the muse is coming back but for a different reason....trying to make money. my best friend just landed in new zealand 2 days ago and i am mourning the loss of such a good friend. although we'll stay in touch, it's not the same as seeing each other once a week and talking on the phone daily or every other day. my goal is to save enough money so that in about 3 years when she gets her homestead, i can go and visit her. so, i'm busting my butt to try to scrape together the funds for us to go. i have yet to see how much tickets will cost to fly there...i don't even have a financial goal in mind at this point, but every little bit will help.
i have been very good about spending most of my money on food at the farmer's market. i bought a side of beef and all of our veggies and fruits from the market and have only been getting the very bare necessities from the grocery store. it's nice to go in every 2 weeks and only spend about $30!
my new goal is to spend nothing unless absolutely necessary. i have slipped off the non-consumeristic bandwagon big time and need to climb back on and dust my britches off. no more thrift shop sprees (i had a big one right after my friend left, talk about shopping when you are depressed, i so fit that category!). less spending, more making is in my future. as much as possible i'm leaving the kids at home when i go to the farmer's market because they just want to buy, buy, buy....lemonade, breakfast from the nearby bakery, etc. it adds up to quite a lot.
Planted: nothing although i was gifted 3 celery plants that i need to plant asap before the goats eat them up. i love fresh celery!
Harvested: chicken eggs, milk, peaches (just 3...they won't be ready for another week), lamb's quarters, herbs, flowers
Preserved: made 2 batches of soap, made 9.5# of butter (froze them) and 1 1/2 gallon buttermilk from locally purchased cream; purchased a side of beef from vendor at the market
Want Not: purchased 2 pillows at a garage sale for 50 cents each. one was a round one that fit a wicker chair that needed a round cushion. the other was a heavy down throw pillow with linen fabric and embroidered ferns on it. score! i am resisting temptation to purchase school pictures...they are ridiculously priced and so posed, i hate them but tend to break down and buy them for the grandparents....
Waste Not: food scraps to chickens and/or compost (chickens dig in compost too). emptied out old preserves that had gone bad (previous wwoofers didn't can them right and they unsealed) to feed to chickens and now i'm slowly washing the jars; using the 'flopped' violet and dandelion jelly as syrup; walked to the high school to register my older 2 kids for school instead of driving (it's about 2 blocks away); used some st. john's wort tincture to dye a play silk (mixed with alum from the grocery store...it turned a beautiful pale pistachio green color)
Community: sold eggs, milk and yogurt to locals, sold soap, wool, eggs, lamb's quarters, flowers at farmer's market (we are attending 2 a week this summer); bartered milk for veggies; have been purchasing all of our veggies and fruit from the farmer's market instead of the grocery store; purchased a side of beef from the market
Eat the Food: eggs, milk (yogurt and cheese), green beans, patti pans, onions, kohlrabi, lettuce, spinach, carrots from market, parsley, sage, thyme, rosemary plus various herbs for tea: lemon balm, lemon verbena, catnip, motherwort, bergamot; peaches
1 comment:
That is quite the ambitious undertaking and a huge commitment. I am impressed with your efforts.
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