May 2010 - Bare Feet on the Dashboard

24
May
2010

crafty solutions: a new cake plate jewelry holder

my dresser is a disaster. jewelry and makeup are strewn about, and my jewelry box can’t hold all of my stuff. i know it is a ridiculous problem to have, but it bothers me. i’m sure you’ve seen these lovely cake plate jewelry holders all over blogland. they inspired me to try it for myself. i found 2 brass candle sticks at a garage sale for next to nothing and then started looking for cool plates. i looked everywhere. garage sales, estate sales, target, and then finally the crate and barrel outlet. at the c & b outlet i found 3 beauties for under $10 total. finally, we were ready for action.

seriously, this is not staged. this is my reality.

on the left is the untouched candle stick.
on the right is the sanded version.

we had a little bit of ivory bisque paint left over from a furniture painting project.
we used it to cover the brass for a totally different look.

jed decided he wanted to help,
and i was more than willing to let him.

we used gorilla glue to attach the plates to the candle sticks.

ta-da! here’s the finished product.
now i have to be patient enough to let it dry.

i have a light blue plate on the bottom,
an ivory plate in the middle,
and then one with cobalt blue flowers on the top.

i love it!

now i just have to make something
to hold the jewelry that won’t fit…

i’m entering this post in a contest over at CSI:

i’m linking to:

the persimmon perch

23
May
2010

verse of the week – 1 john 1:9

categories: jesus

“if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” – 1 john 1:9

the memory verse for this week is a reminder of our forgiven status. we are forgiven, and get to live in the freedom of that knowledge. my hope is that i will treat others with grace and forgiveness if i am reminded of God has done the same for me. join me in memorizing a verse per week.

22
May
2010

frugal friday (just barely) – finishing baby step 3

categories: finances, financial freedom, frugal, our financial story

yesterday we took another HUGE step towards financial freedom. we finished dave ramsey‘s baby step 3!!! this means that not only are we debt free, but we also have 3 months of expenses saved in an emergency fund. i cannot express to you how free this makes me feel. it took ten months for us to get through the first three baby steps, but it has been an awesome journey. we have taken control of our finances and are able to give more than ever before.

here’s the thing – i am TERRIBLE with money. when i left home for college, i made one bad financial decision after another. i maxed out 8 credit cards, bought a brand new car i couldn’t afford, and spent whatever i wanted. i consolidated all of my debts into a big loan and paid on it for several years. while i was paying it off i opened up new credit cards at gap, banana republic, old navy, and victoria’s secret, then got a new visa and discover card for good measure. i was basically a disaster. i was always later with my rent, trying to explain myself to roommates, and completely unable to get it together.

in early 2006, i felt really convicted and overwhelmed by the way i was dealing with money. i again consolidated my debt and cut up all of my credit cards. by the time i married jed in 2008, i was completely debt free. jed was a different story. he still had a few credit cards, a major loan from his parents, and the dreaded student loans. still, i thought we were doing ok. we were very frugal throughout the first year of our marriage, and never used credit cards. but, we still had all of that debt hanging over our heads.

last year we were introduced to dave ramsey’s ideas by jed’s brother, sam. he and his wife michelle had taken control of their finances using dave’s plans, and were eager to share the program with us. i fought it. big time. i did not want a budget. i did not want to sacrifice to pay off “his” debt, when i had already worked so hard to pay off mine. one fateful weekend we were driving to houston and happened to listen to dave’s radio show. it was a “debt free friday” with people calling in to scream, “we’re debt free!!!”. i was hooked. we started the program the next week, and the rest is history. we have found such freedom.

if you are drowning financially, or even just struggling a little, go check out dave. his ideas are not rocket science, just the common sense that we try to hide from as we run up our credit card bills. i am not receiving any kind of compensation for this post, just trying to share the wealth.

i’m linking to:

19
May
2010

weiner dog wednesday – naps in the sunshine

categories: Uncategorized

do you ever wish you could trade places with your dog, just for a day? jackson’s most difficult task all day is readjusting to stay in his sun spot. it is a hard life he leads.

18
May
2010

blooming in my living room

categories: decorating, frugal, photography

i put away my spring decorations,
and decided it was time for summer.

i learned how to make paper flowers when betsy (friend and younglives leader) taught our younglives girls a few weeks ago.

i needed a refresher, so i looked to a few of
the great tutorials out there in blogland.

some didn’t turn out well. they went into the recycle bin.

all of the decent flowers went on green fuzzy pipe cleaner “stems”
and then into my mason jar collection.

i made 3 different sizes for 3 displays
on a bookcase and 2 end tables.
the photo effect used is “1960s” on picnik.

they were fairly quick and easy to make, and cost almost nothing.

i think they make my living room come alive
with bright colors and fluffy blooms.

are you ready for summer?

i’m linking to:

12
May
2010

weiner dog wednesday – the one where jackson imitates a seal

categories: family

why is my dog sitting like a seal on the beach? i have no idea.
he always sits with his paws neatly together, except for this instance.
jed noticed it, and made me take a picture.
jackson is an odd little critter, but we love him.

03
May
2010

welcome to texas. let’s make breakfast burritos.

categories: frugal, recipes, texas

first things first. grab a cup of coffee. this is my favorite mug, from our honeymoon in charleston.

until i married jed, and we moved to texas, i had never heard of a breakfast burrito. when he offered to make them one morning, i was confused and doubtful. he cooked them for me, and my life was forever changed. seriously. we eat them at least once a week for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. there are a million different ways to make them, but here’s how we do it. put your bacon on first, 2 slices per person. we use lean turkey bacon. we tried the extra lean and it was basically turkey jerky. the lean still has flavor but is better for you than the real stuff. feel free to use the real stuff or even breakfast sausage or chorizo. you can’t go wrong.

the next thing you need are your hashbrowns. we use these fresh, never frozen babies from simply potatoes. they don’t have anything added, and are just less work.

brush olive or canola oil on your pan and then lay out the hashbrowns in a thin layer. we use 3/4 cup per person. cover them and let ’em sit for a bit on medium heat. you will need to flip them once.

grab your eggs next. we use 2 per person (sometimes 3 for boys).

beat those huevos, then add 1/2 cup grated cheese of your choice. we like colby jack. add the egg/cheese mixture to your hashbrowns when they are about done.

breakfast burritos are best on freshly made flour tortillas. it is just science. we are trying to be healthy though, so we are using these tasty wraps.