Tips For Homemakers

My daughter and I have both lost 20 lbs each. I think Weight Watchers is really great because you become so aware of what you are eating and can actually change your eating habits. We needed a “lifestyle” change not just a quick fix. Even when I have something I shouldn’t eat, like a donut, I can work my points around it. Eating small meals sure help, too. It seems like my metabolism is working better and I get full so much faster now. So, if you are looking for a way to lose weight and not spend a fortune, try Weight Watchers. You eat what you have in your house…and learn not to put some things in your house.

The trees are getting their leaves again and blossoms are back. Wow. What a difference a matter of weeks makes to nature.

Lake Tahoe was beautiful. Snow-covered mountains and a lake that defies description. The color is amazing. We went up the side of the mountain in a Heavenly Gondala and the view was even better. When you get to the top, there is a “playground” and I couldn’t help but think about my granddaughter enjoying the area. Small kids were learning to ski and there were inner-tubes that teenagers and adults were sliding down the a circular slide. then there were lifts to the top of the mountain for skiers, snow bikes, snow mobiles with a sled behind it for tourists and a place to eat.

A limo met us at the airport and drove us from Reno to Lake Tahoe which was about an hour. I don’t remember being in a limo before so it was definitely a treat.

Only downside to the vacation, Calvin and I both got a head cold and it lasted for a week. It snowed while we were there and we were outside in sweaters and jeans. I would love to go back there in the summer and enjoy the lake.

Back to the Spring stuff….Calvin has already mowed the lawn. No rain here in Florida so I guess we won’t have to mow as often. I am going to need to water the plants outside until we get some rain. That takes about an hour a day…who has the time?????

Remember the crepe myrtles I dug up out of the ditch? Well, they are growing again this year. Thank goodness. Free plants are the best.

My goal for my yard this year is to get some bushes/larger plants planted. My trees are all growing well. Getting them planted earlier was a great plan because they take so long to grow. The grass growing in my sandy yard is a big problem. Especially with two acres.

I hope everyone is enjoying the Spring…new life..new growth…new hope.

I just wanted to say that I am still on my diet with my daughter and we have both lost almost l5 pounds. It feels great.

Hello family and friends…

Sorry I have neglected my blog. Just been so busy with my new job…assistant manager, International House of Pancakes. Training was six days a week and now I am managing shifts so I am down to five days a week. I have to remember how to manage my time in order to have meals cooked ahead of time for my husband as well as keep the house clean, grocery shopping done and laundry caught up.

I did take time to read my newest copy of Mother Earth News and saw a lot of stuff about chickens/eggs/coops. I have been wanting to build a new chicken house for some time now and I think I can either use some of the info from Mother Earth News or maybe even modify one of the ideas.

My garden area is looking really good with all the horse manure my neighbor has provided. I have raked it and my chickens have scratched it down to minute pieces of matter. I need to get something in the ground very soon. I was going to plant seeds since they are cheaper but I am thinking young plants may be a better idea this year.

Calvin and I are going to Lake Tahoe in April to celebrate our (May) anniversary. Free airline tickets and hotel for four days. I just started a new job so I was thinking I wouldn’t be able to take advantage of the great offer but my boss said “time with family is important.” I can’t wait to spend time alone with my husband with nothing on our plate except enjoying each other’s company and sightseeing in a totally new environment. He has been working 30 hours every two weeks (for months) of overtime so he is needing a vacation very badly. Good news is his hard work has paid off because he is getting a promotion and he has gotten two bonuses.

I guess this is all for now.

Well, I have done a lot of gripping about that stupid Mockingbird that keeps pooping on my car mirrors but now I have a good bird story.

We put a fake owl in our front yard near our cars thinking that might get rid of the Mockingbird. Now we have a real owl visiting us every night around midnight. It is a large owl…to us…and it sits in my Mimosa tree which is bare of leaves right now. We could see the owl so clearly because there was a light from our neighbors’ yard behind the tree and owl. We sat quietly on our back porch and watched him for awhile. We had flashlights and shined them on him to get a better look and he didn’t seem to mind.

I looked up owls in Florida and found my owl. It is called a Barred owl.

My daughter first saw the owl a couple weeks ago when she was letting the dogs outside. She said it was creepy looking and he just sat there as she shined the flashlight at him to get a good look.

Then a couple nights ago when she let the dogs out, the bird flew right over her head. She said she could hear the wings flapping and making a swooshing noise.

My husband wanted to see the owl but he goes to bed early every night because he gets up at 5am every morning. We told him the Early Bird would never get to see the Night Owl unless he stayed up past l0pm. So he stayed up last night and saw the owl.

I suppose the light shining into our yard from the neighbors’ and that big tree in our yard makes a great spot to catch food for the owl. I read they can eat l000 mice a year. We have a lot of moles in our yard so I am assuming that is what he is feasting on from our yard. Also, the owls like palmetto bugs which are in abundance in Florida. I really like that owl. I sure hate palmetto bugs.

We are all very excited about our new bird friend. I have a bird feeder out for the smaller birds and we have an abundance of Blue Jays, Blue Birds and Cardinals which are so attractive. We often see Woodpeckers. And during the winter we see a lot of Canadian Geese flying overhead making loud honking noises as they pass over our home.

The other day we saw about 70 large birds flying overhead. I believe they were the vulture-type birds that you see along side the road eating the dead animals. That was a sight to see, too. It reminded me of the movie “The Birds” by Alfred Hitchcock.

My daughter who has been here since the beginning of November has commented on how many birds there are here. It is winter and birds fly South. Or maybe it has something to do with her living in the city and us living in the country. Either way, she seems to be enjoying the birds as much as we do. She is always surprised by the chickens when I let them out of their pen and let them wander around on our land. She said she just doesn’t expect to see a chicken in the backyard when she opens the door.

Enough for now…bye.

My brother, Jerry is in the carpet business and he and his wife are full of information about cleaning carpets. They live in Tennessee which is a good distance from Florida, needless to say. I wish they lived closer because they are both so fun to be around but also because I could get some good deals on carpet for my place. lol

Teenie, his wife is the one who told me how great Windex works to take stains out of carpet. Just spray it on and then dab the stain out.

Jerry and Teenie rented a house and the previous renters had a pet. The house had an odor when the house was closed up all day. Teenie sprinkled fresh coffee grounds (not used) on her carpet before she went to bed and then vacuumed it up the following morning. It absorbs the odor like baking soda does. Now I wouldn’t suggest you do this to a light colored carpet. Just make sure no one tracks across the floor with wet shoes or anything. You don’t want to stain your carpet with coffee stains. Her carpet was a darker color and again, she put it down during the night (or you could sprinkle it down right before you left out for your work day).

I would much rather smell coffee than a lot of other odors. In downtown Jacksonville, Florida there is a Maxwell House factory. When I go downtown with my husband, we often smell the aroma of the beans being roasted (I guess). MMMMMM…

Are you anticipating a refund this year? I bet you already have the money allocated for something special. This year we are wanting a set of mattresses and maybe one of those thin HDTVs. Last year, the refund went toward my daughter’s wedding.

Gathering all the tax stuff together is always such a pain. I tell myself every year that I will be better about putting everything all in one place so I can just grab the stuff and sit down and get it done. I use Turbo Tax myself. If you haven’t tried it, you should look into it. It is so simple. They ask you questions that you probably wouldn’t have thought to even put on your taxes.

Maybe a shoe box would work good. I could just throw all the receipts in there. The man that I work for just throws everything in a grocery paper bag and then carries it to an accountant. I imagine she loves that. I can picture her dumping the paper bag out on her desk. lol

I guess I should have made a New Year’s resolution about my taxes, too. Get more organized. Keep everything in one place.

I never did get my stuff to Goodwill or Salvation Army so that is one tax deduction I lost. I got it into bags and boxes but I just didn’t get it there. Actually, I kept thinking I would take the clothes to the shelters instead. Our bank does a “sweater drive” every year. I was thinking it should have been a “coat drive” until I realized I live in Florida.

So, I guess my only tip would be get organized early this year.

I wish there were some magical way to make myself get into the Christmas spirit. Decorating the house with a tree and lights, buying presents and sending out cards just doesn’t appeal to me. It hasn’t for years. Many years.

Perhaps I don’t like Christmas because I don’t have any small children at home and my only grandchild lives almost 600 miles away. I have lived in Florida now for 10 years and being away from my family probably hasn’t helped the situation. Also, warm weather just doesn’t feel like Christmas either. Actually, I can’t remember when I really enjoyed the Christmas season.

I know the true meaning of Christmas is to celebrate the birth of Jesus. Santa seems to be much more popular than Jesus at Christmas.

People seem to go into so much debt at Christmas, too. That is ridulous. I prefer my family to do/or buy me things throughout the year to show me they love me. My daughter Bonnie bought me a little ceramic chick for $l.99 at Goodwill, I believe and that meant a lot to me. She knows I love and collect chicken stuff. She saw it and it made her think of me. That is love to me. Not buying me an expensive gift just because it is Christmas.

The really great part about the Christmas season is that family get together and enjoy a great meal and each other’s company. Sometimes you are sleeping on an inflatable bed or a sofa sleeper but you are always happy to be there with people who love you.

I was thinking maybe I will start a Christmas Club savings account at the bank. Maybe that will alleviate some of the money stress I feel at Christmas.

It is difficult to decide where to be at Christmas…with my mom, sisters and one brother in Newport, NC…with my son and his family in Raleigh, NC or my daughter and her new husband in Woodstock, GA. My daughter, Bonnie is temporarily in Florida (which is sooooo nice). We use to go to my son’s house because he has a daughter and being at home with the tree and presents is important. But now that she is getting older, they have opted to have Christmas morning alone with her. I can certainly understand that. Afterall, you can open presents and spend time together anytime during the Christmas season.

So…we are spending Christmas with my Mom this year. This is her first Christmas without Dad. I know that is going to be difficult for her. She loves presents, I think. She will miss Dad’s presents and presence.

Well, I guess the least I can do is say “Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.”
If anyone has any suggestions on how I can start enjoying the Christmas season….please let me know.

When I travel, I try to remember to stash a trash bag in my suitcase for separating dirty clothes from clean. I fold my dirty clothes and lie them in the trash bag so I can fit everything back into the suitcase when I am ready to move on.

I have been doing a lot of traveling this month and I forgot to pack the trash bag for the dirty clothes. I was in a hotel so I needed to improvise. I improvised with my nightgown which is a sleeveless, 60% cotton, 40% polyester, not quite ankle-length, soft and flexible material. I then tied the bottom of the nightgown into a knot and inserted the dirty clothes thru the neckline. Once the nightgown dirty clothes bag was full, I slipped my arm thru the two arm holes for carrying.

I was standing at the entrance of the elevator and a lady was staring at my nightgown bag. I smiled and explained how I made my nightgown into a dirty clothes bag. She laughed and said it was a good idea so I thought I would share this idea.

I was thinking when my nightgown gets too many stains…lol…usually coffee stains…I would convert one into a dirty clothes bag by sewing the bottom of it. Of course, I would have to cut some of the length off or it would drag the ground when I walk and carry it.

I know I mentioned before that it is a bad idea to go shopping right before dinner/after you worked all day. Mainly because the grocery store is so crowded and you end up spending more time standing in line. But also because it puts you home later, dinner is later and getting out of the kitchen is later.

I have always heard “don’t go shopping when you are hungry.” I truly believe that is a good rule. It is for me, anyway. I find my shopping cart full of junk when I shop hungry. I have even grabbed a bag of those “Sweet Sixteen” powdered donuts and as soon as I get to the car, I eat three or four of them. If you want to save on your grocery bill, do not shop when you are hungry.

Another helpful hint, make a grocery list. I hate to get home from the grocery store and realize I forgot something that I needed NOW. Like last night, I forgot to buy Dawn. No list, no Dawn. I guess Dawn hasn’t been on sale lately or I would have had an extra one under the sink. I am rather “focused” on stocking up on food so it amazes me when I run of anything.

I like to keep a list as I realize I am out or almost out of an item. I keep the list on the refrigerator door. If I don’t make a list, I sometimes buy things thinking I need it and I already had an extra bottle hiding in my cabinet.

Another idea is to go through your refrigerator, freezer and cabinets before you head out to go grocery shopping. It will refresh you memory so you will be aware of what you already have at home.

Make sure you gather your coupons and put them in your purse, too. I even have a coupon that says you get $10 off for a purchase of $100 from Winn Dixie. Those are nice but I seldom buy that much food at one time for just me and my husband. I guess I just never get low enough on food that I need that much at one time.

Also, the circulars that come out weekly really help you save money. I often plan my menus from what is on sale for the week. There are certain foods I buy only when they are on sale….like T-bone steaks.

Seasonal foods are great to stock up on, too. During Thanksgiving and Christmas certain foods are on sale…like cranberry sauce, canned yams, hams and turkeys. Last year, I must have bought 24 cans of cranberry sauce. They were 50 cents a can instead of 99 cents. And why not buy an extra turkey. You can slice it up and make sandwiches or turkey salad. So take advantage of those seasonal sales.

Most people are too busy to really put much thought into grocery shopping. It is just one of those things you have to do. I truly feel that I save at least $100 a month by taking advantage of the circulars. I guess I have made it a game. I like to save at least 30% at Winn Dixie. My last shopping trip I spent $49 dollars and saved $23. That was without any coupons. And I only bought stuff I knew I would use.

When I do use coupons, I only clip out the coupons of things I normally purchase. It is very tempting to purchase items that you have a coupon for $1.00 off and think, “Oh, I think I will try that.” You end up spending more money. So don’t even clip the coupon unless it is a staple in your home.

So, I hope you will take advantage of the circulars and maybe clip a few coupons for things you use often. And don’t forget that grocery list. Happy grocery shopping. It is the only kind of shopping I enjoy. I know, I am a sick puppy as my daughters say.