Living Like Grandma - Fun & Thrifty

 Hello all - hoping this finds you all well.  It is a lovely morning here - around 44* and sunny.  Yesterday was lovely as well.  Took a walk around the yard and noticed baby grape hyacinths and daffodils poking through the ground.  Under leaves and then after all the snow - there are little signs of life.  Enjoying it all while I can - this weekend gets colder again.  Sigh!

Today let's talk a bit about how grandma lived and how they survived and made do with what they had. I know some of you are young, and your grandparents are probably not even my age - but others of us remember stories from our grands and our parents about living through the depression and those hard times surrounding it.

This picture is true for a lot back then.  Not everyone lived in the city and those who were more rural, pretty much provided most everything they had.  They grew, hunted, fished, gleaned, gathered, recycled and bartered.  They used all they had and they used it up!  They had no other choice.  They worked soooo hard.

Now we can do many of those things, by choice and don't have to work hard to do it.  It just takes a little dedication on your part.  It can be fun and it sure is thrifty.

MEAT was a side dish.  Maybe granny cooked a big chicken on Sunday - then later they had soup, sandwiches, flavoring, broth, meat pies, etc.  After cooking those bones down for broth, many times they were crushed and used in the gardens or fed to chickens.

BONES - were always used for broth and stock.  It is easy to do today and makes the most flavorful stock you can have (also use up the scraps of veggies making it).

BACON grease was gold.  Lard was pretty much the only other grease available back then - and bacon grease had so much flavor to add to all cooked items.  Many of us still do this!

INVENTORY meals - were normal.  Shopping didn't happen often (espec. rural) and many were limited by funds and stamps and places to go.  They figured out how to make meals with what they had on hand.  They knew how to stretch that food.  Meals were kept basic and simple.

I know growing up we had a lot of oatmeal and grits (wasn't a fan) and eggs at breakfast.  Those were basics and filled the belly.  I more enjoyed the biscuits and jelly and toast and jelly.

BAKED at home - cookies cakes, bread, biscuits, etc.

HUNG their laundry - way back there were no driers to be seen.  Line drying was the norm.  I know many places today won't let that happen, but there are ways around it.  Hanging racks in the garage, uses your back patio, the basement, hanging some things over the tub, etc.  

This is one of my favorite fun photos I have ever taken!  Just driving down a country road and saw this line of undies.  I took, not because of size, but the colors and confidence this person must have had with themselves.  Not sure I would have been so confident.  Actually, mine used to get hidden in the middle rows, so not to be seen!  LOL

Nothing smells as great as sheets off the line and a freshly made bed.

They used cold water for most laundry or heated water over a fire for really bad things (a lot of work).  I use cold water for 99% of my laundry today.  They get clean and last longer.  Hot water breaks down fiber.

VINEGAR was the item used for cleaning most everything.  Windows, floors, walls, hair, baths, even laundry.  It is cheap and can be used in so many ways.  Also helped to pickle garden goods.

USED things UP.  Clothes were given as hand me downs, often remade into new items, rags (no paper towels back then), quilts, etc.  Leftovers made in new ways.  Bread - bread pudding, French toast, breadcrumbs.  PCIKLE BRINE used to make other veggies last longer, used for brine in seasoning and tenderizing meat.  SCRAPS - BONES - made broth/stock.  Kept every screw, nail, button, zipper that they could and reused.   You get the idea.

Now you can shop thrift stores and garage sales.  Beware many thrift stores are charging more and more today - if possible try yard sales and family and friend trades.

Nothing was WASTED.  One item had MANY uses.

GROW your own.  Everyone had a garden of some sort back in the day.  Look at growing a small garden, growing in pots on the patio or the porch.  Regrow various items, green onions, lettuce, celery etc.  Herbs are easy to grow and make great flavorings and products for health.

Good QUALITY was important.  Things that were well built were always a plus (usually handmade).  They didn't have funds to replace at a whim - so quality was very important.  It should be today as well - a good value is nice, but quality is better.

My paternal great grandparents and 2 of their children.  Grandpa wasn't born yet at this point. They were a rural family and had very little material goods, but they had love.  See that chair?  I have it!!!!!  It is a bit shorter, as the bottom of the legs had to be trimmed do to wear and tear.

Life looked so different back then.

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Today - track your spending!  Take at least a month and keep track of EVERY single penny you spend and what it was for.  It can eye opening - how much is spent of frivolous items.  Wants NOT needs!  We did this for ages back in the day - and it really made us look at things differently.  It altered how we shopped and the silly things that ate our money.

NO impulse shopping.  Take a good 72 hours to think on major purchases.  Impulse shopping is a great grabber of funds.  Now, I do often buy things at the grocery that weren't on the list, but only because it is clearance, and likely won't be available again for that price.

SMALLER homes - creates less stress.  Less to clean, less to heat and cool, less stuff fits in it!  Usually costs less.  I find my home is easy to take care (even maintenance) with it being smaller.  That gives you more time for LIVING a peaceful life and enjoying those quiet moments.

DON'T try to keep up with others.  The grass may look greener - but odds are they spend more dollars to maintain that look!

Do you - and be ever so proud of what you have.  Maintain it and love it.

Ok, enough chatting for today.  Just remember you can do much of what grandma did and save some funds in the meantime.  It can be fun and a great challenge.  No one thing makes a huge difference in funds, but if you add them all up over a year - you can save a generous amount.

Make it a game and give things a try for a while - t may become a habit.

Have a beautiful day my friends.