Happy weekend guys! So – I think I can go on record and let you know I’m pretty sure we’ve sold our house (again…)! Since the other offers fell through, I waited a bit to say anything this time, but all the papers have been signed and the inspections done so unless there’s a problem with the bank, etc. (nothing ever seems to be set until the very, very end in home sales, right?) it’s a go! The bank is giving a mid-October closing date, so just about a month to finish packing, storing, moving, etc. So you know what I’ll be doing this weekend!
Many of you have been asking where we’ll go – we’re going to be living with my mom for a few months while we look for something that meets our goals of simplifying, which includes financial obligations as well as square footage and less maintenance. It will be a transition time, but never fear, I will keep providing you with recipes, easy DIY and garden tips, as well as delving into time management (finally!) here on AOC. I plan to take you on our journey through this Three Things column, AOC’s Facebook page, and Instagram – I have lots of ideas floating through my head and I’m excited to see where we land and to get all your input!
On to this week’s things I’m loving – and a few links I think you’ll love! (as always, some links below are affiliate links)
The hot pepper harvest #2 from just three plants. This helps me be reminded that you do not need a lot of space to grow enough food to eat and to use in preserving. I planted two Anaheim peppers and one Jalapeño. And this is harvest #2 – I have already harvested enough for a double batch of our favorite, thick & easy salsa. I picked all the peppers left (since our nighttime temps are lower than 50 degrees now) and these will go into another batch of salsa as well as a batch of homecanned Rotel. Anything that’s left I will chop and freeze to use in any recipe that calls for those expensive canned green chiles. (The elephant in this photo? The two yellow sweet peppers I threw in there just because…)
I am also getting more than enough tomatoes from just 6 plants – 2 Early Girls, 3 heirlooms, and 1 grape tomato (read here about tomato varieties and my favorites). I wish I had planted one paste tomato, though, since they are great for sauces. But my normal number of tomatoes the past 10 years has been 18-20, so yeah, I can live with less. 🙂
This sweet, fun movie. We watched Sing Street while we were visiting my dad in LaPine and we found this to be a great movie for families! We were three generations and we all loved it – plus Brian and I got a big kick out of the 80’s fashion and music.
It’s set in Dublin in the mid-80s and focuses on a not-very-popular boy who wants to impress a girl so he says he’s in a band and wants her in the video. The only problem? He’s never been in a band and is in a new school, so doesn’t know anyone. Full of optimism and can-do attitude, he sets out to do just that and the band actually turns out to be pretty good. Rated PG-13, I think it’s appropriate for tweens and up.
Have any of you seen this movie? Did you like it, too?
An easy order, good fitting bra from Amazon. Okay, this is so weird – in fact, I didn’t want to put the Amazon picture on my blog, since it was a woman wearing it and it just seemed…tacky. So I took a (not so great) photo of my bra.
BUT here’s the thing: I hate shopping for undergarments. Really it’s the last thing ever on my list. So I wear them until they fall apart. Yeah, it’s not pretty. So I took a chance with a $12 T-Shirt bra from Amazon and to my surprise, it fit better than my other bras I had bought from stores. So I’m sharing this with any of you who share my dislike for bra shopping – you just may like this too! (and right now you can get it for just $10.40 with Prime!)
The Triple Crown berries that just keep producing! We’re now going on a full 2 months of amazing fresh, thornless Triple Crown blackberries from our three, 3-year-old plants, can you believe it? It’s only a small bowl full every few days now, but there’s still plump red berries that should continue to ripen as our weather holds. I’m again amazed by these berries – plant some if you have the room!
Links To Check Out:
Rules that make decorating easier.
Creamy tomato and white bean soup – I never think to put beans in our tomato soup, it sounds good.
I have been following this room makeover and LOVE the result!
Make ahead breakfasts to freeze for hectic mornings.
7 cult drugstore beauty finds – I have been meaning to try #1 for years!
I’ve been following this adoption story from one of my favorite bloggers. So wonderful.
Who knew there was so much interest in garlic?
I’m going to do this with my next pot of beans.
Secrets for arranging your home decor perfectly.
Like these links? I’m always pinning these and lots more – follow me on Pinterest for more inspiration and ideas!
Disclosure: this post contains affiliate links and by clicking on them you help support AOC at no extra cost to you – thanks so much! Plus you can trust I’ll only share what I love. (You can always read our entire disclosure page here.)
Yippee!!!! Yayyyyyy!!!! So happy to hear the good news about your home selling, although I must admit I have grown very attached to that darling little yellow cottage :)…….it will be dearly missed. I am sure your next place will be even more wonderful and can’t wait to watch that adventure unfold.
I was delighted to find your recipe for the thick, easy salsa and wondered if instead of canning, could it be made into a smaller batch and just refrigerated for a time. If so how long do you think it would keep? Canning is just not an option for me right now, but would love to try this.
As always, thank you for all you share with us!
Thank you Shellie – you’re so sweet! We will miss it, too.
The salsa keeps for quite a while in the fridge, since there’s some vinegar it it, but for longer storage, I’ve had good luck freezing it. When it thaws it’s just like it was. 🙂
Wow, I wish my peppers did that well! I live in Boring and just harvested my two jalapeno and one anaheim and was mildly disappointed (which, is about how everything in my garden has been this year!).
I am currently flash-freezing my peppers and also roasting some of your freezer tomato sauce in my oven. Love your site!
Oh, bummer, Anetta!! Do you think you have enough sun, they really like that. I usually grow peppers all season in a hoop house with perforated plastic, but because we’re moving I just stuck a few in the ground and am really surprised at how well they did!
Thanks for your sweet words – so happy you’re enjoying the site and finding recipes!
Congrats on selling the house (and fingers crossed that all goes well with the closing)! I’m excited to see what you end up buying and downsizing to.
It’s a great idea on so many levels, especially as we age. I think a lot of people who bought McManions (not you, of course) or larger pieces of land will be kicking themselves when the kids are grown and move out and they still have 3,500 square feet of living space and acres of land to still clean and maintain. Again, good luck and I can’t wait to see how things go.
Thank you so much, Amy! (and I can’t imagine Brian and I knocking around in 3500 sq. feet- yikes!)
I’m really glad you are going to let us go along on this next leg of your journey. It will be instructive and interesting and I believe we will all learn something from it.
May the Lord give you peace as you follow Him a step at a time.
Oh, thank you Kim – that means a lot to me!