What Are You Waiting For To Be Happy, Frugal Living Without A Big Pantry, Frugal Gardening Resource – HBHW Newsletter

April 7th,  2010

Editorial

The first robin and the smell of earth are my signs that spring is here to stay.  Alright, we may get some cold nights and the planting of the garden may still be off a few weeks, but I’m getting a little help this year.

My good friend Tawra Kellam has joined me in an interview resource this month to get all our gardeners out there up and planting in no time.  This resource is available to Club members and I’m very excited to be able to provide this information to our gardeners.

As always, quite a few yummy new recipes have been added by myself and HBHW Club readers this past week. The Southern Potato Salad in particular caught my eye. I can’t wait to give this recipe a try. I haven’t made potato salad with olives, but it sure sounds yummy.

Our inspirational quote and story are all about living life today – not waiting for something else to happen to start living.  The Easter season got me thinking about new beginnings and it’s appropriate at this time to begin anew ourselves.  What are we waiting for to be happy?  Why not begin today?

Those are my thoughts this week.  As always, I welcome your comments and suggestions. Feel free to email me at susanne@hillbillyhousewife.com

Warm Regards,

Susanne – The Hillbilly Housewife

Inspirational Quote

“If we are not happy and joyous at this season, for what other season shall we wait and for what other time shall we look?

Abdul-Baha

Time For Some Spring Cleaning…

Spring is here and it’s time for a little spring cleaning. Let me help you make it easier (and faster) with my Spring Cleaning Guide.

This eBook is filled with all the information necessary to help you organize and spring clean major rooms in your home. With information such as how to get started, what items you need, how to organize your cleaning to save you both time and money this eBook tells it all. This handy guide even includes a cleaning supply list, a room by room checklist and much more.

Order your copy here:
http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/ebooks/springcleaning.htm

News From The HBHW Club

What? You haven’t heard about the Hillbilly Housewife Club? It’s a members only forum packed full of great information, resources, and friendly chit chat about the things we are all interested in – fun, frugal living. Come Join Us And See What All The Chatter Is About!

We have a brand new resource available to our Club members. With the success of the interview format for our resource “Pantry/Freezer Challenge and Meal Planning,” we decided to interview another expert, my good friend Tawra Kellam of LivingOnADime.com.  This time we are delving into the world of gardening… FRUGAL GARDENING to be precise.

The new resource, Frugal Gardening – An Interview With Tawra Kellam, is one you won’t want to miss.  If you’ve ever considered starting a small garden, a big garden, or if you are even a seasoned gardener, this interview is packed full of information, even including a few “ah ha” moments!

Simple strategies that gardeners may overlook are presented in a fun, comfortable style.  The interview format is informal and filled with neighborly little over-the-fence kind of tips.

Tawra not only brings years and years of tried-and-true gardening expertise to this resource, but she is also schooled in greenhouse management and landscape design.  She has down-to-earth knowledge fand suggestions for every garden size and type.

Simple “ah ha” moments include planting what you’ll actually eat (yes, people sometimes plant things they don’t like and won’t eat), and planting vegetables that are more expensive in your area.  For instance, if potatoes are dirt cheap where you live, and you can get any variety you want, don’t waste your garden space on them.  This is just a glimpse into some of those simple tips that make the difference between a successful, frugal garden and a waste of time.

You don’t want to miss this fabulous resource. Join the HBHW Club and grab your FREE resource today!

As a HBHW newsletter subscriber, you can join for only $10 per month. Click on this link for all the details: http://www.hillbillyhousewifeclub.com/special.html

Not sure about joining the HBHW Club yet? To make joining us even easier, I’ll let you try it out for just a dollar for the first 7 days.

How will you benefit from joining the HBHW Club with this offer? As an example, for just that one dollar you’ll have 7 days of access to over 350 great frugal recipes that are tried and true, with a new recipe every day. You’ll also have 7 days to ask your most puzzling frugal homemaking questions – and even get answers!

Join us now and enjoy 7 days of frugal fun. Click on the link here and come aboard! http://www.hillbillyhousewifeclub.com/special.html

Let’s just take a peek at what’s been going on at the HBHW Club forum.

One of our new members introduced herself to us this week.  She is living a frugal lifestyle, like many of us, because she has some challenges in her life.  Going from a two income family to a no income family is only one of those struggles in her life.  But, somehow she manages to have a great attitude and is finding ways to make money crafting baby dolls and is saving money grinding her own flour and making bread.

As a Club member, you’ll be able to join us and share your opinions and throw out some of your own frugal tips and ideas. Are you ready to join us at the HBHW Club?

Click the link here and try The HBHW Club for only $1. We’d love to have you come join us! http://www.hillbillyhousewifeclub.com/special.html

Now that you’ve joined us at the HBHW Club, you’ll want to be sure to take a stroll through the resources available free to Club members only. Popular resources include:

• Pantry Cooking Resource
• Freezer/Pantry Challenge & Meal Planning
• Setting Up A Family Budget
• Simple Summer Cooking
• Getting Out Of Debt For Good

Let me know what you think of the resources and if there are any topics we should explore further. As a Club member, your opinion is highly valued because it’s YOUR Club!

Join The Hillbilly Housewife Club for Just a Dollar

I’d like to share one of the recipes that was submitted to the HBHW Club this past week.

Denver Swiss Bake

• 2 Tblsp. cooking oil
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 1/2 cup diced green bell pepper

• 3 Tblsp. flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. black pepper
• 1 cup half and half
• 2 Tblsp. dry sherry or dry white wine

• 2 cups cooked turkey or chicken, diced
• 1 cup cooked ham, diced

• 4 or 5 slices Swiss cheese (enough to cover casserole dish)

• 1 cup fine bread crumbs
• 2 Tblsp. butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Heat the oil in a skillet and saute the onion and green pepper until tender.  Sprinkle in the flour, salt, and black pepper, stirring until combined well.  Add the cream and sherry or wine, stirring until mixture is hot and thickens.

Stir in the meats until combined, then spoon mixture into a casserole dish.  Arrange the Swiss cheese slices on top.

In a separate small saucepan, melt the butter, add the bread crumbs and stir until just combined.

Sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture around the edges of the casserole leaving the Swiss cheese mostly exposed.

Bake uncovered in preheated 375 degree oven for about 25 to 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbling and slightly browned and edges are brown.

And here are a few more recipes that have recently been added to the member area.

• Club Chicken Casserole
• Cabbage Swiss Bake
• Overnight Layered Breakfast Bake
• Mediterranean Beef & Noodle Bake

All in all, we have over 369 new recipes in the member area already.

One of my favorite part of the HBHW Club is the Member Forum. Here’s a sampling of a few of our member discussions:

Member Forum Posts

• Welcome!
  
• Homemade pet foods
  

Why don’t you join us so you can get in on the conversation.  I look forward to chatting with you in the member area.

http://www.hillbillyhousewifeclub.com/special.html

Featured Article

We’ve had a great discussion lately through our resources and in our forum about cooking from your pantry.  We’ve also covered information about what you should stock in your pantry and freezer to ensure you can cook up a storm without leaving your kitchen.

The problem is, not everyone has a big pantry or freezer.  When several of our readers asked about that problem, I thought I’d better put together some suggestions.  Please read our article by clicking on the title below and see if you can squeeze together a well stocked pantry in your house.

Frugal Living Without A Big Pantry

Healthy Hillbilly Housewife

Here’s what’s new on the healthy hillbilly housewife section. You can also go straight to http://www.healthy.hillbillyhousewife.com

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Frugal Tips

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Do you have a tip to share? Fill out the submit a frugal tip form and I’ll be glad to add it to the site and share your tip in an upcoming edition of the newsletter.

Recipes

Here are some of the most recent recipes that have been added to the HBHW site. Enjoy!

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Do you have a recipe you would like to share? Click here to send it to me and I’ll be happy to add it to the website.

I’m Looking For:

This section is all about you. If you are looking for a particular recipe or a tip on how to do something, submit it here and I will post it in an upcoming newsletter. I’ll give you my input and other readers of the newsletter will have the opportunity to share their recipes and tips as well. So take a moment to post your questions and of course if you have a tip or idea for any question posted in this section feel free to leave a comment under the appropriate post.

I’m Looking For Requests
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I’m Looking For Responses
Below you will find some of the recent responses to the “I’m Looking For” Requests. You may also want to go directly to this section and browse through all the recent submissions and replies. To do so, click on “I’m Looking for” here, and start looking through them.
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Inspirational Story

Stop Waiting

Author Unknown

We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married, have a baby, then another. Then we are frustrated that the kids aren’t old enough and we’ll be more content when they are. After that we’re frustrated that we have teenagers to deal with. We will certainly be happy when they are out of that stage. We tell ourselves that our life will be complete when our spouse gets his or her act together, when we get a nicer car, are able to go on a nice vacation, when we retire.

The truth is, there’s no better time to be happy than right now.

Your life will always be filled with challenges. It’s best to admit this to yourself and decide to be happy anyway. One of my favorite quotes comes from Alfred D Souza. He said, “For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin – real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid. Then life would begin. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life.”

This perspective has helped me to see that there is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way. So, treasure every moment that you have.

Stop waiting until you finish school, until you go back to school, until you lose ten pounds, until you gain ten pounds, until you have kids, until your kids leave the house, until you start work, until you retire, until you get married, until you get divorced, until Friday night, until Sunday morning, until you get a new car or home, until your car or home is paid off, until spring, until summer, until fall, until winter, until you are off welfare, until the first or fifteenth, until your song comes on, until you’ve had a drink, until you’ve sobered up, until you die, until you are born again to decide that there is no better time than right now to be happy.

Final Thought

That’s it for this edition of the Hillbilly Housewife Newsletter. I hope you’ve had as much fun reading it as I had creating it for you. I also hope that you have found the information helpful and useful. And by all means feel free to forward the newsletter to family and friends or even better, encourage them to subscribe to it.

Do you have a question, a tip, a recipe or a story you’d like to share with us? Email it to me and I’ll include it in a future issue. Can’t wait to see what you have to say.

Warm Wishes,

Susanne – The Hillbilly Housewife