When we moved to Spokane, the movers couldn’t believe how many boxes of books we had. They said they had never moved another household with as many books as our family had! In my mind, that’s a good thing.
A few people asked what I was going to do with the advent mini-socks. I plan to crochet them onto a chain and then hang them across our slide-out in the RV. Maybe someday I will have a fireplace mantle again to hang them on. I wanted to put numbers on them somehow, but I’m not sure how to do that. Do you have any ideas? I thought about just sewing the numbers with white yarn. And then I thought about buying numbered buttons to sew on, but I haven’t had luck finding any yet. Jenny has kindly offered to fill the socks with little things. I’m going to give her the money and she’s going to fill them so I can be surprised every day! She offered to do this for me. Isn’t she the sweetest best friend?
Alicia called me about an hour ago. Apparently all four of them have Covid. Their neighbor has it and the kids were at their house playing at the end of last week. This other family rarely leaves the mountain either and they were in each other’s “bubble,” but the neighbor had to go to Idaho last week. So far they seem to have mild cases. All have fevers and are achy and Alicia has lost her sense of taste and smell. If you would pray for them I would appreciate it. They sure mean a lot to Dennis and I and I hate to think of them sick.
Jenny also called me this evening and said that she and Neal were both tested today too. She has a cough and so needs to be tested before she can go back to work. She is the person who trains the caregivers for an in-home elder care company. She can’t be around them if she’s sick, so they have to make sure it’s not Covid. She thinks it’s just a sinus drainage thing and I sure hope so too.
It seems it’s getting harder and harder to not have contact with someone who has Covid, so many people are sick. I guess all we can do is the best we can do, right?
My big project today was organizing all of the food that I brought into the trailer when we moved in. It was such a rush to move and I basically just threw everything anywhere it would fit. I wanted to have things more organized where like items were together. I had started stocking up a little bit at a time way back in January when Alex warned us of what was probably coming based on what was happening there. Nothing big like you saw some people on the news. I would just buy a few extra cans of vegetables or fruit or beans, etc., every time I went to the store throughout the spring and early summer. We had a nice little stockpile going on. Nothing huge, but it would keep us going for quite awhile if stores ran out of things. Then we moved into the camper. Whoa! Where was I going to put all of this food? Well there’s an empty spot under the sofa where you usually keep blankets. I have lots of canned goods there. From the two blue lids (peanut butter,) to the right, is a double layer of canned goods. ⬇️ I wrote on the top of every can what was inside. That way I can see at a glance without having to shuffle through them all.
This doesn’t even begin to count what I have in the pantry and in the big closet in our bedroom. There are over 100 cans of beans, fruit, soup and tomato sauce in the closet. I also have all of my baking supplies, and meats, rice, syrup, spices, salad dressing, and on and on stored in there. I would be willing to guess we could live a good six months on the food we have. Of course, when I was buying all of this we had no idea we would be living in an RV. I definitely will not be buying any staples in my grocery orders for quite awhile. The only things purchased will be fresh vegetables, dairy and meats. Re-organization took me most of the day today. I wrote down everything we had and how many cans, bags, boxes, etc., there were of each item. Tomorrow I will type it all into the computer and hopefully I will be able to keep track of what we actually have with a spreadsheet. I thought that all might be of interest to some of you. Do any of you have anything similar?
I have one more photo tonight. Two snowmen that I don’t think I’ve shown you yet. We ended up getting about 2 inches of snow last night, but most of it melted today as our temperature went up to 35°F. I like those kinds of snows. It falls during the night and melts away during the day and I don’t have to shovel it.❄️☃️❄️
Our family suffered another loss this morning. Dennis‘s Aunt Ev, who lived in Minnesota with her husband of almost 70 years, died this morning. She was 90 years old. She was a wonderful woman who always cared about family. Every year she would write a long, long Christmas letter catching us all up on the cousins and their kids. I will sure miss that letter. Please pray for Dennis‘s mom. This is the third sibling she has lost this year, along with her own daughter Karen. I talked to her today and she’s really having a rough time of it. It is hard to be so far away when we feel she really needs us there with her right now.
I pray that you are all safe, healthy and happy. Take care of my friends.
Blessings,
Betsy
I have been keeping track of all stockable items that are not perishable. Got some tp the other day as well. I was finally able to find some diet rite 2 liter sodas which have been hard to get lately. Needed to get a different type drink for Phil, can wise as no diet sodas without out caffiene. I like your snowman, and bigger one looks like Beryl Ives! Sorry for your loss of another family member. So far, no one I know has the virus now. A couple I knew did lately but they are much better, neither had to go to the hospital.Take care, stay warm and happy thanksgiving to you and Dennis. Thanks for the Christmas card. I made my own calendar on Shutterfly Sunday evening, as it was free!! except for the shipping. Worth it! Hugs!
ReplyDeleteThat is sad!! Your poor MIL so many losses in such a short time! Like yourself I always had my nose in a book too! We never had TV at that time I was quite put out about this as all my friends had TV! However, I thank my father for not allowing it nowadays as books like crochet are my way to relax and push away stress that builds up! I love the idea of the little socks hanging on a chain like an advent calender. I think you can get a pack of little numbers to stick on from cheap discount stores. That is a really sweet gesture from your friend! keep well Amanda x
ReplyDeleteI was a bookworm, too! Oh, how I loved to curl up in a quilt and sit at the base of my fav tree and read! Sorry for the extra concerns for friends and family...
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry for your family's losses.
ReplyDeleteI started my own "pandemic pantry". We had downscaled our food storage when all five of our children left home within three years of each other. We live in town near grocery stores and it really didn't seem important. I also have purchased cans here and there and we did splurge on a new freezer and a 1/4 beef. I think we could live a year if we weren't picky about meals LOL. But it does make me feel more secure.
So sorry to hear about your losses and those with COVID. Sending lots of good healing thoughts.
ReplyDeleteWe had a good laugh here back in march when we were headed into lockdown... it's just Dave and I, but I ALWAYS have a stockpile of toiletpaper. Not a year's worth, but enough to get us through a month or two. It's not that I mean to stockpile it, I just hate paying full price for something you're going to flush down the toilet - so I buy a bag or two whenever it's on sale for a good price. That lead to us having quite the collection!
I don't put my cupboards/pantry in a spreadsheet, but that's a good idea. I have a habit of buying stuff we don't need. I do have my Christmas list in a spreadsheet. I write down everyone's name, and what I want to give/make them. Once I've started it (if it's a "make") I highlight it in yellow. Once it's finished/bought, I highlight it in green. That way I can see at at glance who still needs a present!
In the beading section at Joann's (or Michaels) they have numbered charm sets. They are really quite affordable. You'd probably need more than one set to get into the teens and twenties, but they are pretty cute.
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry to hear about your loss. I think it is particularly hard through Covid times when we can't do the things we normally do to grieve. I'll be holding your family in my thoughts.
I’ve been purchasing an extra item or two of canned goods each time I purchase groceries. I’m well stocked and ready for a long winter. COVID cases are still surging here, but I continue to limit the number of people I’m around and the places I go. Be safe and may your friends recover quickly.
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry for yet another loss, your poor MIL must be suffering. I will add her to my prayers along with Alicia and family, praying for a speedy recovery. Your pantry stock is amazing and so handy with these strange times that we live. I do have an extensive pantry but it is easily assessable and I can see most of it, so a spreadsheet is not necessary. You can buy iron on numbers specifically for those little stockings. Hope you manage to fins=d some. Take care and stay safe.
ReplyDeleteYour favorite books reminded me of the book that traumatized me as a little girl. It was The Gingerbread Man. I read it in The Little Golden Books series and I cried all day when the fox ate the gingerbread man. Anyway, I loved reading all sorts of books growing up and I can remember begging my mama to sign me up for those mail order book clubs in the summer. I enjoyed Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys books especially.
ReplyDeleteSo very sorry to hear of your recent loss. Losing those we love now during this time of isolation makes it so much harder to process, to grieve, and to comfort others.
ReplyDeleteI too bought a few extra things every time I went grocery shopping during the spring and summer so that I wouldn't run short at a time when the stores' inventory might be skimpy but I don't have it organized on a spreadsheet.
Lisa
I'm sorry for your loss of your Aunt Ev. No matter how old the person gets to be it's hard when they pass on.
ReplyDeleteWhat a smart thing you did writing what was in each can so you can see at a glance what's inside.
Gosh, Betsy, sorry to hear of another loss. The good part is she lived a long and loved life. I wish you could move back there now so you could be close to her, what comfort that would be for her. And to be near Mandy and Piper. I'm impressed with how organized you are with your store areas. We changed our front entry coat closet into a pantry. Thankful for that area. I'm very upset to hear about your friend's whole family catching Covid!! I'm so scared of it. We're supposed to go to Travis's house for dinner but I'm very nervous about it. What a frightening time. Stay well and safe. ((hugs)), Teresa :-)
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So sorry to read of the loss of an Aunt, we lost one today too...so sad.
ReplyDeleteI keep two notecards on the fridge with a list of what is in the deep freeze and refrigerator freezer...and I try to update the numbers everytime I take something out...TRY! I write the list in pencil! It works for us. I also keep a list of the next two weeks menus on the fridge as that helps with grocery ordering. I have a spice drawer that I wrote on the tops of most items so I don't have to dig through it all! Stay safe out there!
Thanks for the lovely card and note. We didn't go out much before the present conditions. . . Doctor appointments and pick up groceries. I wish I were as organized as you are!
ReplyDeleteWowwwww, I'm impressed with your pantry! You guys are so lucky to be able to do that. We just don't have the funds to stock up, and the stores still limit everything nowadays anyway (1 of this, 1 of that) - I don't know how big families can get by on just that much. // Several people in our apartment building have the virus, and our neighbor lady died of it last week. We've pretty much known all along it's not a matter of if but when. It's part of the flu family, so I expect we've either already had it and not known, or eventually we will get it. Like any other virus, you just try to be smart and stay well. // I might be able to go ahead and have one of my surgeries because it has been coded as urgently necessary now, so we'll see if that doctor okays it and then if Medicaid will okay it. Lots of hoops, of course. // We have your family members all on our prayer list and will be keeping them lifted up to the Lord, of course!! // Your sweet friend Jenny is the bees knees!! What a great person she is!! Be blessed and well, my dear friend!
ReplyDelete🙏 for comfort for your family in their loss and healing for your loved ones. Thanks for sharing your food storage ideas, so practical! Rev. 21:4 is such a wonderful promise, isn't it. 🙏💜
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