If you give a kid a camera...

Last night, Team TMI headed to the nearby village of Montgomery to take in a free, outdoor big band concert.  These concerts are sponsored by our local park district each Thursday night of the summer. 

Aren't those some amazing pictures?  They were taken by an up-and-coming photographer...you might recognize him:

Soon after he took a few pictures of the stage and his sister, the Little Guy made a new friend and they spent the rest of the evening chasing lightning bugs and rolling down a small hill.  Good times!

As I mentioned last week, I am so grateful for all the fun FREE activities offered by the fair city of Aurora as well as neighboring towns and villages.  And I'm looking forward to Monday, when we'll have free bouncy houses, magicians, bands and of course, fireworks as we celebrate Independence Day here in Aurora. 

Have a great (and safe) holiday weekend, everyone!

Early morning in the backyard

If you read Martha's blog, you know she regularly steps outside her home(s) in the morning to take pictures of the early morning scenes before her.  Now I may be lacking in the perfect gardening/homekeeping/scrapbooking department, but I am a pro at wandering outside my home bra less and in a bathrobe.

Please enjoy these pictures of my backyard, taken by me at 5:30am this morning:

The fog had just about burned off the prairie when I stepped outside.  It's amazing how light it is this early in the morning. 

The tomatoes are doing well, but needed water. The kids helped me water everything before I headed in to work this morning.

The compost bin is doing well. The first bin is 2/3 full, and I'm going to haul in some more manure to help fill the other two bins. 

Below: my apple trees are leafing out.  Next summer I'll add two more dwarf apple trees to my mini-orchard.

The peach trees are doing well, too.

My pear trees are concerning me, though.  Some of the leaves are turning red.  Is this normal? 

Here's a close-up view:

I have several pumpkins planted in the back and front yard, and this one seems to be doing the best.  I'm hoping for a few homegrown pumpkins this year because those are really, really expensive in the store.

I hope you've enjoyed this early morning view of my backyard and vegetable garden.   Next time I'm up this early I'll try to put on appropriate attire and actually do some work in the yard.  It's nice to have goals, don't you agree?

Manda Monday--Martha would freak out...

...if she saw my front flower bed, because it was awful. Really, really awful.  It's difficult to tell by the picture because everything is green, but my front flower bed had been overtaken by weeds.  It was a weed party out there, a Weed City even, and my precious flowers were getting choked out.

In the spring, I planted twenty flowers, 50+ bulbs and three pumpkin plants in the new flower garden, located just outside the front door where the bushes used to be.  But you'd never know it because there were just too many weeds obscuring the view of the good stuff.

Like the above bloom, for instance. I had a full Asiatic lily flower in my bed, and until I got in there to do some weeding, I had no idea!  I bet this never happens to Martha Stewart.  I'm betting that her flowers open on command and weeds don't come within a two mile radius of her property.

This is another flower I missed.  The Big Guy's Uncle Dennis knows how much I love native perennials, so this spring he divided a bunch of his echinacea and black-eyed Susan and sent them over. Isn't that sweet?  So far this is the first bloom, but there are several more ready to burst over the next week or two.

I know Martha has an enormous crew dedicated to making her flower beds/house/life look  spectacular, but it's easy for me to forget that sometimes.  Fortunately, I do have good friends, and as I was weeding the flower beds my friend Yogita came by to give me a hand. Thanks, Yogi!

Here's just one of THREE tubs of weeds that I added to the compost bin.  Because I have a very busy summer planned, this may be the only time I tackle the weeding for the next month (or maybe longer), so I'll enjoy the view of my flowers while I can.

Sometimes, in my quest to be just like Martha, this is as good as it gets. 

Living well and spending less in the summer

We're one day into summer, and already I feel it slipping through my fingers.  Like any season, it comes and goes too quickly for me. This year, I am determined to have a full and fun summer...and, because I am frugal and already spent all of my money on my garden, the activities to fill my summer need to be free. 

Fortunately, there's lots of free (or low-cost) and fun activities in the Fox Valley.  Already, my summer calender includes dates of free concerts, festivals, farm days, kids activities and more.  For example, this weekend we'll attend River Night (including an outdoor concert) in nearby Yorkville, and then head to Blackberry Farm for a kid-friendly Tractor Show.  But how do you find out about such things?

I always start my search with the internet at city websites.  Take a look at the "Events" (sometimes listed as "Calender") page of your city/town/village, and see what they have listed.  Then look at the websites of cities/towns/villages within driving distance to see what activities they offer.  The fun stuff I found by looking at the city websites of Aurora, Yorkville, Montgomery and Oswego were enough to fill our calender for the next two months. And I haven't even gotten to North Aurora's website yet!

If you aren't finding much on your city's website, or you want even more options, try looking for fun free activities here:

• Local park district--Ours offers a number of free programs throughout the summer, and they also sponsor several outdoor concerts at park locations.
• Local library--I've stated before how much I adore our library for its free programs and seminars.  Occasionally, they also have visiting musicians/musical groups for free.  Many libraries have summer reading programs (including prizes!) for kids. 
• Local forest preserve--This is an often-overlooked resource.  Many forest preserves offer free or low-cost educational/fun programs and activities.  Check not only your local forest preserve, but also the forest preserves of your neighboring counties.
• County fairs--Nearly every populated county in America has a fair in the summer.  These cost money to attend, but it's worth it.  If the fair is too costly for you, keep in mind that the fairgrounds are in use throughout the summer for other activities. Our county fairgrounds hosts shows, concerts and monthly flea markets.  Check out the schedule for fairgrounds of neighboring counties--you might be surprised at all they have to offer. 
• Local businesses--many home improvement stores, such as Lowe's and Home Depot, offer fun and free activities on the weekends for kids, as do craft stores, such as Michael's and JoAnn's.  Take advantage of these crafty clinics! Your kids will love them.
• Do a google search of your city + free and see what comes up!  That's how I found the blog "Free Things to do in Aurora, IL."  How handy is that?  Perhaps you have something similar for your town.

This is just a snippet of the stuff I talk about in my Live Well. Spend Less! class at Waubonsee Community College.  The next course is July 18-August 1 at the Sugar Grove campus.  If you'd like tips and ideas for living a full life on a budget, then please join me for the next session.  Now get planning for a fun summer!

Martha Monday--60 Days of Summer

Tuesday is the official start of summer, and Martha has you covered. 

Take a look at Martha's 60 Days of Summer which covers crafts, recipes, activities, ideas and Good Things.

One suggested activity is to find your perfect summer hobby.  You can take the quiz here.  My result was scrapbooking, and they're absolutely right: my plan for the summer is to get caught up on the kids' photo albums and scrapbooks. 

It's hard to find time for that in the summer, though, when there's just so much fun stuff to do!  Between family gatherings, weddings, graduations, and parties, there's free outdoor concerts, festivals, farm days and flea markets that I'd like to attend this summer. 

Maybe that's why the days are longer, I need the extra time to fit it all in!

Whether you're headed off to a family barbecue or just enjoying the heat, take a look at Martha's 60 Ice Cream Treats.  This rainbow sorbet cake is amazing.

There's also a slideshow of 60 Summer Sides.  These dishes are perfect for taking to a potluck or for dinner with your family.  I'm looking forward to making this beefsteak tomato salad once my tomatoes start coming in.

 Take a look at Martha's ideas, come up with some of your own, and then get busy enjoying summer!