Does Your Cell Phone Fall to the Bottom of Your Purse?

First I have to apologize for the poor picture

quality.

A certain youngest daughter borrowed my point and click

camera and left it at her grandparents' home.

Ok, now on to the important business.

I have a Blackberry Torch.

My very first "smart" phone.

I was so scared I would break the face of it, I

bought an Otterbox.

I broke the Otterbox.

I have not replaced the Otterbox.

Otterbox needs to make a better one or lower

the price.

The Blackeberry Torch has a terrible fallacy.

The lock key on it is very very easily unlocked.

Just trying to push it into a pocket will unlock it.

I do NOT like this at all.

I am sure people do NOT like

getting butt dialed by me.

I know I don't want to risk the data charges should

I accidentally hit the touch screen while

unlocked in my pocket.

I had to come up with a way of keeping track of it in my purse

and also tyring to keep it from getting unlocked in my

bottomless canyon purse.

Quite some time ago, I started clipping my keys

to the straps on my purse.

This kept me from digging and pulling everything out

in a panic even when I KNEW they were in my purse.

You know, that split second thought...."UH OH".

I know it is nerdy, but it works for me.

I use a rock climber thing-a-ma-jig.

So, if I can easily find my keys, why can't I find my cell phone?

I decided to give a cell phone pouch a try.

I can just make it like a key chain and hook

it to my keys.

I didn't want to go get specific material for this

project....I didn't even know if it would turn out.

I had found an old pair of capri's at our LOVE CLOSET.

No one wanted them, so I decided to re-purpose them.

I started by  searching YouTube for any tutorials.

I couldn't get the right key words or there aren't any out there

specifically for this product.

I improvised.

I watched a POUCH tutorial.

I had to make a few adjustments, like adding the little

hanger strap, but it was pretty easy.

I had to use interfacing again.....I had to read

the directions on which side to iron AGAIN...thank

goodness I saved them...or I am sure I would have to YouTube

the instructions...LOL.

After about 1 hour and 45 minutes, I had my

pouch finished.  I tried to take a picture of my

cute pouch holding the cell phone, but.....

like I said earlier....I didn't have my camera

and had to use my phone camera.

It is a little wider than I needed, but it works just fine.

I even added some little Velcro dots to

keep it closed.

I am thinking I could make these like the

Dave Ramsey envelopes complete

with a zipper! 

I hope I've inspired you to try something new.

Farmers' Market - Okie Style.

Our little town sets right where 2 state highways intersect.

Every corner has been bought up by chain stores.

We have Walgreens Pharmacy, Taco Bell/KFC, and Arby's.

The fourth corner is a small but wonderful little

park area.

Unfortunately, the rumor-mill says that it will soon

be another chain store.  :(

During the summer months, the little park is used on Saturdays

for a farmers' market.

My oldest daughter, Carly, is a massage therapist trying to

get her business off the ground.

I got the bright idea to have her set up at the farmers' market

with her massage chair.

Of course mom had to go with her.....

she did pretty decent her first Saturday.

I, however, was bored.....

so, I got the bright idea to sell some of my

homemade yeast rolls.

We got creative and made a sign....

Carly got a fancy rug....and customers.

I made 4 dozen rolls.

I sold out.

Then I started adding lemonade to my products.

I sold out.

I really enjoy it.

I am a people person if you haven't figured it out yet.

I get to spend 4 hours every Saturday just

chatting it up with locals and distants.

(My hair is fried, it was windy)

Even Summer got into the market....she

makes homemade laundry soaps, cleaning spray, and bug spray...ALL NATURAL.

If you have a local farmers' market, take time to visit.

Take time to get to know the vendors.....

Go away knowing you are supporting LOCAL people

and not the big chain stores.  Yah, the prices might

be higher, but the service is so much better

and you are remembered each week.

I will be very sad if the chain store does come

and tear down our little piece of paradise to

put up a parking lot..... :(

I will try to do a post of all the vendors for

you next week.

Dave Ramsey Cash Envelopes/Wallets

 We started the official Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University

a few weeks ago.

I have always used the envelope method but got away from actually

using the envelopes...because they tore.

I used the big bulky plastic coupon organizer for years.

I found a great YOUTUBE tutorial on

making a zippered pouch.

She wasn't as detailed as I needed.....I broke 2 needles

learning how to put in the ding dang zippers.

I FINALLY got it!!!

Now I can whip them out in 25 minutes!!!

These used to be ONE pillow case.

Total cost for each was approximately $1.75 to make.

When I get better, I will make a tutorial...but you can go to

youtube and search zippered pouch and get several

tutorials.

In case you wanted to know, we have completed baby step #1.

We are plowing through #2.....

Do You Shop at Aldi?

Several years ago, I was driving by some construction and noticed

a semi-truck with some advertising on it.

It said, "Save 50% or Better on Groceries"

To be honest, I thought the building looked a lot like

a pharmacy.  I didn't recognize the name Aldi.

When it finally opened, I decided to just go check it out.

I went to grab a shopping cart that was in a little area outside by the door.

I pulled....and found out they were chained.

I figured they must keep the carts we are to use inside.

I went inside.  No carts.

Finally, I walked back outside and watched a person slip a quarter into the little box

on the cart.  The chain unhooked from the cart.

AHA!!!  You had to PAY for a cart!  How dumb is that I thought....they might

save you some money on groceries, but they were going to get it back by charging

to use a cart!

Long story short....you DO get your quarter back when you return your cart!

Isn't that ingenious?  No more stray carts all over the parking lot.

You also need your own sacks or you will have to buy their sacks.

You also will have to SACK your own groceries....they WILL not sack them for you.

I have been known to throw my sack in the cart and ask that they throw everything

in the sack...it was a free standing sack.  They DID do that for me...when it was only

ONE sack.

Aldi's is a great place to load up on your staples.

I go to Aldi's FIRST and then fill in at other stores if needed.

I tried the coupon thing.....I was a failure....didn't have the time to

devote to it.

Aldi's was the next best thing.

I am going to show you what I got this week and let you comparison shop.

Now mind you, this is a weird week for shopping...with me buying some extra stuff

for the Easter holiday.

I also make a lot of stuff homemade, so don't buy too many pre-made items.

Black beans @ .55 x 2

Condensed Tom. Soup @ .49 x 4

Coffee Creamer @ $1.49

Refried Beans @ .69 x 2

German Coffee @ 4.99 x 2 (this is $1 higher than I normally get)

Deli Sliced Cheese @ $2.19 x 2

Elbow Macaroni @ $1.49

Powdered Sugar @ $1.49 x 2

32 oz. Ketchup @ 1.19 x 2

Cocoa Rice Cereal @ $1.59

Real Choc. Chips @ $1.79

Pecans @ $3.49

Sugar, 5 lbs. @ $2.68 x 2

Beef Hot Dogs @ $2.29 x 2

Multi-Colored Peppers @ $3.29

Old Fashioned Oats @ $1.99

Boneless Chick. Breasts @ $5.49

Sour Cream & Onion Potato Chips @ $1.39 x 2

Butter Quarters @ $2.29 x 2

Sour Cream @ .99 x 2

Oregano @ .99

Margarine @ .99

Confetti Cake Mix @ .95 x 2

Spring Frosting @ $1.19 x 2

Cream Cheese @ $1.29 x 2

8 oz. Cheddar Cheese Chunk @ $1.89 x 2

Subtotal = $77.97

Tax @ 8.5170% = $6.64

TOTAL - $84.61

If you are afraid of generic brands, I encourage you to try Aldi's brands.  The sour cream and onion potato chips taste just like the name brand LAY's chips.  The CHEESE is out of this world awesome. 

Normally, when I shop I spend an average of $75 for a week's worth of groceries.  I do not have to buy beef as we butcher our own.  Before the economy went south, I was able to shop for our family of 5 for about $50/week.  Now, for 3 of us and then some...we do the $75/week sometimes longer.

DIY Rootin' Tootin' Cowboy Wallet/Card

It never ceases to amaze me what people will share for FREE on the Internet!

I found the blog, JustSomethingIMade over a year ago.

This woman is AMAZING in the creative department.

My great nephew just so happened to be turning two when I stumbled upon her latest creation.

I knew immediately I had to make this wallet.

She made a cute little card to go inside.....I made a cute little vintage

kid on a vintage pony picture.

She had some doo-dads to add to the left-side.

I decided to make some origami bill art.

A cute little cowboy shirt and chaps....yah! they are CHAPS....

who cares if they look like pants!!

IT IS MY THEME HERE!!

On the back of the little vintage picture...I printed the "card" for Tristan.

Yes!  even the stitching is REAL....the rest is just printed from card stock.

She did all the hard work.

From start to finish, this probably took less than one hour.  (At least 20 minutes

was spent searching for WHITE thread....which I have NONE, so I used yellow)

Make sure you check out her blog!

My House Before it was a Home...

(PLEASE DISREGARD THE DATES ON THE PHOTOS, IT WAS REALLY SEPTEMBER, 2007)

While decluttering my laundry room, I found my first

digital camera.  It is a Kodak EasyShare.

I had to plug it into the computer to charge on a special

docking station.  Over time, the thing quit working...the

docking station that is.

 I decided to see what was in it.

To my surprise, it has an SD card.

I don't know if I even knew it had a card in it

back when I used the camera.

 Now, I have a Targus Media Reader, which means

I can just plug the little thing into my computer

and pop my card into it....I used to use

a cord and plug camera to the computer.

I could HUG whomever invented this little $20 thing.

 Here is our patio....we got the staining and scoring for FREE

because the cement had a crack in it...a cosmetic crack.

The company did this as a disguise, so I could enjoy

my patio and not focus on the CRACK.

It isn't in the picture, but right in the middle of the patio

is an Oklahoma Centennial Coin....it was the year we

built the house as well as our 20th year of marriage.

 Here is the livingroom.

You can see Regan's bedroom.

 Panning to the right, here is our woodstove.

The wall to the right is a chocolate brown and

the wall to the left is a lighter tan.

The window looks out to the patio.

 This is Regan's room.

She has a huge room.

Her room can eventually be a den and/or

large office.

Her angled closet door was David's idea.

He wanted it to reflect her entrance door, which

is also angled.

Great idea sweetie!

 Looking down the hallway.

Regan's room on the left.

Carly and Sydni shared a large room on the right.

The other doors are storage closets.

At the far end, is the powder room.

 Carly and Sydni's room.

Yah, blinders are needed.

After three year, I've come to enjoy this sunshiny

yellow.

 This is their dressing room.

To the left is the private bath/toilet area.

To the right is a large walk-in closet.

 Here is the powder room at the end of the hallway.

 Walking back into the livingroom, you can see the kitchen.

For whatever reason, I didn't take pictures of the office.

That is the room I am currently renovating.

It was just an empty room, with no closet or built-in

shelving.

 Now we are looking into the kitchen from the dining area.

You can see the laundry room to the back.

The door goes to the garage.

 Here is our bedroom...technically, our house has two

master bedrooms.

This bedroom is off the dining room.

 Here is our HUGE closet...I mean larger than

my office closet.  I think it is 12 x 12, but not sure.

I am still trying to decide exactly how I want to work this

space.

 When walking out of my bedroom, you look at

the pantry.  In the original plan, this is an extra

closet in our bedroom.  I changed it to a

pantry and am I ever glad I did.  It now

has a red screen door!  It slams....I. Love. It.

 A better look at the hall doors.

All of our bedrooms have doors from our old farmhouse.

Five generations on my husband's side have touched those doors.

I was afraid we weren't going to get them for the new house.

Praise God, we were able to get them.

I happened to go to Mill Creek for something and found

NEW doors with the same pattern as the OLD doors.

Guess what?  They were cheaper than the standard six panel

doors found in most homes.  To say I was tickled would be an

understatement!  I just might have "squeed" a bit.

Here is our entrance.

Regan's room is there to the right.

The old farmhouse did not have an entrance...you would just

walk straight into the livingroom.

Most people entered through the mud porch and the

front door was never used.

One of our "splurges" was for the door....

I wanted LIGHT to enter.

I love art deco, and I think this door reflects that era.

For some odd reason, I didn't take a picture of the outside....

it is just a simple rectangle home.

I had pipe dreams of a HUGE wrap around porch which was

quickly squashed when I found out it added 20% to the cost of the house.

We contracted out to build this house which meant we were the

builders.

We did all the flooring ourselves.  My step-dad, Paul, did the

amazing tile work.  He worked so hard at it and I feel I still

haven't thanked him enough.

We also did the painting....All. The. Painting.

I still get a little nauseous when I smell paint.

The average builder cost was around $110/sq. ft.

We built this for $47.50/sq. ft.

It has been 3 years, and I am finally feeling like it is a home.....sigh.....

Pie Making Class 101

 Our cooking class is still going full force.

These classes are held on Wednesday evenings along

with numerous other classes.

The skill for this class was pre-determined due to

our annual spaghetti dinner.

We serve homemade pies for dessert.

 This girl, whipped her crust out so fast!

These pictures are taken in order....and as

you can see, I hadn't even got started.

 We were too busy talking and not multi-tasking.

That lady in the gray shirt...well, this is her very

first experience with making a pie crust.

JUST.LIKE.ME.

 Here is my jagged crust!

 This is the other 1/2 of the crust...our recipe made 2 crusts.

 This is my friend, Chelle.

She was not liking pie baking 101 one bit!

This girl can do just about anything.

She is our GREEN QUEEN.

She can recycle anything.

She even takes her own plates, etc. if she

knows there is going to be "throw away" dishes.

She will be famous some day with her own GREEN QUEEN

show....just wait and see.

 You are looking at 3 generations working

on pie crusts.

The one in the brown is our teacher, Missy.

She is HOMESTEAD QUEEN.

She even processes her own chickens....ewwwww.

She laughs when I gag.

 Here is my first crust.  SWEET.

 I am pretty sure this Pooh's first pie also.

 So, flour on the booty....hmmm...

 Here is the bottom crust ready to get the high fructose filling

added to it.

Yes, I popped open a can and poured!!

That stuff was EXPENSIVE.  It took 2 cans at $3.00 a pop.

 Here is Steph all proud and such.

 Look!  She even made a lattice top!

 Just call me Betty, Betty Crocker!

 See, because I used the high fructose filling

I was able to spend more time being

creative on the top crust!

 Gotta love the large church ovens......

 The pies are starting to come out of the oven......

 My crust wasn't golden because I didn't have

any egg to brush on it....but it still turned

out BEAUTIFUL!

I want to thank Lea Bevins for helping with the

creativity on it.

The crust was FLAKY!!

This is a pumpkin pie I made for the spaghetti dinner...

which ended up being so pretty I kept it to show off.

I did make another one plus 2 Oreo pies to take to

the spaghetti dinner.

I want to thank MsTimmy and Juanita for

helping when I was realllllly stressing

about making a COMPLETE homemade pie.

The people you meet on the Internet are AMAZING!!