Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Low Salt Foods

Low Salt Foods:

'via Blog this'

TIPS ON REDUCING SODIUM -
Avoid Foods High in Sodium

The following foods usually contain large amounts of sodium. Try
 to avoid or consume only
 small quantities. See Low Salt Products for lower sodium alternatives.
  • Bakery items — bagels, artisan breads, donuts and pastries
  • Canned foods — soups, meats, fish, sauerkraut, beans and
  •  vegetables
  • Convenience items — frozen dinners, pizza, cereals and
  •  packaged mixes
  •  (such as pancakes, food “helpers,” stuffing and rice dishes)
  • Dairy products — cheese and cottage cheese
  • Deli items — bacon, luncheon meats, corned beef, 
  • smoked meats or fish,
  •  sausage, sardines, anchovies and mayonnaise-based salads
  •  (like coleslaw 
  • and potato salad)
  • Snack foods — crackers, chips and dips
  • Condiments — Dijon mustard, ketchup, mayonnaise, salad 
  • dressings, pickles,
  •  olives, capers and salsa
  • Sauces — gravy, barbecue, pasta, teriyaki and soy sauces
  • Baking needs — self-rising flour, baking and biscuit mixes,
  •  bouillon cubes, batter and coating mixes, packaged
  •  seasoning mixes,
  •  breadcrumbs, corn syrup, cooking wines, meat tenderizers,
  •  monosodium glutamate (MSG), baking powder and
  •  baking soda
  • Beverages — tomato and vegetable juices, Bloody Mary
  •  and chocolate drink mixes

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

From Dear Lissy




Keep in mind that for most women crying demonstrates anger or frustration more than true sorrow.  It's the male equivalent of a good left hook.

Growing Lawrence

Growing Lawrence:

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Eat Wild - Kansas

Eat Wild - Kansas:

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Red clover is in season: Foraging and medicinal use - Kansas City Alternative Medicine | Examiner.com

Red clover is in season: Foraging and medicinal use - Kansas City Alternative Medicine | Examiner.com:

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Natural treatment for seasonal allergies - Kansas City Alternative Medicine | Examiner.com

Natural treatment for seasonal allergies - Kansas City Alternative Medicine | Examiner.com:

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Biking 101: How to find great bike trails in Kansas City - Kansas City Alternative Medicine | Examiner.com

Biking 101: How to find great bike trails in Kansas City - Kansas City Alternative Medicine | Examiner.com:

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Foods that prevent colds and flu - Kansas City Alternative Medicine | Examiner.com

Foods that prevent colds and flu - Kansas City Alternative Medicine | Examiner.com:

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Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Ten little known ways to save money when building your survival food storage stockpile

Great article at The Survivalist Blog - click on title to read the entire article.



1) Coupons. At Walgreens and CVS you can get stuff for free practically every week… vitamins, body wash, hair clips, razors, toothpaste, toothbrushes, mouthwash. You pay out-of-pocket, then they give you rewards dollars to use next time, and you keep rolling them.


Walgreens also has store coupons in their circulars for cheap food pretty much all the time. If there is a BOGO sale and you have a BOGO coupon, you get both items free. Search the internet. I use SouthernSavers.com and they list all the deals and coupons for you.


If nothing else, think of these as potential barter items, but the vitamins are definitely a good item to keep on hand when you’re not getting the nutrition you should and your stress level is through the roof. To me, Wags and CVS trips are fun. I go in and get over $200 retail value, pay maybe $20, and get $15 back to spend next time… that’s pretty typical and it doesn’t include rebates that some manufacturers offer.


2) Clearance Aisles – My grocery store has a clearance section where (for example) I’ve been finding cans of pinto beans for 20-cents, and they aren’t close to their expiration date nor are they damaged, they just aren’t selling or maybe the brand shut that line down. Even outside the clearance aisle they have bags of beans for 99-cents every day. Throw a bag in your cart each time you shop. (and find some recipes to make them taste good or you’ll hate yourself after the first week… did you know they have pinto bean pie??? It actually sounds good.)


3) Amazon Subscribe & Save - I ran across this when I was looking for healthy, portable, food that doesn’t require refrigeration for my husband who is currently in Afghanistan, plus I also realized that I could keep some on hand for hurricane season.


You subscribe to their shipment service and get a 15% discount, shipping is free, plus they ship your order automatically in 1, 2, 3 or 6 months increments that you choose. They notify you prior to shipment and you can cancel one shipment or all shipments.


This is not a Guthy-Renker kind of cancellation, you do it on their website, it’s automatic, no one hassles you – it’s GREAT!!! I buy pouches of applesauce (baby food, but hey… it’s good), dried fruit, shelf stable sandwiches, etc. On occasion they even offer additional coupons to entice you in; if it’s something you would have bought anyway, that’s a great deal!


4) eFoods Global - They will send you three free entrees of your choice. You have to watch a video that tries very hard to get you to become a distributor… do as you wish, I ignored it. During the video they have a few poll-type questions, answer however you choose.


After that you select your entrees and pay $10 for S+H, and they deliver it to your house. I got one followup email asking if I’d tried it yet and what I thought, but after that no contact, no hassle. I didn’t give them my real phone number, so I can’t say if they tried to call or not, but I doubt it.


I was hesitant to pay the S+H, but my husband thought it was reasonable, and after the box arrived it did seem to be… the bags were larger than I expected and the weight of them probably did justify the cost. They look delicious (I am not a distributor).


5) Thrive Foods – This site has pouches available so you aren’t investing in #10 cans unless you want to / need to (but they do have #10 cans). They also have interesting items like freeze-dried shortening, powdered eggs and freeze-dried butter. Hell, I want it just because every time I buy shortening it goes bad before I use it, and since I married a Cajun… I need to learn to cook gumbo. They also have a “Q” where you set a monthly budget, add the items you’re interested in, and they will automatically group and ship the items to you. (also not a distributor)


6) Coleman Camping Meals – If you don’t want to order anything online, these are available at Target in the camping section and are probably also available at other places where they sell camping equipment. My husband said the cheesy pasta was really good.


7) The fish aisle (for if it REALLY gets bad) – I never knew this, but fish use antibiotics, and you don’t need a prescription to get them. Farm supply stores carry them as well. I hope never to need them, but if I do, I have them. Amazon.com has several suppliers of amoxicillin, tetracycline, doxycycline, erythromycin, penicillin, etc. I saw some at PetSmart, but it was in powder form (not a capsule) so I passed on that.


You shouldn’t use antibiotics if you don’t have to, and until it gets to the point that there is no doctor to prescribe them to me I have no intentions of ever using them, but it makes me feel better to know they’re there. That said, you need to know how to use them, so you will also need some sort of PDR or nursing book, I found an AARP guide to pills at my local used bookseller for $10. Raw garlic also has antibiotic properties if you want to go that route instead. Google it and the info is out there.


8) Clove oil – Good for toothaches. Lavender oil – a topical disinfectant, also repels fleas. Cedar oil – magic against bugs and safe for humans and pets, young and old.


9) Church of Latter Day Saints – I don’t care if you’re Mormon or not, and neither do they. They offer #10 cans of several pantry staples at less than a lot of the emergency food type websites. They also have a starter kit that I ordered once. There is no followup contact, they slip a pamphlet in the box and they’re done:


10) Bath & Body Works – Believe it or not… They regularly have 5 for $15 or 7 for $20 antibacterial soap sales, especially around Christmas time. It’s an inexpensive way to stock up on soap, and not just soap, but soap that smells like heaven. I’m not just saying that because I’m a woman, I think that when things get bad you need a little normalcy in your life and things that make you feel good… treats if you will.


That said, I once had a nightmare that the SHTF and someone warned me that I shouldn’t go out there smelling all good when everyone around me stank or I’d stick out like a sore thumb; everyone would know I wasn’t suffering. Sometimes dreams can be very insightful… but blending in is another topic altogether… Smile


What you stock up on and in what quantities is up to you. The trick is not to concentrate on just one aspect of prepping, or to get bogged down by the enormity of the task.


Start with what is most immediately possible where you live… on the west coast that’s earthquakes, on the gulf coast it’s hurricanes, in the north it is snowstorms. Branch out from there and tailor it to your needs. Little by little you’ll start to build up a stash that will give you piece of mind.


Please share your ideas in the comments below…


Originally at: The Survivalist Blog dot Net -Copyright © 2011 · M.D. Creekmore · All Rights Reserved

Friday, September 2, 2011

Quick Bathroom Redo

Quick Bathroom Redo: I can't believe I forgot to post pictures of the
bathroom after I painted the cabinets.
I did forget to take before pictures though...errr.
I hate when I do that. : )
Well...just picture yucky oak builders grade
cabinets with no handles.
Now, let me make it known that
not all oak cabinets are created equal.
My parents actually have some pretty oak cabinets.
Mine were not so lovely.
After the kitchen redo,
I was kind of hankering to redo the bathrooms.
Enter tons of snow and plenty of free time.
We had a little break in the snow and ran to
Wal-Mart before the next snow came in.
I grabbed these supplies and got started that night.
I wanted to do them a little differently than the
kitchen cabinets, and try to avoid all of the sanding,
so I thought I would give some new products a try:

-TSP alternative
-stripping pads

VERDICT: I love this method!
It was the easiest pre-paint prep ever!
It totally stripped the surface!Step one: wash with the TSP alternative
Step two: scrub like crazy with the stripping pads
Step three: wash them off and dry them....Prep done!
No shiny...just matte and ready to paint. : )
Then I just painted them.
It's important to take your time with this.
1. The first night, I did two coats on the back sides of the
cabinets, the faux drawers and the main bathroom cabinet.
2. The next day, after plenty of drying time,
I turned the cabinets over & painted that side
--again two coats. Let dry.
3. Later that night I distressed the edges of the cabinets
using my handy dandy nail file method and
asked my sweet husband to drill holes and attach
the knobs for me and rehang them.
4. We left the cabinets open to allow them more drying
time over night...just to be sure. : )
Yea! So much better! I also painted the little book holder
that you can see in the above picture. It used have a little
palm tree on it that I had painted to match our other bathroom.I used a little white paint and then distressed it with some black paint.