I Heart Pyrex (II) and Flirty Sanchez

My blog post title sounds kind of risque, wouldn't you say...

After posting about my love for Pyrex earlier today, Jenny, from Flirty Sanchez is offering my readers a whopping 15% off their purchase from her Etsy shop with the code:

MNHOUSEWIFE

In addition to this piece I featured earlier in my blog post:

1972 Vintage Pyrex Bowl or Casserole with Lid and Stand

Flirty Sanchez is Jenny's way to "sell a lifetime, or half a lifetime anyway, of collected artifacts, antiques, family heirlooms, vintage clothes and pop culture kitsch."

In addition to her sweet vintage goods, Jenny also offers sweet vegan treats which, she describes in her shop profile, "organic, natural, fair trade and vegan ingredients sourced from my local food co-op. I have also sourced eco-friendly packaging - from 100% biodegradable and compostable cello bags and cellophane, to natural fiber ribbons from the Distant Village Fair Trade Program to re-usable market baskets."

Jenny says, "I'm trying to save the world one order of vegan goodness at a time."

Awesome.

Here are some more peeks at some of the goods she carries in her shop:

1980s Vintage Jelly Shoes

Vintage Strawberries Enamel Sauce Pot

Vintage Egyptian Turquoise Scarab Pendant Charm

Flirty's Organic Vegan Dark Chocolate Fudge

Flirty's Peanut Butter Swirl Fudge-tastic Vegan Fudge

Aaannd, maybe you know of some vegan and organic loving friends? Jenny offers Gift Certificates!

So, let your friends pick out what they want....

Thanks again, Jenny! And don't forget your 15% off code MNHOUSEWIFE, readers!

I heart Vintage Pyrex

I was emptying my dishwasher this afternoon (while James was strategically placed under the kitchen ceiling fan to keep him occupied! Neat trick, huh?) and found I had used 5 pieces of vintage Corning Ware and Pyrex in the last two days. I think I failed to realize how much I actually use the stuff. The small Corning Ware is perfect for kid and adult food alike. From frozen peas to Spaghetti O's. Same goes for the Pyrex and the big bowl is my favorite for mixing and for salads!



Awesome things about Pyrex?

• Useful
• Come in a plethora of sizes
• Easy to clean
• Pretty
• Collectible
• Often have lids
• Often "nest" and/or stack neatly

I remember stumbling across a Pyrex dream cabinet on Pinterest a few months ago:

Photo Credit // Pyrex Pixie

Can you imagine? My mother collects Candlewick and my great-grandmother Red Wing pottery. Could I possibly live up to their collections by starting my own vintage Pyrex cabinet? Probably not.

Here are a few neat uses for vintage Pyrex (as well as some pretty gorgeous sets for sale) I have found on Etsy this afternoon:

Photo Credit // Old Vintage Goodies

Photo Credit // Sassbox Classic

Photo Credit // The Vagrant Duck

Photo Credit // Olive and Frances

Photo Credit // Flirty Sanchez

Photo Credit // Psych and Eros

I also stopped by the cutest shop, Erin Ink Design, that features some neat Pyrex inspired goodies:

Set of 6 Note Cards

Bridal Shower Stationary

5x7 Art

Glass Tile Magnet

Find out more about Erin on her Website and Facebook!

Ok, now I am really craving a thrift run for some more Pyrex...had enough yet? Any other Pyrex fans out there and or what other kind dishware stashes do you have?

My Crumpled Craft List From the Pocket of My Hoodie

Ever make little (or big) lists for yourself? Well, I just found a little list in pocket of my hoodie that I would like to share with you. Why?

Photo Credit // Not on the High Street

Because I can.

& because this is a cute list for the craft/fabric/thrift store with some Pinterest inspirations in mind. Some of the things on the list I am embarassed I don't have, actually.

1. Pinking Scissors
2. Rotary Cutter
3. Cutting Mat
4. fabric paint
5. seam ripper (a couple extras because I always hide them from David & then I can't find them.)
6. jersey knit
7. stencils (to create things like this)
8. fabric for pillow cover (because I want this pillow)
9. thrift ribbon (for turning scrap fabric into taggies)
10. card stock paper
11. clearance spray paint
12. canvas/slate/large frames (to paint over or remove insides to make things like this)
13. wall shelves
14. cube storage
15. console table

The bad thing about me is I cannot FOCUS. I always have 1001 ideas swimming in my head and I end up partially finishing or start feeling too overwhelmed to start. My little lists should look more like this:

1. living room
2. kitchen
3. bedroom downstairs
4. dining room art

Get one section of my house done or one craft project done. Then I can feel a little more complete! Ugh, and with Spring here...don't get me started. What do your lists look like right now?

Easy Peasy Country Style Pork Ribs

Country Style Pork Ribs

Feed your family on the cheap with Country Style Pork Ribs from your local grocery. This recipe is perfect for cooking before the hubs gets home and then letting him grill for a few minutes to finish off this tasty meal!

You will need:
4 lb Country Pork Ribs
Season Salt
1/4 C water
BBQ Sauce

Roasting Pan
Wire Rack (for bottom of pan)
Tin Foil
Oven

Tongs
Basting Brush
Grill

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
Take out roasting pan and place wire rack on bottom of pan to keep ribs from touching their own fat drippings. Remove ribs from packaging and lightly season with season salt (I use Lowry's).

Pour 1/4 cup water into bottom of pan. Place ribs on wire rack in pan and seal pan tightly with tin foil.
Cook for 2 hours at 350 degrees.

After 2 hours, take out of oven & set aside. Pre-heat outdoor grill on high. Once pre-heated, gently (they can fall apart) place ribs on grill with tongs. Turn often for about 10 minutes. Use drippings from bottom of pan to baste ribs as you grill them.

Baste on BBQ sauce for the last 2 minutes and watch for burning.

And you are done! This is a great meal to plan with left over sides! We had salad, baked beans and tator tots with our ribs but I can imagine you could go quite fancy if you wanted to, as well.

Pork ribs fresh out of the oven.

Hubs' favorite thing to do after work! Grill with a beer!

Adding the Hunt's BBQ sauce.

Raised Garden Bed Project

I am thinking of building a raised garden bed in the back right corner of my back yard. Not quite sure how we will plan it out so, I am moving all the ugly rock that lies there now.

Photo Credit // Scout Regalia

Home depot has an instructional class this Saturday morning and I am tempted to bop in a get some pointers(and supplies? eek!).

So far, I have moved about 10 minutes worth of rock. As a Mom, everything is calculated in mintues as, usually, I only have 10 minute alotted time incriments for projects not involving my children!

David was a "super big help" taking rocks and putting them in the bucket for Mom! You should have seen his little face light up everytime he heard the rock plunk in the bottom of the bucket. A few times, he wanted to grab the same rock and throw it back in but, I had to explain to him, the point of filling the bucket full of rocks was to not have rocks in the yard.

Good thing my husband explained that one to me or I might have been plunking the same rock in the bucket all week, too...


Corner before.

Hopefully, these "before" pictures will have a good "after"...

Monday Night Baby Deals



Kushies Trial Pack in Green/Brown

There are some seriously awesome baby deals going on right now!

Kushies Reusable Ultra-lite Diapers Trial Pack $19.98 (Orig. $39.98)

FuzziBunz 3 Pack Microfiber Inserts, Medium/Large $4.25 (Orig. $9.95)

Munchkin Warm Glow Wipe Warmer $19.39(Orig. $29.99)

Zutano Elephant 3 Pack Burp Clothes $14.63 (Orig. $44.40)

Summer Infant Contoured Changing Pad $15.54 (Orig. $28.95)

GYRO BOWL Spill Resistant Kids Gyroscopic Bowl with Lid $5.79 (Orig. $12.99)

The Teethifier II $5.79 (Orig. $9.95)

Munchkin The Medicator, Colors May Vary $3.49

Baby Chef Ultimate Baby Food Maker $46.99 (Orig. $173.00)

Vtech - Move & Crawl Ball $12.23 (Orig. $16.99)

Levana ClearVu Digital Video Baby Monitor with Color Changing Night Light (LV-TW301) $75.00 (Orig. $199.99)

Fisher-Price Bath Tub Corner Cubby $10.99 (Orig. $14.99)

Gerber First Essentials 2 Pack Natural Flex Pacifier, Colors May Vary $1.49 (Orig. $5.52)

For All You Stay at Home Parents Out There via Tiffany Burke Photography

Photo Credit // Tiffany Burke Photography

Story taken from Tiffany Burke Photography.

A man came home from work and found his 3 children outside, still in their pyjamas, playing in the mud, with empty food boxes and wrappers strewn around garden, The door of his wife's car was open, as was the front door to the house and no sign of the dog, walking in the door, he found ...an even bigger mess. A lamp had been knocked over, the ...throw rug was against one wall, In the front room the TV was on loudly with the cartoon channel, the family room was strewn with toys and various items of clothing. In the kitchen, dishes filled the sink, breakfast food was spilled on the counter, the fridge door was open wide, dog food was spilled on the floor, a broken glass lay under the table, and a small pile of sand was spread by the back door.

He quickly headed up the stairs, stepping over toys and more piles of clothes, looking for his wife. He was worried she might be ill, or that something serious had happened. He was met with a small trickle of water as it made its way out the bathroom door. As he peered inside he found wet towels, scummy soap and more toys strewn over the floor. Miles of toilet paper lay in a heap and toothpaste had been smeared over the mirror and walls.

As he rushed to the bedroom, he found his wife still curled up in the bed in her pyjamas, reading a novel... She looked up at him, smiled and asked how his day went.

He looked at her bewildered and asked, "What happened here today?"

She again smiled and answered, "You know every day when you come home from work and you ask me what in the world do I do all day?..."
"Yes," was his incredulous reply..

She answered, "Well, today I didn't do it."

High Plains Thrifter "Spring into Summer" Giveaway

Die hard thrifter and vintage pal, Meghan, at High Plains Thrifter is having a "Spring into Summer" Giveaway on her blog!

Goods include a vintage beach tote filled with "beachy treats"! Super to die for!

Photo Credit //  High Plains Thrifter

Photo Credit // High Plains Thrifter

Included:
The beach tote
Heart-shaped wood veneer sunnies from Tumbleweeds Oddities
Not Your Mother’s Beach Babe Texturizing Sea Salt Spray
L’Oreal’s Sublime Sun Liquid Silk Sunshield-SPF 50+
Hawaiian Tropic Shimmer Effect After Sun Moisturizer
Summer Fruits lip balm by eos
“This is Not Chick Lit,” edited by Elizabeth Merrick

Visit High Plains Thrifter and leave a comment to enter the giveaway. Tweet about her giveaway and score and extra entry!

Be sure to check out some of her other posts as well. I love reading about her thrifting adventures!

Caption Me: I Didn't Ask For This

When the hubs and I decided to have another baby (which we decided immediately following having the first), I think I wanted new baby because I thought he would make first baby so happy.

"I didn't ask for this!!!"

There are those moments when it is not I who thinks, I didn't ask for this because, you bet your butt I asked for this.

It is poor little first baby, our David, our everything, our star, the love of our lives... who didn't ask for this.

Now, I am really exaggerating in the above photo. This isn't what our days are like most of the time. I asked David to "please lay by your brother so Mama could can get a picture to send to Grandma D." This is the picture we got.

I am exxttrreeemely blessed to have an amazing first born who truly loves, helps, and looks out for his baby brother. Sometimes, I sit in my chair and get tears in my eyes over David's genuine sweetness towards his brother. Yes, there have been a few times (as I recap my Facebook wall for stauts updates) when I felt like I was saying "don't touch your brother" more than I would have liked, but overall I couldn't have asked for a better kid.

We love David so much that we wanted to give him his brother. All of a sudden the word, "kiiidddssss", laced with excitement, started escaping David. He looked like a little puppy dog who just heard the word "outside" at every mention of seeing kids. The other week, I got dropped off by the hubby and kids at a girlfriends house. When they pulled away, David started crying not because his Mommy was leaving, but because he wanted to stay and play with her "kiiiidddss".

It is my biggest fear as a stay-at-home Mom, that people will look at my kids and think to themselves that they are "stay-at-home Mom" kids. I can't even describe, I guess, what a stay-at-home Mom kid is in a bad way - unsocialized, maybe? A Mama's boy? Fearful? Uneducated? Unexposed?

To be sure none of these descriptions fits the bill for my kid, we go. We do. I encourage. I support them. I love them. I let them be and I also hold them back when they need to be. Sometimes (and it's harder than you think), I have to leave them. I have to go be MB instead of Mom.

Through all of this going and doing, hopefully, David and James will be looking at each other instead of looking at me. That is how I remember my childhood. I know my Mom was there somewhere but it is my brother and my sister who I remember doing things with. That to me, is a damn good Mom.

I tease that David loves me now, he may not love me when he is 20, but please let him love me by the time he is 30.

After having James, I think to myself, please let him love his brother. Always.

Great Cloth Diaper Change 2012 Blaine, MN

Happy Earth Day!

I had the pleasure of taking part in the Great Cloth Diaper Change 2012 with sweet baby James this morning. All Things Diapers was official host site of the Guinness World Record event at the Davinci Academy School in Blaine, MN.

They also had a free Baby Expo from 9am-11pm before the diaper change. Some of the vendors included:
Musikgarten with Emily Ireland
BonnieBaby
Baby Wawl
Hygeia Breast Pumps
Bavia Baby
Smart Snugs
Original Diaper Pail

I was a little intimidated at first. Just because I had never been to anything like it before and it was just me and my youngest son, James. He was happy as a clam in his carrier, bopping around as I perused the various booths. With about 45 minutes to spare, I decided to just sit and hang out. It was so cute to watch all the babies and toddlers with their Mommies and Daddies!

I small talk and chit-chatted with a few nice women and it really came naturally as cloth diapering is my favorite thing to talk about! When it was time for the change, we all lined up with out pre-registered tickets and entered (or re-entered depending on where you were sitting) the changing area. I tell you, there were so many cute cloth diapered babies, I could barely believe it.

James was changed into a white Thirsties cover with a Flip Stay-Dry Insert. Probably the most boring looking diaper but it is one of our favorite cloth combinations. One of my cousins has described me as the most normal nerdy person she has known and I sort of wish I would have strapped James into an ultra flashy diaper, just to say I did!

I was looking forward to stocking up on some needed cloth diaper items at the All Things Diapers store but I decided to save that for another day. They host small events and workshops like Mother's Milk Hour, Cloth Diaper 101 and Swap meets. More information about events and the product they carry can be found on All Things Diapers' website!