Stringing Beans...I had no idea

Last night, as I was reading a 1930s diary online, I came across an entry where the woman in the diary said she "helped string and cut green beans".  What???  I've heard of "string beans" but what does it mean to string a bean.  I looked it up and learned something NEW!

 

Check it out!

 

I've never "de-stringed" my beans.  Might have to start.

That's all for today.  I've been reading and reading this January, mostly old diaries online and historical stuff.  It's always fun to learn a bit of history and to learn new things. 

Vintage Paint Box

This vintage paint box is one that I bought at a flea market in Medina MN a couple of years ago, while on vacation.  I stumbled across it the other day, while looking for something else and realized I don't think I've ever done a post about it. 

 

 

The paints are made in Germany.  The paint tray is removable and looks like this on the back.

 

 

 

I think it would be fun to have a little paint box collection.  I'll keep my eyes open at local shops and flea markets.

 

That's all for today.  Until another time, have a happy, creative day!

 

Halloween Candy Trading Tutorial

I've posted this video before, but it's just too funny not to share again.

The narrator talks really fast, and though I'm a fan of Necco Wafers, it's still funny.

 

 That's all for today!  We hope you all have a Happy Halloween!

 

Hi, I'm The Dog--Makes Me Laugh!

We found this video yesterday, someone had posted to Face Book.  Thank you to its creator.  I laughed SO HARD!  Not sure why, but it brightened my day.

 

 

 

The weatherman says it's going to hit 102 degrees today!  With heat like that, I think I'll stay inside tonight and do some embroidering.

Until another time, have a silly kind of day!

Harry Potter Shoes

We were in Walmart a couple weekends ago and darling daughter wanted to by a pair of 5$ canvas shoes to paint.  Yes, to paint.  She even used her own money. 

At home, she proceeded to paint her shoes. 

 

 

She worked on them all weekend long (2 hour stretches mostly) and by Sunday evening she had a one-of-a-kind pair of Harry Potter Shoes.

 

 

I'm so proud of her for tackling this project, her creativity, and the fact that she finished the project!  She obviously doesn't get the "finishing-what-she-starts" gene from me, the queen of UFOs.

 

Until next time, have a happy, colorful day!

The New Light Bulbs

The light bulb above my desk fizzled out yesterday.  Actually it didn't fizzle, it popped.  As I flipped on the light, the bulb made a loud popping sound, as light bulbs have been know to do when they die.
 

I wept, openly over the death of my little light bulb.  (okay, not really, but I wanted to.  What I actually did was mumble something under my breath about the day going straight to hell in a hand basket).  I felt like weeping because I knew there were no longer any unused, incandescent light bulbs in the house, and going to Walmart or Target to buy more is no longer an option.  Sad isn't it?  Instead there are these white, curly-cue, blue-light emitting, fluorescent little monsters that mess with my senses and make me want to go back to kerosene lamps.  

I liked my incandescent bulbs!!  First of all, can we just stop to appreciate the beauty of the word "incandescent" in itself.  The word is an adjective and it means--"emitting light as a result of being heated".  I think it would be a great word to use at a baptism.  Incandescent also means "passionate or brilliant".  I'll never forget watching the end of Pride and Prejudice (2005) when Elizabeth says to her new husband, Mr. Darcy,  “You may only call me "Mrs. Darcy"... when you are completely, and perfectly, and incandescently happy.” 

Incandescently happy...what a beautiful state of mind.

Fluorescent, on the other hand, is not a pretty word.  It reminds me of the words "floor" and "scent".  I don't know about any of you my floor doesn't have a nice scent, not that I've checked, but germs live there, and feet walk there, so let's just assume. 

 

But back to the bulbs.....I liked my incandescent bulbs!!  They had kind of a golden light to them that made everything warm and "homey", like seeing warm lamp light through a curtained window on a very cold night, as you are walking back through the snow from the barn, with a sloshing pail of milk hanging from your gloved hand. 

 

The little house window in "Norway" at the end of the "Norway ride" at Epcot in Florida.

Incandescent light is that warm, welcoming light that says, "Come on into the kitchen, and have a seat there by the stove and warm yourself.  The biscuits are nearly on the table, and after dinner you can join us as we sit down on the davenport to catch the new episode of Bonanza on the Television."

The new bulbs, however, make me feel like I'm sitting in some 1960's government facility, full of teletype machines and balding men in horned rim glasses, smoking cigarettes and cursing, over numbers being totaled on an adding machines.  The only things missing are the mint green walls and the big old Western Union clock on the wall.  The lighting sucks and gives a person a headache.

I'll take the warmly lit home, thank you very much.

They say these new bulbs are more energy efficient, and that's great.  I'll be honest, I don't know much about them other than the fact that people aren't suppose to throw them in the garbage, or they could be deadly if accidentally broken.  Let's face it, we know some of these toxic bulbs are going to end up in the landfills.  More than some.  What then?  Is it worth the energy saved to have these nasty little mercury packages fouling up our landfills?  We already have too many people flushing prescription drugs down the toilet, and other toxins being washed down drains.  Not only that, humans are clumsy, a few are going to be broken and we'll have to call guys in white suits to come and clean them up. I'm not going to go into a full political or social rant about the darn things, I'm just here to say I don't like the light they produce. 
Maybe I just need to find another brand, I don't know.
Maybe I just need to open the drapes more often.
Maybe I just need to go take a nap.

Until another day, don't forget to shut off the light.
 

 

Tommy The Turtle Park

One of our favorite stops in Bottineau is the Tommy the Turtle Park.

 

We love its trees and shady nooks.

 

 

We love it's sunny playground.

 

 

And of course we love Tommy the Turtle!

 

 

I wonder what the history of this Turtle is?

Roadsideamerica.com states that Tommy was built in 1978 and is 30 feet tall, 34 feet long and marks the gateway to the Turtle Mountains in ND.  You can check out Roadside America's site HERE.  It's pretty cool.

 

And my most favorite part of this park is this tree.  Every year in July it blooms the most wonderful smelling flowers and every year I come to visit and practically inhale them.  I think they are Lilacs but am not certain. 

They bring back a memory to me that I can't quit place.  I think maybe it's a memory of a small bar of soap I once had from Avon?

 

 

Whatever kind of tree it is, I'd like to plant one in my yard.  It is fast becoming my favorite kind of tree. 

 

That's all for today, until another time, have a happy, sunny day!

 

 

Christmas Cookies

Sunday afternoon the temperature was cold here...like -22 F cold.  So I decided to crank up the oven and make sugar cookies!  (Thank goodness ovens don't really have cranks...I'd never bake...ever.)
What should have been a two-hour project promptly turned into a five hour project.  Instead of just slapping some frosting on each cookie with a butter knife, I decided to get out my decorator set and frost 'em up proper.

The close-ups I took ended up blurry, but I thought I'd share them anyway. 

 I have a new found respect for bakers and people who work with frosting of any kind.  They must be a chiropractor's best friend because by the time I was done my hands hurt, my shoulders ached and my back was a bit soar.  But it sure was fun! 

Funny story....for years I've been making these cookies off of a recipe card that my Grandma Eva copied for me in her own writing (such a treasure).  But alas, Grandma forgot to include an ingredient (1 tsp salt) in the recipe!  No wonder people have been pushing my cookies away for the last 10 years!  This batch is SO MUCH BETTER!  I can't believe that one little teaspoon of salt can make such a difference!
So, a big shout-out to my mom, who caught the mistake (she gets extra cookies). 

Until another day, have a Holly, Jolly Christmas!

Cats

The patty-cake cats to cheer you this morning. 
A friend of mine posted this on Facebook and it makes me laugh everytime I see it!  Enjoy!

Have a Merry Christmas Everyone.

Out of the Frame

Been thinking a little bit about train travel today.
If I am ever able to travel by train (and I hope that someday that I will), this is one of the songs I would listen to.

I love this song and it is easily in my to ten picks for best songs of all time. 
Call me crazy, but the rhythm of the song reminds me of a train. 
And suddenly, I'm in a passenger car rolling over the Montana plains (Philip Aaberg is from Montana, so it only makes sense that the train would be there also).  We passengers would see grassland, fence lines, and maybe a pickup hauling a horse trailer.
As the train rolls through a small town we glimpse for just a second a view down main street and busy people going about their lives.  Perhaps we see a man stopping by the post office to get his mail, another man stepping out of a blue pickup, and a woman watering some storefront flowers.  It is a moment, a tiny slice of someone else's life that passes by our eyes so quickly.
Then at about 5:20 (in the song) the train begins to slow and then stop.  People on the platform below look up at us through the window and wonder where we've come from.  We folks in the cars have seen miles of country in just a few hours, while those standing still on the platform have seen only their everyday routine of morning donuts, coffee and the two block trip to the railway station.  
I myself am getting off at this station.  This looks like a quiet little town.  As I stand on the platform, I turn around to look at the train that brought me here and the people who are now sitting in my seat.  Their adventure is just beginning.  Soon they will be moving quickly and I will be the one left standing still. 
Steadily, the train begins to pick up speed.  I watch as it continues on it's journey across the prairie until, like the music, it slowly fades away.

Yep.  I like that song.

Goodbye To Summer Party

After three years of asking and asking and asking for a summer-time party, this past week Autumn finally had one.  It was a "Goodbye to Summer" party, complete with 96 degree heat, 4 friends, too many water balloons to count, beach towels, picnic food hot off the grill and frosted cookies for dessert.  A fun time was had by all!

Until another day,
Have a happy, colorful day!

Funny Commercial

Everytime I see this commercial, it makes me laugh. 

Have a Happy Day!

A Fun Weekend with Cookies and Yarn

This past weekend was fun.  And I just realized, it's Monday evening and I haven't left the house since Thursday evening!!  Should I try for a whole week?  It's happened before and could very well happen again.

This weekend Autumn had her cousins over for a sleepover so we baked white sugar cookies aka: cutout cookies, aka: frosting holders. 
It went well and the girls had a blast decorating. 

They went a little crazy with the frosting, but they turned out beautiful, and delicious!



All I could think of is The Princess (Prince) and the Pea.



What a little snuggle bug.

Of course, while the girls were having fun playing and decorating cookies, I had a bit of time to crochet and listen to some old radio programs on the computer.  I tried listening to The Jack Benny Show but just couldn't get into it, so I listened to a George and Gracie and a couple Fibber McGee and Molly.  I only crochet about once or twice a year.  My sister-in-law crochets on a weekly (maybe even daily) basis.  She's always got a beautiful project going.  So between her and Pinterest, I was bound to pick up a crochet hook again sooner or later.  I got quite a few new Granny Squares done in a style I had never tried before.  It's called a solid block.  Here is the picture from Pinterest that gave me the inspiration to try the solid block.

So I was looking and looking at these thinking how pretty they are and I realized most of those colors are in my yarn box!  So I hopped online, learned how to make a solid square granny and went to work.

My Grandma Eva taught me how to crochet when I was about 13.  She is very good at it as many women of her time are.  And she made yarn doilies right up until the time she had to go into the rest home.  She was actually working on an afghan for Autumn which was about half completed.  Autumn won't let me finish it, she wants it just the way Grandma left it. 
When my Grandma Eva was younger she could make the prettiest doilies and afghans.  She made Christmas tree angels and potholders. She got many of her patterns from Workbasket magazine.  She also tried to teach me how to knit, but I liked crochet better.  She crochet every person in our family an afghan.  Mine was the rainbow colors ROYGBIV (I was like 10 years old and that's what I wanted).  She told me later that she always thought mine was the prettiest and most fun to do because of all the beautiful colors.  Sadly, she doesn't remember making any of them.  But I will never forget that she did.

So here is my first square done.  Not perfect by any means, but good enough for me as I am not picky.  Well, the funny thing about crochet is...once you start, it's addictive (it's like pinterest).  So I sat and crochet until almost midnight!

 The yarn I am using is all Caron Simply Soft.  The brighter skeins I bought right after Autumn was born and I made her a bright, rainbow afghan.  Then the softer colors I bought just last summer and made my little baby cousin an afghan with those.  So I am running low on some colors and am hoping they are still available at Walmart. 

The lighter colors.  The only two brighter colors I've been using are the hotter pink and lime green.  The green above is just a little to drab.

The other night I had a dream I was in a store (much like the one below) that had a whole wall of colorful yarn (yarn on the brain).  I don't think I purchased any.  I just stood there looking at the way the colors melted into the next, yellow into chartreuse, green into turquoise and so on.  It was a good dream and proof that I dream in color.  Here are some cute yarn stores I found while browsing the web.

Here is the yarn wall at Silver Threads and Golden Needles, a yarn shop located in the historic downtown district of Franklin, North Carolina.  I can just imagine myself walking down the sidewalks, a cup of coffee in hand, seeing this shop and fainting right on the spot. J/K  I could see myself dropping a few twenties in there though. 

Okay, how clever is the name!?  Purl Jam.  Love it!  (Loved the band by the way)  And this little house is the perfect setting for a lovely little yarn store.  Now, if I just knew how to knit and purl.  This little yarn shop is located in Califon, New Jersey.   

We had our own little yarn shop here in Minot called the Yarn Stash, but as I drove by last Wednesday night, I noticed their sign was gone.  Sad.  They still have their website online, so that's promising.  I kept saying I was going to go in there, but you know how it goes.

I will leave you with the address to a blog my Sis-in-law and I LOVE called Attic 24
 http://attic24.typepad.com/weblog/  She always has the most colorful projects and ideas going on in her head.  I just love the way she has decorated her house to be so bright and cheerful.  Take a look and enjoy!

Here is a crochet flower pillow from Attic 24.  Her work is flawless.  And her projects are just so darn bright and cheerful they make me smile every time I visit her blog!

Whew!  I didn't realized I had so much to say about yarn!  I will post more pictures when I get a few more squares done. 
Until then, have a very happy day.

Lemons

I love lemons.  They are yellow, and cheerful and are the daisies of the fruit world.  Around the month of January I start to get the winter blues.  This year has been a bit of an exception as we have very little snow, and it has been unseasonably warm.  But, even with this mild winter I sometimes feel the winter blues and put a lemon on my windowsill.  My mother used to do it, and growing up, I never knew why.  Now I understand.

A lemon in the window makes me happy.

A kitty in the window also makes me happy.

A kitty sleeping on a lemon in a window, that makes me REALLY happy!
This was taken a couple of years ago.  He had this habit of laying his head on whatever was sitting on the sill with him....

...including tomatoes.  We now have items on the window sill that prevent him from laying on our food.

I've always wanted a vintage lemon label in a frame for my kitchen and this particular one would be perfect.  The dark blue is the color of my kitchen walls!

Here is my little lemon jelly bowl that I use for a sugar bowl.  It has a little spoon that sticks out the top.  See what I mean about the dark blue walls.  They are kind of hard to decorate with but yellow looks good in front of them!

Here are all of my little fruit sugar bowls together on my kitchen counter.  I'm keeping my eyes peeled for a grape bowl with spoon.

Here's an adorable, vintage-looking potholder from Etsy. 

And when you are done looking at your cheerful lemon, you can cut it up and make lemonade!

Here's a colorful advertisement for Minute Maid Lemonade that I saw on Chronically Vintage's blog. 

I've never heard of Sun Drop Lemonade but apparently it was around in the 1940's.  I don't remember where this image came from, but it was just too vintage not to include it!

Have a juicy, lemony yellow kind of day!