I don’t think it's possible to really comprehend what you own until you view it in terms of boxes. We had 27. Plus 4 big storage bins, 2 smaller bins and one bin that rolls under the bed. ... Continue Reading
The Art of Selling Everything You Own
One of the bigger challenges of moving from Texas to California 7 years ago was figuring out what do to with all of our stuff. Each of our 3 bedrooms in our Texas home was fully furnished. There was baby furniture, an office, two dining sets (one in the kitchen, one formal) and a complete living room set with tables and lamps. Granted, our furniture wasn’t luxurious. Most items were either bought off of ... Continue Reading
How to Dehydrate Cranberries
My love for cranberries extends far beyond the sauce (or chutney or jello mold, depending on where you're from) you typically find on Thanksgiving tables. I love them in scones, in salads and homemade trail mix. I love them in granola bars, in biscotti and even in potpourri! I've been known to buy a bag or two when Costco has dried cranberries on sale, but I really go crazy in November because it's the ... Continue Reading
A New Chapter in Crumbs
I have a story to tell. And it's personal. It's not an awesome recipe or an easy DIY. And to bare it all here on the web where everyone can see it is kinda scary. But I'm hoping that by sharing it, you'll see that I'm just like you. I struggle. My family goes through hard times and we have to make tough decisions too. Still, there is hope to be found. It’s hard to know where to start ... Continue Reading
How to Make Soap from Soap Scraps
About a year ago, we ditched over the counter body washes and face soaps and switched to all natural goat milk soap from Bend Soap Company. It started because I struggled with acne. Two days of washing with goat milk soap and my acne-prone skin started to clear up. Then I figured out how to turn it into a liquid soap (making washing my face at night much easier) and started shredding it to make ... Continue Reading
DIY Homemade Carpet Deodorizer
A few weeks ago I took a box of produce over to a neighbor's house and I smelled their house. From the mat outside their front door, I could tell that their house smelled good. Not like they were cooking something or baking something or anything like that. And it wasn't even the scent of air freshener or a plug-in. It just smelled clean. Fresh. And inviting. It made me wonder what MY house smelled like. And ... Continue Reading
Republic Wireless: Switching Wireless Carriers After 15 Years
This summer marked a big event for me. For the first time in 15 years, I looked for a new cell-phone carrier: Republic Wireless. You see - I'd been with the same cell phone carrier since college - Verizon - and frankly, I hadn't run into any issues. That is, until a couple of months ago when I went to upgrade our two Verizon phones to last years model "iPhone" - for 99¢ each.... They wanted to charge me ... Continue Reading
DIY: All-Purpose Flour
Have you ever run out of an ingredient when you needed it most? A few weeks ago, Mr. Crumbs promised the kids to make his favorite oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. His problem? We didn't have any all-purpose flour. We had oats (for oat flour) and a few different whole grains to make our own whole grain flour (specifically, we had einkorn, spelt, kamut and wheat on hand), but no all-purpose. He had already ... Continue Reading
How to Save on Meat without Buying a Whole Cow
My freezer is itty bitty teeny tiny. So small, that we stopped making ice cubes (in trays) so that we could use that space for something more valuable... like meat! I would like nothing more than to buy a cow, save a bajillion dollars and see all the pretty cuts of beef lined up for my picking and choosing come dinner time. But with my teeny tiny freezer, that's just not gonna happen. "Oh just get a deep freeze ... Continue Reading
9 Rules for Organizing the Real Food Kitchen
Have you re-organized your kitchen recently? Once you commit to making healthy meals for your family, you're likely to find your kitchen cabinets filling up with all kinds of ingredients and equipment. And all this stuff may leave you with a kitchen that quickly gets messy and isn't nearly as efficient as it should be. Glass food storage containers take up lots more room than a stack of plastic containers. ... Continue Reading
