Cozy Homemaker Journal–June 2026 Reflections
The best thing that happened in June was that Grampy and I celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary! Yep, thirty years ago, we were married at the courthouse and have since lived happily ever after! One of our daughters made a framed photo of us on our wedding day as a gift. We looked so young back then! We celebrated with a lunch out at our favorite little Mexican restaurant.
One of the nicest surprises this month was reaching 10,000 followers on Facebook. When I started sharing bits of homemaking, gardening, recipes, and everyday life, I never imagined so many people would stop by to visit!
Whether you’ve followed for years or just recently found The Budgeting Granny, thank you! I appreciate every comment, every share, and every little conversation we have along the way. You can join us here.
In the Kitchen
June was a month of pantry and freezer shopping, to use things we already had to make meals. I have frozen zucchini from last year, so I made zucchini bread to use it up. Grampy has been having it for his breakfast each day. We cooked a pork roast and stretched it into several meals: pork sandwiches, pork tacos, green chile, and pork salad (like chicken salad but with pork. It was really good!)
In the Garden
The garden has continued doing what gardens do in June—growing faster than I can keep up with it. The Flower Patch next to Shedna Mae was filled with blooms and the bees were busy. I am thrilled with the little rosebushes I planted in the front yard this spring. I’m envisioning more rosebushes all around our property!
I’ve spent plenty of mornings pulling weeds, so many that I’ve worn out my favorite pair of gardening gloves. After countless wheelbarrows of mulch, piles of rocks, weeds, compost, and general garden chaos, three fingers finally wore through on the right glove. I guess that means I have been a busy retired granny!
At Home
June has been one of those months where every evening ends with me looking out the window and saying, “They’re so pretty!”
Most of this month revolved around two little buildings in the backyard: Shedna Mae and her hardworking storage shed sister, Shedwina.
What sounds simple on paper—paint the sheds—turned into weeks of scraping, caulking, priming, climbing ladders, moving supplies, and wondering if we’d ever reach the end of the paint cans. And we haven’t. Yet. Extremely windy weather, hot days and a bit of knee and shoulder trouble have slowed us down, but we will continue!
Both sheds have been slowly transforming into cheerful little cottage buildings that make me smile every time I see them.
The funny thing about projects like this is that the actual painting is only a small part of the work. Most of the effort happens before the paint ever touches the wall. There were plenty of days when it felt like all we accomplished was filling cracks and preparing surfaces.
Still, progress is progress. You can follow my she shed makeover here.
I also made a new friend this month.
I was thrilled to discover that our local hardware store has a cat! Her name is JoJo, and during my many visits to buy more paint, we have become friends. During one visit, she climbed right into my arms, started purring, and proceeded to drool on my shoulder. She must have sensed that I am a crazy cat lady.
Speaking of animals, the yard continues to be supervised by an ever-changing committee of cats, dogs, birds, and grandchildren. Not always in that order.
Retirement Reflections
As retirement settles in, I’m finding my rhythm more each month. Mornings usually begin with tea, some writing, and a walk through the garden to see what’s blooming, what needs attention, and what new project has somehow appeared overnight.
There always seems to be a new project.
Looking Forward to July
Looking ahead to July, I suspect there will be more gardening, more shed progress, more thrifted treasures, and probably at least one project that turns out to be much bigger than expected.
☕ Pour yourself another cup of tea, and stay awhile.
If you enjoy simple homemaking, cottage gardening, and embracing the beauty of everyday life, I’d love to have you browse more posts in my Slow & Simple Living collection.
Until next time, happy homemaking!
