2020 - OCTOBER - Prepping Updates For The Week/Month

Started the new thread.

Husband and I cleaned off the back deck and the front porch, then he pressure washed both and most of the house, too. Too late to seal it, but he can do that in the Spring.

I moved all the still living deck garden plants into the spare room (which has a big south-facing window). I re-potted some of the decorative plants as their pots were broken by cats knocking them over. Every one seems to be thriving. The bell peppers are getting big. There might or might not be a fledgling lime tree in one pot. This is my 3 time trying to grow limes big enough to keep the cat from eating them! Good thing I moved them, it was only 39 degrees when I got up this morning. Don't think it frosted yet, but that's too cold for many of those plants.

Yard sales have been good. Been picking up PYREX here and there. Got a large pie plate last week.

We started walking the new dog to the bridge almost every day and a neighbor has joined us with their new dog.

Family is visiting from out of state, so we're enjoying them, too.

Grocery shopping has just been stocking up on what we use, and grabbing a few extras if needed. Husband has been trying out new recipes and doing a great job! YUM!

My new desk (built by our cabinet making neighbor) is in place and I love it. Makes the room look so much more put together. It's also in front of the window so I can see our driveway and all the cars go by.

Went to town for grocery shopping today and hit a couple yard sales. Picked up a few things.

Pampered Chef bread mold (never used)- $1 (retail $26)
Pampered Chef cookie press (never used) - $1 (retail $20)
British Lime Soaps (2) - $1.50
French coffee press with cup and spoon - $1.50
Small throw blanket - $3
Small duffle bag - $1
Leather knife sheath - $1
3 CDs Christmas music - 25 cents

Grocery shopping was stock up, although I found a couple shirts and some soft pants with pockets on sale, too. Also bought some flannel for a project.

The fabric section at Walmart is slowly filling up again - and the craft stuff is, too. I finally found poly-fill stuffing for another project.

Dave58 wrote:My wife and I went to Rural King yesterday and it was like an episode of the Twilight Zone.

We kinda walked into a fog and the next thing I remember we were driving home and I had 30 new chicks in the jeep....

Soooo I an going to call it prepping update    and i am going to try and stay out of Rural King at least until the chicken house has a new add on.....

That's a lot of chicken soup and or eggs for all of us Dave

Dave, I've got enough of my own chickens, hookup ReadyMom.

Planted my garlic, winter onions and some leaf lettuce.

Raked leaves or should I say ran the mower and pulled the leaf rake behind it. Burnt the leaves.

Rotated out 20 gallon of gas and 15 gallon of diesel. Ran the generators and topped them off with gas.

Smoked some fish that the grandkids caught (crappie), it was very tasty.

Stacked a mess of firewood on the back porch, have had a fire for a week now.

Grocery shopping and yard sales today.

Grocery shopping - stocked up on what we used.

Yard sales were good today.

4 yards of flannel - $3
Small antique camera tripod $4.50
Small handled hammer - $4
Eiffel Tower ornament - $1
5 foot pre-lit tree - $8

Sewed seventeen flannel washcloths (4 new babies being born in the family!).

Just returned from a visit to the in-laws down in Texas, but thankfully we got our COVID tests back quickly and we could go back about our regular activities without quarantining for more than a few hours. We were ready if tests didn’t come back quickly, and it was important to help them out and visit before things get any weirder....
Not a lot of prepping per se since returning, just stocking up perishables at the local stores and buying a few loss leaders that we donated to the food pantry.
But we did decorate for Halloween, so we look like most others in the neighborhood...gotta look like everyone else to blend in, right? Just not sure how we’ll  deal with any trick or treaters if it doesn’t get forbidden by the health department....guess I need to buy more candy just in case.

The younger granddaughter (10 yo) got her first deer (doe) yesterday during archery season. So, she and I are smoking 2 roasts and some jerky. She's a chip off the old pappy's block.

Picked up 5 gallon of premix, ethanol free gas for the chainsaws.

Got all the corn cut and put away for winter, did shell some and put in the freezer for cornmeal, just in case.

Anyone doing anything different, for preps, over the next 2 weeks before the election?

ReadyMom wrote:Anyone doing anything different, for preps, over the next 2 weeks before the election?

Yep, we don't stock a lot of pasta's, so the wife went down to the store and picked up soup noodles, and spageti.

I stocked up on more ammo.

ReadyMom wrote:Anyone doing anything different, for preps, over the next 2 weeks before the election?

In topping off your Preps, keep in mind there are about 11 weeks between the election and the innauguration. Gas tank full and a ready to chit and git plan that will sustain us if necessary.

Making note of polling locations in my area to avoid. The FBI and Michigan State Police arrested 14 people in the plot to kidnap our governor.

Along with their kidnap plans, there were also plans to blow up bridges (here it's likely the Mackinac which is 5 miles long to connect the UP) or our 3 bridges to connect with Canada, plans to disrupt utilities as well as kill other state politicians. They weren't playing and as such, MSP is concerned that they are part of a group that is far larger than what they believed.

Winter has arrived here. We're stocked up on wood for the stove, lamp oil, and food preps. We're staying close to home. When we drive to town for grocery shopping, we fill the gas tank if it's below 3/4.

Deer season has started here, lot of people shooting in the woods. People are fishing, even in the freezing weather.

Our neighbors added security, some odd things going on now that city people have invaded during the lock down, and have decided to stay. Petty crime and some stolen vehicles, later found wrecked. We haven't seen a police vehicle out here in years, over the last two weeks, police cars have been out here five times.

Neighbor made me a new desk with drawers, and I now sit right by the window where I can see our driveway. I have room for the computer and the sewing machine.

I've been sewing for our family's pregnant mamas - we have 4 new babies arriving any day now. I'm making each a quilt, flannel burp cloths, flannel washcloths, and flannel/terry bibs. As of now, I've finished 1 quilt, 16 burp cloths, and 3 bibs. Also working on my Christmas sewing for gifts.

We did go grocery shopping and hit some yard sales. I picked up a small pet carrier for $1 and some cake decorating tips and candy molds for $3.

A friend needed some work so we had him make some decorative shutters for the front windows.

Husband pressure washed and sealed the front deck for the winter. He also mulched the leaves.

The sick kitty seems to be doing better, not sure if the skin condition is subsiding with winter, or the meds and bathing have taken effect. Time will tell.

Dave58 wrote:We have some cherry tomato's that come up every year.. I tried cutting some starts off of them and placed them in water until they grew a good root system and transplanted them in some potting soil...

They looked good for a few weeks and now the leaves are turning yellow and starting to die...

Anybody have any thoughts on what I am doing wrong ???

I am open to suggestions... I have grow lights on them and they did fine in the jars of water

As far as tomatoes, I'll take a cutting and place it directly in the ground and water it and you're done, no transplanting at all.

As far as the leaves turning yellow, it may be just too much water or a blight. That's my best guess.

Quilted 2 quilts and a table runner (all small, so it was quick). Finished making all the flannel washcloths, burp cloths, and bibs for the babies.

We're sticking close to home, it's been sleeting and raining for a couple days, way earlier cold weather than we're generally used to, although not unprecedented.

dmwalsh568 wrote:...
Just not sure how we’ll  deal with any trick or treaters if it doesn’t get forbidden by the health department....guess I need to buy more candy just in case.

The health dept hasn't forbidden it here, but it isn't likely to happen. The local volunteer FD is giving out treats to those who come by. We have "a few" pounds of candy in our preps, so we have enough in case they do come by.

This month has been slow for me, both due to having done what I feel I need to, in our circumstances, and being low on cash and energy (routine health issues, nothing out of the ordinary for us).