Cheapest Dog House on the Block

 Our puppy chews.  A lot.  He's chewed up shoes, a door mat, feather pillows, stuffed animals, dish cloths, toilet paper, bath towels, computer cords, clothes, cell phone chargers, and a tennis ball, to name a few.  He's chewed holes in my four-year old's pants, while the four-year old was in them.  When we first got him, we bought a plastic dog crate, to crate train him, but he chewed the hinges off.  People say dogs out grow this stage.  

I'm hoping they are right.

Since our mini-move, Mochi has been happily playing in our country back yard and sleeping on our deck.  But, the weather is getting colder and wetter and the puppy needs some shelter.  I've scoured Craigslist for a used dog house with little luck.  I just can't bring myself to fork out more money on something he's going to destroy.

So, Billy came up with a great idea: turn a storage tote into a dog house.  

Brilliant!

We bough an 18qt storage box for less than $6 at Target, turned it upside down and traced a hole for the door.

   Billy used a box cutter to cut it out.  

 We snapped the lid on, turned the tote upside down, and put sealant in between the box and the lid, all the way around.

Next, Billy used sealant to attach a spare lid to the top, for a little added rain protection.

Ta-Da!  A dog house!  And I don't care if the dog chews it up, because it was only $6!

12 Squared: September Square

This month's quilting bee block is called Cobblestones and Bricks.  Mine is a little unbalanced looking and I'm trying to mentally rearrange the fabrics to look less... party on the left and business on the right.

Maybe I just need to switch out a print, but which one?

Any suggestions?

Home Made Energy Bars

My husband likes to keep a stash of expensive energy bars for a quick breakfast on the run or snack in between assignments at work. So I decided to see what I could make to help with the grocery bill! After studying recipes on the internet this is what I made this morning! I think they are tastier than those Odwalla Bars! And much less expensive!

Janene's Homemade Energy Bars

1 1/2 c. granola

1 cup old fashioned oats

1/2 cup wheat germ or whole wheat flour

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup raisins or other chopped dried fruit

1/2 cup coconut

1/3 cup slivered almonds

1 egg

1/2 cup molasses or honey

2 T. vegetable oil

1 tsp. vanilla

3/4 c. chocolate chips (optional)

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 9X13 pan with parchment paper and coat with vegetable oil spray. Combine all wet ingredients in mixing bowl and add dry ingredients till evenly mixed.

Press dough evenly into pan. Bake 20-25 minutes. Cool completely and cut into bars.

Highlights of Los Angeles

Forget movie stars, Dodgers, surfers and taro card readers! For me L.A. is all about 3 amazing grandchildren!

Hunting for wildlife in the Malibou tide pools.

Seeing how close we could get to a rather tame pelican!

Messing up mom's clean kitchen with our cookie dough!

Listening/watching Fiddler on the Roof while decorating cookies! Tradition!

Giggles at bedtime!

Doll Clothes for Leah

My 6 year old grand daughter loves her dolls. During my visit we made them a few outfits

.

This two piece dress is a blouse and skirt made from McCall's Crafts Pattern # 2506. Added a ruffle to the skirt and made the blouse without the collar and we the shortened sleeves. Two fabric circles and a button serve as a flower embellishment tacked onto the waist.

Leah can mix and match with these two tops, two skirts and pink pants. From same pattern as above. To the top on the left I added a ruffle on the bottom. Both tops have velcro closures.

Leah dresses her dolls consistently each day and night. She is a good "mom" to her girls!

Coming soon! A dress for Leah from the fabric on the left, so she can match too!