tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33356055999309072942024-03-14T10:49:14.677-04:00Nestled in the Eastern WoodsMy husband, dogs and I have just settled into our first house. Follow us as we make it ours!Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-68665551202294873202012-11-08T13:34:00.001-05:002012-11-08T14:06:40.258-05:00Prevent the Holiday Light Tangle<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Whenever I think of pulling the holiday
lights out of the box to sort through and hang, I always picture that
scene from Christmas Vacation with the humongous knot of lights that
Rusty has to sort through. In the movie, it is a welcome respite from
spending time indoors with the extended family, but in real life,
it's just a headache.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbjZH2ik4mqBfH4ujFo2BMSk3he9aUmYdQHWFuj4ZziIFRKHwPsUByw2ly_PFqaqwCEAAETkeG4euvt96-zR8xVfTHzld7SrKn92gvLTbe-r_U7TjoHsLS3dN67ygdzCNC9snJ1rfZPQQ/s1600/tangled-christmas-lights_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbjZH2ik4mqBfH4ujFo2BMSk3he9aUmYdQHWFuj4ZziIFRKHwPsUByw2ly_PFqaqwCEAAETkeG4euvt96-zR8xVfTHzld7SrKn92gvLTbe-r_U7TjoHsLS3dN67ygdzCNC9snJ1rfZPQQ/s400/tangled-christmas-lights_2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&sa=X&tbo=d&biw=1366&bih=643&tbm=isch&tbnid=UDroAiPAZ739RM:&imgrefurl=http://www.gadgetteaser.com/2012/09/22/a-non-violent-solution-to-ending-headphone-tangles/&docid=AWrcByG4kEZtkM&imgurl=http://willypowell.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/tangled-christmas-lights_2.jpg&w=481&h=339&ei=a_ubUInYMuHM2AW004HYDg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=4&vpy=150&dur=946&hovh=188&hovw=268&tx=88&ty=136&sig=117267932580638622815&page=2&tbnh=138&tbnw=176&start=19&ndsp=31&ved=1t:429,r:19,s:0,i:132" target="_blank">Source</a></div>
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Now, every holiday is getting a string
of lights. I have orange lights for Halloween and so many Christmas
lights, and I'm sure it's only a matter of time until Valentine's Day,
Saint Patrick's Day and the Fourth of July get in on the action too. I need a way to store them all without making myself crazy.</div>
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I got this idea from the way my dad has stored his Christmas lights for years. He would wrap the strands
around the box the lights came in. I decided it'd be a good idea to do the same, but I ran into a few problems. First of all, for the most part, lights don't come in long,
thin boxes any longer, and if they do, the boxes are really flimsy. And
secondly, I move a lot, and the lights get all jumbled and end up
falling off their boxes and into a big mess in the holiday tub. So, I tried to fix those
problems by using some spare corrugated cardboard and some scissors.</div>
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First, you start at one end by making a
slit with a notch at the end. This is where you will start your cord. (I got the idea to do the post after I already got started - hence the lights wrapped around the board.)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbIMig1Fxord1JOTUnx5w9S7Sdp-J7HuVK2CgkEps_tr6_YB0i4DQ7OWhf2SnF3g9zFSSiRFp08wau5U_Xl8mEyOS07mEtKEMlI9UIQ7WzKE8xXzmJhz_nQ3Fy-Quwjzb0MlRKJhE_eeo/s1600/IMG_8853.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbIMig1Fxord1JOTUnx5w9S7Sdp-J7HuVK2CgkEps_tr6_YB0i4DQ7OWhf2SnF3g9zFSSiRFp08wau5U_Xl8mEyOS07mEtKEMlI9UIQ7WzKE8xXzmJhz_nQ3Fy-Quwjzb0MlRKJhE_eeo/s640/IMG_8853.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg45gmbe_2MV0faliPRRYOK7uD7fZFGUDJ2gzheRJqFq0UJaKZjvDsiNspcdkmsC5RTR5QAvNvWgmfAZHr4xoJjJrckiTnDTAo00Cb7Dkz5qbOYaBSsJZJSWosVvkH9173vmuZM3bNYOjE/s1600/IMG_8854.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg45gmbe_2MV0faliPRRYOK7uD7fZFGUDJ2gzheRJqFq0UJaKZjvDsiNspcdkmsC5RTR5QAvNvWgmfAZHr4xoJjJrckiTnDTAo00Cb7Dkz5qbOYaBSsJZJSWosVvkH9173vmuZM3bNYOjE/s640/IMG_8854.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Then, make triangular notches the length of the
board at whatever interval you like. I did a notch about every inch.
I think making the whole edge notched is a good idea, but I didn't
think of it til I was done. Now you just wrap your lights down the
length of your board. Be careful that you don't overlap too much
because you'll end up with a tangle when you take them off later.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7ZR0tZpjIibnH4sHs-9PuQy49vZ1MdYCw_oL4gTPZAcY5nqwSTe3zDsupzHA_c6bRCB18rvxMjuLygCiRColI3Ou9uCvB6TrkrZjXtkesKP8ZKgCXWhY1IAYZmQFL2zSqY1aSrUI2jko/s1600/IMG_8859.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7ZR0tZpjIibnH4sHs-9PuQy49vZ1MdYCw_oL4gTPZAcY5nqwSTe3zDsupzHA_c6bRCB18rvxMjuLygCiRColI3Ou9uCvB6TrkrZjXtkesKP8ZKgCXWhY1IAYZmQFL2zSqY1aSrUI2jko/s320/IMG_8859.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Cgcvw9Maq-5HaCBJsbQWjZeoonhxPKWgQtZnvIe_jOLKQYpN4yVun0SQKnkqu_VB8AXs1ANrC_gmy2rjtXQzjlfNvzRaWrUs7_W0cPWJY127f5CzCXULRXI0_0m7ALbiS-_-Mhyphenhyphen8BT4/s1600/IMG_8863.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Cgcvw9Maq-5HaCBJsbQWjZeoonhxPKWgQtZnvIe_jOLKQYpN4yVun0SQKnkqu_VB8AXs1ANrC_gmy2rjtXQzjlfNvzRaWrUs7_W0cPWJY127f5CzCXULRXI0_0m7ALbiS-_-Mhyphenhyphen8BT4/s320/IMG_8863.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The handy thing about his method is
that you can pull your lights out of storage, plug them in and see if
you have any bad bulbs or strands. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipfg9MSsjV8cfwoqbkbu5mo4xde71UGELdsEaRJV70tsIYLKrmvYrTD-Ttpx8QCTQxdhkOWO7-OP4zEFzPGlOt0vuffjJ17VRm_ZGDVn9jtjvdZrdZo_1n1I5DX9ht7tK9S9l_K09ECzQ/s1600/IMG_8871.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipfg9MSsjV8cfwoqbkbu5mo4xde71UGELdsEaRJV70tsIYLKrmvYrTD-Ttpx8QCTQxdhkOWO7-OP4zEFzPGlOt0vuffjJ17VRm_ZGDVn9jtjvdZrdZo_1n1I5DX9ht7tK9S9l_K09ECzQ/s640/IMG_8871.JPG" width="426" /></a></div>
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You can easily see in the picture there
is one orange bulb that needs to be replaced.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUXgjaHKBH-u0T8ypr9ZkpHarNtfTA1tuQylu7_Y0eOl46QLzoE-IkYMTy-b7BuMIctpFTV8dARNtSKoyAYD_OJz-V5PLkt0zvC9C9Ep707GinHQ9r2M4k-EXPtWzQknIYcZORMpIkd-g/s1600/IMG_8872.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUXgjaHKBH-u0T8ypr9ZkpHarNtfTA1tuQylu7_Y0eOl46QLzoE-IkYMTy-b7BuMIctpFTV8dARNtSKoyAYD_OJz-V5PLkt0zvC9C9Ep707GinHQ9r2M4k-EXPtWzQknIYcZORMpIkd-g/s640/IMG_8872.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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If you
have your lights all jumbled together, it's almost impossible to see
dead lights or to figure out which strand has gone bad. I find it's easier (it will never be easy) to check each bulb on a
bad strand without everything getting tangled up. I also store the
extra bulbs taped to the board. That way you know which strand they
belong to, and you can make easy repairs.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgblBmdce4bEPvayU2b3YIXLLUnzCNpJsW-MnUcpGvXv3m1wdBzYSS-JumvXiCV2RBm7YK5fJmEfjUU3A7v6Zr1SxTUnkCzGQFOMos0IjgYFXFT_mUopM2GblGE3gNu6v1-CryGWXc4AzI/s1600/Tape+Extra+Lights+to+Cardboard.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgblBmdce4bEPvayU2b3YIXLLUnzCNpJsW-MnUcpGvXv3m1wdBzYSS-JumvXiCV2RBm7YK5fJmEfjUU3A7v6Zr1SxTUnkCzGQFOMos0IjgYFXFT_mUopM2GblGE3gNu6v1-CryGWXc4AzI/s640/Tape+Extra+Lights+to+Cardboard.JPG" width="434" /></a></div>
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Now your lights are ready for storage
until next year.
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-43365112432169902892012-11-07T10:50:00.004-05:002012-11-07T10:51:08.258-05:00Unstuck a CandleQuick Tip:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfdmTr4YJotiCu0E1P1GcvrvrBz7zNPrEhoUDRz19HIs8CIdooy7m508nznCFgnrZkQOExwheURFIGfk16BaYodDL2Sr3KbUNvLmE36_Eu-N1Nx94WWvu0coe2IDwFnSta5D7KMxEy6XI/s1600/IMG_8837.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfdmTr4YJotiCu0E1P1GcvrvrBz7zNPrEhoUDRz19HIs8CIdooy7m508nznCFgnrZkQOExwheURFIGfk16BaYodDL2Sr3KbUNvLmE36_Eu-N1Nx94WWvu0coe2IDwFnSta5D7KMxEy6XI/s320/IMG_8837.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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If you need to get a candle out of its container, just pop it in the freezer for a few hours. </div>
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The wax shrinks and falls right out.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-55914823010965351922012-05-13T20:48:00.000-04:002012-05-13T20:48:35.571-04:00Stuffed Zucchini<br />
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This one is tasty and very versatile.
Basically, you just scoop the innards out of a zucchini and add
whatever suits your fancy and then heat it all up. I adapted this
<a href="http://www.kayotic.nl/blog/stuffed-zucchini" target="_blank">recipe</a> to fit my needs and pantry supplies on any given night.</div>
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For tonight, I wasn't really in a cooking mood, so I did a very uncomplicated version. Here it is! Fancy it up any way you like. I put some other possible ingredients at the bottom of the post. </div>
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Wash the zucchini and cut off the ends. </div>
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Slice down the middle and scoop the seeds out by dragging a spoon down the middle of the zucchini. You can use the stuff
you scooped out in your stuffing if you feel like it or toss it. It's your call, but be aware that some of the big zucchinis can have some tough, old seeds inside them. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvn7F7HysO8lnwrGXSsTqGbln56oeKNeqm9SGdaVUUhDgwoAyxMAOlu6M6xkjE5Vuddgf5SipbyOHX8VWG7NgpwHEjIbwG39wxAukKYmGJv8MGaM9f0sh045lYfsBa_TdRPWLoARFF1xU/s1600/IMG_7659.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvn7F7HysO8lnwrGXSsTqGbln56oeKNeqm9SGdaVUUhDgwoAyxMAOlu6M6xkjE5Vuddgf5SipbyOHX8VWG7NgpwHEjIbwG39wxAukKYmGJv8MGaM9f0sh045lYfsBa_TdRPWLoARFF1xU/s640/IMG_7659.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Then, what I did was melt about a ½
tablespoon butter and mix it with bread crumbs, a little parmesan
cheese, and a few sprinkles of basil, cayenne, garlic, salt, and
pepper. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE_3oDFWFS0-xV6W_HB7OVzmMx1EFsvGMxGUdQFWggQXpt6DjP1EN8LfrOluWIG6shqld6F8EMlse91Vx2q0xAscxNPkibZbhqsX-vyVbxYvAO9xl451fSyBDAq_yhvw0XSwJknRYE0MQ/s1600/IMG_7662.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE_3oDFWFS0-xV6W_HB7OVzmMx1EFsvGMxGUdQFWggQXpt6DjP1EN8LfrOluWIG6shqld6F8EMlse91Vx2q0xAscxNPkibZbhqsX-vyVbxYvAO9xl451fSyBDAq_yhvw0XSwJknRYE0MQ/s640/IMG_7662.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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We grilled our zucchini tonight, but you can just stick it
under the broiler or in the oven until the zucchinis are a little
soft and the topping is brown – about 10-20 minutes.
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Possible Adaptations:</div>
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-cream cheese</div>
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-tomato</div>
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-cheddar</div>
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-parsley</div>
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-onion</div>
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-thyme</div>
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-paprika</div>
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-mozzarella</div>
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-bacon</div>
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-whatever your heart
desires, go crazy</div>
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</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-58731194851663629702012-05-12T22:46:00.000-04:002012-05-12T22:46:38.181-04:00German Apple Pancake<br />
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I love an easy and tasty breakfast. In the morning, I
wake up hungry and angry (also known as hangry) – I need food, and I need it now! Yeah, I'm one of those people. </div>
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I end up saying this to my husband on a
nearly daily basis.
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI-XJVRvDdDU0Jo0sTJqlELHfYT3kbgI_fkoVWkIq3kB4-BgoRpVaZYDGfAxXmmwc7-yGp_vHElWERxdciDVKZKeB5NpYhRPHDjvYTjkEdl-4uxE72DndE3cgewnAzGVPodVS9WkNSTug/s1600/unkind-words-hunger-someecards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI-XJVRvDdDU0Jo0sTJqlELHfYT3kbgI_fkoVWkIq3kB4-BgoRpVaZYDGfAxXmmwc7-yGp_vHElWERxdciDVKZKeB5NpYhRPHDjvYTjkEdl-4uxE72DndE3cgewnAzGVPodVS9WkNSTug/s400/unkind-words-hunger-someecards.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.someecards.com/usercards/viewcard/MjAxMS00OGQzNjM2NDdlODdjZjlh" target="_blank">Someecards</a></td></tr>
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So, how to get tasty breakfast on the
table stat? Stumble into the kitchen, cut up some apples, dump them
in a pan. Cook. Dump in some more ingredients and bake. Other than
cutting up a couple apples, this recipe is a snap. And did I mention
tasty? So good! I edited a <a href="http://allrecipes.com/recipe/german-apple-pancake/" target="_blank">recipe</a> I found on
Allrecipes.com to suit my liking. Hope it works for you!</div>
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<h4>
German Apple Pancake</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZnLM-kuQz0SArDzZdIr6gtC85WAFyJT_DnGTCp85U9kiH0F6wyYOsyuHeypU4uNC9Jq8bOSaC-i6OvMs9H55YfMVs5zgxnJJ2IIMK52VEcJqLtabLeudE8oIlDTt__EzYOomDum_phUw/s1600/Done.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZnLM-kuQz0SArDzZdIr6gtC85WAFyJT_DnGTCp85U9kiH0F6wyYOsyuHeypU4uNC9Jq8bOSaC-i6OvMs9H55YfMVs5zgxnJJ2IIMK52VEcJqLtabLeudE8oIlDTt__EzYOomDum_phUw/s640/Done.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Set your oven to 425F and set your cast
iron skillet on medium heat.
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Peel, core and slice two large tart
apples. Butter your skillet and arrange the apples in a single layer.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFxo3l9ymW1PJnZZdS9Tbnx-lb69Ul41MZDHArObcAxJUbZ-eN9egNWJkKOQeaD9CWrxiDBkHOMfgnrvRAYuPp3H21vbi7iofp77vaFZydPmmRiY-KLgtW5WLAZRjrNlWV-bMk3IxNl1I/s1600/Apples.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFxo3l9ymW1PJnZZdS9Tbnx-lb69Ul41MZDHArObcAxJUbZ-eN9egNWJkKOQeaD9CWrxiDBkHOMfgnrvRAYuPp3H21vbi7iofp77vaFZydPmmRiY-KLgtW5WLAZRjrNlWV-bMk3IxNl1I/s640/Apples.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Sprinkle 1 tablespoon brown sugar, ½ teaspoon cinnamon (or more to your liking), ½ teaspoon nutmeg over the apples. Saute for a few minutes
until the mixture starts bubbling.
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In the mean time, mix you dry
ingredients. ½ cup all-purpose flour, ¼ cup wheat
flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, and a pinch of
salt</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwY6QFHPzE_nUSXFcEoD2lYWVA56MVWS0qj1iNgRnTUm8-vPvw48QvskTjFi2FM6lQP92to0FMMMvKmJ3xcriVIOFSQiVzLRUpxr-AXCjKIKQiY4A307zCxOWJ19uuK_y4NVgSd8po3wI/s1600/Dry+Ingredients.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwY6QFHPzE_nUSXFcEoD2lYWVA56MVWS0qj1iNgRnTUm8-vPvw48QvskTjFi2FM6lQP92to0FMMMvKmJ3xcriVIOFSQiVzLRUpxr-AXCjKIKQiY4A307zCxOWJ19uuK_y4NVgSd8po3wI/s640/Dry+Ingredients.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Combine wet ingredients and mix with dry ingredients. 1 teaspoon vanilla,
3 eggs, 2 tablespoons melted butter, ½ teaspoon nutmeg, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, 1 cup milk</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPaL5TiqvhcSqDiLaYpL_8h3c7pDRK648bAqnakDOu7PkMfInbMiJx-Um0Ty_Q18GqZlg0wosLq1vtpant35QihP4FEvnre1Sv7zBKLdxZhm6wn1qXYf-p8ZmX1IJfwPwpk0NxZSgnIjk/s1600/Wet+Ingredients.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPaL5TiqvhcSqDiLaYpL_8h3c7pDRK648bAqnakDOu7PkMfInbMiJx-Um0Ty_Q18GqZlg0wosLq1vtpant35QihP4FEvnre1Sv7zBKLdxZhm6wn1qXYf-p8ZmX1IJfwPwpk0NxZSgnIjk/s640/Wet+Ingredients.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Pour the batter in the skillet evenly
covering the apples. Pop the whole thing in the oven for 15 minutes.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGVzRLaEwDyKywkzRSHQaxuCzlqd5uqjIq2_-aGGki2Jr-DKATxuBgJZ28C6Ok8i9kVUz1_R1cKK7BzL0-hi1fdPFC8bTRLJSCKmm-VI-QgCR3Vp997q5DAozYA848Cjzf-CqOdH23jy8/s1600/Puffy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGVzRLaEwDyKywkzRSHQaxuCzlqd5uqjIq2_-aGGki2Jr-DKATxuBgJZ28C6Ok8i9kVUz1_R1cKK7BzL0-hi1fdPFC8bTRLJSCKmm-VI-QgCR3Vp997q5DAozYA848Cjzf-CqOdH23jy8/s640/Puffy.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It gets all puffy after a bit in the oven</td></tr>
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After 15 minutes, reduce the heat to
375F and cook for another 10 minutes.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXdUW0GTMfK0xA7CEPL7kLgic0erc5pCDvmKuYJ8Yykih-c8H8bVCTHZD8ZpIjOlqCmpxON1om1HgcBO3xII8gMqWwk55EeT3bsMn5edmwPt39FgP-2kM0jBwUK0RIQqq89NWP4xHyw2Q/s1600/Temp.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXdUW0GTMfK0xA7CEPL7kLgic0erc5pCDvmKuYJ8Yykih-c8H8bVCTHZD8ZpIjOlqCmpxON1om1HgcBO3xII8gMqWwk55EeT3bsMn5edmwPt39FgP-2kM0jBwUK0RIQqq89NWP4xHyw2Q/s640/Temp.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This raises the question: Was I cooking breakfast at 11:30? or did I set my timer wrong? </td></tr>
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Remove from oven and flip pancake onto
the serving platter. Cut your pancake into wedges, and it's meal
time!
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzVgR_4qKxkgo7Hv9igBpZk8xoK1RiC9QwnGEL4bStSvonEarisriq-TQMjMJ5XfuTfn6RuWtFtWMmTHNi9B9Z6rMbzrFVw0IjdhRRsvbpIqnw84157e0qkNo8C6FP9D3D-EfHhY-3s5Q/s1600/Pizza+Cutter.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzVgR_4qKxkgo7Hv9igBpZk8xoK1RiC9QwnGEL4bStSvonEarisriq-TQMjMJ5XfuTfn6RuWtFtWMmTHNi9B9Z6rMbzrFVw0IjdhRRsvbpIqnw84157e0qkNo8C6FP9D3D-EfHhY-3s5Q/s640/Pizza+Cutter.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I use a pizza cutter whenever possible. It's especially handy for this. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhShIuMENy3-e0eaXcwiac4uvp3kmyafdoSsgB3-QVCNoG9Wrosfdp4uCf4xQGwNstiCjhn8n62N-lMuc1bpRCytZklwwDdKXL_EbJrzOOSh6en94dxCP9VdcxrOR-uKrQbRFvhZ492DEw/s1600/Voila.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhShIuMENy3-e0eaXcwiac4uvp3kmyafdoSsgB3-QVCNoG9Wrosfdp4uCf4xQGwNstiCjhn8n62N-lMuc1bpRCytZklwwDdKXL_EbJrzOOSh6en94dxCP9VdcxrOR-uKrQbRFvhZ492DEw/s640/Voila.JPG" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yum!!</td></tr>
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</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-82704077791345714312012-04-04T17:20:00.003-04:002012-04-04T17:27:13.256-04:00Clean, White KitchenI've been loving white kitchens for a while. And my kitchen was white enough, I thought. I figured I'd just update the hardware and call it a day. But, after a while, the cream cabinets started to feel dingy, so Bob and I set out to freshen things up.<br />
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We painted all the cabinets and the back splash in one marathon painting session. We removed all the cabinet doors and hardware on Friday night. We painting Saturday and Sunday. We gave the paint a bit of time to dry and reinstalled everything on Wednesday. Not too painful at all. We used a paint sprayer hooked up to an air compressor for the cabinet doors, and we used a foam roller and paint brush for everything else. So, we have hardly any brush strokes. Pretty fancy.<br />
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Here's how it looks now. Excuse the naked drawers, I have to do some hole-filling and drilling to fit the new pulls on. Here's what they look like, so you'll have to use your imagination to fill in the empty drawer fronts.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmvr8Bam7ADsqrG95Du7JH-v5v0zKLunA-29FYuv83ijtBrnfO5i_I-bRthHjM2P2aq8X2KwOTW0rmeEMg0u0IJ_doivirNehQ-gzu7t1-aMcpmTEuaJTTujQw0vqsHHEMK5Z2OpM5_0U/s1600/Drawer+pulls.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmvr8Bam7ADsqrG95Du7JH-v5v0zKLunA-29FYuv83ijtBrnfO5i_I-bRthHjM2P2aq8X2KwOTW0rmeEMg0u0IJ_doivirNehQ-gzu7t1-aMcpmTEuaJTTujQw0vqsHHEMK5Z2OpM5_0U/s640/Drawer+pulls.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>And without my hand in the way.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_J-wKFQhvK1P-yZrgVHfgO57lU_ZiSWyowy8vaLbo0EwF7HinqcCb6Z9SIhQINvE6HQ5pFKPV-hBB4uwqR0EPCfS0EXoRuHj263tjcO-2i5ZTlBN2HnFCx463jhnaiDDBe552PmDeiAU/s1600/drawer+pull2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_J-wKFQhvK1P-yZrgVHfgO57lU_ZiSWyowy8vaLbo0EwF7HinqcCb6Z9SIhQINvE6HQ5pFKPV-hBB4uwqR0EPCfS0EXoRuHj263tjcO-2i5ZTlBN2HnFCx463jhnaiDDBe552PmDeiAU/s640/drawer+pull2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>Before:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9SCWqLZqhuzet5Oz15m8D14nQ6qf-c9CQcpJLN6IkqWQouReAWXyq-fAmsokRuDqRzfMxgWm8L5xof6aDfkK_gCdCMuXMsDOFyi-ZN4UJ2ZTstQHWq07cH1wrTDRcxPARBS0jhVb1nVg/s1600/DSCF1430.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9SCWqLZqhuzet5Oz15m8D14nQ6qf-c9CQcpJLN6IkqWQouReAWXyq-fAmsokRuDqRzfMxgWm8L5xof6aDfkK_gCdCMuXMsDOFyi-ZN4UJ2ZTstQHWq07cH1wrTDRcxPARBS0jhVb1nVg/s640/DSCF1430.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>After:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo56UTDWr-piWP6RXVeDLmy83afewtcBQ1Lu7z16tQQPSmXPAR1exkXHAOGbOKpYxOXEX8J8Emqc5SZ23iRuck-aSVD407468WtoVm6OC1fLZLEP9OR7tkpyvOxs3jkuwTIk7VmIij3M0/s1600/kitchen+stove.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo56UTDWr-piWP6RXVeDLmy83afewtcBQ1Lu7z16tQQPSmXPAR1exkXHAOGbOKpYxOXEX8J8Emqc5SZ23iRuck-aSVD407468WtoVm6OC1fLZLEP9OR7tkpyvOxs3jkuwTIk7VmIij3M0/s640/kitchen+stove.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Before:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikZi2i3AnFEg-L54deiYcpfUMXGEFOic3pIMdvSnwHFw-CSC6L5DJvFI1L-i0HpKJ12dJ0PxfBj3HoQLz9ZlkC2Z8jYMA6xzHimNYt1_W4oKL29jegSyugo_QuWOqn-wlUBUCWvnIl5BI/s1600/DSCF1431.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikZi2i3AnFEg-L54deiYcpfUMXGEFOic3pIMdvSnwHFw-CSC6L5DJvFI1L-i0HpKJ12dJ0PxfBj3HoQLz9ZlkC2Z8jYMA6xzHimNYt1_W4oKL29jegSyugo_QuWOqn-wlUBUCWvnIl5BI/s640/DSCF1431.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>After:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPodckF4g76CsUkcrvPVMlxTjlp5kQL4SeYRcl2SJXUmpphA21XHaihiGBia068W9NBAivtyLZuCQixecEiMwdZf1YiPm5l4gXjE7KSQU1cmdVHN9L6XS6BKEqUNhbLMPYqxT9-LqMN9I/s1600/kitchen+sink.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPodckF4g76CsUkcrvPVMlxTjlp5kQL4SeYRcl2SJXUmpphA21XHaihiGBia068W9NBAivtyLZuCQixecEiMwdZf1YiPm5l4gXjE7KSQU1cmdVHN9L6XS6BKEqUNhbLMPYqxT9-LqMN9I/s640/kitchen+sink.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>We still need to:<br />
-replace fridge and dishwasher with stainless steel versions<br />
-install drawer pulls<br />
-paint or replace oven hood<br />
-replace sink faucet with a brushed nickel one<br />
-replace outlet and light switch covers with white<br />
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Paint Colors:<br />
Cabinets - Lemon Edge Valspar<br />
Back Splash - Ballet White Benjamin MooreUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-64067774470750065002012-03-28T17:31:00.000-04:002012-03-28T17:31:00.462-04:00April ShowersThese beautiful tulips that my wonderful husband got for me really brighten up my freshly painted windowsill on this rainy spring evening.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjUzxcQ1Woo8MgNVdi6z4RpK4uJjfVrkIFBD5cUp7dd6GrtS5hQOfO_5fBBuJAsPpAAL6cB4EvqE_apH2U5RFsK-jWnT1CTZkUy_i9b9U3BwbUTFKSe_bTdINIzkjPwhVyF-uDLzAy_H0/s1600/IMG_7473.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjUzxcQ1Woo8MgNVdi6z4RpK4uJjfVrkIFBD5cUp7dd6GrtS5hQOfO_5fBBuJAsPpAAL6cB4EvqE_apH2U5RFsK-jWnT1CTZkUy_i9b9U3BwbUTFKSe_bTdINIzkjPwhVyF-uDLzAy_H0/s640/IMG_7473.JPG" width="426" /></a></div> Pictures of my newly painted kitchen coming soon! I'm just waiting on the cabinet hardware I ordered last weekend.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisMbTndWH_YtwES7lUp1MnSRIFRW-YkS_Ms73gs4A2kKLd_HXjCb6Emif1AkJwtdHzdg1E8UWWVJV2uYhq3RLmzClykS13R8xAQpQrG-WSY5zAE2yI40bbEEPm5Y5oF3RJXTE___iktfU/s1600/IMG_7474.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisMbTndWH_YtwES7lUp1MnSRIFRW-YkS_Ms73gs4A2kKLd_HXjCb6Emif1AkJwtdHzdg1E8UWWVJV2uYhq3RLmzClykS13R8xAQpQrG-WSY5zAE2yI40bbEEPm5Y5oF3RJXTE___iktfU/s640/IMG_7474.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-57031128937898488362012-02-20T20:58:00.001-05:002012-02-20T21:05:58.052-05:00Tiny Noodle Soup<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">This recipe is an adaptations of this meal makeover from the discontinued, online magazine, Ready Made.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.readymade.com/blog/food-and-entertaining/2011/02/23/meal_make_over_noodles_sauce" target="_blank">Meal Make-Over: Noodles and Sauce</a></div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I made a few changes to the recipe to fit my pantry supplies and my tastes, and now it is my husband's favorite meal that I've ever made. I have been instructed to make a '50 batch' whenever I make this soup. (A 50 batch is like a double batch, but 50 times over instead of twice – yes, it's that good.)</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCezKx8GH8ItX3OQ9N-A5_7SOS1RoNinPpWzIYAzYY-aLve2Vbv3Etnae3ZtJH114C66FGV1fV0uHUXFW-8ptKnEOy9zZtX_FGLYaSMGkhZGz8XzeEKVzu-rviNTvSp0_29niRppcB2fI/s1600/Chicken+Noodle+Done.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCezKx8GH8ItX3OQ9N-A5_7SOS1RoNinPpWzIYAzYY-aLve2Vbv3Etnae3ZtJH114C66FGV1fV0uHUXFW-8ptKnEOy9zZtX_FGLYaSMGkhZGz8XzeEKVzu-rviNTvSp0_29niRppcB2fI/s640/Chicken+Noodle+Done.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">First, dice ½ a medium onion, preferably red, but any color is fine. And cut up ¼ cup of carrots. Saute the onion and carrot in a medium saucepan over medium heat in a little olive oil or butter for 10 minutes. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPWCP9xAvkiH4EloSH3OHHSYjxGTjkbE-dfGu3W8ky4IXHWkkKocpJKcd84tFN27rvPVTbNVuCMpkjGu7c9iVDRxjUhYoiqzzlRl2oiqdGUs-R-tz1I_UUgnpPrq_VSilLD0Kq-baVYoo/s1600/Onions+and+Carrots.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPWCP9xAvkiH4EloSH3OHHSYjxGTjkbE-dfGu3W8ky4IXHWkkKocpJKcd84tFN27rvPVTbNVuCMpkjGu7c9iVDRxjUhYoiqzzlRl2oiqdGUs-R-tz1I_UUgnpPrq_VSilLD0Kq-baVYoo/s640/Onions+and+Carrots.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
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</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Add 2 cups chicken broth and a handful of bite-size frozen green beans. Bring to a boil. Throw in some basil – about ½ tsp of dried basil should do. You can add some salt and pepper to taste as well. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDQnIIYxlYGj8sxiUCgALDr7DijT4SS9l37vdsSgHIjilisMZvLR5V1L0R7lUubIfQSI66epO2QGtDn9_zf09QRGQpIxQOfueEyQElBls69IRJ5IHW4VRvRVUAsfxqSYRSmvU2kPwR_28/s1600/Green+Beans.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDQnIIYxlYGj8sxiUCgALDr7DijT4SS9l37vdsSgHIjilisMZvLR5V1L0R7lUubIfQSI66epO2QGtDn9_zf09QRGQpIxQOfueEyQElBls69IRJ5IHW4VRvRVUAsfxqSYRSmvU2kPwR_28/s640/Green+Beans.JPG" width="600" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Add ¾ cup orzo pasta and boil for 6 minutes</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxigKkmQdrbLxbedVKSx2nbxf1PbJyW6yizy98BAR7AAgedlEkjcGfyguq3I4ztdLJmOxjIv01r-8OBvWwYIj3qJpwtJbEjIqD0FvNZo0fbM0PvnqJ55oTP7H5pki_6DD9S0ePHTX7dY0/s1600/Orzo2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxigKkmQdrbLxbedVKSx2nbxf1PbJyW6yizy98BAR7AAgedlEkjcGfyguq3I4ztdLJmOxjIv01r-8OBvWwYIj3qJpwtJbEjIqD0FvNZo0fbM0PvnqJ55oTP7H5pki_6DD9S0ePHTX7dY0/s640/Orzo2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Add ¼ cup frozen corn and boil for another 3 minutes.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Reduce heat to low and add a little cheese wedge or some cream cheese. You can also throw in a little cream or milk if you have it handy. Simmer and stir the soup until it is nice and creamy – 1-2 minutes. This is supposed to be a thick soup, but if your soup is turning into sticky noodles, you might need to add a little more broth or water at this point.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb5QI3nXUCYxZQr4vpR4r_meWY5FNht9U4hQi5JAkztFGawp0E4uN1nsVrkBTk33dnPPS0Eixd8r9WuOWC1QUdUiHaEts-X6KiBzcN98W-CwTQQsEbHnNl-pIIWVaE3IHVaba-6EZbdyc/s1600/Cheese.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb5QI3nXUCYxZQr4vpR4r_meWY5FNht9U4hQi5JAkztFGawp0E4uN1nsVrkBTk33dnPPS0Eixd8r9WuOWC1QUdUiHaEts-X6KiBzcN98W-CwTQQsEbHnNl-pIIWVaE3IHVaba-6EZbdyc/s640/Cheese.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Enjoy!! </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9NhXRzORe0T4lezAb-5SSwND7XKbRjDg6Byf6ldHXyxxcj_HMNvh2o7sE_kYdITRLyGM35pED2gj5eAZ8nNCtTq6JTFOuCqMJzwTzi82_xnBxM1SA7O8JSNGa2TL5yGYgeYb6jQzj6_g/s1600/Chicken+Noodle+Soup+Bowl.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9NhXRzORe0T4lezAb-5SSwND7XKbRjDg6Byf6ldHXyxxcj_HMNvh2o7sE_kYdITRLyGM35pED2gj5eAZ8nNCtTq6JTFOuCqMJzwTzi82_xnBxM1SA7O8JSNGa2TL5yGYgeYb6jQzj6_g/s640/Chicken+Noodle+Soup+Bowl.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Tiny Noodle Soup</span></b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">2 servings</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Ingredients:</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">½ medium onion, diced</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">¼ cup carrot, diced</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">1 tbsp olive oil or butter</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">2 cups chicken or vegetable broth</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">½ tsp dried basil</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">salt and pepper</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">handful frozen green beans cut into bite size pieces</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">¼ cup frozen corn</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">1 garlic and herb Laughing Cow cheese wedge or</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">2 tbsp cream cheese</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">1-3 tbsp cream or milk (optional) </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Heat olive oil or butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add onion and carrot and saute for 10 minutes. Pour the chicken broth into pan, add green beans and bring to boil over high heat. Add orzo and boil for 6 minutes. Add corn and boil for an additional 3 minutes. Lower heat, add cheese and milk to mixture and simmer for a minute or two. Add broth or water as needed. Serve hot. </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-71487165510009172642012-02-12T09:11:00.002-05:002012-02-12T11:59:52.157-05:00Valentine's Day Hearts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKgvqbDR1qnD9tLa2rJXaAocMU7HfKBQoEaWdH4gE7RFv3aCWtmjJ30TdFdayCYKGJSQL7kWJm9OzwQzvh2KPmIez4MQYx4rJtvMEriKV2wZlBIq2XE4tyMmoHeW6S4f8LpwJnCbMPnAw/s1600/Valentine's+Heart+Full+Swoop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="403" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKgvqbDR1qnD9tLa2rJXaAocMU7HfKBQoEaWdH4gE7RFv3aCWtmjJ30TdFdayCYKGJSQL7kWJm9OzwQzvh2KPmIez4MQYx4rJtvMEriKV2wZlBIq2XE4tyMmoHeW6S4f8LpwJnCbMPnAw/s640/Valentine's+Heart+Full+Swoop.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b> Easy Valentine's Day Hearts</b></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKV1VPxl1ZbAtN7aBAokC2dyYy08S90TEEj-4AvfbJRZCHYfRwTcycYgwpX-l7Cw2SA7kO3QfA9lcLF7fokd2YRtKRiu0ullrb5KzNN_A6L7vjN0Pl05cBQ1EtLCx9_0jFW7pT5A91kUY/s1600/Valentine's+Heart+Start.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKV1VPxl1ZbAtN7aBAokC2dyYy08S90TEEj-4AvfbJRZCHYfRwTcycYgwpX-l7Cw2SA7kO3QfA9lcLF7fokd2YRtKRiu0ullrb5KzNN_A6L7vjN0Pl05cBQ1EtLCx9_0jFW7pT5A91kUY/s640/Valentine's+Heart+Start.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">1. Make a heart template.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMazpCXhUIaxjFu3Sj8aDG2OMHwUfVh_xtpdVa6TkpO_3-MZyxSVQlNss7msmqbJrC4_4eOXf84CFJ08SLbu0KjNWxWWIcTLT2AqNWtM1OeqN0JMPhDaMzYmvJk1utYN6xpEQxYeMteVI/s1600/Valentine%2527s+Heart+Shapes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="497" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMazpCXhUIaxjFu3Sj8aDG2OMHwUfVh_xtpdVa6TkpO_3-MZyxSVQlNss7msmqbJrC4_4eOXf84CFJ08SLbu0KjNWxWWIcTLT2AqNWtM1OeqN0JMPhDaMzYmvJk1utYN6xpEQxYeMteVI/s640/Valentine%2527s+Heart+Shapes.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> 2. Trace template onto cardstock. Cut out as many hearts as you want. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWbtqdnqEfGUQbXGK4f5caEcpiJyjkWn8onrZ2S2j08rRMtRcrwab6k4U2Ae0xyPT5b22bTTaqhuciN-wQawOyCusSHxwopLa82ip6cUHBIomBdnpjllBmrt96aeK41qVhVbd7cPXUqnU/s1600/Valentine's+Hearts+Demonstrate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWbtqdnqEfGUQbXGK4f5caEcpiJyjkWn8onrZ2S2j08rRMtRcrwab6k4U2Ae0xyPT5b22bTTaqhuciN-wQawOyCusSHxwopLa82ip6cUHBIomBdnpjllBmrt96aeK41qVhVbd7cPXUqnU/s640/Valentine's+Hearts+Demonstrate.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">3. Make lines using two straight edges - such as leftover cardstock.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk1Qn2ecYUHHaitn3yRWkCgF-kUQ49z5OX2KtQkPZZM4K-Sg20nPx_fXJoOmXfNzFcls1DvRSHxBW-aLnS3OCdxMk16AeD6Mv3kR9zuhdVrCYtn8go2PpuGP6n9giWchvTRJSu88mdkbM/s1600/Valentine%2527s+Heart+Demonstrate+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk1Qn2ecYUHHaitn3yRWkCgF-kUQ49z5OX2KtQkPZZM4K-Sg20nPx_fXJoOmXfNzFcls1DvRSHxBW-aLnS3OCdxMk16AeD6Mv3kR9zuhdVrCYtn8go2PpuGP6n9giWchvTRJSu88mdkbM/s640/Valentine%2527s+Heart+Demonstrate+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">4. Apply glue to the line. The same effect can be created using double-</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">sided tape or scrapbook adhesive.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-cZjlOx88nfRc1vqoBX6zXfUkk3zBR5OG7AZ8RO1Br2QnAwZO4hTc0ku4msVRAN5KZ76Ar9rRY4O9kyzdDeC-qzKCFeE_wKtIO7YNSLgtBErWrPkDOA7PisBceqhAjCQ1-AkCd2O1SHo/s1600/Valentine's+Heart+Glitter+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-cZjlOx88nfRc1vqoBX6zXfUkk3zBR5OG7AZ8RO1Br2QnAwZO4hTc0ku4msVRAN5KZ76Ar9rRY4O9kyzdDeC-qzKCFeE_wKtIO7YNSLgtBErWrPkDOA7PisBceqhAjCQ1-AkCd2O1SHo/s640/Valentine's+Heart+Glitter+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">5. Add glitter.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8CG47UL1cVSNejLaXW6lD69dBP2G3mPDMkDnl1yXOmpW1RQolyBdXnGGUq0OSxHL8sMoeKIcrLHcVc236TJif1LglRUDHrKLnl4pmvvyDZIyY7zDk8DMBGg8C71VUD4DFUquZCrXFoPk/s1600/Valentine%2527s+Heart+Done.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="521" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8CG47UL1cVSNejLaXW6lD69dBP2G3mPDMkDnl1yXOmpW1RQolyBdXnGGUq0OSxHL8sMoeKIcrLHcVc236TJif1LglRUDHrKLnl4pmvvyDZIyY7zDk8DMBGg8C71VUD4DFUquZCrXFoPk/s640/Valentine%2527s+Heart+Done.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">6. Let the hearts dry. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxOJ_HuImDzP_wB8a2HFaU9NF1WjscsBLazAgtY2-nh0CHmKZ5d2QIkj5FQg7QtqCM2O1I79XaNyFBP1KTQeesVUfnyx0YkBimdM9uDTIG6s-CFvV2PF7aqT1IKWs_28WoBvKlnMKcvr4/s1600/Valentine's+Heart+Part+Swoop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxOJ_HuImDzP_wB8a2HFaU9NF1WjscsBLazAgtY2-nh0CHmKZ5d2QIkj5FQg7QtqCM2O1I79XaNyFBP1KTQeesVUfnyx0YkBimdM9uDTIG6s-CFvV2PF7aqT1IKWs_28WoBvKlnMKcvr4/s640/Valentine's+Heart+Part+Swoop.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">7. Hang on a sting or on a pom-pom garland.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-84139760305638833752012-02-11T16:54:00.003-05:002012-02-12T12:00:47.907-05:00It's Curtains for You<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">My master bedroom suffered from a case of the drearies. It has only two windows, a north-facing window, and an east-facing window. Outside both windows is heavily wooded. That makes for a pretty shady room. What makes for an even shadier room are the dark brown roman blinds the previous owner had installed. The room was pretty great for sleeping in, but not so great for the rest of the day. Something needed to change. My HOA says that I can't cut down all the trees on my lot, so it looks like the blinds will have to go. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSFZqkz2bKgV9xa3j_l63febiJXMbJi8a-10oNWubCAlGsTUOPr0hAsCkWvEbUcpGyPj-GjxUEl4bqkpkyMOVXfJMwheWOezC4zkmnBkJznnFsWqYc0s5_iWEbzx6PdnU9GPAmMI1Cw8/s1600/DSCF1449.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSFZqkz2bKgV9xa3j_l63febiJXMbJi8a-10oNWubCAlGsTUOPr0hAsCkWvEbUcpGyPj-GjxUEl4bqkpkyMOVXfJMwheWOezC4zkmnBkJznnFsWqYc0s5_iWEbzx6PdnU9GPAmMI1Cw8/s640/DSCF1449.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Luckily, I spotted this great fabric at a Crate and Barrel Outlet store. It was only $5 a yard! This pattern isn't for the faint of heart, but I love it! I wish I'd gotten more for a tablecloth for the kitchen table. Sadly, my <a href="http://nestledintheeasternwoods.blogspot.com/2012/01/there-is-nothing-wrong-with-your.html" target="_blank">fuchsia table</a><b> </b>will remain naked for the time being. But, my windows are fully clothed! And that's what we're here to talk about today. So, let's get to it.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW32y8TUPxus_ONSmnvipYhHNJDzYVeeNBMkAEs-de-BOcvdoyuRG7716EuIAC5L28TXJevFfx8pvqGXz3OYoMy7-cFnN3NCFb7P8DraN_Z1s7oKIvGCGH2YS6UM6Df7ncSe7GQtqZ_y8/s1600/photo+%2811%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW32y8TUPxus_ONSmnvipYhHNJDzYVeeNBMkAEs-de-BOcvdoyuRG7716EuIAC5L28TXJevFfx8pvqGXz3OYoMy7-cFnN3NCFb7P8DraN_Z1s7oKIvGCGH2YS6UM6Df7ncSe7GQtqZ_y8/s640/photo+%2811%29.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">First, I took down the old shades and threw them away. They were pretty ratty looking, so I didn't donate or sell them. Then, I figured out a good spot for the new curtain rods I got at Target. I placed them 3 inches outside the window molding and 7.5 inches down from the 8 foot ceiling.<b> </b>I don't have a level, so I just measured a couple times and trusted my yard stick.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV0TxqIm19tVTfbky4KCGjcUgj4cNWpckeT_s3Azllji8Gl72ESBFLefj4QfVf62nA0T6aqUds0owcY4b1SG8NCq2jm0TlG5V9TW1An6_XuM1gzClZip456xzVriwnAxSVEGANokzNdPw/s1600/Curtain+Start.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV0TxqIm19tVTfbky4KCGjcUgj4cNWpckeT_s3Azllji8Gl72ESBFLefj4QfVf62nA0T6aqUds0owcY4b1SG8NCq2jm0TlG5V9TW1An6_XuM1gzClZip456xzVriwnAxSVEGANokzNdPw/s640/Curtain+Start.jpg" width="425" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">After I installed the rod, I used iron-on hem tape to make 1 inch hems on each side of the curtain to 'tuck in' the unattractive edges. I also threw a quick 1 inch hem into the top of my curtain to hide the raw edge.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXBdSOPkREGTc8kMPqzqqBwAr67g63drOHyAhufyMq_OPpQ8vLAX1SxWrpLKqYwLgoF5v8lyax1ShuoptwPIlldYUldotAa846iaX6W-gOJpFvMXLo9YZNFT-OpmZbraYOpzmNB7kngwY/s1600/Hemming+Sides.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXBdSOPkREGTc8kMPqzqqBwAr67g63drOHyAhufyMq_OPpQ8vLAX1SxWrpLKqYwLgoF5v8lyax1ShuoptwPIlldYUldotAa846iaX6W-gOJpFvMXLo9YZNFT-OpmZbraYOpzmNB7kngwY/s640/Hemming+Sides.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Then, I used some curtain rings to I hang it up. I measured how long I'd need the curtains to be by folding up the excess at the bottom and placing in a few pins to indicate how long the curtain should be.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoVcC5MpufZvkFDtv7HVeF8Qer80qJ8HuK44UiJIb3mH47K3WLU_GjqP-5wKaek8p4AqodcG8mMBIpn-mIMXOjhkWZsb87vQg1Gpb4kc-Jxr1SShAI22jKjARG5zU9TVxGe15XO3WoMoM/s1600/Curtain+hemming+bottom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoVcC5MpufZvkFDtv7HVeF8Qer80qJ8HuK44UiJIb3mH47K3WLU_GjqP-5wKaek8p4AqodcG8mMBIpn-mIMXOjhkWZsb87vQg1Gpb4kc-Jxr1SShAI22jKjARG5zU9TVxGe15XO3WoMoM/s640/Curtain+hemming+bottom.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Next, I took the curtain down and laid it on my ironing board. The pins ended up being 8 inches from the bottom of the fabric. I didn't want to cut off the excess fabric because I'll probably be taking these to my next home, and I want to be able to adjust the height if need be.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4mduPBzQwmfGivSEUar99HVcx7rZPF2-XBCK_OZfJ6eAxrLACx8mI1O-NAje6bz_WMbl8zl-AfxRrJw5jm_BE_GN2xSzCAgaIKt4IMKQ5nWO7SQ-8VWbzESv8SlafxzkCaqMMeUakI1I/s1600/IMG_7147.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4mduPBzQwmfGivSEUar99HVcx7rZPF2-XBCK_OZfJ6eAxrLACx8mI1O-NAje6bz_WMbl8zl-AfxRrJw5jm_BE_GN2xSzCAgaIKt4IMKQ5nWO7SQ-8VWbzESv8SlafxzkCaqMMeUakI1I/s640/IMG_7147.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">So, I folded over 4 inches and ironed the seam. Then, I folded that over 4 inches and ironed that seam as well. I sewed a line across at the hem to keep everything together. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJyiGJ-Q6D6O-B4IyWDm5px7ULSahz2FGBWF287tmp97WTNuh4BWjRGkG6l36C64utqduCWJcX8-PA5QfgPrwrnHTJT5dhO37pMlxZ3E97NX85oFB6usGnQ95Pec82Vxg_Mfe4diUh5RU/s1600/IMG_7176.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJyiGJ-Q6D6O-B4IyWDm5px7ULSahz2FGBWF287tmp97WTNuh4BWjRGkG6l36C64utqduCWJcX8-PA5QfgPrwrnHTJT5dhO37pMlxZ3E97NX85oFB6usGnQ95Pec82Vxg_Mfe4diUh5RU/s640/IMG_7176.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">After my curtain panel was done, I discovered that it didn't do much in the way of preventing people from looking into my bedroom. Call me old-fashioned, but I'm not the kind of person who enjoys putting on a show for the neighborhood every time I get changed. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Luckily, I had some <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40111992/" target="_blank">Ritva</a> curtains from Ikea waiting in the wings. So, I slapped those bad boys up on the curtain rods to measure how long they should be.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFFlAL58sPtZGzNHBj20XbKHmCdGjVLUpJoGMyYbvBv4QrFz3qcsX53f9Py262kkQ-NL8mzw6YYELWJ8wPiNZa3Bw15YQYole2DbgrVDvSYSDvRUNNRiF8ng7LQDH28s_f3NLBiT_rTZs/s1600/Liner+Beginning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFFlAL58sPtZGzNHBj20XbKHmCdGjVLUpJoGMyYbvBv4QrFz3qcsX53f9Py262kkQ-NL8mzw6YYELWJ8wPiNZa3Bw15YQYole2DbgrVDvSYSDvRUNNRiF8ng7LQDH28s_f3NLBiT_rTZs/s640/Liner+Beginning.jpg" width="425" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">The curtains come with some iron-on hem tape, but I decided not to use it because I don't know if I'll want to alter the length somewhere down the road. So, I hemmed these the same way I did the curtain. Using my folding and pinning method, I discovered my curtains needed to be about 12” shorter. I intentionally made this backing curtain a little shorter than the panel so it wouldn't peak out at the bottom.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIdIiddJeHx5RLNJ7HVzb7HLktsXcdnFM4ER-EueNVijvNIDNL2mJhpTpXUqBprlTumwDPcB3PrUSrKxIep0Xv2U-UAkwv53DcOs_Wrv9Oe9nPiNob4CQ4wzlgnGvAlI8K1IsbfKWMzDk/s1600/IMG_7238.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIdIiddJeHx5RLNJ7HVzb7HLktsXcdnFM4ER-EueNVijvNIDNL2mJhpTpXUqBprlTumwDPcB3PrUSrKxIep0Xv2U-UAkwv53DcOs_Wrv9Oe9nPiNob4CQ4wzlgnGvAlI8K1IsbfKWMzDk/s640/IMG_7238.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">At my ironing table, I folded over 6” at the bottom and ironed, then I folded that over 6 inches and ironed again. Off to the sewing machine for a quick stitch across the bottom, and I was ready for hanging! Well, actually, I was ready to make another curtain for the other window, but then I was ready for hanging!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbbxgasqxQoAEJNznSVCj5aFv2NJivv1PHcyT-Aegva2pLGybwg-9fbDNIYHwIUNJPCuS-R8nt6LxO1ckOr_MVQqJvpREKItxWkITXESFrJQcNvB2LTEPzdP6J2SwMvqJC_TyoT7p6zrw/s1600/Curtains+Done.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbbxgasqxQoAEJNznSVCj5aFv2NJivv1PHcyT-Aegva2pLGybwg-9fbDNIYHwIUNJPCuS-R8nt6LxO1ckOr_MVQqJvpREKItxWkITXESFrJQcNvB2LTEPzdP6J2SwMvqJC_TyoT7p6zrw/s640/Curtains+Done.jpg" width="353" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I think my little curtain making method worked out quite well for me. I'm sure when it comes to whipping up a curtain panel, there's more than one way to skin a cat (what a terrible saying), so use whatever method appeals to you the most. If you don't have a sewing machine, use iron-on hem tape or fabric glue. If, unlike me, you actually know how to use your sewing machine, sew away! </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">And don't get discouraged by fabric prices. It seems like people online are spending upwards of $50 a yard for curtain fabric. That can drain a wallet pretty quickly. Just keep your eyes peeled for fabric, and think outside of the box when it comes to colors and patterns -I'll even show you how to use a tablecloth as a curtain. I live sort of in the sticks, and I frequently come across inexpensive fabric that would make great curtains. This is especially true if you print out or otherwise obtain a 40% coupon to Joann Fabrics or Hobby Lobby. I've read that Joann's will take competitor coupons (like the 40% off coupons from Michael's), but I haven't tried it yet. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Do you have a window that could use a new curtain? </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-55473781958076557012012-02-01T19:55:00.001-05:002012-02-12T12:04:08.569-05:00Painting the Roses Red<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Well, this post has nothing to do with roses or the color red, but it does involve a little painting.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I read <a href="http://www.younghouselove.com/">Young House Love</a>, like the rest of America, and these last couple weeks, the lovable couple that writes the blog started an initiative to get those little projects that they've been putting off done. AKA the <a href="http://www.younghouselove.com/2012/01/a-strange-self-imposed-challenge/">"Dude, Get On That Already" Challenge</a>. So, I thought I'd jump on the bandwagon and give it a try too. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">My biggest area of procrastination is painting. I tend to start projects and then finish them up...months later. I don't mean to brag, but I'm pretty great at procrastinating. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">So, here's how my little project started.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMQT20qBxI9ZDWqLsq7hdSW77fmQhyztFYLx-pyRU10ReB5jQFJiuUCTec4E8TA-cHCVdtjHvbxRBc6QJfv0JOJMx2VJK2ehPzMJT8d5V2sn23fIX086IyRgG7ag5hCI7Nv5VzUY33qlw/s1600/House+Living+room+Kitchen+crop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMQT20qBxI9ZDWqLsq7hdSW77fmQhyztFYLx-pyRU10ReB5jQFJiuUCTec4E8TA-cHCVdtjHvbxRBc6QJfv0JOJMx2VJK2ehPzMJT8d5V2sn23fIX086IyRgG7ag5hCI7Nv5VzUY33qlw/s640/House+Living+room+Kitchen+crop.jpg" width="496" /></a></div><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">This half wall between my living room and kitchen had many large holes that had been patched up quite poorly by the previous owner, and it was an unattractive shade of mustard. I set about to remedy both woes. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">First, I used my electric sander with a fine grit paper to smooth out the patch jobs. Then, I filled in some of the holes that my sander made – oops. Be careful if you ever decide to take your sander to the wall. I am guessing this is something that Bob Villa would not recommend. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQamvgsNKNNcWV7PusA6QazpLOMK58f4UWtTaULV4nBcyur1NZNSQwR7Dl_TLBhks_YWo8tgmT52tjDwYisyQlsA0__5-HPB8UiLVGdE0tFefOU61zlqMJR0hs3KpzD65pa5zdYl8aqyg/s1600/Wall+Behind+TV+Console+July+2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQamvgsNKNNcWV7PusA6QazpLOMK58f4UWtTaULV4nBcyur1NZNSQwR7Dl_TLBhks_YWo8tgmT52tjDwYisyQlsA0__5-HPB8UiLVGdE0tFefOU61zlqMJR0hs3KpzD65pa5zdYl8aqyg/s640/Wall+Behind+TV+Console+July+2011.jpg" width="419" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Then, I rolled some water-based primer over the whole thing and finished up with a couple coats of the wall color. I decided to paint this wall the same color as all the other walls. I like accent walls in other peoples' homes, but for some reason, they don't jive with me in my own house. Go figure.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Here's the end result! I'm still working on painting all the trim white. Given my tendency to put things off, I will have my 'after' pictures available for you in mid to late 2018. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Z9IfweQNquUi36Qi2KuOHag4GavcwtPoH8b8uFuNNnKmfGBdxdFNoGqrDOj2p_VbuCP2Xj2Fq6tcfI0dAZzgkQTqFl8yzthkfZ21KYHTVvmo_wDaZuJy-pQxeG-L0TNHODfp4KljxA8/s1600/Plain+swoop+over+TV.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Z9IfweQNquUi36Qi2KuOHag4GavcwtPoH8b8uFuNNnKmfGBdxdFNoGqrDOj2p_VbuCP2Xj2Fq6tcfI0dAZzgkQTqFl8yzthkfZ21KYHTVvmo_wDaZuJy-pQxeG-L0TNHODfp4KljxA8/s640/Plain+swoop+over+TV.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Do you have any projects you've been putting off? Were you waiting for a little push or reminder to get to it? </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-32839563403293610902012-01-23T22:36:00.001-05:002012-02-12T12:05:02.176-05:00The First Wreath of 2012<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWDLpcXPi4a1TXR5uSz9C6nxGgfvd3JKcIY7mU-5duuJeAfRr-XKdiwn0eQ0igMEk-wgRLZgvm3A-2Djp9iF6HFkTKpa7QuGYKy4D_Z-3IN2qZKIlufjN-w9wImlNwFl5ZnIYoP6XfigY/s1600/photo+%252814%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWDLpcXPi4a1TXR5uSz9C6nxGgfvd3JKcIY7mU-5duuJeAfRr-XKdiwn0eQ0igMEk-wgRLZgvm3A-2Djp9iF6HFkTKpa7QuGYKy4D_Z-3IN2qZKIlufjN-w9wImlNwFl5ZnIYoP6XfigY/s640/photo+%252814%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I saw this wreath in the Sweet Paul magazine, and I thought it was a great idea for a free, diy wreath. So, I picked out some paper and warmed up my scissors for a whole lot of leaf cutting.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcNFagmvXWxttbQhpTGFBSrJ8cFm3RN067L99EcKG3EgoO1Chv8Azind-xC9I_QMgd6BDHyF7izEqlXDxDb7Aq0QiqVXQGj7FvsRtuu0ZIKMcpmuh7Yi8lr2nJOspOGuS8EJEa3uC8wcE/s1600/sweet-paul-wreath.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcNFagmvXWxttbQhpTGFBSrJ8cFm3RN067L99EcKG3EgoO1Chv8Azind-xC9I_QMgd6BDHyF7izEqlXDxDb7Aq0QiqVXQGj7FvsRtuu0ZIKMcpmuh7Yi8lr2nJOspOGuS8EJEa3uC8wcE/s640/sweet-paul-wreath.jpg" width="482" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.sweetpaulmag-digital.com/sweetpaulmag/winter2011#pg120">Sweet Paul</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures while I was putting the wreath together. Luckily, this is a very simple project that you can probably do a number of ways. Here's how I put mine together. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Step one:</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Select your paper. I laid out a few different color schemes based on the paper I already had. I thought these blues with white were wintery. Plus, my 24 pack of Martha Stewart glitter has all these colors.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Step two:</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Make a template leaf. Figure out the size and shape you'd like.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Step three:</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Either trace out your leaf template 40 or 50 time, or just do it the way I did (aka the impatient method) and use the template as a cutting guide. I held the template on the paper to be cut in one hand and cut around the template using my scissors in the other hand. It worked out surprisingly well. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Step four:</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Add glitter to some or all of the leaves. This step is optional, of course, but come on, you know you want to. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsSWUDZGu18HstZdPysTskInxwOPb7fMCa9m8vp3Vpz-wV_mCjoXNVM7zwPWXy5KQyH4t99wvj198jzENnXiG9Zzlgb4XMQeCvZcmm-JrkD34CpRXmE1aeCKtBk9y2xUBz9n5mMB0F8bU/s1600/photo+%252812%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsSWUDZGu18HstZdPysTskInxwOPb7fMCa9m8vp3Vpz-wV_mCjoXNVM7zwPWXy5KQyH4t99wvj198jzENnXiG9Zzlgb4XMQeCvZcmm-JrkD34CpRXmE1aeCKtBk9y2xUBz9n5mMB0F8bU/s640/photo+%252812%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Step five:</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Buy a cardboard wreath form or cut one out of an old box. I opted for the latter. My wreath is almost a foot in diameter, for reference.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Step six:</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Once the glitter is dry on your leaves, use your glue gun or school glue or whatever you have on hand to start putting down leaves. My method was to glue down the first leaf just at the 'base' of the leaf (the opposite of the pointy side of the leaf), then I tucked the next leaf under the first one to hide the 'base' of the second leaf. I just alternated colors, angles and glittering of the leaves as I went around. When I had my wreath filled in, I went back and secured the tips of the leaves with a little more glue. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Step seven:</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Glue a ribbon to the back of the wreath form to hang it. Voila! An inexpensive treat for you to see every time you walk in your front door – or wherever you decide to hang it.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Isn't Mother Nature great? We've had hardly any snow at all this winter, but she sent down a few flurries just in time for this picture. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN5MRjaT9mqwWWZzCMeA7JC_whjnS5Y8CK0D-2ISB-wwpt_0Rkvjp1PApXRvOh6fXGHabuClX4L8zIs2sLA3bDSQli9sXIjMimhZQ0MMsYm1l_nNOr4r2rOTuZyAlRy6r9dZz6g0WDGI8/s1600/photo+%252815%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN5MRjaT9mqwWWZzCMeA7JC_whjnS5Y8CK0D-2ISB-wwpt_0Rkvjp1PApXRvOh6fXGHabuClX4L8zIs2sLA3bDSQli9sXIjMimhZQ0MMsYm1l_nNOr4r2rOTuZyAlRy6r9dZz6g0WDGI8/s640/photo+%252815%2529.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-33836001835188740392012-01-19T15:44:00.002-05:002012-02-12T12:05:22.479-05:00There is nothing wrong with your computer screen. Do not attempt to adjust the picture.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPKAlwknsDp3pf94OdndZ4y9LlBGQ_yKpj7g1PJkChykDdNhyphenhyphenDB1hn-sXJ8l47SpIERdp8M2Nxfk7Of5HeZJijNm_5jS2IsLGW3PD6rmrpeFzQNme8a7KlMt7UX-ycdUAdNEL5xWfFlLs/s1600/pink+table+take+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPKAlwknsDp3pf94OdndZ4y9LlBGQ_yKpj7g1PJkChykDdNhyphenhyphenDB1hn-sXJ8l47SpIERdp8M2Nxfk7Of5HeZJijNm_5jS2IsLGW3PD6rmrpeFzQNme8a7KlMt7UX-ycdUAdNEL5xWfFlLs/s640/pink+table+take+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Yes, I am painting my table hot pink! Actually, it's more of a magenta, but in the tray, it looks neon pink. I'm pretty excited! I've been wanting to paint my table pink for a while. My (totally awesome and laid back) husband gave me the go-ahead when I first came up with the idea, but I got stuck in a bit of hand-wringing over the decision. I bought this table at a garage sale almost two years ago with the intention of painting it, but I could never decide on the right color. Then one day, I saw a picture from a television makeover show where they painted the dining room table the hottest of hot pinks, and I was in love. </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGIPaI5UdB78zeV16geM5pHauTMmb2Z4W2IAwdZuFYlhyphenhyphenRL1qeDYd67ZjUX3GigMENA4vB6dRgxetho0ADujb3UUfKEA4Dp95to1QS2QNk8jk9T9CcOOHZwYsMnfZl286HiJqtF5c_NjE/s1600/6a00d8341c6a0853ef014e600c7401970c-800wi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="348" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGIPaI5UdB78zeV16geM5pHauTMmb2Z4W2IAwdZuFYlhyphenhyphenRL1qeDYd67ZjUX3GigMENA4vB6dRgxetho0ADujb3UUfKEA4Dp95to1QS2QNk8jk9T9CcOOHZwYsMnfZl286HiJqtF5c_NjE/s640/6a00d8341c6a0853ef014e600c7401970c-800wi.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Unknown - Sorry!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">But, who has a pink table? Nobody I know – so I waited. And waited. And waited. But, I never found another color I got excited about, so I said 'why not?' and took the plunge. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Now, at the very least, I won't be lying on my deathbed many years from now, wondering what it would have been like to have a bright magenta table. I might regret this decision somewhere down the line, but at least I'll have taken a chance. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I'll post the pictures as soon as I finish up! This color is going to need a lot of coats before it comes out right, so stay tuned. </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj41khTlSqQ7R0CbhiSZ_xfKnZUiw5VM7CPtS1aOlVAz8c1ehmDXYNz62T3W4C31ihP8ta0iTaDKdvuftsHUFFwQFtLc9aJaSBoQjBVyFjtvOm0GEozS4I1dQ33QzCosBxy8gVR0ztnQzY/s1600/il_570xN.281434570+-+etsy+-lisa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj41khTlSqQ7R0CbhiSZ_xfKnZUiw5VM7CPtS1aOlVAz8c1ehmDXYNz62T3W4C31ihP8ta0iTaDKdvuftsHUFFwQFtLc9aJaSBoQjBVyFjtvOm0GEozS4I1dQ33QzCosBxy8gVR0ztnQzY/s400/il_570xN.281434570+-+etsy+-lisa.jpg" width="318" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/84742839/the-biggest-mistake-inspirational-wall?ref=sr_gallery_1&sref=&ga_search_submit=&ga_search_query=biggest+mistake&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_ship_to=US&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade">Etsy - Lisa</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: x-small;"><br />
</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-37599640228407452372011-11-01T21:44:00.000-04:002011-11-01T21:44:35.876-04:00It's Raining Acorns!<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Tonight, as I was setting the table, I noticed something was missing. Things were looking a little Christmas-y with the red plates and red napkins, so I whipped up a quick, last-minute addition to the table, some fall-inspired napkin rings. I got the idea from the Queen of Crafts herself.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZu3wv3Y19St-NjXLr4V88-Fqfrujz3PsVsLBw0Aqt-Cj1zc9XZ_5UZpklIgMoruboAR__qWGcySr9dAljHpInRzBif3eFeEygYTJTTKmPgfcHPDoQWXAgyL3yLELCPArzljdPz9Uw164/s1600/mla103704_1108_napkintie_xl+Martha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZu3wv3Y19St-NjXLr4V88-Fqfrujz3PsVsLBw0Aqt-Cj1zc9XZ_5UZpklIgMoruboAR__qWGcySr9dAljHpInRzBif3eFeEygYTJTTKmPgfcHPDoQWXAgyL3yLELCPArzljdPz9Uw164/s320/mla103704_1108_napkintie_xl+Martha.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.marthastewart.com/274251/thanksgiving-table-settings/@center/276949/everything-thanksgiving#/272681">Martha</a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">The hardest part was collecting the acorns – not because there is a shortage of trees here in Maryland, but because my silly dog kept finding them first and eating them. She's our little Truffle Pig. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKqOpJ5iraOoYPw9SkbQNKlUL2ZZd_nl6TzZ5bWhcX2z1ZmPRnnVGGzEedAGv3YEp7HLTYaZD_veQfDgG7ZMILcfhtQRDH_JxMZi93l39HIqRVA9McC6fbebQnfWRIlr_hn1iLuPJFX-Y/s1600/IMG_2887.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKqOpJ5iraOoYPw9SkbQNKlUL2ZZd_nl6TzZ5bWhcX2z1ZmPRnnVGGzEedAGv3YEp7HLTYaZD_veQfDgG7ZMILcfhtQRDH_JxMZi93l39HIqRVA9McC6fbebQnfWRIlr_hn1iLuPJFX-Y/s320/IMG_2887.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Luckily, I had the acorns that I collected last fall ready and waiting. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbGd6XKk62x3FFW9MnG0S_rQAnOK2hUFFltv5JuzVhYfkZE0ysFEzoR8qyY36kA72mYhCfsmuuDM5k-PWhMmXjkGCI6NX9CYaY9bTUZDnDTm5yDd68auuYHR-e7x45b5Lp49M07TRT8G8/s1600/IMG_6709.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbGd6XKk62x3FFW9MnG0S_rQAnOK2hUFFltv5JuzVhYfkZE0ysFEzoR8qyY36kA72mYhCfsmuuDM5k-PWhMmXjkGCI6NX9CYaY9bTUZDnDTm5yDd68auuYHR-e7x45b5Lp49M07TRT8G8/s320/IMG_6709.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">All I had to do was glue the little acorns into their “hats”. They must have all fallen out when they dried out over the summer. Then, I just glued the end of the ribbon to the back of the acorns. Couldn't be easier.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi98raHUPx4LRaUTUE7lkWbiFcM4vc74jl3MqeSK80XrzpEHtAZLD6CBEm-XBCeVpI4iGeVM-0TcvJsNSBvz4inkmX5IPCacsFQ16ezDpq2nKifz44wGt3CJlHZ1mnwxWfmwS5asYJ1eu0/s1600/IMG_6718.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi98raHUPx4LRaUTUE7lkWbiFcM4vc74jl3MqeSK80XrzpEHtAZLD6CBEm-XBCeVpI4iGeVM-0TcvJsNSBvz4inkmX5IPCacsFQ16ezDpq2nKifz44wGt3CJlHZ1mnwxWfmwS5asYJ1eu0/s320/IMG_6718.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">A neat variation would be to paint the nut part of the acorn gold before attaching to the ribbon. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCZC1Ns7zMzWUrqWZdA9e29E3IJKeKEIbqU5XEcfgceDgpR4V_KrU0scLTY6UURHx4eSxJtOJH63kgQQze9y8eQ0AKOzKdHP0NC6jFTjNRvaZR7rdLrZ4Cc9qXCOWqc-gLXf8U-xhrmCg/s1600/gac_final+Gold+Acorn+Design+Sponge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCZC1Ns7zMzWUrqWZdA9e29E3IJKeKEIbqU5XEcfgceDgpR4V_KrU0scLTY6UURHx4eSxJtOJH63kgQQze9y8eQ0AKOzKdHP0NC6jFTjNRvaZR7rdLrZ4Cc9qXCOWqc-gLXf8U-xhrmCg/s320/gac_final+Gold+Acorn+Design+Sponge.jpg" width="288" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.designsponge.com/2010/10/diy-project-gilded-acorn-charms.html">Design*Sponge</a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">Shiny! </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-8833018532746344702011-07-01T21:46:00.004-04:002012-01-19T15:59:10.989-05:00Happy Fourth of July!!Happy Fourth of July, everyone!<br />
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I just wanted to show my festive "wreath" for the holiday. I was bored one day, and I decided to dress up the door. We've had a wreath hook hanging on the door since Christmas without anything hanging from it, so I used what I had on hand to make something fun and festive.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ5hU3qL_ITLkVA8nf44ToNgEwvI6zZHN2zwOuxdQyQzyQRAaszZQFF2YRjlSAp7nodM_VDPCw8Wv1z4-_O0Gru8feC1_x5QcwCvkGKd_SY74fDkWWJ9fsCA_CAx4j7kpixKWNiv_nuoo/s1600/4th+Door+Wreath+2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ5hU3qL_ITLkVA8nf44ToNgEwvI6zZHN2zwOuxdQyQzyQRAaszZQFF2YRjlSAp7nodM_VDPCw8Wv1z4-_O0Gru8feC1_x5QcwCvkGKd_SY74fDkWWJ9fsCA_CAx4j7kpixKWNiv_nuoo/s640/4th+Door+Wreath+2011.jpg" width="428" /></a></div><br />
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First, I traced and cut out three circles from a cereal box. Then I hot-glued two pieces together to make an extra sturdy base to glue the 'spokes' of the wreath to. I used ordinary wooden skewers to make the starburst - I just eyeballed the placement of the skewers and used a lot of hot glue to keep them in place. Next came the 3rd piece of cardboard to hide my spokes, and then everything (including a good chunk of my lawn) got a coat of white spray paint. Next, I punched out a bunch of red, white, pink and blue circles and arranged them on the spokes to get the positioning right. Then, a dab of hot glue on the back of each circle secured it in place. Lastly, I glued some ribbon on the back. Voila! A super easy and free wreath! I'm tempted to just swap out the paper circles to different colors for other holidays. We'll see. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtz3-D9PnZAr3vlenXq_f7h7ezQ7zE7dXDjRFRRST_Gi_ofUBQSJXCuwsHSp823Nek-Ah8Q5p5lLS0ByvlGUYnDUe1DrQFBWeaksQd38tCFelVnjrD1FMlJ2Eum_XfXV3LCWXinFqc7do/s1600/4th+of+July+Wreath+2011b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtz3-D9PnZAr3vlenXq_f7h7ezQ7zE7dXDjRFRRST_Gi_ofUBQSJXCuwsHSp823Nek-Ah8Q5p5lLS0ByvlGUYnDUe1DrQFBWeaksQd38tCFelVnjrD1FMlJ2Eum_XfXV3LCWXinFqc7do/s400/4th+of+July+Wreath+2011b.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
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PS I totally didn't notice Lena's earless bunny, squeaky toy that's been sitting on our front stoop for who knows how long (it's the light blue lump right in front of the bird house). Oops - maybe I should go grab that.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3335605599930907294.post-24195059366762969952011-01-16T14:56:00.001-05:002011-01-16T14:59:58.257-05:00A Tour!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Hello! I thought I'd start things off with a quick tour of our house. The first picture shows what our house looks like in mid-April. The azaleas are beautiful in the spring! We moved in a month after this picture was taken. Unfortunately, not too many flowers after April, but that shouldn't be too hard to fix.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3nws9BuHPZnPRJhEOeL77zqOIWtQMUR9e77XacNTzlZx9LxL_wcqQykiL4nBQQOM9DGPMzzESSrbfXCDsK-mmnSHJjt3ju0FqNB6m2Wuzpyb25H7-sGSbnENEO2IouFL9ORQqAnf1Gsc/s1600/House+Front.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3nws9BuHPZnPRJhEOeL77zqOIWtQMUR9e77XacNTzlZx9LxL_wcqQykiL4nBQQOM9DGPMzzESSrbfXCDsK-mmnSHJjt3ju0FqNB6m2Wuzpyb25H7-sGSbnENEO2IouFL9ORQqAnf1Gsc/s400/House+Front.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> This picture is our kitchen. All the appliances are white, except the stove is stainless steel. I'm not sure the reasoning behind that, but it is a nice stove.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivzvuhS3WY0doX0WQgBa4xFmeBeXxkE9BPZod-k2UvRcI4P0IGtx1dukTetZaxCJzUrNxcSVFjDoQAu4RxQln1mjfkg-1nFG2ryw9yJViT5IPSyU4OJ7nqsjmUbhWF6vf8DEGU1tycdyo/s1600/House+Kitchen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivzvuhS3WY0doX0WQgBa4xFmeBeXxkE9BPZod-k2UvRcI4P0IGtx1dukTetZaxCJzUrNxcSVFjDoQAu4RxQln1mjfkg-1nFG2ryw9yJViT5IPSyU4OJ7nqsjmUbhWF6vf8DEGU1tycdyo/s320/House+Kitchen.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Here you can see our beautiful vaulted ceiling. I'm standing in the hallway that leads to the bedrooms. On my immediate right is an eating area by the kitchen and a sliding glass door to the backyard. On my left is the living room and front door.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWHuKBcVyKc1j48ONTTIzWtuWLmZcJOhrEg5k_uMA-pSXKtneEeCu3M9bHBquDl4h_80J9PHGz0TfCMB2Mtx_0FeEAQ_Q5Aasz0qM_eSDZ8_mBvoJvT4Nq0QC3q2yfLo3tdDM0YwhkDvk/s1600/House+Living+room+Kitchen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWHuKBcVyKc1j48ONTTIzWtuWLmZcJOhrEg5k_uMA-pSXKtneEeCu3M9bHBquDl4h_80J9PHGz0TfCMB2Mtx_0FeEAQ_Q5Aasz0qM_eSDZ8_mBvoJvT4Nq0QC3q2yfLo3tdDM0YwhkDvk/s320/House+Living+room+Kitchen.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> The living room looking to the front of the house. I love those windows! That's my car, Mordecai.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipDqI2T7GyDxmifmQ4cZz3jE6gU64itPsMGiXXLOUwUbO0Pne_HdBoujkO9u8wH3vdmslBlAG8zQjjDWNsHfwriUdNOS4ZaN_uQAE-lavdkNeydDMkUVibduKLa-B5YUnSPWnJqJoUGBQ/s1600/DSCF1439.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipDqI2T7GyDxmifmQ4cZz3jE6gU64itPsMGiXXLOUwUbO0Pne_HdBoujkO9u8wH3vdmslBlAG8zQjjDWNsHfwriUdNOS4ZaN_uQAE-lavdkNeydDMkUVibduKLa-B5YUnSPWnJqJoUGBQ/s320/DSCF1439.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> Looking to the back of the house from the front door. You can see a kitchen cabinet peaking out by the sliding door, and the hallway to the bedrooms is on the right. You can see the door is open to the laundry room in the hallway.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0VVOVRbyM0C0fQP5lvPRS1E6f_0rUIUUiqHasTcgibjyu8MPqutUHMEK8d2J6129oJTxw9mO0YRLxdMrvnWDsGKeL0ZZHINjC0_gpIJ3-bqnBKTB2NYk3pab5zz0Cn9EjPxw11Bkde94/s1600/DSCF1442.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0VVOVRbyM0C0fQP5lvPRS1E6f_0rUIUUiqHasTcgibjyu8MPqutUHMEK8d2J6129oJTxw9mO0YRLxdMrvnWDsGKeL0ZZHINjC0_gpIJ3-bqnBKTB2NYk3pab5zz0Cn9EjPxw11Bkde94/s320/DSCF1442.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Hallway guest bath. It's builder-grade 1980's all the way in there, except the yellow linoleum has been covered with peel-and-stick, "slate" tiles.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO6l3sHM72FYjzpaeYBK8D7516wdEA6OlqdvFybf4kTxwrGgKKkuwI4yJG0FVOgujlhmTGgDP1ihnKXvR1KGCq-Wnr7TQWuc-QI_PuAlMi4CGdPEIczsxQkJRBjQ9YctB_oMC74yM0im4/s1600/DSCF1435.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO6l3sHM72FYjzpaeYBK8D7516wdEA6OlqdvFybf4kTxwrGgKKkuwI4yJG0FVOgujlhmTGgDP1ihnKXvR1KGCq-Wnr7TQWuc-QI_PuAlMi4CGdPEIczsxQkJRBjQ9YctB_oMC74yM0im4/s320/DSCF1435.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> We have three bedrooms that all look very similar. This is the master bedroom with an attached bath. It is a little larger than the other two.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQsIZsao014QKaLxbDXt4dTV8f3BO-s8WFsgoKv-mhN9GsU-O4EV_7NRyjgEmPxWGLlG8KaVKPAqPvhb0sIK2AVoKYyVvkp-VBFZ4t-vcR2oSAbvPgzbVfWmxTWVzIY371JLsj-6B8QBk/s1600/DSCF1450.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQsIZsao014QKaLxbDXt4dTV8f3BO-s8WFsgoKv-mhN9GsU-O4EV_7NRyjgEmPxWGLlG8KaVKPAqPvhb0sIK2AVoKYyVvkp-VBFZ4t-vcR2oSAbvPgzbVfWmxTWVzIY371JLsj-6B8QBk/s320/DSCF1450.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Here the master bathroom is the exact same as the guest bathroom. The only differences are: this lovely medicine cabinet and a window behind the door on the right.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw4skvbLfMYKEUhIcOTVEEsDvmmvxaumXRzLC1NyIjDyw05axk7_B8V0o3UF5DkmFTr6XyZbFk2FkAq1cxrvfCvtpB85yIvPjoyfxXLIJx39L4c8pwhUqyhhaRMFYmRsz3QbUdK_3ebdQ/s1600/DSCF1437.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw4skvbLfMYKEUhIcOTVEEsDvmmvxaumXRzLC1NyIjDyw05axk7_B8V0o3UF5DkmFTr6XyZbFk2FkAq1cxrvfCvtpB85yIvPjoyfxXLIJx39L4c8pwhUqyhhaRMFYmRsz3QbUdK_3ebdQ/s320/DSCF1437.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> And, last but not least, the backyard. It's small and covered in woods, but very pretty to look out at from the back windows. That's Hubby checking the place out. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgveaJ3w0fBKVaNvh9hLLvsHsl-2R-Xf4lSxAMbwBYE4hfIB2BVf1Zf3sWl1-owvDOWEyVkZb0QKa-IfUoEE9DTFvbhDM4rDyBoPH_zfAI3JV-AsDncDM4w_ETvC8afU7UtznV_EAq3Vu8/s1600/DSCF1456.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgveaJ3w0fBKVaNvh9hLLvsHsl-2R-Xf4lSxAMbwBYE4hfIB2BVf1Zf3sWl1-owvDOWEyVkZb0QKa-IfUoEE9DTFvbhDM4rDyBoPH_zfAI3JV-AsDncDM4w_ETvC8afU7UtznV_EAq3Vu8/s320/DSCF1456.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">And there you have it; this is what we started with, now let's see where we end up!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0