Anyone had the flu this season?  Remember the old fashioned remedy that is chicken soup?  When your grandmothers soup could always make you feel so much better than anything from a can? 

Why is chicken soup better than “Tylenol?” It is because chicken soup has a natural ingredient which feeds, repairs, and calms the mucous lining in the small intestine. This inner lining is the beginning or ending of the nervous system. It is easily pulled away from the intestine through too  many food additives. Chicken soup… heals the nerves, improves digestion, reduces allergies, relaxes and gives strength. Hanna Kroeger- Ageless remedies from mother’s kitchen

Wow!  No wonder chicken soup is often refered to as a cure all when you are sick!  But I don’t think the effect is exactly the same from a can. 

Plus you can use chicken stock instead of bullion! 

Why bother? 

Animal bones are full of calcium, magnesium, potassium, and lots of other good stuff.

Bullion cubes are full of salt, hydrolyzed oils, sugar, and lots of other stuff I can’t pronounce. 

Here’s how it works:

1. Buy your chicken with the bone in (it is cheaper that way anyway)
2. Prepare the meat as you normally would
3. When nothing is left except “scraps” Place the scraps in a pot and cover with water.
   For every 2-3 quarts water add 1/4 vinegar (which helps draw out the nutrients)
   Or the “imperfect” way is add enough water to cover everything and a splash of vinegar. 
4. Add a few slices of onion and carrot, spices, whatever suits your fancy.
5. Bring to a boil for about a half an hour then turn off and let cool.  Skim off any excess that rises to top. 

After it cools, pour your stock into the colander (making sure you have a large bowl UNDER the colander to catch the yummy stock). And there you have your stock!  

It can be used right away to make your own HEALING chicken soup or veggie soup! 

If you would like to use for bullion, pour them into ice cube trays, freeze, then place in a large freezer bag for later use.  I use 3-4 cubes in my vegetables, rice etc.  

How does it taste?

YUM!!  MUCH more flavorful than bullion and I feel so good that I am adding nutrients to our food instead of chemicals and unnecessary ingredients.  This is our favorite dish when anyone is feeling under the weather too.

What do you think?  Do you use stock in your home?

Part of the Green Resource at Sorta Crunchy, the Greenbacks girl, Life renewed, and a Delightful home

Who says you have to pay full price?

Goodwill, yard sales and have become my favorite places.  Not only do I score super exciting stuff for very little cash, I also get to support neighbors and charities like goodwill!  So what kind of bargains can you get at a yard sale and or second hand?  Well, welcome to my happy home as I share some pictures of some of my favorite second hand finds!

First, my all time favorite yard sale find.  A ceiling fan!  Who knew right?

I snagged this guy for $40 about 4 years ago.  It is still for sale today at Lowe’s for $250.

My next favorite is a recent find, the irobot automatic vacuum.  I was a little skeptical buying someone else’s used vacuum but I am sooo glad I did.  It was a snap to clean up good as new.  Now I use this bad boy at least twice a week.  Not only can I vacuum the floors AND play outside with my kids at the same time, it also gets under the bed and furniture where this imperfect person rarely never vacuums.  It works great too!

Oh and P.S.  I got it for $10, it retails for $180.

Once I learned about all the randomness in microwave popcorn I have been popping mine the good old fashion way, on the stove.  It has officially turned me into a popcorn snob now that I realize it TASTE SO MUCH BETTER!!  Popping corn is much easier with a whirley pop (got it at good will for $4 retails for $30)

Another favorite find is my kitchen island.  It is the perfect fit and color for our kitchen and I LOVE the added counter space!  (the baby on the bottom was a bonus…just kidding)

Now onto the backyard shall we? Everything you see here including swing set, sandbox, wheelbarrow, playhouse, and slide were all FREE.  Thank you hand me downs!

While we are in the backyard, may I show you my favorite garden piece?

I knew the owner of a local garden center.  He needed advertising help (my specialty) and I was in love with this gazebo he had on display.  We worked it out a trade and I am so glad we did!  I have enjoyed this gazebo for a few years now!

I could go on and on about my favorite pair of jeans, flip flops, the desk I am typing on, pretty much every toy my girls have ever had (besides those from grandparents) and much more!

What was one of your all time favorites bargains?

I was doing a little grocery shopping the other day and I realized I rarely visit the cleaning isle.  There are TWO rows full of cleaning products in most grocery stores that I am able to avoid with a few simple products.

I think advertisers want us to believe we need a different product to clean every surface in our home.  Well I am entirely to cheap, frugal for all that.  What you see in this picture is what I use to clean pretty much every surface in our home. 

Vinegar is a miracle product when it comes to cleaning your home.  Plus it disinfects! 

All purpose spray:

A solution of equal parts vinegar and water plus a splash of lemon juice is the perfect all purpose, all natural, and all frugal cleaning solution.  Perfect for an empty bottle of your old cleaning solution or a purchased spray bottle. 

Dusting:

A damp rag woks just as good as anything else. Don’t fall for advertising that makes you believe you need fancy sprays or equipment. 

Toilets:

I use baking soda.  It cleans, deodorizes, and it’s $.50 a box.  A little sprinkle and a light scrub from the toilet brush is all it needs.  I do occasionally use bleach but only when I have to (hey I never said I was perfect). 

Moping:

We have a H20 mop and as much as you can possibly love a mop…I love this one.  All it needs is plain water to clean and it does a way better job than any mop I have had in the past!  It is about $100 but it will easily outlast 10 $10 mops, I don’t have to buy additional cleaners, and it is less work than standard mops! Complete review here.

Laundry: 

I make my laundry detergent using soap nuts. Complete recipe here.  As if it wasn’t simple enough I found an even easier already made SUPER concentrated version of the same thing here. It is affordable, all natural, and very easy! 

Dishwasher:

The last several times I unloaded the dishwasher there was a film of soap left on our dishes.  Dishwasher detergent sounds much more dangerous than delicious so I decided to give the Soap nuts solution a try.  Turns out it worked great!  The dishes were clean and residue free! 

• Ok let’s do a review.  Here are my must haves for regular cleaning: Vinegar
  Baking Soda
  Cleaning clothes
  Soap nuts or Soap nuts liquid
• Optional use and occasional cleaning:
  Lemon juice (makes the vinegar solution smell nice)
  Dr. Bronner’s soap (makes your laundry smell nice and can be used for lots of other stuff)
  Bleach: occasional tough stains in laundry and cleaning.
  Windex: I don’t know of anything that works better on mirrors and windows. 

I have the same bottle from when we first got married 7 years ago…don’t judge me. 

The must haves AND the optionals are still much wiser choices than what most Americans have in their cleaning supply closet. 

What do you use (or don’t use) to clean your home? 

Featured at Sorta Crunchy, the Greenbacks girl, Life renewed, and a Delightful home

I have always admired people who were able to preserve all of the yummy produce that is plentiful in the summer.  Making delicious jellies and pickled…well…everything, stocking up to last all winter.  What a fun way to make all natural food at a fraction of the cost!

This season I set out to learn how to can.  I was intimidated, to say the least.  But after watching some “how to” you tube videos (which of-course makes me an expert) and reading a few articles, I decided to roll up my sleeves and give it a go. 

My first experience was when I made strawberry jam.  In “typical me” fashion I got a little too overzealous and tried to make it sugar-free using low or no sugar pectin.  This is possible but a little tricky so I don’t recommend it unless you know what you are doing…which of course I did not.  The jam wasn’t a complete waste however, we can still use it, but it taste much better with a little added honey and it didn’t “jell”  very well. 

My next experience was WAY more successful.  And now I am a canning addict!  I have made scuppernong jelly, pickles, salsa, pear preserves, and pear sauce (the pickles didn’t make the picture because we already ate them already!).

How to get lots of FREE and or CHEAP produce

1. Pick your own.  Many farms offer pick your own produce and the cost is MUCH less than retail. 
2. Check out the “reduced table” at the produce stand.  Many produce stands move their fruit and veggies that are getting old, or have blemishes to the reduced table.  This is the perfect place to get produce for canning because it all needs to be cut up anyway so it is easy to cut out the blemishes.  The only trick is be ready to can that day because the fruit needs to be preserved quickly! 
3. Don’t be afraid to ask.  My sweet neighbor was the one generous enough to let me pick off her scuppernong grape vine for the jelly.  Most people who have fruit trees are happy to share their abundant crop.  You just have to ask. 

What do you need?

The only things you REALLY need are a large pot, jars and lids for canning, clean clothes, a ladle, and something to get the hot jars out of the boiling water. 

Although you can do without it, a canning funnel makes the job easier and less messy. 

Making the recipe to can

1. Decide what to can.  If you already have a favorite homemade recipe then you are already half way there!  There are tons of great ones to choose from here and here.
2. Have no idea where to start?  Almost anything can be canned.  What is your favorite summer fruit or veggie?  What do you buy the most of and could make your own instead?  If you need a good place to start I would suggest a pickling recipe as your first canning experience.  Tomato recipes need added lemon juice or citric acid to get the right pH and jellies are a little more tricky making sure they “jell”.

We made these pickles (without the peppers) YUM!

Fill and process

Once your recipe is made, fill the jars (leaving 1/2 inch space at the top for expansion).
Place lid and ring around the jar and tighten.  Then place jars in the boiling water bath.  There are all kinds of instructions of how long to let them boil depending on your elevation and what you are canning.

I am way too lazy to do all those calculations and I read most sources suggest boiling way too long…so I just boiled everything for 5-7 minutes with success every time!

Remove from hot bath and let cool on the counter. As the jars cool you may have to re-tighten as they can become loose with heat. 

In the next few hours you should hear all your jars POP.  This is the sign of a job well done!  If for some reason one of your jars didn’t seal (you can still press the center up and down) then store in the refrigerator or eat that one first. 

***Update!  Reader, Sabrina, added:

Don’t forget, once your jars are processed and cooled, remove the rings from the jar.  That way if there is ever a jar that goes bad, the lid can dislodge itself instead of the jar exploding.

Good to know!  Thanks Sabrina!

Now all you have to do is label, and enjoy! 

Have you ever canned?  Do you want to?  What are your thoughts? 

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Trying to eat everything perfectly organic can get overwhelming.  Honestly it makes me want to go eat a bag of cheetos and forget the whole thing.  I am all for eating 100% organic…if it were realistic, but most organic products are more expensive and many are just hard to find! 

That being said I know without a doubt it is important.  Pesticides, hormones, antibodies, synthetic fertilizers and genetically modified food does NOT sound appealing.  But being that our bank account is limited and our small town doesn’t have access to everything organic here are some ways we have found to make it all work. 

Produce

Many items in the produce section carry higher contaminates than others.  Oranges and Bananas for example have thick skin, therefore the fruit carries much fewer contaminates than say, grapes or lettuce. 

The “dirty dozen” lays out the 12 foods that carry the most pesticide residues.  It is  suggested  to buy these products organic if possible. 

I admit it, we do not buy everything on the dirty dozen list organically.  My “imperfect” way of resolving the problem is a vinegar bath.  Pesticides are made to be water resistant (because of rain) so just rinsing the produce in water won’t do the trick.  I give my grapes, apples, etc. a bath of (roughly) 3/4 cup white vinegar to 5 cups water.  I let them soak for a few minutes then wash them off as normal.  You can buy those fancy produce wipes too…but this is much cheaper and just as effective. 

Growing your own produce is also a fabulous option.  Think you can’t be a gardener?  Read Cheap and Easy gardning…for the rest of us.

Animal products

Meat, milk, milk products, and eggs all fall into the animal products category.   While pesticides on your produce are not great, hormones and antibodies are much worse.  If you have to choose, It is actually better to make wise decisions when it comes to your animal products than your produce. Need convincing?  Watch food inc.

Free range animals usually come with a high price tag.  Here is how we make it work:

Our pediatrician says if you are going to buy only one thing organic, buy organic milk. Especially having two girls, I appreciate her advice protecting them from false hormones.   Not only is organic milk free of the bad stuff, it also has much more of the good stuff.  When milk is processed it is heated, the high temperatures cause milk to loose much of it’s nutrient content.  Details here.  Our local farmers market sells AMAZING organic milk for $4.50 a gallon.  Which is much cheaper than grocery store organic milk and the taste is significantly better than “regular milk.” 

Our eggs come from the local produce store.  They sell yard eggs for $2.75 a dozen.  We buy free range chicken, grass fed cow meat, and wild caught fish…and it is expensive.  This is just one of the things we feel is important and worth the extra cost.  To make it more affordable we don’t eat it every night.  Often we have a bean dish, omelets for dinner, or soups and casseroles that don’t require as much meat.  We also live in the south and have access to deer meat.  You can’t get more “free range” than deer meat.  Just don’t watch Bambi.

Geezzz i sound like such a hippy huh?  I used to not even like people like me!  Don’t judge!  For the record I am typing this post while eating a piece of chocolate cake so don’t be too impressed.

What do you think?  Do you eat organic?  How do you make it all work for your family?

Featured at Sorta Crunchy, the Greenbacks girl, Life renewed, and a Delightful home