Happy Birthday Bianca!

There is something to be said for reliable vehicles, and Bianca has been one of them!

I adore my car.  Her name is Bianca (yes, we name our vehicles) and this past Saturday, she turned 5 years old!  I’ve had her since August 6, 2006 even though she is considered a 2007 Toyota Yaris.  This has been the longest I've ever owned a car! 

I decided to get a less expensive car 5 years ago with absolutely NO options.  The Yaris just hit the lots, and to be honest, I didn’t like the little 3 door hatchback.  However, the goal was to get a reliable, fuel efficient vehicle at the best price.  Todd and I were talking about getting the 4 door, but he reminded me of my requirements of a less expensive vehicle with no frills.  So, after going back to the lot at looking at her again, I fell in love with Bianca.

 

You may be wondering how she got that name.  It is because she is white.  In Spanish, white is "blanco."  I didnt like the name "blanco" so I named her Bianca.

Bianca just turned 130,000 miles on Friday in only 5 years of ownership.  She gets anywhere from 38-45 MPG.  In the Winter months when I have my snow tires, she gets around 38MPG.  I have to manually roll up and down my windows and no power seats or anything (oh, how have I survived? *sarcastic*). She is a standard, so not even her shifting is automatic!  I have to put my key in the lock to open the door, even in the pouring rain.  She does have an MP3 jack which has come in handy to listen to podcasts on my hour drive to and from work every day.  I absolutely adore her.

She has had nothing done but new brakes after 70,000 miles and new tires.  We (meaning Todd) changes her oil every 5,000 miles as recommended.  He also gave her a 100,000 mile tune up with new air filter, new spark plugs and a good wax job.  She runs the same as she did 5 years ago, but looks a little more cute.  Todd bought me a spoiler for her one Christmas. 

 

The best part?  She’s completely paid off!

I plan on owning her until she becomes unreliable.  I originally told Todd I’d like to see her hit 1 million miles, but for now, I would be thrilled to see her hit 250,000.  If nothing changes with my driving and employment , that would be in 5 years.

I enjoy looking at cars; however, there is no other vehicle I’d rather have more than my little Bianca.  She has been a great car thus far, and I’m sure she will be for many years to come.

Recipe: Pistachio Pudding

A friend of mine gave me a quick and easy recipe for Pistachio Pudding a couple of years ago, and it has been a staple that I take to cookouts and make when we have company over during the Summer.

Pistachio Pudding

1 box pistachio pudding mix
1 can crushed pineapple (do not drain)
1 Cup mini marshmallows
1 (8oz) tub of Cool Whip

Mix together the pudding mix and pineapple. Then fold in the marshmallows and Cool Whip. Refrigerate for a couple of hours before serving.

25 Weeks 'Til Christmas: Week 20 Lavender Sachets

I dont know about you, but I cannot believe another week has flown by!  How are you doing in preparing for Christmas this year?

Photo Credit

This week's Christmas craft idea is lavender sachets.  These can be put in the dryer to make your clothes smell nice and fresh or put into drawers to keep your clothing smelling like lavender.  Lavender is one of my favorite scents, so I look forward to making some of these as gifts as well as for personal use around our home!

You can find instructions on how to make these sachets here on eHow.

As a side note, I have found that the lavender buds can be found in bulk on ebay or etsy.  Until I grow my own (hopefully next year), this will have to do.

Every Monday through the week of Christmas will be a new homemade gift idea/project.  Be sure to check them out!  Happy Crafting!

This is linked to AboutAMom's Wild Weekend Blog Hop, Mama Dani's Blog Hop,  and HomeMaker By Choice's Weekly Blog Hop.

Frugal Project: Outdoor Furniture

Todd and I bought two bistro sets on clearance at Home Depot when we bought our house 4 years ago.  We have had the bistro sets on our front patio where it has been exposed to extreme heat, cold and all of the elements in between!

This year, it started to look really rough and washed out, so we decided to paint it! 

Before:

$7.00 worth of spraypaint and 20 minutes later, it looked like this:

This is what the furniture looked like when we bought it!  One great thing about the spraypaint that we purchased is that it will protect the wood from the elements in the future! 

Quick, inexpensive fix!

This post is linked up with Hop Along Friday, HomeMaker By choice and Boost my Blog Hop!

Chicken Stats

These adorable little chicks were purchased on Wednesday, March 2^nd, 2011.

Meet our little layers today:

(From Left to Right) Blondie, Mocha & Latte

Latte was our first hen to start laying eggs.  She started laying an egg a day since July 1^st at exactly 4 months of age!

Mocha was our second hen who started laying eggs on July 12^th!

Blondie was the last to start laying eggs starting July 14^th.

In the beginning, Blondie was my favorite; however, over the past month, I have come to enjoy Mocha’s company the most (please don’t tell the others).  When I’m outside, she usually follows me around and she loves to eat cracked corn out of my hands. 

My brother and his daughter feeding the chickens.

The chickens love to go into the garden and eat the bugs!  I’m glad, too, because we had a big problem with the slugs early-on.  They can mill around the garden for hours on end.

Blondie on Garden Fence

The first 4 months of their existence, they went through a total of 45 lbs of food.  We are currently on a 75 lb bag of feed and a 5 lb. bag of oyster shells, but we are not even close to the bottom of either of these bags of food!

Let’s take a look at the chicken stats (as of 7/31/11):

Eggs to date:  59 

The cost of the chickens:  $14.94   (We bought 6, but one died within a few hours, the other died overnight and a red fox got the 3^rd one about a month ago!)

Cost of food:  $51.45 
Price per Dozen: $11.07 

Are the chickens “worth it?”  ABSOLUTELY!  I don’t care if it is costing us a dollar an egg, I love these little creatures.  They are so much fun to watch!  It is relaxing to be outside with them clucking around, and they have such personalities!  Blondie is Miss Priss, Mocha is the lover and Latte is the laid back, seen-but-not-heard-type.  

2 Eggs Collected 07/31/2011 at 9:30AM

When visitors come to visit, they are surprised at how friendly our feathered-friends are.  They don’t mind being held or pet, but you have to be careful when you are feeding them from your hands.  Blondie can get a little ambitious and go for the skin!  No blood has been drawn yet – and I’d like to keep it that way!


This post is linked up with Homestead Revival's Barn Hop #22.

25 Weeks 'Til Christmas: Week 21 Ultimate Caramel Chocolate Popcorn

Where I work, we get gifts from Vendors during the Holidays, and last year, we got an awesome popcorn medley that was incredible!  Naturally, my frugalista friends in the front office and I wanted to find a recipe so we could replicate it.

Recipe & Picture Credit

This is the recipe:

Ultimate Caramel Chocolate Popcorn

Ingredients

• 18 cups popped popcorn placed in a large roasting pan or bowl for mixing
• 2 cups packed brown sugar (light or dark is fine)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup
• 1 container mixed nuts (or your favorite kind)
• 3-4 oz. dark chocolate
• 3-4 oz. milk chocolate
• 3-4 oz. white chocolate 

Directions

• Melt in saucepan butter, corn syrup, salt, baking soda, and brown sugar. Bring to boil over medium heat. Boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Take off heat and let cool 2 minutes.
• Pour half the caramel mixture over the popcorn, mixing in carefully, add the nuts, pour the rest of the caramel over the top mixing in carefully but well.. place in large roasting or lasagna pan and place in preheated 200 degree oven for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt your chocolates in seperate containers in the microwave. it works well to microwave for 15 seconds at a time, stirring. DO NOT OVERCOOK!
• After the popcorn comes from the oven, place on two sheet pans, drizzle each pan with equal parts of the chocolate.
• Place in refrigerator to cool.
• Break apart and serve in holiday wrappers or containers for gifts or a treat for family and friends. Yield: serves 12

I have several Christmas tins that I've accumulated.  I will be making this recipe and putting it in the tins with a ribbon as gifts.  I would recommend making this before giving it as gifs; however, you may want to do it when you have a group of people over, because this popcorn is highly addictive! Otherwise, you may eat the whole batch of it by yourself!

Every Monday through the week of Christmas will be a new homemade gift idea/project.  Be sure to check them out!  Happy Crafting!