Rag Square Basket (Done)

I finally finished the square rag basket that I'd started awhile back. Overall I'm pretty happy with it, especially since it is so big. It's a 14" x 14" inch square base, and it's about 12" tall. Right now I'm using it to store my fabric strip balls and yarn skeins.

Ok, now it's time for a new project. What to start next?

William Dietrich

I'm now reading the series by William Dietrich featuring Ethan Gage in post-Revolutionary France. It's like "The DaVinci Code" set during the Napoleonic Wars. So far, I'm finding the series very intriguing. It's well-researched and I'm learning more about Napoleon than I've known, but all the historical references occur during the action so it's not dry and boring (except for some of the battle scenes that I just read really fast).

The 2nd one "The Rosetta Key" picks up right where "Napoleon's Pyramids" ends. There's also a 3rd one out which I'll read after these.

Elizabeth George

Before we left for vacation, I also finished "Careless in Red" by Elizabeth George. This is the 14th in the series featuring Inspector Thomas Lynley. I know there have also been television miniseries made, but I've never seen them, so I don't know how they match up with my ideas of the characters.

I started this series many years ago and read the first 7 or 8 in a row. It's always fun to do that with a new series instead of having to wait for year(s) between new books being released.

I've always wondered if Elizabeth George had ideas for other series/characters since she writes so vividly and with such detail.

Farmers Market

My husband and I went exploring at a local farmer's market this morning. This one has been in the same location for over 40 years, and operates year-round. We were surrounded by wonderful smells when we arrived.

Along with the expected fruits and vegetables, there were also gorgeous bakery items including pizza with samplers. Local farms had flower arrangements, teas, honeys, salsa, and jams.

We timed it perfectly 'cos it started to to rain as we were leaving, but most folks just pulled out their umbrellas or ponchos and kept shopping !!

Swagbucks

After seeing Swagbucks all over the place, I finally decided to join today.It looks like Swagbucks continues to grow and add more ways to win, which is why I think I decided to finally join. It was a very spontaneous decision.

Anyway, I've been playing with the site this morning and have already won a few Swagbucks by searching. I've added the Swagbucks widget to this blog (in the sidebar), and I've joined the Swagbucks Twitter and Facebook groups to hopefully get more chances to win Swagbucks.

I'll keep you posted on my opinion on Swagbucks as I play with it more.

Harry Potter 6

We saw Harry Potter 6 (otherwise known as the Half Blood Prince) a few days ago and I loved it. I'm not a frequent movie-goer but I've seen all the Harry Potters on the big screen soon after they're released.

My daughter's now rereading all the books (starting from 1) so she can see everything they left out of the movie. Then she's going to watch all the movies on DVD (she does this about twice per year). As for me, I'll probably reread 7 since it's been 2 years and I've forgotten alot of the wand lore.

As always, I can't wait until the NEXT movie comes out. It has been such fun watching Daniel, Emma, and Rupert grow up (exactly as they do in the books).

All You Magazine

As I mentioned before, I love clipping coupons, so when I saw the All You magazine mentioned at Mommies with Cents, I was instantly curious and wanted to find out more.

Being impatient, I went to WalMart and bought the latest copy. It's only available at WalMart or by subscription. I think I clipped enough coupons from the one copy I bought to pay for at least a 6 month subscription, so I ordered it through the fundraising site for my daughter's school (and they have great magazine prices as well).

Now I've got the couponing bug again and I'm wondering if there are other magazines that typically offer alot of coupons. If you know of any, please leave me a comment so I can check it out.

I'm not affiliated with All You magazine in any way

Organizing Coupons

My goal for this week is to redo my coupon organizer binder and revamp it so that it works better for me. I found some great ideas on coupon binders at How I Save Money and Half Price Full Pantry but I need to redesign them slightly.

I had a brainstorm while I was shopping this morning and I'm going to try it and will report back if it works. Instead of using the little pockets (trading card sheets), I'm going to use removable adhesive and stick the coupons to a sheet protector. Then I don't have to fold them and stick them in the pockets.

I love having my coupons alphabetized so this will make it easier for me to add sheets where I need them.

That is not me in the picture, but I do love clipping coupons :D

Linda Fairstein

Before I left for vacation, I'd finished the latest mystery "Lethal Legacy" by Linda Fairstein. This is the 11th in the series and I like the characters and want to know how their lives are progressing. Assistant District Attorney Alex(andra) Cooper and her cohorts Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace solve intriguing cases in New York.

I particularly enjoy that each book features a different piece of New York history. This one is the New York Public Library. Others include the Metropolitan Opera House, Museum of Natural History, Bronx Botanical Gardens and Edgar Allen Poe.

Virginia Beach Vacation

We just returned from a much needed family get away. It was wonderful to be at the beach, but it's always good to come home. We went to Virginia Beach and it was my first time there. I absolutely loved the boardwalk (3 miles of concrete walking roads right along the beach) and we walked SO much.

We found delicious seafood restaurants, indulged in yummy frozen custard, played in the waves, and basked in the sun. I love the sound of the waves crashing on the shore/beach. It's so relaxing for me. We had fantastic weather, too, with plenty of sun, but not too hot and a refreshing breeze coming off the ocean.

GraphJam

My brother forwarded this link to me (he always finds the coolest, funnest sites) and I think these graphs are hysterical. The site is Graph Jam.

I also love "How Midwesterners see the US", "Things Done While Fishing", and "Why I Love Having My Own Office".

You can leave me a comment and let me know your favorite ones. Or if you create one, let me know and I'll leave a comment on it.

I'm not affiliated with Graph Jam in any way.

HCD Surveys

I got this letter from HCD Surveys about seeking new panel members. I'm posting it here for those who like to join survey companies. I'm still new with them, so I can't comment on my payment experiences with them yet, but I've heard from others that they're reputable. Here's the letter:

The HCD MediaCurves™ Panel is looking to expand our panel and we need your help. So we decided to offer a little Facebook-launching present for helping our panel grow. Here is the special promotion running this week: If you get your friends to join our panel and complete their profile, they will get 100 points ($1) and you will get 75 points.

Forward this message to your friends on Facebook (or any other friends!) and just have them go to the following link to register and learn more about the panel.
Here is your personal referral link.

Remember to tell them how important our surveys are. Some are for clients such as Pfizer and GE – and a lot of them are fun studies about entertainment, politics, sports, and national events. They are reported on www.mediacurves.com but also get reported in the Wall Street Journal, MSNBC, Fox News, etc. It is fun participating, and you earn cash for each survey too!

Roger's 15th Title

It was a record setting day for both Roger Federer and Andy Roddick, and I'm just ecstatic that I got to watch it. I never thought I'd see a 5th set in a major go to 16-14, but it was just jaw-dropping. Both players were so masterful that I didn't know if either would break in the 5th set.

I actually did work on my rag crochet square basket when I got nervous (it's coming along nicely and is getting closer to being finished. I'll post a picture this week) so maybe it helped Roger.

Photo courtesy of Getty Images and ATP World Tour

Top Droppers for June

Thank you so much to my top droppers for June. If you want to know more about this, please visit EntreCard


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