More Self-sufficient?

Recently, I have felt that I should learn to be more self-sufficient. Times are tough and we are always called by God to be good stewards of all He gives us. This year my garden is doing so much better. I am learning little by little how to grow things successfully. I harvested my first green beans and my first pea pod yesterday. My tomatoes have gone wild and I should have tons of ripe ones within the week. My children and I went on a bike ride today and decided to drive the truck back to a house that had cut down 2 trees. I wanted to cut some of the smaller branches to use as support for my beans and peas. It worked well and it was free.

Another idea my husband and I have been working on for a while is saving rain water to use in the garden during the summer. We have had the containers to catch the water for a while, but that was as far as it went. Well this weekend we decided it was time. We bought the stuff and I finished them today. I am so proud. Now it won't rain. We will have drought waiting to use our new rain barrels. LOL

This is our big barrel. I just cut off the downspout with a hacksaw and attached a plastic diverter to it with screws. Then I put the plastic diverter into the hole on the top. This one comes with an spigot. I just have to figure out how to attach a garden hose to it.This one is actually 2 plastic barrels attached with a pvc pipe. I used a hole saw to cut a hole in the top of both barrels and insert the pvc pipe. I then caulked around both for a good seal.The water will come down the downspout, into the plastic diverter and into the first barrel. When that barrel is full it will overflow into the second barrel. When the second barrel is full it will overflow into the yard. We will be elevating both barrels so gravity will help empty them easier.I also used a paddel bit to drill a hole for the spigots in the barrels. Teflon tape will create a seal around those to keep the water in. All I have to do is attach the hose and turn on the spigot. Free water.Finally, I finished my swing. It is not in its final spot in the yard, but it is finished. The next thing is to figure out where to put it. Then we will buy a section of cattle fencing and create an arch over it. On that we will grow some sort of vine. It will be awesome when it is done. I'll keep you posted.