I am hanging my head in shame.  Not really, but I kinda feel like it.  Today, I am going to share with you, my sweet Dirt Roaders, something ridiculous.  It is our glass and cup collection.  Really now?  A family of five need a bazillion and a half drinking glasses and cups?  Please tell me that we are joking.  It’s nuts!

(These pictures are not the greatest because it was evening…but you will…um…get the picture.  I know…I just winced.)

It will be so nice to unload the dishwasher and not have to fit the glasses in like puzzle pieces!

To our credit…we are big drinkers.  Hiccup.  I’m keeding….I’m keeding…not that kind of drinkers.  Like…sweet tea (Mine with Splenda please.) and other yummy things.  The occasional cup of coffee and milk for our Oreos.  We sound awful.  We are not.  We try to be a little more healthy than we sound.  😉 I do have to say that I usually have a glass filled with some kind of icy, refreshing, sweetness sitting on the kitchen counter.  (Are we thirsty yet?  I’m getting cotton mouth just blogging about it.)

(I lost my edited version somewhere…pretend my badge is on there.) Sheesh…look at all of those cups and glasses and doesn’t include stemware!

Really though…that does not mean that we need all of these cups and glasses.  Remember when I mentioned the January Purge to you?  Well…it has happened at our house.  Our first major phase.  It is wonderful.  I do have to say, that my Mr. did the boxing up while I was cooking pancakes and bacon and eggs.  He asked if things got to stay or had to go.  It’s so easy for him.  (I spied those little Tupperware tumblers that our babies used to drink their milk out of at snack time…but I left them in the box. *sniff) While this was going on, I was consoling myself in my mind, that they would still be in the basement in the box.  Get a grip woman!

ahhhhh……simplicity helps me breathe.

I hope that you have a wonderful weekend, Dirt Roadikins. (My spell check doesn’t recognize “Roadikins” and suggests goatskins.  I would never call you Dirt Goatskins.) May you squeeze your loved ones extra and make wonderful memories…over glasses of sweet tea!

p.s. Mother-in-Law…if you are reading this…thank you for going to the nursing home with me on visitation yesterday.  You seemed pretty comfortable there. That makes me feel better. 😉 (I’m keeding…I’m keeding!)

Hey friends!  One more post before the new year.  I have been busy hangin’ out with my family and not having much of schedule.  It has been wonderful.  BUT….that doesn’t mean that I have forgotten you.  It’s funny, since I’ve started blogging, I am constantly seeing things here or there that I want to share.  That’s a good thing…right?  Right.  😉

This really is… just a little blog in its infancy.  Something that friends had suggested and that I never had taken seriously.  Then it just kind of fell into place and I gave it some prayer and here we are. I am looking forward to all that we can find to get into in 2013.  God is good…to work in our lives the way that He does. I can never thank Him enough.

So now that you know that I haven’t forgotten you, my sweet Dirt Roaders…I will tell you a bit of what has been swirling in my head.  Are you ready?

Clean closets

Clean pantries

Clean basements

Organized spaces

Moss and topiaries

House plants

New recipes

Junk…we must NOT forget the junk.

(I know that these things are not rocket science or really anything new…but if I can inspire you to enjoy the mundane on your stretch of the dirt road…I will.)

Am I inspiring you yet?  January just does this to me.  I’ve also been thinking on more chalkboards and also maybe adding a little more structure to this blog.  Maybe like on a certain day throwing a recipe out there for ya?  What do you think?  I would SO MUCh love to know and hear your comments.  I don’t want this little blog to just be about me.  I want it to be about US!  I would love to hear about things that YOU are interested in at the moment.

This is me…in January.

Have a wonderful New Year’s Eve, Dirt Roaders.  Please be safe.  There is a whole new year out there waiting on us. i just wanted you to know today…that I haven’t forgotten you.

Hey Guys!  How are you?  I hope that all is well.  Are you up to your eyeballs in Christmas stuff?  We are. (and breathe…)  This is a three program week. (and breathe…)  It’s all wonderful…just very busy.  btw:  A BIG shout out to the Mr.  He helped me finish our Christmas shopping yesterday.  There has never been a better cart driver or sounding board.  He can steady me, like no other.  He reminds me to breathe when things are nutty.  Matter of fact, I just got a text from him that said something like that.  How did I manage to snag him and get him to that Christmas wedding, several years ago?  😉

When it was time to “kiss the bride” at our wedding…my husband to be removed a pair of tiny scissors from his tux pocket and snipped down the mistletoe that was hanging from the arch. He held it over my head and kissed his bride. awwwww….lol!

I hope that you have a wonderful day, Dirt Road Elves.  I hope that you eat candy canes until your teeth are pink and I hope that you remember to breathe!

It’s Thursday…..YAY!  Okay…enough of that.  We are going to take a little breather from Christmas decor today.  Let’s check in at the coop and see what it going on.  Sometimes I like to totally change course for a bit…and regroup.  Plus…I don’t want to bore you.  I’m just nice that way.  😉

I’m thinking that they are thinking that it’s time to eat.

Mr. Henry is running around, trying to look busy.

None of them want to hear the phrase “Winner, winner, chicken dinner.”

They probably talk about how stupid the dogs are.

I can imagine a chicken doing that.

I wonder if one ever says “Pardon me, I have to run inside and lay an egg.”

(Okay…I know that chickens don’t talk…we are just having fun.)  😉

I wonder if one ever says “Henry, do these feathers make me look fat?”

(Henry…don’t answer that!)

Have a wonderful day, Dirt Roadies!  May all of your feathers make you look slim and trim. 😉

Okay…okay…sorry for the corniness.  I just couldn’t resist. I know that yesterday we talked about Christmas a tad, but today we are going to just flip-flop back a bit to the everyday stuff.  I just wanted to share with you one of my favorite things. (Not a few…just one. 🙂 )  I have had this crock for a few years.  We actually found it at a yard sale. If I’m not mistaken, the Mr. bargained with them on it.  It has a hole drilled in the bottom, sadly, because someone used it outside.  I did that too,  for a while and then one day….ding…ding…ding….I brought that baby in the house (after I hosed it down) and now it resides in our entryway.  I love it.  Even though it’s all chippy and looks like it came over on the Mayflower.  (Ahhhh….a Thanksgiving/Pilgrim reference. ha!)  It generally holds a blanket…but when it’s time to decorate for Christmas it holds a flocked Alpine tree.  Adorbs. (Don’t tell my teenage daughter that I just said that.)  It’s just all cozy and homey and woodsy with that tree in it.  I will have to show you what I mean…right after Thanksgiving.  😉

It makes you wonder about all of the goodies that this was used for….back in the day.

Have a wonderful Wednesday, Dirt Roaders!  You are halfway through the week.  You can do it!  btw: I love your comments…..don’t be shy!

Hello my friends.  I have missed you!  I do have to say that I have had a wonderful few days off.  God is good…to give us times like these.  So…today…spices!  I love them.  Do you love them?  To me, they make things that are “ho-hum” suddenly become “oh…YUM!”.

Probably about a year or so ago my MIL and I were out hitting a few yard sales.  (That is what they call them in our neck of the woods.)  We went to this little sale that really didn’t have just tons of stuff.  Then I saw this heavenly light shining over these old spice jars.  They were whispering my name…and I was transported over to their table.  Okay…that didn’t really happen…but a true junker knows…that the thrill of finding “a find” can somehow make you feel this amazing, drug-induced like, feeling.  😉  Okay…I’m throwing in all of this drama FREE!  So…back to the little spice jars.  I think that they had some kind of gold lettering on them.  But in my mind….I could see their potential for this decade.  So…I nabbed them.

Okay…so now I get them home.  Do you ever do this and then think…”Why, oh why, did I buy these?”  I think that I did that very thing.  I think that they sat in their little wooden shelf for a while.  THEN…one day…I was looking on a website and I found these little labels that you could print off.  I then knew exactly how I was going to usher these little jars into the modern world of decor.  PLUS…the labels were turquoise!  How great is that?  It was awesome! If you are interested in them…check it out on the Martha Stewart site.  😉

Happy Monday, Dirt Roaders!

Give your spice jars a new life.

There you are!  How are you?  I hope that all is well in your neck of the woods.  Today, I thought that I would circle back to a little organization.  I’m going to show you some shots of some things that help me stay on track a little better in the kitchen.  (Notice that I said “a little.”)

I thought that this was the neatest idea for cupcake liners. I think that I may have seen this on Pinterest. I’ve always had trouble with them staying stacked in those plastic containers. Not anymore.

A tad of cornstarch.

The pint- sized, big- mouthed jars are my favorite for things that you measure when baking. 🙂

I love being able to see what and exactly how much of what I have. This is very helpful when preparing to bake or cook. Organized cooking just works better…for me.

I am sure that you have figured out that I’m crazy about storing things it jars. These oats were too pretty to not share. 🙂

I would love to hear some ideas that help YOU stay organized.  Don’t be shy.  I know that sometimes it’s a little scary, throwing your ideas out there for everyone to see.  Just think of it this way…you might inspire someone.  Someone like ME! 

Happy Thursday, my sweet Dirt Roaders!  Run out and buy some jars! 😉

Hello!  I hope that your weekend was wonderful.  It’s time to start another week.  Do you want to hear some good news?  There is a weekend at the end of every week.  See, all better now, for those of us that have a hard time on Monday.

How bout some love from our yard to “pretty up” your Monday.  You can look at them and go “ahhhhhhh……All better.”  😉

So simple…yet so sweet.

God…you make such beauty.

Some little bug had a snack or two.

So peaceful and pretty. Can you tell that I am a little bit crazy about the table that my husband fixed up for me? It gets lots of photo sessions. 😉

Happy Monday, Dirt Roaders.  It’s really not all that bad.  Just ask my Aunt Rhonda Lou…she loves Monday.  🙂

Hey!  How ah ya?  Good?  Great!  😉

I just wanted to share this picture with you.  The day that I took it…I could just imagine a tiny, little fairy, from a childhood storybook, sitting on one of them.  Aren’t mushrooms crazy?  They aren’t there…and then…BOOM!  Mushrooms galore!  I hope you enjoy this as much as I did.  Maybe I’m crazy…or maybe it was all of that mushroom decor that Mom had back in the day.  Who knows!?

Have a wonderful Thursday, Dirt Roaders.  Thursday…is my fav!

Labor of love. 🙂

It all started over a year ago. We went to this old farmhouse {my fav} to look at a pick up that was for sale.  It was that magical time of evening in the summer…almost dark…but not quite.  Twilight…(no vampires)..that amazing time in the day.  Anyway, you get the picture.  This great little lady takes me on a tour of the house.  (Inside, I’m squealing with delight…on the outside calm yet friendly.)  It was really quite the little fixer-upper but had so much potential.  On the last leg of our tour we venture down into the basement.  If I’m not mistaken, it had a dirt floor.  Out in the middle of the floor…..stop…insert heavenly music here…;)……..was an old enamel ware topped table!!!  Be still my little junking heart!  The kicker to the story is…she gave it to me.  I tried to pay her, over and over.  She said “no.”  We just had to come back and pick it up.

I’m not sure why we waited so long but about a year later husband went by and got it.  At that point, the people who had rented the little farm drug it out to the goat pen to use.  They were having to medicate their goats and used it to set their stuff on.  This is the bad part.  The billy-goat was offended that they would impose new decor in his pen.  He decided to take matters into his own hands (hooves) and he did a little number on the table.  Enter:  Husband of mine.

This year on my birthday (Are you tired of hearing that yet?  Hey…you gotta milk it for all it’s worth.  I highly suggest that you try it. ;)) I asked my husband if he would finish fixing my table.  He had already cleaned it up and taken it apart.  Some of the boards needed to be replaced and new brackets put on.  He tried using the old wood, and it was just really too old.  That was a little sad because the paint was nice and chippy and would have been great.  So…it was a very lengthy project.  As soon as I get the new boards dry brushed a little I will post a picture of the finished project.  It is now sitting in our breakfast nook.  (Insert hysterical, excited giggling.) It really was a  labor of love.  I am very thankful…for this man who I have been blessed with.