Need help with your food storage...?

Food Storage Made Easy

When we lived in California, we were told over and over to prepare ourselves, get our food storage in order. It took some time, but I began to work at it monthly, using a list and sticking to one or two items (for each family member). It wasn't really all that hard, just time consuming and it could be costly at times. I'll admit, I was never really taught how to 'store' food, or what to start storing first. Sure, we had many lessons, over and over about wheat, how to cook it, how to store it...but I really never considered having it because it seemed like such a hassle. Besides, we had our spoiled conveniences like Costco and Sam's club, why did I need to store wheat? Our food storage was food we ate, and while not big is size, it would have sufficed for about 4 months or so. Honestly, I really didn't know what I was doing...and so I wasted a lot of time storing items that were not totally essential. Kind of sad. We never thought about wheat grinders, canning supplies, dehydrators...until we moved to Nebraska! The week before our move, when the moving company came to do our walk through, they took note of the large amount of canned food items we had and quickly told me that they COULD NOT move those items. What?? Are you serious? With our freezer chock full of food, and several floor to ceiling cabinets in our garage full, I was forced to either purge or give away. The Missionaries in our Ward scored big time, as did one of my dear sweet neighbors. The girls and I went through each and every can of food to determine if the shelf life was expired or if it was worthy to be given away. If you must know a small tidbit of information...the whole 6+ months Dan was out of work, we relied on that freezer and food from my so called 'food storage'. What a blessing it was, and trust me, we ate good! You would have never known. Sure, we bought groceries, but it was the food I so carefully stored (just in case).

After moving to Nebraska I soon discovered that food storage is a main staple of life here. From gardening, to knowing people who know people who are willing to share thier bounty. Last year it started with a truck that pulled into town loaded with Colorado peaches, to this year where I have been able to can 30+ cases of food. Not only that, I've learned from some of the best people how to use your wheat, like bread making, how to store it, how to grind it...and thanks to some really awesome food storage blogs, I've learned some pretty nifty tricks as well. You see, if you know me, you know that I'm a visual person, hands on, that is how I learn. Recently, we were given 50+ lbs of dry beans (white & kidney)..did you know that you can replace oil in your baking goods with pureed beans? Seriously, it's the best, and you don't even know it's beans! I'll share a bit about that in a later post.

I'm so grateful for the progress in which we're going. Food storage is so very important, something I will not take for granted any more. I'm so grateful for those who have taught me, and been there when I'm not sure what I'm doing...they've guided me along the way. I'm grateful for moving to Nebraska, and for the many things in which I 've learned...canning is A LOT of work, but so worth it when you can stand there and gaze at all the jars filled with bright colors of your favorite foods! And what's even better...when you can't keep your kids out of it because they say it's the best they've ever tasted! That's pay off in itself..I mean, we are supposed to eat what we store right?

One of the blogs I follow is FOOD STORAGE MADE EASY...Talk about information overload, but in a super good way! Most of us are confused about food storage, or just really don't know where to start. These great gals take you through food storage in baby steps, guiding you along the way. They've created easy to follow lists, and tools to help you get started. You could spend hours on their site, reading and learning. If you are eager to get started, or help you back on track with your food storage, this is the place to go.

One of the most important items you'll need in your food storage (or your kitchen) is a wheat grinder. Dan and I just bought our first wheat..you betcha, I want to keep moving forward with my winter goal, which is to MASTER the art of making bread! Dan's always been the bread master, but I'm getting better! Anyways, we've been discussing the need to quickly get ourselves a wheat grinder. Then just today I got an email about a WONDER MILL giveaway from now until November 25th. Yes!! It's worth a shot, right?! This is an awesome wheat grinder, and I would be so honored to be the lucky recipient...What about you? Would you like to own one of these??

Along with the giveaway, you can also get a $30 rebate until November 25th!
That is on both, the electric grain mill or the hand grain mill...of course, we all love the convenience of electric power, but we also need to remember that at some point we could lose that electric power and would need something to get us through.

Good luck to all that enter, and a great big THANKS to Jodi & Julie, the girls who make this possible!


Disney-Pixars....UP

We finally had a night together as a family (yeah, one night) so Dan and I were scouring the 'Red Box' movie trailers to see if there was anything worthy of a quality family movie night. I LOVE kid movies don't get me wrong, but sometimes it's nice to get a good chick flick or action (adult) movie (as in FAMILY ADULT). Yeah, so Dan clicked on Up and I quickly decided that was the movie we were going to watch. What an awesome choice it was! If you haven't seen this movie yet, you need to go and rent it...it's a super cute movie-one that will be bought for our house. I won't give too much away..but I've added a clip from the trailer for you to see. And at the end of this post, I've added a coupon that I just found to save $10.00 when you buy the movie-so worth buying!! Enjoy.




Here's your chance to own this yourself, or give as a gift for Christmas... Go here: Disney-Pixar Up $10.00 off movie coupon

Project Life....It's HERE!

It feels like Christmas...Do you know how excited I was this morning when I found this in my email box..?? I jumped up and did a HAPPY DANCE!! Shame on me, I ordered several...and in hopes that this is continuous, meaning you can order at anytime. What an awesome gift for your best girlfriend, sister, MOTHER, daugther, cousin, child's teacher at school, you decide. How great it will be to finally put 2009 in an album, even though it may not be a picture a day, it could be pictures by the month...it's just that awesome that you can adapt it anyway you'd like! There are so many goodies in this kit, you've just got to go check it out for yourself! You'll be surprised just how much you'll get. Life gets busy, this is a way to simplify your life, and still have something that your children will cherish...your children could even put this album together, how great is that? Those are the things that mean the most, our children and I want my children to be a large part of our new year with this album..to have them journal, or add photos that mean something to them. That is a treasure!

Don't hesitate, don't waste any time..hurry over to BECKY HIGGINS and order yours today!
P.s. Just for you, Becky Higgins has free digital Christmas cards..isn't she the best!!

Christmas gift idea PLUS news on Project 365

I don't know about you, but I'm always looking for fun & creative new gift ideas...especially since I'm over the Activity Day girls at church. Found these today on one of my favorite blogs- BECKY HIGGINS. If you click on the link, she gives full details and instructions on how to make these darling drink coasters. I can see many possibilities with these..family photos, words, FABRIC and so much more! Let your creativity do the work.


And this..oh my heck! A few summers ago some super cute girls in our Stake did a 'Summer Ideas' class, and low and behold came the famous Duitsman 'Oreo' cake. Got it from the class and tweaked it a bit. Although I've masted the cake, it always comes out uneven and that involves cutting and making a big crumb mess. Yuck. I'm all about smooth and easy, non-messy baking (and cooking). Today, while drooling over Williams Sonoma and all the new goodies, I found this little beauty! I'm in LOVE. Seriously. Call me crazy, but how much fun will this be? It's possible to make that famous 'oreo' cake in perfect form. Gotta add this to my Christmas wish list.


Last but not least..Much time has passed since I've even thought about Project 365. How sad huh. I kind of lost intrest once the kits were advertised for sale, and thousands of us crazy scrapbook people got excited about it, then on sale day all kinds of problems in the sales department. We were traveling to Utah that day and I spent endless hours on hold (from my cell phone)...out of desperation, I called my Mom from one of the girls cell phones to see if she'd log on-line and order for me. But to no avail, she also encountered problems with the site. Talk about BIG DISAPPOINTMENT. That fire, that passion for this project would move on. I was determined to start without all the pretty papers, cards and album (kit). As the weeks went by, I found that excitement diminishing away. I mean, where were all the goods that I drooled over, waited for and talked to everyone about? Then the kits started shipping and the internet was filled with "I GOT MY KITS TODAY", I'll admit, I was a bit green with envy! Oh it gets so much better...Some people (you know who you are) were then selling these kits on EBay for ridiculous prices, I mean crazy! I wanted one badly, but not enough to pay $300 for one that retailed for I believe $40. Needless to say, my project died a slow death. I think I made it through 12 weeks of photos that I kept on a separate private blog...it was easiest to post a picture a day, then journal. They are neatly awaiting a pretty little kit, and for me to scrapbook them!

Today, as I did my regular blog roll...I found a post on Becky Higgins-if you don't follow her blog, you might want to take a peek. She has left CK=Creating Keepsakes to venture out on her own. I am so excited!! She is one talented gal. Anyways, as I scrolled down today, she announced a new kit that is in production at this very moment! More details to follow, but this is so close and dear to her heart and I just know that she really wants to reach out to those who basically missed out, and keep this project ongoing. It's SIMPLE, it's fresh, it's so very EXCITING! This is a sneak peak of what's coming...Oh my, I can barely contain myself! Looking forward to starting 2010 with PROJECT LIFE.



Go see it for yourselves. Pass on the good word. Do you feel inspired? Where will your photos be in 2010..?

BECKY HIGGINS Make sure to click on her 'blog'



Snow Days

Photography by: Lyndsie

We've completely missed Fall this year...and winter has arrived! It was snowing before all the leaves had fallen from the trees. We had 2 full SNOW DAYS (yay!)...and then a Fall break day. It was really nice to be able to stay home, enjoy the snowy cold days, eat soup, and watch lots of movies. Although the snow is pretty much melted now, and the temps have returned to the 60's, it won't be long until the bitter cold returns. We are in store for a pretty wet & cold winter!



Candy Corn Cupcakes....Yum!

Photo Credit: Our Best Bites

Yum yum! Jessica and I are some what of cupcake addicts lately-always looking for fun new recipes to try out. One of my very favorite food blogs posted this recipe a few days ago...thought it was so cute! Wishing that we were going to a party just so I could make some! Enjoy.
P.S. don't forget to click on the frosting link-it's a pretty yummy recipe.

Candy Corn Cupcakes

1 18.25-oz. white cake mix (I prefer Duncan Hines)

1 c. sour cream

1/2 c. vegetable oil

3 large eggs

1 tsp. almond extract

Yellow and orange Wilton food gel (about a heaping 1/2 tsp. of each)

A double batch of Perfect Cupcake Frosting and Filling

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 24-cup muffin tins with white paper liners (although you may not make it to 24 cupcakes). Combine all ingredients except for food coloring in a large bowl and beat on low speed for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then beat on medium for 2 additional minutes.

Divide batter equally into two bowls; you should have about 2 1/4-2 1/2 c. of batter in each bowl. Mix about 1/2 heaping tsp. of yellow coloring into one bowl of batter and 1/2 heaping tsp. of orange coloring into the other bowl.

Divide the yellow batter evenly among the muffin tins. I used a standard cookie scoop, which measures about 1 Tbsp. I only had enough to make 20 cupcakes with the cups filled about halfway. Holding the edges of each pan firmly, bang the pan a few times on the counter to level out the batter. Repeat the process with the orange batter. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 5 minutes in the pan and then allow to cool completely on a cooling rack.



My sweet Birthday girl

21 years ago, 33 hours of labor, she barely entered the world with a cord wrapped around her neck 3 times. I thought she was the most beautiful baby I had ever seen (ok, I'm a bit partial).

Hard to imagine that this beautiful little baby girl is 21 today! The years have truly flown by. What a joy this girl has been in our lives, and continues to be. From the very first day she entered the world, we knew she had a sweet strong spirit. With those beautiful big blue eyes, one look and she melted our hearts. I'm so very grateful to have been entrusted with this sweet girl! What a blessing she is to our family.

6 months

2nd Birthday

4 years

13 years

HAPPY 21st BIRTHDAY MY SWEET GIRL!!
We love you so much.

xoxoxoxo
Mama