News from the Nest, July 1
First off, Happy July!
It’s a dark, rainy Monday morning, and I’m tickled pink! It is a lovely break from the searing heat we’ve endured in the last few days. The only downside to the weather is that Elsa will probably not get her much-needed playdate today…yikes.
Second, congrats to the winners of last week’s drawing! We had 100 entries!! I’ve emailed the winners. If you didn’t win this time, don’t fret. I have more giveaways planned for the near future.
My ‘Fiddling Summer’ was well-timed! Last week, we drove to and from our daughter’s current home twice, and this week, we will spend a few days with our son. I spent another morning at the vet as Elsa ate a good cupful of wood chips and inevitably suffered from diarrhea and vomiting. And in my current state of mind, I’m perfectly content to just roll with it! I took a book along, and we spent a lovely morning in their office.
Here in the U.S., this is a holiday week, with Independence Day falling on Thursday. I hope your holiday is filled with family, festivities, fireworks, and good food! 🎇🎆
Table of Contents
New on the Blog
You can prepare this Thai Pasta Salad without heating up your kitchen other than boiling water for the noodles. It’s cool, crunchy, and nutritious—a one-dish meal with an assortment of fresh vegetables and rotisserie chicken!
From the Kitchen
- Summer’s heat is the perfect time to enjoy refreshing, fruity beverages, and this Watermelon Vodka Cocktail is just the thing to quench your thirst.
- This easy Yogurt Plum Cake is humble enough for a casual breakfast treat but still fancy enough for company dessert!
- This healthy roasted almond recipe lets you make your own roasted and salted almonds in the oven without the added oil often found in purchased roasted almonds. It is one of the very first recipes I published, and it shows! The recipe is a great one, but the post needs a little spiffing up!
- This curry salad dressing recipe is one of our all-time favorite salad dressings. It is perfect with a simple bowl of greens or with a heartier salad. Just a little bit of this dressing adds a unique and delightful taste profile to your salad, and it will quickly become one of your go-to dressings.
- Try this recipe for Homemade Pumpkin Dog Treats for your four-legged friends. This post also discusses grains you can use in your pumpkin dog biscuits and dehydrating your treats to prevent them from molding.
From the Knit Studio
- If you’ve ever wanted to learn how to knit or hone your skills, check out this entire series of knit instructions. We start with learning about yarns and needles and go from there. Step-by-step instructions and videos help you learn successfully. Check out all the knit lessons here.
- This Knit Blanket Pattern is perfect for cool Spring and Summer nights. The free, printable pattern uses the Linen Knitting Stitch to create a woven-like fabric and simple crochet to create a lovely crochet fringe edge.
- Here are various knitted and crocheted gift ideas and free, printable gift tags to accompany your knit gift. Adding a ‘handmade’ tag adds something special to any gift.
From the Arts + Crafts Studio
- Reusable Beeswax Food Wraps are a fantastic replacement for single-use plastic wrap or aluminum foil. They’re reusable, which means you save money and reduce waste in the long run. And, not for nothing, they are easy to make!
- You can personalize these decorative tassels to fit any decor style or room style.
In the Garden
- This post is a little refresher on essential garden maintenance for daily, weekly, monthly, and seasonal upkeep. These tips are available as a printable, in addition to the very helpful Pruning & Fertilizing Log to help you remember each plant’s fertilization and pruning needs.
Home Keeping
- I’ve done extensive research and implemented several of my findings to reduce the amount of kitchen waste my family produces. If your family also struggles with food waste, these seventeen tips on how to Keep Produce Fresh Longer may come in handy!
- My brain can only store so much data, and it’s better for me to outsource the number of teaspoons in an ounce or tablespoons in a half cup to a chart. I had several taped up, and they had definitely seen better days, so I combined the information and put it on a lemon that I watercolored…functional aesthetics! Nab this useful chart, laminate it and tape it where it will be most easily accessed in your kitchen.
- Looking for something productive to do indoors to avoid going outside? Read these tips and print off the checklist to tackle the clutter in your bathroom and bedrooms.
A Few Favorites and Fun Finds
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- A lovely, lightweight throw.
- If you like Juliska like I do, you’ll be excited that many of their newly retired patterns are 40% off through the 7th. I’ve been perusing the sale items; figuring out what I need and what will make great gifts down the road.
- Did you know WalMart carries Coach brand purses and perfume? Many are on sale now.
- The lobby of our favorite restaurant has these wee narrow side tables, perfect for small spaces. These really can come in handy if you need places for drinks, etc…
Well, friends, this could be a really long day if I don’t get Miss Elsa some much-needed exercise. It may be a walking in the rain kind of day; not so bad with a Dickens’ book in my ear! Wish me luck!
Until next week!
