What I did Wednesday

As I planned on Monday, I mowed the front yard this morning before it got hot. 

I also cleaned the floors and did all the laundry. 

I should of taken a before picture but I only have this after photo of the spray paint job that redid a metal silverware holder that my daughter passed on to me. (We always seem to be passing things back and forth and it works out quite beneficial to both of us)

The bottom of the holder shows the original paint.  I thought it might be hard to get the inside divided part painted but spray paint covered it all completely.

This napkin-utensil holder will be very handy, especially when we have a big group for a meal. 

I started having some seasonal allergies problems on Monday. By Tuesday evening, I took Benadryl which cleared up my head but also put me fast asleep by 7 p.m. 

I was feeling a lot better today but since seasonal allergies hang around, I knew I should go buy some non drowsy allergy medicine and I went to Walmart as I figured medicine would be cheapest there,

Walmart had clearance items everywhere but I only found one thing to buy- This multiple pack of little girl undies for my youngest granddaughter.  

At the factory, it held 9 pair but somebody took out a pair so this now pack of 8 was clearanced to $1.

My local Walmart uses these red code 4 tags when they mark merchandise down with deep cuts. 

I have learned to spot them :)

Hope you have all had a great Wednesday! 

God Moments : A Year in the Word

God Moments : A Year in the Word

I got this free book from Amazon a few weeks ago and am really enjoying its sweet and meaningful devotions. 

When I looked on Amazon this morning, the kindle version book is still free. 

The book starts with January 1 and has a devotion for each day. I started the book at the beginning, even though it was July, and read 2-3 each day.  

You don't have to have to a Kindle to read Kindle books. Amazon has free Kindle apps for most phones, computers, tablets or whatever device you use. 

Less busy on Wednesday

I didn't have much on my list today. I cut out coupons, worked on my manicure and went to the bank for cash so while I was out, I stopped at Walmart, Dollar Tree and Aldi.

Walmart. -used 2 coupons from Sundays paper for lipstick and nail polish. 

  The gallon can of tomato sauce is make a big batch of pasta sauce to freeze.

Aldi- rest of the groceries were bought there. We didn't need much this week.

Most of the granola bars will go to work with my husband to keep in his desk drawer.

The other snacks are for the grands snack box.

See that clear tub in the pantry floor? It holds little bags chips, fruit snacks, granola bars. One of the grandchildren has a hard time when they have to leave so I first started the box so that child could get a treat to have on the way home and to make leaving not so difficult.

It worked, goodbyes are much easier and all the grands know where the snack box is now.

Dollar Tree - they have a new batch of solar powered wiggle animals. It is rainy today so neither one is swinging but they will be when the sun reappears.

This is the little measuring cup I got at the thrift store yesterday for 25 cents. It really is tiny, each line is 1 tablespoon or a total of 1/4 cup.  I think I will use it often, so many times I need a small amount like 2 T of oil or milk for a recipe......

Also yesterday, I cut back some of the dead zinnia and put them in a paper bag to finish drying. Each zinnia is filled with many seeds. I should be ready for next spring to grow more zinnias!

Supper tonight was some leftover grilled chicken legs, a big tossed salad and stir fried cabbage.

Grandchildren will be here the next couple days so housework will be done only on a must do basis. I won't be doing any big projects either, just watching grands ride bikes or play with toys and I sure lots of hugs will be involved too. 

Do Stuff Tuesday

I wrote another to do list with tasks I hope to do for the week, not just today. 

I fixed my husband's lunch bag first thing. 

Then I got busy with cleaning.  I vacuumed the carpets in the bedrooms and then shampooed those carpets. I used the homemade cleaner again and was very happy with how well it cleaned. 

Homemade carpet cleaner solution

I also cleaned and mopped both bathrooms and washed those rugs too.

In the garage, I swept and threw a few things away.

After I did the cleaning and found some spiders in the garage, I put down some bug spray in the garage and in the house. That made the house smell so I left for awhile. 

I stopped at one thrift store and found some play clothes. 

I also found a cute little 4 tablespoon liquid measure cup (it is in the dishwasher now, I will try to post a picture, I think it will be very handy!)

If you are not from the South, our supper will probably look and sound strange but it was delicious.

Garden tomatoes with cottage cheese, fried okra and kraut with weenies. The weinies are leftover Hebrew 97% fat free kosher beef franks. My husband bought the tomatoes and okra from a farmer selling them in a gas station parking lot. 

It's not crossed off on my list but I did finish the napkins. I made them from a table cloth bought on clearance years ago.  I used part of the table cloth to make an ironing board cover.  Their was a big odd-shaped scrap left. Last week, I cut it into as many 16 inch squares as possible.  After I machine narrow hemmed any raw edges, I ended up with 11 red checked napkins. 

I won't need to do much cleaning the next few days. 

Yesterday post got the nicest comments.  

I really enjoy reading what you all have been doing---

If you do stuff, stuff gets done! 

Do stuff Monday

Today was a free day- no appointments and no grandchildren - so I wrote out my to do list with more on it than I usually try to get done in one day. Surprisingly and happily, I got it all done my mid afternoon.

Scratching through completed jobs on a to do list is almost as satisfying as finishing a job.

This is a not a common sight in laundry rooms- empty baskets ! But that won't last too long....

The biggest job today was mowing and edging the front and back yard. Cooler temperatures and a nice breeze made this job easier. Here are the jumbo zinnias in the front flower bed - but please just look at the pretty flowers and ignore the grass growing around them, the weeds flat got away from me from this year. 

I also made a quick trip into Ulta to get some hair products my daughter in law recommended

And changed my Jamberry nail stickers. This is my second time applying them and I really like them but there is a bit of learning curve involved. The second time was much easier and faster than the first. 

Supper will be leftovers from Sunday along with some fresh tomatoes and cottage cheese so that meal won't take much time. 

I also got out this sampler and zigzagged the edge of the linen so it won't fray while I stitch it. I plan to start stitching it this evening. 

I am already thinking about tomorrow's list. Clipping and filing yesterday's coupons will be on it as well as straightening the 3 extra bedrooms and bathrooms. 

I hope you have had a productive Monday too! 

Just a funny for you

This is our grandson JJ, 15  months old. His big sister Elizabeth is behind the door in the bathroom.

His momma says JJ talks to Elizabeth under the door whenever Elizabeth is in the bathroom,

Hey- whatcha doing in there? The big people won't let me in the bathroom since they caught me playing in the toilet a few months ago........

Lunch for a group

Here is what I served for a recent meal when we had 12 guests.

Easy crock pot beef tips - except I baked ours in a Dutch oven in the regular oven- doubled the recipe

Make ahead mashed potatoes - this recipe does not use cream cheese like most make ahead recipes call for  - also doubled this recipe

Baked carrots

Green beans

Worlds Best Dinner Rolls - I followed the recipe exactly except I mixed them all by hand in a Tupperware fix and mix bowl. The recipe says to shape the dough into 24 rolls but I made them a regular dinner roll and had about 40. At 24, they would be very large rolls I think, more like a jumbo sandwich bun. 

Dessert was fresh fruit -a Georgia seedless watermelon, red grapes, strawberries and fresh pineapple-and a bag of Chips Ahoy cookies I got on sale for 99 cents. 

I usually bake a dessert or 2 but my husband and I have not been eating dessert for about 2 months and with all the other cooking, I just didn't feel like baking a dessert too. Unfortunately, 3 of the guests were disappointed with my baking slack off.  They did not leave hungry though, they just ate extra rolls and watermelon. 

Beverages were plain and sweet tea. 

I recommend all of the recipes.  And that is one of the ways I feed a crowd. 

Spur of the moment yard sale

We were out early this morning as we took the oldest grandson home after a sleepover here.

I had not planned to yard sale, but as we got home, we saw 2 sales right in our neighborhood.

The first sale had so much nice stuff and at very good prices. I considered buying lots of things but decided to just get what we needed.

This heavy patio set was $50. It needs a new paint job but other than that, it is perfect. It is very sturdy and should survive our harsh weather.  There is a hole in the center of the table to hold a big umbrella.

It came with 5 chairs, 2 are rockers and 3 are regular chairs.
We are really happy to get this. We've looked at new patio sets but they seem to be not sturdy, or too fancy or expensive or not strong enough for the Oklahoma weather. 

I also picked out a few play clothes for the oldest grandson. They were 50 cents each.

I was in Walmart yesterday and checked out the $1 rack that is still in the action aisle beside the shoe department. It was full of knit leggings in very bright colors - all seemed to be for babies size 0-3 months and junior girls size 0-2.  It was nothing we needed but I will keep checking that rack when I go to Walmart. 

Recent bargains

This bargain is about as good as bargains get.

I rarely shop at Walmart but it has been so hot and I had a short list with coupons so I went to Walmart to get everything and not make multiple stops. 

I walked through the shoe department just as they were doing some major shoe clearances.

These are all little boy shoes, sizes 7 through 12. They were all discounted to $1 a pair! 

It looks like lots of shoes but we have 3 young grandsons and there were many more pairs of shoes on clearance.

I also got 3 bags of socks and 1 pack of little girl undies - these were bags that had been ripped open- they were discounted to $1 as well.

The black socks bags held the full amount but the girl socks and undies were missing a few- I am not complaining though - $1 is an amazing price, complete bag or not. 

My daughter and I have both been back to Walmart, hoping to be there if and when little girl shoes get marked down to $1. We saw the men's and women's clearances and my daughter and I each got one pair of walking type shoes for ourselves. 

No success yet on shoes for the granddaughters but I'll let you know if we score. 

Have you found any great sales this month?

$1 flip flops dressed up with help from Pinterest

This $1 pair of pink flip flops is from Walmart, the ribbon is 1 1/2 inch wide and I just hand sewed it to cover the straps. The bows and buttons were hand sewn and then secured with a dab of E6000 glue.

The second pair were from Dollar Tree. They are not as thick as the Walmart one.
I followed this tutorial pretty much exactly as written.
Covered flip flops tutorial

I have been wearing them around the house and they are very comfy. I wonder how sturdy they are and if they will hold together, so far so good! 

If you want to fancy up flip flops, just search on Pinterest for flip flops DIY. There are many many cute ideas.  

First day of July

Don't forget to flip over your calendar pages

I like patriotic scenes so much that I have 2 calendars in the laundry room.

Both of these calendars were mailed to us from charity groups.

2 grandchildren a year ago- they are both much bigger now!

And clean out the expired June coupons from your coupon stash.

A trip down memory lane, shopping and more about cleaning a fridge

We went to Oklahoma City on Friday to have my husbands car checked by the dealer. We also went to our son's home to get the fresh shrimp he brought back from their vacation to the Texas coast.

We ended up just a short distance from a rent house in Midwest City that we lived in from 1983-1986. We drove by and took a photo- the house was not new when we lived there and it is not in a really great neighborhood but it looks almost just like it did 30 years ago and seems to be well maintained.

Our son's wife grew up in this same neighborhood, in a house just 5 blocks from this house.  We did not know her or her family then but we all think it is neat we did live close together even though we did not know it at the time. 

We also just happened to drive by US Foods. It is a rather new store, kind of like a Sams but without the membership fee. USFoods is a wholesale food company that mainly delivers food to businesses and institutions. Back when I was a cook at a fraternity house, USFoods was my favorite distributor. 

Now, USFoods has opened just a few retail stores.  

http://usfoods.com/about-us/chef-store.html

We browsed every aisle and had fun looking at all the kitchen and restaurant equipment.  Since it was a spur of the moment visit, I didn't have a plan to buy anything but we did find a few things 

The gloves were an especially good deal, about $4 for 100 and are handy when when we do messy things like painting.

I really like balsamic vinegar and have a hard time finding it in our town, 

I expect my grandchildren will be happy to snack on the goldfish. 

We will go back, when we need to stock up. They put an ad paper in the Oklahoman newspaper every so often so I will watch for sales on things we use.

I got so many comments from you all about my fridge cleaning. 

I forgot to mention about another important part - cleaning the fridge coils and air flow spots. 

The little fridge has coils on the back that get dusty and the big fridge gets lots of dust buildup in the bottom.  If you need to clean yours, just look it over for dust. 

My husband helped with this job. He used an air compressor to blow all the dust out of the bottom of the big fridge. He also used the vacuum hose to remove the dust.

Using the compressor blows the dust all over but it is important to get it out. Once our fridge broke because the dust in the bottom clogged up the motor.  

Today-I  mowed and edged the front and back yards.  We've had plenty of rain so everything is green and growing. 

The potted garden is mostly growing 

I picked more yummy cherry tomatoes

And discovered that 3 mystery vines are actually cantaloupe!  I did not plant cantaloupe, the seeds must of been in the compost.

Another photo of the potted zinnias - just because they are pretty and happy.

This afternoon, I worked on prettying up a couple of pairs of $1 flip flops with ideas from Pinterest. 

That will be my next post - I've rambled on here long enough with way too many topics.  

At home this week.....

Thursday already?  this week has been flying by.....

We have been getting lots of rain.  I went out this morning to see if my pots of plants needed watered, they didn't, but I did find about  dozen cherry tomatoes ready to pick.  They would not all fit in my hand so I put them in my apron pockets.  

On Tuesday,  I did a little shopping.  At my favorite thrift store,  I found this back of the door rack for $4.  I had been looking at them online and they sell new for $25 or more.  This one is very sturdy and my husband will add some anchors to the top to make it secure to the door. 

I've read about Dukes mayo but have never seen it for sale in Oklahoma.  Well,  Dollar Tree sells it now, in little 8 ounce jars,  for $1.  It really is the best tasting mayo I've ever tried so I bought more.  I made pimento cheese and deviled eggs with it Saturday - 

Tuesday was a primary election day in Oklahoma.  For 2 of the races,  I liked both leading candidates.  But 2 other races,  I didn't care for any of the candidates.  At least for now,  the negative political  ads are taking a break on TV and online

the first zinnias planted are most all in bloom and just look so happy!

I've been reading a book called "all you need is less" and learned that the Downy fabric softener I have used for 30 years has some ewwwwww ingredients.  So, I bought some Mrs Meyers, both liquid and sheets, in lavender.  They smell so clean and soften the laundry just as good as the ewwww products.  

They do cost more but I don't care.  

yes  I have tried vinegar and the Diy softener made from hair conditioner in the past but was not happy with the results.  We have hard, full of lime water in Oklahoma, that famous homemade laundry soap does not work for me either.

I ended up having today free as one of my grandson's is sick so I decided to do a thorough cleaning of our 2 fridges from top to bottom, inside and outside.   I took everything out and put it in ice chests, then I removed the shelves and drawers to wash them and I sprayed down all the surfaces and wiped them until they were clean.
I also took of the papers and photos on the fronts and left nothing on the top but 2 baskets.  One basket holds washcloths to clean up grands when they are messy and the other holds zipper bags that get reused.

yes, there are a dozen ice trays.  the ice maker quit about  a month ago so I just make ice the old fashioned way.  I empty and refill every morning and it is not much effort at all.  We like lots of ice!

I sorted the condiments- all the peppers are in one door basket, 

 and salsas in one, salad dressings in another. 

trust me, both appliances needed cleaning and I am so happy they are sparkling clean, for now anyway. 

bye for now......I hope you are enjoying this first official week of summer 2014.