Household tips and tricks I learned from my Grandma Rydalch

I've been accumulating a mental list of all the "housewife" life lessons my Grandma "taught" me, either by her actions or words.

1. There truly is 101 Uses for Vinegar. Grandma washed windows with it, scrubbed her floors with it, cooked with it, soaked her bad leg in it, gargled with it when we had a sore throat, and drank it.

2. Take mini breaks throughout the day. Grandma would always take little mini breaks and sit on the sofa to watch a favorite TV show, or listen to the radio. They were just long enough to refresh her for the next household task.

3. Pay a child a penny to kill flies. G & G's house used to sit next to a small dairy so every summer swarms of flies would enter the house. Grandma would pay us Grandkids a penny per fly we would kill with the plastic fly swatter. I think the most she paid out was 50 cents to each kid.

4. Keep a food reserve. I knew if we encountered any kind of natural disaster all of G&G's children and grandchildren would come to their house and live off their food and water supply for years. The importance of "stocking up" always stuck with me and whenever I see a great sale, I always buy plenty. It has got us through tight money times as well.

5. Be creative in the kitchen. Grandma was always trying a new recipe out of the Taste of Home magazine, some good, some terrible, but always creative. She would substitute ingredients she didn't have for something she had on hand. We always were served iceberg lettuce salads with pineapple, apples, and cottage cheese. She had issues with bugs invading her dry goods so many times you would find extra protein in your rice, cereal, pancakes or homemade bread.

6. Never leave a pan on an hot stove. Countless times I would see Grandma leave her pots and pans to burn on the stove, ruining many. She always seemed to get interrupted. The most common interruption was a a phone call from a political telemarketer wanting a donation. Or someone looking for Grandpa. The phone was the cause of much stress for her, especially during meal time.

7. Never use your hand as the juicer pusher. She did this and ground off the tips of her fingers one day. I'll never forget that one!

8. Always have dinner ready for your hubby. Then stick your head out the door and call, "Bud, it's time to eat", over and over again until it drives both of you crazy.

9. Recycle your gift wrapping. I do this now too. I save everything from bags to tissue. Grandma always saved wrapping paper, folding it nicely so she could reuse it. Sometimes we would get Christmas wrap on our Birthdays or newspaper when all wrap was used up.

Grandma taught me so much about being compassionate, caring, giving, resourceful, strong and lovable. You will always be one of my Heros.