Prep Genrl Weekly Prep Thread: October 2 ~ 8, 2016

[ReneeT]

Oops - left for work this morning without starting the thread

I haven't done much prepping the past week; and probably won't get much done other than a few things tossed in the pantry this week - I'm off work until the 16th, so a friend and I are taking off for a few days; gonna go listen to some hillbilly music The sales are pretty much lousy this week, and I'd like my apples another week riper before I start getting them put up, so I might as well have a little fun on this vacation lol!

The trip will take a little longer than it needs to as we are going to avoid any big cities, and stay off the interstate most of the way. I'm going to turn out and re-stock the BOB/GMH bag before we head out - throw in a few maps since I'm not real familiar with the smaller roads in that area, and add in some extra layers although the weather is supposed to warm up again. Need to remember to toss an extra case of water in the van, too!

Take care, folks; stay safe!

 

[moldy]

Renee, if you're headed near Colorado, drop me a PM and I"ll have something yummy and coffee. You can come by and visit!

Yesterday was kinda rough - DD #2 headed from here to KS to live. She has family, a boyfriend, and support there..... but I"m still gonna miss her a bunch. Stayed busy with canning - did up some pepper relish, checked supplies, canned up fireballs and some peach and apricot puree. I"m working on getting the freezers cleaned out, but I"m not getting as far as I'd like. This week is more canning for me, and I think DH is going to work on firewood. We are supposed to get our first snow Wednesday night.

 

[Journey]

moldy, for some reason I was thinking Branson, Missouri when ReneeT mentioned hillbilly music.

ReneeT, enjoy every minute of this much needed vacay!

After rocking at CVS last week I'm not seeing much of anything that I want this week. I did have my eyes checked and while we have vision insurance I ordered another pair of glasses. First time we've ever had it and I was surprised by how much it covered - $20 co-pay for exam, ditto for lenses and the frames were free. Couldn't turn that down!

 

[nomifyle]

Back in the spring DH added a good size room on the back of our mobile home. Included in that room is a second bathroom, a nice size pantry (already filled and way to small, but what can you do) and the remainder of the room was supposed to be a dining room. Looks like that dining room is going to be a second bedroom so we can accomodate house guests. The only inside part that is completed is my pantry. DH hasn't been feeling well, so the bathroom completion has gone slow. DH is feeling better, so we are going to devote "x" amount of time each day to getting it completed. Today we will be working on the shower. A little bit at a time can get the job done.

Judy

 

[prudentwatcher]

Publix had Valley Fresh chicken as a BOGO and I had 4 55 cent coupons, so I bought 4 cans. I went to CVS and bought 2 4 packs of Gatorade (got ECB back so they were 2 4 packs for $3), 2 cans of Chunky Soup ($1 each), and 2 boxes of Thermacare wraps (coupon). I had some old ECB's that were going to expire, so I used those as well. Not a lot of great deals, but every little bit helps.

Tomorrow I will go top off the car for the week. I live in Florida and you can't trust what Hurricane Matthew might do. Will see if the grocery ads bring anything good.

 

[moldy]

Today was a really good day - I got put on call, I won $8 on an old lottery ticket, got to come home early, and got 9 buckets of tomatoes picked before it got too dark.

 

[SAPPHIRE]

YAHOO! Moldy...sounds like a blessed day...........take care this weekend ya'll..............

 

[nomifyle]

DH and I have gotten two of the panels up in our new shower, tomorrow two more and then the door. Then we have to work on the drain line, some digging going on there. Our uprite freezer was badly frozen up, we got it thawed out, clean out and the good stuff put back. The chest freezer got cleaned out, much old stuff DH brought from Illinois almost 3 years ago. I'm dehydrating the corn that was frozen, it was from his garden in Illinois. I was so tired this afternoon.

Judy

 

[moldy]

Took steers to the locker this morning - I really hope we can find someone to buy the 3/4 that we don't have sold. We need the money and I don't have room for it in the freezer. A dear friend and her DD came over to pick up a couple kittens, and I worked on tomatoes today. Picked another 6 buckets - we dodged the frost last night - but I think tomorrow night will be it. I have a dentist appointment tomorrow morning, but plan on canning all day.

 

[nomifyle]

Took steers to the locker this morning - I really hope we can find someone to buy the 3/4 that we don't have sold. We need the money and I don't have room for it in the freezer. A dear friend and her DD came over to pick up a couple kittens, and I worked on tomatoes today. Picked another 6 buckets - we dodged the frost last night - but I think tomorrow night will be it. I have a dentist appointment tomorrow morning, but plan on canning all day.

This year we dehydrated tomatoes and they are beautiful. I don't have much use for canned tomatoes because we don't eat red sauce very often. Wish I was close to you, I would buy some of that beef from you.

Judy

 

[ReneeT]

Good Morning, All!

Got back from my trip late, late Thursday evening - and yes, Journey is correct, we went to Branson, Mo; but I thank you for the invitation, Moldy; and will certainly remember it if I can get Hubby to take a vacation next year!! We had an enjoyable trip, contributed to the local economies, and pretty much dealt with each other's eccentrities in a calm and pleasant manner - enough so that we are ready to plan another trip. I'll admit to getting a little tense once when I discovered that the gas gauge was down below a quarter tank - we took my van but friend did the driving and I couldn't see the gauge from my seat. On her part, she accepted my flat-out refusal to go anywhere near St. Louis - let alone through it! - which added a few hours to the driving; and she quickly learned to go back to sleep and ignore the crazy lady that was tip-toeing around in the dark pulling on workout gear at 5am to go hit the treadmill - she thought Branson's hills were enough exercise! I'm used to traveling with Hubby - tank filled when it gets to half empty, the understanding that I'm a much more pleasant person if I have coffee, lunch from supplies packed in the vehicle and eaten in roadside or small town parks, quick stops every couple of hours to walk and stretch, and almost never driving after dark unless it's just a few blocks....

I'm a bit hesitant to post this, but Branson was interesting in one way that was a bit surprising to me - the lack of umm... diversity, for lack of a better word, in both the locals and the visitors. I don't know what it's like in high season, but while we were there, the visiting population was 99.9% older white folk; and while I did see a few Hispanic ladies, I saw almost no foreign or black people. There was a great deal of very overt patriotism in all of the shows, which was nice to see.

I slept in a bit yesterday after getting home so late, but my friend called and wanted to walk, so we put in our usual 3 miles. Then I remembered that I hadn't paid grandson's monthly pre-school fees yet - and saw that the bakery had cherry pie on their menu - so I ran in to town and took care of that. I was pretty draggy the rest of the day, took a nap, etc..., but did rouse myself long enough to walk down to the persimmon grove and pick up a large bowl of persimmons; had to hold myself back from eating too many as I walked back up the road to the house - must have needed the vitamins! I saved all the seeds from the ones I ate (looked like a chipmunk with my cheek full of seeds ) so that I can plant them a bit later; but did open up a few to check the weather signs - every one of them was a spoon, so I reckon I'd best polish up the snow shovel!!

Today, Hubby left early to go to an IDPA match and I will soon be headed to a local festival - there is a hot air balloon launch with a fund raising breakfast that I plan to go to around 7:30 this morning. That will be followed by a parade at 10, kiddie tractor pull, beauty pageant (son-in-law is the MC), older grandson's last soccer game of the season, and a few other activities. Don't know if the grandkids will follow me home or not. No major plans for tomorrow as yet, but there is plenty of garden clean up, a couple of bushels of black walnuts to pick up out of the side yard, and plenty of winter preps to get done around the house and outbuildings. Good thing I have next week off work as well!

The temps cooled down signifcantly since yesterday afternoon - low was supposed to be 44*F last night; but it's currently 39*F! The high is forecast to be 68*F; we'll see if it gets there... Good weather to sit around a fire outside!

Guess I'd better get in gear if I don't want to miss the biscuits and gravy at the balloon launch! You folks all take care out there; stay safe!

 

[Old Gray Mare]

Winter squash are a dollar each at the farm stands. They can keep for months in a cool, dark place with no refrigeration. Made sure that they weren't damaged and had a stem. Picked up a bunch and hope to pick up more. We like them roasted with garlic, in curry and as soup with spices. I save the seeds but pack them separate for each squash and mark where it came from. Some times the seeds are full of tinny critters.

 

[SAPPHIRE]

LOL......Renee.......my husband has an old story concerning persimmon seeds...he correctly predicted a severe St. Louis winter around 1980 (can't remember exact year now!) and was spot on.......all who heard his prediction knew it was due to persimmon seeds and laughed.......it was one of the snowiest long winters I can remember.....Hah!

 

[moldy]

Worked today, and was greeted with a clean closet (i don't think DH has cleaned the closet since we got married 7 years ago!), firewood stacked in the garage, 2 requests to go pick apples, and an offer to buy some of my squash and pumpkins (I have a LOT). It's been a good day! DH and DD went to a chili supper to fundraise for a local fire department, and now DD is making me a quesidilla.