2010 September | Dimes2Vines

Coupon Usage

Coupon Usage does not have to be a mystery. While it does take a little time, the rewards are well worth it in savings to your pocketbook.

I have not posted much recently about coupons. Mainly, because, I have not been shopping lately. We have been eating out of the freezer and so busy that I have honestly not had time to shop! I do however, keep a check on coupon deals and the organization of my coupons. I continue to get questions concerning coupons and thought it might be helpful to have a list of coupon how-to’s in one place.

These are previously written posts that I hope you will find beneficial.

Couponing at Walgreens

Waiting!

Have you ever thought about how much of life is waiting?

Waiting for Christmas. Waiting for birthdays. Waiting for a special event. Waiting at the doctor’s office. Waiting for things to get better. Waiting for rain. Waiting for cool weather. Waiting for hot weather …….. The list can go on and on.

We are waiting for harvest. Our first machine harvest has been delayed several times for various reasons: weather and availability of equipment are just a couple of reasons. The biggest reason to wait? The brix.

Brix is the measure of the sugar content in the grapes. Our Roussanne is currently hovering around 24 which is good. But, we would like it to get higher. 25 or 26 would be wonderful. Sunshine is a major factor in the brix. The higher brix found in more mature fruit makes a more flavorful wine. As of now, harvest of the Roussanne is tentatively set for Tuesday. The Aglianico will be machine harvested sometime in October. As the waiting period increases so does our anticipation!

What are you waiting for?

photo credit: bing images

A New Day

The sunrise always signifies a new day, a new beginning filled with renewed hopes and dreams. I have said it before and it still holds true – west Texas has the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets. I realize this is because there are no trees and you can see the whole horizon but still, they are beautiful.

Today we will be hand harvesting two tons of Roussanne grapes. We hope to be finished by lunch time – many hands make work go much faster! The remainder of the Roussanne will be machine harvested Friday or Saturday.

Have a wonderful day!

Painting the ICF Exterior

When it comes to paint color, for me there is no choice other than yellow. In most cases anyway. The outside of our house in Alabama was yellow. I enjoyed it, so why mess with a good thing? The natural choice for the new house was yellow. The problem is it is so difficult to tell the actual color from a little color chip. I know the tricks: take it outside in real daylight, take it to the place where it will be used…. But when it comes down to it, I feel like it is still hit or miss within shades.

The name of the color choosen is “Buttercup”. I admit, I was drawn to the name. After all, Buttercup is a nice milk cow and a pretty flower. How could I go wrong? Well, if anything is wrong, it may be a bit bright. Would I change it? I don’t think so but I do have time to think about it. All this will be covered with stucco after building the first floor .

I have pictured the girls painting but just for the record, the boys all painted too!

Some got in to it more than others. Since it was water based paint, I was not too worried. Accidents do happen. Fingers in the paint. “Accidentally” touching a sibling with the paint roller. You know how things just happen.

Mmmm! Does that taste as good as it looks?

What’s wrong with yellow eyeshadow?

How did this happen?

We will apply a second coat, to the house that is, on the next calm day.

A House With a View

Once the first floor of our new house is added, this will be the view:

That first dark green line, in the distance, is the vineyard. The house is positioned so as to overlook the vineyard. The plan is, Lord willing, to continue adding acreage to the vineyard and bring it closer to the house. Eventually, the vineyard will surround the house.

Treasure Hunt

You may have noticed that there was no post Tuesday.

Normally, the reason for me not posting could be any of the following: there was nothing going on and I could not think of anything to say, the internet is down, I am sick or there is no reason.

But Tuesday was different. I, we, the whole family, were busy tearing our house apart. A treasure hunt of sorts.

I looked down shortly before breakfast and realized the main diamond in my wedding ring was gone – GONE!

Talk about a sinking, sick, want to throw-up feeling.

So, we spent the next few hours looking everywhere. The kitchen, bathroom, kitchen and bathroom drains, bedding, drawers, clothes’ pockets, closets …. We were on hands and knees with another person holding a spot light hoping to catch a glint or glimmer. We went through the vacuum bag and trash bags.

Unfortunately, we did not find it. Needless to say, I was bummed all day.

Later a verse came to mind which is speaking of wisdom:

4 If you seek her as silver,

And search for her as for hidden treasures;

5 Then you will discern the fear of the Lord,

And discover the knowledge of God. Prov. 2:4,5

I realized that just as we were all seeking my diamond, a hidden treasure, so we should be seeking wisdom – God’s wisdom.

We will continue to look for my diamond and I am hopeful that it will turn up eventually. I also have a renewed zeal to seek the Lord in my everyday life. Seeing Him in each circumstance. And, teach my children to do the same.

Thermo Plastic Olefin

Thermo Plastic Olefin (TPO) is a durable plastic roofing material used for flat roofs. Since our basement roof will be flat until we add the first floor and my brother-in-law was able to get a wonderful deal on it, we are using TPO for our temporary roof.

We had several 10 ft wide pieces, as well as, several 3 foot wide sections. So, the first step was to roll out what we had and see how best to utilize it.

Next came the seams. Pieces were overlapped, some sticky stuff placed in between the layers, glued and then pressed together. I hope that was not too technical for anyone!

To provide insulation, we used the pink foam board. Two layers of foam board were put down on top of the plywood decking. The first layer was screwed down and the second layer glued to the first. The TPO was then rolled out over the foam.

An overhang was left around the top of the insulated concrete forms (ICF) which will be glued down and secured with strips of wood. The bucket are filled to provide weight to hold the TPO down until it is completely secured. We would not want this west Texas wind to get under it and lift it off!

The corners remain to be finished. The excess is cut and that same black sticky stuff is used to secure the pieces together.

If you have ever upholstered furniture, these corners are much like some of the cuts you make to fit the fabric to the furniture piece.

It makes a nice snug corner. Notice the duct tape on the thumb? It is a makeshift, in the field (and sometimes at home) band-aid. Duct tape really is amazing stuff! Did you know it will even help get rid of warts? Not that I have any, but if you do, put a piece of duct tape on top of the wart and leave it for a week, check it and put another piece on if needed. To speed up the process, put duct tape on after using a wart remover.

Now, back to the corners…. It makes a nice snug corner! The excess will be trimmed off when it is secured.

Painting the exterior will be next and then the TPO can be secured across the top of the ICF. We have bought yellow (my favorite color) paint and are just waiting for a still day to paint. Here in west Texas though, it seems that every day is a windy day!

Goals Almost Accomplished!

Framing, TPO roofing, work, work and more work!

If you remember, my brother-in-law leaves today, Monday. He has been here a bit over a week and we have had so much fun! While he came out to help build the new house, I think he may have worked harder than he anticipated! These guys have worked every day, all day, until 7:00 in the evening. Our goals for the week included framing the walls and putting the roof on the basement. The goals were almost accomplished. Framing the walls were finished the early part of the week. They began the roof on Thursday. Since it will only be temporary until we add the first floor above, we are using TPO (thermo plastic olefin). It is a plastic flat roofing material which is very durable. My brother-in-law was able to get an awesome deal from a roofer so it was very economical.

The progress on Thursday included a lot of thinking. Floor joists (roof rafters for now) were begun. Notice “the thinker” sitting and well, thinking!

They were able to put up about half of them.

Friday’s work started with completing the joists.

The decking was next. Plywood (we used Advantech) was nailed over the joists.

The decking was finished on Saturday. It is amazing how having a roof adds perspective to the inside. It gives size and definition to the rooms. It also makes a cavernous, echoing, loud space! I will definitely be using rugs!

So at the end of the day, thinking was begun for the TPO roofing. Since we had several 10 ft sections as well as some scrap 3 ft pieces, how was the best way to lay it out?

I know you are all sitting at the edge of your seats waiting to hear how we did it but … I must leave you hanging. We have to get ready to go to the airport. The brother-in-law would be disappointed if he missed his flight. That would mean he has to continue working and I think he is ready to leave so he can get some rest!

More later!

Pickled Okra

Pickled Okra is a wonderful addition to many meals. Our family especially enjoys it as a side to Cheese Fondue. Our daughter-in-law has made it for the past 2 years and shares it with us. Thursday, I made my first batch and it was amazingly easy. The following recipe calls for pints but I use quarts (2 pints = 1 quart) so you may adjust the recipe accordingly.

Pickled Okra

2 pints small okra

4 cloves garlic

2 tsp dill seed

2 whole jalapeño peppers (more or less as desired)

1 c vinegar (I use apple cider vinegar)

1/4 c water

2 Tbsp salt (I forgot to add the salt!)

Boil jars and lids for 15 minutes to sterilize.

In a separate pot, bring vinegar, water and salt to a boil.

Pack okra as tightly as possible into jars. Depending on the degree of spiciness desired, cut out membrane and seeds from the jalapeño peppers. Leaving the seeds increases the zing! (That means it is too hot for me!) Add garlic, dill seed and a jalapeño pepper to each jar.

Once the okra is packed in the jars, pour boiling vinegar mixture into each jar covering okra, dill seeds, garlic and jalapeño peppers. Leave 1/4 inch head space in each jar.

Place the lids and rings on each jar and place them in a water canner. Water bath (place in boiling water to cover and boil) for 10 min. Carefully remove from heat and allow to cool undisturbed. Store for several weeks before indulging. Serve chilled.

Framing the Walls

Once we hand harvested the Montepulciano, we were able to start work on the house again. Hopefully, we can get a lot done before next week’s harvest. John’s brother is visiting so, the goal is to get the roof on before he leaves!

Since we used Insulated Concrete Forms (ICF), the exterior walls went up very quickly. Now, we are working on framing the interior walls. Here are a few pictures:

It may be difficult to envision, but there are three bedrooms on the south side.

The north side of the basement will be the kitchen, dining area, living area and bathroom.

Next comes the roof (which will eventually be the floor joist of the first floor).