Re-Prioritizing & Independence Days Challenge Update

Independence Days Challenge Update-
When I started thinking about what I've been doing I wanted to stress I had been re-prioritizing. Sometimes people blog about what they shop for for their home (decor, collectibles, etc.) and while I have done that too, I've been re-focusing. Buying more "cutesy decor" won't feed your family in a pinch. I've seen food prices rising already. I have been working on not eating out as much, and buying more large bulk items of healthy staples. Buying and storing lots of small bottled waters, marshmallows and junk food won't keep you healthy. I'm looking at- what can I freeze, can, dry, etc.? I dragged out my old dehydrator the other day, scrubbed it, and fired with up with 4 squash! It all adds up-

All the squash in the basket at the top drying

All dried

Dried food takes up much less space- 4 squashes in 1 jar! It took about 5 hours

Time for an update on this:

1. Plant Something- Nurturing the volunteer and mystery squashes/pumpkins. Planted a pear tree in the last 2 weeks.

2. Harvest Something- Eggs, as finally the 2 new girls are laying most days, eggs are getting bigger! Herbs, tomatoes, hot peppers, and compost that was spread over veggie bed 3 days ago. More rhubarb, & collard greens are ready. I may freeze some of the greens. Lemon thyme, rosemary and tarragon.

  

3. Preserve/Store Something- Dried all my gifted squash for the winter for soups. Froze 6 bell peppers, 4 pints of fresh blueberries, 2 more large packs of chicken parts. Will dry the grapes this weekend, didn't get to them yet. With the 3-day weekend I'm planning on buying some strawberries, maybe local peaches and canning some mixed rhubarb sauce. I'll also do some plain rhubarb sauce. Drying some bunches of lemon thyme, rosemary and tarragon.

4. Manage Reserves- Get A Good Deal/Barter/Stock Up/Prep- See above, good deal chicken, veggies, fruit.

5. Eat the Food- Try New Foods/Recipes- Dried squash for winter to use in soups. Using up various stuff. The refrigerator pickles I made last month came out great, very crunchy!

6. Build Community Food Systems- Working with daughter's boyfriend whose parents own a farm. Will buy more grapes, then apples in Oct. since ours failed this year.

  

7. Recycle/Re-Use- Cleaned up side yard in back and re-purposed some stuff, stored for later use. Made a temporary chicken hospital out of scrap wood, fencing, etc.

8. Skill Up- Thinking about taking a Spanish class, reading Storm Gourmet from the Library about cooking during power outages and bad weather. Some good ideas!

9. Regenerate What is Lost/Salvage Something- backyard clean up, salvaged some items like scrap wood.

Drying lemon thyme, rosemary and tarragon