• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer
Melissa K. Norris

Melissa K. Norris

5th-generation homesteader. Helping modern women live from scratch.

Log In
  • Start Here
  • Podcast
  • Articles
    • Natural Medicine Cabinet
    • Recipes
    • Food Preservation
    • Gardening
    • Homestead-Life
    • Canning Recipes
  • Shop
    • Books
    • Classes
    • General Store
  • Academy
  • Log In
  • Start Here
  • Podcast
  • Articles
    • Natural Medicine Cabinet
    • Recipes
    • Food Preservation
    • Gardening
    • Homestead-Life
    • Canning Recipes
  • Shop
    • Books
    • Classes
    • General Store
  • Academy
  • Log In

Anastasia Sakawsky

My name is Anna and I'm a modern homesteader. I began homesteading a few
years ago when I still lived in a condo in the city. It changed my life! I
now live on just over an acre and am following my dreams of living a
simpler, more sustainable and self-sufficient life. I love to help and
inspire others to do the same & prove that the simple life doesn't have to
be complicated!

A woman cutting evergreen branches with snips.

Christmas Stovetop Potpourri

Read moreChristmas Stovetop Potpourri
two canned jars of cherries. one opened with a spoon in it, and four cherries - all on a wooden surface

Chocolate Cherry Sauce Recipe (+Canning Instructions)

Read moreChocolate Cherry Sauce Recipe (+Canning Instructions)

How to Grow An Herbal Tea Garden At Home + Favorite Herbal Tea Blend Recipes

Read moreHow to Grow An Herbal Tea Garden At Home + Favorite Herbal Tea Blend Recipes
Image of an amber spray bottle and a quart Mason Jar filled with homemade cleaners against a white tile backdrop. A bottle of essential oil and a fresh lemon sit to the side. Text overlay says, "5 Homemade Natural Cleaner Recipes".

5 Homemade Natural Cleaner Recipes - DIY Cleaners that Work

Read more5 Homemade Natural Cleaner Recipes - DIY Cleaners that Work

10 Things Our Grandparents Reused During the Great Depression

Read more10 Things Our Grandparents Reused During the Great Depression

Homemade Cranberry Sauce + Canning Instructions

Read moreHomemade Cranberry Sauce + Canning Instructions
Image of three 8 ounce Mason Jars filled with spicy peach jam, stacked in a pyramid, and sitting on a whitewashed table. Placed in front of the jars is an additional opened 8 ounce Mason Jar filled with spicy peach jam with a spoon for serving. Text overlay say

Spicy Peach Jam Recipe Low Sugar and No Pectin

Read moreSpicy Peach Jam Recipe Low Sugar and No Pectin

Mini Cherry Pies Baked in a Muffin Tin

Read moreMini Cherry Pies Baked in a Muffin Tin

Mafé: Traditional West African Peanut Sauce & Rice Recipe

Read moreMafé: Traditional West African Peanut Sauce & Rice Recipe
A metal container with lavender growing inside.

Container Gardening for Vegetables- Everything You Need to Know

Read moreContainer Gardening for Vegetables- Everything You Need to Know

13 Steps to the Simple Life Your Great-Grandparents Knew

Read more13 Steps to the Simple Life Your Great-Grandparents Knew

How to Make Pierogies- Traditional Ukrainian Perogi Recipe

Read moreHow to Make Pierogies- Traditional Ukrainian Perogi Recipe
homemade soy candle in jar on table with blanket and pine cones

How to Make Soy Candles at Home with Essential Oils

Read moreHow to Make Soy Candles at Home with Essential Oils

Plum Bun Recipe (Baba's recipe from Circa 1910)

Read morePlum Bun Recipe (Baba's recipe from Circa 1910)
A woman in the kitchen with jars of home canned food.

Howdy, I'm Melissa!

I’m so glad you're here. This is the place for all of us who loved Little House when we were young and thought Laura was our best friend. It's where we grow dinner in the backyard and think everything looks and tastes better when it comes from a Mason jar. Here, you'll find my favorite from-scratch recipes, herbal remedies and tutorials, and all my gardening tips from my 20+ years of growing and raising our own food.

More About Melissa
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • Pinterest

My Most Popular Posts

Soft Sourdough Sandwich Bread (Beginner Friendly Recipe)

A fork and knife carving a whole roasted chicken.

Oven-Roasted Chicken Recipe | Crispy Skin & Juicy Whole Chicken  

A stack of homemade graham crackers on a plate.

Easy Homemade Graham Crackers

Peach cobbler served on a plate with vanilla ice cream on top.

Healthy Peach Cobbler

Close up shot of a double chocolate zucchini muffin.

Bakery Style Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

A stack of sourdough tortillas on a towel lined counter.

Easy Sourdough Tortillas (Soft and Flexible)

Plated by Season: Home‑Cooked. Home‑Grown. On Your Table in 30 Minutes or Less.

75+ seasonal, from‑scratch recipes + a monthly harvest chart. Real meals. Minimal fuss.

Grab Your Copy ($20, Free Shipping)

Summer Preserving Recipes

Three jars of strawberry jam hot out of the canner.

Strawberry Jam Without Pectin (Low Sugar Recipe)

A jar of fermented pickles sitting on an outdoor table.

Fermented Pickles Recipe|Easy Old-Fashioned Salt Brine Pickles

Jars of blueberry jam with a jar of yogurt topped with blueberry jam.

Blueberry Jam Recipe Without Pectin (+ Low-Sugar)

placing dill in mason jar crunchy dill pickles on table

Best Homemade Pickles Recipe (Garlic Dill Pickles)

An opened jar of cherry jam with a spoonful.

Cherry Jam Recipe Without Pectin and Low Sugar

Jars of mustard pickles sitting on a counter.

Homemade Mustard Pickles (+ Canning Instructions)

Sidebar


Melissa K. Norris

Follow me:

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • YouTube
  • About Melissa K. Norris — Modern Homesteading ExpertStart Here
  • Classes
  • Academy
  • Contact
  • Log In

Articles

  • Gardening
  • Homesteading
  • Recipes
  • Lifestyle
  • DIY

Podcast

Summer Meal Planning Made Easy (Quick & Easy Summer Meals)

Healing Plants of the Bible: 16 Biblical Herbs and Their Traditional Uses

Why So Many People Feel Called to Homesteading

What Grows Best in a Pacific Northwest Vegetable Garden?

Books

  • Everything Worth Preserving
  • The Family Garden Planner
  • Handmade
  • The Made from Scratch Life
  • The Family Garden Plan

Education

  • Organic Gardening Workshop
  • Home Fruit Preservative Canning e-course
  • Home Canning With Confidence
  • Homemade Bread & Baking Class
  • Natural Homemade Bath and Beauty
  • Pioneering Today Academy


© 2026 · Melissa K. Norris Pioneering Today LLC

  • Privacy Policy
  • Affiliate Disclaimer
  • Terms of Use
  • Accessibility

Melissa K. Norris and Pioneering Today LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Privacy Manager