Does you garden get a lot of shade? Or are you looking for more ideas to get some color into your shady spots? Well today I thought I should share my favorite 14 shade tolerant perennials with you.  I LOVE planting perennials because unlike annuals, perennials will come back year after year and therefore are always a good investment in my book. I’m all about making gardening as simple as possible and with perennials, I always feel good knowing that once they’re in the ground, all I need to do is a little maintenance and I’ll be able to enjoy them for a very, very long time ..read more

It was yet another busy week in the Butterfield household. Our meals were a mix of quick and easy {hello pickety bits} and food on the go.  At this point I’d really like to just hit the fast forward button {60 – 90 days?} and get to the point where there is nothing on the to-do list and we can just live like normal people.  Whatever normal means.  While I am looking forward to this summer and long walks and days at the beach and a more relaxed schedule… I’m already looking forward to fall and chilly weather {did I just say that!?} and the slower pace of life and home cooked me ..read more

Eat More Fruits and Vegetables Iwouldn’t exactly say I ate a lot of fruits and vegetables this past week. But I think that’s a story for tomorrow.   Visit 24 {new} Bakeries / Coffee Shops No new bakeries this past week and quite honestly, I am a bit surprised at myself that I am lagging behind on this goal as it was probably the one I was most looking forward to checking off my list early.  All in good time though, right? But also add to the fact that I am a bit of a pastry snob and have no problem walking out of a coffee/pastry shop if their treats look like they wer ..read more

Bad Haircuts. At what point do you think husbands tire of attempting to cut their own hair and then walking into the kitchen and asking their wife to fix it?  Does anyone know? Do they have to hit a particular age? Is there a certain number of bad haircuts they have to give themselves before a lightbulb goes off and they’re like “Ahhh maybe I should just ask the little woman to cut my hair in the first place and save me the ribbing that comes from said wife?” Or I don’t know… Do they at some point just go to a barber? And by going to a barber I mean partly for the haircut ..read more

While I didn’t set out to be, I was actually sort of a prolific hooker in April. It was a busy month for me, finishing up all my wool dyeing projects, getting sick and then tidying up the garden. Plus, I worked on a side project too, but I’ll share more about that next week. Now that all my major rug hooking duties {dyeing wool, drawing patterns} are done for the summer/fall season, I should have more time to hook. I’d also like to get a few more of those larger rugs that I love to hook so much completed, and be able to offer patterns for them later this summer.  Time. On o ..read more

This past week I pretty much lived off of cough drops and ice cream as I’m still getting over a nasty case of strep throat. I’d say I’m operating at about 80% right now and still taking a mini nap here and there. Hopefully by the end of this week I’ll be back to normal. Luckily though I’ve got the BEST snuggle buddy in the world. Market Bassket $78.51 The HH was down south this week and so he popped into Market Basket to load up on essentials. I think the only thing that wasn’t on my list was the stir fry veggies. Which, by the way, I thought was a bit of an odd purchas ..read more

Having recently planted a long row of carrots in our kitchen garden, today I thought I’d share some of my tried and true tips on how to grow carrots for those of you who haven’t grown them before.  In my opinion, carrots are hands down one of the easiest vegetables to grow {zucchini and peas are at the top of the list too}. Not only are they easy to grow, but homegrown carrots taste a million and ten times better than the pre-packaged “baby” carrots they sell at the grocery store.  So if you have the room in your garden to grow them, I highly recommend putting them at ..read more

bits and bobs: A random assortment of things; small remaining pieces and things So, all I need is butter? Click HERE if you want to go down a rabbit hole. I thought it was pretty funny.  How often do you open a catalog and have to do a double take because the person in the photograph looks just like you at first glance? That never happens! I could have been a garden model!!!  I would pay GOOD MONEY for one of these! I think we need to start a letter writing campaign so Greater Goods will start producing/selling them. Aunt Dora’s Cottage is STILL for sale! I can’t ..read more

This morning when I opened the blinds in the kitchen garden everything looked so calm and sweet that I just had to pop out there and snap some photos for you.  I LOVE this time of year. It’s filled with so much hope! The perennials are beginning to emerge from their winter slumber and the seeds you’ve planted {and hoped you weren’t too early in planting} are starting to pop through the soil.  The birds are chirping and the sun is shining and there’s this feeling that this year’s gardening season is going to be a good one… Whether or not you plant a big garden or a s ..read more

A few weeks ago One Hundred Dollars a Month reader Laura shared her Trader Joe’s tomato and roasted red pepper soup recipe with me in the comment section {I made it, and it was fabulous!}. Then a week later, Tamera passed along her recipe for Trader Joe’s lentil bruschetta. And it too was another winner! And well, here I am again with another easy Trader Joe’s recipe because last week Laura was back with another of her favorite recipes to try; Trader Joe’s salmon spread. Holy cannolis people, was it ever delicious!!  Here’s the comment Laura left me on a previous post: One ..read more