I have spaces in my home that just make me happy. It could be one of my kids artwork. It could be shelves that I made that hold things that are special to me.
With little storage in our kitchen I have shelves that hold staples that I use on a regular basis. The shelves were given to me by a friend. Thank you Cindy. The bakers rack below it was found on a curb on my street in Baton Rouge and was helped carried home by that same friend.
Donny and I built shelves that fit in the kitchen nook window.
At night, with the twinkle lights turned on it looks so cozy.
I love when the suns shines in to the window above the sink because it bounces little pops of color from my stained glass.
When we got rid of Jack’s dresser I repurposed the drawers into shelves. The ones in the dining nook holds cookbooks and other fun little treasures.
I love plants
We have very few pieces of furniture that we have bought new. This green shelving unit is one of them. It’s from Nadeau, started off turquoise because we bought it specifically for our kitchen in Baton Rouge. I painted it green and I like it even better.
When our home flooded in 2016, I saved some of the drawers from our bedroom and made these shelves. I love the thrifted lamp with the stained glass bulb.
I love having shelves because storage is at a premium in our home. These are the most recent ones in our bedroom.
No matter what type of home you live in only bring in things that make you happy. Your style is your style. You don’t have to follow trends, unless that is what you like. Grow and bloom where you’re planted.
I’d like to introduce you to Stevie Wonder. I named him that because apparently skunks are blind. He was outside eating at the cat bowl and on the way to his food ran right into my leg. Didn’t even phase him, he just kept on to his destination. I think he’s getting used to me.
Today I had planned to go out into the shed and unpack my cooler weather clothes. Unfortunately, Donny stayed home with a migraine and I was also not feeling well. I think there is something going around. It could also be that my foot caught on the chefs mat in the kitchen night before last and I face planted narrowly missing whacking my head on the kitchen table. I am a bit sore today.
The mornings have been getting colder. One morning there was even frost on the windshield. Right now my closet is geared toward summer. I’ve been living in old sweatshirts that just didn’t get packed away. I find that if I don’t get dressed, in actual clothes I would be seen outside of the house in, I am way less productive.
Wednesday, when Jackson got home from school, he asked if we could go back to Big Thrift Store to see if there were any more concert tees. I was still on the lookout for a trivet to replace my broken one. I actually found one.
That’s all we found there, so I asked him if he wanted to stop by Goodwill. It’s on the way home and sometimes they have some good stuff. I found a a vintage Foley rolling pin for $1.99.
This cute metal star that I hung in our bathroom. It was only 99 cents.
I am always looking for jeans for Hannah because that’s what she wears to work. I found her a great pair of Maurice’s jeans and then I found the cutest pairs of jeans for me.
I didn’t realize how blurry the last pic was, but they fit like a glove and are going to be perfect for Fall and Winter. I also picked up this waffle weave shirt that I love because it has banded sleeves. It’s so cozy.
I took this cute picture of Milo today. It’s so hard to believe that he was once this very feral scared cat. He came to us when he got hurt and almost died. He now loves to be held and gets separation anxiety if he doesn’t know where I am. I’m so thankful that God put him in our path.
Last week Donny somehow hurt his shoulder. Like HURT it. We aren’t really sure how he did it, but we suspect he slept on it wrong and then wrenched it when he was pushing up to get out of bed. Night before last it was so bad that I suggested we go to the ER to see if they could give us any answers.
We decided on Hospitality ER because why go to a uncomfortable, wait forever, corporate owned ER when you can go to a patient centered family owned one. They have valet service. When you walk in this is what you see.
All of their seating is so comfortable.
They called Donny back within 10 minutes of us being there. I sat with him in the first room where they started his IV pain medicine. They then took him to Xray and a CAT scan. I went back out into the waiting room for that, but Donny said his next room had a pull out couch, snacks and a drink fridge.
I was getting hungry so I made myself a Dove hot chocolate with this amazing machine that you but a Dove pouch in and the richest, hottest hot chocolate comes out. I chose a rice krispie treat and sat back to read my book while I waiting for him to be released.
After only 2 1/2 hours the doctor said that there was something going on with his shoulder but they really needed to do an MRI to get a better image. They scheduled one for the following morning, but Donny ended up cancelling it because his shoulder was feeling a little bit better and he had a physical therapy appointment today. I’m glad that we did go to the ER just to rule out anything being super seriously wrong. We also got a goody bag to take home with us.
I wish that all hospitals cared about their patients as much as Hospitality does.
Some days I just don’t feel like cooking a big, made from scratch, meal. Last night I made one of the easiest dinners ever. Prep time took 5 minutes and everyone loved it.
You just take 8 frozen burritos. I get the bean and cheese in a bag from Aldi. 2 cans of enchilada sauce and a block of colby jack cheese. You can use whatever cheese you like, but i highly suggest grating it yourself because it just melts better.
Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 9×12 dish. Put the frozen burritos in the dish. Pour both cans of enchilada sauce on top and bake for 30 minutes. Put the grated cheese on top and bake for an additional 5 minutes. There you go, that’s it. I made cilantro lime rice to go with it. It’s even good heated up the next day if you happen to have leftovers.
I also picked this up from Aldi. I have a slice of sourdough toast every morning and this with it just hits the spot.
One thing I love about Fall is all of the spicy smells. I’m not a big pumpkin spice fan, but I love cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, etc. I found this Mrs. Meyers dish soap and had to give it a try. It smells so good. I normally use the lilac scent, but I love this for Fall.
I love when Jackson and I get to spend time together. Yesterday he woke up early and wanted to go to Game Exchange and Games 2 Go. He collects vintage gaming systems and wanted to try to find some new games. He was also looking for a game for Hannah. We didn’t find anything so we decided to go to the thrift store we call relish. We call it this because the wax warmer scent they use smells like relish to Jackson.
No trivet there, but Jackson found a Pepto Bismol hoodie for Hannah that he thought she’d like and I found two pairs of jeans and 3 tops. Because it was Saturday we got to spin the wheel they have by the checkout to see what discount we would get. I got $5 bag of clothes which took my total from $20 to just $5.
These jeans fit so well and are wide leg. Perfect for Fall/Winter.
I thought these were just cool with the patches on them.
These will be good to transition from out cool mornings to warmer days.
I also picked up two books by one of my favorite authors.
We then decided to go to Gifts of Grace which we call the big one. I didn’t find one dang trivet, but Jackson found a whole slew of concert tees. He came up to me and showed me the 2001 Jimmy Buffett shirt. He knows how much I loved Jimmy and told me that I could have it. Funny though, it’s still in his room. I have been to several of his concerts and am really sad that Donny and I never got to go to one before he passed. Those were such fun concerts.
He found an Elton John one, a Kiss road crew, a SZA and I found the Oysterhead head tee. I really liked that one, but so did Jackson so, of course, I let him have it.
I did manage to find one he didn’t want that I thought was cute.
By this time I was starving. The blood sugar had dropped, shaky hands, might pass out starving. Since Jackson and I are the only ones in our family who likes Taco Bell, that’s where we went. I haven’t eaten Taco Bell in ages. I haven’t gone inside to eat in years. Holy cow, it has definitely changed. You don’t even order from a person, but a kiosk. It was fun hanging out and having some good talk with him. He’s such a good kid. Very thoughtful toward other people.
And just because my second oldest, who lives in the hill country, makes fun of me for how much food I leave out for the animals here is their buffet from last night.
Guess what? We not only have two raccoons, but THREE now. I guess word gets around.
Donny was off today so we decided to tackle some things that have been needing to get done. I’m always the first one up in the mornings. I have a set routine that needs to get done on a daily basis. I always start the coffee when I first get up. Then I let the cats out and make sure they have food and water outside and check and refill their food inside. After that I grab a cup of coffee and wait for the sky to lighten up so that I can let the chickens out of the coop and make sure they have food and clean water.
Since Donny was off, he ran Jackson to school and I started sorting laundry because it’s been a few days since I have done any. I’m embarrassed to show this picture, but it’s real life and boy is this real.
We needed to get the morning glories cut down from the coop and the bottle tree. That is a chore in itself because the vines are so invasive, strong and can wrap themselves so tightly around whatever they are growing on.
By the time I took this Donny had already cleared the bottle tree and had started burning the dead vines in the fire pit.
The smoke was so bad, but they burned off pretty quickly.
While Donny was cutting away more vines in the garden I was inside tackling the laundry. I actually don’t mind laundry day. I use the Zum Laundry Soap and It makes the outside and inside smell so good.
I did decide to take a break because I was getting so hungry. My avocados were finally ripe so I whipped up some guacamole. It’s so sad that I’m the only one in the house that really likes it. Sad for them at least.
Since it’s getting darker so much earlier now, it pushes my nightly chores up about an hour. These are so important though and I’ve added a new one. There is a mama cat with two kittens that hide out across the street. I had put a food bowl and water buy the drainage ditch that they hang out by. Unfortunately ants got into the food. We have a neighbor on the corner who is always out of town so I put them next to her driveway. Of course she came home and threw the bowls into the street. I asked the neighbor beside her if I could put the food and water against his fence. He said yes, so I did. I guess that corner neighbor called animal control and I got a notice that basically said, Whoever is feeding these cats it is trespassing and you need to remove them asap. Well, I didn’t and I won’t because I have permission from the neighbor and I refuse to let animals starve.
So this is what I walk across the street at dusk.
I found that if I float the food bowl in a pan of water the ants can’t get to it.
After I feed the feral cats, I go put the chickens up. Four go in easily. One likes to roost on the air conditioning unit, but she’s finally jumping off when she sees me to go into the coop. Penelope likes to roost on the bottle tree and is not happy when I have to lift her off. After the coyote, we are being cautious. And every night I go give some love to my neighbor’s neglected dog. He is the sweetest thing and they just throw food in his bowl, never walk or pet him. It’s the saddest thing ever.
The best part of the nightly chores is getting the food ready for our two raccoons, the skunk and possum. I have found that the skunk and raccoons LOVE peanut butter. I do a sandwich and peanut butter crackers. The skunk eats it like a kid would eat an oreo. It opens the cracker sandwich, licks the peanut butter out and then eats the crackers.
Tonight’s menu was ham, mashed potatoes, peanut butter sandwich, peanut butter crackers, peanuts, grapes, frosted mini wheats and marshmallows. They also get a bowl of cat food. I was so happy when I saw the skunk and raccoons eating together. It hasn’t always been that was. I think that they have worked out their problems.
Even though the skunk is small it’s a badass and rules the yard.
Our cats are inside/outside cats. Milo was a stray that we took in. Monkey was from a litter from a cat we rescued after the flood in Baton Rouge, Queso is my daughter’s cat that we are keeping for a while and Tommy is the cat that we have had for 11 years that we got off craigslist when we lived in Corpus Christi. Well, Saturday morning when I went to let the cats in, Tommy was not there.
Tommy and Monkey will stay outside maybe 4 nights a week. Tommy and Milo are best friends and Tommy hated coming in when Milo was outside, so that is why he was outside Friday night. Gavin was over and the kids were up until the wee hours of the morning and didn’t hear any type of ruckus outside. He was just gone. No trace whatsoever.
I put it out on 2 Facebook lost pet groups in my city. I put it on Nextdoor. I found the older gentleman that is always walking the neighborhood and asked if he had seen Tommy. He hadn’t. I asked our mailman. He also hadn’t but said he would keep an eye out for him. We looked EVERYWHERE for him. No trace.
The next morning I went out to let the hens out of the coop and noticed a pile of feathers on our side and our neighbors side of the fence. We have reinforced the fence, but apparently that didn’t stop what I know believe was a coyote. We know there is a den off of the trail where I walk and that they will come out of the park that is adjacent to the trail. To say we are all devastated is an understatement.
Tommy was the sweetest cat ever. He lost his leg 5 years ago when he got it caught in a louvered closet door (at least that is what we think happened since we were all asleep). During the flood when we were stuck on our roof, he fell off the roof and Donny had to wade through 4 feet of water to rescue him. He never hissed, never tried to fight other cats. He loved our dogs. His favorite thing was to climb up in my lap and be held like a baby. I will miss him so much. He was just a kind old soul. I hope he found Bailey in Heaven and they are playing chase.
Through all of the sadness, yesterday morning when I let the cats out Milo was chasing something and came around with a baby bird in his mouth. I chased him trying to get it, but I couldn’t. I went back inside for a few minutes and when I came back out Queso and Milo were both just sitting there staring at the baby bird. I scooped the baby up and put it in a box, covered by a dishtowel, on my bed. I thought for sure it was not going to make it because it did not move a muscle when the cats surrounding it.
I gave the poor creature a few hours to rest and then I went into our bedroom to pick it up and take it outside. That dang bird flew out of the box as soon as i lifted the dish towel. He flew up to my curtain rod, then onto the ceiling fan, then onto my closet door all the while I’m trying to catch it. He then flew behind our chest of drawers that has our TV on top. That thing is so heavy, because it’s an antique, so I had to lift the TV off and take out drawers to be able to move it enough to get my are back there.
He flew out before I could catch him and flew into Hannah’s room where I was finally able to catch him and take him outside. As soon as I opened my hand he just flew off into the great blue yonder. I now know he wasn’t hurt because Milo just wanted to play with him and not consume him. I got my exercise that day for sure.
Day before yesterday I went to Big Lots because I needed to get some more yeast. I used to just get it at the grocery store until I found that Big Lots carried it in a much bigger bag for much cheaper. I was getting the 4 oz jars for almost $8. The bag is $5.50 and 8 oz. I bake a lot so I always like having yeast on hand.
Last week when I was there I found a shower curtain on the clearance aisle. We were needing a new one since our other one was 8 years old. I still love our old one, but it’s nice to have one to switch out when I need to. Anyway, this one is thick 100% cotton and was only $8.97. I didn’t really have any bath mats that matched and ours were wearing out anyway so yesterday I found this white pair for $12.99. That’s a pretty good deal since I checked at Walmart and the cheapest, for one, was $12.97 and they weren’t made as well as the ones at Big Lots.
I was also needing only two of the color changing remote controlled LED lights. Just two by themselves is hard to find. Once again Big Lots came through. These are really bright and were only $7.99. After I used them for Halloween they are going into my glass fishes.
Here’s Frankie in the daylight with one of Jackson’s lights in him.
Today when I hiked on the trail I am very proud to announce that there was only ONE piece of trash and it was just a napkin. That is HUGE progress from when I started. It was also such a glorious day. I had never noticed all of the morning glories on the bank of the creek until today.
This tree had fallen onto the path to where you had to duck to go under it last time I was here.
Someone found a forked log and propped it up so we don’t have to duck anymore.
I also found this turtle shell. It was just laying under a tree.
I actually saw 5 people on the trail today which is more than I’ve ever seen in one day. I’m glad more people are going outside to enjoy this beautiful weather.
Tonight, in Texas, is National Night Out. We didn’t have any parties planned on our street, but that’s ok because we have such great neighbors and we all know each other. We all look out for each other and I know that if I needed anything I could call on them for help.
Our neighbor across the street works for a restaurant food distribution company. A week ago he brought over pizza dough and pizza sausage. Today he brought over these potato wedges. We had them with meatball subs and they were so good.
The neighbor next door to him brings in everyone’s trash can on trash day. She also takes care of our cats when we have to go out of town. She and I are the feeders of the strays. I hope everyone gets out and meets their neighbors. It’s so important to have a good support system where you live. Especially if you’re like us and don’t have family near.
Hannah and I took a walk on the trail. When I first started walking and picking up the trash I could fill a whole trash bag. This time I only filled a grocery bag.
We found some mushrooms, but I don’t know what kind they are.
The light coming through the trees was so pretty.
And one of my favorite time of day is dusk because of the cotton candy skies.
I’d also like to ask anyone who reads here to please pray for everyone affected by Hurricane Helene. I have been through a horrible flood, but it was NOTHING compared to what North Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia are experiencing. My heart breaks for these people many who have lost everything. Everything. Also please pray for those who are searching for missing people and are trying to get supplies in.
Because I cannot leave this on a sad note and because it is October 1st here is my Frankie.
The Funky Frugalista 