What Happens in Vegas.....

.....Sometimes lasts ten years!   

October 7th, 2000 we sealed the deal at the Four Seasons in Las Vegas.  

80 of our friends and family enjoyed the long Columbus Day weekend, celebrating with us, hanging by the pool and gambling the night away.  

It was so much fun.  

Tiger Woods was having his annual celebrity charity function the same night and we saw Charles Barkley, Seal and some other pseudo-celebrities that night.  

After the wedding we all headed out to the Mandalay casino and Tom said Tiger checked out his new bride.  Little did we know...huh?  

10 years fast forward, a move to and from LA, 3 apartments, one house, job changes, 2 babies, construction nightmares, new business 

and here we are, almost as broke as the day we said "I do"....  

All I could afford to get Tommy were a pair of shoes, but as my anniversary card said to him, shoes can be romantic, too.  

If he did not wear shoes the night we met, Rock Bottom Brewery's bouncers would not have let him in the door, thus no fateful meeting.  

His shoes kept him strolling back to my apartment door, they walked down the aisle with me, helped me to Prentiss Maternity Hospital and through the door of our first house. 

Shoes, to me, represent the journey through life.  

Life is still challenging for us, with the house nightmare not over yet and our little business still in the scary, survival stage, but we know that everything is gonna be alright.  

I have walked 10 years with my love 

 and I hope the road is long....

Come Flea with Me....

Cash....check.  

List....check.  

Decaf.....check.  

Warm clothes.....check.  

As I crossed the gates of the Kane County Flea Market at 7:30 this morning, I wished I had my gloves.  Brrrrr, it was 45 degrees outside!  

It's been a long time since I visited this monthly flea market extravaganza and many of the vendors hadn't uncovered their wares when I arrived.  It's good to be early and and to get a close parking spot, though, in case you become laden with numerous, heavy treasures. 

At a big flea like this, you have to bring a list or else you are overwhelmed by all the good stuff.  

Of course, it's okay to stumble upon cool, unexpected items, like this adorable headband from The Twinkled Twig...

www.thetwinkledtwig.bigcartel.com   

I love it, but I think it's more appropriate on Kate.  I might be too tall or dare I say, too old to get away with it's whimsical nature.....  

I wasn't looking for silver salt & pepper shakers, but they looked so inviting bunched together.  My new friend, Catherine, of Freddy & Petunia, 

www.freddyandpetunia.com  

was so gracious and fun to talk to.  They had a great booth of cool items, too!  

On my list was vintage feed sack cloth.  I want to make a pillow.  They are a hot trend and you can find reproductions at Pottery Barn, etc., but they cost $50.00, like this one...

The cheapie in me wants to make my own, but I failed in finding any fabric.  

Next on the list was unique pumpkins, which I found at a good price.  

I was hoping to find two nice antique dining chairs to complete my set at home....no luck today....  Last on the list was an antique clear glass compote.  I saw only one and the price was right, but it didn't hit me, you know what I mean? 

These cake plates were awesome, though.  I love the blue one especially.  Too $$$.....  

I found a couple more snappy handmade fabric flower pins, such as this white wool one, and a license plate thingy that I need to assemble for Jack. (Will show later..)

I'd say it was a pretty good expedition....unexpected finds among the failures on the list.  

Next stop is the French Hens Market  http://3frenchhensmarket.blogspot.com/ October 9th...

What's fer dinner, Grampaw?

Do you remember that skit on Hee Haw? 

 "What's fer dinner, Grampaw?" 

 "We got possum innerds, collard greens and fatback!"

Cracked me up when I was a little kid....

Yep, I'm feeling the mom's daily refrain......

"Crap, it's 2pm; gotta figure out what to make for dinner..." 

There are weeks when I make a meal plan for the following week...

This is not one of those weeks... 

It is, however, a clean-out-the-freezer/pantry kind of week.  Use up the food!  Don't spend money! 

Can we do it?  Yes we can!  (in the words of Bob the Builder....You moms with kids under the age of 4 know just what I'm talkin' about....) 

So, here it is.... 

Sweet & Savory Chicken,

http://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipes/take-five-ingredients-recipes/Sweet---Savory-Chicken-Wings/Print/

Steamed Green Beans with a mustard vinagrette,

http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/green-bean-salad-mustard-vinaigrette-10000001699378/print-index.html

Fruit Cocktail

 and Crescent Rolls. 

Not fancy, but quick, kid friendly and CHEAP!  I might even go crazy and whip up instant pudding with chocolate chips, parfait style,

but don't hold me to it. 

Depends on time of day, how many times Jack pinches Kate and she screams and whether my headache gives up its grip. 

My vote is for puddin'.....

Fall Fell Here...

 

So school has been in session for 16 days and already the kids have a day off.  

Huh??  

Actually, Kate's Prek is in session, but Jack is foot loose and fancy free.  Lucky for me a play date materialized and I was awarded three precious hours to myself.  

Given the fact that I have about $10 until next Friday nixed any idea of a shopping excursion, although I did check out the Jayson Home & Garden French Flea Market 

http://www.jaysonhomeandgarden.com/home.php  

The items were gorgeous and outrageously expensive and all sorts of pretty, hip and wealthy ladies who lunch were giving $5,000 couches serious thought.  

I cased the joint for some good ideas I could do on a dime and headed back home for some indulgent pursuits such as picking up my husband's socks, underwear and shoes from the floor, putting away truckloads of laundry only to start more loads of wash and finishing the morning dishes.  

The breeze is fabulous today...cool and getting crisper by the minute, so I opened all the windows to blow the stink out of this place.  

Then I tackled the "Fall" bin of decorations.  I feel like a schoolteacher getting out the classroom decorations, using them again this year.  I'd love to supplement with some fresh accessories, but it's not gonna happen.  

I took some fall decor pix last year, so if my arrangements look vaguely familiar, you know why.  

I had a highschool teacher, Betty Roseberg, who reused her classroom decorations so much that you could see dozens of pinholes where she tacked the faded paper apples, etc. to the corkboards year after year.  So much for shaking things up!  She was not a risk taker, believe me!  

Anyway, even though the fall decorations are not new and different, it feels a little comforting to see them up....my little declaration that fall is here in the Herlihy house.....

Time to make the doughnuts.....

Don't you love the October issue of most of the home and food magazines?  They get you in that cozy, comfort food state of mind. 

I want to pull out all the warm, loopy throws, stack wood next to the fireplace and make a chicken pot pie, from scratch....

Today is the first official day of Autumn and I am in a fall-ish mood. 

Only problem is that it is 90 degrees outside! 

So much for the turtlenecks, cords and short boots.... 

I knew that fall would arrive with a hot sizzle today, so I compensated by making a fall treat instead. 

Country Living's website has a recipe for Cider Doughnuts.  It didn't look too hard ( I haven't made doughnuts before...), so I put together the batter last night and stuck it in the fridge. 

I woke early this am to start doughnut production. 

Apparently a little rodent was up just a little sooner so he could have a feast of my trash bag on the porch.  He seems to be hanging from his post, checking out possible invaders.... 

Anyway, I tossed the batter onto a floured counter, rolled it out and cut the doughnuts. 

After the oil got to 370 degrees, in they went.  It's a little tricky to keep the temp right...too hot and they "sear" with a doughy interior.....too cool and they soak up the oil as they cook. 

After they came out of the oil, Kate was in charge of the cinnamon sugar shake.  She liked that! 

I brought these cider apple bad boys to work, hoping the guys would not find them inedible. They kind of look like oversalted bagels....

 Lucky for me, they tasted good. 

So, even though it's hot enough to hit the pool and pretend summer is still here,

Welcome Fall!  Let's get to it!

A Good Fake Day....

It is a good fake day....

One of those days when you throw together an outfit to get out the door, not sure what the weather is going to do, not sure if your footwear is going to work. 

Actually, I try to plan my clothes the night before, so it is one less thing to stress about in the morning.  So, the stress is just shifted back eight hours or so. 

My closet is full of worn out, too short, not cool clothes.  I am just tired of everything and wish I could dump the entire contents into a donation catcher. 

I am sure you feel the same way from time to time.... 

I mean who has matching underwear sets, more than a few pairs of socks that have a mate and just the right handbag/belt/shoes for each outfit? 

I wish! 

 Nope, those days of looking put together ended after I left the coutured halls of St. John Knits, got married, was introduced to kids, spit up and general poverty. 

T$ and I sometime dream in bed about what nice things we might buy some day when we make some money.  First on the list is a new mattress. You can see tow trenches where our bodies repose....terrible! Somewhere down the list are some new, fresh duds. 

Poor T$ is looking pretty threadbare these days, too.  Thank goodness we have uniforms at the factory, so shirts are no longer an issue. 

So, back to that dream....

If I could go on a shopping spree I would conjure up the spirit of Audrey Hepburn and buy classic khakis, wool trousers, pencil skirts. 

I would have a couple of fabulous crisp shirts from Anne Fontaine (an investment, of course...), Sundance Catalog has some awesome boots, and Talbot's, of all places, offers great basic turtlenecks and blouses that don't look old lady.  To finish off this dream shopping spree, I'd swing by my fave Anthro for some eclectic skirts, sweaters and accessories. 

Oh yeah..... I have it all figured out and could execute my plan in a matter of minutes. 

Until our Sunfish-sized ship comes in, creative compromise is the game. 

Target provided a few cute pieces, in this khaki skirt and tee.  Necklace is vintage Grandma's and sandals are older than Kate, I think. 

Fakin' it and even got a compliment or two today.....