One Hundred Dollars a Month - Page 2 of 2173 - I am your typical housewife living in high maintenance suburbia. I have a handsome husband, 2 kids and a flock of pet chickens. I try and feed my family with $100 a month. With the help of coupons, gardening and bartering I am able to squeeze the most out of our grocery budget and still manage to have a little fun along the way.

Zeb’s General Store – North Conway, New Hampshire

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By Mavis Butterfield on April 17, 2019 · 11 Comments

For date day last week, the HH and I headed to the North Conway, New Hampshire area and one of the stops on our list was to Zeb’s General Store for a look around. We had actually drove to Zeb’s in early January but when we got to the store it was closed for inventory. This time though, it was open… and I am SO GLAD we made the trip back!

Zeb’s has only been around since 1991, but when you walk in the store it feels like it’s been open for business for at least 100 years or so.

The shop is filled with old display cases, bookshelves and sprinkled with old antiques pretty much everywhere you look.

I absolutely adore stores like this because you just never know what you are going to find. One minute you feel like you’re in a museum, and the next minute you spot something from your childhood and it brings back memories.

My grandmother had one of these washing machines! Can you imagine being excited about one of these? Like you had just won the washing machine lotto or something. 😉 Thankfully we’ve come a long way in the clothes washing department.

The wood floors. The bins, the barrels, the paper packaging. ♥ ♥ ♥

A penny candy counter. {Although these days, it takes a few more pennies to buy a piece of licorice}. They even had candy cigarettes and McGraws Giant Flat Taffy Candy. We ended up buying some for Monkey Boy’s Easter box of goodness.

I found a sweet little knitted hat with a pine tree on it made by a lady in Massachusetts. I loved it so much, when I got home I ordered one from her Etsy shop PlaidPineDesigns {I wanted all the money to go to her, because I’m funny that way about handmade items. I know how much work {and joy} goes into making something handmade}.

There were sooooo many local products in fact, I was amazed. White Mountain Canning Company was one of them.

Cheeses from nearby Vermont.

And Badger Balm was well represented there too. {Their cinnamon bay lip balm is my favorite}.

And of course, they even had offensively large tubes of Duke Cannon Lip Balm for sale. Something I could see my husband or Mr. Hillbilly having in the center console of their cars. 😉

Oodles of beauty products and handmade soap GALORE.

Mrs. HB would have spent an hour smelling everything in this room!

There was even a section packed with treats for dogs.

And Whoopie pies for pooches. 😉

And a wonderful assortment of traditional children’s books and toys {no overrated cartoon, or Disney characters thank you very much}.

Sling shots! Remember those? Raise your hand if you got pelted by something {rocks?} by your brother when you were a kid. Ahhh yes. Making mud pies, climbing trees, and building forts OUTSIDE until sundown. Those were the days. Do kids even go outside anymore and play with nothing but their hands and whatever treasures they can find on the ground?

Zeb’s General Store in North Conway is a true gem and the perfect shop to pop into for a trip down memory lane or to load up on rations and gifts. We give it a 5 out of 5!

So, if you ever find your way near the white mountains of New Hampshire, be sure and stop by Zeb’s. You’ll be so glad you did.

Have a great Wednesday everyone,

~Mavis

Zeb’s General Store
2675 White Mountain Hwy, North Conway, NH 03860

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The 2019 Boston Marathon

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By Mavis Butterfield on April 16, 2019 · 12 Comments

On Sunday, the HH dropped The Girl and I off at the train station {so he could stay home with Lucy and the chickens} and with just 3 hours to walk from the train station to the convention center for packet pick-up, we decided we had plenty of time to spare and to stop by one of our favorite bakeries, Tatte, for a little afternoon treat. Priorities. It’s all about the priorities with us. 😉

After packet pick-up, and hanging out with one of her buddies from college who would also be running the marathon the next day, we walked the two miles back to our hotel, unpacked and then headed down to the hotel lobby for a quite pasta dinner.

The Girl and her friend had planned on attending the pasta feed put on by the marathon peeps, but the line to get in was easily over an hour long, and well, it was getting dark and walking back to our hotel in the dark {and standing in line, in the cold for an hour didn’t seem that appealing to us}.

Originally I booked us a free room {thanks to credit card points} at the Boston Copley Hotel, the same hotel we stayed at during the 2013 Boston Marathon {which just happens to be one street back from the finish line AND more centrally located}.

But 3 days before the race, the hotel called to say that they had accidentally overbooked, and would we mind transferring to another hotel {which they would paid for and give us an additional free hotel stay to use whenever} so we said sure, no problemo, stuff happens.

Well, the hotel was about a mile walk to the Boston Commons {which is where the runners load onto buses to take them to the start line}. And normally that wouldn’t have been a big deal, but it was raining like MAD and well, we got a little soaked along the way.

Luckily this wasn’t The Girl’s first rodeo though and so we were prepared. Well for her anyway. I was pretty soaked by the time I got her to the bus drop off and handed her the pair of dry running shoes and socks we had stuffed into the backpack. By the time I had walked another mile back to the hotel though….

I was drenched and had to ring out all my clothing in the sink and then use the hotel hair dryer to get all my clothes dry before heading out again. Good times.

By the time I left the hotel for a second time that day, thankfully the sun had decided to come out and so walking around the north end of Boston and down the tree streets to collect a few of our favorite food stuffs, was an absolute joy.

And all those garden boxes filled with spring flowers {and shoes!}. What fun. 🙂

Around the time The Girl was at the 18 mile mark, I made my way down to Boylston street near the finish line to watch the runners go by and to meet up with our old neighbor Francisco.

Do you remember Francisco? Well Francisco recently moved to Oklahoma to be near family so it was good to be able to catch up and cheer people on while we waited for our runners to cross the finish line.

Speaking of finish lines…Check out the loot bag the runners got when they crossed the line.

And the medals for this year. Pretty neat-o if you ask me.

The Girl had a good race, and qualified for next year {and so did her college buddy} so everyone was over the moon about that. We had a little snack with a few friends in our hotel room after the race, and before we made our way to the train station to head home.

It was a good day! 🙂 🙂 🙂

It’s hard to believe, that in just a 48 hour span, I too completed a marathon as well. Granted, I walked mine {all over town and then some} and it involved a lot of pastries and tea, but I think it counts, I think I should be able to check “marathon” off my list of goals for 2019…. Don’t you? 😉

Being a parent, it can wear you out some times.

Have a great Tuesday everyone, I’m headed back to bed.

~Mavis

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How Much We Spent on Groceries and What We Ate – Week 15 of 52

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By Mavis Butterfield on April 15, 2019 · 8 Comments

Leftovers, leftovers, leftovers made into soup and oh wait…. a sandwich full of leftovers {turkey, mashed potatoes and cranberry apple jam}. It took 5 days to get through them, but we finally did it! 😉

Those vanilla cheesecake bars, if you haven’t tried the recipe from King Arthur Flour yet, YOU NEED TO! Cut into small pieces, they’d be a wonder addition to your Easter dessert extravaganza. :}

For date day, we got up bright and early and drove to The Newell Post for breakfast. I had an order of heart clogging eggs Benedict {crazy good!} and the HH and an omelet with what was apparently the most amazing sourdough toast ever. He wouldn’t stop talking about it.

For linner that same day, we scarfed down an entire order of sheet pan nacho’s at Moat Mountain Smokehouse. Because really, if you are going to have a pig out day…. Shouldn’t it last the ENTIRE day? Yes, yes it should.

Big Papa’s Fruit Stand $57.19

We did stop at a few places between breakfast and lunch though. One of our pit stops was at Big Papa’s Fruit Stand in Littleton, New Hampshire. Thanks to a hot tip from OHAM reader Leah, we were able to score some seriously good deals on produce.

20 lbs Sweet Potatoes: $8.99

Granted the may be the biggest sweet potatoes I’ve ever laid eyes on, but who cares? They all cut up and bake the same if you ask me.

We also snagged a 40 pound box of ORGANIC Bartlett Pears for $20. I think that was the best deal of them all! Right now everyone in our house is eating 3 pears a day since we don’t really have a way to store all those pears. I plan to can the majority of the pears next week {I’m thinking jam}.

50 lbs Yukon Potatoes: $23

What do you think? Deal or no deal? I do love a heaping plate of mashed potatoes…. So I guess I’ll be good on spuds for a while.

We also picked up a big sack of Brussels Sprouts for $3.20 {I don’t remember what they were a pound} as well as a bag of Mini Peppers for $2.00.

And last but not least, we stopped by the Old Village Bakery in North Conway, NH {we had been there once before} and picked up a loaf of English muffin bread for $4.15. Every single slice in that bag was gone by Sunday afternoon. We all gave it a BIG thumbs up and will now be on the lookout for English muffin bread the next time we’re at any scratch bakery.

It was a good week. Leftovers, a day out and eating toast with heaping mounds of spiced Christmas jam in my pj’s two mornings in a row. Yum Yum Yum.

How about YOU? How did you do in the grocery department this week? Did you find any deals? What do you think about those bulk produce prices?

Have a wonderful day Monday everyone.

~Mavis

Total Spent on Groceries This Week $61.34

Total Spent on Groceries in April $61.34
Total Spent on Groceries in March $321.69
Total Spent on Groceries in February $220.92
Total Spent in January on Groceries $41.19
Total Spent So Far on Groceries in 2019 $645.14 {Goal is to average $150 – $175 a month for the year}

You can go HERE to read more Shopping Trip Stories.

P.S. If you are looking for recipes for this coming Easter Sunday, here are a few of my favorites:

Egg Custard
Baked Pineapple Custard {hands down the best thing to serve alongside ham!
Cherry Cola Jell-O Salad {Grandma’s recipe}
Carole’s Creamy Grape Salad
Vanilla Cheesecake Bars
Broccoli Cashew Salad
Carrot Cake {Ahhhhsome!}
Hot Milk Cake

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My 22 Goals for 2019 – Week 15 of 52

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By Mavis Butterfield on April 14, 2019 · 32 Comments

My 22 Goals for 2019

Goal #1 — Spend More Time Doing What I Love

This past week was the perfect mix of New England weather. There was sunshine {and 70 degrees!} there was snow, and a lot of yard work got done. The chickens are happy, and Lucy got in a little sun bathing on the lawn. What more could a girl ask for.

Goal #2 — Garden, Garden, Garden

Pruning in snow pants. It’s a thing here.

So are poison ivy rashes. The HH and I are both trying to hang in there and NOT got to the Doc in a Box for steroid pills to speed up the process {and get some much needed relief}. At $250 per visit to said Doc in a Box, {and one full blown episode under my belt} I’d rather use the money for this summer’s ice cream stand fund instead of a quick fix. Maybe it’s a sign I am acclimating. Or just a sign I’ve gone a little soft in the head.

Priorities. It’s all about the priorities.

Goal #3 — Plant an Orchard

Next month!

Goal #4 — ~~Gussy Up the Potting Shed~~ Done!

The inside of the potting shed is all done, and so now it’s time to turn my attention to the front now that the snow has melted {and I’m pretty sure we won’t be getting anymore until late fall}. I’ve already bought a sack of gladiolus bulbs, hollyhock tubers and some purple coneflower. Now all that’s left to do is to get all that planted and mulched, and then I’ll be able to call that area good until fall.

I think when fall rolls around this year, I’ll decorate the front of the potting shed with cornstalks and pumpkins and maybe some sort of fall wreath… or maybe even a giant candy corn cutout.

Goal #5 — Grow Enough Extra Vegetables, Eggs and Flowers to Earn $1500 at my little roadside vegetable stand.

The veggie stand won’t be up until there are lilac blossoms to sell, but the garlic I planted last fall is popping up through the soil.

Goal #6 — Finish Every Single Unfinished Rug Hooking Project in My Pattern Bin + 10 Things from back Issues of Magazines/Books I’ve Been Meaning to Make.

This past week I hooked another rug my next Etsy Shop update on May, 3rd. I had meant to finish 3 rugs but with the weather so nice outside, my time was pretty limited. This rug was NOT part of the 73 rug patterns that were in my project bin so I don’t get to mark it off my list. 🙁

I started the year off with:

73 rugs {now down to 55}
183 hooked flowers {finished 61, now down to 110}
10 “things” from back issues of magazines {finished 0}

Goal #7 — Create 12 New Rug Hooking Patterns {with at least half of them being large ones}

6 down, 6 to go! If all goes as planned, I’ll have 3 new patterns to add to my Etsy shop in May! Wahooo.

New Rug Hooking Patterns I’ve Created And Added to My Etsy Shop This Year:

Goal #8 — Split and Stack 2 Cords of Wood for Next Winter

Nothing to report.

Goal #9 — Do Something with the 5,002 Photos on My Phone

I still have 8 months, right?

Goal #10 –Lose the Muffin Top

Working theory: Muffy will just fall off during gardening season.

Goal #11 — Run, Walk or Crawl a 5k, ~~10k~~, Half Marathon and Marathon

Monday is the Boston Marathon. And The Girl {and one of her college buddies, PLUS an old neighbor of ours} will all be running. And, as you might have guessed, I too will be doing my own sort of marathon on Patriot’s Day. So stay tuned for that! 🙂 🙂 🙂

Goal #12 — Read or Listen to 26 New Books {9 down, 17 to go}

I finished The Alice Network on Friday {about a 4.5 of 5 stars} and then started The Coddling of the American Mind but had to hit the delete button after 20 minutes because of the narrator’s style. The speech was slow and almost like he was talking to a 4 year old.

And then I checked NPR’s How I Built This for new podcasts and ended up listening to the most recent one with Alice Waters, and it was wonderful. 🙂 You can find the interview HERE.

I am waiting my turn on the library wait list for the following audio books:

Books I’ve Read or Listened to So Far This Year:

Goal #13 — Try 52 New Recipes.

9 down, 43 recipes to go.

We were eating leftover BBQ for 5 days. 5 DAYS!!!! No time for a new recipe last week. 😉

Goal #14 — Clean Up 52 Old Recipes on the Blog

Seven recipes down, 45 to go. I need to get going on this goal.

Goal #15 — Fill 100 Canning Jars 4 down, 96 to go.

That’s about to change next week though because we bought 40 pounds of Bartlett pears for $20 the other day and they need to be used up! I’m thinking pear vanilla jam and carrot cake jam will be just a few of the recipes I’ll be making next week. 😉

So far this year I’ve I canned 4 jars of Almond Pears.

Goal #16 — Finish Furnishing Our House

Nothing new to report this week.

Furniture pieces I’m still on the hunt for:

~~Coffee table for the family room~~
Console, cupboard or sideboard for the one and only tv in our house which is in the family room. I could totally live without a television, but my husband says the tv stays.
~~Long rectangular table for the craft room.~~
Table for the formal dining room {We moved the kitchen table to the dining room and so mow we are looking for a table for the kitchen/keeping room area}.
2 wing back chairs for the family room.
I’d also like to decorate the mantel in the keeping room as well as put up some sort of decoration above the other 3 fireplaces in the house. I’m not one for a lot of things on the walls, but it would be nice to throw up a little pilgrim bling on the plaster.

Goal #17 – 52 Dates with the HH {12 down, 40 to go}

This past Friday we had a pretty epic date day. 9 hours of exploring northern New Hampshire. We even stopped off at the Mount Washington Resort for a look around. Afternoon tea at the resort is on my to-do list for this summer with The Girl, and by the look of the place, I bet they do it well!

Goal #18 — Take One Adult Education Class

I have signed up for 2 adult educations classes that I’ll be taking in May. One I’m keeping a secret for now {I’m taking that one with a neighbor} and the other class is a wooden spoon carving class that my buddy Heather from Massachusetts and I are going to take.

Goal #19 — Secret {for now} Holiday Project

Still a secret. I suspect I’ll get started on my new idea sometime in May.

Goal #20 — Create 12 Wowie Zowie Party Platters

3 down 9 to go.

Next week I’ll be stopping by my favorite salami shop, Bricco Salumeria & Pasta Shop for a salami or two for our Easter party platter. I’d totally be fine with just making a giant plate of pickety bits for dinner, but I’m not sure if the HH is planning on smoking a ham or something, I’ll have to ask.

Goal #21 — Visit 12 General Stores

3 down 9 to go.

Well, we attempted to visit Fadden’s General Store but they were closed {even though the hours posted on their website said they’d be open!}. But this is New England…. and in between tourists seasons {ski, maple and summer, fall} so this kind of thing {stores randomly being closed} is just part of the scene around these parts. We did make it to Zeb’s though, and I’ll be sure to post about our trip there next week.

So far this year we’ve visited:

Dan and Whit’s in Norwich, Vermont
Hussey’s General Store in Windsor, Maine

Goal #22 — Compete with Carole….. Get on My Front Door Game On

Nothing new to report. Although I did see Carole out front the other day. 😉 Maybe she’s working on her game plan for spring.

Front Door Bling I’ve Made So Far This Year to Compete with Carole:

Late January : Valentine Heart
Late February : Shamrock
Late March : Giant Carrot

**************

How about YOU? What are your goals for 2019? If you told us about them HERE, check in! We want to know how you are doing. Because seriously, it’s so much easier to get those goals checked off your list when you have people rooting for you! 🙂

♥ Mavis

You can read more about my 22 goals for 2019 HERE.

Have a Great Sunday!

This post may contain affiliate links. These affiliate links help support this site. For more information, please see my disclosure policy. Thank you for supporting One Hundred Dollars a Month.