A Shadow of Hope

Book cover #2 is now finished! "A Shadow of Fear" is a pre-teen book written by Janet Ann Collins. It's about a young boy and how he overcomes fear. The book will be available on Mantle Rock Publishing in October/November.

New Adventures

Well, two years....
I guess it's time for a new blog post.

I'm starting a few new adventures this fall.

First, I'm designing book covers for Mantle Rock Publishing. I love reading and since my mom started the publishing company, she's been "gently nudging" me to do book covers for her. So here is my first book cover...a redo of her original book, Callie's Mountain.

Second, my baby girl is going off to college this fall... How can that be? But, it is and what an exciting time it is for her and for us. Freshman registration has already been started and we are looking forward to "move-in" day and orientation week.  I say, WE because we really are proud of her and I know that great things await her in the future.

So, that's it for now. I'll try to ease back into this blogging business one more time. I'm looking forward to what the future holds for me as well.

Treasured!

One of the fun things at Etsy is that you can create collections of things you like.  As a shop owner, it is even more fun when your item is chosen for someone's treasury.  It is a sweet honor to know your item is liked by someone outside your own family.  This past week I was featured in TWO treasures and here they are!

'A cozy day for being at home!' by MyMaine

I'm inspired by the beauty of these wonderful Etsy shop offerings. Teal, Blue, CHOCOLATE brown~ just lovely.

Handmade large satin flower ... Juja $10.00	tree art signed matted print... TheHauntedHoll... $28.00	Birds in Tree Branches, Paus... TriciaMcKellar... $30.00
Ethereal light thunderstorm ... Stormscapestud... $74.00	Vintage Straubhullers Elixir... BlueRidgeRetro $6.00	Teal Blue Iron Bicycle Art ... baconsquarefar... $45.00
Love Weird Valentine Wedding... catalyst54 $29.95	Two Plates With Silhouettes AntB $32.00	Corset Laced Mannequin Velve... CorsetLacedMan... $104.00
Orange Chocolate Ginger Snap... tinacake $15.00	Thomas O'Brien Nympheus ... labdesigns $145.00	Journal: Blank Book Teal & B... BimburBooks $24.00
Custom Banner, Bunting with ... diturpin $16.00	Mustache Mug - Teal/Turquois... TheBeautifulHo... $10.00	2 Emerald Jewel Colored Maso... ErinLeeKinsey $7.25
Book Collection 8x10 Photogr... alicebgardens $25.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.

'A Pocket Full of Posies' by simplysuzie2

Gorgeous finds from http://etsylush.com/Enjoy!

Garnet Necklace, pearl neckl... RaesSpirit $145.00	Felted flower brooch pin - g... AgnesFelt $25.00	Girls Fingerless Gloves: Bla... Sew4Munchkins $9.00
Cat's nose photo pendant... Neus $17.00	Curtain tiebacks - drapery h... chicandtonic $35.00	Eyeglass case or sunglass ca... LuckyCatHandma... $18.50
Chic newborn baby 'Laven... bootki $34.00	Green Scarf Purple Knitted R... TheCandyTree12... $17.00	Freeform Beaded Cuff with Be... annamei $88.00
Cranberry and Silver Glass S... bprdesigns $17.00	Mr and Mrs Paper Shoe Weddin... apreciousmemor... $10.00	The Elizabeth Purse craftsbyposie $58.00
LOVE Banner with names- Bann... diturpin $16.00	Dachshund by Marston Califor... vintagefriends $40.00	Fabric Flower Pin Brooch Mot... ClassABags $20.00
Bird Masquerade Mask, handma... gringrimaceand... $450.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.

Organization - Week 2

Still having fun with my organizational progress.  Continuing with last week's "mission", I have again created my weekly meal plan and I completed my grocery shopping Monday night. YEAH! I even put everything away, well, except the dog food.  It's still in the back of the car.  I'll get it tonight.

On to this week's Mission --

Create a Simple Address Book and Organize Contact Information

Before we go further, I need to remind you that I am following an organization program called "52 Week Organized Home Challenge."  If you want to see the entire program and the author's entire comments on each section, there is a button toward the bottom of the right side of this blog.  These are just my ways of completing each step in the process! Join me in the fun!

1. Decide how to store your contact information - Electronic! After all, I'm a gadget girl.  I store all my contact information on my iPhone.  That way, I always have it with me....unless....I leave my phone at home...... But on those days, when I am phone-less, I can access my contact list via iCloud.  Which is really cool and very helpful! BTW, if you go to the Organized Home Page for this week, she offers some free pdf forms to download if you prefer a paper method.

2.  Create a simple address book with Basic Contact information.

Since my phone has already done this for me, I'm good to go.  I will say that if I am entering lots of names and addresses, I'll use a excel spread sheet and then import them into my phone using an app called ExcelContacts.  There is a free version available but since I deal with large address lists (I work for a church) I went ahead and purchased the regular app and have been very pleased.  It also allows you to create groups which is invaluable for me. You can also export your contact list as a backup.  It is more reliable than other backups I have dealt with.

3. Create A Quick Glance Paper List For Vital Contact Information For Your Purse And Household Notebook
Since my phone **should** be in my purse, this item is done. I'll create a sheet for my household notebook...after I create a household notebook. I notice there are no specific instructions for our household notebook, but I think it should contain all the important stuff I can never find. LOL!
***See Below for Helpful Freebie***

4. Create An Emergency Contact List For Reference In Central Location In Your Home
Similarly, you should have a list of emergency contact numbers in your home for quick and easy reference if the need should arise. This includes phone numbers for poison control, emergency services, fire, police, medical and dental, veterinarian, neighbors and emergency contacts.
***See Below for Helpful Freebie***

5. Create List Of Information For Items In Wallet In Case It Gets Lost Or Stolen

I think this will be a helpful bit of information, as I have had my wallet stolen before. It think I will scan/print this information (drivers license, credit cards, medical insurance cards) and place it in my household notebook...for safe keeping. I think I will hole punch a large envelope and drop this information in there.  That way it will be out of sight but still in a safe place. Of course, if you have a family safe, that would be a great option too. This also needs to be updated, especially the credit card information, on a regular basis.

6. Create A Business Contacts List Or Organized Collection Of Business Cards For Frequently Used Service Providers

I have most of this in my phone with searchable fields such as health care, maintenance, etc. So, I think I actually have this item under control.  I also use a free app called CardCam to store any business cards I have (Link is for an Apple app but you can Google for an android one as well).  I simply take a photo of the card and it sorts the data into my contact list.  I double check all the phone numbers before I save the data because it sometimes misses the character recognition on those.  But it is handy and lets me do 2 cards per week, which is more than I usually encounter and want to save.

***Helpful Freebie***

Since I am hardwired to type everything on a computer, I created the following PDF for my NEW Household Notebook! I combined all the information from items 3 and 4 into a wonderful, funky, 2-page document along with a notebook cover sheet.  Since I love to share, I'm putting the link here for you!

PDF Link

Now, I have a "Household Notebook"!!! Or at least the beginnings of one!

Try Something New Tuesday

I am having fun trying some new things, so I thought I would share some of them with you. This week it is a new recipe. Next week....you'll just have to wait and see!

I tried a new recipe...a Lasagna Recipe...where the noodles weren't precooked.  That really intrigued me and I just had to give it a try, mostly because I hate waiting on water to boil.  Especially a big pot  for lasagna noodles.  Also, I've been feeling a little brave lately, so I tried changing it up a bit.  No, I am not very adventurous in the kitchen.

Here's the original recipe from Little Praire Living,  It's called "Stretch a Buck Lasagne."

I added a few healthier choices.  I substituted ground turkey for the ground beef and fat-free cottage cheese instead of the regular cottage cheese.  I used a combination of mozzarella, cheddar and mexican cheese, literally cleaning out the fridge of all the leftover bits. Other than that I followed her recipe pretty closely and guess what? I got a thumbs up from the whole family!!! Hubby loved the turkey substitution, which I didn't mention to the teen.  Teen loved the cheesy goodness and I loved the easy preparation.  The uncooked noodles were perfectly tender but not mushy and the whole process was pain-free! I didn't take any photos because I couldn't hold 'em back!  This one will go in the Turpin Tested notebook for future use.

Organizing

Since we have not had a lot of winter in Nashville this year, I am ready to do some "spring cleaning." If you know me in real life, you know I HATE to clean. There are a lot of things to do in life that are way more fun than cleaning.  But, alas, it must be done.  So, being the procrastinator that I am, I decided to go to Pinterest to see what cleaning tips I could come up with.  And here is what I came up with...

52 Weeks to an Organized Home

I've tried Fly Lady and several other plans, but I never stick to them. But, I'm trying to turn over a few new leaves in my old age and I'm going to give this a try.  I started this week and I jumped right in with this week's assignment - creating menus and grocery lists for healthy eating.  This was an easy one to start with for me because I usually do this anyway.  I check the sale ads and plan my menu.  I like to check with Southern Savers to see what coupons I might have and if there are any really good deals to be found. Also, in my searching and researching (sounds scientific, doesn't it) I decided to use my Evernote app on my phone to store my weekly menu and also to start a recipe file.  I have a recipe file on my computer that I have printed out in a notebook.  It stores my famous Sweet Potato Casserole and several other family recipes from my mom.  But Evernote is great because I can paste from the internet and eventually, print it out if I want to. If you are not familiar with Evernote, it is a note system that syncs with your phone, laptop, desktop, tablet so that all your notes are always available.  It's a handy little tool.

So having made my menu for the week and also, getting a start on next week, I decided to make some other organizational tools for the pantry.  Here are two that I made this week.

 

I just love bins! This is a handy little bin that I'll be making several of to coral things like lunch snacks, pantry items and video games.

 

 

 Grocery bag holder.  I made one of these many years ago, however, I made it WAY to small.  This new and improved version is much larger and holds many more bags.  Savannah reuses these bags for her lunch and when I get a huge build-up I donate them to our food pantry at church.

Of course, both of these items are featured in my Etsy Store.

How are you staying organized? 

I need all the inspiration I can get!

Because I'm blogging instead of cleaning...

What can I say...

I'm hopeless!

Bald Eagle Watching

“The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. It is the national bird and symbol of the United States of America. This sea eagle has two known sub-species and forms a species pair with the White-tailed Eagle. Its range includes most of Canada and Alaska, all of the contiguous United States, and northern Mexico. It is found near large bodies of open water with an abundant food supply and old-growth trees for nesting.

The adult Bald Eagle is mainly brown with a white head and tail. The sexes are identical in plumage, but females are larger than males. The beak is large and hooked. The plumage of the immature is brown. Bald Eagles are not actually bald, the name derives from the older meaning of the word, "white headed".”

Quoted from my favorite unreliable internet source – Wikipedia. So, why the interest in Bald Eagles, you might ask. As it just so happens, my parents have moved to the “Land Between the Lakes” area of Kentucky.  The fishing is good, the weather is mild and the eagles like to nest there.  These great birds have found a home among the tall pines near the banks of the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers.  Which is convenient for me and my photographic urges.  I like to pretend to take great pictures. Sometime I get lucky and get a few good ones.

This past weekend I got lucky.  Here are a few pics that I captured near the Calvert City Airport. Yes, the airport.  It’s a small non-commercial strip which seems to be the perfecting landing zone for an eagle.  There is also a nearby pine grove with a huge eagle nest.  HUGE, let me say that again.  How they manage to keep it all up in the top of a tree is beyond my knowledge.

If you want more information and to view some more pictures (luckier folks than I took them) then here’s an interesting, fact-filled website to check out. Bald Eagle Info