Closet Remodeling Project

I prettied up the closet in my office-to-be... Form this...

                         To this! I used paint, contact paper and some carpet tiles to make my closet nicer.

 I cut the tiles to fit the shape of the floor as closely as I could. Then painted and decorated with pretty contact paper I got at Dollar Tree when my sister and I had a girls day out.

Mommy's little helper, as always! Loyal company, loyal "help" lol.

Tomorrow's agenda: Meal planning and grocery shopping. Have a good night y'all!

Washing Machine Blues

 

Aahhh, yes, don't you love it when vital equipment kicks the proverbial bucket? The washer is on the fritz. I have tried only doing ultra mini loads and putting it though the spin cycle twice and still, I am left with soaking, dripping laundry that takes forever to dry (even after being hand-wrung out). But, I guess now is a better time than later. 

I don't even know how old it is. It was here when Darling bought the house two years ago, it looks really old lol. The dryer still works, it just has a Velcro strap on it to keep the door shut, and the only setting on it is on or off lol. So we will keep the dryer till it dies too, unless buying a set is a lot better deal than only getting one. I can't wait to spend the day with my sister, the Vet out on the town soon! (She is taking vet tech courses at home now. When she is through with school I hope she sticks around to take care of my farm critters! Livestock/large animal vets are scarce in this area.) Well, I'm off. I'm sure I will be drooling over new washers soon. Isn't it funny? When you are a little kid, you never once think you will be happy to have a working washer, let alone be excited to shop for a new one lol!

Income Tax Refund

Income Tax refund season is here, and this is a quick video to share with you what we are going to do with ours. What creative way will you spend yours?

There's a chicken in my kitchen

That could be the title of a country song lol. Yesterday morning, while I fed the chickens, I left the coop door cracked open and a rooster must have sneaked out. I didn't see him in the loft when I was leaving, and had no idea he got out in the first place. So, I went to work. Darling had coffee at the store yesterday, and when he came home he called me. "Did you know there is a rooster out, running around?" (no, obviously). Well then the little bugger went under the front porch, with snowbanks on each side and there he sat. Darling tried to get him, but he refused to leave his little haven. Later that morning Darling looked out the window to see my cute, innocent dog lugging the rooster around. He got the bird from the dog and brought him in. He is fine now, just a little traumatized and not seriously injured. And so, I have a chicken in my kitchen, living it up for all it's worth until I take him back to the coop in a little while.

Hound Update

The guys got back around 11:30 last night...They found Ruby! They said she had a large circle packed down in the snow, running non stop for what appeared to be hours. The conclusion they came to was that the snow in her circle was packed down and easy on her feet; that she had been outside so long her paws hurt too much to walk on the crusty snow to get back to the truck. She acted like she really wanted to come to them but didn't dare because of her feet. So Joe went and got her. She is home safe and got some food in her belly and care for her feet. She is on a little vacation now.

Runaway Hound

Just popping in for a quick post. Darling and his cousin Aaron were hunting coyotes today before supper with the hounds. One of the hounds is still out there, wondering around and doesn't seem to want to be caught. She had a good run, took a coyote down, but the coyote took off and she chased it. It is ten o'clock and the guys just left again after a quick supper, cup of coffee and dry socks. Hopefully they will get home soon. Ruby (the hound) must be exhausted by now, she's been out for about 9 hours. She has some extra food and paw conditioner coming her way tonight. I had a good time with Tara, Aaron's wife. We talked and talked about all sorts of things including husbands and dogs lol. It was so nice to have someone to chat with and help eat some of the supper I spent a couple hours making( the guys ate some, just 3 hours later than us gals did!). Tara brought a yummy salad and good humor. Well, I'm gona clean up the dishes and snuggle down, waiting for the guys to call with hopefully, good news. P.S. Despite the turn of events the guys said they are still glad they went today and enjoyed themselves! I on the other hand, would be a *little* on the grumpy side by now! I'm such a wimp when it comes to being cold, I can't stand it! Good night, update to follow.

My hens started laying!

 Finally, after what seemed like forever (9 months) my Dorking hens have started to lay eggs! They are a heritage breed, so they take a little longer to get going than hybrids such as the Pearl White Leghorn, which start as early as 4 months. I've only gotten four eggs so far, but am sure the production will pick up as the weather warms. 

I have the day off from work today, and spent most of yesterday on the road with my Darling. We have company coming tonight for supper, my husband's cousin and his lovely wife. I haven't had the chance to get the house back in order so guess what i'm going to be doing all day? 

Tonight's menu:

BBQ chicken

mashed potatoes

Gravy

Salad

Brown rice with cheese and veggies

 Dessert: Strawberry cheese cake (yes, from a box lol)

Have a good day everyone!

Cleaning Tid-Bits

"Accomplishment Feels Better Than The Guilt Of Procrastination."

Isn't that the truth. It does always seem to feel better to wash the dishes before going to bed, or folding those baskets of laundry while watching a movie instead of "later, sometime". I saw this quote on alejandra.tv, now it is on my cupboard door:)

This is a tote I got at the Salvation Army for $1.99. It was just what I was looking for to keep all my common cleaning supplies in . I was tired of running back and forth to find cleaners, scrub brushes, rags, etc. 

Now I can "tote" everything from one mess to the next, and there is no more searching for stuff. It is sturdy, and has deep, roomy pockets. Plus, it's pink and just plain cute lol.

 Sprayway Glass Cleaner is the best glass cleaner I have every used. It doesn't streak and cuts through grime easily. I love to use this with the blue automotive paper towels, because they don't leave lint-like particles behind.

 And of course, who doesn't love the smell and performance of Pledge? I use it to dust pretty much everything.

 Then there is Scrub Free, which I use for an all purpose cleaner. It smells so good!

 And the Quickie scrub brush is great for scrubbing my floors, especially the kitchen. I don't like the scrub brushes with the handles, because I feel like I don't have full control of the brush and can't put enough scrubbing power into it.

 These are my newest addition to my tote, Glam Gloves. Aren't they cute? I usually only wear them when I'm working with harsh chemicals, like bleach or oven cleaner, otherwise they kinda bug me, lol. I know, weird right?

 Speaking of oven cleaner, I was cleaning the bathroom one day and getting fed up with the soap scum in the shower, when Darling said "Hey, why don't you try oven cleaner?". Really? I was thinking. Do you want your skin to peel off the next time you take a shower? Well, what the heck I'll try anything at this point. After all, if I rinse it well, it should be fine. Guess what? IT WORKED! Why didn't I think of it before? I could almost just wipe the scum right off! No more aching elbows due to the awful scum! This is my new shower/tub cleaner, I'm telling you it's awesome. Goodbye tub rings! Hello clean! Thank you Darling!

Everything fits with out stuffing and huffing. That wraps up today's post. I hope you all have a good day.Take care Gals and Guys. :)

    

Snowed in on a Sunday

With 18-20 inches around our area, and snow drifts up to nearly three feet up on the hill ...

 Darling on the tractor, moving snow.

 Little bun-buns staying nice and cozy.

Having "home church" and thinking of our church family in Wytopitlock....

 We sang some hymns; Crown Him With Many Crowns, The Old Rugged Cross and Rock of Ages...

 Studied 1 Peter with John MaCarthur via Grace To You www.gty.org on the topic of "You are what you think".

 Then it was time for a little lunch. Darling made english muffin pizzas with onion on top *yum*.

 I made a big cup of tea to help fight off my cold and sniffles.

Hope y'all are having a blessed day and staying warm!

Introducing...Love

Hello!!! Well, it seems I either have time to blog, Or I have batteries for the camera! I have a couple more posts up my sleeves at this moment, but I want to take some pics to go with it. (I love blog pics lol.)
   Here is the recipe for HOME MADE CHINESE:

You will need: 2 lbs thin spaghetti ( I use angel hair and sometimes whole wheat, or whatever I have on hand)
                      1 lb frozen stir fry vegetables
                      1 jar of stir fry sauce (for 2 lbs, 2 jars really tastes great, but you can get by with 1, just keep in mind that if you have leftovers, the pasta will absorb the sauce and may leave the stir fry a little dry.)
                      Soy sauce
                      Brown sugar

I found the stir fry sauce in the Asian isle at Hannaford. They have a couple different flavors. So far, I've only used the original. I also like using lite soy sauce, not quite as much sodium as the regular. 

 Joe really likes the mixed veggies with the water chestnuts, it gives the stir fry a good crunch.

Ok, start boiling water for the pasta.
Then drizzle some olive oil in a big pan with sides ( keep in mind you will want to add your pasta to the pan later, and you'll want room to stir). Then stir 1-2 TBSP of brown sugar into the oil with a whisk. Add a couple TBSP of soy sauce, stir it in. Cook your pasta and add your frozen veggies to your fry pan. Once you get your veggies thawed and they start to "crisp" in the pan, add your stir fry sauce *yum*.
After you get that going in good shape and your pasta is done, drain your noodles and add them to your pan. Then I stir everything and get it mixed, and fry it until the noodles just start to get a LITTLE crispy, usually only takes 2-5 minutes, not long because you don't want to burn them (obviously).
   Then dish out to smiling faces and hand out the chopsticks!!!! *Awesome* Be careful, you may end up eating this stuff every week for forever!!!!
   This makes enough for Joe and I to have 2 meals and leftovers for his lunch for work a couple times.

I hope you enjoy it! I made this up after looking for recipes for Lo Mien on Google. I didn't  find any single recipe that I liked the sound of, so this is kind of a mix of different ones. It is sure to curb any Chinese craving for a lot less than take out!!!

Dear Baby...

Dear Baby,
     Yesterday was a rather long day. It was supposed to be the big day, the day your Daddy and I were going to meet you. Sure, you and I would have been very much acquainted the only way a mother and child could be. But I would have finally gotten to hold your little warm bundle of a body close to my heart and kiss your soft cheek. To see your little eyes sparkling,  maybe they were green, like mine have turned out to be. Your little fist, wrapped tightly around my finger as you made little gurgling and sucking noises while visitors oohed and ahhed at your little perfectness. I'll be frank; I miss you. I wish you didn't have to go so soon. We had dreamed you would stay with us for a very long time. We thought we would get to teach you how to walk, tie your shoes, ride a bike, feed the chickens and pet a newborn animal. I thought you would get to make me several paintings to hang on the fridge with your little hands. Was I to make you pretty little dresses to spin in and pretend you were a princess? Or were you to dress in overalls and be Daddy's little man? Regardless of who you are, I can assure you,  we love you. We would have given anything to keep you with us. My heart aches for you. Some times tears still fall from my eyes when I think of you, because I love you so  much. I know you are in the best hands now, I just wish you could have held mine first. Until I meet you someday, I'll still love you.
                  Love always,
                                 Mamma