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My mother passed away this past Monday. The last 6 months have been devoted to her care. I haven't given much thought to anything else.

Now I have extra time to fill. I put a lot on hold so I have many things to chose from to get back to. I'm not sure where to start. 

Today I washed the inside of the fridge though.

Greetings,

I have been focusing more on the food aspects in this study and also decluttering the more modern items I have bought and am not using due to their shoddy construction.

Really am streamlining the many choices I  had in my pantry. Two kinds of pasta instead of the plethora of shapes and sizes. Incorporating more lentils, beans and rice into my dishes.  Basic breakfasts of eggs or oatmeal or just toast. These small changes of not buying so many varieties of food is really helping my food budget. Fixing hamburger or sausage gravy over rice or mashed potatoes has become a go to dish.  Lots more vegetables served also. 

I owned and operated a restaurant for 5 years and also did catering jobs after that - I find it difficult sometimes to make smaller portions or less variety.  I did find several wartime recipes for cakes that make a 8x8 dish. I was surprised my family enjoyed those as much or more than the elaborate ones I used to make.  

As my family is not on board with this study - I have struggled with implementing many ideas I have to live a simpler life. Which is why I enjoy reading the pearls of wisdom from GDonna and the commenters. I can live vicariously through others. 

Margaret, my thoughts and prayers are with you as you go through this grieving period. 

Blessings, Tammy

Another reason to soak beans before cooking is that they will cook quicker and use less energy. We have a lot of projects we want to finish up this year, so we always have something going on. I feel like I have been doing and doing for years to make changes, and I want to be finished so I can finally enjoy my new life. :) That's why we're making a big push this year to get done. I am tired of making changes and just want serenity in my life from now on. 

My Mother's Day carnations that I planted last year are still doing great, so I am excited to have my special flowers on the holiday. :) The violets in the flower border will top my birthday cake as usual. I've ordered a special English rose bush and look forward to the beautiful fragrant blooms in the house. Easter will have the lilies of the valley again. There will be the bulb flowers in the yard and house soon, and sitting outside by the lilac bush in spring to catch the fragrance on the breeze. I guess my special touches are done with flowers. :) 

Margaret, I am sorry for the loss of your mother. When my parents passed after months of caring for them I found myself a bit "adrift".  More time but what to do first, take your time and I will pray for you.

I have been eating more in line with what I have read about rationing, a lot more veggies and very little meat. It helps that lately I have very little taste for meat. Tonight is broccoli salad and baked potato skins.  I made baked potatoes today to use in potato salad to be eaten tomorrow. I like my potato salad to sit in the fridge and meld. The potato salad tomorrow will be my main dish and will have carrot, and celery sticks along with it, maybe some crackers also.

I also soak my beans, sometimes I soak and cook extra and freeze a serving or two. It's hard to cook enough beans for just one person.

We have had false spring here in Indiana this week, many of my perennials are trying to poke through the leaves but I know better than to uncover them.  I really was tempted to clean up flower beds but didn't as I know there are birds and insects that need that cover. 

I have kept myself busy doing repair work on garden decor and some crafting with things I have on hand. 

I have started pouring any leftover coffee into a mason jar in the AM and reheating it as wanted. 

I try not to let outside news get to me, reading a lot of old housekeeping books from the 1890's. 

First, Margaret, please accept my sympathy for your loss. 

I have looked back before on the topic of diabetes in the past, because my late DH had Type 1. Insulin first appeared in the late 20’s but diet was still evolving. Matching insulin to carbs was not done yet, from what I see. If we were living then it would have been difficult because he would have been told to eat few carbohydrates. Rice, bread, potatoes, beans, starchy vegetables would have been restricted as carbs were to be only 40% of his diet and he would have been told to eat more animal protein. I’m not sure what we would have done during rationing but at least our need for sugar would have been quite low! 

I am also trying to figure out my new daily routine since I only have 2 days of work left before retirement. So far it’s a moving target. 

I am trying to get planting started too but this weather makes it tricky. Nearly 80°F today but possible 20’s Monday night. 

I am writing down my plans and ideas and trying to see how much time the old ways will take. I will draw up a household plan - in pencil! - and I’ve made a list of possible purchases as well as possible discards. 

It’s in process. I come here for inspiration. 

Margaret P, my thoughts are with you while you go through your loss of your mother. Charles and I will keep you in our thoughts and prayers.  I understand the caregiving, all of the things to do after with paperwork and sorting, and the strangeness of where do I go from here.  Take care of yourself and give yourself time to process all you have to do. Cleaning the fridge is a good start.  Big Hugs, Donna

Margaret P., my condolences on your mother's passing.  

The year after my dh passed, I pieced three quilt tops.  I had one professionally quilted and found the cost more than my budget would allow so the other two are sitting in the closet unquilted.  I enjoy the planning, cutting and sewing but my hands cannot do the quilting, and my machine isn't up to it either.  I haven't done any more due to not being able to have them quilted.

When you take eggs from the carton, take one from each end to keep the carton balanced then it will not twist on you.  

I planted pepper seeds today and put them on the heat mat in the basement.  I'll turn the grow light on when I see they have germinated.  I'll start tomatoes around March 15.  I'm thinking of buying a timer for the grow lights since last year I keep forgetting to turn them off or on when needed.  In the basement out of sight so easy for me to forget.  

I agree all the varieties of pasta are unnecessary.  However, I get a bi-monthly food box that usually has a box of pasta of some kind, so I use whatever.  I will buy only elbow, spaghetti and spiral veggie for salads.  I have more than I can use of the whatever so will pass any new boxes on to someone else.

I've eliminated using the top cupboard shelves except for the front where I can reach.  I'm working on not using the backs of the bottom shelves to save my back.  I have my cast iron hanging on the wall but no wall space to hang the Revere Ware.  The only place for a hanging rack would be the middle of the floor so that's a no go.  If it was low enough to be useful for me, most everyone else would be hitting their heads.  I'm 5'6" and almost all my family and friends are taller with some well over 6'.  

Margaret P, I am so sorry for the loss of your mom. Even when it is expected, it's a hard transition. I will be praying for you.

I don't eat a lot of meat normally and less now because it is pretty pricey.  I do cook quite a lot of dry beans in my pressure cooker though and guess I would keep on eating them with rationing.  Favorite ways to use them are in a bean salad (I use a 3 bean salad recipe but leave out the green beans), making tacos with pinto beans instead of beef, a recipe I created ages ago that seasons pinto beans cooked with with onion and sliced apples and seasoned  with cumin, coriander, turmeric , and maybe some paprika (served in a whole wheat tortilla with salsa).  Also curry made with chick peas and plenty of vegetables, pots pies which are very good using chick peas instead of chicken, pasta sauce served with spaghetti and lentils is very tasty, and soups and chili.  Generally speaking I have found that chick peas work well for a chicken substitute in any thing like "chicken" salad or a casserole type dish.  I just make old childhood favorites and use various beans to stand in for meat and poultry.  This worked well when I ended up with my kids being vegetarian.  For dietary reasons and not rationing, I generally save any cheese eating just for Fridays when I seem to need it.  I don't miss a lot of things but I sure would hate giving up all cheese!  I have been weaning myself off sugar but again I would really miss it if I couldn't get any at all.  

I have discovered that there are a lot of small batch baking cookbooks or small batch baking recipes all over the internet which helps me get to more reasonable portions of baked goods.  I was particularly happy to find an excellent recipe for biscuits that makes just 4 biscuits for example.  But I have tried cooky recipes that make just 6 cookies, cornbread that makes just 4 servings etc.  Plus I can make the in a toaster oven without heating up the large oven which saves gas.  I think you can just about Google "small batch [fav cookie] recipe" and you will be rewarded.  I do it to avoid overeating sweets but would help with sugar rationing I expect.  

Tammy K_2,  it sounds like you are doing more of the study than you realize.  Keep taking slow steps so they will never notice.  :)

Stephanie, Charles and I are making that push as well, we want to settle and this month we have made the most progress towards that.  We are at the point now that we are starting to find peace in how things are placed and our drawers are thinned out. We seem to fit better.  When you described your flowers, I felt like I was walking through some of my Aunties gardens where those same flowers and bushes grew year after year.  When I was younger, the lawn and gardens seemed more set in place and the flowers were so beautiful.  It seems that things grew better.  I did not realize that the yard needs settling as much as the inside of our home to be able to just live it.  It is partially there but now I know more of what to do to get to that serenity. Thank you for that memory  :)

Joyce C, Charles and I have been cutting back on meat and I too have not been wanting much meat.  When I do I have very small portions.  I like all of the things that you are doing from the food  you are eating, to your mason jar for coffee and I love reading the old housekeeping books pre 1900.

Joan S, Oh my goodness, two days left before retirement!  So much change ahead, you will have the time to adjust even though you may be working even more at home. We are still figuring our way through this change and now we know that it will take much longer than we realized to adjust.  But it is a good thing. :)  We are the same with the temperatures here.