Common Sense Home Subscription Confirmed
Welcome to Common Sense Home, where we believe in going beyond “sustainability” to abundance. We live in amazing times with access to so much information it can be like drinking from a firehose.
How do you know who to trust?
We have lived on our northeast Wisconsin homestead for over 20 years, transforming an abandoned pasture into a thriving homestead. We’ve combined old and new to become more self-reliant, producing our own electricity and most of our food.
For instance, we have root cellar and use a clothesline, but also have solar electric and solar heat. We have gardens and orchards, but also use permaculture principles to boost productivity. Sometimes we use traditional food preservation techniques, like fermenting. sometimes we use modern techniques like freeze drying.
Modern media and social media like to push gloom and doom to keep us glued to our screens.
I say we need to fix the mess. We can make better choices for our food, our health, and our lives. Let’s learn and build together!
Subscriber Bonuses
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Common Sense Home Garden Planner
Access the garden planner PDF using the image above or download here.
Don’t Lose our Emails in Spam!
Please add the email “laurie at commonsensehome dot com” to your safe senders list. I use a bulk email service provider called “Aweber”, and some email services block all bulk emails, even when you want the email to be delivered. (aol.com in particular seems to be a problem.)
Find What You Need
The Homesteading Resources page lists some of my favorite bulk food suppliers, nurseries, preparedness supplies, online education programs and other references.
Remember, the menus at the top and bottom of the website link to index pages to help you find topics that interest you the most. You can also use the Search box.
We’re Here to Help
If you have a question, comment or a post request, please leave a comment here on the site. (Sometimes I miss social media comments.) Your feedback is very helpful for giving me ideas on what to publish next.
I will email at least once a week, sometimes more if there is something time sensitive.
If at some point you’d like to unsubscribe, there’s an unsubscribe link at the bottom of every email message. I will never sell or share your email address. If you haven’t already done it, please add the email “laurie@commonsensehome.com” to your safe senders list.
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The photo above is our backyard on a misty morning. I’ll be sharing snippets of country life each weekend, along with seasonal content and special subscriber offers. Our focus is doing what you can, where you are, with what you have.
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Dedicated to My Mom – “Never Buy Bread Again”
In 2017 I published my first print book, “Never Buy Bread Again – 20+ Homemade Bread Recipes“. It’s now available in spiral bound print or e-book format.
This book will help you bake amazing homemade bread, even if you’ve never baked before. Includes online baking tutorial and best bread storage tips.
Welcome!
Thank you so much for joining our online community, and I look forward to learning together with you. We live in amazing times, and it’s a wonderful gift to be able to blend old and new into into a better future for our loved ones, our communities and our world.
Laurie Neverman, Creator of Common Sense Home
Who We Are
I (Laurie) started blogging back in 2008. In 2012, we created the current website. Learn More About Laurie Neverman
My husband helps with preparedness and tech related articles. Our two sons have also been drafted into the family business, working on the homestead and the website.
Learn More About Our Homestead
If you have a question, comment or a post request, please leave a comment here on the site or reply to any of our emails. (Sometimes I miss comments on social media comments.) Your feedback is very helpful for giving me ideas on what to publish next.
Why I Created the Site
Over the years, a number of people have asked me why I started blogging. Back in 2008, our family went through a rough patch. My husband lost his job of 16 years, and the stress sent my health into a downward spiral and my weight spiraling up. I went to the doctor and was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis, but the meds he gave me made me feel worse instead of better.
Long story short, I decided to do what I could to be proactive about my health and providing for our family, doing my own research and figuring out what worked for us. I pulled out of depression, lost weight, and got things back under control.
After five years of working away from home, my husband found a job in the area and we were back together as a family full time. Of course, the only constant is change, and at the end of 2023, my husband’s local job ran its course. Now he’s starting a new venture, doing private consulting work. Visit Neverman Consulting for more information.
We are constantly told that only industrial agriculture can feed the world, or the only way to get rid of garden pests is with poison. Medical costs are skyrocketing, while access to care is getting more difficult in many areas. Disasters happen, and we’re supposed to wait for the government to “save us”, but we know they can’t even balance a budget.
I want a better future than this, and I hope you do, too.
I have been reading your site & have even posted a question. Your site & information are impressive & I even subscribed to it, which I don’t normally do!
Glad you have found the site useful.
I want to learn about organic ways of killing bugs I planted my garden up next to the chicken coop so I don’t want to use anything that would harm them do you have any suggestions for me .
Try https://commonsensehome.com/natural-pest-control-in-the-garden/
and https://commonsensehome.com/homemade-bug-spray/
Thank you for accepting me. What I have read thus far has been very interesting.
Welcome, Brenda.
Hi, thanks for making out time to be a blessing to the world, you’re healing the world with what you and your family are doing and I am so happy to be part of your online family from Nigeria.
I am a Moringa grower and I intend to have a great product with the Moringa Leaves. I want to know how I can infuse or make Moringa Tincture with MCT oil to help fight malnutrition in Africa and in my community
I haven’t worked with moringa because it’s a little too cold to grow it here, but maybe there are those in the moringa community who can help? I know it has become very popular in some areas.
I discovered your blog when I awoke during the early morning and couldn’t go back to sleep. I do need some assistance
with my pet cat, Birdette, Her vet diagnosed her with an upper respiratory infection. The infection got better , then Bird took a turn for the worse. She is a Devon Rex which is a relatively new breed developed from o single barn cat with a curly coat. The breed does not have a very strong immune system. Can you think of any thing natural that might benefit her? Corona virus has interfered with her vet’s office hours so I really need something to strengthen her til Her dr is available again ( he is trying to reschedule most patients so he can make house calls as I am recuperating from a stroke and transportation is difficult for me . Thanks loads . I am so interested in your work
Hi Addie.
Our cats have been fairly healthy overall, but I would think that a probiotic would work to boost a cat immune system just like it works for the human immune system.
They have lots of different pet probiotics on the market now, like this one, which is made in the USA with no fillers.
I’ve only skimmed through after a search on making canned goods brought up one of your posts. I’m am/was also an engineer, and this is what we are interested in, being more self reliant. I look forward to reading more of your insights.
Welcome, Ruth. There are over 700 articles on the site, and we keep working to add more and update the older ones as time allows. The search box at top works fairly well, and the menus at top and bottom of the site link to summary pages that list all the posts in specific categories. If there’s something you have a question about and can’t find, you can always shoot us an email, too. Knowing what readers are looking for helps to narrow down potential future posts topics.
I just wanted to say thank you for all the information you share with everyone. I’ve been using your Spaghetti Sauce Canning recipe for several years now and it is a big hit with my family. It is so rewarding to open a jar of it in the middle of winter when there is snow on the ground! Thank you and God bless!
Thank you for your kind words, and thank you for joining the newsletter. Now we get to visit every week.
We enjoy that sauce recipe, too. I’m waiting patiently for this year’s tomatoes to ripen (only enough for one batch of salsa so far), as we are down to the last few jars from last year’s harvest. I haven’t bought commercial sauce in so many years, I don’t even know what I would buy if I ran out.
I’m looking for anyone with freeze dryer soup recipes for a quick meal.
I’m excited about being a part of commonsensehome.com
Many different soups would work well for freeze drying. The only thing you want to avoid is large, unevenly size chunks. Large chunks can hold moisture in the center, so they don’t dry well. Otherwise, cream based soups, vegetable soups, cold soups – anything is fine.
Yes I just subscribed to your site only because I had cabbage worms in my broccoli I picked it and washed it I thought they were all gone but they weren’t a worm fell out on the floor so I went to clean it again with cold water and salt which didn’t help So eventually I just cut the broccoli heads into smaller bite pieces and pick the worms off one by one then I noticed you had a website it said to use vinegar and cold salt water and soak for 20minutes ps it’s my first time growing broccoli and cabbage the worms are destoring my cabbage an broccoli can you give me some advice please.
I prefer warm salt water for soaking with some agitation to help dislodge the worms.
In the garden, you can dust your plants with diatomaceous earth (DE) on a calm day. The cabbage worms are cut up by the sharp edges of the DE. Do not breathe DE. Another option is Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) spores, which are typically mixed with water and sprayed on the plants. The worms eat the Bt and die in a couple of days.
Both of these products will harm other insects, so be careful to keep them only on the cabbage crops.
Also – be sure your cabbage and broccoli are well fertilized. Stressed plants are more likely to suffer damage from worms. See 5 Tips to Grow Big Broccoli Heads for more broccoli growing tips.
Hi ! Laurie I am from Pakistan though very remote but next to you by modern communications.I am new here and want to know how to grow my dandlion plant in a pot ? Else is ok …Wish u all to stay blessed.Amine.
It should be similar to growing carrots – https://commonsensehome.com/growing-carrots/
Thank you for adding me, I found your site because I was looking for rhubarb recipes on Pinterest and your rhubarb pudding looks so good, going to make it in the next few days.
Welcome, Lynne, and enjoy your rhubarb.
Thanks for the add…we need a solution to rid ourselves of mosquitos here in AZ…we moved from MN…did they follow us? We have a small furry love so we want to me sure she is safe from any repellents we apply to our outdoor living area. Frustrated in AZ! Thanks in advance!
Sharon
Hi Sharon. You can find info on mosquito control here – https://commonsensehome.com/natural-mosquito-repellents/
And a dog safe pest repellent here – https://commonsensehome.com/natural-tick-repellents/
For cats, no essential oils, but a strong infusion of catnip rubbed over their fur may help. They may react to it themselves for a short time, but then the effects for kitty wear off and they are still protected from mosquitoes.
Laurie, This time of the year I’m seeing all manner of posts about Dandelions and Violets.
Both have been in bloom for several days; some of the dandelions have already gone to seed. My question is: have they lost their potency? Or are they OK as long as they are still intact?
Recipes take lots of either, I’d hate to do the work, then find the results to be not so great.
Which potency are you asking about and for what use?
If there are still blossoms, even though some have gone to seed, the remaining blossoms are still good to use. (The seeds are edible, too, but take a long time to harvest.)
Roots are best harvested in fall for optimum medicinal quality, in early spring before bloom for eating.
Leaves are best for eating before the bloom. After bloom they will be more bitter, but can still be used.
I was wondering if you can plant Spinach, in be tween the rows of Strawberry .???
You can put annual crops in a perennial bed. Just make sure that you can reach what you need to reach for harvest without anything getting trampled.
Thank You for adding me. Looking forward to learning
Welcome, Connie!
I’m a brand new subscriber and really look forward to reading the emails. I lived on 18 acres off the Appomattox River when my girls were babies. I baked bread weekly, sewed many of their clothes and crafted their toys when they were young. I used only cloth diapers to lessen our 0lastics footprint on the landfill when they were young. Thanks for the invite! I’m excited to belong!
That sounds like a lovely spot. Welcome.
In your Never Fail Bread Recipe you do not say how many loaves of bread it makes or how many rolls. Could you tell me how many it does make. Thank you
Sorry about any confusion. It depends who is making the bread or rolls and what size they choose to make them. A single batch makes one generous 9×5 loaf, or two smaller loaves. We usually double it and make three mid-sized loaves. The buns are even more variable. When we make a double batch of dough, I often pull out enough for one loaf, and then fill a baking sheet with dinner rolls, which would be around 35 rolls (5 across, 7 long). So a single batch should make around 20 dinner rolls. When making sandwich buns, I aim for a dozen per batch.
Absolutely look forward up receiving your email each week. Really appreciate the time and effort you put into it!!
Thank you, Charity.
Hi Laurie,
Even though I very seldom get to the emails you write until around 1 in the morning, I absolutely love all the time and information you put in and give to us all. I am not one to stop and write back letting others know how helpful they are and I am very thankful that you asked, because now I realize that there are probably a lot of people like you who wonder if what they are doing is helpful. This opens my eyes to the need to let everyone who is helpful how grateful and thankful you are. And Thank You for the new awareness of giving feed back to everyone who gives of themselves to share what they have learn.
Thank You,
Aho-OM
Thank you, Mary. Some folks are more interactive, emailing or leaving comments on the site, but many are quiet readers.
yep, lurkers, not meant mean, so thought of where it would stand for in my case: Loving U, Reading (for) Knowledge, Extreme RascalS
Ah – took me a minute to catch the acronym. Nice to hear from you.
My apologies some major life changes have happened and my focus had changed for a while but I am still interested in learning.
No need to apologize, I completely understand. Thanks for checking in.
Thx for accepting me to your website
Welcome, Sandi.
I hope everything has worked out for you. I ,myself have had major life changes. Take care
Emily
Dear Laurie,
We never failed to open and read any of the emails you sent us. I did not write back only because I imagined you would be too busy to read or reply all messages from all the people who are interested in your work. Recently we lost 2 adult ducks and now another looks sick. He looks sad, refuses to eat, to mate, or to make the usual sounds. So we isolated him from others. I don’t know if you received the recipe I sent you about how to make non-alcoholic beer. Please be sure that we love what you write and we never want to unsubscribe.