# October 2009 Prep Journal



## Guest (Oct 1, 2009)

Here it is October and the Fall weather has arrived in Florida. It's been very pleasant these last couple of days getting the chores done. It won't last, but we'll enjoy it while we can. El Nino seems to have squelched the rest of the hurricane season which usually begins to wind down in October.

Economically the government is saying the recession is over. From what I can see in the local area it's the same old, same old. Must be nice to live in a paper world, but the rest of us have to deal with the reality we can see. 

There have been four major earthquakes in two days along with attendant tsunamis threats which I hope will serve to remind everyone, ESPECIALLY those in seismically active areas, that sometimes disasters come with no warning at all. Surprise! Ready or not there you are. Better to get prepped and stay prepped rather than have to face the consequences otherwise. If you are at or near to sea level on the coasts a disaster a thousand miles away can still reach out and touch you.

Prep wise we've picked up the activity a bit lately. Yesterday was a cannery run which added to the family storage. We're now well over two years on wheat, and approaching that much in rice. The rest have come up a bit as well. Not very many orders this time around so we spent more time than usual canning for the cannery storage and still did not break 150 cans total. Complacency setting in again I suppose. At least until the next thing comes along that causes folks to suddenly 'get it' and they pack the place.

As I mentioned in my last post in the previous month's thread I'm changing my fuel storage over to a drum from plastic cans. I'll save the best of the cans for portability but the bulk of the storage is going into drums. During the '04 hurricanes we went into the season with twenty five gallons which had always been plenty, but with having two hurricanes so close together plus the havoc the other two that didn't hit us caused with the rest of the state fuel was a bit chancy there for a while. Then came the '05 season with Katrina and Rita and fuel availability problems all over again. Then gas went to over four dollars a gallon for a while. I started steadily increasing the storage as we could afford it, but eventually the oldest cans started showing their age which meant replacing them. Now I'm going to drums and might even go with a small tank, but if I do that I think I'll build a shelter for it outside of the workshop. Never know when the next time we have to fuel the generator and have gas to get to and from work will happen with the gas stations being out will happen again. We never did run out, but I wasn't comfortable with how close we came. It is entirely possible to find yourself in a disaster situation while still having to participate in the regular workaday world for a time before things straighten themselves out again.

How's the prep month looking for you folks?

.....Alan.


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## scatyb (Jan 20, 2009)

Well hey, I can finally add something.

Wife and I have been storing for a while what we could(and had room for). The "local" Walmart here has recently dedicated one of it's isles to food storage or bulk items.

We went down to take a look and ran across broccolli cheese soup in a #10 can. While not terribly mindblowing, I did the math on the per meal cost and found each serving(8oz) cost only $0.30 after tax. With some homemade breadbowls you'd be looking at a decent meal for less than $0.50 a person. It also boasts a 10-15 year shelf life. We definitely picked some up.

Anyway, I thought it was a score.

EDIT: Also, I found out that our local cannery allows for a 200lb purchase limit per month. After working it out, between that and what can be had at Costco, the family could another year's supply in about 7 months(also for less than $200/month). HAH! What fortune! Now where to put it all........


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

I've let our stock of stored, filtered water get low, so I'm keeping the filters (Berkeys) filled and filtering them into 5 gallon buckets for storage. As we don't have a generator, the well doesn't work if the power goes out. We can collect water off the roofs for flushing and animal watering, but I just feel much better when I know I have a good supply of drinkable water on hand.

I just had a wonderful thought this morning about the creamy cheese and cauliflower soup I made last night. The cauliflower was grown in my garden, and everything else came from our home stocks - powdered milk, cheese sauce, onion powder, fresh-ground pepper, garlic juice from our home grown garlic, and a bit of salt. So good, and I didn't have to worry about not having the ingredients on hand for what I wanted to make (spur of the moment). To me, that is as much a good reason for a well stocked pantry as having SHFT. I love knowing that whatever I get a desire to cook, I can whip it up without having to go to the store. 

Today I will be canning the rest of the green beans, freezing more ripe tomatoes for later sauce making, and maybe making some raspberry jam, if I don't eat them all fresh.


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## Wisconsin Ann (Feb 27, 2007)

Let me just say *I am NOT ready for it to be October!* Someone call and change it!

However....

Harvest is in. I'm going to buy up a couple dozen pumpkins next week again and put them in thepantry. Can some, just keep the others in the cool and use them as squash. My garden produced a nice tubfull of squash this year so that's happily sitting in the cool. 50# of onions in the cellar, and the last 2 hills of potatoes ready to dig and store. 

I'm actually using up stores this month instead of adding to them from shopping. LOTS of soup going into the pantry, tho, I think.


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## michelleIL (Aug 29, 2004)

Any way to fashion a root cellar above ground?


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## Sharon (May 11, 2002)

We have our fall garden planted and it is doing better than it has in years! It looks promising. DH just cleaned out the chimneys and cleaned out one of our wood stoves. We still need to clean out the wood cook-stove yet. We plan to dig our sweet potatoes some time in the next week or so. We took a peek at a couple and they were extremely large; if they are all like that, we'll have a nice harvest! We've also started cleaning vines off the tomato cages and started hanging them back up for the winter--we have several to do yet though.


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## MountAiry (May 30, 2007)

In the process of moving all stored preps with an expiration date of 2010 up to main level of house. I&#8217;m a firm believer of not storing everything in one place anyway so that plus I never let anything expire, usually keeps me on top of my game. It&#8217;s a bit of a pain, but worth the effort.


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## BoldViolet (Feb 5, 2009)

I'm still relatively new at this whole survival/prep thing...

I'm learning how to bake bread (actually have a couple pounds of dough on the counter right now rising), I'm gonna make a trip to the local yarn shop and see if they offer private knitting lessons (their beginner classes are always when I'm working).

Just restored what we used the other week when the floods came through here in GA. Whenever a family member visits, they always look at me funny when I open the pantry to make dinner... "Geez, Theresa, do you have enough food?"

Am in the process of clearing out the laundry nook to put more preps up on the shelving in there... no one but me looks in there. 

I'm TOTALLY new at gardening -- I had three tomato plants this year, and yielded about 3 tomatoes. And now I realize that GA red clay isn't all that great for growing things without compost and whatnot.

So I've bought a couple gardening books to read over the winter. Gonna have raised beds next year.


Downsizing as much "stuff" as I can -- be it clothes, knick knacks, or rehoming a few of my chinchillas I no longer breed. 


Doing what I can here in suburbia while we save so we can get out of here and get a homestead. 




Next time I'm at the store, I'm gonna see if they have those big buckets. I wanna see about starting long-term storage for flour and rice.


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## Trixters_muse (Jan 29, 2008)

I am happy to report that I am getting pretty good at pressure canning and have NOT blown the house up ...yet:bouncy:

I now have 3 dozen quarts of turkey and chicken chunks in broth, all bought on sale and canned in my recently purchased pressure canner. I have also put up 12 pints of jelly and 12 quarts of tomatoes via steam bath, I'm starting to feel like a pro  

I have been busy this past week trimming trees and chopping wood for the fire pit and fireplace. Even though the fireplace isn't our main source of heat, it is nice to have a warm fire in the winter not to mention the power did go out a couple of cold nights last winter and it was good to have that fire burning! I did invest in a lil buddy propane heater and I bought some extra propane and while it was on sale, picked up an extra 40 pounds of charcoal.

The garden is small but still producing squash, green beans and some tomatoes which are being canned and frozen as I get them. A neighbor a few blocks away is moving this week so he invited me to visit tomorrow and take what I want from his garden which is 5 times bigger than mine and still producing so looks like I will be busy this weekend!


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## mommathea (May 27, 2009)

This is my first real month of getting preps together but here goes..

7qts of tomatoe/okra
6quarts of apple butter with another 12lbs of apples waiting to be processed
Just purchased 30lbs of potatoes and will can those up. it's a start..right.
Just put in an order for grass fed beef
And will pick the rest of the garden next week.
And head to the farmer's market to purchase winter squash to process.

My other goal is to start storing water this month
And each shopping period buying 2x as much flour as I normaly do, and double of some other things.


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## Collinsfarm (Oct 30, 2007)

Hello folks,
It's been a while...hope everyone is well.
Let's see, the fall garden is in with squash already forming. Perhaps the most significant item to report is our chickens. We started with half a dozen chicks back in March. We are thrilled with them. On August 1st we got our first egg and they have done so well during the heat of dog days here giving us 4 to six eggs a day. 

Other items continue to get added/done a little each week. When you are steadily doing a little, sometimes it doesn't seem like much, until a few months have passed and you can see the results. Best wishes to all.


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## oakwoods201 (Dec 21, 2008)

DH cleaned the chimney today, so , tonight....the 1st fire of the season! It's really not cold enough, but we had to have one. Next week I get to go over to Daddy's and raid his apple trees. I split what I can or dry with him, so I get all the apples I can handle. We put in the winter cabbage, brocolli, collard greens & turnip greens. Ok, actually, DH planted it all. I have been sick this week, so he let me take a nap & had it all done before he woke me up. Awww how sweet. Have already given DSs the order to get the wood out of the barn side shed and fill up the front porch this weekend. I have been doubling up on grocery staples and checking out all of the clearance racks. Found 2 qts of corn syrup 1/2 price. Paid 88 cents each!


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## wvstuck (Sep 19, 2008)

First was cleaning the stove pipe and stove, and bringing in a small amount of stove wood (38 degrees here one night already) I have about 3 more cords of wood to cut from the logs we drug in and get that split and stored. Still trying to find time on a dry Saturday to get the garden turned over for the winter and start layering shredded leaves, grass, clippings and manure compost on top. I still have to get all of the battens cut and put on the barn. We hatched 62 new chicks a month and a half ago and I need to get a bigger coop built in the barn for our new "dinner" chicks. As we recently took in a couple of new family members 7 and 10 years old, I need to adjust the preps for children in the new age group. Apples and Pears are on the canning schedule ASAP and then there is all of the other stuff I need to find time to get done 

Oh by the way.... The first wood stove fire of the year was just as good as I thought it would be.. Warming me all the way deep in my bones...


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## mamita (May 19, 2008)

we got both woodstove chimneys cleaned also...ready to go. hit some sales, so built up the canned goods and more pasta. (I could live on rice or pasta, so it's a given to have an abundance. add a little cheese (also lots of cheese on hand), and I'd be set for months...probably a year...maybe longer)  cutting down another tree tomorrow for wood to split to take us well in to next winter. not looking forward to the clean-up, but love the wood stacking.  new garden beds being worked on now for spring. feels good to be out working in the cool temps (now..somebody turn off the rain!)


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## cowboy joe (Sep 14, 2003)

The pears are put up now onto the apples and cranberries. No frost yet so letting the gardens 'run' until there is nothing left to give. Found seeds at the local feed store yesterday for $0.15 / pack. Picked up a half dozen vegetable packs which is about all they had left as the rest were all flowers.

Put another set of quail eggs in the incubator. Only a baker's dozen this time as egg production is starting to fall off.

Cleaned up the bow and got some practice in for the upcoming deer season. Almost had venison for the freezer this morning as a big doe and a fawn jumped out infront of the scooter on my way to work. 

Getting cold. Planning on spending part of the weekend cleaning up the wood pile and doing some more splitting.


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## mamita (May 19, 2008)

forgot about the many cans of broth I canned for the dogs for this winter. they like it on their kibble, which I also stocked up on last sale. pups are good now for a very longggg time.


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## Scott in Florida Panhandl (May 10, 2002)

michelleIL said:


> Any way to fashion a root cellar above ground?


Google "root cellars" and you'll find all kinds of ideas. 

My grandfather in North Georgia every year made what he called a "potato hill" which consisted of a scooped out place in the garden, tipi type frame w/ cornstalks, then covered out side with pinestraw, soil,leaves,etc. Inside was a lot of pine straw that the sweet potatos went into. On top he placed a wash tub, which when removed gave an entry to reach thru. Worked for him, probably depends on how cold winter is.

Scott


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## SLD Farm (Dec 19, 2007)

Added a few pints of grape jelly from my vines. Not enough grapes this year for wine so jelly instead. Fruit production was very dismal this year. Tomorrow I am heading to the Amish to pick up pumpkins for $.25 each and potatoes to can. This was my 1st year growing potatoes and while mine did OK, I only planted a few hills netting only about 10#.
I was able to add several packages of small candles from a yard sale last weekend for free. Also added a few more small bottles of shampoo. A farmer down the road had a partial wagon of last year's hay that he wanted rid of so we got 15 bales for free. I've also saved newspapers all summer so will be starting to make newspaper logs for fire starting.
I am so not ready for Winter! Yuck! I am over the cold and mud already.

Also I have been getting a lot of old coins through my store lately, really picked up in the last 2 months. Wonder if the economy is making people cash in coins that they have been holding? Last night I got a 1935 Quarter and 2wks ago a 1905 Penny. Of course I save all of them.


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## cindy71 (Jul 7, 2008)

48 cans of tuna from Aldi.


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## soulsurvivor (Jul 4, 2004)

Late garden is still giving us tomatoes, squash and zuchinni which are still being put into the freezers. The turnips and kale still aren't ready for harvest. The only meat we added to the freezers was hamburger. The veggies are taking up some space usually reserved for the meat. We took out the corn stalks and tied them together for fall display with a few of our pumpkins. I set this well back from the road in hopes that the pumpkins don't suddenly grow legs and walk off. 

Due to some remodeling still going on here, I keep moving around the preps and haven't yet settled on the best place for storage. The pantry is full and these are extra preps I've added this year. I finally found a wall hanging candle lantern that has easy access to the candle inside and is big enough to hold a pillar-sized candle. I also bought a single serving sized cast iron skillet and sandwich grill to use on the campstove and woodstove. Also bought 2 more stockpots. 

Anything new/used being added to preps for the non-electric days to come. Hopefully we'll be better prepared than we've been in the past.


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## Rocktown Gal (Feb 19, 2008)

I've add 36 cans of food to the store this month. Hope to add much more. 

Cow to be butchered on Nov 4 and list of pork items needed listed for the butcher.


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## hillbillygal (Jan 16, 2008)

Went to a rummage sale today and found two Coleman Lil' Oscar coolers that will be a great size for first aid kits for the cars. They were .75 each. Went by the grocery store that had Scotts 1000 sheet tp for 4.99 a 12pk so I bought my limit of 4.


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## Cindy in NY (May 10, 2002)

I found four 120 hour Campmor candles at a yardsale for $1 each!

Today I'm dehydrating banana peppers and freezing sliced bell peppers. The garden is about done - just some small red cabbages and a bit of broccoli to go. Put the garlic in yesterday. Need to buy some straw to cover it and the strawberries. Need to go to the neighbors and rake up some pine needles to go around the raspberries.

Got the pantry straight and can now see the few areas that are low.

Theresa - the raised beds are the way to go. Try to fill them with your homemade compost. When we left Atlanta, we took a 50 gallon drum filled with compost! We always had great crops of tomatoes, cukes, and peppers esp habaneros!

DH still needs to get the snowblower prepped.


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## TheMartianChick (May 26, 2009)

We just stocked up on 12 lbs of italian turkey sausage, 9 lbs of sandwich steaks and 4 boxes of cereal. We also stocked up on our household cleaners.


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## Pouncer (Oct 28, 2006)

I have peppers to get into the freezer and some small sugar pumpkins to take care of today also. Everything else is up from the garden, it produced a lot of food that is already processed one way or the other. I have some potatoes to deal with that I purchased, they need canned up but they will hold for another week. Next (and probably last) canning chore will be the salmon.


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## two_barking_dogs (Sep 17, 2002)

DreamerTheresa said:


> Next time I'm at the store, I'm gonna see if they have those big buckets. I wanna see about starting long-term storage for flour and rice.



DT - Since you location tag shows that you are from Ga, The LDS folks have a cannery in Tucker which is just east of Atl. For normal purchase they are open to the public. canning requires a reservation which is hard to get. 

A case of rice in #10 cans is currently running about $16 which is 33 lbs. Advantage of the cans is it last pretty much forever. What we do is my household is buy 25 lb bags rice in for everyday use and the canned from LDS for storage.  Wheat we get from LDS in both bags for everyday use and canned for storage. 

We used to put much more up in buckets but have gotten away from them if we can get the stuff in cans at a cheap price. Beans, Oats, Rice, Wheat can all be gotten from the LDS. 

And for those that don't have a cannery close by they sell over the internet with shipping included in the price. Prices are about double the cannery price but its still a good deal for storage food.



Chaging topic.

A.T. Did you ever get your Retsel mill yet? 

Their website still says 2 weeks for their basic colors. I'm wanting one but am waiting until layoff season is over at my company.

.


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## InHisName (Jan 26, 2006)

Manygoats- missed you at that prep fair! Maybe next time..... would you share that cauliflower cheesy soup recipe? Have lots of cauliflower in the freezer from this years garden... Today canned chicken soup and plum butter. Finished digging potatoes and pulled out all the tomatoes from hoop house. Need to get that garden tilled and garlic planted- this is a good accountability thread. Only thing left in garden is chard, collards, a few beets, carrots, and horseradish. The last of the goat jerky is in the dehydrator, and picking up Mr sausage ram at the butcher tomorrow. What do all of you do with canned potatoes, and why? Oh, and left over from the prep fair is 450 lbs of wheat!!!! Folks just didn't know how to deal with it......


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## Guest (Oct 4, 2009)

two_barking_dogs said:


> Chaging topic.
> 
> A.T. Did you ever get your Retsel mill yet?
> 
> ...


 It _should_ ship this week. I'll be sure to do a post when it does.

.....Alan.


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## pamintexas (Jun 15, 2002)

*A T, * thanks for the info on vacuum sealing the flour. I didn't have much success sealing flour or corn meal in canning jars so I just used 5 gallon buckets, Mylar bags and oxygen absorbers.

Since our garden was pretty much a flop due to a very hot and dry year, I have been stocking up on canned veggies from the store. Not as good as home canned, but better than nothing. All that's left of the garden is some Malabar spinach which I will pick and dehydrate when it stops raining. I can't say enough good things about that vegetable. Since it is a vine, it takes up very little room and literally thrives in our hot, dry summers.

I planted a Meyer lemon tree this week and the rains we are getting should help it take off.

We invested in a predator call mainly as protection for our chickens but may come in handy should we ever have to resort to eating **** or possum 

Tomorrow I plan to can bacon.


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## themamahen (Jun 26, 2005)

Well we finished up our firewood late sept 8 cords wheww im tired. it is garden gleaning time here so the beets and carrots and onions have to be dug and processed making dehydrated apples the next few days (turning them into muffin mix in a jar for food storage, 

grocery had a case lot sale and bought 3 cases of peaches and hubby only put 2 in the cart so have to run back and get the 3rd (18,99 a lot of money) 

added 100 lbs more wheat to the storage 50 lbs of oats and bought me a REAL nice first aid kit (80.00) but came with 2 scalpels and sutures and burn treatments) just need some eye wash and iodine tabs now  

Did the last farmers market made 160.00 (for xmas DD getting food storage and DH getting a shotgun) so that helped a bunch.

Been cold here snowed 3 days ago and sposed to snow today GRRR need to get my garden up. sighsss but I just cant seem to get off HT LOL


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## FrontPorch (Mar 27, 2008)

BFL lamb we ordered is going to butcher on Tuesday, I'll pick up his fleece to process and spin sometime next week. Will order a hog tomorrow. Both from neighbors. Defrosted the basement freezer and gave it a good scrubbing yesterday now it's ready to refill. 

The old homestead apple tree has given up the ghost. Only produced about five tiny apples. It came down yesterday. We planted a replacement orchard early this spring but it looks like I'll need to make a stop at the local, family-run commercial orchard this year. The area where the tree was is getting a rabbit proof fence around it and will be home to some raised beds for next year. Tired of feeding the wildlife all my lettuce and tomatoes. 

Inventoried all the food storage and started stocking up on a few things. Still nowhere close to where we need to be but getting there. Added more shelving to the cellar and continuing to add water reserves every week. 

Inspected the cistern and well casing. Decided running the roof water back into the old cistern and adding a hand pump is the way to go for backup water supply for the stock tanks. Will pick up what we need next week. Got a few estimates for a generator. Need to decide how much we want to spend. The built-in units are awfully nice.

Still struggling to make a decent loaf of bread. I hate that my MIL has done if for 50+ years and makes it look so darned easy. :grit:


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## ihedrick (May 15, 2005)

I'm finally getting family trained to set aside scrap meat and bones for making broth for dogs. It's a freebie and makes the kibbles more appealing to the dogs.


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## TheMrs (Jun 11, 2008)

We're still in the beginning stage of prepping, so I'm learning a lot here. 

Had a yard sale and made $585, which will go towards a manual grain mill. We already have a Nutrimill, but it won't do us much good if there's no electricity. So, I'm researching manual mills.

I don't own any canning equipment (except for jars), so I will be putting that on my Christmas list this year. I still need to research exactly WHAT I need to can successfully.


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## wyld thang (Nov 16, 2005)

Yesterday we got a woodsplitter and split a bunch--perfect day to do it, sunny, dry. No whining for the child that has always whined about this chore too(he's growing up! he's 19--ha, I've finally convinced him it's "working out", but still, it's a blessing to see an improved attitude in this kid towards chop wood/carry water ).

Last weekend I started to make quice jelly, cored and cut up 11 pounds of quince "rocks", cooked it to the point of straining it for the juice, and my dad shows up with his girlfriend and wants to visit(we had told them "no we are busy" when they called--I had planned a bunch of canning, hub and son were cutting wood, a sick kid in bed...). So I had to drop the quince stuff to go entertain, and when I came back to it I'd forgotten to cover it all and it was covered with fruit flies from nowhere. Yay, cooked compost porridge for the garden I guess.

I brought in all the spagghetti squash. Still getting a few straggler raspberries and strawberries that are divine. I need to strip all the green tomatoes today, and I'm letting my pole beans get fat to make beans for seed.

I have a bit of fennel I cut, I'm saving the seeds(which taste like licorice). I just read that fennel seed used to be used for bug repellant. I don't have a bug problem, but good to know?

I made a new trellis in the garden, and plan on making some more this fall when the beans come down--more sturdy and permanent than stick teepees. 

It's a good acorn year, lots of acorns falling right now, kinda funny how loud they are falling on the van roof. I see turkeys in the road going down to the busstop and think how yummy one would be for Thanksgiving(smoked!). I'm glad for the colder, wetter, stormier, gloomier weather.

I'm also making a bunch of stuff to sell at a Saturday Market that will start up in NOv in my town--hats, mittens, scarves, bracelets/cuffs, headbands, hairclips, both knit n crocheted. I get huge amounts of yarn samples (the good stuff!) since I design for yarn companies, so it's cool to make stuff with "free" materials. I'm mulling over doing an Etsy store--I am a hands on person and much prefer the market selling over dealing with a computer.

My sister's fig tree is almost ripening, so I'll be looking up things to make with figs(chutney, etc). Also looking forward to her walnuts.

Not so preppish, but our county has an art studio tour each year, which I did this last weekend. Once I get the fotos loaded I'll share it, lots of cool stuff and cool PEOPLE!!! so inspiring!


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## wyld thang (Nov 16, 2005)

Also been losing sleep enjoying the gorgeous MOON!!!!


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## wyld thang (Nov 16, 2005)

TheMrs said:


> We're still in the beginning stage of prepping, so I'm learning a lot here.
> 
> Had a yard sale and made $585, which will go towards a manual grain mill. We already have a Nutrimill, but it won't do us much good if there's no electricity. So, I'm researching manual mills.
> 
> I don't own any canning equipment (except for jars), so I will be putting that on my Christmas list this year. I still need to research exactly WHAT I need to can successfully.


600 bucks going towards a grain mill? yikes, is it gold plated? (I'm just teasing you) check out beer brewing supply places, we got a manual grinder/mill for nowhere near that price.


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

That $585 will get you a manual grinder, along with an All American canner and a good supply of jars and lids to can with, and the required book, Ball Blue Book on food preservation. Good job! Check out Craig's List and Freecycle for cheap or free canning jars, too.

InHis Name - I really wanted to come over for the prep fair, but couldn't pass up the extra night at work (12 hrs at time and a half makes for a REALLY good paycheck). I'd have taken the rest of the wheat off your hands, too!  I'm going to make a trip over to visit my dsis and bil, and check out the grain elevators there to see if I can get a truck bed full for cheap. The savings will pay for the gas, I'm sure, with the bonus of a good visit thrown in.

The soup wasn't really made with an exact recipe - I'm more a throw it together kind of cook, but I'll do my best. I started with 2 good sized heads of cauliflower from the garden, cleaned and broken into large florets, then pressure cooked to mush. That's really how I ended up making soup instead of a side of veg for dinner - I'm still getting used to this new cooker - it doesn't cook the same as my old Revereware pressure cooker. I just left the water in the pressure cooker pan, added in some powdered whole milk to about double strength milk (Nido brand, bought at Wal-Mart), mixed about 1/2 a cup of flour with 1/4 cup of melted butter and stirred it into the hot cauliflower/milk mix. I took a potato masher to it all and when it was well blended, I added about 1/2 a bottle of cheese sauce from Dollar Tree (an experimental purchase and one I'll repeat). If you don't have cheese sauce, you could easily use velvetta, or add shredded cheddar, which I usually do. You could also use powdered cheese sauce. I added about a 1/4 cup or a bit more of grated parmesan cheese, some juice from the garlic jar in the fridge, about a tsp or so of onion powder, loads of fresh-cracked black pepper and salt to taste, let the whole mess barely simmer for a while to cook the flour taste out, adjusted the thickness with a bit of water, and served it up. I think it made close to a gallon of soup, counting what we ate fresh, and the 2 quarts frozen. It was really good - I'm tempted to thaw out a quart, lol! I'll check the progress of the cauliflower still in the garden and maybe I'll be ready to make another batch.

It looks like the garden was frosted last night - these clear nights at full moon seem to be when we are most likely to frost. Even the tomatoes and other tender plants I had covered took a hit. I think they'll still be okay in the garden for a bit longer, but some of it will have to be pulled and hung upside down to ripen. Surprisingly, the raspberries seem to have survived okay. I'm headed back out to the garden after I get off here, time to dig the rest of the potatoes, pul the rest of the rhubarb, and pull the tomato plants that got the worst of the cold. I have a lot of ripe tomatoes to either freeze or throw in a pot for sauce now.

I got the rest of the tiles cut, so I am finishing the hearth today and cutting the hole into the ceiling (but not through the roof quite yet). I am very close to having my wood heat. :bouncy: Supposed to be nice weather this whole week, so I should be able to finish the install, barring any glitches.


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## BoldViolet (Feb 5, 2009)

two_barking_dogs said:


> DT - Since you location tag shows that you are from Ga, The LDS folks have a cannery in Tucker which is just east of Atl. For normal purchase they are open to the public. canning requires a reservation which is hard to get.
> 
> .




Thank you! :bow:


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## sgl42 (Jan 20, 2004)

special ordered 50# organic yellow corn from a local store, should be in wed or thurs. about the same price as ordering online, but helps a local small business. wish they had 25# bags instead, but guess i'll just have to eat more cornbread. so far, i've experimented with grinding popcorn for cornbread, which works ok, but i'm hoping real yellow corn will be better. 

from a different store, special ordered 100# of organic hard red and 50# of organic soft white wheat, which should be in this weekend, and have to drive in to the city to pick it up. will also restock various other grains in smaller amounts (eg, a couple pounds of rye, flax seed, and other grains that i can't use 50# of very quickly.) 

need to order some loose-leaf tea from amazon before my current stash runs out. can't disrupt the start-of-the-day ritual!

--sgl


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## Bonnie L (May 11, 2002)

Yay! I can finally report stuff done! :dance:

Over the last few months I got free-for-the-picking raspberries & pears, & bought 2nds of organic apricots & peaches. Canned, froze, made jam, & made raspberry vinegar & cordial. 

Today I picked up 1/2 a pig from friends & they tossed in the head at no charge. I've got the chops, ribs, & roasts in the freezer & I'm canning the rest tomorrow. 

Anyone know how to cut up a pig's head? I asked in the pig forum & haven't got a reply yet. Eddie skinned it for me, but I need to find out how to saw the skull open & remove the brains, tongue, & maybe how to make head cheese - if I feel up to it. (Eddie is no help because he's always given the head to their dogs.) 

If there is a tutorial on-line, that would be a great help.


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## sgl42 (Jan 20, 2004)

rose2005 said:


> Which tea do you use sgl42 if you don't mind me asking. I'm on the look out for some different brands, and use Amazon a lot.


Taylors of Harrogate, Earl Grey Tea, Loose Leaf 1 Kilo

i originally got hooked on marks & spenser earl grey tea after someone gave my then girlfriend some after their return from britain, but that became difficult to get (had to order from a british outfit, and when the british pound got strong, got a bit too pricy with shipping and all.) then tried something from the local grocery which was *awful*. switched to taylors of harrogate tea bags which i can buy 35 miles away in the city, or from amazon. switched to loose leaf about 6 months ago (small 4.4 oz tins). now gonna get a kilo to support my habit.  but i'm not an addict -- i can quit any time i want! 

--sgl


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## TheMrs (Jun 11, 2008)

More baby steps for me..

Went to Kroger yesterday and checked out their clearance section. They had manually powered flashlights (the kind you wind up) marked down to $5 so I picked up one of those. They also had bandages on clearance so I got those for super-cheap after sale + coupon.

They also had toilet paper on sale this week, so stocked up on it and used coupons. I think we probably have a year's supply of t.p. now.

Also, learned to make my own laundry detergent last week, so no more dependence on the store-bought stuff. That'll be a big money-saver around here. Even by watching for sales and using coupons, there's no way I'd ever be able to purchase it cheaper than what I can make it. 

I know I'm nowhere near the level that most of you are, but I'm trying to get there.


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## Guest (Oct 7, 2009)

Baby steps are steps just the same. So long as they are forward and not backward that's all that matters.

.....Alan.


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## Rocktown Gal (Feb 19, 2008)

I just added:

5 packs of country pork ribs for .88 a lb
4 boxes of cereal - .99 a box 
4 cans of coffee $5.97 a can
4 packs of smoked sauage (BOGO) 2.99 each for 2 (2 free)
4 cans of Pringles (hey they were on sale)


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## Guest (Oct 9, 2009)

My Retsel Mil-Rite is shipping today! At last!

.....Alan.


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## firegirl969 (Nov 3, 2008)

Alan, glad to hear that your grain mill is finally being shipped to you.

Today I really jumped into a new prepping arena for us. I bought a lemon tree! That's right, one day, I will be able to harvest my own lemons. My new tree has 2 lemons on it now. They are still green, but I will put them in some pink lemonade when they turn yellow. The man that sold me mine at the flea market told me his wife's tree had over 120 lemons on it this year. The tree only gets about head high, so I can put it in the greenhouse for the winter. In addition, the man gave me a coffee plant. That's right, it grows coffee beans. It has two on it now. He said it will be many years before I will have enough coffee beans to have a constant supply of coffee, but oh well, it didn't cost me a thing.


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

How cool - I would love to be able to grow coffee and citrus here, but unless global warming really takes off, I don't see it happening.

I ended up picking all the green tomatoes yesterday - filled 6 5-gallon buckets and about half of another one. Put 2 plastic grocery bags of ripe tomatoes in the freezer until I have time to cook them up. Took the seeds out of our National Pickling cukes - they may be crossed with Marketmore slicing cukes, and I'm curious to see what I will get from the plants next year. Picked another quart+ of raspberries and froze them. If the frosts don't get them, I should have another good picking in a couple days. DD dug potatoes in the orchard. She filled one of those big round totes about 3/4 full and she's not done yet - and those are only the ones from the orchard overflow. We still have a good portion of the garden potatoes to dig. We still have a few more cauliflower and cabbages in the garden, but the rest of it is pretty well done for.

Scored a good deal on 3 ladders from one of the neighbors - a 23' step ladder, longer extension ladder and one of those multi-position ladders you can use as a scaffold, all new this past spring from Lowe's, for $265. That's about the new price on one of them. Now I can get up to the rafters on my shed. 

Finished putting the tile on the hearth, just need to finish grouting it now...brought in the stove pipe and measured it - looks like it'll fit. Unfortunately, I need to take apart the stovepipe sections to make it all fit, and I can't get them apart! Anyone have any tips? This is putting a crimp in my plans to have the installation completed before the weather changes again.


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## oakwoods201 (Dec 21, 2008)

Had a big sale at our local IGA. I got a huge pack of boneless, skinless chicken breast (17 large breasts) for $1.38/lb- got 2 5-6lb packs of ground beef for 88 cents/lb- Van Camps pork & beans were 3 cans for $1.00(got DH a case) and 29oz cans of peaches 2/$1.00. 3lb onions for 85cents. I am going back tomorrow for more peaches and onions. I should have got more yesterday. Don't know what I was thinking.


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## themamahen (Jun 26, 2005)

WOW oak vn peaches out here for the small cans were on sale for .79 big are 1.29 

Got my First aid kit from be prepared. it's really NICE I like it! bought some extras to go in there sutures butterflys exc. Need burn treatments and eyewash few other items then i'll be done with that. 

Really concerned about the gasoline storage so I am looking for long term ways to store it any ideas please tell.


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## soulsurvivor (Jul 4, 2004)

Went to Walmart with a list in hand of small items still needed in the preps and found most of them by asking the store clerks for help. I have to take back all the bad thoughts I've had about Walmart now because I managed to get almost everything on the list. I got the potassium iodine tablets, batteries, Vicks salve, another LED lantern, unscented pillar candles, assortment of ziploc bags, heavy duty trash bags, packing tape, first aid supplies, cold and flu meds, Vitamin D3, dish liquid, and a Brita water purifying pitcher and extra filters. Also got 12 over the door racks to hang bags of stuff on. I'm so out of storage space.


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## firegirl969 (Nov 3, 2008)

Boy you did fill in some holes from the sound of your post, SoulSurvivor! It feels good doesn't it?


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

In the last week I've had the tires rotated, battery replaced and the oil changed on the Sport (Montero). I have a set of tire chains to fit it, and I carry jumper cables and a combo air compressor, flashlight, flashing light tool. It's about time to fill the winter tote for it - blankets, winter clothes, extra gloves, candles, matches, water and snacks, etc.

While I was at WalMart getting the oil changed, I ran across a sale on Campbell's chicken noodle and tomato soups at 50 cents a can in 4 packs. Bought 48 cans of chix noodle, 12 of tomato (dd is the only one who likes tomato soup). It packs easier than glass jars of home canned soup, and is nice to keep on hand at work for quick lunches. Plus I grew up with Campbell's Chicken Noodle soup as THE soup to eat when I was sick, so if I catch the flu, it'll be comfort food! Also added another big pack of TP to the stash, and bought a skein of yarn and a crochet hook - designated as my project for the first power outage of the winter...I want to learn to crochet.

I'm slowly going through all the tomatoes I picked and getting them wrapped and stored for staggered ripening. That's a lot of tomatoes - I think I need to look at recipes for green tomato relish and tomato pie.

eta: I stopped at the wood stove shop and bought fire brick for the inside of my stove, only to come home and find that my stove has grooves for bricks that don't match the firebrick I bought. I need to find a way to cut them or another source for brick of the right size. Still don't have my stove install done, darn it all - the stove shop guy said he thought the chimney sections were probably creasoted together, even though the inside of the chimney is clean. His advice was to just keep working at it until it comes apart. At $50 a foot quoted for new pipe, I guess I will.

Worked a bit in the garden, tilling, spreading cardboard, putting chicken manure around the blueberry bushes and then covering it with newspaper and lots of rocks in an attempt to keep the puppies from digging out the manure. They are still small enough to slip through the stock panels, so I can't keep them out of the garden.


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## NoClue (Jan 22, 2007)

We're in re-establishment mode here. We just bought and moved into a new house - one we plan to stay in for a while. It was a foreclosure and there's no end of minor fix-its that need to be taken care of and a couple years of neglect that have to be taken care of.

I spent the weekend clearing out volunteer maples from the fence line and pruned the apples and the pears.... cherries and grapes still need to be done though. The plus side is that we have all the fruit. This winter I'll be getting raised bed ready for spring.

I'm swamped in acorns too - they're so heavy that it's like part of the yard is almost graveled in them. What the heck am I going to do with all these acorns?


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## NoClue (Jan 22, 2007)

I'd love to have a couple pigs, but neither the neighbors nor my wife are going to stand for that. She tolerates my oddities only so long as she can pretend we're yuppies and yuppies don't raise pork in the back yard.


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## michelleIL (Aug 29, 2004)

I have decided if I were to get goats, they would be for meat, NOT milk. BF begs to differ, he loves the stuff!


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## cowboy joe (Sep 14, 2003)

Moved the quail inside as the weather is turning cold. They seem to like the set up based upon the number of eggs they are laying. There's another set in the incubator that is supposed to hatch this weekend. Better get the brooder set up before I forget as bow season opens this weekend. Hope to put venison in the freezer this year but have to make room first. 

First time the freezer has ever been filled before the hunting season. The root cellar is also fairly full as is the pantry. Youngest DD made a few batches of jam this weekend. Hope to make a few more tonight. That should free up some room in the freezer. Giving thanks for a good year. 

Noticed a new batch of rabbits in the pen. Momma rabbit seems to be taking good care of all six kits. 

Solar panels are up, charge controller is in, batteries are at full charge. Still wiring in the distribution panel and working on a remote meter so I can monitor the system without having to run downstairs. The first run will go to the aquaponics system for the lights and a pump. The parts came in a few weeks back for the 12V timer. Hope to make up a few before the end of the month so I can automate the system. So much to do, so little time.


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## Guest (Oct 13, 2009)

Well, since Joe mentioned eggs, incubators, and brooders I'll throw in that my new egg candler just came in. It's actually for the 4-H Poultry Judging team, but I'm quite sure we'll find plenty of other uses for it as well.

.....Alan.


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## RedTartan (May 2, 2006)

Just received my first order from beprepared.com. Love it! 

Question for anyone who might know:

I bought some of those boxes you can store water in. Should I filter the water first, then store. Or should I store water right out of the well, then filter it when we need it? Also, I have some small food grade containers (empty juice jugs) should I just fill them with water then filter when we need it or what? How do I use them for water storage? 

Thanks much


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## michelleIL (Aug 29, 2004)

I'm having some trouble finding glass storage containers at a decent price. Dollar general used to have them standard, but now they are jacked way up in price. The closest thing I cna get is walmart, but they are asking more than I would like to routinely pay, especially should I get more into prepping the way I would like to do. I looked up wholesale places and they were too expensive alsoi. I'm heading over to the thrift store to see what I can find. Hopefully I'll have more luck, otherwise I'll just have to settle for canning jars. GRRRR


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## firegirl969 (Nov 3, 2008)

I bought a new Ball Blue Book on clearance today for $4.50. I will get rid of my old one now.


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## Pets4me (Oct 6, 2009)

Rose2005: Did you have to buy a whole case of the cans of butter, or can you just buy what you want to?


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## ihedrick (May 15, 2005)

Money is tight so I have spent the last week making "hidey holes" (secret door lifts off/out) and "slidy hidey holes" (secret door slides) with my boys. Writing it down as shop class on their homeschooling records! Once you get going on making hidey holes it gets easier and easier to make them, design them, and make too many of them. But with the excess I figure someone will have to find and look throught an awful lot of them to find the ones with the good stuff! We have also taken some empty food containers, cleaned them out, and plan to use them to hide stuff in the pantry. With ten containers of mustard, along with all sorts of other surplus, would you look into each container?


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## firegirl969 (Nov 3, 2008)

Good idea on the multi-container storage system for hiding items, ihedrick. I would never have thought of that. It would make it kinds difficult to find as I don't think anyone would want to look into all 12 containers of mustard.


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

I am having a step back moment in my prepping. I have too many animals. They are not pulling their weight. I'm thinking about selling out of most or all of my goats. I don't drink that much fresh milk, and powdered milk for cooking suits me fine. For the amount I'm spending on hay and grain, vs the amount of milk I get before dd dries up the milkers from sheer bone-idleness, I'd be better off to switch to a few meat goats and get rid of the dairy goats. I'd still get a little fresh milk while they are raising their kids, and then put the kids in the freezer and just keep a few adults for brush control. For the amount of time dd spends with her horse, I'm not so sure we need to have a horse any more either, and the alpaca and his Maddie goat could go back to my friend from work (who gave them to me). I have had goats for years, and I think I'm just tired of the work. True, if TEOTWAWKI hit, I might wish I'd kept them, but in a more likely SHTF scenario, such as illness or job loss, I'd be better off with a good supply of dry milk and NO goats. 

Even thinking about downsizing my chicken flock to just the 4 RIR pullets and RIR rooster, rather than selling eggs at work. Could give the egg concession to another co-worker and give her my extra hens, with the understanding that if I needed more eggs than mine produce, I'd get some from her, and that if they butcher a bunch of the older ones, I get some of the meat for soup. I still have the option of hatching out more chicks from the incubator if I decide to increase the flock size again. 

Maybe it's just winter setting in - I always get a case of the winter blues when the weather turns and the days get short. I probably posted something similar last year. This year, though, it seems like it is really the right thing to do. I am just looking at all the money we have going out on animals and what we are getting back, and it doesn't seem worth it any more. 

Also, dd is going to be 18 in January, and she has developed a pretty serious long distance relationship with a young man. He is making plans to move out to this area in the near future...if he does, I anticipate that she may decide to leave Mom's home for a life with him, and I cannot physically handle the milking chores with the carpal tunnel problems I have now. That is also weighing on me at the moment. So, my prepping today is deciding where I am going in the next phase of my life - the empty nest. How much will I want to handle on a daily basis myself? Thoughts?


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

Well, I did it - I called my friend, Callie, at work and offered to give her the egg concession and all my chickens in exchange for halves on the butchered meat (I hate to butcher chickens). They'll come get them after dark tomorrow night. It's going to seem strange to only have 5 chickens - but the feed bill will be a lot more manageable.


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## AngieM2 (May 10, 2002)

manygoatsnmore - sounds as if you're doing what it takes for you to survive. Both physcially and prep stuff. And getting some of the meat of the chickens back already cleaned ietc, sounds like a deal with me.

Angie


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## vickie (Aug 8, 2002)

While you have the milk goats can that milk. It is great for cooking. I did it when my jersey just freshend. i canned one batch each night for a week or two. I was organizing the prep area and found i had canned over 80 Quarts of milk. I don't feel like it was a hassel. I was suprised i had so much. Just a thought. Vickie


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## themamahen (Jun 26, 2005)

Have company in from ky so the prepping is slow, but i did manage to dehydrate a qt of carrots and a quart of onions. (Note to self on the onions: dollor store has them for 2.00 a pint well worth it) LOL i did it outside but took 2 days because of the snow and my hands still smell bad. Have been cutting fabrics for my friends on HT money is going to buy hubbys new work books (he tore the soles off other ones and is now wearing his hikers to work. 

managed to add a few treats to the food storage few cans of muffin mixes but $ is tight right now so will add what I can. 

Need some kind of water filtering system. next on list.


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## Pouncer (Oct 28, 2006)

Still plugging away at things. Firewood is done for the year, and we have several dump truck loads on the ground here for next spring. Biggest thing I did was go through my pantry area and get stuff moved around-home canned in one cabinet, store canned in another, etc. 

This weekend we do the salmon, and I think I will make barbeque sauce and I have nearly 50 pounds of apples to turn into sauce and pie filling too. Only have about half the spuds canned, but they sure came out looking nice. Once the salmon is out of the freezer, I will be able to see what I have in there, lol 

OK I read somewhere that a person can, can butter? I have some in the freezer that is pretty close to dated that I picked up really cheap and would like to get it out of the freezer and into jars if I can.


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## laughaha (Mar 4, 2008)

I canned butter. seems to be holding up well but it's only been a few months. I posted about it on the preserving forum. Lots of great info on the preserving the harvest forum.

Now is all about the pumpkins and getting the last of the stuff from the garden and figuring out where to put it all. 750 sq feet of home is NOT enough!!!!!!!!


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## soulsurvivor (Jul 4, 2004)

laughaha, if you get those over the door wire racks from Walmart (about 6$ each) you can hang big big sacks of stuff off all your doors on both sides. That's what I'm in the process of doing and it's amazing how much I can store on these racks. I got the 4 prong racks that have 4 big hooks and 4 small hooks on each rack. I use one on either side of the door and have 16 hooks total to use. I had a bunch of cloth shopping sized bags someone gave me years ago and I've been using these to hang up everything from first aid supplies to food preps.


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

vickie said:


> While you have the milk goats can that milk. It is great for cooking. I did it when my jersey just freshend. i canned one batch each night for a week or two. I was organizing the prep area and found i had canned over 80 Quarts of milk. I don't feel like it was a hassel. I was suprised i had so much. Just a thought. Vickie


That's the problem...dd is the one who is supposed to do the milking, and she has dried up ALL our dairy goats. :grump: So, no milk to can until they freshen. I've canned milk in the past - it IS great for cooking. 

The chickens went to their new home tonight. Seems really weird to only have 5 chickens in the coop. I was able to take out 2 roosts so I can easily reach the back of the coop now. My friend from work brought me a big bag of apples and a side of ribs from the goat they just butchered, and they will be bringing me meat when they butcher the extra roos, etc. They are also going to buy a few of my goats and take a puppy, so that will help with the rest of the situation, too. I guess I'll be scooping out the chicken house and putting in fresh shavings in the next few days. I'll till the chicken manure into the garden.


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## catmar (Nov 25, 2006)

Well, it's been two months since my car accident. DH has an adversion to food shopping, so we have been living off the stores in the basement. That's what they are there for. DH almost wiped up out of soups!
I had the kids take in all the peppers, eggplants and tomatoes from the garden. They are now in the dehydrator. 
Garden kindof flopped, no-one was taking care of it when I was laid up. BFF watered & picked tons of beans & tomatos. I split everything with her.
Since I have to get out of the house 3xs a week for physical therapy, I figured I'll start hitting all the sales around.
DD's fig tree is pumping out tons of figs now. He has finally had his fill, so now I'll be drying them.
No-one went apple picking this year, so I'm forced to have peapod deliver a couple of bags tomorrow. Will dry them also. 
If I prep the trays, DH will take care of the rest for me. I love the smell of the apples.

Small steps, hopefully by next summer I'll be jogging!
Cathy


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## Getting There (Mar 11, 2007)

Garden was disappointing, but if I hadn't converted to a well-mulched garden, it would have been worse. Got plenty for the table, bit little for putting by. I did learn that our area (an unincorporated town) has a community garden! :dance: It's actually planted & maintained by a man who lost a child or two and plants the garden as therapy. Such a sad story, but I'm so grateful for his effort. I learned of it late in the season, but got many winter squash of several varieties. 

Our small chest freezer died. I splurged & replaced it with a bigger upright. I'll be very thankful for the extra room.

I bought an old-fashioned non-gas, non-electric push mower at a thrift sale. It's well used, but after the riding mower, the push mower & the weed wacker all died in one evening, I couldn't say no to it.

the wood stove & chimney are all set for another year. There are several dead standing trees that DH will be cutting this weekend to shore up our supply.


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

It's been a rainy, stormy day here, perfect for getting tomatoes into the stockpots to cook down into sauce. I didn't grow many paste tomatoes this year and the juicier toms are going to cook down to nothing, I'm afraid. I have lots of #10 cans of tomato sauce and paste on hand, so I may end up adding some of both to the homegrown before I turn the whole thing into pasta sauce. I plan to make both pizza sauce and a good meaty spaghetti sauce to can up for quick meals this winter. The goal is at least 26 quarts of spaghetti sauce and an equal number of pints of pizza sauce. That gives us one batch of spaghetti (lasts a couple days with dd and me) and a couple medium pizzas every 2 weeks. I'm trying to put together enough menu plans to rotate thru 14 meals and making sure I have all the ingredients either on hand or already processed into ready to serve meals for 26 times those 14, giving me a year's supply of planned meals I know I have on hand. I think I have a lot more than that overall, but I am trying to be a little more organized so I don't leave unfilled holes in the pantry preps.

Anyone have a really good beef stew recipe that cans well? I'm not that crazy about stew, but dd loves it.

*Getting There*, I wish I still had my old push mower like the one you just bought. I cannot get my gas powered push mower to start and I'd love to get the yard trimmed up a little more neatly than the horse and goats get it. 

edited to update: Just tried out the Squeezo or Victorio strainer knockoff and I LOVE it (see my other post). It worked so fast on the cooked tomatoes, much better than the ricer. Then I lined a colander with paper towels (could have used a tea towel, but didn't want to have to wash it, frankly), and poured the runny tomato puree into it - it's draining off a lot of the liquid, which I'll use in something else, like soup, and reducing the time I need to cook down the sauce. Good to remember if I should be in a situation where cooking fuels were limited.


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## Mutti (Sep 7, 2002)

MichellIL...have you ever gone to www.fillmorecontainer.com for jars? They have every size imaginable plus they are a great source for bulk canning lids. 

Manygoatsnmore--sometimes it is smarter to lighten your work load. We just culled our hens...the old girls were laying about every third day and hardly paying their way. I gave up selling eggs at work; just got to be a hassle with bringing eggs and then the people who wanted them called in that day or they didn't have the money or some other sorry excuse. Sell from the kitchen to neighbors and freeze the excess. DH got a Jersey cow and heifer --and he is doing all their care as I just don't see the point in all that milk for him as I'm lactose intolerant. Always used dry milk for cooking. But he loves cows and thinks he can make a little money raising good family milkers...since it took him months to find Esther he is probably right. 

Hard frost last night so need to get to digging the sweet 'taters and finish putting the garden to bed. Had so much rain here that we can't use the tractor and manure spreader. This is the first sunshine we've had in over two weeks!!! DEE


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## Pouncer (Oct 28, 2006)

I counted up the jars I filled over the weekend, and amazed myself! 

173 jars total. 

I am never going to catch up on sleep, haha Only some spuds to can, and then to do something with the berries I found buried under the salmon, haha


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

Great job, Pouncer!

Yesterday was a stock up run to Costco, along with hitting a few Goodwills and a Dollar Store. I found nice pie pumpkins at the $ Store, bought 5 for $1 each - not a bad price this year. At Costco, I plugged some holes in the preps, buying a fire extinguisher, some solar powered flashlights and some plug in LED flashlights that come on automatically when the power goes out. Also found a 2 pack of Leatherman tools for under $20. , which I bought myself for my BD (this Saturday). Been wanting a real Leatherman for a long time.  

I also stocked up on butter, creamer, frozen peas and corn - they have good prices on big bags of organic white corn and organic baby green peas at Costco. Did my Christmas shopping for my grown kids there, too, buying each of them (with their SO) a 2 pack of the plug in LEDs I mentioned. We don't spend a lot on each other for Christmas, but I try to buy them one practical "prep" gift each year.


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## laughaha (Mar 4, 2008)

Great tip Soulsurvivor, thanks!! I'll definitely have to look into them the next time I go to wallyworld.


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## michelleIL (Aug 29, 2004)

Been slowly gathering Locust beans, will be drying them and using them just like beans for soups and stews. Got rose hips yesterday and will be getting them tonight too!


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## soulsurvivor (Jul 4, 2004)

We had the first frost night before last and still had a garden full of squash and zucchini to get in. Since then we've been breading and freezing sliced squash and zucchini on trays in the freezer and then when frozen, put the breaded slices into large ziplocs and stick back in the freezer. Also still working to get this new for me storage system in place and functional, using the overdoor rack/hooks and cloth bags. I finally decided to do a checklist of the bag's contents and putting this in with each bags contents. It's all still listed on a central inventory, but this way I won't have to dig through each bag to instantly know what's in it. I've always used peg racks in the pantry to hold sacks of food preps, but these that I'm using in the rest of the house hold everything from small camping supplies to first aid preps and everything in between. I just hope this system works out because I don't have anywhere else to store preps.


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## Guest (Oct 21, 2009)

My Retsel Mil-Rite came in on Monday. Naturally we had 4-H County Council that night and the local club meeting last night so other than unpacking it all I haven't had time to fool with it. Probably won't have time to do much beyond getting it fully set up before this weekend.

I'll post a report when I have time to give it a work out.

.....Alan.


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## missysid (Feb 21, 2006)

A neighbor stopped on his way home to chat and the back of his truck was loaded. He was telling us of a older lady that passed away about 15 minutes from our house and her family from FL were cleaning out the house. Mentioned they had a pile of glass in the back yard so I asked if they had canning jars. He said he saw a few. So we pile in the truck with 3 boxes and stop in front of the house. Ask the family inside if we can look for canning jars and they were really nice and said to help ourself. 

I about had heart failure when we walked to the pile knee deep and as big as round as a tractor tire. Came home with a truck bed of jars totaling 16 dozen keepers after cleaning and checking for cracks. I was giddy. They came out as we were sorting with 3 boxes of canning rings still brand new in the box! I swear I almost cried unloading it all at home to think it was going to be burried in a hole out back! 

We are going back to the household auction stuff this Saturday to see what else they might have of interest. 

Finished putting up 22 gallons of apples into the freezer yesterday and will be happy if I don't see another apple this year. At last count we have put up over 300 gallons of apples!

Taking 25 old layers to be processed on Saturday and will have meat for the winter and a few to sell. More important less to feed through the winter. Now to tackle that wheel barrel load of pumpkins in the garage! Ugh.


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## SLD Farm (Dec 19, 2007)

Got a small dehydrator this weekend, nothing fancy but I am excited. Think I will try apples first as we have several and I hope they will be easy enough.
Added a few items to the pantry today from Kroger's 10 for $10 sale. They have a promotion that if you buy 10 of an item the 11th is free.


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## NCLee (Aug 4, 2009)

The posts on adding hooks to doors reminded me of something else that works for doors. Shoe bags. All those pockets will hold a variety of stuff that's automatically sorted, if you choose to do so. Think spice bottles, boxes of Jello, first aid supplies, boxes of jar lids, and more. Just watch the weight, as the construction on some of these won't handle many bottles filled with liquids. 

My sis uses them to store skeins of yarn for crochet, one on either side of a closet door where she keeps her needlework supplies. 

They'll work in the bath room to hold washcloths and such.

Lee


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## Trixters_muse (Jan 29, 2008)

I went to Save-a-Lot yesterday and walked out with 50 pounds of chicken breasts! They were 75 cents a pound, I could not pass that up! I put some in the freezer and I will be canning some today and I think I will make some chicken jerky too!

I have been adding more fruit trees/bushes to my garden and I had the good fortune of someone giving me a papaya tree. I don't know a thing about canning or preserving them but they are tasty fresh off the tree and it should start producing in a couple of years so I have time to figure it out.

Other great bargains at the store.... tuna 3/$1.00, bananas 3lbs/$1.00 and Boston butt pork roast 79 cents a pound. Bought a case of the tuna, several pounds of bananas and 4 pork roasts at close to 10 pounds each.

I am sooo glad I invested in that freezer last year!


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## Guest (Oct 22, 2009)

Well, I got the mill set up last night. Ended up getting supper on the table late because of it when I get into adjusting the stones and putting different grains in to see how they did. I thought I was going to have to swap the stone and steel burrs when I wanted to make corn meal, but the manual says so long as the corn is at 10% or less moisture one can use the stones. Well that's the proper moisture content for good storage so I feel OK in that regard.

Took about five minutes of fiddling with it to get the flour down to fine enough to make bread with. Might have been able to go finer still, but I didn't have time to fool with it any more. The two-way switch option is worthwhile because it makes it much easier to adjust the burr spacing when there is grain in the hopper. They don't offer a flour shield any more, at least I could not find one any where on their site. I'm going to get some heavy aluminum foil and make one as it will lessen the clean up afterwards. I used a wide baking pan to collect the flour last night, but I think a roaster pan may be better still.

As far as the noise goes you could hear it in the living room from the kitchen, but it's nothing at all like my Grainmaster Whispermill which sounds like our vacuum cleaner when it's running. Which is better still than some of the other impact mills out there that sound like a jet turbine!

Cleanup is more involved than the Whispermill, but it's not like you have to really disassemble the whole thing. I had to rearrange the countertop real estate to find a permanent place for it but it's there now!

.....Alan.


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## michelleIL (Aug 29, 2004)

I'm putting up six quarts of chicken leg qaurters...yeah yeah...not the best cut of meat, but it's darned good in my opinion and they make great chicken and noodles. The breast meat can be used to make stir fry or something like that.


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## firegirl969 (Nov 3, 2008)

Today, I got the last 16 boxes of regular jar lids for $1 a box at Freds. I also picked up some ora-gel and vapor-rub.


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## Ohio dreamer (Apr 6, 2006)

So far this month:

Unpack and recycle too many boxes
Ordered & stacked wood 
Found a service to remove our pine trees so we can extend the garden and add fruit next year
picked-up 2 water barrels - locally!!
Joined BJ's Club, saved over half our sign-up fee already
Started re-building our food stores!!
Learned, and fell in love with, pressure canning.
Got a 20ga youth gun for DS, DD and I to learn to shoot (hope to hunt next year)
Each time we are in a different "shopping area" I hit the stores, find deals and record prices....starting to get a feel for what to buy from where.

Not bad too bad for being back in the US only 5 weeks


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## laughaha (Mar 4, 2008)

Not bad at all

Got 2 dozen old canning jars for $5 from a second hand store.


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## Ann-NWIowa (Sep 28, 2002)

We stocked up on various supplements (doctor recommended for health issues), more first aid supplies, shampoo, soap, denture stuff for dh, lotions, vaseline w/aloe and checked out several items for future purchase including a new shotgun for me. I can't even lift my dad's old shotgun that mom gave to dh! I'm still not convinced there is a gun that is light enough (in weight without much recoil) for me to handle with severe arthritis in my hands. I believe we not have 8 months to a year of supplements and other personal supplies. Canning supplies have pretty much disappeared from all stores except Fareway who has them on-hand all the time but always at full price. I think I have a 2 year supply of lids but need more jars to cover my stocking up.


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## laughaha (Mar 4, 2008)

You can never have enough jars or lids, lol


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## firegirl969 (Nov 3, 2008)

OhioDreamer,

You have really done great with your prepping in only the 5 weeks since you got back. That is super! Keep up the good work, firegirl


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