Healthy Living Here We Come

When you set out to start a blog you think that it will be easy and that you will have time to update. The truth is that it takes time to write and post. I have a handful of drafts started, but nothing actually ever got finished. George has been having some stomach trouble and fighting ulcers. He is on medication, but also needed to eat more whole grains and cut back on milk, processed foods, and refined sugars from his diet. He has relied heavily over the years on refined sugars to combat his hypo glycemia. His go to was chocolate milk and donuts. Six weeks in and he is feeling much better and his blood sugars are not crashing as often. There is a lot that can be said about healthy living. I have been baking his snacks and granola bars for his lunches. This weeks specials... Peanut Butter Granola Bars and Banana Bread in a jar. I love making breads in a jar; they pack well and slide right out for easy snacking. Best of all, I do not have to bake more than one loaf of bread a week. One recipe for a loaf easily makes six pint jars. One for sampling and five for his lunches. I hope to share some of the recipes that I create with you. I have been playing with old recipes and changing them up to be healthier and more wholesome with whole grains and less refined sugars. I am actually pretty good at it.

It is February and the snow has been coming down for over two weeks now. Our little garden shed is blanketed in snow and the garden fence is covered. George took vacation days to stay home and deal with the snow and I was fortunate to have not one, but three days of SNOW DAYS! George's main activities during his vacation have been snow remove. First the driveway then the roof and then back to the drive. He will be back out this morning with the additional 12 inches we got. I have been cleaning and cooking. The best gift I can give George is a good smelling house and a warm belly. I have to say that the Hershey's Salted Caramel chips are amazing. I followed the recipe on the back of the package, but then drizzled some caramel topping and sprinkled sea salt on the top. Wow!!! I will be experimenting some more. I hope that everyone is having a warm and safe winter. Happy shoveling!!!

Welcome to our blog, "View From the Garden Shed". We are George and Melanie. We bought our place ten years ago, but were so wrapped up in parenthood, jobs, and making ends meet that the development of our land and hobbies took a back burner. The things that have been done on our property have been on a budget and most have come from scrapping and bartering. As we get older, we realize the importance of building the home we want and developing a property that will help us become more self-sufficient. We also are crafty individuals that have not taken time to enjoy many hobbies. It is the time in our lives to begin living the life we want to live and enjoy our grandparent years. We are going to document our journey for ourselves, but hope that others that enjoy similar interests can find some helpful information or learn from our mistakes. We are not professionals, but instead are motivated, passionate, amateurs. We are dreamers! Our blog, "View From the Garden Shed" was named for the lovely shed that George built from scrapped materials found over the years. One side is a garden shed and the other side is used for storage, but we hope to find a better use for it. The shed is our favorite feature on our property and is the home to many of our tools. It is the inspiration for this blog. George built our beautiful shed and garden area for $135. He is very resourceful. We are looking forward to our "grandparent years" and hope that you will visit us often. Melanie and George