Little Lost Souls

Two days ago, my daughters brought a pitiful looking little furrball into my office.  Of course, the first words out of their mouths were, "Can we keep her????"

Poor little Ginger, as we named her, was starving and very weak.  She had a bad cold, and her eyes were caked shut, and she had fleas.  The girls had found her out on the sidewalk.  I don't know if she got lost from her original home, or if she was dumped, an unwanted lost little soul.

After two days of care, Ginger is improving rapidly.  She's perky, eating well, playing a bit, and she LOVES to be loved!  The first day we had her, I could almost feel the happiness in her because she had a nice warm blanket to sleep on, food to eat, water to drink, her eyes were cleaned out, and she had children to pet her and love her.

Our older cat, Caramel, also showed up out of nowhere, but she was in much better shape.  She just appeared in the front yard one day and decided to stay.  

There are so many animals without homes, needing someone to care for and love them, and they ask so little in return.  A huge problem in communities is feral animals breeding without limitations, or pet owners who allow their pets to breed and then don't know what to do with the offspring if they can't give them away or keep them.  All too many of these animals end up on the streets, and if young, they often die because they aren't able to care for themselves.

People who start feeding strays can help the problem by catching the animals and having them spayed or neutered and then releasing them again.  The animals will be happier and healthier, and there won't be two or three litters of new babies to feed and care for.  No-kill shelters can refer people to resources that can help with spaying and neutering, and may be able to take in the strays and help them to find adoptive homes. 

The no-kill shelters are always in need of donations (both money and food/pet care items) and volunteers.  Our local shelter for cats and kittens (SartOhio.org) does an absolutely wonderful job caring for these animals.   But they have over 300 cats and kittens in need of a forever home.  

Sue, the director of SART, posted a very thoughtful note about responsible pet ownership here:  https://www.facebook.com/notes/sart/pets-trash/10150315603550821

Ginger was lucky that my girls found her and we were able to take her in.  She'll have her forever home with us.  But many aren't so lucky.  If you love animals, please get involved any way you can in helping these creatures to have the care and love they deserve.  Find out about your local shelters and help out if you can.  

Thanks for reading!

What Is a Trivet

A household item that you may not be familiar with is a trivet.  There are several definitions, but essentially, a trivet is a small plate or rack that sits on the table or countertop on which you place hot pots or serving dishes.  The trivet allows you to protect the surface underneath.  The word "trivet" originates from Middle and Old English words for cooking vessel (trevet) and three-footed (trefet).  Traditionally, trivets were made with three "feet" to provide a cooling airflow underneath the pot.

Trivets are commonly made from metal, ceramic, or tile.  They often have decorative features, allowing them to dress up a table as well as serving a functional purpose.  

Trivets should be used whenever a hot pot or serving dish may damage or scratch the surface of a table.  They can also be used as spoon rests, or for display.


We carry a beautiful line of AbsorbaStone trivets with gorgeous artwork.  These tile trivets absorb moisture, protect the surface beneath from heat and scratching, and clean up easily.  Many beautiful designs!

Take 5% off trivets with coupon code TRIVET, valid through 9/30/2011, please feel free to share the code!

Shop for Trivets

Recipe - Spinach Quiche

What's for supper?  

Well, today, I looked in the freezer and realized - no meat.  Okaaay, hmmm, still have eggs in the fridge, just picked some spinach from the garden, looks like quiche tonight.

Quiche is really quite a simple dish to make and very customizable to your individual tastes.  I usually make it with whatever vegetables are in season from my garden, and serve with a salad and/or slices of watermelon and a warm, crusty bread.

So without further ado, here are the recipes I used for dinner tonight.  (The pie crust and quiche recipe will make one 8-inch pie).


No-Fail Pie Crust (Trust me, this is the easiest pie crust you will ever make!)

1 c. flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/6 c buttermilk
1/3 c vegetable oil

Mix the flour and salt in the pie pan.  Make a well in the center and add the buttermilk and oil.  Mix with a fork until it forms a dough.  Press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of the pan.  Place in the refrigerator to chill.

Spinach Quiche with Bacon, Mushrooms and Feta

7 slices bacon
1 c sliced mushrooms
2 c chopped fresh spinach
2 tbsp diced fresh chives
1 tbsp minced garlic
4 eggs
1 cup milk or cream
1/2 cup shredded cheese (I used Mexican)
1/2 cup Feta cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Fry up the bacon until crisp and remove from pan.

While the bacon is frying, beat together the eggs, milk, salt and pepper.

Add the mushrooms to the pan drippings and saute until tender.  Remove the mushrooms.

Add the spinach, chives, and garlic to the pan drippings just until the spinach is wilted through.

Take your pie crust from the refrigerator.  Lay the mushrooms on the bottom.  The next layer is the spinach, followed by the bacon.  Top with the shredded cheese and then the feta.  Finally, pour your egg mixture over the top.

Bake at 375 degrees for 40-45 minutes.  Remove from oven, and let sit for 10 minutes.  Serve warm or cold.

I served the quiche with fresh asparagus.  As soon as I took the quiche out of the oven, I put the asparagus spears into a Pyrex dish and drizzled olive oil over the top, and sprinkled with lemon pepper, kosher salt, garlic powder and parmesan.  Tossed and baked at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes.

Italian bread and a glass of red wine made this a perfect summer evening meal!  Enjoy!

Beach Party Tempered Glass Cutting Board

Saving Your Pennies

It's no secret that many people are struggling in the current economy.  With many people unemployed or under-employed, most are realizing the value of frugality and care in their purchasing decisions.  Even people who are fully employed have become more cautious in spending and saving.

My grandfather did not get a credit card until he was in his seventies.  Even then, he never carried a balance.  He always paid it off every month.  He and my grandmother grew up during the Depression years.  The only purchase they ever made on long-term credit was their home and farm, which they purchased through the GI Bill.  Otherwise, they paid cash for everything.  My grandmother always raised a big garden, and she sewed most of her own clothing and home decor items.  If they needed to make a large purchase, such as a car or home appliance, they saved up until they could pay cash.  Because of their frugality and commonsense approach to their finances, when my grandfather passed away, he left my grandmother well-provided for in her old age.

In the last several decades of rampant spending, families largely abandoned the thrifty ways of their grandparents (I must admit, I am no exception here!).  Many people charged their credit cards to the max, lived paycheck to paycheck, and stopped setting aside money in savings.  But since the Great Recession hit, people are going back to a philosophy of prudent spending and saving to try to stretch their dollars further.  They are cutting up the credit cards and paying them down, and setting aside a rainy day fund.  Even baby steps can help you save those pennies that add up to dollars.

I have started socking away all my spare change in my "Magic Money Jar" - I call it that, because the more I put in it, the more I have :)  Whenever I pay cash for something and get money back, it goes into that jar.

Saving your change and small bills in a money jar is a painless way to save up for things you really want, or for emergencies or rainy days.  I always have cash on hand if I need it, and those pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters, and dollar bills really add up over time.  When the jar is full, I can put it into a savings account and start filling it up again.  It's one of the small ways I can practice the prudent financial frugality that helped my grandparents have a comfortable, well-funded retirement.  And it's never too late to start!

Do you save your change?  How are you practicing frugality in your daily life?

Pretty Penny Coin Banks help you save up your spare change

Take 20% off Pretty Penny Banks with coupon code SAVEPENNIES

Songs for Dads

In honor of Father's Day, and to recognize all the great dads out there, I would like to offer a list of some of my favorite "Dad" songs.  Enjoy!

This first song is called "Just Fishin" by country artist Trace Adkins.  I'm sure there are many dads out there who remember taking their kids out fishing for the afternoon, and who know that the time spent together is about so much more than "just fishin'".

This second song is also from a popular country artist, Brad Paisley, called "He Didn't Have to Be."  So many  step-dads have filled such a big role in the lives of the children they have brought into their families, and this song honors them.

What loving father can forget that first moment of meeting his brand new baby and thinking "Isn't She (or He) Lovely"?  One of the best Stevie Wonder songs Ever!

The time with our children passes by so quickly, and there are so many precious moments in their lives.  Bob Carlisle's song "Butterfly Kisses" captures the love a father has for his daughter with sweet poignancy.

"Seein' My Father In Me" by Paul Overstreet.  Every parent's dream is that they will be able to pass down the good things about their lives down to their children.

A sweet song called "Always Be Your Baby" from Natalie Grant.  Yes, no matter how old they get, they will always be our babies.

George Strait's classic "A Father's Love" is all about fathers loving their children, no matter what.  

There is no power on earth greater than Father's love in this beautiful song by Gary Valenciano (originally sung by Bob Carlisle).   

A day comes in one's life when you realize just how much your dad really loves you.  A great song from Keith Urban called "Song for Dad."

This song is for those who have lost their dads, "Heaven was Needing a Hero" by Jo Dee Messina.  

I hope you've enjoyed this list of tribute songs for father's.  There are so many great songs out there honoring dads, that it was hard to choose just a few.

What's your favorite father song?  

Turning an Ugly Duckling Room into a Swan

So we have a breeze way room.  This room was once a concrete slab between the house and the garage.  At some point in time, the previous homeowners decided to roof over the slab and turn it into a room.  By the time my husband bought the house, the rubber roofing material over this room had deteriorated and rain periodically leaked into the room, creating lots of problems with the ceiling in the form of mold and rot.  Ugh!

We decided SOMETHING HAD TO BE DONE!  Not being rich folks, we decided to tackle the project ourselves a little bit at a time.  Luckily, my husband has some experience in construction, and he's the kind of guy that will work at a project until he gets it right.  I'm his "Girl Friday" (meaning, I fetch and carry tools, hold stuff, and help with the heavy lifting).

Last year, we replaced the rubber roof with a metal roof.  Yes, even though I am terribly afraid of heights, I got up on the roof with him, helped to nail down the new decking and attach the metal panels.  Yes, girls can do roofing!  (We did get a couple days help from hubby's son for this project - that was a BIG help!)

This year, we replaced the ceiling with new drywall (please note that you should not undertake this sort of a project unless you really love your spouse!) and installed a ceiling fan.  My son had accidentally broken out the glass in one of the patio doors, so hubby built a new wooden insert to take its place.  Then we painted the old yucky veneer paneled walls with a lovely light and bright color (Ostrich Feather) which lightened up the room considerably.  With new molding along the ceiling, the room was beginning to show definite signs of beauty.

With the new ceiling and walls in place, it was time to tackle the old, ugly, cracked and pockmarked concrete slab.  This required patching and resurfacing the concrete.  Sounds easy, but it took my husband 4-5 days just to get the concrete adequately prepared for resurfacing.  Once the concrete was resurfaced, we had to wait 30 days to apply stain.  So we waited.....and waited....and waited.

Finally, it was time.  I was in charge of the staining project.  I taped off the lines of the design with masking tape, and used the Rustoleum Semi-Transparent Concrete Stain in Sienna and ragged it on.  After drying and removing the tape, my husband and I painstakingly painted Sandstone concrete stain over each and every line, and used the Sandstone color to lighten four of the triangles in the center design.  I also stenciled a floral design into alternating border rectangles using gold craft paint.  Then we sealed.

The floor is just gorgeous!  I really had no idea how it would ultimately turn out, but it has a lovely marbled look to it, and when hubby resurfaced the floor, he left the concrete with a texture rather than smooth, so it almost looks like old stone or leather - truly a unique look that I just love.

We still have some work to do - we'll replace the ugly black floor molding and a little paint touch ups.  The room opens on either end with patio doors to a brick patio in the front and our pond and garden area in the back.  I'll probably add some wicker and distressed furniture and an electric fireplace for the winter.

It is so satisfying to see a room come to life with a little hard work!

Have you got an ugly duckling project?  How about sharing!

Remember the Brave

Today, May 30, 2011, is Memorial Day.  Many people will take the opportunity of the long holiday weekend to spend time with family, to cook out, to picnic, to go on vacation, to shop the many sales that are offered, to enjoy the sunshine and beautiful weather.

I won't begrudge anyone for doing any of those things today.

But there are some people who won't be doing those things ever again.  Those are the men and women who laid down their lives so that you and I would have the freedom to spend time with family, cook out, go on picnics, travel where we wish, shop at any store we want to, enjoy life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

These men and women have died defending our freedoms and our way of life, with honor and integrity and courage.  They fought the brave fight, and because they did, they secured our rights.  They were mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, sons and daughters.  They served in the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the Marines.  They died at Bunker Hill, Gettysburg, and Pearl Harbor, Iwo Jima, Normandy, Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq.    When the call went out for brave men and women to defend liberty and freedom and justice, they answered the call with courage.  They came home in a box with a flag, and their families are left with a hole in their lives that can never be filled.  But their families can know that their son or daughter, brother or sister, father or mother, laid down their life for an idea more grand, more universal, more important than any other in the history of the world - the idea of individual freedom.  And their families can know that the memory of their soldier or sailor or airman or marine is preserved in the memory of a grateful nation.

So today, as you go about your activities, take a moment to reflect that your freedom was bought in blood.  Take a moment to remember the sacrifice of a young soldier that made your freedom possible.  Perhaps take a little time from your day to visit a cemetary and kneel at a military grave and say "thank you."  Say a prayer for those families who have lost a hero.  And thank God that there remain men and women of courage and valor, integrity and nobility, who fight for freedom every day, for us.

“What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal.”