spring weekends

 Spring weekends can't be all yard work, right? Time for another day trip! At first, we considered going to an antique and garden show in Wisconsin, but good thing I looked on Facebook beforehand: There were many posts about how crowded the place was. The police even shut down the main intersection near the farm and were turning people away. So, we chose to go to Evanston - one of our favorite day trip towns. 

We started out with a stop at Hewn. I got a strawberry muffin and Brian got a walnut scone. We sat outside in the sunshine and enjoyed our goodies while people-watching. We also bought a loaf of their homemade bread to bring home. I think it's a good thing we don't live close to this place. We could really get into trouble! 

From their web site..."Everything at Hewn is made in-house, from scratch daily. We source local and seasonal ingredients from small, local farmers when their flavors are at their peak. All of our breads are hand-mixed, hand-shaped and naturally fermented without commercial yeast. Allowing bread to ferment with wild yeast allows a richer, more complex flavor to develop. It also allows the gluten proteins to slowly and naturally break down over time. The starter (levain/sourdough) was initially created by Ellen (owner) several years ago. Our bakers all work to feed and maintain the starter every day.

Each day our bakers mix the dough by hand, turning it every 30 minutes over a four hour period. The dough is then shaped and placed into bannetons, where it rests overnight to rise naturally. In the morning, the bakers fire up the oven and bake the bread. From the start of the mix to the bake, the bread is fermented approximately 20 hours."

We walked around the neighborhood, popping into different shops and stopping to listen to a street band. I loved this planter I saw in front of one of the stores.

Cool street art...

We also visited a farmer's market. Not much going on just yet at farmer's markets here...mostly a lot of plants and spring veggies such as rhubarb and kale. At one booth, I pointed to the rhubarb and mentioned to Brian that "my rhubarb isn't this big and beautiful." The lady in the booth overheard me and remarked, "That's because you don't know what you're doing, my dear." Quite presumptuous, don't you think? Needless to say, I didn't buy anything from Rude Rhubarb Lady. ;-) I did buy a pound of fingerling potatoes from another vendor, which I roasted with olive oil, salt and pepper last night. Then I tossed them with some of my fresh herbs. We agreed that they were the best potatoes we'd ever had. Garden-fresh makes all the difference. I also bought beef bones from another organic farmer so that I can make bone broth. 

We saw this sign on the side of the library and loved it. We talked about how kids merely go through Google and click on links to do research nowadays. And how we used to have to go to the library, use the card catalog (remember those?) to look for appropriate books and periodicals, then look through and read said material. This banner is part of a project from Libraries Transform if you're interested in reading more about the Libraries Transform campaign.

I've mentioned before about Evanston that one of the many things I love about this town is the gorgeous houses. This one is the Oscar Mayer mansion - currently undergoing renovation.

Our last stop of the day was the lakefront. This has always been one of my favorite views looking toward Chicago. See the tiny building on the far right? That's the John Hancock Center. 

We spread out a blanket in the grass area of the park in front of the lake. We brought our books with us, too ~ after all, our intention was to relax and read. Well, intentions are just that. I think my body wanted to nap off the Indian cuisine we had for lunch. ;-)

It was back to the yard work and gardening on Sunday and most of the day today, too. We've been blessed with beautiful weather, but looks like rain is moving in for the rest of the week. Catch you later with some garden updates! 

deals to be had all over

Driving past our local library this weekend, I saw these chairs at the curb. I told Brian to turn the car around and I jumped out to give the chairs an inspection. Fabric still in good shape? Check. Frame still sturdy? Check. Sink into a well-worn hole when you sit down? Umm...yes. Heavy enough to practically give your husband a hernia as he tries to load them in the car? Another yes. Perfect for a college student and his roomies (after you text him to make sure)? Affirmative. Free is good.

While visiting said college student this weekend, I ran into the nearby Goodwill while Brian and Tim were working on Tim's taxes. I found this vintage child's cup for just 79 cents! While I think it's adorable, I have no room to display it and it's not going to be used, so it will go with me to my favorite antique consignment shop to be sold.

At this same Goodwill, I also found a set of brand-new queen-sized flannel sheets and pillowcases from Target. With a 20% off scratch-off ticket, the entire set was only $8! The bedding is in the wash now and will go on my bed later. 

I only pop into Goodwill once in awhile now since I'm really trying to reduce what I bring into my home. A couple of months ago, I found this set of retro plates which will also go with me to the consignment shop for resale. For me, it's a great way to make a few extra dollars.

The one thing I really can't pass up when I'm at Goodwill is quality apparel that one of us truly needs. On the same trip a couple of months ago, I saw this Land's End barn coat in Brian's size for only $7.99. I grabbed it off the rack before someone beat me to it!

Brian loves this coat. Not only does it look good (cool plaid lining, too), but he said it's warm and comfortable.

Speaking of the brand-new Target flannel sheets that I found at Goodwill (above), did you know that Target donates their merchandise to Goodwill? I don't know how that works...if it's close-out or clearance merchandise that didn't sell, or what. In the past, I've gotten a $50 lamp (Target price) for $13 and a $180 (Target price) chair for $35. Anyhoo, these were the latest Target donations that were in the store a couple of months ago - just so you can see some of the bargains that are to be had. I need new bar stools...these would've come home with me if they had've fit in my car. Perhaps my next car should be a SUV. ;-)

I didn't need this ottoman, nor would it go with my furniture, so I didn't buy it. Again, just to show what you can find at Goodwill. And no, I don't work for Target or Goodwill, nor am I getting paid to mention either of these stores. I'm simply a fan.

On to other stores and deals, have you been in Aldi lately? Did you know they now carry an organic line and and keep upping their selection? They started out with just a few canned and boxed items and now they've extended it to some produce, dairy and bread. Again, I don't work for Aldi nor am I getting compensated in any way for mentioning this store. Just passing along information about good bargains. 

Organic, cold-pressed coconut oil is only $4.99. If you're not familiar with the health benefits of coconut oil, do a Google search. There's a wealth of info out there! 

Not organic, but cold-pressed, extra virgin olive oil (which is another healthy, "clean" oil and perfect for making salad dressing) is just $3.49.

Organic, steel-cut oats are $2.79.

 Talk about a healthy bread! This one rivals the "famous" Ezekiel Bread, which is a bit pricey. I don't remember the exact price ($2-something, I believe), but Ezekiel Bread is $4+ in other stores.

Now, my best deal of all this weekend turned out to be free steaks! We were grocery shopping at Trader Joes and my favorite employee was at the register. He's one of the managers who's been there for years. I hadn't seen him in awhile, so I expressed how nice it was to see him and that I had assumed he had been transferred to another store, or had quit. He told me that he was there just about every day and said he didn't know why I haven't seen him. 

Mr. Manager continued chatting with us as we were checking out and then he told me to go back to the refrigerated meat section and to pick out a couple of steaks! He said, "It's on me." I stood there with my mouth open as other customers started lining up behind us at the register. I said, "This isn't coming out of your wallet, is it?" He said, "No, no! Now run back there and get yourself some steaks." I couldn't believe my eyes when I got back to the meat section. There was filet mignon, rib eye and top sirloin. At $12.99/b., the sirloin steaks were the least expensive, so that's what I grabbed. I didn't want to be too greedy! I got back to the register and Mr. Incredible Trader Joe's Manager didn't even look at which steaks I had chosen. He simply took the package and stuck it in my bag. We profusely thanked him and walked out of the store still in a state of shock.

The funny thing is, I don't even normally eat steak. I haven't had a steak in many years, simply because steak doesn't appeal to me. My sister told me to freeze them for her, ha ha. I told her I was willing to try them. ;-) Even though I'm usually a good home cook, since I'm not familiar with steaks, I'm not sure what would be the best way to cook these. In a cast iron pan with butter? Would this cut of meat be best as a steak sandwich or served "as is"? Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

Hope you had a wonderful weekend ~ and that perhaps bargains were to be had by you, too.

Linking up with Thoughts of Home on Thursday #1.

library nook

 Last month, I showed you the library area in my basement.

It merely consisted of overflowing bookcases and a rug.

I mentioned that I needed a small table and a couple of chairs in that rug space.

 No money spent - I went shopping in my own house! I remembered we had our "old"

 kitchen table and chairs stored away in the unfinished part of the basement,

 so I had Brian dig them out. 

I dusted them off - and voila! I think this looks much better.

I also added a lamp on top of one of the bookcases to cozy the space up and provide

more lighting if we want to play games down here or look at books.

The chairs still need cushions though; will look around for those.

 

See the white wainscoting on the left where there's a space blocked by a drawing?

That space is actually a built-in fish tank. When we moved into this house 22 years ago,

the previous owner had saltwater fish in the tank. We had no idea how to take care of them

and he left no instructions, so the fish died. We've never used the tank for anything since then!

I suppose I should put on my creative thinking cap and maybe come up with something

like an artificial terrarium or something. 

Any ideas?