Big Lots: Dr. Gollum and I Go Shopping

Are you ready for another Big Lots adventure?

Let's grab a shopping cart.

When Dr. Gollum saw the baskets, I thought he was going to run out of the store. I have tortured that poor man with my basket frenzy...and yes, I did buy one (but I let Dr. G pick the color).

He selected blue -- it was really more of a shallow tray than a storage basket...but check out the price. Wow!

This darling candle set was $5.

Swirly stainless, $15

A whole set of International stainless, $25

Knives, $20

This cupcake stand was adorable...$10

Bandwith would have liked this--he sees cooling racks on Food Network and wonders why, in our kitchen, I cool stuff in the pan. :-) $7

This set looks very British and reminds me of the Emma Bridgewater pottery. $10

I am not into thread counts, but Dr. Gollum says 300 is good. He put them into our cart--a first for him! King size sheet set, $25. (And I'd looked at a king set, unknown count, at K-Mart that were $40.00.)O, Big Lots, Dr. Gollum wants to be your spokesperson. :-

Bandwith needed sheets, too. Queen set, $20.

Assorted stuff...couldn't find a price.

I rounded a corner and saw white dishes. 32-piece set, $40. Dr. Gollum had to take my pulse.

Plastic glasses, $3 each.

The floor lamps were on sale...I have no idea how much or how little; but I do know they retailed for almost $300 (I checked the "original" price tag. I couldn't find the tag for Big Lots.). Dr. Gollum steered me away from the lamps (but my goodness, they're so handsome), into the food aisle.

Assorted salad dressing , $2 bottle

Spices and herbs for Foodie Fridays ...

And olive oil, $3 to $5.

I came home with the blue basket tray, sheets, four plastic glasses,


olive oil, herbs, votive candles (a huge box, complete with glass holders, $5) and a cookie sheet set.

For coupons (and online shopping), check out their website.

http://www.biglots.com/

Annabel Goes Fishing

The menfolk decided it was a perfect day to take Annabel fishing.

Uncle Jim bought her a Barbie fishing pole.

Then we headed down to the pond. For the last three years, we've been slowly stocking it. When the men go fishing in the Big Pond, their catch comes here. Once or twice, we've bought stock at the Co-op when the fish man stops by.

Father and daughter discuss the finer points of fishin'.

We could see big circles in the water, and a turtle showed up to see what was going on. Annabel was convinced that a mermaid would surface.

Now we wait....

Keep your eye on the little red float...I think it's twitching. Maybe you've got a bite, Annabel.

She does! Time to reel it in, baby.

Looks like a humongous catfish--didn't know we had one in the pond.

Catch 'n release.

But first, let's look at Annabel's first fish.

"We catched fish and talked, and we took a swim now and then to keep off sleepiness. It was kind of solemn, drifting down the big, still river, laying on our backs

looking up at the stars. . . ."

-- Mark Twain

"Heaven's net is indeed vast.

Though its meshes are wide, it misses nothing."

-- Lao-tzu

The men went to the lake and brought back 12 more bass.

"That it will never come again

Is what makes life so sweet."

-- No. 1741, Emily Dickinson

Tablescaping with Cookware

Annabel and I have been playing with new dishes that her daddy bought. Trey is a professional chef, and he just returned from CIA (Culinary Institute) in Italy.

I think tablescaping must run in families, because Annabel loved playing with everything. "Dish is soooo pwetty!" she said.

Trey loves cookware that goes from the freezer to oven to table to dishwasher--and looks handsome no matter where you put it!

I love their "architecture: ruffles, curves, straight lines.

We tested several brands...

Pillivuyt (made in France), Cordon Bleu (made in China), and BIA (China).

We loved them all, couldn't pick a winner. They cleaned up like a dream. However, they are porcelain and will chip, as poor Bandwith discovered.

I have a few cooking tips from Chef Trey,

but I'll save them for later. Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend.

Note:
Neither Gollum nor Trey are affiliated with any of these brands...we just flat out like 'em.

Foodie Friday

The Bandwith Bandit is hogging the internet, so Foodie Friday is running late. But Mr. Linky is up and running, and he's ready for your wonderful food links TONIGHT.

In the future, to avoid the battle of the bandwith, I will be posting Foodie Fridays on, well, Fridays. That won't start till next week, June 5th at 9 am, next Friday morning. No theme, just food and food talk. Suggestions for themes are always welcome.

I've been visiting with my granddaughter, Annabel, this week. She says to tell you all "Hi!" Here she is looking for the mermaid in the pond.

Link up to Foodie Friday via Mr. Linky's Magical Widget: