DIY Dog Pillow/Bed

Sweet little Dexter has been so mistreated.  He's been sleeping in his crate with just this measly old blanket to keep him comfortable. 



He'd rather lay on this old egg crate than that hard crate tray.  Hmmm....my wheels are turning.  I think I feel a project coming on!  I think I'll repurpose this old egg crate and a fleece blanket and make him his own pillow!

Harvesting Potatoes!

Look at all the potatoes that came out of my garden!  Oooooh!  I can't wait to eat them!  YUM!

I had a variety of all sizes but this one was the biggest of all!  Look at it!  It was about the size of a softball.  So proud of myself for growing these babies!

Here are the first of my tomatoes too!  They are going to be sliced and put in a salad tonight for supper!  I love my basket being full of yummy veggies from my garden.

Monthly Menu to the Rescue!

It's the beginning of the month and that time again for me to plan our monthly menu.  Yes, that's right, I said monthly.  I like to get all my shopping done at one time because those crazy, grumpy Walmart crowds make me insane.

 

I make a monthly menu for 4 reasons:

1.  It saves us money.  When I plan ahead, I know exactly what ingredients to buy for exactly what meals I'm going to prepare.  So I'm not buying food we don't need.

2.   It helps me know what to take out of the freezer to thaw in the mornings when I'm walking around in a stupor, well before my morning coffee.           

3.  I know exactly what meal to make.  There's no thinking during the week, no questioning, no "cooker's block."  I do all of that at one time so that it can be all rainbows and puppy dogs the rest of the month...er, at least on the cooking front.

4.  I'm a planner.  I like to plan things.  Did I also mention I'm a list maker?  I like to make lists- a lot of lists. 

My Garden is Growing, Growing, Growing...

Remember what it first looked like?

 Now look at it!

 Wowee it has really grown!  Some of the veggies I tried to start from seeds didn't make, ::sniff sniff:: But I do have 3 black eyed pea plants, maybe 2 green bean plants, an entire row of onions, an entire row of potatoes, 2 lettuce plants, a tomato plant, a bell pepper plant and a banana pepper plant.

I picked my first crop on Saturday.  A yummy banana pepper!  I ate it on my egg sandwich and it was delish!  I have a few tomatoes growing, a few more banana peppers that are almost ready, and some onions that can't wait to be pulled from the ground.  Oh, I can't wait to really dive in and eat the "fruits" of my labor!

I heart gardens!

I love gardening!  Even during dorm and apartment living, I've had indoor plants and container gardens.  But this year, I get to have my very own veggie garden!  I found some bargain price tools and went to work last weekend tilling up the soil.  I hand tilled a 6x10 area (with a little help from Justin) in the corner of our back yard.  It was hard work!  Sheesh!

Yesterday, I got it all finished up and planted lettuce, tomato, bell pepper, hot banana pepper, red potatoes, carrots, black eyed peas, onions and green beans.  I can't wait until the summer to harvest my first crop!  hee hee!