Rosie's Profile

Anyone have any suggestions for a comfortable air mattress? We're looking at purchasing one for guests, and are having trouble figuring out if the expensive ones are actually worth it. If anyone has one they love, please share!

Not a huge thing, but if I'm doing a cheese platter, I always make sure to get the cheese from Trader Joes - significantly cheeper there than at our Harris Teeter. Also, I beef up the more expensive cheeses by including a block of cheddar. Of course, the impulse purchases while at Trader Joes probably outweigh the savings, but...

I've found that in general I have an easier time listing to YA/Children's books than adult books - maybe because I usually listen to them while driving, so don't like to think too hard? Or maybe children's books are more writen to be read aloud? Not sure.
Jim Dale does a great job with a lot of other kids books - always love his stuff.
We had a great collection of Madeline L'Engle reading the Wrinkle in Time books - those are like having your grandmother read to you (in a good way!).
Alex Jennings also does a great job with Susan Cooper's Dark is Rising books - great accent.

Double paned windows - for the most part I love our apartment in a historic townhouse, but we didn't even think to check the windows when I moved in, and it turns out they're about 100 years old and are about as good as tissue paper for blocking cold and wind. I apply the 3M plastic wrap stuff to them every winter, but I will definitly be checking the glass on our next place.

A couple of years ago I made some christmas candy from a recipe posted here - the mailing toffee, I think it was - it came out perfectly - looked absolutly beautiful. Then I tasted it...and it tasted like onions. I'd cooked it in the seasoned cast iron high-sided pan that I do a lot of savory cooking in, and it flavored the whole thing with onions. Had to throw the whole batch out - so disappointing!

DeliaAnne - it looks like the Purl Bee, Ravelry and Red Heart ones are all for knitting patterns only, not for the actual stockings, but you might try contacting my sister (link in my first comment) or another seller on Etsy to see if you could commission a similar one.

I used to love our home, but I've been feeling really down about it (and other stuff) lately, and in general neglecting it - just barely keeping up with the dishes, and not really doing any other cleaning, so the whole place is feeling really cluttered and dirty, which of course means I dislike it even more - it's a circle. This post made me remember all the things that I used to love about my home, and I'm inspired to start taking care of it again. Tonight when I get home, I'm going to sweep and mop the floors, clear clutter, make the bed, etc. I know my lovely little home is still there under everything. Thanks, AT!

So cozy!

My mother, my sisters, and I all have vintage Singers (from the 1930's - 1950's) and we all sew a lot and love them. They're inexpensive to buy ($50-$150), and will last forever. I haven't found it difficult to find repair shops that still work on these (but other than a tune-up when first purchasing, they have not needed repair), and they're easier to fix then newer machines because they don't have computers and other complicated stuff that can go wrong...adjusting the tension is a pain, but it is something you can do youself. That said, if you want something that can do complicated stuff like embroidery, you should go with a newer model, but for things like making clothing, curtains, pillows, and quilting, these machines still work very well.
I did a lot of research when purchasing mine, and it seems like of all the Singer models, for all-purpose sewing model 201 is the best, with model 66 as a close second. Model 221 (featherweight) is in high demand for quilters (and so much more expensive than other models), but it only does a forward stich, so it's not as good for all-purpose sewing.
I purchased mine on ebay and my sister's on craigslist. The goodwill shopping website also often has them. One website that I found super helpful was this model ID-ing website run by Sandman Collectables: http://www.sandman-collectibles.com/id-singer-machines.htm
You may also find the ISMACS website helpful - http://www.ismacs.net/home.html

I have an Oster blender with a small food processor attachment, and it works well for me - the belnder is big enough to puree soups, make milkshakes, etc., and the food processor will chop several cups of stuff for making pesto, chopping several onions, etc. It looks like Oster makes several models like this - I can't find mine online, but this is similar - http://www1.macys.com/catalog/product/index.ognc?ID=218344&CategoryID=7554#fn=BRAND%3DOster%26sp%3D1%26spc%3D8