The Cottage on the Hill

Coupons, Ads, Apps, Rebates, Gift Cards, Sales It was practically another job to figure out how to get as many groceries as possible for the lowest price. It was fun for a while, but then it just became more complicated, stressful, and literally took up hours upon hours to get organized. I may do it again, because sometimes the bargain hunt is fun. But, for now I prefer simplicity. My grandmother never worried about coupons.  Apps weren't even around and even today she doesn't use them. She has her preferred brands and her weekly list.  She has her favorite stores, and her budget. Simple. Now that my children are out of baby and toddler items and we've all settled into what our preferred foods and brands are, shopping is more simple. Many times I can just run into Aldi and get what I need for the week. To be honest, I was mostly disappointed when I did all the couponing and bargain match-ups.  Half the time the items were out, or the coupons weren'...

The ingredients list on commercial mayonnaise jars is enough to send any health-conscious person running. For me, it was more than that.  I avoided mayo because my gastronomy became my enemy. Mayonnaise can seem daunting to make, and it is most costly to make homemade mayo than it is to buy commercial mayo, but the benefits are big, especially if you are on a GAPS/SCD, Whole30, Paleo, or other low-carb diet. Utilizing ingredients from Aldi can help keep costs down. Homemade Mayonnaise Put in a blender: 1 whole egg 1 egg yolk  (for eggs, I recommend not buying the Aldi egg, but spending the money on local, high quality eggs to reduce risk of contamination from using raw eggs.  Wash the eggs before cracking.) 1 1/2 tsp. fresh squeeze lemon juice (You can buy lemons at Aldi, usually, or use their bottled lemon juice.  The fresh lemons are better for you, though.) 1 tsp spicy brown mustard (Or dijon mustard.  You can buy both at Aldi.  I ...

(The picture didn't seem blurry when I first took it!) Mr. Moose arrived in our lives adorning a cute pair of infant pajamas that even had antlers on its feet. Once my babies grew out of the moose pajamas, I removed the moose patch and put it on a size 3T t-shirt for my 3rd child.  It was his favorite shirt.  Unfortunately, as children do, he grew out of it and it was set aside. Recently, his favorite pair of jeans developed a hole in the knee. Lo and Behold! Mr. Moose fit over the hole perfectly! Hopefully he'll survive the jeans until my boy grows out of the jeans and Mr. Moose can be moved to another garment.

I saw this sweater skirt in the Junior's department at my local Target.  I loved it, wanted it, but couldn't justify the price, especially when I knew I could do this: I bought this unflattering-on-me sweater at Goodwill for $5.00. I cut it across the underbust, inserted some on-hand elastic, turned over the edge, straight stitched it and 5 minutes later: Voila!

(The recipe makes more than this, but we've already eaten a bunch by the time I just grabbed the jar and snapped a picture!) 1/4 cup organic unrefined sugar (I used Florida Crystals) Approx. 1/2 cup organic brown sugar 1/2 cup organic almond butter 1 egg 1 stick butter, melted 1 cup organic buckwheat flour 1/3 tsp aluminum free baking powder 1/3 tsp baking soda 1/3 tsp salt 1/4 - 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut Enough coconut flour to make a good cookie dough...I think approx. 1/4 - 1/3 cup Cream almond butter, butter and sugars together.  Blend in egg well.  Mix together with buckwheat flour, powder, soda and salt.  Stir in shredded coconut, then blend in coconut flour until you have a good cookie dough.  You should be able to form balls without the dough being too sticky or too dry.  Form into balls and place on an ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for approx. 5-10 minutes. Keep in mind that I'm guessing a little on the...

I have to be honest with you. If you want to eat better and you have a limited grocery budget, not only do you have to simplify, but you have to work harder. Yep. Make your own. Hate the idea? Well, if you want to eat better, then get over it. Life takes work and getting where you want takes work. Convenience costs one way or another. Hard work pays one way or another. It's daunting at first, I know. But once you get into the swing of things, it isn't so bad. It's ok to pick and choose, too. It may behoove you to make your own yogurt, but making your own bread is just too much. Just figure out what works for you and go with it, so long as you are actually saving money. Another thing to consider when making your own is the total cost of the end result. Remember, when comparing how much it costs to make your homemade bread that you don't compare it to Wonder Bread, but rather the finer, natural loaves. Sure, it may cost you more than a loaf of cheap Aldi...

I am desiring more and more for my family to eat as healthfully as possible, especially since 2 out of 3 of my children are very picky eaters. Unfortunately, our grocery bill is through the roof and I STILL pass up important organic foods because of the expense. So, I am starting this series, Budging the Organic Budget, as a sort of brain storm of ways to keep the grocery budget down and healthful foods up. Part 1 Eat more simply. Variety is the spice of life, but now that I am a busy mom of 3 going on 4, variety can be an added burden. I used to love making all those ethnic, different and gourmet dishes. Planning all those different meals is time consuming and expensive, not to mention all the leftovers that go bad in the back of the fridge because heaven forbid you eat chicken twice a week. With 2 picky children, making dinners such as casseroles, or gourmet flavorings means a lot of waste. They don't eat it. So, I am taking inventory of simple, healthful meals my children...

Marguerite Patten, then. Marguerite Patten, OBE, now. I have recently learned about Marguerite Patten, the home economics and wartime rationing and cooking queen of England. The little I've seen of her on BBC's "1940's House" reveals a woman of grace and positive thinking. I look forward to learning more about her and her home economics. I have found some of her books on etsy, but I am looking for her wartime rationing cookbook now.

I'm really hard pressed to continue spending $80.00 or more dollars every 4 months on products for my vanity. On top of that, I'm bothered by the amount of chemicals women so freely slather into their pores. I have gone more natural, but that comes with quite the price tag. In a continuing quest for simplicity, I wondered if there's a simpler way. I have found it in my kitchen! Makeup Removers ! Milk, yogurt, olive oil! I use rose water as a toner after washing my face (with Scottish Lye Soap ). I use sweet almond oil as my moisturizer. It works great as an after shave lotion, too. Here's a recipe for Homemade Deodorant using kitchen products. I haven't tried it yet since I still have some of my usual deodorant left. I've tried the cider vinegar and baking soda no-shampoo before, but I didn't like how it made my hair feel sticky and made it look filthy and twisted into little rat-tail dreadlocks. I may try it again sometime, but for now I'm hap...

Or at least I started. The other day I was removing laundry from the clothes line while my son helped me. I handed him a kitchen towel and asked him to put it in the drawer. He wasn't sure which drawer so I showed him only to once again sigh in discust over the yellowed, 1950's metal drawers. Yes, my kitchen hasn't been updated since the 1950's. Good thing the retro/vintage look is in vogue again!! The cabinets and drawers are metal, which I don't mind. It's actually neat to be able to pin up anything I want all over the kitchen with cute magnets. The set-up and storage space is decent, too for such a small house. The problem is the once white cabinets have discolored over the years and none of the discoloring matches. The worst are the drawers next to the stove. They were all yellowed in varying shades and splotches and I hated them. Loathed them. So, we were out of bread, the older kids were in bed and my truck was in the shop, so I announced to hub...

While flipping through a back issue of Victoria Magazine I came across their fashion spread based on the Land Girls Army of WW II England! Back during the war there was such a lack of men in the country and such a lack of food that agriculture needed to be boosted on the backs of women. Thus the Land Girls Army was formed. I also found out that they have a book and a movie! I’m fascinated by the 1940’s and the hardships these people endured with such faith, hope and patriotism. Slackness was not acceptable. Everyone was expected to do their share to ensure victory (a far cry from today’s war in the Middle East). I have an original food rationing cookbook from the era and in it they express the need for quick, healthful, economical meals to ensure the health of the Allies, to save money for the war effort, and to save time so the cook could spend more time knitting socks or what have you for the soldiers. I’m struck by how cushy we have it now. I’m struck by how wasteful we are now. I’m...

I love a good bargain! I found a quart of sky blue paint in the "oops paint" section at Lowes today! It's original price was nearly $14.00, but I got it for $3.00. FIY, Home Depot tends to have cheaper "oops paints" than Lowes, but I happened to be in Lowes and found the perfect paint. I also stopped in Goodwill today. I needed a summery white blouse. Not only did I find that at 25% off in 100% cotton, but I found a lovely bias-cut 30's style toile dress at 25% off and magazine holders at $1.99. I have an ever-growing magazine collection that could use more holders. Well, my Dr. has concluded that I'm hypoglycemic. It's not bad hypoglycemia in that my blood sugar doesn't plummet to extreme levels, but my blood sugar does take quite a nose dive. I'm on a more specialized diet and encouraged to do more aerobics. Plus, I'm to prick my finger and take a blood sugar reading whenever I have that low blood sugar feeling. I was right, too. My imm...

Isn't she beautiful? I can't believe I gave birth to such a pretty little girl. The poppies this year are huge and gorgeous! These grow wild at the edge of my property (when they're not run over by a 4-wheeler). Here she is again having fun this morning. And here's big brother. He posed like this himself, my little ham! And no, that's not a bruise on his wrist. That's sidewalk chalk. Yes, he's right by the road, but we get little traffic and I was right there. He's not allowed near the road otherwise. I love that I can go in my own backyard and pick good things to eat and season my food with. Tonight, I made Quick Salmon Croquettes with a Hollondaise sauce, seasoned rice, green beans with parsley and my home-canned plums with real whipped cream sweetened with my brother's home-made maple syrup. The salmon was seasoned with parsley and rosemary from my herb garden. As a side note, I'm trying not to throw about perfectly good food. ...

Bush cherry bushes arrived in the mail today. As usual, mail-order plants always arrive on the worst days. :b It's pouring rain out and the weather man even mentioned the s-word....snow. I doubt we'll get snow here, though. That's the nice thing about living in a valley. I opened the box and the roots were just about dried out, so I secured my children, donned a rain slicker and wellies, grabbed some large pots and a shovel and ran out to my muddy, poo-slicked, stinky garden and potted the bushes. As soon as the weather clears, I'll have to get some top soil for where I want to plant the bushes. Otherwise, life has been very busy and rather unpredictable. There's a cloud of uncertainty floating around. I do feel better when the days are sunny and warm, though. I just feel a bit detatched, lately. Something's bothering me and I haven't figured out what yet. Spring is a good time to try to lower my electric bill. I want to see how low I can get it. ...

Today is my son's 3rd birthday! I can hardly believe he's 3 already! His party is at a later date, but we still celebrated such a special day. He opened his presents from us and I took him to the mall. I had to go to Kmart anyway to get a birthday present for my neice and Kmart had double coupons! At the mall, I remembered to bring a handful of quarters so Bubby could ride the rides. Then, I took him out for a little lunch and ice cream. His poor sister was terribly upset at being at the mall so we didn't stay long. She's become quite clingy and more of a homebody. She reminds me of someone I know.....oh yeah....ME! I was like that as a child.

Home-Made Cream Cheese Pour a container of home-made or store bought whole milk plain yogurt into a muslin-lined seive or jelly strainer with a bowl underneathe. Let the whey drain out for several hours. What's left in the muslin is cream cheese! You can use the whey to soak your grains (Read Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon for how and why you should do this.) Home-made Sour Cream Pour some of the finest cream you can buy (not ultra-pasteurized) into a glass mason jar. Add some of the finest cultured buttermilk you can find (not fat-free). Cover and let it sit on your countertop for 24 hours before transferring to the fridge. It may be liquidy at first, but should solid up into sour cream. I'm not sure what ratio to use. I just kind of eyeball it, but I'd say for every cup of cream, use at least 2 tablespoons of buttermilk.

I'm beginning to detest going to the supermarkets and grocery stores. Now that I'm getting more accustomed to farm fresh items, I'm realizing just how old and processed the items are in the stores. Nevermind that you're paying a pretty penny for all that packaging and handling. Here is what I make at home: Yogurt Buttermilk Sour cream Cream Cheese Cottage Cheese Kombucha Salad dressings Bread (sometimes....hubby still prefers the store-bought stuff) Broths All-purpose household cleaner I make most of my meals from scratch. I try to buy from local farms when I can. My garden will be twice the size it was last year (provided we don't move). You'll notice I don't have the ever-popular home-made laundry detergent on my list. Lately, I've been able to get great deals on store-bought detergent, so I've nixed making the detergent. After all, it can get to a point where you just run out of time in making so many home-made things. As a side note, it...

I'm in prayer for a new computer. This one is so old and diseased and slow, it's such a time waster! Besides, it's not even mine. It was supposed to be a short-term loan that went on and on and on. It's an old network computer that sometimes still thinks it is hooked up to a network. I would love a laptop. We live in a small house, so the smaller the computer the better. The local radio station advertises a website where you can apply for a free laptop. I'm leary of it because, crazy or not, I feel like if I get one of these free laptops, it'll have some sort of government scan chip in it to spy on me. Maybe I'm looney, but maybe I'm not! Tee hee. So tell me...which states have considered separating from the Obama-run United States and want to return to the Constitution? I want to get on board and move to this "Jesus Land" or whatever they're going to call it this new nation. Frankly, if we had secession even during the Bush admin...

Hubby and I are in limbo while we wait to hear from the foreman who might hire him. I'm also waiting to hear from the real estate agent who's selling the house we're interested in. Limbo can be really difficult. I'm doing my best not to get impatient and have decided to just go ahead with the things I've been wanting to do. Any home improvement project, after all, will only add to the value of the house if we sell and move. If not, we'll have a nicer home to enjoy here. If we don't move, hubby and I are up against another wall. It's just so expensive to live here that we won't be able to afford to second storey on the house even if we did most of it ourselves. It'll take quite the mustard seed of faith to figure out how to fit our growing family in such a small home. I have a few ideas. One is turn the enclosed porch into a bunk room. I don't like this idea because it is too easily accessed from the outdoors. Bad people could break i...

We had our first frost this morning. As the leaves make quick changes to a variety of autumn hues, a bit of green arrived in the mail. My elderberry bushes arrived (as did my heirloom garlic). I was disappointed that the nursery was out of blueberries, but planting those elderberries in the crisp autumn noon-day erased my disappointment. I have credit at that nursery now that I can use later this winter when I order my spring plants. I haven't been online in a couple of days and it'll probably be hit and miss for a while. I'm just so busy! Plus, I'm trying to save money and running the computer requires energy. It is frustrating that every time I work very hard to save money, something comes up to eat that savings right up. I won't balk, though, because it is rather amazing that the Lord provides just enough when the goings get tough. I went to the grocery store yesterday because they often have day-old meats marked down. I was able to buy a steak for hubby...