CPSIA and thrift stores... again?

A while back there were some toys from China that were found to have too much lead in them. The media went crazy because 1) people hate the Made in China label in the first place and 2) ingesting lead is bad, especially for children and infants/toddlers have a tendency to put anything they find in their mouth.

So, people wrote their congressmen (and women); a law was written (CPSIA) and passed; and as a result of that justified hysteria a whole host of things that are perfectly useful and will never find their way to a toddler's mouth are being thrown out. Even items that have acceptable levels of lead according to a limited testing will be thrown out because precious few can afford the more comprehensive and more expensive testing the government now requires. If they continue to sell or "distribute" (which includes just giving the items away) these items and they turn out to have lead in them that more comprehensive testing would have revealed, they could face large fines and even jail time.

Before 1985, the illustrations in children's books (the paper and cardboard kind) used lead. Therefore, because they are an item children use, all children's books printed before 1985 are suspect. This even applies to libraries. Why? Because libraries "distribute" books and CPSIA applies to all distributors.

Libraries, which had been given a year's stay, are unsure if they will be allowed to keep any children's books printed before 1985. Some have begun to quarantine books.

Even some thrift stores, which I thought had been made exempt, have decided to throw out pre-1985 "ordinary" children's books and any children's clothes that have metal parts as a way of avoiding future liability. It makes more financial sense to just throw the items away.

What's next? Seriously, what other insanity is going to come out of this law? I didn't think I would ever advocate anything political on this blog, but something needs to be done. So, write your local paper, call or send a letter/email to your congressman, find some way of stopping this insanity before we lose something more than some clothes and a part of our heritage.

How to Wash Dishes by Hand

I really love washing dishes by hand. It's faster and, if done right, gets dishes just as clean, sometimes cleaner, than a dishwasher. I strayed from washing by hand last year due to an illness. I mistakenly thought it would kill more germs if I washed the dishes in a dishwasher. However, we used twice as much water, the dishes didn't come out as clean, and we still got sick. So, I've gone back to washing by hand. I not only use less water, but the dishes are coming out cleaner and, I'm assuming, less germy.

Just in case you were like me and didn't grow up knowing how to wash dishes by hand (there really is a trick to it) here are the basics, based on my own experience.

1. Make sure your dish rack and washtubs (or sink) are clean.
2. Fill up one container (or side of your sink) with hot, soapy water. Soap needs vary; adjust to your own circumstances.
   
3. Put dirty, scraped dishes in the hot, soapy water to soak. In washing, start with cleaner dishes, like glasses, then plates and so on until you've gotten to the really dirty stuff. (If you're washing dishes for a lot of people it's very important to scrape as much food off them as you can since you'll be trying to stretch out this wash water for all the dishes).
4. Fill another container with HOT, clean water. It needs to be hot enough that you won't want to keep your hand in there for more than a few seconds, but not so hot that you'll burn yourself. (The heat is very important here. The water must be hot enough to evaporate within minutes after the dish has been lifted out of the rinse water. The goal is to avoid wiping the dishes after they've been washed.)
5. Some people use cloth to scrub dishes, but I like using an all-purpose brush. Whatever you use, make sure the tool is able to thoroughly clean the dish inside and out. Clean your glasses, plates, etc. leaving the cooking items, if they weren't washed as you cooked, for last. Experiment with baking soda, washing soda, or vinegar to clean pots and pans.
   
6. As you wash each dish, put it in the HOT water rinse. When the rinse tub is full, move those dishes to the dish rack. Once that is full, if you have more dishes to wash and rinse, go ahead and fill the rinse water again with dishes while the first batch dries. If your water is hot enough, they should be dry and ready to put away by the time you finish. (Addendum: If you decide to dry the dishes -- I do sometimes -- be sure to use a clean, fresh dish towel. Do not use any towel that doubles as a hand towel in the kitchen.)
   
7. After all the dishes have been washed and put away, clean your dish rack (I recommend a few tablespoons of vinegar and a couple teaspoons of borax diluted with a couple cups of water... I keep mine in a spray bottle) and scrub out your sink with some cleanser (I use baking soda).

This whole routine, even with a family of nine, doesn't take more than 10 minutes most nights. Special occasions do take a little longer but even then it only adds another 10 to 15 minutes. Part of this is because I try to minimize the amount of pots, pans, and bowls I use when putting a meal together. I also tend to clean as I go so that cleaning fuses with meal preparation.

Anyway, there you have it: how I do dishes.

Preparedness Principles: A Review

I found this book while shopping at a local bookstore. It was marked down to $5.99 from $26.99. I figured, why not? It's about preparedness and it's relatively cheap. Even if it only has one or two good things in it, it'll be worth the price.

It turned out to be a very, very good deal.

As a side note for those who would rather not be prepared or think preparedness means having food and water for three days, I strongly feel that preparedness is the heart of homemaking. All preparedness means is that you've thought ahead for your family. It's the same feeling behind making a will or starting a college fund for your child.

Anyway, on to the review: Preparedness Principles by Barbara Salsbury and Sandi Simmons (link provided so you'll know what the cover looks like).

Summary: A fantastic book both for those who have no idea where to start in getting prepared on a domestic level for the future as well as those who have been studying and practicing these things for several years. Covers several subjects and gets to the heart of the matter quickly.

Good stuff: First off, I love the focus of this book. Focusing on principles makes it much easier to plan specific responses tailored to your locale and family situation. That foundation makes everything else in the book flow along smoothly.

She divides crises into four categories: worst-case scenarios, provident living, dealing with disasters and emergency evacuation. The first two are long-term preparedness and the last two are short-term and the ones we usually think of when we think about preparing for disasters. She focuses first on the worst-case scenario and by doing so shows the importance of planning as well as diversifying our preparedness activities. Very well done.

I also like the emphasis given money and storage space right up front. To paraphrase, it's all well and good to have a year's supply of food but that's not going to pay the mortgage. Having a handle on finances also makes it much easier to know how much extra one can spend at the store to build up her Pantry Principle living.

In fact, that was really my favorite part of the book. Amy Dacyzyn mentions it as well in her Tightwad Gazette books as a way of dramatically lowering the grocery bill but Preparedness Principles integrates it into a long-term storage plan.

The information on crises was the best I've seen, especially regarding sanitation during a disaster. In fact, that chapter alone was worth the price I paid for the book. Honestly, I would have probably paid full price as long as she helped me figure out what to do about the toilet and diapers.

All of the information, by the way, is based on actual experience, unlike other books which shall go unnamed that seemed to be thrown together just to make a buck from interested folks (don't even get me started on those frustrating collections of paper).

And of course, my favorite chapter was How Can I Store a McDonald's In My Cupboard? :)

Not so good stuff: I'm sitting here looking through the book and I swear I can't find any. I wish she had mentioned other options other than soymilk for those with lactose intolerances, but that's about it.

This book is highly recommended for any and all homemakers.

Soil and organizing

We got the results back from our soil sample. We've seen some weeds that love soil low in nitrogen, so we weren't surprised when we saw next to no nitrogen on the results. Phosphorous needs to be added as well. It's good to know all this, especially now that we must get our first seeds out into the garden.

Already planted: broccoli seedling, two types of lettuce, and spinach. Sometime this week I need to plant the onions and celery. It's been such a mild winter that I'm thinking of planting some sunflowers next week instead of waiting for the average last frost date to pass by. We'll see.

I also plan on getting some containers going for ginger and peppermint. Not sure if I want to do the same with the comfrey.

Anyway, since I'm also focusing on organizing this spring, I thought I'd pass along this link regarding habits and organization. Enjoy.

Bulk Grains, part finale

Last time we talked about wheatgrass and other seedlings. BTW, did you know you if you plant leaf lettuce, you can pick off the young leaves as it grows and eat them? Your own baby lettuce leaves right at home.

I digress.

Today, I'm going to talk very briefly about using sprouts in cooking. Why would you use sprouts in cooking? Doesn't that kill the little things and destroy their goodness? Well, if you use a low enough heat, you can still retain many of the benefits of sprouts and yet manage to make them delicious. Or you can cook them as usual (with less water perhaps) and manage to get quite a bit of goodness out of them due to the chemical changes that occur through sprouting. There are many different ways to use them, even in things like muffins and pancakes, without a grinder. I will admit, though, that if you want to use them like that, you'll need a blender.

Now for the different ways of using them.

It's incredibly easy to use sprouts in soups. Just chop them up (if necessary) and sprinkle them in. I've found they work best when added at the end. In fact, I'll often omit the grain the recipe calls for and substitute sprouts.

They can also be low-heated by themselves. For example, take some wheat that's been sprouted for about a day and bring to a boil in an equal amount of water. Cover, turn the heat off and let sit in a very well insulated place to retain heat. When most of the wheat has burst (you'll know it when you see it) it's ready. We've found a double boiler works really well if you want to just keep cooking it at a low heat (think steaming, not simmering and you should get the temperature just right). Or you can put it the sprouted wheat in a thermos with boiling water and let it sit overnight. That should do it. Even most crock pots on a low setting will cook it without killing too much of the good stuff (ours doesn't but that's another story).

As for seasonings... we've used bouillions, broths, and bases (mostly vegetable); we've used cayenne for a "hot" cereal and we've also made almond milk and eaten it like a breakfast cereal. Let your imagination soar! I've even used it to make a pilaf by cutting up an onion, sauteeing the onion and wheat with some garlic and any other seasonings in about 2 T of olive oil, adding broth and cooking it at a very gentle simmer until it absorbs the liquid. I got the idea from Making the Best of Basics which has some pretty good ideas for whole grains (works best as a pantry planner though).

If you have a blender and really want to try out some wonderful recipes with your sprouted grain, I highly recommend Sue Gregg's and Traci Sellers' recipes books (links go to their websites). The recipe I'm about to give you now is my absolute favorite pancake recipe (and is used with permission from Traci Sellers). All the other pancake recipes we knew, I had a horrible time with mucus afterward. Pancakes became a no-no every time we came down with colds. We've also found Traci's recipe treats the kids' tummies much better than regular pancakes.

You need:

• 1 1/2 cups minimally sprouted grain (I, Mrs. V., use stuff that's been sprouted about a day) (we use hard red wheat just because we have a lot of it... you can use other kinds... buckwheat makes it look like you added eggs)
• 1 cup water
• 1 T extra virgin olive oil (I swear I can't taste it at all in this recipe)
• 1/2 t sea salt (optional)
• 2 t baking powder

Here are the instructions as written in her recipe book (note: this recipe can also be used to make waffles):

1. Preheat griddle or waffle iron
2. Blend the first 4 ingredients on high until smooth. Add baking powder while still blending and shut off blender. Batter should begin to fluff, do not re-blend if using a Belgian waffle iron.
3. Pour onto preheated non-stick griddle or into waffle iron that has been sprayed with non-stick olive oil spray (Mrs. V: we just use straight olive oil). Cook until bubbles cover one side and then flip for pancakes, or until steam stops escaping iron for waffles (this may take longer than traditional waffles, usually 2 cycles.)

Hint: If cakes or waffles come out too heavy, add a little more water to the batter.

~@~ End recipe

I also highly recommend Traci Seller's recipe book if you're into health food at all. She bases her recipes on Dr. Christopher's mucusless diet, something that has helped us a lot during illnesses, not to mention with overall general health. If you check out her website you'll find a lot more wonderful recipes, including muffins, desserts and main dishes using grain and legume goodness (not to mention nuts and salads and I'd better stop now before this post becomes too long). We've been using her recipe book for some time now in our attempt to eat better and it has made an enormous difference in our health... mostly because it makes healthy eating delicious! :)

I know I'm gushing, but dang it, I love her recipes.

Oh, and one final thing before I end this series. Once, my husband was canning wheat and one of the guys with him was, in his own words, a "farmboy". My husband said he was hungry and the farmboy told him to take a small amount of wheat and put it in his mouth. After letting it sit for a few minutes, my husband was surprised to find it was soft enough to chew. I swear this really happened, though I've got too many mental blocks to doing that myself. But, if worse comes to worse, that's another way of cooking your wheat. :)

I think that's about it for now. I hope you've enjoyed this trip through using grains without a grinder. Enjoy.

Clean and Green: a review

I've been wanting to write this review ever since I was in the store last week and saw a book by a well-known environmentally-friendly cleaning solution company. I flipped through it and realized very quickly that most of the book seemed to be fluff. Oh, there was some good stuff in there, but mostly it was the why and not the how. I guess they figured if they put their name on a book the people were more than likely going to buy their product instead of making their own at home.

Because this was so different from my experience with environmentalism during the nineties, I thought a review of a good source might be helpful.

Clean and Green is, in essence, a recipe book about cleaning by Annie Berthold-Bond. According to the introduction, she first started experimenting with nontoxic solutions when her health demanded she stay away from commercial cleaners. They made her sick enough she couldn't touch them. It wasn't until later that she realized the environmental impact, and personally, I think that was all for the better because I feel it gives the book a much-needed pragmatic outlook.

The first chapter is the best in that it briefly explains the difference between chemical and "green" cleaning, the dangers inherent in many chemical cleaners, and the basic tools and products you'll need to make your own cleaners. I enjoyed the clarity of the information, though I'm sure some will feel it was too brief on the evils of chemicals. I have a few chemical-sensitive people in my home so I really don't need that much convincing.

The rest of the book is devoted to the recipes and it is extremely thorough. This is a book written by someone who seems to have tried just about everything. She includes "green" products when listing cleaners, but it's the recipes that make up the meat of the book and that make it shine (pun intended). Nowadays there are only one or two key items that might take either mail/online ordering or requesting a store carry an item. Washing soda* happens to be one of those. Thankfully, my local Kroger carries it.

I've used all the basic recipes and a few of the not so basic ones. They work really well, especially the all-purpose cleaners. The money you'll save from just one of those all-purpose cleaners alone will make up for the money spent buying the book in a month or two. (If you have a smaller family than mine it might take longer ;) She even has a recipe for car wax and cleaning oil stains from pavement (haven't tried that one yet but it intrigues me).

In fact, the only section that has disappointed me so far is the laundry section. She mostly gives recommendations for various commercial laundry soaps instead of explaining how to make your own.

The book is old, so the mail order information at the end might be worthless by now. From what I saw many of those companies are still around though perhaps not with the same contact info.

Summary: If you want to truly save money on cleaning supplies, this is the book for the job. Even the initial cost is not as much as one would think and your life will change for the better. I have no chemical sensitivities and yet I've found that by limiting the amount of chemicals in my life I can clearly tell now when they're being used.

*Washing soda is not baking soda. The name sounds similar but the action is very different. Washing soda is a great grease cutter and is slightly caustic (I recommend gloves... trust me). It is also one half of the amazing stain lifter Oxi-Clean, the other being a powdered form of hydrogen peroxide. If my info is correct, that is.

Spring is almost here!

I can feel it in the wind and in the increasing storms. :)

I've sent off my soil sample to the appropriate location -- well, technically my husband did but I was the one who collected the sample so maybe I should say "we"? Maybe so. We have sent off our soil sample. We are looking forward to the results.

However, I still have to get the lettuce and onions planted this week. I'll have to look at my gardening journal to see what else needs to go in the ground (spinach maybe?). It's pretty crucial here in Texas to start them now so they won't wither and die in the summer sun. I think I'm too late for snapdragons. We'll see.

I've been reading the companion book for Frontier House, a series on PBS that tossed three families into 1880s Montana homesteading. The book has some amazing information that's helped me in my homemaking. Last year, when I was trying to garden, I was also trying to sew, and finish up (later prep) for homeschooling, and a whole host of other things. One of the things that stood out at me was the rhythm of these items, seasonally. Here's what I gathered from what I read that applies to my situation

• Spring: a time of planting/sowing, deep cleaning and organizing (including emergency supplies), time to wrap up items left over from winter.
  
• Summer: lots of time spent in the garden weeding and caring for it (not to mention yardwork).
• Fall: time to preserve (this has probably kind of been going on all summer but this is the final push before winter), time to make sure the emergency plans and supplies are in place, fixing up and organizing house/yard for winter, time to wind down and focus on schooling the kids.
• Winter: Time to focus on school and sewing (most of the sewing will be done during this time period). Winter, in general, seems to be a time of turning inward as this is when there's time to make plans for the next year.

I like that schedule. It looks much more balanced than last year. We'll see if it saves me time and sanity in 2009.