Dinner for a Holiday Decorating Party That Almost Didn't Happen

In past years, we've had a family tree decorating party, where I make a dinner of snack-y foods, and we all help decorate the Christmas tree. This year, we decorated the Christmas tree immediately after Thanksgiving dinner with our son and daughter-in-law. But my household was missing having that special snack-y dinner, so we planned on doing the house decorations along with this special meal. Our house holiday decorating consist of hanging a garland, putting artificial poinsettias out, setting up the caroler figurines, getting out the Christmas tablecloth, etc. We did this on Monday after work. And we ate in the family room with the Roku set on the Yule Log via YouTube.

The menu

sliced summer sausage
sliced cheddar cheese

homegrown carrots sticks

cheese-yogurt dip

hummus dip

black olives

dried apricots and cranberries

rye crackers

mixed nuts

orange segments

two kinds of holiday cookies

and that perennial party favorite -- roasted turnips

Monday morning, I wasn't sure we were going to do this. I was tired and not feeling it. I thought the dinner would entail me making a special shopping trip to pick up a few foods. And that made me want to do this even less. So I began getting foods out for a normal dinner and set carrots and turnips to soak before scrubbing the garden dirt off.

Both daughters really wanted us to decorate the house soon, so I began to nudge my thinking into the possibilities using what I had on hand. I had already bought the summer sausage at Grocery Outlet back in November with the plan to use it when we decorated the tree and house. But I didn't think I had much else. After rummaging in the fridge and pantry I came up with everything else on the table. The vegetables were washed and then cut. I oven-roasted the cubes of turnips and we used toothpicks with them. The cheese-yogurt dip was yogurt I strained then mixed in salt, black pepper and cheese powder. My family said it was quite good (I can't eat any of it, due to dairy). To drink, my husband and daughters also made themselves some hot cocoa using the homemade cocoa powder I keep in a jar on the counter this time of year. I'm a water person when it comes to meals.

The meal came together once I adjusted my thinking.

A Pair of Mittens, a Chocolate Bar, and a Little Bit of Crafting for an Inexpensive Gift

When I saw this craft, I thought it was too cute to not do. And as it turned out, it was so quick and easy and very, very thrifty (the cost of dollar store mittens and 1 regular candy bar). I usually give my daughters a pair of dollar store mittens each year anyway, which made this an easy "yes" on my list. I know my daughters will be tickled by these cute little snowmen.

The original idea comes from Amy Latta's blog, in this link.

Supplies:

• a pair of knit mittens, thinner mittens work better than thick bulky ones (mine came from Dollar Tree)
• one normal size, flat chocolate bar (I used regular Hershey bars)
• a black felt pen
• crayons for color, orange (for the carrot nose) and any other color (to fill in the buttons), pink for smile tips
• a long, narrow strip of felt or scrap of colorful fabric to make the scarf (about 1/2-inch by 9 inches)
• 1 small rubber band
• 1 sheet of white paper
• clear tape
• scissors

1) Wrap the sheet of paper around the packaged chocolate bar just a little bit loosely (so you can slip the candy bar in and out for decorating). Trim off the excess paper. The ends of paper are not sealed over the  ends of the candy bar. Tape the back side closed.

2) On one of the mittens, invert (tuck in) all of the fingers and the thumb so they are on the inside of the mitten. Roll the other mitten up tightly and tuck inside the first mitten. This bundle of both mittens will become the hat of the snowman.

3) Slip the candy bar out of the white paper "tube" for coloring purposes. Use the black felt pen to draw the facial features, outline the carrot nose, and draw round buttons with cross-stitching inside each. Use the crayons to add color to the carrot nose, buttons and add pale pink cheek circles to the snowman's smile, if desired.

4) Slide the candy bar back into the now decorated paper sleeve. Pull the mitten "cap" over the end of the wrapped candy bar, leaving the rolled up mitten on the back side of the snowman inside the first mitten.

5) After adjusting the snowman's cap, secure the rubber band around the top of the mitten "cap" about 1 inch below the very top. This creates the illusion of a pom pom on the top of the cap.

6) Tie the felt or fabric scrap around the "neck" of the snowman as his scarf. Voila, you're done!

These took me about 15 minutes each to make, from start to finish, including some practice time drawing the features on scratch paper and redoing one snowman face, as I didn't like how it turned out. But they're not meant to be perfect.

Just a couple of cute, yummy guys for my two gals.

Perhaps it's my inner child, but I think "kids" of all ages would find these adorable. But I especially think this would be a great gift for the littles in your circle. Very inexpensive, includes some chocolate and mittens, and is wrapped in a cheerful presentation. 

If You Don't Buy Chips and Other Pre-made Snack Foods, You Can Afford Bacon

. . . or steak, or nice vacations, or whatever else is your fancy. And the reverse is true, too. If you don't buy bacon, you can afford chips and snacks, even on a tight budget. It's all about choice. What made me think about this is I went shopping at WinCo this week and I bought 3 packages of bacon. But I completely bypassed the chips and crackers aisle. I wanted bacon, and I knew my family would really enjoy bacon. So that's what I chose to do with our grocery budget for the week. 

So often I think about what we can't have or can't do, due to financial constraints. But in reality, we can afford 98% of what we could put on a wish list. We might have to cut out something or save for a longer period. In the end, we could afford almost everything.

It helps my financial morale to remember this aspect of budgeting. Instead of feeling deprived, I end up feeling grateful for the blessing of choice.

Have a wonderful weekend, friends. And I'll be enjoying more bacon. . .

Your Tips: Taking Care of Ourselves in December

December can be such a difficult month for many people. There's the low level of sunlight and shorter days. The holidays bring up all sorts of complicated feelings, from loss of loved ones, to familial conflicts, to personal inadequacy, to feeling left out. The spending can be stressful and not joyous. More viruses circulate and our defenses could be down. And, the weather could make spending time outdoors unpleasant. So, it's no wonder this can be a difficult time for so many. 

For myself, I have Seasonal Affective Disorder, I feel a huge sense of loss this time of year as the anniversary of my mom's passing approaches (she passed away just before Christmas of 1984), the financial stress takes its toll, and I tend to work extra hard making the holidays a special period for my family. I don't think I do a very good job of taking care of myself in December. 

Last year, I became sick on Christmas Eve. Our Christmas celebration had to be postponed 2 weeks as a result. I don't want that to happen again this year for me, and I don't want it to happen to you, either.

So, I thought we could all share 1 or 2 tips for taking care of ourselves in December.

My two tips:

• don't skip meals. Eat regular, healthy meals, on schedule. I know I feel better if I'm eating healthy in December and limiting the treats that I eat. It's a choice. I can eat healthy and feel well, or I can eat treats and feel not up to parr. I just have to remind myself of the consequences to eating a plateful of fudge or cookies.
• get to bed on time. It's tempting for me to stay up late, but I also know that my best chances of shortening any virus I may contract is to sleep well every night. Even if this means I'll miss out on one or two late-night, fun experiences during the season. We will no longer go to the late church service on Christmas Eve, as an example. Count me as one of the fuddy-duddies who can only go to the early service.

Your turn. What are 1 or 2 of your best tips for not only surviving December, but truly enjoying it? How do you take care of yourself this time of year?

More Low-Tech Heat Conservation: Wearing Knit Headbands Indoors

We all know that wearing a hat outdoors when the weather is cold will help keep us warmer. According to this article from Harvard University, when our bodies feel the cold in winter, blood is diverted away from the extremities and into the core of our bodies and to our brains. So, to keep your fingers and toes warm, put on a hat when venturing outdoors in winter.

But what about inside our homes for those of us who keep the thermostat lower than average? Personally, I can't tolerate the extra heat of a hat indoors. Even when the house is set at 64 degrees F, a hat is just too toasty for me. However, I've found a heat-retaining solution that's a step down from knit hats, my knit headbands. For those of you who have been reading here for several years, you may remember me posting about the headbands that I knit for my two daughters Christmas 2013. I used yarn that was leftover from other projects and knit in the garter stitch (knit on both sides, no perl). Both headbands were simple and quick to knit, and my daughters still wear them now, 9 years later. 

A couple of Christmases later, one of my daughters gave me the two knit headbands above. These are what I wear on my head in the house when I'm chilled. They're not so warm that I overheat, but warm enough so I can tolerate lower indoor temps.

I thought I'd share because I know many of you knit and likely have extra yarn from other projects. Or perhaps you're looking for something to put on your holiday wish list that would be practical, yet fashionable. With trying to conserve energy used for our home's heat, many of us are turning the thermostat down a degree or two. While I can use a throw when sitting, the headband solution is something I can do to help stay warm while moving around.

With my two headbands, each offers a different level of warmth. The red one is a looser knit and not as warm (good for when I'm just a little chilled or when going out for a walk when temps are above freezing). While the brown one is fleece-lined and very insulating (good for very cold days indoors or out, or after I've washed my hair and I'm waiting for it to air dry). I use both headbands all winter as part of my winter clothing arsenal to stay warm, both indoors and out.

The weekend didn't quite go as planned . . .

I injured my back Friday morning and spent the weekend laid up. Today (Monday) was the first day I was up and working for any length of time since Thursday evening. I hope I didn't overdo it today. I really needed to get some kitchen stuff done and needed to feel I was being effective. And it seems that my family needs me.

So for today, I cooked up 1 more carving pumpkin (3 down, 1 to go of those pumpkins), made a batch of hummus, boiled some eggs, started some sprouts, cleaned up my indoor garden area, and made dinner. When I said my family seems to need me, I think they largely missed my cooking. They could see and talk with me whenever they wanted while I was laid up, but I couldn't do much in the way of food prep for 3 days. Today's focus needed to be on food, in one way or another.

Last Thursday, I worked in my light garden area, harvesting more radish greens and cleaning out 1 flat of radish plants to start new radish seeds. My light garden is a set-up of 4 trays with pots under 4 sets of grow lights. As I've mentioned before, I use the bottom halves of gallon milk jugs for my grow containers. These are free and slightly squared, so less space is wasted in the tray.

Instead of complaining about my back and the subsequent catch-up work, I thought I'd share the growth cycle of a tray of radish plants.

I begin with containers filled with potting soil, poke holes in the 

surface and plant my seeds and push soil over to cover.

After about 5 days, the seedlings are up.

2 weeks later, the secondary leaves develop.

Weeks 3, 4 and 5 yield lots of leaves
to use in salads, soups, and stir-fries.

Although I grow radishes indoors for the leaves,
we also get some roots to use in salads.

By the end of week 5 or into week 6,
 the plants looks like they've seen better days.

At this point, I harvest all of the edible-looking leaves to use in meals.

I scoop out the remains of the plants and about the top 1-2 inches
 of soil from the containers and add to the compost pile.

I then add some fertilizer and top off the soil,
so I can begin a new batch of radish seeds.

Wintry Vegetable Harvesting

Transport your mind back to the late-19th century. It's autumn of 1872, and you've taken a homestead claim on the High Plains. Everything in the world that you own is in your small shanty. You have to provide for yourself and family with what you can hunt, grow and raise on this never-before-cultivated soil, plus the last of the provisions you brought west with you. There's no Amazon, GrubHub, DoorDash, or Walmart delivery. 

Snowfall came earlier than you expected, but late enough to harvest most of your crops and produce. There are no snowplows, no supermarkets, and no SUV to get you into town even if you had the means to buy your food. 

The snow is fresh and only 8 inches deep. You have a choice. You can sit by your fire and start in on the foods you've put up for winter. Or, you can go out into the snow and see if there's anything that can be picked to make into meals in the next handful of days, thus delaying the date when your set-aside, finite provisions will run out.

This is the spirit that motivated me to head out into our snowy winter landscape and see what I could pick to add to meals in the next few days. Our light dusting of snow turned to 8 inches the other night. I've harvested almost everything from the garden. But I want to get as much as possible out of it before the plants die.

Here's the Brussel sprout patch. Brussel sprout greens and kale are the greens most likely to survive snow and cold. The leaves are still edible. 

I clipped a bucket full this afternoon to bring inside. I'll be able to pick another bucketful tomorrow, too. I'll keep harvesting until there's nothing left to pick. And then, and only then, I'll begin on the veggies that we put away in the freezer for winter meals. 

Our plan has been to get as far into December as we can, harvesting what's available in the garden. Later this month, we'll switch to frozen and canned veggies.

Remembering those pioneers who trekked west, bringing with them not much more than grit and determination.

Pumpkin-Spice Applesauce

This was actually really good. When I first mixed it up, I wasn't sure we'd like it that much. I made it as a way to use up the last of a jar of applesauce and some thawed pumpkin puree.

I mixed together about 1/3 home-cooked pumpkin puree, a little over 1/3 applesauce, and the rest was water to thin to the right consistency (pumpkin puree tends to be thicker than applesauce), brown sugar, and pumpkin pie spices (ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves). That's it. I shook the water up in the near-empty applesauce jar and used that to thin the mixture, getting near every last drop of applesauce from the container.

This was a very frugal lunch addition and appropriate for the season. And the bonus is the pumpkin's nutrients were hidden in a side dish that I know my family enjoys. I can't wait to make another batch!

November 2022 Grocery Journal

It began snowing this morning! A very light dusting.

Nov. 4. I was needing some unsweetened cranberry juice. My daughter went out and bought it for me. Spent -- $4.99

Nov. 9. I'm thinking through my shopping this week. It's been over 2 weeks since I grocery shopped last. I had the opportunity 🙄 to go through my freezers 10 days ago, when our kitchen fridge/freezer stopped working. This appliance is only 13 years old, so it came as a complete surprise. I had to quickly unload everything and find places in our other freezers/spare fridge for everything, so as not to lose anything. In the end, I did have to throw out some fish and some meat fat. The rest was salvageable and caught early enough in the thaw process. But the upside, I was able to see what we have in all of the freezers. I came across about 4 dozen frozen eggs in containers of 4 to 6 eggs each. This means I won't need to buy eggs this month. We still have a case of 5 dozen fresh eggs in the fridge. Between the fresh and frozen, we should be able to get through December on the eggs we have. We do need milk and whipping cream for Thanksgiving. We're going to roast a whole chicken instead of turkey. While there are deals on turkeys, I don't have enough on my list to make the minimum spend. I'll be looking for a deal on potatoes.

On the fridge -- the repair guy said it was a dead compressor controller module. He said these typically fail after 5-7 years in newer fridges. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this replacement will last longer than 5 or 7 years. Fridge is fixed and we didn't lose too much food.

Nov. 11. The first of my twice a month grocery shopping trips. WinCo doesn't have an online database of their prices. Walmart does. So I checked the prices on items I needed for Walmart, wrote them down, then shopped WinCo first. When I got to WinCo I first checked potatoes -- super expensive, over $3/10-lb bag. I skipped potatoes. They had acorn squash for 38 cents/ lb. I picked up 10 acorn squash. Truthfully, at first I picked up 6 squash. Then after shopping around the store I decided to increase it to 10. Sometimes, even I have to talk myself into buying the larger amount. Next I checked the dairy section. Cheese was over my price limit of $3/lb. Milk matched Walmart's price of $3.16/gallon, limit 2. I picked up 2. Whipping cream was lower at WinCo, $4.88 for a quart, compared to Walmart's $4.98/qt. I bought 1 and will hold off on opening the carton until Thanksgiving day. It should keep until Christmas (sell-by date is Jan. 1, but after opening, product deteriorates faster). I bought two 30-oz jars of whipped salad dressing for $2.78 each. Whipped salad dressing is typically less expensive than mayo, and my family doesn't notice the difference. The mayo was $2.88 each. And I bought some holiday treats/gifts, not part of grocery budget. Total spent at WinCo -- $24.61

My other stop was Walmart. My daughters were with me to pick up their own necessities. Walmart has great prices on the things they needed. Although I didn't need anything (I'd bought what I needed at WinCo), I did go in and check the clearance sections. I found a 26-oz bag of trail mix marked down from $5.68 to $3.20 (works out to $1.96/lb). When I find snack treats like this, I buy them for when we have guests over. I'll fill a bowl with this trail mix on Thanksgiving day for the "before dinner" period when my son and daughter-in-law are here.

Potatoes were even more expensive at Walmart. I'll be checking less traditional sources for potatoes in the coming weeks. Gas was $4.89/gallon this week at our "cheap" place.

Total spent today -- $27.81

Total spent for the month -- $32.80

Nov.14. I won't have a car for a while again, so I decided to go to Grocery Outlet (a salvage store) this morning, hoping to find a better price on potatoes. Their potatoes were over $3/10-lbs, too. Fred Meyer is just up the hill, so I'll swing by there for potatoes, as they're advertised this week for $2.79/10-lb bag. That's the best price I'm likely to find this fall. Anyway, at Grocery Outlet I did find a spiral sliced ham for $1.29/lb. I think this is a good price for this year. I'll use this for Christmas dinner. I also found Hillshire Farm beef summer sausage for $2.49. The sausage will be for our tree decorating party. Total spent at Grocery Outlet -- $19.08.

Next stop, Fred Meyer. I had a few things on my list for here. As I shopped both online and in-person this month, I've been comparing prices on specific items, milk, eggs, butter, various meats, potatoes, pretzel twists, mixed nuts, cheese, and peanuts. Fred Meyer looked like it would be the place for several of these items. I picked up 3 of the 10-lb bags of potatoes, a bag of small pretzels for making chocolate-covered pretzels for a gift ($1.50), a 34-oz can of mixed nuts (also for a Christmas item) for $9.99, a 34-oz canister of roasted peanuts for $4.49 (less than Walmart's price), and 2 32-oz blocks of cheddar and 3 32-oz bags of shredded mozzarella for $5.99 each. My limit on cheese is $3/lb. Total spent at Fred Meyer -- $54.30. I could have qualified for a turkey at 69 cents/lb with my purchases today, but I'd already decided I didn't want to deal with taking the turkey apart. It's a lot of work, very messy, and I just don't like doing this. I'll still have to take apart the whole chicken I plan on roasting, but that's a much smaller bird and shouldn't take as long.

So much is interrelated and providential. I expanded my potato beds this past season. I would have no idea that potato prices would have nearly tripled in my area stores. I am grateful for the bonus garden potatoes and the 30 pounds of commercial potatoes I bought today. And my hubby was super stoked when he saw me bring in several bags of spuds. He's one who doesn't like to be limited in his potato intake! And all are glad I bought a ham today. We'd been talking about forgoing a ham if I didn't find a great price.

Total spent for today -- $73.38.

Total spent for the month so far -- $106.18. That's not too bad, especially since I was buying foods for Christmas as well as November.

What's left on my list to buy later this month? We do a breakfast of mini donuts, juice, and coffee the day after Thanksgiving. I've got the juice and coffee, but I need the mini donuts. This is definitely a splurge for us, but treats are good for morale. I'll also need more milk before the month is over. Oranges and clementines will also be on my next list. Our garden is still producing, plus we have a lot in the freezers and pantry.

Nov. 23. The car was finally ready for pick-up. My daughter got it just before rehearsal. She's offered to  stop by WinCo and get the post-Thanksgiving Day donuts for us, as well as some black pepper. I'm grateful she'll do this shopping for me. She did kind of get excited about buying donuts and bought 4 bags of mini donuts at $2.49 each. The black pepper from bulk bins came to $1.38, for a total spent of $11.34. I'd planned on spending about $5, but oh well.

Total spent so far this month --$117.52

Nov. 28. I drove one daughter to and from work today. We needed gas. $4.55/gallon at our cheapest place. It's down from $4.89, but still so, so, so much higher than same time 2021. With one car for 4 adults, we split the cost of gas. So there's that.

Our milk has lasted through the end of this month, thankfully. I found some frozen milk and began using that whenever cooking or baking called for milk. I also thawed some of the frozen eggnog as a milk-based beverage. And I mixed up more cocoa mix for the family to enjoy. And, I didn't need to open the whipping cream on Thanksgiving. My son and daughter-in-law brought over some pumpkin spice  flavored whipped cream to top our dessert. I'll open the whipping cream in December and surely it will keep until New Year's. I do have shopping on my list of activities for later this week. Once again, I don't need a lot, just more milk, oranges and/or tangerines, avocados, and I'll check for deals and clearance items. 

I am still harvesting produce from the garden. I picked 5 heads of cabbage this week, brought them in, washed, and have them tucked away in the fridge. The Brussel sprouts will keep even in this light snow for another week or longer, as will the kale. I'll go out and harvest all I can in a day or two to chop and freeze for winter meals.

So that's it. I spent $117.52 for November.

What I bought:

fruits & vegetables
bottle unsweetened cranberry juice
10 acorn squash

30 pounds potatoes

dairy
2 gallons milk
1 quart whipping cream

10 pounds cheese

meat

spiral-cut half ham
beef summer sausage

pantry
2 jars salad dressing "mayo"
large bag of trail mix
large can mixed nuts
large container roasted peanuts
bag of pretzel twists
4 bags donuts
black pepper

It doesn't look like I bought very much, does it? No worries. We have packed freezers and pantry. In case you're wondering, the donuts lasted 5 days.

Locking Out the Cold: Using Deadbolt Locks as Low-Tech (and Free) Way to Hold in the Heat

I grew up in a time and place when many folks didn't lock their doors during the day. In fact, in my early years, my parents only locked the front door at night, but not the back or side door. Times have changed. Today, I keep doors locked all day. 

But now I have another reason to keep my doors bolted -- a better seal against the weatherstripping resulting in better heat retention in winter. 

Weatherstripping in the door frame is an inexpensive upgrade for sealing out drafts. However, the weatherstripping doesn't do its job if the door itself isn't held tightly closed against it. All of our exterior doors have both the knob lock (in the knob itself) and a deadbolt. On about half the doors, the knob lock doesn't hold the door tightly against the frame. But when I use the deadbolt on those doors, I get that super tight seal.

I was researching what we can actually do for free to help keep our heating costs down this winter. In addition to using the deadbolt during the day as well as at night, the following ideas can all be incorporated for absolutely free to help keep heating costs reasonable: 

• using old fashioned draft snakes for doors and windows (can be as simple as rolled up towels or quilts)
• opening curtains at dawn and closing them at dusk
• closing off unused rooms
• removing window screens on south-facing windows for the winter (window screens block some passive solar heat)
• vacuum heat registers/vents
• keep extra throws and warm clothing/accessories in strategic places in the house

Just like our moms used to say when we complained of being cold, "go put on a sweater."

What I like about these free and low-tech ways to keep heat bills in check is all of these can be done whether you own or rent your home. I also like that I can do any or all of these on a moment's notice. I don't need to find money in the budget or make an appointment with a contractor. I can impact our bills right now. Of course, these are all small efforts towards a larger budget item. But lots of small amounts together will add up.

A Lighter (and Easier) Thanksgiving Pumpkin Dessert This Year

pumpkin mousse

I don't know if it's age and slowing metabolism making me not want the heaviness of pie pastry or if I just don't want to do the making part of pie pastry and rolling it out, but this year I chose to make a lighter version of my mom's pumpkin pie. I've made pumpkin mousse, which is basically a pumpkin chiffon pie filling in dishes without a crust. I also baked a half-batch of gingersnaps, for those who want something substantial with their mousse. And of course I'll top each dish with whipping cream just before serving (oops, there goes the "lighter" part).

Pumpkin mousse is an alternative for those who, for whatever reason, don't want the pie crust. 

Wishing all in the US a happy Thanksgiving. And to those not celebrating a Thanksgiving holiday today, I am thankful for you and wish you a lovely day.

Out With the Old, In With the New

I'm almost embarrassed to show you my now-retiring pots & pans scrubbing sponge. But I know there's got to be at least one friend here who, like me, can't part with a sponge when there are still some good scrubbing spots on it left.

But with company coming over on Thursday, I thought now would be a good time to toss the old sponge and replace it with a brand new one.

I buy sponges in multi-packs at Dollar Tree. The old sponge is the last one of a pack bought before Covid. Dollar Tree still carries the 6-sponge pack, but the price has risen to $1.25. 

Although I use my sponges until they're on their last legs, I do sanitize them frequently in the dishwasher. I know some folks prefer to microwave their kitchen sponges or give them a bleach and water soak periodically, the dishwasher trick is what's easiest for me.

I just like to get my money's worth. And I thought I'd provide a laugh to all of you.

8 Unconventional Tablecloths for an Extra Long Table

Perhaps you can relate: I use the second leaf in our dining room table about 2 to 3 times per year, extending the table to seat 8 or 10. Otherwise, we use the table with one leaf for seating for 6. 

For Thanksgiving this year, we'll be using the extra leaf so we can maintain a smidge of extra distance between both parties (son and DIL plus 4 of us) while eating. With the 2 leaves installed, the surface dimensions are 44" wide by 84" long. A table cloth should ideally have between 6 to 10 inches overhang. So, my table would need a cloth that is between 56" to 64" wide and between 96" to 104" long. 

So here are some options:

thin cotton quilts -- the standard size of a quilt is 70" by 90". This would give me an overhang on the sides of 13 inches and on the ends of 3 inches. I used a pastel, thin cotton quilt for the table at a baby shower many years ago.

flat bed sheets (the top sheet) -- twin size sheets are typically 66" wide by 96" long. Twin extra-long (like what many dorm rooms at universities have) is the same width, 66", but 5-6 inches longer, 101" or 102". For my purposes, the extra-long would be preferable, as the top edge of a flat sheet has a differently-sewn finish than the other three sides. With an extra-long, I could fold this top edge under 6 inches and baste or duct tape this flap in place. When I set up a folding rectangular table outdoors, I often use flat bed sheets as the table cloth. With this particular table, because the legs are not terribly attractive, I use a wider sheet that almost comes to the ground on the overhang.

colorful wool or cotton blankets without the satin top edge -- twin size blankets are typically 65" buy 90". The width would work for my table and the length would allow a very small overhang on the ends of 3 inches each end. I've used colorful cotton throws positioned on the diagonal as a table topper before. This can look especially attractive for a festive dinner, such as Cinco de Mayo.

fabric yardage -- any fabric yardage that is 60 inches wide works for my table. With fabric I already own and don't want to cut to size on the length, I can fold under one or both ends to achieve the ideal overhang on ends. Don't many of us have a stash of fabric waiting to be sewn into something special?

wrapping paper roll -- the standard width of a roll of wrapping paper is 30 inches. The length varies, but many are between 96 and 100 inches long. Two rolls of paper can be slightly overlapped and taped on the underside, creating a near invisible seam down the center of the table. The fun thing about using wrapping paper is that you can customize it to the celebration. In addition to colorful gift wrap, brown craft paper is also an option. After the meal, unspoiled portions of the wrap can be rolled back up and used for gift-wrapping later. This is especially fun for a child's birthday party. I used craft paper for my son's 3rd birthday and gave all the kids crayons to decorate their places at the table.

curtains, rod pocket or clip hang variety, not pinch pleat-- rod pocket and clip hang curtain panels come in a variety of sizes. Common widths for panels include 48 inches, 56 inches, 58 inches, and 60 inches. Standard lengths are 63", 84", 96", 108", and 120". The 48' width would be too narrow for my table, but the other three widths would work. A lace panel would be pretty on a dining table. A lace curtain panel is on my "seek" list for thrift stores and garage sales.

canvas painter's drop cloth -- drop cloths come in a variety of sizes. The 6 ft by 9 ft (72" by 108") would work on my table, with longer overhangs along the sides (14 inches overhang along each side). Pinterest is full of inspiration for turning a canvas drop cloth into a table cloth. I love this look. I saw an especially pretty table topper that was made from a drop cloth. The owner fitted the cloth to the top of the table with a short overhang all around. Then around the bottom edge, she added a ruffle of the canvas. It had a shabby chic sort of look.

if the table surface is in good condition, placemats work very well and most of us have several. Ditto on table runners -- any fabric yardage can become a runner by folding the two long sides under to make the runner's width equal about 1/3 of the table's width. For most of my growing up years, my mother used delicate straw placemats on this same table.

My dining room table was my parents (bought in 1966) and has quite a bit of wear. I prefer to cover it with a cloth to conceal this wear. For Thanksgiving, I've chosen to use a 3.5 yard length of dark plaid wool yardage from my sewing supplies. For many years, I've intended to sew something for myself with this wool. I will someday. For now, it makes the perfect Thanksgiving table cloth for my extra long table, with its dark colors harmonizing with my brown transfer ware dishes. The side edges already have a selvedge finish, so there are no hanging threads. I've folded about 18 inches under at one and of the table to make the length of fabric fit. 

Obviously, the best table cloth for 2 uses per year is something I already own, can obtain inexpensively, or can be reused for another purpose. I likely wouldn't go out and retail-purchase a curtain panel or extra-long twin flat sheet if I couldn't use them other than as a table cloth 2 times per year, especially since I could just buy an actual table cloth that fits for the same price. However, I might buy any of the above items at a thrift store or garage/estate sale, if the price was right and the measurements worked for our table. I would buy wrapping paper, craft paper, or a canvas drop cloth to use again afterward for wrapping or painting, if I was needing items for those purposes. 

How about you? Have you used sheets or other unconventional coverings as tablecloths? 

Cheap & Cheerful Suppers for the Week Before Thanksgiving

End of the week already! I am getting my preparations in order for the holiday next week. Making my list and doling out chores.

Friday

Usual Friday movie night. We watched The Score (2001), an action-crime drama, my husband's pick. It was good, but suspenseful. I bought the acorn squash at WinCo for 38 cents/lb. I bought 10 squash. So good.

Friday

homemade pepperoni pizza

mashed acorn squash

Saturday

This was the day my daughter baked the turkey-shaped cookies (link here in case you missed them). I spent the day decluttering and starting to clean for Thanksgiving. My husband made dinner. He likes to fry kale in oil until crispy. We each have our own ways to cook our basic foods. That gives us variety even when we're eating the same ingredients day after day.

Saturday

pinto beans

crispy, fried kale

rice and salsa

Sunday

I came across some frozen eggs in one of the freezers. I knew they were there, but didn't know how much I had. I thawed a 6-egg container this weekend to use in dinner. I suggested my husband make pancakes and scrambled eggs with this container. He also chopped up some of that huge kraut cabbage for making slaw. Not pictured -- the blackberry syrup, part of the batches I made in late summer and froze.

Sunday

scrambled eggs

pancakes and homemade blackberry syrup

Cole slaw

Monday

I checked around several stores this month for potatoes and ended up buying 3 bags of russets at Fred Meyer (Kroger), $2.79 each. We love baked potatoes, so I couldn't think of making anything else for dinner. This is a childhood favorite for my kids. It's how I got them to like kale. I normally top these potatoes with bacon bits. I had come across a container of pork cracklins' in the freezer, enough to top all four potatoes. Cracklins' are ham fat that's been diced and rendered until what's left is a pool of liquid fat and tiny browned bits. I strained out the browned bits and add to cornbread or use as bacon bits in soup or whatever. The liquid fat can then be used in cooking. I posted about rendering ham fat for use in cooking, here. Rendering fat is a useful skill to know for when times are lean. It's a way to produce additional cooking fat from scraps that may otherwise be tossed.

Monday

baked potato topped with kale in cheese sauce and cracklins'

crabapple and applesauce mix

Tuesday

Using more frozen then thawed eggs, my daughter made the Yorkshire pudding (and the rest of the dinner). Frozen eggs can be used for making scrambled, in quiches or frittatas, or in baking. For more info on freezing eggs, check this post.

Brussel sprouts leaves are edible! They are thicker and tougher than kale (but not in a stringy way, just more chew). I use them steamed, chopped fine and in quiches, and chopped fine and in soups. It's a way to get one more food item from the garden when it looks like there's nothing left.

Tuesday

meatloaf and gravy

Yorkshire pudding

steamed Brussel sprout leaves

crabapple and applesauce

Wednesday

My other daughter cooked tonight. I had processed another pumpkin this week (using my skin-on cooking/pureeing technique), so there's more puree to use and freeze. Both of my daughters really love pumpkin bread, so this was a natural choice for her to go with soup. The soup used potatoes, celery, carrots, kale, parsley, sage, and garlic all from the garden. It also used frozen turkey from last Thanksgiving, onion, and the liquid from straining cooked pureed pumpkin in place of stock. Very delicious!

Wednesday

Wednesday

turkey and garden vegetable soup

pumpkin spice bread (using aquafaba for half the eggs)

A hard day this week. I made chocolate-covered raisins to help and boost spirits. The raisins make it healthy, right?

Thursday

I took Farhana's suggestion for cooking greens (from the comments on Wednesday). Very tasty -- one daughter even commented on the kale.

Thursday

baked beans and hotdogs

rice with leftover meatloaf gravy

sautéed kale and onions Farhana-style

spiced fig and applesauce

I thought I'd share a photo of my favorite brown transfer ware platter. I have a bunch of different brown patterns that all seem to look good together, despite the differences.

I bought this at Tuesday Morning, a discount store chain that buys up surplus inventory, closeouts, factory overruns, and department store cancellations. You never know what you might find on any given day. Several years ago, my drive to get my daughters from high school took me by Tuesday Morning, so I would stop in occasionally. I found this platter and debated over it for about 2 seconds. I had to have it. I knew it would go with my fall and winter dishes (Friendly Village by Johnson Brothers) and would be the perfect turkey platter for Thanksgiving. When it's not in use, it is displayed on the hutch in the kitchen.

Friends, can I ask you to pray for my sister-in-law? Something terribly tragic happened in her family this week. I don't know how much privacy she or her family would want. So I won't go into any details, except she could use God's arms around her, my brother, my niece and nephew, her brother and his family. This is so fresh and devastating. My heart hurts for her. Thank you.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend.

Getting Close to Putting the Garden to Bed

 

All leaves and practically no roots. These are the last of the beets for the year. I pulled them up yesterday afternoon. I cut off the small roots and allowed them to dry on paper overnight. I sorted through the greens and stems, then washed what looked good. I've got the greens in the fridge wrapped in paper towels and plastic bags overnight. I'll chop them for the freezer tomorrow. We still have various other greens left in the garden. I'm trying to make sure we use some greens everyday. By early to mid-December, the greens will die back from repeated freezes.

It looks like there are two to three meals worth of beet greens and stems. Any suggestions for how to use them? I've thought of added to soups and stews. But I was wondering if any of you have favorite ways to use greens such as beet leaves.

This has clearly been the largest garden and harvest we've ever had. I'm tired, but pleased with how much we've harvested.

Your Favorite Kitchen Tools for Saving $$

Cooking at home is one of the most accessible money saving activities for any household. Whatever you skill level in cooking, preparing foods at home instead of eating out saves money. 

We all have our favorite kitchen tools, some of which help us save food/money more than others.

What are your favorite money-saving kitchen tools and how do they help you save?

Here are 3 of mine:

• rubber spatula -- I can usually get about a quarter to a half a portion out of a bowl or jar by scraping it well. I have 6 rubber spatulas and at least half of them are used each day. If I save a partial portion of two or three foods every day, that adds up to about 365 bonus portions of random foods by the end of a year. Little bits add up. And spatulas are inexpensive tools for making that happen.
• my freezer -- I would have no place to store all of the beautiful free blackberries we forage each summer without my freezer. I also stock up of foods when on sale and keep in the freezer, plus I freeze surplus produce from the garden. On the pro side -- freezers can save a lot of money, but on the con side -- they cost a lot up front. Fortunately, most stand alone freezers continue to run for many, many years, even decades.
• an extra-large, shallow bowl -- I used this bowl to mix and knead dough for our homemade sandwich bread for many years. This bowl is larger than my largest mixing bowl, so large that I was able to go from mixing the dough for 2 loaves of bread at a time to 4 loaves of bread. It was a game-changer for me, as I didn't have to bake bread as often, and I could bake more at one time, using less electricity for the oven. We still use this bowl for mixing extra-large batches of a lot of foods. I originally bought it at Target for about $7. It was one of those bargains that pay for themselves quickly.

How about you? What are some of your favorite money-saving kitchen tools?

My Daughter's November Cookies: A Rafter of Turkeys!

So, I turned over most of the cookie making to my daughters this fall. Last month, one daughter, Grace, made pumpkin-shaped, cut-out cookies, with orange frosting and candy corn facial features. 

Cheap & Cheerful Suppers: I missed a week, so here's a post of 2 weeks of meals

Last week I skipped posting our suppers. I had something else I wanted to post about that day. So today I'll post both this and last week's meals.

You may notice a change in dishes and a peek at a change in tablecloth. November 1 is my day each year to switch our Rose Chintz dishes for Friendly Village (and turkey plates for the month of November only). An exception, I spy the use of a Friendly Village bowl on top of a Rose Chintz plate. I think we needed the larger bowls that night.

You may also notice more pumpkin in our meals. I love, love, love pumpkin. My favorite way to have our pumpkin is in cubes, roasted. I often cube a few slices of Sugar Pie pumpkin and roast it for our lunch along with some purple potatoes. So delicious!

Last weekend I harvested all of the celery. I chopped the top leaves for the freezer and washed and wrapped the rest in a couple of tea towels and plastic bags, then stashed in the fridge to use this month. Many of this weeks meals had some celery in them, including a cream of celery soup, an apple and celery salad, in savory bread stuffing, and in a couple of different vegetable soups.

Onto our meals from the last 2 weeks . . .

Thanksgiving Deals Are Dropping Now (plus what I'm actually going to do this year)

These are the turkey deals in my area:

• Last week I read that Aldi was going to "rewind" the prices on Thanksgiving staples to 2019 prices. 
• Our local Kroger affiliate, Fred Meyer, has advertised their turkey deal for this year -- free turkey with a $150 spend or 69 cents/lb with a $50 spend. 
• Safeway (which now owns Albertsons) is offering a free 10-20 lb turkey with a $150 spend or 69 cents/lb with a $50 spend. 
• Walmart is advertising "this year's meal at last year's price." They have Butterball whole turkeys advertised at $1.18/lb, and Jennie O whole turkeys at 98 cents/lb, no minimum spend on either. 
• My other store is WinCo. While WinCo doesn't advertise online, The Coupon Project indicates that WinCo is offering a free turkey with a $125 spend.

What are the Thanksgiving deals in your area this year?

Now, what I'm doing about a turkey this year: 

Unless I find that I can't resist a cheap turkey, we're skipping the turkey for this year. I'll be roasting a whole chicken and a pork loin that I have in the freezer. I decided I didn't want all of that leftover turkey this year. Believe it or not, we're still eating last year's turkey leftovers (had turkey and dumplings just this night). 

      sometimes a "deal" isn't really a deal

Given that we are really well-stocked on everything (except milk, which is a regular purchase), I didn't think I could come up with $150, $125, or even $50 of other items to buy in order to get a stellar price or a free turkey. Sometimes a "deal" isn't really a deal if you have to spend extra on items you don't need. The only extra food I'm planning on buying for Thanksgiving is whipping cream. We have the mentioned meats, potatoes, stuffing ingredients, vegetables, pumpkin, pecans, and pie pastry ingredients, cranberries, and blackberry juice to serve in place of sparkling cider plus ingredients to make spiced apple cider. We could do without whipping cream, but I like to have it around for the entire Thanksgiving through Christmas holiday season.

Thanksgiving is about more than what we eat. It's about our gratitude to the Provider and the family that we share the meal with. We make it special and festive by setting aside that entire afternoon to joyfully break our bread together. We'll eat in the dining room (we usually eat in the kitchen), and I'll use special plates and goblets for the meal. We'll play a game or two afterwards. Then have pie and coffee.

What makes Thanksgiving special in your household?

Creating Cool Vegetable Storage When We Don't Have a Cellar or Basement

So, our house is built over a very shallow crawl space. We have 2 stories above this, with no basement. I would love to have a root cellar to store those winter-keepers of garden and purchased produce like potatoes, onions, squash and pumpkins, cabbage, apples, turnips, and carrots. But that's just not going to happen.

Storing produce at room temperature shortens usability of fruits and vegetables considerably. For an example, I read that if you keep pumpkins at room temp of 68-72 degrees F, they'll last about 1 month to six weeks. That's been about my experience with keeping Jack o' lantern type pumpkins. If you refrigerate pumpkins at about 40-44 degrees F, they'll keep for 3 months. (But I also read that refrigeration is not recommended for pumpkins.) A cooler temp will double the usable life of my pumpkins. I have 7 bought and 3 homegrown pumpkins left to cook or process. If I kept these in my pantry, I'd have to rush to get them processed or used. To make my life easier this next month, I needed to find a cooler storage place than the kitchen. And this doesn't take into consideration the onions and potatoes I need to store.

I've found a solution that I think will work for my situation. I have enough space in my fridges to store the apples, cabbages, carrots, and turnips. That leaves the potatoes, onions, and pumpkins needing a cool storage space. We have a spare room (my office actually, but I can do without it for the next few months) that is at the far end of the ductwork from the furnace. It's always a cooler spot in the house under normal circumstances. I closed the vent (on the floor) and put a large book over it. I keep the door to this room closed at all times, now. I put a thermometer into the room so I could monitor the current conditions. It's been between 52 and 54 degrees F consistently.

Winter 2020-2021 and winter 2021-2022 I stored the potatoes and onions in this room, closing off the vent and keeping the door closed. The potatoes and onions kept through early February until signs of shriveling and rot began.  In years I stored these in the kitchen pantry, the onions began showing signs of rot in December and the potatoes began to shrivel in January. My cool storage extended the usefulness of both root veggies for an extra month. I'm hoping for a similar extension for the pumpkins, meaning I won't have to finish using or processing and freezing them until the end of December or beginning of January. That works for me.

Do you have a cellar or cold storage in a basement? Do you stock up on potatoes during fall sales? If so, how do you store them?