Its hot in the frying pan!!

Oooh doggy its been jumpin around here. Since we returned home from Wyoming I have done the following... This is all from the Wednesday to the following Saturday, tonight. I think I kicked butt on getting a few things done around here. So take that 28 day challenge.
priced the rest of my g-sale stuff
sewed 7 more recycled scarfs, 1 baby hat and 1 soaker....cashmere, way soft and perfect for a baby. I love good wool.
garage sale weekend
take leftovers to family services
dinged out the basement, found stuff I missed
moved all Halloween and Christmas totes to upstairs storage
dinged out Big Betty, she is a huge storage buffet in my dining room
Prepared Betty for canning season, she is now home to canning supplies
dinged out the wood shed.....the two seater is in use now. Now any grubby kids and their mom, dirty from working in the yard can use it without tromping dirt in the house.....hey it should save a bit on the water bill.
Sewed and new set of shower curtains/drapes for the downstairs bathroom. I like having the bathroom shower flanked for some reason.
Planted Rhubarb and more basil.
Prepared for yet another follow up garage sale...bored as ever and it was slooow so I painted up those chalk boards, stained the wood on my camper door, painted an end table, shelf and sign during that time.....read up on some Mother Earth News, and Mary Janes Farm.
Went to bed early that Friday night, I was pooped!
Wake up on Saturday thinking I am going to remove the dead lilac to replace with an umbrella clothesline..... since I located an electric chainsaw, nope I found an email update for a sale on Strawberries and the discount grocer.....urch! HELLO!! change of plans......24 pounds of straweberries in tow (good thing Big Betty was ready) , gather supplies for Pippies birthday, 3 garage sales and 1 thrift store later back at the house to finally process 35 pints of jam, 4 pies and kids to bed and the camper ready for a day trip of fishing on Sunday. Pippy asked for Birthday Pie instead of cake.....How darn cute is that? love that kid!!!

I still have not loaded any new pix, I do promise I have some good ones for ya. How in the heck bloggers keep up with that is something I have not figured out. So even with that said I have Denny Mcloughlins class to attend next week, so I will be a bit MIA. July will be dialed down a bit....but not by much, I have an Art show to prep for, gardening should be in full swing. Its all good!!
Lots of Love to Ya'll!!
Val

ps....we hit 102 this week, so not ready for that. One day its in the 80's then 102, back down to 72. oi that was way hot for us in June!!!

Uh Oh!

I have found myself coming down with a serious case of wanting to paint. Not the kind of painting on canvas but painting walls. Not good, I have so much other stuff to get done that this would really throw a wrench into me plans.

Where did I pick up this bug? I have not wanted to paint walls in 5 years. I really burned out after we built the house. Ack!! I have the urge to paint the kids's room Taos blue, and the living room butter yellow. Oh crap! Its taking over my every thought.

I think for today I will paint up some chalk board doors just to appease my inner paintbrush....

It can get nuts inside my skull at time! sheesh I tell ya!!!

XOXO
Val

Frugal Cleaning products that get the job done

Could this post be any more ________. Feel free to insert any descriptive adjective you wish.
If you just dropped in on any grocery store I bet you could easily drop 50 smackers on cleaning products to clean everything from grout to toilets to windows to get you started. No need cowgirls and cowboys. I used to be that gal that had everykind of cleaning product under the sun.

Here is what I have under my sink..
Pine Sol, thanks to blue statue lady. I totally forgot how awesome this stuff is. For 2.59 I can make 20 spray bottles full. Well that equates to less than 20 cents per bottle. Sure beats paying 4 dollars per bottle of fancy spray cleaner, even the stuff from the dollar store equates to being 10 times as spendy.

Baking soda. This is the best gunk lifter. Even baked on nastiness. Just make a paste and smear it on and let it sit. Great pre soak for dingy clothing.

Another tip for you whites, get em in the sun. One would be amazed at how well it works for sun bleaching out stains and dingy grayness, I learned that back in my cloth diaper days, and its easier on your utility bill. I predict a clothes line comeback for this year as we find ways to cut costs in this slumping economy.

Vinegar is the best for cleaning floors and great for windows.

Mr. Clean magic erasers will save your sanity~~

Thats all folks....simplify your cleaning cabinet.
S.C.

Up and Away

Its a cardinal rule around here to keep the walking area clean and picked up, the only exception to this rule is the playroom, however at the end of the day I still need to be able to walk through it. No one likes to stumble over Tonkas, shoes, back packs, duffle bags, or clothes on the floor. Look at your walls do you have room for a peg rack, shelf or cubbie? This rule goes for pictures as well, get em up on the walls and not all over flat surfaces. Much easier to maintain.

If you are storing items in rubbermaid totes, remember to keep the least used stuff in the bottom ones and more frequent used stuff in the middle and upper ones. Seems simple enough but I am amazed at how stuff can get jumbled all together and one finds them selves hunting through each one, and on that note label them too!!

I have been away a bit for a trip to visit my brother and his kids. I did manage to click off over 500 photos, I will be uploading and sharing those soon. From branding, fishing, playing, scenery and would you believe 2 Nepalese sheepherders. How neat is that! Heck I thought the days of sheepwagons and sheepherders were times gone by. Not so! Gosh who knew Wyoming is actually very scenic. I was pleasantly surprised and totally expected an eastern Montana like enviroment. They have gotten double the moisture for the year thus far, so I was reassured that did help make it easy on the eye. The Wind River Pass was so preetty, and you get to drive through a few tunnels..my first time...I really need to leave my home state more, get out of my comfort zone. Montana is a really nice place to live , it's my home and has been my whole life, but it is nice to go explore then comeback.

Our Garage sale is this weekend and I have been on the hunt for wool sweaters like crazy to repurpose, I found some doozies!! Oh and I was gifted a serger so this repurposing sweaters has just gotten a whole lot funner....is that even a word? In my world it is!! I LOVE IT!! I bought my daughter a potholder loom to keep her busy on the trip, when I say its remote where we went, its remote. Not totally at the main ranch house but we were planning on moving his camper up to the area that has no electricity,running water or toilet... aka "cow camp" but we were rained out. It's best kids learn to keep themselves occupied with their hands for something to do. So I was thinking with all the t shirts my hubby goes through that end up holey she could get her dad to build her a larger loom for placemats and then dye them with the procion dye we already have from other projects. I would not mind one for myself in rug size. Imagine that? one more medium!! I may not have the grasp of such recycling as Ms. Ffrench, however I love making new things out of stuff that seems to have no purpose left. Its getting every last drop out of that resource. I will more than likely need a few projects lined up for the winter months as *sniff* my baby, my last child will be entering Kindergarten this fall.

Live with a purpose!
Val

Introducing Mr. Tok Tokkie

Neat bug!

I picked him up off the ground right outside our cottage in the bush while in Kruger. They are called Tok Tokkie beetles and their claim to fame is drumming their abdomen on the ground to find other tok tok's. I did find a few dung beetles and one flew into our rig....equally as cool...lil unksheibahminkmahs....aka "turd roller". Dung beetles are surprisingly fast lil buggers. Mr Ebes says the tok tokkie is more fitting cus I like to talk talkie a-lot!!

Buzzzzzzzzzzzz

I am the queen bee but this queen bee works too.

Decluttering for yard sale.
new trellis in the garden...one up and 3 more in the wings, it started raining so the welding ceased...Ebes just rocked it finding welding screens at an auction for dirt cheap. 2 for me, 2 for him.
turnip, radishs, pumpkins, and winter squash planted
T ball is still going, 3 more games this season
school is out for summer
guinea pig funeral...I will miss you sweet Lucy!!!
Farm and Ranch supply trips
1 landscape design finished, set and wrapped up, 2 more on the board
4 new shrubs in
a great deal on 3 pallets of flagstone, thanks to my generous pal Scott, whom I do the consults for! *high five* to you Scott, okay maybe I will hug you. Thank YOu!!
Currently browsing 3 new periodicals on urban homesteading...special interest in greenhouse's, backyard chickens and edible landscaping...berries in particular.
Joined the Freedom Gardens Forum.....but I am a bit lost, its like a Facebook format and I dont facebook so its a bit over my head.
So busy is as busy was and ITS ALL GOOD!!

and I gotta bitty secret but mums the word for right now, I am the 1st person she called, and for that I am honored. Needless to say a few things are going to comeback out of that garage sale pile!!

XoXo
Val

Its raining, Its pouring.....

I should be sorting and tagging!!
We are hosting a multi family garage sale this year.....I have started to go through the house, room by room, ridding it of any unused, outdated, outgrown items. Kids room is done. They have grown like weeds this year!!!
I go through each and every drawer, closet and holdout for stuff and tag as i put them in the boxes, with clothing I do not tag individually, they get blanket prices.....kids items 50cents, coats 2 bucks, Jeans 2 bucks etc. Sierra bags up the little things and sells them that way.
I do not like going to garage sales and searching for prices, it bugs me to no end. So word to the wise have everything clearly marked. I always have a free box for odds and ends as well. I do not advertise in the newspaper anymore, it costs close to $40 for a 2 day add.....we just make sure we have plenty of signage around our neighborhood.

What are your garage sale strategies? any tried and true tips?