With the cost of living going up, it feels like every little bit helps right now. Groceries, fuel, bills… it all adds up.
Something I’ve been thinking about lately is how valuable it is to know how to make something, not just buy it.
For me, that started when I was a kid...
I was always creating things — photo frames, dried flower arrangements and knick knacks. My parents would take me to the flea markets and I’d sell them there. I didn’t think much of it at the time, I just loved making things… but looking back, that’s where it all started.
As I got older, that turned into sewing. I’d spend my lunch breaks at school making children’s clothes, which I'd sell at markets under the name Little Monkeys. I even opened a shop for a while, but once I had kids, I moved back to working from home.
Creating, making, and finding ways to earn from it has always just been part of my life. Now I see the same thing in my kids.
We homeschool, and over the years they’ve set up more little businesses than I can count. When we lived in town, they’d often set up a stall outside the house — sometimes I didn’t even know what they were selling until I saw it happening.
They’ve sold:
• Baking
• Old toys
• Hand-painted cards
• Scrunchies
• Digital art
• Fruit (whatever they could get their hands on — avocados included!)
One time they even sold paper planes. I remember feeling so embarrassed… but they came inside so proud because they’d actually made sales. We lived in an awesome neighborhood, people were so kind and supportive. I think they liked to see kids willing to earn their own pocket money and give anything a go.
One of my favourite stories is my son selling sheep manure. His dad works on a farm, so he’d go along, bag it up, and sell it. I remember one of the neighbors ordered quite a few bags, so him and his sisters were loading up the wheel barrow with bags and delivering them. He ended up making enough money to buy himself a little shed — which now holds his lawnmowers for his lawn mowing business.
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That’s the thing… these little ideas often grow into something more.
Now we run a small lawn mowing and gardening business together as a family. My husband works full-time, but helps where he can. The kids are involved, learning real, practical skills — showing up, working hard, dealing with people, earning their own money.
We’ve also sold things like firewood, sourdough, cookies… whatever we can do with the resources we have on hand.
. 
And that’s what I love most about it. It’s not about building some big business. It’s about being willing to try, to work, and to create something from what you have.
In a world where everything is digital and convenient, I think there’s something really valuable in knowing you can fall back on practical skills — whether that’s baking, sewing, gardening, or starting a small service.
That’s really where Our Backyard Collective came from.
It used to be Botanicals for Calm, and I still love oils and low-tox living — that’s a big part of our life. But I wanted a space that reflected more of what we actually do day-to-day.
It’s a place where you can buy and read about:
• Handmade clothes and other things we make
• We share what the kids are working on
• Our little family projects and businesses
• And all the small ways we’re trying to make things work
Nothing fancy. Just real life.
If there’s one thing I’d encourage, especially right now, it’s this:
Start small.
Use what you have.
Let your kids try things (even if it feels a bit embarrassing sometimes).
You never know what might grow from it.
We'd love to hear from you. Are there any budding entrepreneurs in your family? What are they working on at the moment?
Leave a comment below☺️
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