Book Chat

Another month of reading … here’s what I’ve read in the past month:

In Cheap We Trust:  The Story of a Misunderstood  American Virtue (reviewed here).

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I loved the first few chapters of Dating Jesus, in which the author told of her growing up years in the Church of Christ.  I think Susan Campbell and I share more than a first name, because many of her recollections were very familiar to me (and hilariously written, I might add).

Campbell and her family were in church every time the door was open, and she was a Bible Bowl Champion.  However, even as she listened attentively to the preacher and her Sunday School teachers and knocked on doors for Jesus, she had her doubts – principally because of the second-class treatment of women in the church.

In what’s becoming predictable in my latest reads, Campbell ends up leaving the church  and becoming enlightened, i.e. liberal.

Yes, I should have quit with this one while I was ahead, but I felt compelled to continue.  Campbell recounts a visit to Haiti in one chapter, where she decries the fact that “my country has played a major role in helping destroy this country.”

O-kay, then.  Never mind the incredible generosity of Americans – the goods we send to all kinds of countries, the kids we sponsor and adopt – never mind all that.  You know, reading things like this really helps me understand why some people were so happy about Obama’s election.  They truly do seem to feel like America needs to apologize.

Anyway, off-topic I know, but I enjoyed Campbell’s memoirs before she became enlightened.  In short – I liked her better as a Church of Christ member!  I recommend the first half of this book.

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I saw A Reliable Wife recommended somewhere and it sounded intriguing …  set in 1908 Wisconsin, town patriarch Ralph Truitt advertises for a “reliable wife.”   He was married once long ago, but this ended tragically and now his loneliness has him wishing for a life where “everything could be saved and nobody went insane.”  His ad is answered by Catherine Land, whose background is cloudy but whose “unhappiness had been made bearable only by the certain knowledge that somewhere there lived people whose lives were not like her own.”

We soon learn that Catherine is not the innocent thing we thought, but is planning to poison Ralph in order to inherit his considerable wealth.  In cahoots with her on this is her boyfriend, who just happens to be Ralph’s long-lost son Antonio (and whose hatred for Ralph has led him to hatch this plan).

However, along the way Catherine comes to see that Ralph isn’t so awful, and perhaps Antonio is.

You’ll have to read the book to see how the whole thing ends up, but it’s well-written and engaging.  A few more sex scenes than I wanted to read, but hey – it’s written by a man.  Recommended.

More great reading ideas at 5 Minutes for Books.

Menu Plan Monday: Thanksgiving Week and Trader Joe’s

Welcome to Menu Plan Monday – sorry for no banner, but my computer is on its last leg and my banner folder has been lost

About a week ago we went on a 2-hr trip which pleasantly brought us near a Trader Joe’s.  I don’t know if you’ve been to Trader Joe’s before, but I love that place.  It’s kind of a crunchy-granola spot, healthy organic stuff, but fun environment.

There are little kids’ shopping carts which my girls love.  There is a stuffed monkey hidden somewhere in the store … if kids locate him, they can report his location to the folks in the baking corner in the back and they’ll get a yummy treat (adults can get samples of whatever they’re baking as well).

Here’s my haul from the last trip:

A 3-lb bag of pears, just the right size for lunchboxes, $3.  Light coconut milk, which I love using for chicken curry – better price than Meijer.  A bag of tortellini (always reminds me of my trip to my penpal’s in Florence, when her family gave me a similar bag to take home, only to have it confiscated at the airport), whole wheat tortillas, and the yummiest little pretzel bits filled with peanut butter.

Monday: I’ll be having the Trader Joe’s tortellini with pasta sauce and some type of veggie

Tuesday: Leftovers – we’ll be gone the end of the week and need to clear out the fridge

Wednesday: Mini Thanksgiving

Story: Last week (and this week too, I see) Meijer had a deal: $14 off a turkey 16 lb or more when you spend $20.  Well, I did spend $20 on the regular groceries for the week (acutally I spent less than $20 after coupons, but that still “counted”), and got a 16.4 lb turkey for about $5.50.  I was very excited about that!

Our neighbor’s grandma fell down their stairs last week and died. It has been very sad for them (obviously) and for our family.  We went to the funeral home today and they were saying how they had planned to get together with her for Thanksgiving.

So, we got home and my oldest daughter said we should have Thanksgiving for them Wednesday.  I was thinking no, but the more I thought, the more I think we will.  I’m no great turkey baker – I don’t do rubs (gross, putting my hands under the turkey’s skin?  I don’t think so!!) – I just bake it.  But, I figure I can bake the turkey, make some mashed potatoes, open some canned green beans and whip up some Stove Top stuffing.

Speaking of baking turkeys, I ran across this tip on a blog which sounded good to me:

The fun­da­men­tal, unavoid­able turkey prob­lem is the white meat is done 20 degrees ear­lier than the dark meat. This is often com­pounded by the white meat being on top, closer to the pri­mary heat source. So, when the ther­mome­ter says the breast is done (actu­ally 5 – 10 degrees before “done”), haul the bird out of the oven and grab your carv­ing knife. Start­ing at the breast bone, carve away the two breast lobes. This is sur­pris­ingly easy, with only an intact wish­bone pro­vid­ing resis­tance. You will end up with two beau­ti­ful, skin-clad breast lobes, which should be cov­ered with foil and allowed to rest before slic­ing.
Cover the breast cav­ity with foil and put the rest of the bird back in the oven until the dark meat is done.

If you have any easy turkey-baking tips (easy, I say – I claim no relation to Martha Stewart), leave them for me.  It’s already defrosting in the fridge …

I have always wished to spend a major holiday at my own house, but that doesn’t seem to be in the cards for us – so come Wednesday night, we’ll travel 4 hours away through Saturday.  I am thankful, though, that it will be a few days of no cooking.  Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Childhood Memories Friday: Thanksgiving

After waking up on Thanksgiving morning, my sister and I would usually turn the parades on TV and watch them.  Mom got out paper and helped us make pilgrim hats and collars to wear.  We usually either had my mom’s relatives come to our house for the meal or we went to my mom’s parents’ house.

There was always an adults table and a kids table.  Being the oldest cousin, I really enjoyed the kids’ table.  I was several years older than my younger cousins, and I remember one year being told that I had graduated to the adult table since the kids’ table was too full.  I was not a bit happy about that.

My mom always made a cranberry salad and she attached a big grinding device to the table to grind up the berries and other things.  I was never a cranberry salad fan, but I liked most of the other traditional Thanksgiving foods.

What do you remember about Thanksgiving?

Crockpot Lasagna

I know, cooking twice in a week on my blog? Kind of scary, huh? But, it’s all to play along with Dark Side of the Fridge’s Third Thursday, where one is to try a recipe from another blog and talk about it.

So, on to Crockpot Lasagna.  I came across this recipe a few weeks ago when I was searching for weekly recipe ideas.  I found a site with tons of crockpot recipes, and this was one that intrigued me:  I love using the crockpot and I love lasagna – how cool to merge the two!

I followed the recipe pretty closely (although I don’t have sea salt, and also I subbed a different type of noodle for lasagna noodles; it just seemed wrong somehow to break up lasagna noodles so they would fit).  Here it is, ready to go:

I was a little worried that the noodles would become mushy after so long in the crockpot, but they were fine.  The whole family enjoyed it, and I’ll be making it again.

Ta da!  Easiest lasagna I’ve made.

On a side note, don’t you love my ’80s country blue crockpot interior?  I’ve probably had my crockpot since I first began cooking on my own in the ’80s.  I never gave it much thought until a few years ago when I volunteered to bring a crockpot of something to one of the kids’ schools.  I was amazed at all the stainless steel, fancy schmancy crockpots in there – mine looked quite old fashioned (or perhaps it’s jazzier to say “retro”) in comparison.

But, in keeping with my conservative and frugal nature, I see no need to replace my crockpot:  it’s served me well all these years, so why discard a good thing?  Do I really need it sitting in a landfill just so I can have a shiny new one with a timer (which I’d never use anyway)?  I think not.

 

The Perfect Turtleneck for Layering

I love turtlenecks.  But, sometimes you put on a turtleneck and then another sweater, and then … it’s just too much.  Especially when you add a coat, all that bulk just isn’t comfortable.  So, I was really excited last winter to discover these at Target:

They are called tissue turtlenecks, and the best news is that they’re just $10 this week (normally I think they’re around $13).

I highly recommend these turtlenecks for layering.  They work for me!

More ideas that work for others at We Are That Family’s.

Review: In Cheap We Trust

 

In Cheap We Trust:  The Story of a Misunderstood American Virtue was a book I began loving from the first pages.  Lauren Weber is singing my song when she discusses why those who are responsible with their resources are called “cheap,” “tight,” “stingy,” etc.

“We feel a peculiar pleasure in judging what other people do with their money … The censure we heap on others for their expenditures is so intense that it calls to mind Freud’s theories about projection … Teasing (others) for being cheap seems to neutralize some of the confusion or shame  critics feel about their own relationships with money, and perhaps helps them validate their own choices.  I’d call that a cheap shot.”  Preach it, sister!

I’ve often wondered, as someone accused of being “cheap” (by my own relatives, no less!), why it’s thought of as a negative to be a wise steward of the resources allotted to me. Yet, others who spend more than they can afford to are lauded as “generous.”  Something about this always seemed “off.”

Weber traces the roots of frugality in America, and I was intrigued to learn that many of our forefathers had frugality in mind as one of America’s founding virtues:  “Observing the colonists’ appetite for imported luxuries and modern conveniences, they despaired that the Revolution had failed.”

The book is filled with quotes I love:

To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich; to study hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly …. This is my symphony.”  ~William Henry Channing

Just when Weber veers close to telling me more than I wanted to know about thrift in early American, I run across a gem like this:  a schoolbook from the late 1800’s – early 1900’s called Gateway to Independence featured monthly lessons on thrift, illustrated by cartoon elves called “Thrifties,” accompanied by verses like

The Thrifties all know how to work;

They earn in many ways,

And a part of what they earn is saved

For they know that banking pays.

I want a little set of Thrifties!  What a cool idea for Happy Meal toys, huh?  (Oops, maybe that’s defeating the purpose …)

I also learned that thrift was formerly an especially prized attribute for women, as an 1875 book quotes: If the woman who has a household to manage be innocent of addition and multiplication; and if she fail to keep a record of her income and expenditure, she will, before long, find herself in great trouble … The most worthless unit in a family is an ill-managing wife, or an indolent woman of any sort. I have to say, that’s quite true.  Looks like the Proverbs 31 woman had it right all along.

The book does tend to bog down in details, and although I think Weber truly tries to be even-handed, my conservative eye was caught by passages extolling Jimmy Carter’s supposed efforts to make our country more frugal, and others tsk-tsking “the deficits left behind by the Bush administration.”  Uh oh; here we go again.

She mentions all the stimulatin’ passed by Obama and only states that “financing these projects is a thorny issue.”  Yeah, yeah – I know how it works.  Deficits run up by Republicans are just bad, while those run up by Democrats require thoughtful monologues.  Some things just never change!

In summary:   I enjoyed the first part of the book, slogged through the middle (although there were some interesting bits), and found myself annoyed by the end’s liberal turn.  Read it and see what you think …

Menu Plan Monday

We took a little road trip Saturday and during the drive I looked through some recipe booklets I had had around for awhile.  They are where the week’s menu inspiration comes from.

Monday: Lasagna Soup with bread from the bread machine

Tuesday: Quick and Creamy Chicken and Noodles – I make chicken and noodles a lot.  This recipe looks really easy; we’ll see if it’s good.

Wednesday: Cheeseburger Pasta

Thursday: Hot Chicken Salad – love it; making it for a friend who is coming over for her birthday.  Then I’ll heat up the leftovers for dinner.

Friday: Roast Chicken and Veggies – so simple and a definite favorite:

Cut up a couple of chicken breasts, a couple of carrots, a couple of potatoes – put in a roasting pan, then top with 1/3 c. olive oil and a packet (actually I use 1/2 packet) of dry onion soup mix.  Bake 45 minutes at 450.

Where do you get meal ideas?  Do you repeat a lot, or like lots of new things?

Plenty of recipe ideas at OrgJunkie’s …

Childhood Memories Friday: Fifth Grade

Today, fifth grade memories.

In my mind, fifth grade was always the beginning of being a “big kid,” even though our elementary school went through sixth grade.  There were 3 fifth grade classes, and the teachers were southern talkin’ Mrs. Brown, Mrs. Elsner (my homeroom teacher; I don’t have many clear memories of her), and Mr. Hulfachor, who was a novelty as my first “man teacher!”

There I am, 3rd row far right, in the “Bicentennial dress” that my mom made.  My best friend Miriam is two to the left of me, wearing a blue jumper with an apple(?) on the front.

Memories inspired by the photo … my word, is Keith wearing a leisure suit in the first row?  Sure looks like it!  Louis, who always insisted on saying “A PLUS” (not just plain “A”) when he called out his grade; Chuck the class clown; “farting Tom” who sadly has his eyes shut, he was the class oddity who took a shine to me (wouldn’t ya know?); Laurie, a quiet girl who later scandalized our school by having an affair with the high school psychology teacher (he ended up getting divorced, marrying her and moving to Texas).

See Mr. Hulfachor there on the back row?  See that little curl in the center of his forehead?  That was the subject of endless talk among us kids.  Several girls swore they had seen him in front of the bathroom mirror with a curler in it! (how they saw him in the bathroom was never explained).  I remember him paddling kids (yes, ornery kids were actually paddled then).  Once he took Tonda outside of class and we all listened, wide-eyed, as we heard the paddle fall several times.  To Tonda’s credit, she didn’t scream.

I see Todd on the back row … each day we had “milk time” where cartons of milk were brought to the room and if you had paid for it, you drank it.  The boys began a competition of seeing who could “kill” their milk first (this referred to drinking the entire carton as fast as possible in a single long gulp).  One day Todd won, shouted, “finished!” only to immediately throw up.  I remember staring fearfully at the vomit, which landed only an inch or so from my desk, and gingerly climbing out of my seat to safety.

It’s interesting that I recall very little of the reason I was actually in fifth grade – academics.  I do remember we had to memorize a long list of present, past and past participle verbs (eat, ate, eaten; run, ran, ran; etc), and I don’t think kids do that anymore.  Occasionally in my mind I will still run over a verb when I’m not sure of the past participle form.

If you carry your childhood with you, you never become older.  ~Tom Stoppard

So – what do you remember about fifth grade?

Ten Things I Do Every Day

Carol/Knitted Kitty posted this ages ago – I’m finally getting around to it:

1.  Eat breakfast.  Yep, every day.  And, almost every day it’s Raisin Bran.  Kellogg’s.

2.  Exercise. Well, every day except Sunday (gotta have a day of rest, ya know).  I have no love of exercise, but I do have a hatred of the fat rolls that form in its absence.  I ride the exercise bike 30 minutes each day, and lately I’ve started doing 30 second “sprints” every 5 minutes since I read that burns more fat.  I’ll let you know when I notice that working

3.  Read. A reading stand on the exercise bike is what makes exercise bearable, because that is when I get my coveted reading time.  No one else is yet awake in the house, and it’s lovely.  I also read the paper each evening.

4.  Pray. I’ve been through times when I tried to pray for an hour a day, used a prayer guide, etc. – but I quit because they aren’t sustainable for me.  Now, I find myself praying briefly throughout the day – when I think of a friend, when I hear an ambulance … whenever someone or something comes to mind.

5. Enter the Cheerios and Pace online contests. I know – quite a come-down from #4, huh?  But, it’s true.  I have won $5 from Cheerios 5 times (I’ll keep trying until I reach the 10 win limit) and free Pace salsa 5 times (just this morning, and 5 is the limit there – woo hoo!).  Little things, folks – little things.

6.  Get the mail. Oh, how I love the mail.  I was a bit bummed yesterday when there was no mail.  Not that I’m ungrateful to the veterans.

7.  Cook dinner. Again, almost always.  Saturday is usually leftovers, which may not technically count as cooking, and Sunday is “do your own thing” night.  The other night one daughter proclaimed “do your own thing” night her favorite dinner evening.  You always knew I was a good cook, huh?

8.  Drink a diet pop. Yeah, I know it’s not healthy.  It’s bad for your bones.  It’s not good for tooth enamel.  What can I say?  It’s my own little vice and it tastes good.

9.  Google. I often wonder about life before computers, because I swear every 5 minutes I think of something I must immediately google the answer for.  Am I more intelligent now than before?

10. Pet the pets. In case you didn’t know, we have 2 gerbils, 2 rabbits and a hedgehog.  I do love our little critters and enjoy petting and interacting with them each day.

So … what do you do every day?

Earn Money Online

Money.  It seems we all need more of it, especially in this economy.  Yet when you’re a stay at home mom, your options for earning may seem limited.  I thought I’d post about some ways I’ve found over the years of earning money online.

You won’t get rich doing any of these, but the key is baby steps, people.  Say it with me:  baby steps. You know, every little bit helps.

I wrote earlier about mystery shopping.  You do need to leave the house to do most mystery shops (although there are some phone shops available), but you’ll search for jobs online and enter reports there.

I also wrote earlier about earning money writing online.  I really enjoy writing at Associated Content and have made good “online friends” there as well.  I don’t write a lot of new things there, but am still able to earn on everything I’ve written in the past.  I generally make about $20 a month … not bad for just collecting payment for things I wrote months ago.

Especially with Christmas coming, you may be doing online shopping.  Don’t order online through any site without first checking if it’s at Ebates. Basically, if you go to ebates.com and THEN click to the site you’re shopping at through there, you get part of your purchase price put into your ebates account.  Ebates they pays you, every few months.

A similar site is Upromise.com.  In addition to shopping online, upromise lets you earn in various ways (by using their credit card and doing other offers which are detailed on the site).  Money here is put into an account for your child’s college education, but if you don’t have kids or they are grown, you can also request a check from upromise and just be paid directly.

Mypoints is another site I’ve belonged to for years.  You can earn at Mypoints by shopping through the site, but my favorite way to earn is simply by clicking on emails they send almost daily.  Each email you click earns you 5 points (a bit worth than 5 cents; again, baby steps).  Over the  years I’ve redeemed my points there for JCPenney gift certificates (I use these for the kids’ birthday photos), Pizza Hut, and more.  They’re very reliable.

You can also take surveys online for money.  I’m kind of transitioning out of these because most seem to offer little money relative to the time involved.  Some that are reliable (ie, I’ve actually been paid by them) would include:

BuzzBack

TestSpin

ViewpointForum

PanelPolls – for kids 6 – 17 (my kids have enjoyed taking surveys!)

Have you found a money-making online site you’d like to pass along?  Please share it in the comments!

More great ideas at We Are That Family’s.