A Walk in the Woods

Hey, How is everyone doing? I hope all of you guys up on the northern coast are safe and sound. I know a lot of you are getting hammered with lots of wind and rain. I hope you’re not without power for too long.

I had planned on sharing with you a vegetable lasagna recipe that I sort of threw together.

I took all sorts of pretty shots of each step. They were good.

Not, The Pioneer Woman good, but good in my own half blurry way.

But again, I had issues with my memory card and I lost them all.

So no lasagna for you! I bet PW doesn't have these issues.

But we had a gloriously clear and crisp weekend. 

(Sorry to all of you who are soaked right now.)

And so we stopped off for a little nature walk at Rocky Bayou State Park. 

It was sort of a spur of the moment thing and I did not have my big camera with me. 

Just my trusty iphone.

There were tons of these funky blobs of moss. It was really cool looking.

I got up and personal with it.

No one was around to see me with my butt up in the air.

I was really hoping to see some fall color. There is not much around here in the way of reds and yellows. 

It is still a little early for us. Which is why I love Instagram. I get to see everyone else’s fall colors. 

Are you on instagram? Let me know if you are. I'd love to see your photos.

And feel free to check out my feed. It’s on the side bar.

Pitiful, I know.

 

Lean on me.... sing it with me....

Then on the way home we stopped along the roadside so I could grab some of these.

Free flowers :)

They filled out my new milk glass pitcher nicely.

I found a few more treasures recently too. I’ll be putting them in my etsy shop tomorrow.

So stop by Skyland Drive and have look.

Stay safe everyone and have a great week!

Fabric Samples and a Winner

I ordered some samples of fabric for my kitchen window.

I have a small bay window with two inch blinds right now. I thought with all the white paint and light colored walls a little bit of color on the windows would be nice. I might get bamboo blinds but the privacy and light adjustment I get with the old blinds is nice.

Here are some of the samples.

 

I really liked the size of the samples that Fabric.com sent.

The two smaller samples came from OnlineFabricStore.net.

Both have really good prices and a much bigger selection than what I can find around here.

Here are some ideas of what I’m thinking about for the windows.

Something soft and swoopy. Swoopy is word.

They will look like roman blinds but really they'll be just a valance. 

Source: BHG.com

Source: BHG.com

Why didn't I take those stupid stickers off? Geesh!

 

I love them all. And if I could buy them all I would. Because I am a fabric hoarder.

There, I said it.

Now you know.

I. love. fabric.

Oh yes, a winner. Ha, I almost forgot.

I got distracted by all the fabric.

The winner is….

Katrina, who was a little undecided between the blue and the white.

I’ll be emailing you!

Let me know which fabric were your favorites. I’d love to know.

Road Trip Time and Giveaway Reminder

We’re going on a little road trip to see this guy.

Last weekend he popped in and surprised us with a visit. With his laundry.

This weekend it’s parents weekend at FSU. So we’re going to see how clean that dorm room is.

Yeah. That might be a little scary.

I just wanted to pop in and remind you to enter my giveaway if you haven’t already.

You won’t want to miss out out on these cute bucket bags from Sailor Bags.

And, if anyone might know what this is, please let me know.

I really like it. It’s hanging over my fence.

Okay, need to run.

Don’t forget the GIVEAWAY!

Sailor Bags Giveaway!

When Sailor Bags contacted me about a new product and asked if I would I like to show it off on my blog, of course I said YES!

I loved the stockings that were sent to me for last years giveaway and I love this new bucket bag just as much. 

Maybe even more! It has so many uses.

I first showed you a glimpse of it when I was out in the garden picking the green beans.

Did you notice it?

It’s great to hold craft supplies, books, magazines or fill it with your Halloween candy.

Hang it in your bathroom.

 

No one will know what you have inside!

Sailor Bags uses genuine sailcloth for their products. They are made so well that they come with a lifetime guarantee. 

And shipping is only 2.99. That’s a great deal! They make totes, duffles, cooler bags and a lot more. 

They will even embroider them.

I am giving one of these babies away so you can see for yourself how great products from Sailor Bags are. I’ll even let you choose which color. Red, White or Blue. Because they are all so cute.

Leave me a comment and tell me which is your favorite for a chance to win. And if you like Sailor Bags on facebook, let me know for another chance to win. Just leave me a separate comment. Makes it easier to keep track with my fancy little numbered comments. Please make sure your email is available in your profile or leave it in the comment. If I can't contact you I will choose another winner.

You will have until Monday October 15.

Now how cute would this look with some Christmas poinsettias in it?

Christmas is just around the corner!

GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Plant a Chair or Planter Chair and a Surprise!

I started this project the other day and even remembered to take before, during and after shots. But then my SD card got uppity on me and refused to give me my photos I took. I had to reformat the card. 

Which in turn deletes the whole card and POOF all your photos are gone.

I even tried to use a recovery program and got nothing. Luckily I only had those photos on the card. I know a lot of people store their photos on those SD cards. Get them off and back them up if they mean anything to you. You never know when your card is going to act up.

So I retook them yesterday and the light was not great.

Just imagine the chair in it’s natural stained brown state. I picked it up for $2 somewhere. 

It was in great shape but I had no need for a seat-less chair so I decided to plant it.

Like I did for this one many moons ago.

I had these coffee sacks in the garage for quite some time. I have several of the one on the left so I decided to use that one for the seat/pot instead of using window screen like last time.

I left it doubled up since it was a loose weave and trimmed a bit off the top. Then I just maneuvered and stapled it onto the seat frame. Photos would be nice huh? Stupid card.

This is how it turned out.

I spray painted the frame aubergine. Not a color I would normally use but I really like it with these flowers. It’s sort of a fall color too. I gave it a good covering, even the bottom of the feet in hopes of delaying the inevitable rotting. 

My blue chair is now toast.

But you know what? For $2, a can of spray paint and some free burlap sacks, I don’t mind if it doesn't last forever. 

Right now it looks cute and I like it. 

So, what’s the surprise you’re wondering?

Do you remember these cute little stockings from last year?

Well, Sailor Bags has sent me something new this year and I get to have another giveaway!

What is is? Well, come back tomorrow to find out!

You might have caught a glimpse of them in a previous post.

I think you'll love these as much as I do! :)

linking up with:

Coastal Charm: Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

End of Summer?

Someone needs to tell my green beans.

And my peppers.

I’m picking green beans every day now.

They have gotten their second wind I guess.

That basil plant needs to be made into pesto as well.

It’s not the sweet basil you normally see. It has a slightly different taste but we really like it.

This one has much cleaner leaves without being bothered by as many pests.

I’m not pointing any fingers. 

But I have found several of these guys this year and they still freak me out!

Anyway, with my bean stalk not quitting anytime soon I decided to start freezing them.

It’s pretty simple. You just blanch them. Fancy word for boiling like 2 or 3 minutes. Then you throw them in some ice water to halt the cooking. Then they are ready to freeze if you want. Or you can do this prior to sautéing them in some garlic and olive oil. Or you can dip them into a dill and greek yogurt dip and munch away.

They stay nice a bright green this way too.

I froze some of my peppers as well. I did not blanch them. I just washed, sliced and put them on a cookie sheet in the freezer for about 30 minutes. Then after the froze individually I put them in ziploc bags. That way I can take out what I need without them all being frozen in a big clump.

I planted more lettuce now that it cooled off a bit. I hope they do better then in the spring.

Anyone still have a garden growing?
Whatcha got left? 

I'd love to hear.

Things Are Never Easy Around Here

How was your weekend? 

We had a visitor.

Yes, Mr. Rooter came for a little visit.

Our Friday evening plans for a relaxing boat ride were interrupted when a friend spotted some water in the garage. You have no idea what a mess our garage is right now with the extra stuff from son #2 in there. But things had to be moved and drywall had to but cut to see where it was coming from. And we couldn’t figure it out.

We had to call in the professionals. They could either come late that night or we could turn off the water and wait until morning. So…. we turned off the water, went and had some dinner and then headed out on the boat. Might as well enjoy the rest of the evening right?

Normally, weekends + plumbers = $$$$ 

But they didn’t have that after hours charge so that was a relief.

But what he found was not good. 

It was under the kitchen sink.

 Or rather under the kitchen sink CABINET!

Somehow that man was able to get under the cabinets and fix the split in the pipe that led down into the concrete floor.  And may I just add, there was not a plumber's butt in site. Whew! 

Luckily, the water that spewed out did run to the left and out the adjoining garage wall and NOT into the kitchen. 

That was all good news.

BUT

This 80’s house was made with polybutylene plumbing. And that is not good. We knew it when we bought it and they did have all the joints retrofitted but it did not fail at the joint. It was the pipe itself that somehow just magically split. So really, the whole house should be repiped.

Yes, the whole house.

*sigh*

But the evening boat ride was lovely.

The estimates come soon.

I see heavy drinking in my future.

So, tell me about your weekend.