Ants Have Taken Over My Kitchen

Dear ants inhabiting my kitchen,

Seriously...could you leave, already? I mean come on. I understand that there's good stuff on the countertops sometimes and dirty dishes in the sink callin' your name and all. But still.

Don't you read the internet? There are pages upon pages of tips on how to get rid of you. I have followed all of that advice and none of it is working. I've tried to give you little "ant motels" to hang out in. Were they not decorated cute enough, or something?

From what I understand, you don't like to cross over a line of chalk or a sprinkling of baby powder. Do you realize that it is not fun having baby powder sprinkled all over my kitchen? Although, baby powder is preferable to having you all over the counters.

We've caulked up the spots you use as your special "doors" and bought the nice expensive Terro stuff the internet promises will make you leave us alone. What is with you anyway? Just go away!

I'm seriously too discusted to cook in my kitchen right now and my family menus and budgets are suffering.

Windex kills you right on the spot and I've got plenty of it, but I'm pretty sick of cleaning up trails of your carcasses all over my kitchen. Just eat that sweet smellin' stuff and leave us alone. You have really overstayed your welcome.

Tybee Island, Georgia

This is a slideshow from last September when my husband & I (no kiddos) celebrated our 10 year anniversary at Tybee Island, GA. It was wonderful. I just thought I'd share my smilebox creation here. Enjoy!

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Take 2 Of These And Call Me In the Morning - Organizing Medicine

Where is that perfect location to store medicine? We've been told that it is definitely not in the bathroom, due to all the heat and moisture, even though that is where the medicine cabinet lives.


I keep mine in the kitchen. It seems the most convenient spot for my family. In this house, I've kept in on the tip top shelf in the pantry, you know, the one my kids can't reach (I can't reach it either, for that matter). So I dread getting medicine out. Especially since I get lots of free and cheap medicine due to the CVS deals. What's a girl to do?


How 'bout this?

Do you have one of these roll-up makeup/toiletry bags laying around from when you used to sell Mary Kay (and then you used it to tote scrapbooking supples when you sold Close to My Heart)? Well - I did. And it didn't have a use until recently. As in yesterday. Now it hangs on my SKINNY pantry door and holds all the medicines and medicinal supplies (I sound so smart, huh?) that we need to be convenient to get to. As in band-aids and neosporin. And Benedryl and tums...you get the picture.

So go find your leftover roll-up toiletry bag and put it to use (a new use, that is).

This is my challenge to you to think outside of the box, use what you have, and make it work for you.

How's that for inspiring?

What are you currently doing to use creative/out of the box/not what it was created for storage solutions in your home?

For more of my Works for Me Wednesday ideas, look here:

Gimmie 5 (or less) - Recipes with 5 ingredients or less
Painting the Easy Way
Summer Schedule

This is my next organizing project:

The rest of the pantry (cue scary music - cover your eyes and peek through your fingers...don't say I didn't warn you!) There is seriously no rhyme or reason in there right now.

For more Works for Me Wednesday tips, see Rocks In My Dryer, here.

Keep That Fridge Clean

(pretend this picture is rotated...it is on my hard drive, but when I put it here, it turns...grrrr)

I promised y'all another fridge tip last week and here it is. Now, this is not earth-shattering, or anything, but it helps me keep my fridge clean - so hopefully it can help you too! (Not that your fridge is messy or anything...I'm just sayin').

Problem: Fruits or veggies leak or somehow rot and drip nasty smelly juice all in the drawer make a mess in your produce drawers.

Solution: Place a couple of paper towels in the bottom of the produce drawers to catch any stray drips or other (ahem) messes that might happen there.

Like I said...not earth-changin', but definitely helpful!

For more kitchen tips I've shared check out these posts:

Organize & Conquer: Fridge Edition

Kid Snacks for Less

Leftover Juice Popcicles

For even more kitchen tips, check out Kitchen Tip Tuesday at Tammy's Recipes.

Simple Woman's Daybook - Journal Entry

FOR TODAY July 7, 2008

Outside My Window... I see clouds in the sky lingering from the wowser of a storm that came through here last night. It was seriously the loudest thunder I've heard in a long time. The electricity flickered for a moment, so now all of our clocks are blinking. I also see fresh mulch in the flower bed out front. I love the look of fresh, dark mulch.

I am thinking... that I need to be patient and consistent in my parenting today. My kiddos are fighting this morning and I need to remember that I can control my attitude today.

I am thankful for... family time. I love it when my hubby is home and can help me with the kids. He is so patient and can talk calmness into our children.

From the kitchen... I am enjoying toffee bars that were made last night. Saltines, butter, brown sugar, and chocolate chips...yum! Tastes like a skor bar.

I am wearing... jammies. I haven't gotten dressed yet for the day and it is 11:30am. Remember, it is cloudy. It feels good to have a jammies day sometimes.

I am creating... order in my home. Today I hope to organize the pantry as well as straighten up in each room.

I am going... to stay home today. It is an at-home day for our family.

I am reading... A Great and Terrible Beauty, by Libba Bray. I picked it up on Saturday. It seems like it will be a fun read.

I am hoping... for harmony and peace in my home today.

I am hearing... birds chirping outside my office window. There is a nest in the tree out there with babies living in it.

Around the house... just tidying up.

One of my favorite things... is that yummy toffee. Seriously, too good!

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: The kids are taking turns spending the night with Grandma. Taylor is going tonight and Zach tomorrow. We'll be swimming at a friend's house on Wednesday and going to the free movies on Thursday.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

This picture was not staged. Taylor, Zach, and cousin Trevor were amazed with the big fireworks in Grandma & Grandpa's backyard. This was the first "high in the sky" one of the night. Even Grandpa is surprised.

For more of a Simple Woman's Daybook, click here.

Menu Plan Monday

For your viewing enjoyment, here are some pics of yummy kebobs that my hubby made. I didn't get any of the post-grill kebobs, but they were tasty!

Sunday – Breakfast Casserole & Melon
Monday – Apricot Chicken & Funeral Potatoes, Freezer Veggies
Tuesday – Moe’s Quesadillas Copy-cat & Mexican Rice, Melon
Wednesday – Sloppy Joes & French Fries & Sweet Fruit Salad
Thursday – Leftovers
Friday – Visiting with friends out of town
Saturday – Visiting with friends out of town

For more menus, look to Organizing Junkie for Menu Plan Mondays.

For more of my posts on menu planning, check out these posts:

Five Ingredient Recipes

Meal Planning Using Sales

Menu Plan Monday - March 3, 2008

Menu Plan Monday - February 26, 2008

Be sure to check in tomorrow for a fridge tip and Kitchen Tip Tuesdays.

{checking in with you & thank you!}

For my beloved loyal readers: Oh my...I feel so loved! I wasn't sure whether anyone would still be reading this blog after I dropped off the face of the earth! If you're new, you can read what has kept me away here. Thanks guys for your kind thoughts and encouragement. I am glad to be "back on the bandwagon"...a bit more, anyway. Still getting used to my limited ability to get around the house. The kids came home yesterday, after staying with my SIL a couple hours away. They were there for 10 days, and it was such a blessing to be able to deal with "the worst of it", knowing that they were having a blast with their cousins. Thanks Kim! (blogless SIL)

The kiddos start school next Tuesday, so it will be interesting, getting into the habit of a new schedule with a broken ankle thrown into the mix. I'll keep you posted on how that goes next week.

I really have missed blogging. And all of you. I haven't checked the pictures that were taken at Zach's Shrek birthday party, but if there were any good ones of the cool party ideas, I'll share them with you. If I was there, I would've taken "blog-worthy" pictures of all the cool food and stuff and designed a whole post around it.


I hate to have two posts in a row without pictures, so, for your viewing pleasure...and for the love of all things beautiful, please go visit Sarah at A Beach Cottage. She decorates her beach cottage beautifully with thrifted, made-over finds that make me drool. She also has a way with photography that is a sure talent. I recently discovered her blog and have been devouring the archives for a couple of days. Enjoy!