Silhouette Project and Flea Market Find

I've been looking at things in my house trying to figure out what will be the next victim of a Silhouette makeover and the lucky winner is ..... the plain snack jar. Come on down plain snack jar and lets have a look at you before your makeover. You're nice, but you need a little color. 

I think pink would be a great color on you and it would brighten up the pantry.  Let's take a look at you after the makeover.  You're beautiful!!  Thank you Silhouette for another fine job!

I purchased the snack jar at Goodwill for $5 and the vinyl is leftover from another project.  A great update for a little money is priceless in my book.

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Last week I visited the indoor flea market in town and found these lovelies to add to my amber tiara sandwich glass collection and for under $30, they were a bargain!

I love the floral pattern on this bowl.

This week I'm linking up to:

Sugar Bee Crafts Take a Look Tuesday

Farmchicks Homemade by You Monday

At Home with K Terrific Under $10

Embellishing Life Craft Catwalk

Please take a few moments to see what everyone has been up to lately.  Have a wonderful week!

Wow, can you believe this weekend is over?  I think we crammed as much as possible into it.  What about you?  Just a quick recap of what we did.  Saturday:  We went to Farmers Pike on the east side of Indy and I think we hit about 70% of the garage sales on the way there.  We did find some treasures - another square candle holder in the amber tiara sandwich glass pattern I'm collecting, an American flag (the people told us they couldn't even give it away - isn't that sad!), a wooden American flag, a hooked rug (I only paid 25 cents for it)  and Carl found a brad nailer gun (I'm not sure that's the correct name, but it it good for woodworking). 

The most exciting part of our trip was when Ryan decided he was going to be a sling shot.  Basically it was a bungee jump but in the opposite direction.  Before the kids were shot up in the air, they all got to jump on the trampoline and try to do flips.  It must have been harder than what it looked like because so many kids tried and tried and couldn't do it.  Carl did manage to get this awesome picture of Ryan though. 

On the way home we stopped at the Warm Glow Candle Outlet...ahhhh, the smell, the decorations...it was wonderfully inspiring...I'm ready to decorate for fall after that visit :)  However, I only bought one small candle and 3 placemats that I'm using on my entertainment center.   If you must know, I'm waiting for the Covered Bridge Festival to shop for more fall decorations and treasurers.  Carl and I like to go without the boys - it's a win-win all the way around :) 

Okay, please ignore the crack in the crock, but this should give you the basic idea.  Now I need to find some greenery to fill that crock and make it look pretty again.

 On Sunday Carl and Kyle went riding - Ryan's bike broke so he had to stay home with me and clean the house - poor guy missed out on the fun.  I did make a loaf of sausage bread and 2 loaves of cinnamon bread for the boys. 

Monday was a better day - Carl and I went to a small festival by our house and I found more amber glass (yippee for me!!) - I now have one (yes one) candle stick and a last supper plate.  I was so excited about that because I just saw some on shopgoodwill and ebay for much more than I paid.  I love it when I get a deal!

After lunch we went to Shades State Park with both of the dogs, walked some trails, went fishing and let the dogs swim.  Ryan caught two fish...the only fish of the day.

As the fishing was winding down, I told Carl that I was going to let the dogs go for a swim.  Snickers loves the water and can swim well - like a fish, and although we haven't been to the lake with Harley one would think he would be able to swim too. He is a retriever afterall.  Can you tell where I'm going with this story?  I also should have thought about the way they fight over sticks and balls when we play at home.  I threw a stick out and both dogs went in the water for it, fought over it, and were a pretty good distance from the shore.  Snickers won that round and started her way back, but Harley was (barely) treading water.  By this time Kyle came back by me and Carl was on his way back, and we are watching Harley tread water and then he went under.  It was pure panic!  Kyle went in after Harley and was the hero of the day.  From that point on each dog went in by themselves and we decided not to throw the sticks too far out for Harley.  We just can't figure out how he is swimming - I wish I had a video of him - it's kind of funny - it really does look like a dog paddle move.  Now our Indian name for Harley is Swims Like a Rock. I know both of the dogs are tired after today because they have been quiet all night - no barking at anything tonight.

To end our weekend, we made elephant ears.  After paying $5 for them at a couple of fairs this summer, we decided that we would make our own and save some money.  I found this recipe on Cooks.com

ELEPHANT EARS

2 c. flour

2 tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking powder

2 tbsp. shortening

1/2 c. water

Oil (for frying)

TOPPING:

1 c. sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

Blend everything, but water, as you would for pie crust. Add water and shape into a ball. Add a few more drops of water if dough doesn't handle well. If too sticky, add flour. Divide into 10 even balls. Roll out to 9 to 10 inch circles.

Dip in hot oil until brown. Flip, remove and put on cookie sheet. Sprinkle with topping. If thicker, elephant ear will be soft. If thinner, elephant ear will be crispy.

It was a wonderful weekend for us.  I love spending time with my family and this was perfect.  I hope your weekend was wonderful, happy, and full of memories.  I want to leave you with a post my sister had on her facebook page:  Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.  Wisdom is knowing not to put it in your fruit salad.

It's Been a Great Weekend & Show and Tell

Carl and I have had a great weekend - I'm just sad that it's over. Ryan went to the school sock hop on Friday and the rest of us just chilled out at home.  On Saturday I clipped and filed some coupons and tried to talk Carl into doing some grocery shopping with me (actually we were gone for 4 hours before we went to Krogers).  I also wanted to go to a few other places while we were out - I just want to get some of these unfinished projects finished!!  So Ryan went to a friend's house, Kyle stayed home, and it was just the two of us <3! We had so much fun laughing, shopping, and spending time together. 

Our first stop was Joanne Fabrics - I can't divulge anything that was purchased here - it's a secret mission.  Then we had to visit STARBUCKS!!  Carl is a big Starbucks fan and we think he can secretly sniff them out as we're driving down the road :)  Target was next - I wanted to check out comforters/quilts for our bedroom redo, but we didn't find anything that said take me home.  The next stop was Bed Bath and Beyond.  That is such a neat store!  I found a couple of things that I've been wanting for a long time - a jewelry organizer and a drawer organizer for my socks.  Here is a picture of the jewelry organizer.  I'm slowly getting things sorted out....

Goodwill was next and Carl and I found 2 large shelves and one smaller shelf.  The boys have been asking for shelves to put some of their trophies on and these were in good shape and only $5 each.  I don't know where I'm going to put the smaller shelf - maybe the bathroom - and it will be a redo project.  I also saw some really cute Pyrex bowls, but sadly I had to leave them there.

We finally made it to Krogers and once again coupon shopping paid off!   Our bill was almost $400 and after using our Kroger card and coupons, it came down to $246.  Love those coupons!  So, unloading groceries meant that I had to find a place to put them, which meant that I had to organize the pantry.  

Pantry before....

 

Pantry after....

I look at these and I noticed one little potato all by itself in one of those picture.  Now, you may be asking yourself how long it will stay that way?  Well, Carl and I are trying to be better about keeping things in order, and I've also threatened the boys and told them that they have to do their part to keep the pantry organized and clean or I will ban them from ever eating again.  (Insert evil mom laugh.)  Guess what their response was.

Laughter!

Sunday was church (awesome service) and then we chilled the rest of the afternoon.  What a nice ending to a great weekend.  I hope everyone has a great week.  It's almost Spring and warmer weather is on the way! 

Heat, Redo's, Goodwill Finds

We have heat again thank you to our wonderful neighbor!  The temperature didn't get terribly low in the house until Wednesday and then it was down right cold!  Our house always felt "cold" before the furnace went out and now I think we know why....we were headed for a breakdown.  Not having and then having something as simple as heat really makes a person appreciate the simple joys of life. 

The boys went back to school yesterday after having two snow days off plus a few 2 hour delays.  I think they were ready to go back and I'm sure Carl was ready for them to go back also (Carl works from home so he has been "stuck" with the boys for those days). 

I haven't been blogging much lately - feel "wordless"; tired when I get home from work and then trying to get things finished at home equals writers block. 

Here is what I've been working on this week.  If you've read my previous post, you've seen the picture that I painted for the bathroom.  I'm really happy with how it turned out.  I also finished the window that I've been working on for a while.  I decided to just paint it black, sand a little bit, then put a darker stain on it.  As you can see in the picture, I put a red wreath on it and I'll change it out with the holidays/seasons. 

And, I finished the bookcase - finally!!  Kyle and Ryan's trophies are on there plus Ryan's books. Ryan wanted to be in the picture and he's such a sweetie that I couldn't say no - just don't ask about his outfit - it's something with the boys in his class this year.  Pure silliness.

These are a few Goodwill finds that I bought for $2.  I would like to do some stitchery and thought I could redo the frame for a project.  The other piece is a fall decoration that was too cute to pass up.

I'm also going to hop on over to Colleen's place to see what recipes everyone has posted.  I've decided to post a chocolate pound cake recipe for Valentine's Day - Sorry Fit Friday - the holiday won this time.  

Easy Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

from allrecipes.com

1 pkg yellow cake mix

1 (3.9 oz) pkg instant chocolate pudding mix

1/2 c. white sugar

3/4 c. water

3/4 c. oil

4 eggs, beaten

1 c. sour cream

1/2 c. milk chocolate chips

1/8 c. confectioners sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour a 10 inch bundt pan.  In a medium bowl, stir together the cake mix, instant pudding and sugar.  Add the water, oil, eggs, and sour cream, mix until well blended.  Finally, fold in the chocolate chips.  Pour into the prepared bundt pan.  

Bake for 50-60 minutes.  Cake is done when toothpick inserted comes out clean.  Cool in pan for 10 minutes before inverting onto wire rack to cool completely.  Dust with confectioners sugar before cutting and serving.  

This certainly sounds like a delicious recipe to share with a loved one, doesn't it?

FIT FRIDAY

With the weather we had this week plus the furnace going out, I think I lost weight from shivering so much.  These things threw Carl and I off our routine and we didn't do all we had hoped.  Falling out of the routine is so easy and it can be a challenge to get back on.  Last night was our first night back at the gym so hopefully it was only a slight bump in the road. 

So it's Valentines weekend.  I saw this morning on a news station that chocolate is a must!!  The dietitians are now saying that dark chocolate is good for you.  It could lower blood pressure, prevent heart attacks, prevent strokes, and even improve your mood (duh! who's not happy with chocolate).  The more cocoa in the chocolate, the better it is for your heath.  This is the breakthrough in science I've been waiting for!!! Wait there is a catch.......moderation is key and about a 1oz. serving is all they recommend.

Guess what....the phone just rang.....another 2 hour delay.  

Have a wonderful weekend with your Valentine! 

Whatcha Working on Wednesday

We watched Lost last night and oh happy day, the new season has started!  It looks to be exciting, thrilling, and somewhat confusing (for Carl).  Carl said that he still has a headache from it - too many different layers for him.  But for me, I am counting down the days until next Tuesday.  I don't try to analyze it - just watch and enjoy.   

Carl made dinner tonight - thank you sweetie!  He always does a great job when he cooks.  We also did some yoga - have you ever seen Inhale on the Oxygen channel?  It's an hour long show but we only made it through 30 minutes.  It was tough plus we are a teeny, weeny, bit out of shape :) 

I wanted to share this picture with everyone.  A few nights ago I looked into the family room and this is what I saw - all three guys on their laptops :)  No wonder it was so quiet.....

Now for what I've been working on the past week.  Remember that window that I painted and really didn't like?  Well, I took Leslie's advice and hung it back up since I couldn't decide.  The plan now is to fix the spots with stain and brown/red paint, put a new coat of black on, sand and stain with a darker color than what I used earlier.  I think this should work out just fine. 

I am also working on an old picture from our bathroom and it just needs a little something.  It had a white frame that I painted black and then red.  I think I'm going to do the same thing and sand a little bit and then stain. 

The biggest painting project has been the bookcase that I bought at Goodwill.  It was a cherry color and I painted it black and then am going to seal it.  I don't know why I can't get a good picture of it, but it really doesn't look that streaky.  It turned out much better than I thought it would and I hope the boys like it because it's going upstairs in their hallway. 

I'm going to check out what everyone else has been working on over at Leslie's blog - if you have a few minutes, please check out what everyone else has been working on (love the quilt Leslie is making for her daughter!).  Other than watching the weather forecast, I really don't feel like I have much to say so I'm going to wish everyone warmth and safe travels.

Menu Plan Monday and Goodwill finds

Ok, I have to confess.......I'm on a Goodwill kick.  I'm addicted and my husband is not happy because I keep bringing more stuff home.  But....I am slowly clearing out items at home to replace what I bought from Goodwill :)  Here are my purchases - more Pyrex and a bookshelf that I want to paint and put upstairs for the boys - the picture of the bookshelf didn't turn out good no matter where I took the picture, but I'm sure you get the idea.

      

I've found another blog courtesy of Colleen and it's called I'm An Organizing Junkie and she does Menu Plan Monday.  My husband has decided that our family motto for 2010 is "Be Responsible" and this sounds like something that will help me to be responsible with my organizing and making better meals for my family.  Here is our menu for this week and I hope that you will check out Menu Plan Monday!

Monday:  Sausage and Vegetable Skillet, pasta

Tuesday:  Red Beans and Rice with Smoked Sausage, white rice, fruit

Wednesday:  16 Bean Soup with Ham (recipe from the bag of dried beans), biscuits

Thursday:  Spaghetti, salad, and garlic bread

Friday:  Leftovers

Saturday:  Zatarain's Smothered Chicken and Rice

Have a great day everyone and see you tomorrow for Watcha Working on Wednesday with Leslie.