The Practice Homestead

  Instagram @theladymid I hate leftovers. Yeah, yeah, there's just something so anticlimactic about popping a container and microwaving the sad remnants of yesterday's dinner. However, I love leftover magic . Taking bits and bites of the left-over, the sad, and the forgotten and turning them into something delicious just makes me feel like a kitchen witch of the most benevolent variety.  This, for example, was last night's supper, a twist on beans and toast. The main cast members: Leftover Beans  leftover stuffing (not from the same night as the beans) the Heels of the bread half a shallot the last, sad, wilted stick of celery The same night I packed up my leftover navy beans, I set them up in a marinade of olive oil, with some cilantro, salt, pepper, and the finely chopped celery and shallot. Side note: you'd be surprised how much adding 'half of this' or 'the last of that' really can bulk up what looks to be a meager amount of food!  I just used what I...

In the beginning, life was... not so simple. Hi, my name is MaeMae. I'm 35 and live in the suburbs. As for many people, 2020... like, what even was 2020? dumpster fire? tragedy of epic proportions? I got divorced right before the pandemic hit, so I found myself living alone and trying to make the best of my shattered emotional life. I was very, very lucky. I did not lose my job, and though I got sick, I got better again. In many ways, 2020 taught me how to reorient myself. There were a LOT of sad, scary, bad things that happened, but also some really great ones. Those things are the ones I want to focus on. I purchased my first home (12 years after entering the workforce) in April, I met Mr.H in July, and I learned how to have a healthier life balance.  Two of my Buff Orpington girls, Betty and Bitty Living on my own allowed me to explore things that were previously forbidden to me (not going to get into that) and really start to develop the kind of life I was proud of living. I ha...