VintageMama

Here’s your FREE July 2019 printable calendar

June 25, 2019 by VintageMama Leave a Comment

The month of June flew right on by here at our house. Between a high school graduation, extra family members staying with us for several weeks, early spring flu and bronchitis, and college registration, orientation, and preparations, I completely missed the whole month of June. I didn’t even get the June calendar posted here, and I was not able to get the June issue of RUBY magazine published. That is the first time in 10 years that I just could not do it.

But now it is almost July, things are settling down a bit around here . . . . all of the graduation festivities are over, the college events are finished until August, everyone is healthy again in our family, and our extended family is moving into their very own house this week. It will seem rather quiet around here in the coming days, but I think I am ready for a little break in the action. We managed to complete most of the outside yard and garden projects that we were working on – hoping to get the big projects completed before the really hot days of summer – and now we get to relax a bit in the evenings in our pretty gazebo. Until the mosquitos come out, so I’m looking for some natural mosquito repellent ideas.

This week I’m also getting caught up on answering emails, organizing our finances, cleaning house, and finishing up the July issue of RUBY magazine. I’m planning to get this one published, in spite of all the other activities that have been going on around me! I’m also working on getting my blog updated, and trying to take a bit of time to visit some of the other bloggers at the weekly linky parties (which has been rather difficult lately since I’ve barely even been able to get my own blog posts up on time).

Another goal I have for the month of July is to return to my scrapbook projects that I’ve been working on this past winter and spring – and got derailed when we all had the flu and bronchitis. I was out in my sewing room yesterday hemming a few pair of shorts for a lady from the little town next to us, and I realized how much I miss sewing – but that will perhaps have to wait until autumn, or at least until I get the sewing room / design studio organized and decluttered after our house guests are off on their own again.

But I did manage to get the July calendar created today, which was at the top of my To Do list – and I love how it turned out! The soft yellow and white daisies just feel like a summer day to me, and I hope that you like them, too. If you would like to use this pretty calendar on your blog or website, just right click on the image and the “Save as image” to your computer. You can then upload it to your blog or website, or you can also print it out to use in your daily planner or art journal. Oh, that reminds me . . . . that’s another project that was put on the “back burner” earlier this year when all the other activities started rolling over the horizon of my life.

I guess I’ve got plenty to do to keep me out of trouble for the rest of the summer! I hope you are having a good summer so far, and that you are able to take some time to rest, relax, and make some summer memories with your friends and family.

Blogging . . . it ain’t what it used to be!

June 25, 2019 by VintageMama 2 Comments

I remember the first time I discovered “blogging.” It was around 2006 or 2007, when I still had two small children and I was looking to connect with other parents of young children. Before that time, I really didn’t use the computer for anything except writing essays and research papers during my “non-traditional” college student days. The internet was a mystery, and it was actually quite intimidating to contemplate writing my words and thoughts in an email and sending them into cyberspace. Where did they go? I couldn’t fathom the concept of communicating via the “World Wide Web,” and I certainly didn’t want to consider the possibility that someone, somewhere might read my words . . . and what would they think of me?

In an era of telephones that hang on a wall, connected by a cord, and that merely ring when someone is calling, this whole internet invention was quite overwhelming. In the days when we would get in the car and drive 100 miles or more with no means of communication other than the occasional pay phone booth; when it never occurred to anyone that we could have a machine in our homes that would connect us instantaneously with (potentially) millions of other people, all around the world; we felt quite technologically advanced when we discovered voice mail and pagers that would allow you to leave a message and hope that the person you were trying to reach would actually get the message and call you back. Those were the days!

“Do you have a blog?” was the question that jolted me out of my 1990s complacency of simple, small town America of the last century. “A what?” I remember saying . . . I had never heard that word before, and it really sounded quite unappealing. Kind of like a “blob,” or something similar that reminded me of things that are messy, slimy, and disgusting. “A blog. You know, a web log,” was the reply. “A what?” I repeated, sounding quite idiotic.

That was when it was first explained to me that a “blog” was just an online version of a journal, or really anything at all that I might want to say. Or write. Oh, no! That was scary stuff! But I was intrigued, and so I began to think about a “blog” and discovered that blogs were becoming quite a popular way to communicate with people all around the world about things like recipes, family and parenting advice, health and wellness information, personal journeys, friendship connections, and anything at all that people might find interesting.

At the time I really began to be aware of blogging and the opportunities for connecting with people beyond my own little world, my girls were little and I was sewing cute little outfits for them – which is something that I had been doing for a very long time, since the years when my older children were small. In the process of connecting with a few online communities of families with children adopted from China, I met another mom who told me about eBay and all the opportunities for making my children’s designs available for sale. I discovered the there were people who would pay a LOT of money for a handcrafted outfit for their four-year-old’s birthday party . . . or whatever other occasions might require a beautiful new outfit that would be different than anyone else who might participate in said event.

I learned the ins and outs of selling my children’s boutique designs on eBay, and in the process I connected with lots and lots of other moms doing the same thing. There were groups and teams of designers, and I had great fun connecting with so many other women with a shared interest in sewing beautiful clothing for our children, as well as making them available for sale to a potential customer base from all around the world. And then I discovered that “blogging” was one important facet of building a business, doing what I loved to do, what I was really good at doing, all while allowing me the opportunity to work from home where I wanted to be in the first place.

This is how my blogging journey started. Blogging has changed dramatically since that time. We used to post personal stories about our home and family, and we never thought about making money from our “down-home” blog posts about seemingly insignificant topics such potty training, reorganizing our kitchen cupboards, or creating a gardening journal. Who knew that blogging would turn into a multi-million dollar business in and of itself? Who knew back then that, unless you were ready, willing, and able to jump on that bandwagon, that you would be left in dust created by all those amazing bloggers that, for some reason, had something so much more important to say than us regular ol’ mamas?

That was the beginning of my blogging journey, and of course, there is much more to this story . . . for now, I will just remind you (if you have read this far, thank you very much!) that some of us blog because it is fun. Some of us blog because we have something to say, and it really doesn’t matter if anyone reads it or likes it or comments on it or even knows that you (or I) exist. It’s kind of like asking the question, “Why do some people climb Mt. Everest?” Because they can, I suppose. And that is why I continue to blog, even though I do not make any money from my blogging, and I’m pretty sure there are very few people who actually care to read what I write. I still blog because it gives me a place to organize my thoughts and ideas, but I promise you, blogging ain’t what it used to be. We can talk about that more in a later blog post. Until then, what do you think about blogging these days? What do you still blog? Or DO you still blog? I would love to hear your thoughts on this topic.

July Fourth Inspiration + HM #238

June 20, 2019 by VintageMama 3 Comments

It’s hard to believe that the Fourth of July is coming up so quickly! We just managed to survive all of the graduation festivities . . . except for the open house which is this Saturday . . . . and barely have had time (or good weather) to get the yard and garden projects finished up, and all of a sudden Independence Day is right around the corner. I found a few fun DIY ideas for this week’s Home Matters Linky Party #238 with a theme of July Fourth – and I really hope to have a chance to focus on some creative projects once we get through the next few days. #julyfourth #independenceday #homemattersparty

By early next week I should be able to shift my focus to other tasks around here, and I am actually looking forward to having a bit of down time to think about what we want to do with our family the rest of this summer. We tend to try to work on home projects every weekend, just because that’s what we like to do, but I’ve decided that this summer we are going to STOP working for a while and relax and bit. Now if I can just get my sweet hubby to take it easy once in a while, we’ll have some fun this summer! In the meantime, I hope you can join us for this week’s Home Matters Linky Party and discover some of the creative inspiration from all of the bloggers that join us each week. I’ll be looking for you!

Fabric-Wrapped Wreath from Woman’s Day

Patriotic Ribbon Lace Scrap Flag from Craftiments

DIY Independence Day America Sign from Landeeseelandeedo

Stars and Stripes Patriotic Flower Pots from LollyJane

Fourth of July Bandanna Tablecloth from This Grandma is Fun

Welcome to the weekly Home Matters Linky Party. A great place to come, share your blog posts, and make new friends.

We would love to have you visit our blogs and follow us on social media!

Hosts

Lorelai @ Life With Lorelai — Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Ashley @ Sweetpea Lifestyle — Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Donna @ Modern On Monticello — Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

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Sahana @ Vikalpah — Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Emily @ Domestic Deadline — Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

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Each week, we like to feature some of the awesome posts shared at last week’s party. We hope you will be inspired by these creative and talented bloggers who share their best recipes, DIY projects, crafts, home decor, organization ideas, and more. Enjoy!

Check out this week’s features below.

Dip-dyed Sunglass Pouch with FREE Crochet Pattern from Alexandra @ Knotions

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Sheet Pan Fajitas – Steak Fajitas Recipe from Sarah @ Must Have Mom

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Flag Layer Cake from Cindy @ Cindy’s Online Recipe Box

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Easy Summer Salads Menu Plan from Melissa @ Blessed Simplicity

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Pineapple Dream Dessert from Stephanie @ Spaceships and Laserbeams

PIN here

Thank you to all who linked up at last week’s party. We look forward to seeing what you will be sharing with us this week!

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We are thrilled that you came by to link up today! Here are a few rules that hosts and co-hosts of the Home Matters Party follow, and we ask that you follow them, as well.

Please link up no more than THREE posts each week–try to make sure that they are new links that you have not shared here previously. (Exception: Holiday/Seasonal specific posts may be shared once per year.)

Please take some time to poke around and visit some of the other links.

Please take some time to check out your hosts and co-hosts on social media.

We appreciate the variety of blogs on the www; however, the Home Matters Party is for links on matters of the HOME. Please link accordingly.

We ask that you do not add other Linky Parties, Blog Hops, or Giveaways–unless you begin the party with a new project, recipe or post.

On the same note, please do not add links of an extremist, political or strong controversial nature. (The hosts and co-hosts read each and every blog post linked and will contact you directly if you have linked something that does not fit into the realm of the party.)

With your help, we can continue to grow the Home Matters Party! Thank you!

July Fourth is the time to celebrate America with recipes, games, & decor ideas! Plus linkup at Home Matters. #julyfourth #independenceday #homemattersparty Click To Tweet

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Celebrate Summer with Fun Features from the TFT Party

June 20, 2019 by VintageMama 5 Comments

The past few days I’ve been working diligently on painting our deck . . . trying to get some of it finished up before the rain started this afternoon. Fortunately, I had three good days of warm, breezy, sunny weather so I was able to do some painting in the mornings before it got too hot, and then let everything dry under the hot sunlight in the afternoons. The deck looks really good with a fresh coat of paint, and I also started painting the railings and the posts of the gazebo.

This is an older house, I think built in the 60s, so things are needing to be updated and repaired to keep things looking and functioning good. I’m not sure when the gazebo was built on to the deck, but it was (apparently) painted gray to match the original color of the deck. Over time, that gray just got gray-er and gray-er and it looked really yucky. We found this really amazing paint at our local hardware store for decks and patios, that almost seems like putting down a layer of vinyl over the top of the concrete and wood portions of our deck. It is now a lovely blue-gray so it is much lighter and fresher looking than the old steel gray that it was previously.

We are using the same paint for the gazebo, but all of the railings and posts will be white when we are finished. I made some progress on that this morning, but then I could hear the thunder rumbling in the distance so I knew it was time to put the paint away and work on something else for a while. Like laundry. And this blog post. It has been a productive few days, and I have worked really hard on this things now that we finally have the opportunity to do some of the projects that we’ve been wanting to do for the past couple of summers. Limited time, energy, and finances made it difficult to get everything done, so we did a little at a time. And this summer, we are wrapping up the major projects!

For this week’s TFT post, I found a few ideas that “sparked joy” (if you are a fan of Marie Kondo you will know what I mean!), and they are actually creative ideas that I think will work for our little home and family. I hope you are having a good summer so far, and that you are able to accomplish your goals and / or take time to rest, relax, and appreciate the beauty of the season. Hope it stops raining soon so I can finish up a few more little things before the weekend. We’ve got a graduation open house on Saturday so I still have a pretty lengthy To Do list. I’ll be sure to post pictures of our graduate and her special day next week. Have fun at this week’s Favorite Things Party!

Banana Cake with Whipped Cinnamon Frosting from HammersNHugs

Ice Cream Printables from Comfort Springs Station

How to Plant Herbs in Metal Containers from So Much Better with Age

Star-Spangled Flower Pots from The Scrap Shoppe Blog

Zucchini Spice Bread from Nancy C

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Welcome to this week’s Thursday Favorite Things Blog Hop and Linky Party!

Remember you can add three links until midnight on Saturday. One each day or all at once. Please invite your blog friends and social network to join us. It’s time to party my sweet bloggy friends. You can add three links until midnight on Saturday. One each day or all at once. Please invite your blog friends and social network to join us. – Inlinkz has implemented a new policy when you add your link to the list you need to click the little square boxes about their policies on the bottom right.

Please subscribe to ALL of your hostesses blogs

Katherine-Katherines Corner

Nina-Vintage Mamas Cottage

Marilyn-Marilyns Treats

Bev-Eclectic Red Barn

Amber- Follow the Yellow Brick Home

Theresa- Shoestring Elegance

Linda- Crafts a la Mode

Pam- An Artful Mom

A note about the new link up format:

You may have noticed that several link party hosts are now using a new version of the link up that looks a little different than before. If this is your first time linking up to the new format, you may be prompted to register your email to create an account. This is the same as before when you entered your email each time you linked up with the old format. You do not have to have a personal inlinkz account or membership to link up, everything is the same as with the previous link up procedure. After your first time linking up you will not need to create an account each time and you will just be able to link up. If you have any questions or need help, feel free to ask!

Celebrate America with this Patriotic “FREEDOM” Banner DIY

June 18, 2019 by VintageMama Leave a Comment

A couple of summers ago I decided to make a patriotic banner because we did not have a place to display a bunting or even an American flag. So I pulled out all of my scrapbooking supplies and had a lot of fun designing and creating this banner. It is all in shades of red, white, and blue, with lots of embellishments such as buttons and ribbons. The letters are from the Granny Enchanted website where you can find TONS of free printable letters and other embellishments.

Since I really like to add lots and lots of “stuff” to my banners, I made little folded fans, and cut out other designs such as stars, along with various ribbons all in red, white and blue. I put little ribbon loops at the top of each of the flags so that I could run a ribbon through to hold each flag in place, and then at each end there is a ribbon loop for hanging. This one was so much fun to make, I just might make another one this year . . . with the word “America” or “Liberty” or something else to celebrate our nation’s birthday.

Since we are finally finishing up our yard and garden projects (hooray! It’s been challenging with all this rain!), I’m looking forward to getting back to some of my crafty, creative indoor projects with the hottest days of summer just around the corner. If you would like to make your own Patriotic “FREEDOM” Banner, you can find the complete tutorial HERE. The Fourth of July is coming up soon, so you will want to be ready to celebrate!

Summertime Fruit Salad Ideas + HM #237

June 13, 2019 by VintageMama 2 Comments

With a graduation open house coming up next weekend, and a kiddo that doesn’t want a whole bunch of “fancy, expensive” stuff for her party, I thought it would be fun to check out some simple and easy fruit salads that we could make for her special day. So with this week’s theme of summertime fruit salads for the Home Matters Linky Party #237, it is a perfect time for me to gather up some creative summertime fruit salad inspiration. #fruitsalad #saladwithfruit #homemattersparty

I came across this really cute idea of serving fresh fruit and yogurt in sugar cones, as well as some sweet and creamy fruit salad ideas that will be easy to whip up and pretty to serve, especially if it’s a hot day or even it is it cool and rainy, like it is today. Be sure to visit the original blogs where you can find the recipes for these summertime fruit salads, and let me know what you think.

Berry Fluff Jello Salad from Spend with Pennies

Creamy Key Lime Fruit Salad from Countryside Cravings

Fresh Fruit Cones from A Work Station

Strawberry Cloud Jello Salad from The Gunny Sack

Summer Berry Cheesecake Salad from The Slow Roasted Italian

Welcome to the weekly Home Matters Linky Party. A great place to come, share your blog posts, and make new friends.

We would love to have you visit our blogs and follow us on social media!

Hosts

Lorelai @ Life With Lorelai — Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Ashley @ Sweetpea Lifestyle — Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Donna @ Modern On Monticello — Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Co-hosts

Sahana @ Vikalpah — Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Emily @ Domestic Deadline — Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Nina @ Vintage Mama’s Cottage — Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Check out more posts from the Hosts and Co-Hosts on our
NEW Pinterest Board, All Things Home Matters!
And, please do follow…

Follow All Things Home Matters Board on Pinterest.

Check out this week’s features below.

Books Upscale Tutorial – Create Custom Books from Angie @ Knick of Time

PIN here

RV Renovation on a Budget from Christina @ The DIY Mommy

PIN here

Meringue Berry Trifle – Summer Desserts from Jenn @ Clean & Scentsible

PIN here

Oatmeal Apricot Almond Coconut Cookies from Steve @ The Black Peppercorn

PIN here

Ma’s Picnic Pasta Salad from Tracey @ The Kitchen Is My Playground

PIN here

Thank you to all who linked up at last week’s party. We look forward to seeing what you will be sharing with us this week!

Remember that every feature is shared on all Host’s and Co-Host’s blogs, as well as on the Home Matters Linky Party Pinterest Board! Don’t forget to follow…

Follow Home Matters Linky Party Board on Pinterest.

If you were featured this week, Please Grab our Featured Button to display proudly on your blog post, featured page, or sidebar! Share the joy…

<br />
<div align="center"><a href="https://lifewithlorelai.com/" title="Featured at Home Matters Linky Party" target="_blank"><img src="https://lifewithlorelai.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/HMLP-I-Was-Featured-200x214.png" alt="Featured at Home Matters Linky Party" style="border:none;" /></div>
<p>

Are you ready to Party?

The linky party starts when Friday begins and closes when Monday ends, EST.

We at Home Matters love meeting new people and discovering new blogs. Help us grow this party by sharing a link on your post or grabbing our party button for your sidebar or party page.

<br />
<div align="center"><a href="https://lifewithlorelai.com/" title="Home Matters Linky Party - Grab Button" target="_blank"><img src="https://lifewithlorelai.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/HMLP-Grab-Button-Sidebar-2015-200x200.jpg" alt="Home Matters Linky Party - Grab Button" style="border:none;" /></div>
<p>

Stop by and VISIT as many OTHER BLOGGERS as you can. Leave them a message, and share their talents on social media.

Be sure to Please USE our Registered Hashtag…

Home Matters Linky Party Guidelines:

We are thrilled that you came by to link up today! Here are a few rules that hosts and co-hosts of the Home Matters Party follow, and we ask that you follow them, as well.

Please link up no more than THREE posts each week–try to make sure that they are new links that you have not shared here previously. (Exception: Holiday/Seasonal specific posts may be shared once per year.)

Please take some time to poke around and visit some of the other links.

Please take some time to check out your hosts and co-hosts on social media.

We appreciate the variety of blogs on the www; however, the Home Matters Party is for links on matters of the HOME. Please link accordingly.

We ask that you do not add other Linky Parties, Blog Hops, or Giveaways–unless you begin the party with a new project, recipe or post.

On the same note, please do not add links of an extremist, political or strong controversial nature. (The hosts and co-hosts read each and every blog post linked and will contact you directly if you have linked something that does not fit into the realm of the party.)

With your help, we can continue to grow the Home Matters Party! Thank you!

Summertime fruit salads - mix greens and fruit! Find recipes and inspiration plus, linkup @ Home Matters. #fruitsalad #saladwithfruit #homemattersparty Click To Tweet

Link Up!

Thank you for joining in the fun and excitement at the Home Matters Linky Party. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do. We look forward to chatting with you in the comments.

Red, White, and Blue for the TFT Party!

June 13, 2019 by VintageMama 2 Comments

This week I’ve been working a bit more on some of our outside / yard / garden projects now that we’ve had a couple of days without rain. But the weather report says that starting tomorrow, and for the next several days, we’ll have more rain . . . so it is quite possible that we won’t be able to finish up everything we’ve been trying to accomplish before the hottest days of summer arrive. What I would really love to do is get these projects wrapped up so that we can actually go out on our beautiful deck and just relax a bit. I hope that happens sometime this summer!

In the meantime, I’m still looking at all of the amazing, creative, inspirational ideas that you all share each week at the TFT party, and here are a few that caught my eye this week. I love the combination of red, white, and blue for lots of reasons, mostly because it reminds me of how grateful I am to live in America, so when I came across a few patriotic-themed posts from last week, I decided to feature some of them.

I hope that you are enjoying your spring / summer so far, and that you will have time to relax and enjoy the beauty of the season. Please remember to pray for our farmers who are really struggling with getting the crops planted this year because of all the rain . . . and remember, food doesn’t actually come from a grocery store, and without our farmers, there will be a lot less of the fresh fruits and vegetables that we depend on finding in our local markets. Can’t wait to see what you will be sharing this week at the TFT party!

Summer Porch Decor from Common Ground

Red, White, and Blue Quilted Pillow from Busy Being Jennifer

Patriotic Porch Display from A Day of Small Things

Back Porch and the Potting Bench from Common Ground

Red, White, and Blue Quilted Tote Bag from Busy Being Jennifer

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Welcome to this week’s Thursday Favorite Things Blog Hop and Linky Party!

Please subscribe to ALL of your hostesses blogs

Katherine-Katherines Corner

Nina-Vintage Mamas Cottage

Marilyn-Marilyns Treats

Bev-Eclectic Red Barn

Amber- Follow the Yellow Brick Home

Theresa- Shoestring Elegance

Linda- Crafts a la Mode

Pam- An Artful Mom

A note about the new link up format:

My Vintage Window Frame Flower Boxes

June 11, 2019 by VintageMama 1 Comment

Today is the first day in about three months that I have had the energy to do more than “just get through a day.” Hooray! We’ve been working hard every weekend for the past six weeks or so, trying to finish up some of the spring yard projects that we’ve had planned. We aren’t doing these projects for Gracie’s graduation party, they are things we’ve wanted to do for the past three summers but just ran out of time, energy, and money before we could getting everything accomplished on your Yard and Garden To Do List. But the fact that we do have a graduation party planned for June 22nd is giving us a bit of motivation to wrap up some of these “loose ends.”

So, even though I’ve been pushing myself on the weekends, weeding, raking, painting, power washing everything in sight, I very quickly run out of energy. After I’ve been outside doing all those fun things, in the sun for several hours, I find that it takes me a couple of days to recover. This annoying cough still isn’t completely gone yet, but I am definitely doing much better than before. I do try to pace myself, but when there is a project that needs to be finished – like patching and painting the patio before it rains – there really isn’t a good “stopping point” just because I’m tired.

This past weekend we finally had a chance to paint the concrete portion of our deck . . . but then it rained overnight. The next morning there were little bubbles, kind of like water blisters, all over the painted area. I wondered if they would go away when the sun came out and dried everything out, but of course, we couldn’t put the final coat of paint on over it while it was still wet. Today it is dry, no bubbles, but no paint because the hardware store did not have the right tint base when we went back to buy more. So everything on our deck it all in a jumble, waiting for the weather to be “just right” so we can finish painting. Always something that needs to be done!

In the meantime, I was working on getting some planters arranged. I managed to fill up the window boxes with red and white impatiens, and I also spray painted an old metal watering can and filled it with more red and white impatiens. I also saved a couple of plain ol’ tin cans and spray painted them white, tied some twine around one and ribbon around another one, and popped a couple of red impatiens in them.

We still have several smaller projects to finish up, which will really be fun to do, but that painting project just might be a major annoyance for the next couple of weeks, until we can finish painting and get things back in place so we can use our beautiful deck – well, it will be beautiful when it is finished! Today I’m doing my best to try to catch up on a few things without putting myself out of commission for the rest of the week. It’s beginning to feel like a rather miserable cycle – my whole world goes to wrack and ruin (not really, but it sometimes feels that way) when I’m not feeling great, and then once I get back to business, I push myself until I can barely function. Then, I start that cycle all over again. Seems like I would learn not to do that!

I’m trying – here’s to a better day and a better week – and hope for a couple of dry days so we can paint the deck. But not too many dry days or the farmers won’t be able to finish planting. All this rain has them way behind schedule, so if you think about it, please say a little prayer for all of the farmers here in the midwest who depend on good weather to plant their crops. And we all depend on the farmers to have fresh vegetables in the grocery stores!

Father’s Day Ideas + HM #236

June 6, 2019 by VintageMama 2 Comments

With all the other activities going on around here over the past few weeks and the upcoming couple of weeks, I had almost forgotten about Father’s Day! Of course, I would have remembered the week of, but we recently had Mother’s Day, Memorial Day, and Daddy’s birthday, all in May . . . and then end-of-school activities, tomorrow is graduation, and then the week after Father’s Day is the graduation open house / party. So I guess I’ve had a few other things on my mind. Not to mention that we’ve all been sick for the past three weeks. I was really happy to see this week’s theme of Father’s Day for the Home Matters Linky Party #236 to help me stay focused and not lose sight of dad’s special day in the midst of everything else swirling around. #fathersday #fathersdayrecipes #homemattersparty

At our house, since our Dad likes to do the cooking on the weekends, I was looking for things that we could make for him – but probably he would really love to get out the grill for dinner on Father’s Day. I found a couple of other recipes, one for breakfast that I know he will like, and another one for a sweet, simple dessert that will go great with steaks on the grill. I remembered the Father’s Day Banner Card I made a couple of years ago and thought I would add that to this week’s collection, and I came across another DIY Father’s Day card that would be perfect for our Dad – a tool belt foldable card, since every weekend this spring he has been fixing, building, repairing, and creating “stuff” for our house and yard.

I hope that you will have a very happy Father’s Day, and if you have time, be sure to do something creative this year for Dad. I know he will LOVE it! See you at the #HomeMattersParty . . .

Father’s Day Banner Card Tutorial from Vintage Mama’s Cottage

Father’s Day Breakfast Skillet from Cabot Creamery

Father’s Day Tool Belt Folding Card from The Craft Blog

Classic Filet Mignon from My Recipes

No-Fry Fried Ice Cream from Taste of Home

(I’m pretty sure we are going to try this one!)

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DIY Clay Pot Succulent Wreath from Krista @ The Happy Housie

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Easy Ladybug Cookes from Keri-Lyn @ She Saved

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Patriotic Brownie Sandwiches from Nicole @ Mama of Many Blessings

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Green Peach Mango Smoothie from Ashley @ Simply Blended Smoothies Tips

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Simple Summer Entertaining Ideas from Jenn @ Clean & Scentsible

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Lemon Yellow and Strawberry Pink for the TFT Party!

June 6, 2019 by VintageMama 4 Comments

I am so happy to be back to the TFT party this week! I’ve missed at least two parties recently because of all the sickness that has been going around our family . . . . and we’re still not 100% yet but at least I’m finding enough energy to tackle a few of the neglected tasks that have been waiting for me. Even though I was not able to participate in last week’s TFT party, I still checked out some of the posts you all shared and I discovered a few that were so pretty, I simply had to feature them this week, now that I’m finally getting back into my weekly blogging routine.

I found so many sweet yellow and pink blog posts that I thought it would be fun to combine a few into one feature post, and so here I have collected them altogether for you. The first one that I fell in love with is the adorable Lemon Banner from Penny’s Vintage Treasures. I love making those cute banners, but haven’t made one in quite a while . . . Penny has inspired me to make my own summer banner, and I think I’ll follow her lead and make one that features all the shades of summer yellow.

Then, as I continued to visit some of the other blog posts from last week, I came across the Strawberry Lemonade Sorbet recipe from Thistle Key Lane. What a delightful combination for a summer dessert! And, not only does it look totally yummy, it is also really pretty! Even better, it’s a super simple recipe that could be made up in the afternoon for an evening surprise for the family. It doesn’t get much better than that! Visit Thistle Key Lane for the complete recipe for Strawberry Lemonade Sorbet.

As I continued my journey through the blogosphere to see all the creative ideas that you all share every week at the TFT party, I happened upon this recipe for Lemon Bread from Amy at My Recipe Treasures. Although, admittedly, I don’t really prefer to spend my time in the kitchen these days with so many other things I would rather do than cook . . . . I must confess that this Lemon Bread looks like it just might be worth the time and effort it would take to bake up a loaf or two. And since it is made with a cake mix and pudding, it looks like something even I could do! Be sure to visit Amy at My Recipe Treasures for the recipe for Lemon Bread. I’m so intrigued with this recipe that I think I’ll try to whip up a batch this weekend!

I’ve seen lots of clothespin wreaths over the past few years, and I have made several myself. I made a few patriotic clothespin wreaths in red, white, and blue as well as some holiday wreaths in green, red, and white. I have always painted the clothespins which is a rather messy undertaking, but the end result was quite nice. The biggest problem I’ve had with clothespin wreaths is getting the clothespins to stay securely in place. So when I came across this adorable Sunflower Clothespin Wreath from Chas’ Crazy Creations, I was intrigued with her technique. Not to mention that her wreath turned out so cute! It would not only be perfect for autumn decor, but the sunflower design and colors are also perfect for summer. She didn’t paint her clothespins, she used Rit Dye to color them which might be a whole lot easier and less messy than paint. I’m not sure about that, but in any event, her Sunflower Clothespin Wreath is so cute I might try making another one. You can find the step-by-step directions at Chas’ Crazy Creations and make your own Sunflower Clothespin Wreath.

When I think about Strawberry Lemonade, like the Strawberry Lemonade Sorbet recipe above, it just feels like summertime! These Strawberry Lemonade Bars are so pretty and yummy looking, that I’m thinking they might be perfect for our upcoming graduation party. Nicole at Mama of Many Blessings shares the complete recipe on her blog . . . . I’m sure they would be perfect for any summer get-together or a church carry-in dinner or Sunday School picnic. They are almost too pretty to eat! But I’m certain that if we make up a few batches of them for our graduation party that they will disappear in a hurry. Stop by and visit Nicole at Mama of Many Blessings to find the recipe for your family.