One Hundred Dollars a Month - Page 1546 of 2143 - 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.

Greenhouse Gardening in the Pacific Northwest

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By Mavis Butterfield on June 27, 2013 · 9 Comments

It’s been awhile since I’ve shared pictures of the greenhouse with you so I snapped a few pictures last night.

If you look really close you can see a hint of pink near the greenhouse glass. That’s a stargazer lily plant. This is my first year growing lilies and something tells me I probably should not have planted the bulbs alongside the greenhouse but oh well, at least it will add a little color to the area.

Inside the greenhouse the cucumber plants are starting put our vines. Pretty soon I’ll be guiding them towards the top of the greenhouse with twine.

Here’s a close up of the cucumber plant.

The basil we planted in gutters is thriving. Pretty soon I’ll have to thin it.

The two green zebra tomato plants we planted in the stock tank are getting nice and plump.

Look how thick the tomato stem is.

Strawberries are still hanging tough in the greenhouse gutters.

These are Tri-Star berries in case you were wondering.

And last but not least. Take a look at Lemon, the Meyer Lemon Tree. Ain’t she a beauty? Look at all those baby lemons she’s trying to grow. A greenhouse heater is definitely on my wish list for this fall. Since this is my first year growing citrus in the Pacific Northwest, I have no idea how many lemons I’ll get, but even if I only end up with a handful, it will be totally worth it.

Growing your own food is cool, no matter how you do it.

Keep calm and garden on.

~Mavis

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Lucy the Puggle Dog Digs a Hole

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By Mavis Butterfield on June 27, 2013 · 18 Comments

I’ve decided that having a puppy, is very much like having a toddler. Not only do they get into everything, need constant supervision, and beg for your attention, but they will chew on anything as well.

But, if you can wear them out, they will sleep through the night. Which makes those difficult toddler years totally worth it.

Which is what Lucy has been doing for the past week or so.

I smartened up and decided to put her mad digging skills to good use.

After I harvest a head of cabbage, I have Lucy turn the soil over for me and then I plant a seed potato in it’s place. Who needs to break their back digging up dirt when you have a dog who will do it for you?

Why didn’t I think of this sooner?

~Mavis

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Banana Fudgesicles Recipe

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By Mavis Butterfield on June 26, 2013 · 8 Comments

Now that summer vacation has finally arrived for my kids, I have turned into a popsicle making freak. Seriously. Just wait until you see all the yummy recipes start to pop up and you’ll turn into a “popscicles are on the menu for dessert tonight” mamma too.

The number one reason why I love this recipe is because it is a fantastic way to use up brown spotted {ripe!} bananas. Once your bananas start to get brown, toss them in a gallon sized zip baggie and put them in the freezer until your ready to use them.

Banana Fudgesicles Recipe

Author Mavis Butterfield

Ingredients

6 bananas , frozen {peeled of course}
4 tablespoons of cocoa powder
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract

Instructions

I like to take the bananas out of the freezer a good 30 minutes or so before I start. This will give the bananas a chance to thaw a wee bit so when you toss them in the blender, you don’t break the thing.
Once your bananas are thawed somewhat {but still frozen} place them in a blender {I used my Blendtec}. Add the cocoa and vanilla and pulse until well blended. Pour the mixture into popsicle molds and freeze overnight.
The next day they’ll be ready to serve. Yumm-a-licious!

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Easy Crafts for Kids – How to Make a Pinwheel

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By Mavis Butterfield on June 26, 2013 · 5 Comments

When I was a little girl, I used to watch a show called Pinwheel. The theme song went something like this: “Pinwheel, pinwheel, spinning around. Look at my Pinwheel and see what I’ve found. Pinwheel, pinwheel, where have you been? Hello, how are you, and may I come in?” Do you remember this song? Did you watch the show? To this day, whenever I see a child blowing on a pinwheel or pass one in a store, I sing that little song. Ah, good times. In honor of my reminiscing, here’s a cheap, simple pinwheel you can make on your own, and feel free to sing along as you do. 😉

You will need:

Several pieces of scrapbook paper cut into 4-inch squares
Brads
Bamboo Skewers
Scissors
Hole Punch

Directions

First, fold a piece of paper diagonally. Keep your paper folded in a triangle. Fold it again, into a smaller triangle.

Now unfold the paper, so it looks like a square. Your paper will have crease lines in an “X” shape.

Cut about 3/4 the way up towards the center of the paper on each fold line and hole punch a hole in each corner of your paper.

Now, bring each corner with a hole in it towards the center of the paper. You will start to see the pinwheel shape taking form.

Once you’ve gathered all of the hole punched corners to the center, put the brad through the center to hold them down.

Finally, open the brad and wrap it around the tip of the bamboo skewer to attach your pinwheel to its handle.

The last step is to pray for wind so that you don’t spend the rest of the day blowing the pinwheel straight into light-headed bliss just for the delighted giggles of your kiddos.

Happy Crafting,

Mavis

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