It was really wonderful to hear from so many readers this past week in the comments! So many of you have been reading for years and I didn’t know who you were. I loved reading your frugal accomplishments and was very, very touched to hear how much my site has helped so many of you…
This post contains affiliate links. I took a floral arranging class as a university student. I often say that that class and my public speaking class are the two most practical classes I attended. Floral arrangement styles have changed over the years. I follow several florists on Instagram (who have styles I love but that…
This post contains affiliate and referral links. Ten years ago, I sat at my computer and started creating this website. My plan was to create menus and recipes for those who were living, like us, from their food storage and garden. At the time, we had been living on our food storage for over…
My son and I repaired a leak in the garden. I signed up for a free online mini-class. I used a $15 off coupon at Joann fabrics on top of purchasing items on sale. I collected shower-warm-up water and used it to water potted plants in the garden. We picked blackberries and apricots from the…
I cut flowers from the garden. I cut rosemary and Swiss chard from the garden. We picked blackberries, apricots, lemons, and figs from the garden. I had my son spray for bugs. Spraying the outside of the house rather than having a bug service saves us hundreds of dollars every year. We watched children’s shows on…
I harvested Mission figs, Royal apricots, Meyer lemons, peppermint, green onions, New Zealand spinach, Swiss chard, hibiscus flowers, and blackberries from the garden. I worked in the garden, weeding and sowing seeds for sunflowers, Armenian cucumbers, Genovese basil, and vincas. I collected green onion seeds from my green onion flowers and planted a new…
This post contains an affiliate link. I cut flowers from the garden. We harvested Katy apricots, blackberries, chocolate mint, peppermint, chamomile, green onions, and Mission figs from the garden. I planted seeds for Dark Opal basil and Armenian cucumbers in the garden. I received an email advertising a discount for season tickets for the Philharmonic….
This month in the garden, I’ll harvest blackberries, Mission figs, and apricots. I’ll cut and pick Swiss chard, green onions, grape leaves, chives, oregano, rosemary, sage, elderberry flowers (and possibly elderberries, if I can beat the birds to them), New Zealand spinach, peppermint, and tomatoes. I’ll collect seeds from open-pollinated spinach, three kinds of lettuce,…
A month ago, I gave birth to a baby boy. We now have five daughters and four sons. This baby boy was our biggest child! He was 9 pounds, 1 ounce (4,11 kg) and 22 inches long. He was born at home on April 27th at 8:20 p.m. His name is Hamish. Curious about…
This post contains affiliate links. I mended seven leaks in the drip irrigation. I had accidentally cut these last year when pruning hedges. I planted seeds for Armenian cucumbers, pumpkins, zucchini, and Thai basil in the garden. I harvested apricots, lemons, tomatoes, lettuce, spinach, green onions, garlic chives, oregano, parsley, and chocolate mint from the…
This post contains affiliate links. I have been behind in my work in the garden, but now that the baby is here, I am working to get caught up. Consequently, most of my money saving activities this week involved the garden. Two weeks ago, I was speaking with the irrigation person at the local…
I harvested lemons, lettuce, garlic chives, oregano, spinach, and a couple of apricots from the garden. I cooked chicken in my solar oven, which not only didn’t use gas, but it also kept the house cooler. We celebrated a birthday at home for my 2-year-old with homemade cupcakes. My son picked more mulberries from our…