DIY Dog bed

Well it certainly has been quiet sometime since I have posted ANYTHING at all on here. 

Before our first snow storm of the season last week, Harry and I made a trip to Tractor Supply to stock up on some items he needs to get ready for the big snow storm coming! Leaving the store we checked out Jo-Ann Fabrics and Cloth next door. We searched around for some cool looking blankets to create our dogs their own homemade dog bed by Mwah. I was searching in one aisle while Harry was in another, we both ran into each other and realized we both had some pretty opposite opinions on which patterns we wanted, not to mention WAY to many to choose from. We finally decided that we should go cute and seasonal for this first bed. 

Items needed:

* Time
  * scissor

  * blankets

  * 100% Premium Polyester Fiberfill (32oz or more)/foam/ whatever is comfortable

The blankets were on sale for $14.99 for a package of 2 no-sew fleece blankets- what a DEAL!  since they are originally $30.00.
The blankets are both 72" and are considered no-sew (by all means if you wanted to sew it and add a zipper into it it would probably be ideal, however I do not own a sewing machine nor am I the greatest at sewing... at least I don't think I am- never actually attempted)

Step 1:
Since the blankets were 72" i decided I would cut them in half and make 2 decent sized beds so that each of my pups could have one. *** Thinking back on it I kind of wish I cut one a little big bigger and just saved the other smaller quarter for something else, but depends on your dogs size and what you prefer***

Step 2:
After cutting the blankets in half I laid them one on top of the other so that they are evenly together.

Our adorable Penguin pattern :)

Step 3:
Grab your scissor and cut you're going cut the corners off all four corners. Depending on how big or small you want your blanket depends on how much of the corners you are going to cut out. I cut 4in x 4in for all four so it will look something like this in all corners:

Step 4:
 once you have removed all four corners then you are going to take your scissor and cut slits along the sides of the blanket (I started with doing slits on one side first, tying them and then doing the next side) I cut my slits around 3" to 4"  for the fringe depth. The width of each piece should be around 1" (2.5 cm). I ended up doing the distance between the top of my pointer finger to the first crease line haha, which is probably about 1-1.5 inches I couldn't be bothered with marking every inch each time.

Step 5:
Tying the knots. I have showed you in the picture above how i tied my knots. Its a little difficult for me to describe, not to mention there are also many different ways to do the knots. I took both parts of the fringes (top and bottom) and tied it as if i were tying a balloon. This is a little video i watched when i was trying to figure out the best way to tie these fringes: 
/http://www.instructables.com/id/No-Sew-Fleece-Blanket/


Step 6:
Once I finished doing the knots on 3 sides of the blanket i stuffed the polyester fiberfill material into the blanket. I would have liked to use a piece of nice bed foam, however I figured i wanted to test it out with something a little cheaper before i ended up making them a wonderful bed and they would destroy it. They have never destroyed a bed, so not sure why I just didn't go with it to begin with, but you learn! 


Step 7:
Finishing tying the knots on the last and final side of the blanket and you, my friend, are finished! My pup was so funny i couldn't even finish the final side when he decided he had already loved it and wanted to sleep on it. Mr cutie pie! As you can see he made himself quiet comfortable- MISSION COMPLETE!
 

Someone's sleepy :)

Ladies and Gentlemen the final look:

A nice little project to do on a snowy day :) 

 

Big wine drinker? Why not get crafty and re-use that bottle!

When pinterest first came out I have to admit I was OBSESSED with the website and found myself browsing it for hours. This current day I wouldn't call myself obsessed so to say, however when I think of an idea or need an idea for lets say a party, gardening or some house decor, I do turn to pinterest.  

Harry and I are having a get together this Friday to celebrate Flag Day. We are big into having a get together with family & friends whenever we have the chance to do so. Throughout the calendar year there are some crazy, bizarre national holidays for E V E R Y T H I N G and it just so happens to be that this Friday is Flag Day! If you are familiar with how a toga party operates, this is pretty much the same concept except you're wearing a flag instead. We are having everyone pick a country and they are to dress in that country's flag. {toga party= sheets, flag party=flags} Along with dressing in the country's flag everyone is to bring a signature dish or drink from that country.  

Wine Drinkers It's Time To Get Crafty!

...I love wine and always wanted to keep the bottles to do something with, but could never figure out what on earth to do with them. That is until I saw an interesting idea on pinterest! So I saved up a few wine bottles and am turning them into tiki torches! My goal is to eventually hang them along my fence posts, but for the time being they will be sitting on tables since the piece I am looking for (in order for them to hang) apparently is not in any hardware stores that I go to.... weird.

{It's super easy to make! }

What you need

1. empty bottle    Depends on your taste in wine :)
2. nylon plumbing tape 1/2"    $1.49
3. Top plate connector (3/8"-16 thread rod)   ??
4. 1" split Ring hanger (threaded 3/8"-16)   ?? <--- having difficulty finding
5.  1/2"x 3/8" copper coupling  $1.29
6. 1/2" copper cap  $0.69
7. Two hex nuts (3/8"-16 thread rod) $0.12/ nut
8. Two #10x1" zinc plated wood screws  $0.14/ screw
9. 3/8"-16 plated thread rod  $1.99 (I bought 3/8-16x1)
10. Tiki replacement wicks/Torch fuel  wicks- $1.99 (give or take)
                                                        Torch Fuel ~$5.00- $10.00 roughly

All I used to make my table torches:
I used numbers:  1, 2, 5, 10

Assembling:
* grab the coupling piece and the teflon tape
* wrap the tape around the larger rounded portion of the coupling piece a few times until it fits snug into the opening of the bottle, you don't want it to fall in
* fill up the bottle with torch fuel  (I used the OFF! torch fuel since the bugs around here are terrible)
* take the wick and stick it through the coupling from the underneath
* give the wick a few minutes or to soak up the fuel before lighting. 
* the copper cap is used to keep the wick dry, so when your done using your wine torch just place the cap on top of the wick

My final 'table' wine bottle torch:

Final product

Close up look at the top of the bottle

What I want final product to be:

Like I said previously, I am having one heck of a time trying to find the split ring hanger, but this is what I would like my final product to eventually look like.









If you want more information there are plenty of website online you can go to. 
I used the website: http://www.gerardotandco.com/blog/recycled-bottle-torch/


They say you can buy a kit to make it, but I'm sure it is much more cost effective to drink the wine, save the bottle, buy the products and do it yourself. But hey whatever floats your boat!

What a rainy day..

After having a few days off from work and spending it on the opposite side of the country, trying to get back into the swing of things again is a little rough.  Having more than 2 days off from work I literally thought about being unemployed.  However that thought quickly got thrown out the window, no one now a days can even live comfortably being jobless until they are about 95 years old at the rate our generation is going.

My first day back to work mother nature had some rain in store for us, okay fine a little rain won't hurt anyone and personally I don't mind the rain. But no it wasn't a little rain today, it was a torrential down pour A.K.A. advisory flash flood warnings kinda rain in our area. This is one of the down sides to working outside. The pets still need to go out to go to the bathroom, so there is no bailing out of this one. 

I do own an umbrella, however, my umbrella didn't feel like working at convenient times and when it decided it wanted to work I would be walking two dogs at once. Walking two dogs at once is already enough to handle, trying to add a third piece to the mix, like an umbrella, is a little difficult. I either need to grow a third arm when I need it or do what I always do and just suck it up and wear a soaked sweatshirt instead. 

So not only is it a rainy day physically, but mentally as well for me. Today I found out that my sunflowers that were growing SOO well are no longer sunflowers....they are now dud-flowers. Some dang rabbit or deer decided to eat the leaves right off the top of it, in which Harry has just informed me that once those leaves are gone, my flowers are doomed... {not happy about this right now} I don't know if its easier for me to start the sunflowers in a pot and then transfer them into the ground or just start them in the ground again and get a fence put up around them. 

Either way I will not be having any sunflowers coming up soon. I was really hoping these would work out since I can't stand looking at my neighbors ugly side door on his house 

* ANGRY!*

The Rough Travel Home, Dog Approved Treats and A Birdies New Home

After a long day of flying back from San Diego yesterday it didn't all go as smoothly as we expected:

1.  We were on 2 planes 
2. Had my boarding ticket in my hand, which come to find out I was holding the wrong one, I couldn't find the right one, and they had to print me out a new one (as I hold up the line....)
3. Upon boarding the 2nd plane I some how managed to drop my license having it fall through the crack between the plane itself and the attachable jetway (I had to get the co-pilot to get it for me...)
4. We got back home at 2 A.M. this morning 
5. And our luggage was lost somewhere during our lay over in Houston, Texas...     

...currently still awaiting the arrival of our suitcase, thankfully it wasn't lost while we were in San Diego. Poor Harry only got about 4 hours of sleep this morning before he had to get up for work.

My plans for today were slightly ruined since most of the day consisted of dirty vacation-trip laundry, folding and putting it away. Not entirely that upset though. Instead I have decided to make homemade doggie treats!!

I started out with a very simple recipe just to make sure my dogs approved of the flavor:

2 Cups Wheat Flour  ~ I used all purpose flour- I didn't have wheat in the house 1 Cup Oats
1/3 Cup Peanut Butter  ~ I used more like 1/4 cup- maybe even a little more
1 1/4 Cup Hot Water

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix together the flour and oats. 

Slowly begin adding the Peanut butter and the Water. 

Once kneaded and blended together into a ball of dough, put onto a flat surface and roll it out.   

<< Can be done by hand or Kitchen Aid mixer, which is faster>>

I used cookie cutters just to make it more fun, but you can also just put it all onto a baking sheet, bake it and then break it up when its all done cooking.

Bake for about 30 minutes.

 Not only do my pups approve of their new treats, but I recently found a birds nest in a tin container in our garage. I originally thought I had scared her away a few days ago when I opened the door. Since each time I walked into the garage it look as though she had not come back. But sure enough, I looked today and noticed 4 small eggs!! 

Mama bird has approved of laying her eggs in our garage and has made a damn good nest too! (3 pink and 1 blue egg) I'm pretty excited for little birdie babies  :)

Flying over the states

Restless and uncomfortable is how I am currently feeling at the moment.  Harry is zoning in and out of sleep next to me while the in- laws 2 rows ahead of us are being loud and having a good time. I have already played candy crush a few times, but currently have no more lives left and have to wait another 20 mins... and when you're in a plane that certainly feels like an eternity. 

So while waiting for more lives to appear I have played a few games on my ipod, which I found out i'm terrible at, finished 2 sudoku puzzles and a cross word puzzle with Harry (..which I cheated on some of the answers)

Sitting in the aisle seat is always very convenient, you don't have to pester anyone to get by. On the other hand, since I have nothing else to do I wish I could at least be looking out the window... [but random guy in the window seat decided to close the shade.. jerk..]

So far its been about 3-3.5 hrs.. maybe? I honestly can't even tell you since now there is a time change half way across the states heading to San Diego, CA!.... well more like Phoenix for a lay-over.. Booo

Anyways, our final destination will be in San Diego where we will be spending the next few days. We haven't just decided to take a mini vacation to California randomly {which would be awesome if we could just do that} we have a wedding to attend!!  Such a happy time and its going to be so pretty and a great time!  While we are there I've been told by a few people to visit Gaslamp, which apparently is an awesome place {ill let you know how it is}

*sigh*....just got wind that we still have another hour to go in THIS plane... joy

 Oh hey now! I just got a complimentary bloody mary- sweet!! 

This is how Harry slept for a while haha I couldn't resit it was cute

Oh yeah lets get this plane party started...

Pickin' the strawberries

Our strawberries are certainly making there appearance the past few days and I have been picking them like crazy. One thing about strawberries is that if they are pink and white in color the next day they will be red and ready to pick, but after that either they are eaten by some random animal {or your own dog in my case half the time} or they start rotting right away. 

I have so many strawberries already I don't know what to do with them. I thought about ice cream, but seriously how strawberry ice creams am I going to have in my freezer?! The freezer is already stocked up with meats and other flavored ice creams currently, I can't possibly fit anymore. <unless we start eating more and fast>

strawberry ice cream

Strawberry muffins   

old fashion strawberry pie ?

chocolate strawberry torte ?

strawberry upside-down cake...  MmMmm

strawberry dessert crepes

The thoughts and recipes are endless, I mean just look at pinterest it gives you a million options and they all sound amazing...however, the only down side to this is that both my husband and I are currently doing  a low-carb diet for the next week and i feel like my joy of dessert making isn't going to be an option for these strawberries this week.... 

I mean they are amazing looking this year! They do say (I don't know who they are- farmers? strawberry growers?) the first year they aren't very big and are pretty small, which was true last year for us. But so far this year they are a pretty decent size! 

For those of you who never grew strawberries before please note that they are considered weeds and they will SPREAD! I should have contained them in a raised bed when I first planted them, but obviously did not think about it and they are now all over the place. Good thing I love berries.

 Same thing with my raspberry bushes... All over the place haha

My 1st picked berries this year! -->

<---

Why I took a picture of them in a red bowl is beyond me...

Diamond ring?!!

FINALLY!!!
My candle from Diamond Candle I ordered came in the mail today!! As soon as I opened it I had a lighter in hand and its already burning as we speak!!

 The scent I ended up ordering is called: Orchid Meadows. So far it seems to have quiet a smell to it <in a good way>.  Now I know it's only been about 15 minutes since I lit this candle, but I would probably buy another one of their candles just based off smell alone at the moment. 

{Payment} 
I paid (with shipping and handling) about $30.00, which is about equal in price for a Yankee candle. I really wanted to try out a forest/wood smelling candle, but they were all sold out of them, NEXT TIME! I will tell you this, if you do order a diamond candle it will take about 6-7 days for the shipment to make it to your home. Now a days when you order something online its usually at your door step in less than 4 days, so don't be alarmed when it's been a week for this candle. Again if it's something that you're interested in trying out for yourself their website is: 
http://www.diamondcandles.com/

It's funny as I sit here typing this I keep staring at the candle and I normally hate when candles burn fast because that means it will be done faster, but right now all I want is for it to burn really fast so I can see this ring. I promise once I get to part where I can get the ring out I'll be sure you let you know my results! 

I have to admit IF... IF...this ring turns out to be worth $1,000 or $5,000 I will
probably end up selling it to a jeweler and taking the money. In my mind, yes it would be awesome to keep $1,000 ring but the reality of it- Harry and I could really use the money. 


PHOTO OF THE RING COMING SOON....
....and the ring is probably $10 hahah but its pretty... 

Homemade Peach Ice Cream!

I love to bake and make any kind of dessert I can {especially when I am bored} The peaches I bought at the store a few days ago are way beyond mushy for my liking to just eat, unless I want to eat baby food mush. See this is what happens to the fruit and veggies we bring into our home sometimes. Harry and I just get so busy with work half the time that we forget about the fruits and vegetables that need to be eaten within a certain amount of days and they start going bad. Well I don't want to waste it.. hmmm what can I use these peaches for.... PEACH ICE CREAM!!

My brother and his girlfriend got Harry and I an ice cream maker for Christmas in 2012 and have yet to use it. Oh wait Harry used it once to make chocolate covered strawberry ice cream on Valentines Day/my birthday. (turned out pretty good I thought, but a little watery) Let's give it another shot!... 

Below are the ingredients needed:

1. Cuisinart  Frozen Yogurt Ice Cream & Sorbet Maker 
2. Milk/cream/sugar mixture
3. Peaches purred 
4. Whole Milk
5. Lemon Juice
6. Vanilla Extract
7. Sugar
8. Both Mixture together- finished product
9. Heavy Cream   

 The following is the recipe I used to make it if you're interested in trying it, its good!!

Peach Ice Cream

Peel, pit and puree in a food processor:

2 lbs very ripe peaches [or mangoes/apricots/nectarines]

Pour into a medium bowl and stir in:

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup sugar

pinch of salt

Refrigerate until the sugar is dissolved, stirring occasionally. 
Combine in a bowl and stir to dissolve sugar: 

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup whole milk

1/3 cup sugar

pour into an ice cream maker and freeze as directed. when the ice cream is almost frozen, add the fruit mixture      

ENJOY!!

   

 

Preakness

Big floppy hats, flowing dresses, cigars, drinks and the sound of hooves quickly stomping to the finish line..
This weekend Harry and I got to experience our first time at the Preakness in Baltimore, Maryland. We've been to Saratoga, NY before to watch the horse races, but this was a lot bigger! Not much of a horse race better myself and neither is Harry, but his dad is BIG TIME into it and loves it! We both just go along for the fun of enjoying family, friends, and the atmosphere. Needless to say no one in our group won any kind of money, except for Harry's cousin winning $30.00. {hey better than nothing I guess}

The older adults hung out in the grandstands to continue watching the races, while myself, Harry, our 2 friends from college, sister-in-law, her boyfriend and our cousin Joe all decided to go to the infield. The infield had 2 huge stages- one with Florida Georgia Line and the other had Macklemore.

     {I really wanted to stay for Pitbull, but that was later in the night and you had to pay for tickets to see that..oh well. }



All around the stages were vendors for food and alcoholic drinks, many alcoholic drinks. Apparently the official drink of Preakness 2013 was the Black-eyed Susan:
 

Black-Eyed Susan Recipe

1.25 oz Finlandia Vodka

0.25 oz St. Germain Liqueur

2 oz Lemon Juice

3 oz Lemongrass & Blackberry simple Syrup

6 drops of Angostura Bitters

Garnish with one sage leaf

..... let me tell you it was NOT very good. I actually had to throw it out and I hate to waste food or drinks, but it was terrible. There are a few different ways to make this drink- above is the recipe I found they used at the races. 

After 4 hours of walking around and having a good time the final race was about to start. We all rushed back to our seats and BANG the horses are off! Nothing is more exciting then the final race. 

Screaming our heads off for the number 6 horse to cross the finish line first, going neck and neck with two other horses...#6 finally breaks free and crosses the finish line as NUMBER 1!!

Fun time :)

{Harry and I before the race}

Obsessive much?

Everyone is obsessed with someone or something whether they like to admit it or not.  Okay here it goes, my obsession is... candles. I LOVE CANDLES! 

From little tea lights to wall decor that hold candles. Just like when you go shopping with your boyfriend or husband in a store and he always tends to levitate towards the tool/machinery aisle, YUUUP that's me when it comes to the candle aisle. Harry always says my obsession is a healthy obsession, it always makes the house smell good. And let me tell you it was one hell of a plus when hurricane Sandy happened and we were out of electricity for a few days, it was rather awesome if you ask me. Even my husband was excited about the fact that we had enough candles to light up the basement so he could do his lifting routine that day. See? haha

Both our addictions combined (Harry = lifting, Justine= candles) That's love right there!

Soo a while back I saw something on an ad either on Facebook or somewhere on the internet, I don't particularly remember where, but either way I saw a product called "Diamond Candles". Maybe you've heard of them? Anyways these candles are made from all natural soy and inside every single earth friendly candle they make is a real ring worth $10, $100, $1,000, or $5,000! 

  

What's a girl not to love about this product?! a candle and a free ring?! Okay you don't have to twist my arm to order one. In fact, I am currently, impatiently awaiting the delivery....since Friday...I hate waiting.  As soon as the candle comes I'll be sure to let you know how it is, but in the meantime, check it out for yourself at:

 http://www.diamondcandles.com/ 

Grow veggies, Grow!

Now I'm just playing the waiting game for the arrival of dirt and soil from Harry's work to make its way into our backyard. A few bushes were ripped out and have left giant sink holes and not to mention our ground is pretty uneven....Sooo until then the flower garden will have to be postponed until God knows when. In the mean time, however, I was able to plant a few things in the veggie garden yesterday instead! So far I have planted:

• Broccoli
• Potatoes
• Peas
• Green Beans
• Watermellon
• Red onions and yellow onions.   

(the raspberries and strawberries are taking over half my garden and trying to keep them under control is driving me insane! I just can't wait to eat them!!) 
Still need tomato plants, cucumbers, eggplant and carrots for sure and then I'll throw a few more random things in there. And by random, I've always wanted my own peach tree, lemon tree and have grape vines. I've been doing some on and off research about starting a lemon tree from a seed. With some of the information I have obtained I am going to attempt to start my very own lemon 'tree' this week from a few seeds and see what comes of it! I'll keep you posted on how things goes, hopefully I get positive results!!
   
Speaking of positive results I put a few sunflower seeds into the ground last week and they are really sprouting!!! So excited! I'm not sure which I am more excited about though, the fact that I'm going to have pretty flowers in my yard or the fact that they are going to be blocking the view to my neighbors ugly side of his house. Along with my sunflower seeds sprouting, I also planted a rose bush for the first time and it too is starting to grow !!  In the mean time since I'm unable to plant any flowers in the garden yet I bought a clematis flowering vine to get this garden started!

Flower Garden~ Stage 1

In between all of the rain yesterday and today I was able to get started on my flower garden project!...[along with planting and maintaining my veggie/fruit garden]

Like I mention to my mom the other day, I want to try to use all recycled materials to create this garden.

#1-  Door:
Now this door, I believe has been sitting on top of my hill (mainly to block the mean bull dog that drives my dogs crazy...) for about 3 years now since we have renovated our kitchen. So as you can imagine weather takes a toll on the paint and most of the paint was already peeled off. For the remainder of the dried paint I just scraped it off and then cleaned the doors surface.

#2- Wooden Pallets:
There are multiple different ways to use wooden pallets to plant plants. I originally was going to keep all of the rows intact in the pallets, Buuuut I decided against it, I want more planting space inside the pallet itself.

Next step~
     I want to take the deck board parts {the wooden board pieces I sawed off} and turn one of them into a window bed and attach it to the door right underneath the window. With the extra deck boards I think I'll turn them into beds as well... hopefully more projecting tomorrow!

Green Thumb

Well it certainly has been a while since I have wrote on here... 

This past weekend a bunch of Harry's AGR brother's (Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity) from DVC [Delaware Valley College] helped do a lot of much needed yard labor and with all of their help finished in 5 hours in what would take me probably 3 days.

• Fence repaired~ Check!   (now Mahone won't be able to dig underneath the fence to escape- damn the smart breeds!)
• 2 dead bushes pulled out~ check! {now I can plant my flower garden!!}
• Half of hot tub removed from yard~ Check!
• Garden weeded~ Check! {now I can see my raspberries and strawberries}
• Sticks cleaned up/ grass mowed/ trees trimmed (now i can see out of my driveway) ~ CHECK CHECK CHECK!

For the past few hours since I have woken up, on my 2nd cup of coffee, I've been trying to decide what type of flowers, design and what not I want to put into my new flower garden! Since we aren't made out of money and I can be quite crafty I want to do as many D.I.Y or use recycled things to create this garden. What I have come up with so far (if anyone has any better ideas please do share): 

How the "garden area" looks like before

1. wooden pallets to use as garden beds (make L shape Left along house and along fence in front)
2. Old door- repaint and decorate with vines/window box/ hanging plants, ect.
3. Sunflowers to block the fence to the neighbors yard on right side
4. DIY bird bath-  (old big bowl and a tree stump)
5. 2 Cinder blocks- use as a plant bed ??

Crap I just looked at the time, off to work I go in the down pour rain and thunder :/

Finders Keepers, person who threw it out wishes it was now theirs...

Over the weekend while walking a dog, I walked by someone's recycling bin that had 2 decent sizes plastic/ ceramic looking flower pots. I kept walking and thinking to myself "is it worth taking those home since I have no flowers pots?" . After putting the dog back in the house, I got into my car and drove up to the recycling. I sat there for a second and said what the hell if its crap then I'll recycle it myself.  Recycle and I'll reuse.

Before

  I went to a local hardware store and brought myself some spray paint. Now that was the difficult part; trying to decide what color I want to spray paint this pot. I mean there are so many different colors, textures, etc. and I have to choose ONE!?  Well I did I went with Smoke Gray:

I wiped the outside of the pot off with a paper towel before spray painting it, I didn't want clumps of dirt under the paint, that wouldn't look so nice. After about 5 minutes of spray painting both, I let them both air dry for a while and this was the final results:

I must say I think it looks pretty darn good! Now I need to find some flowers or plants to put into my pots and I'm going to sit them outside my front door on the porch! PERFECT! I love D.I.Y's!





 

Now if you're like me I'm pretty messy when it comes to anything so I had spray paint all over my hands.  Nail Polish Remover! That's the key to getting it off your skin!  I  have another DIY in mind be back soon!