In His Grip

Possums, Mice, and Snakes, Oh My!

This has been a week of rodents in and around the homes in our family.  Last week Ryan kept complaining about an awful odor in his house that turned into a literal stink.  His little farm house has one of those old time cellars that have the doors that open from the ground like you see in horror movies.  There was no way he was going down there to check out the smell, too many scary movie scenes came to his mind when you are, thinking DO NOT GO DOWN THERE.  Well, he called the home owner and they had someone "go down there" and found a possum had crawled into one of his ducts and died.  Ewwwh!  Then Jeff saw a mouse in the garage and put out some poison.  Now we have dead mice in the garage and they are starting to stink.  To top it all off, on Sunday when we came home from church there was a snake sunny itself just outside the garage door and as soon as we got close he found his way into a small opening between the garage door and the cement.  When we opened the door there were two snakes.  Now I am a little freaked out to go out in the garage, I don't do well with rodents.  I am ready for a good hard freeze and for all of these critters to eat the poison and hurry up and quite smelling up my garage and by all means DO NOT COME IN MY HOUSE!

Fun Halloween Gift Box

Here is another of my trash to treasure crafts.  I took this drink holder and put a coat of spray paint on it to cover the labels.  I used a tan color and only had to do two coats to cover the writing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I than added a ruffle of fabric that I cut with pinking shears.  The fabric was 2" strip and then I ran a large basting stitch and pulled the string to make the ruffle.  Using my trusty hot glue gun, I attached the ruffle to the top of the box.

 

 

 

 

 

I then took 1" strips of paper that I purchased at the dollar spot at Target, and sewed them with a zig zag stitch overlapping them slightly.  I just kept adding 1" strips until they were wide enough to cover the sides of the box.  Again, the handy dandy hot glue gun helped me attached them to the sides of the box.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I then cut circles with my Cricut and put the tag board letters, also purchased at the dollar spot at Target, on them.  To give them a little dimension I attached them to the box with adhesive foam squares.  The tag was also cut with my Cricut and the pumpkin was part of the tag board letter set.  Add some curly ribbon and you have a great gift box. That cost next to nothing.

Pitt State Family Day

This past weekend we spent Saturday at Pittsburg State University for family day.  I cannot believe this will be the last family day at Pitt State where we will actually be considered "family".  This is Lindsey's senior year and from now on we can all attend as just alumni as both Jeff and I went to Pitt State as well, go Gorillas!!!!!!  I just love the atmosphere of a college campus on game day.  I think because it takes me back to when I was a college student and maybe just for a minute I can pretend that I am a student too.  And then reality hits, and again I am reminded that I am a mom of a college student, and two college students at that, with one that graduated a couple of years ago, yikes, we are getting old. 

 

Fall Front Proch

Here is my current front porch.  I am looking forward to changing the screen door for the glass door so you can see my great fall wreath better.  But with the way the weather is, I love the fresh air that the screen door provides.  The pumpkin topiaries are ones that I made several years ago and spiffed them up a bit last year, but I still think that they need something else.  I am not sure what they need but they are just not right. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is the bench that has sat on our front porch for 20 years now.  Jeff and his dad built it for me when we had no furniture in our house.  I had a cushion on it with pillows.  But as soon as we had a front porch, this is where it has lived.  I have to keep things on it or someone might notice how rotten it is.  I mean seriously, there are mushrooms growing out of the seat of it.  That might be attributed to the fact that I always have pots or baskets with flowers in them sitting on it so it stays wet pretty much all the time.  And here you see the mums that.   are always on that bench in the Fall.  Can you see the amber one.  Why is it I can keep the other colors looking good, but my amber mums always look sad?   Maybe amber mums don't like to sit on rotten benches, just wondering?

Three Word Thursday

Road less taken

From $3 Garage Sale Find to Style

I purchased this chair at a garage sale a month or so ago for $3.  I know not a dumpster dive that I am used to but I thought for $3 dollar, not too bad.  If you look closely there is small tear in the seat, so I knew that I would be recovering the cushions.

 

Once again out comes my colonial red spray paint by Rust-Oleum.  I really like this color!  It works in a number of rooms of my home, but most of all it has become the main color of my studio.  I then sand a little of it off to give it a little bit of character.

To recover a piece I always remove the current fabric.  It makes the final fabric lay much nicer and you use the different parts as pattern pieces for cutting out the new fabric.

You will want to be careful when removing the seams so that the pieces can remain in the same shape to make the most accurate pattern possible.  This, at times, can be very gross, as who knows where this furniture has been.

I found a scrape of this fun toile type design in my studio and knew that it would be perfect for this chair makeover.  Sewing the pieces back together is the fun part as your new piece of furniture begins to emerge. 

One more garage sale find that was taken from junk to a stylish little chair that is now in my studio next to my other dumpster dive makeover chair.

Easy Apple Crisp

I would not call myself a "good" cook but I do like to make "good" food.  Some people like to cook gourmet, things that take a lot of skill.  My specialty happens to be good food made easy.  In fact, one of my favorite web sites is called Dinner Made Easy by Betty Crocker.  In light of the Autumn season and the abundance of good apples around, we made this Easy Apple Crisp for dinner Sunday night.  I found this recipe on the Tasty Kitchen website another of my favorites.  Can you tell that I really like that swirlly brush on my PhotoShop?

Jo's Old Fashioned Apple Crisp 

8 cups Apples, Half Cortland, Half McIntosh

½ cups Butter (no Substitute)

½ cups Sugar

½ cups Flour

2 Tablespoons Cinnamon

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Use a pie dish. 10″ deep dish works best for one this size. Peel and core apples, layering them alternately, Cortland- McIntosh, until all apples are in the dish. Soften butter slightly and mix with the sugar and flour until crumbly. Sprinkle cinnamon, more or less than specified amount according to your taste, over the layered apples. Pour the crumbly butter-sugar-flour mix over that. Put in the hot oven for 30 to 45 minutes, checking with a knife. It should easily go into the deepest part and come out clean. Cool, or eat while still warm. Serve plain, with real whipped cream, or ice cream.

Unbelievable School Spirit!

On Friday night, Jeff and I attended the Gardner High School football game.  Never before have we experienced a high school football game with so much team spirit.  Not only was everyone dressed in blue, but we even saw adults with their hair painted blue, oh, and one was a co-worker of Jeff's, ha,ha.  There were 230 elementary school girls there to cheer along with the cheerleaders for the 1st quarter and they were all sporting their "Raise Her a Blazer" t-shirts. Before you entered the stadium there was the booster club selling Gardner Blazer gear, 50/50 tickets, and thunder sticks.  Okay, then you enter the stadium. You can't help but notice the large blowup in one of the end-zones.  As the excitement of the game heightens, you see the team start to enter the field, but before they do they all fit inside the blowup and   as smoke starts to billow out of the large football helmet the teams bursts out.  It was the best team entrance that I have ever seen at a high school game.  If you want to get the experience of a small town totally behind their football team check out a home Garden High School game. 

More Fall Harvest Things I Love

Here are some more shapes of Fall that I love.  And look how fancy I got with PhotoShop.  I am still learning but I love playing with the different brushes.  I just download a couple of new ones and wanted to try them out.  This is a metal basket that I have just filled with gourds, apples, mini pumpkins and look one lone lemon that I will be using in some tea later.  Have a great Saturday!!!

Apples are a Great Part of Fall!

There are just things about Fall that I love.  One of them happens to be apples.  I really like the colors and shape of them, but most of all the crisp sound when you bite into a fresh apple has to be the best.  I happen to be partial to the green variety, Granny Smith being my favs.  A crisp Granny Smith with that little bit of sour and then sprinkled with a smidgen of salt.  Wow, what a healthy snack.  In the Fall, you can always find a container of apples in our home as a centerpiece.  But, this is a decoration that anyone is welcome to take one and enjoy.  This long narrow wood box happens to be one the treasures that I picked up at Nell Hills a couple of weeks ago.  They came in several different colors and sizes.  Maybe, I should go back and get a square red one, hmmm?  I love how it looks filled with the harvest of Autumn.

Three Word Thrusday

In a group?

Monogram Fall Wreath

With the cooler weather, I am getting into the Fall season.  I spent the last day or two getting our house into the harvest feeling.  When you enter our home there is no doubt what time of year it is.  I am a little partial to Fall decorations, I am not sure if it is the bright orange, amber, and gold colors or the shape of a pumpkins and sunflowers that I fancy.  But I do like Autumn.  I was inspired by a blog that I saw some time ago with a wreath that featured a large letter in the middle and thought that I would make one for our door for Fall.

Here are the supplies that I used.  I purchased them all at JoAnn Fabrics for 50% off!

This is what the "S" looked like as I painted a nice chocolate brown.

I am no floral designer I just cut the flower stems apart and just start hot gluing things down.  I have to say, I am never sure when I am finished and just try to remember that less is more thing.

Here is a close up of the "S".  Sorry the picture is not the greatest.  After painting it brown I used a metallic gold paint pen and just kind of doodled on it.  If you have ever been with me when I am taking notes of any kind this doodling is all over my notes. Then I sealed it with clear spray.

Participating in: Domestically Speaking: For the Love of Wreaths

Full House to Empty House Again

With Ryan moving back to Kansas City this past Spring and the girls home from school for the Summer, we had a full house.  It was fun having all three of the kids around, to occasionally have a meal together like in the old days and all the activity that comes with young adults sure kept the place hopping.  Last month, the girls both went back to their respective schools and Ryan found a cute little old farm house that he moved into this weekend.  His house is just a couple of miles south of us in the country with the highlight of the property being that he will have access to his neighbor's farm pond.  Needless to say, we spent the weekend helping him clean and move into his place.  Wow, it is already very quite around here.

I'm Sport'n a New Doo

Yesterday afternoon I had an appointment to get a hair cut.  On my way over I began to think of how long I have had the same look and decided that I would ask my hair stylist if she could suggest something new.  I told her that I was wanting a new look and to keep in mind that I was over 40, nothing too short, but I defiantly wanted sassy.  I told her to surprise me.  Now, I have been with this gal for a couple of years now and I do trust her, I mean how could you not she is a cute as she can be, and is always wearing the latest style herself, however, I don't think she is much over 25 or 26.  So here is what she has come up with and I really do like my new look, but I think it is very close to the hair cut that Lindsey has, oops.  I have been told all my life that when someone copies you it is the best form of flattery.  So, Lindsey, I really like your hair cut. 

Here is a shot of the back too.  Now can I just say how hard it is to take a picture of yourself in the mirror and not make it look like you are taking a picture of yourself. Young people that take pcitures of themsevles have a talent for it because I just don't seem to have the knack.   I not only wanted to get the front but the back of my hair in the picture as well.  But I really did not want my back fat to show either, so needless to say this is the best I could get and that troublesome back fat is cut off.  I wish that was all we had to do in real life to eliminate those areas that we wish we could forget about but still need some work.   

Three Word Thursday

Generosity -- your choice!

 

A Day With My Girls

Saturday was a whirlwind of fun.  I just have to say up front, I love to have my girls home.  We have so much fun together, even if it is just running errands or hanging out at home the fun is always part of the equation.  This past Saturday included all of that, we ran to Ulta and Target and then headed to Atichison for a soccer game via Nell Hills.  It just so happens that Anna's boyfriend plays soccer for Benedictine University so I guess I will get to frequent Nell Hills more regularly than ever before.  Nell Hills is not only filled with so many wonderful treasures, the place just inspires me.  I can walk around, dream and come back home and create a similar look with what I have.  There is nothing like a day with my girls and a great home decor store all wrapped up into one.

Sunday -- The Church Has Left The Building

This past Sunday's day of service was so fun!  We had a good turn out in Gardner and the best part of the whole day was the contacts that we had with the people in our community.  I had the great privilege and fun of going to each of the sites to capture some pictures.  I like to call myself the "supervisor" but that might be assuming too much.  Being the armature photo journalist that I am, I missed several great photo ops. Like the whole group worship and prayer at the beginning of our day, and after looking at my pictures after I got home, I did not get a group picture at each site.  I am teachable and will not miss those next time.  The purpose of our day of service was not so promote Indian Creek Community Churchbut to "be" the church to those in our community.  In talking with those that participated, many had ideas of how we can continue to live a life of service to those in Gardner.  I am inspired to intentionally find ways to "Live Out" and put into action what I truly believe.  "The church is only the church when we are being the hands and feet of Jesus." 

The Church Has Left The Building

I am so excited about this coming Sunday.  This is the third year running that our church has taken one Sunday where we go out and "be" the church in our communities.  The entire church participates in service projects for the neighborhoods, schools, parks, etc. instead of our regular church service.  Because I attend the Indian Creek Community Church, Gardner campus, I will be participating in Gardner.  We have three projects,  building shelves, cleaning carpets and organizing at the Multi-Service Center, a food pantry and clothes closet; cleaning ovens, playing bingo and serving coffee and donuts at Brittany Court, a retirement community; and weeding, cleaning up and general maintenance at some of the Gardner parks.  I love it when the church can serve our community in a tangible way.  Come join us and you too can "be" the church.

Three Word Thursday

Not twitter appropriate!!!!!!!

BIG Job Almost Complete

The biggest job in the 20 year history of Stitches By Sturman in almost complete.  I am in the home stretch and can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  We have been working on an assisted care facility, Sweet Life, in Leawood that included 369 window treatments.  I am down to around 20 left to complete and yesterday delivered all that I had done so far.  The installation has begun and now I just have to keep my eyes on the prize see that a month ago seemed so far away.  369 valances seemed so daunting at the time but just one window treatment at a time and you can get through them.  Now from a business perspective, the cash flow has been a real bummer, and I also realize that unless I can find another job as big as this one for next year my numbers will be down, but for now, I am ready to be paid!!!!