Corner View ~ Once Upon A Time

Once upon a time a women sat on her back porch drinking coffee and soaking up early morning sun. She peered across her vast landscape and dreamt of a garden. A garden which would bring her great serenity and nourishment. The plot seemed desolate and void of growth as if the only blooming would occur inside the daydream.

Actions speak louder than words and images the mind creates. February brought with it Spring in Northern California, no time to waste, the work needed to produce the daydream must commence.  When the hard work to create is done you must have heavy doses of patience.

What was an "Once upon a time" thought over warm coffee and early morning pondering, became the stuff my dreams are made of. I finally got my little white picket fence too! As of this morning my tomato plants have tiny green orbs and I can't wait to take that first juicy bite  ripe off the vine.

Corner View is a global collective where bloggers share their view on a pre-arranged theme. Hosted by Francesca. 

Recycled Banner

 Last month  my youngest daughter turned 9 and had a camp out sleepover with a slight "One Direction" theme to it. Party supply stores are brimming with decor for any theme and occasion but they come at a hefty price at check out.  I started my wheels turning and went about the house collecting my recycled supplies. Here's what I made with what I found already on hand.

I had a few granola bar and caprisun boxes crushed and ready for the recycling bin so I decided the reverse non printed side would be good for my project.

I used a ruler to measure out triangles for the banner. This method made  two different sized triangles, the longer ones were used as labels wrapped around mason jars filled with make your own trail mix ingredients. (sorry I don't have a photo of that one)

After all the triangles are cut , I added letter stickers from the dollar store to spell out "Camp 1D". I used two different lengths of twine to hot glue the triangles onto. The middle triangle on the bottom has a picture of "One Direction"  I tore out from one of my daughters  magazines and glued on.

Here's the finished product.

Upcycled Crayons

I came up with this recycled/upcycled idea for crayons while cleaning up the kids art supplies. Instead of throwing away all those small and broken pieces I converted them into new bright and colorful stars. My 3 year old  received these in his stocking, they are the perfect size for toddler dexterity.

Materials needed : crayons, mold, pot of water, baby jar or any glass jar, bamboo skewer 

1. Gather all your old funky crayons and take of the paper wrappers . Go find your favorite shape molds

   2.  Fill a pot halfway with water and set to a boil. Put your crayons color selection in the jar and set in pot.

      3.  Stir the crayon with the skewer as it melts. Once the crayon is completely melted pour into your mold.(Be careful use tongs or a towel to take the jar out)

4.        Let the crayon cool completely and pop out, hand them over to the kids and watch them enjoy

Stale chips are for the birds

Ever run into the situation when you go to grab some chips and found they have gone stale? Or maybe the little chips at the bottom of the bag are to small to enjoy? Don't throw them out make them into a meal for your feathered friends.

I throw the chips in a zip lock bag and smash them into tiny pieces. This also fun for children to do.

The meal is then stored in a recycled glass jar and put into the bird feeders as needed. Yard birds really do enjoy this stuff as much as the wild bird seed.