I live in a cozy old home in the Piney Woods of east Texas.
This is my journal
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When I set my mind on something I have to get it done. Yesterday while Donny was treating the ant beds (we are trying baking soda mixed with powdered sugar) I decided that instead of getting the weed eater out I would just dig up the weeds and make a sort of trench around the house and front beds.
I had no idea what these were as I was digging on the side of the house. I did a Google lens search and it turns out that they are Chinese artichokes. You can actually eat them. We planted a couple in an extra pot that we had to see what will pop up.
Our elephant ear bulbs are finally sprouting and growing quickly.
I then moved on to the garden area. It’s so hard to mow around the door to the fenced garden and right up against the barrier. I pulled all of the grass from around the door and laid down some of the wood that we got from a neighbor down the street.
I think it will make mowing so much easier. I also made a little “deck” for the pots that were just kind of sitting Willie nillie around the raised beds.
I’m going to replace the shorter board with one that actually fits, but I needed one there for the time being to make sure the extra boarder I added fit correctly. Those boards are going to be painted red. I wanted to get that done last night but ran out of time.
I removed the wire fencing that I had around the front trellis because it did not deter the cats one bit and my cucumbers in the front all got dug up. We were having to put boards over one of the raised beds because, for some reason, the cats loved to dig there also.
I checked it this morning and no dig holes were found. We still have work to do today because I want to put in a new bed where I dug up a bunch of weeds. It was thundering when we got up but hopefully the rain will hold off.
We finally have some cucumbers to harvest.
I planted two varieties and this is the pickle cucumbers.
On a different note, how beautiful was the sky last night?
I love how our hanging light makes the kitchen glow at night.
Donny and I watched Send Help last night. We thought it was okay. There is one cgi scene that is badly done and it has some really gross gory parts but Rachel McAdams was good in it.
Yesterday we woke up to the temperature being in the mid 60’s with a high of 69. It was a gray overcast day. I had nothing planned so I just kind of went with the flow on what I wanted to do.
My allergies have been awful lately. My ear has been stopped up. It got better after Donny did a lymphatic drainage massage on it, but I could feel it getting stuffy again. I decided to do gua sha. You don’t need a fancy tool. You just need facial oil or lotion and a spoon. There are several videos on it and it does feel so good.
I was wanting to work on some of my crafting projects. On my list was making a star out of toilet paper rolls. I thought I only needed 6, but I actually need nine so that’s going to have to wait. I went through my Weird USA book and let Hannah pick the picture she wanted for her new frame. This is the one she chose.
It’s creepy, but we like creepy.
I thought I could make some curtain tie backs. Right now we are using jute rope, which is okay, but I thought I could make something a little more fun. I had a belt I was going to take apart. When I did, I noticed that part of is was hammered brass.
Forget tie backs, I’m making a ring! It just so happens to match the brass cuff I recently dug out of my jewelry drawers that I’ve been loving to wear every day.
Free ring yay!
If you follow me on Instagram then you’ve already seen this craft. I had these stars and moons on the window in our dining nook. Since I moved the shelf in front of the window you couldn’t see them anymore.
I think they look better on the window frame anyway.
As for my OOTD, all of my cooler weather clothes are packed up. I have a couple of longer sleeved shirts so I grabbed a white one and paired it with my $1 estate sale Dickies overalls. They were mens and I had to cut off the length to make them fall a little above my ankles. I love wearing them because they remind me of the bright yellow ones I had in the 8th grade that I wore with a tube top. Don’t judge, it was the 80’s.
I just paired them with my black converse and I think it’s one of my favorite outfits.
Donny and I have been watching the new Beef miniseries. We really liked the first one and we are enjoying this one, but it feels like it’s trying too hard to be like White Lotus.
Send Help just came out so that’s what we’ll be watching tonight. I hope it’s good.
Because the weather is calling for rain on Thursday, yesterday was the only window I had to get the yard mowed. I couldn’t think of anything I would rather not be doing. Luckily Hannah was awake so I talked her in to driving into Kilgore with me when I dropped Jackson off. Thrift store visits were promised.
We arrived in Kilgore at 9:50. The thrift stores didn’t open until 10 so we had a few minutes to go visit the Shakespeare Garden that I had noticed was in bloom. If I were a student here and had time between classes, this is where you would find me sitting on a bench reading.
I would love to have a space like this at home.
There are twinkle lights around the fence and solar lights throughout the paths that I would love to see lit up at night. I bet it’s just magical. They have added a free little library.
I picked up a book by one of my favorite authors.
It came with a bookmark that is just so cute.
It was finally time to hit the stores. The rule of thumb is that if you find something you want to buy you must try it on. Then you need to ask yourself if you really love and will you wear it. Hannah had several things at both stores but after trying everything on she only came away with 2 items. I don’t know about anyone else, but I love to see what treasures people find. Here’s mine. (I never show what Hannah or Jackson buy unless I specifically ask them and in this case I didn’t)
The only non clothing items we bought. The food container is to replace the one that Donny accidentally dropped at work and it hit just right and shattered. The frame is made of metal and Hannah really wanted it for her room. We just need to cut our a cardboard backing for the glass.
I had in mind what I was looking for. I needed to some summer shirts to fill in my wardrobe.
A good off white sleeveless basic.
Do I like shopping at Target? No. Do I love their Universal Thread V-neck tees. Yes. They just fit so well. I have several that I’ve found at this particular thrift store.
A good basic brown tank. Do I have 2 more brown ones, yes, but they are all in different fabrics. I love brown. It’s my wardrobes black. I don’t like wearing black. It looks very harsh on me. I really think it just stems back to owning an embalming service and having to wear black all the time.
This is my favorite shirt out of the bunch. I normally do not like stripes, but I think because this shirt has vertical ones I like it better. It’s loose and airy so it will be perfect for Summer.
Red tags were 50% off so these were only 4 bucks. I love light colored jeans in the summer. These are cropped and slightly distressed so they are going to be a good addition.
Last, but not least, I found this great belt that I wear slouchy around my hips.
But Stacy, you just bought a brown belt. Yes, I did, but this one is a completely different brown color, has silver embellishments and I can wear it different ways.
I bought 6 items so when I got home I went through my closet and chose 6 shirts that I haven’t worn in forever and I just didn’t love the way they fit. They will be getting donated.
And because I am documenting my outfits of the day, this is what I wore.
Ugh, I need to clean Jackson’s mirror. Because it was 65 degrees I chose my wide legged cropped jeans, a linen shirt and by Born clogs. It’s a simple outfit, but Donny said, “oh you look fancy”. What he really meant was that I didn’t look like a hobo. I’m trying here.
After mowing the lawn (I did change into my holey tank, running shorts and Crocs for that) I was exhausted. It may have been cloudy, but the weather turned up and it was almost 90 with super high humidity. I haven’t really cooked an honest to goodness meal since I was sick. I’ve been working into getting back into the kitchen and actually enjoying making meals. Night before last I roasted a chicken with carrots and onions and made mashed potatoes. Not a grand meal but it was good. It’s hard to get motivated when the kids are seldom home during dinnertime.
Last night I baked some french bread and made crawfish etoufee. It was so good and I’m really sad that we only had enough leftovers for Donny’s lunch today.
Donny stepped in the night before to carve the chicken because that is not my forte.
French bread is one of the easiest breads to make and it’s perfect for dipping in the etoufee.
I don’t use one recipe. I just kind of combine several. Etoufee is also so easy to make. I believe that the secret is in the roux. It was delicious and I’m bummed that we all ate most of it last night so there weren’t any leftovers.
Now I’m going to go see if I can figure out what is happening to one of my cucumber plants. It’s turning yellow. I didn’t see any bugs but I think I need to take a closer look. If anyone has any suggestions please let me know.
Last night as I was taking a shower I noticed that we are getting the dots of mildew again. It just happens because of the steam from showers and the fact that the fiberglass shower doesn’t go all the way up to the ceiling. We just have the plaster. When I went to get my moisturizer I also annoyed by just how messy the cabinet has gotten. My plan today was to take care of the bathroom and that’s just what I did.
Here’s a little before of the cabinet.
It was a nightmare trying to find anything. It didn’t take that long to sort, throw away and wipe it all down.
Here are a few of our mildew dots.
I keep touch up paint at the ready for scenarios just like this. I bought a long handled paint brush for this particular project because I actually prefer the shorter handled ones. While I’m doing my balancing act the longer handle makes it so much easier.
I love these touch up cups because they have a ball in them that makes mixing the paint so much easier.
It’s amazing what a little paint can do.
Our wall baskets have been bugging me for a while now because they weren’t spaced evenly. I rehung them, used a little nail hole putty and I’m very happy with the results.
At Avalon Faire a few years ago I bought Donny a ceramic mug that had a shaving soap disc in it. He used it for a while and then it just sat there. I threw away what was left of the soap and washed out the mug because it will make a perfect coffee cup.
My new resolution is to actually get dressed everyday in something that doesn’t make me look like I live in a tent. I had gotten into a bad habit of throwing on running shorts and a t-shirt just about every day. I feel better when I get dressed in actual “I can be seen in this and not feel embarrassed” outfits. I have decided to document what I wear. Mainly because sometimes I just forget what I have worn.
Anyway, today I wore A.N.A. pants, a Chicos shirt and my silver Birkenstocks. The weather was perfect for the light chambray shirt and I love comfy pants.
Jackson’s room has the only mirror that works for this.
Hannah and I went grocery shopping today. She needed some sunscreen so we hit up Drug Emporium first. They were have a big makeup clearance. I found the perfect shade of lipstick for $1.99. It’s Loreal nude intense in the color Nu Arttistique. I normally only wear lip gloss, but I really like this color and I couldn’t beat the price.
I took a chance on a new snack and I’m so glad I did. The rice chips are so addicting. I will definitely be back to purchase more. I also wanted to try this new soda. I had the watermelon one and it’s only slightly sweet. It’s really good.
And I just have to document the “wasps nest” that Donny made to keep the wasps from building their nests in the corner where they always seem to build them. We used to have a lantern type one but it blew away in a bad wind storm and we never found it. This weird one seems to actually be working.
Also, for any short nailed girlies out there, I found this at the Army Navy Store and it is wonderful. I used to have a plastic fork in my nightstand, but this baby is telescopic and wonderful.
Saturday was ETX Market Day. Hannah and I didn’t have anything going on so we decided to see what it was all about. The weather was perfect, breezy and cool. The market was crowded but not too crowded.
There were so many interesting booths selling everything from jerky to terrariums.
We each bought a necklace. Mine was a sun and moon with an obsidian stone.
I finally talked Hannah into letting me take a picture.
After we had walked through all of the tents we decided to just walk around downtown. We love our downtown area. There are so many cool new shops. We finally have a zero waste store.
One of our favorite places to take a little break.
There is a vintage store that we have always wanted to go to but it’s never been open when we’ve been downtown. Today it was.
The woman who owns it has been there for 36 years. She’s only open 4 hours a day which explains why we have never been able to shop there. She has some absolutely beautiful pieces, but here’s the weird thing, 98% of the items don’t have prices. She just told us that if we find something we like she’ll let us know how much it is. I would also like to note that the BIG difference between a thrift store and a vintage store is $$$$$. We did find several things that we liked. Hannah ended up with 2 chain belts and a hand crocheted shawl that is really pretty. I found a peasant skirt and a belt. I still like thrift stores better, but it was fun shopping here. I guess you pay for the experience.
I do love both pieces though.
Speaking of vintage, I wanted to wear a bracelet with my stones one. I had completely forgotten about my raw brass cuff. I got it on a Spanish class field trip to San Antonio when I was a junior in high school. I really like the way it works with the bracelet. I love shopping in my jewelry drawers. Saves a lot of money.
Yesterday we woke up to a cool front that had moved in overnight. Not only was the temperature amazing, but there was a steady rain coming down. Donny ran Jackson to Kilgore and then headed to Gilmer to pick up one of his salespeople whose car had not wanted to start. I took this opportunity to climb back under the covers, watch a little TV and then fall into a wonderful nap. I woke up just as Donny came in from doing some work in the chicken coop. I had a not so great dream about being in this weird hotel room with my mom, dad and other people who I can’t remember. It was nearing checkout time and no one would help me clean up and pack our things. I had brought my vacuum cleaner and when I went into the hallway to empty I ran into Dwight Shrute from the office and he came in and helped me clean up. I think that comes from watching too much of The Office late at night. Anyway, it put me in a grumpy mood.
To get out of my funk, I turned on Practical Magic, which completely turned it around. It was leaving my streaming service soon and I wanted to watch it one last time before it did. I honestly cannot wait for the second one to come out. Unlike The Devil Wears Prada sequel, which looks horrible, I’m excited for this one. I hope it doesn’t disappoint as most sequels do. Except for Aliens, that one was better than the first one in my opinion.
Donny came in to lay down with me and we watch The Gorge with Anya Taylor Joy and Miles Teller. I had already seen it months ago, but Donny hadn’t and it’s so good. It’s on Apple tv if anyone cares to check it out. We napped some again after the movie. This was our view most of the day.
And, of course, Monkey had to be right in the middle of everything.
We’d only been snacking all day and were getting hungry. Gavin and Hannah had gone to get sushi at Evergreen and I was on a cooking strike after having made a huge pizza that only two people ate and the rest was giving to the chickens. I made Donny decide where to go get food and he made a very good choice.
Jucys tacos are so good and hit the spot. Even Jackson and Olivia approved. Of course I ate mine in bed because it was bed rot day in my book.
Ever since we got back from Galveston I have been wanting to recreate the creamcicle margarita I had at The Spot. We had picked up the ingredients days ago. It’s not exactly it, but boy was it tasty. I just used a 2 oz of tequila, some pineapple juice, a squirt of cream of coconut and two squirts of lime.
It’s more of a tequila Pina colada, but it works.
I think everyone deserves a bed rot day. I’ve been going full speed since I started feeling better. Both Donny and I needed a day to recharge our batteries. I used to feel guilty about taking a day to do absolutely nothing, but I realized I have nothing to feel guilty about. We both work hard and just need a day’s break. Especially on a cool rainy day because there’s no better nap than on days like that.
I purchased a pair of the two strap dupe Birkenstocks 4 years ago from JC Penney. I think they were around $30. I wasn’t sure if I’d like the double strap sandals so that’s why I just picked these up on sale to give them a try. I ended up loving them and wearing them almost every day during the summer. Well, they were getting quite worn out. The sole had come out of the left one and they were cracking.
Obviously they weren’t genuine leather, but for being what they were they lasted a lot longer than I thought they would. It was time to replace them so I started looking online. I really like the White Mountain footbed sandals. I have a pair I got almost 3 years ago that are still going strong. The leather is thick and it took a while to break them in, but now they are so comfortable.
White Mountain does carry the double strap sandals, but since I was getting them to take on our trip and I was going to be walking quite a bit in them, I knew I probably wouldn’t have time to break them in. I did a little more scrolling and landed on the Birkenstocks. I had heard that they last 10+ years, so I bit the bullet and ordered them to be shipped to Journeys so I could just go pick them up.
They were cute. They were comfortable. They were, however, not genuine leather. I guess I just didn’t read the description as well as I should have when I was ordering them. Now, I’m not opposed to non leather shoes. It’s just when you pay $117 for sandals you expect them to be leather, not Birko Flor. (fancy way of saying vinyl) So I did a little research on the Birko Flor and this is what I found.
So, I’m paying a whole lot more for these that are going to last the same amount of time as my cheapo ones from JCP. That didn’t sit well with me at all. I’m not a brand person and only chose the Birkenstocks because of how long they last, well, the leather ones anyway. I did a little more googling and saw that Kohl’s (one of my least favorite stores ever) had a pair that were leather and on sale. I drove to Kohl’s, tried them on and immediately said YES. So comfortable. Fit me better than the Birkenstocks. (I think they are narrower and just fit my food better)
No break in period and I was able to walk all around Galveston in them. I’ll say that’s a huge win. Plus, they were only $37! I love a good bargain. I was able to take the other ones back to Journeys to return them with no problem.
Yesterday Hannah was wanting to go to some thrift stores to find add some pieces to her wardrobe that would work for layering. While she found quite a bit, I only came home with 3 items.
I found this round mandala printed throw, table cloth, wall hanging, I guess it can be whatever you want it to be. I just have it here for now. I love it because my favorite colors are yellow and orange.
We needed another laundry basket because my second one cracked and it pinches me when I use it. I like using to because it just seems to get the laundry done faster. I wasn’t looking for one, but I saw this and since it was only $1.99 I grabbed it.
It looks brand new and feel sturdier than any I’ve seen at the store. I thought the label was different than any I’ve seen.
After a quick Google lens search, it turns out that it’s a vintage laundry basket that goes for a pretty penny on EBAY. Who knew.
Last, but not least, I found a orangey red top that I’m wearing today with my wide leg jeans. (yes, I washed it when I got home)
Last Thursday Donny and I felt it was time to get all of my seedlings planted. We planted tomatoes, bell peppers, rosemary, oregano, marigolds, zinnias and wildflowers.
The purple beds were mostly empty because we were waiting to plant was was in the seed trays. I didn’t realize how many tomato plants I had started. Last year we our tomato plants hardly produced anything. I think we maybe got 5 tomatoes all summer.
This season we have an abundance. We made trellises for them out of the bamboo sticks and some wood I had. I was planning on putting tomatoes in the orange tire, but decided on the zinnias and wildflowers. Having the flowers seems to have helped with the pollination which is what I think was missing last year.
The summer squash is starting to fruit and so are the cucumbers.
So after we finished planting and weeding everything was looking good.
Friday night we got a storm. A big storm. The winds were insane and then it started hailing. All I could think about was our poor plants getting pelted to death. The next morning when I went to check on the damage, this is all I really saw.
My avocado plant that used to have dozens of leaves was now bald. That was the only plant damage (shockingly) so I’ll take it.
I cannot express how relieved I was.
Not only did the garden survive, but we are getting blooms on so many plants.
Started off as seeds and now look at the zinnias.
Our lavender plants are blooming and they smell so good.
I didn’t think the hydrangea was going to live through the winter but it did.
We also though the hostas were dead and even tried to dig them up. Ooops, they are just beautiful.
This is Jackson’s birthday weekend. In fact, today is his actual birthday. He and his girlfriend had planned a trip to Dallas to go to the Aquarium and site see.
I made sure that they had plenty of snacks and drinks for the road trip.
Since Donny had to work it was just Hannah and me. I asked her if she wanted to hang out and go do things. She had been wanting to go to Avalon Faire and since it was the last weekend that’s where we headed.
It was much more crowded than when Donny and I went the first weekend. I think because it is so spread out it wasn’t bad at all.
Obligatory selfie just because.
Ye ole dragon.
We were loving the monk on the left. We all need a monk hair hat.
We ran into Gavin and put him in the stocks.
A memorial to one of my very favorite sellers who is very much missed.
It was so hot and we had been there about 2 hours when we decided that we had seen everything, watched some shows, and were ready to go get a cold drink.
We stopped at Zipppy J’s, our favorite convenient store. Not only did we get drinks, but we got food. Never sleep on gas station food. Well, at least here anyway.
Here’s to our super healthy lunch of a crispito and chicken leg. I don’t even like fried chicken, but this is heavenly chicken. We were so full and decided to cool of and take a little rest before we headed out again.
Hannah had seen a necklace on a woman at the faire. She asked her where she bought and turns out the woman’s aunt has a booth at the 504 where she make jewelry. Go to our favorite store and see if we can find her? Say less. She actually had a pop up on this day so we lucked out.
Hannah talking to her about what she is wanting. While she was looking at the jewelry, I was roaming around finding treasures.
Did not get these, but they are so fun. No idea why I look so dirty here. Must be the lighting.
There is one piece that they have had since we have been coming to the store. I want it. I love it. It’s really big. It’s really cool. It is one of a kind. It is hella expensive. It is from a very old circus.
I also spotted these tables that if I had room in my home I would have snatched them up so fast. Hmmm, maybe I’ll get rid of some things so that I can find a place for them.
Remember when I dropped my mug and it got a big old chip and crack in it?
It was from the 60’s and just gorgeous.
This place is SO big and is basically a maze. A fun maze though.
Hannah asked if we could go to the Dreaming Peddler. It used to be so close to our house but they had since moved into a much larger space. I miss the coziness that the old store had, but they are able to have a drink bar and a small live music stage here.
We had such a fun day together. Although I did not come home with the amazing antique circus sign (sigh) I did get a few treasures.
I got the mug which I used this morning and it’s fabulous.
I also did a matches restock. They have the best ones at the 504.
Oh, and I, for some very strange reason, was craving a bean burrito from Taco Bell. I haven’t had Taco Bell in years. It made me sick. Don’t eat at Taco Bell. The end.
We woke up and got ready to leave. Check out time was 11, but we wanted to get an early stop so we were on the road by 9:45.
We’re definitely going to miss our cute little Airbnb. I cannot tell you how great the location was. We never actually cooked a meal in the kitchen but it was so well stocked it wouldn’t have been a problem to do so.
We decided, on the suggestion of our host and my sister, to stop off at Kemah and see the sights there. It’s actually just an exit on our way home so it wasn’t really out of the way.
The boardwalk was nice.
If you can’t tell by my hair, it was a bit windy.
We didn’t ride any of the rides, but if you have kids this looks like it would be a fun place to hang out.
We didn’t stay all that long because we were getting hungry. We had seen this diner on our way to the boardwalk. We had a really good breakfast. If you are ever in the Kemah area I highly recommend it.
Next stop was Nacogdoches. the oldest town in Texas, founded in 1779. I have always loved their downtown. It has the cutest shops and very friendly people.
We went to the visitors center which is also a little museum. We had to stop at Su Su’s. I love popcorn and we got a bag of the strawberry cheesecake and a bag of the Ulta butter popcorn. Both were delicious.
So many yummy treats to choose from and they have now opened a fudge and ice cream room. I had to reel it in because after all my Pina Coladas I really didn’t need a whole lot more of sugar, but everything was so tempting.
Donny wanted me to see the inside of the Fredonia Hotel. It was built in 1955 and is just gorgeous. We did a little walking tour around the inside.
I loved this cozy courtyard. The pool is something you would see on a 1950’s postcard.
I got this picture off of trip advisor, but it’s exactly how it looks in real life. Just stunning.
We are definitely planning to do an overnight here one of these days. I realize it’s only about an hour from our house, but it’s still sometimes just fun to have a little adventure close to home.
All in all we had such a wonderful time. We both needed to just get away for a few days and relax. Galveston is now on our list of places we are going to go back to visit.
We have never really been into souvenirs. So other than the clothes I got, this is what we consider our treasures of our trip.
Shells that I washed and put into our smaller glass fish.
A coaster from our favorite place that I turned into a magnet.
And last, but not least, cheesy photo booth pictures where we didn’t know what to do in them. The third was was where Donny said to make a scary face. Oh well, we tried.
The Funky Frugalista 