Eating healthier

I am really trying to eat healthier. I'll admit that I do struggle still but at least I'm making some changes right?

One of my biggest changes is in drinking more water. I downloaded an app called "Water Your Body." You enter in some information and the app displays how much you should be drinking on a daily basis. You get a reminder every two hours. At first, I had the audio notifications on and didn't realize it. The reminder sounds like pouring water. I now have it just on vibrate since my phone can't be on at work.

I have a hard time with drinking plain water. The water must also be ice cold. My mom is big on DoTerra essential oils. One of her friends introduced me to "Citrus Bliss." I love adding this to my water. It adds just enough flavor. I also carry Lime and Lemon.

I have a cute reusable cup that I got from my parents. They bought it in a pack of six at Costco. I use it mostly when I am away from home. I have found that the reusable straws aren't as durable as the cups. I was able to buy replacement straws at Gordman's.

For the eating part, I'm working on fixing my snack foods and adding veggies to my meals. I've been eating lots of rice cakes lately. They help with my carb cravings and are easy to pack for work.

Last but not least, the veggies. I LOVE roasted vegetables. I've experimented with broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, potatoes and carrots. It's amazing the flavor that results from tossing in olive oil and light salt and pepper. I almost always add a bit of parmesan cheese and omit the salt.

This is a simple side dish.


Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.
Wash your veggies.
Cut into bit sized chunks.
Toss with olive oil and desired seasonings.
Line cookie sheet with foil, shiny side up.
Pour veggies onto pan.
Bake for 10-15 minutes.
Take out of the oven and toss around to loosen any stuck pieces.
Return to oven for additional 10-15 minutes or until desired tenderness is achieved.
Serve while hot.

The afternoon heat wave

Our house faces East. We live in a multi-level. The afternoon heat pours into the back side of our house. All of the "important" rooms are on the West side, the master bedroom, kitchen, dining room and family room. I honestly didn't realize that this was going to be an issue until we moved in.

We have since planted trees in the backyard but it will obviously be a while before they start lending the much needed shade. We are currently debating a pergola for shade. I'll add sun shade fabric on top and the side to protect us from the afternoon sun. We looked at metal gazebos but decided against them due to our high wind problem.

I worry about Cassie being exposed to the heat as well. She has her dog house but rarely uses it. I make sure there is plenty of water for her. She loves to sunbathe and be outside. In the heat of the summer, she will just have to stay inside. I'm not sure she'll like it but I don't see any other options.

As for the inside of our house, I have curtains over the sliding glass door and curtains and blinds in the master bedroom. I'm currently researching a way to make my current curtains help with the heat.

As you can tell by the light, the back of my house is fully exposed. Any ideas?

Another puppy project

We are still working on puppy training so Cassie spends a few hours at a time in her kennel. She loves going in there and doesn't bark at all. I worry that she's not getting enough water though. I looked online and found several different bowl options. All were too pricey for me.

I like the idea of the DIY ones in the middle. I'm not a fan of the plastic though because Cassie is still a puppy and she LOVES to chew on everything. As for the bucket? I'm sure she would find a way to tip it over.

I decided to go another route. I saw a treat holder and wondered if I could adapt it to the crate.

I started with a small loaf pan that I bought at a thrift store.

I flattened the back edge so that it will sit flush with the door of the crate.

I then bent down the remaining three sides to accept the

Then I went to the local hardware store and bought a large (7 inch) pipe clamp. You can buy whatever size needed to fit your bowl.


This is the result:

 I used my pliers and crimped the edge of the pan around the clamp.

My only complaint is that I think I put it too high up. She's growing fast though so I'm sure it will be the right height in no time.

Furniture Friday

I decided to tackle an tall wooden cabinet as my next project. My husband has been asking me for a while and I'm just now feeling up to a project.

One Saturday afternoon, I transformed my magnet board into a coat rack. We enter our house through the garage and there just wasn't anywhere to hang stuff. We got the shoe rack from my great aunt. It doesn't match but is functional for now.

The board used to look similar to this:


I sanded off most of the black and then stained over the top. I added 5 hooks, one for each family member.

I needed to match this frame for the cabinet.

Here's what I started with:

 I sanded it down and used some black spray paint. I tried to make sure that my spray was random and not patterned.

 Then I added the stain! I didn't stain the inside because I was running low on stain and want to make sure that the exterior looks good.

Now for the finishing touches:

 Talk about a big change! I love it!

Now for the next project....

Halloween Costumes

I had several requests for Halloween costumes this year. I ended up making four. Three were for my nieces and one was for my friends daughter. All of them were unique and turned out adorable!!

 Remember the Frozen birthday? She needed to be Elsa for Halloween.

Introducing our newest family member, Cassie!

7 weeks old

 Our little Valentine, 3 months old

 She loves this puppy, 4 months old

I've spent lots of time crafting stuff for our puppy. She's pretty spoiled. We have lots of fun with her and look forward to years of companionship.

Cassie got a dog house since she loves to play outside. She mainly uses it to store her toys. I'm hoping she'll choose to use it.

This dog house is made of cement board, big mistake, but you live and learn. Why a mistake? We didn't follow the instructions for cutting. It made a huge mess and the blade was smoking. Oh well. At least we know this dog house will last FOREVER! I used these plans as my guideline. They were pretty vague but we got the main idea. I chose to build a separate platform for the dog house. I also altered the plans to make it longer. I felt like 25 7/8 inches were going to be too small. I used the measurements for Cassie's kennel to make a decision about the length.

I saw a cute dog house on Pinterest and this is was my decoration inspiration.

This is my result:

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I'm back... and have lots of projects in the works

Things have been pretty hectic for me lately. I was in a car accident this past November and subsequently needed shoulder surgery. My husband's health continues to decline and he is in desperate need of back surgery. He is currently not working due to the pain he experiences and the doctors have determined that working will only make his back worse.

As a result of this, we have been on a fundraising campaign. My mom's cousin's generously donated a Yamaha Clavinova electric piano for us to sell. Their grandson decided that he'd rather use it as an art piece instead of playing the piano. There are a few scratches on the top that need to be fixed before we can sell it.

I searched Pinterest for help with this project. I chose to try the crayon method since I have some on hand.

Here's the before:

And the after:

Verdict? I think the crayon worked well on the smaller scratches but not the larger ones.

Tomorrow I'll be heading to Home Depot to find a better fix.

Next project is..... refinishing a piano bench. My mom's cousins brought the bench to match the electric piano and also another one. I can't wait to start on it.