Category Archives: Nico

Sep 15

A Few Favorites

These are a few of my favorite things from around our home.

My favorite skirt. I made it from a dress.

My favorite (and my only) kitty.

Sparkly toe-nails. Right now my favorite color.

My very favorite shelf in the kitchen.

My favorite coffee cup. James and I found this one on our honeymoon.

Sep 13

Agnes’ Quilt Update

I’ve been working on a quilt for Agnes. I thought I had it just the way that I wanted it, but then I changed my mind.

I used what I had left to make several more blocks. I thought I had more time to work, but the last bit before school snuck up on me.

I took along my fabric to clip, and sort.

Now I’m thinking of making one quilt that has the bright colors, and one that is only pink and purple.

I’ll probably change my mind a few more times before I actually get it done.

Sep 12

Around The Yard

This has become a very odd end to the Summer months. We have cool rainy days, and warm sunny days, and stormy weather too. Maybe it will calm down a bit in October.

I spotted these little fungi hiding under our large Mulberry tree after a rain storm.

I think they are cute.

Our tree must be the perfect growing ground for these little ones.

I only have a few strawberry plants left in the garden. The heat wiped out most of them, and then Mia helped out too. The four that are left are looking fantastic. They have loved the rainy weather.

I hope Mia won’t dig them up before next Spring.

I also had a few Okra plants survive the hot Summer (and the chihuahua). They are still growing, and maybe we’ll get a few okra before Autumn weather hits.

I was hoping to replant my Green Beans and Snow Peas too. I figured with Mia’s love of garden destruction, I probably shouldn’t. Maybe next year’s garden will do a bit better.

Sep 11

Yard Sale

This month is the yearly City-wide yard sale! I would really love to shop, but I think I had better host one instead.

I didn’t do as well on my Bids & Dibs sales as I had hoped, so I still have a lot of kids clothes hanging out in the foyer. I also have a lot of odds and ends hanging out in the upstairs closet that need to go too.

I’ve started pricing some of the clothes. It is a fun task to do while the kids are in school.

I have got to get this clutter under control, and my messy house back in a decent form of order.

Sep 10

What I Learned From The Power Outage

How I wish I had been better prepared. I should have had more ice, I wish I had purchased more canned goods. I lucked out and had just enough diapers for Agnes.

The power outage taught me a few things though…

  • Your eight year old will be the first one to freak out.
  • It is spooky in town at night when you can hear people and you can’t see them.
  • The town will go into a frenzy if there isn’t Wal-Mart available.
  • Yearly air shows are creepy if you don’t have power. We started thinking zombie apocalypse a little too quickly.
  • Night falls quickly, so don’t procrastinate.

Seriously, I really wish I had been better prepared…

  • All day on Friday I was thinking I should bake some cookies and bread. That would have been helpful on Saturday.
  • We need to own more candles. With the little toddler in the house who hates candles, I only have four. That isn’t quite enough when darkness falls.
  • Always charge your cell phone (which I hadn’t) and have enough gas in your car (which I didn’t).
  • I really need to keep more non-perishable items in the house, and powdered milk too.
  • You can never have enough juice boxes, granola bars, and crackers on hand. They will be the first thing to go with three hungry kiddos.
  • Make sure you have an ample supply of crayons, coloring books, reading materials, puzzles, and board games on hand.
  • Seriously use every bit of daylight you have.
  • Oh, and one more thing I NEED COFFEE!!! I’m not cheerful without it.

I was surprised though…

  • We pulled together quickly, stayed calm, and kept the kiddos calm too.
  • We rationed our supplies that we had on hand.
  • We were prepared for the outage to last much longer, and we were not worried.
  • We spent quality time together, and the kiddos had fun playing together.
  • It really wasn’t that bad, it was a nice break from my addiction to all things electronic.

We were really lucky though.  The weather was nice, and the power was back on late Saturday night. I’ve never seen everyone so happy. I have to say that even though it was a long weekend, it was a lot of fun. The kiddos played well together, and James and I got to spend a lot of time reading. We even snuck in a nap too. It was quiet in the evening, and nice to have all of the windows open in the house. We turned the power outage into an indoor camping adventure, and it was pretty fun.

I cleaned up the yard a bit on Saturday, and got the freezers cleaned out on Sunday. The kids even got a day off from school, so they were pretty happy about that. It will be good to get back to normal again, and seriously, I’m stocking up on candles.