Monthly Archives: July 2022

NJ Bucket List: Delaware Water Gap & Tennis

Maddie here, back with some fun updates to my summer bucket list!

Explore a Delaware Water Gap Town
The Delaware Water Gap is a gap between NJ and PA where the Delaware River runs through the Appalachian mountains:

The Gap not to be confused with Gap, Inc.

It is just about an hour from home (as are most things- loves it!) and I have been wanting to check it out ever since reading a magazine article feature in Country Living. (Shoutout to the library for the free Libby app!) The most popular thing to do in the summer on the Delaware Water Gap is river tubing, but we took this trip to explore the town of Lambertville, also known as the antiquing capital of New Jersey.

I found that article from Country Living and used it as a guide for the places to explore. We spent time at a few different antique stores (the People’s Store being our favorite), enjoyed a BBQ lunch at More than Q, walked across the The New Hope–Lambertville Bridge into Pennsylvania, turned around and walked back, grabbed a beer/cider at Lambertville Station, got an iced coffee at Lambertville Trading Company, and then finished out the day with an ice cream at Owowcow Creamery. The town was super cute and had a great feel to it and we saw so many interesting antiques in all of the stores.

As far as purchases go, we found the antiques to be overall more expensive than anticipated, but did end up buying a German cuckoo clock for my in-laws that matched one from their family history. For us, we purchased a chime that plays the tune “Take Me Out to The Ball Game” that is now sitting on our front porch and chiming away as I write this post.

Cost: BBQ Lunch- $60, Chime- $70, Coffees- $7.25 (we had a $25 Visa gift card that we used to purchase the beers/ice cream so not including that in our out of pocket costs)
Total: $137.25
Top Tip: I am loving the day trip vibes this summer! It is the perfect way to get out to enjoy the season and explore while returning to your own bed at the end of the day

Play Tennis
I included this on the bucket list because we are always saying that we should go play tennis and I wanted something to motivate us to actually make it happen…it worked! This weekend, we grabbed our rackets, picked up some new tennis balls from Target, and hit the courts at a new (to us) park in our town. We went at 8:45amish and it started to heat up pretty good by 9:30am so we left a bit earlier than expected, but it was very fun! The hubz is defs better at tennis than me but he gave me some pointers and I improved by the end. It was fun to get out and active doing something outside of the routine.
Cost: $2.79
Top Tip: Balance low or no cost activities to offset big weekends. This activity followed last weekend’s day trip to Lambertville. It was still great to get out and do something different without spending a lot of money.


2022 NJ Summer Bucket List:
Go to a baseball game
Have a pool day
Host a Summer BBQ
Explore a Delaware Water Gap town
Go to the beach
Visit the Maplewood Farmer’s Market
Play tennis
Win Broadway lottery tickets
See an outdoor concert
Celebrate our 10 year anniversary with a fun activity

Twinning Holidays: 4th of July

When Emily and I compared our 4th of July plans they were v similar: low key BBQs at home and watching the Capital Fourth on PBS! We thought we would do a blog post here and compare costs for the BBQ east coast vs. west coast.

Maddie’s East Coast Menu:
Corn of the Cob: $2.49 (4 pack)
Fruit Salad: $7 (strawberries, blueberries, pineapple)
Hot Dog Buns: $.59
Beef Hot Dogs: $3.29
Macaroni Salad: $1.92
Beans for Ruth’s Beans: $2.96
(I also used frozen bacon that I got on a BOGO deal so that was free)
Total: $18.25

And there were plenty of leftovers where this came from!

Emily’s West Coast Menu:
Cantelope: Free from my mom
Hot Dog Buns: $3.89 (used $1 worth and froze the rest)
Beef Hot Dogs: $5.24 (used $1.38)
Fixings for Ruth’s Beans(included onion, bacon, beans and vinegar): $5.89

Total: $15.89

A few notes and tips. My husband worked on 4th of July so we enjoyed our menu and some quiet fireworks the evening before. It was nice to still mark the occasion even though it wasn’t the day of. Also Ruth’s Bakes Beans makes a lot. I like to freeze the leftovers because it’s rough for a house hold of 2 and a half to eat that many beans in a week.

Forgot to take a picture of our food. But here is me with Pal and Bud at the 4th of July Parade.

Ruth’s Beans
Below is our mom’s recipe for her Aunt Ruth’s baked beans. These were a staple in our household growing up and we love making them in our homes as the perfect side to a summer BBQ:

Second Year Gardening – Update 1

Emily here and I have a lot to say about my garden! Everything has changed.

Plant Placement: Things got moved around for one reason or another. I ended up having more room in my garden beds than I thought so I added more plants. Then a few of them (looking at you Zinnias and Marigolds) didn’t ever grow so I replaced them. I did plant lavender in the window boxes but only got 2 plants for each box because my budget was running low and I thought it would be too crowded.

Seed Starting Update: They all died. That’s the updated. I got too excited and started them all way too early. And by the time I was in the clear they were all dead.

Cold Weather: We have had an unusually cold start to our summer. Our final frost date was May 1 and we had a below freezing night like 5 days after that (all plants made it thankfully). But June has been cold and so my plants aren’t nearly as far along as they were last year. Which is bumming me out but I know they will get there eventually.

Plants Added: In addition to the new plants in the pictures above I also got 2 more peony plant (and to my shock my first one started to grow), a blackberry bush and lemon basil. My goal this week is to get a few more herbs (cilantro and maybe one more), and possibly some snapdragons?

Location Added: I added a wild flower mix and pumpkins to a dirt patch under my windows. The pumpkins seem happy and the wild flowers are finally starting to bloom. They are a bit uneven because we had a broken sprinkler line. (due to me having a bright idea for a cute picket fence around the wild flowers and my husbands determination to make it happen for me. He hammered the fence into the line then it disrupted the dirt around and tossed a bunch of the seeds into my window box.)

Left June 13th. Right July 8th.

First Harvest: July 7th I was able to harvest 6 of the peas! Pal and I split them and they were quite good. Later in the evening Pal went over to the peas and asked for more. So I would say they were a hit!

Here is my best tip so far. Keep notes! I have a calendar next to my back door. I made notes of when I planted everything, when I started to see the plants and now I will write when items are harvested/bloom. This has helped me keep track of everything and will be a big help next year to know how long it takes things to grow in my specific area.

Decorating on a Budget

Emily here! This will be our 4th summer in our house and it still isn’t completely decorated. But I have *mostly* finished decorating above our kitchen cabinets and that is what I’m here to share today!

Before
After
Before
After

I only spent $2 for this! The only thing I bought was an easel for the china plate. Everything was from around my house. There are some family heirlooms, meaningful drawings and paints, gifts, special occasion items and plants. It was my mom’s idea to put my mini tea set (saved from when I was little) into the cake stand. I think that is my favorite part of the décor. I’d also like to point out that this took me a year to complete. I took the initial before pictures March 2021 and just this month I feel like it is (sorta) complete. I’d still like to do something with the blank spaces (maybe some plants?) but I have no real ideas and no budget.

Here are my tips for decorating on a budget!
1. Use what you already have. I used a clock and the clock box to decorate! Get creative with repurposing.
2. Incorporate nature. I added dried flowers from my birthday last year as well as a fake succulent. Keep the nature low or no maintenance. Ain’t no one going to climb on a chair weekly to water. And you don’t want to risk ruining your cabinets with water damage.
3. Use unused books to lift your decorations. That way you can actually see them!

DIY Gallery Wall

Emily here! Here with some more home decorating. I knew I wanted to do a gallery wall when we first moved in and wanted to do it on a budget. Here’s what I did!

I looked up a few how tos on Pinterest. I used printer paper and tape to hang on my wall to see the initial placement then went for it! I used a 12 pack of frames from the dollar tree (which at the time cost $12), got my pictures from Walgreens ($26), and used command picture hanging strips ($20) to mount them. I decided to use the command picture strips because I could do it on my own (didn’t need husbands help with nailing in the wall), it would be non damaging, and if I messed up on the placement I could just try again without much of a headache. I went for a mix of nature places that are important to us and important family pictures for the wall.

NJ Bucket List: Pool Day & Broadway Lottery

We are officially in July and I am feeling pleased with how many items I have completed on my bucket list. This week I checked off two more activities!

Have a pool day: When planning a hang with my wonderful friend, Mari, we decided that a pool day would be perfect! She lives in Hoboken and there is a fantastic free pool for Hudson County residents about a 5 minute drive away with incredible views of the city. Am I a Hudson County resident? No… Do I still have a driver’s license that says I live in Hudson County? Yes! The day was set to be 95 degrees so we decided to go in the morning and it was perfect. This is truly one of my favorite pools of all time and it was great to catch up while enjoying all the relaxation a pool day has to offer.

Cost: $0
Top Tip: Take advantage of your city/county pools. Also use lotion sunscreen instead of spray sunscreen. It takes longer but no burn for me this time!

Win Broadway lottery tickets: I started entering online Broadway lotteries for shows that I was interested in several weeks ago. These included: Hadestown, Hamilton, Six, Into the Woods, and Moulin Rouge. I was very excited to win a Moulin Rouge ticket because everyone who saw this show loved it, it won a bunch of Tonys, and I am a HUGE fan of the movie (the soundtrack rotated exclusively with Maroon 5’s “Songs about Jane” album for my 7th grade bus ride for the entire year- all the feelz). Unfortunately, I ended up being disappointed in the production which they turned into a jukebox musical on steroids that almost parodied the movie. I guess I should have done some research into this beforehand, but I kinda assumed it would follow the movie more closely in tone and content. Instead, I barely got to hear any of my fav movie songs sung completely through and probably would have been better off staying home and just watching the movie. Giving credit where it is due, the set was spectacular spectacular and the performers gave it their all. I will probably wait to start entering the lotteries aggressively until the fall because NYC in the summer is….smelly. Just keeping it real, folks!

Cost: $47.50 lottery ticket, $5.45 parking at train station, $15 round trip train tickets. Total: $67.95 This was definitely one of the pricier experiences of the summer but it was cheaper than filling my car with gas so there is that I guess???
Top Tip: Don’t be afraid to go solo for big experiences! It would have cost nearly twice as much for the hubz to join me for this, but he had rehearsal so I decided to go alone. Even if it wasn’t what I expected, I’m glad I could have the experience without breaking the bank. Also, always pack a snack and water bottle when traveling into NYC.

2022 NJ Summer Bucket List:

Go to a baseball game
Have a pool day
Host a Summer BBQ
Explore a Delaware Gap town
Go to the beach
Visit the Maplewood Farmer’s Market
Play tennis
Win Broadway lottery tickets
See an outdoor concert
Celebrate our 10 year anniversary with a fun activity