Scott leaves for a troubleshooting job in Virginia tomorrow, so he had a "to do" list to complete before he went - Sten completed a repair.

Leaving time for work on his personal rig

Meanwhile, the girls were busy in the neighbor's drop box. It is staged at a cabinet shop so they were scrounging in the sawdust for "good" boards.

A few of the treasures that they were thrilled with . . .

Let's get Cozy

This is our heat source - I love this picture (taken several years ago). The stove box is surrounded by water, which heats the water that flows through tubes in our floor. Yes, we have our favorite "warm spots" throughout the house.

This is the way we build a fire, build a fire, build a fire. Take a heaping garbage can of newspaper (that is a full size kitchen can) . . .

Grab some sticks of kindling out of our stylish kindling shed built by the master craftsman in residence . . .

Oops! Some of my less than desirable projects make excellent fire starter - sorry Auntie Carol

Several handfuls of wood later, she's creating some BTU's

Br-aa-aa-aa-kes!

You might be a redneck if you nearly hit a goat on the way into town.

It happened like this . . . I was hurrying into town, allowing a safe distance (yeah right) between myself and the slow moving Volvo just ahead, when suddenly the driver slammed on his brakes. This alerted me to the urgent need to either hit the ditch, the oncoming log truck, or come to a screeching halt. After lurching to a stop, I strained to see what had caused all the commotion. A GOAT! Deer in the roadways are common around here, a dog or cat - sure. But a jaywalking goat? With a collar? Get home Goat-ster before you are toast-er.

I heart YOU!

Does anyone like this candy? I think it's positively nasty!! Tastes like chalk.

Valentines Day is not complete without conversation hearts tho and they do look festive in a glass dish. Also, at the end of the season, throw them in a bag and save them for next year - it's a once in a lifetime purchase as there is a slim chance that anyone will actually partake.

Now, red hots are a different matter - they are tasty and they look adorable in a glass apothecary dish. My inspiration for this ensemble was from a favorite store in Eugene called Shamrocks. I love frequenting their store mostly to see their fabulous displays and ideas (same with Anthropologie). Oh, Who am I kidding? (turn me loose in there and I could do some serious damage)

Not anymore.
I am being good.
I have been rehabilitated.
I will leave my wallet in the car.

Oh did I mention they have killer sidewalk sales?

Shopping from my cupboards. Red accessories are not hard to come by in this abode.

Progress?

Busy Boy . . . Sten has spent the last two weekends working into the wee hours completely tearing down his trucks before he starts the rebuilding process. He plans to cut the frame on both trucks just behind the cab as the old frame is not long enough to handle the service bed. Then he will join the two frames. When he was younger, he used large quantities of duct tape to complete projects - but I'm thinking this is gonna need something a little stronger.

Sten has even recruited friends to help him - and he offers 5 star accomodations.

Side note: we purchased 2 fold up mats from Costco years ago (they are thick foam and fold in thirds, one side is fabric and one side is vinyl). They are very useful critters - great for sleeping outside or in other strange places such as shop floors. They don't fold compact but they are comfortable. Sure beats those blow up doozies that lose their air at 2:30 am. Costco still carries them occasionally - it looks like we may need a couple more.

This is what he was after. A 7.3 liter diesel engine. The stuff dreams are made of (apparently).

Junk pile - hmmm, need that radiator - Ryan and Will?

Senorita es muy bonita

It's tough to resist a party store. However when a party store is going out of business and everything is 90% off, it is even more difficult. I came out of there with a huge bag of loot for $8 and a few (necessary) items to add to the costume box. This lovely black wig was one of the bargains and Maren decided to wear it to school today - think anyone will notice?

A Stylish Snooze

I cannot sleep in the same bedding for more than a few months - don't know if that's a documented sleep disorder or not. I have an "itch" to change as the seasons pass. This is a duvet from IKEA and I got it (will not divulge). Kind-a boring by itself - until a trip to the fabric store.

Cover box spring with fabric. I like to do this if you do not use a dust ruffle - mine is really just a strip of fabric tucked under the mattress. Notice the stray piece of kleenex under the bed.

Add some color! I think I will change the other pillowcase to zebra print as well. And, I'm going to sleep peacefully (for a few months).

Accent pillow made from scraps. I recovered (well, I use the term "recovering" loosely) old pillows instead of buying new ones . . . don't look too close though . . .

She's held together with multiple safety pins! At a baby shower, one of the kids was the "winner" in a don't say the word "baby" game and I have used from that stash of pins for several years.

Junk Caravan

Guess you know where I'm going on Feb. 5th. My fellow junkies and I are loading up for a trip north. I will probably come home with noth'n but my mind will be swimming with ideas. Maybe I'll see you there!

Put your Chef's hat on . . .

Let me guess, you may have a convection oven and have never used it? Mom and I attended a convection cooking class last week and I thought I would share some things we learned . . .

Ok, this is gonna gross you out and you are probably going to turn me into the local health officials (or at least never eat at our house), but NEVER take a chunk of protein from the refrigerator to the oven. You must allow the meat to get to room temperature before cooking. Scott has done this for years and I have been a little squeamish about it, but we've never gotten sick and his steak is delicious. (this does not apply to seafood and hamburger - they must be refrigerated).

NEVER cook by time, only internal temp. Do not use the suggested internal temperature either, as that temp is for well (well well, I mean cremated) done. Keep in mind that you should not cut the meat immediately after removing from the oven, but allow it to sit for about 15 minutes. Also, keep in mind, that in that 15 minute window, the meat will continue to cook - so take out even earlier to allow for this. (the prime rib our instructor cooked, raised 30 degrees in those 15 minutes).

Use convection for everything except custards, quiches, and angel food cakes.

Reduce your oven temp 25 degrees and reduce the cooking time by 25%. This will save you $$ as your cooking time is less. For example: If I use all the racks in our oven, I can bake a batch of cookies in 8 minutes - using conventional bake, I can only use one rack at a time and it will take about 24-32 minutes. You can also bake multiple different items without the flavors mixing.

Quit peeking in your oven! Every second the door is open the temperature drops 10 degrees. Get a remote internal probe so it's not necessary to check it all the time by opening the door.

Stuck in the 70/80's?

If it seems kind-a quiet on here, I have been helping update these two offices lately (obviously these are the before pics). I have been a client in this office and always itched to spring from my chair and start rearranging things and peeling wallpaper. It has been fun to blow in, make suggestions, and let someone else do all the work. After they had the rooms painted, we swooped in to hang the artwork and arrange accessories. What a difference! I will post "after" pics when everything is done

Also, I have been helping my parents as they make decisions about their kitchen remodel. It all started when their range (that is in an island) needed to be replaced. Now it has "sprawled" to include knocking a wall out (thanks for your engineering expertise Uncle Ed), replacing all cabinets and countertops, purchasing all new appliances, and redesigning the space to include a peninsula instead of an island. My father is feeling anxious and physically sick over the cost (could be the colonoscopy too) but I believe he is secretly thrilled about it. He has firmly declared that the creep of remodeling will not continue down the hall and up the stairs.

What's Better than 1 Ford?

Sten is now the proud owner of, not one, but two Ford pickups. His plan was to purchase a powerstroke engine to put in the 79 Ford, but it turns out it is more cost effective to just buy the entire truck. Big bonus if that other truck (a '95) comes with a service bed and other parts he needs, bummer that it isn't 4 wheel drive. He has that speed bump figured out but now has copious HOURS of work ahead of him. I'm thinking that more than once during the process he's going to question why he didn't stick with a little simpler vehicle procurement program. Good thing he can call on his father for assistance and has access to a shop full of tools - his mother is worthless on this one.

Something Doesn't Add Up??!!

Basic Story Problem. Mom sends 15 year old boy into store with 20$ to buy 2 gallons of milk. Boy comes back to car with milk but says he didn't get any change. Boy says each gallon cost 10$. Did:

a)milk prices skyrocket?
b)checker make mistake?
c)naughty boy put extra $ in his pocket?

In case you are stumped, I will give you some extra info. The father of child mentioned above was once on a 100 mile trip. The mother was sleeping soundly in the passenger seat(don't know how she could with his erratic driving style), when the car suddenly pulled off to the side of the road at which time the father declared that they were at the halfway point and it was her turn to drive. She dutifully complied (as she always does), and took a semi conscious place behind the wheel. However, when she pulled back onto the freeway and discovered that they were only 25 miles into the 100 mile journey - she attempted to question his arithmetic. However, she was met with a snicker and a snore. Hmmm, the nut doesn't fall far from the tree eh??

Boom Boom Crash!

It all started one January afternoon. It was a simple project really. . . attach this faux western front (that we had made for a stage prop) to the end of the wood shed. The 11 year old girl (pictured below) was asked to hold it in place while the adult was quickly grabbing a drill. As girls sometimes do, she struck a dramatic pose at which time the western front started to go south and the drama unfolded. She scrambled, she panicked, and I'm certain she would've screamed if she could. We watched in horror as first one side fell then the other and her small body was pinned underneath. She peeked up from the debris looking astonished, confused and slightly terrified. After a few tears and reassurances - some modification and repair was necessary to the structure. Milah survived without a scratch, but she probably won't share my adoration for this new addition (in fact she probably won't get near it). Hmmm, I see a gingham curtain in the window, and a flower box brimming with posies.