The Happyish Homestead

Thursday, July 30, 2015

To Giveaway

I’m minimizing.

I’ve gone through drawers, closets, cabinets and the basement.

And I held a garage sale.

And took the rest that didn’t sell to Goodwill.

And I got rid of a ton of stuff.

If I didn’t love it, it was gone.

And felt pretty good about myself.

And then a Saturday hit and we were traveling up to Eugene for a week of family reunion-ing and and then on to Washington for some more family time and camping.

Our car was appropriately packed.

We even borrowed a shell for the top of the car.

Six kids.

Eight bags.

A pack and play.

Sleeping bags.

Blankets.

Books.

Even a table booster seat, for Pete’s sake.

And wouldn’t you know there were a couple of estate sales on our 2 1/2 hour trip up the freeway?

And I couldn’t ‘not’ stop, you know?

So, being a minimalist was fun while it lasted…..

{Approximately 13 days.}

Which brings me to this post.

I have a couple of things to give away.

I don’t know if anyone’s even going to be interested, but I’m happy to pass them along if people are.

If you are, leave a comment letting me know your favorite Christmas song and what you’re interested in, if only one person is interested, lucky you(!), if more than one, I’ll pick one randomly.

#1 – Christmas reindeer felt table runner.

I will make sure whatever that white fuzzy stuff is removed before leaving my possession.

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#2 – Christmas Santa Claus black felt piano/bookshelf/something or other scarf.

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#3 Antique scrap quilt with hand embroidery.

Tattered in some areas.

Lap size.

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Katie

And since you’re all dying to know, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas as performed by Sesame Street in the ‘80s is my favorite Christmas song.

Wednesday, July 22, 2015

In Between Shoulder Pads and Halter Tops

That’s where I’m at.

Clothing wise.

Too old for the juvenile section.

Too young for the women’s section.

Some where in the middle.

Kind of like a no man's land.

So, I’ve taken to making some tops for myself.

And they’re not too shabby.

Especially if your vision is far-sighted….

and you never look directly at the shirt.

The first top is a riff off of one of my favorite shirts of all time.

This green one:

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And my version.

It even has set in sleeves.

My friend who majored in garment construction or something similar made a pattern for a sleeve just for me.

I begged her to make me an entire wardrobe.

One measly sleeve pattern was the compromise.

I guess I need to hone my compromising abilities.

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And this was the other side of the camera.

My miscellaneous tower to support the camera.

Which may or may not be why the photos are blurry.

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And canning season is upon us.

I put up 16 half pints of strawberry jam,

6 pints of blackberry jam,

12 pints of green beans,

and our first ever sunflower seeds.

Salted and roasted.

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And Bennett on a horse.

I know I’m biased, but you have to admit, it’s pretty adorable.

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I’d like to know what you’re up to so feel free to comment.

Katie

Thursday, July 9, 2015

Pictures of Elizabeth

I know it’s weird.

An entire post without a single picture of Libby.

I bet you forgot that I even had other children.

Here’s some pictures of Elizabeth.

Lots of times she and I don’t see eye-to-eye.

I’m guessing it’s because she’s ten and I’m her mom and she’s the oldest of six which means she feels neglected and not neglected all at the same time and it’s been a particularly warm summer and she’s smarter than she has a right to be.

You know, if I HAD to guess.

So it’s nice to do something like this together.

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And because Spencer wanted to get in on the action.

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Katie

Wednesday, July 1, 2015

In The Heat of The Summer

My bees look like this:

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It’s called bearding.

It’s just so hot in the hive, that they come out to cool themselves down.

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This box has a hive that used to be in my friend’s neighbor’s apple tree down the street.

There’s not a ton of them, but they’re doing their thing.

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And this is a dorky picture of me so you can see how tall this sunflower is.

I opted to omit the even dorkier pictures of me with my tree size tomato plant and my seven foot tall raspberry bush.

You’re welcome.

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Flowers from the yard.

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And Bennett playing fairies and princesses on the bathroom floor.

Photo courtesy of Bryce.

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I spray painted and hung this bird cage.

With the intention of making it into a light.

FOUR YEARS AGO!

So this is it finally accomplished.

{go me}

I used an Edison style light bulb.

And, if you come visit, I’ll let you sleep here:

Complete with rickety pallet day bed, windows that don’t close all the way and Spencer’s trains strewn about at the other end of the room.

Just take a number….=)

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Anyway, hope you all are doing well.

Katie