Monday Message

"Those families will be fortunate who, in the last days, have an adequate supply of food because of their foresight and ability to produce their own." (Ezra Taft Benson)

Growing a garden is a very important skill. As much as I hate gardening, I still push on because it helps our budget.

I love to watch the garden grow. I just hate the work of it and dirt and bugs and weeds and watering... you get the idea.

How are you coming with your skills? I added a new one to my list...

I learned synchronized brushing...wow! Did they ever like that :p

This week I picked up a pattern and fabric from the thrift store.

So take a little time to really haunt your thrift stores. It is too costly for me to purchase fabric and patterns new or new clothes for that matter. So when I have the chance to happen by one, I stop and look to see if there is anything I can use or that would help us. Saturday I was able to stop at a few yard sales as I had some coins in my wallet. I got a bead loom for free and got four of the church type cookbooks and two cozy mysteries - a pretty good haul with just loose change. So start stopping in at yard sales and see what you can find that would help you. I know some places don't have good yard sales but it doesn't hurt to look.

This is the time of the year that is yard sale season.

I was just passing by going elsewhere and I thought I would check.

Our small town's set a day that the whole town has sales as a yearly event. There are still sales throughout the summer but this event makes it easier to hit more in one go. So check and see if your town has this as well. I know when I would go to the larger town to our north long ago there were neighborhood sales....just something you can check on.

Remember to look for things like canning jars, pressure canners, canning equipment, dehydrators, vacuum sealers, sewing machines, notions and yarn and knitting notions...  these can be found at yard sales still and I saw canning jars at the thrift store, I got the pattern so I know if you keep looking, you will find what you need.

Also, anything you may have an interest in learning, get the supplies used to see if it really is something you want to do that way you won't have a huge outlay of cash to find out you don't want to do it and end up selling at your yard sale.

Don't rule out used bookstores for books on what you want to learn.

I think the key take away is be frugal. You can do what you like still, just spend less doing it.

The news is saying the price of groceries will start to come down. I hope they are right. Either way, keep setting some aside each month for a day when something happens like a car repair or unexpected expense or a time that prices go up again.

Remember to be kind...it takes less muscles to smile than it does to frown, but kindness is a huge service to others. When things are hard sometimes people can get unkind. You may never see the affect your kindness has but it will help.

Along with that, don't be quick to be offended, 90% of the time we take things wrong or it just came out wrong, getting older has showed me that is the case....the rest just need a plate of cookies.

Just remember everyone has bad days, accept it, smile and move on.

Be someone else's good example.

Keep working at skill building and being frugal. If you can be frugal when times are good, you have a jump on the times that are bad.

Missy says if you have a bag you have everything no matter what it looks like.

Tippy Longstockings says being content is key.