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Author: October

  • Playhouse- Part II

    We decided to make the frame for the house in the garage and then attach each wall.  We knew once we had this done, that we would need to then put the sides and roof on quickly.  Here is the frame completed and on the deck.  I realized after it was put together that I did not take any pictures.  But that is ok…because in the next few weeks I will have a chance to take them step-by-step…and will explain in a later post.  😉

    The boards on the top are making sure the 4x4s stay straight and in place while we work on building the house around it.

    Part I
    Part II
    Part III
    Part IV
    Final

  • Playhouse- Part I

    I follow way too many blogs to even talk about…but this one in particular is AWESOME!  It is called Knock Off Wood.  It is a lady in Alaska that spends time designing and making furniture that looks like something you would buy from Pottery Barn.  She posted plans for a playhouse a couple weeks ago, so Wade and I decided it was time to start rebuilding ours that we tore down last year.  With our teeny-tiny backyard and VERY unlevel ground, we started working.

    We built the frame first so that we could square it up and use it as a template for the 4 posts.

    Next we put the posts in the ground then leveled the template and put the bolts in it through the 4 posts.  The girls were very helpful during this part.

    Sydney helped Wade hold down the wood as he cut the pieces.  Stacey, well I don’t know what she was doing.

    Then we added the underneath supports for the deck.

    That is when I got to go to work on the deck.  Notice how the girls have a hammer and crowbar???

    Here are the girls just before the storm in the background moved through.  We had most of the deck finished…we just had to rip 3 boards for the ends and middle.

    Part I
    Part II
    Part III
    Part IV
    Final

  • Artichokes are weird

    I hate cooking.

    I try…but even if I follow a recipe, I still screw it up.  There are so many variables that affect the outcome.  Baking on the other hand…if you follow the recipe exactly as it states, then it will turn out exactly how you expect.

    I hate cooking.

    Good thing I married a cook!

  • Dehydrator

    For my birthday, I asked for a dehydrator.  My mom obliged.  She did not get me some rinky-dink little thing…no…it takes up 1/2 the counter, but it is awesome!  I wanted it for all of the tomatoes that I expect will start growing someday in the garden.  For our first run of it, we made dried apples (they were too soft and the girls did not like them) and strawberry fruit roll ups.  The girls really liked the roll-ups but a few kids gave them a hard time at school for them.  I bet their mom has never made fruit roll ups for them!

  • Garden May 2010

    Here is how our garden looked mid-May.  Not too shabby.  The trellis is for luffa.  I will let you know how that goes! since I have such a green thumb! (kidding…)

  • More Garden Work

    We have been diligently working in the garden.  Wade helped me double it in size and I am SOOOOOOO excited.  When we put it together 3 years ago, we built it right up to the fence.  Not good.  The fence will eventually rot at the bottom and the garden there was not helping.  We knew this when we did it, but no one was living next to us at the time.  We have neighbors now.  So we pulled the garden away from the fence and made a very narrow walkway behind it.  We then separated it down the middle since our yard drains right through the garden.  Before, we had the timbers up on a brick and lined the middle of the garden with rocks.  Now we have a rock pathway.  This will make it easier to get to the middle of the garden.

    Here are the girls helping pick up some random rocks to put in the middle.  I am so glad they are not afraid to get dirty!

    Here is the new garden area.  I knew that it would be slanted when we put the timbers down…but I had no idea HOW MUCH until I stepped back to take this picture.  I will level the garden in another 3 years…

    This is our new vine garden.  We still have to put the trellis up on the wall.  Here we are going to attempt to grow loofah (yes, that is a plant), grapes, blackberries and raspberries.  Whichever doesn’t work, I will pull up and not plant next year.  Surely one of those 4 will work!  But then with my luck…there is no telling.  I had no idea that you cannot grow just 1 plant of strawberries (which I have tried to do the past 3 years).  My co-worker told me they can’t self pollinate.  We bought 10.  They better work this year!

  • The Pioneer Woman

    Yesterday, I went and did something a little out of character for me…I went and got a book signed by an author, Ree Drummond- The Pioneer Woman.  She is a blogger.  I have only been following her for about a year and a half, but she makes me laugh.  I love her stories about her dog Charlie, life on her ranch and homeschooling her “punks.”  Part of her blogging involves food and recipes and she just released a cookbook.  Now…I am not a cook.  In fact my dear husband does all of the cooking in our house.  BUT, if I did cook, I could follow her recipes…they are super easy.

    I found out The Pioneer Woman was coming to town and asked my mom if she would go with me to get a book signed.  (My mom does not read her blog regularly, but I send her enough posts that she has some idea of what is going on.)  We got there at 11:00 to get our signing tickets.  We were told that she would start at 1pm and our color would probably not start signing until 2:30.  We came back at 2:15ish and were told it would be another couple hours!  CRAZY!  All for a blogger!  We came back at 4 and told we had at least another hour.

    Finally at 4:30ish we got to get in the signing line.  Let me tell you…people are WEIRD…VERY WEIRD.  I am just amazed at the number of people primping before they got to the front of the line.  Seriously?!?!?  Maybe if I were meeting George Michael…  The other thing that shocked me was the number of gifts that people brought Ree Drummond.  There was a pile on the floor next to her.   I am sure she has interesting stories to tell every night after these book signings!  It is sorta like being a teacher at the end of the year, you get all this “stuff.”  That “stuff” makes its way to a recycled gift box which can be used as a white elephant gift a few years down the road.  Seriously…what is Ree going to do with a maroon A&M duck???  I digress…

    I had my 4 yo with me and she told me she wanted to tell the lady signing books that her picture was on the front. LOL!  She became shy once we got up there and didn’t say anything.  My mom snapped this shot of us.  Let me tell you…I have always thought Ree was pretty, but she is even prettier in real life.  I can’t imagine being in her shoes…she lives on a ranch, homeschools her kids, starts a blog, writes a book and is now famous.  I am convinced it is just in the stars for some people!

  • Christmas Desserts

    I don’t remember too many traditions growing up, but we did always make candies and fudge at Christmas time. My favorite fudge is Velveeta Cheese Fudge. Yes, it has cheese in it and it is unlike any fudge you have ever tasted…very sweet.

    The next thing we made was Chocolate Butterscotcharoos.  These are like peanut buttery rice crispy treats with chocolate/butterscotch on top.  Yummy!

  • Monarch Migration

    We went and picked up my grandfather for Thanksgiving.  I use the term “picking up” lightly since it is a 6.5 hour drive to Abilene to get him. When we got to his house, his roses are in full bloom and there were butterflies everywhere!  The monarchs are migrating south for the winter.  I tried to get some pictures, but most of them flew away.  It was getting dark , and was supposed to get cooler, so they did not return.  I managed to get 1 good picture.

    Ok…I know that when you get old, you have the right to be grouchy…but he has given new meaning to it!  It is no wonder that he has 3 of his 5 children NOT talking to him and haven’t for a while.  I am finally starting to see his true colors.  It takes a very strong person to be able to look beyond the cynicism and ignore the rudeness.  After a day I was ready to drop him off on the side of the road.  Don’t get me wrong, I still love him because he is my grandfather…but OMG!  I was told how everything I did was wrong!  He complained about eating Thanksgiving dinner too late (we ate at 6pm), and how I did a 1/2 ass job refinishing our 22 year old table (it was not smooth enough), and how I need to use my blinker correctly (don’t push it all the way down if I am merging or it will break the clicker in it) and how we keep our house too cold and we need to turn the fans off and I could go on and on.  I could go on…but he is old and I guess he has a right to be grouchy…maybe…

  • This Is It

    If you know me…I mean really know me, then you know about my bucket list.  For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to see 3 people in concert.  These are the 3 artists that define the era that I grew up in, not to mention who I think have had the most influence in music for my generation.

    I almost had a car accident when I found out that that my FAVORITE of the 3 was coming to concert in Houston.  And I went.  Then, Madonna came to concert in Houston.  And I went.  Then, I could not believe it, but Michael Jackson announced concerts!  I tried…and tried to get tickets.  Every time he announced more shows had been added, I was online trying to buy tickets.  I had no idea how I was going to get to London, but I was determined! They were sold out.

    And then he died.

    I guess it was meant to be.  Had he not died, the movie would not have been made, I would have probably not ever seen him in concert.

    Last night, my 2 teaching BFF’s and I went to see MJ’s movie- This Is It.  Thanks friends!  I had so much fun!