no one perspective

"An impassioned, compelling, dare I say poetic, argument on behalf of those who 'labor in the fields of sadness'...A call to live hard and full, to participate in the great rondure of life and to be aware of the fact that no one perspective on the world is ever finally true." - Ethan Rutherford

I have debated heavily with myself about what order there is to this "story" and does it really have one? Do I proceed by topic? chronologically? by what most bothers me?  And I still don't know which order will be most conducive to others' understanding so I'll just dive in...

Line upon line.

I'll head to a heavy hitter later.

I have always found beauty on the other side of the fence. Both in a negative way and a positive way - I can easily pine after what I don't have - but I am also adept at appreciating culture and the perspective of others. I looove me some documentaries on others' cultures, traditions, indigenous peoples, etc. I wonder at length as to what we actually 'know' and what we are culturally conditioned to 'know'.

Take dress for example. We have very clear ideas about modesty as a religion and a culture. But are those boundaries - just that - cultural?. Obviously, above waist nudity in indigenous cultures is completely acceptable. It is us who view it as barbaric and lacking restraint. But where those norms don't exist there is no moral degradation in that dress.

I have always had a soft spot in my heart for traditional dress of cultures that our missionaries go to and when hearts are converted to the gospel - then things must change. Now I am all for abandoning harmful traditions (ummm like circumcision) - but I like the clothes of the Samoans, the Maori, Kenyans, etc. Including tattoos, hairstyles and whatnot.  And, I think, our Mormonism and Christian faiths ask for drastic changes. Changes that I don't think really serve any purpose for faith.

Then....

Where did we get all these downright ridiculous rules?

Only white shirts for men (especially if passing the Sacrament)
No facial hair at BYU or serving in Bishopric
One set of earrings?
Why don't women wear pants to church if they want- especially if you are serving in Nursery - what is more fun than crawling around with little kids with a skirt on.
No skinny jeans - wait, that may not be too bad LOL

And then don't even get me started on this one: Curvy Girl not admitted to BYU testing center because her jeans were too tight.

There are no words for how much this creeped me out.

Are there more rules to learn and follow than actual worship to do?
Just thinking about all of this opened my mind to the thoughts that maybe there is no monopoly on truth.  Would God have it here in one faith and only make it available to less than 1% of the world's population -and then within that small percentage quibble over such silliness?

I for so long felt that I "had" something... something so great in my faith that others surely wanted or needed it as badly as me.

But I'm not that conceited anymore.  I can see around me that there are many people as happy or much happier than me without a prescribed doctrine.

We don't corner the market on spiritual peace, happy families, etc.  In fact when I think of my 'mormon' identity as a whole - happiness does not register very high on the list of descriptives.

In fact as rude as it may sound - I don't really find church meetings all that joyful. Our songs are slllloooooowwww. Our interactions sometimes shallow, our comparisons far and wide.  Even general conferences have made me think - we have more power than this - we can do better!

We should be a place where the tattooed fellow who still smokes a pack a day feels just as comfortable with the white shirted CEO.  The single mom struggling is happy to be next to the stay at home mom.  Where I don't have to hear political messages masked as messages from scripture and feel like the person speaking just assumes everyone in the room agrees with that political persusasion in the first place.

I can't believe anymore that we have the "only" way. I can't believe in a God who would only have one path back to him. My traditions, my faith's ordinances are no better or worse than another's.  We are different. We were made that way. There are different ways to truth, love and happiness.

I am ready to be a little more "do" and a little less "know the rules".

And my journey has just begun.

We human beings have a strange tendency to complicate simple things. We set up rules, laws, bylaws, processes, and subprocesses. Eventually, we pile up load after load until we end up under a huge weight of expectations that are so complicated it is difficult to keep track of them, let alone meet them.

This is one of the reasons Paul said, “The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life” 

 - DIETER F. UCHTDORF

If you knew that you would die today
If you saw the face of God and love
Would you change?
Would you change?

If you knew that love can't break your heart
When you're down so low you cannot fall
Would you change would you change?

How bad how good does it need to get?
How many losses how much regret?
What chain reaction
What cause and effect
Makes you turn around
Makes you try to explain
Makes you forgive and forget
Makes you change
Makes you change

If you knew that you could be alone
Knowing right being wrong
Would you change?
Would you change?
If you knew that you would find a truth
That brings a pain that can't be soothed
Would you change would you change?

How bad how good does it need to get?
How many losses how much regret?
What chain reaction

What cause and effect
Makes you turn around
Makes you try to explain
Makes you forgive and forget
Makes you change
Makes you change

Are you so upright you can't be bent
if it comes to blows
Are you so sure you won't be crawling
If not for the good why risk falling
Why risk falling

If everything you think you know
Makes your life unbearable
Would you change?
Would you change?
If you'd broken every rule and vow
And hard times come to bring you down
Would you change?
Would you change?

If you knew that you would die today
If you saw the face of God and love
Would you change?
Would you change?

If you saw the face of God and love
If you saw the face of God and love
Would you change?
Would you change?

-Tracy Chapman

It all came tumbling down.

There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed. ~Ernest Hemingway

I am going to tell my story. And not because my story is beautiful or even all that worthy of telling, but because it is a shattered mess of crumbs at my feet and by telling it maybe bit by bit I can put that story back together.

Like most people of faith, faith in an organized religion anyway I shelved the more difficult aspects of that faith for a long time. In the past two years my shelf broke. I have managed to repair it here and there but as most home improvement projects of the soul, the work was difficult and the seams hard to hide. I am at a point now where the shelf is down and the drywall ripped off the wall and I am left staring at a big mess.

That's me in the corner
That's me in the spotlight
Losing my religion
Trying to keep a view
And I don't know if I can do it
Oh no, I've said too much
I haven't said enough
-Peter Buck

So without anymore hemming and hawwing... I will bare my soul to the world wide web. That could very well turn out to be the worst mistake ever. I have considered that at length, but I'm going on ahead anyway for these reasons:

-I generally live my life very open. I make friends - I lose friends - I make people laugh and I make people mad - but what I rarely ever do is let them wonder what I am thinking.  For both better and worse I speak my mind.  Choosing to do it online is just a by product of our society. In another generation I'd spill my guts on the front porch - but that "front porch" doesn't exist anymore.

-I have opened up to family and a few close friends about these issues personally and there is a lot of pressure on them to have a right answer or any answer at all for me.  Kyle who is the kindest, gentlest, and has the most outrageously brilliant mind I know has absorbed my ponderings at length.  But at some point there is nothing to offer up but silence. By putting it "out" here I can plan on that silence, or might be pleasantly surprised by the response. Either way there is no pressure on any parties involved: me, close friends, distant friends, enemies, passer-bys to "do" anything.

-Maybe there will be some response that helps me. I don't plan on it - but maybe its out here. Blogging does greatly expand that proverbial front porch. Despite all the downsides of the internet I have made some true friends on it that I would never have met with the constraints of geography.

-Can telling one's story even when raw and edgy and difficult be a possible service to others? I know some will think that representing a faith/church/religion with anything but the rosiest of colors is a disservice. But standing where I am now in the tar pits of a faith crisis I would completely disagree. Those who have had the strength to share their own difficulties have bolstered me FAR more than those who cling steadfastly to only the sunny side.  So maybe, just maybe sharing what I have to say will help someone.

I feel like have given ample warning to the days ahead on this blog. Not usual fodder for a mommy blogger. But I've tackled weight issues and penis issues and birth and cervical changes here so no need to remind folks there is nothing typical about me. At this moment in time I plan to keep the comments open (does anyone even comment anymore?)

I don't mind comments that completely disagree with me.
I don't mind if you want to talk about me or this with anyone else.
 If its here I expect every who down in whoville to have at it.

I do ask that you don't cracker me.

What does 'cracker me' mean? Well its a term for those who suffer from severe hyperemesis (morning sickness) like ya'll know I go through. When a woman in the most severe forms of sickness is told to eat crackers first thing in the morning.   A simple remedy for simple morning sickness when what this mom is actually going through is life and fetus threatening and if it was as simple as that to treat she sure as heck would have already tried it!

Meaning - this is a faith crisis the likes I have never been through. Any of the following suggestions are nothing but insulting to me at this point:

Have you prayed about this?
Have you read your scriptures?
Have you gone to the temple?
Have you talked to someone?
Have you gotten a blessing?
etc...

The answer to all of those questions would be this:

Like never before.

so here goes, maybe I will have born this all out before I birth this new baby.

If you choose to stick around, All my love,
Janie

"Those who are living the principle of honesty know that the Lord does bless them. Theirs is the precious right to hold their heads in the sunlight of truth, unashamed before any man. The Lord requires his people to be honest. May we desire with all our hearts to be honest in all our relationships and in all the things we do"
Gordon B. Hinckley

Road trip

Here at 34 weeks pregnant I got all five kids and the one in the oven to Virginia all by myself and it was a great road trip I have to say. The kids were well behaved for the most part. We enjoyed the scenery changes from Texas to Virginia. We ate at truck stops. Made some potty humor jokes at every rest area that said "no oversized loads allowed" talked about our favorite movies scenes (mine included steel magnolias, the graduate, and terms of endearment). We drove ALL day then did some late night swimming. The second day we got to hang out with the ever awesome Ryann and her three adorable kiddos! The Moms talked late into the night then in the morning we overwhelmed the continental breakfast with eight kids at once. I missed the days when I first became a stay at home mom and Ryann and I had frequent adventures with our little ones all over the Virginia beach area.

We made the last leg today and best part: we are now at Grandma's
!!!

All these pics are out of order but have at em anyways

Whiter teeth - the cheaper way..

I have committed to being better about flossing. Because nothing undoes a year of frugality or couponing like a big dentist bill does. On recommendation of my hygienist she said to swish with 3% Hydrogen Peroxide mixed 50/50 with water. And for me to use a proxy brush.

With this new routine I noticed my teeth were a little whiter and I did a little research online and lo and behold Hydrogen Peroxide does whiten your teeth.

And I looked at our bottle of this:

and saw Hydrogen peroxide as one of the major ingredients.

So add some Hydrogen Peroxide to your food storage - its a good thing to have on hand. And if you want to whiten your teeth give it a try. DO NOT SWALLOW, DO NOT OVERUSE (can soften your teeth like most whitening agents can), AND DO DILUTE WITH WATER.

It helps with canker sores too...

You can also bleach your hair with it, get blood out of clothes and carpet, dip your toothbrush to sanitize it, add some to the whites load to get them even whiter....

enjoy some hydrogen peroxide linky:

Clean with it

and other amazing uses!!!

More on storing produce & leftovers

I have heard two statistics that BLOW my mind...

44% of American household food budgets are spent in restaurants. AAAAAGGGHHHH how expensive. If you have a strong restaurant habit, splurge a little more in your grocery budget, pick a fancy new recipe and starting treating yourself more at home. Restaurants money adds up so fast!!!

...and the saddest to me was that the US throws out about 40% of ALL its food. Be still my heart. Really I can't handle the waste.

With a growing family we have less and less leftovers. But my tricks are simple and I can honestly say I throw away very little food around here. Eventually I hope to tackle composting and then what is thrown away will go toward making more :)

1. Serve plates, then immediately put leftovers up. Package a lunch portion for work the next day right then. After dinner you may not be as motivated to do this and its tempting to just scrape it in to the trash as you are scraping plates.

2. Freeze Leftovers. How often do you dutifully put the dinner leftovers in the fridge and then 10 days later ritually dump the contents of 10 or so containers into the trash. Microwaves these days have very good defrost settings, defrosting from frozen then heating as you normally would only adds a very little amount of time and saves a lot of money from stuff otherwise going in the trash.

3. Make a leftover list. As you store leftovers -write down on a scratch sheet of paper and stick it with a magnet on the fridge. Cross off as you take back out. Then you can grab this little note and mentally decide what you can use without digging through the freezer. Use masking tape to write on the individual containers. Some things once frozen are pretty difficult to tell what it is.

4. When you notice your Tupperware containers are low in the cabinet its time for LEFTOVER night.

Take out those leftovers from the fridge, heat them up, combine complimenting meals into soup or lay out a cornucopia of options and let the family dig in buffet style. (Leftover Lunch is especially easy on lazy Sunday afternoons)

5. If you are cutting up produce for dinner and chop more than you need. Stick the rest in a Ziploc bag, label and stick in the fridge - you can almost always add this to some soup later on.

and... some more produce tips:

Bread - DO NOT PUT IN FRIDGE!!!!! - it will make it go stale faster, and refrigerated bread is just weird, its hard and cold. Either freeze your bread or leave it out.

Apples - in the fridge or cool, dark place they will last up to six weeks

Avocado - not quite ripe slices are improved with a sprinkle of salt

Bananas - were covered well here, but when they do start to go bad - Don't throw them out. Freeze them, you can freeze them peeled or unpeeled. If you freeze with the peels on when they defrost you can squeeze the contents right out into your banana bread mix. Or if you freeze them after peeled you can easily toss them into the blender with for a smoothie - pre-cut if your blender is not particularly powerful.

Berries - refrigerated, unwashed in dry covered container

Melons - refrigerated

Peaches - in the fridge or room temperature in a brown bag to speed ripening -good in disposable drink holder

Cherries - refrigerated, unwashed in a plastic bag (green bag would be great!)

Grapes - refrigerated, unwashed, loosely placed in green bag

Plums - room temp to ripen, in fridge once ripe - good in disposable drink holder

Tomatoes - room temp but not in direct sunlight

for a quick no cook pasta sauce: grate ripe tomatoes and toss with torn basil and grated Parmesan

Cabbage - in airtight bag or container in fridge

Corn - in the fridge in their husks

Potatoes - in cool place away from light (not in fridge)

Zucchini and Yellow squash - unwashed in green bag in fridge

Beans - in airtight container - don't snap off ends before storing

Beets - in the crisper, lop off green tops before storing - the tops are great in salads

Broccoli - refrigerated in green bag

Mushrooms - unwashed in paper bag in fridge

Onions - in a dark well ventilated place - Don't keep near potatoes, they will absorb the potatoes moisture and spoilage speeding ethylene gas

Peppers - in a green bag in fridge whole, dry and unwashed.

** info from Penn State Co-op extension via consumer reports magazine

DON'T FORGET ABOUT THE GIVEAWAY

freezer jam

Tip #2

This is my recent replacement of paper plates (shhhh... don't make me feel guilty, yes sometimes we use paper plates) - $11 for 1000 sheets

pre-cut deli wax sheets at sam's club - dry wax that is water and grease resistant, so you can plop the sandwich and chips right on it and crumble with crumbs included and toss after. So far We've used them for sandwiches, chips, pizza and ranch, apples, and toast.

I think they'll be great for crafts too!

Tip #3

When making something - make a lot!! - your work will go a lot further.

Making refrigerator dough? make two batches

Making sandwiches for school lunches make 30+ and freeze them

Making soup make a double batch and freeze half for later

Making pie or pizza crust - make six and freeze the extras flat

Here I am making 3 batches of freezer jam:

3 packets of pectin and 2 1/4 cups of water - which if there is any left is on clearance at the Kroger on Custer for .69/box

6 cups of berries (mostly strawberries and a little blackberries and raspberries) + 12 cups of sugar and a little lemon juice)

plus pectin mixture =

FREEZER JAM

Save on your electric bill

Don't Turn on that Air Conditioner!!!

A couple years back we had an A/C unit on hospice. Yes, it was dying and to try to make it last as long as possible I took on the challenge to use it as little as possible. I had so much success that I continued the practice even after we purchased our new and much better system. So here is my routine to going without A/C as long as possible

Become familiar with the weather forecast - when you know what the hottest it will be you won't feel like throwing in the towel so soon - "Its only going to get to 89 I can make it a little bit longer"

At night and when it is cool enough outside for your liking - have all the windows you can stand be open - flood the house with fresh air and coolness.

Then, when just before, or as soon as it gets above your comfort line - go and SHUT all those windows and close the blinds (facing up) and if you have them the curtains too.

Treat your house like the fridge when the power is out - only open doors on a really, really need to basis - Don't leave the door open as you slowly bring in all the groceries. Don't let the kids leave the garage door wide open.

The goal here is to keep that cool air you let in earlier IN YOUR HOUSE.

With this system I kept my house at least 15-20 degrees cooler on the inside than it was on the outside - even when it was about 95 outside.

My system keeps working until it gets too hot at night to sufficiently cool the house.

Like I said keep track of that forecast and you'll know how cool its going to get at night.

Other tips:

have a fan in every room: ceiling, stand, or box -

Box fans in windows help circulate air through the house well but for other fans you only need them on in the room if you are IN the room - fans only make you feel cooler by moving the air - if you are not there to feel the moved air you are just wasting your money.

Have a thermostat to tell you actually how hot it is - for me just knowings its only _______ degrees I seem to be able to tolerate more.

Be very aware of activities in your home that increase temperature.

Exercise early when its cooler

Shut the door to your laundry room - a dryer going all day can raise the temp steadily

Be very careful of cooking methods - nothing will make you switch on that a/c faster than an oven in a Texas kitchen on a hot day. Use those crock pots my friends! Or better yet a solar oven.

I have to say that dinner time is the hardest part of the plan - I only really ever got uncomfy in that 4-7 pm time - be prepared in advance and ready and you'll make it.

Dress cool, cook cool, drink lots of water.

A damp bandanna holding your hair back feels wonderful

I have made it to June and then only with intermittent use until July. This family doesn't use it at all and they live in Texas too!

Its a happy, happy, joy, joy dance when you get the electric bill and its SO LOW

The BEST frugal resource EVER!!!

My all time, absolute, favorite book is on sale at Amazon with FREE shipping.

are you new to the frugal world? an old hat? either way this book has something for you. Its a compilation of newsletters that ran in the nineties - and even though some information is dated - the bulk is completely transforming. It will make you question your lifestyle and stretch your brain on ways to cut back. Your debt will shrink and your savings will grow. Mine has...

at least peruse the reviews, you'll want this book, trust me

go get it, now!!

The COMPLETE Tightwad Gazette - $15.61 (free shipping if you order $25)

May I suggest my second favorite book to qualify for free shipping?

I can't believe its food storage

$12.18 with free shipping

27.79 + tax - an excellent investment - If I had these books 10 years ago I KNOW our overall net worth would be double what it is now.

ps. ANYTHING IN LIGHT GREY ON THIS BLOG IS A LINK - click away my friend...

Are you paying more than 75 cents for a loaf of bread?

The Mrs. Bairds bread store (811 N. McDonald street - through downtown McKinney and left on McDonald, or down 380 and right) is one of my favorite places for saving money.

I buy wheat bread for 75 cents a loaf. Stock changes but you can buy almost any kind of bread. They carry Mrs. Bairds, Thomas, Orrrowheat, and a few store brands. Its not actually "day old" its just whenever the delivery trucks change out stock at local stores - I have found all of the bread to be very fresh. I freeze the dozen or so loaves I purchase. With a frostless freezer we can't ever tell its been frozen.

I also buy tortillas and english muffins for 80 cents a package. I almost always get 3-4 free items off the free rack and I then get hamburger buns that I make into garlic bread with butter and garlic powder, broiled.

I only get other extras if the price is right. I got the muffins today because they were 55 cents for a box of 5. I figured I can't make anything from scratch at that price and they can be a school lunch snack.

this haul was $24 total

this is how it all fits in my freezer.

My grocery shopping route is big lots, bread store, sams club, walmart with flyers to price match and finally the egg farm as previously posted about. I aim for one big shopping trip per month with short runs for fresh items as needed.

ps. Wednesdays are 10% off everything. But sometimes stock can be low.

And they give you a card to fill up and when you do you get two free fresh items.

The battle of the bulk

"Mom, you buy lots of big things and put them into smaller things"

-Ella

the funnel, one of my biggest money saving devices

Things I purchase by the gallon or more that I put into smaller containers:

ranch dressing

ketchup

conditioner

hair gel

dish soap

hand soap

other bulk items that go into smaller containers:

minced onion

flour

sugar

brown sugar

powdered sugar

cinnamon

baking soda

baking powder

salt

I am sure there is more but that is all I can think of right now

Bulk purchasing can be tricky, you have to fight 'bulk consumption'.

It doesn't do you any good to use three times as much of something just because you bought three times as much of it. That is why there are some things I just won't buy too much of- because we'll just use too much of it - like potato chips (who needs those anyway?).

But when the price per unit is the lowest I can find, I buy a lot. Overtime this will ax your grocery budget. I buy more for other reasons too - One for food storage purposes and so I don't have to buy it again until the price is just as low or lower.

For ease of use I re-purpose old containers.

We have two Heinz ketchup bottles, one that holds Sam's club brand ketchup and one that holds sams club brand Ranch dressing. This is nice because the kids can't dump a giant pile of ranch for a few carrots - it just squirts out. I have a dawn dish soap container that is approximately four years old. Its held bulk janitorial supply dish soap from Sams club all that time.

I have hair gel in a cake decorating squirt bottle.

And all the conditioner bottles really have conditioner that I bought from Sally Beauty on sale intended for salons. One gallon for 6.49 plus my 15% off coupon. That is conditioner that's good quality for less than dollar store price.

One thing I am going to start doing is another trick from my favorite book. For the new year, I am writing with permanent marker and masking tape the date I open something or refill something and play a game with myself and see how long I can make it last. Dish soap will be a big hurdle for me I am a notorious waster of dish soap. Because if one drop is good three giant squirts is better. right???

so how do you fight waste in your home? Do you buy in large quantities when the price is right? got any tips on making that stuff last??

Homemade Laundry Detergent Revisited

I have changed the way I make my homemade laundry detergent:

- I switched to powder (easier to make)

-I switched to white zote - gentler on skin and after using fels naptha for a LOOONG time I did notice it slightly yellowing our whites.

so here are my new super easy instructions for making your own laundry detergent for less than 2 cents a load.

1 bar of zote - .89 cents ( I got this at Albertsons)

1.5 cups of borax (about 3.99 - 4.50 a box - you can buy almost anywhere)

1.5 cups of washing soda -NOT baking soda (I buy at Kroger or Ace Hardware)

If you prefer fels naptha laundry bar soap you can get all ingredients at the Kroger on Custer

roughly dice the Zote

Run zote alone through food processor until its well processed - almost a minute in my food processor - you could possibly use a blender

Measure out 1.5 cups of borax

and 1.5 cups of washing soda (I do this on a paper towel because they both tend to be clumpy, and the excess that falls out I can easily lift up with the towel)

add both to processor and blend well for about a minute again and pulse a few times to insure its mixed evenly.

Pour in container and you're done!!!

I use 2 tablespoons per HUGE load in my high capacity top loader.

This mix is safe for HE washers and baby's skin (Mr. PJ can agree)

and I use cold water only on all loads except my whites and it works fine

here is a video so you can see the texture of the finished product. You can hear the food processor making the next batch in the background (it is loud - especially when you do the zote bar)

I make three-four batches at a time.

** wash all kitchen utensils well (in dishwasher) after.

Your Questions about the bread store...

Do they have whole wheat - High Fructose Corn Syrup free bread?

yes... sometimes - their stock changes moment to moment depending on what product is coming in and what is being bought. That is one of the most popular breads so stock can be low. By low I mean less than 12 loaves because that is at least how much I want to buy at once.

If you see it on sale in a flyer or at the store, chances are good there will be a lot at the bread store.

Will they hold stock for me?

yes if you call them they will let you know if they have your favorite brand and if you are coming in THAT DAY they will hold it for you.

What is their phone number?

972-548-0787

Where are they again?

811 N. MacDonald Street McKinney

Tell me more about Discount Day? Does this mean there is less stock?

Discount Day used to be Senior Citizen Day but they extended it to everyone a while back and left it like that. Every Wednesday you get 10% off your entire purchase.

as far as stock goes... it fluctuates.. They do not take in any new stock on Wednesdays - so Discount days does clear out inventory for them. But it doesn't necessarily mean less selection. It all depends. Remember you can call ahead.

What are the best days for good selection?

Mondays and Thursdays they receive the most products in the store.

I went and it wasn't as cheap as I was expecting....

You may have shopped on the wrong side of the store - the right side is fresh from the bakery - still cheaper than the grocery store but not the cheapest. The left side is discounted - loaves are either .75 to .85 a loaf.

Don't shop in the middle of the store - not any cheaper than Sam's club for those items.

I didn't get free items...

You have to spend at least 6 dollars

Don't forget to get a punch card....

They won't always offer it, you need to ask. Fill a punch card and you get a free loaf of bread and a free "sweet bread"

The most popular item in the store?

Cinnamon Raisin bread. eww.. I don't like raisins.

But I make my bread from scratch...

Kuddos to you, but you may not be making it cheaper than this bread. Healthier yes! Cheaper - questionable - depends on your ingredient prices. But no matter I do envy you, maybe one day I will be organized and motivated to make all of our bread from scratch. I am not there yet.

PS. Hope you guys feel the love because telling you about this endangers my bread supply !!! LOL...

Holy Science Fair Batman

Some are afraid to participate in our awesome food deals because they are afraid of wasting the food. As far as the chicken orders and the like, get a freezer - you will not regret it (but that is a post for another day). Or split with a friend. For fresh foods like Bountiful Baskets there are a few tricks. Now this post will continue strictly from my stream of conscience. So if something is wrong or there or more tips to suggest PLEASE comment. I am not taking the time today to fact check ...

For fruits that benefit from not touching each other (I find pears and avocados to be two of those prissy foods) the drink holder do-hickies are PERFECT. They keep them dry and from touching. I keep mine out until they are ripe as I like them then move them to the fridge until consumed. I have made avocados last three times as long with this method. Holy Guacamole Batman. Seriously guacamole is manna from heaven. But I digress

For other fruits - The fabulous Mrs. Amy introduced me to the fact that the DOLLAR TREE is now selling those nifty TV infomercial veggie bags. I admit I am skeptical of new things. Because if the way I am doing it works why change...

I had read in my Tightwad Gazette ages ago that bananas kept better in a bag and I had started just using the actual bag from the grocery store. It did extend the life of the fruit. But then again we inhale bananas around here...

So I decided to do a little science experiment. My hypothesis was that the exposed bananas would ripen the fastest and that the bananas in the store bag and fancy green bag would ripen at a similar pace.

I was... wrong....

The fancy green bag whopped up on the store bag. So for the price you should totally think about using these bags. Especially if you don't have family of seven that descend like locusts on the food in your house.

I imagine with judicious use of these bags (keep them closed, I used a clip) you could make any produce from you bountiful basket last two weeks and more if you wanted!!

They are called Always Fresh Store-its, from DOLLAR TREE - for $1 you get 10 bags (5 large and 5 medium) - and they are reusable!

DAY ONE

DAY SIX:

and... DAY TEN

(look at that a banana disappeared even though I threatened everyone's life)

So conclusion:

The store bag did help extend the life of the banana, but the green bags WON, barely a spot on them. I will keep them in the bag and let you know when they finally give in.. If I can keep little hands away from them.

PS. I did open the bags every day to simulate actual usage.