Day 9 Organize Your Recipes

Here is the challenge:

Day #9 is here. Today's task is:


Organize your recipes! Make a three-ring binder for Favorite Family Recipes and another for Recipes to Try. You will need two binders, two divider sets with tabs, a three-hole punch, and a few clear vinyl sheet protector pages.


Notebook #1. Favorite Family Recipes: Gather all of your recipe cards, recipes from magazines, and your favorite dog-eared recipes in cookbooks. On 8 1/2 x 11-inch paper, photocopy recipes you use frequently. Divide them into hors d'oeuvres, salads, entrees, and desserts. Place them in your notebook. This notebook will contain all those old favorites like Mom's Apple Crisp and Uncle Charlie's Chili. It will not contain untried recipes.


Notebook #2. Recipes to Try: Create another binder with dividers and add a top-loading clear sheet protector to each section. Recipes collected from magazines and friends are placed inside the sheet protectors. When you have several odd sizes collected, photocopy them onto 8 1/2 x 11-inch paper, punch, and put into the notebook. After you have tried a recipe from this notebook and know it is a keeper, transfer it to your Favorite Family Recipes notebook.


(30 Days to a Simpler Life, p. 55)


OR for serious simplifiers only...


Make a list of your top twenty simplest dinners. Select dinners with the fewest ingredients. Choose recipes with five or fewer ingredients. Post this list on your fridge and use it to plan dinners during the work week. (30 Days to a Simpler LIfe, p. 63)


This one is also a no brainer for me...LOL.  My oldest dd copied our family recipes into a blank notebook holiday recipes including many from Dh's Grandma,  who was a fabulous cook.
 
I have my standbys....Betty Crocker (Now on my 3rd Copy!)

For an education in whole foods prreparation,  including combining vegetarian foods for whole protiens,  none is better than this one::(Now on my 2nd copy)

And,  for special meals,  a great geography lesson,  and still keeping in the whole foods...very yummy catergory,  this one can't be beat!

Although we are not vegetarians, (excpet for Ding,  who has been one since she was 3,)  I find it very easy to add a meat dish or add meat to the main recipe. 

These are the only recipes I keep.  Everything else is either in my head, at http://www.cooks.com/ or http://www.allrecipes.com/ . 

Easy menus:
Breakfast:  must include 1 protien (usually some kind of eggs) and one carb (usually fresh fruit or whole grain toast.  I also do muffins, granola bars (made with lots of ground nuts, or whole grain, hi-protien pancakes.

Lunch:  PB&J, Grilled Cheese, leftovers, soup etc.

Dinners: 1 meat,  2 veggies, (one cooked, one raw) 1 grain.  I  very often stir fry, broil,  or make a crockpot with all but the salad.

Now,  I am going completely gluten free due to Hashimoto's and Fibromyalgia.  I am a very simple cook...unless we have something special.  I try not to bake too much.

Anyway,  my recipe books are already pared down...maybe I live simpler than I thought.

Faithe

Day 8 Organizing the pantry

Ummmm...did you ever feel like Old Mother Hubbard??  My kids (one or another)  has been sick and barfing since last Tuesday....so I did not get to my usual shopping.  That,  and due to my health issues, I have decided to go gluten-free and lo-carb.  I do keep a box of Cheerios on hand for Hammy along with natural peanut butter and not-so-natural jelly...but even those stores are running low.

I have plenty of dog food and cat food...so that will keep our furry family happy....

I am slowly ridding the cabinets of anything that has preservatives, artificial colors or sugars and buying our food as fresh as possible.  The baking cabinet does have a bag of white sugar...but all the flours are whole grain,  all the nuts non- processed bought in bulk....I am also getting rid of soy products because they seem to exacerbate auto-immune diseases...so I am changing from a soy based protien powder...to a pea based one made byt the same company....Peaceful Planet.  ther protien powder is the best...and it comes completely unsweetened.   I just add frozen strawberries,  a T. of flax meal and a handful of spinach leaves....yummy Green Shake!

I hope this one is as good as their soy and whey based powders.

So,  my pantry is clean,  my baking cupboard is not too bad,  my fridge is stocked with fresh meat, fruit, veggies, butter and milk,  so no one ...even if someone feels like eating is going to starve.

...and NOW,  I am going to take a nap....

Faithe

Week in review 3/14-3/18/11

We entered into this week in winter and exited in spring!!  Birds are chirping,  colts foot and crocuses are popped.  Snow is almost...almost all gone.

Monday was Yuggies 20th Birthday!!!!  Where did the time go??  So,  to celebrate...we had the traditional egg rolls!!!  The story behind that is when i was in labor with him,  it just was not progressing.  Daddy was getting very antsy....and hungry...so I finally told him to go on down,  find some place to eat and come back.  Well,  wouldn't you know it,  as soon as he left,  my labor kicked into full gear.  Daddy almost missed Yuggie being born because he was eating chinese food down the street...so every year it has been a Father/ son tradition to have eggrolls on Yug's birthday.  I usually make pies...because it is PI day!

OK....back to school stuff:

We had an on again off again week due to Hammy being sick....and our house being under renovation.  I am also trying to de-junk as much as possible....AND,  I am having another flare-up this week of fibromyalgia...I am in a lot of pain....

Ok...this week we covered
BIBLE:  Memory Verse:  With God nothing is impossible
              Scripture:  Luke 1:5-25 The Angel announces the birth of John the Baptist to Zecharias.

History/ Geography:  The new Australian Commonwealth/  Bushrangers/ Ned Kelly

 

Science:   We finally finished reading Pagoo!!! 

Literature:  Read Aloud.  The Wind in the Willows.   One of my all time favorite books...I love the language and the complexity of the sentence structure.   My kids are mesmerized by the prose.  LOVE.

I especially love this edition with the illustrations by Tash Tudor.  Lovely.

Math, LA and Reading got done daily,  but we only worked on 3 lessons in each this week.  Hammy, Cubby & Tallulah are almostfinished with their CLE readers for this year.  Thankfully,   they love them!

Cubby has really taken to reading in just this past week.  It is like a new world opened to him.  He is reading  This book on Louis Braille

After reading about him in his CLE Reader,  he wanted to know more about this boy.  I had this book on the shelf...and he is loving it.
 
I am hoping no one else gets the bug Hammy has.  He has been barfing and pooping for 3 days.  He finally looks a bit better today.  OK...off to plan next week....
 
Faithe 3/18/11

Day 7. Tackling the Bathroom.

Day 7' s challenge is to tackle the bathroom. Even with our large family, we only have 1 small full bath, and 1 half bath. The 1/2bath is tiny...and already cleared out. I tackled the bathroom drawers on messy drawer day, so that was done.

Now, I realize the shower curtain is ancient and dirty...and I have no toothbrush holders or soap dishes...or pretty much anything that makes the bathroom "serene.". So, even though I have my no purchase of 30 days challenge...I allotted myself $ 50 to make the bathroom pretty... Let's see how I can do.....

The Challenge:


Today, clear your bathroom counter of everything.  Then add no more than three items.  Good choices are a water glass, a soap dish, and a scented candle.  Next, declutter your bathroom cabinets and drawers.  Toss any product in a jar, tube, or bottle that you have not used for six months.  Include prescription and over-the-counter drugs, dried up hand cream, and perfume bottles that are so old the insides are dark brown.  Bathrooms need not be a haven for half-used, nearly empty, never-to-be-opened containers.  (30 Days to a Simpler Life, p. 45)


OR for serious simplifiers only...


Think of the freedom you have when you travel with a makeup kit and a few toiletries.  With that image in mind, remove everything from your bathroom counter, cabinets, and drawers.  (Go for one brand of each item---you don't need three kinds of cold medicine.)  After that, put back your essentials.  Finally, hang plain-colored towels and eliminate excess wall art.  (30 Days to a Simpler Life, p. 49)


Here are my results for day 7:
Medicine Cabinet...check
Closet over toilet cleaned out...Check
Cleaners gone through and empties trashed....check.
Toilet, shower and floors cleaned....check!
New pretty shower curtain, shower liner, curtain holder ringy thingys, soap dish, tooth brush holder, tumbler, bath mat, lovely smelling candle that matches and new green hand towels and wash cloths AND a small green step out of the shower rug....Total price....KA Ching......$35.64!!!! 

Gotta love those Family Dollar stores. !!

So, What does every Homeschool Mom Dream of??

NEW SHELVES!!!!

Thank You to my wonderful, talented, gorgeous husband for not only making me more...and more...and more shelves...BUT,  for teaching my talented, gorgeous, intelligent sons to make them too.  You are a great Dad! 

Day 6: Wardrobe...What Wardrobe???

Spend at least an hour reviewing your wardrobe. Create a wardrobe without "strays" --- items that don't go with anything else. Identify your strays and hang them at one end of the closet. Plan to buy something to go with them or give them away. (30 Days to a Simpler Life, p. 38)

OR for serious simplifiers only...

"Freeze your wardrobe", says Allison, an artist living in Boston. At first, we thought she was suggesting we put our clothes in cold storage. A shuddering thought! But she meant, "Don't buy any new clothes for a specified time period---freeze your wardrobe in its current state (and continue to cull out the clothes you rarely wear). When you feel compelled to buy something new, write it down on a list." (30 Days to a Simpler Life, p. 44)

Seriously?   Well this is a no brainer because...well,  I am so simplified,  I barely have a wardrobe to speak of.  I have 4 pairs of jeans,  3 pairs of dress pants,  (brown, black & burgundy), 2 dress tops, 2 little black dresses,   one dress jacket, 8 short sleeved v-neck t-shirts, 4 long sleeve v-necked t-shirts, and 3 or 4 nice tops from Kohls to wear to Dr. appointments or if I need to be seen in public.  That is all.  I have sufficient underwear and socks that I get rid of  and replace as necessary. 

 
 
Now,  what I really need to cull is my book shelves!  THOSE are full to overflowing...and in every room, and closet in the house.  That is where I really have a hard time culling.  I love my books!  Last year I purged a full overflowing car load... You would never know it! 
 
Anyway,  I think I am going to simplify my dishes today...instead of clothes....
 
Faithe

So,  sseeing as I have no wardrobe to speak of,  I decided to attack something that is a terror to all Mom's of large families.  Can you guess what it is????

That's right.  You guessed it!   The sock basket!!!!  Oh boy!  So,  I attacked with vengeance.

                                                  TAH DAH!!!!!...

All done & put away......

I also tackled my pots and pand closet.....I think it looks nice...I really pared down,  got rid of lids that didn't match and pots without lids....It made cooking dinner tonight so easy.  I could find my casserole dishes without an avalance!

Lent Challenge Day 5

I love this challenge....the great closet clean out...LOL.

Design a highly organized closet immediately. To become inspired, visit closet companies and stores like Hold Everything and Stacks & Stacks. I will not be doing this part of the challenge because of the "don't buy anything non-perishable for 30 days challenge...and I still have 23 days to go.  Instead,  I will make myself a list of what I might need to be better organized or pieces of wardrobe that might need replacing for the spring/summer season.

Make your hangers one kind and one color.  I already have enough hangers that do match and are durable.  I am not he fancy hanger type,  and I find myself frustrated by ones that don't match,  so I will stick with the ones I have.

 Next, radically pare down your wardrobe. Recycle at least half of your clothing and accessories. Put your clothes back into your closet using a simple arrangement. (See "Arrange your clothes inventively" above.) Finally, remove your shoes from the closet floor and restrict them to neutral colors.  OK,  so here is where  it gets personal.  I will TRY to weed through the shoes.  Shoes are one luxury I allow myself to have.  I love shoes!  BUT,  I will go through them just for the sake of the challenge,  and any I haven't worn in a year will go to their new home..  


MY RESULTS!

After seven days, review your closet and work out the bugs!



                                (30 Days to a Simpler LIfe, p. 37)


I actually do this one every season.  I have very limited closet space,  so I am always weeding out stuff that gets old or doesn't fit...or I bought and just don't like.  I am usually careful about clothing purchases because of my limited space...and I really have no sentimental attachments to clothing or pretty much anything else.  I am a tosser.  My dh thinks it is because I make poor decisions and don't buy things that last,  while the truth is,  I use my things until I no longer have use for them and then...out they go.

Now,  cleaning the school closet challenge...THAT will be a challenge indeed!!!

Faithe

So,  I didn't clean the school closet,  but I did organize the math and manipulative drawer.

Blurry in the pic,  but it is nice and neat.