The eaglets have landed 2024

The eaglets have landed! It's almost show time. They will spend Halloween up in Seattle before heading down to Carmel. I have just  three days to get the beach house ready and stocked for their visit. This will be their last time being here for the holidays as they both will be in school next year. 

I'm still looking for a place to move to in January but that's taking a back burner now. I was hoping to be moving out before the kids got here but still no luck finding a new place. Boxes are stacked everywhere and just a little depressing. I may have to give up finding an in laws unit and go with an apartment. I really really don't want to do that so I'm not giving up hope yet.

 

Budding Artist?

It was so cute that my 3 year old grandson Henkie is into painting. His name sake (great grandfather Hank) was also an artist. 

Henkie during one of our FaceTime chat said he wants me to have the small black and white painting. Asked his mom to make sure to pack it for their upcoming visit. 

His favorite colors are purple, yellow and red. Mees said his are rainbow colors.

Most of my art supplies have been packed up for my move which is a bummer. I know I have a ton of blank canvases packed somewhere. I do plan to go out and get kid grade paint as I don't think the boys are ready for the professional paints I use. 

Milk Street CookBook Score

$3 score

Do I need another cookbook? No I don't but when I see Chris on the cover it just draws me in. When I saw this cookbook at Happy Dragon, I thought it was an American Test Kitchen book. Thinking it was one of the last cookbook Chris did before leaving ATK because he looks older. It was busy at the store so I didn't pay much attention to it after I tagged it that I wanted it. 

When things calmed down at the store,(it was intake day) I got a good look at it. I realized it was a Milk Street cookbook! It's a $$$ book, so I knew I would have to wait to find it at the thrift store. Just did a quick flip through as I'm still packing and also getting ready for the family visit next week. 

I also listened to Ina Garten's new bio book from the library this week. There was a long list of people waiting for the audio book, so I was surprised it showed up so fast.  I'm glad I went with the audio book and not the actual book. If you're a foodie, it's nice to listen to (she has a great calming voice) but I don't think it's worth sitting down and reading. She's had great success in her life which is inspiring. I've always liked her videos as her food always looks like what a real home cook would make and actually eat. :) 

Mornings

I sort of keep a morning schedule but nothing like when I had school age kids at home or when I worked. In the morning while I have my big cup of coffee the squirrels come by. 

2005 Mervyn's Mug

The gray squirrel aka Fat Boy who has a nest in the tree in my backyard, makes a point to stop and give me a look over. I sure Fat Boy is hoping I will start leaving out snacks. When I first moved here I did the whole bird feeder thing. That was a totally failure as the Fat Boys made sure to empty the feeders as fast as I could fill them. 

The only success I've had with birds is the bird baths. The same pair of birds stop by around 10:00 am and take dip. They are so use to me now that if I walk by they don't fly away. When we had the really hot days and the water was still semi warm in the morning, they would just take a really long soak. It's so cute to just see them relaxing, no fluttering of wings, just floating along. 

Why the pic? This is my favorite mug I got at Mervyn's in 2005. Does anyone remember the Mervyn's stores?  I have two left (I'm sure I started out with more) that have survived the many purges I've had to do. These will be the last things I pack this week. 

Crafty Sunday

There are a few crafting projects I want to get done before the grandkids arrive next month. It's been challenging since all of my craft supplies have been boxed up. 

On Sunday I decided not to leave the house until I got them started. I first finished the XL advent calendar I picked up at the store. It was used so all the inside parts were gone. I made new envelopes and filled the one I could with what I had, mainly stickers.  Now on the hunt of some more fun things the boys would like. 

The second project was to make enough mitten to make a banner. I going for the old fashion handmade look so I'm hand stitching all of them. I'm thinking I'll hide little surprises in them for the boys if I get my act together. 

Another Good Score.

Living once again with moving boxes stacked everywhere it does get a little depressing. It's always a pick me up when I find something rare. This is a very common pattern = low resale value, but finding the mustard jar was a major score. The resale value is much higher than the very common sugar and creamer. Now I just have to find a little spoon to go with it. I know I have one but it's been packed away so I will have to find one out in the wild. 

As I'm getting ready for the grandkids visit, I signed up to get my shots. Being around walking Petri dishes is no joke. :)

Another Good Score - Phomemo Label Maker

$3.00 score Phomemo

If you've been following my blog, you know I really like the new label maker (Phomemo) I got a few months back. It's been a total game changer, making it super fast to price everything. 

It was a very busy day at the store as I'm getting things cleaned up for the big clearance sale next week. I didn't get to my department until late in the afternoon. As I was sorting through all the random stuff left on my desk I found another label maker! I didn't hesitate if I should buy it!  It did have four label rolls, which that alone was worth it. It didn't have its charger cord but because I have already have one that was no problem. A super good score because now I can leave one at the store for the days when I just pop in with new stuff. 

Now I have to decided if I should get a carry case. :)

Kelley Kookies

This past weekend I did something I haven't done before. I handed out Kelley Kookies samples at Zanotto's. The store does something like this 3 times a year. A dozen vendors handing out samples. One of my cousins works for KK, keeping the local stores stocked. I was the sub for the sub as everyone else was busy this weekend. 

It's a very boring job, so I made the best of it by people watching. I was right next to the cheese, turkey and salami table, which got a lot of visitors. It was funny how many older men would just graze around the meat table. When the demo person had to walk away to slice more salami, these guys would belly up like it was a free buffet. I was also next to the fancy soda (very $$$$) and beer table. I was very surprised that you pretty much got a whole bottle of beer which they put in a cup. Considering they didn't check anyone's ID not  many people asked for a sample. 

KK is a shortbread type of cookie and has a pretty good following. They do use real butter, which for a few customers is a really big deal. Yes, I was asked and had long discussions about it. :)