book club- update

I posted yesterday about joining Kelly's book club. I started last night on our first week's assignment to read the first four chapters and I couldn't stop reading! I {{love}} this book!!!!! I love the humor she writes with. Actually, Peter {once again} thinks I'm crazy, because I laughed out loud as I read through the first ten chapters {as he tried to watch Chicago Fire}.
There is still time to join in! I can hardly wait for the discussion on this!

book club: the antelope in the living room

I made a New Year's Resolution to read more this year! I set a very reasonable goal= 1 book per month...no big deal right? I mean, I now had a Kindle and could easily download any book I wanted in a matter of minutes. Well, so far this year my total reading= 1 book! :0(
You see the problem with this easy access Kindle is, I tend to spend all my book reading time on blogging, Pinterest, and email instead!

I was very excited to see that Kelly, from Kelly's Korner blog, is starting a book club {meeting every Wednesday}, and was even more excited to see her first book choice.

source: Amazon

The Antelope in the Living Room- {The Real Story of Two People Sharing One Life} by Melanie Shankle { a fellow blogger!}


Week #1 assignment- read the first four chapters. Next Wednesday, Kelly will post questions to discuss.

Can't wait to get started! :0) Check it out and join in!

coffee table makeover {weathered wood}

It all started with an old weathered section of fence that Mom and Dad was about to take to the dump......

Turns out it was "perfect" for my coffee table makeover project!

Dad did a great job! It turned out even better than I imagined!..{even Peter loves it!!!}

For the base of the table, I had thought about trying a chalk paint, but went ahead and painted it with the same grey/beige paint that I used on the armoire in the bedroom. It looks sooooo good!

Before: oak finish

 a coat of bonding primer.....

a coat of paint with/primer....

I had thought to stain the top of the table with a dark brown stain, but Mom found an awesome blog, Crisp Interiors, and after reading her post about finishing weathered wood, I decided to use finishing wax on it instead. Peter is actually the one who suggested not sanding or staining it, but leaving it it's natural weathered color.

I ordered a can of Briwax Liming Wax from Amazon,  to finish the top and here is how it turned out......

Easy to use: just rub wax on with a dry rag. Rub off as much as you want to get the color you want. Mine turned out kind of white/ grey.....I love it!!!!

The can suggests putting a coat of clear wax on top, just to give it an even more finished look. I ordered a can of Briwax Clear Wax which I'll put on next. I love the finish the wax gives. This wood top was very rough and weathered. The wax gave it a smooth, polished finish. 

I am now on a search for a pretty tray for the table. I think that is just what it needs!

weekend catch-up

Last week was supposed to be a not-so-busy week, but guess what?.......it was pretty busy! I wonder if there is even anything not busy about my life anymore. It's just a fact of life....

-Along with my usual daily routine stuff, I cooked the last goose dinner of the season for everyone on Monday, spent Wednesday getting our taxes done...ugh! Peter and I did have a fun day together though, doing a little shopping and having lunch at Olive Garden......mmm!

I found lots of great stuff at Marshall's......I've been working on styling the bookcases.I'll post pictures soon. Found this mercury glass piece at Big Lots for $5.00!

for a pop of color- love turquoise glass!

I also bought an end table from Marshall's that I liked. It isn't near as awesome as the first one I saw there, but it fits in with the style I'm going for.

I really miss my mantel for decorating! I took all the Easter stuff off the bookcases so I could display my new stuff. I did keep a few decorations out....

Here's a picture of my Easter mantel last year.....

-On Thursday, I helped decorate for a wedding shower. It looked so pretty!
I got them a Pioneer Woman cookbook off of their registry/wrapped it in a dish towel {Pinterest inspired of course!}

beautiful cookie favors

- speaking of weddings......I have my dress....the dress!!!! I found it at David's Bridal, and after much difficulty finding the right size {sizing was wayyyyyy off!} I love it!! I bought my bag and jewelry, but still need shoes.....

Also, I got the prettiest bridal shower invite.....

Lindsey's S-I-L, Angela is hosting the shower on May 3rd. She is very crafty! I can hardly wait to see what she's doing for the shower.

-Update on my 52 Week Money Challenge! I tried doing this challenge last year and failed to stick with it. I really wanted to do a weekly savings plan of some sort, just to have a little extra money set aside for some unexpected buy, or a jumpstart on our next vacation. I posted here about my plan for saving. I am over halfway through the challenge and have $355.00 saved!! :0)

- More grey paint....I painted the little black stand I bought at Ross last month....I like it so much better!!

instagram hop

Linking up for

my latest Instagram post:

-planted 80 tulip/ daffodil bulbs last fall and they all came up!!! 

#springishere #greenthumb

#bloomwhereyouareplanted

follow me on instagram

deal of the day: free starbucks k-cups

Click on the link to get your Free sample pack of Starbucks K-Cups.

more freezer and crock pot cooking

I tried another new crock pot recipe today and it was soooooooo good!!

Brown Sugar and Balsamic Glazed Pork Loin

source: A Dash of Sanity

1 boneless pork loin

1-1/2 tsp. sage

3/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

3/4 cup water

Glaze

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 T. corn starch

1/4 cup + 2 T. balsamic vinegar

3/4 cup juice from crock pot

3 T. soy sauce

Combine sage, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Rub over roast and put in crock pot with water.

Cook on low 6-8 hours or high 3-4 hours.

About 1 hour before roast is done, combine glaze ingredients in a saucepan.

Heat and stir until mixture thickens. Brush roast with glaze 2-3 times during last hour of cooking.  Remove from pan and shred pork. Pour remaining glaze over pork before serving.

D*E*L*I*S*H

On Thursday, I finished up that last of the freezer meals that I had made over the winter. We had the Chicken Cacciatore. Here's a review.....

Thaw, dump contents of bag in the crock pot, and add 1 cup chicken broth. Cook on low for 5-6 hours. Sauce thickens as it cooks. Serve over hot pasta with parmesan cheese. 

Very good!!

I'm planning on making more freezer meals which will come in handy when I start back to work {{{which is in just over a week}}}.

Today I made a pan of Honey Mustard Pork Chops. This is a repeat recipe from last fall. Very tasty!

Freezer Cooking Inventory

1. Honey Mustard Pork Chops