Lifestyles

• Meal Planning Made Simple

  Meal planning can be a time-consuming job and often times, this is why we just give up on it and just go get whatever looks appealing at the store and be done with it. I know from experience that this leads to wasted money, extra trips to the store, frustration and cooking boredom.

• Blackberry Season

  Look for plump, dark colored berries that have no hulls. An indication that the berries were picked too early are hulls that are still present. These berries will be tart.

• Make Your Own Onion Soup Mix

  I have been making this handy, inexpensive mix for years, instead of buying the “brand name” soup mix at the supermarket. For the biggest savings, I buy the spices at the local Dollar Store—much cheaper than the supermarket!

• How To Transplant Irises

  In the past two decades, I have thinned out the irises and planted them in other locations. I have also found irises growing by old homesteads where no buildings remain (I live in rural Wisconsin) and have dug them up and transplanted them in my yard. Each year in early June, the irises bloom in a variety of colors: white, blue, yellow and purple.

• Protect The Skin You’re In

  Summer is approaching and thousands of people will be working on their tans before they whip out their shorts and swimsuits. However, improper skin care can cause permanent damage from the suns rays. Regardless of your skin type, it is very important to protect your skin. Here are some key tips to keep in mind this summer.

• Gardening For Stress Relief

  In its purest form, gardening is about connecting with the earth and resetting our clocks to the simple, natural rhythms of life. Try as we may, we can’t really speed up a tomato plant and make it grow by our time table. We must adapt and in doing so, gardening offers us a gentle reminder about what’s really important in life: food, water, warmth, a bit of loving attention, and some room to grow.

• 7 Baskets That Help With Home Organization

  Baskets are a perfect “tool” to use in organizing your home. They’re often inexpensive, beautiful and functional items. And baskets are usually made of quite durable materials for the typical person’s usage. You can use them in every room of your home. Use them to organize and store everything from your kitchen utensils to your bathroom towels to your child’s toys.

• Mother’s Day Has Gone To The Birds!

  “Rat-tat-tat,” there it goes again. What could it be? Like me, my dog thinks someone is knocking on the door. I open the door only to find there is no one there. I stand wondering if the wind is hitting my wreath. I close the door and begin to concentrate on the tasks at hand. A few minutes pass and, “Rat-tat-tat,” there it goes again. What’s going on? I open the door look around but no one there. I study the wreath, turn it over, swing it back and forth, and nothing, there’s no sound. I shrug and go inside.