Sigh...the Holidays.

This year the family is mostly getting hand made gifts. You heard me! Hand made! I have tons of yarn just sitting there so i may as well put some of it to use!

Its not because we are poor...or that i am cheap (some of my yarn, I confess, was not cheap) but rather i love giving gifts that people will use and love and not let sit and gather dust in some random box.

So there. Deal with it. :)

People make me grumpy...

I hate when i delegate tasks to discover it would have been quicker and less painful to just do it myself. And now the clock is ticking and i have to get stuff done NOW on the double no help. By. My. Self. Gr.

Sometimes new is OK

We bought metal folding chairs instead of regular dining chairs because they are just more practical for our lifestyle right now in the fact that i can fold them up out of sight if the two climbers get too frisky, and i can take em out and hose them down if they get too nasty...which is only practical in the summer of course. I am dead tired of scrubbing crap off my folding chairs. I decided that slipcovers were a necessary evil since i can pull them off and wash them when they get dirty rather than scrubbing snot, pudding, and spaghetti sauce off daily...especially with as much entertaining as we do.

I began researching the most cost-effective and time-effective way to meet my need. New fabric is increasingly expensive, and with estimating about 3 yds/chair and 5 chairs to cover...YIKES! The thrift stores around here have very little in regards to fabric, most of it is remnants from other people's projects and really isn't much good for more than quilting, and seem to be very short on sheets i could recycle. (I found one with Barney...and i REFUSE to recycle a Barney the Dinosaur sheet for my dining chairs. I do have standards you know!)

I started looking online for slipcovers for folding chairs and they were either as much as making my own or i had to order 100!! I finally found a site, YaYa Creations, that offered them in singles, for $2.50 each!! and Flat rate shipping!! Hey I can deal with that! They are polyester, so i can't dye them, but i can wash them and bleach them as needed!! And if i get the whim i can take some fabric paint and stencil them (or get some iron on transfers to paint) with something 1950's since that is the 'theme' i seem to be following.

They may not be a fluffy expensive dining chair, but they work for us and work with my 'bohemian' style of "this and that" and look way nicer than the crusty black folding chairs i bought on sale at the kwalget store.

foot in mouth

sometimes keeping ones mouth shut is worth a thousand words.

Occupation: Home Management Executive

As i was playing with the Profile stuff here on Blogger, i noticed there is a spot where i can put my occupation and industry. Isn't it just a cowinkydink that one of the industries available is "Government"? That is exactly what i do as a mom that doesn't work outside the home...i am the full time Governing Resource and Manager of my home and family. Of course, there are no choices for SAHM, WAHM, Home maker (what an oxymoron)...because being the SAHM mom is so much more than sitting on the couch and eating bon-bons and watching trashy soaps while the house magically takes care of itself.

Lala Land

I have been off in Lala land lately trying to get my house under control now that the girl is in school.

One of my MANY projects has been working on making less of an impact on our landfills. My biggest way i have been doing this is by not using very many disposable products such as napkins, paper towels, and disposable diapers because they not only cost me money to buy, but i have to PAY for their disposal (imagine that loophole in the system, buy the product, use it, pay to get rid of it). I have replaced all those items with their old fashioned counterparts: The cloth napkin, box o rags (old worn out prefolds/flat diapers, teeshirts, and towels), and of course the cloth diaper...and my newest find the cloth toilet wipe (made from recycled flannel sheets and shirts) to replace the YARDs of toilet paper my family seems to clog the toilet with rather than wiping their beehinds. The impact of the water used to wash these items is much less noticeable than the piles and piles of trash in the landfills, go look if you don't believe me.

I was looking for more ways i could lesson my impact and started of course with composting my grass clippings that i didn't need for my garden, which turned into a heaping pile over in the 'back 40' of my yard and while its awesome for the most part, i don't want to have to cart stuff back there when its -40 (I don't even like hauling my trash to the dumpster on the other side of the fence over there when its cold out). I was inspired by a friend who made a 'scrap eater' outside her kitchen door because she has a more huger lot than myself and the 'back 40' is further for her. I of course wanted to use items i already had on hand if i could because i think its silly to go out and purchase items if you don't NEED to. So i googled "Composter DIY" and found the following link:

http://video.about.com/greenliving/Homemade-Compost-Bin.htm

I thought to myself, "Hey, i already have all that except for the lid for the trash can (it blew away in a storm this last summer)!"

So i headed out to the hardware store where they let me purchase a replacement lid for $5.

List of items required:

"Rubbermaid" garbage can (or i guess a metal one if you prefer)

A large nail and hammer

(we used a drill because the nail method is useless on plastic when you want it NOW)

2 Cinder blocks (to help keep unwanted pests out i guess, and to keep the bottom of a metal bin from rotting out)

Watering can or hose (because it won't decompose if its too dry)

and here is my finished product!

Its not pretty by any means, but it functions well so far since we started filling it with our odds and ends kitchen scraps, newspaper shreds, and Josephine's 'take home' papers (of which you don't realize how much gets sent home until you have a kid in school oy!)

I love Thrifting

I got a bunch of stuff today at the local thrift store for next to nothing as they are holding their annual 'bag' sale this week. Craft items including crafting books were $1/bag for as much as the bag would hold. I got 22 styro-eggs (original price $6), some plastic clothespins ($2), and a Crochet pattern book ($2) for $1!! I probly could have fit more, but didn't see anything i really needed because it was pretty picked over by the time me and the boy randomly went in. I also got a cool picture with "Let the little children come to me" for $2.50 because 'decor' was half price. I scored a really cool hanging lamp ca. 1950's/60's that i have been looking for for two years. I put it on the counter and the lady said "That isn't part of the sale" and i couldn't resist saying But i NEED this lamp! I can't buy it unless its on sale?" just to see what she would do. She totally fell for it and said "What? no, its not part of the sale. Its not half price." I cracked up and said, "Oh, ok. Didn't think it was, i can still buy it though...i don't care if its on sale or not i NEED this lamp." and she finally 'got it' and realized i was just messing with her and i am now the proud owner of a super cool lamp. I love my bohemian decor!! When i find my camera i totally should post a pic of it.

Carseat Checkup!

I am so awesome! I scored a perfect at the Carseat checkup yesterday! It pays to be Anal-retentive sometimes, really it does.

My younger two use Radian 65 by Sunshine kids, Izaak is forward facing and Hannah is still RF at 15 months old. The techs had never seen the seats before and actually had to look them up on the internet to get a feel for them while they were doing the checkup. Even though Josephine still fits in the Radian and would for another year, the tech was glad to see her in a Booster at her age. She also was happy to see that it fit Jo properly and that Jo could use it correctly.

Me and Zach got kudos for arriving IN our seatbelts as well (its a rarity in these parts for people to wear seatbelts).

They were impressed that Hannah is still rear facing, and then I stated that she is BARELY 23#, the seat is approved to rear face to 35# as of last November even though the book still says 33#, and the AAP recommends RF until 2 years now as long as the child fits within the RF weight and height maximums of the seat. "How do you clean the straps?" You are supposed to clean them??? *snort*...with soap and water and a rag of course. The only change the CPST made was to add some no-slide shelf liner under the seats because they slid on the leather too much after install. *BE AWARE!* Only use after market materials that have been APPROVED for use with your child safety seats and only if installed by a Certified Passenger Safety Tech!!

It was a good experience, and i have been 'recruited' to take the class this fall, which is OK by me...then i can have a cert behind my bossyness LOL!

all the best!

T.

Join the Adventure!

So here i am jumping on the blog bandwagon. There is just so much that i need a soundingboard for and at least on a blog i can pretend that people care *snort*

Daily life is an adventure for us, whether we are watching a movie, eating, bickering (yeah, i have a dramatic 6 year old drama queen)...

So come on in and pull up a chair, and a cuppa coffee and chat awhile :)

T.