Monday, October 12, 2015

A Habit and Frugal Accomplishments



The zinnias I started in July are blooming.  I planted them hoping for late summer & early fall blooms, and they've come through nicely.  I'll enjoy them while I can.  I'm joining in with Frugal Accomplishments today.  Last week, I strained, sweetened & bottled the jars of elderberry tincture.  Made yogurt and kefir.  Took cuttings of rosella and plumbago for rooting, which I can hopefully plant out in the spring.  Began washing windows.  I think most tend to do that chore in the spring, and I do if I have the time, but I always feel it's most important to do in the fall.  In the warm months, we're outdoors much more and there's so much light.  In the colder months, the house plants and I appreciate all the light we can get, for health and good cheer.  All the inside and 1/2 of the outside south facing windows are washed, which is where the majority of house plants will go.  I cleaned up 20 plants and their saucers, plus the tiles that most sit on to protect the furniture, and got them in the house.  Just a few more to go!  It's a stretch to call that a frugal accomplishment, but there is an avocado and some lemons I started from seed, which may someday provide food, and a couple of aloe for medicinal use.


J & I were treated to a performance of Nunsense, a musical that my brother took part in.  He and the other musicians could be seen during this performance, and all had to dress in a habit :o).  The show was great fun.  I sure love my brother, who almost always makes me laugh.  I made open faced cheese sandwiches with our tomatoes and oregano.  Harvested extra oregano to dry.  Grated a carrot for the pups dinner.  Broke up stale pretzels for the chickens.  Harvested tomatoes and gathered eggs.  I froze the remaining yogurt I bought for a starter in an ice cube tray, so will have starter for quite a while in the future.  Made pasta with our tomatoes, garlic and herbs, and made Brandy's chard soup with our chard and garlic.  Also made from scratch brownies.  What did you do to save money or resources recently?

4 comments:

Michèle Hastings said...

I remember my mother washing windows in both spring and fall... like you, once a year works for me!
Will your zinnia's come up next year? It seems I remember that at the STARgarden and they came up each year and spread like crazy... or could I be thinking of something else that looks similar? I know that in NH they had to be planted each year.

Laurie said...

I suppose the zinnias could reseed themselves, but maybe I've never had that healthy a patch. I've always replanted them. Yes, the hardest part of washing the windows is dealing with our handmade screens, due to all the salvaged windows. It's usually a bit of a struggle to reinsert them back in their tracks.

cookingwithgas said...

I LOVE the picture of you and your brother! Such fun!

Laurie said...

Me too, Meredith!