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Good morning Donna....NZ time 6.53 am.

Seasons... This year the change of seasons here was very obvious. February 28th Summer,muggy,hot weather. March 1st..First day of Autumn.. WHAM instantly cold evenings and mornings and lots of strong,cold wind and leaf drop. Usually it doesn't feel like that until May where we live. I read that a fruit growing area even had a smattering of snow already...unheard of!!!

Foods... I make soups that are good for your gut now and my chicken soup has fresh ginger,garlic and tumeric in it. Bone broth is good. Our bodies change as we age. I cannot longer eat butter. It goes straight through me and causes acid reflux. I have eaten butter and  watermelon my whole life. This year the watermelon  made my tummy bloat then my body would pass wind for about 5 hours!! ( I read Watermelon is high in fructose)  A cup of tea before bed also causing my tummy to bloat. A friend visiting told me if she eats ice cream before going to bed she can't sleep!

Bread.... A law  was passed so that All flour that can be used to make bread ( except organic flour) has to have man made folic acid in it. It leaves a revolting taste in ones mouth.  I brought a bread maker and also do a no knead 100% wholemeal loaf by hand.

Weather... Was so wet in NZ over Summer that people had poor crops- peaches got brown rot, tomatoes didn't produce as well from lack if sun. BUT we don't give up and keep looking at different ways of growing vegetables that our ancestors would have done that we may not think about today.

It is so good to glean good information from times past and use it now.

Grandma Donna, regarding your bread, have you tried Einkorn Flour or wheat?  It is an ancient grain that folks who are sensitive to gluten can eat.  There lots of info on line and it can be found in smaller amounts at the super stores or you can order it on line.

From one Grandma to another,

Sara in Tennessee

I just accidentally lost all I typed. I wanted to say I am starting the move to more old fashioned methods now that I’m home. 

I won’t retype all of my original comment but I also wanted to attach this from the Emily Post 1945 edition of her etiquette book. This is for a young woman to go to college.  

I continue to move furniture to find what suits me at this moment in time. I did get my drying rack area set up to suit me and have been working on totes of seasonal decor. My likes have changed and I have decided "less is more" for me at this time. I am not a minimalist at all but am only keeping what speaks to me.  Family gets first pick of the remainder and then it is going to the thrift store as a donation.

I have too many kitchen utensils but didn't know how to sort them out so I decided to see what I use on a monthly basis and after washing it is put in a separate area. Anything left in the drawer is going to be donated. I own 5 pancake turners....and I can only use one at a time.

My foods have changed also, I want plainer, more simple foods as they don't make me ache or have stomach distress. 

I well remember my grandma's kitchen growing up and what I miss most is the peace and calm of that time, both of my grandmas came thru the depression and it made them so strong and yet so gentle. 

Spring is right around the corner for us, I am anxious to be out of the snow and cold weather.

Hey G'Donna!

I haven't finished reading the blog yet, but you mentioned bread and wheat. I read a book called  Wheat belly: lose the wheat, lose the weight, and find your path back to health (William Davis) and I think it's this book that talks about the original wheat grown before WW2, and there is one woman in the US who still grew it (I'm not sure if she or her family still does). But it's the wheat that we can digest because it's not been modified with any other type of grain to have what we do today. I sometimes suffer from belly issues whenever I eat wheat.

In view of recent world events, I was talking to my husband only last evening about this study and how we would feel in this modern world where we have everything at our fingertips, just how we would cope if things go pear-shaped - and it's quite possible they will.  We're already experiencing fuel demands and possible shortages yet the world goes around using fuel - and that fuel is needed to transport food and other necessary items to the various places around the country for its very survival.  We're very aware that times could be coming when we'll have to think outside the square and we are trying to prepare for those times when things aren't at our fingertips anymore and we have to try alternate ways - can it be done in this day and age where we expect everything to be available?  I dread to think.

I hate winter, but now I'm experiencing spring. :) The daffodils and crocuses are up, and many of our pansies survived the winter, so we have a bit of color in the yard. I harvested all of our overwintered cabbages just now, and there are potato onions and Welsh onions for green onions, and that's good because last year's bulb onions are running out! I do have some dehydrated onions left. We planted the onion seedlings yesterday into the garden, for this year's crop. There's spinach and chives ready in the garden too, and I just noticed that the asparagus is coming up. 

It's taken me a long time, but I'm finally having a wardrobe like the old days. I bought a new summer nightgown and a new dress for this year. My worn out summer nightgown will patch my duvet and my wornout dress will become a blouse. I have one new pair of shorts, one old pair, and a pair made out of some wornout sweatpants. I usually wear things three times before washing. I think I have the proper amount of clothes for the thirties, but I don't remember if that changed much by 1942. 

Sara T_2,  yes I have used Einkorn, I just could not get things to turn out like we wanted.  I tried a entire year using Einkorn.  It is expensive and not available without being shipped so I stopped using it.  I have tried many things.  What I am using now is expensive flour and must have it shipped but I do not want to say too much about it until I have used it longer.  I am still learning, but at this time I am not having any issues using it other than learning how to bake with a less glutenous flour.   Thank you for asking about the Einkorn.   There are many factors to what causes some of us to not be able to eat wheat without issues.  I do not have celiac disease, mine is a intolerance issue.   So far I have made pasta, pizza, and bread and have not had any symptoms.  One big part is giving the dough longer to rest and for me using a low gluten flour.  

Stephanie G,  I really like your wardrobe and that you are recycling what is wearing out.  My two summer nightgowns are very similar, white cotton. One is sleeveless and one has sleeves because during parts of the summer the mosquitoes can make their way inside at times and bite my arms at night.  I must mend the neckline of the sleeveless so that the tear does not get worse.  I have potato onions that are doing good and the Egyptian walking onions are much stronger now.  I lost my welch onions but have seeds to plant now.   It sounds like your home is getting that 1930s/40s practical what makes sense stage.  I know it has probably been a lot of work but rewarding.  :)

As a younger woman (maybe? I'm 37!) with 7 children still at home, I am not able to truly participate in the study. Some day! However,even so, many of the old ways are so beneficial. We have been struggling with our steep electricity bill. I am so spoiled and was using the dryer through the winter. When I stopped and began only line drying the laundry for our family (as well as cutting elsewhere, but this was the biggest offender) our electric usage dropped by half! I thought having to dry the laundry inside exclusively was too hard since we live in a 1200 square foot house and homeschool. Like I said, I am spoiled! But, it has worked out okay. And the savings is 100% worth it!

Both my grandmothers prepared simple meals.  My maternal grandmother 's holiday meal was homemade noodles and chicken, (an old hen which she purchased from a farm wife and cleaned herself), mashed potatoes, green beans, pickled beets and maybe a Jello salad.  The only cake I ever recall her making was an applesauce cake that was dense, moist with ground raisins.  I have the recipe but haven't made it in years because dh hated raisins and now it's way too much cake for one person.  My other grandmother seldom cooked for the whole family but if she did it would have been ham, green beans, sweet pickles, mashed potatoes.  She liked fancy desserts so those were unpredictable.  

I try to keep my shopping to basic ingredients and now days I consider meat as an ingredient more than a standalone individual serving on the plate.  

I was raised in Southern Iowa on Missouri border and the two grocery stores in town were simple, an aisle down, meat counter across the back, aisle back up to checkout.  Mom always shopped at the store where her cousin was the butcher.  I was in high school when we moved to the Des Moines area and found supermarkets.  Mom discovered spaghetti and pizza.  I know I never saw or ate pizza or had spaghetti and meatballs before my sophomore year of high school.  The pizza was homemade and it was a couple of years before I ever had restaurant pizza.  We did not eat out.  Instead of pasta (other than elbow macaroni) we mostly we ate potatoes baked, fried, boiled, scalloped and my favorite, new potatoes creamed with new peas (a special in season only treat).   

Sarah L, you must be non stop from the time your feet hit the floor in the morning with 7 children still at home.  This is wonderful that you dropped your electric bill as much as you did.  That dryer does eat up a budget, I found out the hard way, and now it is for emergencies only.  Surprisingly just a computer pulls quite a bit of power when left on or charging.  We plugged it into our solar generators one day and was surprised that it pulled as much as it did because we thought they pulled very little.  What we do is trade off, when we turn something on we turn something else off if other things are being used.  If I have a situation to where I must use a hair dryer, I go around looking to see if there is anything on that I can turn off because the hair dryer pulls so much electricity. In the winter we leave the oven door tilted back after I am finished baking to let the oven warm the kitchen. Those small things add up too.   I am happy that you are reading along the blog because you can pick up many good ideas how to keep costs down and ways to live a more simple life.  I am happy about your electricity savings. :)

Hi Gdonna,

I found you a few years ago through Ronda Hetzel and her Down to Earth blog. I know she has been off and on with her blog and Instagram, but currently I can’t find her online at all!  I thought she was going to leave her blog available even though she was not currently blogging.  Do you have any info about her currently? I love her books and blogs and am sad I cannot find anything! 

Thank you Gdonna.  I look forward to all your articles and blogs.

Rebecca

Rebecca, Rhonda has closed her blog and removed it to prevent AI from taking her information from her blog due to other bloggers having this happen to their blog.  Rhonda has retired from her blog and spending time with Gracie, her family and working in her garden.  Rhonda is well and happy doing the things she loves to do.

All of the information on bread has been very helpful. I really want to be able to eat sandwiches again because they are such a quick, nutritious meal to have. After reading this post, I've decided to try a long-rise bread with some whole wheat einkorn. I've used Ancient Grains einkorn before, and as long as I used less flour than recipes called for, it gave a good result, but I haven't made bread with it. I ordered some just now. I'll see how it goes. I don't remember any older family members saying they could no longer eat bread. I think this intolerance is something new. I think the flour has been changed somehow. 

Grandma Donna, yes, it has taken such a long time, but it feels so good to do things this way now. :) I went to the Vintage Dancer site, and the 1940s did have a little more in the wardrobe than the 1930s' street car wife wardrobe that I've been using as a guideline. What I like about having my wardrobe this way is knowing that I could probably cobble together some kind of outfit from castoffs if I had to. It gives me a feeling of security.  :)

My son keeps telling me how much he likes homemade bread. I need to make some more for him when we finally get home. I was wanting to make Grandma Donnas biscuits during last home visit but we were too busy around the house for that. The comments reminded me of one of my favorite meals....finding a whole chicken on sale for 99 cents a pound (I wonder if I can even find them for that price anymore) and then baking it with carrots,onions,celery, and potatoes along with a little garlic salt and pepper...maybe even a smearing of butter. I'm going to have to make that when I get home too. That's a fairly easy meal to make. If I can manage biscuits with it we'd have an altogether wonderful meal! Vegetable soup and biscuits sounds wonderful too. 

My husband sent me pictures of the garden. He walked through it for the first time this year. The berries we planted last year are thriving. The strawberry patch is so crowded with new plants I don't think we have to worry about grass getting in that bed any time soon. We are likely going to be harvesting buckets of strawberries this year (Lord willing). Our daughter will be old enough this year to come out in the garden and help us pick the strawberries! She'll be two years old at the end of this month. 

Random note: we did just restock our buckets of Jasmine rice and Sugar. We need to restock on flour here soon too and possibly plain oatmeal. 

One 1940ish thing I am doing is listening to audiobooks on our cd player. They are from Focus on the family radio theater so it's got an old time radio show feel to them. While CDs and audiobooks are certainly not 1940's, that radio station program feel is. 

That's about as 1940's as we can get right now. As it is we are working on replacing two windows in what will soon be our son's room, buying a generator because life sustaining equipment must maintain power, and rewiring a breaker box to manage the extra electrical load that all my sons medical equipment will require. Oh and I bought a book on sign language 

Hi, Kieva A! Your life is so full and rich and rewarding, and your little trooper, Jacob, is hanging in there so well. :) 

I can remember the smells of my grandparent's farm house. I know I'll never smell anything like it again. 

I am sad reading today's post.  In 1942 my mom would've been 7 and the youngest of 7. That's the year they built their small house (3 tiny bedrooms!) Mom died 2.5 weeks ago and with her so many memories. She lived longer than any of her siblings. She was the last tie to a time long gone though it lived on in her.  The children & grandchildren of hers and her siblings are scattered. On my grandparents farmland DR Horton is building townhouses. That makes me sad too. 

My mum died at age 76 in 1988 and I still miss her terribly.  Her birthday is coming up soon - the 19th March and we will remember her again then although she is still close in my heart.  My dad died in 2002 aged 93 - seems like yesterday.  I'm in my 80th year, will be celebrating my birthday in November hopefully if I'm still around, and next month we celebrate our diamond anniversary.  Seems no time since we were young marrieds.  I do sometimes long for the much simpler times of growing up on the north coast of Queensland, access to so many wonderful beaches with not a care in the world - my dad worked over at one of the tropical islands on the Great Barrier Reef so we had opportunities to go over to see him and visit with him any time we liked - those were magical times.  I don't like to-day's times, but you can't go back I'm afraid.  

Life is much more simple here anyway, no electrical equipment unless necessary and I don't own a hairdryer for instance, haven't had one for ten or more years and no electric can openers or graters - it's all done by hand manually.  Our power bill at the moment is zilch, zero, nothing - and has been for a year or so, owing to the generous allowance paid to every household here to help with the cost of living.

Such a wonderful and timely blog post as always GDonna! Reading your thoughts and following along with the conversation in the comments has become a highlight of my week!

With the current state of the world (this past week or so especially), 1942 is becoming more relatable by the day, which is spurning me on to simplify my home and budget more in line with the year we are all studying together, to live even more frugally, and continue to prepare for uncertain times. I just filled up my car with petrol today and was shocked (though not surprised) that the price has risen from $1.63/L to $1.99/L in just a few days, and the predictions I've heard are that it may reach $2.50/L in the next couple of months if things do not settle with oil prices. I'm going to need to start rationing my use of the car. I need it to get to work and church in the next town about 30km away, but for shopping etc I'm only 10min walk from home to the shops here, so I must make a concerted effort to walk more for local errands.

Though Australia is not yet involved in the current theatre of war overseas, it has brought back memories of when my (then) husband received a call while we were out purchasing a lounge suite for our home one afternoon, when we'd only been married a year or so. The purchase was cut short as he had to report to his Army unit immediately, without being told the reason. Later that evening, I (and many other wives) were called to the base to farewell our husbands for a deployment for which we were told no details and they were unable to share anything themselves due to the secrecy of the mission. My husband had a loaded pistol strapped to his leg and many other signs that he was actually heading into danger this time, as he (with his helicopter squadron) flew out into the night. Us families didn't hear anything further until we were called in for a briefing some weeks later, once the Army was able to go public with what was happening. Though I'm not in that situation now, I feel for all those military families around the world that are. It's not only troops that need our prayers, but their families too. Even during those times though, we military wives planned, as I'm sure women in 1942 did as well. As morbid as it might sound we all had decided on plans for what to do and where to do, should we get that awful "telegram" announcing our status as widows. We knew that it would be very difficult to make wise decisions when emotions and grief were at the forefront and we were trying to continue to care for our children, so we made decisions ahead of time, so if the worst happened, we would know what to do. I guess this is a little in line with what has been discussed in the forum on recent posts, of making decisions and preparing for the future (though due to aging or disability) before you're in these situations.

Karen S I'd love your no knead 100% wholemeal bread recipe if you're willing to share? I've seen other recipes like this online, but mostly in the US/Canada, who all seem to add sweetener to their bread, whereas in Australia our bread is not sweet, and I'm guessing NZ might be similar to here? My veggie garden has been very slow this year. I've only been getting ripe tomatoes for a month, and not many at all. The weather here in South Gippsland, Victoria has been much cooler this summer and though we had a couple of "heatwave" weeks, it hasn't been enough to ripen anything much. The rains started again last week though, and now the poor garden is full of weeds and the lawn grew 4" in less than a week! It will be a busy weekend for me trying to get caught up on the yard work. I'm thankful we have a public holiday on Monday so I have an extra day to use outside, and the weather forecast looks cooperative.

Kieva A I'm so glad you mentioned the Focus on the Family Radio Theatre! I've just had a look and was so pleased to see the Narnia series and other of the Timeless Classics titles, that I'll enjoy listening to over the cooler months here, as the days shorten and I'm indoors more.

PS - I recently purchased an old vintage mostly blank recipe book that I'm starting to add basic recipes in for myself for now and into the future. I love simple, old-fashioned cooking and baking, and thankfully my 5th child (the last still at home) does too, and isn't fussy like some of my older ones, so I can simplify our meals a lot now too. I'm going to consolidate many of my recipe books (some handwritten, some commercial) into just the recipes we use and love on a daily basis. It will be a helpful reminder to me when I'm looking for meal inspiration, while keeping things frugal and simple.

Rebekah C, The Narnia series is actually the book I'm listening to now. The book is so much different than the movies. I also have Silas Marner, the Hiding Place, Bon Hoffer, and a few others I don't remember at the moment. I do wish they had more to pick from.  But I haven't exhausted their collection yet. 

Jacob woke up at about 4 AM this morning. I was sleeping and I woke thinking I heard the nurse say, "mom" but in an urgent and slightly concerned tone. She didn't! When I woke the nurse wasn't even by our bed and my son was not feeling good. The sounds he made did get the nurse coming pretty quickly though. He was alright but that experience had me praying for my other children because it was so real that it was unsettling.  That's not something that happens to me.

 Anyway, he settled quickly and I put in the second CD to the Narnia series and he and I fell back to sleep listening to it. I'm going to have to relisten to them because I can't turn it up loud enough for me to hear it clearly over the drone of the machines while it's next to my son. I don't want to wake the other patients either. But I got a slight chuckle out of your mentioning the Narnia series. 

Is this what happened to Rhonda's blog? She was back a couple weeks ago, and I started to go back and read really old posts, then it said my access was denied.  Just curious.

Also Gr Donna, not sure if you're trying to remove sugar in all its forms, but a friend told me about Monks sugar which is near the Stevia in the baking isle.  I tried it. Can't really tell the difference.  I've also baked with organic Maple Sugar instead.

I just want to say, I enjoy every post.  I learn so much. 

I have a wheat grinder and grind my own wheat berries and make my baked goods with that.  I use the Palouse brand off of amazon because it is certified chemical free. If I can't get those wheat berries, I run (lol, it is almost 2 hours away from me) up to Bread Beckers in Georgia and get their wheat berries.  I have been grinding my grains since 2000.  If I eat commercial bread/baked goods I have a sick stomach (and so do some of my kiddos.)

I researched back into what my family would have eaten from my roots.  Irish, Scottish, English.  Then began looking at what they would have eaten back before processed foods started being everywhere.  I asked my mama what she ate growing up and she said, "beans and rice and cornbread, rice and beans and cornbread, spam sandwiches, and on very special holidays we would have a chicken or a roast!"  I thought that was interesting!  My grandmama was a single mama to five kids who worked until she retired.

I have started serving less cultures food and more meat, potatoes, vegetables and fruit.  My family is healthier for it.  I remember when my mama would make pizzas with the new chefboyardee pizza kits they sold. Now, she never eats pizza.  LOL!

Random question - Does anyone use a soap cage with bar soap for doing their dishes in the kitchen? If so, how sudsy do you get the sink full of water before you wash? I'm trying to go back to this method, as I remember doing the dishes with Sunlight soap in a cage at my great uncle's when our family lived with him for 6 months when I was a teenager. It always seemed to work well then, from memory, but I'm struggling to have the soap cut through the grease now. Perhaps soap isn't made as it used to be? I'd appreciate any thoughts/advice/suggestions from you all. Thankyou.

Kieva A, I remember listening to Narnia audio books on cassette tape as a child as I drifted off to sleep - they are such a wonderful series. I am always amazed (but not surprised) how we can be woken from sleep just at the right time to help our children when they need us or are unwell. Your precious Jacob's Guardian Angel is certainly on the job while you are resting. Certainly, these experiences can be unsettling, but also reassuring that God is watching over them as He loves them even more than we do. You, Jacob, and your family are in my prayers.

Rebekah C, the soap cage is called a soap saver. This was the name they called it.    When the bar soap starts getting small I put the pieces into the soap cage. I keep it hanging to the right of my sink.  When the soap starts getting small I put the piece in the soap saver and just swish it in the water. It is also good for laundry water or a pail of household cleaning water.  The problem with soap today is finding the best soap to wash dishes with because the bar soap creates glycerin in the water.  During ww2 DUZ powdered soap was one of the favorite soaps to wash dishes.  I have found a coconut based soap like Kirks does better but it too will create glycerin.  I cut netting and make a dish scrub and when I rub the netting on the soap it makes wonderful soap and then I go over the plates and glasses with the soap suds from the netting.  I have many blog posts about soap so if I can help you further just ask. 

Woops edit I meant it is called soap saver.  

Another wonderful post, G Donna!  And I love the comments!  So much good info.  As to wheat : I am gluten -free due to an autoimmune disease so I don't use wheat flour, etc anymore.  My son-in-law ( not born in the US) cannot tolerate American wheat but when the family would travel in Europe he could eat it just fine.  My daughter started ordering flour from France and he has no trouble eating food made with it.  Something is done to the wheat grown here, either in the growing ( fertilizers, pesticides,other additive) or in the processing that makes it unpalatable for a lot of people.  

I'm trying a little experiment - I haven't had or used a clothes dryer for nearly 15 years.  The apartment where I now live has a washer and dryer furnished.  I use the washer but not the dryer.  I wanted to see for myself what the savings is in drying clothes indoors on racks (many of my neighbors think I'm nuts for not using the dryer).  So, at the beginning of the last electric company billing cycle I decided to use my dryer for all of my washing.  That billing cycle ends next Monday (the 9th) and I'm anxious to see how much extra it cost to run the dryer for the month.  

A funny story I'll tell on myself : when I was a young bride in the late 1960's I did not know how to cook much of anything.  My mother loved convenience foods so that is what we ate while I was growing up.  Anyway, as a new bride we went to visit my husband's grandmother.  One day she said that she was going to make noodles.  I was shocked and asked her, "Do you mean you can make noodles yourself?". She looked at me like I'd just fallen off the turnip truck, sat me down and we made noodles.  The easiest thing in the world, and they taste so much better.  I've been making noodles ever since!  

I find that the modern intrusions due to ads, loud voices, etc. are harder and harder to deal with  And yes, modern food as well.  I simply don't feel well if I eat processed food or anything from a restaurant so I no longer bother with any of it.  As I age I also find it harder and harder to eat sugar, although I will still crave it.  I now add a bit of raw honey to my oatmeal or on a piece of cornbread which seems to satisfy me without stimulating excess eating.  As to bread, I can tolerate the occasional use of an organic sprouted grain bread but one a few times a month.  I don't think that for me it is the flour itself or even gluten because I can eat other things made with non-organic flour in moderation.  I tend to think it is more any kind of stabilizer or preservative.  I lost my sourdough starter a few months ago when I found a chip in the top of the jar.  Since I couldn't know where the chip went I thought it best to discard.  But before I read your column I had already added "start a new sourdough starter" to my task list for today.   I also plan to make some soda bread today.  

A few years ago I started eating fresh non-pastuerized kimchi and sauerkraut and eating the daily has really help with a lot of disgestion issues or all kinds.  I learned how to make kimchi but bought it didn't really save that much money.  I plan to try my hand at sauerkraut this month, however, especially as I will get a good price on cabbage for St. Pat's day.  

I haven't used a dryer in maybe 20 years except for an occasional run to a laundry mat for heavy blankets.   The last time I washed and dried in a commercial machine, a blanket came back smelling so much like artificial scent I regretted it.   Months later it STILL smells.  Next time I use a laundry mat I will drag things home for the outside line and hope that helps.  

This week I started adding cooked yellow lentils to my morning oatmeal (not too much) to increase protein and fiber.  I actually found that I liked it.  I might also try red lentils as they will be more mushy and maybe go better with the texture of the oats.  

Had an interesting thing happen this morning. I was playing some songs on my baritone uke.  And I checked the tuning with a tuner on my phone but it was not working right and it was making me sit through a VERY obnoxious and LONG ad.  I have been trying to develop my ear better but I think I will put more time into it and maybe get a pitch pipe or something that doesn't even need a battery because I think I don't want to have to rely so completely on either my phone or a digital tuner.  

Trying to be 1930s/40s outside of work. But for 8 hours a day I am inundated with emails, texts, chat messages, AI stuff, and constant virtual meetings.  Makes my quiet home even more precious.  

Wishing you all joy and peaceful days...

Sara M: Had an interesting thing happen this morning. I was playing some songs on my baritone uke.  And I checked the tuning with a tuner on my phone but it was not working right and it was making me sit through a VERY obnoxious and LONG ad.  I have been trying to develop my ear better but I think I will put more time into it and maybe get a pitch pipe or something that doesn't even need a battery because I think I don't want to have to rely so completely on either my phone or a digital tuner.  

I can relate. I'm finding going to the phone for you-tube or whatever to be beyond problematic  and down-right frustrating now.  The ads are just horrific.  Even with Prime Video that never had ads then added ads that used to be 2 during a movie, have now more than doubled and some are 3 minutes! I feel like all I'm doing is watching ads.  Even on "pause" it no longer just sits at the movie, but changes to an ad page.  I'm just so sick and tired of ads and the whole kittencaboodle, I'm ready to chuck the entire thing. And now ads have guys that are girls.  I just can't anymore.  I really need to go back in time.  The best thing I ever did was that no techie month last October.  I didn't use it for my blogs, so it was like a good magazine or read - like here. I absolutely love this site. It's just wholesome and uplifting.  Thank you Gr Donna for giving us some normalcy.  

I was thinking that I need a list of fun leisure things to do that don't involve screens, as I feel like I'm addicted to mine.  I'm 45 years old and remember doing all sorts of IRL (in real life) stuff when I was a teen and young adult;  now for the past 10 or 15 years I think I've lost it all gradually and replaced it with screens, but the screens are not enriching my life--the opposite in fact.  I've forgotten how to have fun.

sara M I play ukulele very badly but when I tune, I just tune it against itself, without bothering to be in "perfect" pitch.  If I play with my husband (he on guitar), we will tune to each other--he will tune his and then I will tune off of him. We have had some fun playing together in the past;  maybe I should drag it out again and dust it off.

The article and discussion has been very helpful. Right now, my health is poor so doing all I want to get done is not an option. Thank all of you for commenting. 

We buy Einkorn from Italy, but I still struggle with bloating. I have gone to grinding sorghum berries, adding psyllium powder and flax seed powder and that works fantastic for all baked goods; muffins, cookies, sweet breads, etc.. I have not tried to make bread with it as it has no gluten. I think the bread would turn out more like a sweet bread texture.

There is a wonderful pizza place where we live that makes gluten free crusts with a gluten free flour from Italy. All of the flour that they use, including gluten flours, for breads or crusts is from Italy. I checked on the price and it is too expensive.

Spelt is a lower gluten option and for years that worked for me, then it started causing the same issues I had with wheat. I might try it again with a long rest time, like overnight on the counter. We only use organic grains and buy just berries and I grind them. I won't purchase Einkorn, grown in the U.S., simply because it can be cross contaminated and cause the same problems as wheat.

If anyone solves the "can't eat wheat," bread problem please share. Thank you.

I also wanted to mention the Italian flour. I don’t know which one my sister gets, but in her family of 7, 4 of them are gluten free, and they do fine with the flour from Italy. She gets it on Amazon.

Christina A, I also grew up on Chef Boyardee Pizza. Most often with no more than the Parmesan cheese that came with it on top! And the Jello No bake Cheesecakes too. I have to admit I loved them both. lol 

Galadriel F, Here is a list of things I have started doing lately. Obviously not all at the same time!
Devotions/Bible Journaling
Reading (I admit, sometimes I find things cheaper on Kindle or free on Kindle Unlimited… but I’ve also been getting actual hard copies of books lately)
Crossword Puzzles
Word Searches
Coloring Books… I have found that I love Alcohol markers for adult coloring books, and coloring books with larger pictures, not the “stress relief” ones with all of the intricate designs.
Slow Stitching (google that… or look on Pinterest.. you will find plenty!
Journaling (personal journal, junk journal, dump journal (I have a TON of scrapbook supplies and can just do collages with paper in a dump journal)
Diamond Painting
Feeding our squirrels… I know, sounds crazy, but I truly enjoy it and sit and watch them play. I don’t know their hierarchy, but they sure don’t like to share food with each other! lol There, I hope that gets your wheels turning!

Grandma Donna, I have been wondering and wondering… if your Mother in law, who you took to Quik Check, bought a Jiffy Cake Mix, a Jiffy Muffin mix, Buttermilk, eggs, a whole chicken and white bread… what did she eat daily? (Also I know she had garden veggies in her freezer and potato flakes probably always on hand!) Did she eat 3 meals a day? What did she make with the chicken? Salad? Soup? Sandwiches? 

Sandi P, I really do not know what my mother-in-law ate when she was widowed when I was not there but it would have been very simple.  Probably a sandwich with some leftover vegetables.  She lived rural all her life until one of the older sons moved her into town to a small house.  When my father-in-law was still living they would always have vegetables, cornbread or biscuits and some type of meat. But on her own she would have most likely cooked eggs and grits in the morning, had some type of vegetable such as peas or butter beans with mashed potatoes.  She would also cook salt pork with I know is not the healthiest thing but that is what they cooked.  She also liked fried bologna.  She also grew and cooked greens from the garden or take them out of the freezer.  She made a southern cream corn dish. She never ate out, and seemed to have leftovers in the fridge so she was cooking for herself.  As I mentioned in my blog posts when anyone showed up at lunch time she would pull out the peas or butterbeans from the freezer right away and cook them and a pre-made frozen beef patty and cook that and her famous instant potatoes. I know some meals were syrup butter and biscuits.  That would have been a evening meal.  There was always white sandwich bread to put that hamburger patty on.  My Grandmother would always have cold biscuits and soup.  

Galadriel F, 

This is a great list. I concur with the anxiety of coloring more intricate designs! LOL. I bought a coloring book with larger pictures as well.  

I'm going to look into Slow Stitching.  

Journaling is good or creating a CommonPlace Book. I journal scripture as there's a Scripture Writing group on FB that gives you Scripture to copy/journal/meditate on/draw, based on a theme per month.  I'm loving the CommonPlace Book which is writing down anything you see, read or find noteworthy on anything! 

And of course there's reading on our history.  I've read a bit about the history of housekeeping, the kitchen, etc., which I find interesting!

It was nice to see your reference to this old etiquette book, Joan. I have one(copyright 1952) that I refer to often. 

Thank you for your post, Grandma Donna. I hope that you are able to figure out what to do for your bread. My husband thinks the culprit is not gluten, but the pesticide that has been used, starting in the 1960s, on the wheat. He just told me our neighbors buy their flour from Italy- must be what was mentioned by some other people here. We can't afford it!

I used our dryer this winter because my husband took the clothes line down because it was in his way when he was trying to take wood to the deck for our woodstove. On Friday I asked him to put it back up. It is so nice to be back at hanging up the laundry again. I always feel more fit when I do this regularly. 

I continue to look for items to take out of plastic and put into glass, like mayonnaise, ketchup, and vanilla.

We don't have money for new clothes right now, so I am doing what I can do with what I have. I sometimes take dresses from my closet that are getting worn out and I change them into skirts for every-day wear. They usually have zippers. I cut off the tops and fold them down into a thick waistband. It is very fast and anyone can do it! 

I also took a drawing class at the community college. 

Expanded my inside plants and outside garden.

You like music maybe a choir group would be a good match for you.

Water aerobic or exercise class at Y or gym or community center is a good activity.  

Walking on a treadmill or around the neighborhood or at the gym.

To those mentioning flour from Italy, This is the route I have taken and did a lot of research (still am researching) ,  I have been trying this for several weeks now. I am not giving advice, we each have to do our own research and I don't want to say too much about it because I am still learning myself.  It is very expensive and I do believe that the problem for many of us is that we simply cannot tolerate the high gluten, the chemicals used to grow the wheat and the hard red winter wheat. Even the milling can be a factor.  Also I am looking at cane sugar issues possibly so that is a very difficult problem to figure out.  I made some Italian bread with Italian flour and did not use any sugar or honey  but used a long rest period and I made a pre-ferment, not sourdough.  It was very good and no bloating or pain.  But I am still learning because it is different to use the lower gluten and very interesting.  I am enjoying the challenge.  

I have to make very small batches of whatever I make due to the cost.  I do recommend for anyone having issues to do a LOT of research.  I did talk with my doctor about this a few days ago and he acknowledged that some people are having issues like I am having.  He too mentioned some of the same facts that I have found by researching, the pesticides, the land it is grown, the milling is different here and other countries.  

The numbering on the flour is different when buying flour outside of the U.S. and you need to learn what all of that means.  They have different flour to make different food such as a different flour for pastries and cake, pie etc.  Different flour for pizza dough, pasta and bread.  Also different flour protein.   Take your time researching and make sure it is coming from the right source.  Try a small bag first.  There are "0" flour, "00" flour and numbers to look for such as 300 - 340 flour strength or 230 - 250 and numbers such as 11% flour Protein, 13% flour protein, 15 % flour protein etc.  Sometimes the flour strength will have a W in front of the flour strength number.  

Another thing is bread is a staple in other countries and many meals are different than ours.  You have to search information for "traditional family meals cooked at home"  Not the fancy things we see in cooking videos.  

Some people here outside of the U.S. may not understand the issues we are having here and the way our flour is labeled without all of these numbers.  Just do your homework on this.  :) Donna

I too am trying to change my use of flour & bread consumption.  I purchased Einkorn from Italy. I use it for pizza crust and focaccia. I sliced the focaccia horizontally to use for sandwiches. It's very good that way. I bought several bags a few years ago before it really went up in price. I keep it in cold storage. I have purchased Italian "00" flour from Italian shops (in US) and Amish bulk stores. Someone mentioned French flour. I see that's pretty pricey too. I'd like to try it. 

Because of the price of these flours I'm reconsidering how often/much bread type foods (bread, muffins, wafgles, etc) I eat. I'm thinking have it less often but better quality flour is the way to go. I'm hoping changing flours helps resolves some nagging health issues.

It would seem that I'm fortunate, although I do suffer from gut issues, that any kind of bread doesn't bother me - and I've given up making it at home as we just don't eat enough of it to warrant it.  I think - I know! - that in any western countries, the grain or flour we use is doctored so much that it is definitely the reason that so many now are intolerant of it all.  I just go with the flow, if something disagrees with me, I take it out of my diet but so far fairly good with most things.  My elder daughter suffers greatly and can only eat a limited amount of food due to allergies so I'm very aware of what our guts dictate - and also just how much additives, preservatives, fertilisers and modification is added to food these days.

Since I got rid of my smartphone and got a no-internet flip phone, I've suddenly found time to do all kinds of homely activities. So many activities that I want to make Sunday a no-cook day so I get a whole day of relaxation and rest! All of this new information about flour makes me hopeful that I can have some nice homemade blueberry muffins for Sunday breakfast, and some chicken salad (or other filling) sandwiches for Sunday lunch with fruit and soup. Sunday dinner will be something made ahead that I can reheat. 

For those looking for non-screen activities, my hobby is trying to be a naturalist. :) I record weather info, birds, bees, butterflies, and how the garden and flowers are doing in journals, and I have a "how to draw nature" book. I try drawing some of the things I see on my journal pages. I've also pressed some flowers for drying, like the first violet of spring. 

I found that a glass of homemade kefir, made from full fat milk, has helped settle my gut issues from my chemo meds.

Our son in law works in a flour mill and all the staff have a monthly allowance of flour, as well as bread and cake from the testing bakery. GS14 has started making sourdough bread and wants to do cookery as one of his exam options. 

We don’t eat out very often but our special treat is lunch at the college, cooked and served by the catering students. They use seasonal fruit and vegetables. We are presented with the selection of the fresh bread rolls of the day.

Sainsbury’s had their red label, loose leaf tea back in stock last week, after several months, £1.75 for 250g, so I have replenished our stock. I dislike the taste and the scum from teabags, they are UPF, each teabag releasing billions of microplastics and nanoplastics, and even wood fibre, glue and bleach into the boiling water. 

The weather is still very wet here in Staffordshire. Temperatures down to 5°C at night and 11°C by day. I did get one load of washing almost dry in the garden on a rare sunny day, but most of it dries on hangers and the clothes airer by the radiators. The three plum trees, Tzar, Victoria, and Yellow Pershore, in the garden, are covered in white blossom.

I have stopped reading the war news at present, a break for my mental health. I know it will affect food and fuel prices, we have a well stocked pantry. I have been rereading books which are old favourites, comfort reading, since my dear old Daisy Dog had a stroke, and a short trip to the vet. I miss her.

About gluten free flour:  I occasionally make baked goods with coconut flour.  It doesn't really make bread (or at least I haven't been able to) but I have found some nice muffin and cake recipes. Today I made a pumpkin cake from a website called Sugar Free Londoner, which the whole family enjoyed (it is actually a muffin recipe but I baked it in a small cake tin).  She has a nice blueberry muffin recipe too.

Thanks to people sharing their hobbies/activities--so many ideas!  Stephanie G, I misread your comment as naturist and had a double take!  You reminded me that I started that kind of journal a couple years ago:  I did little drawings and colored them in with markers;  it was fun and I wish I had kept it up.  Even now just looking back at those few months worth has been useful to me.  I marked down when each of my spring flowers started blooming (with a little illustration) and when there were frosts.  Also what birds/creatures I saw visit the garden.  Maybe I will try again this spring, and organise my drawing/colouring materials so it is easier to continue it.

This weekend we got two of our front, downstairs windows replaced. They have been leaking for a while and since we live in an 1890's farm house the logs were deteriorating because of the leak so every time we opened the window stuff would rain down all over the window seal so we stopped opening them other than to put a window AC unit in every year. I am excited to be able to open the windows again and get some nice, fresh air blowing through the house on a hot day. We are also replacing two more down stairs windows that were not that bad at all but they too were old. Hopefully that all will be done by the end of this week or early next week. Grandma Donna, I would always think (when I saw all that dust on my windows seals ) that this is not Grandma Donna approved. Now I can wash my windows seals and they will stay clean for the normal amount of time. 

On my way back from the Hospital on Saturday morning my map app took me on a path it never takes me. My husband told me over the phone (handsfree) that I should probably turn around and go the normal way. I figured it was taking me that way due to an accident or maybe the fog was really bad along that path. Either way, I went with the flow. This new path took me past a Goodwill. I thought I might take a look in there. Maybe there was something in there I could use for Jacobs room that I would have missed had I not been redirected. I was right. I found this chair for $47 after taxes. It's comfortable but not too comfortable and easy to clean and move. All is essential for Jacobs room. Above all, it is solid. It's not going to break on me anytime soon. 

Kieva,

That rocker looks beautiful, sturdy, and practical.  Nice find!

Thank you!

Thankyou GDonna, now that you explained about the soap creating glycerine, I do think that 8s the problem I'm having. I will test some different soaps and see how I go. 

Kieva, the rocker is beautiful, and a really nice find .  That rocker is going to do a lot of rocking in your home.  I like how you kept going on the road you were on.  Charles believes that when we are delayed there is a reason and when we take an unexpected path that there is a reason for that too.  He has always said this even when we are at a redlight and there are few cars around and the light seems longer that this is just a patience thing, there is a reason to slow us down. :)  

gDonna’s blog posts contain so much information and so many helpful ideas that I am slow at taking it all in.

From this post, I love this:

 “I do not even have all the answers, but I want to suggest a deeper research.  Each of us have different needs…”

Over the past year, I have been doing a deeper dive into my clothing situation. gDonna has mentioned the Vintage Dancer site before, and that is where I started. Then, I made a couple of a-line skirts, both from the same pattern. I know that skirts have not been wardrobe staples in every decade, but they seemed like what I needed. Partly, I just didn’t want any more cropped pants made from stretchy fabric that wears through in little more than a year.

The skirts that I made have deep pockets, so the denim one is a great everyday skirt for spring/summer and early fall. The pockets hold a lot of clothespins, or some garden produce if I am just out checking on things in the garden. The other skirt is brown (I love brown) linen, and it is nice for church.

These skirts meet some of my needs very well, but they might not work for anyone else. 

I also heard about a book, that I requested through interlibrary loan, called “The Lost Art of Dress”, that explains a lot about how smaller wardrobes worked in the past. It talks about color choices, so that everything goes together, about choosing necklines so that layering works, and more details that I had not thought enough about on my own.  As a result, I have a better idea of what to look for in clothing when it is time to replace some of what I have.

I also keep this gDonna gem in mind, from a much earlier post: “we go slow, so we bring our patience with us.” This reminds me that the changes that I make don’t have to be all at once, and they don’t have to be perfect on the first try. 

All the comments on this and other posts are so very helpful! Thanks to all.