Home Economics & ICAN (Ideas for Cooking and Nutrition)

Our county's Extension home economics program helps strengthen family life. In a rapidly changing world, the challenges facing individuals and families in our county are great. With A problem solving philosophy, we strive to develop programs to deal with complex issues facing local families. We are helping people build leadership and other skills. We teach through group training sessions and local programs and community projects. We are dedicated to solving community needs, concerns and issues.

Child Development & Family Life

The situation for many Lea County families is like that of families statewide. Marginal parenting skills and stress experienced in many families in their efforts to provide the family income contribute to continued incidences of child abuse, teen pregnancy, substance abuse, failure for children to succeed in school, and violence in the community. Limited resources brought on by the economic decline in the area also hamper family. These and other factors contribute to the malaise. One significant factor not often cited is the number of single moms giving birth. In 1998, 42.1 percent of the babies born in Lea County were to single mothers, or 417 babies were born in Lea County in 1998 who would not have the benefit of a two-parent family. The statewide percentage was 43.9. Some social scientists attribute the absence of a father from the home as greatly contributing to the social problems given above.

• Additional Home Ec Resources

Good/Nutrition Education

Lea County residents show a distinct concern for nutrition, diet, and human health. New Mexico Department of Health data for 1996 (received December 1998) show heart disease and cancer account for 50% of all deaths in Lea ounty. Diabetes is a concern, because like the rest of the state, Lea County citizens also experience high incidences of diabetes. However, there is not a physician, certified diabetes educator, or registered dietitian in Lea County that specializes in the treatment, monitoring, and care of diabetes. Weight management and disease related to hypertension is also a concern.

Lea County Home Extension Clubs

Lea County Extension has six active Homemakers clubs. Many tours, programs and workshops are offered through the various clubs. Persons interested may call the Lea Count Extension Office at 396-2819 or 1-800-371-7785 or one of the clubs listed below for more information.

• ARTFUL HANDS QUILT CLUB (County Wide Membership) is an organized group of quilters. The club meets on the third Monday of each month at the Hobbs Senior Center at 9:00 am to learn new quilting techniques and work on individual projects. Contact Robin Baker 396-2819
• CAPROCK CLUB (Tatum/Caprock Area Membership) meets monthly to select programs and crafts. Contact Bonnie Kennedy 398-7677.
• LOVINGTON LLANO (Lovington Area Membership) meets the second Tuesday of each month at the Jackson Ave Baptist Church. Contact Vestal Lair 396-6795.
• HOBBS HANDICRAFT (Hobbs Area Membership) meets the first Tuesday of each month. Contacat Ruth Jones 396-2030
• HOBBS TRIANGLE (Hobbs/Knowles Area Membership) meets monthly to listen to selected programs. Contact Mary Lee Norris 392-2683.
• MAILBOX MEMBERS (County Wide Membership) is composed of individuals who wish to be a part of the extension homemaker organization but can not attend regular meetings. These members attend workshops, social functions, and receive educational information from the extension office. Contact Robin Baker 396-2819.

Lea County Homemakers Newsletter (June 2008)

I realize that fair time seems like a long way off, but considering it is already May, it will be here before you know it. Once again the fair board will only have fair books on the county web page, they will not be printed. You can access the webpage at: www.leacounty.net. Click on Fair and Rodeo. If you do not have internet access, please call the extension office or fair grounds for a copy. There have been several new classes added! As a reminder, there is prize money for all members and clubs who exhibit the most at the fair. There will be a quilt show planning meeting and council meeting on May 15, starting at 9 am. Please plan to attend! There are some items on the council agenda that must be voted on and a quorum must be present. The Annual Home Tour will follow at 1 pm. Please meet on the North side (Washington Street) of the Courthouse. Volunteers are needed for the Hobbs Festival of Quilts Show. If you can help out, please contact Arleen Coleson at 391-8365 for more information. Enjoy the fresh new days of spring! Robin Mack- Baker, Lea County Extension Home Economist Calendar of Events: • May 15�Quilt Show Committee Mtg. 9 am • May 15�EHC Council Mtg. 11 am • May 15�EHC Home Tour • May 22�Hobbs Festival of Quilts Show begins • May 26�Memorial Day Holiday, Office Closed • July 4�Holiday, Office Closed • August 2-9, Lea County Fair & Rodeo Inside this issue: Bargain Season 2 Get the Creative Edge! 3 Recipe of the Month 3 The Brush Off 4 When Legends are made of Fiction. . . . 5 May/June 2008 Lea County Extension Homemaker News Cooperative Extension Service - New Mexico State University - U.S. Department of Agriculture Lea County Extension Service 100 N Main, Suite 10, Lovington NM 88260 Website: http://leaextension.nmsu.edu Phone: 505-396-2819 Fax: 505-396-2971 Email: lea@nmsu.edu See this newsletter at: http://leaextension.nmsu.edu June Meeting Dates Artful Hands June 18, 2008 Because We Care June 14, 2008 Llano June 10, 2008 Triangle June 3, 2008 May Meeting Dates Artful Hands May 21, 2008 Because We Care May 10, 2008 Llano No Meeting! Triangle May 6, 2008 The signs of the season are here: "Yard Sale, Garage Sale, Moving Sale, Estate Sale." It's time to clear out the old and the unwanted and, for some of us, a time to find new treasures. Television programs that show people picking up pots or paintings for a few dollars and selling them for hundreds or thousands can bring out the spirit of adventure in a lot of us. But, it's also easy to end up with an empty pocket and an empty gas tank, along with a trunk filled with items you don't need and didn't really want. A little advance planning can help avoid impulse shopping and endless driving in circles. Check the newspaper classified section for garage sale locations. In large urban areas they will be listed by sections of the city. Circle those with special items of interest and note the times and dates of operation. The next step: decide on a route. Plan a course that takes you to the most locations with the least mileage. Use a street guide or a computer guide to get from one location to the next with the fewest wrong turns. Neighborhood and housing development sales usually will give you by far the most sales per mile. Come up with some idea about what you're looking for. • Keep a list of items with sizes and colors. • Keep a tape measure and a small magnifying glass handy. • Bring a screwdriver, in case you buy some- Bargain Season thing that needs to be dismantled to load and haul. • Invest in an antique and collectible guide, and bring it along so you can check the value of items. • If you're yard shopping with someone else, bring along a good book so you can keep yourself occupied should your partner become engrossed in a "find" while you wait to move on to new territory. So what happens after you obtain lots of treasurers that you can't use? You stage your own sale! It can be a lot of work, but you can unload some of your clutter and make some money for future garage sale shopping. Think about the ads that drew your eye. That's the type of advertising you want to use. Provide directions to your sale. Include times, dates, address, and list some items for sale or reasons for customers to seek you out. Street signs are a real help. Write the letters large and use contrasting colors. Use few words. Drivers don't have time to safely read a list of items, addresses, dates and times. A simple sign that says "Yard Sale" in big letters and an arrow pointing to the direction usually is enough. Put signs at each of the corners on the way to the location. Important: take down the signs after the sale. In some cities, you can be fined if signs are left up too long. If your sale involves multiple owners, you'll need some way to track individual sales. The easiest is to mark items with stickers that include the price and the owner's initials. When a sale is made, peel off the sticker and put it in a logbook along with the price the item sold for. You also can use a different colored sticker for each person. Continued on page 4. Page 2 Extension Homemaker News As we begin to get out the summer clothing, there may be some items in need of a little touch up. Here is where the embroidery machine comes in handy. Many fashions have begun to include stitching along the hems of Capri pants, appliqués along pocket edges or rhinestones within the waistbands. Here are some tips and tricks to “reinventing� your summer wardrobe. • Direct Method. To prepare the garment, open the side seams at least 3-inches. Print or stitch a template of the design with a removable marker to ensure correct placement. Stitch out the design, then re-stitch the seams with matching thread. • Appliqué Method. This method uses matching fabric to stitch out the design. Simply hoop the matching fabric and stabilizer, then stitch out the design. Once finished, cut around the motif leaving at least 1/4-inch fabric border. Position the design on your garment and stitch in place using a satin, straight or blanket stitch. Use a matching thread to hide the stitches. • Cuff Method. In using the cuff method, you are adding a coordinating fabric to the hem line of a sleeve or pants. In this method, there will be some measuring involved to ensure the pants or sleeves do not become too long. Once the measuring is complete, trim the hem off just above the current hem line to reduce the bulk. Stitch out the design then attach the cuff to the garment. Remember, you will need to repeat the design for the other side. If you don’t have access to an embroidery machine, try some of these tricks: • Stitch beads into the lower edge of a waistline. • Add fusible rhinestones. • Add beading with hand sewing needles for additional accents. Information taken from Sew News, April/May 2008 issue. Get the Creative Edge Page 3 Extension Homemaker News 2008 Extension Homemaker Council Home Tour All homes will be in the Lovington area. We will be leaving from the courthouse at 1 pm. Please meet on the North side (Washington Street) of the courthouse. Homes to be toured: The Lawson Home on Jefferson The Robinson Home on 3rd Street The Ford Home on 2nd Street 7 cups thinly sliced, peeled cucumbers 2 cups sugar 3 large onions, chopped 1 medium green pepper, chopped 1 cup cider vinegar 1 tablespoons salt 1 tablespoon celery seed In a large serving bowl, combine all ingredients. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Serve with a slotted spoon. Makes 8 to 10 servings. Taken from the Taste of Home, February/March 2008 Cucumber Salad May/June 2008 Page 4 Continued from page 2 Then calculate individual totals at the end of the sale. If your sale is inside your home, place a table for sales collection by the door. This should prevent items from leaving without being purchased. Keep a sharp eye on items displayed in the yard. Keep plenty of change, and decide if you will accept checks. Cash is always good. Will a time come during the day when items will be half off? Decide how you are going to "deal" with people. Part of the fun in garage sales is in the bargaining on prices. Before your sale, it's a good idea to go to a few others to see how items are priced. Remember that the key word is "sale." You won't get the original value out of your items. You can, however, get a lot of things out of your house and get some reimbursement for them. Some items, such as used clothing, are hard to sell. You'll get far less than your investment. Paperback books will sell for only 25 cents to 50 cents each. If you price your items too high, you'll be packing them up and putting them back in your house. Weather can be a concern. On hot summer days, shoppers will look around longer if you can provide shade or cover. You might need to keep tarps ready for a sudden shower. Or, if items are on tables, they can be carried into a garage or under shelter. If the sale is inside, you might want to invest in carpet runners to protect rugs and floors. Indoors or out, both you and your buyers, also will appreciate comfortable chairs and some shade after a period of time. Most sales are held on Saturdays and Sundays. Customers, however, seem to come out in greater numbers on Fridays and Saturdays. Sales that start by 8 a.m. get more customers while they still have money to spend. During summer, it's also cooler at that time of day. One last tip --- arrange for some help at the sale. You will need a break now and then and some time to eat lunch. It's more fun to have several friends, family members or neighbors work together. And, in a worse case scenario, you can at least swap your stuff! Written by Gale Loeffler, Colorado State University Extension agent in Arapahoe County. The Brush-Off Hairbrushes, makeup brushes and toothbrushes are part of our everyday grooming routines. But these aids to helping us look good can harbor bacteria that are anything but good for us. To avoid this, The Soap and Detergent Association, recommends a regular cleaning and replacement routine. Makeup brushes: With proper care, a good makeup brush can last for years. To clean it, run the bristles under warm water. Then apply a small amount of liquid hand soap, liquid dish detergent or shampoo and work up a light lather. Rinse the brush until the water runs clear of soap and makeup residue. Using your fingers, gently mold the bristles into their original shape and then let the brush air-dry. Hair brushes: These are easiest to clean in pairs– either two hairbrushes or a hairbrush and comb. Gently run the bristles of one hairbrush or the comb through the other brush to remove the hairs that have accumulated. Wet the bristles under warm running water. Apply a small amount of liquid hand soap, liquid dish detergent or shampoo onto the bristles of either the brush or comb. Rub the two together gently so the hairbrush bristles don't fall out and then rinse under warm running water. If any gunk–such as residue from hair products–remains, use a cotton swab to remove the particles; then repeat the cleaning process. This gentle cleaning method is better than soaking. Soaking will erode the rubber on cushioned brushes, damage the finish on wood-bodied brushes, and may twist or curl the bristles on boar-bristle brushes. Toothbrushes: Thoroughly rinse your toothbrush with tap water after brushing to remove any remaining toothpaste and debris. Replace the toothbrush approximately every 3–4 months or sooner if the bristles become frayed with use. Information taken from the Soap and Detergent Association Newsletter, March/April 2008 According to the American Council on Science and Health, the Internet is used by health scare artists to terrorize the public. Leaving people in search of accurate health information caught in the web of hoaxes and urban medical myths that are rampant of misconstrued facts and opinions. The health scare messages are always the same - whatever it is, it will make you sick, live forever, rich, beautiful, etc. How does it start? It begins with vague facts or misconstrued information from a reputable source or a source that seems reputable. Bloggers are many times expressing their opinion then these ideas pickup support by innocent well meaning people. Recent food urban legends include: Aspartame is linked to cancer, Diet Coke was originally ant poison, TAB diet cola is an acronym for “totally artificial beverage�. Other myths are: Canola oil is the same as rapeseed oil, celery is negative in calories. Some people advocate that raw milk is safe to drink, while others claim that organic milk does not contain hormones. Most myths and legends can be dispelled with scientific research. The National Cancer Institute, for insistence, sites current research results that show approved low-calorie sweeteners are not linked with cancer. When confronting new information, that generally sounds better than it is, ask yourself where the information came from and check with related associations to see if they have similar reports. Many consumers don't recognize the risks they take with some of the information that is found on the internet, in emails, or through visiting with a friend or family member. To dispel any food or nutrition myths, here are some websites to check into: American Council on Science and Health. http://www.acsh.org/ Food and Drug Administration www.fda.gov US Department of Agriculture www.usda.gov Information compiled by Nancy Flores, Food Technology Specialist at New Mexico State University. When Legends Are Made of Fiction Rather Than Fact 2008 Festival of Quilts “Windmills of Our Lives� Quilts on Display May 22 to June 7, 2008 Western Heritage Museum Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame Additional Exhibits: 2007 Hoffman Challenge TEXTile Messaging from the NM Art Quilters Art Quilts from Albuquerque & Santa Fe Featured Speaker: Debbie Caffery, author of Can of Worms Artful Hands Extension Club Block of the Month Demonstrators May�Cindi Sanchez June�Susan Brandon NEEDED: Photography Superintendent For the Lea County Fair & Rodeo Please call Robin if you are interested! LEA COUNTY COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE 100 N. MAIN ST. SUITE 10-C LOVINGTON, NM 88260 New Mexico State University is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and educator. NMSU and the U.S. Department of Agriculture cooperating. PRESORTED/NONPROFIT STANDARD MAIL U.S. POSTAGE PAID LOVINGTON, NM Permit #3