Family Balance Sheet

$1 off Coppertone Suncare Product

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Fri, 25 May 2012 01:43:00 +0000

Just in time for the holiday weekend!

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$5 off Two Cafe Escapes K-Cup Packs Printable Coupon

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Fri, 25 May 2012 01:26:00 +0000

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Tackle that Tough Spot: Purge the VHS tapes and Unused Media

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Thu, 24 May 2012 10:30:00 +0000

When was the last time you watched a VHS tape?

Our VCR started eating tapes a few years ago and we were not about to replace it or try to get it fixed. But for some reason I never got rid of the tapes. As I was cleaning out our entertainment center I realized the craziness of keeping them, so I tackled it and the tapes are headed for the yard sale/giveaway box.

I also went through the stacks of CDs and DVDs. We download our music now, so there is no need for piles of CDs that we don't listen to. (That pile above is just a smidgen of what we have.) The unopened DVDs of Seasons 1, 2, and 3 of The Office and Seinfeld are also heading to the yard sale box. We don't watch them, we have never watched them, and if we wanted to watch them, they are on cable TV every night. Honestly, I'm not quite sure how we got them.

Do you have stacks of VHS tapes, CDs, and DVDs lying around? Go tackle it!

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My (almost) Square Foot Garden

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Wed, 23 May 2012 10:30:00 +0000

The weather this past weekend was gorgeous, so I took advantage of it and finally planted my vegetable and herb garden.

I converted to a square foot garden in 2010 and it really changed the way that I garden. It is an efficient way of gardening. If you haven't read the book, Square Foot Gardening, I highly suggest you check out the book from your library. I ended up buying the book and I refer to it quite often.

I referred to my garden notes from 2011 to plan this year.

I made my list and headed to the nursery with a $10 off $30 purchase coupon in hand.

I planted 3 Roma tomatoes, 1 grape tomato, 1 sweet pepper, 1 jalapeno, carrots, green beans, and many herbs. I also bought butternut squash to plant on my vertical trellis along with a cantaloupe. That was a last minute decision inspired by the selection at the nursery.

From this picture, the garden looks a little anemic, but I assure you that there are plants and seeds in my box. The bigger plants in the lower right corner are perennial herbs that survived our mild winter. This is the first year that parsley, oregano, and thyme came back for me.

I also need to find Lemon Verbena, an herb that I love to plant. This nursery was out and it makes a great addition to homemade iced tea.

So why (almost) Square Foot Garden? I didn't do a grid this year and you are supposed to have a grid to make it an official SFG. I couldn't find my masking tape that I use to grid the box and I was not about to run to the store for masking tape. I eyeballed it this year and I'm sure everything will turn out fine.

Did you plant your vegetable garden yet? Did you plant anything new and interesting this year? Let us know in the comments.

For more information check out the book, All New Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew.

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Homemade Sidewalk Chalk

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Tue, 22 May 2012 12:00:00 +0000

Today I’m participating in the Ultimate Blog Swap. You’ll find me posting over at The Holistic Mama about Saving Money on Organic Food, and I’m excited to welcome Camille from Growing Up Gabel to Family Balance Sheet:

One of the many ways that I save money is by making things I would otherwise buy at the store. It's amazing the items we purchase that can actually be made quite easily at home! So when I saw a tutorial for homemade sidewalk chalk, I knew I had to try it.

When I went to the craft store to buy the supplies, I started doubting that it was less expensive to make the chalk rather than just buying it. I wasn't able to find small containers of any of the items I needed, but I was able to use coupons for 40% and 50% off to cut the cost of this project in half. I spent around $9 total for the supplies, but I'm also pretty sure we have enough materials to make chalk for years! And now I'm on the lookout for art projects that involve Plaster of Paris.

Almost every single tutorial I've seen for sidewalk chalk uses toilet paper rolls for the mold. I would suggest using wax lined paper cups instead. I had a really hard time with the toilet paper rolls. We also tried out a silicone ice cube tray and it worked so much better! So just ignore the TP rolls and go for cups or any kind of ice cube tray.

If you want to try the TP rolls, duct tape the bottoms securely and then line with wax paper.

To make the chalk you will need Plaster of Paris and powder tempera paint and water.

For each color of chalk you will need 1 container to mix in. I used old cottage cheese and yogurt containers and just tossed them when we were done. I also used plastic utensils to mix so I could toss those, too! I put a large vinyl tablecloth that we use for art projects down on the table. You have to work fairly quickly with this since the plaster starts to set up in about 20-30 minutes. So get everything ready to go and then start. From start to finish, these only took us maybe 10 minutes to make.

When you are all set up and ready to go, pour 1/2 cup warm water into each mixing container. Add in 1 cup Plaster of Paris and mix well. Add 1/4 cup of powder paint, or more if you want darker colors and stir to combine. We made red/pink, blue and purple. In the process we learned that red and blue make purple.

Pour the colored plaster mixture in to your desired molds. You can see that we used an ice cube tray that makes long ice for water bottles. I ended up putting foil over the TP rolls because our mixture was leaking out! Thus the reason I suggest cups instead.

Let dry. We live in the desert with single digit humidity so these dried within a day for us. If you live in a more humid climate these can take a few days to dry. Once they are dry, peel away the paper cup or pop out of the ice cube tray. I only made half the recipe I've posted here and it was not nearly enough as you can see. As long as you're make a mess, you might as well make a nice big batch of chalk.

My 3 and 5 year old had a ball making these and they keep asking to make more. Thankfully, I have enough supplies to keep us stocked up with chalk all summer long!

Homemade Sidewalk Chalk

Supplies:

Plaster of Paris
Powder Tempera Paint
Water
Plastic containers and utensils
Molds for the chalk (paper cups, ice cube trays, etc)

Instructions

Pour 1/2 cup warm water into each container.
Mix in 1 cup Plaster of Paris and mix well.
Add 1/4 cup of powder paint, or more if you want darker colors.
Pour the paint mixture in to molds and allow to dry. The drying process can take a few days depending on your weather and the mold used.

Visit Life Your Way to see all of the Ultimate Blog Swap participants!

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My Day @ Bloggy Boot Camp

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Mon, 21 May 2012 10:30:00 +0000

This past Saturday, I woke up bright and early and headed east to Philadelphia to attend my first blog conference. I sucked up my fear of walking into a room and not knowing ANYONE and I spent the day listening, learning, and absorbing tons of information to help me improve my writing, my blog, and my business.

Bloggy Boot Camp is run by The SITS Girls: Tiffany Romero and Francesca Banducci. They are two witty, sharp, and savvy women who are a wealth of knowledge about blogging, business, and social media. They also lined up a stellar group of speakers. I took 15 pages of notes from the 6 sessions:

Top 10 Tips for Blogging Success - Laurie Turk from Tip Junkie
Video Unveiled: Getting View on You Tube - Colleen Padilla from ClassyMommy
Expanding Your Platform Beyond Your Blog - Audrey McClellan from Mom Generations
Business of Blogging Workshop run by Laurie Turk, Tiffany Romero, Allison Tallamantez, and Danielle Liss.
SEO: 10 Things to Make Google Love Your Blog - Dali Burgado from Secrets to Web Success
Proven Methods to Grow Your Site and Increase Your Influence - Sharon Rowley from Mom of 6

I also met a lot of other bloggers, traded tons of business cards, ate a delicious lunch provided by Kings Hawaiian, and received an unexpected, but sweet swag bag provided by all of the conference sponsors: Mirassou Winery, WaterPik, Happy Family Organic SuperFoods, and Care.com.

On the way home, my head was spinning with ideas and flashbacks from the day. Honestly, I think my head exploded somewhere along the PA Turnpike. I arrived home exhausted, but energized about all of the possibilities for Family Balance Sheet.

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Visit The SITS Girls for posts from other bloggers of their experience at Bloggy Boot Camp.

Tackle that Tough Spot: Above the Refrigerator

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Thu, 17 May 2012 10:30:00 +0000

Have you looked on top of your refrigerator lately?

Go ahead, don't be afraid, take a look.

I'm tall, so that might be one reason the top of the refrigerator becomes a dumping ground. It is also a spot that little hands can't get to, so I'll use that as an excuse too.

So, I tackled it. I gave borrowed DVDs back to their rightful owner. I found a new (out of sight) home for the big supplement containers. And tools were sent back to the tool box. My kitchen feels so much lighter now.

What does the top of your refrigerator look like? Go tackle it!

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FREE Meal Planning Service: Food on the Table

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Wed, 16 May 2012 15:08:00 +0000

Do you struggle with coordinating your weekly menu with the store sales? Then you should consider taking advantage of this FREE offer:

Food on the Table is an easy meal planning service that is based on sales at local grocery stores. With Food on the Table, users will be able to:

find thousands of easy, healthy recipes
save money by knowing the items that are on sale
simplify your shopping experience with a well organized grocery list.

Normally the fee for more than 3 meals a week is $5. However, New Users can use promo code SPRINGFREE and they will get to use the service free for life. (Code is good throughout the month of May!)

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Chicken, Pinto Beans & Rice Casserole

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Mon, 14 May 2012 10:30:00 +0000

Chicken, Pinto Beans & Rice Casserole is a hearty and versatile dish. If you don't have pinto beans, replace them with another bean, such as red or white or black or chick peas. Cooked pinto beans were in my freezer, so that is what I grabbed. I had a lot of beans and rice leftover (the chicken was devoured at dinner), so I used it as a filling for burritos the next day.

Enjoy!

Chicken, Pinto Beans & Rice Casserole

Inspired and Adapted from Family Circle

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons olive oil
6 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 red pepper, chopped
2 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
3 cups homemade chicken stock, or store bought
1 (16 oz) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 ½ cups uncooked long grain rice

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. In a 6 qt. lidded Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-heat. Add the chicken and cook for about 5 minutes each side. Remove from Dutch oven and set aside on a plate.

3. Add the garlic, onion, and pepper; stir and cook until softened. Scrap the bottom of the pan to loosen the browned chicken bits and mix in with the garlic/onion/pepper mixture. This will add flavor to the dish.

4. Add the cumin, oregano, stock, beans, tomatoes, salt, and pepper and stir to combine.

5. Bring the stock to a simmer and add the rice. Stir to combine. Add the chicken back to the pan. Cover and move the Dutch oven to the oven. Bake for 20 minutes or until the rice has cooked all the way through and the liquid is absorbed.

Print recipe for Chicken, Pinto Beans & Rice Casserole.

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May 11 - 13 | FREE or Low Cost Events for Kids and Families

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Fri, 11 May 2012 10:30:00 +0000

National Public Gardens Day
Sign up to get a FREE admission coupon at a public garden near you. FREE coupon is only valid on May 11, 2012

Lowe's

Saturday, May 12, 10 - 11 AM | Build and Grow Clinic - Picture Frame Planter

Michael's

Friday, May 11, 6 - 8 PM | Mother's Day Flower Clip - Make-It Take-It with purchase of Flower Clip
Saturday, May 12, 10 AM - Noon | Mother's Day Apron and T-Shirt - Make-It Take-It with purchase of apron or t-shirt
Saturday, May 12, Noon - 2 PM | Mother's Day Button - FREE Make-It Take-It

A.C. Moore

Saturday, May 12, 1 - 3 PM | Purchase a T-Shirt and Decorate FREE with Simply Spray Party Pack Fabric Paint

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Tackle That Tough Spot: Plastic Ware

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Thu, 10 May 2012 10:30:00 +0000

Today's Task: Reduce the proliferating Plastic Ware

Please tell me that I'm not the only one with plastic ware stuffed in every empty crevice of the kitchen cupboards.

My husband, who normally doesn't comment too much on the state of our home, was even fed up with the amount of plastic ware that we had. I could hear him gripe every morning as he was packing his lunch about not being able to find a lid that matches a bowl.

One family doesn't need this much plastic ware. I'm not even sure how we acquired it, because I don't remember buying any of it.

I pulled it all together and stacked it in the yard sale box. I'll mark it all FREE just to get rid of it.

Instead of the plastic ware, I'll use the Pyrex. It stacks easily in the fridge or in the cupboards. It will be so much easier to find the matching lid.

How much plastic ware do you have? Go tackle it!

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My (Half Crazy) Weekend in Pittsburgh

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Tue, 08 May 2012 10:30:00 +0000

In case you weren't aware, I'm only half crazy, not full blown crazy, just half.

We spent this past weekend exploring Pittsburgh. We took the incline to Mt. Washington...

...where we took in some incredible views...

...and ate a little ice cream.

We had a wonderful time visiting a great city.

But then at 5:30 on Sunday morning, I woke up, ate a big breakfast, and headed downtown ...

...to become a Runner of Steel.

I ran the Pittsburgh Half Marathon, because like I said, I'm only half crazy.

It was a hot morning and I finished the race 2 minutes faster than my last half marathon. Two minutes feels like an eternity at the end of 13.1 miles!

To celebrate the race and my time, we had lunch at Primanti Bros.

If you have never heard of Primanti Bros, it is a Pittsburgh attraction, because their sandwiches are stuffed ridiculously high with your choice of meat (I chose ragin' cajun chicken), cole slaw, and french fries...IN the sandwich, not on the side.

I ate the WHOLE sandwich.

So maybe I am full blown crazy, but it was worth every single bite!

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National Public Gardens Day - May 11, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Tue, 08 May 2012 00:47:00 +0000

National Public Gardens Day
Sign up to get a FREE admission coupon at a public garden near you. FREE coupon is only valid on May 11, 2012

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April 5 & 6 | FREE Events for Kids and Families

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Fri, 04 May 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Home Depot

Saturday, May 5, 9 AM to Noon | Build a Planter Box

Michael's

Saturday, May 5, 1 - 3 PM | FREE Make-It Take-It - Mother's Dya Butterfly Card

Museums on Us

Saturday, May 5 & Sunday, May 6 | Bank of America cardholders can get general admission to museums, zoos, science centers, botanical gardens and more. Just present your B of A card. Check out the list of participating museums.

Comic Book Day

Saturday, May 5 | Comic Book Day - Participating comic book stores give away free comic books. Check your local stores for their participation and details.

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Tackle That Tough Spot: Sippy Cup Wars

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Thu, 03 May 2012 10:30:00 +0000

Today's Task: Win the war on sippy cups!

What is it about sippy cups? From the time our children start drinking from a cup, it seems that we collected every character and color that Target offered.

Sippy cups also seem to breed other forms of cups, plates, bowls, lids, and straws. It's a total mess.

My kids are 6 and 4, so our plastic drinking cup phase is winding down and I couldn't be happier.

After removing it all from the cabinet, I chose to keep a few things:

but this pile is headed straight to the yard sale box!

Join us next week for another installment of:

Do you have trouble controlling the kids' cups? Go tackle it now!

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Tackle That Tough Spot and Kick Clutter to the Curb!

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Tue, 01 May 2012 10:30:00 +0000

Do you have a tough spot in your home? A spot where stuff seems to accumulate, congregate, and multiply as time goes by. The stuff has been around so long that no one notices it anymore; it has become like a grey noise.

Follow along with me as I tackle tough spots around our home that are sucking the life out of it. My objective: get rid of clutter and kick it to the curb...literally. I want to get rid of the grey noise.

The tasks could take us 15 minutes or up to an hour, depending on our clutter.

Join me, every Thursday until all our Tough Spots are gone!

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$5 Taste of Home Cookbook Sale

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0000

It's that time again. Today thru May 7, get select cookbooks, gardening, home and children's books for only $5, while supplies last. And if you spend $25 or more, you can get free shipping by using the code listed below! These books make great gifts.

Click the followng link for more details: $5 Book Sale now through May 7th. Supplies Limited! For additional savings use code: LS114 for free shipping on orders over $25!

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Portobello Cheese 'Steak' Sandwich (Meatless Meal Idea)

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:30:00 +0000

If you are looking for a meatless meal, Portobello Cheese 'Steak' Sandwiches are a tasty alternative to the meat version.

Portobello Cheese 'Steak' Sandwiches

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 red onion, sliced into thin strips
1 red or green bell pepper, sliced into thin strips
2 large portobello mushrooms, 6 - 8 oz total, remove gills and stems, sliced into thin strips
½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
½ teaspoon ground pepper
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
8 tablespoons shredded mozzarella cheese
4 large rolls

Directions

1. In a large skillet, saute the olive oil, garlic, onion, and peppers over medium-low heat until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes.
2. Add the mushrooms, salt, and pepper and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add the Worcestershire sauce and stir well to combine. Cook for another 2 minutes.
4. Load up each roll with the mushroom mixture. Top each sandwich with 2 tablespoons of mozzarella cheese.

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This post is linked to Ultimate Recipe Swap at Life as MOM and Real Food Wedneday at Kelly the Kitchen Kop.

April 28 & 29 | FREE Events for Kids and Families

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 17:14:00 +0000

Healthy Kids Day at Your Local YMCA

Saturday, April 28 | Healthy Kids Day - Check your local YMCA to see if they are participating in this nationwide event and their time. We are members of our local Y, but the event should be free to the community (at least it is at our Y). Every Y might be different, but ours offers games, open pool, crafts, bouncy house, and snacks. My kids always have a blast.

Free Entrance Days to the National Parks

April 21 - 29 | America's Best Idea - the national parks - gets even better with several fee-free days at more than 100 national parks that usually charges entrance fees. List of participating parks.

Lowe's Build and Grow

Saturday, April 28, 10 AM | Build a Terrarium

A.C. Moore

Saturday, April 28, 1-3 PM | Wilton Decorating Basics Demo

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Printable Coupons: Ball Park Franks, Solo Cups, Snapple

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 22:33:00 +0000

Picnic season is coming up! Start stocking up with these printable coupons:

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Baked Salmon Packets

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 13:45:00 +0000

Baking salmon in foil packets is a super easy to cook salmon. The ingredients are simple: salmon and any seasonings and spices that you have on hand. Easy!

Baked Salmon Packets

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. You'll need a piece of foil large enough to fold up into a packet. I wrapped in 1/2 pound portions. Spray the foil with non-stick spray or olive oil spray.

3. Place the salmon on the foil, skin side down.

4. Drizzle salmon with olive oil and sprinkle with your favorite seasonings. I used minced garlic, salt, pepper, a little lemon juice, and topped with lemon slices.

5. Wrap up the salmon. Bring the long ends together and fold down. Fold the ends in, as per the picture below. Place on a rimmed baking sheet

6. Bake for 20 minutes or until salmon flakes easily when pierced with a fork.

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April 21 & 22 | FREE or Low Cost Events for Kids and Families

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 11:52:00 +0000

This weekend's FREE or low cost events for kids and families:

Free Entrance Days to the National Parks

April 21 - 29 | America's Best Idea - the national parks - gets even better with several fee-free days at more than 100 national parks that usually charges entrance fees. List of participating parks.

Bass Pro Shops

April 21 & 22, Noon - 4 PM | FREE Kids' Challenge Weekend - Test your skills in the Bass Pro Challenge, FREE giveaway to first 50 kids to participate, FREE kids' crafts, prize wheel.

Michael's

Saturday, April 21, 1 - 3 PM | Body Art Make-It, Take-It
Sunday, April 22, 1 - 3 PM | Earth Day Tote Make-It, Take-IT

A.C. Moore

Saturday, April 21, 1 - 3 PM | Buy a t-shirt and create a 'hand' stamped shirt

Home Depot

Saturday, April 21, 10 - 11:30 AM | Raised Gardening Bed Workshop
Saturday, April 21, 1 - 2 PM | Create Entry Door Appeal and Lock Basics Workshop
Sunday, April 22, 1 - 2 PM | Outdoor Power Equipment Workshop

Have a great weekend!

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Green Living: There's Always Room for Improvement

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 10:30:00 +0000

As a family, we try to be good stewards of our environment:

But when I took our recycling bins out to the curb this week, I noticed that there is still room for improvement...

What is one green thing that you can improve on? Let us know in the comments.

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Printable Coupons: Greenworks, Alexia, Starbucks and Many More!

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 14:43:00 +0000

Lots of great coupons to print:

Disclosure - This post contains affiliate links that help support this site at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting Family Balance Sheet! You can read the site's full disclosure here.

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Square Foot Gardening: Spring Clean Up

noreply@blogger.com (Family Balance Sheet) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:28:00 +0000

We spent Easter weekend sprucing up our front and back yard landscaping. We spent this past weekend, cleaning up my square foot garden.

As you can see, it needed some attention:

Some of the 'weeds' in the picuture is the mint that I naively planted 10 years ago when we built my garden box. Do yourself a favor and plant your mint in a container unless you want to spend your spare time yanking it from your garden. It is the most invasive plant known to man!

I converted the box to the square foot garden method until 2 years ago. By following sfg, I plant about twice as much as I did before switching.

Last spring, I replaced the original dirt with the square foot gardening soil mix. There was an initial investment, but those weeds in the above photo were a breeze to pull out. My old soil was hard, cakey, and extremely weedy. My plants benefited from the new soil too.

I filled the box up with more leaf compost, because the soil had settled over the past year. Now, I'm ready to plant.

I was surprised to find that 3 herbs survived the mild winter: thyme, parsley, and oregano.

My blueberry bushes have lots of flowers that will hopefully turn to delicious berries soon. I need to get a net over these bushes before that happens though or the birds will be dishing on the berries before we get a chance to.

My garden is ready for May 15, the last day of frost for my region.

Have you opened up your garden yet? Let us kow in the comments.

To learn more about square foot gardening, check out Mel Bartholomew's book, All New Square Foot Gardening.

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Disclosure - This post contains affiliate links that help support this site at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting Family Balance Sheet! You can read the site's full disclosure here.

This post is linked to Tuesday Garden Party at An Oregon Cottage.