The Tammy Bag vs. A Small Bathroom

I have a small bathroom.  Not a tiny bathroom like I know some of you have to deal with, but a small one that has very little counter space and only two tiny, narrow drawers.  It has a cabinet under the sink, and a wide "medicine cabinet" behind the mirrors and a cabinet over the toilet.  It's a working bathroom....meaning it's often cluttered with the everyday stuff that we women think we can't live without.  It's critical to me that I be able to clear those counters quickly if company drops by.  But just clearing it is easy since I could throw it all under the sink willy nilly...I need to be able to clear it and then retrieve it easily when company is gone!  Typically my counter space looks like this:

The Tammy bag has set me free!  Well, not really, but it sure has helped a lot.  First I made this one for all my makeup and lotions:

All of this fits easily into this!

Then I thought...I should make another for all the other stuff, like deodorant and toothpaste and contacts so that I have the perfect travel bag.  So here's what I did:  (no pockets on this one because it's just for travel)

Actually this is all three of the bags I made to go together.  The small one holds a travel size contact solution, a contact case, and eye drops.  The other two hold all this:

I used a laminate fabric for the interior of each one:

So if anything happens to spill I can just wipe it up!

Now when company comes my counter looks like this:

The big basket with my mouthwash in it sits right on top of the towels under the sink, and the Tammy Bag sits on top of the washcloths.  The other Tammy Bag with deodorant, etc. in it, sits on top of the hand towels...and I have clean and neat counters!

I'm giving away a little bag today - not a Tammy Bag, but a trash bag for your car.  There's a button on the tab that, when shut into your glove compartment, will keep the bag hanging securely. (I'll be adding a few little things to sweeten the bag.)  It's the perfect size for straw wrappers when you get that Diet Vanilla Coke from Sonic.  What, I'm the only one who likes those?  :)  I'll draw from all those who comment on this post.

Thanks so much to Madame Samm for coordinating this blog hop....be sure you go visit the other bloggers today.  You're going to be glad you did!

June 13th ( thursday)

Les

Marlene (you are here)

Lisa

Anjeanette

Kristen

Marica

Lynn

Gingini

Linda J 

Nicole

Judith

The Tammy Bag Blog Hop

You don't want to miss a day of this hop - I can't wait to see what everyone has done with their bags!  Here's today's list of bloggers to visit:

June 12th  ( wednesday)

Tina

Melinda 

Mary

Frederika

Thearica 

Liz

Grethe

Daryl

Patty

Inga 

A Tiny Bit of Stitching

My grandson is getting married this month....the first of my eight grandchildren to take that step.  He's the oldest, has a great job, and his fiancee just got her first job as a first grade teacher.  They've known each other for several years and have dated most of that time; she doesn't mind his monster truck rock climbing adventures so that's a real plus.  They worship together, both want to live in the country, and seem to like the same things.  Their wedding will be in a chapel way out in the country and will be a fairly simple affair.  That says to me that they are mindful of how they spend their money - and that will go a long way to helping them be successful in marriage and in life.  All combined it should be a good "fit."

Last week she asked me to embroider their wedding date on her dress.  Oh my goodness.  She wanted it to be her "something blue", but tucked away somewhere that wasn't blatantly obvious.  Other than that she didn't have instructions...any color blue, any font, anywhere I thought best.  Her dress has a satin underskirt with a lace overlay.  The lace is almost like an apron....it is floor length in the front but sweeps up gracefully on the sides so that the satin shows.  I put the stitching on the left side, the side closest to her heart, near the hem just under where the lace starts up.  It's visible, but only if you're looking at her feet, and looking closely!

 I pulled the lace up so you can see.  Isn't this just the sweetest idea?  June 30, 2013....with each stitch I prayed that God will bless this marriage with more joy than sorry, with more laughter than tears, with a shared journey serving Him.  Godspeed Jeremy and Catherine on this great adventure.

I Love The Farmer's Market!

When I got up this morning, in this hot southern state of Arkansas, the temperature was 58.  It was like Heaven!  I did an early morning walk, showered, dressed and headed out to The Farmer's Market.  Look at the wonderful vegetables, fruit and bread I found today:

That yellow squash is a new kind of zucchini called Sunbeam - at least it's new to me.  I already have the green beans and new potatoes cooking.  The carrots are scrubbed and waiting to be simmered in a little water, drained and a little butter and brown sugar added.  I sliced some of the cucumbers and have them crisping in some ice water.  I don't fry foods any more but I really think I might have to break my rule with that zucchini...it's not as large as it looks but it's the perfect size for frying.  The bread is a regular wheat loaf with sunflower seeds added; I had a nice visit with the Amish lady (who baked it yesterday).  And the strawberries will be sliced at the last minute and have a little cream added.  My husband, who has been in Mexico on a mission trip, comes home today and since he's really a meat and potatoes man I think I'll let him grill some venison burgers since it's the perfect weather for being on the deck.  Doesn't that scrumptious?

Oops

I tried a new body wash - an exfoliating one.  I don't think it agrees with me!

How long does it take an allergic reaction to go away?

School Is Out!

You know what that means, right?  It means that I only have a few more days to work.  :)  As an administrator my contract is a bit longer than teachers but work now means no kids, no teachers, no parents (well, maybe a few parents)...just a lot of paperwork.

(image from Google Images)

I'm unreasonably happy.  :)  Deliriously happy.  :)  It's back to retirement for me.  :)

I have all these plans.....for some ridiculous reason I want to clean out cabinets and drawers and closets.  I think it's psychological nesting.  Or something profound like that.  Of course there are a few things that will have to happen along the way - normal things that have to be taken care of when you've put life on hold for 10 months.  For instance, an eye doctor visit, a colonoscopy yuck yuck yuck, one of the students backed out and hit my car so it has to go to the body shop, a visit to my sister yippee!, my grandson's wedding.....life goes on.  But somewhere along the way to normal I'm going to be able to

Make Quilts!  And other stuff!

I have tops to be quilted:

 (plus a few more....well, if you have to get technical, several more)

And tops to finish piecing:

 This one which should really look like this by now:

I think that's probably enough of my sins (aka UFOs) to show today or I'll start to get overwhelmed!

And needless to say during my 10 month hiatus I bought a few patterns.  And a bit of fabric.  Oh my goodness.  Plus there's the fact that the 10 pounds I lost last summer I regained this winter.  I'm headed back to Yoga classes and to walking and to eating healthier.  Lofty goals I know, but we all need goals, right.  Those are my goals for the summer....what are yours?