Happy Homemaker Monday

 

The rain has brought on the garden.  More rain is coming, and the bell peppers look great.

My husband and I took a short weekend getaway to a nearby Amish country.  We checked out their new flea market, but wasn't impressed.  We did however, bring home some items for the newly repaired/remodeling bathroom.  It's now all put together and looking nice.

We stayed one night in a historic hotel we stayed at years ago.  I was so disappointed with the new owners.  They completely took the "nostalgic" away from the hotel.  The parlor was completely remodeled into a quilt room.  It was one of the reasons I loved that hotel.  No more.  Our room we stayed at years ago, now has no refrigerator nor microwave. We brought food with us, and could not keep it cold, nor heat it up, and the other rooms also had no refrigerator.  I was blown away at this....

Literally in front of the toilet. See the toilet paper?  We checked out and got coffee at the flea market.  The bed was comfortable, but the whole "nostalgic" part is the reason we liked to stay there.  The new owners just destroyed the original, "real" historic part of the hotel.

We came home, and unloaded, and searched every bag we brought home.  My husband lost our keys.  Not kidding.  Somewhere walking into or out of the hotel, while reaching into his pocket, lost our keys.  No one turned them in either.  Thank goodness I had the spare truck keys, and luckily, I had the only spare house key in my purse.  We never found the lost keys, and like I said, no one turned them in, and thankfully the truck was still there when we checked out.  You just can't trust anyone anymore.....anyway, as of this morning, still no keys.   

We were on the porch thinking the hotel would call, but we just got a visit from a butterfly.

We invited 3 people to dinner, but not one came over.  We grilled chicken with apple bourbon BBQ sauce, corn and camper potatoes.  It was truly humid, but we did get rain during our grill out dinner.

Today I am joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

I will link up when she posts.

The weather . . . 

Hot, humid and rain.  It's been awfully humid and hot, up in the 100's and I think we will finally get a break this week.

As I look outside my window . . .

It's cloudy, and we may get more rain this morning.

Right now I am . . .

Drinking coffee to get my bearings straight this morning.

Thinking and pondering . . .

While on our weekend getaway, I talked to someone who just removed wallpaper from their house.  I will be looking into renting a steamer to remove the wallpaper from the upstairs room.

I only have trash to remove up there as well, and then we start on that room, but now we are discussing building the new coop next.

We have friends/family in the demolition derby tonight, but the heat and humidity will keep us home.  Not to mention it will rain again tonight.

I've been asked to make up and donate a basket for a silent auction for our family members raising money for an adoption.  I have not decided on my theme for it yet.  I have the basket, but have nothing in it just yet.

How I am feeling . . .

Exhausted, ha ha!  I think the heat and humidity just did us in last night.

On the breakfast plate . . .

Have no idea just yet.

What I am wearing . . .

Sweatpants and a tank top.  

On the reading pile . . .

More of Mom's recipes.

On my TV this week . . . 

Whatever looks interesting

On the menu . . .

-leftovers for starters since no one joined us for dinner

-have no idea yet

Looking around the house . . .

Well, my kitchen floor is still piled with donations.  The people that were coming to take it never showed up.  It may be going in the barn after the rain quits.

The to-do list . . .

-can hot pepper mustard sauce

-laundry

-plan meals

-unpack suit case

-make a new recipe

-plant another honeysuckle the birds gifted us

-check garden

-plan a camping trip

-freeze green/wax beans

From the camera . . .

The new small item I am making for the holiday craft show.  Daughter E has been wearing a few for her recent Hippie Fest, and suggested I give her business cards.  I do have them, but they need updated.

Devotional/Prayers . . .

Our small town pets.  Someone found their cat cut "perfectly" cut in half and now we are worried someone is out killing people's pets.  What a cruel world we live in right now.

Last Night's Sunset and other Chit Chat

Although we got zero rain, we had a beautiful sunset for a short time.  We can't really see all of it, due to the woods behind our home, but the sky was a pretty pink.

I spent about 2 hours cleaning stuff from the upstairs.  Mostly, I spent time bringing down any larger items to donate.  I may have found a home for a pole lamp she left up there, and I have a kitchen floor full of boxed up stuff to donate somewhere.  I filled the trash, and put a few things in the burn pile.  Today, I need to spray Lysol up there, as I realized she had 4 animals up there, and I am not sure how well she cleaned, as in sanitized.  There is still much to clean out.

I cannot tell you all how happy I am to have an entire summer of wicked, miserable work hours end for my husband.  He was home, and out mowing after work! 

The handyman finished the bathroom, but left without putting the bathroom door back on.  My husband and I put that back up, installed a new toilet paper holder, installed a mini wooden ladder to hold bath towel, washcloths, and installed a hand towel holder.  We just need to add a small bit of decor, and it's completely done finally.  It is hard to take photos in that small bathroom, but once we have whatever decor up we decide on, I'll try and show you all before and after.  We now have peace of mind that the floor, shower, toilet and sink are good for many years to come.

I have to say, it is truly nice to have the house to myself again.  I know it will be crazy again soon when we tear up the living room, but thankfully we have time to do more cleaning and removing of furniture, and packing up bookshelves before that happens.  Speaking of which, the bookshelf holds all of my homesteading info, so I may just temporarily move it to the office or bedroom, so I can access it.

I told my husband I am not ready to rip up the stairway carpet (also ruined by the dogs), because I am literally dragging stuff down the stairs (ha ha!) to save myself.  It makes it super easy to get things down and out.

Unfortunately, our chances of rain continue to blurp right off the radar.  It was 60% yesterday, and we go zero.  I'll be watering everything today.  The garden has slowed down due to the lack of rain, but praying we do get some this week yet.

 

Happy Homemaker Monday

Daughter K came over to do more cleaning upstairs.  She had intentions of bringing me 3 dozen hears of corn from a community garden near her.  Twenty minutes into her drive, she realized she forgot them.  Sigh.

We have horse flies bad this year.  I have no idea why either.  No goats, no horses, nothing but chickens here.  Best we figure, is that there is a dead animal in the woods.  Urgh.  Every time I kill one, another shows up and drives me off the porch.

I was very glad to have Daughter K over, even for a few hours.  I got to thinking, and I think I have felt depressed because Mom's birthday is coming up.  Either way, I am was glad to have company.  My husband had to work Sunday as well.

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• Today I am joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

The weather . . .

85/65°F, thunderstorms.

As I look outside my window  . . .

Dark clouds are moving in.

Right now I am . . .

Getting ready to wash dishes and purge some cigar boxes that Daughter K left.  I'll be donating the boxes to a friend who has an antique store in a small town about 30 minutes from out home.

Thinking and pondering . . . 

The prices of yarn have gotten so ridiculously high.  My online resource now has cotton balls at $3.49!!!  I used to get them at Wal-mart for $1.50!  Wal-mart hasn't had anything I need lately either.

I'm considering starting to prime the master bath cupboards, but I think I want to paint the walls first.  Not sure.  I still have to clean up the debris left by mainly one kid upstairs.

How I am feeling . . . 

Good.  Pretty good actually.

On the breakfast plate . . .

Eggs, toast and coffee.

On the dinner plate . . .

I actually made the chicken fajitas last night, so leftovers tonight.

What I am wearing . . .

T-shirt, yoga pants - looking forward to a rainy day inside.

On the reading pile . . .

Mom's recipe books.  She kept a lot of recipes.  I'm looking for notes on the recipes she tried and found delicious.  I may be trying a few, adjusting them with organic/home grown ingredients.

On my TV this week . . . 

We just finished watching Alone.  I had a hard time finding good movies, but now that my husband is done with long, exhausting hours at work, we can spend evening out on the motorcycle hopefully.

On the menu . . .

-Black bean cakes with mango salsa, yellow squash patties
-tacos, homemade salsa
-chicken fajitas
-crockpot bbq pork chops, beets

-something grilled, grilled onion for a side

Looking around the house . . . 

Well, handyman came to finish installing the shower, and the bathroom door is now back on where it belongs.  

To do list . . .

(for the week)

-can pickles

-can grape jelly

-can applesauce

-freeze corn

-purge living room, bedroom and upstairs

-buy paint for master bath

-finish weeding flower beds

-clean out fridge

-crochet new item for holiday craft show

-take a trip to donate more stuff that the kids left

From the camera . . .

Daughter K brought her boyfriend with her Sunday, so I gave them Mom's tea spoons.  They will be a nice addition to their black/white themed kitchen.

We finally got my husband's Father's Day gift (from Daughter K) put up on the porch.

Prayers . . .

Daughter K's dog King has had 4 seizures in one month.  Prayers for him.  He may be going to the vet.  He gets a natural calming oil every morning, but he is getting worse and it makes me sad.  He never had them until they moved to an apartment way back in the day.  Poor Kingsley.

Prayers for those dealing with flooding and lost lives in Jackson, KY.

Just the Bits

 Although late, and due to rain again, I planted some shasta daisy seeds in the flower bed.

I also planted basil, cilantro and parsley for indoors.  

Made Einkorn pancakes and blueberry sausages for breakfast.

  

Baked another peach crumble, and a chicken/brussel sprout/carrot sheet pan dinner.

I love rainy days and yesterday was one of those.

I also printed another new crochet pattern.  Like a need another pattern...ha ha!

Daughter E came over and raided my closet.  She is attending a country concert soon.  She left with some cowboy boots, a summer dress and a jean's skirt.  Well, she helped purge my closet anyway, ha ha!

Our smaller bathroom now has a functioning toilet and sink.  The rest of the shower goes in today.

I filled a box with old dvd's, and it's ready to be taken to donate somewhere.

The green beans, cucumbers and squash are rolling in now.  Thanks to the rain, and the bell peppers are on, but not ready to harvest.

My errand day lists are growing, but today it's back to weeding the flower beds.  

Happy Homemaker Monday

 Sunday I had plans to do some long distance errands, but decided to do them another day.  It was predicted to storm all day, and go figure, it did not.

I, however, cleaned up the kitchen, sorted cookbooks for donation, filled another box for Daughter K, caught up on laundry, and filled one box for donation.  I finally filled a tote with 50/50 vinegar/water to soak an old cast iron pan I was given.

I already have a few cast iron pans, but no one wanted to bother with restoring it, so it ended up with me.  It's always nice to have an extra pan in case we need to cook over a campfire too.  You never know with what's happening in our world right now.

Today I am joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.  I will link up when she posts.

The weather . . .

85°F/65°F, possible rain

As I look outside my window . . .

It's foggy.

Right now I am . . . 

Trying to figure out the plan for the day due to more rain.

Thinking and pondering . . .

Where the heck am I going to store that cast iron pan?  My computer area needs a new mug rug.   We need a getaway soon.  Camper still needs water lines checked.  

How I am feeling . . .

Although not ready to take on a Monday, I had a nice weekend.  Daughter K visited Saturday, and Daughter E had a sleep over with our grand daughter A and both came to visit me Sunday.

My husband is on another whacky schedule this week.  We will both be glad when it's over with.  He's working double shifts - 16 hour days now.

On the breakfast plate . . .

Coffee, part of a giant cinnamon roll Daughter E brought us.

On my reading pile . . .

Do bills count? Ha ha!  The mail?

On my TV . . .

Honestly, whatever looks interesting.

On the menu . . .

-pork chops, zucchini/corn saute

-chicken, brussel sprouts, carrots

-leftovers

Looking around the house . . .

The kitchen island is finally cleaned off, but the table needs a complete tidying up job.  Living room is slowing getting emptied.  Kitchen still needs a piece put back up over the sink area, and one blind installed.

The to-do list . . .

-check garden

-freeze green beans

-paint the last of the bathroom trim

-put away dishes

-label and store the peach jam

-clean off kitchen table

From the camera . . .

Prayers/Devotional . . .

-I can't find my devotional right now.  I'm slowly getting my computer/bill paying station back in order.  It's probably in the office yet.  

Daughter visit ~ More Painting ~ and other tidbits

Daughter K came for a visit to clean upstairs.  She filled the trash and her car thankfully, but more has to be cleaned.  She also cleaned out her car. It's not easy to do living in an apartment, so she did that at our house.  We grilled dinner and then she went home.

She did help me finally, after 6 months, help me move my computer back to the desk in the kitchen corner.  She said I should replace my keyboard and mouse, so I'm on the hunt for a wireless set that is affordable.

The clean up process is in progress in the living room. Daughter K helped me sort thru a box full of cables and wires and electronic game parts.  We found the correct cords to a DVD player left by the kids.  I moved the TV and the DVD player upstairs and it will be in the "guest" bedroom.  The room is still under a purge project, but at least it's out of the living room.

I have another problem however.  When I purged my old hutch, I boxed dishes and they are in my office.  They are dishes from one of my grandparents.  I have no clue on where to store those now.  Urgh.  

I found someone to give us a quote to clean gutters (family business), but now my husband said we'll do it ourselves after being over charged on the bathroom repairs.  I'm not sure I want to be on a ladder, and if I am, I have to do it when someone is here, so that is a problem.

I'm finishing up the bathroom trim.  I have one more piece, and the saw horses can finally leave the living room.

It looks like it will be raining all day today, so there will be no outdoor work accomplished, but thankful for the rain.

Happy Homemaker Monday

The smaller tiller (runs on a battery) broke down after the 4th use.  It's going back.  We spent the entire Father's Day searching for a better one.  We finally found one, and it runs on "gulp" gas.  It was the last one they had and it was 1 hour from home.

We finally bought a new tire for my wheelbarrow ($32.00!!!).  It's in the back of the truck, and guess who took the truck to work this morning.  Yeah...not sure yet why he didn't take his car, but the wheelbarrow will have to wait.  Again.

We took Mom, Dad and my Uncle flowers.  Mom's cemetery is very close to Dad's, and surprisingly, the last flowers I took were still there (we had a bad storm recently). We stopped to buy more flowers for Grandma and Grandpa, but we could not find any in the stores.  

Bluebell flew the coop yesterday.  I guess I'll be clipping her wing.  I cannot wait to build a better coop, but we have so much on our plate right now.

Today I am joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

The weather . . . 

Well, I woke up to rain, so I am not sure I'll be getting the weeding done today.  The heat returns as well.

As I look outside my window . . .

It's raining.

Right now I am  . . .

Getting ready to post this blog post.

Thinking and pondering . . .

What my day will be today due to unexpected rain.

How I am feeling . . .

Exhausted of this work schedule.  My husband said it may be coming to an end in 3-4 weeks.

On the breakfast plate . . .

Not sure yet.  Will figure that out after a power shower.

On my reading pile . . .

Haven't had time to read.

On my TV this week . . .

Netflix.  Whatever looks interesting.

On the menu . . .

-Chicken fajitas, grilled
-not sure for the rest....will work on that later today.

Looking around the house . . .

The kitchen painting is winding down, but I still have the ceiling to paint, and then it's time to gut the bathroom.  I may be doing it by myself.

To do list . . .

-weed gardens
-laundry
-paint
-bake a breakfast
-marinade chicken
-floors

From the camera . . .

Nothing.  Oddly.

Devotional . . .

Haven't picked up a book in days.  I need to be better at that.

Happy Homemaker Monday

My husband finally had Sunday off, but we pretty much spent it running around for errands, and for about the 3rd time (even though it was on the list) forgot the new tire for the wheelbarrow.  Sigh.  

We successfully planted my flowers I bought 2 weeks ago, and weeded the lower front flower bed.  We also put a tarp down to extend one area of the flower bed, to make mowing much easier.  We will not plant there for 1-2 years, to make sure we kill off the grass.

We tag-teamed and tilled the gardens, but the belt broke on the larger tiller.  We totally forgot to buy one when we were in town.  We did remember to buy a new filter for it though.  Oddly, it was still very wet out there, so I have not had to water anything but the grow bags and flowers.  The herb garden has the least amount of weeds right now.

We finally both got haircuts, but I was so ready to cut my bangs myself.  Luckily, our daughter was working and had a time slot for both of us.

We stopped at several stores and brought home 2 azaleas for one area around the house.  I had him make a stop at the Dollar Tree so I could run in for 2 things, one being bungee cords.  I got in line and boy was it a long line.  There was a woman in the other check out with a cart filled to the brim and over flowing.  Preparing for another Armageddon?

On a good note, our electric bill went from in the $200's to down to $94.00.  Amazing how low it can go with all the kids move out.

Today I am joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

The weather . . . 

If we are lucky, we are to get rain late tonight.  Actually storms, so I hope the tomatoes are strong enough to withstand any wind.

As I look outside my window . . .

I have a pile of cement blocks I need to remove from the yard, but that is last on the list, otherwise thankful we got the flower bed area covered with a tarp for a future expansion (possibly more herbs).

Right now I am  . . .

Sipping coffee, trying to wake up and figure out on a breakfast for my husband tomorrow.

Thinking and pondering . . .

I really need to get flowers to the cemeteries.  I just don't want to go by myself, but I really want to get them there.  We have not been able to sell our hutch, so we have contacted Habitat for Humanity to see if we can donate it to a new home they are building nearby.

How I am feeling . . . 

Somewhat rested, but not looking forward to another long week of these work hours.  I guess I'm going to have to take the tire off the wheelbarrow and take it somewhere to make sure I get the right one.

On the breakfast plate . . .

Have no idea yet.  Today it may be leftover french toast, scrambled eggs and blueberry sausage (unless I save it for my husband for tomorrow and make something for myself today).

On the reading pile . . .

Haven't had time to read lately.

On my TV . . .

The Patriot, Netflix

On the menu . . .

-Apple/pecan chicken salad (a refreshing dinner on a hot day)

-grilled burgers with tomato and our garden lettuce

-I want to get some iced tea made with home grown spearmint (my favorite)

Looking around the house . . .

The floor trim was never put in on Sunday.  Time got away, and it was just not done.  I do have to get a corner piece painted, but we may end up replacing it.  The people we hired to paint, removed it and put it back up, but destroyed it with staples.  A piece of floor trim will also need replaced.  They broke it in half removing it (sigh).

The to-do list . . .

-water grow bags and flowers

-move one hosta

-paint

-a small bit of laundry

-carpets

-work upstairs

-put up more strawberries

-tidy up kitchen

-make a breakfast

-check all lists I have going...sigh...

From the camera . . .

 I saw about a dozen finches yesterday.  They love this thistle.  They would visit me in the flower beds until I yanked my 5 foot weeds, but they sure do love them, and I am seeing so many this year.

Prayers . . .

Us.  We are just so spent lately, and it's even difficult to enjoy my husband's day off anymore (packed with to-do's on the honey-do list).  He is on edge most days when he gets home.

Happy Homemaker Monday

It was about time we were blessed with an entire weekend rest, relax, and rejuvenate. 

My camper ornaments have been delivered and are for sale in a store on our favorite island.  I'm creating another new items she is interested in.  I'm praying I have time to work on them, and get the painting done, garden kept up, and so forth.

We are not the only ones dealing with a busy schedule.  Our friends on the island could not meet up with us due to a very busy work schedule.  We did stop and visit with another friend we have other there though.

My new smaller tiller finally arrived so garden work, while my husband is back to long hours, is much easier on me.

Today I'm joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

The weather . . .

85°F/66°F, scattered thunderstorms, windy

As I look outside my window . . . 

It's still dark out.

Right now I am . . .

Sipping coffee, trying to wake up.

Thinking and pondering . . .

Too early for that, ha ha!

How I am feeling . . .

Sad.  Sad we have to be back on the mainland with my husband back to long days, but I do have a lot to keep me busy, and the younger two girls come and go with visits.

On the breakfast plate . . .

Egg/sausage/cheese muffin, organic coffee

On my reading pile . . .

Picked up a new book.  I am pretty sure it will be a fast read, so I'm putting this first before I finish my current book.

On my TV this week . . .

Whatever looks good.

On the menu . . .

-chicken teriyaki, homemade teriyaki sauce

-Rueben's, but most likely will be next week

-grilled brats, side veggie

Looking around the house . . .

I have to make a trip upstairs and try and juggle working up there as well.  I need to (still have not) make room for the treadmill.  Next flooring project is the living room/kitchen bathroom.

On the to-do list . . .

-water and till in garden

-paint another drawer

-tidy up kitchen where I can

-water flower pots

-laundry

-vacuum

-dust

-water house plants

-check emails (getting so bad at this)

-start working on the back patio

From the camera . . .

Devotional/Prayers . . .

No special requests right now.