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Several weeks ago, our freezer went out. Unfortunately, it was about a week after I had remembered there is such a thing as a freezer alarm – and the night before pay day, when I would have actually ordered one. We lost almost everything in our freezer, which was no small loss (financially or time-wise). Well, the freezer kicked back in, so we thought we’d discovered the problem. But I bought my freezer alarm! lol
In the week that we’ve had it, this little gadget has already paid for itself. The night before last, our freezer died for good. Thanks to the alarm, we didn’t lose any food, because we knew right away. It goes off when the freezer reaches 15 degrees Fahrenheit (It’s recommended to keep a freezer set at 0.), so you know that the freezer is not functioning properly, but things are not already thawed. Some reviewers complained that the alarm was too quiet to be of any use if it isn’t in the main living space, but my freezer is in my carport, and I heard it from the kitchen. Granted, the interior door to the kitchen was open; just the storm door was closed. But on a full battery, the alarm should sound for three full days, which is plenty of time to have an opportunity to walk by (or go to get food out!) and hear it. And in the meantime, it won’t drive the neighbors nuts.
This inexpensive little freezer alarm definitely works for me!
Today is the first day of school for the students around here. (In fact, I’m listening to the school bus stopped outside my house as I type.) Turns out, it’s our first day, as well.
We were supposed to start on Monday, but…life happened. A week-and-a-half ago, my husband had surgery to remove that stupid kidney stone (that was in there for nearly three months). It didn’t go as smoothly as we’d hoped, so he ended up with the stent in for three weeks (yes, it’s still there), rather than a week. (This is really icky, because the stent results in feeling like you have a bladder infection the whole time it’s in there.) The morning after his surgery, I came down with a cold – not a big deal except that it left me really exhausted. The girls were a disaster all week because of the massive schedule disruption. And our freezer died the day before the surgery, which meant the need to go through it and figure out what’s salvageable, empty it out, haul food to the dump, defrost and clean it, and completely redo the month’s menu and grocery list I had finished less than 24 hours before it died. (I get tired again just thinking about all of it!) Soooo…I have been just a wee bit behind and overwhelmed. I think that I am finally almost caught up. I was working on three craft swaps that were to be sent out on the 15th, and two went out on time. The other is, unfortunately, still here waiting to get finished up – hopefully it will get done today. All that to say, Monday and yesterday served as more catch-up days and we are just beginning school today, along with everyone else.
With everyone heading back to school, consider this information from Seventh Generation about staying healthy. (And, yes, it’s good advice for those of us who are schooling at home, too!)
Is your child picking up more than the ABC’s in school? While you’re packing your child’s backpack with the pencils, notebooks and tools they’ll need for a great school year, don’t forget the supplies they’ll need to stay healthy and germ-free, too.
With nearly 22 million school days lost each year due to the common cold and flu (CDC) and as many as 2.7 million bacterial found per square inch on common school surfaces (NSF International), it’s no wonder that 82 percent of parents with kids in grades K-5 fret about the germs in their children’s classrooms (according to a survey conducted by Seventh Generation).
This school year, Seventh Generation is sharing tips from best-selling author and pediatrician, Dr. Alan Greene, to help parents protect their child’s health during back-to-school season. Dr. Greene suggests taking the following precautions:
Optimize the immune system
Reap the benefits of probiotics like those found in yogurt. A recent study showed that children who received enough probiotics daily throughout the cold and flu season had a significant reduction in the number of illnesses they had and, when they did get sick, the symptoms were both milder and didn’t last as long.
Be sure your child is getting plenty of vitamin D from the sun, from food, or from a supplement.
Build a strong foundation. Good food, good sleep, and good physical activity all help the immune system to flourish.
Be wise about reducing unnecessary exposure to harmful germs
Teach children the key times to clean their hands in the classroom. The most important times include after sneezing, coughing or using the restroom, upon leaving “high-risk” places (recess, naptime, play stations) and before meals or snacks.
Sixty percent of teachers surveyed said that they request that parents donate disinfecting wipes to the classroom. Seventh Generation’s disinfecting wipes kill 99.99% of germs* naturally using the active ingredient thyme, a component of thyme oil which is derived from the herb thyme.
Stress the importance of not touching their eyes, nose or mouth. Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.
Demonstrate to your children how to cover their mouth and nose for every cough and sneeze. This simple maneuver has spectacular results in decreasing the spread of viruses and bacteria floating about the room, waiting to be inhaled.
*Refer to disinfecting product labels for full details
We love Seventh Generation products! Unlike many natural products, we have found them to actually work. (Especially love their dishwasher rinse agent.) Seventh Generation graciously sent me a fantastic gift package – with paper towels, tissues, disinfecting multi-purpose cleaner, a backpack, and two canisters of disinfecting wipes (one for our household and one to donate to the kids’ school – which I guess means we could keep it? but maybe we’ll give it to the church).
You can win a prize pack just like this. To enter, leave a comment on this post sharing your favorite natural stay-healthy tip. It could be a favorite vitamin-packed recipe, a tip for getting children to practice good hygiene – whatever. For additional entries, “like” Seventh Generation and/or Titus 2 Homemaker on Facebook, blog about this giveaway, and/or subscribe to my feed. Be sure to leave an additional comment for each extra entry, so I know how to count you! I will choose a winner randomly the day after Labor Day.
**Disclosure: The information in this post, gift pack, and giveaway prize were all provided by Seventh Generation through MyBlogSpark.
We all have different organizational styles. Classic planners are generally best-suited to a particular organizational “type,” and they often aren’t very effective for those who don’t think the “right” way for their design. My sister uses Post-It notes. My mother uses index cards. These are perfectly fine, as long as you have a system for maintaining them! (Both my sister and my mom do.)
If index cards are your style, but you don’t find them very convenient to carry around, consider following Sara’s instructions for an index card holder. Her holder is designed to go inside a “half-size” binder, but I’m sure it could be adapted to other uses, as well.
“Fix it up, wear it out, make [it] do, or do without.” It’s the frugalista’s creed. But sometimes you need stuff and (at least if you’re me), you can’t figure out on your own how to make it work. That’s when you mooch off of others’ creativity. lol
If you need to be able to carry “stuff” around inside your planner, and you don’t want to go out and buy a special zipper case – or if they don’t make a zipper case with holes in the configuration you need – try Sara’s zip pouch instructions. (They’re super-easy, and you probably already have the supplies on hand. You know, in keeping with our creed. )
LeaAnn Garfias has been hosting a series on her blog this summer called Ask the Grad, and I am honored to be featured this week. If you’d like to hear a little about my homeschooling history and the part it played in my journey to where I am today, head on over to Whatever State I Am.
Titus 2:4-5 " ...admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste,
homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed."
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(reading chronologically)
