Mid-week Fridge Check

It is Wednesday, and my fridge is a combination of fresh ingredients and leftovers. At this point, I like to see if anything needs to be tossed, moved to the front so we remember to eat it, and what we have left for meals for the rest of the week. 

I am gonna be real honest with you about the condition of my fridge early this morning. Will I find science projects or leftovers that I am tired of? 

After less than five minutes, I had searched all the shelves and drawers and found these items. 

I had made corn on the cob, but I realized I was the only one eating it. I was feeling food fatigue, so I decided to let the last two cobs go to waste. The potatoes were dried out and didn’t have a lid, so I doubt even the dog would have eaten them. The celery was downright disgusting. I think I bought too large a package for just three people. 

I discovered zucchini hidden beneath a bag of broccoli. Instead of putting it in the pasta sauce, I’ve decided to make zucchini bread later today. 

I discovered that there are ingredients for more salads, plenty of sandwich fixings, and vegetables for drunken noodles, a salmon dinner, and enough ground turkey to make a large pot of chili. 

I was successful!  I tossed out a few items before they made the fridge smell and turn into a science project.  I have quick bread ingredients and enough food for the rest of the week. 

I’m delighted that the food waste was minimal and I’ve prevented my family from consuming anything questionable. If you’re like me, the sight of something unappetizing on Saturday morning can be quite frustrating. Fortunately, I’ve discovered a few items that I can eat for lunch or incorporate into our pasta. As a result, there’s no need to send Hubby or my son to the grocery store on their way home from work. 

My task on my fridge is complete.  ✅

What is lurking in the back corner of your fridge that needs to be tossed? 

Low Cost Fall Tabletop Decor

 Decorating for fall or any occasion on a budget can seem difficult. 

These days, many decor items are both expensive and temporary. Today, I’m going to show you a tabletop arrangement that I made on a budget. 

Most of the things you see here were items I already had around the house, or I bought for only a few dollars. 

Let's start at the upper left corner.  The artificial flowers were from the local dollar store.  It is a bit hard to see, but the flowers are being held by two glass cappuccino bottles. The wooden crate that holds the arrangement was from a gift basket. 

Next, I found this tray at a local thrift store for a few dollars. It was tarnished, but with some silver polish and elbow grease, I restored it to its former glory. 

A white linen napkin from my dining room hutch added softness to the arrangement. Next, I “shopped” my dining room hutch and found the leaf salt and pepper shakers. While picking up artificial flowers at the dollar store, I noticed the gingham “M.” It cost me $5.

I added the mini pumpkins from my garden, and the final piece is the rolling pin on the corner. Although the small rolling pin is hard to see, it’s a family heirloom that usually resides on my kitchen shelf. The arrangement would have been complete without it, but I thought it added a sense of family history.

This arrangement cost me less than $20.

Use things in unexpected ways... the cappuccino bottles. Reuse items already in your home... the salt shaker set, the small crate, and the linen napkin. Shop thrift and dollar stores... the "M", the tray, and the flowers. Use things from your garden... pumpkins. 

After the fall season ended, I returned the items to my dining room storage and reused them the next year in new and different ways.  

How do you decorate seasonally on a budget?

You might be wondering what those red things on the tray are. They’re peppers from my garden. I thought they added a pop of color, and I needed a place to dry them. 

Easy Halloween Wafer Cookies

 I saw this idea on Pinterest a few years ago and decided to try it. 

Ingredients:

• Vanilla wafer cookies
• white frosting (for cakes)
• Halloween candy sprinkles

This is a fun treat for kids to make. 

Start by adding frosting to the end of the vanilla cookie. You can make it thin or thick. Your choice.

While the frosting is still wet, add Halloween candy sprinkles. 

I used store-bought cake frosting. Since I never use all of it on a cake, I freeze the rest in a small plastic storage container. Before making this recipe, I left the frosting out on my kitchen counter to thaw completely. 

The frosting on the wafer cookies will harden. 

A few days later, I discovered that they weren’t the best. The frosting moisture seeped into the cookie, causing the layers of the wafer cookie to separate. In some spots, the cookie becomes a bit spongy. How can I fix this? Eat them within 24 hours of making them. They’re great for parties where the cookies will all be eaten, or for family gatherings where they’ll all be devoured in one sitting. 

Do I recommend them? Oh, yes!  

If you bake the cookies, please return and share your thoughts with us. 

Daily Resets- Dining Room Table

A dining room table can easily become a catch-all for mail, shopping packages, and what I affectionately call “pocket vomit.” People see a flat surface and assume, “I’ll just put this here for a moment and come back to get it.” Unfortunately, these items often remain on the table for hours, sometimes even days.

To combat this, I make it a habit to quickly check the dining room table a couple of times a day.  I ensure that packages and mail are either delivered to the office or the recipient’s room. Food items are returned to the kitchen, and pocket items are placed in a tray in the laundry room.

Once everything is in its place, I return the centerpiece to the table and inspect the placemats for any food stains. The room is back to its pleasant and tidy state.

With this routine in place, we can now enjoy a snack or relax at the table without any obstacles.

I prefer my dining room table to be a designated space for activities such as designing flower arrangements and sorting the mail.  My husband enjoys working on his laptop at the dining room table, while my son likes to prop up his phone and watch reels.

Clutter on the table would hinder our ability to perform these tasks.

It takes me approximately 5-7 minutes to relocate any left-behind items and return the table to its pleasant and tidy state.

However, there’s one exception to this rule. Half of our dining room table is currently covered with a thousand-piece puzzle. While we still have a place to eat, we also have a designated space for relaxation, conversation, and puzzle-solving.

How do you handle dining room clutter? 

Daily Living Room Reset

 If your family is like mine, you spend a significant amount of time in your living room, which naturally becomes a lived-in space.

In the mornings, I dedicate a quick 5-minute or less reset to my living room.

First, I embark on a mission to find any misplaced drinking glasses or food dishes. Then, I gather all the items that need to be returned to their respective bedrooms or offices.

Finally, I tidy up the throw pillows and refold the blankets, ensuring that the living room is in a tidy and inviting state. 

That is all it takes!!

Before bed, kids can be taught to gather up their dishes and either put them in the dishwasher or at least the sink. Afterward, they can grab their phones, tablets, or laptops and return them to their backpacks or rooms. 

Even with two other adults in my household, evenings can be quite sleepy, and things tend to get left in the living room overnight. However, I don’t worry about it. The daily reset routine will restore the room to its tidy and calm state. 

Instead of a daily marathon cleaning session, I prefer a quick swipe-and-gather approach. 

Bedroom Bookcase

We quickly discovered our very full bookcase was going to need a new home... We bought an antique buffet for behind the couch. 

We live in a rental house, and we had to make some quick decisions that wouldn’t result in further clutter and chaos in our rooms. 

We love books. We collect them from antique stores and thrift stores. Once in a while we splurge on a new book from Amazon. Our collection has grown beyond our two bookcases, and there were piles on the bedroom floor and on tabletops. Something needed to change. 

We disassembled our bookcase and decided the best place was an open space in our master bedroom. Hubby had the smart idea of double rows of books rather than continuing with our dangerous stacks. 

Here is our solution:

The least-read books are in the back, and the ones we want to read this fall and winter are in the front. I had just started a new collection of the Bobsy Twins books and bought a few new history and psychology books that I am currently reading. Now we can see what books we have and try not to buy duplicates. Wish us luck!!

We did sort through the books and said good-bye to a few books we had grown weary of reading. We moved my Christmas cactus upstairs with the bookcase and had room to display the five books I have written over the past year. Yes, I have written five books.  They are my pride and joy! 

A few plush friends were brought out of hiding from the closet to guard my written work. 

A few fall flowers from Costco add color to the bookcase and the window. 

The only money spent was on the flowers, and my hubby is happy to let me replenish them as needed.

Our books are safely in the bookcase, and the living room has room to breathe.  It is nice to sit in my chair in the morning, grab a book or two, and enjoy the sunrise or sunshine as it washes over the room. 

P.S.

This space has become one of my favorite spots in the house. So quiet and filled with sunshine... and my favorite books. 

Everyday Graces: A Thank -You Note

Each week, my Grandma would sit down and pay her bills, write letters to friends and family, and write thank-you notes. 

Thank-you notes for others' kind gestures and the gifts I received. One day, she said it was time for me to learn how to write thank-you notes after my birthday. 

We created little cards out of construction paper.  Next, she told me what each card needed to say:

1. Thank you for the gift. 
2. How I was going to use the gift in my life. 
3. To affirm their generosity and my appreciation.  

Some of my cards were simple. “Thank you for the birthday money. I plan to use the money to buy my new school supplies or save it for a dress I saw at the store (or new shoes).  Your gift is greatly appreciated, and I love that you remembered my birthday.

Sometimes, I would share my summer plans or let people know what grade I would be starting next month. For those I knew well who lived far away, I would suggest that we exchange letters throughout the year. 

She then helped me add the address and the stamp. 

Some of the letters I would personally deliver, and it was delightful to see the smiles on their faces when I handed them my card. 

When my son got old enough to write, I insisted that he write thank-you notes.  People love to be thanked. They love to be appreciated. 

Times have changed.  Very rarely, I will text someone a thank-you or email them. But I still love getting out my pretty cards and paper and handwriting a formal thank-you. 

It takes but a few minutes to say “thanks for thinking of me on my special day”.  “Thanks for making my day so much better”. “Thanks for helping me”.  Thanks for being such a great friend/family member”. “Thanks for having us over for supper. The food was wonderful.”

Grab a blank piece of paper, an envelope, and a stamp. Simple things turn into something amazing. A quick text or an email can strengthen the connection between two people. 

Thank you for reading my blog. Your time and your presence are valued here. 

Pumpkin Sugar Cookies- No Chill

 I am always on the lookout for a good cookie recipe. Cookies are my weakness. 

I found this recipe on Pinterest and keep coming back to it year after year, holiday after holiday. 

It is a no-chill recipe. It is not mine, but I am gonna share the recipe with you and leave a link to the original recipe because she is a smart lady and it is wrong to take credit for her hard work!!

• 1 cup of unsalted butter
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 cups all-purpose flour

The original recipe calls for almond extract. I leave it out of my cookies (I am allergic to almonds). One other alteration to the recipe is: I leave out the salt. My husband and I are both on a low sodium diet.  With one cookie per meal/snack, we are able to keep enjoying this recipe. 

There is no need to put it in the fridge for an hour or more. Just roll it out, cut out your cookies, and pop them in the oven. It is a bit of a time saver.

Here is the link to the original recipe: (a new window should pop up when you click on it).

Sugar cookie Recipe 

I used this recipe for my pumpkin-shaped cookies, Valentine cookies, and Christmas cookies-- every time. 

Enjoy... and have a great month of October with your fall parties, Halloween parties, and bake sales. Oooh, and ahh them with this recipe. 

**The frosting is a thick powdered sugar recipe with orange sprinkles. 

First Dates

The other day, my son was getting ready for another first date. I was hopeful for him. 

He left to fill his car with gas. He came back home carrying a huge bouquet of roses. I must have looked shocked. He quickly explained that "she loves roses". 

I asked him to remind me how long they had been dating and if they were serious. He looked sad and said it was another first date. 

I told him that a whole bouquet of roses was not a good idea.  He looked like I had torn his heart out.  I told him that if his father had presented me with a huge bouquet of roses on our first date, I would have freaked out. 

I was his same age many moons ago, and dating as a girl was scary, even then. I had dated many guys who were desperate to woo me on the first date. Very awkward. 

My son just looked at the money he had spent. I said he could take her one rose or leave them all at home. I wanted to hug him. 

He paused for a few seconds and handed me the roses. He said, "Mom, they are for you". I said thank you, but I thought he should enjoy them himself. 

While he was getting ready for his date, I quickly cut the roses and put them in a blue glass vase and presented them to him. "Put them in your room". I kept a few of the roses and put them in our living room so that the family could enjoy them. I also snuck a couple of red roses in a small vase, and I put them in his bathroom. 

I am hoping the date went well... without the roses.

Watching my adult kid maneuver the dating world is hard for this momma. My husband and I are very honest with our son about dating, romance, and being a good date. Some lessons are painful to watch, and sometimes we can catch things before he makes a mistake. Luckily, he is a good communicator and sees us as safe to come to during this phase of his life. 

Roses are for love and commitment. Choose your dating gifts wisely. 

 

Daily Routines: Laundry

If your home is like mine, there’s always laundry to do.  With small children, the amount of laundry can feel endless and overwhelming. 

Growing up, I watched my mom do multiple loads of laundry every weekend. If she had a spare minute during the week, she would quickly wash the essentials.  As I got older, I was given the task of keeping up with my own laundry to ease her workload.  I did the same with my son, once he could safely reach the dials. 

Now, with only my laundry and my husband's to manage, I still run one load every day. Some days it's clothes and other days it's linens like sheets or towels.  Keeping this simple routine means we rarely run out of clean items. 

One load of laundry a day can do the following:

• Lessens the risk of running out of clean clothes
• Lowers stress levels and reduces the feeling of overwhelm
• Makes the "mountain" of laundry on the weekends almost non-existent, freeing you up for other things.

No one enjoys getting up in the morning only to discover they are out of underwear or their favorite shirt isn't clean.

The visual clutter of seeing clothes tumbling out of an overflowing laundry basket adds to your stress. And having to postpone fun outings-- or give up your weekend-- just to catch up on laundry is the worst.

Instead, grab the basket and toss in a load of whites or towels while you are watching TV or doing other chores.  An hour later, move it to the dryer and go back to what you were doing. Once everything is dry, a quick fold is usually all it takes to keep things under control. 

You can even involve little kids by having them fold washcloths and match up socks. It is a small habit that makes a big difference in keeping the laundry chaos away. 

Doing one load of laundry every day is a simple habit that helps keep laundry from becoming overwhelming. Instead of facing a huge weekend pile, you can stay ahead with small, consistent loads- whether it is clothes, towels, or sheets. This routine reduces stress and prevents last-minute "I am out of clean underwear" moments and frees up your weekends for rest and fun. By involving kids in small tasks like folding small items, you turn laundry into a manageable part of daily life rather than a never-ending chore. 

Everyday Grace around Expectant Mothers and New Babies

My grandmother had a wonderful way of subtly teaching me poise and elegance.

As a girl with numerous male cousins and predominantly male classmates, it was difficult for me to remember the subtle nudges she gave me. However, I eventually managed to learn.

One thing I quickly realized when new cousins arrived was that expectant mothers are beautiful but also tired. Their round bellies and loose, flowing clothes made them look so lovely. 

I was delighted to welcome a new cousin into our family. We made it a point to visit the new little ones shortly after their birth on most occasions. 

My grandma instructed me to keep my hands to myself and to talk quietly around the baby and the tired mom.

As a new mom 25 years ago,  I expected others to have the same respect. Nope! Everyone wanted to touch my belly while I was pregnant or cuddle with my son shortly after coming home from the hospital.  I cringed inside.

Luckily, my grandmother was around shortly after my son was born. She scolded people who tried to take my son out of his carrier or insisted it was their turn to hold him. She strongly encouraged them to wash their hands and not stand so close.

While I was pregnant, a lady came up to me and immediately started to reach out for my very large belly. I swung out of her reach and promptly said I would prefer she not touch my growing belly. She was insulted.  

Our first time in church after our son was born, everyone wanted to hold our son. We insisted that they just look but not touch. Some people were respectful, and others were hurt. 

We chose an old-fashioned name for our son. Quite a few people said they didn't like his name and wanted to know if they could call him something different. We refused most suggestions for nicknames. 

25 years later... here is some friendly advice: 

• Respect a mother's growing belly. The belly is hers. Give her lots of room to move around and get comfortable.
• Respect the baby. Immune systems will increase slowly, just not all on the first outing. Let Mom and Dad handle the carrier or stroller.  If you have had a cold or the flu, keep your distance. 
• If you don't like the name... keep it to yourself.
• If they let you hold the new baby, treasure the moment. 
• The greeting should be "Congratulations," no matter how many children they already have at home. Babies are a blessing. 
• Finally, please keep yourself from suggesting sleep or feeding schedules.  I guarantee you, the mom and the dad are tired from getting so much advice.

A casserole dish of food, a cozy sleeper for the baby, or a gift card for take-out are welcome gifts. And keep visits short. 

A little bit of kindness and grace goes a long way with a pregnant woman or a new mom/dad. 

Are there any ways you have found that show love and kindness to new moms/dads and new babies?  Please share it in the comment section.