SECOND RATE PURSUITS

farewell

2009-07-25T14:10:00.000-07:00

Over the last few months I have spent an embarrassing amount of time looking at home and craft blogs while giving minimal effort to completing any projects to display on my own such blog. I've realized that while my accomplishments are satisfying to me, in the big world of H&C blogs they are really quite pathetic. There are SO many amazing blogs and ideas out there, I began to feel grossly inadequate.

In addition, the last week or so I have felt more like sitting down and reading a book than working on home improvements or homemade bridal shower gifts. For the first time in my life I have felt guilty for wanting to read, because in the back of my mind is this sad little blog that has been horribly neglected.

While I plan to continue to give homemade gifts, and I will always have some home improvement project in the works, I want to relieve myself of the burden that this blog has become. So for the time being, SRP is discontinued. If I feel especially proud of something I've made or finished, I'll post it on my other blog. That is the blog I really enjoy contributing to, and will more directly benefit from time spent with my nose in a book.

Thanks for stopping by!

hats

2009-06-15T17:01:00.000-07:00

My enthusiasm for homemade gifts is waning. I'm a month behind now. I thought I found the perfect gift my very cute and crafty sister-in-law. This sun-hat.

I did a practice version for Eli, who hates having the sun in his eyes. It didn't turn out as well as I had hoped but I figured out the changes I needed to make for the final product.

Sadly, the final product went terribly wrong. It wouldn't fit on my head, or any adult's head for that matter. It will be tucked away in a dress-up tote in case someday we have a girl. I was bitterly disappointed by my failure. Sorry Brit, but I do have something else in mind!

Eli doesn't seem to mind his hat's imperfections. It is reversible afterall.

Homemade Broth

2009-06-06T07:37:00.000-07:00

At WinCo I often buy chicken in the largest quantity possible because it is usually cheaper. When I bring it home I cook all or most of it at once. Then I divide it up and chop or shred it and put it in the freezer to use for meals later like enchiladas, hawaiian haystacks, you name it.

My mom taught me that if you season the water that you boil the chicken in it gives the chicken good flavor and the remaining "water" that the chicken was cooked in can be used as broth. I use the broth to cook with (as broth) and I also love to cook rice with the broth instead of plain water. I just freeze it in old yogurt tubs.

This picture doesn't look very appetizing, so you'll just have to take my word for it. All I use to season the water is salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder.

utility room rug

2009-06-04T14:02:00.000-07:00

We had leftover carpet after we got our new carpet installed. I decided the shaggy nature of the carpet would make for a great rug in the laundry room, which is the gateway from the garage into the house. I'm tired of door rugs that do nothing to remove actual dirt/mud substance from shoes. So I just cut a piece of carpet the size I wanted. Then I ordered the Instabind online for
$1 per foot. I'm really happy with it.

Finished Product: And it is so much nicer to stand on while doing laundry.

in the works

2009-05-28T07:47:00.000-07:00

I do have several projects in the works. But the exhaustion that comes with the first trimester is resulting in a slow-pace for home improvement. And I am terribly behind in the homemade birthday gift arena. But I am motivated so stay tuned.

Meanwhile, I keep busy with the first-rate pursuit of feeding myself. I love these pre-cut baguettes from Fred Meyer. They make the perfect little snack topped with gouda cheese & tomato or almond butter & avocado. Mmm.

my garden

2009-05-17T14:57:00.000-07:00

I posted on my other blog about planting the seeds for our garden. I wish I had taken a picture of the seedlings before the transplant, as proof that they actually existed in the likely event that they all die.
Well Saturday I transplanted all my precious little seedlings. I was telling Richard that it really does amaze me that you can plant a tiny little seed that carries the information and capability to produce a plant that will provide you with many fruits or peppers or what have you. It blows my mind, to be honest.
This year I planted everything from seed and we'll see how it goes. I'm really excited, but at the same time my optimism makes me prone to disappointment when things fail.
You may remember these cans... it is the chocolate mix I put in my skinny-boys milk to add calories. Anyway, they were piling up and I read in a book about using something similar to protect the seedlings. I cut out the bottom with my awesome Pampered Chef can opener. If there are in chilly nights in the future I can just put the lids on the cans and "Voila!" Protected.

The red stuff you see is cayenne pepper. It's purpose is to keep predators away. (In our case, it would be our dog.)

the clock

2009-05-12T19:55:00.000-07:00

I re-painted this canvas to make a clock that matched my other canvases for my bathroom. Last step for the bathroom, a new shower curtain!

Cornice

2009-05-10T20:15:00.000-07:00

We have an arched window in our living room that for the first two years we lived here had blinds hanging from over the top of the arch. I can't really explain how bad it looked, but eventually they quit closing and so when I painted the room I took them down entirely.

I couldn't decide how to handle the arch shape because we wanted blinds in the window. I finally decided to just hang blinds in the rectangular part of the window and cover the arch altogether with a cornice. My sister Lori had made a couple for her apartment and came and spent an afternoon helping me construct it.

If you really want details let me know, but here are some pictures of the process.

glad to be back

2009-05-01T13:53:00.002-07:00

Well, since all my major life-changing events are out of the way I have the chance to get back to my second-rate pursuits.

My homemade gift challenge has been just that, a challenge. I hit a major obstacle in February with my brother-in-law's birthday. He is a married twenty-something in college. I went grass-roots and tried to think what he enjoys most in life. The best thing I could come up with was food. His wife was doing student teaching all day leaving him on his own for lunch. I put together some lunch-size meals for one and froze them. From what I've heard, it was a hit.

Calzones

Homemade Chili

Enchiladas

baking

2009-02-25T21:34:00.000-08:00

It was the birthday of a co-worker and he requested an Angel Food Cake with orange frosting. I have never had success with frosting so I went for a glaze instead. I'm not here to give a great recipe for a glaze. I just got mine from a Better Homes & Gardens cookbook.

I am just here to say what I always want to say on this blog:

If I can do it, you can do it.

just some more blocks

2009-02-23T21:09:00.000-08:00

The homemade gift train keeps on chuggin'. These were for my brother-in-law who is a middle school teacher. I hope they can find a home in his classroom.

card club February

2009-02-21T11:12:00.000-08:00

Richard said this card looked very "spring-ish". I didn't do that intentionally, but I won't deny that it was probably my subconscious speaking out.

another homemade gift

2009-02-14T13:00:00.000-08:00

I made this apron with the help of Krista. (And the sewing machine of Krista's. Thanks.) It was pretty straight forward and I think it turned out so cute I had a hard time parting with it.

Re-do

2009-02-06T12:25:00.000-08:00

Remember these? No one told me they were ugly. But I figured it out and decided to try something different. I'm painting part of my bathroom that navy color, it is the same paint I used for my little bedside table. I'm trying to tie the brown bedroom and the blue bathroom together a little. I'll post pictures of all that later. Anyway, I repainted the canvanses navy and mod-podged some specialty paper from the scrapbook store on top. It took less than an hour if you don't count drying time. I got the idea from something similar my sister did in her bedroom.

homemade gift #3

2009-02-03T09:44:00.000-08:00

I have actually done this one for years for my mom for her birthday. It's a homemade calendar with pictures of family members from the previous year. Not too original. But I have gifts #4,5 and 6 this month so stay tuned!

before & after

2009-01-28T10:40:00.000-08:00

Well just about everyone agreed that I should paint the wall surrounding the door. I guess I am easily persuaded. It's funny, now that it's done it looks like it has always been that way.

Time for a new project. I finished one yesterday that will have to wait for posting because it is a gift.

step by step

2009-01-26T21:40:00.000-08:00

http://www.boldervisions.net/kblog/2008/09/11/creepy-craft/

This is Krista's post of our original wood block project. She gives a pretty good summary of how to make them. I don't think she will mind my referral to her blog.

latest installment in the holiday block collection

2009-01-23T19:25:00.000-08:00

You might think that making these blocks gets old... on the contrary it gets better every time. These are my favorites so far.

Homemade Gifts

2009-01-18T13:59:00.000-08:00

The original pledge I first saw by NieNie was to buy only handmade gifts for Christmas. Holli took that idea one step further and committed to personally handcraft all birthday gifts for 2009. I was inspired. So - it's a great year to be related to JoJo because I've committed to making birthday gifts for all my family members this year. (And maybe in the years to come.)

I didn't get a picture of the first gift I made, for my father-in-law but I did remember to take one of my second gift. (But yuck- I make a terrible model!)

TA-DA! It is a homemade version of the infomercial "snugglie". A blanket with arms.

So you can drape it over you and still have your hands free for sipping, knitting, blogging and the like. My mother-in-law tends to be frequently chilly and so it was perfect for her. It was quite simple and you can find directions from many online sources.

spice it up

2009-01-15T13:17:00.000-08:00

When Richard Bird, CPA is being Travel Warrior January through March, I find projects.

Project #1: Paint the pantry door. (I hope the Travel Warrior approves. He is a little wary of my projects sometimes.)

The green was left over from when we painted the kitchen walls. The blue I bought as a "sample" can at Lowes. It's great for small projects because you can get the custom color in a half-pint.

The secret to my AMAZING straight lines. (Acrylic Gel Medium.) It is a little pricey but one jar lasts a long time (many projects).

First tape.

Then "paint" the AGM along the tape edge to make a seal.

Once the AGM is dry, paint your color as needed.

** Special note ** Peel tape off while paint is still wet for an edge good enough to please the OCD painter.

I love the way it looks. With the exception of the hideous doorknob... need to do something about that hardware...

Do you see the white wall around the pantry? Should I paint that green like the other wall and door? It might make the white door frame stand out...

Christmas Gift

2009-01-14T10:47:00.000-08:00

My family does a Christmas gift exchange each year of homemade-only gifts. I could blog for weeks about all the gifts that have been created, if I had pictures of them all.

Unfortunately I didn't take a picture of the gift I made for my brother in law. But I do have pictures of the gift I received in the mail from my sister-in-law, domestic goddess in training, Brit.

You'll have to ask her for details but it is a beautiful plate/dish, handpainted. Thanks, I love it!

work in progress

2009-01-10T17:04:00.000-08:00

Just about every room in my house is a work in progress. That is the fun of owning a home I guess. (Even if it is worth 18% less than what we paid for it...) Here is that little table back in its proper place.

I pride myself in decorating my house with minimal cost. So when I heard everyone raving about Anthropologie I resisted, because I was determined to buy secondhand. Well then one day I found myself in that store and I was in love. *Sigh* So any money I saved by buying this little table at a garage sale, was lost when I spent $8.00 on the adorable little knob at Anthro. At least I splurge on the small items and not the big ones, right?

Besides, I got a deal on this cute little alarm clock on ebay. It turned out to be smaller than I anticipated, but it still stole my heart.

Before

2009-01-06T21:04:00.000-08:00

I was looking through old pictures tonight and came across these pictures of our living room. It is a crazy coincidence because they were taken exactly two years ago, January 6 2007.

We've come a long way living room.

At Last

2009-01-06T14:00:00.000-08:00

Here are pictures of what I've been up to in the last... however many days since I last posted.
I can't claim that I did the floors and carpet myself... but I did paint and move furniture and clean clean clean!

Our new floors (post flood) are laminate. I'm really happy with them. Easy to clean and very durable, crucial characteristics in a house with small children.

The little hands and feet aren't some wild-modern-art, they are plaster molds of Cameron & Eli's feet and hands at two weeks old.

Glitter is soo IN

2008-11-22T08:54:00.000-08:00

I've jumped on the glitter band wagon. I love this stuff! I was really feeling the need for a craft so I called my crafting mentor, Krista. (I use the term "called" loosely, we have a unique method of communicating.)

Step 1: Cover styrofoam shape with mod podge. (Original instructions said to use a spray adhesive, which works well on smooth surfaces but Krista suggested mod podge, and I think it works better for rough surfaces.)

Step 2: Cover with *SPARKLES!*

To really get the full effect you need to see Krista's.

Project

2008-11-20T21:55:00.000-08:00

I love completing a project. This one has left me a little unsettled because I need to put a knob on the drawer and because there is no sense putting in back in our room because it will just have to be removed at carpet-laying time. But anyway.

Before:

It required primer. I did it the lazy-girl way, with spray paint primer. It's so easy to do when you have a few minutes here and there during the day.

A fresh coat of paint can make a garage sale bargain feel new and personalized.

When my house gets put back together I'll post a picture of the table in its proper place. I am thinking cute old-fashioned clock and lamp on top?

Tater Turkey

2008-11-20T12:40:00.000-08:00

One last preschool craft. After four weeks of toddler-mania I am off the hook! (For a few months anyway.)

It's a pretty lousy picture, but for me that is normal. He has pepper feathers, craisin eyes, and a pisachio beak. He was supposed to have onion wings but we didn't make it that far. He is standing up with the help of a tripod of toothpicks.

Here is where I got the idea.

www.familyfun.go.com is a great resource.

Apple Chips

2008-11-07T09:13:00.000-08:00

Here is a yummy and easy fall treat. I did these with the preschool kids and they loved it. Cameron didn't actually like the end product, but I did!

Preheat oven to 200 degrees

Line cookie sheets with Parchment paper.

(Brilliant side note: I didn't have parchment paper so I consulted the internet and found this idea. Cut part of a paper sack and spray it down with cooking spray. Let it sit for a few minutes and it works great. Don't try to do this without some kind of paper, I made that mistake for you.)

In a bowl mix 1/2 cup sugar and 2 tsp. cinnamon. You can add nutmeg and ground cloves if you have them. (I didn't.)

I used my handy vegetable/fruit slicer to slice the apples very thin. If you don't have one, cut the apples in half and slice them in half-moon shapes. (The thinner the better.)

Dip them in the sugar/cinnamon bowl and lay them on the cookie sheets.

Cook for 1 1/2 hours and then turn and cook for another 1 1/2 hours. If they aren't crispy enough, turn off the oven and leave them inside overnight or for a few more hours.

To prevent them from sticking to the paper, loosen them with a spatula as soon as they are done baking.

These are my modified instructions from this recipe.

Last Halloween Craft

2008-10-30T22:16:00.000-07:00

A Halloween idea the day before Halloween. Really helpful. I did these today with Cameron's preschool. They are empty Crystal Light canisters, wrapped in gauze, with little paper eyes.

No wiggly eyes, we all know why.

Creative Wall Art

2008-10-29T17:46:00.000-07:00

I am not an artist. I don't say that to be modest. Even Cameron gets confused trying to figure out why my "elephant" looks more like an airplane. But I can paint geometric shapes on a canvas. (With the help of stencil.)

I did these awhile ago but this blog was hurting for some more posts. You can see that I got my inspiration from the shower curtain. Not fancy, but hey- it's just a bathroom.

Then I did a clock to match. It's pretty basic, but my aim here is to provide ideas. Those who are blessed enough to paint without stencils could really show me up. (They were just blank canvases from a craft store. ) Any questions? More ideas at Michael's.

Cheesecloth Ghost

2008-10-22T19:53:00.000-07:00

The other day in exchange for watching her little girl a friend bought me the stuff to make a cheesecloth ghost. So thoughtful. It took me a few days to get around to it but here it is.

The cheesecloth cut into strips.

My "form". TIP: These arms were WAY too long. I cut them halfway through, and I still think they were too long.

The instructions said to cover it with plastic wrap. Since I am currently out of plastic wrap, I had to improvise. Yay for saving winco produce bags.

Then I put the strips into a ziploc with all the fabric stiffener and mixed it all up.

Draped the strips over the form...

And almost 24 hours later it is almost dry! One more tip: take the time to make the form just the right shape. I wasn't totally thrilled with mine. He doesn't really have a neck, but as I type this I am realizing that most ghosts don't have necks... so I guess he is just fine. Thank you Laura, I think I got this idea from you.

Easy Peasy

2008-10-09T13:38:00.000-07:00

This idea was not my own. (They never are.) I got it from a new favorite blog called The Inspired Room.
But it was the easiest thing I have done all day. (Busy day!)
The Happy Halloween sign isn't my creation. It was done by Nikki for our card swap that I mentioned last month.

Then & Now for Groceries

2008-09-23T15:05:00.000-07:00

When I was a new bride grocery shopping was challenging. Not in the way that it is now, with two children running and reaching, but in an amateurish way. I never knew what to buy, my cooking repetoir was limited; I just didn’t have it down yet. Shopping for a man was a whole new ballgame compared to shopping as a single college female. I could not impress my new husband with Cinnamon Toast Crunch for dinner. So to aid me in my grocery shopping advancement I saved my receipts. I would pull them out each time I made a new list to help me remember what I bought last time. Was it good, did it work, was it eaten and enjoyed?

Flash forward five years. On Friday night I came home from the grocery store completely disheartened. I was sure that on this trip to WinCo I was going to spend less money than usual because I was anticipating Richard’s being out of town, and planning on eating Cinnamon Toast Crunch for dinner again. Richard traveling should amount to fewer groceries, especially in the meat department. But alas, at checkout the cashier shattered my hopes when he announced the total. It was exactly the same total (well within a dollar or two) as my last trip to WinCo and the trip before that. In fact, on my way home I even entertained the idea of a conspiracy… “charge the regulars the same amount each time, they buy the same stuff, they’ll never catch on.”

Where am I going with this? In my hopeless state I dug out an old receipt from our newlywed days. The date on the receipt I will refer to was November 3, 2003. For fun I chose a few items that I shopped for then and still shop for now. The necessities that have been on our grocery list since the beginning of lists. Here is the comparison with Friday night’s receipt.

Then/Now

Milk $1.98/ 2.72
Applesauce 1.28/ 1.37
Cream of Chicken Soup 0.66/1.25
Tortillas 1.75/2.67
Cheese 3.98/5.98
String Cheese 1.50/2.98
Dozen eggs 1.09/1.36
Tortilla Chips 2.42/2.98
5lb Potatoes 1.38/ 1.98

Total 16.04/23.29

Granted, some of the brands have changed and there are other factors. But it was a fun little game for me to ease the guilt of the costs of eating. So I let a little self-pity wash over me and whined about the tough economy and the price of gas.

But lest I sound ungrateful I don't really have anything to complain about. I'm lucky to eat what I do and to have the money to do so.

Card Swap

2008-09-21T08:12:00.000-07:00

This month for our card club we decided to try something different for Halloween. There were a lot of really cute projects but I think I better get permission before I post them on here. This one was mine, it was a pretty simple, one sheet of paper folded into a bag. You can see where I copied it from right here.

Perfect for a few Reese's peanut butter cups! I didn't put any candy in yet since Halloween is still a month or so away.

The Grocery List

2008-09-17T08:42:00.000-07:00

In my list of 101 things about myself on my other blog I mentioned my categorized grocery list. I had a few requests for it so I put it on google docs. It is loosely based on the layout of WinCo in Meridian, but they occasionally change locations of products and I haven't been very good about adapting my list because I practically have it memorized by now anyway. But here it is if you're interested. Much thanks to Laura who gave me something to start from. (Can you tell how I'm totally into the hyperlink thing?)

And I hope this works because I have never used google docs before. Give me some feedback so I know if it's connecting for ya.

Craft Time

2008-09-11T20:03:00.000-07:00

Some friends came over for an afternoon craft. It was quite the effort, but maybe we'll be faster next time! Step one: cut 2x4 into blocks. Step 2: Paint the blocks

Steps 3-?: Cut out paper, mod-podge to blocks, cut out letters (Thanks to Kim's cricut!), modpodge letters, tie ribbon... Ta-da! (Cameron's new favorite phrase.) I am not good at tutorials am I? Photographs courtesy of Krista.

Grommets!

2008-09-05T07:54:00.000-07:00

My sister Adri is quite the home decorator. She made some curtains for her kitchen and she told me it was very simple so when she was in town I had her and my Mom help me, and it was very simple. I just measured and cut the fabric to the size I wanted. Which turned out to be too small but the fabric was on clearance and I only had enough to make decorative curtains. Meaning they don't cover the spanse of window when pulled closed. But they are sheer anyway, so no matter.

I just sewed a hem around three sides and the doubled the fabric over a few times on top, for strength. It just has to be wide enough for the grommets. If I had done this project after I had this blog I would have taken step-by-step pictures.

The grommets are really easy to attach. You just measure and mark where you want them, cut a hole and they just snap together. Ta-da!
They aren't great. Second rate at best.

Never throw anything away!

2008-09-03T15:57:00.000-07:00

Okay well maybe that is a little unrealistic. But those of you who have seen my boys in swimsuits know they could stand to put on a few pounds so my pediatrician told me to put this in their milk each morning for some extra calories. We collect these cans at quite a pace and so today I was determined to make use of them.
This is the first one I made. I don't really love it, but it was a first try. I figured I could put cookies/treats in it for a birthday gift.

This one turned out a little cuter. I'm not sure what I'll do with it. The lids to the cans are blue and not the right blue for this paper so this can will have to serve a lid-less purpose.

the Transitional magazine holder

2008-09-02T15:16:00.000-07:00

I love lists. One of my lists is a list of things I want to buy when there is money available. On that list are these cute magazine holders. (IKEA) But before I started cutting magazine pages out and putting them in my Idea Book I saved all the magazines. I used empty cereal boxes and covered them with contact paper. As you can see the contact paper is a little dated now. I made all these when we were poor college students.

More zucchini!

2008-08-29T08:32:00.000-07:00

Brit got me the book Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld for Christmas. And although I have my doubts about Jessica Seinfeld (wife of Jerry) actually cooking there are a lot of good ideas in the book. She suggests making vegetable purees to use in recipes and so I took a couple of my zucchini squash and chopped, steamed and pureed.

The next step in measuring it into little bags and freezing it. I'll be sure and share when I use the puree in a recipe.

Stuffed Zucchini

2008-08-26T13:04:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure I undersad the spelling of this vegetable...but anyway. These are actually zucchini squash, but it works for regular zucchini too.

Ingredients:

4-6 zucchini

1 cup dry bread crumbs

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/4 finely chopped onion

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup grated parmesan (another food with an odd spelling)

Directions:

- Preheat oven to 350

- Bring large pot of salted water to boil. Cut each zucchini in half and add to pot. Cook until tender, 5-10 minutes. Drain the pot and scoop out the "flesh" of the zucchini, making a boat.

- Combine zucchini flesh, bread crumbs, cheddar cheese, onion, salt, and half of the parmesan cheese.

- Sprinkle remaining parmesan on top and bake for 20 minutes.

A Garage Sale Transformation

2008-08-21T16:18:00.000-07:00

I bought this trunk for $8 at a garage sale. I used rust remover on all the metal hardware, you can see in the picture below a before (bottom of handle) and after (top of leather handle).
Here is the final product.

A few Cards

2008-08-21T15:21:00.000-07:00

The Bissel gets the Gold

2008-08-21T15:07:00.000-07:00

I first borrowed a carpet cleaner like this from my in-laws, then from a friend. It worked well both times so my mom and I went in together and bought this one. It's my new favorite domestic appliance. It hadn't been too long since I last cleaned the carpets but this is what the water looked like when I finished just half of my bedroom.
It was both very satisfying and very disgusting. (And also a little embarrassing now that I'm sharing this...) I love clean carpets. It makes the whole house smell nice. There really is something gratifying about having the house a little cleaner in some way.

For Starters

2008-08-21T14:54:00.000-07:00

Richard had several binders left over from his CPA study course and I used one to make this book. I just mod-podged the cover on and tied a ribbon around it. I've subscribed to various magazines over the years and when there is a recipe/craft/article I really like I cut it out and put it in here in a page protector.

The flowers are from my own flower beds. That is quite an accomplishment for me!