Today is the last day of November. I am sad at how quickly this year seems to have gone by. What's been going on? DS1 got his Eagle and GED, DS2 got his Eagle and might get his license soon (scary), DD2 & DD4 are now in public school like the other kids, and I am now in school! In 5 weeks I have written 4 papers and had 6 finals! My brain hurts. I came home from school today dizzy, oh joy. So since I don't do much during dizzy spells I thought I'd catch up on friends' blogs. While looking at everyone's posts (which btw have been amazing! I have missed a lot in 5 weeks!) I found a great post on Angela's site that I think would be beneficial for all of you. So please check out Adventures in Self Reliance.
Also, I am wanting to get a StoveTec rocket bulk order done. This is a fabulous emergency prepareness and camping item! The price on these has doubled in six months!! I would like to get one before the price is out of my reach.
Also over at Adventures in Self Reliance, Angela has worked hard on a 4 part blog about Basic Firearms, that is worth the read! go to the link provided, then read the parts in order. She did a good job.
Showing posts with label Bulk Buy Group. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bulk Buy Group. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Friday, August 27, 2010
Lamb Fest 2010
Please read this offer to better understand how it works to order in an animal in whole or part. Lamb Fest 2010 is an opportunity for you to buy USDA lamb cuts directly from the farmer in individual packages to see what you like.
Organically Raised Lamb Available Now
We are pleased to be able to offer you organically raised lamb from Josh Farmer of the Snoqualmie Valley. He has been farming for near 30 years and grazes his beef, lambs and goats in both Duvall and Bothell.
A fellow farmer told us, “Josh raises beyond the organic standard.” This means that there are no fertilizers or pesticides used on any of the grasses upon which his animals graze. Although his animals primarily eat grass and are moved between the Duvall and Bothell farms as needed for maximum nutrition, they also receive a daily meal of special grains. Josh feeds his animal grains that have been recycled from the brewery, which means all harmful sugars have been removed. It’s these sugars that weaken an animal’s immune system. This grain is slightly damp, smells fresh and is much lighter than soaked wheat, barley or spelt.
These animals are fed no hormones and are never injected with harmful drugs. All medicinals are natural and herbal as required by organic certification. I repeat: These lambs are not certified organic but are raised to a standard beyond organic certification. Remember, organic certification is costly and a lot of paperwork for any farmer or rancher.
BREED and AGE: Josh raises chevettes or cheviots. These lambs are born and raised on his farm alone, not imported. All lambs harvested are under 6 months of age. Here is a link to better understand the various breeds of lamb:
On the left hand side of the page, click on Cherviot and the picture and description will come up quickly.
Lambs are not grown sheep. The Scots used a lot of “mutton” and it was the 2-year-old sheep that were used in stew pots. Mutton is very fatty and stringy. Baby lamb is more mild flavored, much more lean, more tender than beef, yet full-bodied in flavor when it is harvested young. It’s especially delicious with garlic.
TERMS OF SALE:
You purchase a lamb from Josh on two terms (see below). When we have a minimum of 4 orders, he takes the lambs to Lynden to a certified USDA processing plant. Here the inspectors supervise the process of dressing out each. Then licensed butchers cut and wrap the lamb into individual packages. Each package labels the cut, the weight and has a USDA stamp on the package.
Lambs, live weight, are about 120 pounds
You pay Josh Farmer a $100 non –refundable fee that is applied to the total cost of your ordered lamb.
OPTION 1:.
You can pay Josh $1.48 per pound for this LIVE weight of approximately 120# + $90 for slaughter & package fee, which would be $177.60 + $90 for a grand total of $267.40. There will be some tax charged by the USDA processor. This would be your USDA finished cut, wrapped lamb frozen, ready to go into your freezer. Each package bears the USDA stamp and weight. The finished weight, after slaughter and trim, would be about 60 pounds of beyond organically raised lamb
.
OPTION 2:
The other alternative payment is to pay Josh $3.75 per pound FINISHED WEIGHT. This finished weight is approximately 60 pounds x $3.75 which is $225 plus tax and $90 slaughter & packaging fee for the whole lamb. This is done for customers order ½ lamb. For this price, you receive your cut, wrapped USDA packaged cuts with the weight of each on the package label.
DELIVERY:
When at least 4 lambs are ordered at one time, Josh will deliver the frozen meat to Duvall for distribution to those who ordered. Since the meat is frozen, it will be important for coordinate pickup so you can transport quickly to your home freezer.
ORDER AND PAYMENT PROCEDURES:
(1) You order your lamb thru oxygen14@comcast.net
(2) You provide me with your name, accurate email address, phone number to reach you quickly, and the number of lambs you want to order in.
You attach the lamb “cuts” list along with your order or say, “traditional cuts only please.
(3) I will CONFIRM your order by email. Send your check for $100 deposit to me IMMEDIATELY.
(4) I will notify you when your lambs have been delivered to Lynden for processing, and when they are estimated to be ready for pickup. As soon as your particular lamb is hung and cut, the USDA facility notifies Josh with a “ticket” of the hanging weight or the “live weight.”
(5) Since Josh must pay all the processing fees for your lamb out right before he can pick them up, I will email you and ask you to send him your check immediately. You will have approximately 10-14 days turnaround time to get him your payment.
(5) Pickup will be in Duvall unless other arrangements are made. For example, members of the Bulk Buy Group who live closer to Marysville, Stanwood, Sedro-Woolley and Whidby Island might prefer to pick up in Lynden directly.
COOKING WITH LAMB:
We are fortunate to have cooks in our group who are experienced in preparing delicious lamb dishes. Terrie, Cheryl, Dick, Charity all enjoy lamb as do their children. Lamb was so unaffordable in Canada when Fred and I were raising our children, we didn’t have it often.
Terrie suggests:
· 2 parts ground beef and 1 part ground lamb makes delicious meatballs.
· Sautee loin lamb chops in a bit of olive oil and savor their taste when surrounded with veggie and brown rice
Susan suggests:
- Ground lamb seasoned with middle eastern seasoning, grilled into burgers and stuffed in pita bred with fresh veggie chopped from your garden. A simple chipotle mayonnaise to dress your burgers.
- Lamb stew in a crock-pot with local root vegetables of parsnips, leeks, potatoes, and roasted turnips. The lamb imparts a distinct flavor to the vegetables.
So, this is yet another opportunity to work closely with a clean Washington farmer and expand your children’s palate at the same time. Imagine your healthy lamb cut surrounded by walls of vegetables and nourishing grains piled around it.—Yum!
Lamb Fest 2010:
Since many of you are not familiar with lamb, you will have the opportunity to purchase organically raised cuts of USDA inspected and wrapped lamb cuts in mid-September. I will go meet the my co-op on a Saturday morning (Either Sept 18 or 24) at Josh’s Duvall farm and I may purchase particular cuts for $5.00 a pound. Each package has the weight on it so you will multiply it by $5 per pound and pay Josh directly. Only farmers/ranchers who use USDA facilities are permitted to resell meat in this fashion.
If you want to participate in Lamb Fest 2010, please email oxygen14@comcast.net to reserve your place at this event.
I’m thinking that once you taste this high quality delicious lamb, you will want to consider purchasing a lamb from Josh for your family’s longer term pantry.
Standard Possible Cuts of Lamb:
I have attached a list of possible cuts for lamb from a gourmet butcher who advertises on the internet. It’s a way for you to see all the possibilities for serving lamb from the entire animal, wasting little. This does not mean that YOU would be able to order all these cuts from the USDA facility in Lynden, but it gets you thinking about options and cuts that might be most suitable to your family.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
PEACHES
More interest than I thought. And since we don't know when we will be able to go out of town due to work, I am going to do the peaches. The price is excellent, and the peaches are really good. NO LIMIT!!! Call friends, neighbors and relatives and see if they would like some too. I am driving all the way to Monroe to pick up from my supplier, and so I'd like to make it worth the trip :) Sorry about all the confusion.
Peach pick up, Aug 13 . It is a lot of work to put these orders together and drive to get the food. I love providing this service for all of you, but it is time consuming. I am going to ask a $0.25 gas charge per person's order. Just to help a little with my expense. I hope you all understand.
I’ve attached an Excel sheet for the varieties of peaches available for order. Each box, regardless of variety is $12 each for 25#. The big peach pickup is scheduled for Fri, Aug 13 about 2:00 pm.
We are pleased to offer 3 varieties of early canning peaches from Mott Liek of East Wenatcheee. Mott has been an orchardist for 30+ years. He supplies a busy fruit stands in Monroe as well as other stands throughout Puget Sound.
These peaches are not organic. When the peach seed is the size of your thumbnail, Mott sprays the seed to prevent disease. He sprays once more but not heavily on the skin about 30 days prior to harvest. This is why we say they are “lightly sprayed” to ensure no bug damage. Since we recommend these as delicious canning peaches, you will be peeling off the skin when you preserve them.
Peach Pick up: Friday, August 13, 2010 about 2
DEADLINE TO ORDER AND PAY: ASAP. All orders for peaches are due to Lisa Kenyon ASAP SATURDAY AUG 7TH AT THE LATEST!!
The peaches will not be ready to can on the day of pickup. They will need 3-5 days to ripen properly for easy canning.
Here's the information from the grower and his wife:
All the varieties we are ordering are free stone also known as “cling-free.”
'RED GLOBE...Freestone... is a cross between a Red Haven and an Elberta. A great canner and slicer... Does not turn brown when sliced and left on table. It’s my personal favorite... not the sweetest peach but real peach flavor. Use a very light syrup. Available Aug 1-25 Our #1 seller
ROSA...Freestone... is the sweetest peach we have.. my wife's favorite.. great for slicing or canning.. Use a very light syrup. In a jar I cannot tell the difference between the Rosa and Red Globe.. Available Aug 1-20 Our #2 seller
EARLY ELBERTA...Freestone... just an earlier version of an Elberta. A good canner and slicer. Use a very light syrup to preserve the delicate peach flavor. '
CANNING INFORMATION: NOTE: The USDA has specified that peaches must be water bathed or steam canned for a full 30 minutes per quart (or 25 minutes per pint) in simmering water to be safe for home bottling without risk of contamination.
HOW TO ORDER—SPECIFIC FORMAT: Send your email order to Lisa Kenyon in the following format:
YOUR NAME
YOUR PHONE NUMBER
YOUR ACCURATE EMAIL ADDRESS
YOUR ORDER: # of boxes of which varieties
Example:
(425)-392-1390 home
2 ROSA + 1 Red Globe
PICKUP on FRI, AUG 13 OR AUG 20:
At Lisa Kenyon's home about 1:30 TO 2pm. PLEASE be on time to pick up.
AGAIN, the fruit will NOT be ready to can on the day of pickup. It usually takes 3 to 5 days to ripen fruit for canning.
Thank you!!
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Strawberries and bulk canning lids!
I have it!! The list of bulk orders for the year :) Right now we have berries, but this one was short short notice! IF YOU'D LIKE TO ORDER, EMAIL ME!!!!
Unsweetened Strawberries in Juice
STRAWBERRIES: These are fresh strawberries from Mike and Jean’s Berry Farm in Mt. Vernon. They are cut up, packed in their own juice, and then packed in food grade buckets. These are NOT ORGANIC berries.
These berries are ready to make jam (both cooked and freezer types), to freeze in quart bags for smoothies or desserts, or to eat fresh out of the buckets. These are not individually frozen berries. These berries ARE IN THEIR OWN JUICE (note our emphasis since we get so many questions about this).
Order WITH money NO LATER THAN Saturday, June 19th !!!
BUCKET SIZES:
15 lbs. $21.00 and ( a 2-gallon bucket size)
30 lbs. $37.50. (a 5-gallon bucket size)
These prices include the cost of paying the Berry Farm to transport our order in licensed trucks with staff.
You must PRE-PAY for the berries.
Order Confirmation: Lisa will confirm your order by return email. Every few days I will send an email notifying you when she receives your check.
----------------ORDER FORM FORMAT------------------------- (may cut and paste; print to paper and mail with your check or money order)
Your Name:_____________________________________
Name on your Check (if different than the name above)_________________________________
Check # ________________________ If Money Order, check here: ______________
Email address:
Telephone number where we can reach you reliably: ___________________
YOUR ORDER:
__________Strawberries 15# bucket at $21 each ______________
__________Strawberries 30# bucket at $37.50 each ______________
TOTAL ENCLOSED: ____________________
ORDER PICK UP JULY 1st !! Around 3pm at the Kenyon's.
Generic Bulk Canning Lids: We have been ordering and testing these bulk regular and wide canning lids for the past 2 years and are VERY happy with their quality. All canning lids available on the open market contain BPA (Bisphenol A) but these are coated a bit more lightly than the white enameled lids sold in the stores. They contain NO WRITING so you have a wide space to paste on your own funky labels for gift-giving.
They are packaged in long sleeves of brown paper (think of how Ritz crackers are packed in sleeves) and this is the price:
288 WIDE lids in one sleeve are $36.95 (this is 24 dozen)
345 REGULAR Lids in one sleeve are $35.95 (this is 28 ½ dozen)
Shipping is extra: Ordering two of these sleeves at one time will cost you about $12. thru the post office. With shipping last year, it worked out to an average of $1.65 per dozen lids. Pretty wonderful!
ORDERS: Gather your friends and family and order directly thru
Dutchman’s Store, 103 Division Street, Cantril, IA 52542-1024. Their phone number is (319)-397-2322. They accept debit and credit cards and ship promptly.
If you only want a few dozen, order thru Lisa Kenyon
You will pay your portion of the shipping when you pick up the lids from Lisa in Issaquah. I email everyone who ordered when the lids arrive and arrange a one-time pick up at my home in Issaquah.
Email your order for lids drop your check off to Lisa, or mail it to her. You will pay your share of the shipping when you pick up your lids. Deadline to order thru Lisa for lids is Saturday, June 19th (same deadline for strawberries in juice)
Email Format for the Canning Lids (example):
NAME: Susan Smith
PHONE: 425-123-1234
Geographic Area: Lynnwood
3 doz Wide
2 doz Regular
Canning Jars for the 2010 Season:
Check with relatives and neighbors who no longer can. Get as many jars donated for your use as possible. Check the prices at WINCO since it’s employee-owned and support the Washington economy because a large percentage of their money stays here in Washington.
Wal-Mart has excellent prices this year, cheaper than last year. However, it’s a giant conglomerate and has been cited for questionable policies as to health care benefits and hiring illegal aliens without documentation. This being said, here are there prices per a phone call:
One quart (regular mouth) are $ 8.82 dozen
One quart (wide mouth) are $10.00 dozen
12 oz jelly jars are $8.12 per dozen
1 pint (regular mouth) are $7.70 dozen
1 pint (wide mouth) are $8.76 dozen
How many lids and jars should I plan to keep on hand?
Guideline: If you had to pressure can and preserve everything in your freezer and garden for the entire season, how many jars would it take to save what you have on hand and have grown? It takes 2 ½ pounds of beef stew chunks per quart jar and 4 whole chickens make approximately 13-15 pints of boneless chicken and 8 quarts of light chicken broth. A five-pound bag of frozen berries will make at least 2 batches (sometimes 3) of jam if you use sugar or honey. If we had a major power outage you would probably lose most of your frozen vegetables.
Unsweetened Strawberries in Juice
STRAWBERRIES: These are fresh strawberries from Mike and Jean’s Berry Farm in Mt. Vernon. They are cut up, packed in their own juice, and then packed in food grade buckets. These are NOT ORGANIC berries.
These berries are ready to make jam (both cooked and freezer types), to freeze in quart bags for smoothies or desserts, or to eat fresh out of the buckets. These are not individually frozen berries. These berries ARE IN THEIR OWN JUICE (note our emphasis since we get so many questions about this).
Order WITH money NO LATER THAN Saturday, June 19th !!!
BUCKET SIZES:
15 lbs. $21.00 and ( a 2-gallon bucket size)
30 lbs. $37.50. (a 5-gallon bucket size)
These prices include the cost of paying the Berry Farm to transport our order in licensed trucks with staff.
You must PRE-PAY for the berries.
Order Confirmation: Lisa will confirm your order by return email. Every few days I will send an email notifying you when she receives your check.
----------------ORDER FORM FORMAT------------------------- (may cut and paste; print to paper and mail with your check or money order)
Your Name:_____________________________________
Name on your Check (if different than the name above)_________________________________
Check # ________________________ If Money Order, check here: ______________
Email address:
Telephone number where we can reach you reliably: ___________________
YOUR ORDER:
__________Strawberries 15# bucket at $21 each ______________
__________Strawberries 30# bucket at $37.50 each ______________
TOTAL ENCLOSED: ____________________
ORDER PICK UP JULY 1st !! Around 3pm at the Kenyon's.
Generic Bulk Canning Lids: We have been ordering and testing these bulk regular and wide canning lids for the past 2 years and are VERY happy with their quality. All canning lids available on the open market contain BPA (Bisphenol A) but these are coated a bit more lightly than the white enameled lids sold in the stores. They contain NO WRITING so you have a wide space to paste on your own funky labels for gift-giving.
They are packaged in long sleeves of brown paper (think of how Ritz crackers are packed in sleeves) and this is the price:
288 WIDE lids in one sleeve are $36.95 (this is 24 dozen)
345 REGULAR Lids in one sleeve are $35.95 (this is 28 ½ dozen)
Shipping is extra: Ordering two of these sleeves at one time will cost you about $12. thru the post office. With shipping last year, it worked out to an average of $1.65 per dozen lids. Pretty wonderful!
ORDERS: Gather your friends and family and order directly thru
Dutchman’s Store, 103 Division Street, Cantril, IA 52542-1024. Their phone number is (319)-397-2322. They accept debit and credit cards and ship promptly.
If you only want a few dozen, order thru Lisa Kenyon
You will pay your portion of the shipping when you pick up the lids from Lisa in Issaquah. I email everyone who ordered when the lids arrive and arrange a one-time pick up at my home in Issaquah.
Email your order for lids drop your check off to Lisa, or mail it to her. You will pay your share of the shipping when you pick up your lids. Deadline to order thru Lisa for lids is Saturday, June 19th (same deadline for strawberries in juice)
Email Format for the Canning Lids (example):
NAME: Susan Smith
PHONE: 425-123-1234
Geographic Area: Lynnwood
3 doz Wide
2 doz Regular
Canning Jars for the 2010 Season:
Check with relatives and neighbors who no longer can. Get as many jars donated for your use as possible. Check the prices at WINCO since it’s employee-owned and support the Washington economy because a large percentage of their money stays here in Washington.
Wal-Mart has excellent prices this year, cheaper than last year. However, it’s a giant conglomerate and has been cited for questionable policies as to health care benefits and hiring illegal aliens without documentation. This being said, here are there prices per a phone call:
One quart (regular mouth) are $ 8.82 dozen
One quart (wide mouth) are $10.00 dozen
12 oz jelly jars are $8.12 per dozen
1 pint (regular mouth) are $7.70 dozen
1 pint (wide mouth) are $8.76 dozen
How many lids and jars should I plan to keep on hand?
Guideline: If you had to pressure can and preserve everything in your freezer and garden for the entire season, how many jars would it take to save what you have on hand and have grown? It takes 2 ½ pounds of beef stew chunks per quart jar and 4 whole chickens make approximately 13-15 pints of boneless chicken and 8 quarts of light chicken broth. A five-pound bag of frozen berries will make at least 2 batches (sometimes 3) of jam if you use sugar or honey. If we had a major power outage you would probably lose most of your frozen vegetables.
Monday, May 24, 2010
StoveTec Rocket Stove
Ok, I am seriously thinking of doing a bulk order of these stoves. They look like they would be fantastic for emergency prep, but ALSO for camping. Wouldn't it be great to have something you could have a double use for? Not something just taking up space, it would be something you can use when camping or during power outages. Here is a website that has a few videos about the stoves. Let me know what you think.
There are two stoves, one for wood only and one for wood or charcoal. I would like to do the one for wood or charcoal. Prices.. Wood only is $35 (24cm) or $45 (26cm) . The wood & charcoal one is $49 (26 cm). So PLEASE let me know what you think.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Blue Chip Group/Augason Farms Close Out sale!
IF you live in Utah, you are in luck, or if you are visiting. Blue Chip Group, now Augason Farms is having a close out sale to get rid of the old label. One of the awesome deals is Red Feather canned butter. This butter is amazing, and is good for 15 years!! So worth the sale price! They have quite a few things on sale, red wheat, oats, morning moos, spiff-y whip, potato stuff, dry cream of soups, etc.. So if you are in Utah or going to be VERY soon, stop by Augason Farms in SLC. Get some stuff for you food storage for great prices :)
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Conference Weekend!
I will be offline for a few days. Please feel free to leave comments, questions, concerns.. you can also email me!! Have a great weekend and Happy Easter!
Just a reminder, orders for the bulk buy group, I will or should have ALL the prices April 1st, I will try to get this to you, but if I don't have my laptop with me, this will not happen until I get back April 4th or 5th. Thank you!!
Just a reminder, orders for the bulk buy group, I will or should have ALL the prices April 1st, I will try to get this to you, but if I don't have my laptop with me, this will not happen until I get back April 4th or 5th. Thank you!!
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Bulk buy info
Olive Oil on sale at Bartell’s Drugs thru 14 March. STAR brand, 17 oz for $3.99. Choose Extra Virgin if possible. Look for bottles that are clear with no debris resting on the bottom. Store to the rear of your cupboard out of sunlight. Peggy wraps all her precious oils in brown paper wrap with tape to protect in the event of an earthquake. Bartell’s also has whole grain Barilla Pasta for $.99 per 15 oz package.
Fred Meyer Specials
This is the sixth month of testing the specials at Fred Meyer (Kroger) for families who are stocking their 90-day and long term pantries. Fred Meyer, with their weekly coupons, are still showing a strong lead for economy in offering at least 1 meat or poultry product, 2 or 3 fresh fruits and veggies (some organic) and at least 8 or 9 coupons each week that save you money on staples like canned tomatoes, canned beans for those of you who are just learning how to cook with and eat beans in casseroles and entrees, and in milk/dairy/juice with weekly coupons. They have had coupons for medium cheddar cheese (2# loaf) every other week in their Sales Flyers. I receive my flyer in my email inbox by signing up at Fred Meyer
Restocking your pantry: The prices and names of products that will be available for May pickup in Kent will be emailed to you the first week in April. You will have 9 days to place your order.We also are becoming more certain that we will have boxes of dried cranberries and Thompson Raisins as well.
Bahnmiller’s Frozen Fruit (in 5 pound bags):
We will have more bags of Bahnmiller’s fresh nearly chemical free frozen fruit in early May.These bags are 5 pounds each, individually frozen fruit from Washington farmers. We will send you the order information the 3rd week of April.This should tide you over until Al Bahnmiller harvests the new crop of strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries in 2010.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Fred Meyer 2.14- 2.20.10
Good Sabbath to you all! Hope you had a great Valentines Day. I find it interesting how St. Valentine was a martyr for Christianity. He died February 14, 270 A.D. when he was beaten then beheaded by the Roman Emperor Claudius II for first performing marriage ceremonies when it was illegal, and then after his arrest when he met the Emperor, who was very impressed with him, he tried to convert the Emperor to Christianity (which brought about his sentence of imminent beating and beheading). A long time ago, I was told St. Valentines day was the day you told people how you truly felt about them (love or loath).. Anyway I found some interesting info on St. Valentines day, and wow, this is a busy day in history!
Ok, well onto other things..I have sooo much information to share it isn't even funny.. Does anyone by any chance have a template for a newsletter? I need one, that way I can send out a newsletter weekly too.. M and I made the recipe below, and everyone loved them. They were a great treat to have for our St. Valentines Day dessert. We are freezing some to see how well they freeze.
Tips: Where are you storing your dry canned and white bucket foods? Do not store any food on cement or dirt floors. Why??? Moisture and condensation, you would hate to have cans rusting, or moldy grains. So please put them up, atleast on a pallet so they are not in direct contact with the floor. And yes ALL canning lids have BPA on them. So do any food grade plastics. This is why we do not recommend heating foods in plastic. You may want to consider lining your plastic buckets with mylar before filling (mylar bags for buckets), I am researching places to get these bags. So far I have not sure a liner in my buckets, but I would like to. Also very important: what temperature is the room your food storage is in at?? Did you know the ideal temp for food storage is ..... 40 degrees or less? NOT freezing, but pretty cold. The cooler the temp, the longer the food will store. Dry pack foods will store longer. But home canned foods should be eaten in about a year or two. We eat a lot of home canned foods, and we rotate them pretty quickly. I love home canning as I can control what is in my food :)
Canning Lids and White Food grade buckets: Also, I have a source for white buckets with lids (remember you need to wash them as soon as you get them), looks like they will run $2 each and I will be placing an order the later March or early April; I am looking for another source though.. As for cannind lids, I am still working on a good source, but will hopefully have info on this soon.
Grain Mills: I am soo very excited, my new Country Living Grain mill has arrived. It does need to be attached to something sturdy. A sister in Duvall has her's attached to her center island as she uses it daily. I too will be attaching mine permanently, but not until after we have our RS meeting so I can show it too you, along with my other one. Also when we have this meeting, please bring your grain mills as well (with your name on it!!) so we can all see the different kinds. Again, I do not and will not recommend stone grinders as they are well known for glazing over and hence being useless and also they lose stone into your flour which grinds your teeth down (not good). I have an excellent place to get grain mills so we won't have to pay sales tax. (I'm all for not paying too many taxes)
The Scoop on Garden Seeds
It’s time to purchase and/or order the right seeds for your food garden. For those of you who grow your starts from seeds, it’s time to start your shallots now
One of the confusions for those of us who are new vegetable gardeners is to understand the difference between HYBRID, HEIRLOOM and GMO (genetically-modified) seed so we can make the right seed choice for our individual families. So, Kathryn of Frog Chorus Farm in Snohomish has written a humdinger of an article for us and posted it on her website, Grow Food At Home.
The link for the report is:
Advanced Organizer for the article:
Pages 1-4 Introduction and Basic Genetics
Pages 4-6 Heirloom and Hybrid seeds (based on the genetics discussion)
Pages 6-7 GMO Seeds
Pages 7-9 Implications in the Age of GMO’s: Fears and Myths
At the Country Living Expo in Stanwood on Jan 30, Dr. Carol Miles from the WSU Skagit Valley Extension Service talked about the importance of buying quality seed that is right for your area. Her favorites are from Johnny’s Seeds (in Maine) and Territorial Seed in Oregon. Peaceful Valley also produces quality organic seed and Ed Hume’s Seed is developed outside of Puyallup. Why is it important to know where your seed came from?
First of all, read the Territorial Seed Catalog from cover to cover. It’s FULL of helpful and interesting information to help you grow things. You can pick one up for 25 cents at your local Ace Hardware Store or order a catalog online. This catalog teaches you a lot of things about how to grow vegetables successfully in our area.
When Territorial Seed, Johnny’s Seeds or Ed Hume’s Seeds tell you the number of days to that seed’s maturity/ harvest, seed, they are far more accurate when talking about our area of Western Washington. For example, Gurney’s (Midwest) specifies that their Early Contender Bush Bean needs 49 days to maturity. The Ed Hume variety specifies 70 days to maturity. If you plant bush beans and expect them to be ready to eat in 50 days and it’s another 2 ½ weeks until they even look remotely ripe, you can get discouraged. Furthermore, since you plan your planting for the season, your entire schedule will need to be revamped depending upon your crop cycle.
We purchase our Gourmet Lettuce Blend from Johnny’s, our Kale, Beets, Collards and Beans from either Ed Hume or Territorial Seed and they do what they SAY they do in terms of days to maturity and germination and planting tips that have helped us have food.
Fred Meyer:
Large Navel oranges $0.58/#
Med. yellow onions or bulk carrots 3#/ $1.00
WITH COUPON:
Bandon Medium Cheddar 2-pound $3.99 each LIMIT 2
Kroger Corned Beef Brisket $1.79/# LIMIT 3 packages
Purex Laundry Detergent (50-oz liquid or 55-oz powder) or Softener (44-oz) $1.99 each LIMIT 2
What to add to your storage this week??? TOILET PAPER !! It is so annoying when you finally get your turn in the bathroom, only to find that the last person use the last of the TP and didn't put out a new roll, so you look under the sink, and there isn't any.. So you call for someone to bring you some.. only EVERYONE is outside! UGH... Finally someone comes in and you are told, "oh sorry there isn't any, I'll bring you a napkin".. (YUCK!!!).. When we were first married, we only needed 4 rolls a week, more when we had friends over, so ok, we needed closer to 8. We had friends over EVERY day, not kidding! And we fed them too! Anyway, We use 2 whole Costco Kirkland brand TP packages a month! But we use it for kleenex too. Sometimes we use less than that. So if you have to buy toilet paper, buy twice what you need, this will help you to stock up. But only if you can afford to. :)
REMEMBER, Fred Meyer and Walmart sales are from Sun to Sat. Everyone else is Wed to Tues. Kind of a pain in the neck. Also just because it says 10/$10 at safeway (SFWY) doesn't mean you have to buy 10. Although if it is something you will eat, check the dates when you are buying it, will you use that much or more in a year or before the expiration date?? Think yearly, not weekly or monthly. IF we ate tuna, 10 cans would be good for 5 to 10 months for us. But we don't, we can and eat our own chicken :) What about other conveniences?? Spices? IF you are looking to save money, sometimes making things from scratch is cheaper than buying convenience foods.
2.10 - 2.16.10
Hello SUNSHINE!! Boy have we missed you! We have been enjoying the sun even with sick kids. We have been planning our garden, making sure we have the seeds we need, and got some seed starter to fill our little green houses with. The girls are very excited! Bo is too, but he doesn't know what he wants to plant this year. He is going to narrow it down soon I hope. I hope you all don't get information constipation from these emails!
Budgeting.. oh yuck. I hate that word.. "BUDGET".. to me means, don't make one, then you won't know if you can or can't afford it. When in actuality, I have to have one. If I didn't have kids I wouldn't worry about it so much. Someone gave me a great site to help me figure out where my money is going. It shows you how much is going where, and gives you hints on where you could save. Now when I started this little section of this email I never intended to bring up this site, but it just popped into my mind (divine inspiration!). It is free! What I am hoping you will work on this week is figure out your budget. It's always a good idea to know where you stand financially (even if it is not on good ground). So, here is the site, check it out, you might like it. http://www.mint.com
The ground is soft and ready for you to start turning it over and getting it ready to plant soon. Grandpa told me to start turning the soil in March at the latest and keep turning until the second or third week in April. Then let it rest for 2 weeks before planting. Wish he would have told me when to fertilize and when to plant certain crops.. owell, I'll learn. We are actually getting more dirt for our garden, and then we will be planting beets and onions.. The rest will wait for a bit warmer weather.
I can not emphasize urgently enough how I feel about preparedness. For a few years now I do not feel like we have any time to waste. We need to listen to what the Prophets have told us and get our 5 years supply. Yes 5 YEAR supply. Sure now you hear 3 months (at least), but did you know it started out with 5 years? I am not going to ask you to try.. I am going to tell you to DO. Really it isn't hard to get caught up. I am not talking about doing a major purchase, although yes, 2 years ago we did do that, but you know what, we saved the money up and canned a lot of dry pack (at home!!). If you make your list and need 1 or two of something, get 4 if you can afford it. Do you really need those store bought cookies when you can make 4 times as much from scratch for half the price (or less)? I am still learning but so you know, Russ taught me how to use a sewing machine, how to change a cloth diaper, how to talk to a baby (of all things!!), how to pray and listen. I've also learned to cook and bake. I have attended classes to learn to water bath can and pressure can. I learned from Harry how to make bread. I started a garden and eat from it. I am still learning things, but I am willing to learn more. I won't say exactly how much food storage we have, I know it is not even close to enough.. but we are building it up!
I can not emphasize urgently enough how I feel about preparedness. For a few years now I do not feel like we have any time to waste. We need to listen to what the Prophets have told us and get our 5 years supply. Yes 5 YEAR supply. Sure now you hear 3 months (at least), but did you know it started out with 5 years? I am not going to ask you to try.. I am going to tell you to DO. Really it isn't hard to get caught up. I am not talking about doing a major purchase, although yes, 2 years ago we did do that, but you know what, we saved the money up and canned a lot of dry pack (at home!!). If you make your list and need 1 or two of something, get 4 if you can afford it. Do you really need those store bought cookies when you can make 4 times as much from scratch for half the price (or less)? I am still learning but so you know, Russ taught me how to use a sewing machine, how to change a cloth diaper, how to talk to a baby (of all things!!), how to pray and listen. I've also learned to cook and bake. I have attended classes to learn to water bath can and pressure can. I learned from Harry how to make bread. I started a garden and eat from it. I am still learning things, but I am willing to learn more. I won't say exactly how much food storage we have, I know it is not even close to enough.. but we are building it up!
When is canning season?????? You're kidding right? Obviously when the fruit and veggies are coming into season in Summer. Duh..,, NOPE!!! There isn't a true canning season! You can can year round! Sure during summer you are more likely to do what is in season from gardens and farms and farmer's markets and such. But the rest of the year you can put up meat, soups, stocks, and beans and more! My poor husband is getting upset with me, as soon as he puts my canner away I haul it back out! Did you know on Thanksgiving day, after dinner I threw all the leftover meat into jars, with some canning salt and boiling water and processed them? Yup, so during dessert it was a little loud and rather warm with my canner going and a nice hot fire, but hey, I didn't eat leftover turkey for a week! And the next day I processed quarts of turkey stock! Awesome! Guess what the first thing was I ever pressure canned.... chili! Have you ever had Pear butter? Banana butter? zucchini jam? home canned chicken? it is sooo yummy and you know exactly what is in it, and none of the words use every letter in the alphabet! Have you ever made jellies or jams with out using Sure-jell or Certo?? Wow the flavor is so different! BULK canning lids, I am looking into ordering some, do you can? Need lids? let me know so I can figure out how much to order, when I do.These will NOT come in nice little 12-pk boxes, these will most likely come in a big box that we hand separate OR in sleeves.
Sorry so much to say, so much to share, so little time!
Please remember these prices are with the card or your phone number :) IF coupon is required I'll let you know. Looks like SFWY wins with the deals this time. Wow.
Albertson's
Bumble Bee tuna chunk light 2/$1.00
Albertson's chuck cross rib roast $1.99/#
Farm stand carrots 1 pound $0.79
Yellow onions medium size $0.59/#
Hunts diced or Fire roasted tomatoes OR Rotel diced tomatoes $0.89/can
Star Olive oil (17 oz) select varieties $3.99
Nature made vitamins (12 - 500 ct) select varieties Buy One Get One (BOGO)
Kiwi 2/ $1.00
SELECT VARIETIES 10/$10.00:
Snow's Clams (6.5 oz) chopped or minced
American Beauty pasta (12 - 16 oz)
Ronzoni Smart Taste Pasta (14.5 oz)
Hunt's Spaghetti Sauce (26 - 26.5 oz)
Ronzoni Healthy Harvest Pasta (13.25 oz)
CostCo:
Jasmine rice elephant $14.49/ 25#
Homai California Cal-rose $12.69/ 25# $23.99/ 50#/
Conagra flour $13.99/ 50#
Table Salt non-iodized $3.95 / 25#
Granulated Sugar $6.15/ 10# $14.99/ 25#
Brown Sugar $3.25/ 4# $16.49/ 25#
Red Star Brand yeast $3.89/ 32-oz
Red Star baking powder $8.99/ 5#
Arm & Hammer baking soda $5.99/ 13.5#
Ambrosia Chocolate Chips $16.99/ 10#
Crisco shortening $6.99/ 6#
Canola oil $6.99/ 5-qt
Kirkland REAL Vanilla $6.49/ 16 fl.oz.
Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce (Bug juice) $6.49/ 20-fl.oz (2)
Tabasco $4.65/ 12-oz
Johnny's Garlic Seasoning $5.45/ 18-oz
S&W tomato sauce (15 oz) $7.45/ 12 cans
S&W tomato paste (6 oz) $5.99/ 12 cans
Rosarita Refried Beans (16 oz.) $6.59/ 8 cans
White distilled vinegar (2-gallons) $3.59
Cheerios (37-oz) $5.69
Honey Nut Cheerios (40-oz) $7
Jiff creamy PB $7.99/ 48-oz (2-pk)
Adams crunchy PB $6.99/ 80-oz
Silverbow Honey $10.99/ 6#
Grapenuts (64-oz) $6
Oreos (52.5-oz) $6.39
Honey Graham Crackers (57.5-oz) $7.29
Saltines (3#) $4.69
Ritz (48-oz) $6.85
Cheez-its (48-oz) $7.39
Fish crackers (58-oz) $7.59
QFC:
Certified Angus Beef NY steak or roast $5.99/#
Large Del Monte Gold Pineapple $1.99 EACH
Meow mix 16-pounds $13.99
SFWY:
Pork Shoulder blade roast $1.29/#
Foster Farms (FF) Chicken breast with rib OR thighs OR drums $0.99/#
SFWY variety breads $0.99 EACH
Bumble Bee Tuna SOLID white can (5-oz) OR LIGHT pouch (2.5-oz) $0.88 each
Betty Crocker Cake or Traditional Brownie MIX $0.69 EACH
Boneless Chuck pot or shoulder roast $1.99/#
Rancher's Reserve London Broil beef $2.99/#
SFWY Chicken thighs, drums or leg qtrs $0.99/#
SFWY canned veggies (11 to 15.25-oz) $0.79
Banquet Brown n Serve Links or patties 10/$10.00
SFWY Frozen Potatoes (22.5 - 32-oz) 2/$5.00
BUY ONE GET ONE (mix and match) Select Varieties:
Foster Farms Thin Sliced Lunchmeat 9-oz. Tubs.
Foster Farms Variety Pack Lunchmeat 9 to 16-oz.
Hormel Fully Cooked Entrées 17-oz.
Jennie-O Turkey Store Lean Ground Turkey Breast 20-oz.
Jennie-O Turkey Store Turkey Breast Tenderloins 24-oz.
Ball Park Meat Franks 16-oz.
Oscar Mayer Basic Lunchables 3.3 to 4.5-oz.
Johnsonville Smoked Sausage 14 to 16-oz
Fletcher's Original Stak Pak Bacon 20-oz. Or Maple or Peppercrust.
Oscar Mayer Sliced Bacon 12 to 16-oz.
Johnsonville Breakfast Sausage Links or Patties 12-oz.
Hormel Marinated Pork Tenderloin 1.15 or 1.7-lb. Loin Filet
COUPON:
Tyson breaded Chicken selections $3.99 LIMIT 4
Nabisco Oreo or Nutter Butter (9.6 - 18-oz) $1.99 LIMIT 3
SAT thru TUESDAY SALE:
Braeburn or Jonagold Apples $0.58/#
WinCo:
WinCo:
Bulk spices !! Just because it says $7/# doesn't mean you need that much! Refill your containers at home, buy your spices in bulk and SAVE BIG $$$ Prices vary at winco for spices, but this is where I get my gluten flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, garlic powder, onion powder, dried minced onions, dried minced garlic, quinoa, triticale, oatmeal, italian seasoning, poultry seasoning, bay leaves, paprika, chili powder, and more!!
What to add to your food storage this week??? Canned VEGGIES and or canned seafood. We don't eat canned seafood as we have allergies, but if we did, we would use 2 cans of minced clams a month. We would use 10 cans of solid white tuna a year. We currently use 4 cans or more of some kind of tomato product a month. So if you need tomatoes they are on sale. So are veggies and seafood. Amazing how quickly you can stock your pantry by buying 1 or more EXTRA of something you need when it is on sale. Or if you see something on sale that you eat, add a year supply to your food storage :)
REMEMBER, Fred Meyer and Walmart sales are from Sun to Sat. Everyone else is Wed to Tues. Kind of a pain in the neck. Also just because it says 10/$10 at safeway (SFWY) doesn't mean you have to buy 10. Although if it is something you will eat, check the dates when you are buying it, will you use that much or more in a year or before the expiration date?? Think yearly, not weekly or monthly. IF we ate tuna, 10 cans would be good for 5 to 10 months for us. But we don't, we can and eat our own chicken :) What about other conveniences?? Spices? buy in bulk! IF you are looking to save money, sometimes making things from scratch is cheaper than buying convenience foods.
REMEMBER, Fred Meyer and Walmart sales are from Sun to Sat. Everyone else is Wed to Tues. Kind of a pain in the neck. Also just because it says 10/$10 at safeway (SFWY) doesn't mean you have to buy 10. Although if it is something you will eat, check the dates when you are buying it, will you use that much or more in a year or before the expiration date?? Think yearly, not weekly or monthly. IF we ate tuna, 10 cans would be good for 5 to 10 months for us. But we don't, we can and eat our own chicken :) What about other conveniences?? Spices? buy in bulk! IF you are looking to save money, sometimes making things from scratch is cheaper than buying convenience foods.
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