Playing catchup to life and playing with pallets

Hello all.
I know its been almost a whole month since last I blogged (has it really been that long?!?). This summer has been way more than just fun and games...well... except for this game...

Bucket ball anyone? Think Beer pong, but with Dollar Store plastic trashcan buckets and plastic baseballs.

I reccommend making this easy game if you have a large enough space- it was a huge hit at our cast party this summer- adults and kids alike. Speaking of the cast party...

Cast party was a blast- I can't believe we agreed to host it though. lol

My "sisters" and I in "Fiddler on the Roof." In case you didn't figure it out, I'm in the center.

Also saw "Guardians of the Galaxy" among the week of the show, and loved it!

But life just has been sooooo crazy this month- we had all the performances of "Fiddler on the Roof," my mom stopping by for a short visit, our cast party, me starting my new job (or at least getting more into the swing of it- I still have to work 2 hours a day at my old job till next week, then I'm 100% to the new digs!), starting rehearsal for another show, our wedding anniversary and overall- being social butterflies.

6th Wedding anniversary with the hubs.

I know being busy is no real excuse not to blog, but honestly I haven't really been doing much blog-worthy projects in life till about this week. lol

One of the big projects we've been working on was getting our backyard up to snuff for the big cast party.
We acquired a new pool (16 foot!), the hubs built a little deck thing for it- from 2 old picnic table tops and a drink shelf.

Hubs made this mini deck from 2 tops of picnic tables.

He also made a little drink shelf to the side of the pool from the seat portion of the picnic table.

We also moved over the fire pit (eventually we hope to build benches for that area) and cleaned up the deck and barshed.

We stained our deck too. Phase 1:

Phase 2 is painting the actual railings- but that takes a lot more time.

Recently the hubs has discovered new ways to get pallets and has been making a few projects for around the house.

pallets galore!

Hubs made me a cute wine rack to go in our dining room.

A few easy cuts.

a little spray paint.

Tada! Final!

He also created a little inset box for our trashcans, to kind of hide it from the rest of the yard (he still needs to add the top and the side door though.

He also created 2 window boxes for a friend of ours' German classroom- she wanted window boxes to add fake flowers to, adding some character to her classroom. She plans on staining them.

Eventually we are going to add a "carport" style shed to the side of the barshed, to put the lawnmower and bikes in, since it doesn't really fit easily in the side shed when the pool is up (we want to take that horrid metal thing down anyway).
Eventually we will also repaint our front steps as well (and resettle them as the one is loose). We finished re-painting our picket fence to be all pretty white (with the help of a few friends and some kids my friend was babysitting, lol).

Here is the finished white fence...along with a scary large spider who took up home there for a bit.

So many outdoor projects and not enough time or money- so we have to pick and choose what all we do. haha.
I also made lots of headway on one of my bucket list items: Write a novel. I plan on working on it in co-op with my hubs (he's much better at dialogue writing than me).

The start of the prologue- very rough still.

... and I've also started rehearsal for the next show I'm in:

Other projects...hmm... Well, as part of my anniversary present from my hubs I signed up for some Subscription boxes to try- and will get rid of the ones I don't like, after the first month.
When I get my first box from each, I'll do a reveal/review of them, so stay tuned.

I'll be getting:
- Paper Pumpkin from Stampin Up!
- Baribox
- Ipsy
- Splendies

So stay tuned for some reviews of these subscription boxes. My mom is trying out a few others, so I'll let you know about the ones she tries too!
I found so much information on subscription boxes from this great website: http://www.mysubscriptionaddiction.com/
(I think I got my mom hooked! lol)

Lastly, I was excited to catch the season premiere of Dr. Who Season 8 in theaters with a good friend of mine. I totally had a blast!

fun before-show trivia

So what have you been up to these days? Has your life taken over your free time like mine has?
Wendy cat says hi!

Have a great day!
-M

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Favorites Friday: Cooking along this summer

Hello all! Long time no see!
I've been so swamped with preparing for "Fiddler on the Roof" and working my full-time job, that I haven't had much time to do anything else. But don't worry. I didn't forget about ya'll!
Here are some of my favorites this week, that I think you all should check out!

1. Campbell's Skillet Sauce- Thai Green Curry: I picked up a pack of this just to try it, and BOY was I blown away by the flavor. It is easy to cook with and made such a fantastic meal. I'm looking forward to trying their other sauce flavors.

2. Office 365: This past week I was in training at work for learning the new Office programs- Office 365. Everything will be going to the cloud and this makes life easier! I am actually looking really forward to the launch date at my workplace.

3. McDonald's Premium McWrap Sweet Chili Chicken (Grilled): I tried this the other day just to see if I could get a healthier alternative at McD's, and was surprised that it actually wasn't half bad- and the Weight Watchers Points Plus on it are pretty good, considering it is from McDonald's.

4. Fiddler On The Roof: Next Thursday is opening night for Newtown Arts Company's "Fiddler on the Roof", where I will be portraying Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. It has been a great theater experience and the cast is fantastic. I am so excited to be a part of it, and I know audiences will love it. If you're in or around the Bucks County, Pennsylvania area, check it out!

5. ProSeries 16' x 48" Above Ground Pool: We saw this baby go on sale at Walmart online. Hubs messaged me in a frenzy- "should we get it?" We've been wanting one like that for ages, but were not willing to spend more than $250 for it. Sure enough, it went on clearance and we got it for $250. There was none in stock at our local Walmart, but they shipped one to the store, and we picked it up this past weekend. So far, it has worked beautifully, and I'm so happy with it!

So how has your summer been going? I'd love to hear from you!
Have a great weekend and Friday!
-M

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