~Bloggy Break~

I'm taking a little break, and I'll be back...when I feel like it. LOL Hope everyone is having a fun summer, and I'll still be stopping by my regular blogs.

~$100 Shopping Spree: Etsy~

Etsy is a fun place to shop. Here are some items from some of the shops I've marked as "favorite" that I would be tempted to purchase (all prices include shipping):

From Purple Petunia, an earthenware surprise mug, $48:


From Sunnyside Ellen, Cottage Rose sock yarn:


and Strawberry Smoothie sock yarn, $47 for both combined:


And...that leave me with just $5 to spare. Money goes fast when shopping Etsy! :-)

~Tour of the Grounds~

I planted wave petunias along the front and part of the side. They are doing really well - behaving like wave petunias ought to, and spreading and blooming like crazy! :-D



The driveway runs along one side of the house, so I only have the one side to do any planting in. A bed runs along the length of the house. I am very happy with how things are growing this year! My perennials have come back nice and strong, and are blooming or are about to bloom. For perennials, I have: two echinacea plants, one lavender plant, two carnation plants, a Shasta daisy, a small variety of bleeding heart, and a few other things. I only had to get a few annuals to fill in the spaces this year, which was my goal! I would still like to plant a rose bush and then I will consider this bed complete. I plan on moving some things around to optimize the plants, but I'll do that in the fall when the blooming season is over.



I already posted this picture, but these are my lilacs. I planted allysum along the border and I really like it!



I'll have to get some close ups of the pretty flowers! I'm enjoying a huge bouquet of carnations! Maybe tomorrow...

~$100 Shopping Spree: Christopher & Banks~

Continuing on with my "shopping spree", my next stop is Christopher & Banks. If I had $100 alotted for Christopher & Banks, I would purchase:

Tropical Floral Hooded Cardigan, $39.50:


Belted Gored Skirt, $17.75 (on sale):


Button Decorative Tee, $9.99 (on sale):


Skinny Stripe Shirt, $25.50:


My grand total? $92.74. If I were shopping in the store, I could probably find a clearance item for the remainder. :-)

~Daybook~

June 16th
Outside My Window...a lovely, breezy, cool day!
I am thinking...of my grocery list. It seems we ran out of everything this week, sooner than I had planned for!
I am thankful for...the lovely weather!
From the kitchen...Oh...something simple tonight, but I'm still not sure what it will be!
I am wearing...a printed tee, jean skirt, and black slide-on sandals.
I am creating...a knitted scarf out of mohair. I'm loving it!
I am going...to the grocery store, sometime today!
I am reading...a book by Tracie Peterson.
I am hoping...to find some good sales at the grocery store this week.
I am hearing...cardinals, I think, outside my window.
Around the house...nothing major, but I need to straighten up after a busy Saturday but lazy Sunday.
One of my favorite things...to eat right now...eggs over easy with toast. Mmmmmm.
A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: finish planting my summer flowers, get a few tomatoes going, and keep up with the housework!
Here is picture thought I am sharing...


My lilac bed. We got beauty bark on Saturday, and I cleaned the weeds out, and planted alyssum along the rock border.

For more Daybook entries, visit The Simple Woman.

~£100 Shopping Spree: Cath Kidston~

Today's stop is Cath Kidston, which is a UK-based shop.

If I had £100 (and yes, I fully realize that £100 would be more than $100) to only spend at Cath Kidston, I would purchase:

Spot Paper Napkins, £3.50:


Breakfast Tea Towel, £6.00:


Strawberry Tea Mug, £6.00 (oooh, strawberries and pink together!!!):


Strawberry Crush Mug, £4.00 (I love strawberries, can you tell?):


Spot Print Classic Mug, £7.00 (this is the last mug, but I had to get in some more polka-dots!!!):


Multi Mix and Match Stationery, £6.00:


Summer Toile Bucket Bag, £40.00:


Mini Strawberry White Fabric, £18/metre (£27.00 for 1 1/2 metres):


And that leaves me with £.50, which I highly doubt is enough for shipping! :-)

~It's a miracle! It's a freak of nature! It's...~

...no doubt a mis-labeled plant!

I was shocked when I looked out the window this morning and saw some pretty pink flowers. I thought they were perhaps weeds...but no, they were growing on my white carnation plant.

How odd...I know I purchased a white carantion plant last summer (it never bloomed last summer, so I was very excited to have a plant full of blooms)!

Oh well, I'll enjoy the pink! I got quite a giggle out of my plant changing colors on me though!

~$100 Shopping Spree: April Cornell~

We used to live near a mall that had an April Cornell shop in it. I loved to go in there and just look. I just looked because everything was so expensive. But it was so fun to look, and the store had a nice comfy armchair which Kevin could enjoy while I browsed.

So if I had a $100 giftcard to April Cornell, I would consider the following:


Josephine Mug, set of 4. $42.00


Cherry Blossom Tea Towel. $8.00

This was sold out, but since I'm not spending real money anyhow, I'll add it to my list:

Josephine Lime Market Bag. $29.00


Cherry Blossom Gold 16" Napkin Bundle (set of 4). $16.00

That puts my total to $95.00. I guess the rest will go towards shipping, because I doubt there is anything on the site for $5.00!

~$100 Shopping Spree: Amazon~

If someone gave me a $100 giftcard to Amazon, I would most likely purchase:

Because I am #38 on first hold returned at my library:

The Forbidden, by Beverly Lewis. $11.19

I have read Jane's blog Yarnstorm for over two years, and was delighted she was writing a book. I do like the UK cover better than this one, though this cover is pretty too. :-)

The Gentle Art of Domesticity, by Jane Brocket (title to be released in September, 2008). $23.10

I wish my library would get this book:

Pretty Little Pincushions, by Lara Books. $12.21

I keep checking this book out of the library and then not doing anything with it. It has a ton of recipes in it for household cleaners.

Clean House, Clean Planet, by Karen Logan. $10.17

This just looks like so much fun:

Gingham Aprons of the '40s & '50s: A Checkered Past, by Judy Florence. $26.96

Knitted Lace:

Knitted Lace of Estonia: Techniques, Patterns, and Traditions, by Nancy Bush. $16.47

I only went $.10 over. Pretty good, hmmm? LOL

~Just for Fun: $100 shopping sprees~

I thought it would be a fun series to post what I would buy if I had $100 I had to spend at specific stores/websites. Each store will be a different post:

Amazon
April Cornell
Cath Kidston
Christopher and Banks
Etsy
Ikea

Any other websites that you would be interested in seeing my shopping style? Look for my Amazon picks tomorrow! :-)

~Motivation~

Kitten with Broom

Lately I haven't been feeling very motivated as far as housework goes. So I've been doing something very simple: I write a list titled "5 Things" and list out (are you ready for this?) five chores that I need to accomplish. Sometimes one "thing" is actually several tasks pertaining to the same room/chore.

Yesterday's list looked like this:

1) Take all laundry down to basement, sort, and start load
2) Make bed, pick up room, dust
3) Pick up living room and dining room, dust, Swiffer floors
4) Dishes, sweep kitchen
5) Write out menu and shopping list

Then I start at the top and set my timer to count up, and see how long it takes me to do each item.

Need even more motivational tips? Hire a maid for the day, and other motivational tips.

What are some things you do to motivate yourself?

~Not really a recipe YOU will want to follow!~

My kitchen and I are generally on civil terms, though not necessarily friendly terms (especially when it comes to the oven!) People tell me that I'm a good cook, but I think that is because I actually cook - so few people take time in the kitchen these days! But I'm not always so great of a cook! Take dinner a few nights ago...here's the "recipe" I followed:

***Brown some ground turkey with onions and garlic.
***Retire to living room to allow meat to finish cooking.
***Forget about the meat for a while.
***Suddenly remember meat, and rush into the kitchen.
***Just because it is stuck to the bottom of the pan, does not mean it is "burnt". We cooks call it "caramelized". Yeah, that's right. It is still perfectly edible.
***Dump in contents of spaghetti sauce from a jar in the fridge. Stir well.
***Discover mold growing on the sides of the jar.
***Shriek and cry! Utter despair. It is already 7 p.m.!
***Run out to Taco Bell. It tastes better than spaghetti anyhow!

~Delurking Day~

~Hello, hello!~

I've deemed today as a delurking day! Please leave me a comment and tell me a little about yourself. I'll stop by your blog too!

Have a wonderful day!

~Daybook~

June 9, 2009
Outside My Window...a stormy looking sky.
I am thinking...about the new flower plants I purchased on Saturday.
I am thankful for...my church. It's been going strong for over 150 years!
From the kitchen...white chili with chicken. Mmmmmm.
I am wearing...pink printed t-shirt, khaki skirt and black sandals.
I am creating...a tatted heart bookmark.
I am going...grocery shopping...sometime tomorrow!
I am reading...What Katy Did at School (I'm almost finished).
I was hoping...there would be enough white chili for my lunch tomorrow, but there wasn't. ;-)
I am hearing...a tv program about NASA my husband is watching.
Around the house...laundry? LOL
One of my favorite things...good Christian music!
A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: We're having company this Friday, which I'm looking forward to. No huge plans otherwise. Just normal "stuff".
Here is picture thought I am sharing...a picture we took on our anniversary trip last week:


For more Daybook entries, visit The Simple Woman.

~Etsy News~

I have a few vintage items listed in my Etsy shop. Please swing by and take a look. :-)





If you have any specific requests, I'm always happy to do custom sewing. Just send me an e-mail and we'll work out the details.

~Happy Saturday!~

Hello everyone! Thank you so very much for your kind anniversary regards! :-) Kevin and I had a very nice anniversary!

When we went on our honeymoon, we went to The Old Spaghetti Factory for lunch the next day. While we lived in California, we had a tradition of going to The Old Spaghetti Factory on our anniversary each year. However, here in Michigan, we would have to drive out of state in order to keep up the tradition. Needless to say, we have just picked an Italian restaurant close by. We rarely eat out at Italian restaurants, so it is a nice treat!

On Wednesday we went to the Lake and enjoyed the day together. The weather was drizzly, only raining when we were inside eating lunch! So that worked out! LOL

And now it is back to the daily grind. :-) Hope you all have a good Saturday!

~WIP Wednesday~

I'm back in the "saddle" again! Yeehaw! ;-)

It wasn't lack of yarn that kept me from knitting. Perhaps I just needed a little break from the needles? I don't know, but I do know that I am thoroughly enjoying my project!

A year and a half ago, I started this project:



There were several things that went wrong: first of all, the yarn was not what the pattern called for. It really wasn't looking all that great. Secondly, I repeated the pattern wrong, and when I discovered that, I ripped out the whole project.

Last year on my birthday, I purchased the correct lace yarn (a mohair yarn) for this project. I didn't get around to starting it until a few weeks ago, and I had trouble starting it.

So finally last week I sat down, determined that this was going to work! And it is:




I love it! I'm glad I stuck with it!!!

~Eight~

Eight years ago today, I walked down the aisle and pledged my troth to my dear sweetheart.


Happy anniversary, Kevin! I love you!

Silhouette cut at Disneyland, July 2002.

~Daybook~

For today, May 26th

Outside My Window...
A sunshiny, gorgeous day!

I am thinking...
about the new apron theme at Tie One On. This time around it is gingham! Oooh, I love gingham, I'll be sure to participate!

I am thankful for...
So many things! My salvation and His mercies that are new each morning!

From the kitchen...
Oh dear, a stack of dishes awaiting my attention! I'm not sure what is for dinner either...last week wasn't a very organized kitchen week.

I am wearing...
A navy polo shirt with an aqua skirt with navy polka-dots...love those polka-dots!

I am creating...
A knitted scarf. It seems to be going so well! I'll show pictures on Wednesday.

I am going...
crazy, want to come?

Just kidding. My husband says that all the time though, and I just couldn't resist. I think this afternoon is pretty clear, I can't think of any place I'll be going.

I am reading...
What Katy Did at School

I am hoping...
That this beautiful weather stays around for a while!

I am hearing...
Nothing much. The hum of the computer.

Around the house...
Dishes and laundry. Those two things never cease, do they? =)

One of my favorite things...
Old children's literature!

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week:
Let's see, it seems to be a shaping up to be a very busy week, though today is calm! Errands on Tuesday, and other appointments throughout the week that will keep me going!

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

Embroidery pattern found here. Three down, four more to go! =)

For more Daybook entries, visit The Simple Woman.