April 2020
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P.S. I highly recommend Book Outlet! Use my link to receive $10 off your first order of $25 or more. #25. MORALITY FOR BEAUTIFUL GIRLS by Alexander McCall Smith || ★★★☆☆
“If people knew this,” she said, “if they knew that we were all from the same family, would they be kinder to one another, do you think?” Mma Makutsi put down the magazine. “I’m sure they would,” she said. “If they knew that, then they would find it very difficult to do unkind things to others. They might even want to help them a bit more.” (5%)
You simply could not help everybody; but you could at least help those who came into your life. That principle allowed you to deal with the suffering you saw. That was your suffering. Other people would have to deal with the suffering that they, in their turn, came across. (50%)
This is the third book in the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series. With everything going on in the world, I needed a lighter read and who better than Mme. Precious Ramotswe?
#26. CHARACTERS OF THE PASSION: LESSONS ON FAITH AND TRUST by Fulton J. Sheen || ★★★★☆
My plan was to read this little book slowly throughout Holy Week, but I tore through it in two days! I just love Fulton Sheen’s writing and this one was so, so good. The chapter on Peter was beautiful and almost made me cry.
#27. INTO THE WATER by Paula Hawkins || ★★☆☆☆
After struggling through and eventually putting down a detailed non-fiction book about WWII, I decided I need a change of pace. I grabbed this thriller from the library since I had liked Hawkin’s The Girl on the Train. Unfortunately, I didn’t have nearly the same reading experience. There were a lot of characters and since I was reading on my Kindle, it was almost impossible to keep flipping back and forth. Just okay for me.
#28. THE ROSIE PROJECT by Graeme Simsion || ★★★★☆
Another light read. I loved Don, the quirky main character who most likely had undiagnosed Asperger’s.
#29. THE HOUSE ON MANGO STREET by Sandra Cisneros || ★★★☆☆ “Told in a series of vignettes – sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes deeply joyous – it is the story of a young Latina girl growing up in Chicago, inventing for herself who and what she will become.”
(This was my 1984 pick for my 20th Century Reading Challenge too.)
#30. THE GUERNSEY LITERARY AND POTATO PEEL PIE SOCIETY by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows || ★★★★☆
That’s what I love about reading: one tiny thing will interest you in a book, and that tiny thing will lead you onto another book, and another bit there will lead you onto a third book. It’s geometrically progressive—all with no end in sight, and for no other reason than sheer enjoyment. (5%)
In every nook, I find little things that tell me about her. She was a noticer, Sidney, like me, for all the shelves are lined with shells, bird feathers, dried sea grasses, pebbles, eggshells, and the skeleton of something that might be a bat. They’re just bits that were lying on the ground, that anyone else would step over or on, but she saw they were beautiful and brought them home. (57%)
I’m probably the last person on the planet who hasn’t read this one! Such a charming story and the fact that it was totally told in letters was a fun change of pace. 3.5 stars, rounded up.
#31. THE ROSIE EFFECT by Graeme Simsion || ★★☆☆☆
This is the sequel to The Rosie Project and I had high hopes that it would be just as enjoyable. But it just…wasn’t. Disappointing.
#32. THE APARTMENT by K. L. Slater || ★★★☆☆ This thriller is about a struggling single mother who gets an opportunity to live in “a shockingly affordable flat in a fashionable area of London.” And as the lesson goes, if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is. I liked that the story was a fast-paced page turner, but I found the whole thing to be a little unbelievable. I figured out whodunit pretty early on as well.
(Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book. The Apartment was just released on April 28, 2020.)
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MY READING IN NUMBERS FOR 2020 Books Read: 32
Pages Read: 9,373 Fiction: 20 // Non-Fiction: 12 Kindle Books: 15 // Paper Books: 17 20th Century in Books Challenge: 24/100
Original 2020 books “to-read” total on Goodreads: 414 // Current “to-read” total: 411
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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!
WEEK 14 (Mar 30-Apr 5)
A new baby was born! I sent my congratulations in this adorable card from Yeppie Paper. I also got to use one of my new stamps – how fun are these?!
WEEK 15 (Apr 6-12)
Lots and lots of Easter mail! The Alleluia cards are from Gratia Design Co., Some Bunny Loves You cards are from Happy Dappy Bits, and the cute bunny one with the bracelet was a Meri Meri card that I picked up at Homegoods before all the craziness started.
WEEK 16 (Apr 13-19)
Birthday card week! The cake card from Love Light Paper was sent to my sister-in-law. It’s belated (I have a loose filing system for my cards and hers slipped into the wrong week!) but I’m sending it anyway. The other two birthday cards were for my mom and my sister and both are from Yeppie Paper.
WEEK 17 (Apr 20-26)
I sent a letter to a blog reader (hi Joy!) and had so much fun sharing a few of my favorite spring things: birds, books and flowers. I mean, is there anything better? The envelope is a free printable from Naomi Loves. Her snail mail newsletter is wonderful.
CURRENT SNAIL MAIL TOTAL: 45
P.S. Need a little sunshine in your mailbox? Sign up here to get on the list! HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE SIXTH WEEK OF COVID-19 LOCKDOWN
Week six.
Every morning when I wake up, I have to intentionally stop and think about what day it is. Once this week, I was convinced it was Monday for about three hours before…uhh nope, Monday was yesterday and today is acutally Tuesday. Who does this? I’m completely losing it.
We learned that despite public school children having their standardized testing cancelled for the year, homeschooled kids won’t be that lucky. It’s a bummer because we were really hoping for a year off. Oh well. I ordered the materials for the week of May 4th to correspond with the end of our schoolwork. If all goes to plan, we’re on track to start our summer break on May 11. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t counting down the days until then along with the kids!
I read an article from the New York Times called “What Will Our New Normal Feel Like? Hints Are Beginning to Emerge” and this was interesting:
Research on the effects of epidemics and sieges, along with the emerging body of knowledge about the coronavirus, hint at what the coming months may look like. Our ability to focus, to feel comfortable around others, even to think more than a few days into the future, may diminish — with lasting consequences. But we may also feel the tug of a survival instinct that can activate during periods of widespread peril: a desire to cope by looking out for one’s neighbors.
“We are incredibly capable to adapt to any kind of situation,” said Bozovic, now a professor of photography in Montreal. “No matter how bad it is, you adapt. You live your life as best you can.”
Saints and heroes are always made during times of adversity and this time is no exception. Another good reminder to be compassionate to everyone you meet.
Sad news: a holy priest that we love and respect has been diagnosed with COVID-19. Thankfully, he is now out of the hospital. We are storming heaven for his complete recovery.
Oh the allergies! We’re all suffering from them in one way or another right now. Even so, we’re still heading outside whenever we can. Yardwork, riding bikes or hikes around the loop…it doesn’t matter as long we’re out and breathing fresh air. (Getting a break from each other doesn’t hurt either.)
Our shipment from Home Depot finally arrived on Friday with our fence lumber and all of our soil. The rain stopped on Saturday and I took full advantage of the kids’ screentime to do some yardwork all.by.myself. I put down fresh soil in the front beds and heavily planted it all with wildflower seeds. I had a few perennials come back from last year, which was exciting too.
A new series for 2020: if I record 20 things every week, I’ll have over 1,000 items by December 31. That’s a lot to be grateful for. five brand new baby birds in the nest
every kind reader who goes through my affiliate links to make their purchases the food banks that are working so hard for those in need right now the farmers who keep us fed
holy, courageous priests
watching my oldest teach some of the little kids how to play guitar when the kids complete their math lessons without complaint how affectionate P has been with me this week how much my string of pearls succulent is growing my mom taking walks outside by myself bialys fresh from the oven Scrabble games on the same set my grandmother used to use a night off from cooking dinner Saint Faustina’s diary whispy white clouds on a background of bright blue sky this lesson of living in the present moment getting to use both sides of my brain with my #100dayproject
birds and flowers and green things growing everywhere
This post is a combination of March and April, since I missed it last month. Is there any better time to focus on frugality than in a pandemic?!
APRIL’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.
+ I borrowed and read six books from the library.
+ I recently had a winter coat and a pair of dress pants dry-cleaned and I forgot how expensive that is! To avoid that cost for awhile, I invested in an at-home dry cleaning “kit” (affiliate link). Hopefully it will work!
+ We had a bunch of old Jenga blocks strewn around the house – I’m not sure how they got all over the place and if we even had enough for a game! Inspired by this blog post, I gave two of the kids the blocks and our tempera paints and off they went! The blocks turned out beautifully and have been played with daily ever since. So fun to give a cast off toy a new life!
+ I gave Sophie and three of the boys haircuts.
+ One of our sinks was clogged and would not drain at all. I tried my handy declogger recipe with no luck, so off to the Internet I went. I learned that the issue might be the P-trap, so after watching a Youtube video, I got to work. I removed the P-trap with a wrench, sprayed everything out well with the hose and reattached the pieces back together. Definitely my favorite frugal accomplishment of the month.
+ I unsubscribed from almost a dozen email lists. Less temptation for things that aren’t on the priority list right now.
+ I used the paper created from shredding our junk mail for our compost pile.
+ We turned the heat off on March 12 and barring any random snow storms, we should be able to last awhile before we need to turn on the AC!
+ The big boys and I took out the remaining boxwood shrubs from our front flower beds and transplanted them in the backyard.
+ We’re saving tons of gas money by not going anywhere!
+ The rolling wheel part of the top rack of our dishwasher broke. Since we can’t really have any repairmen in the house right now, Mark did a little research, ordered the parts online and was able to fix it himself.
+ We’re making a garden! This is not exactly a cheap endeavor, but doing all of the work ourselves is saving us quite a bit of money. For example, Mark built all of the beds from untreated lumber, which was significantly cheaper than buying pre-made kits.
+ J and I made some garden markers for our veggies out of Sculpey clay and alphabet stamps (affiliate link). They are so perfectly imperfect and I love how they turned out!
+ Did you know that you can reuse parchment paper up to three times before throwing it away? This has been especially helpful right now when I can’t get to the grocery store often.
Your turn! What did you do to save a little money this month?
P.S. I’ve been pinning frugal ideas to this Pinterest board if you need some inspiration too!
_________________________________ Previous Frugal Accomplishments:
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Happy Wednesday!
A QUOTE
A noble and delicate soul, even the most simple, but one of delicate sensibilities, sees God in everything, finds Him everywhere, and knows how to find Him in even the most hidden things. It finds all things important, it highly appreciates all things, it thanks God for all things, it draws profit for the soul from all things, and it gives all glory to God. It places its trust in God and is not confused when the time of ordeals comes. It knows that God is always the best of Fathers and makes little of human opinion. It follows faithfully the faintest breath of the Holy Spirit; it rejoices in this Spiritual Guest and holds onto Him like a child to its mother. Where other souls comes to a standstill and fear, this soul passes on without fear or difficulty. – Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska’s Diary, p.83
THE BOOKS ON MY NIGHTSTAND
I’m cycling through three books right now:
- Fiction: The Rosie Effect, which is the sequel to The Rosie Project but isn’t nearly as good as the first one. Still pushing through because…maybe it will get better?
- Non-fiction: There’s No Such Thing as Bad Weather. I’m less than 100 pages in, but it’s already reinforced so many reasons why we’ve chosen to continue homeschooling.
- Religious: I picked up Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska’s Diary after listening to a homily on Divine Mercy Sunday and it’s better than I remembered. A lot to ponder and pray about.
#STANDWITHSMALL
A 100 LITTLE THINGS UPDATE
Work on my 100 Little Things list has been puttering along. I need to step up the pace! Current total is 36/100 with a little over three months to go.
- ✔ #29. Find a free piano. My parents have said that we could take their piano, but we want to wait until P is a little older before we move it. (He loves to bang on it when we visit their house and I don’t think I could handle that on a daily basis.) For now, we bought a keyboard for the kids to use.
- ✔ #1. Buy a spice organizer. I cannot tell you how long I have wanted this! It’s one of those items that falls into the “definitely not a need, but it would make me happy” category and more important things have always popped up. Finally made it happen in February and I was right: having all of the containers neatly organized makes me insanely happy every time I open the cabinet door.
- ✔ #58. Make homemade playdough. We made a batch in February and it was a huge hit with the three youngest.
- ✔ #38. Build raised garden beds. Mark made us twelve 4’x4′ beds! Can’t wait to fill them up with flowers and veggies.
- ✔ #60. Do 90 days of no sugar. I started this goal on January 13th with the intention of going sugar-free until Easter. I stayed strong and was thriving until the anxiety created by the pandemic had me stress baking. I didn’t make it to exactly 90 days, but am still calling it a success. I fully intend to go back to no sugar on the weekdays going forward…I feel SO much better without it.
- ✔ #37. Hang a mason bee house. Purchased, hung and ready for the bees!
- ✔ #85. Thank the trash guys. We made it social distancing friendly by taping a sign to our trash can.
- ✔ #87. Pay off the car. So so happy to have this one checked off the list!
- ✔ #77. Send someone flowers. We sent tulips for my mom’s birthday.
A FRUGAL ACCOMPLISHMENT QUESTION
Earlier this year, I splurged on beautiful white Turkish hand towels for our bathrooms. Unfortunately, this has proven to be a foolish purchase because…kids. (#thisiswhywecanthavenicethings) Our Virginia clay/mud has discolored the towels and all of my natural stain removal techniques haven’t worked. The tag says that I shouldn’t bleach them, so do I have any other options? Consider it a failed experiment? Are there any tricks left that I can try to make whites white again? Help! Act in such a way that all those who come in contact with you will go away joyful. Sow happiness about you, because you have received much from God; give, then generously to others.
– Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska’s Diary, p.24
INTENTIONS FOR THE END OF APRIL
- paint my toes
- give myself a haircut
- add a fresh layer of soil to the front flower beds
- plant wildflower seeds throughout the entire front beds
- start planting!
- start working on garden fence construction
- clear away the fallen trees and branches in the yard
- read an ARC due for Netgalley
- brainstorm some ideas/topics for my #100dayproject
- update Nest Watch
- try to propagate my Christmas cactus again
- swap out the master rug for the one in the living room
- clean the indoor/outdoor rug
- put the indoor/outdoor rug out on the porch
- order ferns on Etsy
- order lemongrass on Etsy
- go on a jog
- deep clean the oven (100LT #4)
- finish up the last work of the school year and prep for standardized testing
If you’re reading on your phone or in a reader, be sure to click over to see what I checked off the list!
blog more(so far, so good! I really need this creative outlet right now)continue working on my new scrapbook project(enjoying this creative outlet too)- add a fresh layer of soil to the front flower beds (our delivery has continually been postponed, but we hope it have it by Friday)
- plant wildflower seeds throughout the entire front beds
email the county to see if I still need to order standardized testing(we’re still required to test even though the public schools are exempt…bummer)figure out how to make Easter Sunday special, even under quarantine- start planting!
- research rain barrels
choose a few books on my Goodreads “to read” list(I borrowed The Rosie Project and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society from the library)decide on a baby shower gift for my cousin- finally work on the Finders Keepers box that I’ve had since December(!)
browse the recipes I’ve pinned on Pinterest and bake something new(decided to try a recipe for bialys in my sourdough cookbook instead)- try to propagate my Christmas cactus again
see if I can revive my dying fern(I trimmed it back and re-potted it, so we’ll see!)- add a few things to sell on ebay
clean and vacuum out car interiorsbrowse around for a bigger rug for the living room
HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE FIFTH WEEK OF COVID-19 LOCKDOWN Week five! Time keeps marching on.
Mark decided to head to the grocery store on Tuesday, so I showed him how to make a mask from a bandana that I had seen on social media. As I placed the hairbands around his ears, I stopped and said, “What world are we living in right now?! I can’t believe this is an acceptable way to go to the grocery store now.” The days go on and we adapt, but I still struggle to wrap my head around it all.
A new puzzle arrived that I purchased on Ebay. Those puzzle sellers are making bank right now! I refuse to spend more than $25 (and honestly, that feels a little high but I’m consoling myself that we’re helping to pay someone’s bills) so my choices have been a little random. Thankfully the kids just go with it. This latest addition takes our collection up to four.
I saw a cool new plant while walking in the backyard and discovered that they were called fiddlehead ferns! I had no idea that they started all curled up like that.
The weather turned a bit chilly again, so I pulled out a warm hand-me-down sweater from my sister…or maybe it was my mom’s? I’ve worn it every single day and it makes me feel close to them, despite the distance.
Big news of the week: we paid off our car loan! This has been a big goal and we’ve been steadily chipping away, one little extra payment at a time. So happy to be car payment free for awhile!
I read an article about how the “Big A” (you know who I mean…) is surging right now and it gave me an extra push to choose small businesses first…again. I made a purchase online from our local bookstore and they delivered it to my door the next day! I also made an order from a Catholic bookstore in our diocese and they are mailing the books to me. Next up is to purchase a gift card from a few of our favorite local restaurants!
I made sourdough bialys for the first time with caramelized onions and crispy bacon. Whoa. SO good, but gone in minutes! I need to try a double batch next time.
A new series for 2020: if I record 20 things every week, I’ll have over 1,000 items by December 31. That’s a lot to be grateful for. the process of working with sourdough
embracing the weird wave of my hair au natural ice cream after dinner my baby sister finally paying off the car loan in full! listening to Mark read picture books to the little boys in funny accents the rustle of the wind through the trees
ten days into my new project
clipping greenery from the yard to beautify my home big chunky sweaters pulled back out of storage for this cold streak sitting on the back deck with Mark grilled chicken salads watching the boys’ stop motion animation videos hours and hours of playing outside finding tiny violets and buttercups in the yard when P says “Hi Mum” every time I come in the room getting on the treadmill again after a long break when J excitedly shares all about the book he’s reading
slow mornings
1 // COBBLE HILL FARM SOAP
You know me and soap…I just ordered two new bars from a shop called Cobble Hill Farm. I got the Saratoga Spa and Blackberry & Sage and they both smell awesome. I can’t wait to use them!
2 // PHENOLOGY WHEELS
I made my first phenology wheel last month and loved the process. Such a nice way to stop during a busy day and observe the outdoors. I didn’t continue into April, but I wish I had. I hope to start again in May. This is the printable I glued into my journal. The #phenologywheel hashtag on Instagram has so much inspiration too.
3 // MY GO-TO SANDWICH BREAD RECIPE
I’m sure I’ve shared it before, but this is my favorite homemade bread recipe. I start the process in the bread machine and then transfer to a bread pan for the second rise. Bake for 40 minutes at 375°.
4 // NEST WATCH
With five new eggs in our porch fan nest, I logged into Nest Watch (a part of The Cornell Lab of Ornithology) again to record our data. That website is a treasure trove of information about bird species, nesting attempts and birdhouses. If we have enough wood scraps, I want my boys to build a nesting box from one of their free plans.
5 // MAKING HEADBANDS WITH BUTTONS FOR NURSES
Have you seen all of those heartbreaking photos of nurses showing their bruises from the PPE? I recently heard about headbands with buttons on the sides that help take some of the pressure off of their faces and if I can get the tension on my sewing machine corrected, I’d like to try to make some. This tutorial seems easy enough.
Changing things up with a collection of little daily stories from Holy Week. During the most somber time in our Church calendar, I asked the Lord to help me reorient myself to Him and show me examples of hope. He was gracious to grant me this desire. God is faithful.
The virtue of hope responds to the aspiration to happiness which God has placed in the heart of every man; it takes up the hopes that inspire men’s activities and purifies them so as to order them to the Kingdom of heaven; it keeps man from discouragement; it sustains him during times of abandonment; it opens up his heart in expectation of eternal beatitude. Buoyed up by hope, he is preserved from selfishness and led to the happiness that flows from charity. (CCC #1818)
MONDAY, APRIL 6
We were deep into a puzzle at the dining room table when one of the kids glanced up and said, “Huh…a bird’s up in the nest.” This is third spring that we’ve observed new life in this nest we lovingly call our BirdBNB. The mamas come, adding a little moss here and another twig there, and then settle into the job of keeping their babies warm and safe. When our latest tenant flew away, I took a quick peek and there they were: five perfect little eggs. In just a few short weeks, there will be five little baby faces poking out.
Look at the birds in the sky; they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are not you more important than they?” – Matthew 6:26
TUESDAY, APRIL 7 The kids were so excited to see the pink supermoon, supposedly the biggest and brightest moon of this year. At bedtime, we craned our necks to get a peek, but the clouds were many and dark. I knew it would already be a stretch to see it clearly at only 8:00 and I was disappointed along with them. We were just about to go inside when – there it was! – a faint outline in the sky. The moon was visible for only seconds before another cloud covered it up, but that little glimpse was such a gift.
Praise the Lord, for he is good; for his mercy endures forever…The moon and stars to rule the night, for his mercy endures forever. – Psalm 136:1,9
(first picture is from the outside and the second shows the reflection on the wall inside)
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8
Since we can’t go to church, we’re bringing a little part of our church home to us. Two of the kids and I created a “stained glass window” on our door using painter’s tape and washable paint. It turned out so beautiful! I especially marveled at the way the morning light reflected the lines onto the wall inside. Arise! Shine, for your light has come, the glory of the Lord has dawned upon you. Though darkness covers the earth, and thick clouds, the peoples, Upon you the Lord will dawn, and over you his glory will be seen.
– Isaiah 60:1-2
THURSDAY, APRIL 9 I was listening to TJ tell me a long story about some Lego creation and I couldn’t help thinking about how far he has come. Two years ago, his speech was so limited and we translated his needs with a lot of finger pointing. Back then, we prayed and hoped that we could help him find his voice, but it felt like a very big mountain to climb. Through patience and his hard work, my boy is now jabbering away. We get to hear his sense of humor and listen to what is deep in his heart. I smile from ear to ear when I hear him say words with that final consonant sound, a feat I wasn’t sure we’d ever reach!
…Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” – Matthew 19:14
FRIDAY, APRIL 10 – GOOD FRIDAY
In the tender compassion of our God the dawn from on high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace. – Luke 1:78-79 SATURDAY, APRIL 11 Today has been a flurry of preparations for tomorrow, although it will look very different from the norm. No carefully chosen toys and chocolates in their baskets. No new dresses and pressed collared shirts. No filling the pews tightly with parishioners and friends. No dinner with loved ones. Our day tomorrow will be simple, but it will be good. Our children will still hunt for eggs in the craziest of places. They will find baskets full of junk food and a book. (I have a feeling this will still be a big hit.) We will still pray and worship a living God. We will still gather around the table for a good meal. I am excited for tomorrow.
“Do not fear! Stand your ground and see the victory the Lord will win for you today…The Lord will fight for you; you have only to keep still.” – Exodus 14:13-14
SUNDAY, APRIL 12 – EASTER!
Alleluia! He is Risen! We are an Easter People and Alleluia is our song!
Oh death! Where is your sting? Oh hell! Where is your victory? Oh Church! Come stand in the light! Our God is not dead, He’s alive! He’s alive!