So true...

Bet you didn't know...

Bet you didn't know you can make an emergency candle out of vegetable shortening! Well you can! And it will burn for a really long time! Just like any other candle, I don't recommend leaving it unattended!

INSTRUCTIONS
1)  Open a can of Crisco. The bigger the can, the better.
2) Insert the candle wick into the center of the can of Crisco. If the can has a large diameter, multiple wicks can be inserted. Leave a quarter of an inch of wick showing above the Crisco to make sure the flame is a manageable size.

3) Even out the top of the Crisco so the candle is smooth.

4) Light the wick and enjoy the candle.

Bet you could make a few of these using the small cans too! Then you could have one in every room you were in!

Anyone love those fire pits? Look what I found!

Love those firepits? How about a "personal" sized one? I found this over on theartofdoingstuff.com! How cool is this?! I think this would be a nice addition to a backyard hideaway! Or even inside if you don't have a fireplace! It would make a great conversation piece for a party! I don't have space inside, but can think of a great place to put it out back! Found it here: http://www.theartofdoingstuff.com/how-to-make-a-personal-fire-pit-for-cheap/

Please take note of the warnings she posts and make sure you used it in a safe location! Enjoy!

Cake Decorating and Baking tips!

Cake Baking/Decorating tips

The best cakes start with using the right tools for the job. Making nice cakes takes practice and some imagination.  When I got tired of getting bad cakes from the bakery for my children's birthdays, I decided to learn how to do it myself if it killed me...it didn't! LOL  Just remember, once you start making pretty cakes, everyone will want you to make them...I made a pretty good little side income making birthday and special occasion cakes for friends and others...my business was called Edible Art...I took a class and read a lot of books and took the best tips and methods and used them for all of my cakes...I'll share them with you now...

First things first:

Ok, so the first thing we have to do is start with the basics. I don't grease and flour my cake pans, it leaves a film or makes the cakes crumby, which gets into your frosting. Crumbs can ruin a pretty cake.  I use the spray with flour added, Baker's Secret (or the store brand is fine) or just plain old Pam. If I'm out and have to grease and flour my pans, I take the pans to the sink and turn them upside down and knock out the extra flour for good measure. The pans are easier to clean this way, too.

Pour your cake batter into your pans evenly, then shake side to side, back and forth to even it out. Then, pick up the pan and drop it a few times on the counter/table top to remove any large air bubbles. You don't want any air bubbles to ruin you cake when you cut it.
Wrap your pans with your strips, so it bakes evenly (see note below) and place in the center of the oven.

Set the timer for the shortest time first, do not open the oven to check the cake until the timer goes off the first time. Use a toothpick and stick it in the center, if it comes out clean, it's done.  If it doesn't, set the timer for 1-2 more minutes, until it does. When it's done, remove the cake strips, be careful, the pin will be hot. I set my cakes on a cooling rack for at least 10 minutes before turning it out on my cake board/plate.  Run a butter knife around the edges to make sure it's loosened from the pan. Place the cake board or plate evenly over the cake, and turn it over and set on the counter or table.  Gently pat the cake pan to make sure the cake has come loose from the pan. Gently remove the pan, if the cake is still not loose, let it sit for a moment and pat again, it should come out clean. Allow the cake to cool completely before frosting and decorating.

If you're in a hurry, after you put it on a board or plate, you can put the cake in the freezer for 10-20 minutes.  Place your hand on the center of the cake, if it's still warm, leave for a few more minutes. If you forget it and it freezes, allow to thaw before frosting or the frosting can fall away from the cake and ruin a beautiful cake...I've seen this happen, it wasn't funny when the customer was due to arrive any moment for her wedding cake (I learned from someone else's mistake!)

Ever taken a cake out of the oven and it has a big hump in the middle?...well, not anymore!

The reason the cakes hump when they bake, is because the sides cook faster than the middle. Here's how you solve that problem: You know those old towels you've been promising to throw away or use for rags?...Don't!...Take them and cut them into strips, the width of your cake pans, long and short ones.  Get some big safety pins to keep with the strips in a storage box or drawer.

While you are mixing your batter, (I use boxed mix, it works just fine and everyone thinks they're made from scratch, they never fail me. I also never claim anything but my frosting is homemade) place the strips in a glass or cup of water.  After you have your cake ready to go in the oven, take the strips and squeeze them out hard. Wrap them around your cake pan and pin in place.  The wet strips keep the outside of the pan from heating faster than the center and your cakes come out level. Leave the pins on after the first use, so all you have to do the next time is wet it and slip it on the pan.

If you don't want to do this, or forget and your cake humps, simply take a knife wider than the pan and lay it flat across the pan and "saw" the hump off the cake and set aside (good snack while decorating if the kids don't get it first! LOL)

Remove crumbs before frosting:

After the cake has cooled completely, take the cake to the sink and gently brush off the crumbs from the top and sides of the cake. This is where most crumbs in the frosting come from to begin with, that and not using the proper technique when frosting the cake. Rinse the crumbs down the sink, no mess! Now you're ready to frost the cake!

Proper method of frosting a cake:

Place several spoonfuls of frosting in the center top of the cake. Use a large angled spatula for the top and a large flat metal spatula for the sides of a two layer, a small metal spatula for a single layer. I use these, you can find them at WM or a craft store:

http://www.wilton.com/store/site/product.cfm?id=3E30E6CA-475A-BAC0-5453BF5F6792E26D&fid=C2751602-475A-BAC0-5416139A613F7E59

http://www.wilton.com/store/site/product.cfm?id=3E30E728-475A-BAC0-53FDF2766A97BD0F&fid=C2751641-475A-BAC0-51BFF750962F7CFC

http://www.wilton.com/store/site/product.cfm?id=3E30E747-475A-BAC0-52128628832B4224

Remember, you need the right tools to do a great job...now, using your large angled spatula, push the frosting, evenly to the edges of the cake. Do not pull the spatula back toward you, as you will pick up crumbs. Lift the spatula up and away from the cake as you work different areas. Just keep turning the cake until you have the top covered evenly.

Now, use the large flat spatula for a two layer cake or the small flat spatula for a single layer cake. Pick up the frosting from the bowl (about a tablespoon for single layers, the width of the cake for two layers*) and begin to smooth the frosting on the sides of the cake, starting away from you and pushing the frosting toward you. I'm right handed, so I begin on the left side of the cake and turn the cake to the left as I work around the cake, (work the opposite direction if you are left handed). Lift the spatula back and away from you when you need more frosting so it doesn't lift the frosting and pick up crumbs.  Keep working until the cake is covered.

Now, go back and use your spatula to smooth out any line or bumps in the frosting. Then, get a tall glass/cup, fill with hot tap water. Wipe your spatula clean with a paper towel, then dip in the hot water and use to smooth the cake evenly.  Wipe the blade after dipping and before dipping so you don't get the frosting wet, or put frosting in the water. Work quickly. Now, allow the frosting to dry and crust so you can place your design/pattern on the cake for decorating.

*For two layer cakes, make sure the middle frosting layer is even, as it will make your cake lopsided if you don't.

Designs on the sides of the cake:

You can leave the cake smooth or you can use a cake rake to make lines on the side (be gentle, or the cake will show through), or allow the frosting to dry and take a paper towel with the bumps on it and gently rub it on the sides for a neat little pattern.

How to make a pattern out of just about any picture:

Take the picture you want to use, I find them in coloring books, greeting cards, children's books and even video game covers...I've used comic book covers too...ask the person if they have a picture of what they want...make a copy of it on a copy machine, enlarge it or shrink it to fit your cake. Be sure to leave room to write your message. I've always made the message match the picture, for instance: an Air Jordan cake would say "Hope you Air Jordan your Birthday"...or when I used the Magic basketball logo is said, using the logo for the word: "Just like "Magic" Ian turned 10"

Now, working on the front of the picture, use a straight pin, toothpick or a push pin and poke holes through all the lines in the design. When you're done, you'll have what feels like Braille on the pattern side.  Lay the pattern on your cake where you want the design to be and PRESTO! You've got a dot to dot design to follow on your cake.  Use the picture as a guide, and a small round tip to trace the design on the cake. Let the design dry before you fill it in, so it doesn't move or the colors run, I use black (usually only takes about 1/2 a cup of frosting) to trace my designs, or a contrasting color, like dark pink for a heart design that will be white. I only use paste colors, because liquid colors thin the frosting.

Filling in the pattern:

Depending on how large or small your design is, you can fill it in using a small round tip, or a small star tip.  When filling in with a round tip, I use a small, soft, paintbrush to push the frosting into the smaller areas and to the edges of the lines. Stars are faster and easier for large designs, round tips are better for smaller more intricate designs. You can use a paintbrush or toothpick to add texture, such as for fur or water or waves.

Patterns on the sides of the cake:

You can use pattern presses you can buy as a set, or make your own the same way you make the picture designs. I use a toothpick to mark where the patterns should go to make sure they are evenly placed around the sides of the cake.

Frosting recipes I use:

I use boxed cake mix, but I never use canned frosting. It doesn't hold up to decorating, because it's too thin or coloring very well. I make my frosting while my cake is cooling. The secret to this frosting is the salt makes it taste like butter cream, while using water keeps it from going bad the way milk would. It’s snow white and colors extremely well, while tasting exactly like butter cream (use 2 teaspoons vanilla in the regular recipe below, we’re substituting the cheesecake flavoring in this one). You can thicken it with powdered sugar or thin it with drops of water for whatever you need. You can also experiment with other flavors, just make sure they're clear, because they will color the frosting. These frostings are snow white and take color very well.

Selina’s “Mock” Butter Cream Frosting:

1 bag of confectioner’s sugar
2 cups of Crisco (or all vegetable shortening)
1/8 -1/4 teaspoon of salt (check for taste after mixing, using 1/8th)
2 teaspoons Vanilla
½-1 cup of water

(You can sift the sugar if you like, but normally it’s not needed with the Dixie Crystal brand.)

Add sugar to bowl, add salt (start with 1/8th teaspoon) , Crisco (cut into ½ cup sizes for easier mixing) and flavoring (start with 1 teaspoon). Add ½ cup water to start, begin mixing on low, then medium as it comes together.  Add water a little at a time, until you reach the consistency needed for frosting cakes. (Less for stiffer decorating frosting)
(You can add ¼ cup of cocoa to make this chocolate, more or less to your taste. You can add brown food coloring if you want a darker “chocolate” color)

Makes enough to frost and decorate 1 quarter sheet cake (13X9”) or 1 two layer 8-9” round cakes

I use this one for Red Velvet and Carrot Cakes:

Selina’s “Mock” Cheesecake Flavor Frosting (it's also white):

1 bag of confectioner’s sugar
2 cups of Crisco (or all vegetable shortening)
1/8 -1/4 teaspoon of salt (check for taste after mixing, using 1/8th)
1 to 1½ teaspoons cheesecake flavoring (check for taster after mixing, using 1 teaspoon)
½-1 cup of water

(You can sift the sugar if you like, but normally it’s not needed with the Dixie Crystal brand.)

Add sugar to bowl, add salt (start with 1/8th teaspoon) , Crisco (cut into ½ cup sizes for easier mixing) and flavoring (start with 1 teaspoon). Add ½ cup water to start, begin mixing on low, then medium as it comes together.  Add water a little at a time, until you reach the consistency needed for frosting cakes. (Less for stiffer decorating frosting)

Makes enough to frost and decorate 1 quarter sheet cake (13X9) or 1 two layer 8-9” round cakes

Don't want to spend a lot on those cake boards? Neither did I!

You can use cardboard boxes cut to fit your cake or even beer/soda flats (they come with the beer or soda six packs at the convenience or grocery store, just ask for them).  Cut the sides off the beer flats and they're perfect for a 13X9" cake. Or you can lay your cake pan upside down on cardboard, trace it and cut it out. Cover with foil and tape on the bottom. It leaves enough room on the sides for side decorations on the bottom with room to spare. If you're making a larger cake, double the board, to make it sturdy and easy to transport. If you put double sided tape in the bottom of the box or whatever you're transporting your cake in, it won't slide around while you're driving.

That's all I can think of for now...if you need any other tips, or have questions, let me know...

Cake! I love cake!

I love cake so much, I learned how to decorate them so I could make all of my children's birthday cakes! I studied a lot of books, tips and techniques and then I went and took a couple of Wilton's courses. I always wanted to go to their wedding cake school! That would have been so much fun!! Lot's of money in wedding cakes!! Here's a few I've made over the years. Anyone got some pics they want to post? Post away! I'd love to see your work!

This was my official icing taster! The TravMan!

:o)

Can you crochet or knit? Show us your work!

Can your crochet or knit? Show us your work! I always wanted to learn, but never took the time to do it. My Mom crocheted like a pro! She could have sold her work for lots of money, but never would! I wish I had paid more attention or let her teach me how to crochet, but foolishly I didn't.

I recently learned a couple of basic stitches and I'm currently working on a baby blanket for my new grandbaby. I actually learned how to crochet watching videos on Youtube! LOL The first thing I made was a sweater for my little dog. I kept thinking "If I can do this, I can certainly do a baby blanket!" LOL So that's what I'm working on now. I don't have a whole lot of time, working two jobs, but it's coming along, slowly but surely!

Here's a few pictures of the doggy sweater I made. My very first attempt at crocheting. I tried my hand a knitting years ago and I did pretty well. I may try that again, too!

The blanket I'm doing is a continual Granny Square design. I can't wait to see how it turns out! Here's a preview:

How am I doing so far? I could really use some tips! LOL

Here it is finshed. What do you think?  :)

COOL! Now I can post from my mobile phone! I LOVE technology!!

Now, for something political...The Secret is out!

In a capitalist economy the true job creators are middle class consumers. Taxing the rich to make investments that make the middle class grow and thrive is the single best thing we can do for the poor, the middle class and the rich.

Nick Hanauer, "super-rich" entrepreneur, gave a fantastic 'TED Talk' about how the middle class—not the super-rich—are the real job creators. But TED, which has released over 100 different political videos in the past, thought this one was too partisan and refused to release it. Under pressure from the internets, TED finally relented and released the video. Watch it and decide for yourself if it's really all that controversial to say that the "super-rich are not job creators." Then share it like crazy.

Shared by: Chris Colombo
Speaker: Nick Hanauer; http://www.upworthy.com/breaking-you-know-that-ted-talk-you-werent-supposed-to-see-here-it-is-2 

Do you agree?

Our Christmas Egg Nog...

This is the recipe for the egg nog we make at Christmas time...once you try this one, you'll never go back to the old way! Yummy!!

Mocha Egg Nog

6 large eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups milk
1 cup kahlua (see substitute below)
1/2 cup chocolate syrup
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups heavy whipping cream
Garnishes: Ready Whip cream, chocolate sprinkles

Stir together eggs and sugar in a large saucepan; gradually stir in milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, 18 to 20 minutes or until mixture thickens and coats a metal spoon. Remove from heat; stir in Kahlua, chocolate syrup and vanilla. Cover and chill 8 hours. Beat whipping cream at high speed with an electric mixer until soft peaks form; fold into chilled egg mixture. Garnish, if desired. (you can use 2 teaspoons of instant coffee instead of Kahlua for a non-alcoholic version)

(Definitely a break from the regular, boring eggnog. We love this one!)

Happy Holidays from our house to yours!

Turtle Pumpkin Cheesecake, a Holiday favorite!

This is a recipe we ran across a few years ago. We've made it and served it every Thanksgiving since! It is easy and tastes amazing!

Turtle Cheesecake

2‑1/2	cups crushed chocolate cookies or vanilla wafers
1/4	cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
2	packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1	cup sugar
1‑1/2	tablespoons all-purpose flour
1‑1/2	teaspoons vanilla
1/4	teaspoon salt
3	eggs
2	tablespoons whipping cream
Caramel Topping
Chocolate Topping
1	cup chopped toasted pecans

PREPARATION:

1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
2. Combine cookie crumbs and butter in medium bowl; press onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan.
3. Beat cream cheese in large bowl until creamy. Add sugar, flour, vanilla and salt; mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in cream. Pour over crust. Bake 10 minutes.
4. Reduce oven temperature to 200°F. Bake 35 to 40 minutes more or until set. Loosen cake from rim of pan; cool. Remove rim of pan.
5. Prepare Caramel Topping and Chocolate Topping. Drizzle over cheesecake. Refrigerate cheesecake. Sprinkle with pecans just before serving.

Caramel Topping

Combine 7 ounces (1/2 bag) caramels and 1/3 cup whipping cream in small saucepan; stir over low heat until smooth.

Chocolate Topping

Combine 4 squares (1 ounce each) semisweet chocolate, 1 teaspoon butter and 3 tablespoons whipping cream in small saucepan; stir over low heat until smooth.

This was before being moved to a nice plate for serving!

Great place for "living off the grid" tips!

Here's a great site for living off the grid tips, that you can also use every day! I found a great recipe for homemade laundry soap here! There are a lot of great finds here, too! Go check them out!

Homestead Survival

In fact, I found this useful information sheet there!

Laundry soap recipe:

 http://homesteadsurvival.blogspot.com/2012/05/laundry-soap-tutorial-courtesy-of.html

Need some inspiration? Read on...it's a true story, a messge of hope...

“The Cow Story”

This is a true story, and it happened to my mother and me.  Please don't feel bad for us, because this is a message of hope and something that you can share with someone who may need to hear it.  Or you may need to remember one day when you feel like there is no hope for your situation.  Trust me, there is always hope, with God...okay?

I'm going to try to make a long story short.  So I will start by saying, that when I was 14 years old, there were a lot of things going on in my life.  My mother had married a real lowlife sort to get me away from a man (my multimillionaire guardian, yet another long story).  Well, because of this man she married, we (my Mom and I) ended up losing every thing.  We lost our home, our new furniture, our clothes, and our beloved pets...EVERY THING!  We ended up at his parent’s house just outside Lake City, Florida.

Well, in February of that year (1975), shortly before my 15th birthday, her husband said that he had "found us a home of our own".  This home he found (if you can call it that) was not fit for a hobo, much less for a woman and her 14 year old daughter.  I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw it; one good strong wind just might blow it over, condemned is putting it nicely!  It had a hand pump for water in the "kitchen", an outhouse for a bathroom (with huge dead rats in it!) and a "tub" but no "running water".  You didn't dare walk through the house at night because the holes in the floor (“floor”, now that is funny!) were so huge, and the walls, (if you want to call them that) had holes in them so big you could see from room to room.  These rats that were as big as full-grown cats would jump out of the walls at you, it was scary, let me tell you!  We had a wood burning stove to cook on, and were so cash poor, we were rolling our own cigarettes and sharing them. 

Well, this "man" took off and left my mother and I in that...place...for like three days!  We had no food, no money, nothing.  Well, I take that back, we found some popcorn in an old jar up on one of the shelves. (LOL)  It's frigging winter and we have no heat.  This jerk comes back in the middle of the night, with his lowlife brother to pick up his "things".  He tells me that he's leaving my mother (get this!) because "she's too good to him, he can't handle it!"  What a joke!  He took off in OUR car and left us there, 10 miles from the nearest town! 

So, we decided that we'd get some sleep (as if!) and then, in the morning, we would walk into town and talk to the sheriff about our plight.  He took us and got us some food, arranged for us to stay at the local motel (more like Petticoat Junction!), and made arrangements for someone to go pick up what was left of our belongings and put them in (drum roll please!)...the county jail cell!  (LOL)  A few days later, he took us over to this town called Live Oak.  He said that there was a man there that would help us. 

He dropped us off at the Sheriff's office and told us we would be okay.  Well, this asshole (sorry) proceeds to tell my mother and me, that if we didn't have a place to stay and money in our pockets by sundown, he was going to throw us in jail for vagrancy.  I jumped up out of my chair and leaned across his desk and said to him, "Mr., you are sitting in a elected official's chair, I promise you that if you have us arrested, knowing the situation we are in, you won't sit in that chair come next election, I DARE you to throw us in jail! That's not a threat, that's a promise!"  I then told my mother to get up, we were leaving!  Needless to say, the Sheriff didn't bother us again! 

So we set off to find "this man" the other Sheriff had told us would help us.  Guess what?  He was out of town on business for the next two days!  Boy, that sucked!  What to do now?  So, we began to explain our situation to different people of the town, and this really nice guy that managed the U-Haul rental place offered to give us a place to stay until the other man got back from his trip.  How nice!  Not so fast! 

We get to this guy's house and come to find out, there was a price to be paid.  If we wanted to stay at his house, I would have to have sex with him.  I was like "Dude, you must be smoking some really good stuff!  Because that ain't gonna happen!  We'll sleep in the street first!"  He said there was no need for that, that he had a better place than the street and he took us back to the U-Haul place and let us sleep in one of the U-Haul trailers for the next two nights.  How generous!  (Those wool moving blankets really suck by the way! LOL) 

We couldn't call our family, we were too embarrassed.  We couldn't let them know what had happened!  They would take me away from my mother for good this time!  And no telling what they would do to her!  They had made ugly threats about that once before, so now way!  But we did call about 30 of our closest friends, and out of all of them, only TWO would help us.  My best friend's Mother, in St. Petersburg, Florida and my best friend's sister in Ft. Worth, Texas.  They each paid for a bus ticket to Ft. Worth, and my friend's sister, gave us a place to stay until my Mom could get on her feet.  But that's ahead of the story. 

Now, the man finally came back to town, and sure enough, he helped us, just like everyone said he would!  When he closed the store that evening, he took us to his house.  He gave us a nice bed to sleep in, food to eat and use of his phone so we could call friends for help.  Now, here's where the story gets good. 

On the way to his house, we had to drive down this long dirt road.  The road goes through another man's ranch.  He raised Brahmas (you know, the cattle with the big hump on their backs).  Anyway, these cattle were in such horrible shape.  Apparently, the man who owned the ranch had gone bankrupt and could no longer feed or water his herd and it was huge!  There, lying on the ground were literally hundreds of skeletons and carcasses.  What few cattle were able to remain standing, were mere flesh and bones. 

I could not believe what I was seeing.  I couldn't understand how anyone could allow this to happen to these poor animals.  I always wanted to be a Veterinarian, so, it just broke my heart to watch this scene pass before my eyes.  It was the worst thing I've ever witnessed in my life.  Suddenly, a thought occurred to me..."Boy, I thought I had it bad, at least I can ask for help. I guess it's true, when you think you've got it bad, there is always someone else who has it worse!" 

I believe that God touched my life in a special way that day.  I learned a very important lesson that day, that no matter how bad our situation looked, it wasn't as bad as that.  So, the moral to the story is this: When things aren't looking so good for you, remember “The Cow story” and you will probably see that your situation probably isn't as bad as you think.  At least you can ask for help. 

If you meet someone or know someone that thinks their situation is bad, tell them “The Cow Story".  They may see, that they too, do not have it as bad as they originally thought.  My life was forever changed by that day and that happened to me over 30 years ago.  I will never forget the cows and what they did for me.  I hope they will help you or someone you care about one day. 

For me, because "they" helped me, they did not die in vain.  Their deaths gave me hope and gave new meaning to the word "problem".  Every question has an answer.  That's what problems are, questions that just need answers.  Please, feel free to share this with anyone you feel may need to hear “The Cow Story”.

With love and hope... Selina :o)

PS… I’d like to add that after watching that movie “March of the Penguins”, I began to understand how interconnected their story and the cows’ story is, really.  So, now, when things seem bad to me or someone I know or meet I say, “Well, just be glad you’re not a penguin or a cow.  At least you can ask for help”.

Need a quick, cheap chocolate fix? I got you covered!

I ran across a really good recipe for a quick and easy chocolate fix! Brownie in a mug! I tried it this morning and it was really good! I added a 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla, too. I'm willing to bet it would be even better with some chopped nuts or even some mini chocolate chips if you have some lying around! I don't care for vanilla ice cream, but if I had some Ready Whip, I'd sure top this off with some and some chocolate sprinkles, too! I also found a cake in a cup recipe I'm going to try as well! I LOVE cake! I'm sure many of you can come up with some ideas to make it better, some great toppings we could try and some things to make it even yummier! Let me know!! I found the cake in a cup recipe here, over at The Hidden Pantry's blogspot: Aunt Betty's 1-2-3-cake

I'm going to try this one in chocolate and also carrot cake! Yum!!

Gardening in small spaces...

I'm really interested in gardening in small spaces. Lately, I've found an interest in wanting to "live off the grid" without having to live 50 miles from nowhere. I'm a city girl and just couldn't adjust to living that far out of the city. But, I know there's a way to have the best of both worlds, so I'm on a mission to do just that as we speak.

I have a fairly large yard, that has a lot of space to do a variety of food and flower gardening. I have full sun sides, full shade sides and a happy medium side where my house is located. I have plenty of space to install a full food garden in my back yard, but would rather keep it simple and on a smaller scale. For some reason, I just like the way it would look. Problem is, I don't have a green thumb, so I could really use some tips on how to be a successful gardener. Also, I don't really have an eye for decorating, so I need help in that area, too. I want my gardens, food and flowers, to be pleasing to the eye as well.

I tend to research things before I start them. I've run across some great ideas, lately.  Probably one of the best ideas is how to use things I already have as containers to grow things in. They won't take up much space and can really add to the eye appeal. Here are a few examples of things I've found:

What ideas have you run across?

Welcome to my Blog! Our little corner of the World!

Well, I finally took the advice of a very good friend, Lynn and started a blog! I hope many of you will visit often and feel free to add to the conversations! Please feel free to add recipes, other blogs to follow, ideas, tips and tricks or just something you'd like to add.

We can discuss religion, politics, gardening, cooking, hobbies, books, movies, you name it! Just keep it clean and keep it civil! If you find an interesting idea or website you think will fit here, feel free to share it! I'm looking forward to what lies ahead in the future for this blog!

Welcome friends! New and old! I'm really excited!! Feel free to follow my on Facebook if you don't already: facebook.com/selina.grissom and on Twitter: @LilRdVet2. Happy blogging everyone! Ready? Set! BLOG!!