This past Sunday, I posted the picture above on my Instagram account to share what we had done in our front garden that afternoon. What I didn’t share at the time was how we scored six – yes SIX – bags of brand new mulch for a total of $1.50. I have to thank our neighbor for the heads up here. He and Adam were chatting in the front yard and he shared with us that he had just gotten brand new mulch from our local Lowes for $0.25 a bag. What the what? We’d been wanting to clear out that front flower bed for awhile so this would be perfect! So after lots of tilling and removing bushes and pruning we ran up to Lowes and sure enough, in the far back corner of the garden center sat two pallets of re-bagged mulch. The bags had split and spilled when they were being…
So Why the New Blog, Anyway?
So, why a new blog? I wish there was an easy answer for that. Instead, it’s somewhat complicated. For awhile now I’ve been unhappy with blogging and to an extent, the blogging community. Let me be clear though, through blogging I’ve met many wonderful people, who I consider now to be good friends. But as with anything (like say, high school) there are also cliques, mean girls, and the popular crowd you never quite seem to be a part of. Maybe that’s just me. Either way it felt really disheartening. It was hard to never feel good enough. “Don’t compare yourself to others.”, friends said. Easier said than done. When I began blogging it was a way to share my adventures in being a new housewife. It gave me an outlet as I transitioned from full time teacher to full time housewife. That was a big switch, let me tell you. A…
Sunday Drives
I’m not sure how it happened, but the last three Sundays Adam and I have taken an hour or so for a quiet drive in the country. It’s been a nice time to catch up, talk, and just relax. If you follow me on Instagram you’ve probably seen some of the pictures I’ve posted of the things we see along our journey. In this year of simplifying and embracing peace I’m really enjoying stepping away from things, even for an hour on Sunday and just “being”. Here are some of my favorite pics: It’s not so much about where we go, or what we talk about. It’s just a time to de-stress before the new week starts. With an anxiety disorder, sometimes relaxing is a hard thing to come by, but this seems to help. It’s just one more thing I’m attempting to make a habit for better…
Six Sisters’ Stuff Slow Cooker Chicken Broccoli Alfredo: A Review
Hey y’all. I’m back with another review from our foray into freezer cooking. This time, it’s another recipe from Six Sisters’ Stuff. Before I begin, I have to mention that in our first round of freezer cooking the recipes we used came mostly from Six Sisters. If it seems like I’m sticking with them, I am. For now. They offered the most simple, easy to follow recipes that included ingredients that I generally have on hand and can afford. Definitely a plus for this girl! You know I’m all about simplifying this year. I will be branching out on our next freezer cooking day, which I think will be in March. I’m already gathering new recipes! Make sure you follow my freezer cooking board on Pinterest. Now, onto the recipe. Y’all, I really wanted to love this one. I really did. Hubby and I love pasta. We don’t often…
What is Love? An Open Letter to My Nieces
Since it’s Valentine’s Day, I thought I would forego the flowery Happy Valentine’s Day post and instead take a moment to write a letter to my nieces who are either at the beginning or end of their wedding planning journey.Dear Katie and Sara,I want you to know that what I’m about to say isn’t meant to discourage you in any way. And I want you both to be exuberantly happy in your upcoming marriages. But before you walk down the aisle, I want to share a few things I, your not so old and fuddy duddy Aunt, has learned in my almost four years of marriage. And yes, I realize that four years doesn’t make me an expert or anything, but think of it as your future self offering advice to your bride self right now. OK? Ok.Girls let’s talk. Right now you’re probably frazzled by all those wedding details, but…
Simplified Goals for February 2014
A new month means a new set of simple monthly goals here in the Scrappy household. Here’s what I have on tap for this month: Start planning our landscaping and gardening projects for the year.Spruce up the upstairs guest bathroom.Organize my jewelry box.Continue working on our filing cabinet and important papers.I’m lagging, even getting this post up (!!), but I have time. Lots of it given the stupid amounts of snow we’re waiting on as I type this. Anyone else ready for spring?And as always, I’ll be blogging about my progress. I’m thinking I’ll tackle the jewelry box tomorrow while it snows (and snows and snows…).How are your resolutions or goals progressing? Let me know in the comments below. I love hearing from you. 🙂
My One Little Word for 2014
So, in case you aren’t familiar with One Little Word it was started a few years ago by Ali Edwards, blogger, scrapbooker, and designer extraordinaire as a way to focus the year ahead and define how you want your life to be for the next twelve months. I’ll admit that over the past couple of years I’ve picked a word and then promptly dismissed it. Part of the problem is the depression was consuming me at the time and I couldn’t see past it enough to focus on anything else. But now that I’m healthier and much happier I feel like I have the space and desire to focus on how I want my life to look for the next year. I know that I’ve mentioned this before but now that I’m healthy again, I have this deep desire for things to be as simple and easy as possible.…
Six Sisters’ Stuff Hearty Beef Stew: A Review
Hey y’all! A few of you said you might want reviews of the freezer cooking recipes we’re trying and I’m more than happy to oblige.We tried our first one last week and I’m happy to report it was fantastic!The Hearty Beef Stew recipe from Six Sisters’ Stuff is pretty much everything you want in a good beef stew. The beef gets nice and tender; it melts in your mouth really. The stew base is nice and thick and perfect for dipping bread or crackers into. And y’all, it makes a ton! For hubby and I, it made a good two full meals. Obviously if you have a bigger family you’ll need to keep that in mind. I would say it feeds four comfortably. Now, if I’m being honest, and y’all know I am, my only pet peeve is that in the recipe, it states to slice the carrots. Hubby fired up…
Easy Valentine’s Day Garland
I don’t know about y’all but when I wander around craft stores (who am I kidding, stores in general) I find awesome seasonal decor ideas but then cringe at the price point. Maybe I’m just cheap? This year was no different. I found a really cute scrappy fabric garland for Valentine’s Day at Michaels, but I didn’t want to use my hard earned scrapbooking money (*ahem*) on extra decor for the house. Priorities people! Then I realized I had a TON of pink, red and white scrap fabric, ribbon, felt and left over twine stashed in my craft room. I could just make one! For FREE! And it’s super simple guys. Promise. I just grabbed my scrap fabric, ribbon, twine, scissors and pinking shears and got to work. I used the pinking shears to cut strips of quilt weight cotton fabric and my scissors to cut strips of felt and…
Simple Goal Setting in 2014
So, I know in terms of the blog world, I’m kind of behind the times in setting goals for a new year and sharing that with you, but I think that fits me pretty well. I’m different. I try really hard to be like everyone else but each time I completely fail at it, I’m reminded that I’m not everyone else. Even when it comes to how I’m setting goals this year.If you’re anything like the average girl, you might set goals or resolutions. Maybe something like, “lose weight” or “quit smoking” or “be more organized”. Sound familiar? Y’all, every year for as long as I can remember I’ve tried that and failed…miserably. Are you with me?This year I’m trying something different. I know I’ve said this before but since being diagnosed with chronic depression and anxiety, I just can’t make big sweeping goals or resolutions. And when I do, life…