Category: General

I invite you to watch this brief but intriguing documentary on the true cost and environmental implications of bottled water.

I never really stopped to consider the cost of bottled water.  I think we have been sold a bill of goods to believe that bottled water is more pure and safe than our tap water.  When I see a bottle of water in the store, I never considered see the enormous amount of oil, the landfill waste, and the exorbitant cost behind each bottle.

Stop and consider these chilling facts about bottled water:

• Up to 40 percent of bottled water is filtered tap water. In other words, if you’re concerned about what’s in your tap water, just cut out the middleman and buy a home water filter.

• Each year, according to the Pacific Institute’s Peter Gleick, making the plastic water bottles used in the U.S. takes enough oil and energy to fuel a million cars. And that doesn’t even include the fuel required to ship, fly or truck water across continents and state lines.

• Three-fourths of the half-a-billion plastic water bottles sold in the U.S. every week go to the landfill or to incinerators. It costs our cities more than $70 million to landfill water bottles alone each year, according to Corporate Accountability International.

• Bottled water is subject to fewer health regulations than tap water.

“(P)ause and consider the insanity of a global economy where 1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water while other people spend billions on a bottled product that’s no cleaner, harms people and the environment and costs up to 2,000 times the price of tap water.” Anne Leonard

As we know, tap water, which is more economical and environmentally friendly than plastic bottles, can still contain many contaminents unsafe for human consumption.

Consider an investment in a Multi-Pure,  home water filteration system.  It only costs 8 cents a gallon, doesn’t create any envirnomental hazards, and provides some of the safest and cleanest consumable water!  Multi-Pure offers many models for a variety of budgets. 

One of my favorite models is the Aqua-Dome!

Click here for additional information.

The Aqua Dome is a convenient counter-top model that filters up to 750 gallons for just $224.95.

My mom’s been using the Model 750 SB (stainless steel housing, under the counter mount) for 16 years.

Either way – both models filter the same number of contaminants, they are NSF certified, have a 90 day money back guarantee, and a lifetime warranty!

Check out my Multi-Pure Website!

The following is written by Guest Writer Jill Cooper

As a single mother of two, I started my own home business without any capital and paid off $35,000 debt in 5 years on $1,000 a month income.

I am often asked what are the top lessons I would give a family or even a single person who is dealing with a tight budget. Here are my top tips for living on a small income.

• Stop spending.
• Don’t think that using a credit card or getting a loan will make it better. Going into more debt will not help you get out of debt.
• Get rid of your pride. You may have to shop at garage sales for a while. You may not be able to have your kids in sports and you might have to say no to friends when they want you to go to an expensive restaurant. Pride is a sin. God didn’t kick the angels out of heaven because they murdered someone or were doing drugs, drinking or smoking but for pride.
• Stop worrying about what others think or whether or not you are making a good impression. We constantly tell our kids not to give in to peer pressure but we do it all the time. We Christians can be especially bad about worrying what other Christians are going to think of us. That is the same as when your kids worrying about their peers.
• Cut back on everything. You can save 50% on your grocery bill before you even go to the grocery store by simply exercising good portion control with your food. It is better for you, too. Go from a 30 minute shower to a 5 minute shower. Not only will you save on utilities, but your skin will thank you.
• This should be number one: tithe. Right now when others are panicking about their 401k’s or about what their stocks are doing, I don’t have a worry in the world. I have invested my money in Someone who has promised that no matter what happens in the world, including with finances, I and my children will be fed and taken care of. He has demonstrated His faithfulness over and over. To me, my tithe is the best savings a person can have.
• The real test of a person’s character occurs during hard times. Keep your integrity, be responsible and be trustworthy and honorable whether your situation is your fault or not, whether it is fair or unfair. Proverbs 22:1 says “A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.“

I once received a notice of foreclosure on my house. I had 2 weeks to come up with $35,000 and I couldn’t sell my house. I didn’t have $35. I wasn’t sure what to do. If I lost my house, my kids and I would literally be out on the streets. After a few moments of panic, I prayed and God told me what to do. One of the first things I did was to call the banker and tell him I wanted to start up our old business, which I knew nothing about and had no money for supplies, no customers and a limited market.

What loan officer do you think would say, “That’s great– forget the foreclosure and you don’t even need to make a payment until your business is up and running well”? None that I know of, but that is exactly what he said. We had banked there for a while and, because of that, he knew I always paid my bills (the foreclosure was because of my husband’s debts he incurred when we were separated).

The loan officer said “Jill, I know you and trust you to pay so I’m not worried.”         Everything God tells us to do is for a good reason and it is usually for our good. He wants us to have a good name because He knows at times when things hang in the balance, a person’s good name can tip the scale in the right direction.

• Don’t decide you are going to change your ways and then expect God to suddenly produce a miracle and make all of your debt go away. God loves you, but He is also a just God. He expects you to pull your weight and if you spent 5 years carelessly spending, you may have to work extra long and hard for 5 years to get yourself out of your mess.

It would be like telling my teenage son to clean his room. After a month goes by, he is out of clean clothes, can’t find anything and has been grounded by me for failing to do what I told him to do. He tells me how sorry he is, insists he’ll never do it again and repents all over the place, but he still has to clean his room, which is such a big mess it is going to take twice as much work.         I forgive, but he is perfectly capable of cleaning it himself, so he has to clean up his own mess.

Here’s something to think about:   In Matthew 6:24, the Bible says “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” We always think that this verse relates to having lots or money, that it only concerns the wealthy or those seeking wealth, but it can pertain to the poor and those in debt, too.   Be careful.

What controls your waking thoughts? God or money? What do you seek after more? God or a way to pay your debts? What do you talk about more with your family? God or how the bills are piling up “in these hard economic times”? Do you spend all of your money eating out, playing a game of golf, buying your kids sports uniforms and dance lessons and having your nails done or do you first tithe?

I have found most people give their money to whoever or whatever has their heart and soul. I don’t say these things to condemn you but to get you thinking, “Do I have things mixed up? Can I do something differently? Do I need to change something, even if it is something small?”   We guard our families in so many areas. Don’t let Satan sneak in the back door with this and destroy you, your family and your testimony.

Ed Note: As a single mother of two, Jill Cooper started her own home business without any capital and paid off $35,000 debt in 5 years on $1,000 a month income. Jill and her daughter Tawra Kellam are frugal living experts and the editors of http://www.LivingOnADime.com/.

Spinach-Mushroom Quiche

(This delicious recipe is Courtesy of A Simpler Time Bed and Breakfast, Paonia, Colorado)

2 -9- inch deep dish pie crusts, thawed (or use a Basic Pie Crust Recipe, below)
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 pound sliced fresh mushrooms
2 Tbsp olive oil
6 large farm fresh eggs, beaten
1/2 cup half and half
1- 8 – ounce container sour cream
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 cups packed, chopped fresh spinach
1/4 pound smoked mozzarella cheese
Sun dried tomato pieces, optional garnish

Preheat the oven to 425°F

Prick the sides and bottom of the crusts with a fork.  Bake crusts for 6 to 8 minutes.  Remove from the oven, and set aside on a wire rack to cool.  Reduce the oven temperature to 325°F.

Saute the onion and mushrooms in the olive oil in a medium skillet until tender.  Set aside to cool.

Combine the eggs, half and half, sour cream, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.  Fold in the spinach, cheese, and mushrooms.  Pour the mixture into the prepared pie crusts.

Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center of the pie comes out clean.  You may need to cover the edges of crust with foil part way through the baking process to prevent over browning.

Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing.

(Sharon and Scott Morley are the proprietors of this delightful Victorian B & B.   Sharon cut my hair for six years before embarking on this new career.)

Basic Pie Crust

6 Tbsp cold  butter, cut into small pieces

1 1/2 Cups flour (freshly milled and packed pastry flour will work)

Approximately 4 Tbsp very cold water, milk, or buttermilk

In today’s Denver Post, the lead story opens saying:

“Denver-area authorities are embarking on $760 million worth of massive water-treatment projects, to convert substandard water into drinkable new supplies.

Water providers say they also increasingly are detecting new contaminants, such as pharmaceutical residues from birth-control pills, cosmetics and antidepressants, that they anticipate might have to be removed.”

I think the fact that Pharmaceutical residues found in municipal water sources would compel all families concerned about health as sufficient reason to invest in a high quality drinking water system as a high priority!   At the cost of 8 cents a gallon, this is a very economical, environmentally friendly and convenient,  way to protect the health of  the children and adults in your family when and if new municipal water treatment systems are constructed and on-line that address these concerns.

Theo Coborn, PhD, expert on Endocrine Disruptors, helped craft the following statement nearly 20 years ago on the seriousness of pharmaceutical contamination in water:

“Unless the environmental load of synthetic hormone disruptors is abated and controlled, large scale dysfunction at the population level is possible.”

Unfortunately, there is ample evidence that synthetic hormones are effecting the health of children at an alarming rate.  Watch the DVD The Male Predicament for more information.

At this time of year, I don’t really like to cook.  It’s hot, that makes me tired and I just don’t have the energy.  Truthfully I’m not that hungry anyway.

Chef  extraordinaire Dava Parr, owner of Fresh and Wyld Farmhouse Inn and Gardens, here in Paonia, offers simple tips to make those veggies extra lucious without a recipe.  Here are her simple seasonal recommendations for turnips, snow peas, baby beets,  radishes, onions, chard, and or kale:

• Turnips, Snow Peas and Radishes are very yummy to eat raw with one of your favorite salad dressings drizzled over them or with a little Dip made from some of your Chevre, Dill and a couple tablespoons of plain yogurt to thin it out.  (Chevre is goat milk cheese – Feta is a good substitute.)
• Your chard or kale is so good lightly sautéed with some Olive oil, garlic, salt, red Pepper and chopped nuts. Try a little Nutritional Yeast sprinkled over the top.
• Tender spring onions want to be cut in rings and then slowly sautéed in a little butter and salt to have a sweet treat alongside a piece of grilled Fish.
• Baby beets would like to be braised. That is a technique for starting the cooking process with a little liquid in the pan, and then finishing up with a little butter or oil. You can add a splash of Balsamic at the end as well, then serve them alongside a salad loaded with toasted walnuts and serve with grilled bread topped with Chevre.
• Shell Peas! Make a little White Basmati Rice and when your rice is cooked, add a handful of shelled peas, a Tablespoon of Butter, chopped Dill and a big handful of Grated Parmesan Cheese . Put the lid back on, till peas soften and butter and cheese melt. Give a little stir and top with Cracked Pepper!

I have lots of dill, snow peas, baby beets, and onions – so now I have a simple solution.  Hope you try it.

Continuing Education for Moms has returned as UrbanHomemaker Live Talk Radio.

Join authors Mary Clemens Meyer & Susanna Meyer as we talk about Saving the Seasons – How to Can, Freeze, or Dry Almost Anything.

You may listen to the Recorded Broadcast Now:

You will be inspired to get started with something you love, it’s simple with step-by-step instructions! Here’s some highlights from this workshop:

*How to get started with preserving fruits and vegetables
*Pros and Cons to the different preserving methods
*How to get your children involved and motivated.
*Free Download Links from the book courtesy of publisher, Herald Press Below

How to Start Canning

Step-by-Step to Canning Tomatoes

I love fresh produce, farmers markets, buying direct from the grower and developing a relationship with my local growers, taking advantage of low prices and high quality produce in season, preserving a portion of the abundance for later, and especially the atmosphere of the Market.  In  Urban areas, many families prioritize attending the local market on a weekly basis.

With a slow economy, savvy families are learning how to can, freeze, dry the bounty of the harvest in season to make ends meet and focus on developing the old-fashioned skills of food preservation.

URBANHOMEMAKER LIVE TODAY– June 24, 2010 – 2:00 ET, 1:00 CT, 12:00 MT, 11:00 PT

Guests: Mary Clemens Meyer & Susanna Meyer, Authors of Saving the Seasons – How to Can Freeze, or Dry Almost Anything

Today we will be talking about:
*  Suggestions for supporting the Local Food Movement
.* How to Can Freeze, or Dry Almost Anything
* Fermenting Fruits and Vegetables
* Making baby foods
* Making Herbed Vinegars
*  Involving the whole family in preserving the harvest
*  Advantages of each method of preservation
*  Getting Started with food preservation

I hope you will join our continuing education for moms, relax, listen in, get inspired, ask your questions, and tell your friends.

Please join Mary, Susanna, and  I, TODAY– Thursday, June 24, 2010 at UrbanHomemaker Live Radio at 2:00 ET.  (details follow)

How to Join the free Program:

1.  Go to Urbanhomemaker Live Radio Website at 2:00 ET (adjust for your timezone):

https://www.urbanhomemaker.com/productcart/pc/viewContent.asp?idpage=47&adminPreview=1
2.  Click on the arrow icon on the blue shield at the starting time at the website and listen in without making a phone call.

Or Call in:  Phone Number: (724) 444-7444
Call ID: 83314 – Then enter #1 as directed.

It’s really simple!

3.  Join in the chat while listening to the information.

The new “improved” Continuing Education for MOMS format has several new  features including:

*    You can listen to the show live on my website – no need to make long distance phone calls.
*     You can listen to the recording at your convenience,  if the scheduled time doesn’t work for you, there is no charge for recordings.
*     You can chat with others during the call and make some new, like-minded friends.
*     You can attend continuing education classes for moms from the comfort and convenience of your own home and computer.
*     You can tell others and invite them to join you.
*     The background noise is automatically muted out so no worries about crying babies or loud and boisterous households.
*     There will be live question and answer time at the conclusion of each show or workshop by using the chat feature.
*     There will always be free resource bonuses and coupon codes just for listening.

Please join Mary, Susanna, and  I, Today, June 24, 2010 at UrbanHomemaker Live Radio.  (details follow)

So mark your calendars, set your timers, tell your friends, and join me (adjust for your time zone.
Subscribe to From the Heart of The Urban Homemaker!

Ed Note:  I just became aware of an ecourse with a deadline coming up very soon (June 28th)  that I thought you should know about as I imagine that many of you would be interested in it. Please read the below from the author, Kimi Harris from, The Nourishing Gourmet.

Ever wonder how to stay on a budget while eating nourishing food? Feel overwhelmed, but want to learn how to shop and cook nourishing food while on a budget? My ecourse, A Peasant’s Feast: Nourishing Food on a Budget, is designed to give you a good foundation in knowing how to save money, shop for good quality food, and how to cook it. Enter the contest to win a complimentary ecourse ($120) value.

Kimi has an interesting story and journey of how she has come to know so much about real nourishing foods.   She writes:

My Background

My interest in cooking started with my first job working at a small local bakery and café. My interest in nutrition grew as I started my own family with my wonderful husband. My concerns about the environment developed as I learned about the devastation that some modern farming and agricultural practices have on our world.

I decided I wanted to eat less of the new fangeled foods of our society and return to a more traditional local diet. But with a husband going back to school, I knew I had to do it on a budget too.

I’ve spent the last two years cooking and blogging about eating well on a budget at thenourishinggourmet.com. I have also taught several cooking classes in my area, including one about eating nourishing food on a budget.

Through feedback from my readers I’ve come to realize that people want more help in this area. I’m a “real life mom” who has to balance my budget, time, and a desire to eat well. I’ve come a long way in learning how to make all of those coincide and I want to help you succeed in your desire to do the same.

A Few of the Things You Will Learn:

* How to balance your budget with nutritional food

* How to stretch one chicken into three meals

* What it really means to eat a nourishing diet

* Why I am not a vegetarian when beans are so cheap

* How to make one cup of leftover seafood stretch to feed 6 people

* The benefits of sprouting and soaking grains

* How to make your own salad dressings

* How to make homemade yogurt and sourdough bread

* How to make one pound of beef stretch to feed 6-8 people

* How to make delicious fruit based desserts

* Meal Planning Basics

* How to make chicken stock

* What a typical weekly menu of nourishing frugal food could look like

* How to save money on quality food and where to shop

* The difference between organic, free range, grass fed and vegetarian raised meats

* How to save money on legumes and grains

To sign up for the ecourse ($120), click here. To use the payment plan (broken into three monthly $40 payments), click here.

The Ecourse

The 13 week ecourse, starts on June 28th,  will give you a bite-sized amount of information every week in the form of topical articles, cooking demonstration videos, and shopping guides.  I will give you tips on where to buy quality food for less, demonstrate cooking methods that both boost the nutritional value of your food and stretch expensive meat, and explain in more detail traditional cooking practices.

Enter the contest to win a complimentary ecourse ($120) value.

Disclosure:  I am an affiliate and make a very small commission.?

Authors Mary Clemens Meyer & Susanna Meyer will be my guests on Thursday, June 24, 2010 at 12:00 MDT.
They are authors of Saving the Seasons – How to Can, Freeze, or Dry Almost Anything.

During our Live broadcast we will be talking about:

• *All the reasons to eat locally.
• *Locking in all the nutritional benefits
• *Filling Your Cupboards with chemical and preservative free foods
• *Growing your own food.
• *What to do if you don’t have a garden.
• *How to get started with preserving fruits and vegetables.
• *Much Much More!

Herald Press has generously provided download links to very helpful charts and information straight from their new book:

How to Start Canning

Step-by-Step to Canning Tomatoes

Last week, my friend Kelly, from kellythekitchenkop.com wrote in her blog post:
“You can probably relate to that bittersweet feeling that you get when summer is here.  It’s nice having the kids around more…  But yet the bickering and constant interruptions when I try to get work done can be tricky.  Do you have some good summer parenting strategies to share?

Here is my answer to Kelly, myself, and other moms who want to plan a productive, harmonious, memorable summer vacation:

Although, I think moms and kids look forward to school being out as they look forward to a more flexible schedule,  I quickly learned as a home school mom, that bored children without a schedule will start bickering and fighting and basically destroying the peace of the household if I allow it.

1.   I learned to  pray ahead of time and consult with my husband on some activities the children could look forward to (so could I such as camp, VBS, swim lessons, etc), plus I had a rule – no get-together’s with friends and neighbors in the mornings.

2.  I wasn’t rigid, but I found – the schedule would be shot if I didn’t do this.  Once neighbor kids come in – your kids forget about their responsibilities and think its all about them, and then the other kids get jealous and it de-generates from there.

3.  Generally speaking – each child needs some sort of schedule so they know what is expected of them and when.  Will they follow it perfectly?  Will you follow-up and check up on them perfectly ?   Well the answer is probably no, so we must be flexible.  But if we fail to plan we plan to fail.

A schedule – loosely put together is absolutely imperative that changes every half hour to hour, especially for younger children.

Time to get up and dress, time for breakfast, breakfast clean-up, morning chores – beds made, pick -up  (sweep/mop floors/vacuum) – laundry, dusting, etc.  Dinner prep.  Take a walk – out door activity – play with pets/j ride bikes, etc – listen to tapes, video time, game time/play time/ park time, skill time – work on projects such as sewing or woodworking.  These are just ideas I have.

One mom I know who lives in a hot climate has playtime before chores, because children do not like to get outside in the heat of the day.  When they come in, their responsibilities await them.

Older children are responsible for younger children to keep them on task.  Take a morning break with the children so they feel a connection with you.

5. In hot climates you might make outdoor play the first ativity, and all the chores and inside work for later in the morning during the hot part of the day.  I always require some quiet time in the afternoon whether they are nappers or not.

6.  Make sure kids know that if they start fighting/bickering/etc that they will be sent to their rooms and loose privileges for the rest of the day such as the computer – whatever works.

7.  Get an early start on your day.  I have a friend who gets up at 4:00 or 5:00 am and starts working.  She gets in about 3 hours before the family is up – wish I had tried that – napped with kids etc.

Anyway – a schedule, clear expectations and consequences is a must for getting started.

Please share with us what you do with your children during the summer to keep them on task!