They get out a half hour early today
then have tomorrow and all week off.
That's when I plan to get my Spring
cleaning completed (not including basement).
Today I stopped in the thrift store
looking for more fabric to make another
set of curtains since the other ones weren't
the right color. I needed something brighter.
I bought a plaid valance with reds, yellows
and greens in it. Then another patterned
fabric (actually a shower curtain)
that had a cream fabric background but had yellow
and red florals on it with greenery.
They compliment one another well.
Then I bought a light yellow flat sheet to line
the backsides of the curtains with.
Total spent was $5.00 because 2 items were half
price. I would have bought them at full price
so that was a bonus!
The colors on the computer are a little
different in real life.
The yellows in the plaid are yellower
and all one color yellow.
So I will probably spend this evening
or tomorrow working on the curtains.
It will sure help to break up all the
yellow that is in here at the moment on
the walls.
We plan to get the couch this weekend
so it's coming along together slowly.
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I can't wait to get up our new privacy fence!
If you've ever had something stolen or broken
into you would know where I am coming from
by feeling your place would be more secure
if you had a 6' or more fence completely surrounding it.
Last year I had been home all day and just stepped out
to go one block to pick the kids up from the bus stop.
While at the bus stop I saw the helicopter hovering
low in our neighborhood. Didn't think nothing of
it as it flies around here all the time.
I get the kids and round the block to come
home and there are a couple police cars out front
of our house! I guess these three younger guys
had been scoping out our house and stole a nice,
new bicycle out of the driveway underneath the carport.
The neighbor lady saw them do it and called police.
They in turn sent out the helicopter to try and
hunt them down. Still can't get over that!
We never got the bike back. But it makes you keep
an eye and an ear out lots more as to what
might be taking place around your home!
So today I am sitting here by the window
with the window open and the blinds drawn.
I see three younger guys make a pass by our
house 4 times within minutes, once even resting on a large
rock in the neighbors yard, about the end
of our drive way. Never seen these three
characters before but they sure were making
me nervous making continuous glances down
our driveway. I even called Tony at work
to say I wasn't getting the right vibe with them.
I told him to make sure everything is locked
up tight tonight and nothing left out of
any value! That's how they get ya! They
scope out your place first then come back
later on!
So in the near future I am hoping to get our
fence up to keep intruders out!!
There are a lot of shady characters I don't
trust around here, especially ones I have
never seen before!
__________________________________________________
I've been on the hunt for some Home Depot coupons.
I checked Ebay and found Home Depot coupons
BUT every auction says it's NOT good at Home
Depot but good at Lowes only. This doesn't make
sense to me!
I found Lowes coupons on Ebay and it seems
like every auction has bidders on them.
WHY WHY WHY???
Go down to your local post office and
get a change of address packet. In there
are the 10% coupons for Lowes!!!
Don't pay for them!!!
I'd really like to find some Home Depot
ones as their dog eared fence sections
are a couple dollars cheaper than Lowes.
__________________________________________________
Yesterday I bought a large bag of bird food
from Big Lots for $1.50.
I took my double shepherd hook and stuck it
in the ground right out our front room
window and hung two bird feeders from it.
The sounds of birds chirping and singing
away eating from the feeder just fills the
house. It's so soothing and relaxing.
Heck it didn't even scare them away
when I was running vacuums and carpet
cleaners. Must be some hungry lil birdies!
__________________________________________________
I'm thinking chili sounds good this weekend
so I have been looking for a copycat version
of Wendy's chili. These would make great
freezer recipes. I don't see why you couldn't
throw it altogether in the crock pot.
I'm sure most these ingredients could
be found at Aldi's to make a cheap version.
Here are a couple versions I found:
Wendy's Chili Recipe
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 can onion soup -- 10 3/4 oz
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons cocoa
2 cans kidney beans - undrained
6 teaspoons tomato paste
15 teaspoons tomato sauce
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon vinegar
6 cups v8 juice
Brown the ground beef in the vegetable oil. Break the beef into tiny rice size pieces.
Place the onion soup and half of the cooked beef into a blender and process on high speed until it resembles cement mortar.
Combine the blended beef with the unblended beef into 2-1/2 qt saucepan. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer until flavors are blended.
This Wendy's chili recipe should serve 6 to 8 people.
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Or Here Is Another One
1 pound 97% lean ground beef or turkey (Vege Version: 1 pkg Morningstar Crumbles)
Salt and black pepper
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup diced celery
1/2 cup frozen diced green peppers
1/2 cup frozen or fresh diced red peppers (I’ve not found frozen in my neck of the woods)
1 cup frozen diced onions
2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 tablespoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
One 15-ounce can petite-diced tomatoes
One 15-ounce can tomato sauce
1 1/2 cups water
One 15-ounce can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
One 15-ounce can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
In a stockpot, over medium heat, brown the meat with a little salt and pepper. Add water, just to cover by 1/2 an inch, and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes. Drain and rinse.
Return meat to pot – medium heat – and add the olive oil, celery, green peppers, red peppers, onions, chili powder, cumin, salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. Cook for one minute.
Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, and beans. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for one hour, stirring occasionally. Makes approx ten 1-cup servings.
Per Serving: Calories 164; Protein 13 g; Fat 3 g; NET Carbs 13 g; Sugar 3 g; Sodium 512 mg
