The Great Depression Project

  I've always been fascinated by the Great Depression. All four of my grandparents were born during it, and lived through it. Hearing their stories, reading the stories online of my grandparents' generation who survived on very little, has always made me stop and reflect on our life today. It often seems that the more information we have at our fingertips, the less capable we have become as a society. I know men and women-my own age!!-who can't even peel a clove of garlic, let alone cook a meal. My sewing and gardening skills are abysmal, at best. Will knows how to do basic mechanical maintenance, but I'm clueless. If you stuck me in the middle of a farm and told me to get started on the day's work, I would look around helplessly before wandering over to some cute baby animals to pet them. I don't know how to knit. I CAN cook, and I'm getting pretty good at making recipes from scratch. I cloth diaper our babies, and when the weather is nice, I hang our laundry out to dry on our clothesline. I make a bi-monthly budget for our family, and for the most part, we follow it closely. I'll be honest, though; the skills that I have as an almost 36-year old woman pale in comparison to the skills a woman my age in the 1930's needed to have in order to survive. I'm embarrassed by it, but I'm doing what I can to learn new things, and to use technology for good. (In other words, spend what little free time I have teaching myself how to garden, how to knit, etc, by watching videos on YouTube, not playing silly games or browsing Facebook every twenty minutes). 

  I've been brainstorming lately, trying to find ways for me to live like a mother back in the 1930's. Mind you, I'm not secretly praying for a national financial crisis, or hoping that we have an attack on the power grid so we all have to go back to the days of root cellars and colonial ice houses to store meat and dairy. What I am trying to do is be more mindful of our spending, participate in activities with the kids that don't involve TV shows, and most importantly, make do with what we have. I was going over our monthly menu a few days ago, while I was in the midst of making our October meal plan, and I was commenting to Will that I was shocked-and upset-with how often we had gone out to eat last month. And how many times we went through the drive-thru, either at Starbucks or Chik-Fil-A. I was frustrated with myself, because I felt like I did a poor job meal planning, and there were some nights when we didn't have enough leftovers that I had been anticipating, or I had planned a time-consuming meal on a busy night, or I had forgotten a key ingredient to a recipe at the grocery store. Will pointed out that compared to most Americans, we really don't eat out all that often, but that didn't make me feel much better. During the Great Depression, most people didn't know where their next meal was coming from. Between the Dust Bowl and the massive layoffs, if the wife or mother didn't cook breakfast, lunch and dinner, the family would go hungry. There was no, "I'm too tired to cook tonight, let's pick up a pizza," or, "I'm really craving Thai food, want to order some to go?" 

  I feel as though I've been very wasteful lately, with our food and our budget, and I'm really kind of ashamed of myself. Considering how many people have been displaced and/or lost everything these past few months due to weather-related disasters, I believe the very least I can do is be more economical and frugal when it comes to groceries and meals for my family. I have a few ideas how I can make this happen for the month of October:

1. Make a meal plan and stick to it.

2. Even if we do have a day where we have too much going on to cook a meal, or I'm in too much pain, make sure that we have enough in the house so that we can throw together a simple dinner for us and the kids. No ordering pizzas at the last minute because I didn't plan properly. 

3. Plan family fun activities that don't involve fees or technology. Trips to the neighborhood pool, since it's still Hell On Earth here in the great state of Georgia and the pool is open. Play dates with friends. Trips to the library. Parks, when it isn't 90 degrees with 100% humidity. 

  Obviously, some exceptions will be made. Being that this plan is for the month of October, I'm certainly not going to deny our kids a fun Halloween because I'm on a budget mission ("sorry, kids! No costumes or candy this year, because my grandparents didn't have that luxury back in the 1930's! I'm sure you guys can understand!"). Lol, no. That being said, I have a Halloween budget every year for the month of October, for costumes, house decorations, and candy for trick-or-treating, and we've never had a problem sticking to it. Carmine's birthday is on the 24th, and mine is on the 31st (yes, I'm a Halloween baby, and yes, I had some fantastic parties growing up). My goal is to be budget-conscious and frugal, without being a cheapskate. I'm also trying to incorporate more vegetarian meals into our monthly meal plan, which can be a challenge, since my husband is very much a "meat and potatoes" kind of guy. Fortunately, Pinterest has a bunch of delicious looking fall recipes, and many of them feature in-season vegetables. 

  I've noticed that things like vintage skills, homesteading, and survival-type courses are beginning to make a comeback, and I think that's excellent. We live in very uncertain times, and there's no guarantee that all of the technology and information we have at our fingertips will always be available. I'd like to see more people my age (and younger) learn the skills our grandparents grew up with, and to not take their wisdom for granted. I, for one, am very excited to begin what I call my "Great Depression Project," and start learning more about these useful skills that, in my opinion, more people need to know. I'll report back next month with an update on my project (which, at the moment, includes a stricter budget, especially in terms of food, basic gardening, and if I have time, beginning knitting). Anyone else up for the challenge? Leave a comment and tell me what you would like to do for your own Great Depression Project!