And so it begins...

This blog is being started to get all my thoughts and ideas out so I can answer the question that family and friends always ask..."How do you do that??".  I'm not a superwoman (as my mom and mother-in-law believe I am sometimes), I am just a stay at home mom/wife with the passion to make as much homemade as possible in this crazy busy world. Family is very important to me and that's why I do as much as I can for them!!

I will share how I live and how I do it, and even how my kid are learning that what I do is normal (at least to me).  My idea is teach them young and when they are older my ideas will hopefully get passed along to the next generation so that the simple life isn't forgotten. I will say that the life I have chosen takes patience, just like raising children.

Things I plan to blog about are:

• How to can (yes, those wonderful mason jars have a practical purpose) and how it saves you tons of money and preservatives!!
• How I plan my meals, use coupons (not coupon crazy, but they are just like money), and freeze for future use
• How to garden to eat what you like without spending the money at the store (you don't need a lot of yard, or even one at all...containers are wonderful for the little extras)
• How I take the little extras and preserve them so they don't go bad (throwing away food is just basically throwing away money!!)
• How I make items for my family with crocheting and knitting so we have our own special items (it's easier than you think and, at least for me, relaxing)
• How I just live day to day and run my house so we don't go too crazy!!!

I hope you enjoy being along for the ride.  I am always open to questions and comments.  I have gotten inspiration from many people, including some of you reading this.  I hope I am able to help you understand that what I do isn't really all that crazy or hard.  It just takes patience, experimenting, and (yes) a little extra time :)

Amanda