One Hundred Dollars a Month - Page 9 of 2210 - 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.

My 22 Goals for 2019 – Week 33 of 52

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By Mavis Butterfield on August 18, 2019 · 21 Comments

My 22 Goals for 2019

Goal #1 — Spend More Time Doing What I Love

I spent a ridiculous amount of time on the internet this past week searching for things I’ll never buy, catching up on current events, learning about a cow tail amputation, listening to podcasts {I love the podcast How I Built This and the Boom Chick a Pop podcast was so good!} and for the most part, getting absolutely NOTHING done.

My eyes hurt so much when I woke up on Saturday morning from staring at a screen all week, I couldn’t drag myself out of bed to do the weekly highlights. So, I apologize for being a no show. Life, it happens. 😉

Goal #2 — Garden, Garden, Garden

What I’d like to know is WHO has been eating my strawberries all summer? I suspect it was our resident bunny, but with all the wildlife around here, I can’t tell for sure. Other than a little thieving, the garden is doing well these days.

Goal #3 — Plant an Orchard {Calling it Quits on this one for this year.}

We have 3 apple trees on the property and now that one of trees with fruit on it has a bit of color to it, I think it’s safe to say it’s an Empire apple tree! 🙂 It’s a popular apple around here. Now I just have to figure out what the other two are.

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

Those sunflowers! I wonder how tall they’ll get. Just when I think they are ready to bloom, they get a little taller. I need to go out and measure them.

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

I sold $24 worth of jam at the veggie stand this week {I guess nobody wanted the mini pumpkins, zucchini, flowers or eggs}. Oh well, I’ll set up shop again next week and see if I get any takers.

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.

I finished absolutely nothing to add to my Etsy shop this week. What can I say. Some weeks you just feel like you’re on autopilot.

I started the year off with:

73 rugs in my pattern bin {now down to 37}
183 hooked flowers {finished 133, now down to 51}
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}~~ DONE!

So far this year I’ve added 12 new rug hooking patterns and 13 beginner rug hooking kits to my Etsy shop.

New rug hooking patterns I’ve created and added to My Etsy Shop this year:

Rug Hooking Kits

Busy Little Bee {in 2 different colors}
Folk Art Heart
Small Nantucket Whale
Primitive Crow
Miss Robin {in 2 different colors}
Simple Kitty
Primitive Flowers
Sunflowers
A Basket of Spring Posies
Fat Brown Hen
Chicky’s Garden

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

So far we have 3 1/2 cords for this winter. I say we need more. The HH disagrees. But what do I know.

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

Down to 2942 photos. This is a photo of the “complimentary breakfast” from our hotel The Girl and I enjoyed one morning while staying in Vancouver B.C. I can’t believe I have had this photo on my phone for over 2 years now. If this was 1990 and I had to pay to print out my photo, I would have been like…. why on earth did I take a picture of that for?

Goal #10 –Lose the Muffin Top

Blah Blah Blah.

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

We are at day 60 on the turtle baby watch. According to the Google, hatching could occur anytime between 45-90 days. I wonder how many will hatch?

Goal #12 — Read or Listen to 26 New Books {16 down, 10 to go}

I picked up An American Princess: The Many Lives of Allene Tew from the library yesterday but haven’t had time to crack open the pages yet.

Current Books I am on the Wait list for:

Mr. Sunday’s Soups
On Writing {I’ve already listened to this 2 times but it’s sooo good, even if the only writing I do is an online journal.
Mistress of the Ritz

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

Marilla of Green Gables #1 Still my favorite
The Great Alone #2
The Aviator’s Wife #3
Before We Were Yours #4
Secrets of a Charmed Life #5
Where’d You Go, Bernadette #6
Carnegie’s Maid #7
The Gown #8
The Alice Network #9
The Shape of Mercy #10
Will’s Red Coat #11
Big Little Lies #12
Bunny Mellon {Doesn’t count because it was my second time}
Walden
Finder’s Keepers
Delicious!
Following Atticus

Goal #13 — Try 52 New Recipes.

22 down, 30 recipes to go. This past week I shared a recipe for Old Fashioned Peach Preserves.

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

9 down, 44 to go. I’ll get crackin’ once fall {and cooler temps} come around.

Goal #15 — Fill 100 Canning Jars 48 down, 52 to go.

As soon as the John Boy peaches are available at our local fruit stand, I plan on making another batch of jam!

So far this year I’ve I canned:

Goal #16 — Finish Furnishing Our House

I didn’t come across any new furniture this week but I did score a nice wooden bowl {for all those acorns!} and 2 books Beatrix Potter’s Art and Designs on the Heart, The Homemade Art of Grandma Moses at our local recycle center. Side note: Those old wooden bowls…. They go for a small fortune on Etsy. Who knew?

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.
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 2 1 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 {26 down, 28 to go}

For date day this week the HH and I went o Winter Harbor, Maine. Have you been there before? After reading about the coastal Maine hideaway in The Aviator’s Wife and the Bunny Mellon book, I just had to see for myself if it was as beautiful as I had imagined it to be. And it was all that and more. I don’t know about you, but I just love a rocky coastline.

Goal #18 — ~~Take One Adult Education Class~~ Done {I’ve taken 2!}

I’m keeping the first class I took with my neighbor top secret for now
Spoon Carving Class with Heather.

Goal #19 — Secret {for now} Holiday Project

The big reveal… Friday, September 13th, 2019.

Goal #20 — Create 12 Wowie Zowie Party Platters

4 down, 8 to go. {I’ve decided to wait and work on this goal during the fall/winter months}

Goal #21 — Visit 12 General Stores

8 down 4 to go. We didn’t make it to a general store this week, but we did stop at a cool eatery with a nice selection of everything you could possibly need to a pickety bit extravaganza. I’ll tell you all about it next week.

So far this year we’ve visited:

Chase’s Daily {I think it should count}
Squam Lake Marketplace
Harrisville General Store
Dodge’s Store in New Boston, New Hampshire
Zeb’s General Store in North Conway, New Hampshire
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

I’ve decided on a big sunflower cutout for the front door. Now I just need to go out the barn and get a piece of wood and have the HH cut it out for me. 😉

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
May: White wave petunia hanging basket
June/July: Tin Star and Flag Bunting

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

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!

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10 Fun Facts About Bell Peppers!

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By Mavis Butterfield on August 16, 2019 · 10 Comments

I like produce. I like to grow it. I like to eat it. I like to create recipes with it. I’m also kind of a nerd and like to get to know my produce. I like learning new or fun tidbits of info about the produce I’m growing/eating/baking. If you’re a weirdo like me then buckle up for this new series as I dive into a plethora of produce facts and share them with you. Here we go:

1. Since bell peppers have seeds and come from flowering plants, they are actually fruits, not vegetables.

2. The bell pepper is the only member of the pepper family that does not produce capsaicin, a chemical that can cause a strong burning sensation when it comes in contact with your tongue. The absence of capsaicin in bell peppers is because of a recessive form of a gene that gets rid of capsaicin. That’s also why some people refer to bell peppers as sweet peppers!

3. A bell pepper has the highest levels of Vitamin C of any produce item. A large red pepper provides more than 300% of your daily requirement of Vitamin C and has three times more Vitamin C than an orange. Why does no one talk about this? You hear about oranges and Vitamin C all the time, but never peppers!

4. Bell pepper have many different names. In the US, India, Canada, and Malaysia, they’re called bell peppers. In Australia and New Zealand they’re called Capsicum. The British simply call them pepper, while the Japanese call them papurika.

5. When Columbus brought dried peppers back to Europe, Europeans were only familiar with the pepper spice not veggie. When they tasted the dried peppers from the New World, they found them even hotter than the black pepper they knew. For them, if something was hot, it was peppery—and so they named the new arrival “pepper” as well. However, pepper and peppers are totally unrelated.

6. Bell peppers can be eaten at any stage of development, however the vitamin C and carotenoid content {so all the healthy things about peppers!} of bell peppers increases with ripeness.

7. Red/yellow/orange bell peppers are simply green bell peppers that have been left on the vine to continue to ripen.

8. Red bell peppers are sweeter than green ones because bell peppers sweeten as they ripen.

9. Traditional Chinese Medicine used bell peppers as treatment for some medical conditions like poor blood circulation, indigestion, loss of appetite, swelling, frostbite and digestive issues.

10. Bell peppers are not grown seasonally so they can be enjoyed year round!

Had you heard any of those fun facts before? Do you have any of your own to add? Is there a particular produce item you want to know more about? I take requests!

Grow on,
~ Mavis

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Gardening in New England – Chickens and Vegetables

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By Mavis Butterfield on August 15, 2019 · 31 Comments

Yesterday, The Girl went out to collect eggs and she couldn’t help but give our black australorp, a hug. She’s our favorite bird, the boss of the bunch. All the other birds allow her to go after any treats we give them first {these days it’s giant sliced zucchini}.

This is Ethel the Easter Egger. She’s the one that likes to chase Lucy when given the chance. 😉 She’s kind of a trouble maker, but we love her. 😉

And then there’s Hilda our Blue Easter Egger. She’s gone broody and fights us for the eggs each morning. Note to self: buy some fake eggs and stick them under her.

In other news, the spinner gourd vines are about ready to take over the gate in the front. We have another garden gate, and so it’s really tempting to just let the vines take over and have the fence covered in teeny tiny little spinner gourds until late fall when the leaves die away. What do you think, should I just leave them alone?

Isn’t it dreamy? That part of the garden feels very English to me. Like I should be strolling, and sipping tea while checking on the gourd babies each day.

The purplish pink blossoms on the Shrub Althea {a common hibiscus} are starting to bloom. It’s nice to have a pop of color in the herb garden.

In the garden, the peppers are coming in…

And we are picking tomatoes everyday now.

As well as the beans the bunnies didn’t nibble away. 😉

Kentucky pole beans will always be my favorite.

And finally, early yesterday morning, I set up the veggie stand with jams, eggs and a few produce items.

What do you think of those prices? Pretty fair?

How is YOUR garden doing these days? What have you been harvesting? Curious minds want to know.

Have a great Thursday everyone,

~Mavis

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Moulton Farm in Meredith, New Hampshire

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By Mavis Butterfield on August 14, 2019 · 8 Comments

Last month while the HH and I were up near Lake Winnipesaukee, one of the stops along the way was to Moulton Farm in Meredith, New Hampshire. Growing up in the more suburban areas of in the Pacific Northwest, there weren’t as many of these types of greenhouse/farm stands/bakeries/gift shops when I was a kid as there are here in New England.

And while I do miss my annual stops to Spooner Farms for berries, and the annual fall plant sale at Watson’s Greenhouse in Puyallup, it’s been so much fund discovering all the {mostly} seasonal shops that dot the landscape around here. Every time we pass by one, I sort of freak out a little and make the HH pull over so I can investigate. Poor guy.

I couldn’t believe it. Not only did Moulton Farms have the biggest display of hydrangea plants for sale that I’ve ever seen in one location, they had a greenhouse full of tomatoes growing in bags reaching from floor to ceiling. It was AWESOME.

I mean I’ve grown tomatoes in a greenhouse before, but not on this scale. And it sorta made me want to buy a greenhouse again. 😉 But who am I kidding? The weather here in New England is perfect for growing tomatoes outside. And anyway, who want’s to break out of winter mode super early just to get a greenhouse up and going… Not me. I’m happy hunkering down inside and stretching out the colder months as long as possible.

Basil basil basil.

And onions…. talk about some pretty instant gratification on those. Then again, with bulbs those size, they’s be great for a first time gardener or little kids.

I thought when we pulled over we would be just checking out a greenhouse. But as it turned out, Moulton Farms was a true farm market. Not only do they sell a bazillion plants, they sell their produce, baked goods, all sorts of soups and take away meals AND they offer farm to table brunches and dinners. How crazy is that!

Now that’s what I call one stop shopping at it’s finest.

$2.49 a pound for zucchini though, I had to do a double take on that one. 😉

Strawberry milk. And it’s local! When was the last time you had strawberry milk? I think I was 12. Too bad we didn’t bring The Girl along, she would have totally bought that.

So here is yet another super amazing place in New England that you need to add to your “must visit” list. Moulton Farm in Meredith, NH. I think it’s pretty awesome. And I think you will too. 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone,

~Mavis

Moulton Farm
18 Quarry Rd, Meredith, NH 03253

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