Learning to Love the Space You Are In

If you live in a place like we do, housing is expensive and options are limited. And right now, a lot of us are spending most of our time at home. We are lucky enough to rent a space in my parent's home. We have our own yard and entrance and a decent sized one-bedroom apartment. While it is spacious enough for 2 (plus our kitten cat), the place is dated. While it would be easy enough to sink a bunch of money into a renovation we try to walk the line between making things functional while saving as much as we can for our future forever home.
Over the years I have developed a few ideas that have made us really happy and comfortable where we are.

• Think about what activities you spend the most time on and focus your money there. For us, we spend a lot of time watching TV. It's something we enjoy together and so we spent some money on a nice tv and a neutral TV unit that can travel with us when we move. We also bought a nice sectional couch (from Costco) that will last us a long time but is also adjustable and could be adapted to fit any space. 
• Spend energy organizing what you have and donate what you don't need. I know, easier said than done. Focus on one area at a time (books, clothes, kitchen, and misc. stuff). For me, it was toiletries and cosmetics. I purged what I had in the closet that wasn't needed. Then, I put it all in a box and over time was able to empty the bottles and recycle them. Some local shelters will accept toiletries so make sure to check that before you throw them out.
• Beatify the things you have that you don't love. Because we have very little space there is just a lot of STUFF that we want to keep but looks messy (things like board games, workout equipment and paperwork. I didn't want to get rid of our shelving unit (or pay for a new one) so I spent some time figuring out what I wanted out of the space. For about $40 I was able to repurpose the unit and was really happy with the results.

Before

After



• Keep the place clean and tidy. Spending the extra time to make your bed in the morning will really make a difference. Over time you will take pride in your space and be happier overall. You may not have control over the flooring or layout but you have control over the contents and the way you keep it organized. 
• Add the comforts of a forever home, in a portable way. If there are things you know you want in a forever home, find a way to have them in your current home. For me, it was trees. So, last year we purchased 3 trees (pomegranate, lemon and mandarin) and we planted them in large containers. This way, when we are ready to find something permanent we already have established trees and in the mean time we can enjoy their fruits! We also have some jasmine plants that I have had in the last two apartments I've been in. 

Take some time to reflect on what's important to you in your space. 

Enjoy!
Sincerely, Samantha

Instant Pot Chicken Bone Broth

Bone broth is super fashionable these days. The health benefits and it's tastiness are definitely worth the hype but not for the price. Some jars go for as much as $16 in the stores. It is so easy to make and you can make it with scraps you would normally consider trash. I keep a bag in my freezer and every time I prep veggies for dinner I throw my scraps in the bag. This works well with onions, garlic, carrots, celery and parsnips but you can experiment with other veggies too. I don't recommend starchy veggies like potatoes or yams. Then, when the bag is full and a I have some chicken bones, I know its time to cook up a batch. 

Ingredients: 

-Bones of a cooked chicken (or turkey)

-2 carrots chopped roughly (or broken in two)

-5 stalks of celery 

-1 small onion 

-2 cloves garlic

-1 tsp peppercorns 

-2 bay leaves 

-2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (the vinegar helps pull out the nutrients from the bone. Without the vinegar it's just stock). 

-variety of fresh herbs (I used whatever I have in my Aerogarden)

Directions:

1. Pour all ingredients into a pressure cooker (this is the one I have).

2. Fill with water to max fill line. 

3. Cook on high pressure for 4 hours. I time mine so that it cooks overnight and is cool by morning. Let the pressure cooker naturally release. 

4. Strain with a fine sieve.

5. Store in jars. This will keep in the fridge for 1 week or in the freezer for months. 

6. Use the broth in soups, sauces or drink as a meal replacement or snack. 

Sourdough Soft Pretzels

We have been on a mission to cut down on waste. We are a work in progress but we are trying to be more conscious. And, we are 10 days into self-quarantine so we are bored. On Tuesday, I began the process of creating a sourdough starter. Today, was the first day I had 'discard.' A sourdough starter requires regular feeding and rejuvenation so every so often you have waste. I've researched a number of recipes you can make from the discard and pretzels excited me the most. I combined a popular recipe with my past knowledge if sourdough pretzels to create the perfect pretzels. Not only does it incorporate the unfed, discard starter but all of these items can be found in the bulk bins at your favorite local grocer so its truly a zero waste snack. Give this recipe a try and tell me what you think!

Ingredients:
Pretzel Dough

3/4 cup (170g) water
1 cup (227g) sourdough starter, unfed/discard
3 cups (361g) All-Purpose Flour
1/4 cup (35g) nonfat dry milk
1 tablespoon (14g) sugar
1 olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons instant yeast

Drop Wash

8 cups water 

2 tablespoons baking soda

Directions:
Pour all ingredients in the bread maker basin and turn on to the dough setting. Let the bread machine do the dough kneading. 
It should be a little sticky, if it's dry add 1-2 tablespoons of water. It won't rise a whole lot but should be a cohesive dough. Leave it to rise for about 45 minutes (or the duration of the bread machine setting). It won't rise much. 

Once the rising is complete, pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees and weigh the dough. Mine was 991 grams. Divide total by 12. Weigh out 12 equal pieces.  (Example 991 grams/12=82grams each) This will ensure you have like sized pretzels and they cook evenly. 

Boil 8 cups of water.
Roll out into long ropes (approx. 18 inches)
Rest long ropes on the baking pan. Complete all the ropes and then roll out once more before shaping into pretzel. 

When the water is boiled add 2 tablespoons of baking soda. 
Prepare your baking sheet. I used a silicone baking mat, if you don't have one grease the baking sheet a tiny bit (with butter or olive oil).
Drop the pretzels into the boiling water (I did three at a time). Boil 45 seconds-1min each side.
While still wet sprinkle on coarse salt, poppy seeds or sesame seeds. 

Bake 18-20 minutes until evenly brown. If you have two pans worth, swap the sheets from top to bottom half way through baking. Let cool 5 minutes before eating. These taste delicious warm and fresh. Once cooled, store in the freezer (if you don't eat them all in one go!) Lightly toast to reheat.  You can also store in a paper bag on the counter if you'll eat them with a day or two.

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Going shopping, in your own home

With all of the hoarding going on it’s hard to resist the urge to hoard essentials. Although I didn’t originally feel the need to run out and hoard, I got nervous that everyone else was and so when I did run out of things everyone else would have bought everything up. This peer pressure further perpetuates the hoarding. Humans are trained to survive and in times of uncertainty we lean into actions that make us feel prepared. If all you can do to prepare yourself is wash your hands and hoard, I get the appeal of the shopping spree.

This weekend we chose to self-quarantine and do our part to flatten the curve. 

In doing so we spent some time beautifying our home and doing a little in-home shopping. No, I don’t mean online shopping.

I am a pretty organized and tidy person. But, we have a small living space and so we pack stuff in where we can which means things sometimes get lost. We have three main storage spaces: under the kitchen sink, our hall closet and under the bathroom sink. We spent a few hours organizing. We started by going through our medical supplies (which we have sorted into internal and topical). By going through this stuff we felt much more confident that we had what we needed. 

Including: 

Loads of cough drops

More than enough ibuprofen to last multiple illnesses 

Plenty of alcohol prep pads 

Then we sorted under the kitchen sink. 

I found:

Extra antibacterial soap hiding in the back

Plenty of sponges (now I am not afraid to retire the rag we’ve been using)

In the closet I found enough laundry detergent for over 100 loads. 

We also spent time consolidating some extra bottles we had and putting like items together. 

We:

-Poured 2 dish soap bottles into one 

-combined bottles of windex and goo gone 

-Put all of the laundry care together and poured bulk bag contents into dispensers

-Found toilet paper in multiple spots and found we had 4 more rolls than we thought! 

By spending the extra time to make ourselves aware of what we had and put like items together we feel a lot more comfortable and prepared without having to hoard or take necessary essentials from those in need. I am using this time as an opportunity to use what I have, create new recipes, consolidate, and transition to low-waste alternatives. 

Thanks for reading and be well!

Sincerely,

Samantha 

DIY Homemade Disinfectant Spray

My husband came home with a bit of a cold the other day. With all this hysteria around illness these days I felt compelled to disinfect the house. Only problem is, we’ve been working towards using only toxic free house products and reducing our waste. So no Clorox or Lysol. I quickly put together an all-natural chemical free cleaning solution that worked wonderfully! You can make your own using this recipe! 

Ingredients: 

1 1/4 cups water

1/4 cup white or Apple Cider vinegar

1/4 cup Tito’s vodka or rubbing alcohol 

15 drops essential oil  (I use Plant Therapy’s Immune Aid but you can use lemon, lavender or tea tree oil. All of those have been known to fight germs. You can also use Thieves or OnGuard). If you’d like to buy some essential oils at a discount click here.

Spray Bottle (I use my glass bottle from Grove Collaborative. For a free starter kit click here.)

Directions:
Pour all ingredients into the spray bottle, shake and clean! Because of our efforts to reduce waste we use cloth towels when cleaning up. As you are cleaning make sure to change cloths frequently. I suggest using a new cloth for each room you disinfect. No use spreading germs from area to area all across your house. When I use this solution I spray it on all surfaces, wood, tile, vinyl etc. If you are worried about what it will do to a surface make sure you test a small area first before spraying the entire surface. Don’t forget to disinfect light switches and door knobs! 

Homemade DIY Hand Sanitizer

Everyone is freaking out these days about coronavirus and the flu and I get it it’s super scary. But, what I am finding myself getting stressed about isn’t actually getting sick but, not having access to things like purell and medications because everyone seems to be stockpiling them. I’ve already looked at many places are sold out of purell and other hand sanitizing products. First, let me say washing your hands with antibacterial soap and water for 20 seconds is much more effective than hand sanitizer. But if you’re in a pinch it’s much easier to have some hand sanitizer in your car or in your purse in case you’re in public and don’t have the opportunity to stop at a bathroom. I created this simple hand sanitizer recipe that you can put in a spray bottle and keep near you in case you have the need for clean hands on the go. This stuff is effective but doesn’t leave that residue feeling on your skin like other gel hand sanitizers.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup aloe vera gel
2/3 cup rubbing alcohol (91 or 99%)
10 drops of your favorite essential oil (I use Plant Therapy’s Immune Aid but you can use lemon, lavender or tea tree oil. All of those have been known to fight germs. You can also use Thieves or OnGuard). If you’d like to buy some essential oils at a discount click here.

Directions:
Pour all ingredients into a measuring cup with spout
Stir and pour into a spray bottle.
Shake bottle before each use.
Spray 3-5 sprays on hands and rub until your hands feel warm (friction can also kill germs 🙌🏼).