Muddy Boot Dreams

If winter tarries too long, make your own spring

2012-02-26T04:07:00.000-08:00

The gardener in me being ever the optimist, I am celebrating the fact that we didn’t move up here to the “frozen north, or land of endless skies” until the beginning of December last year. Winter tarries long here, holding on with icy fingers, and giving in begrudgingly to spring.

Whenever spring is coming….there that’s the realist in me.

By moving here in the middle of winter, we shortened the time I have to live without green things growing, at least for the first year. Who knows what I am going to do next winter, make my own spring I guess.

Down on the coast there are crocus blooming, there are BUDS on the branches, GREEN BUDS! And yes that was all capital letters, it was required by the gardener in me. So who’s whining, not me, it’s just that gardener chick that lives inside of me.

Winter is tarrying, taking it’s sweet time, hanging out, flirting with us, giving us the occasional day of warmer above 0 temperatures, and then snatching it back with a vengeance. They are predicting –12 C this week. That’s pretty cold if you can’t do the conversion. In fact when we lived in White Rock, that would be “alarm bells” cold. Seriously cold, as in ice half way up the windows of the condo kind of cold, but we are made of sterner stuff now, and this house has better insulation.

In a recent trip to the “big city” of Kelowna, I noticed that the closer we got to the city, the less snow there was. It’s kind of hard to admit that my sister [she who knows houses] was right, and they do get less snow there then we do. In fact Kelowna was brown, while here it’s white. It’s white, snowy fluffy stuff everywhere, including my garden.

Which has the gardener chick in me wringing her hands, and worrying if spring will ever come. Well that’s fine, I have over 30,000 photos on my hard drive, and most of them are flowers, I can print them out and plaster the house with them should I so choose…so take that winter!

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

I did tell him, didn’t I?

2012-02-25T07:31:00.001-08:00

Over the years while driving my parents vehicles when I was young, and now using their vehicle to drive them around we have occasionally encountered some problems. That’s normal, no matter how well maintained, vehicles break down. When I was young, I used to mention an odd noise to my Dad, who had a mechanical interest, and he would take a look, and then tell me that nothing was wrong.

Both my Sister, and I have been telling them that there are problems with their truck brakes for a few months now. Of course my Dad, insists that there is nothing wrong, but to placate us he will have them checked. Although they were still fine, the repair guy said he would replace them to make us feel better.

Yesterday after picking up their vehicle from the brake repair shop, my Mom and I drove a few yards over to a parking spot at a garden center. And as I wheeled into the parking spot I got the scare of my life. The vehicle seemed determined to crash through the fence at the end of the parking spot. Crunching noises, the feeling of brakes giving way, and total disbelief, after all I had just picked it up from the repair shop.

Turns out the ABS light isn’t coming on, and while I did manage to stop in time, there is something wrong that they didn’t catch at the repair shop. See Dad, I did tell you there was a problem, but again…sigh you didn’t believe me.

Remember when I told you the Fiat would stall out at rather inopportune times, and you never believed me until you ended up stalled on the train tracks, and the train was coming?

Yes….hmmm. I rest my case.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

I’m still waiting

2012-02-24T06:53:00.001-08:00

They say there are signs of spring showing up on the coast.

I’m still waiting, we just got more snow again. And the snow plows have been running all night. Gone are the city noises, now we are wakened by the giant diesel trucks running the roads and pushing snow all night…

They take snow very seriously up here.

And I take spring very seriously. I guess the snow plows won this round.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Thrifty living 2012 - Daycations

2012-02-23T04:10:00.000-08:00

Each Thursday the Frugal Five write a blog post about Thrifty Living 2012. With the economic downturn, and the cost of everything rising, it’s good to have some tips on how to save, and be thrifty. Join, Brenda, Claudia, Elaine, Diane, and myself as we present our individual views on each subject. This week’s topic is Daycations.

The Daycation, taking off and enjoying the scenery within the boundaries of a day’s drive, and returning to your home that night, and sleeping in your own bed after having a great day away. For homebodies like me and my husband, a Daycation is a perfect way to enjoy the surrounding attractions, and still be comfortable that night. You come back refreshed, replenished, and rejuvenated, and with much less of a credit card bill then a vacation. The extra bonus is you don’t need to unpack at the end of it either.

When we lived on the coast we had Circle Farm tours, in the Fraser Valley, that offered cheese and wine tastings, along with farm grown produce. Or we could head off to the big city, Vancouver, with it’s amazing cultural neighbourhoods ranging from China town, to little India. It was like touring the world all in one day. Granville Island market was a particular favourite, featuring art galleries, glass blowers, retail stores, a market selling everything from veggies to cut flowers, and spanakopita.

We have so much to explore in our new world up here, there are mountains, rivers, turquoise lakes, world renowned wineries, and deserts all within a same day drive. And the best part is we get to take lots of photographs, enjoy ourselves, and sleep in our own beds that night.

So the next time you need a bit of a break, consider the Daycation, it might end up being just the ticket.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

View in a window

2012-02-22T04:08:00.000-08:00

Just a few shots of cut flowers in the window…I miss the flowers on the coast. Apparently there are sightings of crocus, snowdrops, and witch hazel. Me, I have snow.

But for now, this is my spring….

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Neighbours, doggie gifts, and frozen chickens

2012-02-21T04:08:00.000-08:00

We have just moved into our new home in the rural suburbs, and being new, we would like to make a good impression. So I bit my tongue when I found the special gift the large dog next door left for me on my front lawn. Talk about putting your foot in it, there I was wiping my shoe desperately in the snow, and introducing myself to another neighbour the same time. Thankfully he wasn’t the owner of the naughty dog.

A few days later I found a white feathered, frozen chicken in the bushes lining my front yard. Cold, and very much dead, the poor desiccated thing had been thrown in there, but I decided to leave it until garbage day.

A few days later, after a heavy snowfall my husband was outside shovelling the driveway when the neighbour with the large dog stopped by to chat. Oblivious to his dog happily wandering all over my front lawn leaving doggy prints in the pristine snow, I glowered at the dog through the office window.

The guys talked, I hid behind the blinds in the house willing the dog not to leave any more special gifts for me, and wondered if I would have the nerve to say something if he did.

After snuffling through my bushes for a few minutes the dog discovered the dead chicken, and started to chew on it, frozen feathers sticking out of it’s mouth. It coughed them out, and went back to happily munching away while the guys talked over on the driveway.

I debated letting his owner know that his dog was chewing something rather unsavoury, until I thought, no, if he can’t pay attention to his dog, and he’s willing to let it wander all over my front lawn and leave messy gifts…then too bad. Besides, I was in my housecoat, and my hair was a mess.

The neighbour finished his conversation, and my husband came inside. The dog obediently trotted over to the neighbour with the dead chicken in his mouth. As the the neighbour, removed the dead chicken, he looked around thinking so where do you throw a dead chicken from your new neighbours yard? Why back onto the new neighbours yard of course. So there is lays, somewhere in the snow bank on the road side edge of our lawn. I am hoping that a neighbour who walks their dog without a leash is surprised one day by what their dog picks up the next time.

And I think we might be looking at fencing the front yard.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

We’re taking it all off – word verification that is

2012-02-20T04:09:00.000-08:00

I kind of feel like we should be playing a few notes of a drum roll here to celebrate. Because you have all been taking it off for a good cause, removing word verification from your blogs, and saying how much you don’t like it on other blogs. It’s hard to understand, difficult to read, and who has the time to spend trying over and over again.

Spread the word, pass it on, tell a friend, and then tell another. Word verification isn’t the way to go. The filters from Blogger have been improved and are very good at getting the bad stuff.

I really appreciate all of you who left a comment, to be honest, I was a little worried that no one would understand. And it’s nice to know that it’s not just me that has a problem with the squigglies.

Rock on word verification free blogs.

I was looking in my archives and I found these images of snowdrops taken last February 19th. Just think, last year at this time we were starting our condo Reno, and had so much upheaval ahead of us, good thing we didn’t know what was coming. While as a gardener I am missing the early flowers we used to enjoy on the coast, it’s good to be here in the Okanagan where we have longed to be for such a time.

And as soon as we get a brighter day, I am taking some indoor photos of our house. There are a few areas that I would love your decorating advice on. And painting, well it’s still needing to be done, we are getting close to picking a color that we think will work. Will share that in the next few days. Imagine this, we have all the boxes unpacked, now it’s just detailing, cleaning up, and organizing. And then I am hanging pictures, even before I paint. I need to see art on my walls, I love color.

Here’s to blogging, and here’s to good blogging friends!

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Word Verification, I’m sorry…but it’s so not working for me

2012-02-19T04:02:00.000-08:00

When I was trying to leave a comment on a few blogs yesterday I noticed a problem, the word verification has been stepped up. Seems like Blogger has pulled a nasty trick on all of us “over 40’s” who’s eyesight isn’t as it used to be. It’s word verification gone to the max. It was hard before to figure out what those scrambled, jumbled blurry characters on the screen meant, and now it’s impossible for me to figure them out at all.

I’ve tried, many times, there were some blogs that I valiantly tried over 4 times to leave a comment on. But if it involves calling over my husband to puzzle over each one with me every time I would like to leave a comment, something isn’t working for me.

I can’t do this, I am unable to understand the characters, and I am finding it a strain. I read a lot of blogs, and I love all of you, and I want you to know that I will continue to read your blogs, but I just can’t leave a comment on your blogs if you use word verification.

I get a lot of spam, some days it’s a LOT of spam, I think one bad day it was 70 comments in my spam box. But you know, in all the years that I have been blogging, only twice has spam made it through the filters to actually be on the posts. And I just went to the post and deleted the comment, it wasn’t the end of the world. I use Gmail, and I use Blogger, and they both do a great job of filtering out the bad guys.

You might have noticed the button on the sidebar of my blog that reads “word verification free blog” it’s more important to me now then ever. If you would like to join the movement and have the button on your blog, please visit Beatrice Banks. The button code is on the bottom of the post, and she says it much better then I do.

So if you have word verification set on your blog, and you don’t see comments from me, I apologize, but now you know why.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Choices: Unpacking or blogging…well of course I choose blogging !

2012-02-18T04:11:00.000-08:00

It’s always coming down to making a choice, unpack, or blog…I know no contest. Blogging when there is a spare minute, and then unpacking for a little while to make up for it, and there still aren’t that many spare minutes in our days. We are most likely down to the last boxes, except for the studio/craft room, and that’s a mess. I say most likely, because I truly think those boxes are multiplying behind our backs. They are sneaky like that.

Boo our cat is settling in, he has a set routine now, which involves going downstairs at 5 am, and scratching the inside of a rattan basket that I set out in the hallway as a catchall. It’s caught his attention, and the sound of the cat scratching the basket at 5 am echoes through the silent house.

Too lazy [tired] to get up, I just call downstairs at him, “Boo, no scratching” and it suddenly stops. Why? Because he is bounding up the stairs, and launching himself onto the bed, where he immediately comes over to my face and meows. As if to say, “hello so you Can Openers ARE alive, I was rather worried that something happened to you.” LOL, ah ha, sure you were.

I’m smart, and play it fast asleep, but if Gar talks, we are in for it. Bootsie is diligent, his life’s goal is to wake us up, and have us feed him. Black and white cats are very strong minded, and determined to get their way.

He has a morning spot, which is in the bay window in the kitchen, where he can watch the Magpies swoop down from the fir branches, which reminds me to set out the feeders. I keep forgetting, can’t understand why. After 11 am you can find him in the front living room window, he sleeps on his pillow, and monitors the neighbours as they walk by with the dogs. The late afternoon he spends upstairs on our bed, and evenings are spent downstairs on the couch.

That cat has it made, except for the fact that we brought the farm dogs over for a visit the other day. The look on the poor cat’s face when they charged into his domain was unforgettable. A little astonishment, some disgust, indignation, and a touch of fear. He was still searching the premises the other day as if to say, where did you hide them?

It’s a cat’s life, and it looks like we won’t be getting a dog anytime soon, but situations change all the time, and who knows if Boo is lonely….we might need another kitty.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Necessity is the mother of a “toasted bagel”

2012-02-17T07:07:00.000-08:00

Well, the correct term is necessity is the mother of invention, but in this case it’s a toaster. See there are two kitchen boxes left to be unpacked, and I seem to have lost my necessary unpacking energy. Could be the mounds of cardboard, and newsprint that seems to multiply as soon as we turn our backs.

I had a toasted sesame seed bagels on my mind, and a craving that drove me, until I went out and bought some to appease it. At 200 calories each, these are treats, toasted and slathered with butter they are memorable, and nothing that a few hours of unpacking won’t work off.

There wasn’t a toaster to be found, not anywhere, so that drove me to look through the last two boxes, the ones that I have been avoiding all week. Well they are the last two in the kitchen…there’s still boxes in the garage, and I think that they are multiplying also.

The boxes got unpacked, the toaster is found, and I had my toasted bagel treat, life is good. Obviously I am motivated by the thoughts of food, except I really can’t get too enthusiastic about unpacking those boxes in the garage.

Cheesecake anyone?

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

PS: These are all shots of “Next Door Kitty” Allie, he was Boot’s kitty nightmare, but such a sweetie to us.

Thrifty living 2012–Saving on Groceries

2012-02-16T04:06:00.000-08:00

Each Thursday the Frugal Five write a blog post on Thrifty living 2012. With the economic downturn, and the cost of living rising, it’s good to have some tips on how to save, and be thrifty. Join, Brenda, Claudia, Elaine, Diane, and myself as we present our individual views on each subject. This week’s topic is Saving on Groceries.

Food, I love it, but it costs the earth sometimes to buy. We Canadians can only look over the border with some sort of envy, it seems like Americans have such choice, and so many great prices that we can only dream of. Add in extreme couponing, stacking coupons, double coupon days…we can just dream on.

While we do have store coupons, and sales, manufactures coupons, and rebates, I don’t think they come anywhere close to what US shoppers have available. Not to mention the wider variety of products that are available….

1. I buy in bulk, it’s simple if you have the space buy larger quantities and break them into smaller, easier to store amounts. We have Costco, and bulk stores, prices there are usually quite a bit cheaper when you don’t have to pay for packaging. If you don’t have the space, try splitting the food with a neighbour or friend. Spices are a great example, a small jar of dried mint would cost me $3.00 at the grocery store, at a bulk store it would have just cost me pennies. Transfer your bulk food into your own jars, and containers, label it, the extra time is well worth the effort, and think of the money you will save.

2. Train yourself to shop mostly the outside aisles of the supermarket, the freshest food is on the exterior walls of your local grocery store. Dairy, meat, produce, are all fresher, healthier, and less expensive then the prepared meals that are in the inside aisles. Sure it’s convenient to have some microwave dinners in the freezer, but you will pay more for them. The same goes for prepared foods, the sodium and fat levels are high, they have lots of preservatives, and they cost more. Convenience is the price you pay when you don’t cook from scratch.

3. Make it from scratch…remember homemade? It seems that we are all so pressed for time now, that convenience foods are the way to save a few minutes. Made from scratch takes longer, but it costs less. You can also make a little extra for lunches the next day, or freeze leftovers to have on a day when you don’t have time to cook.

4. Shop the sales, I go through the store flyers, and specials in each flyer, then I mentally plan out meals using the sale priced items. Lets say large packs of ground beef are on sale, I can cook it all and freeze it in smaller amounts for when I need it. If there is only one or two items on sale at a particular store that I need, and another store has lots of what I am needing I will skip the first store, because what I save on food, might be spent on gas. And that’s not saving at all.

5. Plan ahead, your grocery costs will be less if you purchase items when they are on sale, and before you need them. It involves a bit of thinking, and preplanning, but in the end not having to run to the corner store for bread will save you $$$$. Because you know that there is no way you are just coming out of there with a loaf of bread. If a item is on sale, take advantage, and buy more then one, if you will use it in the next little while, it’s worth it to stock up.

6. Eat seasonal foods, and veggies when they are in season. Every fruit and veggie has a peak time and that’s usually when they are the least expensive to buy. Buying blueberries in winter will definitely cost you more than when they are in season during the summer months. Fruit and veggies are expensive during the winter, try buying frozen, or freeze your own, they make a great less expensive alternative.

7. And last, don’t buy non grocery items at the grocery store, this hint has always stuck in my head. Deodorant, laundry soap, toothpaste, convenience items are usually more expensive at the grocery store then the pharmacy, because they know that you are not going to make a trip to another store, and will justify the extra cost because of time constraints. If you wait for a sale at the pharmacy, or bulk store you can save even more.

Put the money you have saved from these grocery tips into a daily interest savings account. When you have saved enough, you can send me a post card from the Hawaiian vacation the accumulated savings paid for.

Stop by the other Frugal Five, Brenda, Claudia, Elaine, and Diane for more grocery saving tips.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Our voices in blogging

2012-02-15T04:08:00.000-08:00

I had a conversation in person with someone yesterday about voices in blogging that really made me think. We talked about blogging, both reading and writing, and how the personality, or voice comes through in the writing. She told me about meeting a blogger in person after reading her blog for quite some time, and how her voice in person was exactly like the one she had imagined while reading the blog.

For bloggers it takes a little bit of courage to put ourselves out there, to share our lives with strangers. Some “get us” they hear our true voice, others don’t. It happens. That’s life. But it hurts when we are misunderstood, or misheard.

I write from my heart, as I see things. Nothing extraordinary, and certainly never sarcastic, or mean. That’s not who I am, or who I want to be.

I am by no means ungrateful for the wonderful opportunity to actually live out our dream and own our own house. I know that I have something that many will aspire to, but not attain. And by no means am I taking this for granted.

This is me, this is my voice. Life as I see it, through my lens. And I see periwinkle walls, and oxblood curtains, that’s my life right now.

It’s only paint, and it’s only colors…it’s life. And this is my voice.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Help, I’ve got periwinkle walls

2012-02-14T04:03:00.000-08:00

Dear decorating dilemma help line, “Oh no, I’ve got periwinkle walls in my living room, my hallway, and my studio. The only curtains I’ve got right now for the living room are Oxblood coloured red.” What’s a girl supposed to do? I challenge anyone to come up with a good thought about that color combo. After all, pale pastels, and deep jewel earth tones? Not quite working.

One of the little treaties that the old owners left behind for us were cans, and cans of paint. All carefully marked with room, and color. It’s a lovely gesture, only problem is,they are not quite the colors I would choose [meaning I really, really, really!!! don’t like them] . So I don’t think I will be using any of the touch up paint in the near future.

We have deep blue hallway, and deep blue carpet going up the stairs, with a pale lemon yellow top floor, as accent color. And periwinkle, now I love periwinkle, it’s color from my wedding, but even I am crying Uncle over this one. It’s everywhere, except for the kitchen, which is a cantaloupe color. One bathroom is pink, toilet, sink, cupboards, soaker tub, all flesh eating pink. My bedroom is lime green….

What’s a girl to do?

The curtains I had from before are Oxblood red, yes that’s a color, it’s a beautiful warm reddish with tinges of brown in it. And it goes perfectly with the fireplace, I mean perfectly. But the fireplace doesn’t go with the wall colors, or with the floor….rugs? All over the walls maybe?

We have to live with the wall colors for a few weeks, and the curtains will need to stay until I have some extra money to buy some new ones. Any suggestions, and no burning them doesn’t count.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

How we ended up in the Okanagan, our life in a nutshell.

2012-02-13T04:17:00.000-08:00

We’re all story tellers, we bloggers, we like to tell our story, we like to read about others stories, it’s kind of what makes us tick. And as bloggers who read other blogs, we sometimes forget that those who read us, haven’t been along for the ride the whole time. It was pointed out to me in a comment,[thank you!] that the new readers were wondering how I got from there White Rock on the West Coast, to here the North Okanagan, in the interior of BC, Canada.

If you are a long time reader, please bear with me, and maybe just look at the pretty pictures. But if you are a new reader hopefully this will explain how we finally are living our dream.

Years ago as newlyweds we thought we would move up to the Okanagan months after marrying. But life had other ideas, and we had commitments, so we stayed in our condo in White Rock. Muddy Boot Dreams was born one day when I needed a name for my photography business, it perfectly described our dreams of muddy boots, and a farm.

Last spring we put our condo up for sale, and it took months to sell, that’s not unusual in the Vancouver market that is flooded with condo’s for sale. We sold it at the end of November 2011, it was one of the only ones in it’s area to sell. We needed to be out in two and a half weeks, and had nowhere to live. Thankfully my Sister, and my BIL, let us stay with them on their farm while we went out house hunting. Our search is documented in the house hunting series…and wow did we find some interesting houses. You can read about the search by looking under the tab called house hunting, it’s just underneath my banner.

One spring a few years ago severe environmental allergies surfaced for me, and we decided to change our dream from a farm, to a house on a large rural lot. This works for us, there is no way I will be able to farm during the spring season.

We have only been in our new home for a week or so, and we are unpacking boxes, and still trying to find the things that seem to have been misplaced. But we did find the frying pan.

Our dream of having a house, and living up here has been fulfilled, and I have more dreams to aspire to in this new place that we now call home.

Soon as we finish unpacking the mess, we are tackling the …. ahem….decor. After all periwinkle blue is a great color for a flower, but not so much for my living room.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Released, be free hideous clock from Aunt Matilda

2012-02-12T04:07:00.000-08:00

Thanks for all the great advice yesterday, I will take those items and donate them to a charity. That’s kind of what I wanted to do, but honestly I didn’t quite have the guts to do it, and some of those items are worth a lot of money, so they have even more guilt attached to them. Now that I realize I am not the only one who needs to release some things into the world….and what a great term to use. Release…..be free, go and make someone else’s life cheerier Aunt Matilda’s, hideous wedding gift clock. [Names have been changed to protect the guilty. LOL].

Definitely I am a emotional writer, I am trying to explain how I feel at a particular time, and hopefully making it interesting. We are in so much upheaval lately, it’s been particularly stressful, and that’s something that I didn’t expect. Funny how your dreams when they come true, are not always dreamy at first, or what you dreamed they would be at all. I know it will all settle down, and things will fall into place. And I am in no way complaining, not at all. I am just noting that life is a little tight right now. And some unexpected things have been happening.

My Mom and Dad are both housebound, and we have been running errands, and driving them to appointments as needed. Trying to help them out, and move into our new home, get unpacked, and figure out our way, sometimes takes over my life. It’s complex, but doable.

Which brings me to a announcement that I would like to make….ah hem….We have found our frying pan!! Yes Jen from Muddy Boot Dreams may now have scrambled eggs for Sunday morning breckies. And did you know, it was in the next to last box to be unpacked in the kitchen…go figure.

If the sun ever shines I will be able to take some more indoor photos. I have a flash, but it’s beyond me where it’s gotten to…maybe that black hole of Kitchen Misc..

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

I’ve made a dishy decision today

2012-02-11T04:06:00.000-08:00

We all have them, those dishes, and knick knacks that are too nice to give away to the thrift store, but not appealing, or to our taste at all, so just what do you do with them? I made a liberating decision today, well partially freeing, and I did feel rather euphoric after I did it.

You see, it’s complicated, the dishes, and knick knacks are mostly ones that were given to me, so I felt guilty if I didn’t display them in our condo. Our place was so tiny, everything was on display, and if it was “missing in action” it would be very apparent when the giver came to visit.

Now that we have a house, I could fib and say that they had a unfortunate accident during the move, but I would know that wasn’t true….so, no, I wouldn’t do that.

We now have more room, I have decided to put them into the basement for the time being, and when everything is unpacked, and organized, then I will deal with those items. Life is too short to be displaying Great Aunt Matilda’s hideous wedding clock forever….pack your bags, we’re going on a guilt trip if you get rid of it.

I honestly don’t know what to do with things that other people have gifted to me that just don’t work in my house, I am grateful that they thought of me, but sometimes our tastes just don’t run the same street. Am I obligated to keep them forever? Should they get a place of interest in my home if they remind me how much I don’t care for the item each time I see it?

I have given what I thought were perfectly matched gifts to friends, and I know that they never see the light of day. I totally understand, if you don’t like it, don’t worry, I won’t be hurt. After it happens once I make sure to give you something consumable, that you don’t have to keep.

So this is both my guilt trip, and my dishy decision, to put them away, and deal with them later. They have been on show in my home for years.

What would you do?

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

The big giant black hole of “kitchen misc.”

2012-02-10T04:17:00.000-08:00

When we found out that had to have everything packed in such a short time for our move, all of my organizing plans went out the window. Now it seems apparent that everything also went into a black hole labeled “Kitchen Misc.”

Because of the rush, gone were the carefully planned spread sheets and color coordinated labels, along with lists and individually numbered boxes. It was crunch time, just put that thing in a box, and tape ‘r shut. It was all about getting boxes, getting stuff into boxes, and getting the boxes into a ever growing pile.

And then I found out that most of the boxes had been stored up side down….for two months, yikes all of my careful packaging, lining with newsprint, and towels, gently laying down each cherished glass, only to find it upside down in the box when I unpacked it. What was the point?

If the box had a fragile sticker on it, more then likely it had a foot print on it. I really don’t want to know how that got there. Did they use the box as a step ladder to climb on, to put boxes higher and higher on the pile?….best not to ask.

Just where does the giant black hole store all of my kitchen utensils, my frying pans, and my spoons. Because I am sure that’s where everything is…they certainly are not in my kitchen, or downstairs, or in the garage…or the bedrooms. Believe me, I’ve looked. We have lots of forks, and knives, but only two spoons…go figure.

We have too many boxes marked, “Kitchen Misc.” to count, most likely they are not even my boxes, but someone else's. And some where, some one else is opening up boxes of my spoons, and frying pans, and wondering where all of their living room stuff has gone, I am sure of this.

We have two cat litter boxes, and tons of canned food, but we can’t find the batteries for the phones. And where are my frying pans? Any one seen my spoons?

I’m sure they are all living it up in the black hole marked “Kitchen Misc.”

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

I’m in another world….

2012-02-09T08:11:00.001-08:00

Looks like all the unpacking, and moving got to me at the worst time. I accidentally posted next week’s Frugal Five topic before everyone else did. Sorry about that, and I will repost it next Thursday….. I guess moving twice in two months does make things a little chaotic. So for now be sure to drop by their blogs and visit their Thrifty Living posts.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

The day is done…

2012-02-07T17:11:00.001-08:00

The day is done once again, the dancing light flickers and leaves us until tomorrow. One more day gone….and the house is that much more organized. I now have my kettle, but still no frying pan, we can’t find anything we are looking for, but that’s moving isn’t it?

Looking out the window and seeing the fog frost covered trees, and shrubs makes me long to get out the camera. Maybe tomorrow…..after I clean up a little more. And then maybe I can take some photos to share. The good news is the PC is finally up, and now I have access to my photo archives, yah!!!

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

It’s all about the pictures

2012-02-05T08:29:00.001-08:00

If you have been reading my blog for some time, you know for me, it’s all about the pictures….I love to share what I see through my camera.

And since we don’t have the PC hooked up yet, I don’t have any photos to share with you.

I am sitting at my kitchen table, in my new house, looking out the bay window, [not quite as grand as it sounds] across the snowy backyard. There is a plume of misty air exiting from the pipe at the side of the house, apparently that’s from the high efficiency furnace. It complements the fog frosted trees, and branches that the –7 C temperature has garlanded the landscape with. The photographer in me is aching to get outside with my camera. This is hoar frost supurba!

The body in me, is aching, legs are sore, who knew that mopping could hurt your back, and stretch your thighs? All I want to do is find my kettle to have a cup of green tea, but in the thousands of boxes that we have parading everywhere all labeled misc. kitchen….sigh, there is no kettle to be found. I had the feeling that giving in to the pressure of trying to pack the entire condo in 2 1/2 weeks would come back and bite us.

Now we have gathered most of our “things” from White Rock, from storage, from the farm where we were staying, and all are abiding in our new home. Except for my plants, all of my things are under one roof. It’s a amazing feeling. And exhausting, so the thought of getting out the camera, where on earth it might be….and taking pictures of a mess, just doesn’t appeal to me.

I promise pics, I promise posts, just bear with me. Right now we are celebrating finding a tea cup, and a pot to boil water in….life is good.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Farm Friday : Prickly, and hooped

2012-02-03T04:07:00.000-08:00

Sharing shots of the farm where we are staying at in the North Okanagan

Nope, not some kind of cactus, but barbed wire. It seems that there are hoops of the prickly stuff hanging all over fence posts on the farm.

I love the look, kind of country chic, meets pottery barn inspired galvanized steel.

And if you want to talk rustic, let’s look at the fence posts, they have some vintage patina going on, texture and color that can’t be duplicated.

Toss on some fresh fallen snow, and it’s a beautiful rustic scene.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Thrifty living 2012 – Gas Guzzlers, and it’s all hot air

2012-02-02T03:16:00.000-08:00

Remember Sunday drives, the days when your parents would load you, and your siblings into the old gas guzzler that served as the single family vehicle, and aimlessly drive around for hours? Looking at neighbourhoods, checking out houses, or maybe just going to visit the countryside to look at the farms. Maybe afterwards your Dad would fill up the guzzler for the week at the gas station, and it might cost around $.20 per gallon, and he would grumble at the cost of filling the tank.

Those days are gone like a puff of hot air now, with gas prices skyrocketing, it’s not uncommon to see prices of $1.49 per litre. [ 1 Liter = 0.26 US Gallons, which is approximately $5.68 US per gallon. This is a great site to use to convert prices, and size of gallons, since Canada uses litres, and the US uses Gallons.

I’ve combed through some fuel consumption sites in order to gather together the most common tips on how to save both money, and fuel. And since it’s all about thrifty living in 2012 here we go.

Braking 101:

One of the top tips across all of the sites is all about braking. Avoid breaking suddenly, or hard, and don’t be taking off too fast, it uses up a lot of gas. Remember vehicles are heavy, and once they are stopped it takes a lot of gas to get them going again. So if you do a lot of city driving, or drive in traffic leave that little bit of space between you and the car in front of you, so you are not forced to brake too suddenly.

Slow down speedy:

Drive slower: For those with a lead foot this might be hard to manage, but it will pay off in the long run if you can train yourself to drive slower. There are some sites that claim a decrease in speed from 75 mph to 65 mph will save you 12% in fuel. Worth a try, so slow down.

Small is better:

Get a smaller vehicle, because larger vehicle = more to move = higher fuel consumption. With the thought in mind that fuel consumption varies from vehicle to vehicle, make sure to do your research before your purchase.

You’ve got junk in your trunk:

While you are at it, get that junk out of your trunk, I am a repeat offender for this crime, all sorts of things go for a long ride with me…and it’s adding up in increased fuel consumption.

Cruisin on a sunny afternoon:

Cruise control when used correctly and safely, will save you a average of 7% in your fuel consumption. Wroom, wroom, baby. Just don’t use it in the city.

Idle times:

Don’t let your vehicle idle excessively, it wastes gas, in the extreme cold weather use a block heater, or let the vehicle idle for only a short period of time, and then drive slowly for the first little while until it warms up.

It’s all hot air:

Air conditioning, to turn it on, or to sweat it out? Turns out they are divided on whether or not to use your air conditioning, and maybe your parents were half right. Yes is does consume a small amount of fuel, but not that much. So if you are city driving, wind down those windows, and let the fresh air in. On the hi way save fuel, by reducing drag from open windows and let the air conditioning be the breeze that flows through your hair.

Hope you can find something useful in here, and that you do save some fuel.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

For more tips on saving gas, check out the Frugal Five, who are joining in on Thrifty Living 2012.

Brenda, Claudia, Elaine, and Diane, and me, Jen.

Come back for Farm Friday….it’s all hoops, and prickles

Today’s the day we get our house

2012-02-01T04:05:00.000-08:00

It’s been a journey, we have seen some amazing places, and some pretty wild places, but today is the day we have been waiting for. We get the keys to our new home sometime today.

The first full day is tomorrow and we will be cleaning, and wiping down all the surfaces, there have been many different stocking feet wandering through this cosy home along with many hands that have opened doors, and many eyes that peered into closets.

We started this process almost a year ago to the day, and today we are at the beginning of our new journey making this house our new home, far away from where we used to live.

Can’t wait to see our “things” it’s been over a year that they have been packed away. It will be like Christmas all over again, as we unpack each cherished item, and find it’s perfect place.

Thank you for all of your supportive comments, and your interest. I am so looking forward to sharing photos of my decor dilemma's and my after images. Please be patient, first I have to get organized and cleaned up.

So while I am cleaning, and sweeping up dust, don’t forget to drop by Thursday for the Thrifty Living 2012 series that I am joining in. Where we will be sharing tips this week on how to save gas.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Now I know why they have hot tubs

2012-01-31T04:03:00.000-08:00

It seemed that almost every place my husband and I looked at before we choose our house had a hot tub lurking somewhere. Some had them hidden away in a corner of the deck, others had them right out there in the open, or covered with lattice, and one memorable one had it sunken into the basement floor.

I still remember looking at the MLS photos and trying to figure out what the floor height padded cover sitting directly in the middle of the basement floor was. It took some time, but after reading the listing details, I realized it was a hot tub. Now, I am a total klutz, and it doesn’t take much for me to trip over my own feet. So can you imagine a open pit of water in the middle of the floor? Right, not going to take much for me to fall into that one. We didn’t bother to take a look in person. And how do you get rid of that if you don’t want it? Not like you can fill it with kids toys, and cover it up or anything.

We lamented to our Realtor about hot tubs so much that it became a running joke, she would look around, and with a certain amount of glee in her voice say, “yep it’s got one.” If it wasn’t apparent immediately that the house had a hot tub, we would all search until we found one. And we found one almost every time.

Seriously I couldn’t understand why all these houses up here had hot tubs, what for, I kept asking her? Now after a bout with –20 C weather, and a average below zero temperature that seems to be here until next summer, I can understand. Baby it’s cold outside. And a hot tub is certainly one of the only ways you can get warm.

Just don’t fall in by accident when you walk across the basement floor.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

PS: Two more sleeps until we get possession of our new house, that’s if I can sleep for excitement.

Picasa, give it a try now, for me

2012-01-30T04:07:00.000-08:00

Google has upset quite a few people by their announcement that Picnik is going to be phased out. It didn’t really affect me, since I had tried Picnik, and found it a rather maddening wait beyond the lovely “sending request” quotes such as “chasing butterflies,” or “picking daisies.”

I just never caught on to it’s more complex offerings, almost all of the ones I wanted to use cost more money, and since I had discovered Picasa and all of it’s free delights years ago, I just never bothered to take the time to play with Picnik. I am sure it’s lovely, but it’s going away, so what are you to do? Go back and give Picassa a try, I think you might like it.

I have Lightroom and Photoshop, but I use Picasa for most of my blog photos, it’s quick, easy to use and now it has some fun Picnik settings to boot. I don’t need to think about what to do next when I use Picasa, I just do it.

This entire series of photos took me minutes to make. It does get easier, and that’s the norm for any program, the more you use it, the easier it is.

So go back, reload Picasa, and give it one more try. I have the feeling that you won’t be disappointed. All of these photo effects were made with the new Picasa. And if you would like to know what I did to them, you should be able to hover over them and the title of the photo should come up.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams