Stephanie

What it is - is Sam's Wholesale Club (like Costco), but now they are online. So, you can go in there and 'click' and choose what you want and they 'pull' it for your so it is ready when you get there.

Okay, I'll join in for my yesterday... Planted - Cucumber, strawberry and okra plants Prep - Bought a LOAD of stuff from Sam's (but still in the van, as I can't figure out where to put it) Cook - Venison Roast in the crock pot (supper tonight) Local food systems?? Does gathering eggs, milking my goat and letting one of my hen's go broody count? I may not do good on this area if it's all about community food production.

Just an update, went and picked up the order! IT was SO easy! I just paid and pushed the cart to the van, loaded it up with the help of oldest ds. They had the cold stuff in the big cooler and everything was organized and stacked nicely, ready to go. They asked if I needed some shopping time before they went to get the cooler stuff AND I got some free samples of Restaurant cleaning supplies...apparently they assumed I'm a new cafe' in town!

Neat web site , thanks for sharing that. It has me to thinking about some challenges that I'd like to give myself.

I just tried the Sam's 'Click and Pull' for the first time. So, hopefully after PT tomorrow I can go and pick it up without having to 'shop'. Here's what I got... Item Description Item # Quantity Unit Price Subtotal FULLY COOKED BACON 72 COUNT 272086 1 $8.52 $8.52 I try to keep a pkg of this on hand, very handy and shelf stable DQ PK SALMON 4-14.75 4-14.75 OZ 822899 1 $7.67 $7.67 noticed I needed mored salmon the other day when counting CHOCOLATE PUDDING 112 OZ. 488505 6 $4.08 $24.48 This is the best chocoatle pudding I've ever tasted, pie quality CHICKEN BOUILLON CUBES, 25 OZ 071148 1 $4.87 $4.87 To keep on hand with the dehydrated vegies CREAMY PEANUT BUTTER 2 PK / 40 OZ 049573 1 $6.39 $6.39 This is a good price for the size and a 2/pk ACTII SEASONING SALT 52 OZ 624038 1 $3.34 $3.34 Haven't tried this yet, hope it will be as good as the popcorn BAKED BEANS 117 OZ. 037053 6 $5.27 $31.62 I need to make some of my own...but in the mean time, these are handy VANILLA PUDDING 112 OZ. 488511 6 $4.08 $24.48 We tried these puddings last week and are sold on the quality & price BEEF BOUILLON CUBES, 25 OZ 071149 1 $4.87 $4.87 Works really well in recipes,soups, stews, etc... even alone? YLW RND TORTILLA CH 2 - 3 LB. BAGS 022202 2 $6.18 $12.36 These big boxes have a better expiration date than bags SHREDDED CHEDDAR 5 LB CHEDDAR 063903 1 $9.02 $9.02 This is some really good grated cheese, I divide and freeze AMERICAN SLICES 5 LB 160 CT 063945 1 $7.67 $7.67 This we get every time we go, good deal MINCED GARLIC 48 OZ 442118 1 $4.08 $4.08 I may never chop garlic again! PRAIRE RIDGE BF PATT 10 LBS 4 OZ PATTIES 293758 1 $17.88 $17.88 We're going to grill these tomorrow CHILI WITH BEANS 6 LB 11 OZ 192355 6 $6.28 $37.68 This and some tortilla chips will feed my whole family w/leftovers ACT II POPCORN 50 LB 624059 1 $16.58 $16.58 One of my favorite things to get at Sam's TROPICAL FRUIT SALAD 107 OZ 860346 6 $5.16 $30.96 We got one of these and liked it very much VLASIC DILL CHIP 5 GAL 2500-3000 CT 728740 1 $13.66 $13.66 My dh picked this out! It's is a 5gal pail! NO CALORIE GRANULATE SWEETENER - 1.2LBS 156010 1 $11.88 $11.88 This is Splenda I didn't get some of the normal stuff that we usually get... Canned Tomatoes #10 size Ketchup, Mayo, Mustard (pump size) Nacho Cheese #10 size Toilet Paper and Paper Towels Pinto Beans (25lbs for $13) I'm stocked pretty good on that stuff and will get more of that next time.

You are doing great! About the Popcorn - I blogged about my popcorn adventure. I finally arrived at the 50 lb bag at Sam's! It is so cheap!! and stores so easily!! and the whole family loves it. http://www.samsclub.com/shopping/navigate....&pCatg=7915 About the Peanut Butter Powder - I blogged about that too. Have you ever used it? If not, I wouldn't return that jar of Peanut Butter right away, until you've done some experimenting with the powder. If you already have used the powder and have any tips, let me know. (Came back and edited when I saw I had linked to the wrong place about the popcorn...silly me!)

You are not alone, several of us had to learn about the "draft" vs "published" entries! We homeschool year round, but we do a relaxed summer schedule. You have a great weekend too!

I struggle with this... Collecting my Preps and not wanting to use them. Whenever I'm canning something I am almost hoping one jar won't seal so that I can taste what I've done. I'm a bit better than I was, been working on it. I rememberJudy saying in a post, that we were 't creating a Food Museum with our canned goods (a while back). That really got my attention! Months and months ago I bought a Berkey, went through heck and high water to get it. I was so proud when it came, so relieved! It is still in the box! Now, in my defense, it came with several of the Berkey Sports Bottles and when I had to take that trip a while back, I pulled one out and have been using it faithfully since then. *Cool bottle btw! I seem to have this mentality of not opening and using things that I've collected until there is the need for them, or just the right moment. I'm a nut! The other day I had bought something, and my ds9 asked about it. I said what I say so often, "This is for an emergency." He looked at me thoughtfully and said, "How much longer do we have to wait for one of these emergencies?" I laughed, I couldn't help myself. It was so true! as the old saying goes....from the mouth of babes.... I have also yet to try my Junior Wonder Mill Deluxe Grain Grinder or open any of my wheat. I've ordered MORE, I've read recipes and threads here. I'm still gathering my equipment and ingredients and information. I tend to do that. First I gather and think, think, think... then I act. So, now I'm wondering if I've crossed some kind of proverbial line in this Prepping vs. Collecting. We bought this really cool Butterfly Kerosene stove for a great price at a yard sale last summer...still in the box. But, I did mention to my dh that I'd like to try it and see how it works. I guess that's a step in the right direction. I DID open that #10 can of Peanut Butter Powder and we HAVE been experimenting with it. I made some cookies the other day that were so good, the kids were fighting over them. I DID open my FOOD SAVER that my mom gave me for Christmas after only a few weeks and use it! But, I haven't opened the jar attachment that I bought to go with it. I AM using some of my home canned food and not saving all of it for a rainy day. We are using some of the #10 cans of fruit and pudding and etc... to see what we like and what we want more of. I DID open up my first Pantry Stuffer of Dehydrated Vegies from Harmony House and use them very often ( and enjoying them very much). I ordered a second batch including some other things. Well, I guess I'm making some progress in this journey, but still need to start enjoying and using the neat things I've collected. Perhaps today I will try out that Food Saver Jar Sealer and 'can' up some Steel Cut Oatmeal that I have in buckets...leaving the buckets open for something else?

You're doing great! Hang in there with the coke withdrawals, later it won't bother you at all. I still remember laying mine down (many years ago) it brought me to tears. Sounds silly, but it just hurt my feelings! Are you making your own tortillas? I found this great mix at WalMart that is so easy and all you do is add water. The 4 lb bag is around 2.50 and makes about 80 tortillas. That was a big money saver when we started doing those.

Have a safe trip! and enjoy the celebration too! Happy Birthday to your DGD, they sure do grow fast!

This week we were so busy doing and learning that I didn't have time to stop and think about it! My dh taught my two oldest (13 & 15) how to properly run the tiller when breaking up brand new ground. When the belt slipped on the tiller, they learned how to fix that. As a family we plotted the new garden, we're trying some new things and want to make sure how to go about it. Found out that corn should be on the North side of the garden and that okra can get as tall as five feet. Plotting including all kinds of research, collecting of data, measurements (math), and good hard physical math. I started teaching my girls to make Southern Buttermilk Biscuits, an art that every Southern girl should have! Today, I will be continuing to train my oldest boy to do clipper cuts (his younger brothers will be his guinea pigs). We worked on that last summer when we were buzzing heads for summer cuts. He's actually got a good knack for it. I'll be right there watching and assisting, but it will save my shoulder a bit of pain (in Physical Therapy for Bone Spur). I'm continuing to share what I learn at the Puppy Training classes, hoping they will have a good solid start with that. My ds who is 9 has attended every week with me and actually has decided he wants to do this as an adult (could change his mind a million times, but he's very interested and learning).

(((HSMom))) This is a great idea for your blog and I'm so glad you'll be sharing your journey with us. You can do this! I know you can! I'm assuming you're increasing your meals of pancakes, rice, oatmeal and beans? I need to find that thread, "Now and Then" where we talked about adjustments to our menus. If I do, I'll bump it up for us to refresh our memories.

It is good to see you back Aaroun and thanks so much for this article. As usual, I learned a lot.

Thank you for the words of encouragement Autumn and the lovely picture as well! Welcome to our blog area!

A Massage!! Way to go M!!! What a lovely gift and a lovely day!!

Happy Anniversary!!! Y'all are such a sweet couple! I hope it was a special day!

The garden sounds great! If you can, take some pictures. I just asked my dh to till up a nice spot in our front yard area, it gets a nice amount of morning sun. He asked if I was sure about having a garden be the first thing somone sees when they approach the house. I told him that gardens can be beautiful! So he agreed!

I'm so sorry to hear about M's knee. Tell him I feel for him as they just found a bone spur on my right shoulder and significant arthritis in my left hip. Thankfully the ortho is sending me to Therapy before considering any kinds of surgeries and thinks that they can be strengthened that way. I hope M gets good news.

I'm so glad you started blogging MomM!! This is so cool! I bet the baby quilt was beautiful. BTW, if you want to you can post pictures.

Gorgeous!! I absolutely love the way you designed the raised beds, GREAT JOB!! And the plants are coming along so nicely!! The gate is lovely!

I enjoyed this so much!! What a wonderful trbute!

Today we learned how to properly plant a Magnolia Tree and a fig tree.(that I got for my birthday) This led to several discussions/lessons/learning opportunities.... Math was part of it, as we had to measure the holes, discuss diameter, doubling that and etc. Tools were chosen, Square shovel vs Angled Shovel? or post hole digger? We recycled!!! As we found worms the little ones ran and fed them to the delighted baby chicks! Science was a big part as we studied the parts of the tree from roots to blossoms to fruits...did you read about how a fig is fertilized?? amazing!! We also identified different soil types, fertilizers, and soil conditioners. Very good day, in every way!

We've payed for (for the first time ever) Puppy Training Classes, I am taking Aslan every week. I'm learning so much! So is he! I'm taking my 9 yr old ds with me each week, he is crazy about animals of all kinds and I imagine he'll work with them in some way one day when he chooses a career. Soooooo....naturally I'm sharing the wealth of info with ALL of the family *including dh. We might as well get our money's worth! This could be invaluable info later as I believe that animals will be a much more viable part of our future than we can imagine. ::::maybe I should stock up on those training clickers:::: Seriously, I do think this could be a very viable skill to have in days to come.

Great photos! Thanks! I am convinced that chickens have personalities! And what personalities they have!

You are very blessed to have such a wonderful fellowship (church) Angela. I pray the surgery is easy and successful and that your recovery is quick!