Lovely Links: "While We're Busy DIY-ing" Edition

Things have been pretty busy around here.

My husband got a bonus at work (woohoo!), so we decided to finally get rid of all the linoleum in our house and replace it with tile.  My brother, who happens to be an up-and-coming contractor, did an awesome job.  Since we had to pull everything out of the bathrooms (If you look at the bottom of the picture at the left, you'll see that there's a toilet in my bedroom. Nice.) , we decided to replace the old sink/counter ensembles in there. And the mirrors. And the light fixtures. And since the walls were bare and the floors were empty, why not paint the rooms while we're at it?  So, yeah, like I said, things have been pretty busy around here.

This all explains the lack of posting. Although my brother did the tile work (though, as you can see in the picture, my husband and son helped with the demo) and my husband is doing the rest of the bathroom renovations (not that I'm lazy -- there's just not a lot of handiwork to do when you're seven months pregnant), I've been busy doing my part. The upstairs literally looks like there's been some kind of earthquake or something. Cleaning and organizing the mess is no easy feat. So, until my house is back in order and my routine gets back to usual, here are some great frugal/homemaking/interesting posts to keep you reading until I return.

11 Weird Things to Do in 2011 - Dave Ramsey
You know, weird things like meal planning and saying no.  Basically, common sense that just isn't so common these days.

Toasted Almond Granola - Joy the Baker
The ingredients aren't fancy or anything. It wouldn't cost too much to make. And it looks so good!

9 Ways to Prepare for Food Inflation - Frugal Dad
Not the cheeriest of subjects, but I'm sorry to say that it's coming.  Forecasters are saying that food inflation will hit meat, cereal, dairy, and sugar especially hard in the first few months of 2011.  It's a good time to re-evaluate your shopping habits, food storage, and budgeting.

Home Canning in the Winter Months: A Round-Up - Simple Bites
I've never given much -- okay, any -- thought to wintertime canning. I've always just associated canning with late summer and early autumn. But the author of this post brings up a great point -- you can be a little more leisurely about canning when you don't have all the pressure of getting it done like you do when everything's fresh out of the garden and farmer's markets. I'd add the fact that being in a hot kitchen in the wintertime is preferable than being in one in August. Just sayin'.  Anyway, she has some great links to winter canning recipes -- I'm contemplating making and canning this recipe for pink grapefruit & pomegranate marmalade from another post from Simple Bites.

How to Begin a New Year - A Holy Experience
It may be half-way into January and maybe you've already broken some of your resolutions (*raising hand*), but this post is still worth checking out. Nothing parsimonious at this link -- just a beautiful post by Ann Voskamp. Her site always instills a sense of peace and purpose in me when I read. Love it.