tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55596308629411076452024-02-19T17:08:22.729-08:00Living Large on a DimeAndreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.comBlogger120125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-24084721593689190692012-06-01T03:20:00.001-07:002012-06-01T03:20:03.636-07:00Holy crap! We're back in business! I figured out my email address AND my password! Woohoo! Time to start writing and sharing again! Yeah!!!Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-56335496883645313702010-07-11T18:58:00.000-07:002010-07-11T19:40:58.678-07:00Garden Update #4Wow, it's been awhile! I've been away on business and as you can tell, the hubby did not take care of the garden like he was supposed to. :( Regardless, I'm going to try my best to bring it back....I'm leaning towards some type of organic fertilizer and following up with some coffee grounds.<br /><br />Here is the squash, zuchinni, and potatoes. They are probably struggling the most...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvJV2L5-uGVOGYOR0pksRrWOgYs2Xr1nNQle5U59zTpHIgqRyIpBvcRUMRTlfQ2mD04gx_A8jw_XCY4bX2XO6c5_lZgMke3jdWtHxyzT9Tvh31WdJ956CbOqHllxDXAbHVIoTCkrEI9chy/s1600/167.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492840712136819666" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvJV2L5-uGVOGYOR0pksRrWOgYs2Xr1nNQle5U59zTpHIgqRyIpBvcRUMRTlfQ2mD04gx_A8jw_XCY4bX2XO6c5_lZgMke3jdWtHxyzT9Tvh31WdJ956CbOqHllxDXAbHVIoTCkrEI9chy/s320/167.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Here are the eggplants in box #3. Not getting huge, but they do have three or four little ehhplants on them.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492839656543797154" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5l3JY690awJ4NAMz_L8aMyYfbYiXrmvlJwuQo1v2bgk8LFvDrRl8f_gxIO1YHdx3Io6mee7YW56_lg9XEXiudrMb4nYuUX19WcEWApeN7n0d6szj6vOMnXa5lPr32LpaUv-x4UdonOyQp/s320/164.JPG" border="0" /><br />Here is on of the tiny baby eggplants! Cannot wait to make these into something delicious!<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO6Sb0ttlNA5yKyoeyMgPcuM8kYND2EM6MiBrJ_fDG1A5BK_8drBXhZFbPTzAVAJdUrYiMHw-qZllc4D9jCuxr7ELqcsz-plAvyVZXB6BvIxKk_ovQ9HGvt0P7BVrvUS9pvPdjL_pR99g6/s1600/165.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492840708976737026" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO6Sb0ttlNA5yKyoeyMgPcuM8kYND2EM6MiBrJ_fDG1A5BK_8drBXhZFbPTzAVAJdUrYiMHw-qZllc4D9jCuxr7ELqcsz-plAvyVZXB6BvIxKk_ovQ9HGvt0P7BVrvUS9pvPdjL_pR99g6/s320/165.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div>I've discovered two squash plants have come up in box #3. Only one little squash so far though (although it looks an awful lot like a pumpkin to me)???</div><div><br /> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqtXlhZ6xxeN-fSrTWTAO4ZnwXLiqnwUzoM-HKbX9IVcCrlMKk9XkbinkG9xCf_yOYCsYjMD9n9c_MDMOACg36mbje4lsOsdS4cGYMG3xNnIGtte-QTW8thwpGa34gPm7E0Dkyh7CtfNCN/s1600/161.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492839653015274882" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqtXlhZ6xxeN-fSrTWTAO4ZnwXLiqnwUzoM-HKbX9IVcCrlMKk9XkbinkG9xCf_yOYCsYjMD9n9c_MDMOACg36mbje4lsOsdS4cGYMG3xNnIGtte-QTW8thwpGa34gPm7E0Dkyh7CtfNCN/s320/161.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />And here is the green beans....struggling without water.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx_NXMQxKdmHC8RuOIhxtyQTHqwAU1zR9Egoc9NnIGZL-r-3_GRwFwLQnMIJLGQ7mYxg6yaOm8O7OOVWG8A4mZmLN6D4ZZD4NbaGxzNAtkQndPO4wvc1XaBVc43qzy4EGJk43sbx0eINQt/s1600/160.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492839640038805074" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx_NXMQxKdmHC8RuOIhxtyQTHqwAU1zR9Egoc9NnIGZL-r-3_GRwFwLQnMIJLGQ7mYxg6yaOm8O7OOVWG8A4mZmLN6D4ZZD4NbaGxzNAtkQndPO4wvc1XaBVc43qzy4EGJk43sbx0eINQt/s320/160.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Here is all of box #3.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgurp_-46wzps3RmY_jjhs4kGTkUuLFbfY4cpdd0jB_8HuWBjse0JO3Dc-doEMQpyKyTb5ZlzZFXymIo7Fttt2Nau0F7Pcn2C3h5Bsh2xv8bh9cM7i_JmW7GME6k4Q-LNkH8E-H0aNbzevX/s1600/159.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492839628259874786" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgurp_-46wzps3RmY_jjhs4kGTkUuLFbfY4cpdd0jB_8HuWBjse0JO3Dc-doEMQpyKyTb5ZlzZFXymIo7Fttt2Nau0F7Pcn2C3h5Bsh2xv8bh9cM7i_JmW7GME6k4Q-LNkH8E-H0aNbzevX/s320/159.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Planted red onions in box #2. These seem to be doing really well. I have no idea when they are "ready" though, hmmm????<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitC3P74GBT7IWZCfmS07p3ebfyVcXccd0CL9OFo-YAV7Isyne1ZB7VpumFkgrUtoeBrwDHZWRUKV898JqNAUCcf2lwLtfz-j2rz4jGGGFh4WxZuavjqUcItaAh2ABwXjZHipZGWDPdUGk3/s1600/157.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492839618404720546" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitC3P74GBT7IWZCfmS07p3ebfyVcXccd0CL9OFo-YAV7Isyne1ZB7VpumFkgrUtoeBrwDHZWRUKV898JqNAUCcf2lwLtfz-j2rz4jGGGFh4WxZuavjqUcItaAh2ABwXjZHipZGWDPdUGk3/s320/157.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />And this I believe is garlic. It's either supposed to do this, or it's dead and I look like a fool! Ha!<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV3VrUH_qKFfzdna80mltiEdUAG2IcdwIc5QoHnketSOvGKa5ijOeqRVTQ1nyfn9L7etlO9sLQCPYt_LWAu5fA_rA5kvnuXYRzcLCyaGuhYR25WbRkoMt2RSnOh14YiDX96CO9YvtJWIb9/s1600/156.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492838363779316626" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV3VrUH_qKFfzdna80mltiEdUAG2IcdwIc5QoHnketSOvGKa5ijOeqRVTQ1nyfn9L7etlO9sLQCPYt_LWAu5fA_rA5kvnuXYRzcLCyaGuhYR25WbRkoMt2RSnOh14YiDX96CO9YvtJWIb9/s320/156.JPG" border="0" /></a> And on to box #3....<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492838329793221026" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Z6II7kDHe9aNKlTUmW1jLpbDEuUA8Mcj_h_5cMzeAyqIltUZjNj3HZ6PnYkvaFGh-6wfxe9M_bLfUZvZo03ba1YjhPqIkHHG4D2MuoytvWSof-SzMW5PVnfTvUkBHnnN3ZzA_m4yQpZm/s320/149.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div>Here are my little banana peppers. Not getting very big...<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqR1c6SAG6A1FP83kWVUY_ULO7QdWNa28U0qwVkts5MsemxwK722P2wwUumF6fihcG9L6nY4CKlxqcx-GHKQIajfibYGFATUOuCQKmhXhndTQ81Npq5nhNSOung0P-dZuHjQA9_1qZvJVw/s1600/151.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492838350216211842" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqR1c6SAG6A1FP83kWVUY_ULO7QdWNa28U0qwVkts5MsemxwK722P2wwUumF6fihcG9L6nY4CKlxqcx-GHKQIajfibYGFATUOuCQKmhXhndTQ81Npq5nhNSOung0P-dZuHjQA9_1qZvJVw/s320/151.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />And one loan bell pepper. Not sure if this tiny plant can hold it much longer though...<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVbxAVQmmZ0uklGcQFMuIEWzZxrBkHJ02qWg6AiP4sY5uDw03bBcwLPDKaeuEQrBw77JPd4ChCQUoSaNDCEuVWKIqjQYa8Skc0wvrL6HN7M1uqgxAJ87EWAOUbtQMPUO-5nPV4yiNfOea0/s1600/150.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492838335665193362" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVbxAVQmmZ0uklGcQFMuIEWzZxrBkHJ02qWg6AiP4sY5uDw03bBcwLPDKaeuEQrBw77JPd4ChCQUoSaNDCEuVWKIqjQYa8Skc0wvrL6HN7M1uqgxAJ87EWAOUbtQMPUO-5nPV4yiNfOea0/s320/150.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />And we've got quite a few cucumbers growing despite how bad the plant looks.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492838354209016946" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh6QCBvliFFp8MhcL4nWM4YeGtsCImm_f7NRON0xqKTdGOTiVnEvoDwYkU0x0DQGpfO_q1UjPGzOlUdJgLch0rFr32CS99JJap0THnZph_Sp4FqltjjUts2t9gn-Vzr7je7uSSyzV-NCIS/s320/155.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmQYBVwTNLNioIRGGZg1K9iJkX09PxnRQvGjt7VxcBvvWSxzSxPxlK1cEhHX69EWVoHNpLDik0UphhYcRxgyKS_eJSIlTiVS6cIRlIXBpKSC5NG6951ft0kU1BWZvWS7ZjLalI0K9LrKxd/s1600/148.JPG"></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwYBpwTnp3S5L2se3MVoZX61vPk8qDKuZ-4ll29mpOjdIE0aDlPBM8B_uZ6QZXHtRyyrAk2uNEtmlA8TlgaNOgKb1HWKniGf8kraiSXNnAO7qZx3i-BrEo6T2aFOnq4x6Ce67PUMa5e5an/s1600/145.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492836313611414930" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwYBpwTnp3S5L2se3MVoZX61vPk8qDKuZ-4ll29mpOjdIE0aDlPBM8B_uZ6QZXHtRyyrAk2uNEtmlA8TlgaNOgKb1HWKniGf8kraiSXNnAO7qZx3i-BrEo6T2aFOnq4x6Ce67PUMa5e5an/s320/145.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNT51UYcTR-TXN1k6zzVNn8Cn28MoeVw50Wf1JRI8qa8HHYU9GljftHM5MGywYgzygZBrpflhB1ijAQN1k6Mr09UMHMJL_TTxNZ3ZgFPy93EBUaHKJ1r_Is_WvV6ykgN3Hwk1JJN4CyPYS/s1600/144.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492836304617108946" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNT51UYcTR-TXN1k6zzVNn8Cn28MoeVw50Wf1JRI8qa8HHYU9GljftHM5MGywYgzygZBrpflhB1ijAQN1k6Mr09UMHMJL_TTxNZ3ZgFPy93EBUaHKJ1r_Is_WvV6ykgN3Hwk1JJN4CyPYS/s320/144.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifDejiAX5VahW8CJjDEwMeF0IdwHlMMK4IUzmIibqiXQ0d36k9VTfrr6yag8byjShhe8WgwbFYWp2K5d0kxPPy1M2R8R6oumR4TlBVMcjIjRJqWOWAXxSiBF0rqOJszbKQwMBdVV2wC9o9/s1600/143.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492836300170701330" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifDejiAX5VahW8CJjDEwMeF0IdwHlMMK4IUzmIibqiXQ0d36k9VTfrr6yag8byjShhe8WgwbFYWp2K5d0kxPPy1M2R8R6oumR4TlBVMcjIjRJqWOWAXxSiBF0rqOJszbKQwMBdVV2wC9o9/s320/143.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Epfa1y9q1t75_CidOjFIUFX_VQWe0i98EUTV0EgKh3ivDAUDnzBrfShER4U5lZCC5nydYu8mGu_yeqZfRDoqZ11L67cMKjFvn0aP1ia-GUGNGnnn4RcV3-n72lef13J-bdfh-n0UnVPW/s1600/142.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492836288643392402" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Epfa1y9q1t75_CidOjFIUFX_VQWe0i98EUTV0EgKh3ivDAUDnzBrfShER4U5lZCC5nydYu8mGu_yeqZfRDoqZ11L67cMKjFvn0aP1ia-GUGNGnnn4RcV3-n72lef13J-bdfh-n0UnVPW/s320/142.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikvqyWSkWzwZfb612JsEkmjQaCC2KAaGi263Rzmq0uRi35w98wSUu9pAitROUlllxmynNPYj_clVn02HTk2o6CrO_g8ho53F9kchvrzl6h-ozy2If0C2H8zeNIjP0I2LrVq9pzmwPKWQ1_/s1600/141.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492835059278928786" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikvqyWSkWzwZfb612JsEkmjQaCC2KAaGi263Rzmq0uRi35w98wSUu9pAitROUlllxmynNPYj_clVn02HTk2o6CrO_g8ho53F9kchvrzl6h-ozy2If0C2H8zeNIjP0I2LrVq9pzmwPKWQ1_/s320/141.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwwkJl7nOdXb805U7C2lM7npWM0F8arswBzO6P0ir3Yop1fbWa3sqUIu9S8TzLLZzSC_x9nuWOydG5a0PJO2zLHnUVp_uRkMD8US1rtx8r1W9mKQ3EfIgNr8-lVjWIRTaMFkqlsQwbCgSL/s1600/140.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492835051151439602" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwwkJl7nOdXb805U7C2lM7npWM0F8arswBzO6P0ir3Yop1fbWa3sqUIu9S8TzLLZzSC_x9nuWOydG5a0PJO2zLHnUVp_uRkMD8US1rtx8r1W9mKQ3EfIgNr8-lVjWIRTaMFkqlsQwbCgSL/s320/140.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg81c8aPa5iLCKH3OnzHZWqjYIam-DXAwc3Bm1DLqVhAl3BAM95jwh3GCP0u5LXlqnTRdlmbnRQ8HEs3dC6UMmn1pko6ERWLqjJCCP_PIuK1KvkJjQ1vEYjii1_i1dXnOoXHo9n7D-c3gT/s1600/139.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492835021238918770" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg81c8aPa5iLCKH3OnzHZWqjYIam-DXAwc3Bm1DLqVhAl3BAM95jwh3GCP0u5LXlqnTRdlmbnRQ8HEs3dC6UMmn1pko6ERWLqjJCCP_PIuK1KvkJjQ1vEYjii1_i1dXnOoXHo9n7D-c3gT/s320/139.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuNjJG2yvcntDEQtG_NQXPWsog6dFY5TDcjtz89z0fizloy3X_TIb-opd8fZRcLY4x70CxcJ1afvniZAS0sSfCofUsDGeM3l_H3gciNthOuyvedvNXfc__S7rWILrLAbr87TFhqzj0CQvl/s1600/138.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492835011519099714" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuNjJG2yvcntDEQtG_NQXPWsog6dFY5TDcjtz89z0fizloy3X_TIb-opd8fZRcLY4x70CxcJ1afvniZAS0sSfCofUsDGeM3l_H3gciNthOuyvedvNXfc__S7rWILrLAbr87TFhqzj0CQvl/s320/138.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7W7d8PEcnkDzuJA-nOUzgKQypxzoqhMMoE07_95_2du0EZWj1axdIVU0Yu7WCwpRjgWuUqB1f1Wpw17FHV3yrhVVOfgOlTt9HE9YkFnfv0Q5GSFh5Ij7VnSxCscTbpV8M3lvGBw9X1RO8/s1600/137.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492835006159845458" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7W7d8PEcnkDzuJA-nOUzgKQypxzoqhMMoE07_95_2du0EZWj1axdIVU0Yu7WCwpRjgWuUqB1f1Wpw17FHV3yrhVVOfgOlTt9HE9YkFnfv0Q5GSFh5Ij7VnSxCscTbpV8M3lvGBw9X1RO8/s320/137.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div>Wow....it's been awhile huh?</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-52176713276520089702010-06-10T19:18:00.000-07:002010-06-10T19:28:56.254-07:00<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7-YSOn00mm4oCuJrJFnEoQ08Yrl8GQUXDwM92bEhQGicx0UNSGkfAKVh99U4kx8liHNfsn7_GEpDVHHBRS6y5xVQrMkLvBH4w6B1bLY9pgsrg9Oisa6ZJ37B5aLSOpfT13coc5Yg8gm1L/s1600/043.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481337378809843314" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7-YSOn00mm4oCuJrJFnEoQ08Yrl8GQUXDwM92bEhQGicx0UNSGkfAKVh99U4kx8liHNfsn7_GEpDVHHBRS6y5xVQrMkLvBH4w6B1bLY9pgsrg9Oisa6ZJ37B5aLSOpfT13coc5Yg8gm1L/s320/043.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1MZUgGdZd2L62VfTaPgYmfhGqai1-4bwCNAfmfqM0secKmhYcST1Z1xSWTHjDOQPz22y1xiqm1eC8u-Zj-r91Kg77Us3bnZ1br55jrlYtUEsPXYYE_mhHLGo081D65dbCC7YnoUR8Z8vu/s1600/039.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481337366568113234" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1MZUgGdZd2L62VfTaPgYmfhGqai1-4bwCNAfmfqM0secKmhYcST1Z1xSWTHjDOQPz22y1xiqm1eC8u-Zj-r91Kg77Us3bnZ1br55jrlYtUEsPXYYE_mhHLGo081D65dbCC7YnoUR8Z8vu/s320/039.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTKw-OYCK4rHKj0IpE9R3W5e3y_MRR91do2cD9Wwjepl2B__8u-8AO0czz1fVdwx5lKWobPqmw0tWga7JI2WpWsuumD1PWwRRZpc53wuyC4JW3DFacuHknPZL9cnbmMVsoVuRr8kD6K4Mi/s1600/036.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481336462977076322" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTKw-OYCK4rHKj0IpE9R3W5e3y_MRR91do2cD9Wwjepl2B__8u-8AO0czz1fVdwx5lKWobPqmw0tWga7JI2WpWsuumD1PWwRRZpc53wuyC4JW3DFacuHknPZL9cnbmMVsoVuRr8kD6K4Mi/s320/036.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhQWdkibGGxXeAUKylWHzQeLlaJDrEkRuOg6qAck4EiFSKbfDupsxffF6jy__mwki6CO9GAppfyecj2ySIapawqg1uadvhFudTZ2Vmx1fu8IRC7jYVSPGH_YFBMbmExUBJxtnm1NWjLnos/s1600/027.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481336453196151682" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhQWdkibGGxXeAUKylWHzQeLlaJDrEkRuOg6qAck4EiFSKbfDupsxffF6jy__mwki6CO9GAppfyecj2ySIapawqg1uadvhFudTZ2Vmx1fu8IRC7jYVSPGH_YFBMbmExUBJxtnm1NWjLnos/s320/027.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtA1bXxJ1xbumTVeJT-UwIV2OeNJkJ4VzEpme7LMic_0kRjJ-UjDY4O7Rf_8YtKmY46aS9JOFOQtzhBUO6y4B7PFCjGVQDClMnfkdT6xbJUJiG-4xjAKalFHTwAVG-lG-EcD6A8ng_jskR/s1600/020.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481336443824101586" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtA1bXxJ1xbumTVeJT-UwIV2OeNJkJ4VzEpme7LMic_0kRjJ-UjDY4O7Rf_8YtKmY46aS9JOFOQtzhBUO6y4B7PFCjGVQDClMnfkdT6xbJUJiG-4xjAKalFHTwAVG-lG-EcD6A8ng_jskR/s320/020.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRQpNo5AJh05cAMFWw8vUXaFQ4yx0_n_otqF3KIf5d8HJNvIUvMhIZujsXf44hh8tj9J6pCxYWRC_TrkOhTxXUWIcbB-UM5PHoBbbIRsuErSU5UX9B8UnQ8M5sdgGDrV9jE7-HYUFts_P6/s1600/097.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481336435089396818" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRQpNo5AJh05cAMFWw8vUXaFQ4yx0_n_otqF3KIf5d8HJNvIUvMhIZujsXf44hh8tj9J6pCxYWRC_TrkOhTxXUWIcbB-UM5PHoBbbIRsuErSU5UX9B8UnQ8M5sdgGDrV9jE7-HYUFts_P6/s320/097.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3gKgajvoyd6WoHqXTxfi8M9mzONqihYrUkxzxQodK2znQxpHfmcvR-bVWcBRE8xigFDRhnTlP8ifKF86GWg8QLGK0psh-0EyCPCLHLB7ZBj-vYlBHoO0Rar9heZqt25FlG0vrY7oyJqM3/s1600/095.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481336428705777666" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3gKgajvoyd6WoHqXTxfi8M9mzONqihYrUkxzxQodK2znQxpHfmcvR-bVWcBRE8xigFDRhnTlP8ifKF86GWg8QLGK0psh-0EyCPCLHLB7ZBj-vYlBHoO0Rar9heZqt25FlG0vrY7oyJqM3/s320/095.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-11773370652672420182010-05-31T17:23:00.000-07:002010-05-31T18:54:04.524-07:00Garden Update #3The garden is amazing me with how quickly last weekends seeds sprouted and how fast everything else has been growing. I guess the extreme heat, humidity, and a good nightly watering have been doing them good. And, to my own amazement, I've shocked my husband who thought this whole garden thing was going to be a waste of time and money. ;P So far I've only had four squares of strawberries (from the root seeds?) not come up and one square of cucumbers which I'm out of. But other than that, every single thing has sprouted and is going strong so far.<br /><br /><br />The strawberry bucket hasn't seen much growth yet, especailly compared to everything else in the past week, so I decided to move it to a more sunny spot. We'll see if that helps it take off.<br /><br /><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477596278820558802" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh59WTaScUXlCIhWi5TIzR3JUK-bKpHmC0MfwAPPMekx7UjiQ3SHMKpogYRJkoBFdMIUkLz8VT7mqBZwMA_tV1nNbCVD_NdkGG6D5c8tMnhdGXO2-i0Mq5iBHDwGKJQa1-lCNN1S06PuCcL/s320/096.JPG" border="0" /><br />Both the zuchinni and the squash sprouted and as you can tell, they are doing phenominal considering I planted them last Sunday!<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477596290213517794" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBJEriuPsxTeGFKM61MjmSLRGpxNQX35DLnNcK5auxXBWN598QAd4Wop73rKYCVBdBh1_PNzu-7T3QhlOxm7oRIXEtZJLDuF7C9iHJyAaCjDjT7v7jrGZOM85qVH8N3faY2Xf7NMtQTHrR/s320/097.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>And a few of the potatoes finally sprouted yesterday! Woohoo! I was a little worried how these would turn out.</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477596297756251202" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaT1iOda1LyXPGTGaL8jZM-UzHLQBIrf_ztqtdwqtMPs_YOAlvO3f82iWW2PcXkEtqPm_ZzmaVtvh43bP1s3Ktxev-tci_M01KmCBMnNPeque3KVGwFPQDWCC9SE_fy2mXdYBgtkmFnvhF/s320/098.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>Here are the sugar pumpkins I planted up against the house, all four plants have tiny sprouts.</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477596306382461010" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLI5T1gAkNOlDpmKCejMehmEmqyl0gFDtk56io4yWplkoBFDzVYMJfgbEMKcksO9sK1IdRU9WBG-O5fk78JF8iJU8it4-V_U8vD-DSJ3j4xaW4C2NGFheQpISEt_4mu-QPbgW_93Rx_MUH/s320/099.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>And the two watermelon plants!</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477596319765655970" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2v2OylzO0C4a9-JpMHYYOkc135B96ywxkWJc25rft3VM9woNrwQC0XWTDqPZWeAkhafWWQc6xlP4vQwTWKnnVzgxr5TOS47WxpGCqpDIG2jHzLmj8br6qtkRuN73Nau_Lx8HZ7neFUa6a/s320/100.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>And the two jack'o lantern pumpkin plants!</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477597676171847506" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTCtpLTigYbAhENjmPAQdHKIUhyzt2pgZsaraqSKVn_3YsiMaoy-Wr1nZUQSkhH1kAOqtCGz4Q05jaSgVCaxfLJWsgRB1Rss4yyxTAlOC0_Tch121HLOy15USd5jLbKwVjHvDnvOu7HMAC/s320/101.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>This is kind of a hodge poge area where I tossed extra seelings I had, and then forgot to mark, but I think there is a broccoli plants here and the other is a brussle sprout plant. ;P</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477597678458338770" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnCHEeHEGJ4Vrz2D0wRiyocgUhOZcVORZHYPXLVD2K7UXOkkKHMthCBaB_vQYpiuseMokMFLsfcJddEf-lYCbgmbCwzhKmXYhBMbq5ooc6rQeNiiD99GBq4A8dRa2DVu2Dqf6JO1FKhqAS/s320/102.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>And my four melon plants are strewn about in the landscape.</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477598634875437554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirJNllewlzKbbmMkBf3A8IyEDAA-LLyb4tPpIjw5DHoqe8xYYJuf0aK5RQ58bbGX6r5gph3_2HnmLAN3rW3QGSIn4mjJ3cMMt5CRNDmIqQ4wVn41SVqy13tdq7YdurlZX8JsAiTf6KEHnE/s320/103.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>Here's a overall view of my three square foot raised beds.</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477597687208834434" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOI3PrDkXxD2BxypvuhunFebToqpGCuOqR6FTEtVuv0Zp2w_EJ15EbIQ3b4EbyyzSUmK0DtXFradhf4hExMVJHF1Kp8jmtNKnfElN9WmW2I-Ljvzp1x2-mv7jnDaLgyxgNi_ahZ662_dCj/s320/104.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>Box #1 is still going strong. The peas are flowering like crazy, so from what I read, that meas we should be harvesting sugar snap peas in just about a week. We also did our first harvest of lettuce and spinach this week. I made <a href="http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/06/homemade-ranch-dressing/">homeade ranch dressing</a> to go over it using chives from the garden and Todd proclaimed it the best ranch he's ever tasted in his whole life! ;P We had some spinach in a pasta dish, but I'm making spinach strawberry salad tomorrow, so I'm super excited. The spinach isn't at it's peak like it was about two weeks ago, but thankfully it's still as good as the stuff from the super market, so we'll use it up while we still can! The dill plant is going crazy! I cannot think of enough dishes to use that all up! Anyone know if I should just trim it back? </p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477597697871571330" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMAwyD1HeyphZg71kRFuH1jYG8mnQNIVcTQhH8Hyu9sW2ygyWuYBN8kiaIFqXspy4IBqQ8LqHsTtqBbt96EbRSyh3a_5jHIbAcM8KXimH8Mt9VBdfTJBlAAIJbvHqNAoYdvFQu7POV9QOS/s320/105.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>Box #2 is just a steady grower. It's mainly plants that were supposed to be planted earlier in the season, before the last frost, but the first plants got ate by rabbits, so this is the second go around. No heads on anything yet though, so we'll see. I also have a giant mystery plant in the middle. I seriously have no idea what it is, haha!</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477597703704914274" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl8NvJ4W6BqY0JNIWn3a-uySWKjXqtB4G8aK3_t-MZdExrd0DEZZfwplF0nQwIygWTO_AtgGD4-SCDqu0K2hhFAS9AuOkOmvwe_4xki-I_fwgrosJUdc-UmTMD7YegTjPHbdGBhc8bdM7v/s320/106.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>Bed #3 is finally picking up too. My garden plan got a little messed up, so there is a mumble jumble of beans, carrots, lettuce, marigolds, and a zuchinni plant in the north part, but I have the south part under control. ;P The beans I planted last weekend really started strong, the eggplants are getting huge, and the new square of carrots, along with the new square of green onions all have tiny little sprouts starting.</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477598636786385298" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsWrEKfL5OzQaHQmJTu-U2bGm4O1CMcEJViOZLP-dM0GZssSJCKT9KR_1F8z2-FIOKUJYIN50zQU-Shx1CQyGGUcMRSzsQd1Act6Ti_TqGHGuQbOVzT_XovqvhyphenhyphenC3cLPMW5i0QpRNRwwAH/s320/107.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>Haha....and while this is not my garden, this is our neighbors, these are "our" tomato and pepper plants that got planted this weekend. Our neighbors just enjoy gardening and no longer can their produce, so they are very generous with what they drop off on our front porch. Not only that, but they remind us almost on a daily basis to come pick and pick away. They only have a few eggplant and zuchinni plants, but they grow about thirty varieties of peppers and tomatoes around their house and nestled in their landscape. So needless to say, this is why I don't grow a single pepper or tomato plant! And why I'm shooting a picture of it and watching it's progress, hehe!</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477598648032895730" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg37w3it3zh96W8Ep1_2xN-J2NP49z0DJPNBt6EZDgQzUk1GOdVcnGN8-Wd7Y2PJwszIxnuGJ4u7fqLQBZFPxUuTmsta-I0lw1fScsyjpzqZK_KLJVbCRWBPaP8kFEOOfErI-1lSji7YMq8/s320/108.JPG" border="0" /></p>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-79080113114587753622010-05-23T17:45:00.000-07:002010-05-23T19:19:04.760-07:00Garden Update #2I'm 99% done with the garden and all it's associated projects. I decided to wait for the most humid and hot day of the year so far....go figure! But Todd and the kids had a blast getting the inflatable pool, sprinkler, squirt guns and slip and slid out while I was doing it, so at least it kept me a little cool every time I got srayed or a bucket of water dumped on my head!<br /><br />Here is the three raised beds as of 2pm! We added two trellises to the 4'x4' boxes and added chicken wire around the 3'x6' box since rabbits ate all my plants in that bed only!<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1WZBWmTmY27LHF5Z7SPz648Ejg0i8FOcjvWucCdJk4N1AWR0NQKjB0miSLKEHYFKsZMWGaAeXeu9SsqvDKSn_tJKcGf-3VACtEbcl9bwQOifRZM3VmSwsWBRFDinnABk1qPdXR4GxMLnH/s1600/036.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474632437905893746" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1WZBWmTmY27LHF5Z7SPz648Ejg0i8FOcjvWucCdJk4N1AWR0NQKjB0miSLKEHYFKsZMWGaAeXeu9SsqvDKSn_tJKcGf-3VACtEbcl9bwQOifRZM3VmSwsWBRFDinnABk1qPdXR4GxMLnH/s320/036.JPG" border="0" /></a> This is box #1. The Amish snap peas are doing great! I had a really hard time getting the trellis in between the middle, but they were happy once I started working them up the trellis! The spinach and lettuce are also in DESPERATE need of being picked over. I've got two salad on the dinner menu this week and two pasta dishes for the spinach...so hopefully that should keep them manageable!<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474639059039097682" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMABU1KXN695OFoS_gECvfQJ61rG1I0yiKfI16rKZAztM61zVpwn5rMNORmUyq8iFgzrgmjkWMudhivn6JXY70qwXtNAjwdmPNa9PbrMwt3znxxVi_-TvtoDYMDaf54YwY8Yd9HCawXUrI/s320/041.JPG" border="0" /><br />This is box #2. I was lucky enough to find some pretty large cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, and brussel sprout plants at Meijer this weekend for cheap, so I figured why not. Well try to grow them and see what happens.We also added leftover chicken wire from the compost pile around the bed to keep the rabbits from coming back and having another feast!<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474632469307422962" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW-rXEN01E10ydZO-cqVBlSO4FQNBKSTF8JO4obR4LKwpU60d2LpHKobJH30lgTt7TGQEbTBro5u6tMDg4yQ_2J9lYgYgVU-4a8qd9SWzyXzMoRoCJVLKeKMYklykHV6hPp7nTcZybthTQ/s320/040.JPG" border="0" /><br />This is box #3. The pole beans are going crazy! I also noticed quit a bit of the romaine is coming up as well as the carrots. The eggplant has also gone crazy and the leaves are getting huge compared to the tiny little seedlings we planted just a few weeks ago!<br /><br /><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474632457966072530" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUgyBfG1DhaOgthOsciyeQ0OwIOld2nxHYe-g9Ivpu5ynBl7XxQ9fTsyyRUvGNR6gjckaM0sbmXrs1N7BX820n2MOiBFoY51Cy4Kh1chDh_D-xy06to_0yscPGTgyrIMG38kOo42FcBtI7/s320/038.JPG" border="0" /> As for the structures, here is a picture of the whole trellis. We actually found out Lowes carries cement remesh panels, which are much cheaper than the 100' roll others use. The panel is 3 1/2' x 7' for only $6.39. These panels fit perfectly inside the beds and then we attached them to t-stakes with zip ties.</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474632445526400274" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKjfTljCQ1c7_x4i8Cb82uhjne4cX4roX7z0gB42ZncZFm76wq9Jbu31y13D5E5YMfCNt9GPqNhGnTitxpOkZ39hginTemJGi5okeFSAWz26uHsFuB00XbfGiEDBG02MaMPzYyr9jVM6fq/s320/037.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>This is a good picture of the chicken wire we placed around bed #2 to keep the rabits out. The hardest part was keeping the top of the chicken wire from bowing out, so we needed lots of stakes. Thankfully we found some wood stakes in the shed as well as a few scrap pieces from the deck railing. May not be pretty, but it works great!</p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRcbVAzkw4a38uJVGuO8YOG0vPwRSzGxjsW4-gHAEagFdfv-Dk_daXNMnkp0fH41WsN1-LDXjXVqFZmgRecE4Iy2LscvX_1WggPvChzU9M-lGcANqqK6P38Rr3gsSH4DLsdcuu-aIppSsa/s1600/035.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474632429510933522" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRcbVAzkw4a38uJVGuO8YOG0vPwRSzGxjsW4-gHAEagFdfv-Dk_daXNMnkp0fH41WsN1-LDXjXVqFZmgRecE4Iy2LscvX_1WggPvChzU9M-lGcANqqK6P38Rr3gsSH4DLsdcuu-aIppSsa/s320/035.JPG" border="0" /></a> I also didn't plan out my garden before ordering seeds, so I already had watermelon seeds as well as pie pumpkins and jack o'lanterns. So it wasn't until I planned it out that I realized there was no way I'd have room for these in the raised beds. So after thinking it over, I decided what the heck, I threw some dying herbs in our beds last year and they did great, so why not try a few plants in there was well. I also picked up a few melons at Meijers last night as well. So below are the freshly planted melon seedlings.</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474639065705919634" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHyuKQHu1Najzfr7e-H6DxI8GZjKsqrj-Fn9MlgUf8D1NjtibYyvWuJOxcEJDOi-MKaSy4bAME8NNQ1Dfr4JLvC3EGTsIN3rmstKYuio4Afnt_VD7OQGDE8Onx-OghJBsJgluhzlGBYuvO/s320/042.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>Along the pack of the house, we put in the watermelons and sugar pie pumpkins. I also threw in an extra brussel sprout plant and extra broccoli I had.</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474639072619483410" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_4YMothb8ceb6OfgpKLSx8vCajonehGvF8az0feETBCZ6JoxvVvgG0AzCc97fJcSzRWOOm6NN2SSPmjAnbVT6Kg18lUBMv8lLbuirxB5nodb4a_eK4olgTxMc5uubLPlndEYaZFpyl7zJ/s320/043.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>And over here is the pumpkins. Currently they are marked with tiny toothpicks so I know where to water, but this is still on my to-so list....figure out a way of marking all of my plants. ;P</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474639088746313250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKvooKtORnR8iIdub40W7ZWQrD9xWgsl_87xg0OYLJYlFwszNVKktGJSp2wKHiNNyWYSNtEQv0GfCCvwJTBks7UOOWlY4kddKXpdQIjI8KozkS6Bm8wKTmgIhpHaPhBbivH5e2R620HJQB/s320/044.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>This is our potato bin. The "seeds" came in a variety pack I bought with onions, strawberries, and asparagus, so I figured I'd give them a try. I read online that they could be grown in a trashcan, so I figured, why not try a plastic bin I already had in the basement. So we cleaned it out really good and drilled several holes in the bottom for drainage.</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474639091399736242" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCrgdil_gwa9BbHU0V9uB_07WdxYoJXtmmRrqKmBCLbqs-lN2ArtYOi8Rik7ptg4qXt34dQQvb-DhVAxN7zWdD1usYBjFm0qBrkj2rm-G3MO6sDx_7TQYWcYHM4VMDOZI1GNtM4ulCyWhb/s320/045.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>I also ordered zuchinni and squash plants without really looking into how they can be grown in a square foot garden. After finding out how much room they really need, I decided to try container gardening for these. And wanting to keep cost down, I figured I'd try using some galvanized tubs I had leftover from our wedding 5 years ago! Again, we cleaned them up and drilled holes in the bottom. Again, not finished just yet though. We have an old wood ladder under the deck which I'm going to make into a trellis for these.</p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474643003683991794" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGLq-qMTzEpJY0trARj1L7wbJ0OCDdtSM3RpmDJ91j0vQdmXN3aQ6tf8PxvbktIFt1QeZLpxxpSa4bHqW1GFnEXVmU5FIovSqzznpy-mP-PEDKigaL3tPY4a8TzMsTg2NDV3b8Ef7yAG5Q/s320/046.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>And last but not least, another idea I saw online was growing strawberries in a bucket. I was able to get the bucket for just $2.99 at Home Depot (as if you can't tell ;P). I then bought a 6 pk of strawberry plants. Tod used his 1" spade drill bit and made 16 or so holes in the bucket. I then placed the 6 plants inside the bucket, weaving the vines out through the holes and filling it up with compost as we went. I'm hoping we have lots of strawberries in another month or so! </p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474643017614143634" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgapc0dQ5qyqNyUivjVKYvh9Y-fyjrKLR6jVp5cY4d12f3lhIs1CqJ1TAF9LEUJwYt2BnSATu_Tda7SrXm-A0qNH0ez2d7d0abTFrRpPbU4tZqmnBOdeOaa_8yfM1Ju6bhPHFRPFDBqrK_z/s320/047.JPG" border="0" /><br />We're super excited about the progress we've made so far and all the work we've put into it. The ony thing left we have to do, that I didn't mention earlier is a small herb garden on the deck. I want to grow some basil, cilantro, and parsley in a 3 basket planter. Hopefully I'll get around to that one night this week! </p>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-54959550142228089342010-05-19T18:05:00.000-07:002010-05-23T17:44:40.859-07:00Saving on your landscape!As I'm sure I've mentioned before, Todd owns a lawn and landscaping business. So thankfully for me, that means free labor for boosting curb appeal (which also boosts your property value). But really, landscaping is easy and anyone can do it. So much easier than most DIY projects like learning to hang drywall. The biggest money saver though is buying young plants at places like Lowes and Home Depot. They have a yr warrenty (so save your reciept) and in just a few years, it'll look just as good as the plants you want to pay 4X as much for at the nursery! Here is a prime example!<br /><br />This was the picture in the listing for our house. It had sat on the market empty for close to a year! It was UGLY! Original landscape from 1979 and hadn't beentouched since then. The beds wre overgrown, no mulch had been laid, even the weeping cherry was growing into the roof of the house! This was March 2007.<br /><br /><div><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjIql1zD3suXx3bo33V66KnHuWF0TVy6yev0-NjooDG5Ba4zgcmMCjP7sQUtp_qV_XnTCrY_iTFwv1eGX711oCRQ7A3cExy8wSGd4-0CQyl9UJ7SbbWrOdrlAlTC-hnP6HLdk6ioqcmzrw/s1600/ry%253D400.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473153112342831394" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 233px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjIql1zD3suXx3bo33V66KnHuWF0TVy6yev0-NjooDG5Ba4zgcmMCjP7sQUtp_qV_XnTCrY_iTFwv1eGX711oCRQ7A3cExy8wSGd4-0CQyl9UJ7SbbWrOdrlAlTC-hnP6HLdk6ioqcmzrw/s320/ry%253D400.jpg" border="0" /></a> That same weekend we started removing the landscaping because it was just so ugly. That July, we gave the house a fresh coat of paint, got some new shutters and new lighting. We also took down the giant tree. Then in Oct 2007, after any threat of drought had passed, we put in the new landscape. We watched out for end of the year auctions and got some killer deals on a few plants. We also found hostas and daylillies for free on Craigslist. Note how small the plants in the landscape were at the time we planted them! But we had faith!</div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473153125250672114" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 233px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDPj3-UG1jMcdFkDG7FCL0kcI4yjzZVyxijNIQedMYDBiZ6r3NPGbMBHqn2jNt4-hqwKR3JbHdUanyryrNW3-_erBTyDjkhGzIwHkaI7CokhXXqJl0rVsq-N_eI9vP5IWvjetOhBHYRzu0/s320/ry%253D4002.jpg" border="0" /></div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473153120308076690" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 233px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRw2iiP1d9vW4Ieyax3LaO-33EMH6fpiNz0tnQjZK1vtj3ouN_M-hnWs0dHWQV2ygdUa-pqsuIOzbJ19MfLYoHSuBuRS-BkfXAY7OzS6h47yAexHnT3lEmh63qWC3M7nzUR833cNf7ogeM/s320/y%253D4001.jpg" border="0" /></div><div>This is our landscape now, just two and a half years later. And this is after a good pruning where Todd cut everything back to size. The trees, both the weeping cherry and maple are doing great. The daylillies and hostas are already going to have to be divided this coming fall ad the hollys are growing tons of berries now. The privets along the garage were going crazy but considering they can be used for privacy, we cut then back quite considerably to keep them from getting overgrown. </div><div> </div><div>An addition this spring was the small retaining wall around the weeping cherry. This fall we hope to get a nice size bed built around the maple tree extending towards the front left corner of the house.</div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473153132324489698" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBsUCeFF639J6Iq2czkoDLSRM4CzE6ban9CI5jHljehZQOsxW76ZbYaVKPTT2WZOu-9SoB8s3SS5GRUICckO_fDbBkmQa2GcNiraOLTJCYLgEU1GkbeVGaIXQA_jvMAcXaCu5IMrnuHU3T/s320/071.JPG" border="0" /></div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473153143235647458" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc7wezeXVehlYbLl96uGr9qzujO-Z07g2DAvPa4zCaNJoriYOyNUGksqQ8XJK1_eHqc7M9wFidRANGLHNi1vW0nVwlfHYznAKue69veqKzR-qajdrrDc7Ieh324xyqyL1CGHXqty1Rj82l/s320/074.JPG" border="0" /> </div></div></div>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-88577878870672931232010-05-16T18:18:00.001-07:002010-05-16T18:49:16.606-07:00Our First GardenI've wanted a garden for years and finally the timing was right. We started falling in love with fresh from the garden vegtables last year after tending our neighbors garden for two weeks while they went to Florida. We also saw the joy Luke got from picking the tomatoes. We figured now was a perfect time to give gardening a shot! I did a lot of reading and decided the Square Foot Garden method seemed to be most kind to beginners. Todd still has a very "half cup empty" outlook on this whole garden thing, so I'm really hoping we get some beautiful produce from it!<br /><br />Here is our three raised beds. Two on the ends are 4'x4' and the one in the middle is 3'x6'. Todd made them from composite decking leftover from our deck project last fall. They turned out great! And the grids were made from the roping we used to measure of the deck as well, so another free item w had around the house! I ordered most of our seeds from Seed Saver Exchange, but I must admit I never got around to starting seeds indoors. Being pregnant with #3 has me totally worn out. So I did have to buy a few seedlings from the local garden center, but all in all, we're still on plan.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVv8nScsag4QGaO_M1wYlDAnRsQyCd93v7QfNJ03q0WoX7iYBJM0zr72waFRKGKqK8VerGeBeNSykZmx6jCQzQk-UHAP09RGK6esVIHJRGgVkqShyFbgGpZv8O1L8Bs-9_DA_QIPHKghBd/s1600/001.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5472043141565442066" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVv8nScsag4QGaO_M1wYlDAnRsQyCd93v7QfNJ03q0WoX7iYBJM0zr72waFRKGKqK8VerGeBeNSykZmx6jCQzQk-UHAP09RGK6esVIHJRGgVkqShyFbgGpZv8O1L8Bs-9_DA_QIPHKghBd/s320/001.JPG" border="0" /></a> Bed #1 on May 1st. This bed is planted with Amish snap peas, strawberries, Longfellow cucumbers, spinach and lettuce. I also have a border of dill and oregano by the cucumber, thyme by the strawberries, and marigolds by the peas. These are supposed to naturally ward off harmful bugs and disease.<br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5472043150080535106" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtdWL03JFLXNKrmtQTgRIcNH4wwkEn8xD5ccuTkTy28G7X77nYV4bzDdNgrIvmNR-ctSBdd-AE9_VxnFBJvhm7Pkyx0Qas7i04bVwSa7N3LqoC8M2-As_oQQdbu3wcfHnFAPosfB653Yam/s320/003.JPG" border="0" /><br />Bed #2 is now a disaster and needs to be replanted....hence the reason I'm using photos from May 1st! This bed contained sweet onions, red onions, shallots, garlic, broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower. There is a border of oregano around the cauliflower, cabbage, and broccoli, a dill border by the onions and broccoli, and rosemary by the cauliflower. Problem? I got a little cocky. Our neighbors have had gardens for years and had no problem with animals eating the seedlings. So, I figured why go to the extra effort, it'll be fine! Wrong! Sometime between Friday and Saturday, a rabbit ate all the broccoli/cauliflower/cabbage! Some of it is totally gone, some is just the stems eaten all the way to the soil. Not even sure if it's worth replanting these at this point with the temperatures getting warmer. But I can tell you....chicken wire is being wrapped around every single bed this week! I'm not opening a buffet line for nature!<br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5472043159222808530" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq8AuEMy31tnEswpB9Cucxm_t9Zsfq8eEW4d1LSo5qBl7fQp5qt5Lo-9eqdbuZDv6uGU5ta742Uod_Htqtl2iEM7FVAO_3XqSTMkfTxJRnF1XvFrfcLyMeNSdKlRwRCp_wPKr3pYnMb7no/s320/004.JPG" border="0" /><br />Bed #3 still needs to be finished, but will eventually be planeted with carrots, lettuce, golden zuchinni, Kentucky Wonder pole beans, empress beans, Black Beauty eggplant, and more garlic. This bed also has a border of marigolds by the eggplant.<br /><br /><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5472043164914525378" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguIMN4utzECt0EFpMnoCBFy01iSAouaqeVvyZg_CMsJxkjoPvwL8wkZpENDy1zrz5AknZyWmBUPDsz_4RwQwITUrDqllPtdCDw5FKIS39NvCan1wRYFx8ooMn-QEfe1fSCBxxNdzpp_F1f/s320/005.JPG" border="0" /> </p><p>We still have a lot to do not only for our vegtable garden but also the gardening for all my flowers around the house, so this weeks to do list is rather long. I hope my energy returns as I cruise into second trimester towards the end of this week.</p><p>TO DO:<br />-put chicken wire around all beds<br />-make trellis out of cow panel or cement rebar for peas, beans, and cucumber<br />-set up trelis along house for pumpkins, melons, and more zuchinni<br />-drill holes in galvanized tubs/rubbermaid tub/strawberry buckets for drainage<br />-finish planting in bed #3, containers, strawberry bucket, potatoes in rubbermaid tub and along house<br />-put flowers in planters and hanging baskets around the house (thankfully I bought these all over the weekend, just need to plant them!)<br /><br /><br /></p>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-75883223068935429002010-03-01T19:46:00.000-08:002010-03-01T19:59:22.632-08:00Finally, a use for leftover taco meat!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHxEKAmg3RsTxkIvu8PIe3BFNDyJLj2XgfCJwD50QOTcLHNlwmzsyWh_z0Rqc2WciVZa6WiYObtDqEgua-NVuNOl7DctbZXPgxJ_MhMBB8mntRhU2onbdiptUs_n03N57nxG0MQ4LZHeiT/s1600-h/002.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443878150925486594" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHxEKAmg3RsTxkIvu8PIe3BFNDyJLj2XgfCJwD50QOTcLHNlwmzsyWh_z0Rqc2WciVZa6WiYObtDqEgua-NVuNOl7DctbZXPgxJ_MhMBB8mntRhU2onbdiptUs_n03N57nxG0MQ4LZHeiT/s320/002.JPG" border="0" /></a> Our family always manages to always have a little taco meat leftover, no matter how much I cook. I've recently stuck with 1 lb just because it's easy. I usually have about 1/4 lb left, which I throw in a frezer bag and it gets lost never to be seen again. So I'm always looking for ways to use it on something within a few days, but not something that is TOO similar to tacos.<br /><br />Todd said he was in the mood for pizza, so into the kitchen I went searching for some kind of pizza to make. Low and behold, my taco pizza was born.<br /><br />Crust is just a Betty Crocker pre packaged mix since I had it on hand, but any crust would do.<br /><br />Sauce: 1 6 oz can tomoato paste, 3/4 cup water, 3/4 of a 1.25 oz package of taco seasoning, 1 tsp hili powder, and 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne powder - mix all together and set to the side<br /><br />Beans layer: mix 1 16 oz can refried beans, 1/3 cup salsa, and 1/4 cup finely chopped onions<br /><br />Then begin to layer...crust, tomato/taco sauce layer, bean layer, crumbled leftover taco meat, some black olives if you have them left over from tacos, and some shredded mexican cheddar cheese. Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 15 min!<br /><br />After done baking, we also drizzled it with thinned sour cream and some fresh green onion, but it's optional.<br /><br />This recipe is enough for two pizzas but we would never need that much. Instead we used it for lunch the next day...layer of cream cheese, bean mixture, tomato/taco sauce, meat, cheese and olives. Makes a great dip for tortilla chips!Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-45359709720926587762010-03-01T18:47:00.000-08:002010-03-01T19:45:38.318-08:00We're ready for spring!Luke clearly is ready for some warm weather. This weekend, after having the stomach flu run it's course through our house, Luke told me it was time to go out and play. He must have taken his clothes off as he was playing in his room and then came to me with cowboy boots, Todd's winter hat, and holding his mittens saying it was "time for the fresh air mom!" He actually didn't have undies on the first time he came and asked, but I made him put some on and ask me again, HAD to take some photos for daddy!<br /><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443863597640640834" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikQsCMB-HKQNW1gjK3hsNkRspPnkxKws323xXDuOEbzh_lZ1q3LjUQP_P5QTw5gAf92OgZNSHeRigkElL5yoUfdT-_M6V_R87wvV89Xy7nz7TjtM5ODZvFHw4rUr75jEv9xs2cc2ZOb54X/s320/029.JPG" border="0" /><br />He also picked out sunglasses that would be "pwetty on Brookey mom" while we were at the Carter's Outlet. Of course the second we got home, he said he needed them for the bright sun. Did anyone else besides him see sun on Sunday? Yeah...I didn't think so...<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443863590958373330" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT3Omaa9DZQbqeKdA0BhTnBYOOYy4LvzHtKrnfUDEmWXAoNsWHBNGH1nb-D4D2NN0nouqTZsTNdu_WfGF0iUnugYvfEHKPxIjHDt1WY2enOx0eECIpsHEVTaSwbq68Uy6LLuUtASeOpS1p/s320/003.JPG" border="0" /><br />We did manage to get Brooke's nursery complete though this dreary weekend. Yeah, yeah, I know, this should have been done, oh, 9 months ago or more! Haha! And if I was even half a mom I would have gotten it done BEFORE her pictures in the nursery, but no, couldn't get that done either. Oh well, it is finally 100% finished!<br /><br />Here is a good picture of the tissue paper poms I got from <a href="http://www.etsy.com/">http://www.etsy.com/</a>. The store is called Pros to th Host. I'm so going to be getting some of these for Brooke's first birthday party! SOOO cute!<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443866161344855266" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8gRr7fFt2c-h0yEIPBQT-XyeURB4aBCJNf2sUu8sJLyWQrB1DtpQZ7hgLaDsimomHxW3MRgCw5eQ4HZRd7EoGOMKRr1lTKEwi4fBgByeIFdo67SDzzDxNBUyJ_mkEDNxEqLaGxM_rt-f1/s320/038.JPG" border="0" /><br />And here's a closeup of the name art I made from scrapbook paper and framed with cheap frames from Kohls. They are hanging behind her crib.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443866155723550130" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyfapqqPQmgJsq_6SWb5QyxEgdd5d2R0goNDPFx0lLwTsFCENi32EnuIlriqhitITJwmEWP0bSCg6WT-MkEz9f4knhsk3tP1KjSyjL-6HYZD31-ho6nBC2wTtFau0vBIzeLcW2uPwmw0bj/s320/037.JPG" border="0" /><br />These two photos are on either side of the window in Brooke's room. They aren't the greatest, but I needed something I coul get done in about 10 min while both kids somehow managed to nap at the same time. Todd woudn't let me spend any money so I already had these frames and scrapbook paper laying in the closet. The first is a bird on a branch and the second is supposed to be "mod" flowers that match the crib bedding. Not bad for free hand from the world's most uncrafty person! Haha!<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443866147862444402" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjovYohtmEdj4vnl_fW95AqxNJ1YbrsYzDboVGUHeyw7eCEmlpnuiFF0-bDI5_3Mvsv7wG65m7PENHdZdMtRRmyuvI93mp9y4AQY3bIOJhitYBGcMqYpDyoolVizHFkIWiD64cYscgMTHzM/s320/036.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443866140898417618" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7616xVZLQrhnEuh3cheL5dU0_xzqSnbvN29ZBaoFnKpi3zqvkQQpKlT7uRrv40JR6vllwJV4xvW0PmEjA8KOdpZvfLR_BFh6rmhosW-khY6wwmMuu5ngqXFapYmIM64RjW6yCklWsPWmS/s320/035.JPG" border="0" /><br />I also have a few recipes to share. Todd and I were going through some old photos this week while we were all sick and came across some of our all time favorite recipes from this summer. I don't think I ever had time to share either of them, so I thought I'd do it now...maybe to get everyone motivated to start the seeds for their gardens soon! ;P<br /><br />Anyway, the first recipe is a Grilled Eggplant Panini. The recipe can be found here: <a href="http://www.5dollardinners.com/2009/08/grilled-eggplant-panini-with-rosemary-garlic-aioli.html">http://www.5dollardinners.com/2009/08/grilled-eggplant-panini-with-rosemary-garlic-aioli.html</a></p><br /><br /><p>We saw this recipe and just happened to have almost everything on hand. Our neighbors garden was overflowin with eggplant, zucchini and tomoatoes so we just had to try this out. Messy, BUT wonderful! We cannot wait for the first eggplant this season! </p><p>We served the panini with grilled broccoli (recipe below) and "fried" eggplant. Th fried eggplant was a little heavy with everything else, but I can't wait to make it again, this time as the main dish! All you do is slice the eggplant as thin as you can. Shake with a little salt an place on paper towels to get out as much water was possible. Then mix about a cup of mayo with a little lemon juice and some seasoning. We used a little seasoned salt. Then dip the eggplant into the mayo to cover all sides, then dredge in italian bread crumbs. Bake at 350 for 20 min, flip, and bake for 25 min more. Serve with a little warmed marinara sauce. SO good!<br /></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443874973224962178" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizBd73JXP9Lf32P6zkqFkuEhS2FnTCMUumZzLbPcBHOdHND5_ciyLjxTidiJHyyI_7LEA99a4_jnclevi1SN6jX2kAqARxv_HL3N55dh5RE5dT1wReljivYVWM51gbQFpzXnGQYDlntQ49/s320/111.JPG" border="0" />As for the grilled broccoli, this is a staple in our house. I'd never heard of this until my father in law started grilling all kinds of veggies. All you do is grab a square of foil, cut up a large head of broccoli, add a few tablespoons of butter and season with a littl garlic salt. Fold it up so none of the butter can leak out and then place on the grill for about 20-30 min depending on how hot you are cooking other items on the grill.<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443866164405024242" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPS_9EcH4Tw5mks_hwbnEDvtxnXsnsuIKoMKHfeeK2fqlN5OCqMs7TIb2j2reN4oWqG8z89OSWI1kyYYJrmEz6ffCbKMj1aTE5ig9GpsDXgWr7JPGbSEhHeoLHmdBr30zHuHuqw1OIvq-P/s320/051.JPG" border="0" /></p><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK34s0dHF1p4ZY2gJgKeqCEUGGn6M3krpInChVmPZ4H68-EbMrN8cO7qEo0lCoKSxEfyAGkCxOTecAVs-_gqYol9Q5jXslO_JvbewSvkERj-9axmm_ckVlRiAnfjY4-RRLwZ6sR4854AKF/s1600-h/052.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443868816564034978" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK34s0dHF1p4ZY2gJgKeqCEUGGn6M3krpInChVmPZ4H68-EbMrN8cO7qEo0lCoKSxEfyAGkCxOTecAVs-_gqYol9Q5jXslO_JvbewSvkERj-9axmm_ckVlRiAnfjY4-RRLwZ6sR4854AKF/s320/052.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><br /><div></div></div></div>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-90126255522710120992010-02-16T17:55:00.000-08:002010-02-16T18:12:00.597-08:00We made out at the Gap sale!We ended up with a pretty heft haul at Gap yesterday for their 45% off sale! Even though there was a major winter snowstorm on it's way in, we trudged out in the snow, credit card in hand!<br /><div><div><div><div><div>We got there about 20 min after they opened and boy am I glad we went early. Within 20 min or so, it got insanley packed! Todd found himself a pair of work pants for only $3 (!!!) as well as 3 pairs of jeans for around $15. I got Brooke a few of the favorites I've been drooling over on the internet for spring, as well as a pair of plain white Robeez sandals that will match many outfits this spring/summer. I got the most stuff for Luke for next fall. He got several pairs of shoes/boots, a book bag for preschool, and several shirts. I did pick up two pairs of pants for myself, but both just don't fit right, especially for $25 still. I'd rather get a pair from (gasp) JCPenney's for half the price. Sorry, I have a lot of love for the Worthington Wear pants for work!</div><br /><div>Anyway, here is a few pictures of the kids in their new clothes:<br /></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5439027919900177554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge_2ZAakWWS536Loo9Le6_rYzVAFHJ0Trty5RSzzdl8UhgWZfBY_XMHX8V-fBcnm8HFj5Y0ir4atRr2IOm9kH4BBzdmmjsT-zMnvMVhVY9JzaZmTvc_cQyTPasew7nFtmUYCSCuz1GJLJS/s320/046.JPG" border="0" /></div></div></div></div></div><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5439027913527707202" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIHFKlIcbbZzUQygUg2fcWgSWmvbiySVam1sSIXNgl4i2-wZDGKWRQgFyhDQLUdnSCx53xDzid9wC5BKiTGdpPw8HsnsZLMtFEAssOaFiiEyU3e2KN8M9GTLA_cyi9KCZPF4P7E3zCHUy3/s320/040.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5439027931423230146" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiMODSYA5No0WH0kWM93ChPd0nKLc9k2bxSNvJop-9KI4YovyyxYga5AP8JVxF9ClQHnJNDvvdSQoL8I7CbyayWxlrGCsKJ3QRPaEyPPUC-dSFtBCpWBx63MXQv_OO3LSTazxRT36Nopo1/s320/055.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5439027925063047298" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaz_-zyehJEUPrqdV2zeki96PykkcmzMsU5Pjtjx53t4XX9ZMBRAZr8rxZlECnOneUQygS4jmxHAoD-ZT7ygQviJJl4lhI5y0ZjVK9-YLmOBR_9pMe7ApLUIzb3rAVTV8-1acfaGXEcFnh/s320/053.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5439027901665307506" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYgEv2LDgqkxEyRT659NL0fFipyHE-XM0Mv2E9GNtmnNuE3KOBMk5P-pTf8SfuMC-L41XHkaprucyhsGJnsryn9mTWzLEbbhUDfeJNRiE1xslIdiPjSnj-08FBCktSbYkAAnoRO1cUhU4e/s320/036.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>I also bought about a bag full of sale extras to sell of Ebay. My "strategy" was to pick things that there was only one left of, thinking it was probably a popular item! Seems like it worked pretty well. I've started listing things on Gymbofriends and I've sold quite a few, but the only thing I'm getting from that is rewards and points towards silver. I didn't add any extra for them. Tomorrow I plan on listing on ebay and starting my bid at the price I paid. If they buy it for that amount, great, if they pay more, added bonus!</p>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-61851445585532705642010-02-16T17:20:00.000-08:002010-02-16T17:54:36.629-08:00Our frugal dinner...We got another surprise bill tonight...$241 at Gymboree that I thought was part of last month's $500 bill. Oppps! Yeah, this is a great example of how I got WAY off track on meeting our savings goals. And just because I needed to use my Gymbucks (aka, I bought $500 worth and got $250 off, plus another 5% off) is no excuse. I shouldn't have spent that much period on just part of Brooke's spring waredrobe!<br /><div><div> </div><div>I hate grocery shopping because it's one of the biggest budget items for us. I also hate grocery shopping because it feels like it never ends. Every Thursday I start thinking about it again. I'll write a list of what we have on hand and I'll try to mingle that with sale ads and coupons, but a lot of times I fall into the trap of seeing a recipe that looks delicious, and it might use up the chicken we have in the freezer, but then I need to buy 5 things to make the recipe. We also fall into the trap of quick snack items, especially for the kids. </div><br /><div>My solution, a month long menu, well in our case it went from Sunday to March 18th, the day we leave for our Gatlinburg vacation, so about 33 days. We're going to try not to eat out or get carry out, not even for lunch, that entire time. AND we're going to try to stay under $50 every two weeks which is a BIG goal for us considering we have been spending about $150 every week.</div><br /><div>I will post my monthly menu soon, but tonight's meal was frugal AND delicious, so I had to share. Our locally owned grocer had chicken leg quarters on sale for $.49/lb. I was able to get 6lbs (6 leg quarters - which is basically the drumstick and thigh I believe) for around $3. Last night I boiled them in some water and taco seasoning (I made a big batch of homeade seasoning since our family loves tacos). I then shredded all the chicken off the bone. I put 1/3 aside for tacos tonight and divided the other 2/3 into freezer bags, one for chicken tacos in the future and one for chicken tortilla soup next week. I then saved the chicken broth for both tonights spanish rice and next weeks tortilla soup saving me about $4 from two large boxed chicken broth.</div><br /><br /><div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5439023096363725762" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWxReKmxXd2rvujtEkmDBCYZ-UVMsAXf64tkBMuT2FJEtR9u5KuTDc0mgMQmgBt7DR74EcVOwlNeSDcUQqBQH5x8vpI_IAH7VKoh2CPf4HVfdqw6WYFt5WsEWyG_TfgQFq-aDxPybgkrA/s320/cd8c76ab72c8e2de4d925b1646ad0654.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><div>For tonights dinner, I just tossed the shreded chicken in a skillet with more taco seasoning and just a tad of water. I also threw in a little corn to make it stratch a bit. We just threw that on some small soft taco flour tortillas we found at GFS for under $2 for 50 of them, topped them with chopped tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, a few packets of Taco Bell sauce I found in the fridge and a little sour cream.<br /></div><div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5439023100102608146" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZmR9OZAH9DCQxnfXS81eUkJ9Gig_tACGGJrAIsWyXctm4cikw9a11uJSpzYbci4-TQWu0OheBvKMpU48KFIrbPuBHU4wLXPov83uFulIYRyeaRxhPxYpBVs8I3J1FxqGeIwC-bShaR4ED/s320/DSCN0894.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div>As I side, I made spanish rice. I had remembered a recipe my brother had to make for his 4th grade class...a rice with tomatoes and bacon. For years I've tried to recreate it, but the second I laid eyes on this, I knew this was it. You have to check out this recipe at <a href="http://oneplusoneequalssix.blogspot.com/2009/06/spanish-rice.html">http://oneplusoneequalssix.blogspot.com/2009/06/spanish-rice.html</a>. Added bonus...I've had two giant bags of long grain white rice sitting in my pantry for a long time, but never knew what to make with it. Pathetic huh? I'm a minute rice kinda gal. But this recipe not only used the rice (only 1 cup made a HUGE pot), but it also used up green onions I had for later this week, chicken stock I made last night, and a leftover can of diced tomatoes from dinner last night. </div><div> </div><div>***These are borrowed pictures from the internet. Brooke was *dying* of strarvation, so I rushed to the table to feed her before I had time to snap pictures!***</div></div>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-72767432383505449362010-02-14T19:17:00.000-08:002010-02-14T19:43:07.347-08:00Kids clothes...I've only been shopping for kids clothes for about three years, but I finally think I've figured out the best way to save money. You know the old saying "it takes money to make money?" Well, I take that saying to heart! Well, not really making money, but maybe saving money.<br /><br />Anyway, in the past, I've always been good about shopping clearence racks, buying ahead, buying used clothes, etc. BUT, almost everything I bought was just a single item. For boys, it was fine most of the time because pretty much anything matched a pair of jeans or khaki pants, but for Brooke this just hasn't been working out! Do you seriously know how many shades of pink there are or how hard it is to find plain jeans for girls without hearts or flowers embroiderd on them?!?!?<br /><br />I recently joined a messag forum called Gymbofriends and started "educating" myself. My first thought was a bunch of prissy moms who blow money on their kids clothes. But I figured I coud scoop up the deals by buying their used clothes that were to small. But what I didn't know was all the coupon/sale savvy moms on that site. With the knowledge I've learned on that site, I am hoping to break even from now on as far as the kids clothes and a few items I might actually make money on! I first sarted buying Brooke's spring/summer clothes during the Gymboree Rd Balon Sale. Everything was $6.99 and under plus I used a 20% off coupon. I also got 5% off for using my Gymboree credit card and recived $25 in Gymbucks for every $50 I spent. I was able to sell those on Ebay for $5/$25 Gymbuck. I also bought a few extras and sold them on ebay. One dress was bought for about $4 and went for $25! Crazy! And the resale for these outfits are great. I should get back at least what I paid for these items after she's done wearing them.<br /><br />Then the Old Navy Baby sale came around. I only got the kids a few things, $4 sweat shorts for Luke, brown thong sandals for Luke, and oxford shirt, anda dress for Brooke. I also got myself a pair of pants for work at 40% off. On top of the already reduced prices, I got free shipping for spending $50, $10 off with the THANKYOU code, and an extra 15% off. I ended up getting 9 things for $45!<br /><br />Gap has always been my favorite brand for Luke but I just haven't seen that great of sales s I've been buying most of this spring/summer waredrobe online, through Gymbofriends or ebay, or in store at Once Upon a Child and Moms Market. I also bought him two pairs of jeans during their buy one, get one for $10 jeans sale yesterday because I coulld use a 25% off coupon in conjunction with it. $30 for two pairs of jeans isn't too bad.<br /><br />But lo and behold, Gap is now having a ridiculously good sale tomorrow, 45% off for cardholders!!!!! That is like insane considering it'll sell used for about the same amount! I'm so excited to not only get a few things for Todd and I, but also to get a few things for Brooke. Luk may get another shirt or two, and another pair of flip flops, but that's it!<br /><br />Another HUGE tip I've learned is buying things in outfits! For resale purposes, this is HUGE, but it also is nice for planning purposes. I've started keeping complete outfits in the kids closets in those canvas shoe cubbies. I don't always get the kids dressed (either my mom does or Todd when he gets home for work) and sometimes I'm embaressed at how mismatched they are. So this has helped us tremendously!<br /><br />This sure beats reselling Circo brand shorts that I paid $5 for for $1.50 at Mom's Market though! It may have cost less overall, but the quality just isn't there so it's hard to justify asking much for it when it'll probably only last through one or two more kids. But quality clothes go for more resale becase the quality is so good. It still looks brand new even if we wore it every week all winter long! Not to mention they look cute nd "stylin" inall their clothes too! Now if I'd just dress like I cared as well...haha!<br /><br />Anyone else have tips of cutting your clothing balance???Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-74087751381553316432010-02-12T19:03:00.003-08:002010-02-12T19:14:56.342-08:00And I just have to share...something happened to my baby! She's growing so quickly, I just had to share a quick picture or two of her!<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437559518692066178" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy-UxScGGpn9g-uPN10-h8ZmDxoOHMSzXYagMeQA7sZ8ffDwjyt4kvV3ywPsCZ073pBfrVToGRa8PsmvRP1PwYmGCi6VpK5yNg_JOozvPrCWQKi8jH8eL38qKwMxac5vvYk1jPBO4qXl7K/s320/014.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437559525974702530" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOoth56BLp_3g9fH3HSn3Fb0aOv4AQO-9j9rVJVQEDv6JTLSxQFyutVdU3tFvPUFqATa7zMxAZYGYWKhm2PI2JmkhJlMuvvuobGJa8gVxiyBjYzyaJG4MxtE8dFpjKGYsa0MOtvxNSEY_Y/s320/070.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437559529171418946" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBCCqPQIdUchyphenhyphenqzpQJ-rHecDcAgkYt5Nk_fzVkSGXlKqEmg-YkowMWKHtxH6YTM0SMSJ7i1SBSwr4Ffm62Rsw5ra1L3IOhpPAafbE0TSNiYM6Mxg9FqgP82tHe-X1bu277pNTS0g4XFSFG/s320/096.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437559540172117202" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnAwzDb9wMkC1PJiAkyQDTVlNEaBvaiWXgGIIwv1wTtbefgirH3dZ-7W2YXleq6e7WytRAwSUW0iGmlUxaroDV-1oPAu6JJ6y2TmAUxgO3r07W76oxKeuCgmx-5Yi2sdHkxQUp5E2s-4qS/s320/003.JPG" border="0" />An this last one, I swear she was actually stapped in and we were right there. It was quite halarious that Luke has fallen in so much love with a stroller we found at the curb (even though it looked brand new!) We found it when I was still pregnant with Brooke and Luke recently found it back in storage! Go figure! One day he decided it would fit Brooke perfect and much to our surprise, it actually did. This was a one and only time though..Curious George is now the lucky rider in this vehicle of style...prepared for long walks as soon as this 20 ft of snow melts away! Oh, and yes, he has no pants on. During potty training he picked up this no pants thing and it's stuck. Thankfully it's just a home habit or we'd have some trouble! ;P<br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-16109382198961695922010-02-12T18:30:00.000-08:002010-02-12T19:01:53.914-08:00Our first bulk meat purchase!<div><br /><div>We've talked about it for years but we finally walked the walk. I've done lots of research on the benefit of buying grass fed beef (mainly the decrease in fat and the increase in Omega 3's) and I've searched local farms high and low. From my research, it ran from about $3-$6/lb fully processed. And there is every range from someone who posts on Craigslist (with bad grammer and spelling errors) to farmers who come highly recommended on many local eating sites yet have a wait list at least a year long to recieve their meat, yet still require a $250 deposit up front! I did end up finding our farm, Bare Family Farm on Craigslist, but he had a very nice ad with a link to a very informative and nice webpage.<br /><div> </div><div>In early December we actually went to the farm to visit and they were the nicest people. Showed us around the farm and even invited us in so our kiddos could warm up and play with their kids. The farm is a working farm, aka, not the picturesque farms you see in a issue of Martha Stewart Living, but overall very clean and a great set up for raising beef and their 4-H goats (their kid's projects for the county fair). </div><div><br /></div><div>Three weekends ago we picked up our first bulk meat order from the butcher, 142 lbs, a 1/4 a side of beef. Just for anyone who is curious how much meat that actually is, here is pictures of everything on our counter.</div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437554362907817922" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg7esbsbxRZq5tdvhyphenhyphen5SB6uLDPJgAaZ6YcP2zH7TqwVwO1rrwpwhbOarJQWR9jIRlaK2_ui5UnRg1Fn_DO9Y3zzlrbOoje2Lt69BWXWRU7ptzg_gah-ul884sYddz4vxF98GdabmoH1vSF/s320/001.JPG" border="0" /></div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437554371303305730" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7vxqzBEC5yyJmOCD5HQJp7jxxpIHRYetX2k-j2zYaq9VbWAolMy8ndrGoEfAX-OfNAYpE_KwwQfonU_J4wNWNW9CFTfzDUj1t5RXV2VWYcJ6B3Grt7l4osXMQ_5x-UpmbwNbgCA_YeokO/s320/005.JPG" border="0" /></div><div>We actually ended up giving my parent's about 50 lbs of it so after all that, it really isn't all that much. It will easily last us 4 months I'm sure though if we only eat beef 2-3 times per week.</div><div> </div><div>And just in case anyone is interested, this is a picture of how our beef is marked. I was a little weary beforehand about knowing what was what, but I was so relieved to see the packages marked this way, with the date and what each item is.<br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437554379798434418" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOQEng55bELWEMRGsxr2H0f9iLFN21UOQ5Ax-s6eEmA5Nb5vtj9Zq9-glGs03KEYCytz6eO3G6coUU67RSUuROF7pBCEM0aF2gaRTV8Rww0eD1Pnpnyu17q4PFcMHs-jL_P8XLQUTLBViJ/s320/008.JPG" border="0" />For 142 lbs we got approx 40 lbs of ground beef (1 lb packages), 6 packages Tbones steaks (3/4" steaks, 2 per package), 6 Ribeye Steaks (3/4" thick, 2 per package), 2 packages of soup bones, 2 or 3 packages of short ribs, 4 packages of beef stew meat, 5 packages of cube steak, a half of a flank steak and several roasts. </div><div> </div><div>So hows the taste? This was probably my biggest concern is that we wouldn't like it. Overall, we do like it and will do it again. The biggest thing for us to get used to so far is one, not having large steaks. In a restaurant, we are used to being brought T-bone steaks that amost fall over the side of the plate. With grass fed beef, especially from a younger, smaller (aka, more tender) cow, the steaks are MUCH smaller then we are used to. BUT, we know this is the amount of steak we <em>should</em> be eating so it's just something to get used to. The other is more variety. We had flank steak the other night and it was great. Todd asked when we could have it again. Well, the next time we buy a cow since cows ony have one flank per side. But we like flank more often than this. So that is something we just need to get used to.</div><div> </div><div>As for the taste, I think it's delicious. We made burgers the other night with the ground beef and they were just to die for. Steaks are okay, but we just arn't huge steak fans since we don't eat anything around the fat. Flank steak was incredible and we're looking forward to trying a roast, short ribs, and cube steak in this weeks menu.</div><div> </div><div>Also stay tuned for my report on buying 1/4 pig (110 lbs). We're picking it up tomorrow. Not sure how it's going to fit in our already stuffed to the brim deep freezer and fridge freezer, but tomorrow morning I better get it figured out!<br /><br /></div><div></div></div>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-8716792200933131372010-02-10T19:41:00.000-08:002010-02-10T20:03:13.021-08:00I'm back...to living on a dime!Call it a blogging break, call it a case of the winter blues, call it whatever you want, but I took a break. My main reason...I felt a little funny writing a blog called "Living Large on a Dime" when we were not living it. We were living large, but we were also paying large. Our biggest splurge ever, a third vehicle.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436827242137262466" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRTnu9lj7a0m_cFsD9fGVTOUcClAEEDKAA6g7_-Ea0_DmywRxqPYxIHu_kT3AB76bzEJnRPFb9LwlUTJ-hDoLxxh_NHfhrFBLBMmq_jLl4eML8YjD6OLFl0Y1fjQSykkuYvwL9NUyeMLFB/s320/18179355.jpg" border="0" />We did need a bigger vehicle, and we decided that keeping my 2003 Honda Accord would save on gas mileage to and from work, but still, it wiped out our entire savings. We still have our 2 year emergency fund, sitting high and tight earning a whopping 4.5% BUT it's been a long time since we've lived exclusively on my income along to build back up our savings. We've also had some of those "large, one or few times a year purchases" like buying a 142 lbs of beef in bulk, 110 lbs of pork, paying 1 year of trash service, paying 1 year of preschool, carpet for our basement remodel, title and taxes on th new vehicle, and many more I feel like. So we have gone from living very large to saving every dime we can. We've even resorted to making as much extra money as we can. I've been working my rear off bringing in extra income by selling things we don't need on Ebay/Craigslist/several other diaper/clothing resale sites. I've made close to $1,000 in the past month. Todd has been pulling in extra money by shoveling snow which we have been getting A LOT of lately! He's also been finding odd jobs like painting a friends interior, selling tools he no longer needs (or has two of), and making raised planter boxes from the extra decking we had left over. Who knew he could be so efficient during the small 1 hr window when both kiddos were napping!<br /><br />A big area of improvement for us has been tracking expenses. We've never been serious about this until now, mainly because I always thought I had a pretty good grasp on what we spent and where it went. Anymore, it's gotten out of control. So we started tracking everything...how much we spent, how much we had come in, how we paid for it, and how much we saved. Only 2 weeks in and we're really excited to see how it's coming along.<br /><br />Another huge improvement, mainly for me, NO EATING OUT! I'm ashamed to admit it, but when I became pregnant with Brooke, I craved McDonald's sweet teas BAD! But of course you can't just go through the drive thru for a $1, so I added on breakfast as well for about $3-$4 per day. Then to make matters worse, I got into the habit of grabbing food at work when I was running late, which was basically everyday. It wasn't anything special - sandwich, chips and a pop but it came to $5-$6. So almost $10 a day for food. For the past three weeks, I have not ate out once! Tonight was the first night we've had dinner out in a LONG time too. We got carry out from a bar and grill type place and only because it was Todd's birthday and he had recieved a gift card. Halfway into eating it, we realized this is one thing we really don't miss. Our biggest cravings have been fresh vegtables.<br /><br />So, here's to my committment to get back on th frugal living train. We've got a lot of thing we plan on buying in the next few months, so hopefully documenting on how I got the best price on things will be quite an intersting journey.Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-78820856654622340132009-12-20T17:17:00.000-08:002009-12-20T17:48:56.851-08:00Christmas photo shoot!I've been overly excited about getting a Christmas photo shoot done by our photographer, Alison Kamper, but low and behold, Saurday brought snow and a grey dimly lit house! Boo! So I decided not to have her waste her time and instead, talked my mom into letting me break out my new 50mm lens. I have to say...I'm IN LOVE! That lens rocks! Anyway, here are a few of the awesome shots I got...not even edited. Next step...learn photoshop!<br /><br /><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417497222813495090" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfMv-G5sN_Ee7DfJovOgLwviwAVD2tDF9alUXNoepYJdps8hZj23eth21k9w7uNK5z5XcBXaQWYS7Kcyh8TkpodCQNVwAn0-fW_0IoWg9_njNembgr2fQ0iTNY61i_Ju2UGJxCWVGwKruh/s320/085.JPG" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417494664064329298" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBkm1jpxlDhIKnK9fW1ycF_KoOX0NWjJNs31S54rHkq55Od96hpzDil4zCThASShmMQkXeW3y7ElMSqEu_jpIM6BD0J38zWI4w78JHMPedWUbMyhfG_i_uUMDjXDx9MBMjweYDRd8huZDl/s320/082.JPG" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417494657082462146" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcmSMUuUa19ejoRz0yAQb20H0CjuWLeETG6pxzcFnd25QK9ev-bHjTm___05ExryIeGIosL8R4SYHcBS1dRIYZXmHTowj_AWacdHFHOXUY5RkYTegr1xQpMNlkeRtw6mBSzV-CMKSZniTJ/s320/079.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417494645078714706" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibrlbAADmoWFXrhXYh6bRGQJKNjHGi2wyP7p1WpfaoEg3g2FohSASuuxbwAhkdN0xIKDwcR5lt5TQVQSxysgOwJdI40Y5ZYUJIVbOUhFsk4Wp5i5Tc6ubgu1cCM8IkIm4SOp3ZWPJpa7-l/s320/070.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417494641314999378" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSx4AyCkeRYtY2RoICgnz9M0bMxYDnxoOZbbEIkEJpmLzeTmDmnZ9j_d_DPcuDkQ5qfPQZ0FQYnpWMFZkJ8ULwNNz1dGlOFpn4aZwLDBo-XaNseGcJavlcaUai8kxkRT2EgSCePs9WrV-m/s320/057.JPG" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417494632393875554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibnNaIumXVwmjVymVwPVYuxe_UVl_eDTZknk_LfJiO7BxnYxku-uE98BYpBWc49IkAVmoLAjh0pgRXD5gfrZFB6pnsPf8fHwlENXvHEjU9Nd5Vv3H3nMN-iAUpdVNYF0g4PG0H2-fC0ScK/s320/041.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417497230618021234" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Lgetvaajks0ttK06gkL21jhwTtvI6_qwQtAwZnGE5DxS9XizWLmytNz2mKzerTGI6GISGb_muPJyzVpRs4d88sSe26uIdU0UyNM3BprZK9_iUdQDPkmsYtSFaRLGMYHwEUe2PkuaYZ9O/s320/095.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417497235155997138" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH4AekOJh5iSD4IJsbkQo8ZUmASdozXL0g7xx5Rvp6G5XPxzD3LqVmi3GO5A8WsDatTIYti7-eB5cpLk2l5h6CfYb1of_L5mJ1poXc9BP8s-GoTqoiZHH8K3txR5gJ7qzaaLChvnOhEcFn/s320/100.JPG" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417497246081751266" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJXjoKODypLFsZ8egJKaAgHvDjvI8pHfLf4kfb_Tt5yX1hLR_imiCWUxtsCxqIlYkggKPrgkfjRBngwIJac8cnCCyOfqHP49qisGwjlmxtAJKw4iXQh91L2Ca0lJi8SF0Lf26Koug6eNdB/s320/109.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div> </div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-72127245966732935292009-12-15T17:24:00.000-08:002009-12-15T17:36:42.906-08:00Sorry for my lack of posting...but my camera lens broke! It was over something so stupid too...roof vents Todd wanted me to sell on Craigslist. The same ones we couldn't even give away on Freecycle! Ughhh! I was taking a picture of it, moving around on my knees, tripped on the strap and boom, went crashing into the hardwood floor, camera lens first. It's the basic kit lens, and I already know there is a 50mm waiting under the Xmas tree for me, so it wasn't a HUGE deal, but it still makes me cringe thinking of all the holiday photos I've been missing. =( I've got a few shots from across the room with my zoom lens, but trust me, nothing blog worthy!<br /><br />I also should no longer be absent from blog posts due to my health. I FINALLY had my gallbladder removed on Dec. 1st. They call it a "minor" surgery, but it was a wake up call for me that I NEVER want real surgery if hat was just minor! I'm a big baby, but not being able to put on pants or eat for almost two weeks just about killed me. And I went about an entire day without helping out with the kids. How can you not hug them and squeeze them and tell them you love them? That is probably the hardest part of all. Anyway, one surgery later, a terrile cough and cold later, and one bout of hives and I'm FINALLY feeling better. Well, the cough isn't entirely gone, but the antibiotics will hopefully kick in tomorrow.<br /><br />The only other news I have is our deposit was paid on our quarter of beef and pork this past weekend. This is something I have thought a lot about for the past several years ut never got around to it. There was just too much to self learn and I never found the time. Well, after watching Food Inc. with Todd, he never wanted to eat meat from the grocery again. So we found a small local farmer who does 6 beef a year and 6 pigs. We will be getting apporx. 100 lbs of beef and 60 lbs of pork. I'm really excited to try out some new recipes with cuts of meat we normally don't eat. The extent to our beef eating ends at ground beef, sirloin steaks, and stew meat. It'll be nice to cook Todd a NY strip and have him tell me it's more delicious than his favorite steakhouse! Anyway, we will be picking that up from the processor on Jan. 19th, so I'll be sure to share pictures and our experience.<br /><br />Guess that is about it for now. I need to get working on those Christmas cards I've been seriously slacking on! =)Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-31365625687686540042009-11-07T04:36:00.000-08:002009-11-07T04:49:22.025-08:00Beco Butterfly II<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL1d1e10L2VhppqutqfmTNoCCDFE1vozsYqKe_iI4mc1Vt0q-vV6p84Ztm82MuRPeNnmJ3SF94DQNkX2bF3efqPI9PSVhU722YAynIbRFFVc58cgpEj8o7X8ZjZ8msBmZQuqba2qHGPsKJ/s1600-h/beco_butterfly2_lenka.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401341234423594098" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 255px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL1d1e10L2VhppqutqfmTNoCCDFE1vozsYqKe_iI4mc1Vt0q-vV6p84Ztm82MuRPeNnmJ3SF94DQNkX2bF3efqPI9PSVhU722YAynIbRFFVc58cgpEj8o7X8ZjZ8msBmZQuqba2qHGPsKJ/s320/beco_butterfly2_lenka.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Brooke is now getting to the point where she's heavy enogh that she's starting to hurt my back in the carriers we already have - Hot Sling, SweetPea Ring Sling, HautePocket, and our LoveyDuds wrap (WAHM Moby). BUT I still need to carry her in something. She's not really old enough to sit in the carts at the store (and quite frankly, I'm not sure I want her in it anyway with all this H1N1 crap going around) yet I NEED two (okay well maybe 3 or 4) hands to keep tabs on Luke. So I've been looking for a new carrier that will last us quite some time. I've also been looking for something that my mom could easily throw on during the day and something that ::gasp:: Todd might even try to wear. This was not a small task! Here are some of the benefits of a Beco Butterfly in case you are unfamiliar with them:</div><div> </div><div>* Comfortably fits users from under 5’ to over 6’ - I'm 5'4 and it's very comfortable and fits <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUYV7khCHUA7C_k7U-xrJUz4WhEDlpwqwomzm-crDl9m3HLEbbFJL47pW1lxcVX298wz0eyGPb4CQk3OprA2rkqz-GaP_Hfaj4uW6DJ50-AilQBZ0qPuvr1uAWtk7YQvKWU1WtHqwsqEB9/s1600-h/martini_MED.jpg"></a>great. It <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWyQUp_ZvV5vcYZ-av31_hJGbZ7RXe9Pyj680HJa8hvHs_8cJE-SiVdobwnR900bF3Ke-EWgKgHoaTZVLDdZRov1kIlaBKBocpX75dx2MEHGfFfaFyC9mCf5uuPddeYX3biokiDzF7Caq/s1600-h/beco+003.jpg"></a>adjusts great so it fits my husband excellent as well. </div><div><br />* Newborn to toddler up to 45 lbs - Excellent built in infant insert for little ones. I tried it on a doll (since my daughter is 14 months already) and it worked great. I also tried this on my son who is <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtqtbln3jGIfvISfjpa7aFM8cV36gWeTRQ_XdQrd7lMNsLt8XAqUk5KZMrd69nStXNXDMRwGmjXGA49Hm_DDFZtJKp0f62Mf1ah7-fH6Ngmxzg-lt8GYlhWMvISu7qpsgNgv2bBy9mmxQG/s1600-h/martini_MED.jpg"></a>about 35 pounds and I was literally amazed at how well he fit and comfortable it was to carry him.* Ergonomically curved shoulder straps - The shoulder straps were great, adjustable and padded which made it very comfortable. </div><div><br />* New redesigned body style - The designs are absolutely the cutests things ever. The body style fits your baby great with no cutting of the legs.</div><div><br />* Inside panel enables to pass baby front one parent to another - I love this, it's so easy to get on and off, just like putting a backpack on with a baby a<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRG0atL9VWZnywLm4RbxF0JruLnGJLIS0XmUY8NfULMWyQt40CzOgaTOLaQjLJvaBeuE7TAuqz65le0V2OWM-VooZZW6YBqsycketHi4euAe4bVrMli0CbaOFcbyy4XuoPEWB7LyGkTiuJ/s1600-h/beco+001.jpg"></a>nd it is very, very easy to pass back and forth without worrying she's going to fall out. </div><div><br />* Easy and safe front and back carry - I wear this mostly on the back because my daughter likes to face out a lot and this lets her be up high and in the action. Both ways are easy to get on and with the buckles around your waist and one just beneath your collar bone, you know your baby is secure. </div><div><br />* Lightweight and Stylish - Very lightweight, but a little big for just stuffing in your diaper bag. This is very good for extended wearing, for walks, hiking, etc. </div><div><br />* Hands free nursing - A MUST and yes it works great!</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Well after driving almost 2 hours to a store in Columbus called Sprout Soup, I tried on the Beco I'd read so much about and LOVE it! It's everything I've been asking for all wrapped up in one. But okay, I feel bad for saying this, but I just KNEW I could find it online cheaper. I'm all about small businesses, and I do understand they need to mark things up, but sorry, someone else can pay the mark up, I look for deals! Anyway, a deal I did find. Be sure to check out <a href="http://www.babysnazz.com/">BabySNAZZ</a>. With coupon code flipflop5 you get 5% bringing the price down to $132.05. Plus, they offer free shipping on orders over $75. Then, as if that isn't enough, they also have a 10% back rewards program. So I should expect $13.20 in store credit coming my way! I've got my eyes on some of those super cute baby legs in their clearence section! ;P</div><div> </div><div>Anyway....if anyone is looking for a new carrier, I HIGHLY suggest buying the Beco Butterfly II from BabySNAZZ!</div>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-11357618500227537812009-11-04T18:06:00.000-08:002009-11-04T18:37:52.228-08:00In other news...Of course our biggest news is the newest member of our family. Meet Harry. Yes, Luke has started naming Todd's lawnmowers. Haha! We have NO idea where he comes up with this stuff or where the heck he heard the name Harry, but whatever, the laughing is good for our health right? Anyway, Todd made yet another "risky" mower purchase. One of these times I'm convinced he's going to get burned but he's now 2 for 2 on Ebay. He paid WAY below market value and got it for only $4800. Now I know.....$4800 for a mower seems like an awful lot, and it's sad to say that this is just one of 15 other mowers, but he's gotten to the point where mowers are like shoes with me. You buy a new one, you must get rid of an old one. So the one he got rid of he had used for over 3 years, and although he took very good care of it and it'll last someone many years to come, he still got $2,000 for it! Craziness in my opinion! Anyway, Harry, meet my friends!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXyVGQWCqA2jitUSwioAs2WDjsPttKjVnhfni2IDc_WNFvMFAkvPiH5ZgmgX5PTGc3duNKlw8T7AHh5NMuFTPNCX_gL1BwPi_MRRCnp-YeP5NPd8l6KgWxjza5I9YibWSTv62crljl9EsV/s1600-h/095.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400436261804475426" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXyVGQWCqA2jitUSwioAs2WDjsPttKjVnhfni2IDc_WNFvMFAkvPiH5ZgmgX5PTGc3duNKlw8T7AHh5NMuFTPNCX_gL1BwPi_MRRCnp-YeP5NPd8l6KgWxjza5I9YibWSTv62crljl9EsV/s320/095.JPG" border="0" /></a> Now onto something people more normal than us might care about, my sewing skills are getting better and better with each project. Yes, I'm still in the beginning project stages, but still, they are finally starting to look like they were done by someone who knows what they are doing. I'm really proud of myself for sticking with this and finding time to dedicate to it. Normally, I'll get real into learning something, make an investment in all the stuff needed for it and then a week or two into it, I'll just give up, espeially anything that requires creativity, since I basically have none of it. Haha!<br /><br />Anyway, this is another fleece soaker I made for Brooke for under $2. These are working great at night over Brooke's diaper just in case there is a small leak. I made the size up so she could grow into it, but it's working great even now.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsusEC9_tvKWy5alXrOhm-q0BFy88THg5FTuKLjKjMTiWck4Ny9oKpJ3uq4itT0VerEEWHm6pkNkyo6ERIVzrNN6Fwo6EqI7ZC8cBM5O60ydc_uxMQXX3DBuKoXzN83A9Fscbl73haYYOS/s1600-h/136.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400436250399835042" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsusEC9_tvKWy5alXrOhm-q0BFy88THg5FTuKLjKjMTiWck4Ny9oKpJ3uq4itT0VerEEWHm6pkNkyo6ERIVzrNN6Fwo6EqI7ZC8cBM5O60ydc_uxMQXX3DBuKoXzN83A9Fscbl73haYYOS/s320/136.JPG" border="0" /></a> And this is my first attempt at a cloth wipe. I kept reading up about how to make them and they seemed so easy, but there was several options and tons of different materials you could use to make them. I ended up buying OBV (organic bamboo velour), some terry cloth, and flannel. Then there is single layer wipes where you just cut and stitch around the edge. There is a double layer where you just put two layers together and stitch around the edge. Or, the third option is a T&T wipe (which I believe stands for turned and top stitched). Basically you sew wrong sides out and leave a little gap. Then you turn the wipe right side out an do a decorative stitch around the edge. I decided I thought I could try option 3 and it tuned out perfect. I'm glad I went the extra mile as it turned out really well. </div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgDvGx4aCEkUnOYHva5UeFnr4WcVo30JgG_J32JtyT6jeAABxn7SUmMw8vXEAp99hF1PLqvBGz2hidg1XftOEAa9XF1AnkRKPYy5vUdm5jP_wDYYWzzX5b8e2nKT3FhsUMUPwrc9vgTLGp/s1600-h/141.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400436246168994578" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgDvGx4aCEkUnOYHva5UeFnr4WcVo30JgG_J32JtyT6jeAABxn7SUmMw8vXEAp99hF1PLqvBGz2hidg1XftOEAa9XF1AnkRKPYy5vUdm5jP_wDYYWzzX5b8e2nKT3FhsUMUPwrc9vgTLGp/s320/141.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-39961282595059310632009-11-04T17:38:00.001-08:002009-11-04T18:01:30.862-08:00Halloween was a howlin' good time!We had a really great Halloween night. This is the first one since we've "been on our own" that was on a weekend. Normally we're rushing home from work, figuring out that we forgot to get candy or forgot to carve pumpkins and then afterwards it's a mad dash to get to sleep because the daily grind starts again the next day. Plus, the past two years since we've had Luke, it's been down right miserable and especially cold. So not only was the night perfect, but the temperature was perfect too. I doubt we'll get a Halloween this nice again until the kids are graduated from high school. Haha! Isn't that funny to think about.<br /><br />Anyway, Saturday afternoon after Todd got home from work, we started carving pumkins. We had picked up 5 pumpkins along the way and somehow only paid for one of them. We never made it to the pumpkin patch to pick our own, but it's top on our list next year. Anyway, the one pumpkin we did by was the enourmous one from Sam's Club. I HAD to have it because I'd always dreamed of putting one of my kids in a carved pumpkin. When I saw them at Sams for $8 I jumped for joy, quite literally. ;P<br /><br />Anyway, here is Brooke posing for her pictures in her pumpkin....she's getting SO big but she still wasn't happy sitting in a giant, cold, damp pumpkin. She's a trooper though!<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtFGFhzHTdb4GZfXsW31pod2IqntjES_iNUG2aCgQ8FDuXYKckfYSEM0ToITC18fzrzDH6nOeuHONhMY7pXcBBLFPTi5GcXKYN_06teWPQ_lR7nRPYsINT6hroQEIp73SwKurila4aWOng/s1600-h/006.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400429457675258274" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtFGFhzHTdb4GZfXsW31pod2IqntjES_iNUG2aCgQ8FDuXYKckfYSEM0ToITC18fzrzDH6nOeuHONhMY7pXcBBLFPTi5GcXKYN_06teWPQ_lR7nRPYsINT6hroQEIp73SwKurila4aWOng/s320/006.JPG" border="0" /></a> After that, Todd tore into carving it. Luke's ben real obsessed with the movie Monster's Inc. right now, or "Inky" as he calls it. He LOVES talking about "scary guy." So when Todd decided to make Mike from the movie, I thought it was not only way out of his reach, but a really cool idea. It turned out pretty good with the help of a few toothpicks, haha!<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh85d6F2aLDhY2i2mD0QfecM4pof_TM6jL4nTZy-lj9RaTFQBiEXfJskrkzPAID8Ycqx13k8VcKwAUISqHtvjv_gg_NyFm7wzvfyMkyqQy5t2ZEKS292de5gn98p_M67QFKwck33NUHSw2P/s1600-h/130.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400429454912669874" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh85d6F2aLDhY2i2mD0QfecM4pof_TM6jL4nTZy-lj9RaTFQBiEXfJskrkzPAID8Ycqx13k8VcKwAUISqHtvjv_gg_NyFm7wzvfyMkyqQy5t2ZEKS292de5gn98p_M67QFKwck33NUHSw2P/s320/130.JPG" border="0" /></a> And a picture of the pumpkin all lit up. It was the talk of the neighborhood.....everyone was saying ti was the best of the night! Haha! </div><div><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400429475129819970" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhn_dX5P-Xpf-hJQfE6P9YA2MInVHNQkaGdeWskWp8ocVV1e-k9Xt5WnuOQJ8ZxU31Dd6Ha70Htfv_CF5NOojLN3WwHK5HGvNIQL7Y0_U_la8DxgtxqBzAvX3hfmtFoTmsxXdhyphenhyphenvdGedjS/s320/039.JPG" border="0" /></div><div> </div><div>Then the picture of the kids in their costumes. Is it sad that this is the best one I have? Luke's new thing is "rubbing bellies mommy." He LOVES rubbing him and Brooke's bellies together and she just thinks it's about the funniest thing in the world. And if you can't tell what they are, Brooke was a bumblebee and uke was an Indian. I was feeling unmotivated this year so store bought costumes all the way! Go me!<br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400429460121453250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXbFkAiL7Ia6BLoZ3Dpu_YrV3_r0Hsgu_DkqbF9XokdRQ6TNxyuIA5JRL6kJK9bxzK7EdCxYijXGYI3mcQZ0IqvIyCdhPYH_lUSZ5kiaF8VxAVkXxiTTkpTZqWBPLXSN51FMEG_ZcRTSla/s320/015.JPG" border="0" /><br />This picture pretty much explains how our entire night went. Luke ran from house to house yelling "I need more." Glad I've done well teaching my child manners. Actualy though, it was a great opportunity. I wouldn't let him leave a single house without saying thank you and he did a spectacular job. We managed to make it through about 3 blocks in 2 hours.....how that for a world record? Just kidding! He enjoyed running house to house, ut he'd also sit right down on people driveway and start counting all his pieces. Haha! What a site to see.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400429469809184994" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVP5iPeG-nASQnumJB8OTZsnCjNBIbaG9xdDmbhNm9senQwEHNCLu7hUqovrt8iS4XVkM_AAnQLgaiA8WhpNKg0Uv-llr-OtHhOmAEhhD_FnA2lfDAubmGuqtLReHMgQAtwE5aaQFzpX6Q/s320/023.JPG" border="0" /><br />Anyway, I hope everyone had as wonderful of a Halloween night as we did! And shockingly enough.....what does this mean? Holy crapola....I'm hosting Thanksgiving in less than 1 month....AHHHH!Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-2567588812999482352009-10-30T18:46:00.001-07:002009-10-30T18:51:38.532-07:00New Family Pictures...Here is a preview of our fall family pictures - <a href="http://alisonandoliver.blogspot.com/2009/10/todd-andrea-luke-brooke.html">http://alisonandoliver.blogspot.com/2009/10/todd-andrea-luke-brooke.html</a><br /><br />I once again super shocked that there was any good pictures at all. Since Luke's been about a year old, and basically not sitting still for 10 seconds, I have no idea how anyone captures pictures of our family at all. And then to throw our baby Brooke in the mix just makes it all that more interesting!<br /><br />The first day of our shoot ended up getting rained out. It started out just cloudy and sprinkling. We braved through it and got the chair/field shots and then went to a giant sunflower patch b our house before it started to really pour. We rescheduled for three weeks later and thankfully it worked out pretty good. The leaves had begun to change and the day was beautiful, but chilly and windy. Brooke was not real happy about it, but she did great! Luke didn't get his nap that day either. Can you tell? Anyone hope everyone enjoys them as much as we do!<br /><br />Plus, the highlight of the shoot was actuall finding out some super information about our photographer that I had been praying about nightly. I even bought her a little something already because I couldn't contain my excitement! ;P Yeah....Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-57434686450163792862009-10-27T18:39:00.000-07:002009-10-27T19:09:58.669-07:00Feeling accomplished!It's almost bedtime and I just had to come blog about my day, I just feel so accomplished, like the old me. I did take a half day off work today since I apparently slept wrong last night and needed some heating pad time and lots of Mortin, but still. I woke up as usual at 5am with the babe. I'm not complaining considering she's zonked out by 7pm....hoping she'll last anymore than 5am is wishful. So I get her her bottle and of course uke just somehow knows we're up and comes right in asking to watch "Inky, Inky mama" (aka - Monster's Inc.).<br /><br /><br />Anway, I'll spare you the rest of the lame details of my day and get to the good stuff. So basically, I was super bus at work this morning, but hunchd over my keyboard at work was just not working for me. So I headed home at lunch time, took some Motrin, laid on the heating pad and took a little nappers.<br /><br />I was feeling better so I thought I'd run some quick errands before starting dinner. In less than an hour, I dropped off my WAY overdue dry cleaning (I'm pretty sure I'm going to wear the same pair of black pants three days in a row), dropped by the grocery for Halloween candy ($1.48 a package - score!), and got some lost books taken care of at the library. Funny how I found them on their shelve huh?<br /><br />Then I came home and made this delicious salmon dinner. Normall, I <em>try</em> to make fish about once a month. Really, it's all we can handle. I've tried recipe after recipe and we just eat it because I made it but you can tell no one likes it, incuding me. I saw reviews for this recipe saying it didn't taste fish, some said they hated fish but loved this recipe, etc. So I figured, well salmon is only $3.99/lb for fresh wild caught salmon, so why not give it a shot. OH MY GOSH! Wonderful! Of course allrecipes.com is down right now (go figure), but it's called Baked Salmon II I believe. I'll come back and edit this post with the recipe. I just paired it up with some white rice (with the marinade poured over it) and grilled broccoli. Even Luke ate every single bite and kept saying "mmm, mommy, mmmm."<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397461103779656978" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBcfTvpocFac5wx-15VAZW-y_8gUEz6pkZbAn51Xg33yMASm9Cjq1JzNzNySghYb6ParfAISxwEQTgthKXFafqqmQ219WustqonsCKPYwlj50RCQwY-O0nckNBAz7SHcweRFrNaSPeOPVD/s320/001.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br />We also decided to start Brooke on her solids tonight. I had made that butternut squash this weekend and there was about two servings that wouldn't fit in an ice cube tray. She ended up LOVING it and being totally read for it. She did great!<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397461105066718930" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8ovrjpO32HsgffAwac-52nns-8d3eQSYWkjopT0LaSs2ENrZwnr3pr8Be-9ZZozvADpwxhL1nvE1tifqHOChfAwgNCqHlx0JnwmF-z8GmH95T7rz46J_BDKgZFA34BSYh68XkUz1ZA3SR/s320/004.JPG" border="0" /><br />She also enjoyed plaing with her "spoon" afterwards too. I picked a few of these up at Target when Luke was starting solids and they work great. It's a little gross to me to let them use our finger like a lot of the books suggest, but this is very similar. Hopefully I can find some more at the store since I can only locate two of them in our house. I'm sure the'll pop up sometime when she's around a year. Hehe! So much for my super organized pre-kid self huh?<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397461116992165010" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrnS2-9fY5c4FF0qiSMHhXI9VZCegFdH21q3kRd4dcdUAFhUTORvt5qv23C9-A-SCo7z8CYaye6XUIUJKiQbmZB1jpwpLS2bORksNVDhSlEXYP2RtDEL81XTZGjSnmn3397847CfB2Jgvk/s320/010.JPG" border="0" />And here ou can tell just how happ she was about her first experience with solids. =)<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbemYntpcXvjgcDQtEmHTnNfhAl1U8NJAVdKh_RqUevzj3JzDBvdN_10VbyElok17EAD6EH3PCG-esp-SaUAalt2kp8a7J9SLZ1xwefOXHA-DUIXbpHqchm-t2LXuoXTS7AowHgCcP0vVo/s1600-h/015.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397461120563898450" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbemYntpcXvjgcDQtEmHTnNfhAl1U8NJAVdKh_RqUevzj3JzDBvdN_10VbyElok17EAD6EH3PCG-esp-SaUAalt2kp8a7J9SLZ1xwefOXHA-DUIXbpHqchm-t2LXuoXTS7AowHgCcP0vVo/s320/015.JPG" border="0" /></a> After dinner I had my last table decor sewing class at JoAnne's. I honestly thought about not even going to the second class. I wasn't sure how this was going to turn out (the front of the pattern looked really ugly) and I had some major issues in the first class with getting the wrong fabric, not knowing how to use the machine at the store, etc. BUT, I paid for the class, I was going to go. So in I went and not only finished my first placemat, but also finished a second one in a little over an hour as well. YEAH! It's amazing what nice fabric really does for something. Goes from looking like something grandma made to something hip. Oka, so maybe hip people don't sew placemats, but hip moms do right? Can I at least be a hip mom?<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397461128381387058" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiDND7WYh1V46HhL3qygSL4Tx2Q4-0D3bxUnB5JWVVvi_WxUpgI6gXxqHRTBG-xEBzY0Zwrr62FZXoKayewOq5fzPcxgqZQYr7crY8aIISOngiIPhcm8LyQShcJk5N-nOEvPz4xdHxPSyJ/s320/023.JPG" border="0" /></div><div>Oddly enough, while I was in my class, our local Kroger store had trick or treating for the kids and a big sale. Of course I'd already told him we got plenty of candy, but of course he thought he needed an extra 10 bags for whatever reason. He also decided he needed enough carmel apples and frosted brownies to feed an army. The kids got ANOTHER huge bag of candy too. Seriously, we now have three giant bags of candy from three different Halloween events and trick or treat isn't until Saturday! Gesh people!</div><div> </div><div>All in all, I can say we had a pretty exciting day. Hard to believe it's onl Tuesday.<br /><br /><br /></div><div></div>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-13705092354470340542009-10-25T18:39:00.000-07:002009-10-25T19:32:40.308-07:00Finally feeling like myself...<div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div>I don't know if it's Brooke sleeping through the night, the change of the season, or the fact that I basically "got a week off" since I went to Chicago for business last week, but I'm feeling more like myself again. Regardless, we've had a super busy weekend, full of all kinds of Halloween festivities.<br /><br /></div><div>First, Friday afternoon was my office kid's Halloween party. Last year I was basically in charge of the entire thing by myself, so I didn't get to enjoy it with Luke. This year I told them I'd help before hand, but I was enjoying it. And enjoy we did. Luke's favorite parts were of course the eating (cookies galore!) and trick or treating around the cubicles in the office. Everyone goes all out decorating and it really gets spooky. Luke is still talking about all of the "scary guys" as he says. <img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396720486881524786" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7go0LEI0axl_F7-DP80zblq9LnCEgYMV_w-UGnNjeS4EGT2CR1hb6g9MQ-Yqm50Obu5-1CiAGofWGuJgRrLLXZUCnzM2Z4NvPaCEOKS-4bTM8k1_IeFLFaKYlfcmqEouiCEhoPXj17_z9/s320/008.JPG" border="0" /></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396720490833272306" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcCOdNy9PXvAv9TKl5JA7PQMNZskwpnuVYAxYE1AUcRyBuxXralGIDT070hcI7KfwBWnyaETWwfAlzlEzP_PJIffnngt9Lv4IDbUX_MtHRiZugfj79yxZbmiw9o5192pPuTlaD7dYxYkIF/s320/018.JPG" border="0" /></div><div> </div><div>Then I started making Brooke's baby food. Can you believe she's 5 months already?!?!? Where has the time gone? I still plan on starting her on bananas, avacado, and brown rice cereal, but butternut and acorn squash were on sale this week so I decided to freeze some of it into cubes too. Just chop the squash in half, la in a baking dish with 1=2" of water and bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes.</div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396720506315903522" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU6imUY4TJX7BsNGakhwMennbG-4cpmqF1Kvt8TVwj06lbshWIdSt0zV1i_1rbB0O5TS6NxFAK141AvfusT6ywvTCNMBFcLCtMWq54ITjmwn5xqQ8CVYrqpaobwu91d_QUOYqe2LKSNUCo/s320/020.JPG" border="0" /></div></div><div>Then scoop out of all the "meat" and place in a food processor or blender. Then add a little bit of the water that the squash cooked in. Roasting squash as I've read retains the most amount of nutrients and adding the water which it roasted in adds back some of those nutrients. </div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396720497420012226" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ9otKzBT3H0BcEMo0CAuaRVCupSkMRVGylNm0I8ono8gSaQjkFVzN661K2YcL9984qn6ceoG5n0IGLnciU-HXoyvY6sifwFxipl8-8aTflVcP2iAhBUT27rDd6lwYhnfyvWTPR3G0imqi/s320/019.JPG" border="0" /></div><div>Then process and spoon into ice cube trays. Cover with seran wrap, freeze, and then pop them out and play in freezer bags. Be sure to label what it in the bag and the date you made it. Butternnut squash looks and auwful ot like carrots and sweet potatoes and acorn squash looks a lot like pears and applesauce. =)</div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396720513812801186" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe946hUCsL9lb6fCEI8cmuWDJN0dnResdGndm3l3ddis1iKEJ4eNFgHuIAhdPb-c3BpU6nga5xfaOeZM7a_NFlGCg9On4DoEUvNIcNzjGkQrSAAQAkDFWJFQ0d8a-Cc_bCCzYZN1nGBG_c/s320/022.JPG" border="0" />Then toss the skins into the compost pile. Did I mention Todd put a compost pile together for me??? I can't WAIT to start a garden next spring!!!<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396723139255853714" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit1Rlfi96vi2s4ZC-WZQegvfjjMA9OFa1Kc1AlF9wLZGgfl_NJ568ccN_oI7FkIzUN5KjBh6aZK_VK3ou_ZNxe6XoDxjYhpbEOFOMdGZyw1HPYLZt4lwrlnU_MlmpaxjvCgEzKoxTpi7Zv/s320/023.JPG" border="0" />Then,take the flesh that you scooped out at the beginning, put it in a strainer to seperate out the seeds. Then toss the seed in olive oil and kosher salt. Sprinkle with fresh ground black pepper. Bake at 350 degrees for 6-8 min! I also saved a few before cooking to plant next year. =)<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396723148520929906" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOZiAXVq77IgIUmmhtdr-ZRP6bBvJz9kH6NPSq6SOS3saxoDXvFotgC9LE6UHBremkY_XM4TqRaHDm3l1U5aRme9k68z9_mKQLyjvwIRtrr2J5pkG_o9yC2grkMCct9sxOWui2xC6tC6JO/s320/025.JPG" border="0" />Then we had our neighborhood annua Children's Halloween Party in the Park! This is our third time going and thie first one where the weather has actually been decent and we didn't have to come home after 20 minutes because we could no longer feel our toes. =)</div><div> </div><div>Anway, it all starts off with a police escorted "parade" from in front of our house down to the park. Of course the kids get a big kick out of this.<br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396723189739749586" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYNQyHx69q_5bXp5agV3b00EX0BJKIsc9DB8olSGHLkpdCYhPns8mODmNIvE6GqBT1Q_iUSFusarMntzQg33t5OIn80zJRNWi3Njx1dZOEoDcYCiyHzCVvXJ67_mtJZRWVWGy53jH5F94l/s320/026.JPG" border="0" />Then they have the custome contest. Luke won 1st place last year for his "duct tape" costume. This year Brooke won in her $2 Walmart bee costume. I'm sure it didn't hurt that she smiled the entire time we stood in line...<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396723193498271314" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxagdJ6q26IRSli2z_FIMedU_4HIJb4JV1fT1EZ7fWgpsOusqaRlGK6JagdbSYdVo7R8R4nAWoMNFS9-tE96xPAVwnWn-sA8-6uzylNkSUHM9rU8Qigtg-u9VGnXkuXUMZEg6M-vK_W280/s320/031.JPG" border="0" /></div><div>There was also a chili cook off forthe adults. I submitted Rachel Ray's Tex Mex Corn Chip Chili. It was okay, but didn't win. There was some tough competition though. </div><div><br /> </div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396723195996259394" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRykCjcpteePwKDqnip0Hym2xPiR-U3iDGARKLgsKi0ZOe10wGITvG7x-TPn1RBYDkwJT-hsaqkDkUPtMlHiA9b4mKIJdOJtUvzgxWZY1JNhB2ENQgvlNVUmgZLIwjAGSAIjwFF1_dkgID/s320/032.JPG" border="0" /></div><div>Then there are tons of games for the kids to play. We could not get him away from bean bag game. He NEEDED another set of dracula teeth. =) That's his new thing b the way....everthing is "but mom, I NEED it!"<br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396724645133194130" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmgrooN3ohlKkPoFwgrskEc9HROxhdCrCWkHt-rcFDHQhsjbM50z7oFg0AIvk1XE3oqnMJWNF0n_koRjDp8R8ohpiu2glWpN6D3bOKcPMvNogLBwBLXs1HJ1XNKCkbn44MVab3rL_tqjv3/s320/037.JPG" border="0" />And Luke's other favorite thing was the hayride. It's nothing big, just a neighbor who takes his "tractor" (aka riding mower) through the "haunted woods" (aka the tiny patch of woods with a couple older neighborhood kids that jump out with masks).<br /><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396724652473020354" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjduLw0jR72SVmCgLA8qz1ek9Qo_fdXoAh6vcF6QvFUrYxKuKM54SxJE9vdznvaPBFSV1dayO4g0LXce7VI1d-kxTH6tkuF82NW2jWn-gTqdudsDRW7INB5dIl2pHpO5yymt4VdmVnTtM73/s320/044.JPG" border="0" /></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><br /><p>Oh and the other boys in the picture are our new neighbors. They are such well beahved boys and take Luke under their wing just like another brother. We're been really blessed with great neighbors and getting to know them better and better has been great. </p><p>Time for bed, hope everyone had as wonderful of a weekend as we did!</p>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-79913556209815652672009-09-29T17:46:00.000-07:002009-09-29T18:15:53.526-07:006 Meals in a snap!***This blog post will not have any pictures.....I have a stupid virus I can't get rid of and it won't let me attach pictures....booo! But I promise, everything was delicious!****<br /><br />So I haven't posted in quite some time. I have to be frank in saying that we have been having some probems at home. Everytime I "think" I understand why they call it the terrible twos, it gets worse. We love our little guy to death, but I swear he just is like the energizer bunny and keeps going and going and going. I do not look forward to eating any meas with him anymore and I feel horrible for saying that. Every night is a struggle. It's an absolute war (or should I say carnival, since we have to make up about 4 different games to get him to eat 10 bites) to get him to eat anything and I'm not sure it does any good because during that time he's probably burned twice as many calories. He's up on the table, he's hanging from the chair, he's crawling under the chair, he's everywhere. The upside to all this.....well I guess I'm still losing weight because I have no time to eat! J/K! I'm still glad we eat dinner every night as a family, but still, when does it start getting better. When do we not have to stop mid-bite every two seconds to tell him to sit down, stop spitting out your food, stop feeding the dog, stop this and that. I feel like the worst mom in the world.<br /><br />Weekends, yeah, well, they aren't much better either. I get just about nothing done except the family room and basement picked up every 10 minutes and by the time I'm done I start all over.<br /><br />On a lighter note, I'm trying to streamline things as much as possible. I keep telling myself Luke's behavior problems are because Todd and I work and so he does these things for attention. I know I'm probably beating myself up more than I should, but regardless, I continue on. Anyway, so I came up with this awesome little three night supper/lunch plan. As long as you don't mind having chicken for lunch and dinner three days in a row, hopefully you'll love this as much as we have! (You could also probably freeze the chicken and use at a later date to space out these meals if you think 3 days of chicken is a little overkill).<br /><br />Anyway, I started out on Sunday morning marinating the chicken breast. I used my new favorite meat marinade I posted about a few weeks ago. In case you forget, here it is again:<br /><br />1 1/2 cups vegtable oil<br />3/4 cup soy sauce<br />1/2 Worcestershire sauce<br />1/2 red wine vinegar<br />1/3 lemon juice<br />2 Tbsp dry mustard<br />1 tsp kosher salt<br />1 Tbsp fresh ground pepper<br />1 1/2 tsp fresh minced parsley<br /><br />Just shake everything up in a jar and use as you need. For this recipe, I only used about half of the marinade for all the chicken.<br /><br />Then Sunday night Todd grilled the chicken breasts and I served with some simple baked potatoes with butter, fresh chives from our herb garden, kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. We had brownie sundeas with it for dessert. The remaining 5 chicken breast were packaged up and put in the refridgerator.<br /><br />The next day for lunch I made chicken cesar wraps for both of us for lunch. I got some tomatoe basil tortilla/sandwich wraps on the manager's special rack for only $.99! I used those, tore apart 1/2 a chicken breast for each wrap, tore up a few leaves of Romaine lettuce, sprinkled with a little parmesean cheese, and put a little Ceasar dressing down the middle. Todd and I both thought it was delicious.<br /><br />Monday night for dinner was Chicken Pasta Primavera. I actually got this recipe from <a href="http://www.5dollardinners.com/2009/09/pasta-primavera-2.html">http://www.5dollardinners.com/2009/09/pasta-primavera-2.html</a> so go on over and check that recipe out.<br /><br />Then for lunch on Tuesday I split another chicken breast and tore it up into a tortilla wrap. This time I made chicken cobb salad wraps though. A little bit of mayo, colby cheese, lettuce, chicken, tomatoe, and avacado. Todd added some ranch to his. Again, they were delicious, quick, cheap and easy.<br /><br />Tonight for dinner was chicken pesto pasta. I just made this up with what we had on hand. I again tore a leftover chicken breast into pieces and tossed it in a skillet with some olive oil and garlic. I sauteed that until it got warm and then turned the burner to low. I added 1 and 1/4 cup heavy cream, 1/2 cup parmesean cheese, 1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes in oil, and 1/2 prepared pesto. Meanwhile I cooked a 16 oz box of pasta to al dente. At this point I drainedit and tossed it in with te chicken and sauce. I served with a simple side of garlic bread.<br /><br />Tomorrow for lunch we will be splitting up our last leftover chicken breast. We both loved the Ceasar wraps so much we're going yo do those again. We tossed around the idea of making it into BBQ chicken wraps, but maybe another time perhaps.Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5559630862941107645.post-54243819243052366192009-09-10T20:02:00.001-07:002009-09-10T20:28:23.679-07:00Brooke's 3 months - super belated!<div><div><div><div><div><div><div>Yeah, so I know Brooke's now been 3 months for almost half a month, but hey, better now than never right? So here's a few pictures of her from the past month:</div><div></div><div>Brooke's 3 month "birthday" shoot by me! Can you tell she thinks I'm halarious?!?!</div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380041504682476946" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0mhzd6mxZsep8KIqSXp3Hr7lV_EOyDc_-fdkyij5ZMcFkMDt2CNMbYLGtGNOPH-Ep4gwLq-y9q0TOdXEQQ8UfgMdFHdaAOPkANDbPqt6n3upXEAiAcOvuX0FA2ila3fj3k6AaAooZsCKj/s320/002.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380042554092610690" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUoTQYPAqB3UnW-l-RXMzRDL82Dd2HmShogEmV_APFHVKfyOEHPxzu9UE88DLsZvVVa1vjHRecd85uFiVlnApkubkruk-7XYqIhozTtmArztEDn2dLGs8cMXEM0g9H3CpamlN0bDNzJWJ9/s320/007.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380042565034080898" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHnrQHvGFuf69B5OLjbvS0wP_yszXITZ7XhxvIBW_0TrF4AM-EO2WddiAW-BGTPo4JQ53EriXZCTpyYam9ihsLNh0m5QGlK3pYx9A0N3MeTi6rDgYlJCCGMe714CnveKyfCl5PV173EK6h/s320/020.JPG" border="0" />Brooke went to her first festival inTodd's home town. Yeah....she had about as much fun as I did. ;P<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380042578988630722" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDSaKptkKNOkXfHnklgpe_zy6I0aZQ7fm5w2odCbizCfQYYTXvQignffCSFQuItfSXSfsOdTg2u64k2tRNRT9ztL-AzDIquSkO7g8mIoZLkr97yuGLPMwZFWAJEPlFvvWStB7DBgGNga0c/s320/009.JPG" border="0" /></div><div>Who crawled into who's bed? And are my kids color blind? Don't they know blue is for boys and pnk is for girls.....guess not!<br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380041491021439042" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJG9U9LF98CxjAUBaZI6CqRWuifR9Iki9QVdnCQCAJx01WTslpGC8kPMGeQ1mT9W5ruuWIEatRN3er7AIz_QwQZd057CrvPgBw04SPNgIWTyAhPattwK4k4q0WCJqPqocOD43Sqbwk-uZU/s320/011.JPG" border="0" />We've been having a TON of thunderstorms this summer. Chloe is still a HUGE baby during storms, she just has a new pal to protect her. She may be about 1/4 of her size, but hey, it works I guess. </div><div><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380041484771407890" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_ri7Yx5jIZyVMMhtOD_6tSHhyphenhyphenYxA4vgNhrUWErPR1iq6VYWDLUNXiprA-P470-OvRcF8iWG9uoKC4icgRdTb0IAzlK5VD_nH3MqqMntxZ334vBg77Vx_4FvSeYGLB0wJsRO_PTgBjn6Ja/s320/007.JPG" border="0" />And Brooke modeling her newest additions to her fall wordrobe (and newest additions to mommies OBSESSION). These are both recycled wool longies from seller Chickadee on Etsy.com. Cute strawberry on the bum of this one...</div><div><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380041473342855330" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLoRCI0wCSXQw_mGVvZK5Hi3BVXM-N8LHIgahXiUmTv1ujjSt0L5WSAfHza35NBWzJT9Y9Rt6GSPpslf5HFLrL7gtwQ5bSHPrcyu7wwP7mjQxkFW-fugQeeic_jbvd-vPJ7db7dTbgzBw-/s320/028.JPG" border="0" />And recycled wool footies with a matching hot pink flower on the bum of these. Too cute! She loved them too if you couldn't tell. ;P</div><div><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380041464042642018" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSyIhxcUiHHY7Tr4-jszslUjKdxrgn0WIi7ttH4qkyThWeoZAbD-CXtQgUJWVCqTv6kLQsPcXd0OU6ha-RrmixiNkKH9Pd-fRp51nJ0CiYe2GUJMfshvz193z4kR5Kg6c8oK6HI4Jas2Z3/s320/021.JPG" border="0" /></div></div></div></div><br /><br /><p>So this month Brooke has really started to "wake up" and see the world around her instead of sleeping for 20 hours a day. I wasn't complainging, but hey, it's fun to actually have fun with them during that baby baby stage though. She's holding up her head pretty well now and loves to do her tumy time. She is eating like a bottoless pit and laughing pretty much every inute of the day. I guess when you have a brother as silly as hers, one can't help but laugh all day long. She's also sleeping very well. She goes down right after Luke about 7:30, sleeps until Todd goes to work at 3am, and then sleeps again until about 9am. We switched to her crib without any fuss as well. I can only hope this great babiness doesn't turn into toddler hell X 2. I don't know if we can take it if she's any more "active" than Luke. "Active" is a nice way to put it, right? =)</p>Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00091498488378238750noreply@blogger.com0