Category: House and Yard

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Tomatoes

I’m not much of a farmer but I planted a couple of tomato plants this year in containers.  I love fresh vine ripe tomatoes.  They are so much better than what you get in grocery stores.  We have so many tomatoes right now that we are even freezing some.

All you have to do is put the tomato in boiling water for about 30 seconds and then put them in cold water and the peeling comes off really easy.  Then all you have to do is dice the tomato or even put it in a freezer bag whole.  Even if you freeze them whole, they won’t stay that way once they’re thawed out but man do they come in handy to make home made sauces and soups.

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More great finds

Last weekend we found some great lawn furniture for our deck.  I don’t like the new stuff because of not only the price, but they just don’t seem to last that long.  I have a friend that does powder coating.  If you don’t know what that is, it’s this powder that is put on anything medal and then baked in a large oven.  It comes out looking like you have painted what ever you had powder coated but lasts a lot longer.

Not only does that make the medal look new, but there are a lot of different colors and textures you can choose from.  In other words, you can have your yard furniture match most anything.  Great way to restore antique lawn furniture.

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Fish tanks

A friend of mine was moving and decided that he did not have room for the fish tank he had. I was a little hesitant at first but after some thinking I decided to take the tank off his hands. The tank was a 55 gallon one and came with two fish. I knew it would be a lot of work but I was ready for the challenge.

After a fair amount of work, we got the tank set up in our home. It sits in a prominent place in our living room. The tank is beautiful and is a wonderful addition to our home. We have added some fish to the tank and it has really brought our family together.

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Painting

Well the chair came out great.  The only problem I have with it is now we need to paint the bedroom, or so I’m told.  We found some great material but it’s not quite the right color to match our walls.  It’s easier to change the paint to match the material than it is to find material to match the walls, or so I’m told.

I don’t mind painting at all.  It’s all of the preparation that I dislike.  One things for sure, something as simple as a coat of paint can really change the mood of a room.  The walls were a dark green which was my choice but now we are going with a much lighter green, almost a cool green color.  I have to admit, that color is going to be much better so I guess I should leave the decorating up to her next time.

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Yard Sales

Rachel drug me to a couple of yard sales over the weekend and I have to admit I thoroughly enjoyed it.  It’s almost like going on a treasure hunt.  We found a great antique chair for our bedroom that needed some new upholstery but other than that, it’s a great find at an even better price.

So now we are looking for some fabric to reupholster the chair and are even going to do that ourselves.  It’s not that hard to do on the style of chair once we really looked at the chair.  All we have to do now is find the right material and some upholstery tacks and it’s going to look great.  I hope so anyway.

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The Horse Whisperer

Rachel and I have watched The Horse Whisperer a few times and it’s not only a movie for you ladies.  Us guys enjoy it too.  After all, it’s almost a cowboy movie.  Well Rachel came home with the book yesterday.  She can’t seem to put it down.  I must admit, I kinda like her reading it too because she seems a lot more interested in cuddling with me since she started reading it.

As with most movies, she says the book is so much better.  Might be but doesn’t sound like my kinda book.  Who knows, I might have to borrow it after she’s finished reading it.  Nothing like a good book on a nice summers day laying in the hammock.

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Hey, it works

Well I just wanted to let all of you know that the distilled vinegar on weeds actually works.  I sprayed the weeds every other day for a week and was pleasantly surprised to find that the weeds were dying after the third time I sprayed them.  Just gave them an extra day of spraying for good measure.

Nothing like getting rid of the weeds and saving money and even time too.  Well, it also saved my back from bending over pulling the weeds.  Yeah I have a hoe but I like to try and get the roots so I pull them instead of chopping them with a hoe.

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Weeds are taking over

The season of yard work is now in full bloom. Mowing isn’t that bad and neither is weed eating the yard but the weeds are taking over. We only have a few flower beds around our yard and I hate the thought of using weed killer. It’s not only full of chemicals, but you run the risk of damaging your flowers should the wind blow.

A friend of mine told me about using white or distilled vinegar to kill weeds.  They told me that I might have to spray the weeds a few times before they die but the vinegar is biodegradable and won’t hurt the environment. I’m all for that.  Not to mention, it’s a lot cheaper than weed killers.  Guess I’ll give it a try and keep you guys posted of how effective it is.

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Auctions

As I was driving down the road the other day I noticed a sign that was advertising auctions. I used to go to auctions when I was young with my father. I thought it would be pretty cool to go to another now that I am an adult.

The auction is today and I am excited about going to it to see what is happening. I am always interested in finding things that are interesting to me. I may buy something or I may not, but I am sure that I will have a good time.

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Keeping things going

I have a friend who owns a farm. His name is Skip and his wife’s name is Barbara he lives in a house that is very unusual. He lives in a dome. The house is round and is made of concrete and is very secure. He owns many acres of land and is planning to raise goats and chickens when he retires soon. I have been helping him with some of the work that is necessary to make his dream come true.

We have worked together to build a fence to keep the goats in and the unwanted animals out. The only problem that he has is that his house is way out in the country. So if the power goes out he is usually the last one to have his service restored. Since the animals need constant attention, he is considering having a backup power system installed.

Skip wants to have a generator installed. This way he will be able to have the power he needs to keep his farm going if the power fails. We went online and have considered many options. Luckily, we found a company that can help. It is called generatorsatoz.com/ and they have just what he needs. I feel confident that Skip will have the ability to keep his farm going even when the rest of the county is without power.