Keep Smiling

Keep Smiling

Monday, April 11, 2016

This and That

 
The weekend after Easter 
we were invited  to Steve's sister's
home for a family pot luck.
 
We love getting together with their family
and I love good food.
These deviled eggs were all suppose to be chicks,
like the two in the middle.
if I were making egg salad, I am sure that my eggs
would have peeled neatly from the shell,
but because I needed them smooth and nice,
they came off the shell jagged.
Murphy's Law, LOL.

 We also took baked beans . . .

and cake.
 I love pot lucks . . . 
you go around putting a little bit of everything on your plate 
and by the time
you reach the end of the line,
you wonder how you will fit it all into your tummy.
I managed, LOL.

I took all the plants that I started in the house,
out to the potting shed. 

And I've started more
now that the weather is better 
and I can use the potting shed.
These photos were taken about 10 days ago.
I'll take more in a couple of days,
so that you can see how good they are growing. 
  
Have you seen using toilet paper rings for starter pots?
I saw it on Pinterest and had to try it. 


 Notice the black hat with the satin flower.
I got it at a yard sale for $1.
It will adored my lovely scarecrow this year :) 

Speaking of yard sales.
This little chest of drawers was 
painted glossy black and marked $12.
So, I couldn't resist.
I just used paint that I had on hand.
The more happy colors the better,
for the Art Barn :)
It's my place to go a little crazy, LOL

I do hope that you are all
have a lovely week.

*******
Keep Smiling!
*******
Your blogging sister,
Connie :) 

38 comments:

  1. Cute deviled egg chick. Everything you made for the potluck looks yummy. I bet you're a good cook, Connie. It's nice to see what's going on in your potting shed. You're enjoying it, and that's good. I love the little chest. Did you paint the decorations on the front or are they decals, or what? They look great!!!! It's super cute. Enjoy the new week. Hugs, Nancy

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    1. Hi Nancy, well I hate to admit this, but they are stickers . . . I know, kind of cheesy, right? Oh well, In my defense, they are pretty stickers, LOL. Anything goes in the Art Barn :)

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  2. Connie - Yummy! The food all looks so good!! Your seedlings look great. Have a great week!

    Judy

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    1. Thank you Judy, you would not believe how much they have grown since those photos.

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  3. You made me hungry and I just laughed out loud when I saw the chicken in the middle. The dresser is so cute and I love the colors you chose to paint it.

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    1. Hi Betty, I intended on painting it all lavender, but didn't have enough paint, so I got creative. When it comes to furniture for the Art Barn I put function first and then get crazy with color :)

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  4. Connie...I've had that happen to my eggs before too. Your one little egg was so cute...just sitting there in the middle of the deviled eggs. It has still been too cold here to plant anything outside yet. It is usually warm here in Ohio by new, but not this year!!
    hugs,
    Cindy

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    1. Hi Cindy, the only things that I dared to plant outside so far are onions and peas. I planted my peas a week ago today, they haven't sprouted yet but it should be any day now :) Oh, I also purchased three blackberry bushes and planted them, too.

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  5. I love the chest of drawers, you have done an amazing job. Such a great idea to use toilet roll inners for planting up seeds, I must start saving them.

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    1. The toilet papers are really nice because you don't have to disturb the root at all when you transplant. The roll goes into the ground and becomes compost and food for the plant :)

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  6. I like how the eggs are served, cute!

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  7. Hi Connie, Nice to see your blog again! You are certainly busy and accomplish so much. Love all the cheeriness of your Art Barn! Lovely chest of drawers. What will go in there? You blow me away with all the plants you have started! I need you to put a jump start on me! That egg chick in the middle of the deviled eggs is adorable. I like deviled eggs but it seems like such work to make them. Time consuming! Those beans look delicious! Recipe anywhere? I am not much for just cake but yours looks special. Enjoy your day!!! Nancy

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    1. Hi Nancy, the cake is one of those that you poke the hole in and then pour jello over, have you ever made one? We like them because they are so moist and with the cool whip on top they are not as sweet. I use sugar free jello and fat free cool whip . . . it helps a bit :)

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    2. Thanks! I think I have made one of those a long time ago. I think it was lemon. Nancy

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  8. The eggs are so cute. I love deviled eggs so I don't know why I only have them at Easter.

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    1. They are so easy to make and they go great with many meals, especially summer picnic and pot lucks :)

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  9. Your deviled egg chick made me smile. So cute. And the chest of drawers that you painted is adorable. It certainly is cheery!!

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    1. Cheery is a good word for it . . . it reminds me of and little girls Easter dress :)

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  10. My eggs do the same thing....a lot. Wonder why? I heard that if you keep them in water until you're ready to peel them, that helps. No it doesn't. My eggs are still hard to peel most of the time. Those beans look so good!! And, I can't wait to see what you have growing in your potting shed.

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    1. Hi Laurie, I've tried many suggestions over the years for peeling eggs, but I think that they work only because at the time any method would, but then there are times when nothing seems to work. Maybe it's the way they were stored before we purchased them, or something in the chicken feed . . . there must be a certain something that makes them peel easy one time and not the next. If you ever find it, please remember me and share :)

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  11. That little chest turned out so pretty. I always like to read what you've written at the top of your blog...I read it to remind myself! Hugs!

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    1. I think that you are referring to having style on a tight budget . . . it is amazing to me how some people seem to pay so much for things that they could do themselves with a little effort and waiting for the right item to come around for repurposing. Or people that do without pretty things because they think that they can't afford them. There is a satisfaction in doing it yourself and in saving. Around here we work hard for what we have, so wasting is not an option. Not that I haven't wasted money. . . we all have those items that we look back on and wonder why we ever purchased such a thing.

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  12. Your food for the potluck looks so good! I love deviled eggs but I hate making them. I have a hard time peeling hard-boiled eggs, too. I've tried every trick in the book, including using older eggs and nothing really works!
    So exciting to see your plants growing from seed. I bet they are really taking off now that the weather is warmer.

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    1. Hi Melanie, this being my first time to have a greenhouse/potting shed it is a learning experience and I am keeping a very close diary so that I will know what works and what doesn't and when will be the best time to start certain seeds in the future. I'm having so much fun out there. You would not believe the difference in temperature inside the little building . . . when the afternoon sun hits those windows the thermometer rises 30 to 40 degrees. Some days I have to open one of the vent windows and even open the top of the dutch door to bring it down. Yesterday it was 70 outside and 108 inside . . . a steamy little sauna :) I feel a little bit like a mad scientist . . . taking lab notes and mixing up different soil combos.

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  13. That food looks so good! And I love the little dresser!
    xo
    Lynn

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  14. Oh, I love 'This and That' posts ... there is always good things to read and look at.
    I think your deviled eggs look tasty, and so nice to see your seedlings.

    Happy Tuesday and Happy Week

    All the best Jan

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    1. Since we have gone low carb . . . I find that we eat more eggs.
      Thank you so much for always being so encouraging. Your comments are so up-lifting:)

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  15. so good to have family time!! Your plants are looking good, bet you are itching to get them planted!! Fun colors on the dresser, goes great in your art barn!

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    1. I am very excited about gardening. Around here we usually wait until mid May to put things out in the garden, although I have planted peas outside already. You just never know when you might be surprised with another frost.

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  16. The deviled chicks are so cute! I'll bet no one wanted to eat the two in the middle ;) Yes if anything can go wrong it will! I thought the dresser was just your style, and perfect for $12. Then I read further and you repainted it already. Ha! Looks great with the little decals on the front too. Have a great week Connie :)
    Wendy

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    1. I rarely find anything at a thrift store or yard sale that doesn't need a little painting or putting a new spin on it . . . but that's part of the fun :)

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  17. Hi Connie! I am glad you found me so I can find you back! Your blog and home is sunny and delightful! I will enjoy visiting! Andrea

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    1. Hi Andrea, Welcome to my little humble corner of the world. I love that you are visiting and that you left this comment. I have tried twice now to add you to my blog-list and it hasn't worked. Blogspot is like that sometimes. I'll try again later and I'm sure it will work. Maybe it has to do with how many people are on line or something. Anyway . . . Your photos are absolutely gorgeous . . . I can almost smell your flowers :)

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    2. I love your corner of the world! We are househunting right now and are so tired of looking at crowded developments. You are right, blogspot is like that! Andrea

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    3. Good luck with your house hunt. We bought this home two years ago . . . it was neglected and run down, many people looked at it and didn't want to put in the work. We feel like the Lord was just saving it for us. We've put a lot of work and money into it, but now it is beginning to be our perfect dream home. We never thought that we would have an acre of land to garden and spread our wings. We lived thirty three years in a very close community where we could almost touch our neighbor's house without leaving our yard. I wish you the very best in your house hunt . . . our dream home awaits :)

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  18. those deviled eggs are so cute. You've got a nice start on your gardening for the year. I so wish I had a green thumb.

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  19. Your food looks so pretty. I understand that the fresher the eggs are, the harder they are too peel. So yours must have been really fresh xxxx

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