Tidbits And Stuff

 

It has been a treat to have Kurt home so soon after his last visit. He has helped in the yard (and will do some more today), enjoyed talking with us, helped Harvey bottle the beer, and even washed dishes by hand. He leaves at some point tomorrow and we probably won't see him again until Thanksgiving.

I did not get all my projects and goals finished in June. I have carried over the weaving, and embroidery. I also did not get the fries ready for the freezer either. Still I did manage to cut the pieces of chunky/bulky yarn to be used in a future project, declutter, work on clearing out and organizing the sewing/craft room, knit 10 pairs of mittens, get some infused oils started, and a couple of small projects that I added on done as well. 

July will hopefully see me finish the weaving, finish the one block and start another, sandwich the 4 quilt tops, copy out another 20 or so recipes, get some patterns organized and in a binder, dehydrate more herbs, knit some more mittens in the next size, and start Kris's woven rug. Looks like another very busy month. I should be able to make some of the herbal salves as well. 

I did up the budget today for the month of June and surprisingly we were under budget once again. I had hoped that I would do better with the grocery line, considering we had company twice that month being about $250 under budget was quite good. The savings on the grocery budget for the last few months have paid back what we spent on the new dining room chairs, and has actually given me $50 towards the cost of the new range. I should have the range paid off in about 4 or 5 months. What we save on other budget lines is helping pay off Harvey's two partial plates. 

After a big loss on our investments in the first quarter, things are starting to rebound this quarter. We have almost made the losses back, just a bit more to go. I am keeping my fingers crossed on that front, with various tariffs it is hard to know what will happen. 

Using up lots of bits and bobs from the fridge, freezers, and pantry. This saves on the grocery budget a great deal. Perhaps not as much as I would like, but enough to make a difference, even if just a slight one. 

Foraging will be taking place over the next while. My BIL says I can come out any time and pick chokecherries from their bushes. Probably will be doing so in the next few weeks. I see jelly and syrup in the future stocked in the pantry. In a week or two I will also be picking mint to make mint jelly. I will dry some for tea after the jelly making. 

Weeding and watering will also be taking place much more frequently as it is warming up so much. Also because of the warm up the mosquitos are out and biting early in the mornings or if I am in the shade. 

Life is about to get much more complicated especially as I want to get as much done as humanly possible before the end of the year. Add in Christmas gift making, harvesting/processing and I am going to be a very busy person the next while.

Next week I get a phone appointment with my doctor and the Echocardiogram at the end of the week. Of course, there will be another phone appointment with the doctor after that. My dental appointment for a cleaning has been moved until August. That is probably a good thing in my mind. Too many appointments drive me crazy. 

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.