Thrifty Giving: Mel & Pita’s Birthday Presents

Pin It I’m a little behind on my schedule from all those days I was sick, so Little Big Kitchen will be back later this week, or, depending on how much I can get done, next week. I have settled on...

Life List: Grow a Garden of Poppies

Pin It I’m finally crossing grow a garden full of poppies off my life list this year. Next year we’ll work on expanding the color palette. I want a rainbow of California’s flower. Pin It

Scrapbook: To The Best Man I Know

Little Big Bazaar

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Follow Friday – Summer Succulents

Pin It Would you like to be a guest photographer for Follow Friday? Email me! What is Follow Friday? It’s a Twitter meme that I have taken a couple steps further. Learn more about it in my FAQ. See...

Snapshot 6.12.13, Continued

- The photo above pretty much sums up the past couple days. The house is obviously a wreck, Isobel’s sandals are on the table, she’s wandering around the house in her tutu swimming suit eating...

Snapshot 6.12.13

- The photo above pretty much sums up the past couple days. The house is obviously a wreck, Isobel’s sandals are on the table, she’s wandering around the house in her tutu swimming suit eating...

Recipe: Homemade Sloppy Joes (Slop Sloppy Joes)

Pin It I grew up eating sloppy joes but as far as I can remember they weren’t homemade but from a can. Having fond memories of them growing up I decided to recreate the experience one time in...

Thrifty Crafting: Dave’s Workshop Easy DIY Flower Press

It started when I met Paul. (This is Paul:) Paul is a rickety homemade flower press I found while thrifting. We call him Paul because this is what we found when we opened him up. We assume it’s...

Scrapbook: Appropriate Use of a Water Table

There’s nothing like watching your kid have a fantastic time with one of your best friend’s kid. The first two photos were left over from our kite misadventure and the rest were taken in the...

Little Big Bazaar

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Follow Friday – Dinner at Doug’s

Pin It Today’s Follow Friday features photos I took while at a family dinner on my Father-in-law’s verdant patio. He has the sort of patio I aspire to have one day. Would you like to be a guest...

Little Big Links for Summer

Thrift Store Score: The Carafe Productivity Creepin’: Favorite Road Trip Apps Thrifty Living: Water Painting Thrifty Living: Dollar Store Chairs Patriotic Thrift Store Gore Thrifty Summer Fun for...

Snapshot 6.05.13

- Anthony is officially laid off now and has been at home with us the last couple weeks. When he’s not filling out applications or following up on job stuff we’re working on household projects or...

Recipe: Sweet and Sour Marinated Mushroom Snack

Pin It Shiitake mushrooms are super healthy and extremely delicious, but they can be expensive and hard to find in their fresh state. I’ve mentioned before how I always keep dried shiitake...

Thrift Store Gore: The Ungame

Pin It I don’t even remember where I was anymore when I first came upon The Ungame. I remember taking a photo of it to share in a Thrift Store Gore post, but after reading the blurb on the back I...

Scrapbook: Thrifting with Jenn

I went thrifting with Jenn “I don’t approve of this font” Castro.

Sponsor Spotlight – May

Gabe pedals offer the musician a high-quality, American made, hand-builteffects pedals and amplifiers. Gabe crafts every pedal and amp himself, one at a time. It’s his goal to give you a fantastic...

Follow Friday: Guest Photographer The Palinode

Today’s guest photographer is my internet pal (and sometime food-fight rival) Aidan Morgan. In addition to being funny as hell and a talented writer, his photography blows me away. He also happens...

Greenwashing: A Primer For The Home

Pin It Today I’m happy to open up my blog again to my friend Jose Gonzalez who will speak on an issue close to our hearts, environmentalism in the home. Specifically he will address to topic of...

Snapshot 5.29.13

- Those of you who follow me on twitter know that Poppy, one of our indoor-only kitties, somehow escaped and was gone for two nights. I was sick with worry, and deep in my heart I felt she was gone...

Recipe: Preschool Potluck Seasoned Rice & Vegetable Salad

Pin It Potlucks in general don’t give me much pause for trepidation. I know the crowd-pleasing dishes and can make anything from the spectrum of hearty main dish to appetizer or dessert, and...

In The Garden: Late Spring Update & Pea Adventure

Although life’s afforded less time for weeding and digging in the dirt than I’d like, we’ve still managed to find time to spend some time in the mornings or evenings or late afternoons in the...

Scrapbook: Kite Misadventures

From last week’s Snapshot: Over the weekend we decided to take advantage of the windy weather and fly some kites with our buddies the Waltons. It turns out that I have been friends with Angela for...

The Little Big Bazaar

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Follow Friday – Piping Playdate

It’s my ten-year wedding anniversary to my favorite male human, Anthony Castillo. Love ya, babe. You only get better with time. Today’s Follow Friday photos are brought to you by what our children...

Thrifty Giving: Spring Housewarming Gifts

Recently a few of my friends have found themselves moving into sweet new pads and I found myself scouring the housewares section for appropriate, we-love-your-new-place gifts. Or in my case,...

Snapshot 5.22.13

- Last Friday I met up with some friends and attended a rainbow prom at our local university. My friend Val is head pastry chef there and she created a lovely rainbow cake for the festivities and...

Recipe: Fresh Basil Corn Salad

Pin It There are few as ephemeral and wonder summer delights as fresh corn on the cob. When it comes in season it is plentiful and cheap, and you can leave the grocery store or a farm stand with a...

Productivty Creepin’: My Tips for Coping With Stress & Anxiety

Pin It Last week I had another conversation that revolved around my friend Jenn talking to me for an hour or so to distract me from my anxiety. She’s damn good at it, and during the talk we...