). In the event of economic collapse, I would like to be able to protect myself. I've already been robbed once in my house and once out of my car and there was no economic hardship. I can only imagine what my so called fellow townspeople would do if there was an economic emergency. With two small babies, I'm scared about it. Also, I don' t know how to use one. I have to look into how much lessons would cost.

5. I'm looking and learning (in the very preliminary stages) about stockpiling: whole grains, dried beans. Equipment: canning supplies, hand powered grain mill, etc. I'm trying to be balanced and leveled.

6. We turned over the ground for our vegetable garden. I am going to find some containers around here for growing tomatoes (which grow easily in containers) and use the plot for other crops.

7. I have no shirts/blouses for the fall. They are all either too big (I was pregnant last fall) or too small (I wasn't this size the previous fall) or just really jacked up (I wear clothes till they literally fall apart). Here's to hoping that a trip to a shopping area in another 'hood will perhaps yield a score of 3-4 shirts that fell off the truck (i.e. name brand shirts being sold for bargain basement prices). 3-4 shirts with my 4-5 skirts = a decent fall wardrobe, I suppose. If I worked outside the home, that would be different.

Well, that's all that's what's on my mind.

Excited About Gardening

Okay, if you know me, you know I have a serious phobia of snakes. I can't even stand to look at them on television or in books. A few weeks ago, Z1 and I were studying about jungles and it took such courage on my part to read about and look at the pictures of snakes. I'm relieved that that unit is over. Anyway, it is my phobia of snakes that has kept me from starting a garden all this time.

But if you have your feelers out, you will know that over the next few months, things are expected to get a lot tighter. The predictions are dire and everyone is encouraged to become more self-sufficient. I've been feeling that way a long time . . . even before I started reading and learning the knitty-gritty details about peak oil. Nothing lasts forever and the U.S., with all it's extravagances and luxuries that people take for necessities, will eventually have to go the way of the Roman Empire. The Bible says that for everything there is a season. The U.S. is no exception.

I digress. We are going to start a garden. I am going to be brave about snakes. When I encounter a snake, I will step back, call the hubby or one of my nephews and have them remove it. I will not panic.

I went to the library today and picked out a few books for beginning to garden. From going to the farmer's market, I have a pretty good idea about the kinds of crops that grow well in this region such as tomatoes, onions, and sweet peppers. We've identified where we would like to start the garden and this weekend, we're going to turn the soil over and fertilize/put down manure. Fall is the time to do it so that it will be ready for the spring.

I'm a city girl, through and through and playing in dirt is not my idea of a good time. I'm hoping though that I will enjoy it, get the hang of it, and be very productive. Shucks, if I could I would have been keeping chickens a long time ago because organic, free-range eggs are too damn expensive and who knows if they are feeding the chickens organic soy instead of an organic variety of grains and bugs. Anyway, I'm excited but the task is also daunting.

Spending Way Too Much on Groceries

So for some reason, this month's grocery bill is significantly larger than the last few months. Well, actually, I do know the reasons. Firstly, I've been going to Whole Paycheck more often than I really should be out of convenience since the Farmer's Market and Whole Paycheck are in the same town. I'd generally hit up the Farmer's Market, swing around and go to Whole Paycheck since it's nearby. I spend on average about 30% more, I would say, at Whole Foods than at any other grocery store. Granted, they have some of the specialty items I need for vegan baking and cooking but honestly, I can make one trip a month to get all the specialty items I need and leave it at that. That's what I was doing and somehow, I fell off the bandwagon. Secondly, I've been committed to drinking the green smoothies and I've been trying to do organic greens and fruits. This has proven to be quite costly. So I found this list (actually, I've known about this list for a while and just remembered about it when I tabulated this month's grocery costs) which basically gives a breakdown of the foods that are most and least heavily sprayed. Looks like I can stop buying organic bananas and onions (which I use a lot). I'm going to print out this list and put it in my wallet.

I started keeping track of the grocery spending back in May and slacked off over the summer. It was really surprising to see how much I've spent in September alone (I kind of knew it would be a bit exorbitant just from the receipts I have in my wallet). So now, I'm trying to get the spending on groceries in some kind of control and stick to a budget. It's true that we rarely eat out so the grocery bill will be kind of high in comparison to some of my friend's and family's bills. But it doesn't have to be crazy.

Organization

So I was looking at some other homemaking blogs and there's this recurrent theme about household management binders and while it seems like a great idea, I don't think it would work all too well for me.

Most of these binders have some kind of calender where important appointments/dates are kept. I keep mine using Google Calender. I love getting e-mail reminders and I love not having a whole lot of paper around. Oh and I prefer typing, hands down. I type exponentially faster than I write by hand.

Most of these binders have some kind of cleaning schedule. My cleaning schedule is posted on the fridge.
Monday--Vacuum
Tuesday--Change and launder all bedding
Wednesday--Clean all appliances
Thursday--Vacuum and organize kids' bookshelf, toy box and drawers
Friday--Clean Bathroom
Saturday--Change and launder all towels, cloth napkins, place mats, etc
Friday--Thoroughly clean stove and cabinets
Every day, however I do light clean-up in the kitchen. I wipe the stove and the counters down and I never go to sleep without having cleaned the sink and swept the floor and set the table for breakfast the next day (correctly setting the table requires that I also plan for the next day's breakfast)
I wash laundry (including diapers) every 2-3 days. I try to fold and put away laundry the same day I wash it. I cannot stand for clean laundry to sit around.
I pick up the children's toys and and anything out of place nightly before I get the kids ready for bed. I try to make the house look neat and tidy before I go to bed. I also lay out the children's clothes for the next day the night before.
I make up the beds every morning after opening the curtains/blinds and windows to air the house.
All this in addition to trying to get Z1 and Z2 out to the playground, library or other activity in the morning right after breakfast.

Most of these binders have some kind of master shopping list but I tried that and I think it's easier for me just to jot down the things I need at the market in my little "pocketbook notebook". I go to the market so often for fresh fruits and vegetables that I rarely have a long list of things I need to pick up. So the master shopping list just didn't seem to make much sense for me.

I do have a Household Management Notebook where I keep a list of meals which I encourage DH to choose from. I don't plan meals all that far in advance. I have a very well-stocked pantry: lots of dried beans, canned tomatoes, pastas, rice, quinoa and other grains. I have a very well-stocked freezer: tofu, frozen vegetables, fruits, frozen coconut milk, tomato paste, etc . . . so since I am really trying to stick to the green smoothies and have to be to the grocery store every 2-3 days minimum, I don't really have to think that far in advance when it comes to meal planning. Anyway, in my Household Management Notebook I have some recipes , tips for doing certain things, ideas on improving other things but it is generally severely under-utilized.

I realized, I guess, that I just keep most things in my head and what I can't keep in my head, I keep on my Google Calendar or posted on my fridge. It's working so far. I figure that by the time the kids get to be old enough where we are juggling activities, I should be balling somewhat enough to go on ahead and get a Blackberry (even if I have to put it on lay-away). ;)

I need to organize

My collection of recipes and patterns. This project will take a few weeks because I have TONS of recipes and patterns. I'm going to start with organizing my recipes, though, because nowadays I cook way more thank I knit and crochet. I've collected most of my recipes on the internet over almost seven years. They are haphazardly stuck in a binder that is now too full so they are overflowing into a cheap folder. It usually takes me *forever* to find a recipe and there are some recipes that I have totally forgotten since everything is in such a mess. So, I came up with a classification system (albeit not a sophisticated one) to try to put them in order.

1. Breakfast
a. porridge
b. veggie meats (sausage, bacon, etc . . . )
c. breakfast breads (pancakes, waffles, muffins, scones, etc
2. Veggie Burgers and Other Sandwiches
a. patties
b. spreads and fillings
3. Breads
a. yeasted
b. quick
4. Dinner
a. soups and stews
b. casseroles and pies
c. sides
5. Desserts
a. cakes
b. cookies
c. pies
d. breads
e. other pastries (tarts, baklava, cinnamon rolls, macaroons, etc)
6. Miscellaneous
a. hair and body products
b. cleaning products
c. toys (play dough, etc)

I bought some sheet protectors. Initially, I was going to take some other stuff I had in sheet protectors out but I don't have the time and I think I might want to keep that stuff preserved anyway (it's teaching materials). I will make copies of all the recipes that are old or stained so that they are fresh and then I'll put two recipes in each sheet protector. I think a 100 count package of sheet protectors should do and I think all my recipes will fit into the one binder I already have.

I'm really looking forward to getting this project done. It will help streamline things in the kitchen and hopefully I'll rediscover some great recipes that I've been neglecting.