At the Cottage ~ September 23, 2023

    Hello, dear readers!  I do apologize for the unexpected, unannounced blogging break.  It wasn't something I had planned, and it lasted longer than I realized! 

    We are all doing very well.  I just needed some time to get caught up on a few things around the home that needed my undistracted attention.  With various projects going on and new things added to our schedules, I had fallen behind on some of my homemaking tasks.  It feels good to have them done.

    Annabel wrote a post a few weeks ago on stewardship that really struck a chord with me.  I know there are areas in which I need to improve, so these last few weeks I have tried to be very diligent about taking care of what I have.

    I am happy to say that my garden is staying about 95% (totally made up number, but based on my perception) weed- free!  Each morning I am getting out early to tend to this, as well as puttering around and tidying up outside.  Even just little things can become big ones if they are neglected.  I've also been trying to teach the boys good habits by having them put all their outdoor toys away in the shed before we go inside.  I do the same with my tools.

    Before my blogging break, I had cleaned out, organized, and rearranged my freezers.  Now I have done the same with my pantries.  This was a big task, but it looks and functions so much better.  I can easily see what I have and get to what I need.  I am still trying to figure out how I will restock it moving forward in a way that complies with our new healthy eating habits.  I will still have pasta, rice, and other grains on hand for emergency purposes, but those are not foods that are very good for me and eating them comes with not-so-good consequences.  Some food is better than no food, but I'd rather be stocking and eating foods that nourish me, as opposed to making me feel terrible.  Once we have our freeze dryer set up (post renovation), I hope to add lots of dried garden produce to the pantry.

    We have also joined our local homeschool co-op.  I have definitely had to get out of my introverted comfort zone to participate.  At orientation, we all had to go around the room and introduce ourselves to the group and talk about ourselves.  This is a nightmare for an introvert- as soon as I walked in and saw the chairs all placed in a circle, I thought, "Oh no."  But I survived (my heart was racing SO fast, haha)!  And I actually had a lot of fun.  I have since made several friends in the group.  A lot of the moms have gardens, chickens, bees, and other livestock.  Many of them can and preserve food, bake bread (including sourdough), and one even has a freeze dryer!  They are all Christian ladies, as it is a Christian group, so we share a lot of the same values.  I think a lot of us were surprised to have all of these things in common, as I know my interests usually make me the odd one out!  I feel like I have found my people, and my heart is full.  It's funny that I signed up for the kids, but it has been a tremendous blessing for me, too.  Of course, John has loads of fun playing with the other children.  We all meet once a week and really look forward to it.

    Aside from all of this, my regular tasks keep me busy- a good, productive busy.  I am sorry that I don't have many pictures to share - I haven't paused very often this month to take them!

    I do have one, and it is of Ginger "helping" me weed.  I'm sad to say it will be my last one of her, as she has disappeared.  We had a storm several nights ago, and my guess is that she got scared and ran off, as I haven't seen her since.  It saddens me as I got really attached to her.  I know that is part of life in the country- I just wish it wasn't.

    What about you?  What have you been up to this past month?  I'd love to hear!

At the Cottage ~ August 25, 2023

    It was a gardening week here at the cottage.  After getting my squash in last week, I moved on to various types of lettuces and greens.  We have been eating a lot of these, so I am going to be glad when we start harvesting and I don't have to buy them any more.  They are one of the easiest things for me to grow, so it pains me that they are so expensive at the store.

    After I got these in, Colton told me that we were expecting rain on Tuesday.  Rain is so rare and precious where I live, so this sent me into gardening overdrive.  I planted green beans, radishes, beets, carrots, cabbage, and parsnips.  John planted corn and zinnias.  I covered my rows with more wood chips (we are really running out but I think the Lord must have multiplied them for me like the loaves and fishes because I had enough with some left over!) and spread more hay in between.  Ginger helped, obviously.

    Inside, I started my tomato seeds and herb seeds.  I should've done this sooner, but better late than never (I hope).

    What I didn't know was that we weren't just expecting rain- it was a tropical storm!  Not sure how I missed that memo (actually it's because I don't watch/read the news or socialize very often), or I probably wouldn't have planted!  I'm glad I did, though, as we ended up getting a steady, gentle rain that totaled three inches by the time it was over.  This is what I found the next morning:

    That's my squash!  And some of the greens coming up:

    I set out buckets and caught lots of rainwater.  I'm using it for my seedlings and fruit trees, which are still in pots.  Two of our peach trees were completely stripped of their leaves overnight by leafcutter ants, so I'm having to haul them into the shed at night and back outside in the morning until Colton can find the ant colony and poison them.  They are nearly impossible to fight.  All the websites basically say "good luck".  We'll try.

    With all of the planting I did, I thought I should really keep a better record than I have in years past, so I created a gardening journal using one of the binders I bought over the tax-free weekend.  I used free printables from JES (here and here) and these, which I found on Pinterest from The Fairy Printsess.  There are so many free options to choose from that I was able to customize it and get exactly what I wanted. 

    Some of the pages:

    I also included print-outs from my local nursery on planting times for our area and care guides for some of the trees and plants I have.

    While I was at it, I made a weekly/monthly planner using free printables from Shining Mom, which I also found on Pinterest (just type in "free planner printables" and you will get loads of results).  The planner I have used in the past is wonderful but expensive, so this time I am opting for "free".  I was able to get the pages that will fit my needs, and they are pretty!

    I do so much better with lists because it means less for me to remember!  Getting things onto paper means getting them out of my brain, which means less stress about all the to-do's.  I can keep track of my Fly Lady schedule this way too.

    This week I tackled a big task and organized and inventoried the freezers (we have three if you count the one in the fridge).  Now I can see what all we have, what we need to buy, and what we need to use.  Sometimes I open them just to admire my work!  I added the inventory sheets to the back of my planner, along with a master list of meal ideas that we eat and like so that I can meal plan and rotate my stock.

    It was a no-spend week, except for buying apples, which I could not pass up.  There is a discount produce store in the city where Colton works and I always check their Facebook page for deals.  Once we bought a 40lb box of bananas for $5!  We shared them, ate them, froze them, baked with them, and my dad freeze dried heaps for us to eat as snacks.  This time it was organic apples for $1 per pound!  I bought 18lbs of Pink Lady, Honeycrisp, and Fuji varieties.  This coming week I will process them into apple butter, applesauce, juice, and dried slices.  Because they are organic, I can also use the peels for making jelly and/or vinegar.

    I am still working on my wardrobe.  I had ordered some clothes online during tax-free weekend (are you tired of hearing about "tax-free weekend" yet??) when the boys had their shopping spree.  Most of them came in this week, so I was able to try everything on and see what worked and what didn't.  Most of it didn't, which I expected, but that's ok.  I've become very picky about my clothes because I don't want a closet full of things that I avoid wearing for one reason or another.  I'd rather have the money for things I feel good in, so I will keep the pieces I really like and get a nice refund for the ones I don't.  

    This was the view out my window as I tried things on during all the rain: 

    Could there be a cozier scene? 

    Meanwhile, I've been putting more effort into my every day attire with the purpose of looking nice for my family.  I had fallen into the comfy t-shirt and worn out denim skirt trap, and it wasn't pretty!  Here is an example of my recent efforts:

Top: Goodwill

Skirt: made by me about 15 years ago!

    It isn't anything fancy, but I think it's lovely anyway.  Lovely is the goal.

    How was your week?  I'd love to hear!

At the Cottage ~ August 11, 2023

    A little cloud of sorrow hung over my week, as my beloved twelve-year-old cat, Button, died.  Colton got him for me a month after we married, so he was with us right from the start.  He is greatly missed.

    I am very glad to have Ginger following me around the way Button used to.  No, she isn't Button, but her antics amuse and delight me.  She is a good little companion, getting in the middle of everything I do.  I trimmed my mint this week and set some of the clippings in jars in hopes of propagating them.  We'll see how that goes- I think I need younger, more tender cuttings.  Here she is getting a refreshing drink of mint water.

    I also got my last remaining rose bush weeded.  Hopefully I can get that flourishing again.  Ginger thought to help, but she was on the other side of the fence in the garden.  I managed to capture the exact moment that she realized she could no longer fit through the fence like she used to.

    Our A/C went out this week.  It had been making some funny sounds, and finally it quit working.  Colton called my dad, who came over and helped troubleshoot.  He brought a bag of beef for us that he picked up on his way!  And he included some little treats for the boys.  Just pure kindness and generosity. 

    He and Colton were able to figure out the issue but needed a part, which the local A/C repair man didn't have, but he kindly let us borrow a part from his scrap pile to get us by until we could get what we needed (different size).  My dad made some phone calls and arranged for us to be able to get the part wholesale, saving us about $100, and who knows how much by doing it all ourselves.  When we return the borrowed part, I will send cookies as a "thank you".

    I've done a little clothes shopping this week.  I had intended to wait for the Tax Free Weekend, but as I was searching online to see what sales would coincide with it, I saw that one of the children's clothing stores (The Children's Place) was running a good sale, with an extra 25% off when you sign up for their emails.  As a bonus, they were having an early tax-free special for Texas shoppers.  I ended up getting the boys several shirts in their next size up for about $4.50 each.  Shipping was free and I didn't have to fight the crowds!  I also earned some coupons for $10 off my next $20 purchase, so I am very pleased with all of that.  We still plan to go to the brick-and-mortar stores tomorrow, as Colton needs some new clothes and will have to try them on.  I'm hoping it won't be a madhouse, but I expect it will.

    I ventured into town to get some grocery specials.  We usually do our grocery shopping in the next town over, which is thirty minutes away, because our town's grocery store is so expensive.  However, they do run some good sales, so I always check the flyer.  This week, I got a ten pound bag of potatoes for $3, bananas for $0.33/lb, and a pound of ground beef for $0.99 with a coupon.  I may or may not have bought two cartons of Blue Bell ice-cream that were half off.  See?  I do buy convenience foods and treats sometimes ;)  

    Fun fact: We visited the Blue Bell (a Texas company) factory in June with some friends!  I don't have too many pictures without us in them, but here are a few:

A display case in the Blue Bell Museum

Looking out the Museum window at an old ice-cream delivery truck replica

Display case in the ice-cream parlor above the factory

    Photos were not allowed in the actual factory part.  Top secret, you know.  But we did get to see them make the ice-cream and package it from the upstairs observation deck.  The flavor that day was Cookies 'n Cream.  A good time (and ice-cream) was had by all.

    Ice-cream is certainly not part of the gut-healing program I am on right now, so my recent purchases are waiting in the freezer.  Once I finish the program, I am allowed to maintain an 80/20 balance of healthy/not-so-healthy, and boy have I been dreaming of that 20%!  I'm almost there.  This is week 8 out of 13, and I have seen so much improvement.  I had a little setback over a food that didn't agree with me and that reminder of what I used to feel like is enough to keep me from falling off the wagon once the program is over.  I've had a taste of health and energy and I'm not giving that up!  Moderation, Kelsey.  Moderation. 

    I've been saving the supplement bottles from the program since the pills came in glass amber jars.  This week I took the labels off and washed them up.  A tip for getting sticky label residue off is to coat the surface in peanut butter or almond butter and let it sit for a bit before wiping it off.  The oil in the butter is what makes it work, so you might be able to get away with just olive or vegetable oil.

    I think I will store dried herbs in the bigger ones and maybe homemade vanilla in the smaller ones.  What would you store in them?  I'm looking for some ideas.

    I want to show you how big my grocery store lettuce grew in a week's time.  I can't believe it!

    Over the last couple weeks, I have been freezing bananas that get overripe before the boys can eat them.  I flash freeze them on a pan and then put them into a bag in the freezer for smoothies.  Really this goes for any fruit that is past its prime but still good.  The boys love smoothies in the summertime and I feel good about the ingredients and no waste, so it's a win/win/win.  To the blender I add:

    -2 frozen bananas 
    -A few handfuls of frozen fruit such as strawberries, blueberries, or peaches
    -A few generous spoonfuls of plain Greek yogurt, for probiotics and creaminess
    -Milk, to cover

    I don't add any sweetener because the bananas are sweet enough.  I also add Amazing Grass green powder if I have it, which has two full servings of vegetables per scoop.  Hidden in the smoothie, the boys can't taste it.  

    I made extra one day and froze it into popsicle molds.  The boys thought this was the best treat ever!

    Hmmm...maybe I should do a cost breakdown and comparison for homemade smoothies for a Grocery Savings post...

    Upstairs in the loft, I started a few craft projects, but didn't get any finished enough for pictures.  I did get some tidying done up there, which will make completing those projects much easier and enjoyable.  I also got caught up on my ironing, finally.

    I did more deep cleaning in my bedroom, too.  I got rid of the clutter piles that had built up, dusted the rest of the furniture, washed the walls and baseboards, and laundered the bedspread.  One good thing about this heat is that my bedspread dried on the line in no time!

    Everything looks and smells so nice and fresh.  My bedroom feels like a restful retreat again.

    This cabinet holds our bedroom blankets and linens: 

    The frame on top holds a sign that my friend hand-lettered for me.  It says:

"Let the wife make the husband glad to come home and let him make her sorry to see him leave." 

- Martin Luther

    The wooden box was made by Colton's great-grandfather, and the vase belonged to his grandmother.  The vase holds dried baby's breath from a friend's wedding.  The hat, clock, and doily were thrifted.  The vast majority of décor in my home- if not all- has been acquired very inexpensively.

    There are still a few more things I'd like to do in my room, but it is mostly done.  I want to implement the Fly Lady system again, as it worked well for me when I did it before.  Colton starts back at his school nurse job on Tuesday, and John will be starting homeschool in September, so getting a good routine down is going to be crucial for keeping everything running smoothly.  

    I will be taking the week off from blogging as we adjust to our new schedules, but I will be back again on Friday!  I am also going to continue Thrifty Thursday and my Grocery Savings series on Mondays, but they will be on alternating weeks.  I have a few extra posts planned, so this will allow me to squeeze those in, as well.  I do love sharing in this space and appreciate you taking the time to read what I have written.

    I hope you have a wonderful week to come.  Happy homemaking, ladies!

At the Cottage ~ August 4, 2023

    This post might end up to be somewhat lengthy, as it was a very full week here at the cottage!  Overall it was a good one, except for one trial, which I am happy to report is finally over. 

    A couple weeks ago, John came to me in tears.  "Heidi pulled up all my flowers out of the pot!" he cried.  I looked out the window and, sure enough, one of our dogs had pulled up the flowers that he bought and planted as his own little project using some of the money he had saved.  I quickly went to try and salvage them, seeing that two still had roots.  When I got outside, I saw all the bushes I had just planted strewn all over the yard in bits.

    Truthfully, Heidi had been getting into trouble almost since she got here.  She chased our chickens (even killed a couple) and barked and ran at the livestock when they came near our fence, which is an obvious problem on a ranch.  I hate to confess, as I know this won't sit well with many, but I had been considering rehoming her for some time.  Her friendliness was a redeeming quality, but she was so overwhelmingly full of energy that the boys didn't even want to play in the yard because she would be all over them.  This really didn't seem fair to the boys or to Heidi, both of whom just wanted to play!  When the boys played outside of the yard, riding their bikes and scooters, she barked at them the whole time.  We got her to be a good family guard dog, but she loved strangers and hid from snakes- the complete opposite of what we wanted.  

    I never liked the idea of rehoming a pet, and I kept thinking she'd eventually outgrow some of her habits, as she was still very young.  Throwing in the towel just didn't seem fair to her, even though it increasingly felt like she wasn't a good fit for our family.  "I'll just give her another chance," I kept saying.  I felt as though it was more my fault than hers for not knowing how to train her or funnel her energy, and I really felt sorry for her for that.

    Then this week, "Mom, Heidi pulled up my flowers again!  And Daddy's fern!"  Then a few mornings later, "Mom, Heidi pulled up your lantanas and another pot of flowers!"  By this point I had really had enough.  I decided that for all our sakes, including Heidi's, she needed to go to a home where she would be loved and appreciated, not just tolerated and put up with.  I advertised her, and within about three hours, someone wanted her and arranged to pick her up the next day.  Immediately, I felt a weight lifted, but I still wondered if it was the right thing to do.  I prayed that the deal would fall through if it was God's will for us to keep her.  

    The next morning, Heidi's new owner messaged me to say that he was so excited to get her and that his little boy was going to love her!  He asked if she liked canned food because that's what his older dog likes.  She never got anything like that at our house!  So really I'm just overjoyed that she is with someone who is going to give her the love and attention she needs, and she will have a better, happier life with them than she would have with us.  It was a bittersweet ending to a stressful situation.

    Besides all of that, our week was full of good things.  One day, we took a trip to the next town over to do some shopping and run some errands.  I packed drinks and snacks for the children, as I knew we were going to make a day of it.  Buying those types of foods when you are out and about is getting too expensive!  

    First we went to the grocery store, as all of their school and office supplies were on sale, plus I had a coupon for $5 off of $25 for items in those categories.  I got lots of things we needed for the year and beyond, with a total savings of $8.  I still lack a few things (I was trying to get my total as close to $25 as I could), but those things are on sale at Walmart too, so I will wait until Tax Free Weekend to pick those up.  Of course we bought groceries there, as well.  I saved $11.47 on food by shopping the sales and using coupons.

    Out in the parking lot, there was a pallet of clearance plants.  A closer look revealed that some of them were Texas everbearing fig trees!  I bought two of them.  They looked a little poorly from being in the parking lot in 100+°F, but with a little TLC they perked back up.  See the fresh growth?

    The real excitement came at our next stop.  We needed to go to Tractor Supply to pick up some dog food, and when we got inside, we heard chicks!  The Tractor Supply in our town only gets chicks in the spring and fall, so this was a surprise.  Colton and I had just discussed getting more, as many of ours are getting older and none of our hens went broody this year (which was odd).

    "Can we please get some chicks?" John pleaded.  The answer was an easy "yes".  We decided on six Salmon Faverolle pullets (females).  I had never heard of them before, but when I Googled them and saw that they were a specialty French breed on the "watch" list, I knew I wanted them.  They grow to look so fluffy and beautiful and are supposedly one of the most docile breeds.  Here they are on their way to their new home:

    This particular Tractor Supply also has a garden center, and all of their plants were 50% off!  I felt like a kid in a candy store.  I got another rosemary plant, several bushes, and three peach trees.  We are well on our way to getting a little orchard set up.  All of these plants had been struggling too, but I've nursed them back to health.  Some of the bushes now have blooms.

    Once we got back home and unloaded everything, Colton and I decided to see if our local Tractor Supply was running any sales.  There were no plants, but we found gopher traps and bait in the clearance section (we are still fighting that war), as well as a shirt in Colton's new size and a hummingbird feeder that I will save for next year.  We even found some stain blocking primer in the brand we need for the inside of our garden shed, which is something else we had just talked about.  It was half price.

    Up in the loft, I got some crafting done.  The boys have been wanting some handkerchiefs like Colton's, so I made them some out of James's old crib sheets.   John used these sheets too, so by now they are nice and soft, gentle enough for little noses.  Cut into twelve inch squares, I ended up with eleven of them.  I serged the edges to keep it simple.

    I made some "un-paper" towels in the same way using some flannel I had.  The sticker shock the last time I purchased paper towels was motivation enough for me to make my own.  So far I only have fourteen, but I plan to make more.  I keep them in a basket on the kitchen counter.  

    John watched me as I sewed and got the giggles.  I asked him what was so funny, and he said it looked like the needle on the machine was dancing!  Wouldn't it do us a heap of good if we looked at the world through children's eyes sometimes?

    The new construction sheets I had bought for the boys' beds came in cloth bags made out of the same fabric.  They were awkwardly shaped with huge tags sewn onto the fronts and backs, so I couldn't use them as is, but because we use every part of the buffalo in this household, I took them apart and salvaged what I could.  I got two sets of velcro strips and several construction vehicles cut out.  I can use the construction vehicles as appliques, patches, or in paper crafting.  I played around with some ideas: 

    A plain gift bag embellished with a dump truck and tied with a strip of thrifted curtain "ribbon"...

    ...or a brown Kraft package tied up with twine and a dump truck gift tag for a little boy gift.

    Which is your favorite?  I think I like the tag the best.

    With all of the stress surrounding the Heidi situation this week, I got some deep cleaning done in the bedroom.  Setting things in order and taming the chaos in the form of cleaning is what I tend to do when "I am quite put out", as Lady Catherine would say.  I feel much more calm in tidy spaces and it gives me a productive way to use my energy.  I made up some dusting spray, which is similar to the wood polish I make, but diluted with water.  Most of the recipes for this online were about the same, so I just combined what I had to make my own version.

DIY Dusting Spray

1 cup distilled water
1/4 cup vinegar
2 Tablespoons olive oil
*10 - 15 drops essential oil of choice (orange, lemon, lavender, tea tree, and lemongrass are good choices for scent and cleaning ability)

Combine all the ingredients into a spray bottle and give it a good shake before spraying onto wood surfaces.  Wipe clean with a soft cloth.

*If you don't have essential oils, you can submerge orange or lemon peels in white vinegar and store in a dark place for a couple weeks to make infused, scented vinegar with extra cleaning properties.  Just give the jar a good shake every few days.

    I used 15 drops of orange and 5 drops of cinnamon (yes, I used some extra drops) for a fall-scented spray.  I don't usually jump ahead to seasons before they get here, but this summer's heat and humidity have been so brutal, I needed just a taste of my favorite season!  I used a label from JES at Mistress of the House on Etsy.  My dusting cloth was one of James's old, plain white crib sheets cut into large squares.

    I put on Homemaker's Radio and tackled my nightstand first, which is really a little bookshelf that holds all of my "girly books"- the ones on homemaking, decorating, motherhood, biblical womanhood, and marriage.  My ever-growing collection had gotten out of hand, with books piled on top and stacked sideways in the gaps.  I took everything off the shelves, dusted, and put back my favorites.  The rest will be moved to other bookshelves in the home. 

    Some of my favorites:

    The Excellent Wife by Martha Peace

    The Lifegiving Home by Sally and Sarah Clarkson

    The Nesting Place by Myquillin Smith (I have her set of three and like them all!)

    My collection of Emilie Barnes books

    Cottage style decorating books, mostly vintage, but including my new Hill House Vintage by Paula Sutton.  I used to follow her when I was active on Instagram and it fed my inner cottage-loving, Anglophile heart.

    There are others that I still haven't read, but I am working on that!  I recently enjoyed both of Dana K. White's books: Decluttering at the Speed of Life and How to Manage Your Home Without Losing Your Mind.  Her advice was practical and she wrote with such humor (if you can't tell by her titles) that I laughed out loud several times.

    I limited the top of my nightstand to my one current read so I wouldn't feel overwhelmed by that "silent to-do list", as the Minimal Mom calls it.  I've chosen Mother Culture for a Happy Homeschool by Karen Andreola. 

    Have you read any of these books?  What are your recommendations in the homemaking/biblical womanhood genre?

    By the end of my cleaning spree, I had cleaned my books and nightstand, swept underneath it and behind, laundered the curtains, cleaned the inside of the windows, and wiped down the walls and baseboards on either side of the bed.  It smelled wonderful and fresh.  I didn't finish the entire room, but there is always next week.

    How was your week?  As always, I hope you enjoy a lovely weekend.

Grocery Savings ~ "Real Food" Alternatives

    Every Wednesday, I look through the grocery store ads to see what the sales are.  Stocking up on things we use when they go on sale is one of the main ways I've built up my pantry and fed my family frugally for many years.  I've noticed, however, that the sales are just not what they used to be, and finding a true deal is a rarity.  Now, as I flip through the "sales" flyers, I pass most things up as either unnecessary or still unreasonably expensive.  Usually it is packaged, prepared, or processed food, and the packages are getting smaller while the costs continue to climb.  I find myself thinking, "I bet I can make that cheaper (and potentially healthier)" or, "We could eat something else instead and save more money."  That is the inspiration for this series.

    Many of these ideas might not be revolutionary, but sometimes we get so used to buying a particular item or eating a certain food, that it never occurs to us to consider a substitution or a different method of preparation.  My goal is to get us thinking outside the box, sometimes quite literally.  We have to get creative if we are going to get the most out of our dollars.

    Of course, every family's needs and preferences are going to be different.  Prices will vary from store to store depending on where you are, just as budgets will vary from family to family.  I am basing these posts off of my own family's needs and likes, so glean what you can and tailor it to fit your own.  By no means am I telling you what to buy or what not to buy, nor will I say that convenience foods and treats don't have their place and purpose!  These posts are merely to trigger ideas and offer suggestions.  I am learning and adapting to the climbing costs like everyone else, so please don't hesitate to offer input in the comments.  Sometimes we may think we've thought of everything, only to learn of a new tip we never considered!

    For our first post in this series, I am looking at "real food" alternatives to some of the convenience, packaged items offered in the recent sales ads.  These are substitutions, not copies, but the savings and benefits of these swaps are substantial and worth considering, in my opinion.

    Most of the offers lately have been geared towards back-to-school lunches, breakfasts, and snacks.  One of them was:

Buy one box (2lb) of Mott's Fruit Snacks for $7.98 and get a FREE box (18oz) of Cheerios ($4.78 value).

    At first, I clipped the digital coupon.  A "savings" of $4.78 is pretty good, I thought.  James loves fruit snacks and John loves cereal, so these would be easy treats that they don't get very often.  But as I thought more about it and made my list, I realized that the true savings would be to not buy sugary food that doesn't satisfy my children's tummies.  Both of these foods just leave them wanting more because they are not filling or nutritious- they are addictive.  I thought about what I could buy instead that would be cheaper and more nourishing.

    I decided that fruit snacks could very simply be replaced with real fruit.  Cheerios, which are oat cereal, could be easily replaced with oats for oatmeal.  If we swapped size for size:

• 2 lbs of bananas ($1.16) + an 18oz box of oats ($2.48) = $3.64.  That is a savings of $4.34 over the fruit snacks and cereal!  That would buy a pound of breakfast sausage with money to spare.  Or an extra box of oats for the pantry plus 2 more pounds of bananas for the freezer.

or

• 2lbs of apples ($1.98) + an 18oz box of oats ($2.48) =  $4.46.  That is a savings of $3.52.  That will buy a gallon of milk where I live.

or

• 2lbs of grapes ($2.76) + an 18oz box of oats ($2.48) = $5.24.  That is still a savings of $2.74.  That would buy a dozen eggs.

    Some additional things to consider about this substitution: 

    ~ An 18oz box of oats is going to stretch much further than an 18oz box of cereal, as oats expand in size when they cook and are way more filling. 

    ~ Unless you eat it dry as a snack, cereal would require the additional purchase of milk, increasing the cost of the meal.  Oats can be cooked in water and flavored frugally.  I have written a post on oatmeal toppings here.  Oats are also versatile and can be used in many recipes.

    ~ You can purchase fruit based on what is in season or the cheapest.  Mix different types together in a bowl for fruit salad.  The above savings might even make organic options possible, if that is important to you.  

    ~ The ingredients lists on fruit snacks and cereal are long, and they contain a lot of added sugar and other questionable components.  While fruit contains natural sugar, none of it is added and there's only one ingredient!  Oats are also only one ingredient, and you get to control the sugar content based on what/how much you add to it.  You'll know exactly what's in it, and it will be much healthier.

    Another offer in the sales ad was:

Buy 2 bags (15oz each) of corn chips for $5.96, get a FREE 9oz can of bean dip ($2.48 value).

    I thought about what might be a real food alternative, and I came up with cornbread and beans.  No, it's not the same thing, but it's cheaper, healthier, and more filling.

    If I cooked the beans myself and baked the cornbread from scratch using my recipe:

• 1lb of dry pinto beans ($1.15) + *cornmeal, flour, baking powder, eggs, and milk for a pan of cornbread ($0.94) = $2.09.  

    That is a savings of $3.87, with tons of beans left over for other meals or snacks!  The money saved would be enough to buy a package of shredded cheese and an onion to top the beans with.

    If I went the convenient route:

• 1, 27oz can of pinto beans ($1.58) + 2 boxes of cornbread mix ($1.20) + *enough eggs and milk for mixes ($0.46) = $3.24.  

    That still saves $2.72.  That would be enough to buy a head of romaine lettuce to put towards a side salad, with change left over.

(*based on cost per cup/egg/teaspoon in the brands that I would normally buy, usually generic)

    Looking over these swaps, here is a sample of the cost comparison:

If we bought the convenience foods on sale-

    Fruit snacks: $7.98

    Cereal: Free 

    Corn Chips: $5.96

    Bean Dip: Free

    Total: $13.94

If we paid full price for the real food options-

    1 lb of bananas: $0.58

    1lb of apples: $0.99

    1 box of oats: $2.48

    1lb pinto beans: $1.15

    Cornbread ingredients: $0.94

    Total: $6.14

    Savings: $7.80!!!

    You can see that the real food versions are much cheaper than the convenience foods.  You get more food for less than half of the price, and that is even with coupons for the packaged foods!  Imagine the cost if they were regular price.  People buy these kinds of foods regularly.  I know they are buying the fruit snacks because the website now says they are out of stock. 

    These are just two examples that added up to almost $8 in savings.  Think of the rest of the grocery trip and how much would be saved if each coupon was scrutinized in this way.  That money could be put into savings, transferred to other parts of the budget, or used to buy more groceries and build up your pantry.  Not to mention, your health would be better off!

    As a side note, if you have children and you purchase a treat because it's on sale, they aren't going to understand why you won't buy it again when it's full price.  Ask me how I know!  That is the whole point of coupons- it's a marketing tactic.  Companies want to lure you in with a "good" price so that you will try their product and be hooked enough to pay full price for it later on.  Definitely something to consider!

    These are just a few ideas and observations I had after looking at coupons last week.  I have more ideas in mind for future posts, but I would appreciate your feedback in the comments.  Is this something you would be interested in reading?  Please let me know if you want me to continue this series!

At the Cottage ~ July 28, 2023

    I had a wonderful start to the week with a visit from a dear friend.  While I see her every Sunday at church, she had not been over in a good while.  I showed her all of the projects we had done, as well as the ones in progress, since the last time she came.  The boys were so excited to show her their made over room.  I remember I loved to show company my room as a kid, too.  She was very enthusiastic about it and even tried out each of their beds, which they really delighted in.  

    It had been her birthday a couple days prior, so she kindly brought her leftover birthday cake for the boys to enjoy, which they did over the course of the next few days.  She also brought us eggs from her chickens, for which we are extremely grateful, as our chickens have gone on strike, no doubt due to the extreme heat we have been experiencing.

    I made a little gift of handmade garden-themed cards for her.  I didn't photograph those, but I did get a shot of the wrapping.  I wanted to show you how I make tags from book and magazine images in the same way I made over my journals.  The wrapping is just tissue paper, but the ribbon and tag elevate it.

    With my washer and dryer back up and running, I made good progress getting caught up on my laundry.  Trying to be extra conscious of ways to save money these days, I dried several loads on the clothesline.  It is so hot outside that the clothes feel baked in no time, and so do I.  My strategy was to use the line for things that don't take long for me to hang, like denim clothing and sheets.  The dryer was reserved for the smaller items like shirts and underthings- the things I don't want to be crisp ;)

    I've also been getting caught up on my ironing.  I used to not like ironing; I found it a bit tedious.  Now, I welcome the opportunity to slow down and take a break from my more demanding tasks.  My ironing board is upstairs in the loft where I craft so that I have quick access to it when I'm sewing.  James is not allowed upstairs yet, so I wait for his afternoon nap and then I go up to my little retreat.  

    I added some drops of lavender essential oil to my ironing spray bottle (just water) for a relaxing scent while I worked.  I like to listen to Homemaking Radio while I do this.  I have been reading Mrs. Sherman's Home Living blog since I was a teenager and aspiring homemaker.  Now she posts videos on her blog, in which she shares wonderful homemaking encouragement in the style of Titus 2.  She will often read excerpts out of novels and other books and have a gentle discussion on them, as well.  I really look forward to this as a time to recharge and get things done at the same time.

    On the subject of clothing, we went through Colton's closet and decluttered the clothes that no longer fit him. He has been doing the gut-healing diet with me for support (wonderful, wonderful man), but he started following a Keto diet back in March.  He has lost 40lbs so far!  You can imagine that his clothes were starting to look a bit frumpy, so we culled them.  I am keeping back a couple because I really like the fabric and plan to use them for sewing projects.  

    Outside, I cut the heads off of our spent sunflowers.  These came up as volunteers and John was so excited that he diligently kept them watered.  We have a six-foot fence around our garden, and the sunflowers grew taller than that!  I had to lift my hands as high up as I could reach to get a photo of the highest bloom.

    I saved the seeds and ended up with a good amount, some to keep and some to share.

    I have been trying to make more of an effort to save my kitchen scraps for the animals and the compost pile.  Sometimes I get a bit lax about it for the sake of convenience, but every bit I give to the dogs and chickens means less feed, which is expensive.  Compost, fertilizer, potting soil- that is all climbing in price, as well.  Isn't everything?  I told Colton that I'm going to get serious about my compost pile.  "Good luck," he said.  "The Bermuda grass has taken over your compost pile and it might be hard to get up."

    He was right about it being taken over.

    But I had a hunch that, being rooted in soft compost materials, it might not be so hard to pull.  Sure enough, I got it up!

    Ginger was right in the middle of it all.

    She follows us everywhere.  Here she watched from the safety of a tree while I pushed the boys on the swings.

    I do need to go through my seeds, as it's time to get some of them started.  With our special diet, we have been eating a lot of vegetables, which have to be organic on this program.  Do you know how it pains me to pay money for zucchini and kale?  Those are usually my most successful crops.  So it's time to get back to it.

    I did have some grocery savings this week, totaling $15.98.  I will take what I can get, but the sales are just not that good any more.  Most are for junk food.  As I look through the sales flyers, I just pass things up as unnecessary.  "Don't need that" or "I can make that myself" are my responses most of the time.  I've been thinking of starting a series on this.  What do you think?

    I hope everyone had a good week.  I will leave you with a verse that stood out to me this week during our family devotion time:

"I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope."

~Psalm 130:5

    Have a lovely weekend, ladies!

At the Cottage ~ July 21, 2023

    This month has seen some changes here at the cottage.  My aunt kindly offered us a set of wood framed beds for the boys.  They are very special, as they are the ones my cousins slept in.  We felt James was finally big enough to transition into a regular bed, so last week we picked them up.  They had been in storage for about 20 years, so I gave them a good cleaning and polished them up with my homemade wood polish: equal parts vinegar and olive oil with a few drops of orange essential oil for scent.  They came up beautifully.  I also got the construction themed sheets washed up that I bought on clearance.

    We'd had one of those mattress-in-a-box mattresses in their closet for a good year or so just waiting for this occasion.  We found it on Craigslist, new and sealed up in the box, for $100 (tax free).  This one became John's.  It is high quality and when we finally took it out of the package and it started to unroll, we found that it came with two pillows!  I have them stored away for guests until the boys' pillows need replacing.  In addition to this, I was able to find a mattress protector on sale for 20% off, so we really saved in the bedding area.

    All of this had sort of a ripple effect in their room.  As we moved things around, I cleaned smudges off the walls (Mr. Clean Magic Erasers are a new tool in my cleaning arsenal), cleaned the floors and baseboards, and washed the windows.  It looked and smelled so fresh.  The boys were thrilled to see their room all made over, especially James, as this was a milestone for him.

    John had his share of milestones, too.  He turned six and lost his first tooth!  We have been watching a children's baking competition lately, which he is really interested in.  I promised I would let him help me bake cupcakes for his birthday.  I frosted, as it was getting close to bedtime by the time the cakes cooled, but I let him lick the beaters, so he wasn't too upset.

    Can you believe I didn't eat a single cupcake?!  I am on week 5 of 13 in my gut healing program.  I hated to miss out on something for John's birthday, but this program has really helped me.  I am seeing improvements that I really did not think could be possible.  Among a host of other things, my energy levels have greatly improved.  As someone who has struggled with fatigue since my teenage years, this is huge.  I have been able to get so much done, and that without feeling stressed or worn out.  It's a big deal, friends.

    My father-in-law gave me a stack of newspapers that he had been saving for me.  I use these along with vinegar to clean my mirrors and windows.  I made up another batch of my shower cleaner this week, which is 2 tablespoons of citric acid for every cup of hot water put into a spray bottle.  This works wonders.  It is the only thing that worked on our glass shower doors- homemade or commercial- when we had them.  Now I use it to clean my shower because it cuts through hard water spots so well.  I wouldn't use this on stone or marble, as it would have an etching effect like vinegar, and I think it has a bleaching effect too, so I'd be careful on colored grout.  We have white ceramic tile with white grout, so it comes out like new after a good scrub.  A friend has used this successfully on widows, as well, which get hard water spots from the sprinkler.  Just be sure to test in a small spot first. 

    I am happy to say that my washer and dryer have been hooked back up!  The laundry room is still just a shell, but my dad came over and helped Colton rewire some of the electricity and move the plumbing, so now it is at least operational.  It is so nice to be able to do laundry at home again- the things we take for granted!  

    I have picked up crafting again, and as it usually happens after neglecting it, I was surprised by how much I had missed it.  I made over some free notebooks we got.  One is the shopping book I showed on Thursday, and the other one I plan to use as a journal to record little things the boys do and say, little milestones they reach, and things of that nature. 

    A few jokes they have been telling me lately:

What do you call a snoring bull?

A bulldozer!

What do you call a cow with no legs?

Ground beef!

    { Italics and exclamation marks are necessary because the answers are shouted with enthusiasm every single time. }

    Outside, most things are struggling to survive the heat, including me when I'm out there!  My plants on the patio that I have in pots are doing well, though, especially the ones that are partly shaded.  There is new growth on the foxtail fern...

    My lantanas have a few blooms.  I love the purple variety...

    The post you see in the middle of the barrel holds up string lights.  I have three of these barrels on the patio, so the lights stretch across.  We get to enjoy these more in the cooler months.  It gets dark so late in the summer.

    In March, we added some guineas to our flock of chickens.  We have started getting little eggs from them!  Cooked up, they are bite size.

    John has declared them "the best bird ever."  We'd like to get some more, as a snake got into the guinea pen when they were small and only two survived. They will have to go in my shopping book under the "Homesteading" section until the budget allows for their purchase.

    Despite the heat, I got some bushes planted in the front flower beds.  I've had them a while and they were starting to suffer in their nursery pots.  I finally realized it was because the pots kept getting knocked over and the dirt was spilling out!  So I figured it was time to plant them.  This is the culprit responsible for knocking my pots over.  

    Isn't she cute, though?  She's our little Ginger Kitten.  Of course, she helped me plant the bushes.

    As you can see from the photo, the bushes are yellowed and look a bit poorly.  Hopefully they perk up once they get settled in their new home.  If they do, I'll share some photos.

    I hope everyone has a lovely weekend and feels rested and renewed for the week to come. I will be back with a craft post soon...