Today there were “green festivals” in both my town and the next town over, but I didn’t make either one. Too busy with Little League and working on my daughter’s room. But, it’s a reminder that I want to get or make a rain barrel.

Simply gorgeous weather today, blue skies, 80 degrees. My daughter, my younger son, and I hit up Jo-Ann Fabrics, looking for ideas for her room, and walked out empty handed. Then we stopped at a multi-family yard sale, where I almost bought a very old child’s chair. It really appealed to me as it fit the style I’m going for with her room, but I don’t want to put anything in her room that isn’t functional (except for artwork, etc.), and this was not a chair she would ever sit on. Too small, not comfy. Oh and my son pitched another antisocial fit, much like the birthday party one last weekend, so we had to leave anyway.

On to my older son’s Little League game, then home, where I ran my ass off for the next four hours. Finishing the primer coats on the headboard, pulling weeds in the front garden, cleaning up a little inside. My older son had some friends over and my husband kept my daughter occupied. It was awesome! I felt so accomplished.

Yesterday evening I stopped at the hardware store for more spray primer and more garden soil. I held off on buying planters and instead decided to try something I first heard about on the Nonconsumer Advocate Facebook group (I love them!). I transplanted one of my tomato plants from inside to a reusable shopping bag filled with soil. I just cut a few holes in the bottom of the bag. Ok, so my garden isn’t going to win a beauty contest, but I saved a couple bucks. And the bags are nice and deep, so they ought to work good for the carrots, which I plan to plant tomorrow.

I am really, really happy to report that all of the plants I planted in the front garden last year — a hydrangea, two mums, and two “beauty berry” plants — are coming back to life.

In one of my recent posts, I mentioned I was looking for cheap alternatives to buying curtain rods. Well, my blogger friend Ginger over at Urban Shmergin sent me a link about using pipes for rods, and then I just kept going from there, finding links like this one — yes, you can use branches! But then I decided to just poke around the house, and lo and behold I found an old curtain rod in my daughter’s closet. Then on my desk I found some hardware, from some other curtain set. It was a dark red color, so I picked up some silver spray paint last night and sprayed it to match the rod today. Now I just need finials of some kind. At this rate, I feel like I could just grind an orange onto each end. And spray paint them! Wheee!

Yesterday I took a moment to add up everything I’ve spent on my daughter’s room so far. It was $353, but minus $50 from selling her old crib and changing table = $303. I wonder how low I can keep it?

I also added up what I’ve spent in April so far: I have $300 left for groceries, $200 left for “miscellaneous,” and $100 left for eating out. That’s a little tight (for us). Not to mention there was a deficit for March, a large one. As I think I explained before, it’s a deficit from February that just keeps carrying over, and growing each time, like a snowball rolling downhill. But, the good news is that all our tax liabilities for 2013 and 2014 are about to be taken care of, and a lot of credit card debt paid off, thanks to some positive developments on my husband’s side of things. The credit card debt that will remain could be paid off in a year or sooner, and then (hopefully) we can really start some serious saving.