Gifting, gifting, gifting

I finally got my gifting partner info, and we have emailed back and forth a few times just trying to get to know a little more about each other. I still haven't pinpointed just yet what I will make for her, but I have an idea. Hopefully, it turns out great, and I will reveal more when the time comes to ship it out. What will it be? One hint...it's a Christmas decoration. Ha!

It's my first time to join a blogger gift exchange! I am so super excited and can't wait until November 8th to get my partner and begin work on her gift! I plan to post more on the gift I make and the gift I receive! This is really going to add to my holiday excitement! If you are interested in doing an online gift exchange (it's kind of like getting a pen pal), you should check out Craftaholics Anonymous. She hosts two exchanges a year.

Mismatched!

I absolutely refuse to buy flatware. The last time I bought any was about 9 years ago when I was single and I had a gift card. Our set...well, our flatware is not a set, I don't have enough to make a single matching set even for our family of four. But, we have enough to eat with. It works just the same. I cannot see myself spending $60 on a matching set that is going to wind up mismatched anyway. I had to buy some spoons (4/$1) the other day because my kids insist on taking spoons outside to dig with. Do yours do that too? I also, in the past have taken my own flatware to work in my lunch and have lost it or forgot it. Who knows, maybe one day I will get a set, but I guarantee that it won't be before my kids get a little bit older. This is just something that I feel like if it's not broke, then don't fix it!
P.S. I am the same way with towels and washrags! Stains and bleach spots...why get new when it will wind up just like the old. A towel absorbs water, that's what I need it to do. When my towels stop absorbing, then I will buy new ones! How about you?

This will work

     I must honestly say, the two things I miss the most from our previous house were the deep kitchen sink and my glass, flat-top stove. However, I have no desire to go out and spend the money on a deeper sink when the one I have keeps me in check (takes less to fill it up which means less to clean at one time), and we didn't want to have to rewire our electrical box to hold the load of the stove. This sink does have one option I like, and that's the sprayer. And the stove top, well, I will fix that. I will just get the hubby to use a scrap piece of plywood to make a cover to give me extra counter space for those days of baking cookies and such. And hey, with the shallow sink, I will learn to love it! The stove already has one option that is way better than the flat top, and that is gas! It's a lot easier to cook on gas than electric, in my opinion. One by one, I will find things that I already have will work way better than than getting something new, partly because I don't have to spend the extra money!

First day of school photo shoot

Today was my baby's first day of school! And because of it being her first day ever, we were almost late. I had to take pictures, and my last batch, I just said, "Give me what you got!" She took the bait. I think I got a cute array of her first day pictures. Too bad I didn't take them in the classroom. Ha!

So, when we got there, I carried my son, who is only 3. He likes to drag his feet a little, kinda like I did when I was a kid. I was racing to get her to the classroom before the bell. We got there, hung up her backpack in the hall, opened the door to the classroom, walked in, shut the door, and the the bell sounded. Whew! I just hope I am not that late tomorrow. I made sure when I left to pick her up, to leave 30 minutes early. And we live a mere 1 mile and 3 tenths to the school.

The Best Banana Pudding...EVER!

I mean this! I have received so many compliments on this particular recipe of banana pudding that I will never go back to traditional banana pudding. My husband and I have a family night at our local Masonic Lodge once a month. Its a great time for us to spend with other families who have something in common. I have been bringing desserts for the last year at least. Its been fun! I have brought some favorites, to say the least! Let's just say, I know how to pick out a good dessert when I taste one, and I am not shy to ask for the recipe. This recipe was given to me some time ago, I just started using it again maybe 6 months ago. Last month for family night, I decided to bring banana pudding because it was so easy to put together. I also brought some cupcakes so the kids would leave the banana pudding for the adults! Haha! I was told at the end of the event that I didn't make enough, the bowl wasn't big enough, and please bring that stuff next time. So, this month, I made 2! And it went so fast, everybody told me I still didn't make enough! I must find some bigger bowls!
Here's the recipe, I'll share because it's just that good!

Ingredients
3-5 large ripe bananas, sliced
1 box vanilla wafers
1 box banana creme instant pudding
1 box french vanilla instant pudding
3 c. cold milk
1 10oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 8oz tub whipped cream, thawed, divided

That's it! You just need 20 minutes of your time to put this together! It's awesome.

Directions
Mix the two boxes of instant pudding with the 3 cups cold milk. Whisk until well mixed, about 2 minutes. Put in the refrigerator to set, about 5-10 minutes. When pudding is set, add can of sweetened condensed milk and half of the tub of whipped cream. Stir gently and evenly. It is okay to leave some marbling in the mixture. Sorry I don't have a picture of what it looks like in the bowl, but it is beautiful! Start with lining the bottom of your bowl with vanilla wafers. Add desired amount of sliced bananas on top of wafers. Pour 1/3 of the pudding mixture over the bananas. Repeat the layers 2 more times, ending with pudding on top. Place vanilla wafers around the top perimeter of the pudding. Stir remaining whipped cream gently and then spread over the top of the pudding all the way up to the cookies on the edges. Top with remaining vanilla wafers if desired. This is the hard part! Grab your plastic wrap, go ahead. Wrap that banana pudding up. You can do it. Now, leave it ALONE! Yes, leave it alone for a whole 24 hours! You will thank me for this tip when you taste it, trust me.

Creme Puff

I have wanted a fresh start. On my blog. On a new home. Need to get back on track with being a “green” family. And I have wanted an excuse to try a different approach to usable crafts and sewing projects. Well, here we go. Starting this week (I started this post July 9^th), a new adventure! Well kinda. For those of you who know me, this post may seem funny since you already know our history with this house. I have not documented the ugly of the start of this project. I haven’t even documented the bad with this project. I don’t even want to share it with you since it’s totally disgusting to know how some people obviously don’t know that you are supposed to clean house.

Anybody ever heard the term bigger is better? How about everything is bigger in Texas? NOT! Let me share with you a brief history. When I met my husband, he was truly living in a bachelor pad. A minimalist, I might add. He owned this cute little “crème puff” house in a great location in our town. We met, got pregnant, got married, and turned the extra room into a livable nursery. Until…our little one was not going to be the only little one anymore. With a toddler and a baby on the way, we decided “crème puff” was too little. So we rented a house, fixed up “crème puff” and rented her out as well. This was 4 years ago. After having 2 tenants, and realizing we had to dump another few thousand dollars to fix what someone else had worn out, we decided to reclaim her. We wanted a new house anyway. We were on the market shopping. Almost had a contract! Then all this.

Crème Puff is only 788’ sq! Yes, I said it. I am going from approximately 1400’ sq. to way less. Ouch! But wait…we are excited about this. Even though the neighborhood has turned into not so great, we are in town again. Close to everything. I can ride my bicycle to the library (and I tried it already, so fun)! And the grocery store! And the park!
Please disregard the mess in front of the steps. I am in the process of changing the rock walk.

Before we started putting all the new flooring down, I took measurements of every little nook and cranny trying to decide what to keep, what to store, and what to give away. Once we get everything squared away, we intend to build are building a deck and a storage shed so we don’t have to continue to rent a storage unit. Let me tell you, less is definitely more! This will be a challenge in some respects, but I am willing to tackle these challenges.

 This picture is my sewing room nook. I got rid of three 33 gallon trash bags full of fabric. I think I may have a problem! Haha! This little nook behind the front door is 35 inches wide and I think 15 inches deep. I think I measured the shelf unit (hiding under the patriotic material) about a hundred times just to make certain I would have a home for my sewing machine and all the lettings. With the trim on the door, it fit with about 1/2 inch to spare! Whew! 

  

This is my living room looking toward the front door. The entertainment center is to the right. Yes, we still have one of those! We refuse to buy a new TV until the tube gives out. We have a very rowdy 3 year old and fear buying a new TV for him to destroy. The dog bed is under the end table to the left of the love seat. Yeah, the one you can't see. Its like her little indoor dog house. 

 

Turn around and you will see the entryway to the kitchen. I bought a cross to profess to my house guests that we are Christian and admire His love for us. In the kitchen is the back door...well, side door. And yes, it is also my laundry room. See...

 This little booger is called a THIN TWIN. And baby, it is! But it works very well. A large load in this thing compares to medium load in a traditional top load machine.

To the left in the cubby where it sits, I put in an organizer for my plastic wrap, wax paper, freezer bags and sandwich bags. Under the organizer, I tried hooks for the broom, mop and dust pan, however, I found that with the lack of space that 2-1/2 nails worked just fine.

On the right, I hung 3 nails up top for my flyswatters, my lint trap cleaner, and my laundry bag for my delicate laundry. I was also able to slide my folding sewing table in on the floor in between the wall and the washer.

 This is the farthest I could zoom out on the kitchen with the door closed. It's about 14 feet from the door to the wall. This is the view from the back door looking in. In the very right side of the picture, notice I used an under the counter paper towel holder. Not that I use that many, but it keeps from using counter space on the other one. I also had a 3 tier hanging basket that I took apart using my jewelry tools, and I  hung 2 baskets to the underside of the cabinet. Currently I use a diaper box for the bread box. I made a cover for it today and I took the picture yesterday. Haha!

And finally for this post, my bathroom. Not too small. Bigger than our last one. There is a good size closet behind the door to the left. I made the toilet lid cover today because they didn't have one to match the rug I was buying. So I bought a matching towel and tackled it that way. It was cheaper than buying one anyway. I made the valence out of material that I have had for over a year now. Its a small print of acorns. We are doing a lodge theme to our house, so I thought it fit. Yes, there is a window in my shower...odd, I know. I am going to make a curtain out of a frosty shower curtain and get rid of the mini blinds. If the curtain gets mildew, I can just cut and sew another one. I will use tension rods at the top and bottom to keep it in place.

One day I will share the bedrooms. I am waiting to find the time to finish the curtains and wall decor.