Tiring Tuesdays

Emery goes to “school” on Tuesday mornings, which I love because I can actually be productive. I go to bed every Monday night excited about all the things I’m going to get done the next morning and I go to bed every Tuesday night more exhausted than ever and still feeling like there is way too much to do.

Today’s mission: Clean out the kitchen cabinets

I’m trying to pack up as much stuff as I can to put in storage before we list our house. I figure I can go a few months without a few things and this way there will be less clutter in the house and less to pack when our moving day arrives (if it ever does).

Here are some tips I learned though out the day:

• If you don’t know what it is – throw it out or donate it.
• Any Tupperware pieces that don’t match up or don’t fit in your cabinets – throw it out or donate.
• If you haven’t used the kitchen gadget in the past year – give it away.
• You really don’t need more than ten dishtowels – throw your ratty ones out.
• Pots and pans you never use anymore – give them away. (I always use the same four pots and pans and I had bought a couple of cheapo ones in the past that I clearly didn’t need to keep).
• Stop saving all those paper bags. I never bake cookies that often and that’s the only thing I use them for. It looks junky!
• Use fabric bags for groceries – it’s better for the planet and you don’t have all those plastic ones hanging around.

If you’re one of those people who can’t throw things out or give things away, I suggest you pack some of the above items in a box and see if you miss them over the next few months. If you do, go ahead, take it back out. If not, toss it or donate it.

Here are some before and after pics:

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My non-napping, yet adorable Emery who keeps me from

getting things done around here all week.

Good thing she is cute

and worth all the attention she gets.

Grill tip

I was watching Food Network or Cooking Channel (can't remember which channel or which show) the other week and I heard a chef say, "The meat will tell you when it's ready to be flipped." I've never heard this. They said if the meat is still sticking then it's not ready to be flipped. Well, I've grilled about 4 or 5 times since I heard this tip and found it to be very true. I've always been one to flip the meat too early and then half of it sticks on the grill or grill pan and then I have to flip it again... Well, now, I just wait until it doesn't stick to flip and I also wait to take it off until the other side doesn't stick either. I've found every piece of meat to be perfectly cooked since I learned this trick. You all may have already known this, but clearly I didn't. Thank goodness for cooking channels!

My perfectly grilled mahi mahi and salad for lunch. Yum!

Candles New Again

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I love candles and I got a bunch of them from my mom last year for my birthday in these pretty botanical jars. They got really dirty (I think you're supposed to trim the wick every time before you light them so the black stuff doesn't get on the sides???) so I researched how I could clean them up and reuse them. It was REALLY easy.

1) Put them in the freezer.

2) Use a knife to pull out any left over wax.

3) Wash.

See how easy! Now I can put tea candles in them or maybe even use them as a vase.

FYI - Emery has been crying/playing/crying during the whole process of cleaning them and typing up this blog. Ahhhhh! Guess that shows how quick this takes? It usually takes her about 30 minutes to get to sleep for a nap. And she's asleep- time to relax with a big glass of wine, I think. Happy Sunday!

Frame your necklaces

I got this idea while flipping through the latest Ballard Designs catalog and knew this would be REALLY easy to make myself. I've been wanting to find a cool way to hang my necklaces and I already had the frame and fabric. All I had to do was go out and buy the hooks, which I found at Target.

First, I ironed the fabric that I already had on hand and stapled it on the back of some cardboard that fit my frame. Next, I arranged the necklaces, screwed in the hooks and secured them with masking tape. So easy! If I ever have a store and I have jewelry to sell, I think I'll display all the necklaces in frames.