I really wanted an ice bucket for holding drinks when we entertain, but put off buying one for years because of the price. I looked unsuccessfully for a used one. Even though we entertain quite a bit, buying something that we would only use for several hours a week seemed like an indulgent purchase. IRead More
Gardening in the High Desert
This morning instead of blogging about my garden I went to Walmart and bought 1 gallon forsythia plants for $3.00 each. Forsythia are one of the few flowering bushes that meet the stringent requirements necessary to be added to my backyard. To thrive in the high desert a plant must be able to survive -20Read More
Protecting Chairs from My Toddler
There is a 14-year gap between my second youngest and my youngest child. During that gap we bought grown-up furniture, not knowing that we would be blessed with a bonus baby. I would be lying if I denied thinking about the fate of my furniture while expecting Rew. We now have a delightfully messy two-year-oldRead More
Peanut Butter Fudge and Peanut Butter Tip
Peanut butter fudge is one of our favorite candies, but as much as we enjoy it, we have a friend who declares it her absolute favoritist candy EVER. Before I visit her, she asks if I will be bringing her some peanut butter fudge…and the correct answer is “Yes, of course!” I keep trying to convince herRead More
Tomato and Basil Soup
I am overrun with fresh basil and I will soon have an overabundance of tomatoes. This soup recipe will help me eat into the excess produce. This is a very accommodating recipe so experiment with other herbs and spices growing in your garden. I have used both a pressure cooker* and a crock pot toRead More
The Shell-Shocked Gardener
Last week I prepared yogurt cups to start my next crop of radishes. Rew found the cups and had lots of fun playing with the dirt. I told a friend about the mess he made and said I needed to prepare the cups again and she said, “It is 95 degrees outside, you do realizeRead More
The Pressure Cooker: Grandma’s "Microwave"
Big Bertha – My 20 year old pressure cooker. As a newlywed I called my Grandma to ask her for some cooking advice. I wanted to know the secret of putting a home cooked meal on the table within thirty minutes of my husband coming home. This was back before cell phones and my husbandRead More
Rice with Garden Vegetables
I wanted to use $5 Dinners Rice with Garden Greens recipe, but I was unable to access her site so I made up my own version which ended up including an ingredient that was inspired by Amanda at Coping with Frugality. As it turns out I did not have the 4 cups of spinach calledRead More
Dinner Menu – Week of July 6th
I am so excited! I think we will be eating from the garden for every one of our meals next week. I should be able to pick 5 tomatoes tomorrow and use them to make spaghetti sauce along with onion, garlic, oregano, basil, and parsley from the garden! I am planning on adding green beansRead More
Growing Early Girl Tomatoes
I picked my first Early Girl Tomatoes this morning. They might have preferred a day or two more on the vine, but I wanted to add them to a garden salad this evening. I looked at the tomatoes at the grocery store and decided that mine looked more edible even if I picked them aRead More
Hooked On Cookbook Holders with Splash Guard
I have seen many pretty cookbook holders and had toyed with the idea of getting one for years, but always held back for some reason that I did not fully understand. When I spied the below cookbook holder at Walmart ($9.99), I realized what the others were missing: A splash guard! I have many recipesRead More
Everything is Flowering in My Garden
My Early Girls should be ready to harvest soon. It would be lovely if they were ready by the 4th of July. Was I complaining about my squash not growing? Would it be inappropriate for me to start complaining now that they are out of control? The posts are three foot high; if they continueRead More
Using the Last Dregs of Salsa
Tonight I will make Chicken Tacos using the last dregs from the salsa jar. One day when rinsing an “empty” bottle to put it in the recycling bin I noticed that instead of truly being empty there was actually a layer of really thick salsa on the bottom. It had not reached its expiration date,Read More
Menu Plan – Week of June 29th
Last week when I broiled Chicken I decided to broil 4 pounds. I used 2 pounds in last week’s salads and froze the rest. I will pull out the frozen chicken on the mornings when I need it and let it thaw in the refrigerator, so it will be ready to add to dinner inRead More
Does Boiling Water Kill Weeds?
In a previous post I told you I was letting my weeds grow on purpose and promised an explanation. Well, a friend told me that you can pour boiling water on weeds to kill them. I loved the idea and decided to give it a try with the leftover water from making jam. Here isRead More
Using Paraffin to Quiet a Sliding Door
Our sliding glass door was not closing smoothly and was making quiet a bit of noise as it moved. I used a trick I learned from my father-in-law to make the doors glide smoothly again: Paraffin! Now, a quiet whoosh is the only sound the doors make as they glide by! It is easy andRead More
Scotcheroos Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats
Scotcheroos Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats combine the flavor of Scotcheroos with the ease of making Rice Krispie Treats. Scotcheroos are made with Rice Krispies, peanut butter, chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips. Like Rice Krispie Treats, Scotcharoos are a no-bake bar recipe. The difference is Scotcheroos are made by heating corn syrup and sugar toRead More
Hooked On DIY Hanging Flower Baskets
I have often admired hanging flower baskets, but the cost of pre-made baskets has always stopped me from indulging myself. There are some annuals that I really enjoy, but I can’t plant them in flower beds because the rabbits would devour them in one night. So this year I decided that I was going toRead More
Determined to "Cheat" the Wind
As a determined gardener, I am continually looking for new ways to “cheat” the elements. The first year that I gardened in Mordor I had to replant my cucumbers three times because the wind blew their little leaves off (yes, really three times! Does that last statement reflect badly on our weather or me? PerhapsRead More
Making a Juice Box Pull Double Duty
We rarely consume juice boxes since we prefer to drink from our stainless steel water bottles. However, there are times when juice boxes are a convenient way to transport extra fluids. When we are going to spend most of the day away from home hiking or cross-country skiing I pack a couple of juice boxesRead More
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