Curtains and Day to Day Stuff

I haven't gone 'private' just yet, but once I have a free afternoon to do that and put out my invites, I will. You have all been very kind in the comments, and I thank you! I finally finished up the girls curtains. The room is small and a bit crowded so this was the best shot I could get of them. Curtains are one of the easiest, cost-effective additions to any room. If you haven't tried making them and want to, just google it in and get your instructions and go for it! You don't even have to be able to sew a straight line; they're that forgiving!

I've been really trying to cut back and save money as the car repairs from last month are still haunting us. I've been using what we have food-wise and have been staying out of the grocery store except for produce and dairy; and even then, I send in one of the kids so I'm not tempted by any specials or sale items. We've been eating healthy, yet peasant-type food. The other morning it was oatmeal and tea. Filling and quite good; better since I decided to call it 'porridge' instead of oatmeal! ;)

My little girlies are having all kinds of fun in the backyard! They made a fort the other day and have been playing in it every afternoon once their schoolwork is done. We ate lunch there the other day. I love it when their imaginations lead them into all different places and time periods!

Going Private

I'm very disturbed to learn that there are two sites, Filmhill and Meeno, which are porn sites. Apparently they can take your pictures (or your children's) and copy them onto someone else's body. If you check your stats page you can see if they have visited your site. They have been onto mine six times. I am deeply upset about this and will not allow the possibility of my children being used. If you would like to continue reading my blog please leave me a comment or e-mail me and I will send you an invitation. I'm sorry to have to do this.

My Favorite Stitching Spot

Oh, I know, I know, it's a mess right now. But Mary Kathryn had a lovely post today about where she likes to stitch. Well, sometimes in the afternoon or at night around 10(ish), I sneak away and put in a few stitches. I did just that this afternoon. Oliver is laying just where I normally sit, stretch out my legs and relax with whatever project I'm working on. Today I'm doing the finishing work on my Ort Bag. I'll show a picture soon! Where do you like to stitch?

Where Did July Go?

This summer is flying right by! It's been chock full of fun though, so I'm not complaining. My pool garden has been just lovely this year. I don't know the name of this flower, but they come up every year and it's one of my favorites. We've spent quite a lot of time swimming and lounging by the pool.

We also went on vacation! We didn't have Corey and Lisa with us this day, which was kind of sad, but we had everyone else. Here, we were on our way to the beach! When there's a lot of big people, I'm really thankful to still have the 'big van'!

We go to Rhode Island every year for a week! Kierra is playing here, but all the kids really enjoyed swimming, too!

Back at the trailer we played Michigan Rummy nearly every night. We love that card game and I'm sure everyone around us heard our laughter! Such family fun!

Of course, all good things must come to an end to make room for other good things. Our garden is in full swing and has been producing really well this year. So far we've canned 8 quarts of beets, 10 quarts of carrots and all those bags of corn. Tonight we'll can salsa and pesto.

I've been pretty busy cleaning, too. Corey and Lisa had no room for this hutch in their new apartment so guess who got it? Yup, me! I've never had a place to put my beautiful china, crystal, or other pretties. I was so excited to get it and fill it up. It looks really nice and now I can pull out my china for special occasions.

We painted bedrooms, too, and the little girlies wanted a pink bedroom with new curtains. I'm nearly done making them and will post a pic very soon. Hope your summer has been full with all kinds of good things!