Hi again!

So I've been a little lax in posting anything. I've been busy, in addition to Christmas and all of the handmade presents we gave out- that I made- I finally graduated with my bachelors degree in Art. Only took about 20 years too. Other than those I also did some commission work this Christmas, getting paid means your a real artist right? Even if it is your sister? Anyhoo here are a couple of the pantings I did.

"Fatty"

"Izzy"

Money Saving Monday!

Here's an idea for you, do nothing! Our culture seems to be so focused on getting the latest gadget, seeing the newest movie, hitting the hippest club, the new whatever that we don't always take the time to just be. So take a nap, cuddle with a loved one and watch a movie you already own, turn on the radio and dance, visit your grandma if your lucky enough to have her around. See how nice it can be!

Money Saving Monday #3

A Home Garden

Again, while not exactly earth shattering this is an idea that is underutilized. Now is the time to start dreaming about what to plant next growing season. It doesn't have to be anything exotic, plant what you know you and your family will eat. Having your kids help and see the results growing in their own yard is also a great way to get them to love veggies. This summer I planted peas and didn't get to eat hardly any as every time we went in the backyard my girls stood begging for any on the vine (we nicknamed it baby crack), and although my 5 yr old wants nothing to do with tomatoes in the house she will stand with her 18 month old sister and shove grape tomatoes into her mouth as fast as they can pick them! We also regularly get volunteer tomato plants because I'm too lazy to pick up fallen or rotted tomatoes so sometimes being lazy pays off! We made these beds out of scrap lumber from our shed and only bought a couple packets of cheap seeds and a few starter plants, I'd say well worth the cost and effort even if much of our haul never made it inside.

66 Days!

Ack! Only 66 days until christmas!

 Even if I do one present a day I will never have them all done. What on earth have I been doing all year?

Money Saving Monday

The Clothesline

My sister came over to my house and immediately said "Is your dryer broke?"

  Now I know this is not a new or earth shattering idea, but not enough people use this terrific way to dry your clothes. The dryer uses more energy than almost any appliance in your home (anything that heats up generally uses alot of energy) and the sun is free. I live in Michigan where the weather isn't always predicable and line drying is only practical for a portion of the year, but when it is we put our laundry out. Not only is it cheap but your clothes smell great and the sun is a great whitener and stain remover and I'm not setting those stains in the dryer because I didn't see them the first time around!

Money Saving Monday!

Money saving Mondays!

So here is a little money saving tip. This looks like cheap dollar store window cleaner, right. Well it is, sort of. I worked in custom framing for many moons and we used ALOT of glass cleaner, but we didn't buy it- we made it. Just buy a cheap spray bottle ( or use one you already have) and fill almost to the top with water. Add a drop of dishsoap and about 5 or so capfuls of rubbing alcohol. That's it, the watered down soap cleans the window and the alcohol dries it. Happy cleaning!

Mama's got a brand new bag!

    A couple of years ago I decided I was going to learn how to sew, so I went and bought a few purse patterns and some cheap fabric and began playing. I knew the basics of sewing since my grandmother had taught me many years before but still had to look at my manual every time I tried to tread my machine. Well, I cutout those patterns and sewed and tore out stitches and resewed and eventually made a couple of bags that looked kind of like the picture on the front of the pattern. Then I saw a couple of bags that fellow bloggers had designed and thought, I could do that! So now I've been making my own purses and diaper bags for several years now and I don't follow any kind of pattern, I just make it up as I go along. This way sewing is much more enjoyable and I'm not always trying to figure out what someone else was trying to explain, poorly I might add, but figuring out how to make it work myself . Although I have had some epic failures most things have turned out better than I expected, of course maybe I just have really low expectations of myself! lol

So, that took awhile

Posting again has taken longer than I expected, or really pretty much what I thought would happen. This is why I didn't start a blog 3 years ago when I first started following them. I kept thinking that I would do it when I started to learn more about computers or had more time, but I guess the only way to really do this is to just do it!

So I've been working on some projects but haven't taken any pictures of them. They would have made good posts too. Even as I was taking them apart and putting them together I kept thinking I should be taking pictures, anyway I promise to have something soon and I will leave with a picture and a comic book featuring my girls.

Hi

Well, hello there!
Here's my first venture into the big bad world of blogging. I intend to make posts about things that make me happy. Hence the name, clever I know. Well hopefully I'll figure all this out!