Finances

 Our new mortgage is 8 months old...  We started with 360 payments. We are at payment 43 almost to payment 44. 

Hubby has 26 more payment to the work truck, the business pays for it so he figures he won't "retire" from the business until that truck is paid off. So he will be almost 66 when he stops .I don't believe he will stop but that is okay, he is planning it that way.

 We have no other debt.

We pay off the credit cards every month. I am using the cash back from our credit cards to pay for the "grid goes down" items. I put utilities, medical, supplies on the credit cards, then pull the $ from savings as it sits about 3 wks before the credit cards come due from the time our $ comes in for the month. On the advice of Hubby's parents, we did separate when our IRA's come in so we get Social Security one week, my IRA the middle of the month and Hubby's at the last part of the month. 

We have the money in the savings for the propane. Took some work to scrape it up now. Put off the "grid down" buying but it's there so I won't be stressing about it. Put off a couple projects we had planned to do on the house.

Hubby asked for the grocery list... milk, half and half, heavy cream, 6 lbs. of onions that should get me through until ours is growing or I can get the walking onions. They are kinds of squishy in the winter. 

Prayers for peace

Blessed Be

what we are looking to buy for "grid goes down" emergency

Our internet went down and Hubby was thankful he has "hotspot" on his phone as he was in the middle of doing work on the computer for gov't stuff needed for his business. 

Which triggered him to asking where we were at on the "grid goes down" emergency list.

I also found out what triggered him to tell me to stock up NOW instead of this fall. Several of the Amish bulk stores are having issues getting supplies in and it's more than just the ones in Ohio having issues.

I listed the following on our grid down list.

toilet... we have an outhouse, needs some repair this summer , but usable even if we don't get the repairs done. It sits on the septic tank that is connected to the septic tile so it's no going into a hole like my parents and grandparents. I would like two windows that have screens in it instead of a Plexiglas that you move if you want air... then the birds come in if you don't close it.

We have a deep well... Amish have told Hubby what to get to enable us to get water from it. There is a pump that is solar charged that would connect to the pressurized tank so we would have running water in house through our plumbing. You can also "hand" pump it if there is not enough solar. Ohio is #3 of being the cloudiest in the USA.

We have a cistern and a handpump at the mudroom sink. Big thank you to N for leaving us  that when he moved so we could at least wash our hands while doing construction. I use it to water my indoor plants.

I would love an ice house (we would have to buy/build it) but could very quickly convert the pump house to a spring house like many in my family had. 

I would love a root cellar even though I have a basement.

I already can and dehydrate. M and B offered to teach me to can meat when I get to that point. I have canned some meat... mostly beef.

We would need heat plus cooking. Hubby asked Amish and they pointed him to exactly what would do for us. One that has a home the size and layout of ours told Hubby how wood or anthracite nut coal (not the coal I grew up with that was nasty to deal with) it would take a year. Said to make sure we got a reservoir so we would have hot water to wash with. LOL

We have an open floor plan, would need to be able to close down some of those doorways to keep the heat in the primary living areas. I have fabric and extra curtains so I can make that up. Would need more blankets for the beds as the bedrooms would not be heated. Can make quilts from the fabric I have.

I have needles and thread to mend and Mother's old button can that I add to .

I have All Clad cooking pans and some cast iron so I won't have issues there.

I ordered 2 wash tubs to wash laundry or bathe... wringers is on back order. I actually have a wringer washer that Hubby thinks he could hook to solar (got a portable solar for camping bookmarked) to run. Again I think of our ranking on cloudiest states. 

I got 2 wind up pocket watches (Hubby just broke his) and a Big Ben wind up alarm clock that will definitely stay near Hubby because I am well known for tossing them across the room if they are within reach when I am sleeping and they go off.

Hubby is asking about grain mills. Might find someone that would just grind for us as that is common here. He is also asking a young Amish that just got married and is making clocks if he can make a key wind up clock.

I need to learn how to knit/crochet socks etc. 

Hubby said his buddy that is Emergency management for this type of stuff suggested some solar and a wind turbine or moving our windmill to the pump house ... that's on the list but at the end. He felt MY list pretty much covered it since we already use oil lamps and have a big supply of candles. I can get tallow or lard to make candles if needed.

Actually all I did was write down what was at Grandpa's house that only had 2 outlets in the whole house when I was a child. One for the refrigerator and one for the tv in the corner of the front room. There was NO running water, heated and cooked with coal that we got off the side of the mountain that they were mining. Kerosene lamp on ceiling of kitchen and one by Grandpa's rocker in the front room. Aunt Hazel had a small candle for her bedroom. Grandpa slept in was what the dining room. Daddy and I dug outhouse twice. I love mine is sitting on a septic tank connected to septic tile. 

Mother had outhouse, ice box but very seldom ice for it, kerosene lamps, they had running water and the cook stove was coal and had a reservoir on it. 

It helps to keep that knowledge.