Bye Bye School - Hello Summer! (Thank You!)

This is the very last week of school for Video Boy and Princess! Woohoo! While most of the school districts in The O.C. have already sent their students off to get busy hangin' at the beach, enjoying PB&J's poolside or departing on a family vacation, our school district had one more week to go before bidding us farewell. Each end-of-school year our family always like to make sure to send our teachers off with a great, big "Thank You!" So, naturally, I've been busy at The Sandcastle Cottage getting our teacher gifts finished and handed out. Every year it's always a challenge for me to make it special, but keep it frugal. Teacher gift giving can get a bit expensive – especially in the land of sunshine, beaches and fancy cars!

I've always felt that a home-made gift is the very best way to say “Thank you,” and Teacher Thank You’s are no exception! Let me start by saying... you do NOT have to be a "crafty creature" to make a gift. If you can open a paint bottle and move a paint brush around, you CAN make a gift! One of my favorite (easy) gifts to make is the “Thank You” flower pot. Now I admit I found the original idea on Pinterest, but this version has my own frugal design twist - and absolutely ANYONE can do this.

First you start with a terra-cotta pot (purchased from a discount store, of course – I bought mine at the 99 Cents Store). Begin by flipping the pot over and use a permanent marker pen to inscribe your child’s name, grade, and school year. This way your favorite teacher will always remember who gave them this wonderful gift! (Sorry about the fancy high-tech censoring, but Video Boy likes to remain mysterious!)

Next, take some paint – any paint will due.  I used up the last little bit of some chalk paint I had on hand from another project, however craft paint would work just as well, too. Paint the rim of the pot…

 …. And then the base of the pot. Choose whatever color you like… you can even get the kiddos involved and have THEM paint the pot!

Now, take your permanent marker pen and write around the upper edge of the pot, “Thank You For Helping Me Grow” – You should be able to repeat this two times, if you’re careful. I like to spruce my letters up a bit, but regular lettering is perfectly fine.

I decided to draw a few bees and their little flight paths around the sides of the pot, but you could do anything! Stencil a summer themed scene, use sponge shapes and add some colorful designs - just have fun and let those creative ideas flow!

And... last, but not least, plant a flower in the pot! (I bought a 6 pack of flowers at the local nursery for $4.00) Don't forget a name tag - I’ve recycled some old, plastic garden markers in this version seen here, but large Popsicle sticks work well… you can even use some jute twine and tie a home-made tag around the rim of the pot.  That’s all there is to it! A simple, personalized gift to let your teachers know how much you appreciate them and all that they've done this past year.  The BEST part… each of these personalized beauties only cost me $2.25 each! A gift that's filled with love (and not the contents of your entire wallet!)

What frugal Teacher Thank You gifts have YOU created? We’d love to hear (and see) your creative “Thank You” style!

-Sophia

Hot! Hot! Hot!

Summer has arrived in “The O.C.” and we’re digging in for our first official heat wave of the summer season. The Sandcastle Cottage didn’t come with air conditioning (being 5 miles from the beach as the crow flies, we don’t often need it), so when the beach breeze disappears and the sun gauge starts to creep up it can get hot, hot, hot!

Staying cool, while not running up the electric bill from all the fans that my family wants to turn on (sometimes as early as 6:00 a.m. in the morning), can be a frugal-challenge. The humans in my household are eager to throw money out the window and flick on the nearest switch of electrical appliances to beat the summer heat waves the minute the mercury climbs.

One of the best money-saving devices I’ve put into place to help keep us cool during the summer months are light-blocking curtains.  Although a bit pricey, these curtains are an investment that’s worth every penny! I’ve tried to watch the sales during the winter months and buy a window at a time. I’ve eventually installed these wonderful cooling curtains on every window in which the sun beats in. The curtains that are in my bedroom were actually purchased on sale at J.C. Penny and were originally one, long curtain (often times less expensive than buying two panels) which I later separated down the middle. Up to 30% of unwanted heat comes from your windows, and utilizing shades and curtains can save you up to 7% on your bill. Keeping out the heating rays of the sun during the hottest part of the day can lower the temperature in our Castle up to 20 degrees and keep the electrical appliance usage to a minimum… which equals $$$ saved!

According to Samantha Toscano of Huffpost, some other beat-the-heat ideas include:

Be smart about your doors. 
Closing off doors will prevent the cool air from permeating these areas during the hottest part of the day. You’ll want to capitalize on the cooler night hours, too, letting air flow naturally through your home.

Hack a fan instead of turning on the AC. 
Not even an air conditioner can give off a faux sea breeze... but filling a mixing bowl with ice (or something equally cold, like an ice pack) and positioning it at an angle in front of a large fan, so that the air whips off the ice at an extra-chilled, extra-misty temperature, is a magical substitute that works great.

Swap your sheets. 
Not only does seasonally switching up your bedding freshen up a room, it’s a great way to keep cool. While textiles like flannel sheets and fleece blankets are fantastic for insulation, cotton is a smarter move this time of year as it breathes easier and stays cooler. And as an added bonus, buy yourself a buckwheat pillow or two. Because buckwheat hulls have a naturally occurring air space between them, they won’t hold on to your body heat like conventional pillows, even when packed together inside a pillow case.

Set your ceiling fans to rotate counter-clockwise. 
Whether you know it or not, your ceiling fan needs to be adjusted seasonally. Set counter-clockwise in the summer at a higher speed, the fan’s airflow will create a wind-chill breeze effect that will make you and your guests “feel” cooler.

Focus on the temperature in your body, not the house. 
If your ancestors survived without air conditioning, so can you. From sipping tasty iced drinks to applying a cold cloth to strong-pulsed areas like your neck and wrists, cooling yourself from the inside out is not a bad idea. Other tricks include being smart about your clothing choices and telling your partner you won’t be cuddling until the leaves start changing color.

Turn on your bathroom fans. 
...or the exhaust fan in your kitchen, for that matter. Both of these pull the hot air that rises after you cook or take a steamy shower out of your home.

Heat-proof your bed. 
Go straight to the source, and put a cool-inducing Chillow under your head while you sleep. For feet, fill a hot water bottle and put it in the freezer before placing at the foot of your bed. And it sounds strange, but slightly dampening your sheets before bedtime will majorly help you chill out.

Let the night air in. 
During the summer months, temperatures may drop during the night. If this is the case where you live, make the most of these refreshing hours by cracking the windows before you go to bed. You can even create a wind tunnel by strategically setting up your fans to force the perfect cross breeze. Just be sure to close the windows (and the blinds) before things get too hot in the morning.

Ditch the incandescent lights. 
If you ever needed motivation to make the switch to CFLs, or compact fluorescent lamps, this is it. Incandescent bulbs waste about 90 percent of their energy in the heat they emit, so tossing them to the curb will make a small difference in cooling your home while lowering your electric bill.

Start grilling. 
It’s obvious, but we’re going to say it anyway: Using your oven or stove in the summer will make your house hotter. If it already feels like 100+ degrees in your home, the last thing you want to do is turn on a 400-degree oven. Besides, who doesn’t want to get more mileage out of their outdoor furniture and seasonal accessories?

Make a few long-term improvements. 
If you’re really, really committed to the whole no-AC thing, you can make a couple changes to your home that will keep it cooler for seasons to come. Insulated window films, for example, are a smart purchase as they work similarly to blinds. And additions like awnings and planted trees or vines on or in front of light-facing windows will shield your home from the sun’s rays, reduce the amount of heat your home absorbs and make your investment nothing but worthwhile.

How do YOU keep your Castle cool during the heat of the summer months? We’d love to hear your ideas!

Clipped Wings

I have a to-do list at least several pages long....the garage needs organizing, the garden needs tending to (well, okay...the "tending" is actually the fact that I need to PLANT the veggie garden), I have several painting projects lined up, and there's always my Sunday morning walks along the beach with my best childhood friend.  With all of these tasks awaiting my attention, injuring my lower back was certainly NOT on my to-do list. I've been out-of-commission since March 3rd and let me tell you...when your life is suddenly limited to sitting, laying down and moving very carefully...mingled with trips to the doctors and various procedures to set things right again...that to-do list ends up mocking you. (I can hear it chuckling and sneering from my desk).

On the bright side, the income taxes are done and filed, I'm now working on reading book #5 from the pile on my nightstand and I've had more time to do the things I never seem to have time to do (like contemplating paint colors for the master bedroom), so it hasn't been a total waste of time. It's also given me time to slow down a bit....think about things...and realize that this little blip on life's radar has really been a blessing in some ways. I've spent more time with my parents, my husband and the kids...I'm not rushing off here or there...and I've had time to watch the flowers in the front yard grow...time to keep a better eye on the herbs in the old washtub on the back patio...more time to chit chat with the neighbors (on the few occasions when I've managed to hobble out for some fresh air and sunshine). The good thing is that to-do list will be there when my back has mended itself, and in the meantime I've had a little respite from life's hamster wheel. It's all in how you choose to look at tings. Life's challenges are what you choose to make of them - and I'm making good use of the time I've been given to slow down and smell the flowers. - S.

A Dandelion Perspective

What do YOU see?

Last weekend I received another lesson on Perspective. It's one of those skills that really needs to be presented to us over and over again so that we don't forget how to use it. Luckily, I have a 5 year old who keeps my Perspective skills up to her standards.

We're in a drought here, so we haven't really paid much attention to the back lawn lately (truth be told, I'd love to rip OUT the lawn and put in raised vegetable beds, or a lovely patio area, but that's a subject for another conversation). Instead of a well-trimmed lawn, the dandelions have taken over. Now most of us would be embarrassed at letting our lawn "go to weeds," but apparently having several dozen dandelions scattered around is actually cause for great joy and excitement! The Princess was in the back yard with her two little friends when I heard an exclamation! "Look!.....dandelions!.....everywhere!" I watched as three little girls ran joyfully around the backyard...picking dandelions and blowing them (which, no doubt, will lead to even MORE dandelions). I stood and watched their delightful discovery play out. It made me think: Life is all about perspective - how you choose to look at a weed. It can either bring you a sense of embarrassment and exasperation or it can lift your spirits and bring you pure joy and delight.

Luckily, the dandelions in our backyard are "joy and delight" dandelions.....not plain 'ol weeds, as I had previously thought. Who knew? The Princess knew....and she, once again, patiently taught me - It's all in how you choose to look at things. This weekend I've decided to "throw in the trowel" and leave the weeds to sit a bit longer. Instead, I think I'll give blowing dandelions a try - I'm sure THAT skill needs a little sharpening, too.

-S.

Gardening in an "Endless Summer"

It's been challenging to know what to put in the garden this year. The weatherman keeps promising "El Nino" weather and that we'll have lot's of rain, but so far it's just been an Endless Summer....and we're in February! Luckily, I decided a while back to start planting drought-tolerant landscape plants. If you're unsure of what to plant, I always recommend looking around at what's planted along the side of the road or highway. If it's surviving there (with all of that carbon-monoxide exhaust blowing at it every day) than it's definitely something that might have a fighting chance in the garden. One of my favorite plants is Plumbago auriculata. Aside from the fact that it's one of my favorite colors (Blue), it's very versatile. You can let it grow in to it's usual wispy bush, you can hedge it (it's particularly great at disguising chain-link fences, which is what I'm doing with it) or you can even keep it trimmed close to the ground for a low ground cover. It's drought tolerant and tough as nails. This weekend I'll be heading off to my local nursery to find some more "Endless Summer tolerant" plants to add to the Sandcastle Cottage garden. I'd love to hear what the weather's like in YOUR garden? What are you planting?