It’s very fulfilling to walk right out into our Backyard Oasis and randomly pick things to eat. This evening my Husband and I were prepping a portion of the walkway for an upgrade and we decided to gather a few herbs and vegetables for dinner before it got too dark. It was a scorcher of a day and we were happy to call it a night. After we tallied up all that we harvested, we estimate that we saved ourselves around $40 at the grocery store.
We’ve harvested a variety of things from our garden a few times already this summer, so I’d be confident in saying that we’ve already gotten a full return on what we paid to grow all of our vegetables: seeds, nutrients, dirt, TLC, etc.
Now, I get to enjoy watching my Husband mosey himself from plant to plant and pick whatever he likes! All I do is wait until he’s finished gathering and then I take it inside, rinse it and cook it up nice and tasty for him.
A simple dinner, where all of the herbs and veggies come straight from backyard to table. It’s healthy in that we know exactly where our produce is coming from and it was grown using sustainably sound gardening practices. It also makes us feel proactive in regards to our finances because we spend a lot less on fresh vegetables and herbs when we shop for groceries. We also just like to garden so we don’t mind tending to yardwork. It’s challenging and relaxing at the same time and there aren’t many things that have that effect on us. Gardening also offers an outlet for a wide variety of creative art mediums. From making our own planters to cooking up our special homemade deodorant, balanced living is what we strive for and we’re encouraged to do-it-ourselves. Each season we learn better ways to do just that and we’re grateful.
Larger okra is usually too tough, so we let those dry for next year’s seeds. 
COWPEAS! One of my most favorite vegetables to grow. 
Growing our own herbs and vegetables has become second nature and it would be hard to live any other way at this point. We often get asked what’s our secret to growing and actually producing a yield and each time we have to emphasize that’s it’s all about learning. It also takes a lot of patience and practice to get to a point where you consistently produce each season. My Husband and I are always researching to find the latest and greatest, best gardening practices that we can incorporate to enhance areas that need strengthening.
After we research we put it into practice. For example: we always wanted to learn about canning. Well, now we’re excited to have had the opportunity to take a deeper dive this summer, canning and practicing some of the methods we learned over the winter. There’s so much to learn about canning and that deserves a post in itself!
Overall, we’re grateful to have this balance in our day-to-day. But I have to admit that backyard to table living takes us on many unexpected adventures sometimes. The entire process is certainly a wonderful journey though.