Let it snow!

That's a phrase I used to say on the farm after getting back from the grocery store and having a full larder after canning, "putting by" and having staples to last at least a month.  Except for milk...we really needed a cow for those kids considering all the milk they drank.  I still say it every time the supplies are replenished and I have more than enough for the next month.   It's a wonderful feeling and a blessing all in one.  So, as you can guess, I went to Wal-mart yesterday.

  

They're carrying more and more organic foods these days which I love to see.  I keep a few cans of ready to eat soup on hand in case there's a power outage.  I plan on cooking up my own beans and freezing them as it is cheaper than canned.

They also had a local (to Arkansas) wine that I'm going to try.

 I bought some herbs for my garden and a few plastic containers as I am replacing all cardboard boxes with plastic bins little by little.  It also forces me to go through the boxes and see if I can get rid of a lot of it.

A few cans of spray paint....a gal can never have too many cans of this stuff!  Stay tuned for more "adventures in spraying"!

I also received some items from Amazon yesterday...........some biodegradable Keurig coffee.
 This is San Francisco Bay coffee and they are doing their part to not add to all the plastic waste from the Keurig K-cups..........I like that!

Once I open a bag I put them in a Lock-n-Lock container so they stay fresh as you can see there is just a "netting" material holding the coffee instead of a plastic cup.  Brilliant, I say, brilliant!

It's been cloudy and rainy here on and off but it's also kept it cooler than normal which is great for the walking.

I found some new tree specimens too.........pines which I haven't seen many of here in my area except cedars

This was a long needle pine all by itself in the woods.........

 

These are the type of needles that baskets can be crafted from....hmmm.....I'd like to try that one day.  I so admire those that can take raw materials and make functional and beautiful items from them. It's a lost art.

I'm not sure what these pines are but they were very tall and there was an entire family of them.

Oh, look what else I got in the mail.............I've wanted this for quite a while now....love that gal!

This book hopefully will teach me how to make any "person" I can dream up.  It doesn't have directions for a specific, individual doll but rather different parts that you can put together.  I want to make the Frida Kahlo doll (the last doll on the right) for my daughter who is an art teacher and Frida is one of her favorite artists.  If I can master this I could make custom dolls for people.  Maybe I could even make a  Farmgirl Sam doll although I doubt it would sell! LOL!  Stay tuned for more on this as it will be one of my first projects for YOP (Year of Projects) 2014/15 starting in July.  BTW, please feel free to join this group as we are always loving new contributors.  The people are so encouraging and talented and very inspiring.  Just go on Ravelry and if you're not already a member it is free to join.  If you are a knitter, or crocheter, or spinner or love anything and everything about fiber arts, you will love Ravelry.  There are thousands, and I mean thousands, of patterns for free and many designers are out there also.  There are patterns you can buy, yarn shops, your own place to keep track of your 'stash', your own library, projects.....it's just marvelous!  You won't regret it!  The group that has the YOP is called Come Blog Along and is specifically for bloggers but there are many, many other groups out there also....one to fit every interest.

 

One last picture and I'll stop...I know this has been a long post!

One giraffe leg done!  I'm off to mow the yard today before it rains....again.  I'll be by later to check on y'all. Happy Trails!