Pantry Organizing Supplies

When I started on our pantry organization project, I had no idea how many glass jars we’d need to hold everything. Had I known, I may never have embarked on this particular activity, but I’m so glad I did.

I shopped around for affordable glass jars and settled on canning or mason jars. They’re inexpensive and incredibly durable. We already use them for our drinking glasses so having more around the house for that purpose too was a bonus (should we have any jar left over — HA!).

We bought twelve giant half-gallon jars (here are just half of them):

and twenty-four (two flats of these) pint sized jars:

The downside to these jars? The lids are lined with the endocrine disruptor Bisphenol A (BPA). Total bummer! We still decided to use them because we’re filling the jars with dry goods that won’t be touching the tops and we’re leaving plenty of headroom between the goods and the lids. We’re not too worried.

Ultimately we want to replace all of the BPA-laced lids with these Tattler Reusable Canning Lids. We can use them with our existing bell jars that we’ve already invested in and filled (more on that later!) and the lids are reusable and BPA-free, even though they’re plastic (the only part we’re not completely sold on). Why aren’t we using these lids right away? We just spent all this money on canning jars and we’d need a lot of lids. We’ll get to it eventually. We’re in no rush.

To mark the jars, we bought these fantastic Wet Erase Chalk Markers by Pentel:

They come in a number of vibrant colors: green (shown above), blue, red, violet, yellow, orange, white and black. (All the pen colors are eligible for Amazon Prime so if you have that, like we do, you’ll get them in two days! So freaking convenient.) If you’d rather buy these pens straight from the manufacturer, click here. We bought our pens from our local art supply store.

You can use these pens on any dry, non-porous surface, like the metal tops and glass sides of the bell jars (or blackboards or whiteboards), and the ink easily wipes away with a damp cloth or paper towel. I had originally planned on spraying the jar lids with chalkboard paint to then use these pens, but realized I didn’t have to. Hooray, one fewer step in our pantry organization process!

The only downside that I’ve found to these pens is that you need to have fully dry hands when you handle the labeled jars or the pen wipes off. No big deal. I keep the chalk markers within an easy reach of the pantry for touch-ups.

Want to see what our pantry looks like now? I’ll be posting about it tomorrow. Stay tuned…

One Meal, Six Variations

My kid insists on eating pasta (usually with cheese) at least once a day. I can understand this. I was a kid who ate mac and cheese religiously for about a decade. However, now I’m a grown up and while I still love pasta, I can’t eat it plain every single day. REALLY. Also I am so not interested in cooking two dishes at each meal, one for my toddler and one for me. NO THANK YOU!

Here are some quick pasta additions straight from the garden/pantry that I’ve tried over the last month for you to try and enjoy.


First up, above, for mama: pasta with spinach, pine nuts, and chickpeas (similar to this chard recipe).
For the kid: plain pasta with chickpeas on the side.

Above, for mama: pasta with tuna and mayo, raw sliced zucchini, and halved cherry tomatoes.
No picture of what Miss Leyba ate, but I can guarantee plain linguine was involved.


For the toddler: mac and cheese (Annie’s gluten-free version) straight out of the box.
For mama: some halved cherry tomatoes added to the mix, though this tastes much better with fresh basil too.



For mama: a super quick addition of grated Parmesan cheese and jarred artichoke hearts halved.
For Miss Leyba: a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese (she LOVES it!) and a giant bowl of edamame to share.


Finally, for mama: putting leftovers of grilled zucchini and cherry tomatoes to good use.
For toddler: linguine with Parmesan and a circle of cherry tomatoes (she warmed up to the idea by the end of the month; score!).

All easy, all super tasty!

Some other toppings I want to try (and will undoubtedly have plenty of time to taste) include pesto with boiled potatoes and pine nuts; corn and green chilies; and asparagus, arugula and ricotta. YUM!

Camping Friday

Another post in our First on Friday series where we try something new!

David and I used to camp together.

We camped across the country:

David outside our old tent in Texas Canyon in 2003 on our way home to New Mexico from the east coast

We camped in our backyard for several nights after our wedding as a mini-honeymoon before the big honeymoon several months later:

With the wedding decorations still up in 2005 (ugh, pardon the blurry photo)

We camped in beautiful places:

At the Great Sand Dues in 2006

And then we had a kid. Since this event we’ve slept in a tent a total of one night IN OUR BACKYARD. LAST YEAR. TO TRY IT OUT. I know, pathetic. To say it was time to try it again was a bit of a understatement.

Yesterday we headed out to a State Park close to home for a one-night trip. Luckily when you live in Northern California you don’t need to go far to find someplace absolutely beautiful. Less than an hour away may not sound terribly exciting, but we’ve been feeling giddy over it and loved our trip.

Here’s how it went down:










All three of us enjoyed being in nature, doing something new together, and getting away from the fray.

Our getaway was so needed, so restful, such fun… and I am so looking forward to doing it again.

The best part though is that it’s Friday and we have the whole weekend ahead of us! Have a good one!

Garden Tour

It may be the end of September, but the weather has finally gotten HOT and our garden is responding! Flowers blooming, vegetables growing and ripening, weeds taking over the place…

First some pictures of the flowers and then a quick video tour of our itty bitty yard bursting with plants.



Before I give you a tour of our garden this year, let me remind you of what our yard looked like last year when we moved in (more info here):


Here it is now, a year and half later:


Movie: Garden Tour from Carrie on Vimeo.

(Sorry if I sound a bit breathless. I had a cold while filming, which we’ll now remember forever. Sigh.)