"can’t imagine doing without running water for 4 months!" It was . . . interesting. Fortunately, there's both an indoor pool, and a campground nearby that let us use the showers. And a neighbor let us fill jugs at his house. "You use green beans as dried beans? That’s a first! What do they taste like?" Dried beans are basically beans that have been left to get mature. So they just taste like beans to me. They're not as pretty and fun as, say, Vermont Cranberry Beans, and the flavor isn't as specific as most dried bean varieties, and also they're not as big so they don't shell quite as easily. But they're great for a lazy person :) "I guess you cook when you travel. The security check at the airport must be interesting with all that produce in your bag. You don't have a frying pan in there too? [g]" A fry pan -- lol! Well, on road trips I have been known to travel with a salad spinner and Cuisinart :) Always have to have a kitchen. Or someone else's home cooking. Really dislike restaurant food. Self seeded veggies are wonderful. And yes, the ones I mentioned come out good, even if not exactly true to seed, it all tastes good. (though they seem to be true, as well) If you'd have to pay for hay or straw it doesn't seem worth it. Maybe ask a couple neighbors if you can have their grass clippings and/or leaves? (those who don't use herbicides) It sounds like the next few years hold some exciting experimentation for you! You'll have to report back and tell us how it goes. I'd love to hear how you do with fall lettuce and greens if you try them this year.

Nice! Unsure on the echies but I think you've got all the others right. The flapjack will outgrow this space quite fast, at least mine did in my succulent dish :O

We're in Week 9 of no Kitchen and have only had a Temporary Sink in our Powder Room for one week now (last week Friday it was installed)--until then we had to use an upstairs bathroom for doing dishes. For the first 8 weeks we had no water at all on the first floor (PR is part of the remodel). Our layout, like others has the kitchen in the middle of the back of the house w/the FR & Garage on one side, DR on the other side, and the LR/Den/Upstairs in the front. To get to the FR from any part of the house, you MUST go through the kitchen (ditto for getting to the basement). Our Temporary Kitchen is located in the FR. We put up a set of metal shelves and stored the most commonly used items on those shelves (bread on top so the dogs couldn't get to it!) Our refrigerator & MW were moved into the FR and I purchased a one-burner hot plate and Toaster Oven (convection) that was big enough to bake a 12" square pizza. Our kitchen table was also moved into the FR and we put our measuring cups, spoons, etc. as well as some prep tools and glass casserole dishes on the back of the table, stored our smaller pots & pans in a box under the table, and in another box the rest of our prep tools....also under the table. I also used 2 of our TV tables b/w the wall & refrigerator to store paper plates, bowls, napkins and plastic cups & flatware. [BTW...if you have those rattan paper plate holders, get them out...they make eating off paper plates much easier!] We use mostly paper, plastic, and foil items (paper plates/bowls/napkins, plastic cups/flatware, and foil pans). While we use paper/plastic/foil for most things, cooking and serving are often done w/glass or metal pans/bowls. We purchased 2 inexpensive dishpans and use one to collect dirty dishes to take upstairs and later be washed in, and one to rinse out & bring back down the clean dishes. [We still use the dishpans, but now we can use them in the PR downstairs...it may not have a toilet, but at least it has a sink!] FR Access: We had a tile floor put down in the Foyer, PR, & Kitchen. To accommodate us, the "tile guy" put the floor down in phases so that we always had a path from the FR to the Foyer, at least. He was very understanding of the situation and it worked out very well (of course, it helped that he had plenty of time to do the floor since nothing else was going on at that time!) Now that work has restarted, the contractor moves the plastic out of the way in the Kitchen/Foyer/FR doorway so we can access the FR w/o going outside. We do, however, use the outside route while they're working now that the weather has gotten better. And yes, shoes/flip flops are required at all times...as I constantly have to remind our children!!! I cannot wait for our kitchen to be done!!!!

My friend and I run a Scrapbook Summit and this is our third year -- always on the first May weekend and falls on Nat'l SB Day. This year we have 107 scrappers meeting in the Berkshires for F/S/S at a great Inn. Always lots of fun and on Saturday it's pajama night!!! Becky