Beginning to look a lot like Christmas! I'm not ready!

 Sneaky little thing, the Holiday season.  Normally I'm ready to go.  I can face it's arrival with a smile because I've already started my Christmas shopping.  I laugh at delivery dates because I know I've had ample time to have my gifts arrive.  I feel sorry for those poor souls running around last minute to get their gifts for loved ones.  That is until this year.   This year, I'm a poor soul running around.  I haven't even started.  Well, okay, I do have one grandsons gift.  I bought it in the beginning of the year.  I also have two very small gits; one for DH and one for our youngest son.  The bulk of my Christmas shopping is still to be done.  It starts tomorrow.  However, I will need all my wits to get everything before the Christmas Holiday.

Dh and I set a budget each year; for ourselves and for what we get for family.  We don't use credit cards.  Not even with the intention of paying it off next month. Once we paid those bad boys off, we said never again.  "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions" said 18th century writer Samuel Johnson.  Truer words were never spoken.  Especially when it comes to credit cards.  Well, and me.  It's so easy to get out of budget during the Christmas season.  Gifts, paper, ribbon, food, tape, stamps, cards, employee parties, etc., all can throw you off budget.  Balances can become more than can be paid off in a month.  Then what follows is tax season.  Not a good combination.  Before you know it, that balance thought to be paid off in January is still there come next December.  

This year, for us, is going to require some leg work; old fashioned Christmas shopping at brick and mortar stores.  I can get somethings online tomorrow, but the rest won't have time to make it.  I won't have more Christmas money budgeted until the middle of the month.  So the other half of the shopping plan will be after that.  The benefit of that is the closer to Christmas the lower prices tend to go as stores try to move inventory.  It's a gamble, but I look forward to the challenge.

Homemade gifts are also part of that budget/plan.  Everyone from the mail man to my siblings will receive a homemade gift from me.  Usually in the form of a baked good or candy(my butter toffee).  If I have enough time while DH is away, I might be able to make our traditional Pj's for Christmas eve.  One year I decided not to give Pj's on Christmas eve.  I thought the kids were tired of it and already knew what the gift was anyway.  I was wrong.  They missed not having the Pj's on Christmas eve.  So I've gone back to it.  If I don't have time, I'll need to buy them, but if I can make them from fabric on hand, I can save that bit.  I may end up buying the t shirt tops, and making the pants.  

So we'll see what I can get done.  Sewing will be my major project while DH is away.  The most important part that I hope is taken away from this post is please, please, please

A)  Have a budget, even if it's tiny, to work with for the Christmas season.  Homemade gifts are awesome!  I have recipes on my pages for "how to's", playdough, and other treats.  Google is a great resource too!

B)  DON'T USE A CREDIT CARD!  Even if you have and follow a budget, don't do it.  Don't put yourself there.  If you can't afford gifts for your entire family, let them know and focus just on you, your spouse, and your own kids.  

***The pictures are pictures of present and past fur babies in our home.  The top is current.  That's stitch.  Next is Wolly.  We lost him 12 years ago.  I miss him every day, and last is Nermal.  We had her for 22 years until 7 years ago.  Now we have 2 dogs and 4 cats in our little house because apparently we're nuts!  Happy Thanksgiving!  Love to all!

Discombobulated!

 It's been a while.  Sorry, again.  No this time it is literally time that has gotten away with me.  You see DH has left his full time nursing job to partially retire.  I say partially because he's actually taken another position as a professional wrestler!  I still shake my head at that one.  So my routine is kind of up in the air at the moment as I refigure our schedule.  I had the routine down pat.  Monday through Friday it was up to make his breakfast and lunch while he would get in a morning workout.  Then off to work he'd go( hi ho, hi ho).  While he was gone to work I'd had some project I'd work on: garden, baking, house, sewing, errands.  Then I'd have wrapped the project up and be settling down for the day by the time he got home.  All I'd need to do is fix dinner and my day was done.  Weekends were a slow start as we'd enjoy coffee together in the morning.  Maybe we'd work on something at the house together if needed, but often times we'd go out, mostly to antique stores, or just for a drive.  

                                    

Now that schedule is up ended and we're both trying to navigate this new routine.  It hasn't really become a routine yet, and not sure if it will while he's touring.  Yes.  He tours.  So I have one routine when he's home and one routine when he's gone.  I get a lot done while he's gone.  Not because he doesn't help when he's home, but because I want to just spend time with him when he's home.  Plus when he's home I have to stop what I'm working on for meals and such.  Contrary to what one may think, I do skip meals if I'm engrossed in something.  I may stop and grab a piece of fruit or cheese if I'm getting hungry, but not stop what I'm doing.  With hubby home; I have to actually stop and figure out a lunch.  It's a worth while trade off.  I miss him when he's gone, and that's another reason I get so much accomplished.  When he's gone I work to make the time pass.  

So needless to say Being out of my routine has thrown other things out of a routine; Blogging, baking.  Even calling my mother!  I know!  See, you're in good company.  I usually call her once a week at least.  I did finally get a chance to call her yesterday.  I said "did you forget me"?  To which she replied " almost, but not quite".  In my defense, DH and I went up to her house last week for a breakfast with her and my other siblings.  

So I'd love to be able to share some frugal tidbit I've been working on, but I'm too scatter brained to think of something.  Right now we're cleaning things up to put up Christmas decor.  I've got my tree up, just not decorated.  That will come Thanksgiving night.  Then the rest of my Christmas decor will follow.  

One thing I can do is share some links to previous posts about preparing for the holidays.  So here ya go!  

Christmas in hard times.

Crafty stuff 

Working within a budget

Thanksgiving Essentials You Can Make Not Buy!

 Here comes the holiday season!  It's just around the corner!  I've already started to see the commercials for Christmas, and Thanksgiving hasn't even happened yet.  To be fair, Christmas decor made it's way to the stores right after 4th of July, so who are we kidding.  Retailers aren't kidding when it comes to competing for your hard earned dollars.  That includes grocery stores.  I don't fault them for this.  It's their job.  Their job is to get as many of your dollars as they can.  Your job, should you choose to accept it, is to keep as many of your dollars as you can.  This isn't Mission impossible!  It can be done.  You just need to be a little more savvy, and you win.  Part of that savviness is in making more of the things grocers tell you have to be bought.

Many of these recipes I've listed before in one way or another, but I wanted to place them here for convenience.  Both for you and me.  Before you grab a premade, possibly chemically laced bottle, can, or package of something for the holidays; look here to what you can cross off your list.  It's a bigger list than you think!  Full disclosure, I don't know why the next two recipes are highlighted white, but I couldn't fix it so.....

Sweetened Condensed milk

2 cups whole milk
3/4 cup of sugar
1 tsp vanilla

On med/low heat whisk the milk and sugar together. Keep stirring occasionally while the milk mixture reduces by about half ( you're shooting for 14 oz. I weigh mine to get it exact). Once reduced, remove from heat and add the vanilla.  Mix well. Makes 12-14 oz and you can use this recipe anywhere sweetened condensed milk is called for.

Evaporated milk

This is incredibly easy.  Simply pour 3 cups of milk into a pot.  On a med low heat simmer until reduced by half.  Use where ever evaporated milk is called for

Cream soup mix

1 1/2 cups dry milk
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 ts salt

mix all together then cut in

1 stick of  butter.  Store in an airtight container in the fridge.  To use for plain white sauce just use 1/3 cup mix to 1 cup of water.  If you want cream of chicken, use chicken broth, cream of mushroom: open a can of mushrooms and drain, add water to the mushroom liquid to equal 1 cup fluid. Then follow the rest of the recipe.  You can also add 1 cup of cheese and 1 tsp. yellow mustard to make cheese sauce. If you don't have dry milk, you can simply make a white sauce using 2 TBS melted butter, 2 TBS flour, 1/4 tsp salt and 1 cup liquid of choice: milk, chicken brother, mushroom, etc.  This recipe will take the place of your cream of chicken, cream mushroom etc.  I used this recipe last night to make queso cheese sauce for our fajitas.  It was very good, and popular.

Homemade Poultry Seasoning

2 tsp ground sage
2 tsp Thyme
1 tsp Marjoram
3/4 tsp ground rosemary
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground black pepper.

Just add everything to a jar and shake well.  Just keep it in your spice cabinet for use whenever you need poultry seasoning.

Homemade pumpkin pie spice

4 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

Chicken Broth

Cook a whole chicken for dinner.  SAVE THE JUICE FROM IT"S COOKING!  After it's use for that meals, remove the rest of the meat.  Save that meat in the fridge of freezer for other meals.  Take the bones from the chicken, and the cooking liquid from cooking the chicken and place in a crock pot or stock pot.  If you have the giblets, add those too.  Add some celery (2 large stalks), some carrots( one large), half a large onion, couple of tsp salt, and 2 tbs vinegar.  Covered it all with water, put the lid on and set it to low.  Let this simmer at least a day.  If in a stock pot, let it simmer during the day and check on it periodically.  Add water if it cooks down too low.  You want to keep everything covered.  At bed time, turn off, then resume cooking on low the next day.  You want to cook both crock or stock pot, until you can take a bone out and crush it with your fingers.  That means the vinegar has done it's job and removed all of the minerals from the bones, and the broth is now infused with those good for you minerals.  The broth is now ready.  Strain the broth to remove the bones, and vegetables.  The bones are so soft after cooking broth that I will mash up everything, veggies and all and give it to my dogs.  They love it.  Place the broth in the refrigerator to cool.  Remove once cool and skim the now solid fat off the top.  Your broth is now defatted.  This should a make at least a few quarts of really good bone broth.  Bone broth cost big bucks at the store.  You got it cheap cheap!  

Stuffing

Save the heals of loaves of bread, left over hot dog bung, hamburger buns, corn bread, and biscuits.  Keep this stale bread in your freezer.  If you don't have left over corn bread or biscuits, simply make them and freeze to use for stuffing for Thanksgiving dinner.  No one should have to buy( and pay crazy money) for stale bread.  Saltine crackers are also a great stuffing addition.  Use your favorite recipe, just don't buy the dried stuffing.  

Pie crust

2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp salt

2/3 cup lard or butter.  Please don't use shortening, and make sure the lard you buy isn't hydrogenated.  I use butter most of the time.

6-7 TBS cold water

Mix flour and salt together.  Cut in the butter until it's crumbly.  There shouldn't be a piece bigger than a pea.  Make a well in the center.  Add the cold water a TBS at a time, tossing it into the mixture.  It you need t add a little more water, add just enough to get a nice dough that doesn't crumble, but isn't sticky.  Divide in to two pieces.  Roll out each onto a floured surface.  Makes two crusts.  You can flour parchment or wax paper and roll the crust out on the paper, then roll and freeze or refrigerate until needed.  

Baking powder

2 TBS Baking Powder

2 TBS Corn Starch

4 TBS Cream of Tarter

Mix all together in a jar.  Use as you would any store bought baking powder, only this will work way better.  Much cheaper.

Brown Sugar

Mix in 1 TBS of Molasses into 1 cup of granulated sugar.  You can blend this to mix, or use your hands to mix well.  Use just as you would any store bought brown sugar.  Way cheaper this way.

Powdered Sugar

I've actually done this.  I know it sound crazy, but to make powdered sugar you need to put a cup of sugar into a blender and blend on high.  You'll need to stop it periodically to loosen things up, but it works.  

Okay.  That's all I can think of at the moment.  If I think of anything else, I'll add it here.  Please comment if you know of something I've missed, have a question, or just want to say hello!