Lasso The Moon

Planted.

**don't forget to enter to win a copy of "kisses from katie!" the drawing is this friday. click here to leave a comment and enter.**

I cannot say enough how much I am in love with this paint color!! Do I sound obsessive?  I kept saying it over and over as I was painting.  But doesn't it just look like it belongs there in the yard? Love it.  Find it here.

I set up a grid and tied a string at every 12 inches, because I think the square foot gardening technique is going to work best in this space.  I might have planted a few too many pepper plants.  I have three bell peppers, one salsa pepper, and a couple more banana peppers.  Ole!

This is the extent of my herb garden. I have more, but they have to be planted in pots. Mom says the basil (left) is going to take over, but I saw that as a challenge to use it faster than it can grow.  Also seen here is dill, curry, and sweet potato vine--which I know is not edible.  It's actually semi-poisonous.  But I'm really good at growing it and it's pretty.

Beets.  Anyone know how to pickle?

Radishes.  I don't think anyone in my family even likes radishes, but they are easy and fun to grow.  You can harvest in 25 days from seed.  Which is why they were a favorite of Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle.

I know you are probably thinking, What the heck is that? That is an experiment.  I read somewhere that the stumps of celery would grow if planted, so there they are!  I'm skeptical, but if you look closely, there is a tiny bit of new growth right near the center.

And the onions.  I planted these a little late, but I'm already happy I did.  Because our first harvest of the year is onion chives!

Yum. 

We also planted zucchini, yellow squash, cantaloupe, tomatoes, rainbow chard, carrots, and pickles. 

Yes, pickles.  We don't like raw cukes. Ew.

Can't wait to see how my garden grows.  I just love walking out and checking on my newborn seedlings.

 

 

Mother's Day 2012

**don't forget to enter to win a copy of "kisses from katie!" the drawing is this friday. click here to leave a comment and enter.**

To say that I had a beautiful Mother's Day is a bit of an understatement.  We went to my Grandma's house (Grandma V and Pop) and had a feast of barbecue and banana pudding.  We ate outside on the back porch in the most perfect weather.  It was cool and breezy, and the view (they live on a golf course in Dallas) was incredible.

These hydrangea bushes were babied and grown by Grandma V herself.  She said she got them out of the "dead" pile at Lowe's and coaxed them back to life.  I've never seen hydrangeas like this.  So impressive.

We met some new friends.

And took wayyy too many pictures of the baby.  But how could we help it?  She matched the landscape!

How wonderful is this peely bench!  Grandma said she was planning to repaint it, but I hope I convinced her not to!!

My own pretty Momma, with Dad and all 5 of their grandchildren.

 

But first...

I have lots of Mother's Day photos to show you, but they have to wait until tomorrow.

I have a few updated pictures of my garden, but those have to wait, too.

I have been taken hostage by a story, and I want you to be, too.

Have you heard of Katie Davis?  I don't want to give away too much, but let's say she is 23 years old and she is changing the world.

Take a minute to watch this video, and if you are hooked, come back--because there's more.

She has written a book, and as soon as I'm finished reading her whole blog, I'm going in for the book.

And I want you to read it with me!  I want to start it next week, and discuss it as a group at the end of the month, here on the Lasso blog.  If you are interested in joining me, let me know in the comments. 

Also, for those of you who leave a comment, I'm going to have a drawing on Friday for a copy of the book.  On Friday at noon, I will draw a name from the comments and that happy person will win a free copy of Katie's book!  From me, because I want you to read it with me that bad.

If you'd like to go ahead and order your copy, you can get it here or here or even here!  If you win the drawing, you can always give one of the copies to a friend and make our book circle even bigger.

So go ahead, leave a comment (with your email address listed) and then share this post with a friend so she can join us, too!

Some House Rules, New and Old, for Mother's Day

I've shared some of these in the past.

Some of them are new.

Some of them were declared for the first time yesterday.

Parenting is full of amendments.

These are the rules:

Do not eat gum you found on the sidewalk.
If you drop your gum in a movie theater, do not pick it up and put it in your mouth.
Do not put your feet in your baby brother's mouth.
Do not put your toes in your baby sister's mouth.
I don't care if she likes it.
Do not lick the tile on the back porch table.
Do not lick the window screen.
Do not lick the car windows.
Do not wash your toys in the potty.
Do not slurp water from the bathtub stopper.
Do not dance with pencils.
Do not dance with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
Do not jump on the top bunk.
Do not stuff finger puppets into your mouth to see how many you can fit.
Especially on a full stomach.
Especially if your stomach is full of ice cream.

These are just some of the actual rules, stated out loud at some point in our household.
Happy Mother's Day

The Rest of the Seal Grey Paint

It didn't take us long to start up another project.

Donnie has built me the most gorgeous raised vegetable bed.

The entire thing is 8'x10', but it has nice, wide pathways, big enough to fit a lawn mower.  Or a tea party.

The entire thing is situated on a hill, but he managed to make the beds perfectly level.  That's how he does things.

He let everyone chip in. That's also how he does things.

Next step, paint it with the left over paint from the shutters, fill with healthy, living dirt, and pick out our crops!

Each side bed is 2'x6', and the one along the back is 1.5'x8'.  Perfect for a square-foot-garden style venture.  I have a habit of killing plants--especially vegetables--but this is just so pretty I want to come out and look at it all day long.  I hope I still feel like this when the sun starts raging with it's Texas summer attitude.  But, Donnie built this garden for me as an anniversary gift, so I'm pretty sure that means he's willing to take up the slack on the watering duties when the heat gets severe. 

What a great guy!

Oops...how did that get in there?

Follow you? Anywhere.

Strength in Numbers

This weekend my little brother Jeremy graduated from Bible College.  That's him in the picture below...the one we are clearly trying to edge out of the picture.  How nice.

My brother Josh and his wife surprised him (and the rest of us) by flying in from their home in Colorado to be there.  Even though we didn't know it, they were at the airport when my mom called him to say that her younger sister had passed away unexpectedly.  Have you ever noticed how that happens? Someone dies near a special occasion and you suddenly don't know how to feel.  I was so proud and excited for Jeremy, but also sad and grieving the tragic loss of life. 

I mentioned this to a couple people at the graduation, and they all had similar stories of simultaneous joy and heartache.  I don't think this timing is any coincidence.  We naturally gather together for celebrations, and need the strength of numbers when mourning.  God knew my mom would need all of her babies around to love on her this weekend, even though Josh didn't fully understand why he was making the trip.

I am in awe of our Heavenly Father, who knows us so well.  Who uses our loved ones to prop us up when we can't stand alone.  We gathered around the breakfast table Sunday morning, once again the family of my childhood, enjoying the company of siblings, celebrating accomplishment, remembering a loved one, and eating waffles. 

God knows what we need when we need it.

 

You Are My Sunshine - Esther's 1st Birthday Party

 

A couple years ago, we decided that we would only have "family" birthday parties for our kids until their fourth birthday.  That seems to be the age that they are able to anticipate the party and their friends, and doing a "friends" party before that brings on  a lot of unnecessary stress.

Our family parties are almost always held on the actual birthday, and we usually don't start planning and inviting people until just a day or two ahead of time.

We came up with the theme "You are my sunshine" on Tuesday, called people on Wednesday and Thursday morning, and had cake and ice cream in our backyard on Thursday night.

It was the best possible outcome.  Esther had so much fun being the center of attention.  She daintily picked at her mini-cake until we helped her out a bit.  She smiled, made faces, laughed, and was generally the star of the show.  (Thank you, Lord for that long nap she had before the guests arrived!)  The only part she didn't understand was the presents.  Those fancy bags and papers just slowed her down on her way to the green grass.

The weather was beautiful, the early evening sunshine was eerie and gorgeous, the cake was yummy, the decorations were simple and fun, and the company was hilarious.  What more could we ask for to celebrate our Essie's first year!

 

 linked to: TDC

Birthday Breakfast

Birthday announcement pancakes are getting to be a bit of a tradition.

She likes them!

Now I have to get off the computer and get to work.

We have some making to do before her cake party tonight.

Come back to see how it turned out.

Back

I am back from one of the best trips I've ever taken.

I went on a weekend retreat with 5 other women I've known since high school.

We talked for three straight days.  We rested, reminisced, and recharged.  We shopped at flea markets and antique stores.  We laughed, cried, and prayed together.  We left the kids at home (except for nursing babies).  It was incredible.

We also did a little crafting.

Some homemade sugar scrub:

Made from the simplest kitchen ingredients, you can afford to use this scrub liberally.  It feels so good!  Just pour half salt, half sugar into a jar.  Pour this into a mixing bowl and add enough oil to make a paste (I used sunflower oil.  It doesn't seem to have a smell.).  Then add your scents until the scrub smells delicious.  Essential oils are great, but you can also just use grated lemon peel and vanilla!  Pour it all back into the jar, and you're done.

We also stenciled some canvas bags using the freezer paper method.

We printed out the alphabet in simple fonts so that we could trace them and spell anything we wanted.  These ranged from super simple monograms to something a little more complicated.

I saved the design from the bag on the left, in case you'd like to make one for yourself.

Here's the PDF: Friends stencil

I'll be friends with these women for the rest of my life. 

They know way too much about me.

**

**now it's back to work.  this is a busy week. someone has a birthday on thursday**

 

Check!

Make Lists

Clean Out Car

Finish Laundry

Make Meatballs

Pack Kids' Bags

Pack My Bags

Pack Car

Print Map and Directions

Drop off the Kids with Grandma

Drive

Momma is leaving town.

 

 

Giving Back

I buy Donnie tools for birthdays and such.

He makes me awesome stuff for the house.

Like these new DIY shutters he designed.

Here's the before:

And the after:

Aren't they darling!  He made them out of 1x8 rough cedar with a cross piece on the front and back.

The color is "seal" from Martha Stewart Living.  I can't tell you how much I love this color.  It's a dark grey, but it also has a hint of brown and green.  A gorgeous neutral.  {Did you know Home Depot doesn't sell MS paint anymore? I had no idea. They are still mixing the colors into other paint brands, though.  We used a sturdy outdoor Glidden paint in satin.}

Anyway, I'm horrible at estimating how much paint I'll need, and we only used 1/4 of the two gallons I bought.  Now we need another project to use it on.  I love this color!

And I love these shutters.  I didn't even think we needed them, and now I don't know how we went without them for so long.  They make the perfect backdrop for watching thunderstorms on the front porch.

We love thunderstorms, too.

Nap Time

I hope your Sunday was a restful as ours.

Scuff Marks - a quick home keeping tip

My mom and I have a little joke between us.  We say, "there's a time for vinegar, and there's a time for bleach."  We both love to use natural cleaning products around the house, but there are some germy messes that can't be fixed with anything less than good old-fashioned bleach. 

But sometimes a natural choice actually works better than a more expensive un-natural choice.  And there is one natural product that works better than anything on the market for getting out scuff marks.

In our kitchen, we have what Donnie calls the "school cafeteria floor."  It's a 60s-era light-colored vinyl tile designed to hide dirt--but instead it just never quite looks clean.  Of course, the kitchen floor is on the list of things to upgrade around here, but it's a long list, and we're going to be living with it for a while. If you've ever had vinyl tiles in your home, you know that they pick up scuff marks like nothing else. 

Here's a shot of the floor under the kitchen table, right after it was mopped.

Yikes.  No amount of mopping, bleach, or magic erasing will get those out.  The only thing I've found to work on plastic or rubbery surfaces like this...is baking soda.

Get your rag really wet.  The water will work with the baking soda to get into all the little crevices and grab the dirt.  Next, sprinkle a little baking soda directly onto the floor, and lightly rub it in with your wet cloth.

You will be amazed at how quickly those scuff start un-gunking.  It forms a paste that gets darker and dirtier as it works.  It takes very little elbow grease.  Actually, repetition is more effective than force.

After about 30 seconds of gently scrubbing the spot I showed above, it looked like this:

Amazing how little effort that took. Keep wetting your wash cloth and adding more baking soda until you are satisfied.  If your floor feels gritty when you're done, drizzle some vinegar over it and mop that up.  This is a time for vinegar.  It dissolves the baking soda just like it did in your science fair volcano.

This is one of the household chores that I actually look forward to.  It's like magic!  Used in the exact same way, I've gotten rid of soap scum in the tub, a rust stain in the kitchen sink, unbleachable stains in the plastic part of my fridge shelves, dirt stains on Little Tykes plastic toys, scuff marks on patent leather, and more.  Don't you love when a natural solution actually out-performs a chemical one? And baking soda is a fraction of the price.  What have you used it for--other than baking?

Custom Sized Canvas Bins :: a tutorial

Take your shelves from this:

To this:

With some home-sewn canvas boxes.  You can make them in any size.  And they are way easier than they look.  Canvas boxes can cost a lot of money, but these literally cost me about $10 for the whole set!

The secret to these is the frame.  It's made from plastic canvas!  This inexpensive material can be found at any craft store.  Mine was $.99 for a 10x13 inch sturdy sheet, and $.49 for a slightly more flimsy piece.  I used the regular for the sides, and the sturdy for the bottom.

My tutorial will take you through the process for making one smaller bin, like those on the top shelf in the picture above. (The dimensions are 6"w x 9"h x 9 1/2"d.)

Step 1: Gather Supplies

*Plastic canvas - 1 sturdy sheet, 3 regular sheets (Buy extra if you tend to make measuring mistakes.)

*A roll of paper for making the pattern

*Transparent grid ruler

*Paper Weights or clean stones for holding down the pattern

*Binder Clips

*Needles and straight pins

*Pin

*Scissors

*Yarn or string for lashing together the plastic frame

*Fabric: 3/4 yards each of canvas and lining. Coordinating fabric for binding (1 1/2" wide x about 36 inches long)  I used an old canvas drop cloth for the outer fabric, and for the prints, thrifted sheets.  Cheap!

Step 2: Prepare the plastic canvas

From the sturdy piece cut 1 - 6"x9 1/2" for the bottom.

For the sides, 2 - 9"x9 1/2" and 2 6"x9" pieces

Lash the sides to the base with yarn.  Tie really good knots.  Leave flat for the next part. (Should be in the shape of a wide cross.)

Lay out the flat frame on your pattern paper, and carefully trace around the entire perimeter. Be careful not to shift the plastic canvas while you are tracing.

Put the paper aside until the next step, and sew up the sides of your box frame.  Tie really good knots.

Step 3: Make the pattern

With your ruler, add a 1/2" seam allowance to the inner corners of your pattern.  Do not add seam allowance to the top edges of the box pattern. 

Cut out your pattern.

Step 4: Cut fabric

Lay out your pattern on top of the fabric, and use weights to keep it from rolling or shifting.  You can use anything as a weight.  Here's my rag-tag assemblage:

Trace around the pattern in a pen or pencil--directly onto the fabric.  This will give you the most accurate sizing, and you want your fabric to fit the box frame very closely.

Cut one from canvas and one from the lining fabric.

Cut out one rectangle for the handle from canvas--3"x6".

Step 5: Sew it together

Stitch up your pieces in this order.  First, sew the box lining.  Remember to use a 1/2" seam allowance! Start at the top edge (rim) of the lining, and sew toward the corner.  Continue with each side until it forms a box shape.

Next, make your handles. Sew into a tube, lengthwise. Turn inside out and press flat.  Turn the ends under.

Pin handles to your canvas before sewing up the edges.  This makes for easier placement.

For added strength, sew a square with an "x" inside on each side of the handle.

After your handle is attached, sew up the sides of the canvas.

Attach the binding to the top edge of the canvas layer.  Start by folding over the binding about 1" and sew all the way around using a 1/4" seam allowance.  Overlap the binding a little at the end for a clean finish.

Step 6: Finish

Turn the canvas layer right-side-out and place your plastic frame inside.  It should be snug.  Carefully line up the seams with the corners of the frame.

Slip the lining inside, with the right side of the fabric showing.  Line up the top edge of both fabrics with the top edge of the frame.  Hold in place with binder clips.

With needle and thread, slip stitch binding in place. 

And there you have it.  You made a box!

Now make a few more, and clean your place up!

I hope you have fun using this tutorial to help organize your own space.  I'd love to see how you make the project your own.  I've always been a little prejudiced against plastic canvas as a craft supply, because everything I'd seen done with it seemed so dated.  (You know what I mean...) But now I have seen the light, and I'm thinking up many more project ideas to use the stuff.  It may just be a new favorite.\

Linked to:

TDC

 

Overachiever

When Emma finishes her weekly homework early, she makes up more for herself.

by Emma, age 7

Sqirls, porkypines, and elifents.

Nacher is full of inspiration.