Archives for 2012

Burger King: 50¢ Vanilla Ice Cream Cones

August 17, 2012 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Burger King

For a limited time, participating Burger King locations will offer the soft serve vanilla ice cream in a cup or cone for 50¢. Yeah!

The BK Facebook page indicates that price and participation vary. Our local Burger King ran a television spot announcing their participation from August 17 – 31, 2012.

Whether you are still enjoying summer or need an after-school treat, check your local Burger King for participation and price restrictions.

Keep enjoying your summer while using time wisely building relationships. Happy licking!

Question: What is your favorite ice cream flavor?

2012: Garden Journal – August Edition

August 16, 2012 by Tracy

This garden experiment continues to surprise me.

As a green (read: inexperienced) gardener, I missed the second watering a few days in a row. Yikes!

Though my efforts have not been perfect, our garden continues to forgive my mistakes and produce well.

The results by the end of July looked like this:

Strawberries

We picked 20.5 strawberries from our 4 plants. Yeah, they exploded this month. The half was due to a bug or bird getting the other half, but it still counts. 🙂

Tomatoes

The cherry tomatoes took off resulting in 47 red ones and 1 green one that fell off while harvesting the ripe ones – oops! (I really am green. ;-))

Cucumbers

Our two plants produced 5 more cucumbers. I’m amazed at how fast they grow. I will check one evening and discover a little bulb. Then the next morning, the little bulb expanded into a 4-to-6-inch cucumber. Incredible to see.

Lettuce

Both types of lettuce began flowering. Honestly, I’m not sure what that means, but I chopped down the buttercrunch bibb because we don’t eat it – too tart even with salad dressing. The romaine wilted somewhat, so I pruned it back as well. Now we wait to see what the plants will do.

Peppers

Are you ready for this update? We have two green bell peppers growing. Finally! The yellow pepper plant is on its own time table. Just watering and waiting some more.

Onions

Alive and well, our onions have sprouted green shoots again. I will check on their growth in August and report back.

Herbs

Cut, rinsed, and dried parsley, basil, and oregano. These are the herbs I use in making Italian dishes like lasagna, spaghetti, manicotti, and chicken parmesan. Yum! Though not baking much this summer, I will have the herbs ready to make our favorite fall dishes in the coming months.

Our garden has its ups and downs, but I haven’t killed any of the plants yet. In using time wisely, I am learning a new skill, preparing for the fall, and enjoying the process. If you are trying out gardening or are a seasoned expert, then please share your gardening adventures. I welcome your suggestions. Happy tending and harvesting!

Question: What are your favorite herbs for Italian dishes?

Freebies for Blogelina’s New Blog or Blog Makeover Launch

August 15, 2012 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Blogelina

When I wrote my goal update back in March, I explained how I took Blogelina’s free on-line course and participated in Blogelina’s 100 Comments event.

Networking with other bloggers keeps me accountable which is why I also participate in Blogelina’s Blogging Buddies. I have 4 other “buddies” in my group, and we encourage each other on our blogging journeys.

Blogelina’s New Launch

As a fan of Blogelina, I am thrilled to share Tanya’s new launch coming on Tuesday, August 28, 2012. If you have wanted to start a blog or desire a makeover for your existing blog, then you will want to explore these Blogelina options.

Freebies from Blogelina

For visiting her new launch page, Tanya at Blogelina will give you a $20 discount coupon and a free year of web hosting. Yep! No strings attached. Even if you want to try blogging, this is a great FREE opportunity that you can get today.

To give you a peek into web hosting, I use Bluehost.com. When Bluehost offered their rock bottom sale of $3.95 per month, I extended my service for the maximum 3 years and paid around $150, which is $50 per year.

(Note: I appreciate Bluehost.com’s web hosting service and have joined their affiliate program. When I link to Bluehost.com, I use my referral link.)

For me, paying $50 per year is a great price. But right now, Blogelina is offering you a deluxe web hosting service for free which is a savings of $50 to $100. Awesome deal if you are beginning or need to renew your current web hosting service!

Blogelina’s Services

If you are interested in starting a new blog, Blogelina has the tools to make your blog a success from the start. If you are already blogging and could use a makeover and guidance on plugins and resources, then Blogelina can improve your design.

Blogelina Affiliate Association

Affiliate Notice: Since I have found Blogelina’s resources helpful, I wanted to pass along this information to you. All the links to Blogelina within this post and on my sidebar are my affiliate links.

This means that if you click through my referral links and make a purchase, Blogelina will compensate Using Time Wisely at no cost to you. For more information please refer to my full disclosure policy.

Being extremely selective in my affiliate links and referrals, I will only pass along services and recommendations that I have found useful and worth my time. Blogelina is such a resource which is why I choose to partner with Tanya in her affiliate program to spread the word about her new launch.

If you are even the slightest bit curious, go checkout her launch page. As there are no services yet to sell, you will not feel any pressure to make a purchase, but you can accept her free gift of a year of web hosting with no strings attached. You have nothing to lose, so go check it out. Happy blogging!

Question: If you have or plan to have a blog, then please leave a comment sharing your link? (Spam links will get blocked. ;-))

Summer Picnic & Barbecue Planning Guide – Part 4 of 5

August 14, 2012 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Flickr (Smabs Sputzer)

Many summer schedules are coming to an end, but summer continues officially until September. As your routines change and you are reunited with your friends, enjoy times together over a summer picnic and barbecue.

After planning the menu in part 1, distributing the responsibilities in part 2, and creating an inviting space in part 3, today continues with keeping refrigerated items cold and organizing your food layout.

Keeping Refrigerated Items Cold

With the summer heat, keeping the refrigerated items chilled is a challenge. Besides keeping those dishes inside or in a cooler, I like using ice packs. Since the ice packs will melt, I do the following:

1. Find a coordinating hand towel that fits nicely on the table,

2. Set the hand towel (folded in half) in the place of the refrigerated dish,

3. Place the ice packs on top of the hand towel, and

4. Put the dish on top of the ice packs.

Throughout the picnic, I check the refrigerated dishes for coolness and return them to the kitchen as the dinner comes to an end. Keeping refrigerated items cool is difficult in the direct sunlight. If the ice packs are too bulky for under the dish, I have placed the ice packs around the dish as well. As each picnic menu has its challenges, I focus on keeping the refrigerated items cold when organizing the food layout.

Organizing the Food Layout

When I setup the food table, I choose to group like items together as needed. My organizational pattern is as follows:

1. Paper Products

In this section, I place the plates, napkins, and silverware. Of course, I skip this step if tables are preset with these items.

2. Meats

A platter of meats followed by breads and condiments fill the next section on the serving table.

3. Sides

Placed next to the meats are the sides, including salads, vegetables, and fruit.

4. Desserts

If desserts are included on the table, then I add them at the end. Depending on the setup, I usually serve dessert after dinner is complete.

5. Drinks

If I only have one table, then I set the drinks with cups at the end. This way, guests do not carry their drink through the food line as they fill their plates.

With a simple setup plan that works with any type of gathering, I can quickly prepare for guests without lots of fuss. Inviting friends on the fly is possible with a plan in place. Entertaining others does not require china and crystal glasses. Thank goodness. 🙂

Planning a simple summer picnic and barbecue need not take lots of time and energy. In using time wisely to plan ahead to keep refrigerated items cold and organizing the food layout, you can focus on relaxing and enjoying your evening.

With Labor Day weekend coming, consider inviting some friends for an enjoyable summer picnic and barbecue. Happy planning!

Question: How do you keep the refrigerated dishes cold?

When Your Organizing System is Less than Perfect, Get Creative

August 13, 2012 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Martha Stewart

There it is that perfect organizer that gives everything a place and looks fantastic. The advertiser has lured you in with perfect lighting, balance, and color. You consider your space and budget and decide to purchase it.

Then you get it home and the drawers are too small to hold all your items, the height seems smaller than pictured, and reality sets in. The ideal organizer looks great, but lacks functionality in your space.

Don’t Give Up

Hang in there because not all is lost. Remember the saying, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade,” find a new use for that great organizing system.

Creativity and organization go hand in hand. What works for one individual is not guaranteed to work for another. Just because that scrapbook station worked for one scrapbook artist who loves small items like buttons, eyelets, and paperclips does not mean that the same system will work for the scrapbook hobbyists who loves bulky items like paint, stamps, and stickers.

Try, Try, and Try Again

Organizational systems are great. But when your organizing system is less than perfect, get creative. Go back to the drawing board, and answer these questions:

What is currently working well?
What is not working?
What changes would you like to make to the existing system?
What do you need to get from your current system to a workable solution?
Do you have anything around the house that will fit your needs?
Can you adjust your beautiful scrapbook station into an office or music center?

If not, get creative. See if you can move a media storage center into a tall, narrow space to solve your problem. As you evaluate your organizational systems, you have options. Just because the designer chose to market that set as a sewing center, you can adjust that system to create a desk, kitchen island, or workbench.

What worked last year is not necessarily workable this year. Stay flexible and creative in finding a solution that works for you. Happy organizing!

Question: What organizational solution resulted from your creativity?

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