jcristi's Profile

I make doggie treats out of leftovers I'm not going to eat. Usually something from the freezer that's still edible, but it's time to eat it or toss it. I thaw, puree, add flour, bread crumbs and other dry goodies to turn it into a thick dough. I bake and then dry to make little doggie bites.
My dogs love it... no matter what flavor it is.
Jan

I love making my own granola, but had no idea how to turn it into bars. I will try this. I must admit I've never used brown rice syrup before so I'm looking forward to checking it out. Do you ever use molasses? I also mix and match my sweetners to change up the flavors. No two batches ever turn out the same.
And great idea to use the parchment paper liner to keep it from sticking. I use that when I make homemade dog treats or I'd never get the darn things off the baking sheet!
I've been lurking here for awhile and this is my first comment. I've pinned dozen's of your recipes. Thanks so much for all of them!
Jan

Our Sunday School class scheduled and brought meals for more than two weeks out when our son was born. Leftovers lasted nearly another two weeks. One of the best gifts was someone who came to mow our lawn! And while it was all wonderful, I would have foregone one of the dinners for some grocery basics: milk, OJ, eggs, bacon, cereal, loaf of bread, so if you're going to lend a hand, remember breakfast is also a meal. One meal was a restaurant gift card.
Very good friends scheduled their meal delivery for the 2nd weekend after Dillon was born and insisted we come to their house for dinner. Perfect timing to get out of the house and everyone wanted to hold the new baby so we didn't even have to change a diaper.
They brought similar meals when my dad died 4 months before Dillon was born.
Everyone appreciates a gift of food during times of stress.
Jan

In my neck of the woods estate sales are always advertised in the newspaper. And if you go frequently you'll soon know who is running each sale and get a feel for how they price things.
If the ad lists lots of things I really want, I'll go the first day, but otherwise I'll wait until the last day when things are half-price. I don't know what I've missed and when I find things I want they are cheaper. During the last hour or so I have been able to bundle things and get a better deal... A box of maps at 50 cents each for a couple of bucks... And sellers around here will take bids on items, so if it doesn't sell and your bid is high, they'll call you. A friend has bid $2 over half price and scored on several things after the sale.
About #10... if you carry it around buy it. I used to abide by that rule, until I missed out on a few things. Now if I'm interested, I pick it up and if someone asks to write up my ticket while I'm still shopping I give them what I'm sure about and say "I'm still thinking about this one." and hold onto it.
And if I see someone carrying around something I want, if I keep an eye on them, they might find something else they want more and put down the item I covet. I worked an estate sale last month so I had "first dibs" and on Day One I saw someone carrying around a cookbook I hadn't seen. But later in the day I came across the cookbook in another part of the house so I was able to snag it.
You can see some of my estate sale finds on my wordpress blog JanMadeIt.

I was just at the Salvation Army store this afternoon, and a lot of things spoke to me but alas, there was no dinged up filing box. Maybe next time.
About the legs/feet so many have suggested. I have a trunk which I use as a coffee table and I've wanted legs on it, but have been reluctant to screw something into the bottom of it. The solution I've come up with, but haven't done yet, is to cut a piece of plywood to fit the bottom of the trunk and attach the feet to the plywood. I'll attach some kind of trim to the wood to finish the edges and paint it to match the trunk. It would also work for the file box. Maybe attach the trim a little high so the file box fits into the base and there's no danger of it sliding off. Rolling casters or wooden legs could be used.
Yellow is my favorite color! Love it!
Jan