Keeper of the Home

A Seasonal Menu Plan

This week I made a departure from my usual style of menu planning.

Since we've been doing this special diet for my husband (a little over a month now), my repertoire of meals has been rather limited. Doing my menu plans each week has felt a bit discouraging, as I stare once again at my (short) list of the meals that I can make, that we all enjoy. I'm sure those of you who have been on restricted diets for any amount of time know what I'm talking about! :)

Rather than feel frustrated with it each week, I decided to follow Lindsay's plan of making a seasonal menu plan. It works by giving a theme to each day of the week, and then choosing 3-4 options that fit under that theme. Each meal will be made once a month, or perhaps twice if you only have 3 options on a certain day. I think it will take the brainwork and stump-ed-ness out of my planning (you know, when you sit at the table, tapping your pen and staring alternatively at your meager meal plan, then out the window, then back down at the meal plan for way too long)! I spent a while working on this and really digging deep to come up with recipes we could eat, and I'm happy with the results!

Here's how I've set mine up, for the next 3 months or so until we're back to our regular fare:

Monday- Main Dish Salads/Veggie Based

1. Chicken Meal Salad (a really hearty salad with hard boiled eggs, avocado, lots of veggies, etc.)
2. Stir-fry with beef or chicken or turkey, served over brown rice
3. Taco Salad (except that right now we're skipping the tomatoes, sour cream, and he can only have gouda cheese on his)
4. Avocado/Pepper/Black Bean salad (Ry and I adore this light salad, which I've recently been adding a bit of corn and cilantro to as well. The kids, not so much, so I make them rice and beans)

Tuesday- Sandwiches/Soup

1. Lentil Vegetable Soup with bread or biscuits
2. Wrap Sandwiches (homemade tortillas with any mix of protein, veggies, cheese, etc.)
3. Chowder (either this Garden Chowder, with some slight tweaks to make it diet friendly, or my favorite Salmon Broccoli Sweet Potato Chowder, also with a few changes)
4. Bierocks or German Beef and Cabbage Pockets (we just tried this tonight and fell in love! I can't use a bread dough, since it would require yeast or sweetener. Instead, I just used Kimi's Ground Beef and Cabbage Filling slightly altered, and put it inside her dairy-free Biscuit recipe, making them into pockets. By doubling the biscuit recipe and making the filling recipe about 1 1/2 times as large, I was able to make 20 pockets, which made one dinner for tonight and one for my after-baby freezer stash.)

Wednesday- Italian or Ethnic Dishes

1. Cold or hot rice pasta (with chicken or sausage, and any variety of veggies), and either a cashew alfredo sauce, an olive oil based pasta salad dressing, or vegan pesto.
2. Curry or lentil dahl, over rice or served with homemade chapatis (flatbread, similar to tortillas)
3. White Lasagna Casserole (this is a new dish I created last week, in an attempt to use up some lasagna noodles I had. It's made without tomatoes, has a white dairy-free sauce, shredded zucchinni and carrots, plus sausage, and a generous helping of feta cheese. Surprisingly good!)
4. Italian Rice Salad

Thursday- Mexican or Casseroles

1. Sweet Potato Burritos in homemade tortillas (wow, these really are addictive!)
2. Chicken or turkey pot pie, with whatever veggies are seasonal or on hand
3. Chicken or beef fajitas

Friday- Favorites

1. Pizza (using my tortillas as a crust, due to no yeast). I serve Ry's with vegan pesto instead of tomato sauce.
2. Meat main dish (steak, ribs, roast chicken, etc.) with a grain (rice, millet, quinoa) and steamed or raw veggies.
3. Feta burgers (no buns), with sweet potato fries.

Saturday/Sundays- Simple and quick!

1. Leftovers!
2. Sausages (fried with apples/peppers, or with a grain dish and salad, or with corn on the cob)
3. Any sort of tortilla sandwich, quesadilla, wrap, etc. Whatever's in the fridge!
4. Salmon Cakes (from Nourishing Traditions) or Fish Coconut Curry, with rice or other grain and a veggie
5. Macaroni and Cheese (brown rice pasta, hemp milk, and gouda, Ry's main cheese indulgence these days!)

Ta-da! No stress meal planning! I'm so relieved that I did this as part of my personal retreat this weekend (which was wonderful, by the way).

It's Menu Plan Monday over at Organizing Junkie!

Have you ever tried making a seaonal menu plan like this? How did it work for you? If not, how do you organize your meal planning?

Links I've Loved Lately

(How's that for alliteration? :)

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Learning to use less electricity (50 ways) @ Proverbs 31 Living

Healthy Home Tips: Choose Better Body Care Products @ Environmental Working Group

Lessons From History: The Dignity of Making Ends Meet @ The Nourishing Gourmet

Birthing Choices Series (primarily on homebirth and intervention-free birthing) @ Sorta Crunchy

The No Spend Month Challenge @ Small Notebook

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Have you read any great blog posts or sites lately that you want to pass on?

Taking a Personal Retreat

Image by Amir K.

Every once in a while, a mom could use to just get away for a little while.

I'm not talking about self-indulgence or feeding the idea of constantly needing "me time". Our society tells us often enough that it's time we stopped doing everything for everybody else and started focusing on meeting our own needs. I don't believe that type of thinking is Biblical. We have been called to serve our families, laying down our lives for others and for God's kingdom, and to trust in Him (not ourselves) to ultimately meet all of our needs!

I do, however, think that it can be an incredibly beneficial thing to plan to take a "personal retreat" once or twice a year. This can be anything from a couple of hours in a coffee shop, to spending the day at a park by yourself, to actually going overnight somewhere and having a full day or two by yourself. It all depends on the season of life that you are in (newborn or nursing babies, a husband or family member that is able to stay with the children), your financial limitations, etc. but I think that anyone can find a way to carve out at least a little bit of purposeful time.

So what's the point of taking a personal retreat?

For me, it is a way to spend some focused, quiet time seeking God, reading His word, praying over specific issues in my life and just generally asking Him to renew my vision and my priorities for the season of life that He has me in.

It is also an opportunity to read encouraging or challenging books on important topics (on mothering, on marriage, on home educating, on a specific spiritual topic). It can be an ideal time to really flesh out the different things in my life that are fighting for my attention, and bring some clarity to what is most important and then make a plan to focus on those things and release the others.

Planning can happen more easily when I am already in the mode of refocusing myself and setting goals and priorities. I find it the perfect time to tweak my schedules and routines, to plan for upcoming months of home educating and blogging, to determine projects I want to accomplish, to choose new books to read or set a new direction for personal devotions, and to set goals (and steps to accomplish those goals) in various areas.

If you're interested in the idea of taking one, see this older post where I talk a little bit more about taking retreats, and also highlight the book Shopping for Time which was instrumental for me in beginning to take my own retreats!

What I'll be doing this weekend...

Starting tonight, I will be serving dinner to my family and then leaving the house for several hours alone. The next morning after breakfast, I will go out again and take the entire day, until it's time to come home for dinner. My husband and I have been planning this for quite some time, and he is fully supportive of my desire to do this. He also takes retreats a couple of times a year, and we are both in agreement as to just how helpful they are to us and how they enable us to better function in the roles that God has given us.

I've been anticipating taking this retreat for the last several months, and I am so eager to go and enjoy some intimate fellowship with God, and to come home (as I always do) just bursting with eagerness and joy to do what He has called me to do, with a fresh sense of purpose and direction!

Have you ever taken a personal retreat? What did you find the most beneficial about it? If not, would you like to take one?

Free Groceries and Other Random Thoughts

 I'm writing this towards the end of a busy day (midwife home appointment this morning, and then a day at the zoo with my sweet children to celebrate Canada Day!). Here are a few things that have been on my mind:

 

**The kids on the train, at the end of our zoo day, showing off their face painting!**

1) Swagbucks are awesome!

First of all, thank you so much to all who signed up for Swagbucks and helped me to earn a fun gift certificate for a Father's Day present! He was thrilled to receive it, and I was so blessed that you all helped me out!

Secondly, I am having way too much fun with Swagbucks these days. I have been earning Amazon gift cards like crazy, and here's the great thing: I can use them to buy free groceries! I didn't think of this at first, but later realized (as I was thinking of all the different things Amazon sells) that groceries were totally a possibility, and there are so many options of natural, organic and even bulk foods! How cool is that?

If you haven't signed up for Swagbucks yet, you can do so by clicking on the banner below. The more friends who sign up under you, the more points you earn, so let others know about it and soon you'll be earning gift cards for Amazon (.com and .ca), iTunes, Starbucks, Target, etc. Yay for free stuff!

2) I'm making progress!

I continue to putter away at my "before baby" to-do lists. My list of foods that I want to have put away in the freezer is nearly complete. All that's left is a bit more baking, and possibly a different meal concept to replace Shepherd's Pie, since my husband can't eat that on his special diet.

My general to-do list is also going well! Last week I got the infant car seat washed and ready, and we did a trial run in the car. No problems, whatsoever! Praise God! This week, the shelves in my family room were fixed (thanks Ryan!) and so I've almost finished re-organizing that room, and just have a little bit of work and decoration left to do. My Nana has agreed to make my nursing pads, a friend is making some feminine cloth pads, and I also made a few myself, using my Nana's incredible sewing machine (I will not be jealous, I will not covet! :). All the newborn diapers and clothes are clean and ready to go. My garden is doing great, and I've been trying to preserve foods as they are available in abundance (drying herbs, freezing peas and turnips and spinach, etc.), and just caring for it and planting my last few summer seedlings.

This weekend is my personal retreat, on Friday evening and Saturday during the day. I'm so excited to spend some extended time really seeking the Lord and doing some planning (home educating, scheduling, blogging, etc.) that will really help me out as I enter this new season of life. And this morning we had our home visit with the midwife, and have just a few last details to get ready for our homebirth (pick up the pool and inflate it, buy just a few more supplies, gather the things I would like to use for comfort during labor, etc.). It's all coming together!

3) Guest posting spots are all filled up!

This was one of the other major things on my list. Last week I put out a request, and I could not believe how quickly and wonderfully my need for guest bloggers was met!

I already have all the guest posts that I need. What a blessing! Thank you so much, ladies, and I am so looking forward to all that you have to share! :)

No 'Poo Update

Remember back when I made the crazy decision to toss my shampoo and start going "no-'poo"? Ever wonder what happened with that experiment?

Over a year later, I'm pleased to say that I have continued it for the most part! I went strong with this method from last April, up until December this year, when I got pregnant. The only time that I briefly stopped was during the first half of this pregnancy, when my hair, scalp and hormones all went crazy. It wasn't pretty, so I started using natural shampoos again for that season.

Since things have evened out a bit (probably the last 3 months or so) and for all of the months I did it last year, I've been really enjoying my simple, frugal habit.

The method I'm using these days is to:

• Keep a squirt bottle with about 1/8 baking soda and the rest water in the shower. It settles between use, so each time I just shake it up briefly before I use it. I squirt it all over the top of my head and a bit onto the back, and then just rub it around and somewhat "lather" it (I add the quotations because it's not a true lather, like shampoo, but it does foam up a bit) for about 30 seconds, then rinse.
• Next I use some apple cider vinegar for conditioning. I dilute it 1/2 vinegar, 1/2 water and keep it in a glass jar with a lid. This isn't ideal, and I'd like to get a squirt or spray bottle for it as well. I only apply it to the bottom half of my hair, because it causes my fine, thin hair to get a bit greasy if I use it anywhere near my scalp.
• Every once in a while, I shampoo with a high quality, natural shampoo that I happened to have around. It served as a nice transition from when I stopped no-'poo temporarily, and has helped me to ease back into it without it being obvious that I was transitioning back again. Soon I don't think I will need to use it anymore at all.
• I wash my hair only every 2nd day. Back when I started, last April, I was a shower-every-day kind of girl, and my hair would get so greasy without being washed daily. Between the no-'poo and gradually spacing out my showers (taking advantage of days at home, when I could toss it up in a ponytail!), I've managed to get it to the place where I can almost always go 2 days in between. The picture of my hair above is actually taken on a 2nd day, without showering, and you really can't tell.

Once in a while, I notice that my hair is a bit dry, but then again, I'm struggling to stay hydrated enough with a summer pregnancy, and it has been a dry summer here so far this year. I have experimented once with using my homemade mayonnaise as a deep conditioner, but I didn't find the results particularly impressive, so I haven't bothered much since then.

I stumbled across a blog post the other day, about how a mother has adapted a similar method for her daughter's beautiful, long hair. She uses a natural bar soap, every 5 days, and then the apple cider vinegar rinse for conditioning. Looks like it's working well for her. Check it out!

For my kids, I continue to use just water on Caden's short and fine hair, and maybe 1-2 drops of Dr. Bronner's Castile Soap on Abbie's slightly longer (but still very fine) hair. I wash their hair about 1-2 times per week and I don't ever find that it looks dirty. I mean, aside from the smears of yogurt and jam and spaghetti sauce. :)

Have any of you transitioned over to using the no-'poo method? How is it going for you, and do you do it any differently than I do? Any deep conditioning suggestions for me? What are the rest of you using for shampooing?

Q&A: Living with PCOS

 

I've enjoyed your posts on PCOS. I'm struggling with that right now. Do you think this condition contributes to my sugar cravings?

Jennifer

Definitely! But it's not just the PCOS, although that certainly contributes. I can think of 3 likely reasons for sugar cravings:

1) Unbalanced blood sugar and insulin levels, common in most with PCOS. When our blood sugar levels gets too low (and our insulin is off and thus not able to help balance it) the natural response is that we crave... yup, you guessed it. Sugar! It becomes a horrible, vicious cycle. Your blood sugar is low, so you crave sugar, you eat a donut, you feel great for a couple hours, then your blood sugar plummets, so you crave some chocolate, and on and on and on.

2) Most women (whether they have PCOS or not) have higher Candida or yeast levels in their bodies than is healthy. Basically, Candida is a form of yeast that feeds off of sugars, carbs, yeast, etc. that we eat You can imagine how much there is to feed Candida in a typical North American diet- all that white flour, sugar in nearly everything, yeasted white breads everywhere!

3) The fact that most of us are simply addicted to sugar and simple carbohydrates (white flours, pasta, store-bought baking, etc.).

What to do about sugar cravings?

The overall best thing is to move towards a whole foods diet, gradually cutting out more and more processed and packaged foods. Make your eating revolve around nutrient-dense animals foods (grass-fed meat and poultry, free-range eggs, whole and preferably raw dairy, wild fish), as well as whole grains like whole wheat flour, oats, brown rice and others (instead of refined, white grains), and plenty of fresh vegetables and fruit. Start replacing typical sweets and baked goods with homemade, more wholesome versions (and better sweeteners, like honey, maple syrup or Rapdura), or try eating fruit when those sugar cravings come instead. Seek out whole grain sourdough or sprouted grain breads, in place of store-bought white bread. And try to always eat a bit of protein with every meal or snack throughout the day, to keep that blood sugar balanced!

You will find, as I have (and I was seriously, completely addicted to sugar and white carbs!) that over time your taste buds will change and you will stop craving these sugars so badly. Your body and taste buds will begin to be much more satisfied with these wholesome foods, and you will start to feel better... so much better! Less headaches, less cravings, less fatigue, less digestive issues, less breakouts, less roller-coaster emotions. It's a very. good. thing. :)

I'm curious about the PCOS thing, which I also have. Did u take any
medication or supplements to help you be more fertile after u went off
the pill? My cycle is SO irregular, i haven't got the foggiest clue
whether or when I ovulate. I'm becoming quite depressed and
despondent, because we really want kids. But every time i miss a
period, it seems to be just my messed up cycle. I thought u might have
some advice.

God bless
Liz

Liz, I'm so sorry. I know the discouragement you're feeling and it's hard. Huge hugs to you!

The biggest thing that I did when I went off the pill (which I would never, ever recommend- avoid it like the plague!) was to switch my diet over to a whole foods diet as I've just talked about above. I think that this was really helpful for me in starting to replenish many of the nutrients that the pill had sucked out of my body, begin to balance my blood sugar and insulin levels, and to start to nourish my body more fully so that it could get back to cycling more regularly.

I'll tell you the truth, that it didn't happen overnight. It has been a process of about 6-7 years since I began to deal with PCOS, over the course of which my body has gradually begun to cycle more regularly on it's own, allowing me to conceive more easily. Even after having my first baby, when my cycle came back it was still incredibly irregular and it took us a year to conceive our second child, which eventually happened with the help of a mild ovulation medication (Clomid, also not something I particularly recommend).

A few suggestions... one is to add a really good quality B vitamin into your diet. Make sure that it has all of the B vitamins, but especially B6 and B12, which are crucial for hormones and reproductive function. These are really depleted while being on the pill. Another suggestion is to start tracking your cycle by charting it. This will really give you more of an idea of what's actually happening in your body, which is priceless. Third, look into Vitex, which I will talk about below.

I have really enjoyed your series on PCOS and have even ordered Nourishing Traditions. I have a quick question about Vitex. You mentioned that this was one of the most effective things that you have taken for PCOS. I was wondering how often you took it (i.e. every day of the month, only before ovulation stopping after you ovulated, etc.). I've been wondering if I should stop taking after I ovulated and wanted to hear what your experience has been as far as that goes. Thanks!

Great question! For those who don't know, Vitex (also known as Chasteberry) is a herb that is traditionally known to help balance hormones, specifically Follicle-Stimulating and Lutenizing hormones (crucial for ovulation). Many women, especially those with PCOS, have found that it helps to balance things enough to encourage ovulation and more regular cycles.

This was the case for me. I have used it both during the year that we tried to conceive our son, and also for several months before conceiving the baby I am carrying now. Both times I found it effective.

The thing about Vitex is that it requires a little bit of patience. In both instances, it took about 3 months to start to notice the effects from it and to begin to ovulate. This is considered very normal when using Vitex. It is recommended to use it steadily for 3-4 months before expecting to see any (or at least many) changes.

I have used both a tincture form, as well as capsules because they were cheaper. I found the tincture slightly more effective, but both worked. You can buy it at almost any health food store, in their herbs section. Look for it under both Vitex and/or Chasteberry.

It should always be used daily in order to be effective. As for specific dosage, that will depend on which type, brand, etc. that you are using. Consult the package, or speak to a naturopath or a herbalist for more on dosage.

In all my research, I have never read anything suggesting that it is dangerous to continue on with it after ovulation, in case of conception. I would discontinue it as soon as I had a positive pregnancy test, but if you continually stop each time you ovulate, you will never be able to take it regularly enough to see it's effects. If anyone has any really solid information on a reason why it should be discontinued after ovulation, I'd be really interested to hear/read it, but my personal opinion is that it's not harmful.

For those with PCOS, is any of this helpful? Does it spark further questions or comments? Any other issues you would like to have specifically discussed?

Bugaloo Kids: The Cutest Baby Shoes (And You Could Win Some!)

Gosh, these are such adorable designs! The leather baby shoes at Bugaloo Kids are definitely not your typical, cutesy baby designs, but more fresh and modern. I had such a hard time choosing a pair because I really liked them all!

They are the same style as the ever popular Robeez, but much more affordable. They go for a mere $15 a pair, which is very, very reasonable for this style and quality of shoe. Not to mention, if you purchase 3 pairs, then your shipping is free (they'd make a great and affordable baby shower gift, although you could just get 3 pairs for your own kids! :)

They are definitely higher quality than so many of the other little leather shoes that are out there. I was really impressed by these.  I personally like this style of shoes for babies because I find that they will fit a bit longer than your typical Size 2 or 4 (or whatever) style shoe, just because they are soft and flexible and they don't need to be such an exact fit.

They're great for babies toddling around the house (and outside as well), and are so much easier for little ones to learn to walk in than shoes with stiff or thick soles. My understanding is that it's actually much better for their feet and for their walking development to use soft sole shoes like this, and I can understand why! Unless you're buying very expensive children's shoes, they often don't fit well and just aren't conducive to ease of movement, especially for little ones who are still tripping and wobbling and tottering around.

My son Caden adores them. He has the green pair pictured on the right, and I just love their simple and stylish design. When they arrived he kept exclaiming over his "Noes!" The fit is generous, and even though he's just turned 2, he's still able to wear the 18-24 month size with some room to grow.

I was blessed to see that 5% of the profits are donated to International Justice Mission, which works to fight again slavery and human trafficking. I think it's wonderful to see businesses that are using their profits to give generously to others. These are the kind of businesses that my husband and I love to support!

Want to win a pair? I know you do! :)

Here's how:

1) Visit their site Bugaloo Kids, and check out their adorable designs. Come back here and leave a comment letting me know your favorite design (or designs- I know it's hard to pick!).

2) Get a second entry into the giveaway by posting about this giveaway on your own blog. Leave a comment with your post url.

3) Get another entry by twittering about this giveaway (linking to this post, of course), and then come back and leave me a comment that you've done so.

4) If you've never subscribed to my blog before, earn yourself another entry by subscribing, either through email or through a blog reader. Leave a comment letting me know that you are a first time subscriber!

5) Giveaway ends on Friday, July 3, at 4 pm PST.

Comments are now closed. Thanks everyone!

How Much Sugar Are You Really Consuming?

(Image courtesy of Sugar Stacks)

Ever wondered just how much sugar is in your favorite drink, snack or dessert? Wonder no more!

I just discovered the site Sugar Stacks today (hat tip to Local Nourishment), and was both appalled and thrilled to see such a vivid demonstration of the amount of sugar in a number of typical foods.

Just for fun (gosh, the things I do for fun!), here are a couple of other photos that I found particularly interesting:

Lemonade? That harmless, refreshing summer beverage? 16 1/2 sugar cubes in one measly bottle! Let's squeeze some lemons, add a bit of honey, top it up with water and ice, and call that refreshment instead!

Ouch! 6 1/2 cubes of sugar inside each teeny tiny bowl of flavored, sweetened yogurt. Do yourself a favor and skip the flavored varieties. Buy (or make) plain yogurt instead, and add your own fresh or frozen fruit and perhaps a little natural sweetener of choice.

I know, this one may seem harmless in comparison. 1 cube of sugar. But... keep in mind that 1 cube is in each and every tablespoon of ketchup. A tablespoon is basically one decent sized squirt. Most ketchup lovers consume far more than that with their hashbrowns and eggs, their hamburger, or their french fries.

Wanna see some more? Check out SugarStacks.com for a whole host of examples of just how much sugar there is in processed, convenience and store-bought dessert or snack foods! It's a shocking reminder of the amount of sugar that members of our society pump into their bodies, and we wonder why such sickness and obesity abounds! And I'll confess... even I saw a couple of indulgences that I am sometimes tempted to enjoy and was so glad for the visual of exactly why I need to reconsider whenever those cravings arise!

Note: I will make one comment about an aspect of the site that I didn't care for or agree with. It's comparisons of the sugar in fruits and vegetables is highly inaccurate. Yes, there are naturally occuring sugars (ie. carbohydrates) in fruits and veggies. Yes, they do have some effect on our blood sugar levels. No, they are not even remotely the same thing as the added sugars (especially all the processed, white sugars and high fructose corn syrup) that are in most of the products they are displaying. Fruits and veggies contain high amounts of fiber, water, and vitamins and minerals. Our body handles them very differently than regular sugar. This is not comparing apples to apples, and I wouldn't suggest that you get hung up on this aspect of the site. Otherwise, enjoy!

Are you surprised to see this visualization of the sugar that is actually in some of these products? What is your biggest struggle in decreasing the sugar content of your diet?

Frugal and Green(er) Option for Shaving

Have you by chance found an alternative to using disposable shavers? I can't think of anything other then chemical removers that I am loathe to use but I hate constantly tossing out used ones. thanks!
Brittany

As a matter of fact, I have! Great question, because I would have never thought to show you ladies a picture of my lovely little shaver! Here she is:

I use this little handheld electric shaver. It works just great with our rechargeable batteries (except on the mornings when I have to recharge and I'm running out of time before church, LOL!).

This is my standard shaving option for both my legs and my armpits. Every once in a while, I use my husband's disposable (a Gillette Mach 3 that we purchase disposable heads for) just to get a super close shave on my armpits. Other than that, the electric seems to suffice. I believe you can actually use it wet or dry, but I've never bothered with it wet, as it suits me better to use it dry.

I bought it at a drug store while visiting family in Florida for $10 (maybe a CVS or Walgreens?). I wish I could tell you what brand it is, but it doesn't actually say anywhere on it (and I got it about 3-4 years ago, so I just plain forget). That "C" on it's front may be a hint, but it doesn't spark anything in my memory.

It's been so worth it. Just as good as something more expensive in my opinion. It actually shaves quite close and smooth and quickly, for something so small, simple and cheap. If it ever breaks, I won't get one of the pricier ones. I'll just try to find another one of these. 

Another perk to using a dry, electric shaver is that I have no need for shaving cream. Most shaving creams are full of chemicals, fragrance, dyes, etc. It's not a concern for me! Sometimes I put on a bit of coconut oil or some other natural lotion after I shave if my legs seem dry, and I find that totally sufficient.

A side note: For those out there with sensitive skin, you might be interested to know that mine is extremely sensitive. I actually can't handle wet shaving with a razor blade. It raises bumps on my legs and makes them incredibly itchy for days. I've also tried the waxing and sugaring route, but found that somewhat irritating as well, and it resulted in a whole lot of badly ingrown hairs. Ouch. This has really been the best option that I have tried in the past 8 or 9 years, and believe me, I've tried almost everything (different razors, lotions, soaps, salon waxing, home waxing and sugaring, etc.).

More fantastic frugal ideas at Frugal Fridays, hosted by Life as Mom!

What do you use for shaving? Any other frugal and non-disposable suggestions? 

Pennywise Platter Thursday: Simple, Affordable Bread

For all those who haven't heard about it yet, today is the kick-off for the latest carnival from The Nourishing Gourmet, my favorite food blog. The goal of the Pennywise Platter Thursday carnival is to create a place where we can share how we serve and buy nourishing foods, but as frugally as possible!

I am so appreciative of a carnival with this focus, especially as our family is about to enter a season of a more limited budget. My food budget won't be going down, but it certainly won't be going up or having any extra wiggle room, which is challenging these days as prices have risen so much and my family continues to grow and eat more!

I'm sharing the bread recipe that I have been making for the past several months now, with much success. It's not my own recipe (it comes from Serene of Above Rubies and was in the last issue of the magazine), but I thought I would pass it on and let you know how well it's been working for me!

The four things I love about this recipe/method:

1) It is so simple! It takes me no more than 20-30 minutes to whip up the dough (that's on days when I have to grind the flour) and sometimes as little as 15 minutes! Not bad, for a recipe that makes 3 loaves! Not to mention, it only has 4 ingredients, 1 of those being water!

2) It is nourishing! Since it is a soaked, sourdough recipe, it is very digestible, the phytic acid has been broken down and the nutrients are readily available to us.

3) It is good! It may not be that beautiful, fluffy sandwich bread that you buy at the store, but the taste is so nice, and the texture is not too dense or crumbly (which can sometimes be a challenge when making whole grain or non-wheat breads, and also with sourdough breads). My husband has not liked all of my bread making attempts, but he enjoys this one quite a bit, as do the kids and I!

4) It is cheap! Ahem, frugal. :) I make 3 loaves of bread, using only 6 1/2 cups of flour (I buy the grains in bulk, making it fairly cheap for organic, non-wheat flours), some salt, sourdough starter (more flour and water), and water. I just calculated the cost, and it adds up to $2.56 for the batch or about $0.86 cents per loaf (that's based on my US co-op prices- in CAN $ it would be $2.95, or $0.99 cents a loaf).

The Recipe:

(This is actually half of the original recipe, which is intended to make 6 loaves of bread. I only have 3 bread pans, so I cut it in half and it makes enough to last us about 2 weeks, give or take)

3 1/2 cups kamut flour (you can substitute spelt flour, as in the original recipe, or whole wheat flour)
3 cups rye flour
1 quart sourdough starter
3 cups filtered water
1 1/2 Tbsp salt

1. Mix all together, with a heavy duty wooden spoon or something similar, for 5 to 10 minutes. The mixture will be wet enough that there's no way you could knead it. Instead, you just stir it really, really well, and you will notice that the texture begins to change as the gluten strands lengthen, and it will get harder to stir. It really doesn't need any more than 5-10 minutes!

I have actually recently been experimenting with mixing up the dough in my Sunbeam Mixmaster. I know that you're not supposed to use metal on sourdough, as it can weaken the culture. However, so far the recipe has still worked just fine the 2 times that I have tried it. It takes even more of the work out of it, and mixes it quite well.

2. Pour the dough evenly into 3 well greased bread pans (I use my leftover butter wrappers to grease them). Using a wet hand, smooth or flatten it a bit.

3. Place the bread pans aside on a counter for at least 7 hours, covered loosely with a dish towel.

4. Once they have risen sufficiently, basically double in size and close to the top of the bread pan, they are ready to be baked. For me, this usually happens after about 7-8 hours. If they have risen before the 7 hours, wait it out. They need the full amount of time for the phytic acid to be broken down through the fermentation process of the sourdough. I've also had times when perhaps my starter wasn't quite active enough, and I left them slightly longer. No big deal, but be forewarned that if you leave them significantly longer (like 14 hours, oops! :) they will be very. very. sour. Still good, but sour. 

5. Bake at 350 F for 1 hour.

(When you use kamut instead of spelt, it seems to increase the baking time a little. It's difficult to say whether it's just my oven or not, but I have found that it needs more like 70-75 minutes for me to have them turn out fully cooked in the middle. I haven't tried it with wheat yet, so no tips there.)

That's it! About 20 minutes of work, 7 hours of doing anything else that you feel like doing, and 1 hour of baking. I like to have mine on the counter, starting to rise by 9 or 10 am. This ensures that I can have the loaves in the oven by 4 or 5 pm, while I'm cooking dinner.

To see the original recipe in video format, click here.

For some tips on troubleshooting with sourdough bread, see this recent post.

Do you make your own bread? What type of bread do you make, and do you find it to be cost effective and worth the time?