letters from the wilderness
I'm back! My schedule got a little crazy, and then we did a 24-hour visit to see our 2 sons in Pennsylvania. October Unprocessed - I set a goal of making stuff from scratch AND using up old ingredients. One item I'm using up is chia seeds purchased from Giant way back when. I toss... Continue Reading →
Time for a belated Frugal Friday post. Our fall schedule kicked into high gear with the addition of physical therapy appointments for my daughter to help her TMJ and me dealing with a sinus infection on top of a recurring ear infection. Fun times! Coupons! at Kroger, CVS, and cashback and Fetch rewards - When... Continue Reading →
1. Recycle plastic containers for chicken. Since I discovered Aldis used plastic containers for chicken pieces, I've been washing them and reusing them as plant bottoms for the plants I'm starting from seed or cuttings. 2. Use up bits of veggies in quiche. My sister-in-law mentioned making quiche and using up some peppers and onions... Continue Reading →
Time for my next edition of 5 frugal things. Leave plastic bottle under kitchen tap to collect drips. Our kitchen tap has been dripping off and on for several months. Since my husband has been working on other projects like the river birch stump, I simply stuck the plastic bottle under the tap and did... Continue Reading →
Since we redid the office, I've been mostly happy with it. Removing the wallpaper and painting the walls blue helped me feel more comfortable in our home office. But, I wasn't completely comfortable. I've been feeling frustrated about getting things done. My systems were not working and I continued to have a visual mess on... Continue Reading →
One of the bloggers I'm following, Katie of The Non-Consumer Advocate, does a regular post about her frugal doings. As I work on our spending plan and focused budget challenges, I thought I would share weekly the big and little frugal doings. 5 frugal things Cancel Spotify: We had a family membership for Spotify for... Continue Reading →
After my Amaryllis bulbs bloomed last winter, I tried pollinating the flowers to produce seeds. I was successful in producing seeds and getting those seeds to grow! Once the seeds began growing in water, I put them in potting soil in recycled plant containers from Home Depot and Lowes. I decided to use potting soil... Continue Reading →
After a break, maybe 7 or 8 years, I decided to pick up knitting again. I love knitting and embroidery. When the kids were little, I took a few of their drawings and turned them into embroidered pillows. I also knitted many socks, hats, a sweater, a few scarves, and a few blankets. My love... Continue Reading →
Why write about mixed nuts? Ingenuity and creativity, my new mantra for my budget challenge. So, we love to buy the Kirkland mixed nuts from Costco. Right now, I’m eating keto - 30 net carbs and lots of protein. Nuts are good way to add protein to my salads and snacks. However Costco is 1... Continue Reading →
As I mentioned in my Adirondack chair post, I started a monthly budget challenge at the beginning of June in response to receiving a ginormous electric bill. This year, we had a hot spring with 9 days of over 90-degree temperatures. With the kids home and the higher temperatures, we had used almost double the... Continue Reading →
2 dogs and a house 