Halloween

Okay..I know I'm backtracking, but I want to catch up and this is too cool not to post!

Halloween.  Odawa Casino. Petoskey Michigan.  The traditional costume competition.  The Addams Family.  My daughter Charlie is Wednesday and her significant other, Tom, is Uncle Fester.  They placed second in their category...Just short of the money!  I think they should have been first!!

Junk Junkie

Wow!  Fall seems to have melted too quickly into winter, I can't believe it's December already...Just a week and a half before Christmas! ..I do get all giddy and soft, anticipating Santa's arrival.. For the grand-diva's you know.. :)

September brought a new adventure for me.  After a summer of garage sales, thrift store shopping, and endless 're-do's of vintage items..my tiny space was bursting with my collection of 'discared treasures'.  I had no choice but to take this show on the road!  I rented a 10 X 12 foot booth, at our local indoor flea market and it has been amazing!  I'm not getting rich by any means, but I am so much richer for the experience!  I've met some wonderful, special people, both vendors and shoppers.  I've sold lots things I know other people (like me) just can't resist and will love as much as I do...And I really am looking forward to the rest of this cold, snowy winter! 

Here's my booth..See anything you'd like?  Stop by, we'll be here til May!

Before and After

I picked up this child sized table and two chairs at a garage sale for $3.00.  Some handy dad or grandpa probably spent a weekend puting it together.  It is very sturdy and well built, although not very pretty!  When I purchased it, it looked to have been outdoors a while or at least stored in a non-weather proof area.  No warps or rotting wood...Just a bit 'rustic' to say it best!

The set originally had a pinkish white tint to it, and the paint had faded badly.  I cleaned it up the best I could, and sanded and sanded and sanded!  Here it is....Still rustic, but all made over with a couple fresh coats of vintage yellow paint and a very cool chalkboard top!  I hope some little people will enjoy doodling on it!

New Food Find! Almond Butter!

This stuff  ROCKS!!

A cousin to peanut butter, (which I love) this is my new favorite pantry staple!  Here's some nutritional info from 'Bestnaturalfoods.com'

Almonds and almond butter are nutritional powerhouses that contain significant amounts of protein, calcium, fiber, magnesium, folic acid, potassium, and vitamin E. Almond butter has extremely low saturated fat content and is rich in monounsaturated fats making it a heart-healthy choice. Of course, almonds have no trans fat. Studies consistently have shown that the addition of almonds into the diet effectively lowers cholesterol. Unlike low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets, adding almonds does not adversely alter insulin sensitivity in healthy adults or blood sugar levels in patients with diabetes.

In addition calorie count is 190 per 2 tablespoons..a tad less than peanut butter.  Fiber is 3 g. one more than peanut butter. Yeah, we need fiber!

The texture is a bit grainy, it's a little sweeter and thicker than pb, but tastes so very luscious on those crispy, Kashi TLC crackers!  Or on a spoon!

It's also kid approved as Lex took a taste outside her culinary comfort zone and gave it a big 'Yes!'

Try it, you'll like it! 

Framed!

About a year ago, while leaving a garage sale, a picture frame caught my eye.  It was laying on top of a pile of ragged blankets and moldy books slated for the trash.  On closer inspection I realized it was a 'Gesso'.

 Gesso is a preparation of plaster of Paris and glue. (Or many other combinations)  It is used as a base or surface for painting.  It can be molded and applied to wood...As on a frame.  Vintage Gesso's are highly collectible and decorative.  A Gesso on it's way to the trash!  I had to rescue it!

This poor frame had been treated with great irreverence.  It had been spray painted a tingy brown. It's backing was burlap and those funny 'pods and stems' people paint gold and display at Christmas time were sticking out and glued all over it's face.  I was embarrassed for it.  I offered to pay the owner a fair price.  He looked at me and laughed.  I took it home.

Here it is...A large 27 X 23 oval.  All sanded, painted a creamy ivory and slightly distressed.  It got tired of waiting for the black and white photo of my Grand-girls I had hoped to put in it.  So, it's up on my wall, empty.  It looks beautiful!

As a side note:  Today I picked up this 'just tacky enough to be Chic', black vintage paper mache vase with bright red artifical flowers.  The base is a huge 17 inches wide!  Overall height is 23 inches! Someone is going fight  me over this !!

Ahh..Breakfast!

I love breakfast!  It's my favorite meal of the day.  I don't usually have time to make the big sit down and eat extravaganza that I'd like to, due to my babysitting duties for the grand-diva's.  So, this is one of my easy, make ahead dishes that allow me to have something quick, nutritional, and much more tasty than the cereal or fruit bars I eat in a pinch.  I just call it 'The Egg Dish'.

2 Eggs and 2 egg whites  (I use Egglands Best)
About 1/4 cup milk
1 Morning Star sausage patty-crumbled (They really do taste like sausage)
1/4 cup any shredded cheese
I use olives, green pepper and sometimes cooked spinach, but anything goes according to taste.
About 2 tablespoons of salsa ( I like the kick)
Mix that all up in a bowl.  Spray an 8 1/2 inch pie plate with cooking spray and pour the mixture in.  Bake at 350 till set.

I cut the finished product in half and put it in the fridge.  In the morning I just pop one half in the microwave and make a piece of whole wheat toast.  This really does hold me over till lunch time. It looks like a lot, but even at half, I'm only eating 1 egg and 1 egg white.  Calorie wise with the toast it's about 200.  Not bad, and I'll still have the other half for the next day!

Red Kitchen

It may sound a little silly to be excited at finding a vintage cake carrier...

But not if one already has the matching canisters:

And bread box:

The kitchen is my most favorite room in the house!  When I moved here, I was happy with the green and pink theme I started with.  As time when by, I missed the RED  I had lavished my previous kitchen in.  So...I'm going back.  Changing linens, curtains, and accessories to reflect my likes.  You won't find many brand new or without flaw items in my kitchen, and some goodies such as depression glass and Hoosier jars will still be pink and green.  I will however make you a cup of coffee in an old enamel coffee pot and serve it to you in an antique china cup embellished with red flowers.  C'mon over!

Just Me

I'm not really one for manicured lawns or orderly thought out landscape balance.  I like to let things fall into place and just be what they are.
This old chair pictured above, I think used to be rocker..The rungs are missing..And I bought it at a garage sale for $5.  The paint is to say the least 'chippy' but so chic and perfect. It hugs my self planted flowers, beautifully!

The rusty plant stand was a $3.00  garage sale find and my sister gave me the long pots..dirt is free!!

The rusty chairs and plant stand to the left (actually 2 chairs) I picked up for $9 at various sales.  I had someone cut circular plywood basis for the chairs.  I bought cheap foam, cut and glued it to the plywood, then used a vinyl table cloth..doubled..to upolstery them.

The weeds growing through the cement are an added perk..I think I'll let them live as they are trying so hard to push up through the concrete..Anything with that much determination for life deserves to flourish!

I have spinach, cherry tomatoes, basil, and onions growing in pots on the back deck..I'm growing salad!  Can't wait for it all to be ready!  I've found a wonderful vinaigrette recipe I'm looking forward to pouring all over the finished product!!  Gosh I love summer!!

Where Have I Been? June 12 2011

Wow-It's been six months since I've posted! 

The winter, although long, seems to have gone by quickly.  Living in the city through all the snow and blow didn't seem nearly as bad as when I was in the country...On secondary roads that don't get plowed till mid-day.  Ice that doesn't melt until April, and open spaces that give the blustery wind a turbo charge!  Yes, the city is nice.  I was able to get around with no problems.  I only had to use the four wheel drive to exit my garage once after a storm, and I never lost power.  I think I'll stay here.

I guess no matter where you live the spring not only brings the peeling off of down jackets and thoughts of sandals and lazy days, but yard work!  Fall leaves compact in hard to reach places.  Grass is matted and brown, and the ground is soggy.  This being my first year to fend for myself, I enlisted a little help from Lexie.  We went to the hardware store and bought rakes and clippers.  Items that had mysteriously disappeared from my fathers work shop when I wasn't looking I suspect. 

She was a trooper and worked hard..for about thirty minutes!  We didn't get a whole lot of raking done but we had a great time just being together and walking around the property.  I related old stories to her about the house, and dates that her grand dad had planted some of the maples and apple trees in the back yard. And how her grandma had been so proud of the now, nonexistent little garden she tended each summer.  Somehow, knowing a bit of the history made the work a little more important to her.

I'm looking so forward to the hot days ahead, when I can set up the sprinkler in the back yard,  make a pitcher of Koolaide, sit on the deck and watch my grand girls play and laugh in the same spot I once did.  I love this house.
Yup..I'm staying here.