So…crafting. Hmmm, how do I explain my convoluted relationship with crafting?
I love it.
I hate it.
I wish I were better at it.
I have great ideas for it…just, zero follow-through.
Until today. Cuz today, I kicked crafting’s butt.
Not so long ago, here on Country Wife Chronicles, I shared with you my journey to becoming a bit more self-sufficient. And one of the tips I shared with you was to “Learn to preserve.”
Today’s post is a prime example of doing just that. Preserving the yummy, juicy, summery goodness of fresh peaches to enjoy all year long.
And even better, preserving these gorgeous, plump, uber-ripe peaches without any added sugar. Simply natural fresh frozen peaches can’t be beat…
Have you ever thought about what era you would have enjoyed living in had you not been born when you were?
Am I alone in this pondering?
Gosh, I hope not. That would just be weird.
Well, I’ve always pictured myself in the days of the pioneer. Maybe it was the joys of playing The Oregon Trail in my childhood, but I could always picture myself as a prairie wife. You know, a real Sarah, Plain & Tall in a Little House on the Prairie setting.
I’ve been on a bit of a daydream vacation over the last couple of weeks. I sort of get in these dreamy mindsets whenever Wildland Man is away on a fire. It must be a coping mechanism. And it surely isn’t coincidental that my dreaming of the future almost always involves us being together, not separated during a fire season.
Maybe I should talk to a therapist about these daydreams.
Nah, I’ll just share them with the entire world. Maybe y’all can help me make sense of them 😉
I’ve always been a planner and list maker. It’s a problem really. I pretty much have an addiction to the satisfactory feeling of crossing things off a list. I’m working on it, I promise.
Add in the fact that I’m the Country Wife here at Country Wife Chronicles and my work-at-home lifestyle and rural living pretty much requires organization and planning ahead.
The past two weeks here at CWC have been all about Planning Ahead.
I can’t seem to remember what our meals were like prior to learning how to meal plan. I’m sure it was a black hole of Hamburger Helpers, mac and cheese, and hot dogs.
I do, however, vividly remember my first experience with meal planning.
We had recently left our professional careers for something new, and in so doing had to drastically revise our financial spending and budget. We lived 20 miles away from town and it no longer made financial sense to run into town on a whim. Every trip and gas expense was accounted for and needed to be worth their while.
I chose the country life. It’s true. I made the conscious decision to live outside the definition of urban life on purpose.
And in so choosing the country life, there are some lessons to be learned. One of which is today’s topic: Planning Ahead.
I was sort of forced into planning ahead when it came to meals and groceries, simply by the sheer distance between me and the store.
But I can honestly say that if I were ever to live within city limits again, I think I’d do my very best to maintain this system of planning our meals that I’ve perfected over the past few years.
I grew up loving the outdoors, as a child I used to practically live in tree in our yard. It had a perfect little nook where I could climb and hide away. Whether I was watching the clouds pass me by or stuck with my nose in a book, that tree opened the doors to let my imagination run wild!
I’ve shared my love for the outdoors here, here and here.
I’m pretty sure my love for everything in nature was spawned by all the time I spent with my dad outside growing up. I remember riding along with him to fix fence, spending days on the lake fishing, and bearing the cold and snow to scout coyote or deer.
I’m a believer that we all need our own unique connection to nature in order to appreciate it. We all have our own story and our own memories that sparked our love for the outdoors, if we had the chance to interact with it on a deep, personal level.
So, you may recall from earlier posts here on CWC that gardening is not really my thing…I’m just not a gardener.
You can catch up on a little bit of my gardening experience here.
I have to give Wildland Man full credit for any gardening experience I do have and any crops we are able to harvest.
But, I tell you what; I’m learning to like it. Heck, I may even be falling for gardening. Only time will tell.
I liken it to how I became comfortable in the kitchen and began to like cooking and baking.
I guess, now that I think about it, both the kitchen and the garden have always been Wildland Man’s domain. Now I’m encroaching on both. Hope he doesn’t mind.
Waste not, want not. That should really be the title of this post. Because if you’ve been reading along the past couple weeks you know that this DIY Pallet Deck Table is project #3 that we got out of just a couple of pallets.
First, Wildland Man and I picked up some pallets to create herb boxes for our deck railing. You can read about that project in DIY Pallet Planters {Part 1}.
Then, we used some of the leftover pallet scrap to make a large square planter box to put flowers out by our mailbox. You can read about that project in DIY Pallet Planters {Part 2}.
Finally, we used what was left of the pallet wood to construct this little table for our deck.