Inflation
Evictions
Company coming
Making do for a roof over the head
Budgeting / Scheduling
Churches
Staying Warm
Soup & Cheap Recipes
Disappearing Grits
Getting ahead. In anything. Is that even possible at all? I knew we have just had and continue to have some summer. It is practicing for winter / fall with a little cooler break every now and then. Most gardens are done or winding up unless you planted a fall garden. Goodness, for folks canning and trying to grow every bite of food they can for their family with inflation it is non stop hustling. For me as a person that likes to bake there is also a baking season. In summer it is lemon flavors and fruit pies with zucchini recipes. Now I see everyone is starting to turn on the fall taste buds! I see recipes coming out for all kinds of pumpkin, apple pies, cookies, oatmeal. For the person that is trying to find all these perfect recipes it is ridiculously hard to keep up with the changing cooking seasons. I still have a list of summer recipes I would love to try!
This year once again we are being challenged as a family. These stupid politicians keep messing everyone up all over the world! What the H is wrong with them?! I see on the news a lot of people are going to be evicted from their homes for different reasons. Some may be laziness others hard working folks that no matter what they just can't keep up with rising prices of food, water, electric and yes even rent. I don't know how it's going for folks with bank loans. Even if the banks behave and not raise things up all the other needful things to live your daily life it will make it hard to pay the mortgage.
Be ready if it isn't already happening to your family. People are going to be moving in together to make ends meet. If they are lucky they will have a camper, mobile home, or even one of those small portable sheds to live in without moving into another families space. The stress factor is bad enough but living with other family members in their space can get explosive some days.
I know out here in the country just within a couple of miles we normally travel I see these changes. I noticed a mother in a wagon type auto moved in a portable shed to live in. It's a nice one but nothing fancy like windows or anything even, my living room is bigger. Is there water there? I'm not sure I didn't notice a electric line but I wasn't looking either. Then next door to us is 80 acres. They have had all kinds of trouble keeping the bills paid to the point everyone moved out. Sometime ago someone came in a stripped all the electric and anything else of value out. So no lights, no water or cooking available for sure. Yet I see someone parking kind of hidden way to the back of the house and looks like leaving to go to work somewhere. Down lower in the pasture a see a very small pull behind camper / trailer that someone may be living in. I hope the owners are just helping someone out and they aren't just sneaking in. Do you call the sheriff to have them check? I just figure they need a place to live the best they can and are struggling. So just leave well enough alone as long as they stay to themselves.
Try to think of all the things it takes to live so close to someone else. Make some general guidelines on such simple things as scheduling bathroom times. Who or when the laundry gets done. Budgeting is a huge thing. If 2 families are living together somebody is going to have to get personal and everyone talk about their individual families budget then see who can pay how much of what normal living bills there are or even if they can contribute at all. You have to know some folks may not have anything at all to pay forward after all they wouldn't be there if they had enough money.
Food and cooking. Hopefully "company" brought some food to contribute. So do they keep it separate from the group or everyone just mix it in to the general food supply.
There are so many things that can stress the whole group out. Talk about a unhappy circus! It may be easier if one family has any extra loot at all to get together with the other and look at the budgets to see if for instance a parent can afford to help the child or visa versa out so they can stay where they are instead of moving in together.
I would say turn to churches but that isn't working out very well either. I know in this very small town of Prague the attendance is so so low. After over 2 years of trying to keep everyone separated people have gotten out of the habit of going to or even helping with donations at churches. I know the tiny church Jon and Nikki got married in only has about 11 older people going. That same church about 6 years ago had all kinds of folks young and old with at least 30 or more attending. There is another church that should have at least 100 people attending and they are lucky to get 30 people. Once again they are the "old" folks. Some have died off naturally others maybe covid. These older folks attending don't have the income to donate anything pretty much to help other folks. I'm sure they are having a hard time even keeping their doors secure.
So gather up all the extra bedding and towels and other common generic things like soaps,etc. Get ready for the possibility of company coming for a extended stay. If your a prepper then you know you have to have way extra because things are terrible looking. That may be one of the requirements for your company to learn how to do.
I hope everyone is managing good enough this new season coming. Electric blankets could be handy so you can turn down thermostats when sleeping or even snuggle up to during the day. Old fashioned hot water bottles with a towel wrapped around them is great for keeping feet warm if you don't have someone to snuggle up to and stick them in their back. LOL! Maybe it's time to give the dog a bath and let him sleep on top of the bed this year?
Got good soup recipes? Soups are some of the easiest ways to make money stretch when feeding a family or a crowd. Martha Stewart usually has some pretty good recipes. Here is a link to 25 Delicious Soup Recipes You Can Make in 45 Minutes or Less
https://www.marthastewart.com/297026/quick-soup-recipes?
The Hillbilly Kitchen - Down Home Country Cooking is a really good youtube channel. She grew up poor, married a preacher man, had a large family and knows how to feed a crowd cheap. Look at her videos for some good ideas. She is a very very good teacher and anyone can use her recipes.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC547XA_zfSXKLaqe-GAiXCg
Would love to hear anyone elses ideas I can share with folks.
I am working on a few Christmas projects already. Simple but nice personalized family stuff.
Love
Ranchmama
( Who bought 30#'s of grits and can't find them anywhere?! How in the world can that much grits disappear? They were in freezer. I took them out and now nowhere to be found!!! LOL Pitiful !)
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