The Big White Farmhouse

intentional living, little by little

No.417: 52 Weeks, 52 Letters Project // Weeks #22-25

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One of my big goals for 2020 is to send at least one piece of snail mail out every week.  Keeping track of my progress here on the blog will help keep me accountable and I’ll also get to share with you some small stationery businesses.  Maybe it will even encourage you to join in on the fun!

I sent a penpal letter with another card from Providential Co.  I love the message and I think it’s something that everyone needs to hear.

A new baby gift! This beautiful watercolor card came from Like Pearls on a String.

My little cousin’s birthday!  I should have saved it for his fifth birthday, but I thought this card from Yeppie Paper was too cute to wait.  (I added the little birthday hat sticker, just for fun.)

I mailed a birthday card from Mudsplash Studios to my brother, who I haven’t seen in months!  I know he’ll roll his eyes at the cheesy pun, but really – what are big sisters for?
I only managed to send out one Father’s Day card (also from Mudsplash Studios) this year, but he’s one of the most important – my own!  We haven’t seen him since March and it makes me so sad that we’re spending another holiday without each other.  This COVID separation thing is so, so hard.

CURRENT SNAIL MAIL TOTAL: 61


No.416: A List of June’s Frugal Accomplishments


JUNE’S FRUGAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS
My Goal: Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.  
And if you have to spend money, do it with intention.

+ File this under “Things I Should Have Known, But Actually Had No Idea”: after digging around blindly in the small opening of our lint screen for over two years, I discovered that it actually opens!  (Insert face palm.)  I also cleaned out the lint that gets trapped in the vent to the outside of the house.  Better air flow should help with less drying time (= saves money) and makes less of a fire hazard too.

+ I made a natural fertilizer for the garden from egg shells.  I also cut up a waaaay too ripe banana (too ripe even for banana bread) and buried the pieces in the soil for an extra potassium boost. 

+ We lasted until May 23 before we turned on the air conditioning.  We lasted 71 days, which is amazing for Virginia.  We can thank this cooler than normal spring.

+ We replaced a ceiling light with one that we’ve had stored away in the garage.  I purchased the schoolhouse-looking light for my old house right before we decided to move, so it’s just been sitting brand new in the box.  Mark installed it for me and it’s perfect!  I hope to be able to sell the old (perfectly nice and functional, just not our taste) light in the months ahead.

+ I unclogged my shower drain again using my trusty recipe.

+ Mark watched a few hair-cutting Youtube videos and then gave the two big boys haircuts.

+ I made a chalkboard from an old piece of artwork that we got when we were first married, almost 15 years ago!  The glass was broken and it didn’t really fit our decor anymore, so we turned it into a chalkboard for our garage gym.  Mark had a piece of plywood cut to size and then I painted it with chalkboard paint.  Super simple project and now the boys have a place to write out their workouts and rep tallies.  I’m really happy that we could give something new life instead of just throwing it in the trash.

+ My daughter saved the sticks from her popsicles, painted them and glued them into frames for her artwork.
+ I sewed a potholder (using this tutorial) to replace one of ours that has seen better days.  The fabric is extra special because it was given to me by my grandmother, who has since passed away.  The potholder is definitely imperfect – my sewing skills are rusty! – but I’m so happy that I was able to create something useful and I know I’ll think of my Memere every time I use it.
+ I made my own refried beans using this recipe.

Your turn!  What did you do to save a little money this month?
P.S. I pin frugal ideas to this Pinterest board if you need some inspiration too!

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Previous Frugal Accomplishments: 
2019: JULY  //  AUGUST  //  SEPTEMBER  //  OCTOBER  //  NOVEMBER  
2020: JANUARY  //  FEBRUARY // APRIL  //  MAY

No.415: Homemaking Notes on a Monday // Vol.02

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The weather outside is // 

We’ve had such a mild spring, but it looks like we’re back to typical Virginia summer weather this week.  I think time in the sprinkler is in order!

On the breakfast plate this morning // It was a bowl not a plate, but I had my new oatmeal concoction again!  Cinnamon and spice oatmeal, a big dollop of pumpkin puree, and a handful of raisins and chopped walnuts.  Yum.

As I look outside my window // Everything is so green!  I loving living in our “forest” this time of year.  

As I look around the house // I see so many things: a half-finished puzzle on the dining room table, pans and ingredients on the kitchen counter as the kids cook their breakfasts, a floor that needs to be mopped…again.  There are books and a laundry basket and another block creation being built.  We certainly won’t win any home decor awards and won’t be seen anywhere on Pinterest, but it’s ours and it’s good.  You can tell a family lives here.

On this week’s to-do list //
  • send in our letter of intent to homeschool in 2020-21
  • make a checkup appointment for Lucy
  • list three things we no longer need to sell on ebay
  • finish lesson planning Weeks 2 & 3
  • fertilize the fruit plants
  • finish picking the last of the lettuce
On the menu this week //
Monday: Refrigerator Clean-out Night
Tuesday: lasagna roll ups
Wednesday: teriyaki turkey rice bowls with egg rolls from the freezer
Thursday: homemade pizza
Friday: bean and cheese burritos

Currently reading // My nonfiction book right now is Trials of the Earth, which is a first hand account from a pioneer woman.  Really interesting so far!  I also just got The Silent Patient, a thriller, off of the holds list at the library.  My religious book is still Saint Faustina’s Diary, but I’m almost done – around 100 pages left to go!

What I’m creating at the moment // I sewed up a potholder last week and now I’ve got the bug!  I pulled out my paper piecing supplies and I started work on a scrap quilt.  It will take me awhile, but I’m excited.

New recipe I want to try this week // This recipe for fluffy pancakes using sourdough starter came up in my Bloglovin’ feed and I think it will be a nice change for breakfast one morning.

No.414: 2020 Gratitude // 24 & 25

Welp, my goal of writing everyday this month is a complete wash, but I’m coming back with a clearer head and a calmer heart.  Two Sundays ago, I unexpectedly felt compelled to go on an Internet and social media fast.  I’ve already shared some of my mental health struggles throughout this lockdown and the protests/riots sort-of put me over the edge.  I could feel myself turning…numb, maybe?  So I turned it all off: no news articles, no opinion pieces, no following hashtags.  No watching the fighting and disagreeing and shaming.  No more noise.  I craved silence and the best way to have that happen was to shut it all down for awhile.  (I hated “giving up” so early in my annual June writing challenge, but truth be told, my heart wasn’t in it from the start this year.)  


During the past two weeks, I have done research on my own terms, prayed a lot, and wrestled with ideas and possible actions.  I puttered around my house, worked in my garden, and finished a few projects I’ve procrastinated on.  I finished three books and am almost done a fourth.  I cooked and cleaned and cuddled these little people in my care.  I needed this time away from the never-ending information of the Internet to actually think for myself again, you know?  Highly recommend, especially for those of us prone to anxiety and depression.  


a much needed break from the news and the Internet
easily fixing the tension issues with my sewing machine
green, green, green, everywhere I look
reading outside on the rocking chairs with J
clean, cold water from our well
ham sandwiches with bread that I made and lettuce from our garden
a long phone call with my mama
starting to differentiate between bird calls
jiu jitsu classes back in session for M
watching the little kids play in the sprinkler
coconut primer water that reminds me of being at the beach
Our Lady of Kibeho
how fast D has learned Blender (a free online animation/rendering software)
watching fireflies at dusk
sitting under the twinkling lights on the back porch after the kids go to bed
little brothers wearing big brother hand-me-downs
another student loan paid off!
a beautiful Mass for the Solemnity of Corpus Christi
waking up with the sunrise
laughter
a sale on ebay
getting to the bottom of the laundry pile, if only for a little while
homemade blueberry iced tea
the opportunity to snag a deep freezer while they’re back in stock
a new website that I found to buy used books
a good hair day
a jungle of wildflowers in the front flower beds
boxes of fabric given to me by my late grandmother
the sewing lessons she taught me (how I wish I had asked her to teach me more!)
when Lucy naps at my feet
watching a squirrel jump from tree to tree to tree
my six happy, healthy children
watching a movie on a rainy afternoon
an answered prayer

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