Solving the Natural Peanut Butter Oil Separation Problem
Article Archives
Voluntary Simplicity
- Why We Chose Voluntary Simplicity — Sometimes There Is No Tomorrow
- What is the Difference Between Simple Living & Voluntary Simplicity?
- Taking That First Step
- Making Living Green a Habit
- Overcoming the Paralysis of Too Much Analysis
- Discovering Your “Enough”
- Some Thoughts on Avoiding GMOs
- Learning To Say No
- That Very Ordinary Life
- Sometimes It Takes a Closer Look
- Are You Tired of the Noise?
- But I Think an Intangible Something Has Been Lost
- Can Credit Cards Be Used Responsibly?
- An Easier Way to Wash Dishes
- Some Thoughts on Staying Home
- Two Resolutions That Can Change Your Life
- The Wood-Burning Cook Stove In My Kitchen
- When You Give The Gift Of A Smile
- Things I Have Learned About Cooking & Baking with a Wood Stove
- Does Frugality Mean You Shouldn’t Have Nice Things?
- Being Sensible About Frugality
- Rethinking Multitasking & The Myth of Quality Time
- Some Thoughts About Staying Motivated
- About This Blog (And About Me) FAQ
- Some Thoughts on Accepting Personal Responsibility
- Homemade Laundry Detergent — Yes Or No?
- What Living in the Moment Means To Me
- Downshifting To A Simpler Life
- There Is No One Way To Do Simple Living Right
- A Simplicity Anyone Can Live With
- A Simple Country Life
- Keeping a Photograph… Purging the Item
- How To Be Happy In A Mostly Unhappy World
- What True Frugality Is… and What It Is Not
- What Voluntary Simplicity Is NOT
- Accomplishing What Needs To Be Done… Efficiently, Quickly, and With As Little Stress As Possible
- What We Don’t Say
- Seeing the Sunshine and a Happier You
- The Importance of Learning To Care
- LESS Stuff Doesn’t Equal Happiness Either
- How You Choose To Spend Your Time
- Some Thoughts About Raising Free Range Chickens
- The Biggest Obstacle to a Simpler, Truly Fulfilling Life
- Have Necessities Become Luxuries Because of the Recession?
- Learning To Slow Down
- Making the Most of Those Lifestyle Challenges
- Achieving a Simpler Life — Step 1: Track Your Spending
- Practicing the Golden Rule
- Does the Electric Company Really Need My Social Security Number?
- Organizing, Decluttering, And Purging
- Some Thoughts About Voluntary Simplicity
- Our Journey To A Debt Free Life
- It’s The Simple Things That Count
- Decluttering and Purging
- Waking Up to a Clean Kitchen
- 6 Quick Steps to a Clean Living Room
- As Long As You Derive Inner Help and Comfort...
- The Promise of Each New Day
- Why Would Anyone Deliberately Choose a Simple Life?
- Coping with a Power Outage
- Write It On Your Heart That Every Day is the Best Day in the Year
- What Do Hosta Flowers Look Like?
- Happiness Is the Result of My Decision to Be Happy
- The Impact of Attitude on Life
- How Far You Go In Life...
- One In, One Out vs. Purging for a Reason
- Learn to Enjoy Every Minute of Your Life
- Do I Really Want Another Dishwasher?
- Visual Proof That Nothing Is Impossible
- Seeing The Beauty That Is Already There
- Procrastinating is a Habit... Nothing More
- This Is To Have Succeeded
- A Toad in the Hand
- Seriously... Doesn't That Look Like a Smile?
- Except For That One Year and That One Heron...
- Keep Close to Nature's Heart
- The Noble Art of Leaving Things Undone
- The Apple Trees in Our Meadow... Heirloom or Wild?
- Success, Like Happiness, Cannot Be Pursued
- I Think Contentment is Almost a Default Characteristic
- Note That This Journey is Uniquely Yours
- Except For Those Two Times When We Dug Up Something Else...
- Why the Extreme Cold and Snow Doesn't Seem All That Important Any More
- How Do Your Living Expenses Compare with the IRS’s Allowable Living Expense National Standards?
- Organic Seeds, Heirlooms, Hybrids, Open Pollination, and GMO-Free
- Where Did the Summer Months Go?
- Bring Love Into Your Home...
- Peter Lawrence — The Happy Minimalist
Simple Living
- Discovering Your "Enough"
- And That Won't Be Fun Either
- Taking That First Step
- Not Exactly What I Had Planned To Do Today…
- Making Living Green a Habit
- 7 Grocery Shopping Strategies That Work For Me
- Some Thoughts on Avoiding GMOs
- Can Credit Cards Be Used Responsibly?
- An Easier Way to Wash Dishes
- Some Thoughts on Staying Home
- The Wood-Burning Cook Stove In My Kitchen
- Things I Have Learned About Cooking & Baking with a Wood Stove
- Does Frugality Mean You Shouldn't Have Nice Things?
- Being Sensible About Frugality
- 4 Money-Saving Tips for Buying Produce
- About This Blog (And About Me) FAQ
- Sometimes You Should Complain
- Homemade Laundry Detergent — Yes Or No?
- Saving Money On Yeast
- Downshifting To A Simpler Life
- There Is No One Way To Do Simple Living Right
- Don't Confuse Playing at Frugality With Living Frugally
- A Simplicity Anyone Can Live With
- A Simple Country Life
- Keeping a Photograph… Purging the Item
- What True Frugality Is… and What It Is Not
- What Voluntary Simplicity Is NOT
- Accomplishing What Needs To Be Done… Efficiently, Quickly, and With As Little Stress As Possible
- Energy Efficient Countertop Ovens
- What is the Difference Between Simple Living & Voluntary Simplicity?
- Why I Don't Play the Coupon Game
- LESS Stuff Doesn't Equal Happiness Either
- What Will Ten Dollars Buy Where You Live?
- How You Choose To Spend Your Time
- Some Thoughts About Raising Free Range Chickens
- The Biggest Obstacle to a Simpler, Truly Fulfilling Life
- Have Necessities Become Luxuries Because of the Recession?
- Learning To Slow Down
- Making the Most of Those Lifestyle Challenges
- Achieving a Simpler Life — Step 1: Track Your Spending
- "Farm-Fresh" Eggs — When Organic Isn't All It's Cracked Up To Be
- Why We Got Rid of Our Compact Fluorescent Bulbs
- Energy Conservation & Convenience — A Trade-Off?
- Organizing, Decluttering, And Purging
- Real Advice for the Current Economic Situation
- Some Thoughts About Voluntary Simplicity
- Trying To Keep Heating Costs Down This Winter
- Our Journey To A Debt Free Life
- It's The Simple Things That Count
- Decluttering and Purging
- Waking Up to a Clean Kitchen
- 6 Quick Steps to a Clean Living Room
- Why Would Anyone Deliberately Choose a Simple Life?
- Coping with a Power Outage
- At Least We Haven't Had an Earthquake Lately...
- One In, One Out vs. Purging for a Reason
- Do I Really Want Another Dishwasher?
- It's Time To Plant the Potatoes
- How Many Servings of Fruit and Vegetables Should Your Family Eat?
- Some Thoughts About Grocery Shopping & Sensible Frugality
- Hanging Bags of Water... Do They Really Keep Flies Away?
- The Apple Trees in Our Meadow... Heirloom or Wild?
- How We Removed an Enormous Tree Stump... or How We Saved $576
- Everyone Agreed It Was Past Time For a Rest
- How To Make Your Own Chili Powder
- Except For Those Two Times When We Dug Up Something Else...
- Why the Extreme Cold and Snow Doesn't Seem All That Important Any More
- How Do Your Living Expenses Compare with the IRS’s Allowable Living Expense National Standards?
- Organic Seeds, Heirlooms, Hybrids, Open Pollination, and GMO-Free
- Where Did the Summer Months Go?
- Peter Lawrence — The Happy Minimalist
Sensible Frugality
- Some Thoughts About Grocery Shopping & Sensible Frugality
- 7 Grocery Shopping Strategies That Work For Me
- Can Credit Cards Be Used Responsibly?
- Does Frugality Mean You Shouldn’t Have Nice Things?
- Being Sensible About Frugality
- 4 Money-Saving Tips for Buying Produce
- Sometimes You Should Complain
- Homemade Laundry Detergent — Yes Or No?
- Saving Money On Yeast
- Don’t Confuse Playing at Frugality With Living Frugally
- What True Frugality Is… and What It Is Not
- Energy Efficient Countertop Ovens
- Why I Don’t Play the Coupon Game
- What Will Ten Dollars Buy Where You Live?
- “Farm-Fresh” Eggs — When Organic Isn’t All It’s Cracked Up To Be
- Why We Got Rid of Our Compact Fluorescent Bulbs
- Energy Conservation & Convenience — A Trade-Off?
- Real Advice for the Current Economic Situation
- Trying To Keep Heating Costs Down This Winter
- Are Buyer’s Clubs A Frugal Choice?
- How We Removed an Enormous Tree Stump... or How We Saved $576
Organizing, Decluttering & Purging
- 7 Grocery Shopping Strategies That Work For Me
- How I’m Organizing My Recipes
- Organizing Recipes
- Organizing, Decluttering, And Purging
- Decluttering and Purging
- Waking Up to a Clean Kitchen
- 6 Quick Steps to a Clean Living Room
- Buttons, Buttons, Who’s Got the Buttons?
- One In, One Out vs. Purging for a Reason
Green & Natural
- Hanging Bags of Water... Do They Really Keep Flies Away?
- Making Living Green a Habit
- Getting Rid of Ants the Natural Way
- Shining Stainless Steel with Flour !?!
- Make Your Own Citrus-Scented Disinfectant Spray
- A Recipe for a Natural Cough Syrup
- Compact Fluorescent Bulbs
- Natural Tarnish Removers
- Jewelweed for Poison Ivy — Does It Work?
- Another Green Cleaning Solution That Really Works
- An Amazing Natural Wood Stove Cleaner and Polisher
- A “Green” & Natural Method for Cleaning Stainless Steel
- Make Your Own Natural Body Powder
- 4 Unique Tips For Removing Garlic Odor From Your Hands
- Cleaning With Vinegar
Doing It Ourselves
- Everyone Agreed It Was Past Time For a Rest
- How We Removed an Enormous Tree Stump... or How We Saved $576
- Our Search For a Firewood Source Continues…
- Short Growing Seasons & Saving Seeds
- Why Mark Shields Never Looked So Good!
- How To Make Compost in a Garbage Can
- How We Make Leaf Mold
- My Handmade Soap
- What $25 Worth of Strawberries Looks Like
- How We Extend Our Short Growing Season
- Digging Another Pond By Hand
- Our Hand Dug Backyard Pond
- Yes You CAN Learn To Do It Yourself
- Our Garden Paths
- Our Experimental 100% Leaf Mold Gardens
- This Is Our Stone Path
- We Should Have Wondered Where All Those Rocks Came From!
- Somewhat More Intimidating Than the Usual Do-It-Yourself Project
- The Final Cut and Summer Memories
- What Our Finished Compost Looks Like
- Our Load of Logs — A Progress Report
- A Truckload of Logs — Our Winter Firewood Supply
- More Leaf Mold in the Making — It’s Starting To Heat Up
- How To Save Tomato Seeds For Planting Another Year
- How We Make Compost
- Firewood — Cutting Our Own Instead Of $250+ Per Cord
- A Squirrel Proof Bird Feeder That Really Is
Simply Personal
- 14 Things Unique To Me
- And That Won't Be Fun Either
- There Was a Slight Problem With Yesterday's Mail Delivery
- Do I Really Want Another Dishwasher?
- It WILL Stop Snowing... Won't It?
- "Do Not Eat Raw Flour, Dough or Batter"
- At Least We Haven't Had an Earthquake Lately...
- Coping with a Power Outage
- Change Happens Really Fast Sometimes
- Please... Not Just Yet!
- A Credit for the Inconvenience Caused by this Order
- We Do Know It’s There
- And Sure Enough, It Was
- I Hope She Didn’t Try To Eat Them…
- Two Spools, Some Knots & a Short Piece of Rope
- This Month Started Without Me
- It’s Been a Long Time Coming…
- A Very, Very Pasta Filled Day
- Reactions, Recalls, and a Red Fox Move
- But I Think an Intangible Something Has Been Lost
- Involuntary Tunnel Vision?
- It’s So Cold Out There!
- A Little Too Close For Comfort
- About This Blog (And About Me) FAQ
- What Happened When The Town Clerk Made A Mistake
- It Was an Accident
- Our Uninvited Midnight Visitor
- The Mystery Of Duck Duck Goose
- I’m So Glad Today Is Friday
- What Living in the Moment Means To Me
- Childhood Memories
- The Beginning of the End of This Temporary Chaos
- That Sense of Balance
- A Logical Explanation?
- When Should You Get Involved?
- We Are Stranded
- All Things Confusion
- Some Things My Statistics Tell Me About You
- I’m Hoping They’re Wrong
- Upgrades, Databases, Error Messages & Murphy’s Law
- For One of Us It Is a Totally Relaxing Experience
- What Do YOU See?
- Why We Chose Voluntary Simplicity — Sometimes There Is No Tomorrow
- Want To Talk Bird About It?
- Too Many Crackers Too Late At Night
- One Year Ago Today…
- After the Storm — Day 3
- Can You Tell I’m Really, Really, REALLY Looking Forward to Spring?
- It’s a Blizzard Out There
- My Brush With Politics
- Playing the “Let’s Blame Anna” Game
- A Stove By Any Other Name
- An Exercise in Perseverance
- I’m Sorry But I Can’t Hear You
- Things Could Be a Whole Lot Worse
- The Joys of Rural Mail Delivery
- The Reality of Dial-Up Over a Phone Line That Has Been Left to Deterioriate for 36 Years
- Our Absolutely Amazing Fall
- When I Woke Up This Morning…
- Lost On The Schoolbus
- Appreciating the “Now” of My Life
- How To Teach a Bird To Talk
- A Reasonable Dial Tone
- Will the Squeaking Wheel Finally Get Some Grease?
- A Downside to Our Rural Life
- The Vet, the Economy & Our Ferocious Dog
- On a Personal Note (Or It Has to Get Better Than This)
- Life is Getting Back to Normal
- Still Hanging In There
- It Was a Very Long Night
- Oh No… Not Yet!
- Setting the Record Straight
- Frugality for the Birds?
- The High Cost of Veterinary Care
- Tomatoes From My Garden On Christmas Day
- A Mother’s Thoughtfulness
- Farewell, Old House
- Our Journey To A Debt Free Life
- It’s The Simple Things That Count
- Everyone Agreed It Was Past Time For a Rest
- It Has Been Quite a Morning
- Vintage Hazel Atlas Jam Jars -- Strawberry, Pineapple & Apple
- Can You Break a Piece of Spaghetti into Only Two Pieces?
- Is It Possible That They Actually Are As Healthy Now As They Look?
- Where Did the Summer Months Go?
My Creative Pursuits
- The Tiny Little Sweaters I've Been Knitting
- Fall, Gathering Grapevines & Weaving Baskets
- My Reversible Basket Weave Knit Afghan
- From Old Stove Base To Cast Iron Sempervivum Planter
- A Trip Around the World Quilt... x 2
- I’m Knitting Slippers
- My Husband’s Solution To My Creative Chaos
- A Mock Cable Fisherman Knit Afghan
- My Knitted “Feather & Fan” Afghans
- Special Words in Cross Stitch
Living with a Soy Allergy
- Learning How To Eat Again When You Have A Soy Allergy
- Can You Trust Allergen Labeling?
- Why I Avoid Soy
- Bulk Food Bins & Allergen Cross Contamination
- Thiamine Mononitrate & Soy Allergy
- Living With A Soy Allergy
Cooking & Baking from Scratch
- How To Make Your Own Chili Powder
- When Did the Correct Method of Measuring Flour Become So Controversial?
- Crockpots, Slow Cooking Dried Beans & Phytohaemagglutinin
- My Recipe for Quick & Easy Sandwich Buns
- How To Make Your Own Pumpkin Pie Spice Mix
- Super Delicious No-Butter Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies
- Make Your Own Soy-Free Hamburger & Hot Dog Buns
- Hasselback Potatoes — Baked Accordion Style
- No-Butter Apple Oatmeal Raisin Nut Cookies
- Carrot Pineapple Raisin Nut Oatmeal Cookies
- Green Tomato Refrigerator Sweet Pickles
- My Recipe for Extruded Pasta Dough
- Our Favorite Cucumber Refrigerator Relish
- Ice Cream For Breakfast?
- Carrot Cake with Walnuts & Raisins
- Breaded Potato Sticks with Cheese & Herbs
- How To Make Homemade Ketchup (and It’s Soy & HFCS Free)
- Easy To Peel Hard Boiled Eggs
- A Quick & Easy Yogurt Ice Cream
- How I Make “Real” Potato Chips
- A Very, Very Pasta Filled Day
- How I Make Oven Baked Potato Chips
- A Really Good Veggie Burger
- Three Pans of Potato Rolls
- It Seemed Like a Good Idea…
- How To Make Your Own Apple Pie Spice Mix
- My Mom’s Gingerbread Recipe
- Coleslaw — Is It Part of Your Thanksgiving Tradition?
- Our Other Favorite Banana Nut Bread
- Our Favorite Peanut Butter Cookies
- Yes, Mix in the Pan Cakes Really ARE That Easy… A Tutorial
- The Petite French Lady’s Italian Minestrone Soup
- The Easiest Crackers I Have Ever Made
- Dill Refrigerator Pickles
- Ready-To-Bake Frozen Cookie Dough
- How To Freeze Cakes — Frosted or Unfrosted
- How to Make Chocolate Pudding From Scratch
- Tips for Baking Better Bread at Higher Altitudes
- Roasted Chickpeas (Garbanzos) For A Healthy Snack
- How To Make Banana Pudding Without a Mix
- 9 Tips For Baking Better Cookies
- Two Egg Free, Milk Free (Also Vegan) Cakes
- Breakfast Fruit Smoothie
- Best Ever Oatmeal Raisin Nut Cookies
- Quick And Easy Homemade Ice Cream
- Mock Maple Syrup — Made From Potatoes
- Our Favorite Homemade Yogurt
- All Natural Watermelon Popsicles
- Making Bread: Kneading The Dough
- There’s No Meat in Our Favorite Meatballs
- Making Your Own Cake Mix
- Ice Box Butter Buns
- “Mix In The Pan” Applesauce Cake
- Whole Wheat Raisin Bread
- Busy Days Bread Maker White Whole Wheat Bread
- Homemade Egg Noodles
- Our Favorite Blueberry Yogurt Smoothies
- Champion Sponge Cake
- Did You Know Chiffon Cake Is So Easy To Make?
- The Spaetzle Experience
- How To Make Cake Flour
- How To Make a GMO Free Light Corn Syrup Substitute
- Whole Wheat Banana Nut Bread
- Corn and Chicken Soup with Rivels
- Quick One-Dish Spanish Rice
- Oatmeal Apple Crisp
- How To Shape Crescent Rolls
- “Mix In The Pan” Chocolate Cake
- Pickled Carrots
- Too Many Crackers Too Late At Night
- Old-Fashioned Molasses Drop Cookies
- Making Extruded Pasta From Scratch
- Bread Maker Honey Wheat Bread
- Barley, Bean, Chickpea & Vegetable Soup
- The Easiest Boiled Frosting Ever
- My Favorite Recipe for Divinity Fudge
- How To Make Sweet Pickles One Jar At A Time
- Freezing Batter for Quick & Easy Muffins Anytime
- Hulled Corn or Samp — What It Is and How To Make It
- By Request — My Oatmeal Bread Recipe
- How I Make Rivels, Couscous Size
- Our Favorite Homemade Spaghetti Sauce
- Gluten-Free, Egg-Free, Sugar-Free Oatmeal Cookies
- How To Make Teddy Bear Rolls
- When Homemade Bread Tastes Too Yeasty
- Pineapple, Banana, Celery & Chicken Salad
- How Do I Tell When Bread Dough Has Risen Enough?
- Waffles Made With Yeast
- Making Onion Rings From Scratch
- Streusel-Filled Coffee Cake
- Some Thoughts on Two Ingredient Cookies
How To’s & General Information
- When Did the Correct Method of Measuring Flour Become So Controversial?
- Crockpots, Slow Cooking Dried Beans & Phytohaemagglutinin
- How To Make Your Own Pumpkin Pie Spice Mix
- What Is The Best Way To Cook a Perfect Easy Peel Hard Boiled Egg?
- An Easier Way to Clean Oven Racks
- Easy To Peel Hard Boiled Eggs
- Hard-Boiled Eggs... in the Oven?
- How Long Should Food Be Left in the Freezer?
- Favorite Kitchen Gadgets?
- How To Roast Garlic
- Arsenic in Rice — How Concerned Are You?
- An Easier Way to Wash Dishes
- Common Sense, Good Hygiene… and the Flu
- How To Make Your Own Apple Pie Spice Mix
- Equivalent Measurements For Fruit
- My One Piece Long-Handled Spoons
- Ready-To-Bake Frozen Cookie Dough
- How To Freeze Cakes — Frosted or Unfrosted
- Equivalent Measurements For Vegetables
- Irradiating The Food Supply
- Produce, E. Coli, Bacteria, and You
- Dehydrating Fruits
- Equivalent Measurements For Herbs & Spices
- Equivalent Measurements For Beans & Nuts
- All About Allspice
- All About Peppercorns
- All About Salt
- Equivalent Measurements For Meat & Dairy
- Equivalent Measurements For Miscellaneous
- How To Make Rose Petal Beads
- Are Your Hands Clean Enough?
- How I Make Seed Tapes
- How To Make Cake Flour
- Solving the Natural Peanut Butter Oil Separation Problem
- How Much Does It Cost to Feed YOUR Family?
- Freezing Apples For Pies
- Freezing Raw Tomatoes?
- Digging Eight Quarts of Dandelions
- An Easier Way To Separate an Egg
- Freezing Batter for Quick & Easy Muffins Anytime
- Do You Still Want To Shake Hands?
- Don’t Touch That Shopping Cart!
- How To Make Salt Beads & Salt Clay
- High Fructose Corn Syrup — The Debate Goes On
- Shelf Life of the Staples in Your Pantry
- The Lifespan of Appliances
- How To Season Cast Iron Cookware
- Making Powdered Sugar From Granulated Sugar
- Electric Rates, Appliances, & What They Cost To Operate
- Quinoa — Eating More Whole Grains
- How To Turn One Stick Of Butter Into Two
- Ingredient Substitutions For Baking
- All About Olive Oil
- How Many Servings of Fruit and Vegetables Should Your Family Eat?
Growing, Storing & Using Herbs
- The Peppermint I Planted Doesn’t Smell Like Peppermint
- Chives (Allium schoenoprasum)
- Common Sage (Salvia officinalis)
- My Winter Herb Garden
- Growing & Harvesting Garlic
- Tips for Using & Storing Herbs
- How To Make Your Own Italian Seasoning Mix
- How I Make Garlic Powder
- Frozen Basil That Doesn’t Turn Black
My Country Gardens
- The Lupines Growing Wild at the Edge of Our Woods
- Sunshine Columbine (Aquilegia x caerulea)
- Can You Tell Me What This Is?
- It's Time To Plant the Potatoes
- Seeing The Beauty That Is Already There
- Did My Siberian Squill Survive?
- Growing Heucheras From Seed
- Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)
- Sloshing Our Way Through Summer
- Bridal Wreath (Spiraea x vanhouttei)
- Flowering Almond (Prunus glandulosa)
- What Do Bleeding Hearts Look Like When They First Come Up in the Spring?
- Starting More Hollyhocks from Seed
- How Do You Suppose THAT Happened?
- The “Something” That Has Been Eating Our Cucumbers
- What Do Bleeding Heart Seeds Look Like?
- Spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana)
- Bee Balm (Monarda didyma)
- Coral Bells (Heuchera)
- Oriental Poppy (Papaver orientale)
- Money Plant (Lunaria annua)
- Orange Day Lily (Hemerocallis fulva)
- Common Foxglove (Digitalis)
- Feverfew (Chrysanthemum parthenium)
- What Flowers Are Blooming In My Garden?
- I Think I’ve Already Lost the Foxglove Battle
- Lamb’s Ear (Stachys lanata)
- Bleeding Heart (Dicentra spectabilis)
- What Are We Dealing With Here?
- Germination and Growing Information for Vegetables
- Pulmonaria (Pulmonaria saccharata)
- The Same Celery Plants, Year After Year
- Alpine Columbine (Aquilegia alpina)
- Sweet Cicely (Myrrhis odorata)
- Common Primrose (Primula vulgaris)
- Leopard’s Bane (Doronicum orientale)
- Micro Tom, the “Smallest Tomato Plant in the World”
- Growing Hollyhocks the Easy Way
- Our Traveling Orange Day Lilies
- It’s Almost Time To Plant the Tomatoes
- Golden Glow (Rudbeckia laciniata hortensia)
- 196 Little Seedlings
- What Does Bee Balm Look Like in the Spring?
- Primroses Blooming In The Snow
- Still Loving My Hollyhocks
Hostas in My Gardens
- Hosta ‘Shade Fanfare’
- Hosta ‘Northern Exposure’
- Hosta ‘Tattoo’
- Hosta ‘Twilight’
- Hosta ‘Tokudama Aureonebulosa’
- Hosta ‘Christmas Tree’
- Hosta ‘Ground Master’
- Hosta ‘So Sweet’
- Hosta ‘Queen Josephine’
- Hosta ‘Golden Tiara’
- Hosta ‘Honeybells’
- Hosta ‘Regal Splendor’
- Hosta ‘Sum and Substance’
- Hosta ‘Undulata Albomarginata’
- Hosta ‘Fire and Ice’
- Hosta ‘Summer Joy’
- Hosta ‘Great Expectations’
- Hosta ‘Krossa Regal’
- Hosta ‘Halcyon’
- Hosta ‘June’
- Hosta ‘Gold Standard’
- Hosta ‘Guacamole’
- Hosta ‘Undulata Univittata’
- Hosta ‘Patriot’
- Hosta ‘Cherry Berry’
- Hosta ‘Revolution’
- Hosta ‘Lancifolia’
Growing Hostas
- Can You Help Me Identify This Hosta?
- My Hosta Sports
- The Hostas in My Gardens
- Hostas I Have Grown From Seed
- Growing Hostas From Seed
- Hosta ‘June’ And Its Seedling
- How I Divide A Hosta
- My Surprise Streaked Hosta Seedlings
- Do Hostas Seed Themselves?
- How To Harvest Hosta Seeds
- What Do Hosta Flowers Look Like?
- What Do Hostas Look Like When They First Come Up in the Spring?
- Hostas, Slugs, Iron Phosphate... and a Dilemma
- Can They Still Be Considered Seedlings at This Size and Age?
- Finally... Some Streaked and Speckled Seedlings from My Revolution Hostas
- One More Reason I'm Glad I Don’t Cull Volunteer Hosta Seedlings
- How Many Days After the Last Snow Melt Should Gardeners Begin to Look for Hostas?
Sempervivums (Hens & Chicks)
- Is It Possible That They Actually Are As Healthy Now As They Look?
- From Old Stove Base To Cast Iron Sempervivum Planter
- Three Sempervivum Hybrids... or Just One?
- There Was a Package in Our Mailbox Today
- Sempervivum Flowers & Growing Sempervivum From Seed
- Hens & Chickens (Sempervivum tectorum)
- Propagating Jovibarba heuffelii
- Sempervivums in Shades of Red
- Cobweb Houseleek (Sempervivum arachnoideum)
- Oddity With Tubes or Oddity With Blades?
- Sempervivum ‘Purdy’s 70-40’
- Sempervivum tectorum ‘Oddity’
- One of Nature’s Small Miracles
- When “Have a Nice Day” Just Wasn’t Enough
- The Destruction of My Sempervivums
Woodland & Meadow Perennials
- Hepaticas... Our First Sign of Spring
- Is It Common Fleabane... Eastern Daisy Fleabane... or Robin's Plantain Fleabane?
- Did My Siberian Squill Survive?
- How To Grow Jack-in-the-Pulpit From Seeds
- Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)
- Starflower (Trientalis borealis)
- Indian Pipe (Monotropa uniflora)
- Foam Flower (Tiarella cordifolia)
- Red Trillium (Trillium erectum)
- Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium purpureum)
- Looking for Blooms
- Fringed Polygala (Polygala paucifolia)
- Bluets (Houstonia caerulea)
- Wild Red Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis)
- Dogtooth Violet (Erythronium americanum)
- Wild Ginger (Asarum canadense)
- Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta)
- Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema atrorubens)
- Bluebead Lily (Clintonia borealis)
- Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majalis)
- Canadian Mayflower (Maianthemum canadense)
Enjoying Nature
- Except For That One Year and That One Heron...
- Seriously... Doesn't That Look Like a Smile?
- A Toad in the Hand
- Sometimes When You Feel You're Being Watched... You Are!
- Wolf Spiders in the Garden
- It Will Be Interesting To See What Type of Frog They Turn Out To Be
- Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)
- Can Toads Climb Trees?
- White-Breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)
- Just Passing Through… We Hope!
- This Really Makes Me Angry
- A Life Worth Saving
- Why Bumblebees Buzz
- It Just Doesn’t Stop Growing…
- Eastern American Toad (Bufo americanus americanus)
- How To Tell If A Frog Is Male Or Female
- How Bees Collect Pollen
- Tiny Eastern American Toads
- Tricolored Bumble Bee (Bombus ternarius)
- Is It a Frog, a Bullfrog, or a Toad?
- Why There Are No Old Bold Mushroom Hunters
- And That’s a Warning We Take Very Seriously!
- I’m Sure There’s a Story in There Somewhere
- Our Austrian Mushroom-Hunting Friend Has Survived Another Year
- A Plethora of Mushrooms
- What Are the Odds?
- Old Mr. Toad
- When Wild Turkeys Come to Visit
- There’s a Bear in Our Bird Feeder
- What Happened to All the Birds?
- Eastern Gray Treefrog (Hyla versicolor)
- Little Acorn… Mighty Oak?
Antiques & Simple Treasures
- English Breakfast Marmalade Jar Kix Cereal Promotions — Hazel Atlas Jam Jars
- Vintage Hazel Atlas Jam Jars — Strawberry, Pineapple & Apple
- Blue and White Soap Dish — Greenwood China Company
- Hazel Atlas Ovide Platonite Dinnerware
- My Blanchard Butter Mold
- An Unintentional Collection
- There’s a Pig in Our Garden
- My White Ironstone China Pitcher — J.&G. Meakin
- Antique Stoneware Rolling Pin, Blue Wildflower Design
- Pure Food Sanitary Cooking Ware
- Welded Metal Garden Dogs
- Neu Deel Cookin Ware
- Swans Down Cake Pan
- The Prize Butter Churn
- Ford China Company Antique Pitcher & Bowl
- Two Little Teapots, One Is Fiestaware, One Is… Not
- The Mister & the Missus
- My 1902 Antique Baby Nurser
Glimpse into the Past
- What Did People Earn in 1860?
- Prices for 1860, 1872, 1878 and 1882 — Groceries, Provisions, Dry Goods & More
- New England’s Dark Day — May 19, 1780
- How To Boil a Potato Perfectly, Circa 1880
- Prices from the 1899 Sears, Roebuck Grocery Lists
- What Did Things Cost in 1860?
- The Year Without a Summer
- “Any Citizen of the United States Has the Recognized Right of Paying His Respects to the President”
- A Little Book About Law and Life, Circa 1881
- What Did Things Cost in 1872?
- Dr. Rose’s French Arsenic Complexion Wafers — 1902 Sears Roebuck Catalog
- Why Very Old Recipes Often Seem Incomplete
- How To Do Laundry, Circa 1880
- How To Take a Bath, Circa 1884
Inspirational Life Quotes
- Bring Love Into Your Home...
- Note That This Journey is Uniquely Yours
- Success, Like Happiness, Cannot Be Pursued
- The Noble Art of Leaving Things Undone
- Keep Close to Nature's Heart
- This Is To Have Succeeded
- "I Believe That the Very Purpose of Life..."
- Learn to Enjoy Every Minute of Your Life
- How Far You Go In Life...
- The Impact of Attitude on Life
- Happiness Is the Result of My Decision to Be Happy
- Write It On Your Heart That Every Day is the Best Day in the Year
- What If You Gave Someone a Gift...
- Autumn is the Eternal Corrective
- When You Arise in the Morning...
- As Long As You Derive Inner Help and Comfort...
- It Will Always Lead To Something Else...
- What Is Success?
- When We Stop Stuffing the World with Things
- But of Little Things…
- You Must First Be Who You Really Are
- There is a Place That YOU Are to Fill…
- Many People Will Walk In and Out of Your Life…
- A Matter for Each Individual to Settle for Himself
- They May Forget What You Said…
- Just Because They’re Not on Your Road…
- Wherever You Go, There You Are
- With An Open And Grateful Heart
- What Is A Home?
- The Realization of How Much You Already Have
- The Potential to Turn a Life Around
- Our Happiness or Unhappiness Depends…
- The Day Your Life Really Begins
- When We Are Unable To Find Tranquility…
- The Essentials of Happiness
- The Years Teach Much…
- The Most Valuable Things in Life
- There Are Only Two Ways To Live Your Life
- In Any Moment of Decision…
- Seeming To Do Is Not Doing
- If You Love What You Are Doing…
- Happiness Is… Not
- Not From the Power of Possession…
- The Rewards Of The Simple Life
- Don’t Wait Until Everything Is Just Right
- The First Day of Spring?
- If We Had No Winter…
- What Comes First in Your Life, the Compass or the Clock?
- A Definition of Happiness
- Cares Will Drop Off Like Autumn Leaves
- Nobody Trips Over Mountains
- Being Rushed Along with the Rush
- Success Is Simple
- Enjoy the Little Things
- This Is My Symphony
- “Kindness Is Like Snow”
- Involve Me and I Learn
- Precious as Autumn Sunshine
- You Have Succeeded in Life When…
- When I Hear “Life is Hard”…
- Happiness… and Harmony
- For Our Overburdened Spirits
- Don’t Miss Your Share of Happiness
- The Question Is Not What You Look At
- We Tend To Forget That Happiness…
- … Maybe Your Soul Has Never Been in Bloom
- Is It So Small a Thing?
- It Is the Time for Home
- Comfort on Difficult Days
- The Future Lies Before You
- The Best Thinking Has Been Done in Solitude
- Peace Amid the Storm
- “Going Out, I Found, Was Really Going In”
- The Best Things in Life
- A Road Less Traveled By
- An Old New England Proverb
- Happiness Comes From Within
- Happiness Is As A Butterfly…
- A Friend Is…
- ‘Tis Easy Enough To Be Pleasant…
- Every Flower is a Soul
Reader Questions
- I Think Contentment is Almost a Default Characteristic
- When Christmas Isn’t So Merry
- Crockpots, Slow Cooking Dried Beans & Phytohaemagglutinin
- Discovering Your “Enough”
- Blue and White Soap Dish — Greenwood China Company
- Some Thoughts on Two Ingredient Cookies
- One In, One Out vs. Purging for a Reason
- What Do Hosta Flowers Look Like?
- Why Would Anyone Deliberately Choose a Simple Life?
- A Trip Around the World Quilt... x 2
- Green Tomato Refrigerator Sweet Pickles
- How To Grow Jack-in-the-Pulpit From Seeds
- Overcoming the Paralysis of Too Much Analysis
- Some Thoughts on Avoiding GMOs
- Favorite Kitchen Gadgets?
- Learning To Say No
- Shining Stainless Steel with Flour !?!
- What Do Bleeding Hearts Look Like When They First Come Up in the Spring?
- What Do Hostas Look Like When They First Come Up in the Spring?
- Can Credit Cards Be Used Responsibly?
- Arsenic in Rice — How Concerned Are You?
- Some Thoughts on Staying Home
- Our Favorite Peanut Butter Cookies
- Things I Have Learned About Cooking & Baking with a Wood Stove
- How To Make Compost in a Garbage Can
- What Do Bleeding Heart Seeds Look Like?
- Some Thoughts About Staying Motivated
- How To Freeze Cakes — Frosted or Unfrosted
- Do Hostas Seed Themselves?
- How to Make Chocolate Pudding From Scratch
- Tips for Baking Better Bread at Higher Altitudes
- Two Egg Free, Milk Free (Also Vegan) Cakes
- How I Divide A Hosta
- Homemade Laundry Detergent — Yes Or No?
- Why I Avoid Soy
- Whole Wheat Raisin Bread
- Small Appliances — Extravagant Or Necessary?
- How To Make Cake Flour
- Solving the Natural Peanut Butter Oil Separation Problem
- Keeping a Photograph… Purging the Item
- The Easiest Boiled Frosting Ever
- How To Make Sweet Pickles One Jar At A Time
- Another Green Cleaning Solution That Really Works
- The Biggest Obstacle to a Simpler, Truly Fulfilling Life
- Hulled Corn or Samp — What It Is and How To Make It
- A “Green” & Natural Method for Cleaning Stainless Steel
- What Does Bee Balm Look Like in the Spring?
- Some Thoughts on the No Shampoo (“No Poo”) Movement
- Tips for Using & Storing Herbs
- How To Season Cast Iron Cookware
- How To Save Tomato Seeds For Planting Another Year
- When Homemade Bread Tastes Too Yeasty
- How Do I Tell When Bread Dough Has Risen Enough?
- Decluttering and Purging
The photos are my own. Some illustrate the post... others show our surroundings and the things we love about our version of simple living and voluntary simplicity. I welcome links to my blog or to any of my articles, but please do not copy my photos or content. —Shirley
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