Creating a Thanksgiving Planner

One of the greatest gifts you can give to yourself is time to enjoy the holiday season.  

After years of literally dreading the holidays, while putting on a happy face and pretending that it's the best time ever...I decided to take back my holiday life this year and really, TRULY, enjoy it.

That's when I stumbled across the idea of a Christmas Planner through my endless scrolling of Pinterest.  What the What?  

When did this become a thing, and how did I (the queen of planners, planning, and all things organized) not know about it?

Then, I started thinking... there must be a Thanksgiving Planner somewhere on Pinterest.  And yep, you guessed it, there are MANY!  The one I picked was a downloadable purchase ($7.00) from Etsy and PeoplesLifeonPaper seller.

So, let's talk about the cost first.  

It was $7.00 to purchase and download the content.

I have absolutely NO PROBLEM buying the download and here's why...

1 - Could I have used a freebie from Pinterest?  Sure...I just really loved the colors and the 31pages of planning that this particular planner offered me.

2 - Could I have made my own planner sheets?  Absolutely!  It would have taken me HOURS to create them, and I know for a fact that I would not have made 31 pages, and I would miss some of the important pages (like the checklists) that I downloaded.  PLUS - the blocking, the inserting of images, creating tables, etc...would not have been fun.  I am NOT a graphic designer and this is definitely something that a graphic designer or self-taught designer can do.  Me?  Nope!

3 - I LOVE to support other small businesses on a platform designed to support small businesses.  This country was built on small business entrepreneurs and they are making money to support their families, give to charities, and support other small businesses.  I like passing that along.

4 - Finally... $7.00?  For 31 pages of graphic rich material?  That is literally $.23 a page.  That's cheaper than Staples charges to print a page in black and white!  Plus, considering that I have ALL the other materials, this planner cost me...$7.00!

So let's get assembling...

First thing was to print the pages that I wanted from the planner.  I did not use all the pages, but I did use most of them.  I printed the cover and cut off the white edges.  I wanted some of the designer paper to show on each side of the cover.

Next, I printed all the pages that I knew I would use.

These checklists were what I really loved.  A great checklist ALWAYS keeps me organized and these really have been thoughtfully created.  Similar to a wedding planner, they are organized by "weeks before," "week of," and "day of."  See where this is going to make my life less stressful?

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these pages.  This allows me to plan the menu and the pre-dinner appetizers.  It has a space for noting that one of my guests has a mushroom allergy (severe, so very important info!), who will be bringing what to the our meal, and WHERE each recipe is located.  Because several of my recipes are on Pinterest, in cookbooks, and on my photo roll, I will need to be able to access them without stress.  I will most likely print the recipes, laminate them, and then place in this section of the planner.

These pages are handy for planning the decor.  I'm going with an alternative color scheme this year:  Rose Gold, Creme, Soft Olive, and Khaki.  I've been gathering things along the way and this will help with setting the table so that it's "Pin Worthy" for Pinterest, but also a treat for my guests as well.  A beautiful table is the setting for great food and great conversation.  It makes guests feel special and makes the meal all the more special.  Remember, we "eat" with our eyes first!

These pages will be my Bible on the day.  It will also help with the many cooks and helpers in the kitchen as it will be an easy reference for them as well.  I will have the day mapped out by time, including the cooking, which will help things arrive hot and ready to the table.  I can even create a "chore" list so that helpers can pick a chore and get that done without me having to verbally direct and stop what I'm doing.

These pages will allow me to spread out the needed tasks and have things prepped well before hand.  There is even a Cleaning checklist so that I am ready on that front as well.  I don't know about you but I NEVER see that speck of dust or cobweb UNTIL about 5 minutes before guests arrive...ugh!  You too???

Last, but not least, there is a notes page that can be printed multiple times and placed wherever you'd like.  I put it in the front of my book so that I can jot things down on the fly.  As I return to the planner I can add those notes where they need to go.  It would also be a great place to write gratitude quotes and personal memories of Thanksgiving.

Once I picked my designed paper from my copious stash of card-making supplies,  I went to work.  

This Happy Planner hole punch and Scotch Laminator, 3ml Sheets and 5ml Sheets are office supplies that I could not live without.  The laminator is used for everything from sealing our insurance cards to protecting recipes to making covers for my Happy Planner obsession.  The hole punch allows me to punch the ring holes into so many things that make their way into my planners and organizers.

I used the laminator and 5ml sheets to make the front and back of the planner.  These make the covers very sturdy.  The divider pages used the 3ml sheets.  The hole punch was used to make the holes for the rings so that the book came together neatly and well lined up.

I've marked the hole punch so I know where to line up the edge of the laminated sheet.  This keeps things uniform all the way through.

Here's the cover taking a nice hot roll through the laminator.  It is set on the 5mil setting so that the front and the back heat seal correctly.  This particular laminator has settings for both mls.  It also has a quick release button in the event that something goes in at a wonky angle.  I just recommend you line it up with the groves on the side of the opening.  It laminates at a slow pace, so you have time to place it exactly how you want it.  It won't "grab" it from you when you place it in the slot.

And just like that, both covers, the 6 dividers, and all the pages are ready to assemble.  

At this point, I needed to make the divider tabs for the divider sheets so I used my brown Sharpie marker and Post-It sticky tabs.

The easiest way to line them up is to place all your laminated sheets in the order that you want in your planner.  Start with the first divider and then just eyeball them as you ascend down to the next divider.  You could measure and all that...if that's you thing, but it's not mine.  I'm good at the "eyeball" method and although I'm fairly obsessive about organization I'm not THAT obsessive...just saying.

Next, I placed all the dividers and pages together and began the easy process of putting the arc rings into the holes.

The rings are universal, so scout around and see what you like.  I've got the ARC system, Martha Stewart, and Happy Planner rings.  They come in a variety of colors and sizes.  These are Happy Planner rings in Rose Gold.  Perfect for my color choices this year.

And with that done...

Here it is...

The great thing about using the arc rings is that I can add printed recipes, additional copy paper with holes punched down the sides, a paper folder pocket from the Dollar Tree...anything that can be punched can be added, including photos of my table scape and printed photos from that day.  It can turn from a planner into a scrapbook of memories!

Once done, I can remove the rings and use a binder clip to hold everything together.  I will file it away and pull it out for next year to use as a guide. 

I hope this inspires you as we enter this holiday season.  If you are not hosting Thanksgiving dinner, check out the Christmas Planner that the same Etsy seller has available.  

Making my Christmas Planner will be coming up on my agenda!

DIY: Building a Rustic Table with Pipe & Paint

So, let's talk about this skinny little space on my porch.

It's snuggled between the end of our L shaped couch and the sliding glass door to our dining room.  This 3-season porch is not very large, in fact, it's quite tiny; but, it's a great place to relax, read, nap, and have a drink with my honey or a few friends and I love it.  It's been quite a long time since I've freshened it up, and I wanted to start with creating something new.

For quite awhile I have had a skinny metal table that was a bit wonky and not all the useful because you couldn't get to the bottom shelf.  I pondered quite a bit about what I wanted here, and decided to build a box like base, on wheels, with an elevated top with some galvanized pipe - because I see it all over Pinterest and I knew it would be a fun element to add.  Here is what I built:

And here's how it all went down...

First, the tools and supplies.  My trusty miter saw (yes, it's mine, not hubby's), Gorilla Glue (the best glues and tapes on the market, hands down!), 1/2 inch threaded galvanized pipe and 1/2 inch galvanized floor flange fittings, screws for the flanges, spray paint for the pipe, drill, brad nailer, wood filler, pine boards (the box stores have them already in shorter finished pieces that are easy to work with), sanding block, a square, a level, pull hardware, paint, antiquing glaze, and 4 rolling feet .

I totally built this table from the bottom up.  I used the pine boards to build the box at the bottom using my needed dimensions and my miter saw.  My whole idea was to have a storage place for books or a throw.  I cut my 1 inch board into two 19" lengths and used one as the box bottom and one as the top shelf.  I then used my 1/2 inch boards to build the box sides.  These were attached on the upper sides of the box so I could brad nail from the bottom.  This leaves the sides without holes to fill as they are on the bottom.  I dry fit everything first, then glue and brad nail.

On the front and back of the boxes I made sure that my ends were facing the sides so it looked "finished" from the front.  I filled in the holes with wood filler.  Once I had it to the box point, I sanded to soften the edges as well as the end cuts of the wood.

I painted the box and the top with Valspar paint in a soft turquoise color which matches my new pillow fabric (coming soon to the blog).  After I did two coats, I sanded again and then used a Valspar Antiquing Glaze in Burnt Umber.  I have literally had this glaze for 5 years and it's just as good as the first time I opened it.  It too came from Lowes and has been used on so many projects including our kitchen cabinets.  This glaze gives the painted parts a softer aged/weathered look and because it's a hint of brown it pulls the piping materials in as well.

Speaking of the piping materials, I washed them well with soap and water and then spray painted them outside with Rustoleum's Oil Rubbed Bronze (ORB).  The pipes may feel and smell a bit greasy.  I was worried that the paint would not adhere to them, so cleaning them got rid of the greasy feel and smell.  Once painted I did not have any problems with chipping paint.

They took the paint well.  I always spray in light coats, multiple times so that the paint in even and without drips.

Here's a tip on buying pipe: 

FIRST:  Make sure that your threaded pipes screw smoothly into your flanges and are straight.  Because this is pipe that is for hidden construction, the threads are not always perfect and your pipe can screw in at an angle.  No matter what you do, it will not go in straight.  This is fine for work behind walls, but if you are using it on a furniture piece, you want it straight.  Just work with it in the aisle when buying.  

SECOND:  There are different widths of pipe in the aisle.  Read the placards carefully and make sure you have matching pieces.  It's not a one-size fits all.  The smaller width pipe would work here as well, but I wanted to use the larger width so that it looked more substantial.  

LASTLY:  Have your build plan in place so that you know what you will need.  I spent some time in the pipe aisle looking at the different flanges, couplings, pipe width, etc.  It was interesting examining all of the different options and gave me ideas for other things to DIY.  If you are not ready to build something yet, go to that aisle and take a picture of all the different aspects.  You can also go online at Lowes and see what they offer as well.  I also watched several YouTube videos of people building pipe furniture so I could get ideas and see where they made suggestions.

After the pieces were painted and glazed, I added the wheels to the bottom of the box and the flanges to the inside of the box.

I then screwed in the pipes and then screwed the flanges on top of them.

Now comes the most important part.  I placed the top on those flanges and placed the level on top to make sure it was as close to level from side to side and front to back.  I had to screw the flanges up and down on opposite sides to get as close to level as I could.

I also used the level from bottom to top to make sure the at the top was as closely aligned to the box bottom as possible.  From here I used a pencil to mark the flange holes on the underside of the top.

I drilled starter holes in the underside, flipped over the box and pipe bottom and screwed the flanges in place to the top.

I added the pull and it was done.  Here it is, snug in it's place on the porch.

I am really proud of it.  It's not perfect...like, I wouldn't sell it or anything, but it's perfect for this space and for what I envisioned in my brain.

Stay tuned for it all decorated when I post my porch reveal soon.

Let me know if you have built a pipe furniture piece.  I've got my eye on a Pinterest pin for my laundry room!

Now I've got pillows to recover!

Hall Closet Cleanout

So, I'm just going to show you my hall closet before.

Not bad, huh?  I agree, it looks pretty organized and clean, but it wasn't.  It was a jumbled mess in those bins, OLD medicines and OTCs in the pockets, and hidden messes on the shelves and floors.  I even found a dog biscuit on the floor where our little Dixee must have batted it beneath the door.  It was time for a good cleaning and purging for this well-used hall closet.

The first line of business was setting up what I would need to do the task.  This is one of the key things that people DO NOT DO when organizing, and it's often why they abandon the task halfway through, or don't even start to begin with.  People...get your tools ready to do the task!  Nothing is more frustrating when organizing than needing to stop and start to run around and gather needed items.

I set up a table because I hate getting up and down on the floor to go through things unless I'm actually cleaning something up near the floor area...like under a bed.  I have my trash bag (Dollar Store is now using these great brown paper bags) and label maker ready.

 I also have my sticky back label holders ready as well.  There are from the Dollar Tree and come with 18 in a pack, including the white label insert.  Perfect for notebooks and plastic baskets; really anything you want to label!

I did not spend any money on this redo as I had all of these items, plus, I reused the green bins and 2 white bins that I already had.

I decided to tackle the door shoe pockets that had been used over the years for holding meds, ointments, bandaids, earplugs, etc...  Anything small that could fit into the pocket was stashed here.

However, just like my spice cabinet, there were TONS of expired meds just hanging out.  Even items like saline solutions and cough drops do expire.  Throw those things away!

I've used this shoe pocket for over 10 years and it was a great way to have all of these things at my fingertips.  However, several things have changed over the course of those 10 years.

Our last child has flown the nest, so the collection of ointments, cough drops, and throat sprays were no longer used and were actually expired.

We are now a household of Young Living essential oils users, and have not had a need for OTC meds or prescription medications in a long time.  In fact, the Rx meds in the top pockets were empty bottles, or expired meds.  They made their way back to Walgreens and were disposed of in their medicine disposal unit by the pharmacy.  Check with your local pharmacy or police station for medicine disposal units and rules.

In addition, in our desire to downsize all areas of our lives, we realized that we needed less in the way of personal care products and health care products.  Because we use Young Living products, it was easy to see what we really needed and what was taking up valuable real estate.

So the clean-out began.  I highly recommend that you take EVERYTHING, AND I MEAN EVERYTHING out of the closet.  If you don't you will just be rearranging stuff you don't need and leaving it in the closet until you "clean" it out again.  Total waste of valuable time.  Get that stuff OUT!  You will want to wipe down everything as well, so keeping it in the closet will not allow for a good cleaning.

I used the table as a staging area so that I could go through each bin, basket, and drawer.  The bins and baskets were from the Dollar Tree of course, and the drawers are so old that I can't begin to tell you where I picked them up.  However, you can find similar ones here.  Measure your shelf height so that you can purchase the exact sizes you need.

I was left with this:

So, two things I want to note.  About the time I added the show organizer to this closet, I also redid it as well.  I removed the warped wooden shelves and wooden wall brackets and wall-papered the closet.  

Yes, I wall-papered the closet.

This paintable (or left natural) wall-paper is a great addition to any closet that gets a lot of action.  Why?  Because it protects your walls, always looks fresh, and it super easy to wipe down.  Now...that was not my initial reason for wall-papering.  Truth is, it needed a serious paint job (think 1960's faded mint green), I had this wall-paper left over from the pantry redo, and I didn't want to paint.  Plain and simple.  I could wall-paper and continue on my organizing way without having to wait for the paint to dry.  All the cuts were easy and I have wall-papered many times before, so I had the skills to do this job.  

I also installed brackets to the back after papering and added the wire shelves that could be adjusted.  Another win in my book!  I had Lowes cut the shelving to the widths I needed right in the store.  They have a great pneumatic cutter, so know your lengths BEFORE your purchase.  Otherwise, you will be using a hacksaw at home.  By adding the wire shelf liner I don't have to worry about things falling over or through the spaces.

I cleaned each shelf and wiped down the walls with my Thieves cleaner.  I also made sure to clean the floor as well.

Now came the fun part.  Returning what made the cut to the clean closet.

Tadaa....

Here it is finished!

Notice that I have some empty spaces, and there are 2 empty bins on the lower shelf in the event I need them.

So, why bins/baskets?  I am a firm believer that things need to have a pleasing look in order to be appreciated.  I love the Dollar Tree bins, and I like this happy green color when I open this closet.  The bins with the handles are especially great because they act like drawers that I can pull out and take with me, or slide out and grab something inside.  I used my label maker to add the contents at the top of each handle.  This is so that the "other person" living in this house doesn't open the door and proceed to yell "Where is such-and-such."  It also helps that same person put things away where they go and not just where there is empty space.  It's still a work in progress ladies...

The drawers hold smaller items like toothpaste, first aid supplies, cotton balls and swabs, and other smaller items.  Each drawer is labelled there as well.

Here's a great inside look at my manicure bin.  I give myself my own manicures because I do not paint my nails.  The polish never lasts, especially with all the projects I do.  I do however get a monthly pedicure and do have my toe-nails painted.  

I used smaller Dollar Tree organizers to hold it all in an organized fashion.  On Sunday evenings, I pull this bin out and take it to my bathroom where I do my manicure, or in front of the TV, really, wherever I want to go.  I can also take the bin right onto the RV if I want to do my manicure while we are camping.  Priorities...right?

You may wonder where my linens are.  I stopped putting them in this closet and moved them to each of the bedrooms.  I have a set of sheets for each room that are on the beds.  I have coordinating towel sets for each room as well.  All of that bedroom's linens are stored in that bedroom.  It makes it easier for guests and it keeps this closet clear of that type of stuff.  We really only need 1-2 sets of sheets for each bed, especially now that we are empty-nesters.

Do you have a hall closet that needs to be reorganized?  Tell me about your biggest closet organization need!  

From Making Stock to Cleaning Stock - Purging the Spices

While making my veggie stock, I took a bit of time to pull out all my spices and purge.  As the stock cooked down the vegetables cuttings, I pulled all the spices out of the cupboard and started the process.

I had so many different containers, that I decided to start with the general spices like salt and pepper. I combined the two containers of pepper I had after  I filled all the different pepper shakers in my kitchen.  Yes, I have different containers.  Some are just for cooking and are by the stove.  Others are pairs that I place on the table with matching dishes or are used when dining al fresco.  It was a good time to also fill the salts as well.

Combining the peppers into one container allowed me to get rid of two smaller containers, making some room in the cupboard.

Next, I began to look for expiration dates on each of the spice containers.  For some spices, this was an easy job.  They are usually printed on the bottom of the container.  I will confess that one was dated as expiring in 2005!  Yikes...   I did some research and found this:

"As seasoning makers like McCormick point out, spices do not actually spoil. ... Over time, spices will lose their potency and not flavor your food as intended. As a general rule, whole spices will stay fresh for about 4 years, ground spices for about 3 to 4 years and dried leafy herbs for 1 to 3 years."

It also pointed out that expired spices will not make you sick, but they will not flavor like they are intended to past their expiration date.

Because spices are expensive, I did find this interesting site that gives you some neat ideas of what to do with your expired spices if you want alternatives to throwing them away.

I did opt to throw mine away. However, I emptied the contents into the trash can and recycled the containers in our recycling bin.

Here's what was recycled:

And here's what made the cut:

I was not terribly upset by all the spices that went to the wayside as I now primarily cook with the Young Living Essential Oils Vitality line.  These oils are specially formulated to ingest, and they are great in recipes.  You can use this chart to help you when using essential oils in lieu of powdered spices.

My Vitality oils are kept in the wall cupboard above my spice cupboard.

Once you start using oils for recipes, it does become a bit hard to go back to general spices.  They add so much flavor with just a drop.  Once of our favs - one drop of Black Pepper Vitality oil added to the oil for cooking popcorn.  We cook popcorn the old fashioned way, on the stove, with organic vegetable oil.  The Black Pepper adds just a hint of spiciness to the popcorn.

After the purge, I put back the remaining spices in the cupboard, making sure that the expiration dates were clearly marked on the bottom of each container.  A simple Sharpie Marker makes it a breeze.

I also use the Sharpie to label the top so I don't have to fish around for a certain spice while cooking.

Gorgeous!  It's so streamlined and organized, and these are ready to go without the worry of expiration.

Because spices are expensive and it's so frustrating to have to purchase one spice that you may never use again, I did research and find that there are options for buying spices in smaller quantities.  If you are in a progressive urban area (not me) you may have access to an actual spice market or an ethnic area that sells small quantities of spices.

I did find the Atlantic Spice Company website but do not have any experience or opinion.  If you do, or know of other options, please share in the comments below.  I'm always looking for new options like this.

Another option could be to get with a friend and split the cost and contents of spices.  There are many options for containers on Amazon, OR the Dollar Tree always has small container options in their kitchen section.  You could use the old spice containers after you washed them out and removed the label as well.  Print or order some cute labels and you've got an affordable option.

The clean-up of spices also made its way to the island shelves which are right across from the spice cupboard.

(My spaghetti pig was made many years ago by my sweet father-in-law.  He's 101 this year!)

I keep my everyday Trader Joe's grinding spices here because I use them to cook on a pretty regular basis.  Our closest Trader Joe's is an hour and a half away, so my next trip will need to see a few more of these babies make it into the cart.

I hope this post inspires you to inspect and purge your spices.  

Let me know in the comments below if you have a spice or two that's older than 2005!

Making Stock

If you're like me, you like to cook, and really enjoy making great meals.  BUT... you're not a 5-star chef or even a "homesteader" who spends time preserving and canning for the coming winter months.

I used to "want" to do that, but time, knowledge, and effort never seemed to be on my side.  So, for years I had grandiose notions to be this fabulous cook who did all that, only to NEVER actually do it.  I know it's a great way to have quality nutritious foods during the colder months, but I JUST NEVER DID IT!

So, I made my own rule.  Do want you can with what you have and be inspired by that.

While perusing Pinterest for winter soup recipes, I came across several posts for creating your own soup bases.  Now, I can make some great homemade soups; so this seemed like a win-win for me.  And guess what?  It was!  Not only that, it was affordable as well...

First, start by saving all the cutting scraps from your fresh vegetables.  I mean all...  Save the ends and any cuttings from your celery, onions, tomatoes, potatoes, garlic, carrots, mushrooms, and so on.  Any fresh vegetables that you are working with, save it all.  Place them in a large ziplock bag and put in the freezer.  There's no specific way to do this.  Just throw them in the bag and zip it up.  Keep adding cuttings until you have a full bag, or even two.

2 gallon ziplock bags of frozen vegetable cuttings in my largest pot.

When your ready to make your stock, open your bag(s) place your cuttings into the pot and add enough water to cover about 3/4 of the pot capacity.

You can see that all the veggies are not covered with water.  That's okay, they soon will be.  DO NOT overfill your pot.

Next, place the pot on the stove and turn on the heat to high and cover the pot.  You want the water to boil so that it cooks and releases all the goodness of these frozen veggies into the liquid.

You can periodically open the lid and give the veggies a stir so that they all are immersed into the liquid.  As they begin to boil and cook they will wilt and settle, and will eventually be covered by the liquid.  My pots are waterless cookware and have a steamer vent that can be closed to keep the steam inside.  Once it starts to boil I turn the heat down to low and allow the cookware to continue doing its job.  If you are cooking without these types of pots, reduce the heat once the liquid begins to boil to medium to low.  You want the liquid to gently boil to release as much of the nutrients as you can from your veggies.

You want to cook your veggies until it looks like this.  For me, it takes about 45 minutes.  I check it every so often and really just use how it "looks" to know that it's done.  Because I've done this many times I recognize the amber color of the liquid and how "spent" the veggies look.

Now comes the fun!

Remove your pot from the heat and begin to immediately remove the veggies.  Do not let it cool at this point as the veggies will reabsorb some of the liquids and you want to get as much of that "liquid gold" as you can.  I use my hand strainer to dip out the bulk of the pieces and place them in my large stainless bowl.

Now, this is important...you want to squish the veggies with your soup ladle so that you can get more of the liquid out of the veggies.  You will do this several times and be AMAZED at how much liquid is still in them.

Squish them then pour through the strainer to catch any wayward seeds and small bits of vegetables.  I do this part several times until I am satisfied that I've gotten almost all or most of the liquid that I can.

Here's the final outcome...

Look at that!  This is literally nutritious liquid gold, ready for soup and stew making!  Can you believe the beautiful amber color that those vegetables produce?   Plus, it smells heavenly and gives your kitchen that cozy, homemade meal smell...just a bonus!

At this point you can let it cool for about 20-30 minutes on your countertop while you clean up the rest of the your cooking stuff and prepare to place it in freezer bags for storage until you need it.

I set up my bag holder (you can find one here) close to my bowl. 

Once cooled, use a measuring cup to scoop it into a labelled gallon Ziploc bag.  I got two gallons out of this boil - somewhere between 20-24 cups of liquid.  

When you zip it up, leave a small opening to force a bit more of the air out of the bag.  

Once the bags are fairly cool, place into your freezer.  

These 2 bags will be the base for many different soups.

I realize that not everyone will want 2 gallons of soup base.  However, there are some options that you can consider.

*Don't make as much as I did if you're not going to use it or can't gift it to a relative or friend.

* Get with a friend and split the liquid. 

* Freeze a portion and immediately make soup from the other part.  A great vegetable, vegetable beef, or Minestrone are always good options.

* Create small bags to use as the base for recipes or smaller batches of soup.

* Freeze stock in ice-cube trays to use as stock for pan frying and sautéing.

Let me know if you have other ways to make stock or even great recipes for using this stock.  I'm always looking for recipes to make delicious homemade soups with my homemade stock!

Bon Appetit!