glammed gift tag

ok so glammed is a little bit of an overstatement but this was a really easy way to make a little girls gift tag go from simple and understated to pink and girly in two little cuts. i usually like simple and understated that's why i have these little white gift tags but a little girl is not simple and understated:)

take and old sticker sheet edge. cut the corner and lookie there a fun gift tag for a birthday party.

~type to you soon~

pancakes

today when i was making pancakes, (in my pajamas, not showered, hair matted) for our little g at 8:35 and he was supposed to be at school at 9:00, i thought to myself, why? well i promised pancakes to little g last night and one should never break a promise. little g has me promise him things quite often. he knows my feelings on this promise rule! his face while he helped me make the pancakes was priceless, it was worth the few minutes that we were late for school. it was once said that “Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend” . i would add to that time spent doing the good, the lovely, the right, the gracious...

~type to you soon~

photo credit: razor family farms

organic finds

today at walgreens i found oscillococcinum (the children's variety) on the clearance rack for $3.24. i had a $1 off coupon so i scored big time. $2.24 for and item that is usually $12. i also purchased the chestal that can be mailed in for a rebate for the full purchase price. the chestal is a wonderful product. we use both of these products to help with winter colds and flu every year. they are excellent! note: CORRECTION: YOU CAN ONLY PURCHASE 2 IF YOU LIVE IN RHODE ISLAND. SORRY ALL YOU OTHER FOLKS. can't beat that deal!

at kroger they have cascadian farm cereal in a double pack for $2.99 (over a 50% savings) and on the pack there is a coupon for a FREE box of cascadian granola bars. i found the cereal right on the edge of the produce department not in the cereal department.

let me know what you find.

~type to you soon~

observations of a 34 year old

pictured above: opera cream cake from the bon bonerie (my favorite) photo credit: enquirer.com

yesterday was my 34th birthday. i spent most of the day on a little shopping adventure, thanks to sweet mr. dc. and my precious friend denise (who cared for our 4 year old). i had several hours alone which does not happen to often, and i had a very pleasant uninterrupted lunch with my mom. here is what i have deduced about my life of 34 years.

1. i have sorely underestimated the importance of a GREAT bra my first 34 years of life! mind you, i was not wearing a bra the first 10 or 11 years of that life but since then, man was i wrong. a bra is not just a bra. i am NOT endowed, therefore in the past my experience with undergarments has been finding a good deal at the gap outlet:). well yesterday i splurged and bought 3 bras that support my nothingness. LET ME TELL YOU...the girls have been happy today!

2. i loved leggings in the 80's. "n" has worn leggings since the day she was born. i am now wearing leggings again. i love them...i might continue to wear them well past there "in style-ness". if you see me in my leggings in 7 years when everyone is wearing baggy pants again, i give you permission to clue me in at that point...until then, leave me to my legging bliss.

3. my children love to give gifts about as much as i do. they were so excited they could hardly wait for me to open my present from each of them. in fact, "g" was so overly excited that he opened it on his own as just kept saying in a VERY loud voice..."this is so snugly momma. we can snuggle momma."

4. mr. dc is by far the most generous, kind, thoughtful, procrastinating man on the planet. he did shop the day before my birthday this year, which is such an improvement from years past. i was soooooo proud! he also got almost everything that he purchased for me in the right size (even two pairs of jeans, amazing, and i really like the jeans). he did not like some of the jeans that i have been wearing, apparently they are a little to "grandma-ish". i think that i like grandma-ish, but i also like what his face looked like when i tried on the jeans that he bought.

5. i never tire of having a quiet, uninterrupted lunch with my mom. we do it so infrequently now that it is always such a special treat. i love my mom...i always will love my mom!

6. my friends are the best friends on the planet. if you need an awesome friend i can try to match you up with one of mine. i will however need a very in depth questionnaire filled out and have to conduct several thorough investigations into your personal life before i share. i could not have felt more loved yesterday. thank you, thank you, thank you!

~type to you soon~

deals at the drugstore

so here is the low down
spent:$17.39
would have spend that just on the razor and the toothpaste if bought at reg. price
total retail:$51.00 more depending upon where you shop

cvs has some great organic brands in their clearance section. you may want to check your local cvs. if you live near a rite aid they have some AWESOME deals this week on homeopathic medicine. i would go if i were you. check the deals on southern savers or thrifty mama.

~type to you soon~

apples

today was applesauce and dried apple day. i tried a new method to make the applesauce in the crock pot. it worked lovely. i peeled and sliced the apples, covered the bottom of the crock pot with water, added sugar (about 1/4 cup for every 5 apples) you may want to add more to taste. i also added cinnamon, not sure how much, just covered the top of the apples. i let those suckers cook for about 8 hours and the house could not have smelled more like a home. it was lovely. the dried apples were just peeled, sliced, and put in the dehydrator. we like to eat dried apples for snacks and use them for dried apple pies. you should really try the applesauce. it was really easy and the smell in the house was so worth the little effort that it took.

~type to you soon~

quaker oats coupon

here is a coupon for quaker oats for $2 off. that is a great deal and if you can find a good sale it will be near free. thanks organic deals.

have a great sunday

~type to you soon~

hospitality-thursday thoughts on friday

i read this excerpt in a book yesterday that talked about hospitality and how our perception of true hospitality is ridiculously skewed. the passage is worth reading. i hope that you enjoy it as much as i did.

"By worldly standards, hospitality is entertaining others, and the focus is on the host and the hostess. Their home is clean, the food is special and abundant, all has been well planned and prepared in advance. The host and hostess are smiling, and seem to have everything in order. The guests enjoy the evening and they will soon reciprocate.
By contrast Christian hospitality focuses on the guests. They are not ones to whom we are obligated because "they have had us over." They are saints of God, struggling Christians just as we are, who have a need. The first priority is meeting that need, which might be a place to stay, a listening ear, or just fellowship. If food is to be served, the quality and quantity is not important. The house does not have to be spotless but can look as though someone lives there."

this passage so spoke to my heart and the ridiculous emphasis that i put on things that really do not matter now and certainly not with an eternal perspective in mind. hope this pricks your heart in the way it did mine and probes you on to love and good deeds toward others.

~type to you soon~

passage found in This Love We Share by Harry and Emily Griffith

Marble Gooey Bars

photo credit: taste of home

this is for my sweet new friends i met this weekend. hope to see you soon. we will try to plan a committee get together at our house. sorry we missed you last night after, i was not feeling so great after we left. thanks again for the fun weekend!

crust:

1 package of yellow cake mix

1 stick of butter (melted)

1 large egg

filling:

1 package of cream cheese (8oz.) room temp.

2 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 stick of butter (melted)

3 3/4 cups of confectioners sugar

1 cup of semi sweet chocolate chips

preheat oven to 350

use 13 X 9 inch baking pan

crust:

combine cake mix butter and eggs in large mixing bowl. blend on low for 2 min. the batter should stick together in a ball. spread the batter over the bottom of the pan to make the crust.
filling:

for the filling you can use the bowl that you used for the crust and the beaters too. no need to clean. fluff the cream cheese by blending with the mixer. then add eggs, vanilla and melted butter and mix on medium for about a minute. add the confectioners sugar and beat on medium until sugar is incorporated.

melt the chocolate chips in either microwave or on stove. measure out one cup of the above filing and combine with the chips to make chocolate filing.

pour the white filing into the crust and spread over the entire crust. then drop spoonfuls of the chocolate over the white filing. run a butter knife over the chocolate drops to create marble effect.

bake until it is browned but the center should still jiggle ( this is one thing that is ok to jiggle:)

approx. 45-47 minutes. i think it took a little less time for me because i used a bigger pan.

keep in mind you might as well take 2 bars and place them on your rear because my dear friends this is where it will end up...but life is short...and gooey bars are soooooo good...

~type to you soon~

free lightbulbs from duke energy

if you are a duke customer for your electricity go HERE to read how to get free energy efficient light bulbs. seems like a great deal!
~type to you soon~

fall at the suburban farmhouse

i just love the way the berries intertwine in this antique bracket

teacups are always a great way to "pedestal something up"

this tray sits on an ottoman and just "cozies" the room

those little acorns are from a tree up the road

these acorns too...

our mantel is currently a really thin one...so decorating it can sometimes be a challenge...it won't be thin too much longer

simple centerpiece in the kitchen

the benches on the front porch

some of the pumpkins from our garden :)

hope this puts you in the mood for fall...i am so ready for some crisp cool days and warm sweaters!

~type to you soon~

encourage

a sweet lady came up to me at church today and told me that she read domestic chick and ask if i was the author of the site. it was such a sweet word of encouragement. so often i think that we don't recognize how much an encouraging word means. so today encourage someone. encourage your child who is struggling in an area or your husband that might need some recognition for all that he does. i am so thankful for this little blog and all of you who so graciously entertain my ramblings. have a great Sunday!

God encourages Moses to encourage Joshua and the encouragement strengthens him...

But commission Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him, for he will lead this people across and will cause them to inherit the land that you will see.

Deuteronomy 3:28

~type to you soon~

photo credit:corasnc