Wednesday, May 28, 2008

A New Look

My blog is getting ready for the big celebration, and went out and got a whole new look!!! This look is so ME! I LOVE it!! It is not a gift I have...computer know how, but a dear lady helped me along...well, she actually took my ideas and made them better. Thanks Tammy!!! You accomplished exactly what I was looking for!
I sat down to make my grocery list and have gotten a bit discouraged.
Prices are sure going up. How do we keep to our budgets without compromising our menus? It is tough. I will be glad to get my garden in and reap some of the veggies. I was looking at some tips on how to make your food dollars stretch.
That loaf of bread should last a while!!! I found some great tips from wartimes. Gosh, ladies, we are in the same spot our grandmother's were in back in the 40's! It is wartime here in 2008! Back then our government tried to help.She looks completely pleased to make her own dried bread crumbs. Not sure I could be so happy about it. Attitude. It is all about attitude. So things will have to be pared down a little. You know that cherry pie I made? 3 bags of cherries at $3.98 a bag...that was a $12 PLUS pie. You can't see me, but I am smiling just like the lady in the ad. My jaw is a tad tighter, but I AM smiling!! Count it all joy!!!!What happened to the A&P mentality of helping housewives, and working mom's to supply healthy nutritious foods at affordable prices? The shopping carts back then were much smaller. They did not need to buy as much because they canned their own fruits and vegetables. They made their own sauces from their canned goods. No Prego in that shopping cart! It is wartime girls!! That means change. We haven't felt it as hard as we will, but we are fully equipped to make it through!!Wouldn't it be awesome if they brought back Green Stamps???!!!I remember my mom laying out the empty books and the stacks of stamps on the dining room table. We would use a wet sponge to wet the backs and fill those books up!! Then we would take the stacks of filled books to the S&H Green Stamp store and redeem them for something wonderful...something we had picked out and would have been saving for all along. When I was about 10 years old, my mother let me save my own S&H Green Stamps. I redeemed them for a guitar with a vinyl case. I had forgotten about that......
So I am off to finish that grocery list with a renewed attitude! As TJ would say,
"Can we do it? YES we can!!!!!"


17 comments:

Libby said...

My first roller skates came from the Green Stamp store. The were not the kind with a key, but had a wing nut on the bottom to adjust the size. The straps were the most delightful red plaid. They had the most unforgiving metal wheels - the tiniest little pebble on the sidewalk would lock those babies up tighter than a drum causing a lot of damage to my knees *s* I remain envious to this day of the girl I knew who could turn a cartwheel while roller skating!

SuBee said...

SUPER new look! And what a sweet trip back in time, that sure brought back memories. I was "in charge" of the green stamps but in our area Blue Chip stamps were more common.
Hmmmm....$12 plus for a pie.....I bet it was 100% better than a store bought! No price on that!

Dani said...

I love the new look of your blog, it is very peaceful!

We used to have stamps from our local IGA, I don't remember redeeming them, though I am sure we did. The joy for me was sticking them in the book!

Paula said...

Love your new look! :)

I remember going to the S&H store when I was a little girl. Everything there looked just wonderful to me. Can you imagnine how many of those green stamps are stuffed away in the back of someone's junk drawer?

copperswife said...

Good post! You've touched a bit on some of what I've been pondering....much to think on.

My mom did the Blue Chip Stamp thing....just like Green Stamps, but maybe more popular in our area. I remember her "buying" a set of luggage with those stamps.

The new blog look is beautiful.

Corin said...

Beautiful blog changes! and...

YAHOO!!! You go girlfriend! I'm looking at ways of cutting back as well, but I LOVE your 1940's comparison!

If I cut back like that, do I get to wear the cool clothes as well? ;-)

Mamabeanof4 said...

I LOVE your new look!
i also remenber the anticipation of saving the Green Stamps for something special. We had an actual store-we didn't have to buy out of the catalog. What fun we had dreaming-remember the Brady Bunch episode when the girls wanted a sewing machine and the boys wanted a canoe(I think?!) so they had a card tower contest and whoever won, got the Green Stamps!? Oh! Those were the days!
I remember that the A&P in our town always smelled like coffee when you walked in the door because that's where the coffee grinder was.
Aaaaah! Memories.
I cannot believe you get to meet Niki soon! You lucky dog! I hear she is coming to PA too-can you ride with her!?!

Anonymous said...

I'm with Corin...let's bring back the clothes styles as well ☺

I love your retro pictures...just right for a post on your new "stylin'" blog...LOL!

julieQ said...

I try to go to the store just once a week, with a list, only get the things on the list...but still am spending more. We go meatless at least half the week, too. I remember green stamps...I miss those days and the fun we all had!

Kelley said...

Love the new look Bren!
Can you believe that it is already Wednesday?
The time is just flying!

Have a blessed evening!

Angie said...

I love your blog, Bren!

Aren't the prices crazy? Even at the military bases we're feeling the crunch - rice is being rationed to only 2 bags per person! And buying muffins in a 24 pack is cheaper than a 10# bag of potatoes (over here in Japan, anyway).

Thanks for the encouragement - I love the clothes too ... wouldn't hurt my feeling in the least to return to that style. Love it!

The Proverbs Wife said...

My husband sorta jokes on me because I have really taken an interest in cooking from scratch, canning and growing veggies at home.

He jokes that those times are over. He says" Woman don't do that anymore".

That may be so but I enjoy it and if we do experience times such as the Great Depression, I am sure that he will be thankful.

Sarah said...

I love the new look, Bren. Sometimes I worry when I think how bad things could get... $5 for a gallon of gas, $4 for a loaf of bread. I always remind myself that God is in control and He will supply my needs!

Brenda@CoffeeTeaBooks said...

We used Green Stamps all the time. My mom worked at a soda fountain for years (the kind that was part of a drug store) and the manager let her keep the green stamps she received from purchasing food for everything she had to make for the soda fountain (like ham salad, chicken salad, etc.)

I was in the grocery store today, after filling the car with gas. If you ask me, we are at war again!

Stephanie D said...

Well, so long as I don't have to wear heels to the grocery store.

Whatever happened to the guitar?

Anonymous said...

it's so hard to stick to budget for groceries that I quit using it, but I'm going to start keep track again! Thanks! PS. We go through 1 1/2 gallons milk per day= $180.00 month!!! Please share any thrify recipes you come across!

Lindah said...

Hi Bren
I'm trying to cut the "don't needs" out of the grocery trips, too. Becuase produce is a large part of my list, it is always a pleasure in the summertime to shop when most of our produce comes from our yard then.
S&H stamps...We still have the clock on the wall that we bought 43years ago after saving stamps for months. Although it no longer runs, it is a very beautiful clock.
One thing to remember, in the early days of mixes, it was cheaper to buy a cake mix than to buy the ingredients...I remember budgeting a cake mix at 29 cents for a full size Betty Crocker mix.-----of course, those early mix cakes didn't tast very good either, IMO. They have come a long way in quality, as well as in price! hmmm, in those days...if I bought a half pound of hamburger, the butcher would GIVE me a couple of big soup bones. How times have changed--now the bones are a couple $/pound.