Harvest Lane Cottage

    Hello dear reader! I forgot to publish my post last week! So, I decided to combine the posts this week. So, this is really a Thrifty Things Lately post. I want to share each week, but sometimes, the week just gets away from me—especially now that I'm working part-time again. I think I'll give that some thought.   ~~~~~ ♥♥♥ ~~~~~ Our Superbowl party was potluck. The one man who truly cared who won was happy with the results.  My dentist filled my chipped tooth when I went in for a cleaning. That saved about half. We washed our clothes only if they looked or smelled dirty to save on the laundromat. It really helps clothes last longer also. Washers and dryers are hard on the fabrics. We bought a washing machine! Praise God we saved and bought it with cash. No payments means no interest and more financial freedom.  We used the last of our "laundromat quarters" to splurge on a couple $5.99 pizzas to celebrate! My daughter received a $3 credit for our next pi...

Hope is a very powerful thing. Many years ago, when my eldest son was a toddler, I had a friend who was living near the poverty level just as my family was. We spent time together frequently, because we attended church together and had sons about the same age. We both struggled a great deal with just putting food on the table let alone all the other needs we had. There was a major difference between us though. HOPE I told my husband that the difference was that we were hopefully poor, and she was hopelessly poor. My husband was trying to provide for us. Her husband was making more money; but, he kept out a large percentage for his personal use and gave her barely enough to keep going. The key was that I had hope that things would get better. She really didn't expect anything to improve. In fact, she was tearing down her house with her own hands with her hopelessness. Hope for hope's sake may help some; but, I must hope in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, t...

Circumstances.... we can be above them or below them. We can look on the dark side or the bright side. Every circumstance requires a choice. Unemployed? It's either hopeless or a chance to watch God perform miraculous provision. Cancer? It's either a death sentence or a chance to see God's miraculous healing. Lonely? It's either a reason to despair or a reason to reach out to someone else who may be lonely, too.  Afraid? It's either a reason to give in to anxiety or to take every thought captive unto the obedience of Christ. I choose hope.  I choose faith. I choose to reach out. I choose miraculous healing. I choose miraculous provision.  I choose to take those thoughts captive. I choose JESUS. I choose to keep on the sunny side of life! Now... when I need it, please remind me friends! What do you choose? This old song by the Carter Family  ministered to my heart today. It's an old recordin...

May God bless you and keep you as you seek Him today. May you bring peace and hope to everyone you meet today. May you feel Holy Spirit guiding you and protecting you today. Be blessed! Spread sunshine all over the place and put on a happy face! Happy today! Laura

Photo by  Joe Caione  on  Unsplash "If one wants to be happy,  one must do happy things." ~ Mrs. Sharon White The Legacy of Home

  Welcome to another thrifty week at Harvest Lane Cottage. I am glad you've found me! Each week I share my thrifty and frugal projects, ways of saving money, frugal cooking, and my blessings from God.  ~~~~~ ♥♥♥ ~~~~~ My husband and I talked seriously about our garden plans. What do we actually need most? What will we eat? What do we want to eat a lot of? Hello tomatoes! My husband is painting our sunroom a creamy beige. It's been the same old dingy white since we moved in a couple of years ago. It's amazing what a little paint can do. This is thrifty, because my husband bought this paint a few months ago from the paint store. They had a few cans of beigey colors that had been returned. They were all different shades. They mixed them all together in a five gallon bucket and sold the paint to him for $10! What an incredible savings! I made chicken soup with leftovers from the fridge including some leftover chicken, broth, and veggies. A bay leaf and some rosemary gave it a n...

  Let's spread cheer, love, and happiness! Send someone a handwritten note or letter today! February is International Correspondence Writing Month. Send some joy in post box!

  Welcome to another thrifty week at Harvest Lane Cottage. I am glad you've found me! Each week I share my thrifty and frugal projects, ways of saving money, frugal cooking, and my blessings from God.  ~~~~~ ♥♥♥ ~~~~~ Ways I saved money: I mended an old dress.  It will give me another year as a housedress. I did my own manicure with a $2.99 set of Lily and Fox nail wraps. I extend their wear with a Sally Hanson's gel top coat (it doesn't have to be cured with light). That saved about $22 over the price I used to pay for a manicure. I cooked beef stew using hamburger, because stew meat is ridiculously expensive now. We tried a different laundromat that was about two dollars less expensive to wash a load! We spent about twenty dollars washing everything up. I got behind when I substituted. It costs money to work outside the home.  The snow storm kept us home this week. That saved gas money and other money that my husband or I might have spent. Cooking at home from scra...

On my knitting needles... in my Scribd app... on my book pile!   Hello ladies! I enjoy listening to and reading Scripture and books daily. I also like to do needlework. I have been knitting lately, though I also crochet, sew and quilt. Perhaps this summer, I will pick up embroidery again. I haven't done it in quite some time and would like to make some pillowcases.    It's a cold and snowy day here in Southern Missouri. There's just enough snow on the ground to make things pretty. It's very cold for our neck of the woods and getting colder. School was canceled for a couple of days, so I got a bit more knitting in!  I remembered to put out a pan to collect snow for ice cream. Have you tried it? I made a sugar-free version here . You can also pour sweetened condensed milk over snow like this .  On my Needles: I've set aside my Everything November blue and white mit for a bit. I've been exclusively knitting my husband's black wool hat. This double brimmed watc...