The green green days of summer!

I'm sure many of you passed this site on your way to Church every Sunday.  Our garden is very visible. 

I love square foot gardening!  I know it's still cold, but really this is the best time to start thinking about your garden.  Don't have one.  Well start thinking about one!  This particular type of garden can take up as little or as much space as you want.  We utilized our unused side yard and got over 80 pounds of potatoes and dozens of peppers, not to mention tomatoes, carrots, beans, etc...  and if you haven't tasted home grown broccoli then you haven't really lived.  I was so shocked at how different it tasted than store bought.   Anyway the point I'm trying to make is you really don't need a lot of space to grow a lot of food.  I also found it was a great way to grow family relationships.  We would have the kids help us in all the different aspects of planting.  It's great one on one time with kids as well.  We let each of our kids pick 2 squares and they got to choose what they planted in them.  It gave them ownership as well as helped with getting them to eat their veggies! 

For our boxes we used scrap lumber that was laying around at my dad's house.  I've been told that lumber yards often have scrap wood.  Don't be afraid to ask around.  You never know what people are wanting to get rid of. 

Mel Bartholomew is the author of Square Foot Gardening.  You can find it at the library.  We chose to use Mel's dirt mixture and made our own dirt since the side yard dirt was rocky and not very good.  I can honestly say I've never weeded my garden because of this.  It's great!!

I hope this gets you thinking about your garden.  If you start making a plan now then when the weather warms up you can put things into action. 

 

What to do with Chicken and Bean Flour

Right now there is a good deal on chicken breasts at Macy's and hopefully you have all had a chance to grind some beans,  Now lets start cooking!

Easy Chicken Bake

1 tsp Salt, 1 tsp garlic powder, and 1 tsp paprika  mixed in a bowl.
6 good size pieces of chicken
1 can cram of mushroom soup (Use your cream of bean mixture, I found mushroom soup base at Kitchen Kneeds in West Jordan)
1 cup cream or 3/4 cup evaporated milk
Rub your mixture of salt, garlic powder, and paprika all over the chicken pieces.  Dilute the soup with cream or evaporated milk and pour over the chicken.  Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 hour.

Square Foot Garden

 I know the weather is still cold, but it's a great time to start thinking about warmer days when we can get out and work in our yards.  One of our families favorite things to do is plant a garden and the only way to do it is by 
Square Food Gardening.  The video link is a quick preview of what it's all about.  You can also get the book at the library.  I'll be posting more about gardening, but for now start checking out how to do box gardens, I promise you'll love it!

Get Out Of The Winter Time Rut!

Looking for something to break up the winter blues?  Need to reconnect with your spouse or a break from the day to day? Try the Winter Concerts that are going on at the Conference Center. 

Dates and Location
Instrumental Showcase: Friday, January 21, 2011, 7:30 p.m.
Ballroom Dance Company: Thursday–Saturday, January 27–29, 2011, 7:30 p.m.; 2:00 p.m. matinee on Saturday.
Vocal Point: Thursday–Friday, February 10–11, 2011, 7:30 p.m.
Living Legends: Saturday, February 12, 2011, 7:30 p.m.
International Folk Dance Ensemble: Friday–Saturday, February 18–19, 2011, 7:30 p.m.
Conference Center Theater

Tickets
Ticket Price: $8.00
There is a limit of 10 tickets per order.

Vocal Point: Thursday–Friday, February 10–11, 2011

BYU’s vocal percussion kings put on a show like no other group on stage. Vocal Point performed for over 90,000 audience members in the summer of 2010, and now they bring their unique talent and incredible showmanship to the Conference Center. Their varied repertoire includes rock, pop, country, jazz, and R&B. Vocal Point gives regular performances for crowds of all shapes and sizes, from school children to corporate executives, from intimate groups to audiences of thousands, and everything in between. Each Vocal Point member displays musical ability, creativity, and stage experience—a combination that adds up to original, skillful, and spirited performances. Vocal Point will perform Thursday and Friday, February 10–11, 2011.

Living Legends: Saturday, February 12, 2011

Living Legends returns to the Conference Center after a tour to China in 2010, where they represented the United States in the Shanghai World Expo. The group spent three weeks thrilling audiences in venues from Beijing to Shanghai. Living Legends is preparing their show, "Seasons," for a summer tour to Russia in 2011. Living Legends presents dances from Polynesian islands, Mexico, South America, and American Indian culture. Living Legends will perform Saturday, February 12, 2011.

International Folk Dance Ensemble: Friday–Saturday, February 18–19, 2011

The International Folk Dance Ensemble is preparing for their 2011 summer tour to Eastern Europe with their show "The Gathering." The show is a collection of dances from cultures all over the world. The International Folk Dance Ensemble has toured throughout America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and the South Pacific representing both the United States and BYU to the world. The International Folk Dance Ensemble will perform Friday and Saturday, February 18–19, 2011.

Other Mothers!

Check this out!
The Other Mother

Rett Spring Fling

I know last year our youth did an amazing service project by doing a yard sale in behalf of the Retts Syndrom Foundation.  This year The Foundation is sponsoring a Rett Spring Fling.  It's dinner, dancing, and a silent auction.  It sounds fun you can register for it here.

I love this article. Good FHE

But, Mom, doesn’t every 8-year-old have an iPod Touch?

Published: Sunday, Jan. 16, 2011 3:57 p.m. MST

By April Perry, For the Deseret News

Our country's obsession with "stuff" is driving me crazy.
My children have always been happy with what they have, but in the past 24 hours, I've been hearing way too much of this:
"Everyone at school has an iPod Touch."
"I was standing in line, and a girl asked me why I wear these shorts so much."
"Some girls at school said I didn't get anything 'good' for Christmas."

Seriously?
I've been doing a lot of thinking about how I see my life and how my children see our lives. I've come to the conclusion that children will naturally think everyone in the world has "more" — unless their parents show them the truth.

Here's a fun exercise that can be repeated as often as necessary to help our children want less — and therefore help us to stay on a budget, get out of debt and spend our money on things that are actually worthwhile:

Step 1: Gather around as a family and list everything that is "wrong" or "lacking" in your lives. It took us about four minutes to come up with 16 things. I was a very good helper.

Step 2: Send that list to a friend or family member who is well-acquainted with the way that most of the world lives. Ask him or her to show you a new perspective. We sent our list to my brother-in-law Jon, who is living in a rural village in the Philippines. We asked him to tell us how our huge, terrible problems compare to those of the people he sees and works with every day.

Step 3: Review this new perspective with your family often, post it in a prominent location or repeat this process whenever your children start to feel like everybody else has more. I've included our list as an example:

1. We have to keep boxes stacked up next to the dryer to keep it closed.
    People here have to scrub their clothes themselves and then hang them up to dry because they don't have a dryer — believe me, its not fun; I've made my knuckles bleed while scrubbing.
2. We have paint chips on many of our walls.
People use cinder blocks as walls here.
3. We have no grass in the backyard.
People don't have backyards here.
4. Our carpet has stains on it, and we have to get new carpet.
I have never seen carpet in any of the people's homes here.
5. The sliding doors on our bathtub are broken.
I have never seen a bathtub here, either!
6. We want our own bedrooms because we are tired of sharing.
A lot of homes here are just one room with bamboo dividers for rooms, if their home is big enough.
7. Our dishwasher leaves a weird film on the dishes.
To wash dishes here, you have to go get your water from a well and wash them all by hand.
8. One of our cars is making a weird noise because of something wrong with the brakes.
You are considered rich here if you own one car.
9.The family, especially Ethan, wants better desserts.
A lot of children would just like to have ulam, the stuff they eat with their rice.
10. The older kids want better toys.
Kids don't have toys here; they just make up games and play with each other all day long.
11. Grace and Alia want a little sister.
People might have that same problem here, too.
12. We want to go to Hawaii.
People here would love to go on a trip to even just Baguio for a day, but can't afford it.
13. The fridge and microwave don't match the other appliances.
People here have no appliances and still cook food over an open fire.
14. Ethan wants video games.
Children here don't know what video games are.
15. We'd like to have a vacation home.

Some people would like to live in something more than a bamboo hut.
I can't blame my children for wanting all the toys, clothes and gadgets they see their friends enjoying, but taking some time to appreciate the comforts of our lives has changed our family discussions. We try to talk about what we can do to help others, and we express more gratitude for our food, our clothing, our home and our family.

Every 8-year-old does not have an iPod Touch, and when we shift our focus from what we don't have to what we do have, our "less" really does become more.

April Perry is co-director of The Power of Moms website, which can be found at powerofmoms.com. She is a writer for the "Motherhood Matters" blog on our website.

Beans- the magical fruit.

Beans beans those wonderful things, 
the more you eat, the more you..... well I won't go there, but let's just say the better you'll feel. Beans have so much nutrition packed inside them yet so many of us are not enjoying the fiber goodness. 

I know we all have some sort of bean sitting on our food storage shelf.  Just sitting there making us feel good because hey we have food on our shelf.  But would you really eat just plain beans? 

So what can we do with that 10 year old can of beans?  I know many of us are thinking "I'll make chili", but what if your like me and chili ain't your thing.  Here is a great idea to use up tons of beans, plus make your food storage budget go a little farther.


Grind your beans in a wheat grinder!  Yup you heard me. Make flour out of your beans. For me this rocked my cooking world. Why you ask?  Because I get all the nutritional value, but without the bean texture.  I'm a texture girl and beans are not my favorite thing to put in food.   

So what can you use bean flour for?  My favorite thing is to make cream of chicken soup (or what ever cream based can soup you want)  Here is the recipe.

1 1/4 Cups White Bean Flour
4 Tablespoons Chicken Soup Base


Mix together and store in cool place.
To replace a can of Cream Of Chicken Soup (condensed) use 1/3 cup of mix and 1 3/4 cups cool water. Bring to a boil and use in your recipe just like you would use the canned soup.

I now use this whenever a recipe calls for a can a cream soup.  It's fantastic!  I also have used a mushroom soup base and a vegetable soup base to make different flavors.  Make sure to grind enough beans to keep some on hand so that every time you need it you don't have to break out the wheat grinder. 

Bean flour is also a great thickener.  You can use it to thicken gravy, cheese sauces, or any food you need to thicken.  Like I said before you get all the nutrition that our little friend the bean has to offer!

 

Welcome To A New Year!

I recently have been called to serve as the new provident living leader.   In talking with our awesome R.S. President I've decided to run things through a blog. I've never blogged before, but I'm excited about the new adventure! 


On the blog I will be posting great deals I've found, dates to remember, recipes, money management tips, and hopefully other useful information.


Provident living is all about becoming self reliant and as I was reading through the Church website on what I should be focusing on I came across a section that really spoke to me and to my surprise it wasn't all about food storage!  There are actually 5 areas that the Church wants us to be self reliant in.  I have posted the article and hope you find it helpful.  During the year I will be focusing on the 5 different areas to hopefully help us all become a little more self reliant. 

Elements of Self-Reliance

Self-reliance is the ability, com­mitment, and effort to provide the necessities of life for self and family. As members become self-reliant, they are also better able to serve and care for others.

Education. Education can en­rich, ennoble, and provide under­standing that leads to a happier life.Members should study the scriptures and other good books; improve their ability to read, write, and do basic mathematics; and obtain skills needed for suit­able employment.

Education

Health

Spiritual Strength

Employment

Finances

Health. The Lord has com­manded members to take care of their minds and bodies.They should obey the Word of Wis­dom, eat nutritious food, exercise regularly, and get adequate sleep.They should shun substances or practices  that abuse their bodies or minds and that could lead to addiction. They should practice good sanitation and hygiene and obtain adequate medical and den­tal care.They should also strive to cultivate good relationships with family members and others.

Employment. Work is the foun­dation upon which self-reliance and temporal well-being rest.Members should prepare for and carefully select a suitable occu­pation or self-employment that will provide for their own and their families’ needs.They should become skilled at their jobs, be diligent and trustworthy, and give honest work for the pay and benefits they receive.

Home Storage. To help care for themselves and their families, members should:

– Build a three-month supply of food that is part of their normal diet.

– Store drinking water in case the water supply becomes polluted or disrupted.

– Gradually build a longer-term supply of food that will sustain life.

See All Is Safely Gathered In: Family Home Storage, 3 (item 04008).

Finances. To become financially self-reliant, members should:
– Pay tithes and offerings.
– Avoid unnecessary debt.
– Use a budget and live within a plan.
– Gradually build a financial reserve by regularly saving a little.
– Teach family members prin­ciples of financial management.
See All Is Safely Gathered In: Family Finances, 3 (item 04007).

Spiritual Strength. Spirituality is essential to a person’s temporal and eternal well-being.Church members should exercise faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, obey God’s commandments, pray daily, study the scriptures and teachings of the latter-day proph­ets, attend Church meetings, and serve in Church callings and as­signments.