I Don’t See How You Do it?! How I manage 7 kids
When people find out we have 7 children that are very close in age, they are quick to say, “I don’t see how you do it!” I have heard that more times than I can count! For years people have said that to me and I kind of awkwardly laugh and change the subject. I never really know what to make of this or what to say in response, but the short answer is I DON’T! I let go of that self imposed guilt to try and “do it all” a long time ago, but that’s for another post….This is just a little bit of how we practically manage some of the chaos with a big family. The secret?! I have 7 kids to help me do it all!
Our motto is, “See a need, and if you are able, meet it.”
The Partner System….
After we had 3 kids, we decided to implement the partner system. I think I was actually expecting number 4 when we first talked about this concept. We didn’t read any great books or consult any other wise parents, we just discussed practically how our kids could help each other (and me) out. The kids were getting older and could help more around the house and we really wanted to foster that bond and responsibility between our children. Yes, even our boys need to learn to take care of babies! This is in no way a replacement for parenting, but we feel like we as a family are a team, and we should help each other out in any way we can. Some of the things we implemented were helping them get dressed (especially getting shoes on!), buckling them in the car, helping with bedtime routine, and just generally watching out for them and helping when they see a need. Christ calls us to be servant followers, and I want to instill that servant heart in them so they can apply it in any life situation. We also wanted to foster a love of family and a sense of responsibility to each other. Our motto is, “See a need, and if you are able, meet it.” At the end of the day, they are kids and not always perfect at this, but our hope is that they will always put that motto into practice, whether in family life or out in the world.
Find a system for household work that fits your family.
On top of the partner system, we give them chores to do, but we mainly encourage them to go above and beyond and look for ways to help anywhere they are needed. We started with meal time chores which consisted of setting the table, getting everyone’s drink out, clearing the table afterwards, wiping the table, sweeping, and taking the scraps outside (yes, we live in an old house with no garbage disposal 😉). The kids are at the age where they still enjoy helping me prepare for meal time so we have also added that in the mix. They each get a day to be my “kitchen helper” and this varies depending on the age of the child. For example, on my 4 year old’s day, it mainly is getting things out of the refrigerator, setting the table, or throwing things away. On the days that my older kids help, they can cut, chop, or get things out of the oven. Not only are these practical skills that I think every child needs to learn, they are also so helpful to make our mealtimes run smoothly. We make sure to rotate through table time chores monthly so they aren’t stuck doing the same things all the time.
Fast forward to a few more kids and several doing school, we realized we were doing a lot of the work of reminding them what needed to be done. Remember, I wanted them to see a need, and meet it? Plus, I wanted them to take responsibility for their days, not just me barking out orders and them following. We needed a system that would bring all that together. My sister told me about Accountable Kids and we have used it ever since! It may not work for every family, but it has been just the combination of accountability and “chore chart” that we needed. There days are laid out for them as well as their chores for the day. Anything above and beyond their normal chores, they can earn rewards or money and this helps also teach financial responsibility. We start the program at around age 4 and follow it until about age 12.
You can find the book and the kits here:
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Lower your expectations if needed.
My kids are still fairly small so I get asked the question, “How do you let them do the cleaning, or laundry or whatever? Don’t you like it a certain way?” Yes, it’s true the little ones don’t always do the best job, but as long as they ARE doing their best, I let them do the task. I try to not go behind them and re-do it. If it needs to be redone, we do it together and I explain why. Even as an adult I know there are times someone has asked me to do something and then it was unappreciated or they went back and “redid” the task I was asked to do. That is not what I want our kids to remember-that they could never fold the towels right, or so on. I’ve definitely had to lower my standards in some areas of “clean”, but you know what? If you let them practice enough, they will eventually get pretty good at cleaning or cooking, etc. Then one day, you will look around and you will have productive, responsible kids who love and serve each other….at least that’s what I’m waiting on. 😉
I remind myself often, that it’s a journey of learning not perfection…
Yes, my kids still fight and bicker. Yes, my kids still fight me on chores some days. Yes, my kids still act selfishly and don’t want to help their partners. BUT, we are all learning and growing day by day, and isn’t that what life is all about anyway?
Nature’s Best Earache Oil
You remember my son with the cough? He’s my different one. Not in a bad way, just different. The only brown eyed child we have, sensitive skin, thoughtful, behaves like a 60 year old man. Seriously, if you close you eyes, you could swear you were having a conversation with an old man instead of a 4 year old.
We’ve never had problems with earaches in our house. I know some families really struggle with that and have to go the whole route of tubes and antibiotics, but we just haven’t ever had that issue. I think we had maybe 1 or 2 earaches until my “sensitive son” came along. Now, I would not say he had chronic ear infections or even that much of an issue, but just more than we were used to dealing with. So, being the herbal-loving, frugal, slightly-crunchy, concerned Mama that I am, I started looking for what herbal remedy to use. It didn’t take long to find many references to mullein being a great treatment option for earaches. This has been a great resource for us ever since!
This was early in my herbal journey and I hadn’t used mullein before so I wasn’t really looking for it. But, boy when I did go hunting, I found it literally EVERYWHERE! It is said to be a healer of the soil so it grows in just about any type of soil. I have found it on the roadside in little more than just gravel. I promise, when you start to look, you will see it everywhere! My kids are constantly spotting it along the road and hollering for me to pull over and get it! Now, I always make sure to gather extra flowers during the summer and dry them for when I need them later.
Do not wait for the mullein stalk to fully bloom because they won’t! You will most commonly see it look like the plant above. Don’t pick the whole stalk head, because if you just pick the flowers, more will grow in a few days. This will allow you to harvest several rounds of flowers from one plant.
How to make earache oil:
- Place dried (or fresh) flowers in oil. I like to use sweet almond oil, but you could probably use olive or coconut oil.
- Cover and let it sit in a warm place (I like to use the kitchen window) for 2 weeks. If you can’t do it the long way, you can warm the mixture on the stove on low for 1 hour. Do NOT boil!
- Strain, and pour remaining oil into a container.
- When needed for earaches, take a dropperful and warm up. *Make sure to test it before you use it!
- Put a few (warm) drops in the ear and cover with a cotton ball.
Disclaimer: I am in no way a doctor or medical professional. This is just my personal experience with an herbal remedy that many have used over the years. I have found that it works great for common earaches, but is not intended to treat chronic ear infections. If you have reoccurring infections please, seek medical advice.
Oh, you are one of “those” people…why we chose homeschooling for our family.
We will soon be starting our 7th year of homeschool. Sometimes it’s crazy to say that out loud, considering we never intended to. We didn’t set out to be a homeschool family. I mean, they are all unsocial, awkward, weirdos, right? That’s what I thought too when we started on this journey.
DISCLAIMER: This is about our personal journey with homeschooling. No, I don’t think everyone CAN or SHOULD homeschool. No, I don’t think I’m a better person or Christian because I do. It is what has been right and good for OUR family and here is our story. Don’t like it or agree?, move along….If it brings you some encouragement or insight….great! That was my point. 😊
My mom was a second grade teacher for 30 years. My husband and I attended public school all the way from kindergarten through college. We turned out alright and I never thought any different for our children…until our first was about to enter kindergarten. The same year, my husband was elected as a state representative for our area and that would have him out of town all week long for almost half the year. We realized that with her in school, the only time she would see her dad was on the weekends. We loved the idea of freedom it would give us for family time and learning flexibility, but I was one of those who said I would NEVER homeschool my kids! Doesn’t God have a sense of humor?!
“You will never look back on your life and regret that you spent TOO much time with your kids.”
The decision to take the final plunge, wasn’t some epiphany that came to us, but a series of events and people that confirmed what the Lord had began to lay on our hearts. We did a lot of praying and talked to the few families that we knew were already on this journey. In the end we decided to look at homeschooling as a “we will try it for a year and see” approach. After all it was only kindergarten, right? How bad could we screw that up, right?! Right??
Well, we made it through kindergarten and haven’t looked back! We continue to take it a year at a time, but we honestly see no signs of stopping in our future! What started as almost a chore, has become an unexpected blessing for our family and our children. We have fallen in love with the freedom, flexibility, and closeness that homeschooling has provided for our family. Yes, it is challenging and difficult at times, and there are days that I feel overwhelmed and inadequate, but the rewards far out weigh any of those fears and emotions. It has not only benefited our children, but us as parents also. The Lord has definitely used it to humble and stretch me in areas that I didn’t even know I needed “work”. But he has also been so so so faithful to us. I have gotten to build character and relationships with my children that is deep and lasting. A wise older lady once told me that you will never look back on your life and regret that you spent too much time with your kids. (And you will spend ALOT of time with your kids, so you better like them! 😉) Now, I know, this lifestyle isn’t for everyone, but if you are on the fence, like I was, I encourage you to earnestly pray, do your research, and talk to other families. If the Lord is laying it on your heart and leading you to it, He will lead you through it.
Here are the top reasons we choose to homeschool.
- FREEDOM and FLEXIBILITY: Our main reasons when we started this journey was for the freedom and flexibility of homeschool. As I said earlier, my husband was going to be out of town the entire week and we wanted to be able to visit him when we wanted and not have to worry about a “school schedule”. For a time, we actually would spend 2 weeks out of the month with him “in the city” and this allowed us to go places and experience things not always offered in our small town. These 2 reasons remain the greatest benefits to us! Also, during the month of October we operate a pumpkin patch. As they have grown, our kids have been able to take an active part in the day to day operations of the farm. They have become a huge help to us and are also learning valuable real life skills like how to work with the public, make change, supply and demand, animal husbandry, and plant science, just to name a few! My daughter has actually earned quite a bit of money making and selling homemade jam. We also pay them a small amount for each day of work and they are able to learn about tithing, saving, and giving in a practical way. Since we homeschool, we are able to have an alternate schedule for school during this time to allow them this opportunity.
2. FAITH and BIBLICAL WORLDVIEW: We have always felt it is important for our kids to have a Biblical worldview. What better way than to be able to pick the content and scope of what they are taught? No, we don’t hide them in a bubble. Yes, we do learn about all other religions and opinions. But we teach every subject through the lense of the Bible and God as our ultimate authority. Honestly, when we made the decision to homeschool, it wasn’t a huge concern about what our children would be taught in school. After all, my husband and I had been through public school and kept our faith. We live in a small town where most of the teachers and administrators are at least acquaintances and most are believers, but as time has gone on, I’m glad that most days we don’t have to deal with some of the stuff that comes up in public school. At least not until we feel our kids are ready to hear it! We are very honest with our kids and they know about social issues, but they also know where to look for the ultimate truth. With more and more agendas being pushed on our children, I’m thankful we not only get a say, but we get to choose the content and subject of our curriculum. Our kids are going to learn all about the world and some ugly truths too, but I want to be the one to choose when and how those issues are discussed and introduced.
“If the Lord is leading you to it, He will lead you through it.”
3. LIFE IS LEARNING: If you are around me very long, you will hear me repeat this quite often. I didn’t always think this way. Actually, when we started, I just thought we would “do school” at home. Complete with a desk, white board, and our own “classroom”. Now days, we still have our white board and classroom area, but we have expanded our ideas of what “learning” looks like. Sometimes our school looks like sitting at the table doing workbooks, sometimes it looks like a trip to the grocery store or museum, sometimes it looks like going on a nature walk, and sometime it looks like working together to accomplish a task. What I have learned is that kids are always learning, and they don’t have to be sitting in a desk, quietly for hours to do this. Of course they need to learn to read and do math problems, and sit quietly, but learning is so much more than that! This mindset also lets my kids have the flexibility to learn how is best for them. We don’t put them in a box and they are able to learn at their own pace and in a way that best fits them. It is contrary to what most of us have been taught and its honestly taken me a while to wrap my mind around it, but it is now one of the top reasons we continue to choose to homeschool.
Many people have said to me, “Oh, I could never teach my own kids. I’m not smart enough, or I don’t have the patience.”. My answer is, God gave them to you! You know what’s best for them. Maybe for you that means a Christian school, maybe for you that means a tutorial a couple days a week, maybe for you that means public school, maybe for you that means a Montessori school, or maybe like us, it’s homeschooling. Whatever it is, be encouraged, that you are your child’s best advocate and teacher, whether you go it alone or have someone else help with the “formal education part”. I truly believe that if God calls you to it, you can do ANYTHING…even teach your child math! 😉
Pumpkin Muffins from Fresh Pumpkin
We became pumpkin farmers, quite by accident, and now it’s a huge part of our life. So, the supply of pumpkins is usually plentiful! One pumpkin can yield quite a bit of puree so I usually freeze it and we can enjoy from scratch, fresh pumpkin muffins all year! These are obviously great for breakfast on the go, but we also eat them a lot at snack time. It has been a great way to save a little money on snacks with just a little effort up front! I hope you enjoy!
First, cook your pumpkin:
- Wash the outside of pumpkin. You want to include the skin in your pumpkin puree because it has great flavor and that is where lots of the nutrients are also!
- Cut the top off, like you are going to carve it for a jack o’ lantern, and scoop out all the insides and seeds.
- Separate the seed and put aside. Throw away all the rest of the “goop”.
- Now cut the pumpkin in 2-6 pieces, depending on size. I usually keep mine pretty big, about 4 pieces, so don’t feel like you have to do a lot of chopping.
- Spray or brush inside and outside of each piece with oil. I have used a variety of different kinds, and they all work fine.
- Place on a baking sheet and bake on 300 until the pieces are “fork tender”.
- Put in a food processor or blender to make the puree.
- Put in freezer bags (or jars if you are going to can) I try to measure about 1-2 cups per bag because that is what most of my recipes call for.
Save the seeds:
- Clean off as much of the pumpkin “goop” as you can.
- Rinse the seeds and let drain.
- Lay out to dry or pat dry with a towel.
- Spread them out on a baking sheet.
- Drizzle with olive oil.
- Add your favorite seasoning! We love to use a package of dry ranch dressing. Or you can simply do salt and pepper. Red pepper flakes and a little dry ranch seasoning, or try cinnamon and sugar!
- Bake on 350 until crispy and brown.
Now let’s make muffins!
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 2 cups of puree pumpkin (fresh or frozen) I have also used sweet potato puree when I was out of pumpkin.
- 2 cups of oatmeal (quick)
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice
- 1 cup of brown sugar
- 1/2 cup of white sugar
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon of baking soda
- Add the extras! I use this recipe to literally add whatever I have on hand that I want to sneak past my kids-flax seed, chia seeds, nuts, raisins, coconut, protein powder, you name it! I usually can add less than 1/2 cup without having to adjust the other ingredients.
- Mix together and put in muffin tins. Bake on 350 for 10-15 minutes.
I Don’t Buy Organic Food, and That Doesn’t Make Me a Bad Mom.
As a mom, the majority of the grocery shopping and cooking responsibilities fall to me. We all want what’s best for our kids and families, but seriously, do we need more stress? Sometimes just grocery shopping can feel so overwhelming with all the information out there. Who do you believe? How do you ever know what is best? Everyone has an opinion and judgement, especially when it comes to raising kids and what you should feed them.
Choices are a good thing!
I personally believe life is mostly about balance. I apply this concept to most every area of my life. I use my herbal remedies and essential oils, but also modern medicine when needed. I breastfeed all my babies, but I wouldn’t dare let them co-sleep with me. I give my kids kale smoothies and Oreos in the same day. You do ALL those things too?! Great! You don’t do ANY of those things?! Great! What works for you may not always work for me and vice versa. Isn’t freedom great?!
It’s the same way with farming. Choices are great, and I think we even need those in farming and our food supply. Can we just pause and say hallelujah, that we have an abundant enough food supply that we GET to choose our foods?! We need to never forget how blessed we are that we have a stable and safe food supply.
Why do we care about your opinion?
I grew up on a farm with crops and beef cattle. I have a bachelor’s degree in animal science. I worked for 5 years in commercial hog production. *Gasp!* Yes, one of those so called “factory farms”. No, a farming family that just happens to also be really good business people and have a lot of land and animals after years of HARD work. Also, my husband and I have raised about every kind of (farmish) animal you could imagine. I am by no means saying I’m an expert, but I do know a little about the science and practical aspects that go into producing animals and crops for food. You can read more about our experience HERE!
When shopping you may see labels like “all natural”, “organic”, “hormone free”, “non-GMO”, or “grass fed”. Everywhere you look someone is coming out with a new study or sensational claim about chemicals in food or the destruction of the Earth by “factory farms”. You are led to believe that if you don’t choose a certain type of food or even whole diet lifestyle, you are giving your children second rate food. That’s just not true. The USDA is the agency that sets the standards for organic farming in order for them to use that label on their products. Organic is a term that says the food or products have been raised using the approved methods.
- Organic does NOT indicate a superior nutritional value. There are a lot of claim, but no solid, science based research that shows this to be true.
- Organic does NOT tell you where your food came from. Most all farms, yes even the big “factory farms” are family owned and have been for generations.
- Organic does NOT tell you if pesticides were used or not. Contrary to popular belief , organic farming can still use pesticides.
I’m probably not going to buy any of those “labels” because they are A: more expensive (marketing is a business after all), B: I have 100% confidence that ALL of our food is safe, and C: I don’t believe that “organic”, “all natural”, “non-GMO” etc is better or healthier….just a different option.
Again, choices in food are fabulous and a luxury that many people around the world don’t have. Whatever you choose, that is what’s best for your family, but please, do NOT choose because of fear, guilt, or shame playing a part in the marketing of products. At the end of the day, its hard enough to feed your family and not have “mom guilt”, don’t let misleading labels add to it.
Apple Pie Crisp From Scratch
One of my husband’s favorite kinds of pie is apple. Several years ago, while at a farmer’s market, he found a good deal on apples. He ended up coming home with 6 bushels of apples. That’s a lot of apples, by the way! So, we ate all that we could eat, but in the end, something had to be done with all those apples. I think he secretly planned this all along. I decided apple sauce (a great frugal snack) and apple pie filling. I had plenty of canning jars and plenty of little helpers so we set to work. Now, these are our 2 favorite items to make in the fall and enjoy all winter.
Start with the crust.
- 3 cups of all purpose flour
- 1 egg
- 4 Tablespoons of water
- 1 1/2 cups of butter (softened)
- 1 teaspoon of salt
Combine the dry ingredients. Beat the egg and add in with the wet. Mix well. Roll out with a rolling pin or (like me) just use you hands. Put in a pie plate. Fill with filling and bake.
** This recipe makes 2 crusts, so I keep several of these in the freezer so I can always have apple pie (or any kind of pie for that matter) available! Life is just better with pie!
Then comes the filling.
- 1/2 cup of water
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon of lemon
- 1 Tablespoon of butter
Bring to a boil. In a separate pot mix 1/4 cup of corn starch and 1/2 cup of water. Mix well and add to the filling. Add 1/2 cups of Karo syrup and 2 cups of raw sliced apple. Add cinnamon and brown sugar to your liking. To can: multiply the recipe and put in jars while hot. Water bath for 15-20 minutes.
I like to make a big batch of this and can it. If you haven’t home canned before, its really not as scary as it sounds! With a few supplies and a little practice, the possibilities are limitless! This apple pie filling recipe came to me from one of my dearest friends, who happens to be Mennonite, and taught it to me many years ago. Home canning has truly become one of my favorite things to do, in part thanks to her, my Mom, and Grandmothers, who took the time to share their knowledge with me from an early age.
Now for the topping.
You can top with another pie crust and bake at 350 degrees like normal people, but who wants to be normal, right?…OR you can make an apple pie crisp! This is one of the things I sort of created by accident and it ended up being a family favorite. During one of those ‘hard times”, we only had enough ingredients for one crust so I ended up throwing some stuff together and calling it a “crisp”. It turned out really well, and now that is how we prefer to eat our apple pie. You can mix ups a topping or when in a hurry, I use my homemade granola as a topping. Both are very similar and are approved by my apple loving family!
- 2 cups of quick oats
- 1/2 stick of butter (softened)
- 1/3 cup of brown sugar
- 1/2 cup chopped nuts
- 1/4 cup coconut
- 1/4 cup of flour
- pinch of salt
Mix together. Pour over pie filling. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes.
ENJOY! Hopefully with ice cream!
Healthy and Easy Homemade Granola
- 5 cups of Quick oats
- 1 stick of Butter or substitute coconut oil
- 1/4 cup of Honey
- 1 cup of Brown Sugar
- 1 cup Pecans or your choice of nuts-I like to crush them, but you can leave them whole.
- 1 cup Coconut
- Pinch of salt
- 1 cup Chocolate or butterscotch chips- I like to use the mini version. Add after it has been cooked.
- Any “extras” you want to add to sneak past your kids! Some of my favorites are chia seeds, dried dates, crushed cereal, flax seed, dried herbs, raisins, or other dried fruit. I usually add 1/4-1/2 cup of the extras. If you add many extras you may have to adjust some of the other ingredients to have the consistency that you desire.
Mix all the ingredients in a big bowl. Pour onto a baking sheet or shallow dish and bake for 30 minutes on 300 degrees turning or stirring every 5 minutes. If you like it really toasted, you may need to leave it longer. Again, this is such a versatile recipe, you can make it however you like.
I started making this recipe several years ago and my kids love it! I’ve tried to buy store bought granola, but it’s always hit or miss whether it has all the goodies in it that we like. I like to make a really big batch and then have it on hand for yogurt parfaits or just to eat as cereal. I also use this on top of my apple pie crisp if I don’t have time to make a topping. The great thing about this recipe is that you really can’t mess it up! Too sticky? Add a little more oats and some crushed cereal that’s about to go stale. Too sweet? Add a little more crushed nuts. You can tweek it however you like it and make it as healthy as you choose. Our favorite way to eat homemade granola is layered with frozen fruit and yogurt as an afternoon snack. You can make these ahead of time and they will last for several days in the refrigerator.
Happy Snacking! Hope you enjoy!
How do you Feed All Those Kids?? Tips to save on groceries
How to save money on your grocery budget:
See the end of the post for items that are making my life easier right now!👇
Seven kids is a lot in today’s world, and they can be expensive, but they don’t have to be! One of the questions we get asked often is, “What do you feed all those kids?!” I’m never good at answering things like this when strangers at the grocery store ask. But, I thought I would share some tricks that help us make our grocery budget go a little further and save money on groceries each month, in hopes that it might be helpful to you too!
1. Stay out of the store.
I know that sounds silly, but one thing that has helped me, is shopping only once a month. That may sound impossible, but we started doing monthly shopping about 4 years ago, and it has helped us tremendously! I found that the more trips I made, the more I would spend, AND its just hard taking all those kids to the store every week! Plus, my husband is paid once a month so it helps with budgeting.
2. Buy a combination of fresh and canned/frozen.
We eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, so early on that was a struggle for me. I started buying a combination of fresh and canned/frozen fruits and vegetables and with that approach I was able to make them last all month. We obviously eat the fresh produce first and then we fill in the rest of the month with the canned/frozen items. There are some things that are just better fresh, so I don’t even waste money trying to keep those all month, and we just enjoy them the next month. I do NOT buy organic produce and you can read about my reason to do that HERE. Since these are oftentimes more expensive than traditionally grown produce, this saves us money also.
3. Grow it, can it!
This is something we need to be better about, but having a garden can seriously save you some money! Even if you just have a few raised beds, like we currently do, you can raise quite a few vegetables. If we don’t grow it, I try to buy large quantities during the summer (or whenever its in season) and can it myself. Many fruit farms even offer a pick your own option for a discounted price. I seem to have more time in the summer for these projects since the kids usually like to help, and we are not doing school per say. It sure is nice to have fresh corn or green beans during the cold winter. If you have never home canned, it may seem intimidating or too time consuming, but with a little prep work, it can really be a simple money saving solution.
4. Make it from scratch.
You can read my post where I fell in love with cooking from scratch out of necessity HERE, but it is habit that can save you money with just a little extra time. From apple sauce, seasoning mixes, breads, or whole meals, the more you can make from scratch, the better! My mom always said the more whole ingredients, that haven’t been processed, that you can buy, the better. For instance, I don’t buy frozen waffles, but make the batter and have on hand, or freeze them for later. Its a little extra time on the front end, but it saves money and you know exactly what is in what you are eating. Plus you can make just the right amount for your family at that time and have no waste.
5. Limit (or eliminate) snack food.
This made me not so popular with the kids, but really helped us save money on groceries. I’m not a big believer in snacks anyways, so it didn’t take too much convincing for me to cut them out of the grocery budget. I found that my kids were snacking all day and then wouldn’t eat the healthy, well balanced meals I was slaving away to make them. So the snacks had to go, and they learned (the hard way) that we eat at meal time and that’s it. This keeps me out of the kitchen all day and cuts down on costs. Y’all, snacks are expensive! We eat breakfast around 8-8:30 (don’t judge, I’m not a morning person), lunch around 12-12:30, a homemade snack (pumpkin muffins, carrots and dip, fruit, homemade popsicles, or yogurt and homemade granola) at 3-4:00 and supper around 6-7:00. The summer is one of the busiest times on the farm, and we feel like it is VERY important to eat together so summertime suppers could be anywhere from 5-11:00 PM, and happen anywhere from the back porch to the tailgate.
6. What about the milk?
We love milk so yes, it is the one item that I will go back to the store gas station to buy. Did you know that?! Maybe its a local thing, or maybe its always been this way, but the gas station usually has the lowest price milk. It’s a scientific fact, I’ve done studies. 😁 And many time you don’t have to go inside the store to buy it! I know you Mom’s with little ones know the value of a DRIVE THROUGH WINDOW! It is the exception to my rule. If we run out of anything else, we just make it or use what we have to get by, but milk I can’t go long without.
7. Skip the big store.
I don’t hate the “Big Stores”, but you pay for what you get. You pay for the convenience of having everything in one place. I am not good about shopping around for what is cheaper “here” vs “there”, but I do know where I can get the most food for my money and that is not at a store like Walmart or even Kroger. Yes, I’m talking the store that’s not got as many options and you may have to bring your own bags. This isn’t for everyone, I know, and with a new baby, I probably will do the “big store” pickup a few times, but if you are looking for the best bang for your buck, skip the “big store”.
8. Buy generic.
I know everyone has their favorites, and for me its coffee creamer, but for the most part, things taste about the same no matter what name is on the box. Again, I know there are probably a few exceptions for you and your family, but if you can buy the same exact tomato sauce for $.50 less because its the “Save a Ton” brand and no one can tell a difference, then save the $.50. In today’s world we have SO many options when it comes to food so don’t be fooled by marketing and fancy labeling. Expensive doesn’t always mean better, just better marketed.
9. Dried beans and rice.
I joke about living off grid one day, and even though I’m partly serious, I think its always a good idea to be prepared. I grew up listening to my parents talk about the 80s. For those that don’t know, the 1980s were a terrible economic time for farming, especially hog farming, which was a big portion of my family’s farm income at the time. Also, my Dad’s parents lived through the Great Depression so I guess some of that fear of economic ruin rubbed off on me. For this reason, I try to always keep a stash of dried grains and staples on hand for emergencies or hard times. I keep them in sealed 5 gallon buckets inside our house. Some of the things I have on hand are 10 gallons of sugar, flour, powdered milk, and cornmeal, and 5 gallons of black beans, pinto beans, white rice, black eyed peas, lima beans, coffee, and salt. I use these to cook with too! Its cheaper to buy a big bag of rice and add whatever seasoning you like than to buy the same amount of rice in pre-made packages. I do dip into these when I need to, but for the most part, they will keep for long periods of time so that’s a plus!
10. Meat and eggs.
We try to raise our own meat and eggs, which cuts down on the cost significantly. Even if you have a very small amount of land, you can raise chickens and even a few larger animals. Many cities even have cut back on the ordinances so families can have chickens in town. Maybe you aren’t in the position where you can do that, but I would suggest looking at buying in bulk from a farmer who does. Many will sell you a 1/2 or 1/4 of a cow or hog and sometimes at a discounted price from the grocery store. Just with produce or other items, remember when buying meat, the less processing they have to do, the cheaper its going to be. Buy (and learn to cook) the whole chickens, or the meat with bones, not the pre-cut and seasoned packages ready to cook. You pay for processing and convenience. Also, if I see meat on sale, I buy a bulk of it and freeze it. Sometimes this forces you try new recipes, but in doing so we have found some of our family’s favorites dinners.
These are the main things we do to save money and help stretch our grocery dollars. We hope they might help your family make the best life with what you have!
Just a few things that have made my life easier lately! Go check them out!
Syrup Saves the Day-Homemade Elderberry syrup
My husband laughs because I always have some kind of “potion” brewing in a pot on the stove or tincture sitting on the shelf. I haven’t always been that way, but the more I learn, the more I love finding things in nature that benefit my family. Elderberry was probably what sparked my interest in all things herbal so I’d love to share this recipe with you! Elderberry products are all the rage lately, with several good studies that have been conducted about it’s immune boosting properties, but its been available in nature for centuries. I first learned about elderberry and its healing properties several years back when I was looking for a natural cough remedy. I had one son, who we jokingly say, was born coughing! He had a terrible, non-stop cough from literally the time he was born. We tried everything over the counter. He had numerous doctor’s visits and chest x-rays where they declared his chest clear and no infection so they sent us on our way. There just didn’t seem like there was anything there to treat other than the cough. He still kept on coughing and coughing! He was still so little, I didn’t want to give him cough suppressant, so I looked for other methods that might help. We were at our wits end, and we even tried onion poultices! Which, by the way, DOES work, but only for a short amount of time, and who has time for that!? It was when I was looking through some of my Mom’s (I often laugh and say my Mom was crunchy before it was cool.) old books that I found elderberry syrup could be used for coughs. I didn’t really know much about it, but I thought I’d give it a try.
I bought dried berries from a health food store while I was visiting the “Big City”, made the syrup, and I was amazed at the results! After some further study, I found out you can use it as a sort of “preventative” supplement also. We started taking just a little every day during the winter when cold and flu was so prevalent. If we did start to feel bad or have symptoms of a cold, I would increase the dose to several times a day. I am no doctor and I don’t claim to have the answers to your health problems, but this has benefitted my family greatly. Plus, I feel like you can take it everyday or as much as needed without feeling like you are pumping your family full of “medicine”. We are thankful for modern medicine and use it when necessary, but we also feel like, as with most of life, it’s all about balance. This is obviously not going to cure your cold or flu in an instant, but I feel like it does lessen the symptoms or maybe even the length of sickness. I do believe it’s helped my family stay healthy, plus it stops a cough when nothing else will!
It can be found in late July to early September. If you have the flowers they will often help to “sweat out” a fever and can be beneficial to add. As with any plant, you want to make sure that what you are picking is not toxic (there are several berries that look like elderberry and are poisonous). Also, never eat elderberries raw, always cook them first. When you are foraging for any plant or berry, always do your homework and if you have any doubt, you can buy from a reputable supplier or plant your own instead!
Elderberry Syrup:
- 1 cup of dried elderberry
- 1/2 cup of dried flowers (if you have them)
- 3 cups of water
- 1 Tablespoon of cinnamon (or you can use cinnamon sticks if needed)
- 1 teaspoon of ginger
- 1/2 Teaspoon of clove
- Honey (to taste)
- Drops of echinechea (if you have it available)
*This recipe is great because it can easily be multiplied or divided, depending on your specific needs.
Place dried berries in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and turn down to simmer on low. Add the dried flowers, cinnamon, ginger, and clove. Simmer for 30 minutes or until reduced down, stirring occasionally. Strain and add honey to taste or leave it out if you prefer. You don’t want to add the honey until you are done, because if you “cook” the honey, it will most likely cook out some of the good properties that you want to keep in the honey. Place in containers and you MUST store it in the refrigerator. It will last for up to 6 months. I call it syrup, but to me it’s not very syrup-y. You can add substances to make it thicker if you like, but we just use ours the way it is and it works fine.
**Disclaimer: As always, this is my personal experience with my knowledge and what works for my family. I am no doctor and do not claim to treat or diagnose any illnesses or diseases. It is always a good idea to consult with your doctor before taking any new supplement.
**Too busy? For those of you who have said, can you just make it for me? Below is a link to an Etsy shop I’ve set up and you can buy some of the products I use and make. It’s still under construction so check back in often as I add more items!
Pumpkin Farmers?
We started a pick your own pumpkin patch in 2008. This may not sound like a big deal to some, but in the midst of vast row crop farms and beef cattle, it was a rarity at the time. We started raising a few pumpkins for wholesale, just to add a little extra income to our hog production. We didn’t really know much about pumpkin production, and had to just kinda jump in and start from scratch. They did fairly well, considering the Tennessee humidity could be problematic, but we made a good crop for a couple years. However, the one request we kept getting was from families who wanted to come and let their kids actually pick their own pumpkin and make it a family outing. So the next year, we decided to go for it and open our farm to families. One complication…we had our second baby 5 days before we opened!
It was a stressful start, but like most businesses, it grows every year and gets better with time and experience. We try to add new things every year and make the best with what we have. When we started the pick your own season on the farm, people made fun of us….mostly behind our backs, but a few to our face. One person said, “If you can get pumpkins to grow here, I’ll eat every one!” Well, we have had good years and bad as far as pumpkin crops, but I’d hate to know how many pumpkins that would be! WE have eaten a lot of pumpkins over the years and I have perfected several “pumpkin recipes”.
For some reason, actually using the pumpkin for anything but decorations, seems to be scary or too much of a hassle for most people, but it is actually really easy! You can cook any kind of pumpkin, as long as it’s a real pumpkin and not a gourd. You can usually tell this by the skin. A gourd will have very tough skin and be fairly tough to cut through. I have probably cooked and eaten just about every kind of pumpkin that we have grown, and all are edible, but some have better flavor and texture. My favorites to cook with are the jarrahdale, cinderella, and cushaw (which is what the old folks call a potato pumpkin). Don’t be intimidated, try it, and everyone will be impressed at how much value you got out of your fall decorations!
How to Cook Fresh Pumpkin:
- Wash the outside of pumpkin. You want to include the skin in your pumpkin puree because it has great flavor and that is where lots of the nutrients are also!
- Cut the top off, like you are going to carve it for a jack o’ lantern, and scoop out all the insides and seeds.
- Separate the seed and put aside. Throw away all the rest of the “goop”.
- Now cut the pumpkin in 2-6 pieces, depending on size. I usually keep mine pretty big, about 4 pieces, so don’t feel like you have to do a lot of chopping.
- Spray or brush inside and outside of each piece with oil. I have used a variety of different kinds, and they all work fine.
- Place on a baking sheet and bake on 300 until the pieces are “fork tender”.
- Put in a food processor or blender to make the puree.
- Put in freezer bags (or jars if you are going to can) I try to measure about 1-2 cups per bag because that is what most of my recipes call for.
Seeds:
My kids especially love to have roasted pumpkin seeds as a snack!
- Clean off as much of the pumpkin “goop” as you can.
- Rinse the seeds and let drain.
- Lay out to dry or pat dry with a towel.
- Spread them out on a baking sheet.
- Drizzle with olive oil.
- Add your favorite seasoning! We love to use a package of dry ranch dressing. Or you can simply do salt and pepper. Red pepper flakes and a little dry ranch seasoning, or try cinnamon and sugar!
- Bake on 350 until crispy and brown.
Pumpkin Muffins-using fresh pumpkin:
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 2 cups of puree pumpkin (fresh or frozen) I have also used sweet potato puree when I was out of pumpkin.
- 2 cups of oatmeal (quick)
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice
- 1 cup of brown sugar
- 1/2 cup of white sugar
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon of baking soda
- Add the extras! I use this recipe to literally add whatever I have on hand that I want to sneak past my kids-flax seed, chia seeds, nuts, raisins, coconut, protein powder, you name it! I usually can add less than 1/2 cup without having to adjust the other ingredients.
- Mix together and put in muffin tins. Bake on 350 for 10-15 minutes.
