Poison Ivy (Left) Virginia Creeper (Right)

Last Wednesday on my lunch break, Ben and I were looking at our garden’s progress, when we noticed some poison ivy on the edge of our garden.  I said, “I’ll just pull it up since I’m not allergic to Poison Ivy.”  I then proceeded to pull up the vines without gloves on.  Do not make my mistake!

Things I have learned about Poison Ivy/Virginia Creeper:

1.  Poison Ivy often grows alongside Virginia Creeper. Virginia Creeper is also poisonous.  At this point,  I am not even really sure which one caused my rash.

2.  Just because you have never had an allergic reaction to Poison Ivy, doesn’t mean that you are not allergic to the plant.  You can develop an allergy to it at any time, usually after repeated exposure.

3.  Just because you “are not allergic” to Poison Ivy doesn’t mean you are not allergic to Virginia Creeper.  Poison Ivy causes an allergic reaction after exposure because it contains an oily resin called urushiol.  Virginia Creeper causes an allergic reaction because it contains oxalate crystals.   You can be allergic to both or just one or the other.

4.  Urushiol (Poison Ivy) can remain on clothes, tools and even dead poison ivy vines for years.  Since I couldn’t really remember what I was wearing that day, Ben and I just washed everything.  We still need to clean our tools but I am not excited about going into our backyard again.

Things I have learned about the Posion Ivy/Virginia Creeper Rash:

1.  Having never had poison ivy before I had no idea how bad it sucks.  The itching is slowly driving me crazy.  It is all that I think about really.  I have been taking Benadryl at night which helps but makes me feel real loopy and sleepy.  I have also been using Caladyrl which also helps but doesn’t stop the itch.  I would suggest using both.

2.  The rash develops nasty blisters similar to the blisters you get from a really bad sunburn.  They look really gross and seep nasty liquid.  There is not much you can do about the seeping, but the liquid doesn’t cause the rash to spread which is a common misconception.  These blisters make going to work a whole other issue.  Since my rash is the worst on my wrist, I had to figure out a way to work without irritating the blisters or grossing out my fellow employees.  Although it is not a good idea to cover the rash with any type of bandages, I have found that if you need to cover it for work you can loosely cover the blister with rolled gauze.   The gauze will soak up the liquid and help you not to focus on it.

I promise you that it hurts.

3.  There are plenty of home remedies online.   I have tried two home remedies so far with no results really.  I tried mixing Apple Cider Vinegar with baking soda and pouring it over the blisters.  This did nothing.  I also tried mixing baking soda with regular vinegar and making a paste.  I applied the paste to the blisters and wrapped with saran wrap to keep it from being too messy.  I left it on for 25 minutes.  For the first 10 minutes I was less itchy but then it started itching again.  Tonight I plan on using the Aveeno Oatmeal bath, which I have heard and read works well.

In case you are suffering from either Virginia Creeper or Poison Ivy, I found these websites helpful:

• Mayo Clinic (my go to for anything medically related)
• Wikipedia’s page on Poison Ivy Toxicodendron radicans and Virginia Creeper Parthenocissus quinquefolia
• Poison Ivy Home Remedies and Information
• Read my friend Kristen’s post about her Virginia Creeper issue this summer.

Sorry this post is pretty negative but I have very negative feelings about my rash.

Update:  My rash is feeling so much better today.  It has been 4 days since I posted the photo above and I started taking Medrol (tapered dose pack of steriods) on Friday.

Here is how my rash looks this morning

I know it still looks pretty bad, but the itching has mostly stopped and the blisters are drying up!

Here are a couple of pics I snapped of it on my lunch break:

Lesson Learned:  Red Wine + Late night Ebay bidding = Hilarious Purchases

My tulips are blooming!  I am so excited because these tulips are the first bulbs I have ever planted.   Last year I bought tulips that were about to bloom in a planter from Lowe’s and re-planted them around my mailbox.   They immediately fell over.  Little did I know that they were not supposed to be re-planted.  I tried tying their little stems to a mini metal rose trellis, similar to the way you steak tomato plants but this did not work either.  I was pretty disappointed about them and decided to pull them up, which is my answer to anything that doesn’t immediately do well.

While getting ready to pull them up, my 76 year old neighbor and garden guru Ida Mae walked over and said, “why did you buy them like that and not from bulbs?”  I answered, “I am not sure,” but what I meant was I am impatient and wanted tulips now.  She suggested that I cut the tulips and leave the the bulbs in the ground, add more garden soil and plant a small annual over them.   I took her advice and exactly one year later I have beautiful tulips!  So far only two have bloomed but there are at least 3 other buds that should bloom soon too.  I really love tulips and I hope they are the first of many tulips to grace my tiny mailbox bed.

I hope everyone enjoys this lovely Friday.

I bought this charming little mail organizer at the Salvation Army with the hope of painting it and making it wonderful.  After the first coat of paint, I realized that there was nothing charming about this dumb mail sorter.  I underestimated its cheapness really.  Also I hate sanding, so I skipped that step which was my first mistake. The paint of course did not stick.

Skip ahead 6 months.   I decided to dig my failure of a mail organizer out of my closet and try again.  This time I did research on painting laminate and sanded it first with a fine grit sanding block.  Next I painted on a coat of Zinsser’s oil based primer and let it dry, this resulted in another epic fail.

Mail Organizer after 1 coat of primer

At this point, it was me against the shelf.  What I thought would be an easy afternoon craft project, turned into all out war really.  No longer did I think fondly of this little mail organizer.

Next I added another coat of primer, lightly sanded it again and then added a fresh coat of white spray paint.  After the spray paint dried, it still looked horrible!  So once again I lightly sanded it and added another coat of white spray paint.  After the 2nd coat of white paint dried, I almost gave up and had to walk away.

I cooled off and decided that I would just have to cover it with  pretty wallpaper and sheet music.  I guess it was late at night  or maybe because of the wine drinking associated with craft failures but  I thought spray gluing wallpaper and sheet music onto painted faux wood would hold, which it did not.  After a couple days of watching the wallpaper slowly peel off, I decided to Mod Podge the wallpaper to the mail organizer as my final effort.  This worked thank God!

Although I am still not 100% happy with the results, I think it is fair to say that I won and the mail organizer lost.

Because of my recent tomato explosion, I feel the need to cook, bake or do something with all of the tomatoes I have on my kitchen table.  So Ben and I made salsa and also a tomato pie for True Blood Sunday.  I wasn’t really happy with my tomato pie but I tried it again last night and will post about it tomorrow.  I have been waiting to make my own salsa from my own tomatoes and bell peppers since we planted our garden.  I don’t care that the rest of the ingredients came from the grocery store because the tomatoes were so great and my bell peppers look fake because they are so beautiful.  For whatever reason, bugs don’t nimble on bell peppers and I like that.  We don’t use any pesticides in our garden.  So I am aware that insects and worms like tomatoes just as much as I do, but for whatever reason they are not into bell peppers.

For True Blood Sundays, my friends and I usually make Louisiana or vampire inspired dishes.  Although salsa isn’t really  a Louisiana or vampire inspired dish, making salsa from your own vegetables is a very southern thing to do.

Overall I thought our salsa was really good.   I love how fresh it tasted!  While making salsa for the first time I also learned how to peel a tomato.   Peeling tomatoes is actually really easy and I had no idea.

Peeling a Tomato

1. Wash your tomatoes and take the stems off.
2. Cut an X on the end without the stem.
3. Boil enough water to submerse your tomatoes.  Once the water starts boiling place them into the water.
4. After a few minutes, use a slotted spoon to place your tomatoes into a bowl of cold water.
5. Let them sit a minute or so then pull the skins right off.

Check back tomorrow for my tomato pie!

In order to get to know the other students in the class, one of the students suggested in our class forum to post a 5 things list.  I agree with her.

5 Things I am looking forward to:

1. Planting my vegetable garden
2. Growing old with my husband
3. The next project in Indie Biz
4. My trip to Atlanta this weekend
5. Having children

5 Things I did yesterday:

1. I went to a Garden Expo with my husband.
2. I potted the new plants we bought and re-potted my airplane plant.
3. I worked on a journal/planner that I am making for myself.
4. I brainstormed ideas for my first Indie Biz assignment.
5. I snuggled on the couch with my husband and watched the Oscars.

5 Things I wish I could do:

1. I wish I could spend my days crafting instead of working.
2. I wish I could be sitting on the beach on Tybee Island right now.
3. I wish I could understand what is happening on Lost.
4. I wish I could adopt every stray animal that comes near my house.
5. I wish I could play an instrument well.

5 Places I’d like to travel to:

1. The Grand Canyon
2. Niagara Falls
3. Italy
4. Alaska
5. The Galapagos Islands

I thought about what was new in my life for a minute and I said, “Oh well I started a blog, so that is new.”  Then she asked me really normal follow up questions from people who don’t stay on the internet 24/7 such as:  “What is a blog?”  “What is it for?”  Defining a blog was easy but explaining its purpose was a little tricky.   As I hesitated while thinking of what to say to her, she said “Well what do you write about?”

Maybe my niche is about the process.  I’m not good at cooking but I’m learning and I enjoy it for the most part.  I’m not good at gardening but I love plants and flowers.  I fail sometimes, but at least I try to be creative and try new things.  The quarter life crisis is real and I am still trying to figure out some things,  but I know for sure that everyone either has or will go through some type of transitional phase of life plagued by self doubt and unreal expectations. Sure, some people are really talented, beautiful, creative people who get a job right after college and make $100,000 a year but some people have a very different reality.  Some people maybe made straight A’s their entire life (including college) but had no idea that their Communication degree wouldn’t land them a stellar job, and their joy comes from married life or learning to cook at 28 or painting cheap furniture to make it seem nice, or thrift store shopping or finding out why their toilet gurgles, or anything else that makes their life seem more fun.

Note to self:  Enjoy the process.

Our water bill will suck this month.

This can't be good.

This is the part of the pipe that the plumber fixed.

Avoid a not fun Saturday by letting your hot and cold water run from your faucets and showers at night when the temperatures drop below freezing.

Despite starting my morning cussing and freaking out, I can honestly say that the situation could have been worse and our plumber is a really nice guy.  I appreciate good customer service.  I know I can be a lot to deal with when I am upset but our plumber Randy Wofford diffused the situation like a professional.  He was really nice to me, came to my house within ten minutes and explained everything to me as he repaired the pipe without acting like I was bothering him.  I told him that we left the water running last night and he asked if we left both the hot and cold water running.  I told him I wasn’t sure.  He said that you have to leave both on and that the hot water will actually burst faster.

Good to know, lesson learned.

(If you live in the Starkville, MS area and need a plumber, comment on this post and I will email you his phone number.)

2009 was an exciting year.  I learned to ride a motorcycle, conquered my fear of flying, bought a house and  got married.  Encouraged by Daily Blog Tips recent group writing project 2009 in Review, I decided to write my own review of 2009.  Check out Daily Blog Tips on December 14th to see the complete list.

9 Things I Learned While Planning My Wedding:

1.   Martha Stewart Weddings is  a wonderful source for  creative ideas and advice and has free online planning tools that are really helpful.  I used their planning checklist,  budget tool and their DIY Photo Booth template.  I also used their guest list tool as the basis for the Google document spreadsheet I created to keep everything organized.

If you would like me to email you a link to this template, leave me a comment.

2.  Wedding Blogs are so fun to read and full of inspiration.  Check these out, you will thank me.

My favorites include:

3.  When you receive a wedding present whether in the mail or at a shower, always write down what the present is and who gave it to you.  At showers it is a good idea to assign this task to your Maid of Honor or your mother.  Make sure they also write down the person’s address.  When you receive gifts in the mail and you will, keep the packing slip.  It should have the sender’s name and address as well as the item you receive.  Once you send a thank you note, add the gift description and the date you mailed the thank you note to either an excel file or you can use Google documents which are free.

4.  Register for everyday china.  My husband and I were not going to register for china because we already had hand me downs and thought it would be wasteful to have more.  My mother in law sat me down and told me I should register for china.  She explained that I should register for china because I would probably never purchase it for myself and that people love to purchase wedding china as wedding gifts.  She was right!  We registered for Lenox Chirp everyday china and I love it.  We boxed up our old dishes and took them to the Salvation Army.

This is our wedding china and we love it!

5.  Delegate.  The stress of doing everything yourself will drive you insane and your friends and family want to help.  I delegated many small tasks to my bridesmaids and they were very helpful.

My bridesmaids were ready for anything.

6.  Make your vendors sign a contract that outlines exactly what you want from them and the agreed upon price.  Vendor contracts are available online for free.  Even if you decide to hire your friends (which we did), have them sign a contract.  It eliminates confusion and provides structure.

7.  Hire a wedding planner or make sure you have a support team that is as dedicated to your wedding.  I wanted to do everything myself and thought that I didn’t need a wedding planner.  I was wrong.  It is very hard to get everything done during the day if you work from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.  Planning a wedding on your lunch break is crazy.  Thank God I had bridesmaids that didn’t mind making calls to vendors, quick trips to the florist and other various tasks for me during the day.

8.  Regardless of how stubborn you are, make a plan in case it rains.  It rained on my wedding day and our beautiful outdoor wedding had to be moved inside.  Thank God we had a backup plan.  Our venue had multiple options for us to choose from in case of rain and our indoor wedding was still beautiful and actually more intimate.

9.  Relax and enjoy your engagement.  Being engaged is so much fun.  I wish I had relaxed more.