What I am Reading

Evacuation Lists

Matt and I took the time to make a list of items that we would take with us if we had to evacuate the house. Being the stockpilers and survivalist that we are, we have stuff all around the house. On this list we made sure to list the item and where it is found in the house.

This is our list.

5 Minutes until Evacuation
Wallet
Purse
Cell Phones
Cell Phone Charger
Shoes/ Boots
Prescriptions
Matt Bag
Carolyn Bag
Pet Emergency Kit
Dog Crates
Dogs

10 minute until Evacuation items: * add to 5 minute items
Case of Bottled Water
Sleeping Bags
Blankets/Towels
Tent
Batteries
Crank Radio
Cold Weather Clothing- if applicable

30 minutes Evacuation List * add to above items
Hard Drive
Documents
Pillows
Walkie Talkie
Fire Extinguisher
Rain Gear

If you have a few hours or days, add these items to the above
5 Gallon Containers of Gas
Canned Food Supply for 7 Days
Clothing- 7 Days Supply
Survival Books
Chain Saw
Grill
Charcoal
Cooking Utensils and Pans
Air Mattress

eBay Auction Score

Like everyone else, I am trying to save a little money wherever I can.

I always search eBay when I want or need something.

eBay has been a source of many good, inexpensive buys for me.

The most recent for me is this:

Avon Clearskin Professional

Sells for $34.00

(happens to be on Sale right now for $29.99)

I won it on eBay for a total price of $10.00

with shipping it will be $18.52!!!

Garden Day 23

Today was Garden Day.

To see more pictures of the Garden on Day 23 visit:

http://mcgathagarden.blogspot.com/

Beagle Update

Molly's stitches.

The Beagles are doing much better.

Molly was pretty much back to normal the next day except for the 10 stitches in her head! And that didn't slow her down any!

Mandy was a little slower to recover but she had 7 teeth pulled. We have been feeding her soft for the past couple days but she is back to eating the hard food now.

They are both on antibiotics and will get their stitches out on Thursday.

Ways to Save

Here are some ways to save energy this Summer:

Close your curtains-block out the sun's heat by closing your window treatments on the south side of the house during the day.

Open your windows- Open you windows at night when the temperatures are cool. Then close them in the morning to seal in the cool air for the day.

Turn up your thermostat- set thermostat between 74 and 78 a degrees for comfort and energy savings. Resist the urge to drop the temp for a quick cool. It just taxes your system and wastes energy.

Schedule heat producing periods- Use the dishwasher, oven and dryer during the early morning or evening instead of during the heat of mid day. For extra savings, Use your grill and microwave instead of your oven or cook top to prepare meals.

Clear out yard waste- remove shrubs, plants and flowers that block airflow from around your A/C unit

Portable Dog Crates

You know that Hubs and I are all about Emergency Preparedness and Planning.

We got started talking the other day about what we would do with the Dogs if we needed to evacuate the House either on a short term or long term situation.

With 4 Dogs you have to plan a little. We can't just scoop all 4 and go.
We have to think about traveling and containment for the Dogs.

We needed something that would be easy to store, easy to move, easy to assemble

So we did a little Internet shopping and found these:

The Canine Camper Day Tripper.

As you can see from the above picture, It folds for easy storage.

Then with just a few flips and zips, you have a Dog Crate.

And here is Molly testing out the new Crate.

Thanks Molly!

Victory Gardens

Victory Garden Posters was part of the publicity for a brilliantly mounted campaign to encourage the use of homegrown foods during the World War II. Because commercially canned goods were rationed, the Victory Garden became an indispensable source of food for the home front. The Victory Garden was a household activity during the war and one of the most well received of all home front chores. At its peak, it is estimated that nearly 20,000,000 gardens were grown and about 40 percent of all vegetables produced in the U.S. came from Victory Gardens. By the end of the war the Department of Agriculture estimated total home front production of over one million tons of vegetables valued at 85 million dollars.

With these hard economic times, I wonder how many "Victory Gardens"

will be planted this year in the United States?

Garden Day 16

I visited the Garden today.

Visit http://mcgathagarden.blogspot.com/

if you would like to see more pics

Sick Beagles

Both of the Beagles had their teeth cleaned yesterday.

Mandy had to have 7 teeth removed. Mandy also had a cyst on her neck that they removed. She has 5 stitches in her neck.

Molly did well with her teeth cleaning but she had a large knot on her head that they removed. She has a shaved head and 10 stitches.

They are both pretty pitiful.

And then they have to go back in 10 days to have their stitches removed and get all of their shots!

Poor things!

On the bright side, we found a really nice Kennel we are going to use while we are on Vacation this year. I was very impressed with it.

Here is a link to their website and pictures: http://countrylanekennel.net/11.html

Backyard Bucket Garden and Rain Harvesting System

We will have a lot from the Co Op Garden so

I didn't plant that much in our Backyard Bucket Garden this year.

But I did want to try my hand at growing some Spinach

And some Grape Tomato's

Jelly Bean is the name , a Family favorite!

And here we have this year's Rain Harvesting System.

Last Year, we just had a plastic bucket under the gutter Matt raised for me .

This year I got a galvanized trough at Tractor Supply!

Cool......No!?!?!?!

What Matt is Reading

What I am Reading

Garden with a View

( This is the view from our Garden)

Meal Plan

This week's meal plan:

Chicken Tetrazzini and Garlic Bread

Beef Burgundy with Egg Noodles and Green Beans

One Dish Chicken Meal and Salad

Crustless Spinach Quiche, Garlic Bread and Salad

Sloppy Joe's Carrots and Dip and Chips


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Next week is going to be Left Over Week.
All though I use the Meal Plan for 2, We still have left overs.
I have been freezing the left overs for later use.

It will be nice not to go to the Grocery Store next week. That will save me some time and money! And isn't that what meal planning is all about?!?!?!?

Garden- Day 9

Today was my day in the Garden

Visit the Garden Blog to see more pics of the Garden on Day 9

http://mcgathagarden.blogspot.com/

What's for Dinner- Crock Pot Tortellini

Crock Pot Tortellini

Sleep Running Dog

What's for Dinner- Breakfast Pizza

Breakfast Pizza

What's for Dinner- Apricot Chicken

Apricot Chicken with Rice and Yeast Rolls

What's for Dinner- French Dip Sandwiches

Toasted French Dip Sandwiches with Au Jus

and Side Salad

You have 10 minutes to get out

This Week's Meal Plan

I started using e-mealz for my Menu Planning. e-mealz promises easy and delicious dinner plans that will simplify your life, save time & money! Sounds good to me. You can customize you membership to several different types of Menus and you can even select particular Stores. I chose the Menu Plan for 2 at any store. And the shopping list is all ready done for you!

I followed the shopping list pretty much to the letter, just picking up a few extra items that we needed and the bill was about $70.00 cheaper than my normal bill.

Here is this week's Meal Plan:

Breakfast Pizza with Mandarin, Apple Salad

French Dip Sandwiches

Apricot Chicken with Rice and Yeast Rolls

Crock Pot Tortellini, Garlic Bread and Italian Salad

Italian Dijon Tilapia, Garden Herb Rice and Lemon Butter Broccoli

I am going to try and remember to take pictures of each of the Meals and post them for you too see!

Planting Day 2009

It was planting day at the Garden.

Check out our Garden Blog

http://mcgathagarden.blogspot.com/

Food Mill #2

I got my 2nd Food Mill the other day.

This one has a little use on it but it is still in good working condition.

Another great eBay Auction win.

I haven't decided if I am going to give this to my Mother in Law

or keep it in my Canning Supply Stockpile.

Baby Bird Update

I thought I would give you an update on the Baby Birds.

It looks like there is only one left.

He is getting bigger and his feathers are coming in.

I thought it might be a Robin but the markings on it head don't

really look like a Robin

What do you think it is?

Pandemic Preparedness

We’re all concerned about the news headlines. But the best way to protect yourself and your family’s health isn’t to panic—it’s to get prepared.

Click on the link below for important tips to keep your family healthy, watch our video and find out how to put together an emergency preparedness kit for your home:

http://www.redcross.org/pandemicflu

Prepping an emergency preparedness kit for your home is important all year long, but it’s particularly important in outbreak situations like the swine flu. Luckily, there’s a lot you can do right now to prepare in case the worst happens in your area. If the illness becomes widespread, you should limit your exposure to it by staying close to home. That means stocking up on food, water, and other necessary supplies.

3 Month Food Plan

Make a list of foods you eat on a regular basis, and determine how much you would go through in three months.

Gradually purchase these foods in bulk as they go on sale.

Use and rotate these foods in all your daily cooking.

Constantly replenish the stocks of these foods as they go on sale again.

Don’t forget to include non-food items in this step as well.

Get a 3 month supply of NECESSITIES such as diapers, medications, toilet paper, toiletries, etc.



Benefits include: saving money by buying foods on sale and having foods you normally eat in times of economic or any other type of hardship.

Our 3 Month Food Storage saved us when we had a few months of no income from me. We were able to make some basic meals and didn't have to spend alot of money at the Grocery Store at that time. We only had to buy milk and eggs for the most part.

I always try and catch meat when it goes on sale.
(I forgot to take a picture of our full Freezer. It is a little weird but it gives me joy to have a full Freezer.

We are slowly getting our 3 Month Food Supply all stocked up again. I am still working on getting our stockpile built up from that time. I buy 2 or 3 of most stuff when I go to the Store now.