Book Pals - Fancy Nancy

My mother may have over-exaggerated my book mania by just bit.  However, I do love a great children's book.  Besides looking for books, I have been on the lookout for plush book characters for my favorite books.  You can buy them, but my bank account cannot handle the prices.  My current favorite picture book is Fancy Nancy.

I think that Fancy Nancy is what I was as a child.  I loved nothing better than dressing up in as many ruffles and bows as I could pile on.  As a teacher, I love Fancy Nancy for her wonderful way of choosing extraordinary words to say ordinary things.  So of course the first character I wanted was Nancy.

Madame Alexander Version $59.95                                              Amazon Version $33.00

Mama Thrift was sure we could create  Fancy Nancy.  Remember these she bought for 25 cents each?

We took the legs off one doll and attached them to another.  We took purple tulle and hot glued on a dress.  Then we accessorized.  Beads, ribbon, jewels and a boa (a ribbon that we gathered).  The glasses are made from craft foam and colored cellophane.  Everything we used was from our craft junk drawer.  I love the final product.

  Total cost...50 cents!   Stayed tuned for our next book pal project...Pete the Cat.

Thrift Chick

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Winter Wreath Transformation

With the Christmas decorations put away, things were looking pretty bare around here.  I wanted a wreath for my front door.  When ever I go to purchase  floral things, I am just so amazed at how quickly the cost adds up as you add picks and sprays.  For my front door I decided to see if I could take thrift store castoffs and repurpose them.
  Remember these from my last foray into half off days?

The foliage cost me $1.50 and the ugly wreath $1.  I took all the ball picks off the wreath and discarded the gold glittered ones.  They were looking very frayed and bare.  I cut the foliage into pieces and stuck it into the wreath all around.  I then put the white ball picks on in strategic places (I am sure that is how a florist does it...isn't....just stick 'em on, take 'em off, move 'em, stick 'em on again until you are either satisfied or tired of working with it.)  My final product looks like this:

It is not Pottery Barn, but for $2.50, You can't beat the price!  If in a few months, I hate it, I won't feel bad about changing it up....that's why I love thrifting....buyer's remorse is almost nonexistent!

Mama Thrift

For the Love of Books

For the past few years, Thrift Chick has been amassing books.  Lots and lots of books.  She says it is for the classroom she will one day have, but I think it really is to feed her habit.  Since she was little, she has loved to read.  Now she has an excuse to buy books.  She initially began her collection by doing what all teachers do...buying from Scholastic Books Clubs.  Then she discovered Goodwill book bins on half off day.  Books galore for a quarter apiece (or 50 cents if they are hardback.) Oh my...she thought she had died and gone to heaven.  Now our spare room looks like this.

Over the past two years, she has collected close to 350 books.  She said she was organizing them, but I think she spread them out so she could gaze upon all their loveliness.  She has promised to stop for awhile.  However during our thrifting day last week I found her head deep in a bin shrieking "Junie B. Jones, Horrible Harry and Flat Stanley!!"

If you have young readers, you might want to check out Goodwill.  Just watch out for a redhead with a crazy gleam in her eye.  She just might pepper spray you to get that Fancy Nancy book you are holding.

Mama Thrift

Day After Christmas Shopping

Most people hit the stores the day after Christmas to snatch up some post holiday deals.  We are no exception, but the stores we hit are of a different kind.  All the thrift stores in our area have half off days on December 26.  Of course we had to hit each and every one.  This is my haul.  Thrift Chick will have to show you hers later.

 The dolls were a quarter a piece.  Thrift Chick will be showing you all the books she has gotten for her classroom later. She has also been on the lookout for the characters from some of her favorite books.  They tend to retail for close to $20 and that is just too steep for her.  We have "Fancy Nancy" plans for these "cuties.".

 Yeah, I know...what was she thinking.  I have no idea what I will do with these, but they were only $1.00.  I think I was overcome with nostalgia remembering those camp craft potholders.

 Yes, it is a very ugly wreath and maybe even worse fake foliage, but you can't beat the price for basic wreath parts.

It may not look like much, but I am excited to try and reinvent each and everyone of them. Stayed tuned!

Mama Thrift

Range Games

Part Select is having a GE Appliance giveaway.  All you have to do is submit a blog post that relates to one of their topics.   This one caught my eye..   “If your appliance could talk, what would it say?”  See I know our oven has a mind of its own and in that evil mind it has devised a plot to drive me completely insane.    Here is our oven.  

  

It is a downdraft.  Because of the way our kitchen is laid out, it is the only type of range we can get.  Which limits us to two…that’s right just two models.  Our oven knows that my choices are limited as well as the fact that our budget is nonexistent.  It all plays into its diabolical plan to push me over the edge. 

What the Oven says: 

“Actually she is quite correct.  I do have plan.  I have to confess though it didn’t start out to be evil or diabolical.  In fact, in the beginning, it was just a simple malfunction of my sensor.  Sensor goes out and I start blinking F-3 and beeping nonstop.  Who could have predicted my owner would have lost her manual and have no idea what F-3 meant?  Really it is all her fault that things have digressed to this point.  She kind of hyped out trying to figure out what F-3 meant (and how to stop the insane beeping.)  The problem was easily solved by a visit from her local repairman.

It would have ended there, but I got a little bored.  After all, she really doesn’t cook all that much.  Let’s be honest here, the Food Network is not going to be calling her in the near future.  Besides, it is not my fault I seem to have a fatal flaw with sensors.  It was evitable that the sensor should go out again.  F-3 and beeping equals frustration and button pushing.  All in all, it makes for quite a show.  I must confess I did do a little messing on my part.  Sometimes, I would turn on and cook everything to perfection.  Sometimes I would start the annoying beeping halfway through.  Sometimes just for the heck of it I would start the beeping in the middle of the night when the stove wasn’t even on.  That little maneuver produced quite a show.

Now my owner is no dummy.  She did what every DYIer would does, she started researching me on the internet.  She ordered a new sensor and installed it herself.  She was so proud that I almost stopped the shenanigans right then and there. ..almost.   Instead I lulled her into a false sense of accomplishment and then BAM!  Beep, beep, beep.  I thought she was going to pick me up single handedly and toss me out the window.

Now we are engaged in the most satisfying game.  I let her start the oven, preheat and put her food in.  After about 10 minutes, I flash the code and start the beeping.  Now my owner is a tough cookie.  She has not yet thrown in the towel.  She plays with my buttons, turns on the fan and restarts me.  I give it a few minutes and then make my move.  She counters with a push of the broiler selection and then a quick push of her bake selection.  Sometimes I reward her inventiveness with a full 25 minutes of cook time.  But of course, I can’t let her think that she has won.  That middle of the night random beeping is by far the best move I can make.  I have also found flashing other random codes like F-0 also drive her crazy.

There are times I feel a little sorry for her.  Watching her trying to bake Christmas cookies did make me feel just a tiny bit ashamed.  However, the constant battle of wits every three minutes as she tried to keep me from beeping and shutting down was just too much fun.  Really it is not a diabolical plan…maybe if she would have used me more, I wouldn’t have gotten so bored.  Hmm….I wonder if the dishwasher and refrigerator would like to join in on all the fun. “           

 The Oven

Santa Baby

       We had the best present of the year this past June....my niece Ady arrived.  Now I am not much of a baby person.  I have always said unless I can pop out a toddler without getting fat, I may just forgo the whole baby thing.  I must admit Ady has worked her way around my anti baby sentiments.
        Now I must explain my brother is my exact opposite.  He is sports loving without a lick of fashion sense.  My sister-in-law is wonderful, but she too prefers sweat pants and tennis shoes (she is after all a physical education major.)  So there I have this adorable niece and two parents who prefer her to be.....uhm....less ruffles and bows.  That just doesn't do it for me.  So when I was babysitting, I just had to break out a little tulle and flowers.   Now this is a Christmas imp!

     Now my sister-in-law when she saw the tutu just laughed and said, "Well you know what she will do with that, she will just eat it,"

     She may have been right, but just give me a few years.  I'll get her fashion sense humming!

Happy Thrifting!

Thrift Chick

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie

Every year, my fellow special ed teachers have a cookie exchange.  I must confess I am not excellent in the kitchen.  I have a few recipes I can make that people actually comment on.  But for the most part I am at best average. So for the cookie exchange, I am always looking for something yummy and easy.  This year I saw a recipe for chocolate pudding cookies at Chef in Training  They looked yummy and easy....and they were!  Nikki wrapped the dough around a Rolo.  I wrapped the dough around a half of Andes mint.   I also made half the dough plain and put in a candy cane Hershey's Kiss when I took them out of the oven.  Both were wonderful.

     For the exchange, you are supposed to bring the recipe.  I wanted to do something my fellow teachers would appreciate so I borrowed from this famous picture book:

    I created the recipe card tag with the recipe on one side and a quote that makes me smile on the other side.

   A few cookies, a tag and a little ribbon and I am ready for the exchange.  All in all, I think this time I may consider my kitchen experience a success.

By the way, the whole experience was made a bit more challenging by this guy who just couldn't stay away.

      Don't let the sad eyes fool you.  He has the same steely determination of his namesake the Leroy Jethro Gibbs. 

May your holiday baking go as well.

Mama Thrift