thrifty thursday and more

Today I am joining Lady Cordelia again for thrifty Thursday.

Where do we draw the line?

We don't.

Trash by the side of the road is absolutely fair game. 

I have been hankering for new dining room chairs for a long time. I say that like I have dining room, which I don't.  We have had white plastic ikea chairs for many moons, and while they were nicely neutral, they were getting grubby. And they were plastic, let's not forget. 

I was hoping for some wood chairs or some retro cool, awesome colored, vintage Brunswick fiberglass shell chairs.

uh huh.

guess what?

free.

by the side of the road.

10 of them.

I only took five in the coolest possible colors.

can you believe?

....in other news...

We have been busy creating around here. I can't reveal it all right now, but this was a fun project. 

Max and our youth group welded a bench to go in the garden at the local soup kitchen. They were taught the basics and then got to it. 

filing.

excuse me, young man, but who said you could grow up?

These three give me faith in raising a teen! such. nice. kids.

Max wields fiery hot torch, Mike puts his hands in there to guide. Oy.

The finished product was simple and lovely. Thank you to Ellen and Mike for organizing and executing. It takes a village, and I am always grateful for my village, at home and afar.

***
Summer Valley Camp plans are coming along fabulously and if you are thinking of coming, then let me know soon!
I am filling up fast!
Matt will be helping with the older kids on Mondays and I'm so excited.... he is a fountain of enthusiasm and fun. (rhubarb excluded)
***
My next door neighbor dropped this card at my door the other night. It reminded her of me and reminds me of her, which is just so nice. I love it!

And finally, here is the much maligned rhubarb cobbler. Matt went ON AND ON about how awful rhubarb is. I was making it, and he went so far as to make HIS OWN batch of oatmeal, pecan, milk chocolate cookies for dessert. He kept saying that 'if I want to make a dessert out of sauerkraut then go right ahead....'

blah blah blah

The children were nonplussed to try it, to say the least. 

But then the aroma, and the crumble, and the vanilla Ben and Jerry's caused him to cave and try it.
I should have said 'no'. I should have said 'take your little cookies and go eat them in the corner.' But this fellow has a spell on me, and of course, it's always glorious to prove them wrong.

'I must have been thinking of something else', he meekly volunteered after finishing his first bowl.

We polished it off for breakfast.

I used this recipe and added raspberries, oats to the topping, and used a whole stick of butter rather than a quarter.

Happy Thursday!
Go forth and be thrifty (but not with the butter).