With everyone home for the holidays you can probably only begin to imagine how much food we have to hunt, gather, and prepare for consumption on a daily basis. Having 6 kids and 2 adults in the house is kind of like preparing a Thanksgiving dinner three times a day, every day – for the rest of your life.

It can become a bit much. Which is what led to Marc’s hash recipe that has quickly become one of our favorite lunches.

Marc sautéed some (lots of) onions in olive oil, then he browned a tube of Jimmy Dean sausage broken up into bits. (apparently the secret ingredient is that it MUST be Jimmy Dean’s) Once the sausage was cooked, it was removed from the pan and frozen hashed brown potatoes were added (the loose kind, not the ones in pre-formed bricks) and cooked until brown and crispy.  

After the potatoes were cooked, they were added to the meat and onions, placed on the table and the dinner bell was rung.

It certainly smelled good enough but when we got to the table and saw what was for lunch, a few of us wrinkled our noses. It was lumpy and white and brown. It didn’t exactly look like something that we would want to eat.

Seriously, does this look appetizing to you?

Um, Marc – it looks like something they would serve in a third world country, I told him.

But as firm believers in waste not, want not and knowing full well that there were indeed people in the third world who were literally dying for a meal like this, we reluctantly tried it.

We had a bowl full.

Then we had another.

Then we all fought for the remains.

Griffin hunkering down with Dad's Thrid World Hash

And with that experience, Dad’s Third World Hash was born. It may not be the prettiest food but it sure is tasty and for very little money, you can apparently feed this entire tribe of ours.

We’ve made it through the Holidays, no small feat when you have a tribe of kids. Santa managed to make everyone happy and mom and dad even got to read a book or two. We relaxed, we had food, we had guests, we had fun.

Now all we have to do is get through New Years… and this god-awful cold weather.

Each night we say a little prayer that this will not be the night that our chickens freeze their little beaks off. I mean I know that chickens are supposed to be hardy outdoor birds. I’ve read and been told this. I know this because it’s also my standard answer to the most often asked winter-chicken question.

What do you do with the chickens in the winter?

Chickens are supposed to be outdoor birds, I reply. They’re like the wild turkeys we have around town. Chickens were born with a natural down coat. Basically, you do nothing with chickens in the winter. They know how to survive on their own.

Except that we feel sorry for our semi-frozen birds and have made some provisions.

We keep a light on in the back. This is not for interrogation reasons, there will be no torture in our flock, instead it’s for the minimal amount of heat that we feel we should provide. We’ve been warned about over-heating our birds (which results in nothing less than SUNDAY DINNER) but a little bit of light on a cold and dreary night can’t possibly hurt.

We’ve also added warm food (which let’s face it, is ice cold by the time we get it to the coop but we try). All edible compost material (no meat or eggs thank you) goes out to the birds. A few days ago, Marc even mixed in a glass of un-drunk white wine to the mix and sent it out back.

Notice the cozy back-lit area of the coop

Not sure if that’s the kosher things to do with hens, but on a cold, windy night, perhaps that bit of wine came as a welcome respite warming the cockles of our little chicken’s souls.

Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Keep on being thrifty
Wendy Thomas

This is the last installment of the Simple Thrift series. The new year is coming, and with it comes hope for a stronger financial situation for all.

For those who have been readers of this column, please don’t think that thrift doesn’t live on. For some of us, thrift is not something we do as a result of world economies; thrift is something we do as a lifestyle. It’s what we’ve been taught. Thrift simply makes sense. Some of us believe that even when the money is flowing, it’s just not logical to spend it when you don’t need to.

Like Virginia being consoled about Santa Claus, thrift will always live on in all who believe.

Being thrifty is evident in mothers who have created ingenious solutions for their children, when they bake something from scratch or figure out how to stretch that 1 pound of beef into a meal that will feed the entire family.
Being thrifty can be seen in families who choose to use hand-me-downs, who read books out loud at night instead of going to the movies and who just say no to fast food.

Being thrifty also means experimenting and trying out new things that may be at first uncomfortable. As a result of creating different cost-saving recipes, we’ve learned a few valuable lessons. I’ve learned I can never add ricotta cheese to something called cowboy stew if you want your kids to eat it. We’ve also learned that zucchini can be used in a million different ways, and in some recipes, you can’t even tell it’s there.

When we were challenged with thrift problems, one of my children would always ask “what if?” initiating conversation that would ultimately lead to some creative solutions. What if we celebrated the arrival of spring by packing muffins and hot chocolate for a picnic to greet the sunrise? What if we made a Christmas gift from things we found in the woods? What if we turned off the TV and instead played a board game?

As a result of thinking in a creatively thrifty manner, we’ve had birthday parties that haven’t broken the bank, made handmade gifts that are more valuable than gold, learned the importance of portioning food and made ourselves wait before making the decision to buy something. And – oh, yeah – we’ve also learned about chickens.

This series has bought those chickens into our lives. We’ve met and continue to meet some of the most wonderful people because of our birds. We’ve gotten some amazing pets out of them, as well as some stories that will forever be retold at all future family gatherings. I’m also happy to report that we currently get about six eggs a day from our girls.

Whoever thinks that being thrifty is not fun clearly never had chickens.

Being thrifty is nothing to be ashamed of. You should never apologize for holding on to your hard-earned money, but you should be productive and resourceful while keeping it. My kids have learned to make do with what we have before we even think about buying something new. They’ve learned to reuse sneaker laces and to see new uses in old containers. They’ve also learned to pass on what we no longer need. They have learned to become good stewards of our money, as well as thoughtful, responsible members of their community.

I know the economy is still challenging. I know that many people are still without jobs and are facing difficult times. I’m not going to pretend that times are rosy. But I will tell you that with creativity and gratitude for what you already have, being thrifty can result in so much more than just saving pennies.

When the economy gets better (and it will), don’t forget the lessons learned. Continue to take good care of your families and to reach out to your neighbors. And for those of you with the space, think about getting some chickens. Your kids will love you for it.

Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Lose some weight, then donate it to a good cause
Wendy Thomas
Many of us are carrying extra weight. It’s tough to keep it off, especially at this time of year when so much of our holiday entertainment is centered around food. Add that to especially cold temperatures, and, well, it’s just easier to sit on the couch with hot chocolate than go outside for a brisk walk.
Not only is extra weight hard on our bodies (resulting in increased medical costs as we try to find ways to alleviate our aches and pains), but it also creates an increased cost on our food budget, as we have to buy the extra food needed to sustain the weight. Let’s face it: Extra weight on our bodies is just not a thrifty way to live.
The goal is then to lose the extra weight. It’s not easy, and often there is little incentive for us to pass on that chocolate cheesecake.
In a magazine, I recently saw a story about a woman who turned her weight loss into good for others. Weight Watchers has a program like this, as do a few other groups. It got me thinking.
I can do the same. Since last January, I’ve lost 22 pounds. I’ve had some ups and downs, but right now it stands at 22. At the end of the year, I’ll take my total weight lost for the year and will donate that weight in canned goods to a local food pantry.
Similarly, a friend of mine, Linda Lusby, of Indiana, told me about how she donated 75 pounds of food to her local food pantry through Weight Watchers. That food represented the 75 pounds she had lost from the beginning of the year until October. There were 13 (16-ounce) boxes of Cheerios to represent the 13 pounds she lost on her own before joining Weight Watchers, and 62 (16-ounce) jars of peanut butter, which represents the weight she lost while on the program.
That’s nothing short of an impressive accomplishment on her part, and the fact that she was able to do good as a result makes it just that more admirable.
A big part of living a thrifty life is sharing what you have with others. That’s especially important to remember at this time of year.

More eggs
You know that expression “be careful what you wish for”? Well, we are currently getting around six eggs a day, and the number will be increasing as our birds age into laying.
We are becoming very good at figuring out how to use eggs in our recipes. In fact, all of my kids are becoming quite adept at independently making some pretty mean scrambled eggs.
SCRAMBLED EGGS THAT EVEN KIDS WILL EAT
½ chopped onion
2 eggs per person, mixed in a bowl with a fork
A healthy pinch of shredded cheddar cheese
Splash of olive oil
Pepper to taste
Using medium-high heat, saute the onions in the olive oil.
Add the eggs, and start scrambling.
When the eggs are somewhat dry, add the cheddar cheese, and continue cooking until cheese has melted.
Serve with pepper.

With this basic recipe, my kids have also added different cheeses, leftover vegetables and even chopped-up meats.
Who knew that having chickens would result in my kids learning how to cook for themselves?

Our chicken coop has Christmas lights on it.

A bit 'o Holiday cheer

Now ask me if our house (as in where we live) has Christmas lights on it?

The answer is no.

The chickens not only have lights, but they have a red bow on the door and an evergreen wreath on the side. The kids are even planning on hanging a stocking out there to see if it gets filled on Christmas morning.

No, I told them, Santa has enough work tending to the children of the world, he’s not going to start throwing in presents for chickens.

There has also been some whispered talk of staying up until mid-night on Christmas Eve to see if the chickens talk. “There were chickens when Jesus was born right?”

You know, in all the nativity sets I’ve ever seen, there have been cows, lambs, and even a camel or two but I have never seen a chicken. I believe that chickens were originally at the stable (why wouldn’t they be right? Even people back then enjoyed a good scrambled egg or two) but when the roosters among them (and surely there were roosters as the venerable job of Chicken Sexer had yet to be invented) started their incessant crowing at 5:30 am no doubt waking up the Christ child as well as the exhausted Mary, I’m guessing that they were all invited to the Christmas feast the next day – thus effectively removing them from the Christmas tableau.

And in case you were wondering, Marc and I will be the only ones up at mid-night on Christmas Eve, just as we always are (6 kids remember?) and although a chicken stocking won’t be filled, I might quietly go out at mid-night to listen and sprinkle some feed for the chicken’s Christmas breakfast. Because you just never know.

Title: The Power of Slow- 101 Ways to Save Time in Our 24/7 World

Author: Christine Louise Hohlbaum

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

ISBN: 978-0-312-57048-4

The Power of Slow – 101 Ways to Save Time in Our 24/7 World is like a breath of fresh air reminding us that it is sometimes okay to just sit back and relax.

Backed with insightful exercises, Hohlbaum first leads you to the realization that time and being busy may not be what you do but may have become what you are. Statements like “I don’t have time , I’m out of time, No time today, I’m sooo busy, and We’re going to be late” are examined to see the role of being busy takes in our lives and if we are truly happy by being constantly consumed by time.

Written as a series of 11 chapters that build on each other, concepts covered include: Ten Ways to Improve Your Relationship to Time, Ten Ways to Move Forward When Your Just Don’t Want To, and Ten Ways to Do What You Do Best So Others Can, Too. This handy book not only gives you exercises to recognize your adverse relationship with time but also gives you strategies on ways to cut back, slow down, and just say no.

The Power of Slow goes beyond simple time management and tries instead to get to the root of behavior and in some cases, addiction to the rush of being under a time crunch. In the section of learning the importance of saying no, you are prompted to ask yourself the following questions before you agree to yet another obligation:

1. Does the idea of saying yes to the project leave you breathless?
2. Does the project make your heart sing or sink?
3. If you are uncomfortable taking it on, locate the reasons for your discomfort. Are you fearful of tackling something new? Do you feel overwhelmed by the scope of the project?

The Power of Slow not only discusses slowing down and prioritizing your expenditure of energy, it also covers taking care of yourself so that you have the energy to expend. Under the topic of Protect the American Dream – Take a Nap, Hohlbaum states:

To quote Nancy Gibbs, “With too little sleep there are too few dreams.” How can you pursue the American Dream if you aren’t getting enough shut-eye to let that dream unfold? Sleep and fulfilled dreams go hand in hand.

With simple and precise logic Hohlbaum leads us through a series of self-analysis exercises and questions that ultimately help us clearly see our relationship to time and identify what might be getting in the way of our getting things done.

Christine Louise Hohlbaum is a public relations professional, freelance writer, and the author of S.A.H.M. I Am and Diary of a Mother. She lives near Munich Germany, with her husband and two children.

Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Chicken eggs are coming, and more holiday ideas
Wendy Thomas

I haven’t talked about the chickens lately, but I have big news. We are starting to get eggs on a daily basis! The older girls have started laying, and the second younger batch of six should also be laying in the next few weeks. The eggs range from brown to light blue to green – proving that, indeed, there is such a thing as green eggs and ham.

We can positively identify two of the layers. Zelda, true to what her previous owner had told us, tends to lay double-yolked eggs. Her eggs are larger, and we need to avoid them in recipes where another yolk might be a problem. For your information, using a double-yolked egg in brownies may not be the best thing for your cholesterol, but it sure makes them extra “cakey.”

Squishy is the one who lays the brown eggs; this I know because I got a frantic call from my son one day telling me, “Mom, I saw the egg come out of Squishy. She was yelling, and then it just sort of popped out. How does that big thing come out of her like that? No wonder she was squawking.”

When I got home, he hugged me. “Mom,” he said, “do you know that you essentially popped out an egg like that six times? Wow.”

Yes, indeed, we are all still learning from our chickens.

Holiday memories
Here are some more holiday memories when money was tight that will warm your hearts.
n Every year, whether money was tight or not, my children and I made something homemade; even when they were teens, they still wanted to do it. We would buy plain Christmas balls and cover them with glitter, or at the craft stores, you can get little knickknack things and paint them. One year, we made Santas out of felt and walnuts still in the shell. Anyway, my mom and aunts still hang them on their trees each year. My children are now 25 and 29!
– SUSIE TAYLOR, Harpswell, Maine

Last year, I had $49 to my name. (I had savings, of course, but being retired, you never know how far they will go, and that’s for the future, anyway.) My day-to-day expenses left me with $49 until the end of the year. I had a thrifty year, because the economy took away the ability to withdraw from my savings, so it’s good that I ended in the black at all!
As a result, my grandchildren were the only recipients of gifts from me. I asked each one what they would like for a painting for their rooms. Kate chose horses galloping across a field, and Ben chose a soccer player scoring a goal.
– PAULA SUPER, Merrimack

There were many years my mother wouldn’t waste money on gift wrap and instead used the funny papers for wrapping presents. I’ve learned from her – my kids have been receiving gifts from Santa in the same recycled gift bags for years.
– GWEN MIKAILOV, Nashua

The adults in my family have, for a number of years now, decided that we can’t afford to buy presents for each other, and none of us really need anything anyway. (We’re not a well-off family, but we’ve also – knock on wood – been pretty lucky about staying employed and keeping roofs over our heads.)

So, one year we decided to start making gifts for each other rather than buying them. We make the same thing for everyone, so when the family gets together to celebrate Christmas, we all open, for example, my sister’s present at the same time, then my parents’ present, etc. That way, the surprise isn’t ruined for anyone else if one person opened the parents’ present while another opened sister’s. There have been some pretty imaginative and well-made gifts over the years.
The real concept is that a handmade gift is of far more value to us than a store-bought one. Of course, we each think our own handmade gift is the stupidest yet, so we ended up calling these our “Stupid Christmas Crafts.” I’m still working on mine for the year, and, yes, I think mine is the stupidest yet!
– JANE LAW, Concord

Black and White Strike Gold
Authors: Sandi Webster and Peggy McHale
Publisher: C2G Publishing
ISBN 13: 978-0-9842786-0-2

Black and White Strike Gold is like having a mentoring older sister in the business who willingly takes you by the hand to guide you through the oftentimes difficult business owners’ waters.

Sandi Webster and Peggy McHale, both laid off from American Express as an aftereffect of the events of September 11th combined their formidable corporate experience to create a new business: Consultants 2 Go in 2002.

It didn’t take long for both of them to realize that life as a business owner was a little more difficult than they had imagined. Each time they came across and solved a problem, they would jokingly say to each other “here’s another one for our book”. Black and White Strike Gold is the collection of all of those valuable lessons.

Written in a conversational tone, the lessons in this book detail many of the pitfalls they encountered during the first few years of their business. Topics covered include: There are No Friends in Business, Beware the Naysayers, and Networking 101: Ten nuggets for Entrepreneurs and Job Hunters.

What sets this book apart from many of the other business advice books is the way in which the authors work so well together. Each chapter is primarily authored by one writer while the second writer adds her thoughts at the end.

Another notable difference from other business books is the candor with which the authors present their information. The section on hiring people talks about not one but two mistakes they made in hiring people for their company. How refreshing to hear that even top business owners are human as well.

Filled with 52 bite sized lessons, Black and White Strike Gold is the type of book you want to keep around to constantly remind you not only of what can happen when you are a business owner but also of what you can do about it.

Sandi Webster is one of the principals of Consultants 2 Go. She has spent years advising clients on the latest trends and strategies in marketing. She has over 20 years of experience and has managed all facets of new product launches, created and executed national mail campaigns, website launches and telemarketing programs.

Peggy McHale is also a principal of Consultants 2 Go and is a marketing guru acquiring her extensive senior management experience starting in telecommunications at AT&T, and ending an impressive corporate career as a vice president at American Express. She has developed marketing campaigns with wireless companies, credit card issuers, banks, insurance firms, and deregulated energy companies.

Title: Mrs. Nosy – A Composting Story

Author and Illustrator: Lily A. Goldman

ISBN: 978-2-9811384-0-8 (English)

978-2-9811384-1-5 (French)

Mrs. Nosy – A Composting Story is a humorously delightful and beautifully illustrated story of the magic that can happen when one composts.

Mrs. Nosy is envious of her neighbor’s garden and when she is told it occurs through the help of a good fairy who sprinkles magic dust at night, she plots to stay awake and catch the fairy in the act. The neighbors have fun fooling Mrs. Nosy until they laughingly confess that the magic in the gardens enabling the flowers to grow so well is actually compost made from kitchen scraps.

Mrs. Nosy is a gentle, clever story that teaches youngsters about the value of composting and how it can be used to better everyone’s lives. The relationship between Mrs. Nosy and her neighbor’s daughter Sooz is charming and is one of mischievous respect for each other. At the end, Sooz willingly shares her compost “fairy magic” so that Mrs. Nosy’s garden could flourish.

The text is accompanied by beautiful brightly-hued and inventive watercolor illustrations depicting gardens in full bloom and the compost (complete with bugs, worms, and discarded apple cores). The final picture in the book depicting a young child skipping through the butterflies while a pair of hands embraces a flower is simply stunning.

Mrs. Nosy is a wonderful and charming book that introduces even the youngest readers to the magic of composting.

Lily A. Goldman is a Montreal artist and author, and book reviewer for children and adult books for www.bookpleasures.com. She was born in Egypt, lived in Paris for awhile and moved to Montreal many years ago. Her other books include: Kaliky and Jojo, A Greyhound Story, Nofret’s Magic Hair and the Lucky Scarab (about the discovery of hieroglyphs in Egypt), and Farmer Norm (another composting story).  Goldman has also illustrated The Potter and the Painted Lady by K. Frey.

Title: Fat Chance – Losing the Weight, Gaining My Worth

Author: Julie Hadden

Publisher: Guideposts

ISBN-13: 978-0-8249-4788-0

I loved this book! Fat Chance is so inspiring that it made even me forego eating that piece of chocolate cake and opt instead for lacing up my sneaks to go for a walk.

Julie Hadden, a cast member on Season 4 of The Biggest Loser television show, has written a memoir that transcends the all too usual “I had an exciting experience” memoir. Through the use of humor and a writer’s voice that just wants to invite you over for a cup of coffee, Hadden manages to tell her fat to thin story while at the same time impressing on us the important lessons she learned along the way.

Included in this well told story are humorous incidents, poignant realizations, and true insight into why she was so overweight to begin with. As an example one of her discussions is about how she has learned to pause before eating something she knows she shouldn’t and ask herself “what is it that you are really hungry for?” She realizes now that as a child, she was using food to fill the need of approval and acceptance.

You don’t have to be a Biggest Loser fan to enjoy this book because even those who know nothing of the show will still benefit from its inspiring and straight forward message. But if you are a fan, you’ll love the little bits of inside information she includes as asides in each chapter. For example, the large scale used at the weigh-ins is fake (gasp) and the contestants are weighed at a Dr.’s office earlier in the day. If it’s any consolation, they don’t know what their actual weights are until the taping segment at the scale.

Written in short, digestible chunks (pun intended) Fat Chance is a quickly paced read that will keep you turning the pages, not because you are wondering if she got thin (the answer is on the cover of the book, yes she did) but instead it keeps you wondering how is she going to cope and continue living a thin life where a fat woman once lived. The question “What is it that needs to change?” will keep you up reading this book late at night.

Without being heavy handed, Hadden gives her faith due credit for her surviving the show and for her continuing on, even in the face of birthday cake and tea parties. Her honest relationship with God comes across as sincere and not in the least bit preachy.

As an added bonus to this book, the appendixes include workout routines, glossary of terms, recipes of favorite foods, and a section on frequently asked questions.

Hadden claims that her single most important lesson she learned from being on the Biggest Loser is that she is worthy of living the life she was created for. Her enthusiasm and inspiring words leave you cheering her success while at the same time asking yourself if you are also living up to your own full potential as well.

Julie Hadden is a thirty-seven-year-old stay-at-home mom. She and her husband Mike, live in Jacksonville, Florida with their two sons.