The One with a (Hopefully) Green Thumb

I do not enjoy yard work. I have never been a gardener. Pulling weeds is basically equivalent with torture. Getting dirt under my fingernails (what little, short, stubby fingernails I have) is gross. I don't like bug bites or worms or bees. I have serious allergies to pollen. Sweating in the sun while working with a shovel and getting callouses on my palms is not my cup of tea. I have rarely had success in keeping plants alive. 

But this past weekend I put all that aside and got to work. We live in a rented house, you see, and while the landlord takes care of the mowing, the lawn maintenance stops there. Our street is full of rented homes, leaving much of the sights rather sore on the eyes.

Despite my dislike of yard work and my lack of a green thumb, I have been slowly planning an attack on my curb-appeal-lacking yard. I purchased new gardening gloves, borrowed straight edge shovels, bought mulch, potting soil, seeds, and pots.

Friday afternoon I used my little hand trowel and spade to create a new, small flower garden with zinnia seeds and to edge around an existing flowering bush. (That was hard, long work.)



Saturday I found terracotta pots at a garage sale and paid $2.00 for 12. I used that borrowed shovel and other edging equipment and when to town on the sidewalks leading up to our house. I LOVE STRAIGHT LINES. (Betcha never would have guessed that. HA.) Again, hard, long work.

I brilliantly came up with a place to transfer all of the remnants of dirt and grass from the edging project--the 2 foot wide-1 foot deep sink hole in the front strip of yard along the road. I kept piling it on, stomping it down, and adding layer after layer of dirt and grass (and yes, even weeds.)



On Sunday, I edged along the main sidewalk in front of our house and finished off the sink-hole-covering project. It was like laying turf.



Monday I potted more herbs and vegetables--cilantro, basil, snow peas, jalapenos, cherry tomatoes, parsley, dill. Now I'm just going to have to figure out what to do with all of the seedlings. I'd like to keep them contained in pots, but I hate the thought of getting rid of the other little plants in the thinning process.




Monday evening, after dinner with friends, I headed to the back yard and dug up "forgotten" soil, tilling it by hand, and planted sunflower seeds and more zinnias. *crossing my fingers and hoping they grow. Filling the front corner of our back yard (visible from the road) with 10 foot sunflowers will seriously brighten the neighborhood.

And today, I scored the window box/valence pot I was hoping for--at my favorite store, Aldi! For $6.99 I found this lovely wrought iron basket with hooks hang it from the front railing. AND THEN, at Walmart, I came across a huge hanging pot of petunias on sale for...get this...$3.50! It was definitely a little sad, but I'm hoping I can revive it. I separated the four petunia plants from the pot and transplanted them to their new valence box. Even as unhealthy the as the flowers are, it brightens the house up immensely. I'm so thrilled.

...The work in progress product...
waiting for the flowers seeds to grow and the front tree and bushes to blossom and other working-bee brainstorms to occur.

The One with One Gift Idea

Just a week before Christmas I came up with (what I think to be) a brilliant gift idea. Homemade. Personalized. Keepsake. Creative. Unique. All the marks of a great gift.

I set to work on my GIMP editing software and came up with four 8x10 inch prints for four of my favorite kids.  I choose fonts and colors specifically for each child, clicked "save," and uploaded them to Walmart.com. Within an hour, I received an email that my prints were ready for pickup! I bought frames right then and there and VOILA! Personalized wall hangings for each child's bedroom. 

I was thrilled to hear their exclamations and see their expressions as they each opened their gifts! I wasn't sure how much a 2, 4, 7, and 9 year old could appreciate such artwork, but they all seemed to love them. :D 

See Ashlyn's face?! 

The only snafu in this whole process? Picking up the photos from the photo department. The woman looked through my four prints and then looked up at my suspiciously. She didn't believe I had created them myself. I wasn't sure how to convince her, but she eventually had me sign a copywrite release and let me go. *whew* (I guess that's sort of a compliment--that they looked professional.) 

Merry Christmas, L kids! We LOVE you!

Did YOU do any homemade gifts this year? 

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The One with the First of the Canning

I have been trying so many new things this week. One of which I will share with you here. 

You're welcome.  

On Monday, the hottest day of the newly-arrived fall season, Sheryl and decided to try canning tomatoes. Her neighbor had given her baskets upon baskets of tomatoes leftover from his garden, and we decided to preserve them for future use. We gathered those beautiful mason jars from new boxes and dusty, dirty, spider-filled boxes (those were mine. thank you, basement.) We washed and sanitized all of the jars, filled the stove with four large pots with various purposes and went to work-- washing tomatoes, chopping off the stems, boiling them, shocking them in cold water to loosen the skins, peeling them (not always as easy as it should have been), breaking them up (especially fun to do with your hands--clean hands, of course), simmering them for another however-many-minutes-until-we-thought-they-were-done, transferring them to the jars (with those handy-dandy wide-mouth funnel), and then the actual canning. 

Two days later, we tried a similar process with cooked salsa and additional canned tomatoes. The second time around we had a much better rhythm, but man, canning is quite a lot of work. I'm so glad I didn't attempt it completely on my own for the first time. I probably would have given up. But working alongside a friend, filling the time with good conversation, makes the time together so sweet and very productive!

 I am thankful! 

What about this canning business? Do you have a lot of experience? Any tips to offer us?

The One with the True Haggler

Tonight my mom called. We chit-chatted for a while and just before hanging up, I remembered a story from last weekend that I just had to tell her. By the end of my re-telling, we worth both cracking up with laughter, just about dying over the ridiculousness of the story I had just told. 

The story you are about to read is true. None of the details have been altered in any way.

This past Saturday, as I got back from my long-ish run (5 miles in 40 minutes thankyouverymuch. woo!), I decided my "cool down" would be walking with Kevin to the Rummage Sale at the Knights of Columbus hall just around the corner. This would kill four birds with one stone. 

1. get first dibs at the sale.

2. cool down from my run. 

3. go for a walk with my husband. 

4. spend time with my husband. 

Much to my glee, he agreed! And off we went. 

When we arrived, I was a bit confused and kind of bummed. This wasn't a rummage sale at the Knights of Columbus. This was a the-Knights-of-Columbus-need-to-sell-all-their-old-junk-because-they-sold-their-building-sale. I took a courtesy look around. You know the type. "Yeah, I don't really see any way I'll find something worth buying here, but because I'm here, I might as well look around and pretend to be interested." 

We made our way into the bar area of the hall and found boxes and boxes of glassware. There were these adorable little glasses I wanted to get, but Kevin quickly informed me they were shot glasses, so I moved on. (I'm naive, what can I say.) But then, my husband, who has a teensy addiction to glass ware and always seem to find a glass he just has to have, found a box of 96 drinking glasses. Sure, they're probably beer glasses, but they are the "regular" height of a water glass, and have a uniquely small diameter, and a sweet frosted look. Kevin convinced me to buy some of them with this argument-- "they're so compact, lots more glasses can fit in our cupboards this way." True. And he of course mentioned how awkward it is to drink out of our square-ish glasses. (He and my mom just get totally thrown off and don't seem to know how to drink out of them--do you drink from a corner or an edge? So funny.)

Anyways, I conceded and we filled a box with 16 glasses. Yes, 16. 

I then set out to choose a price. Glasses are cheap at garage sales. And abundant. Plus, I can buy new glasses at Walmart for very little money. 

$1.00.

I decided I wanted to give the guy one dollar. 

With that in mind, I approached the older gentleman at checkout counter. He asked another guy, "Hey, how much do you want for these."

"Five dollars." 

"Five dollars?" I reply. "I'll give you a dollar for them. Glasses are cheap." 

"Not those, they aren't," the man replied. "Those are worth $5.00."

"I'm sorry, but I won't give you any more than two," I said, standing firm. "I can't get glasses almost that cheap brand new. And besides you have a box of 96 of them back there."

But the guy wouldn't budge. 

Another gentleman approached us and offered $3.00. 

"Nope," I said, "I'm not going any higher than two dollars." 

(Yeah, this is for real, folks.) 

They turned me down, so I sent Kevin to return the glasses to their collection. 

(I've gotta give my husband some mad brownie points for this too. He never took control of the situation. He knows I'm hardcore about garage sales, and he let me handle it. Thanks, babe.) 

While I was waiting for his return, the only lady working with this rummage sale was standing in my vicinity. She had tried to talk the guys down in their price, but those men were certain their glasses were worth more. 

At that moment, she leaned over and said, "You can have them for two. I'll go get him." (him, being my husband.) 

VIC-TOR-Y!

Kevin was totally stoked to get his box of awesome glasses. I, on the other hand, was totally irritated that I had to spend a whole extra dollar to buy him his glasses. (And no, I'm not joking. I was actually irritated.)

Now, a week later, I'm happy. The glasses are super cute. And he was right--many more glasses can fit in my cupboard this way. And I don't regret that extra dollar one bit.

Anyone else out there a haggler?!  Or am I crazy and alone on this one? 

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The One with Organized Baking

Sometimes, I just need to organize. 

It's amazing how cluttered one's drawers and cupboards and hiding spaces can become over many months. Though most people would have probably still identified my baking cupboard as "organized" I knew, deep down, it needed some serious attention. 

I have accumulated a massive amount of baking mix-ins (mostly chocolate)--semi sweet chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, unsweetened baker's chocolate chips, mint and chocolate chips, Hershey's kisses, toffee brickle bits, sweetened flaked coconut, candied ginger, raisins, walnuts, pecans, almonds, and more. 

When I see a sale, I stock up. For instance, I may or may not have 4 jars of molasses. Yes, I love molasses cookies. Yes, I was baking them non-stop over the winter. Yes, they will get used eventually. Yes, each bottle was 8 cents per ounce cheaper than the other varieties. No, you may NOT make fun of me. I'll know you're laughing inside, though. 

In any case, I also have a frugal streak when it comes to food storage. My salsa jars, pepper jars, and pasta jars have all been washed and cleaned and used for other purposes (such as homemade salsa storage.) I won't even mention the 6 boxes of canning jars in the basement. Oh wait, I just did. But it occurred to me in a moment of brilliance, "Why not use the abundance of jars to contain all of my bags and bags of baking ingredients?!" Bags are not easy to access or stack or organize, plus they require the use of my bag clips that seem to be a hot commodity as of late. 

And so I set to work. Mason jars went in the dishwasher and the already-clean salsa/pasta sauce jars went right to use. Now I have a highly organized cupboard and beautifully stored baking products which can be identified through the clear glass. Heck, they're pretty enough to display on open kitchen shelves. 

I feel awesome right now. 

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The One with the Colorful Deals

What a gorgeous morning it has been. Cool temperatures. Blue skies. A cute long sleeve light weight orange shirt courtesy of the Girls Clothes Swap. And shorts. And flats. 

But on top of all of that wonderfulness, there were deals to be had at the grocery stores! On my quick trip through my first grocery love, Aldi, I came upon a steal in the meat department. I always check to see if any items are marked with a $1.00 off sticker as it nears its expiration date. Sure enough, I hit the jackpot! Lean Ground Turkey [93/7] with $2.00 off--making it $0.49 a pound! I snagged 6 packages, thankyouverymuch.

My other favorite store is a local farmer's market with fresh produce up the wazoo. (What the heck is a "wazoo" anyway???) It's a healthy girl's paradise! I came home with blackberries for $0.79 per container, 7 limes for $1.00, fresh peaches for $0.69 a pound and lots more!

And then there was a Walmart. The two of us have a love-hate relationship, but it's mostly love when it comes right down to it. As I was hunting for a new frisbee to replace our broken one (we simply cannot go without a good frisbee in this household!), I came across a colorful display of plastic dinnerware. I thought, "Oh how pretty" and kept on walking. 

But then, in a moment of sheer brilliance, I remembered that in a month I'm going to be in charge of feeding 15+ teenagers for a WEEK while we work and play at Family Camp. HOLY MOLY. Buying the plastic plates (4 for $1.00) and having them wash them after each meal is SO MUCH MORE frugal than buying piles of piles of Styrofoam or paper plates. Amazing! 

It was difficult choosing only five colors--there was also pink, light green and teal available. I would have gone for the pink, but our girls seem to generally loathe it, so I avoided the feminine extreme. 

In sum, I'm totally stoked about my purchases!

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The One with the "World's Largest Rummage Sale"

You may remember my love of garage sales. 

Rummage sales. 

Yard sales. 

Consignment shops. 

Anything second hand?

I'm all about it. 

Well, the largest church in our conference hosts the world's most gigantic rummage sale every July. 

I've looked forward to it every since I had my first taste of it's amazingness in 2005. 

This is a garage sale guru's heaven. 

Prices are super low. 

Inventory is categorized, mapped out, and sorted beautifully. 

And get this--

all of the proceeds go directly to world missions!

So you can't even feel guilty about spending money because it's going to one of the most noble causes. 

All the way back in May, I had requested off Thursday, July 29th. 

I needed the day, people.

This sale is not for the faint of heart. 

I arrived a few minutes before the doors opened at 9am, 

and the parking lot was already filled to capacity. 

With the rush of shoppers, I headed into the book room. 

The book lover's gold mine. 

All books were 75 cents and after about a half hour, I had a box full of 17 books totaling $12.75--the cost of one inexpensive book at retail cost. 

I found another copy of Tolkein's The Silmarillion and The Hobbit. 

(I was really really hoping for the Lord of the Rings trilogy as ours in literally broken apart at the binding.)

C.S. Lewis' Perelandra.

A Grief Observed. 

and Screwtape Letters.

Karen Kingsbury's Like Dandelion Dust

(which, I hear, is being made into a movie.)

I overheard someone asking about her books and the lady said, "I know there's one over here."

And I said, "I think I have it!" 

*sly grin*

I picked up two Bibles--one a devotional Bible for couples and one with notes by Max Lucado. 

(Bibles for $0.75?! I mean, really?)

I found a couple of Bronte classics, 

and a collection of the Browning Poetry.

(Kevin doesn't know Elizabeth Barret or Robert Browning.

What in the?!)

Today, I went back for more. 

Mostly because I knew more books and merchandise would have surfaced and prices would be even lower. 

Sure enough books were just a quarter today! 

I found 7 more!

Devotionals by Billy Graham and Corrie Ten Boom. 

The Swiss Family Robinson. 

(I loved that movie as a kid!)

Rob Bell's Velvet Elvis 

(Heard it was great. No idea what it's about. 

But I really love Bell's stuff.)

More success. Excellent. 

I also managed to procure about 4 sweaters, some blouses, a jean jacket, a fall trench coat, and a pair of black slacks for me; 

a dress shirt and 4 awesome ties plus 2 great polos for Kevin;

AND four pairs of amazing shoes (nearly new, perfect fit, irresistibly adorable) and 4 purses/bags (once again: nearly new, perfect fit, irresistibly adorable).

I kind of have a purse fetish. 

But I figure it's not a terrible thing when I get them all for under a dollar. 

And realizing I can buy 30 purses for the cost of one in the department stores?

I'll take it! 

I finally own an apron!  

It's red--perfect match for Stan the KitchenAid MixerWilton Angled Spatula 8". 

I snagged an offset (frosting) spatula--Wilton Brand, 

a couple beautiful tumbler glasses*, 

and a mug and a couple random miscellaneous items for my husband who loves random miscellaneous items.

*By the way, we've decided to become those people with the awesome mismatched collection of glassware.
I mean, what fun is having all of the same glasses.
"They" say you can mix and match your table settings.
So I say that goes for glasses.
And besides, my husband has some crazy obsession with cool glasses.
Really.
Every time we're anywhere and he sees a new drinking glass, he wants it.
It's hilarious and awesome at the same time. 

When I went back for me this morning, I detoured at a friend's yard sale. 

She had some fantastic clothing items--but after seeing the church's really super cheap prices, hers seemed steep. 

I did manage to get a brand new Spring Arbor sweatshirt and three cute tops for $7. 

I'll call that a win. 

Especially after I spent $1.75 on 7 books. 

I love rummage sales, did you know that?