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Grab a glass of lemonade and settle in for a visit! Listen to stories designed to encourage, uplift, and help you Live a Simple Life with a Back Porch View. Find out what that means, and how to shift your own lifestyle. Then relax and enjoy while learning the different aspects of a Simple Life - from following your dreams and passions to handcrafting, cooking, tending to the home and garden, and more. And from time to time, there will even be a recipe and freebie or two!
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The Eye of the Storm: Finding Peace in Life's Chaos
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Even when you live a simple life there are times when you feel as if you are standing in the middle of a storm. Adding holidays to the mix can make it even more chaotic. It doesn’t have to be that way. Join me on the porch and find easy ways to help calm that storm. Send us a text Support the show The Farm Wife (website) Let's Visit! (email) Amazon…
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A comfortable faith comes from a place of trust, familiarity, and regular practice. Just as when you first begin getting to know someone new, your relationship goes through a bit of awkwardness and uncertainty. But once you spend more time with that person and begin to share experiences, the comfort level when you are around them increases. In this…
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Here in the south, and I imagine it’s the same in other parts of the world, we have a deep-seated connection to food. Whether it be meals served at home, packed in a basket to create a picnic, or cakes and cookies made for a bake sale, we love our food. And many of our traditions revolve around food. But there is one tradition that just makes it ev…
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As the air cools and the days grow shorter, we find ourselves in the midst of one of the coziest times of the year—fall. It’s a season that invites us to slow down, gather with loved ones, and enjoy the comfort that only this time of year brings. Listen in as we dive into the heart of that comfort: from the emotional and scientific pull of comfort …
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The changing of the seasons, whether natural or in life, is inevitable. It’s how we move through these seasons that make a difference in our lives. And we have a choice. We can fight the changes, kicking and screaming, or embrace them with a comfortable level of acceptance. Listen in as we talk about how to recognize the changes as they come, the b…
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We all have lessons to learn in life. Some are big and only happen once or twice in our lifetime. Some are pop quizzes which we never saw coming. And others are small, almost imperceptible, which happen as a learn as you go lesson. But some lessons come wrapped in unusual packaging with a unique delivery system. And not too long ago, I found myself…
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Make Your Simple Life Fun - Join a Group!
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It’s fairly easy to visit with a single friend from time to time, and occasionally a neighbor will drop by. But groups? I’m going to be honest – they are a little harder to come by. Whether they are steeped in the whirlwind of a hectic lifestyle, or comfortably settled in to living simply, most everyone is busy these days. It gets difficult to find…
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When you sand a piece of wood, you are taught to ‘sand with the grain’. If you sand across the grain, the grit of the sandpaper will leave grooves– like scratches or small cuts that are obvious in the finished project. When you sand ‘with the grain’, those scratches are less obvious, as they blend in with the natural grain of the wood. But sometime…
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We often think in tangible terms when we talk about living a simple life. Homemaking. Slowing down. Spending time with family, getting involved with our community, and developing our creative skills. But there are some things we can’t actually see or touch that make up a large portion of living a simple life. These are the intangible things we expe…
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How many times have you taken a look at all of the bits and pieces left over from other projects, and wondered what in the world you are going to do with it? These are often called ‘Remnants’. But don’t toss them out. Instead, get creative – you’re only limited by your imagination in all the ways these can be used for other fun projects! Send us a …
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Creativity is a wonderful thing to indulge in. You can be creative in the kitchen, craft room, yard, and in many other ways. But when you overindulge, it can create a very creative problem. Need help with creativity overload? You may find it here - (but then, again, you may just find you have a bigger problem…) Send us a text Support the show The F…
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Social Media. Cell phones. Emails. They all have their purpose when it comes to communication and stopping in for a quick visit. But they all have one thing in common – they are very impersonal. It may sound old fashioned, but there is just something special – and much more personal - about having and using a Calling Card. Listen in to discover wha…
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There are times when life just gets too heavy for us to shoulder the load. When that happens, it may help to sit down by the Brook Besore with David and his men, a story that can be found in I Samuel 30. You may be surprised as how a simple rest by a deep ravine can help. Send us a text Support the show The Farm Wife (website) Let's Visit! (email) …
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It may seem like a lazy, unproductive, and selfish thing to do, but there really is value in being still. Take a lesson from a little yellow bear and learn the value of the Art of Doing Nothing. Send us a text Support the show The Farm Wife (website) Let's Visit! (email) Amazon Shop Page Great Products by The Farm Wife: The Simple Life Workbook Sim…
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Dot-to-dot. Connect the dots. As a kid, you probably spent time pouring over a page with numbered dots scattered around in what seemed like a random method. If we started at Dot One, drew a line to Dot 2, and continued in the same method, eventually the lines we use to connect the dots would form a picture. But ‘connecting the dots’ isn’t just a pu…
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Holidays have a way of eliciting excitement in our hearts when we think about them. We can’t wait to catch up with family, dig into food we usually only get to enjoy once a year, and celebrate with all the festivities and fun. But there is nothing that can burst our excitement bubble quicker than thinking about how much it will cost. The needle tha…
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Don't Lose Your Marbles! In the heat of summer, we are often looking for fun ways to entertain ourselves and stay as cool as possible at the same time. We also want to take advantage of the season and host a gathering. But knowing what to do – other than a picnic and outside games and activities – can be tough. What we really want to do is escape t…
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Tempest in a Teapot: How to Avoid Heat-Related Attitudes
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The summer months bring out more than bathing suits, grills, and ice-cold Lemonade. It also brings hot and humid days, some of which break the 100-degree mark. With little rain fall to break the heat and humidity, life can become uncomfortable to almost unbearable. It isn’t surprising that the heat doesn’t just make us sweat – it can also bring out…
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Embrace the Freedom to Live a Simple Life
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This week our nation will be celebrating the 4th of July, which we all know is the birthdate of our country gaining freedom. Our forefathers created and signed the Declaration of Independence, which gave us political separation from Great Britain. By choosing to live a simple life, you have gotten your own brand of freedom – the separation from the…
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Mama taught all of us girls the basics of laundry. We learned how to use the washing machine, the proper way to hang clothes on the line, and when we were blessed with an automatic dryer, how to use it. Once everything was cleaned, she taught us how to iron, then fold items and put them away. And yes, she even taught us how to fold fitted sheets. F…
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Established in Washington in 1966, Reading is Fundamental (RIF) began when Margaret McNamara realized that students she was tutoring didn’t have ready access to books. Today, we have libraries, bookstores, eBooks, and even online libraries. Accessing books isn’t truly a big problem any longer, but finding time to read might be. Take a ‘page’ out of…
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Get Creative with Heat Busters: Ideas for Handmade Christmas Gifts
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The summer heat has a way of driving us indoors, but we struggle to find ways to escape the heat and still be productive. Summer is one of the best times to work on handmade Christmas gifts. Listen in and discover some great ideas on gifts you can make, and a simple tip on how to keep them all organized! Links: Psalm 91 Throw Embellished Bath Towel…
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It’s official. Summer has finally hit us between the eyes. The humidity may be more of a southern thing, but the heat affects all of us, at least to some extent. And it doesn’t just make us sweat. It can affect us physically, mentally, and emotionally. Whether we want to or not, we can’t avoid it, so we just need to learn how to handle it to the be…
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I hope you are ready for today’s conversation because I am going to take you back in time. I’m doing this to answer a question proposed to me recently. It had to do with the differences between a Simple Life ‘back then’, and a Simple Life now. The question seemed to clash with a belief that ‘we can never go back; we can only move forward’. To a poi…
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As much as we sometimes would like to withdraw 100% from society, in reality it isn’t practical or probable. As humans, one of our basic needs is to have contact with others – even if it is only one or two people at a time. Having neighbors and a community fills that need. It doesn’t mean we have to be surrounded by people every single day. A littl…
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Welcome back to the Porch! Help yourself to some tea cakes and lemonade and settle in for a few minutes. In fact, you showed up just in time to help me with a little project I’m working on. All I need for you to do is tell me – what is your favorite kind of cookie? (Just send me an email and let me know!) While I was in the kitchen baking those tea…
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Gardening as part of a Simple Life is more than just growing fresh food for your family. It is also finding a way to continue growing that food when money is tight or we find ourselves in the midst of floods, drought, or even food shortages. To do this, we need to take our gardens to the next level and learn how to save the seeds for the food we gr…
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If gardening is an art form, frugal garden decorating is the canvas! We all want healthy, beautiful gardens that delight the senses. But there should also be an element of fun tucked between the greenery. But when adding decorative elements to your garden, a shopping trip to the local gardening store may cause severe shock to your checkbook. Some o…
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Spring Flowers: How to Embrace Life with Beauty
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Spring is here, and with it comes a beautiful array of spring flowers. As you drive down the road, you see fields of wildflowers, or beautiful roses in someone’s yard. All that beauty can’t help but make you smile. If it makes you smile so broadly when driving, why not let that beautiful vision greet you each day in your own yard? Embracing life wi…
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Handcrafts are a beautiful way to express our love for creating, and sharing that love with others. But having to buy all the supplies can get expensive. One way to circumvent spending all that money is to supplement your love of handcrafts with things from nature. And that’s where a Craft gardens comes into play. Learn more about what to grow, how…
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Friendship Gardens - The Ultimate Forever Gift
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Flower gardens are a great way to add beauty to our yards and homes. But a Friendship Garden just seems to bloom better and more brightly. It’s my belief that these gardens are so beautiful because the fertilizer that makes them grow is love. If you are ready to start planting ‘Friendship’, listen in on how to get started growing the best garden an…
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Plan(t) It Better - Getting Your Garden Started
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One aspect many of us have included in our Simple Life is having a garden. Our goal is to provide food for our family, seasonings for the food we create, or even just being able to walk outside and gather a bouquet of fresh flowers to decorate our home. But as with any endeavor, we need to plan our garden, long before we dig the first hole. For tod…
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Springing forward is more than just moving our clocks up an hour. It is also about springing forward with a new attitude. Making an attitude adjustment can help you breathe deeper, feel healthier in both mind and body, and can bring a smile to your heart and face. It also acts as a source of encouragement, knowing that we can accomplish all those p…
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There are so many types of businesses you can do from home. This podcast is nowhere near exhaustive, but it can get you started in the right direction. Listen in to find out what home-based business is right for you. Send us a text Support the show The Farm Wife (website) Let's Visit! (email) Amazon Shop Page Great Products by The Farm Wife: The Si…
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Now that you’ve given working from home a lot of thought, done your research, and maybe have even dipped your toe in the water, it’s time to think about what comes next. This episode in the Home-Based Business series deals with tips on setting up your office, creating schedules, dealing with ‘expectations’ from others, and how to help make working …
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Have you ever dreamed about quitting your job and starting your own home-based business? Then grab some refreshments and settle in for this three-part series. Today’s episode covers the perks, the downsides, and gives you a general idea of what it takes to set up a home-based business. It also offers food for thought on what type of business, how t…
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Making your BIG Dream Work: Tips to Reduce the Debt
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You’ve had a week to think about your BIG dream of quitting your job to stay home. But as much as you try to manipulate them, the numbers still aren’t adding up. Don’t let this frustrate you – it’s to be expected. We have been manipulated to live a lifestyle of consumerism. We are told we can be beautiful, rich, happier, more fulfilled – but to do …
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Your Dream to become a Homemaker: How to Make the Numbers Work
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Lately, we’ve been hearing the catchphrase ‘When the BIG one hits’ quite a bit. What it refers to is the rumor of a ‘big’ storm, or the ‘big’ recession, or even the ‘big’ hit of an EMP, social collapse, or even war right here in our own country. We’ve all probably heard the rumors, used the phrase, and thought about what our future will look like i…
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The Benefits of an Accountability Partner
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Have you ever found yourself in a slump? Life is stale. Your creativity feels similar to a dry creek. There are things you want to do but can’t seem to find the motivation. If this is where you stand, it may be time to get an Accountability Partner. Often, having an Accountability Partner is something you would do from a professional standpoint. Ho…
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There are so many types of financial investments, but we rarely consider one of the most important investments you can make – and that is learning how to invest in yourself. We try our best to invest our time, money, and energy in our finances, homes, family, jobs, and other priorities wisely. What we neglect to remember is all of these things have…
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Have you heard about the time someone had the bright idea of importing Hippos into South Louisiana? The thought behind it was to use these mammoth beasts in part to help control water hyacinths which were taking over our swamps. But was it such a great idea? How many times have you had a ‘wonderful idea’ that you just knew would work? It’s one thin…
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Have you ever had this really great idea to do something, but as hard as you try, you can’t get past the first initial thought? As hard as you try, you just can’t ‘see’ it. And for many of us, we need to be able to ‘see’ what we want if we ever want to accomplish it. If you love the idea of living a Simple Life, or if you are in the process of lear…
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The Grass is Always Greener on the Side you Water
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There is just something about a garden that can soothe my soul quicker than almost anything else in the world. From breaking ground and starting seeds, to planting and then harvesting, I love the time I spend in the dirt. If you stop and think about it, there is a close comparison you can make between a garden and living a Simple Life. They both ne…
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No matter how you describe or define it, I love living a simple life. But for me, a more traditional simple life fits better with who I am. So, what’s the difference between the two? To be honest, there is very little difference between a ‘simple life’, and a ‘traditional simple life’. A simple life is one where you actively focus on slowing down, …
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It’s that time. We are now in a brand-new year, and are faced with either making, or starting on our New Year’s resolutions. In Episode 90, we talked about the feeling of being stalked by our resolutions. To boil it down, the word ‘resolution’ often feels as if it is a synonym for ‘duty’. If you’re like me, you have enough ‘duties’ to last you a li…
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A bright star in the East. Oh, how I often wish I could have been standing alongside the Magi when they looked up to see that beautiful sight. How I would love to have started walking, each step filled with the anticipation of coming closer and closer to the Christ child. Each year at Christmas, as I hear the story and listen to the songs that port…
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All too often during the time right before Christmas, we feel as if we are being stalked by the New Year approaching. Time is flying by. We look back and see that we didn’t accomplish that long list of resolutions we vowed to keep. There just wasn’t enough time, money, or energy. By February, five had been broken. By March, half of those that were …
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One of my favorite things to do is to read. It’s something my mom instilled and encouraged in me from a very young age. I enjoy reading so much, finding time to spend between the pages of a good book is actually one of the minor priorities I listed when mapping out my Simple Life plan. Several years ago, this love of the written word led me to star…
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“Giving up hope is for the hopeless.” – This is a quote by Lloyd Davis (played by Bruce Boxleitner), from the movie, Love’s Everlasting Courage. No matter how bad things get, there is still hope. It may be buried deep within us, but it’s there. We still have the ability to step away from the sheer mountain of things that threaten hopelessness to se…
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Our lives may be busy most of the year, but things seem to escalate during the holiday season. Between the extra shopping, baking, cleaning, and everything else on our list of things to do, our schedules are hectic. At some point, we just need a break. You probably already know this, but much of the holiday chaos is created by our own hands. We wan…
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