Autumn baking.... has begun!

Wow I can NOT believe autumn is here already!!  I mean I was sure it was summer just a week or so ago.  Over the course of the last week our temperatures have begun a slow decline and there is a certain crispness to the air... yesterday the skies were a clear blue with puffy white clouds.  Today... we woke to drizzle and gun grey skies.  A perfect day for curling up with a good book and a cuppa.  It was also the perfect day to start stocking the freezer with muffins for breakfast.

Blueberry 

Chocolate Oatmeal

Yes these are the giant sized muffins.  I've found that if I make normal sized muffins they are ALL gone in one sitting, even if I double the recipe.  So I double the recipe add a few secret ingredients to make them even healthier (and more filling) which in turn leaves me one or two.

Yes the idea was to bake enough to freeze but since this is the beginning of the "baking" season I thought I would splurge and let the guys eat them all.  

So by tomorrow morning after everyone has gone to school I'll start the process all over again... but this time these will go in the freezer, for those rushed mornings when no one wants cereal.

or for those leisurely mornings spent reading.

Hope you are enjoying the first days of fall!!

What a week!

Wow I can hardly believe it is the middle of September already... I mean we just notifications of the first school quarter being halfway over.  HOW could that happen?!?

As a few of you know my mother and step dad have been in town for the past week.... I really do wish they lived closer so that we could see them more often but have come to cherish the time we do have together.  I had hoped to do a bit of baking/cooking/preserving/crafting/shopping together.

But we only managed....
 the shopping... Several times in fact!  It was wonderful to just wander the stores looking at things, gaining ideas,  chatting away (uninterrupted), laughing.

.... evenings spent watching spectacular sunsets.

.....the parent's preview of the marching band show.

.....a trip to a conservatory where we enjoyed tropical plants on a grey day, ate super sweet vine ripened cherry tomatoes plucked fresh from the vine while wandering the children's gardens, tasted stevia (i love it, mom thinks its disgusting... ha ha)

..... and a few evenings of UNO, Phase 10, and Shang-hi.

Yes that is my momma and step dad!!  Seriously doesn't she look great!?!  I mean at 72 years old (in her case it is years young!!) she has so much energy.  She is like the energizer bunny and a whirlwind rolled into one!  I am so glad we had this past week together!  And do you see that hair color?  Yes, it is ALL natural... NEVER been touched Miss Clairol or any others.  Seriously?  How often does that happen?

Sadly our week came to an end as they decided to go home a day early... no there were no hard feelings or illness on their part.  Its just that everything went a little crazy here.  Yesterday evening Evan broke strained the growth plate in his foot.  Yes you read that correctly.  He was in the driveway smacking tennis balls against the garage door when he stepped wrong.  His foot twisted under him and he crawled up to the house.  Since we were going to be going back and forth between doctors all day long my folks decided to head out early.  Oh we also had a cold front drop in which was starting to play havoc with my step dad's sinuses.  Mom does NOT drive so they can NOT risk him getting sick on the way home.  All in all I will miss them but I do understand!  (Evan's foot was wrapped in a soft cast and is in a "boot" for the next 10 days... he may still be able to get in a few tennis matches after all!!)

Now I'm off to spend the rest of the afternoon making cookies and spending time at the podiatrist's office!  Sadly this means the end of the tennis season for said child.... he was so looking forward to the tennis match on Monday.  His first EVER!  Thankfully he should be healed by the time swim team practices start....  and may even get in a tennis match or two... Homemade cookies ALWAYS make a day better!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Customized magazine holders

I enjoy reading as I am sure you can guess by the bookcases.  But its not just any reading... I LOVE PAPER!!  I enjoy crafting with it, I love the smell of it especially in the form of magazines and old books.  There is just something about the smell of ink... Yes I have a bit of digital reading material but in all honesty... I prefer the feel of paper when I read.  There is just something about it (even if it does mean I have to drag out my reading glasses or squint to make out the words, ha ha! and yes I squint more often than not!)  So it should come as no surprise when I say I have a few magazines.  A few are current reads but most of them are magazines which are no long in publication so I loathe the thought of getting rid of them.  I shudder to admit this but... the top shelf of my closet and a small book case in our bathroom is filled with nothing but back issues of favorite magazines.  Did I almost mention I collect individual articles as well?  So how does a girl store them without having an unsightly mess?  Magazine holders!  And not just any but customized ones!!  My first set came with a collection of used magazines from the thrift store, set #2 I made but they were thrown out with set #1 by the movers, and set #3 were these from Ikea (which I still use)

I have to admit I love them because I can leave them plain or give them a bit of personality.  So with a bit of decoupage, scrap muslin, bits of velcro, and my sewing machine I covered them.  The ones for the guest/craft room are being covered with sheets of scrapbook paper.

The middle one was laid out flat and I sewed my fabric on using a zigzag stitch.  The other two were  simply covered with a thin layer of decoupage "glue" and then the fabric laid over the top.  After I made sure to smooth out all the wrinkles I went back over it with another coat of decoupage.  What is not pictured are the dots of velcro adhered just inside the top "spine" and on the underside.  These are to adhere strips of ribbon/fabric to coordinate with seasonal decor.  For now we like the unadorned look.

I do have plans to make up my own from the old pattern but that will have to wait because.... MY MOM is coming to VISIT!!  Its not often that I get to spend time with my folks as they live in Louisiana.  This trip will be rather poignant as my dad passed away earlier this summer and I haven't seen my mom in a year.  Thankfully Roland, my step-dad is a wonderful man and I am so glad to have him in my life, even if we don't see each other much.... well only as often as I see my mom since he is the one who drives her up to visit... she doesn't drive... hasn't for well over 40 years but that never kept her from stranded at home.  God gave her two feet and walked if she needed to get some place, i can attest to that because i've walked many a mile with her.  In fact at 72 she still walks about 3 miles a day just to stay in stay healthy!  So this week I am getting ready for their visit and next week will be spent visiting, shopping, and crafting (she doesn't know this tidbit of information yet)!

The wall of bookcases

YES!  All the missing cords, chargers, and other camera paraphernalia was found!!  

So without further adieu I give you the assembled bookcases....

Okay I have to admit there is one "flaw" that kinda bugs me.  It is highly visible through the lens of a camera but is barely noticeable in person.  Do you see it?  Or am I the only one who notices it?

Yes, you see it, don't you?  The seam in the backboard of the bookcases!  But seriously it really is hardly noticeable in person!! Once everything is in place I am sure it will disappear (in fact I am the only one in my family who still remembers its there, ha ha!!).  For the price of the bookcases I am VERY happy!!
 It is starting to look exactly as I imagined.  

As you can see we are still in the arranging stage and there are more books to be put on the shelves.   And lets not forget the magazine subscriptions from years past..... Cooks Illustrated, Organic Gardening, and Martha Stewart Living, my old stand-bys from days gone by which still get used on a regular basis.  Currently I am gathering the supplies to make customized magazine holders so they can be kept organized and neat.  

And do you see the boxes in the upper right corner?  Those are some of our board games!  A few years ago Target had classic board games in wooden storage boxes on clearance after Christmas.  We don't play them as often as we once did but during the winter they still get their far share of usage.  I am hoping to see if my father-in-law will make me some more storage boxes which can be used for other games and treasures.

Camera craziness and a blogging hiatus

You are not going to believe this but I finally have (or make that had!) a blogging schedule.  Yep twice a week, the time is marked on my calendar, and all is ready to go.  I've been taking pictures, crafting, cleaning, sewing, and organizing... Did I mention taking pictures?  Well a bit ago we discovered the cord to the charger for my camera battery is missing.  No problem, there is still a charge.  Until my son goes to take a picture of the moon and what... its dead.  What do you mean its dead? I ask.  Apparently my camera had been left on. ugh.... okay no problem we have more cameras!  Get out the old digital camera.  Ah success!  Gorgeous pictures of the evening sky and moon rising.  Okay so lets download these bad boys...
We popped out the memory card and wait... seriously wait for it folks... the card DOES NOT fit any of our computers or printers.  Yes it is obsolete!  Okay lets grab the cord... NO it doesn't work either.

REPEAT PROCESS AGAIN!

Yes you read that correctly!  We now have two obsolete cameras from which we cannot download pictures, one missing cord, one cord which does not fit any cameras, and one broken cord.

So until 

1. we find the old battery charger and cord

or

b. we buy a new charger.

We will be without cameras.  Yes I can take pictures with my camera but can't figure out how to load them.  One other thing... we did find one camera with its cord but my computer has decided that that particular camera contains NO pictures.

So I am going back to my sewing and preserving and junk sorting filled days.

  Maybe we will even have stuff to sell on eBay.  Oh wait that means taking pictures! 

ARgh!!!!!!!

(it might be a tiny bit frustrating but its okay as work is getting done here!!)

Hope you have a wonderful week and are enjoying the remaining summer days!  

Inspiration for our wall of bookcases!

I am so excited!!  Have I ever mentioned that I work at a snail's pace and that I'm easily distracted? No?  REally?   Well, let's just say it takes me a while to get rooms decorated.  I mean, we have only been in this house for 18 months and the addition has only been completed for something like 2 months. ha ha! Years ago my dear sweet husband used to "encourage" me by reminding me that "Rome wasn't built in a day!"  Now, he just smiles at me!  He is so understanding!!!

Well the bookcases came in today!  bookcases?  What bookcases?  OH did I forget to mention that?  See for the past 21 years we have lived with mis-matched bookcases in all sorts of shapes and sizes.... yard sale finds, gifts from my father-in-law, unassembled unfinished types.  You get the picture.  Well this time we took the plunge and bought 5, dare I say FIVE matching bookcases.  They make my heart swoon... (I know who uses words like swoon any more??? apparently I do! words like swoon, beaucoup (pronounced boo-coo, yep nothing like a little bit of redneck french to spice things up.... and to make our boys and/or their friends roll their eyes!! ha ha!)  Back to the book cases.... I would love to show you a picture of them assembled and staged in our living room aka "the library" but they are not assembled and I did a bad thing.... I mean really bad!!  I lost the charging cable for the camera.  It was one of those cases of me putting it somewhere other than where it belonged (the camera bag) but in a place that made so much more sense.  Did I mention I get distracted easily?  Which sometimes translates into I forget things...  Yes you guessed it.  I do NOT remember where I put the charger for the camera battery... and the battery is dead.  Soooo...... for now a picture of one of the inspirations for the bookcase wall.

(photo courtesy of pinterest and HGTV)

(I know this is such a long drawn out process but it will be worth it in the end! I promise... really it will!)

So now I am off to start clearing the area and start assembling bookcases... did I mention there are 5 to assemble?  If I start to look dazed and confused PLEASE remind me that this really was a good idea...

Okay?  

Thanks!

A to Z of.....

You know I've seen this done a bit recently and decided to "join" in so to speak.... especially since I've been so negligent of this blog.  But summer is soon coming to an end so maybe things will change.  :)

 

So here goes... the A to Z of me

A. age :: 46

B. bed size :: queen

C. chore you hate :: mopping the floors

D. dogs :: Lily

E. essential start to your day :: hmmm I do like a good cup of coffee but its not always essential.

F. favorite color :: orange, chocolate brown, aqua, but in pretty much all the colors under the rainbow (aside from garish colors like mustard yellow and avocado green!)

G. gold or silver :: silver

H. height :: five.feet.two

I. instruments you play :: piano (kinda)

J. job title :: mama, wife, friend, daughter

K. kids :: ian, sean, and evan (our three john's)

L. live :: indiana

M. maiden name :: monroe

N. nicknames :: peggs, honey

O. overnight hospital stays ::tonsils at 19, and then all three of my "babies"

P. pet peeve :: mean people, talking with food in your mouth

Q. quote :: "but they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.  Isaiah 40:31"

 

R. righty or lefty :: right

S. siblings :: none

T. time you wake up :: 6 a.m. during the school year and whenever during the summer

U. university attended :: Metropolitan State College (Denver), Metropolitan Community College (Omaha) but I've never managed to get a degree even though I have enough credits....maybe in the near future.

V. vegetables you dislike: endive but I like a LOT of veggies!

W. what makes you run late :: my own self and sometimes a certain other who will remain nameless. :)

X. x-rays you’ve had :: multiple head x-rays due to bad sinuses, one arm and all the normal teeth x-rays.

Y. yummy food :: pizza, mexican, italian, etc... there is a reason for my "curvy" figure but I am starting to get pickier as I get older.

Z. zoo animal favorite :: monkeys, elephants, and most anything they will let you pet!  I LOVE animals!

So there you go, a little peek into my quiet life!