Should I Be Pink Tulip Girl?

The daisy is still my favorite, but I did find the cutest tulips at Wal-Mart of all places. They had them close to the Valentine's displays. Of course I didn't go with the red or white, I had to pick the pink. These are sitting in my kitchen, and they don't look quite so willy-nilly when you're looking at them in person.

Could We Just Chat About Purses For A Minute?

I can count on one hand the number of purses I have had in the last 10 or so years, many of which my aunt gave me, and I would probably still have at least one finger left over. Don't get me wrong. I love purses, and I see cute ones in the store all the time, but they just aren't the right purse for me.

I'm particular about my purse. It can't be so small that I can't fit the necessary items in it, but it can't be too big, one, because I'm so short and two, because my neck and back don't hold up well under a big heavy bag. I don't like having to snap my purse shut where I really have to work at it, and I don't want to have tons of zippered compartments inside. It's kind of like having a bunch of walls that chop up your house into too many small rooms. I have a few things to keep my items in so they don't have the run of my purse, plus of course my wallet and checkbook. Then I don't have to worry about a bunch of snaps and zippers.

I have had the "perfect" purse one time. It finally had to go about 10 years ago when the leather on the outside was just too beaten up, and I've been on the search for the perfect replacement since then. Just before Christmas Hubby and I went in Marshall's and were browsing, and I wandered down the purse aisle not really expecting to find anything. I could not have been more wrong! Ta da! My perfect purse:

It has a magnetic clasp that is probably a quarter-size and it's on the inside top middle where you can't see it. It's even hidden under the fabric. It is so strong that it will usually close itself when you pick your bag up off the counter in a store after you pay. Here you can see about how big it is where Sparky is modeling it:

She was being just a little silly so I went ahead and took the picture. She doesn't model and she doesn't carry a purse. She carries a "bag." I made her model show it to you so you'd understand the vast difference between a purse and a bag. Her sister said something to her that angered her slightly right when I took the picture.

I gave her a second chance to smile sweetly for you. I just couldn't resist showing you her angry picture, too. Notice she got her braces off!

So back to my purse. Two Sundays ago the minister's wife (the ones we went birding with in Canada) told me she had seen some just like it at the outlet mall about an hour north of us. Hubby was going to take me there tomorrow to see if I could find some different colors, because I tell you, this is the most perfect purse for me. But tonight when we were running around for a few minutes while the girls were at a church get-together, I decided to run in TJ Maxx and see if by some weird chance they had any, that store being related to Marshall's and all. Hubby and I walked down different purse aisles to scope it out and see what we could find. I rounded the corner and he had four different colors hanging from his arms! By the time we had looked at all the racks, we had found 11 or 12 different colors, including two prints.

I am now set for at least the next 10 years where purses are related. Maybe more than that since I'm honestly not that rough on them. Why? Because Hubby bought me some purses tonight.

The solids are leather, the plaid is kind of like vinyl, and the tan/cranberry print is a heavy cloth. I passed on orange (the hardest one for me), tomato red (mine is cranberry), cream (would get too dirty too easily), an ugly weird beige, mustard, the most putrid light blue, and it seems like there was one more and I'm blank.

And since I have one very girly girl who has been wanting a new purse for a long time and hasn't gotten one, we surprised her with this — a purse, not a bag:

When Hubby and I went to the hockey game on Groundhog Day and I had to hand my purse over for inspection, as I walked through the metal detector the guy who had my purse said, "I'll give it right back." I don't know if I looked at him funny, but I do know the drill, and I just said, "I know," and smiled. As he handed it back to me he looked at both of us and said, "That purse is very neat and organized." You can't ask for much more than that out of a purse. Or a purse checking guy who would notice those details for that matter. A girl, maybe. But a guy?

So, anybody else out there have trouble finding the perfect purse? How long did it take you?

Organization — Spices

A couple of weeks ago I showed you one of my favorite rooms, my kitchen. In that post I also showed you my spice drawer. Here is what it looked like:

I could find everything relatively quickly, and it was sort of alphabetized.

I had to buy some new spices this week, and I also desperately needed to replace some old ones. Using those old Tupperware spice containers worked great while Hubby was in the military and we moved around, because that way the movers would actually take them. But the down side of that was that there was never an expiration date since the bottle got thrown away. I knew they needed to be replaced though, so I did.

In doing so I analyzed my drawer to figure out what would work better. I didn't want the bottles in the drawer without being inside of something, so I had to figure out what would work best. Two of the glass bottles fit nicely in the smaller rectagular basket that you can get 3-for-$1 at Wal-Mart. After a Wal-Mart run, emptying out the old spices, and rearranging the drawer (including alphabetizing), this is what it looked like:

See, alphabetized:

I also keep my paper muffin cups, plastic measuring cups, slicer thingy, toothpicks, etc. in here. Baking/cooking related stuff. I kept the taller plastic basket for some items because it fit the space best and I really needed the higher sides for those things.

So I didn't get the fancy-schmancy spice drawer organizer I thought I might, and I didn't get the one I love that goes up in the cabinet either. But you sure can't beat about $3 in plastic baskets.

Organization — Manuals and Booklets

Several years ago when we lived in Illinois, I got an idea that I think was from Martha Stewart. That is in the recesses of my mind, because I didn't watch her show and I don't read her magazine, but the tip must have been credited to her somewhere.

I got a huge honkin' binder, and the most awesome two-side pocketed, extra-durable plastic tabbed three-ring inserts. I use them in some other binders, and they are just heavenly. I get a little verklempt about them.

So these pockets I used for my manuals and a few instruction thingamajigs I didn't want to lose that I would categorize with a manual, and would therefore know exactly where to look for them when necessary. Instead of writing on the tabbed inserts (where I would have to change them whenever there was rotation of some kind), I just used my labelmaker and then stuck it directly on the outside of the tab. See:


Front and back view:


This was a four-inch binder. Do you see how thick that puppy was?


Now the thing is, I rarely had to get into that binder, and it took up a lot of space. And when I did need to get into it, it was a little cumbersome. By not getting into it often, there were usually a lot of things to throw away by the time I did.

So I went through this binder the other night, and this was my throwaway stack:


and this is all I was left with:


Target has these fantastic little boxes by Sterilite now that fit regular sized paper (as well as a few other sized boxes) and I am hooked! Look at this:


Okay, yes, I do still need to use my labelmaker, but I just couldn't resist going ahead and showing you what I'd been up to. The top box is the one you saw in the picture above, the second one has all the manuals and warranties from our new appliances with this house, the third one has all the electronic kind of "stuff" that came with our computer, cell phones, ipods, digital cameras, etc., and the fourth box has the Ikea instruction books and the extra pieces that we didn't use during assembly (like wall anchors and stuff). I have all those loose things in a big Ziploc baggie inside the box so they don't go all helter-skelter in there.

Here's another stack — I told you I was hooked!


The top two boxes have the kids' Monster Jam yearbooks that they've taken to the events and had autographed by whoever was there. These books have been my nemesis until a couple of days ago. The bottom box has all the Thomas the Tank Engine track layouts and yearbooks they used to give out in the stores with more track layouts. We're working on future favorite grandparent status here, so these will live with us forever.

Here's a little peek at how they look on the cubbies.


I'll show you the entire thing later, but the set of three boxes is at the opposite end on the same row. Because it had to be symmetrical. And yes, to be perfectly symmetrical I need another box. I'm working on it. I just haven't been back to Target.

You remember the OCD issues, right?

Memory Monday — Proverbs 4:23-27, Individually

These verses were each on a colored index card and then hung from the kids' bathroom mirror in Virginia. We have yet to find a great place for them here in Michigan since they no longer all share a bathroom.

Each card, except the one with the first verse, had a little note on the bottom to help them with the big words or with a little more application. That's what I'm going to share this week.

From memory:

Proverbs 4:23
Above all things else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.

Proverbs 4:24
Put away perversity from your mouth; keep corrupt talk far from your lips.
*perversity means really bad stuff (and I had a frowning face drawn next to that)
*corrupt talk means bad words and things that hurt people's feelings

Proverbs 4:25
Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you.
This means keep your eyes on the Lord and what is right, so sometimes we have to look at our shoes in public.

Proverbs 4:26
Make level paths for your feet and walk take only ways that are firm.
Don't go somewhere you shouldn't and where you might be tempted to do wrong.

Proverbs 4:27
Do not swerve to the right or the left; keep your feet foot from evil.
Satan is the curb we bump up on that keeps us from pleasing God. The curbs are things that tempt us to turn down another road even though we know we are on the right one.

I'm getting this posted much later than I wanted to, so I didn't get to go into much detail on the shoes thing. I also made a few mistakes in my verses, and being the perfectionist I am, I think I will get them right for next week, plus add verses 20-22 to the beginning. I love Deuteronomy 6:4-9, although realistically I don't think I can memorize those by next Monday also. I do think they really go hand in hand with these verses from Proverbs though. So I plan to memorize those by the next Monday. Maybe I will be able to at least get a head start on them.

I'm also going to challenge my children to memorize these five verses from Proverbs, and then they can post for Memory Monday next week too. Then I wouldn't have to find a place to put these cards up right away either.

Joanne hosts Memory Monday over at The Simple Wife every week. Have a blessed week!

Menu Plan Monday — February 9th-15th

I haven't done my formal menu planning since prior to our move to Michigan. Which was August 1st of last year. I tell you, this move has put me out of my groove. But I'm determined to get back into it, not only menu planning this week, but also getting every remaining box unpacked before Valentine's Day. Wish me luck!

Monday—Breakfast for Dinner...Pancakes and homemade syrup (recipes below, and in parenthesis in the pancake recipe I gave the measurements for when I triple and quadruple the recipe, and I always at least triple it). I mean, come on, we eat dessert for breakfast.

Tuesday—White Chili from Lora. This is a new recipe for our family.

Wednesday—Cheesy Spaghetti Bake. Another new recipe for our family. The directions say to make it in two 9 x 13 casserole dishes and that it makes 24 servings, so I plan to bake one and freeze one prior to baking. I'm curious to see how that turns out since I don't usually do too well with frozen meal planning. I will serve this with Pepperidge Farm Mozzarella Bread.

Thursday—Slow Cooker Barbeque Beef Sandwiches. I'm really going out on a limb this week, because this ones new, too. I might double this recipe or do it at 50 percent more. I'm still working on that one. It may be a decision I make while I'm standing at the meat counter looking at how big the piece of meat is that it calls for...because if I cook it I sure want to have enough to eat it. I will probably serve this with a veggie tray.

Friday—Meat Loaf. This is almost the identical recipe to the one that is in my Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book from 1987. I always double it, and depending on my mood and the amount of time I have to cook it, I will sometimes make it into mini-meat loafs and just put them on my largest Pampered Chef baking stone (the one with sides). It takes a lot less time for it to cook that way. I usually have to use my smaller stone for the overflow. I will probably serve this with some type of dinner roll and warm veggies; probably green beans and corn.

Since I'm trying some new things, I may very well have some leftovers, but since they are new, I don't know how much. Any of these things could get bumped back a day or so depending on that, and then we have the weekend planned out also. Except that I'm hoping I get to eat somewhere special Saturday. Hint, hint, Hubby...

Pancakes
Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book (in 1987)

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (3 3/4 or 5)
2 T sugar (6 or 8)
2 tsp baking powder (6 or 8)
1 beaten egg (3 or 4)
1 cup milk (3 or 4)
1 T cooking oil (3 or 4)
1/2 tsp salt (1 1/2 or 2)

Stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Combine egg, milk and oil; add all at once to flour mixture, stirring till blended but still slightly lumpy. Pour onto a hot, lightly greased griddle or heavy skillet. Cook till golden brown, turning to cook other side when pancakes have a bubbly surface and slightly dry edges.

The recipe says it makes about eight 4-inch pancakes or about 30 dollar-size pancakes. I've never made either size, so I have no clue how accurate that is. I just know to feed my family of six, I need to triple the recipe, and if I want any leftover for the next morning for the kids, I have to quadruple it.

Homemade Syrup
from Betsy

1 cup white sugar
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup water

Bring to boil in medium saucepan over high heat. Boil and stir about 30-60 seconds, until the drips on your spoon start to thicken. Remove from heat. Stir in 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract and 1 T butter.

Another new recipe, and I'm going to be Betsy's guinea pig since she's never had any left and tried to save it. I'm going to need to make more than one batch anyway, so I might triple it and see how much I have left over, refrigerate it, and we'll see how it keeps.

This week I will also be making Puppy Chow for a snack (which will be gone the day after I make it), figure out something yummy with a Valentine's theme, or chocolate!, and I'm also going to try and make Homemade Granola for the first time ever. Unfortunately, I'm going to show you a recipe and I don't know whose blog I printed it or linked to it from.

Homemade Granola
we'll just say anonymous for now

3/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup honey
5 cups oatmeal
1/2 cup dry milk
3/4 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt
1/2 cup raisins (but if you think I'm putting food in my food, you're crazy; I just put this here in case someone else happens to want this recipe and likes raisins)

Mix brown sugar, oil and honey in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and heat until the sugar is dissolved. Combine dry ingredients in a large cake pan. Pour syrup over dry mixture and mix well. Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally. Let cool in pan. Add raisins (if you must) and stir. Store in an airtight container. You can also add wheat germ, coconut, nuts, dates and other dried fruit. Of course that's just what the recipe said. That would again qualify as food in my food. Makes 5 cups. At least without the food in your food.

It feels good to be getting myself organized and back on track again! To check out hundreds of other menu plans and recipe ideas, go to I'm an Organizing Junkie.

Do You Bleed Blue?

Anybody out there know where that came from? It was the catch phrase in St. Louis for the Blues NHL hockey team. Since we've been gone from the area for almost three years, they very well may have changed it by now. But there were billboards everywhere around the city with that phrase.

So now guess what Hubby and I did on Groundhog Day? Yes, I'm a little late in posting about it, but you know the cliche. And no, we did not go to St. Louis. We saw the Blues play here in Detroit against the defending Stanley Cup Champion Red Wings.

At first I felt like I was back in the old Busch Stadium in St. Louis watching the Cardinals play. It was a sea of red seats.

I love hockey. It's the best spectator sport. It's also the one I understand the least. Well, out of the major sports like football, baseball, and basketball. I'm not just a math geek, I'm a sports chick. What are the odds?

I hadn't been to a game since I saw the Blues play at The Arena in St. Louis in the early 90's before they tore The Arena down and before kids. Hubby found special pricing for two tickets, two hotdogs, and two small sodas, and we had a date. Aren't all you girls jealous?

Although we'd only seen a handful of games live, this was a night of firsts for us. It was the first time we had seen an overtime game, which they called the 4th period on the scoreboard. It was only five minutes long, as opposed to the previous 20 minute periods, and it was sudden death.

You'll see that at the end of the overtime period neither team had scored, so it was another first for us — a shootout! At the end of the shootout (each team got three tries), which they called the 5th period, the Red Wings had scored one more goal than the Blues (2-1), so they added that one goal to the previous three, and the Red Wings won.

If they had still been tied, they would have gone one-on-one in a sudden death shootout situation. Have you enjoyed your hockey lesson?

So the guy sitting next to me asked in the middle of the game when we were going to become Red Wings fans. I told him I wasn't sure, because their red color was like Soviet Union red. I mean, I did grow up when the Cold War was still going on and the Russian judges at the Olympics gave our Olympians lower scores. Plus I look better in a deeper red color. But I only told him about the Soviet part, not what colors I looked good in. He agreed and suggested that I wear their black jersey. I just smiled and chose not to tell him one of the reasons I don't really care for the NFL's Raiders or Steelers.

On the other hand, Hubby really likes their logo. It reminds him of the Army's transportation wheel he wore all those years. So this team could easily be our second favorite hockey team. We've never had one; just a favorite. And you can't ask for much more from your second favorite team than that they are the defending Stanley Cup champions. Unless, of course, they are second behind your favorite team.