I spy with my little eye...

...stuff I'd like to buy.

A Trip to the Thrift.

Today is payday (woohoo!) so after school I ventured over to my fave thrift store to peruse around.

I found a couple things, and none of them cost more than $.99! Yay!

I found this great walnut candle holder (.99). The bottom of it says that it is from Ozark Missouri Walnut. Nice.


I think it'll look great in our bathroom with a chunky white candle on top.

Next I found this cute vintage-y green vase (.99).


It reminds me of the drinking glasses my grandparents used to have. Oh childhood memories.

I always look through the book section as I love old books. Today, two caught my eye.


The first one attracted me because of its pretty colors (yellow and gray), and the title made me laugh out loud. How To Keep Slender and Fit After Thirty.
That stage of life is closer than I'd like, so I should probably get a-readin'.

The second one I loved the color and pattern of the book. Plus I'm a teacher, so a Linguistics book or two never hurt.


What do you think? Do you all have any great thrift store finds?

Flashback.

I heard this song on the radio today and the memories came flooding back.



Almost 3 years ago I was making this slideshow for our wedding. Want to hear the weird thought process I had in making it??

I wanted to make people cry.

How awful and weird am I?

Oh well.

Enjoy.


(Isn't Mr. Free the cutest little boy ever??? I think so too.)

xoxo, Jenny Free

Stumblin'....

OK.....see that little graphic that says 'I Like It' right under my 'About Me' section???

Well, if you LIKE (I sure hope you do!) my blog, you can click that little icon, which will lead you to www.stumbleupon.com , a website that helps bloggers connect through common interests and helps recommend top-rated blogs.

If you have a moment and feel so obliged, please review my blog and *hopefully* recommend it to others!!!

THANK YOU READERS!!!!

Oh! And if you do enjoy reading my blog regurlarly, please 'follow' my blog by clicking the link to the right! That way you will *always* be updated on the latest news in the Free household.

Random.

Today's post is random. But it's my blog.....so I can do what I wish. : )

First off.... Monday was a Snow/Ice day at the Free household, and on those rare occassions, it is slowly turning into Doughnut Hole days as well.

Our household loves donut holes. (Yes I spelled them two different ways, just appealing to the masses)
For our rotation for breakfast in Sunday School, we always bring homemade donut holes.


Today's post is random. But it's my blog.....so I can do what I wish. : )

They are soooo stinkin' easy.

Equipment:
*Deep Fryer (or skillet filled with an inch of hot oil(

Ingredients:
* Canned biscuits (as many cans as you like! The 'grands' type will be able to become 4 donut holes each biscuit, the regular kind will be 2 donut holes per biscuit)
* Cinnamon
* Reg. sugar AND powdered sugar

Directions:
* Heat oil to 374 degrees.
* Cut biscuits into either quarters or halves depending on how big the biscuit.
* Roll into balls.
* Drop them in the fry basket, or hot oil
* Keep them in til golden brown (only a minute or 2)
*** You may need to flip them, depending on frying method
* Stick hot, fresh donut holes in a paper sack with a few tbs. of reg. sugar, powdered sugar and cinnamon
* Shake the bag like a polaroid picture
* Eat and enjoy.

They are sooooooooooooooo good. Mmmmmmmmm.

Next:
Please promise me before you die, KC locals that you will try, at least once, Shatto Milk's Root Beer milk???



It is sooooo good. You're honostly missing out if you haven't had a taste.

It's local. It's delicious. It's Kansas City. (Wow...that's a good slogan! Maybe I should have gone into advertising... : ? )

Thirdly and finally:

Mr. Free and I decided on our living room window treatment dilemna. We hope to work on it this weekend. Here's a sneak peek. (We aren't going with just one of the inspirations, we are combing a couple. Genius.)



It'll involve these.

Well there you go.....'til next time.

Sugar and Spice...TWICE as nice!

Mr. Free and I are going to be the proud aunt and uncle to twin neices this summer!

We are so excited to welcome little ones to our family!

We found out the genders of our two precious little neices this week, so I've been in full aunt mode!

Thoughts of baby showers and presents have filled my head! These are going to be two very spoiled little girls!

As a big fan of Etsy, I decided to peruse that sight in search of precious things for two lovely little girls. Oh boy, that site is sure addicting. Especially the baby stuff. I hadn't ventured to that part of Etsy before....it is too cute!

Here's some of my favorite baby girl finds!

How cute is this dress!


And these booties!


I normally hate ponchos on adults, but look how precious and cuddly it is on a sweet baby girl!


And I really think all little girls need hats and headbands until their girly locks come in.



These little shoes are so adorable!


I love these stuffed giraffes! (Giraffes are my favorite zoo animal...partly because they have freckles like me!)


I'm normally NOT a girly girl (pink has never been my favorite color), but how stinkin' adorable is this tutu?!


And of my goodness, I'd wear this cardigan myself! How much cuter on a baby!


And since they are twins...how cute are these onesies???!!


For those of you with little ones or expecting little ones, I highly recommend checking out Etsy for some unique, handmade items for your sweet little one!

Does anybody have any other sites to check out for possible gifts or ideas for my neices???? Let me know!

Inspiration

On a cold snow day like today, I need inspiration. This has a been a LONG winter, which can get down right depressing. Here's some glimpses of personal inspiration. Enjoy.

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."
Deuteronomy 31:6



"Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed."
Proverbs 16:3



"That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil-this is the gift of God."
Ecclesiastes 3:13



"The LORD is my light and my salvation- whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life- of whom shall I be afraid?"
Psalm 27:1



"The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them.
People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
1 Samuel 16:7 (NLT)



"But my God shall supply all your need
according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus"
Philippians 4:19 (KJV)



"Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice."
Philippians 4:4 (KJV)

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Need design inspiration? Check out this site.
I'm looking for some DIY Inpsirational Spaces. Do you have a room you'd like featured on my blog? Shoot me an e-mail and we can make that happen!
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Where do you draw inspiration? A specific verse, poem, prayer? Leave me a comment to help inspire others!

Need an awesome screensaver?

Probably.

Most are lame.

While perusing design blogs, I noticed a couple people's Macs had a sweet vintage flip-clock screensaver. And I figured out how to get it.

Go me.

Here's what it looks like:


pic via apartmenttherapy


pic via Making It Lovely



It's a free download. You can get it here. (Pssst....it's the one on the left!)

And to my non-converted friends.... it's available for Windows too. : )

Enjoy.

I need COLOR in the kitchen!

I've come to the realization I have been afraid of color in our home!

Almost every room is brown/black/white with aqua. Our house is so little I was afraid to make it too lively.

Wrong.

I need color. I'm bored.

So....Im starting in the kitchen.
The base colors in there were, surprise, aqua and brown.
I'm adding YELLOW! My new favorite color!

Here's my recent additions, with a few yellow accents.


(Yes I know, most of your closets are bigger than my kitchen. : ( )

To shop from the things I already own, I pulled a recycled paper flower pot I bought for $1.50 last season on clearance at Target and am currently using it as a cookie cutter holder....adding a little more punch of color.


Here's the aqua and yellow together...I love it with the white and chocolate brown! It's kind of retro.


Here's my wish list for my kitchen, to add a few more punches of color:


Pitcher- Target $9.99



Cookie Jar- Target $9.99



Bread Box- Target $14.99 (I absolutely LOVE this!!!)

And the crowing jewel that I would DIE to have in my kitchen:


Kitchen Aid Yellow Artisan Stand Mixer- Amazon $250 (Beautiful and practical)

So, there's my wish list. Sigh.

Readers, are you afraid of color like I was or do you live in a vibrant home? Do share!!!

Espresso Nutella Shake

Meet my new boyfriend.



His name is Nutella. He's Italian.
(I know that's a bad picture...I just finished a 1st grade concert. I'm tired. Sue me. Actually, please don't. I'm a teacher. I have no money.)

Today I concocted a little jewel. Espresso Nutella Milkshake.

The recipe is as follows:

2 shots espresso- cooled to room temperature
4 scoops of vanilla ice cream (I used low-carb because I'm healthy like that..hahahahaha)
3 globs of Nutella (that is the correct measurement. globs.)

Throw all that stuff in the blender, give it a whirl and pour.

You're welcome, world.

Oh Target, I love you.

Thanks to gift cards, I've been able to do some shopping without melting our spending freeze. It's truly helped keep my sanity!

I went perusing Target the other day and found some steals! Oh how much I stinkin' love Target!

Number 1:


Throw pillow by Dwell Studio

I've always loved the Dwell Studio line at Target. Their stuff is modernly beautiful! However, their price is still a bit high for my liking.
I've had my eye on this pillow ever since it came to the shelves.

But last week, I saw that beloved red sticker on its label.

Original price: $24.99, Clearance: $4.99

YES PLEASE!

Number 2:


Yellow Kitchen clock.

I've got a whole other post about the changes I'm making in my kitchen, but long story short, I want some yellow accents.

I also wanted a clock in the kitchen.

Badabingbadaboom.

This clock I did NOT buy on clearance. I know... I know..... I'm disappointing. But wait til you hear its price.

$3.99

Yes.... $3.99. Forgive me now?

Number 3:


Kitchen rug

Our old kitchen rug was starting to fall apart, so I had been on the lookout for a replacement. I originally wanted something with lots of color, but when I turned the corner and saw this, I fell in love.

Then I saw the price tag and fell head over heels!

Original price: $24.99 Clearance: $6.24

Every time I come into my kitchen now, that cute little rug makes me smile!


So, anybody else find any great bargains lately?! Do share!!!

Stressed?

Yeah, me too.

Having yesterday off was wonderful, but life sure kicked me in the teeth today.
I love my job, and I'm blessed to have a job I love, but whoo golly. This is a whopper of a week.

If you have kids in school, tell their teachers how much you appreciate them. It really will make their day!

Anyways, I've got a lot on my plate which I KNOW I'm not the only one feeling that way.

In fact, I need to count my blessings in that I have a job to be stressed over. That I don't have a crisis going on in my life or family that is the source of stress.

I am blessed.

Below is a video that Mr. Free and I absolutely love. It's actually a 40 minute sermon, but the clip below gets to the heart of the message. A message I need every.single.day.

Please take time to watch it, or at least part of it. It is absolutely wonderful. So great, Mr. Free and I own it on DVD.

I pray your lives (my 2 readers!) are stress-free and blessed.

Valentine's Rewind

Mr. Free and I had a great, relaxing Valentine's Day this year.

I was still getting over whatever stomach bug I had this weekend, so we slept in, ate great food and watched reality television. We never do that, so it was genuinely a treat. Here's some pics from our fun day together.

We had a pink brunch. Pink eggs and pancakes. We have a weird fascination with food coloring. Lord knows what our insides look like. Of course we washed that down with some Shatto chocolate milk.




Mr. Free got me some gorgeous roses and made me an Edible Arrangement! It was very thoughtful and delicious! That man went all out, it's seriously over 10 pounds! If anyone wants to stop by for some chocolate covered fruit, be our guest!




Here's the best picture I have of the art project I made Mr. Free. It is still drying at this point. You know I love houndstooth, and we love our basset hounds. So the two seemed to fit nicely. Houndstooth. Har har har.



Then we enjoyed a nice relaxing dinner and evening. We had steak and potatoes and mint oreo ice cream cake for desser!



Hope you all had a wonderful day with those you love!