How to decorate your kitchen using 200 plastic bags!

There! Now aren't you glad you came to visit today?

Just Kidding, Come back, I have a surprise for you!
If you have been following me for awhile you have probably seen these already.
That is why I am doing something totally different!
I Will take you step by step, so be patient with me... I tend to ramble!


The first thing you need is about 200 plastic grocery bags. With my boys that is about 4-5 shopping trips. But you may have actually seen me in the store with my arm in one of these too!

I have been doing alot of BLURFING (excuse me) lately, and I noticed alot of posts about a company called Ballard Designs. Now, I am no brand fanatic, so I had to google them. I was cruising around in an overpriced gallaria of home decor yummyness when I stopped dead in my tracks... THIS was what I saw!

Pretty right? Made from recycled drink containers, (water, juice, etc.)
NOW, You will have to scroll down to yesterdays post to see what I think about recycling. Come on, you know you want to!

Just look at her! She is the lacy cream of the crop! I want her! (thou shalt not covet Ballard Design rugs!)

WAIT A MINUTE!!!

See the light bulb?

I already have all the materials I need taking up space in my office room!

You don't even want me to go there!

Sorted by color! I actually took this picture after the project was 5/6th finished, so there really aren't as many colored bags in this shot as I used. Just wanted to give you the general idea.

Special thanks to Haggens for using pink bags so I can make pretty things! Special request to Haggens, Could you please use them all year long? I didn't get enough during the month of October, and am now out of pretty pink bags!

Please forgive the blurry action shot. The Hand model is my lovely assistant Cannyn.

He helps me alot and you will see more of him below.

Gotta love teenagers!

We gather up the handles and the bottom strip and take them back to the recycling bin!

(What? Let them recycle those too!)
So, the trick is to keep your "string" taught as you tie your strips together. Cannyn heard me grumbling about how slow it is to crochet two strips, then stop to tie more on, and crochet two strips and stop again.

So He devised this clever plan to tie a long "rope" so I don't have to stop so often.

No, I do not approve of "Energy" drinks, we had company and they brought it!
and please pretend you don't see that in the next shot too! My Hubby isn't the best at removing his own recycling!

Isn't he clever? Almost 15, ready to take on the world!
The next four shots were taken with my webcam and posted on facebook. Sorry Facebook friends, you can just scroll down real fast to skip over!

Want a close up?

From this ...

TO THIS

In only 20 hours! Actually, I wasn't keeping track, But since I don't know how to crochet, I think that was a pretty good estimate. I could have had it done faster if I had used a larger needle, and didn't have to keep taking the silly thing apart because I kept needing to adjust the increase. I kept getting ruffles and rolls! (Ruffles because I used too much increase, and rolls because I went too long without increasing. I am sure there are technical terms for this but since I don't know how to crochet, I couldn't tell you what those terms are!)

TA DA!!!

Isn't she lovely? Isn't she special?

I am so proud of myself! Now, I am going to go find some linky parties to show her off!!!

Yep, I made it all by myself!!! (and Cannyn)

=

Why I recycle.

Some of you may be offended. Sorry, but this is my party and I will cry out," LOOK Mom, the Emperor has no clothes!!!" if I want to!

I decided to write a post about recycling in preparation for another post I want to put up tomorrow!

Makes sense right? Gotta lay the foundation.

The "Greenies" Want us all to believe that we have nearly destroyed the Earth, and only by recycling can we save it.

Well recycling and communism, but I digress...

I recycle. Really I do! I am better at it than some, not as good as others. I guess I am just "normal"

(SHUDDER!!!)

Here is the process for recycling your household waste, You put it all in one of those magic bins that dissapear all your glass, plastic, cardboard and yard debris. There! Wasn't that easy?

NOW

Here is what really happens!

A Great big truck enters your neighborhood, It comes once a week to your neighborhood, but is out driving and picking up trash 6 days per week. 10 hours per day. Not one of those 50 MPG hybrids we are all supposed to own by now.

After it is full, it drives to one of these places. Where it is sorted usually by machine, sometimes by hand.

Once sorted, It is loaded onto one of these beautys

And shipped to another country for the next step in being GREEN!
(Why? You ask?)
Because we cannot build a recycling plant in the USA!
Not of this magnitude!
The EPA won't let us!
We cannot employ people cheap enough to process that much junk,
The Healthcare Reform Bill, and other Socialized programs won't let us.
You see, We have to pay our employees enough to cover their taxes, and then pay Congressmen, Senators, Lobbyists, and all the other beurocrats. AND Pay social security, Welfare, Unemployment. (the list could go on and on!)

SO, to another country we go!




They don't have the EPA, Peta, ACLU, and Labor unions breathing down their necks...

Once "Recycled" into something new, it is loaded back onto one of these...

And Trucked to One of these...(after its trip to the giant warehouse, where it is moved from container to storage, then to truck, where it is driven across the country to a store near you!)

Neat huh? Everything you always wanted made out of recycled materials right?

NO!!!


Usually, recycled plastic is made into THIS! ( with wood chips and sawdust).

You see, the recycling process is not a great one, It has not been able to keep up with the new product manufacturing.




WOW!! Neat, I am saving the world!!!

This is my favorite recycling center!

That is right! I donate and shop there on a regular basis. I give clothing, shoes, and house hold items that someone else may want, but cannot afford to purchase at full price. I buy other items that I use to decorate, create, and sometimes wear! (I am a bit of a snob.)

Not to mention it is a NON PROFIT organization, training people who need job skills, feeding the hungry, and housing the homeless. Now that is better than 41 golf games to me!

Another recycling project... My son built this fire pit out of broken concrete, and counter top scraps. Even the concrete ring is recycled. We found it in the woods where my Husband and sons ride their motorcycles. Cost to me? 200$ in plants dirt, sand, gravel, and lighting.

We use it all the time! We have s'mores partys where we just announce to everyone we are lighting the fire and they come if they can. FUN!!! Priceless!

My other favorite recycling center is just off my back deck. I go out the kitchen slider and drop things into it... MY MANTRA - - - 'FEED THE WORMS!!"

And now I have found yet another way to recycle. Grocery bags! The T-shirt style bags you get 20 of every time you go to the store! (I do anyways, Have you seen my boys?)

And here is a little teaser for my next post!

Ballard Design has these on their website. It is made of recycled beverage containers. (see above)

Just you wait to see mine!!!



Why I recycle!

That is the name of the post...

The Earth is the LORDS' and everything in it.

We are to be good stewards of what God has given us.

We are to be fruitful and multiply, leaving a legacy for our childrens children.

NOT because of GLOBAL WARMING!

(Farce)

Not because of Carbon footprinting!

(LIE)

But because I want to leave my children a legacy.

AND

Because I am CHEAP!!!

=

Making it Monday!

Technically it is still Sunday night! I forgot to go to bed again! Just kidding,It is only 12:20, so I still have half an hour until my brain freezes up and my fingers stop moving.

Oh, this is Making it Monday! I am going to show you how to make Christmas pillows for about 1/3 of the price in the stores, using Placemats!

Placemats are two sided, so I just split the seam between the sides,and stuffed away!

Give it a whipstitch to close it up, and fluff it up. Easy as Pie!

I have a funny story about the plaid pillow. but I guess I was wrong about having a half hour before my brain freezes up. I uploaded the pictures in the reverse order I wanted to post them, so I squished them all up and changed the order. I hope I un-squished them to the right size! I am tired.

I will be linking up to some other blogs tomorrow. Hope you enjoy my Holiday pillows!

Linked to this crafty blog, http://j-a-girl.blogspot.com/??

Show me Faith!

Today as I got ready for church, I was ANGRY! Last night, the Senate passed the healthcare bill that is going to put me and others in my family out of work. I am a Licensed Massage Practitioner. I bill insurance. I get paid to help you keep your body in optimal health by aiding it in self-healing. It is a proven remedy, Centuries old! And I am really quite good at it. My clients run the gamut from 16 years old to 90+ years old. I work in pain management for people with chronic conditions, healing of injuries, stress reduction, and general maintenance.
Church almost did not happen for me. My boys would not get moving and ready for church, we were late. We made it in time for the service, but everyone had already had some fellowship time. I like listening to what God has done in others lives. I enjoy watching the families arrive with the kiddo's, Greetings and hugs abound! Our church likes to be a "community" so every one attending is important.
We sat down, in time to stand again and sing. Beautiful moving songs. Reminding me that God IS! Already, my heart started to let go of the anger. I fear change. It took alot for me to go to school to become a Massage therapist, and my next step was to go to Chiropractic college. That too is not going to happen now. So, fear still nagging, We sat down to listen to Tim teach from God's word.
Tim is young, funny, and very exuberant! His teachings are often met with chuckles as he draws from his own experiences to illustrate his point. His beautiful wife and daughters are often part of the sermon. Mostly because that is where he draws his life experiences from.

Today, Tim led us to open our Bibles to Hebrews Chapter 11.
v1. Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 2. For by it the elders obtained a good report. 3. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

The Greek word used for faith is also the word used for Believe/belief, trust. I did not write that word down for any of you scholarly type, but If you have a Strongs, you can look it up. There are types of faith. To believe that something exists, Like I believe there is a God. I believe I own a car. I believe my sons exist. This type of belief really has nothing to do with faith. Even the Devil and his demons believe there is a God. The next type of faith requires a choice. I believe Jesus Christ died on the cross to make the final sin payment. I believe that he did this for me! I believe that by putting my faith in him and this sin payment, I will go to Heaven when I die!

But there is a faith which goes even deeper than that.
By Faith, Abel gave his offering to God, which was more pleasing than his brothers (Cain).
And even though Cain murdered Abel, Abel's voice is still heard through the generations.
By Faith, Enoch lived his daily life in accordance to God's will. And God spared him from death. One day, Enoch was not. God took him without allowing his body to experience death.
By faith, Noah builded an ark. Did you know there was no rain before God flooded the earth? The atmosphere of the earth was different. Water just existed. When Noah built the ark, nobody even knew what rain was, and here is this man saying "it is going to rain" God told Noah, "build an ark" and so by faith, Noah built an ark.
God has promised to fill all my needs. We have grown to expect so many luxeries in life that we often consider them needs. The apostle Paul wrote in Phillipians 4:11&12, "Not that I speak in respect of want; for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content, I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need."
He finishes up in verse 13 by saying, " I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."
And in Romans, 8:18 "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." Skip on to verse 28 "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose."
I do not even pretend to know the type of suffering that Paul went through. I have been homeless. I have been poor. I have had to seek charities to get my electricity turned on when I had a baby and not enough income to cover all the basic needs. I had to feed a growing child with $25 PER WEEK. I did not own a car, I lived with relatives because I could not afford to live on my own. I used to have garage sales and sell everything that was not nailed down to buy groceries. I took foodstamps from one mother in trade for watching her small children on occasion.
God brought me through all of this even when I was not living a life in accordance to his plan. I must say, that in and of itself is evidence of his love towards us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Making a way for us to have a relationship with God through him.
As I pray about the next season in my life, I am encouraged by a verse Tim just casually mentioned in his closing. Psalm 24:1,

" the earth is the LORD'S ant the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. "

After all, I had nothing when I came here, I will take nothing when I leave. If I can only live a life that is pleasing to God, then I have been successful!
Thank you for your prayers as I try to reason out my next step in life.
I always tell the boys that there are always ways to make money if you are willing to work hard.
Now, I will get to show them that this is actually true!
Blessings! LOVE!!!!

Another give away.

I found a blog called Rose Brook Cottage. So, of course I went there!

http://rosebrookcottage.blogspot.com/

She is giving away cute little candy cane ornaments. I know they are Pink, but Pink is Purple's little sister, I can work with them!!! Go there if you want, just don't enter to win, I like my chances better that way.

(Just kidding Mary!) I think I should win just on the fact that I AM Rosebrook!

Look here! http://collectedtreasures.blogspot.com/ Another give away, Jana is giving away this victorian cone, Just another example of a creative mind using her powers for good! LOVE IT. Please don't enter this contest either! I want it all to myself!

Almost wordless Wednesday!

GO see what this is all about!
WAIT! grab some kleenex!
Make sure you have some time to look through the blog. You will be glad you did!
http://kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com/

Blessings in Disguise(s)

This year is special because of a family that has been brought into our life recently. I won't go into all the details, just say that things have been a little rough for them of late, and I am now an adopted "auntie". My little neices got to stay with my family over the weekend, and I told their mommy not to worry, I would take care of their costumes. I got so excited making these costumes for the kids this year. I did not know that this would be the first time trick or treating for the two younger girls. Just knew that I wanted to put them in fun, bright, little girl costumes! I honestly could care less about Halloween otherwise. I don't decorate for it. I let the boys trick or treat if they want, (two still do) but I do have rules about what kind of costumes they can have. NO HORROR, No BLOOD, NO EVIL, and nothing "Sexy".

So, Cannyn, Brystan and thier friend Corbyn had Motorcycle gear on. This is after a trip to Value Village two nights before to get a second costume because they hoodwinked thier father into buying "Scream" costumes.

BUT the second costumes were not motorcycle gear, It was 50$ worth of camoflauge and 70's style (disco) outfit.

WHICH THEY DID NOT WEAR!!!

After I took apart the polyester pants and added a really cool bell bottom to. After I sat up all night sewing. After Cannyn could not go to bed at bed time because he had to Iron his Camo to make it more legit.

MOTORCYCLE GEAR! We had that at home!

Everything is amazing when it is new to you! I have no daughters, so It was more fun to focus on the girls this year.

Big sister did Hair and Makeup.


My Pink Butterfly.
Value Village, pink Childrens Company pants, $5.99
Pink Old Navy sweater, $3.99

Feather Boa, $1.99

Pink wings, $1.99

Headband, 5 pack $3.99

And my little yellow sunflower!

Value Village

Green skirt, $2.99

Green Old Navy sweater $2.99

K Mart

Brown leggings and Brown turtle neck, $5.oo each

Once they figured out that everyone thought they were adorable, and they got lots of praise, they LOVED trick or treating! BUT if it wasn't for my friend Tina going around with us, I would have split in half trying to keep up with them.





Confession time. I forgot to take pictures of all the older kids before they went out. We came home for a few minutes, then the girls begged to go out again. I think we did 2/3 of our neighborhood. It wore them out! They ate a few pieces of candy, then baby fell asleep in my lap and middle sis had to be guided to bed because she could barely walk. (Did I say brush teeth?)
I did not make Big sis take them trick or treating which was a special treat to her. She had so much fun being a Tween with her (new) cousins She did come home and walk around with me and her little sisters on our second outing, and we went to GRAMMA's house. Gramma and Grandpa were just coming home with one of the NON T.O.T. grand children, when the girls found out she had no candy, they each offered her a couple of pieces of theirs. (Very grand gesture)
GRAMMA Gave them PLAYDOUGH!
Thanks mom. I needed to steam clean my carpets!
(All day they kept asking when they would meet GRAMMA. We were past Gramma's house, and I saw them come home so I pointed out "Look that is Gramma and Grampa going home. They RAN BACK TO GRAMMAS HOUSE, AND HUGGED HER THE SECOND SHE GOT OUT OF THE CAR!)

This morning the trading started. One sis does not like chocolate, so everyone traded with her first. Giving her 2 dum dums for a chocolate bar, or skittles for M & M's. Her haul was slightly less bulky, but she seemed happy! Baby girl made out well since she was so cute everyone gave her hands full!

The "Big Kids" sorted, bagged (Note to self: Buy Sandwich bags tomorrow!), and traded amongst themselves.

I used to take the candy away and meter it out piece by piece. Then my friend told me she lets them eat it all in the first two days. Tummy Ache or not, it is gone, never more to be thought of. I think my boys did that one year and the tummy aches that followed were horrendous. Now they eat it all in about a week to two weeks.
I don't care!
I just hate having to pick up all those wrappers!!!

All in all, this was a great Halloween. Mostly because I had little ones again. Mostly because our eyes were opened to the wonder of all things shiny and new.
Mostly because GOD has given us a great blessing
In Disguise(s)!