A weekend day around the casa...

First we enjoyed the comings and goings at the bird feeder.





Then we enjoyed the company of our youngest three kitties.


(Tallulah, 7 months)


(Gypsy, 16 months)


(Jasper, 16 months)

Later, the girls helped out with the garage clean-up. Ryan helped too but I didn't get a picture of him.





Finally, I looked through our glass door at the afternoon sun. Can't wait to get it sanded, painted and installed!

Abundance Is....

(First I'd like to thank everyone who commented on my deliberate living post. What you all wrote was inspirational and has given me more to think about. I'm absolutely at peace with dancing to my own music, using my microwave, and sleeping in dyed sheets.*G*)

Now,

Abundance is...

Having enough to give away and never miss it.

We filled the whole Suburban today with stuff for charity and gave a nice dresser to a needy family. We aren't finished, not by a long shot, but we were cleaning first, sorting out second. There are more weekends coming up.

Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again. Give portions to seven, yes to eight, for you do not know what disaster may come upon the land. Ecclesiastes 11:1-2.

Let your religion be less of a theory and more of a love affair.~G.K. Chesterton

Abundance is...

Perfect weather, rain or shine.

The past two weekends were spent raking, moving, hauling, lifting, digging, bagging, and so forth. We got our entire front and back yards done! This Saturday we awoke to chilly, windy drizzle and it was just perfect because we had nothing to do outside(no yardwork). Ryan had to be at his job just before noon so we all got ready and dropped him off. We headed to Lowe's for some shelf holders and Jake's for guinea pig and dog bedding. The girls were hungry and decided on Taco Bell. Just as we were waiting for the light to change for us to turn onto that road, Mark had the brilliant idea that we needed something a bit more substantial so we headed for our favorite Tex-Mex dive. It was exactly what we needed on a gray day, very comforting and relaxing.

Today we had no plans to work in the garage but it happened. The weather, once again, was just perfect. Not too cold, not windy, sunny and mild. We didn't get hot on the west side of the house nor did we get cold fingers(except the girls when they washed some box lids). Now after hours of hard work, our garage is clean and organized with (almost)everything in its place.

Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather. ~John Ruskin

There's nothing like biting off more than you can chew, and then chewing anyway. ~Mark Burnett

Abundance is...

Experiencing one of the Earth's most powerful and awesome events and not being hurt or scared.

We had an earthquake early this morning! Actually, what we think is that it was an aftershock from one that happened north of Oklahoma City at 3:43am(Did You Feel It?"). Mark and I were awakened at 4:45 by a series of vibrations like idling in a diesel truck but there was no noise(our bedroom doors did shake a bit). The dogs had actually got me alert a few seconds before so I felt them before Mark. The shakes woke him up. It was unnerving but we really didn't think "earthquake" until we'd got up and around later in the day.

Which would you rather have, a bursting planet or an earthquake here and there? ~John Joseph Lynch

It is not light that we need, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder. We need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake. ~Frederick Douglass

New Year's Resolutions?

I don't typically make resolutions but this year will be different. Here are areas that I will be working on for the next year:

1. Simplifying my home. When we get back home I will help Mark sort through our garage full of furniture and the attic junk as well. At least 90% of it needs donated or plain old tossed out. My closet is a catch-all for everyone's "stuff" as well so that will be February's task. March through the end of the year yet to be determined.

2. Simplifying my schedule. I need to come up with a better system for grocery shopping and meals. Having church, park day and other commitments is not something I'm all that used to and I struggle with remembering to cook those days.

3. Getting my physical self back together. Mark wants to go hiking with me when we come back to North Carolina in August. I'd really love to be fitter, WAY fitter and stronger, by then. Its a goal to work toward so maybe that will help my motivation this time around.

4. Learn some things that I need to know. Like machine quilting, how to sew garments, how to knit socks... you name it, this is the FUN stuff I'm resolving to at least attempt in 2009.

Like I said, I hardly ever make resolutions so this will be something I can refer back to every week or so to keep me on track maybe. That would be nice.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!!

The Rearranger

I am not sleeping well with the bed under the window at all(we switched the dresser and bed spots a week or so ago). Our neighbor has a shop in his backyard with spotlights on it and they shine right into our bedroom! It is worse right at the curtains so its like I have a big green glowstick above my head as I sleep. Soooo, since the girls are not here and Mark and Ryan are working, I'm going to put on my rearranger cape and get after it! Of course I have to pick up a ton of stuff first.

The girls will have to clean out both piggie cages when they get here. All of a sudden, in the last 3-4 days, we've had a fly explosion! I'm thinking some animal must've died in the pool area or across the street or something. They tend to hang around the cages and the litterboxes so we've kept them poop-scooped every day since we noticed the problem.

I've got laundry going and have swept the kitchen and utility room. I hate sweeping almost as much as I hate ironing. Bleh. Now I need to figure out dinner and I'll have gotten a lot accomplished before noon!! YEAH ME!!! I'll grocery shop later today, we're out of most of my favorite things so I have to go. Mark's check was bigger than we expected, over a car payment bigger than usual, so I can really stock us up for the winter(including new curtains for the living room and maybe our bedroom!!!).

more decluttering going on....

Yesterday we tackled the garage. Again. But, this time we didn't just restack what was there. We tossed stuff. Three huge bags of trash were filled and many bags were filled for charity and the suburban is stuffed! Including a tall kitchen bag full of yarn that I'll never use.

Found items included a plastic shoebox full of sunflower seeds(birdseed style) inside another box, hidden from our view. This was on a shelf right outside the door and would explain why we startle rats when we go out there. It is tossed so maybe the rats will go away.

I also found two of my good pairs of sunglasses, missing fabric and quilt patterns, and ***dddrruuumrollll please*** the remote to the dvd player!!!! It had been missing for at least a year now, maybe more.

We have several pieces of furniture that need to go as well but they won't fit in the suburban so we'll probably just drag them out to the curb and hope someone claims them. Mark hates to do this because it looks junky and he's always afraid that nobody will get them and we'll have to drag them back inside. I tend to look on the positive side, that someone will snap them up within hours(which is usually what happens). Anyway, that's for another weekend.

In other news....

I made a heavenly chocolate pie for dessert last night. My grandmother used to make them but I didn't really care for the taste. My version used dark chocolate cocoa powder and followed this recipe, sans meringue, over at Homesick Texan's blog. Ooooh it was rich!!! There is just a small slice left too so I'll be forced to make another one today probably.

A friend of mine called later and asked me to meet her at Books-a-Million for Bluegrass night. Some local musicians meet up there once a month for a mini-concert. They were ok. Not great but certainly not bad either. I didn't go til 9:30 and they wrapped up shortly before 11. It was nice but a late night.

Today we'll be getting the girls' friend from a nearby town for the afternoon. They are out of school tomorrow for a teacher work day or something so she might spend the night. Soon I'm headed out to walk at my favorite walking trail before meeting Mark and the kids at the bookstore for coffee and magazines.

Later this afternoon I plan to get my craft corner thinned out. There are boxes and old suitcases full of junk that I just don't need to keep. Things like fabric from the mid-80s we've saved for quilt backing and such as that.

Yesterday I started some adorable needle-felted balls. I left the felting loose so I can wet felt them the rest of the way. The first attempts at this were very successful and didn't take but a few minutes. I'll share pics tomorrow.

Tallulah!

Guess who is in LOVE!!


(Tally and Mark)

Actually, we all are! Amy was asking about who might "adopt" her and Mark said someone already had. He has claimed her as HIS cat!

She slept between my shoulder blades ALL night the first night. Last night she slept in the crook of my arm and under my chin, ALL night long. She plays herself to exhaustion and then just crashes! This morning she played in the curtains with Gypsy and Jasper. They don't really know what she is but they'll chase her and she'll jump on their tails, it is SO cute! She still looks like a chupacabra but her personality more than makes up for it, she is a MESS! The guinea pigs fascinate her, they're just her size, but slightly fatter(ok, a whole lot fatter). Even Rosie plays with her. Ruby and Muffin are the hold-outs but they're more indifferent than anything.


We still don't know if she suffers from Manx Syndrome or not. She is so very young that her symptoms might be related to not having a mom to clean her hiney. After lunch yesterday she has had no problems with leaky booty. She did poop on the bed twice though. It might be that she can't feel the urge sometimes but we've seen her go in the litterbox several times. I'm hoping its just her body adjusting to different foods, different place, the vaccinations and worm meds she got, etc. but only time will tell. You can read about the breed, including the syndrome, HERE.

In other news...

We are working in the garage today since we got hurricaned last weekend. Our plan is to get rid of 75% of the furniture and junk out there(and put out rat poison). Hopefully I'll find some materials to make a headboard from.
****update to say we are NOT working in the garage today. Mark's neck and upper back are hurting him today, probably from all the driving to hither and yon that he's been doing. So, now I don't know what we'll do other than go get my medicine from Walmart pharmacy. Wow we are so exciting!!

I've got two roasts in the crockpot for dinner tonight. I'll fix mashed potatoes, field peas and a big cucumber salad to go with. Can't wait!

Downgraded...

Louisiana and Arkansas are getting the brunt of what was forecast for northeast Texas. We're still in a Lake Wind Advisory and Flash Flood Watch through tomorrow night but the mega rains are staying to the east for now. Right now(noonish) we're getting a steady light rain with a slight breeze but the rain is supposed to get heavier this afternoon and throughout the night. I think we're projected to get up to 8 inches of rain through tomorrow. No tornadoes or other weirdness so far. Thank God.

I'm going to work on decluttering my craft corner in the living room. Its piled high with projects and loose ends, including the 3 shown here. This fall would be the perfect time to get many of them tied up and finished! Or maybe that's just wishful thinking.

A Most Boring Day

I have done nothing all day. Except try to decide where to put the china hutch. It really would do well in the dining room but there isn't a wall wide enough. The next choice is in our bedroom so I'll get Mark to help me move it there tonight. My desk will go in its vacated space by the fireplace. Oh yeah, I also tore out a few recipes from some old Cooking Light magazines. Most stuff they make uses ingredients I would not typically buy so there are few things I can use. Mark asked if I wanted to renew my Prevention mag and I told him I'd rather have Cooking Light again but after going through 6-7 mags I've decided to not take either of them. And I emptied out two more kitchen drawers, the dreaded "junk drawers". I threw about 1/3 of the junk away but we'll need to sit down and sort the rest of it later. Guess that wasn't nothing afterall, but it was still boring.

Back to desks: I've found a temporary substitute in the form of one of Mark's Texas tables he made early on in his career at JDMedical. At the time they weren't able to afford much office furniture so he built two nice tables and painted their tops with Texas flags. I had been thinking of using one until I find the perfect desk but the one I came across in the garage had the legs taken off. This morning I was out looking it over when I spied the other one, legs intact, on top of some boxes. So, I'll have Mark bring that in for me tonight as well. I may have to blog from the girls' computer until he can get up in the attic to move the cable over to the fireplace wall. YEAH! I'm excited to finally be off the floor!!! Now I can bring in a small chest(after I get it painted) for the microwave to go on which will free up some much needed counter space next to the stove. YEAH!

Speaking of Mark's job... We were talking this weekend about how nice it is to be free from all the stress he had at his old job. Every waking hour he was giving 200% of his mind to that place, even when he wasn't there. It was a losing battle because no matter how much he did(or how fast or how many hours he worked), he could never do all of the stuff that needed done, it was an enormous workload for one person(3 or 4 working at his blazing pace and intensity would be about right). Now when 5pm comes, he walks out the door and doesn't have to think about work again til the next morning. He can finally give attention to things that he barely had time to glance at in the past 2-3 years. He has taken up running again, complete with long and short-term goals. The best thing is that our conversations no longer have to center around the insanity that was his workplace, we've probably spent less than 20 minutes total talking about it since he walked out their doors for the last time. It is exceptional how he has been able to totally switch gears and "recover" from such a stressful situation. I take that as a sign that he was ready for a change.*G* He has become a fun, relaxed person again, it is wonderful!!!

You Are Wintergreen Flavored Gum

You are laid back, low maintenance, and super cool. You go with the flow, and you never cause too much of a fuss. You are very in touch with nature and the world around you. You prefer to keep things simple. Complexity stresses you out. You are a very real person. Openness and honesty are important to you. You can be friends with almost anyone, as long as they tell it like it is.

What Flavor Gum Are You?

Easy Friday...

In order to avoid some major room cleaning this afternoon, I sat and filled out this meme, oh around 1:40pm(my innernets didn't work to let me post it then). Promptly afterward I took a 2-hour nap on the loveseat. The room will have to wait til tomorrow.

Eye Color: Dark green with rusty brown centers.
Hair Color: Dark brown with copper highlights and newly added grey shimmers.
--Dyed or Natural: Natural.
--Curly or Straight: Mostly straight with asymmetrical waves.
Right- or Left-handed: Left
Tan or Pale: splotchy tan in some places, lily white in others, does that make me spotted?
Jeans or Khakis: comfy capris
Country, Rap, or Rock: 70s-80s classic rock and classic country(occasionally) but mainly new age.
Heritage: English, German, Norman
Shoes you're wearing today: NONE
Your weakness(es): Cute animals.
Your perfect pizza: Homemade
Favorite color: Mostly greens but I love color in general.
Favorite place: Home
Goal you'd like to achieve: Too many to list, lose weight, get in shape, have a clean, organized house, declutter to the point of being THROUGH with it already..
Your most overused phrase(s): Feed the (pigs, cats, dogs) please!
Your thoughts first waking up: What the heck was that dream all about?
Your best physical feature(s): My smile.
Your bedtime: Usually around 10ish, later for the Olympics though, last night after midnight!
Your most missed memory: Actually, I think they've all been found.
Pepsi or Coke: Dr. Pepper, hello?
McDonald's or Burger King: McDonalds if I have to.
Single or group dates: Dates?
Adidas or Nike: Mizuno
Lipton Ice Tea or Nestea: Uncle Yee's Green Tea, iced.
Chocolate or vanilla: Yep
Cappuccino or coffee: Coffee

DO YOU:
Smoke: Nope
Cuss: Yes
Have a boyfriend/girlfriend: Yep, he's my hubby.
Take a shower: 3-4 times a year.
Have a crush(es): No.
Think you've been in love: Yes
Want to get married: Done
Believe in yourself: Yes
Believe in God: Yes
Believe in your government: Oh Yes, its definitely real.
Get motion sickness: No
Think you're attractive: Don't consider it.
Think you're a health freak: Not really but I am concerned.
Get along with your parents: Yes
Like thunderstorms: If they rain out a softball game, yes. And other times too of course.

IN THE PAST MONTH, HAVE YOU:
Drunk alcohol: No
Gone on a date: No
Gone to the mall: No
Been on stage: No
Eaten an entire box of Oreos: No
Eaten sushi: No
Been dumped: No
Gone skating: No
Gone skinny dipping: No
Stolen anything: No
(oh look, a perfect score!)

IN THE NUMBERS:
Number of people I could trust with my life: Four
Number of CD's: Buckets and buckets
Number of piercings: Two in each ear
Number of tattoos: None
Number of times my name has appeared in the newspaper: At least 10.
Number of scars on my body: lots

Quirks....

Maizee at Fabric and Yarn Stasher tagged me and Susan at Blackberry Creek so I'm playing for both of them!

I won't tag anybody outright, play along if you dare! Here's the rules(which I rarely follow)
1. Link back to the person who tagged you.
2. Mention the rules on your blog.
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours.
4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking to them.
5. Leave a comment letting them know they've been tagged.

My quirks would be thus:

1. I hate to hear balloons popping. I hate loud noises in general but this one can cause me to have a panic attack in seconds! Don't know why. Consequently my kids are always BEGGING for balloons. I finally give in and when one pops I freak out, yell at them(because they KNOW how it is for me and balloons), and go sulk in my room.

2. My feet get washed every night right before I get into bed. One of my biggest pet peeves is crumbs in the bed and this seems to help. Yall now know that I am a true princess.(and yall got a freebie quirk)

3. I don't eat syrup on my pancakes. I eat them with either bacon or ham layered with each bite. Oh, and plenty of butter!

4. I am a notorious maker of lists, but rarely do what is on them.

5. A platter of sausage, gravy and biscuits is way more appealing than a bowl of ice cream. I'm not big on sweets.

6. It has to be near pitch dark for me to sleep at night. Even the light from the vcr or alarm clock has to be covered up. Mark thinks I am NUTS but it really does bother me through my eyelids! Yes it does.

And in other news...

My little brother finished hiking the Appalachian Trail!!!! He started last year but came home shy of the finish for family reasons. He went back not long ago and picked up where he left off. The weather was horrid the whole way but he stuck with it and came to the end!! YEAH! Now he's looking at another hike, 900-something miles from western North Carolina to the coast. I can't remember what he said the name of it is but I bet he's on it soon! Keep him in your thoughts and prayers, he's got the same nasty vurus that we've had.


(note the fog and banged up shins-it was not an easy hike)


(my next big project, still no desk but this was $12.50 at Goodwill)

What I worked on this afternoon:

I warn you, it is GROSS...


(do I really need all this? it came from the drawer)


(at least those crumbs are just salt, it could be worse)


(some of those things didn't make it back into the drawer, that pampered chef sandwich cut and seal really shouldn't be there though)

Curtains are hung!

We finished painting a few weeks ago* but hadn't put the room back together since we got busy with the pool liner and other things. Over the weekend I managed to get to Lowe's so I could get a 1/2-inch copper pipe to use as a curtain rod, a few brackets, and a light bulb for the kitchen fixture(which didn't light up so we might have a bigger problem). Anyway, Mark and I put the curtains up last night and here is the result! I'm very pleased but wish I would have measured with the curtains actually on the rod before we cut it. I used a tape measure and it looked like it would work but the curtains actually hang down about an inch inside where I thought they would. It ended up being ok but it would have been better if they were out an inch on either side. Sigh. I'm still searching for finial ideas. I saw some homemade ones out of sculpey(?) clay but I get horrible headaches when that sort of thing is baked in my house. Maybe some glass door knobs or something will come along.

*Except for the trim. We've narrowed it down to either Bistro White or Betsy's Linen(both Valspar colors from Lowe's) It has to work with our paint and the girls' turquoise too since we need to do their room.


(taken from doorway)

My next project is to make some tie-backs for them out of a coordinating fabric. I was thinking of using a cobalt blue, it really sparkles with the green fabric and storm-colored walls. However, with the quilt on the bed having lots of warm golds, red-oranges and purples, I'm going to go with purple. I have lots of scraps left of the quilt border fabric so that's the likely candidate. My plan is to make a tube about 2 inches wide by 7 inches long and put two snaps at the end so I can undo them easily for nighttime.


(taken from bathroom doorway, the paint color is almost dead-on in this pic)

Yes, I need to de-junk-pile again. I'm thinking of getting a piece of tempered glass to fit the top of my dresser. That way I could put doilies and other decorations under it and not have to worry about getting make-up on them or the cats destroying them. That would be a while down the road though.


(taken from corner opposite bathroom, no flash)


(bed wall)

Now for the headboard. I had a vision last night of what I want to do for a headboard. It involves plywood, padding, and a rich red-orange rusty fabric covering(that I have to find). It may not come to be, the cats may end up keeping fabric off the headboard, but I'm hoping they won't. If not, there is another idea I'm exploring. Old window frames with fabric covered panels inserted where the glass goes. Or, if nothing else, I could use paint in the color I want and just do some wooden slats. I don't know for sure but I can't wait to get started on it!


(entire bed wall)

We also have to decide what to do with our shelves. This last picture shows a LOT of wall above the bed and shelves! Wow! Our bed will probably be on risers by the time everything is done but I haven't ordered them yet(no stores in our area sell them). So, do we paint the shelves to match the walls? Paint them in a coordinating color(I'm thinking a deep, almost black plum)? Trade them for something else? What? I have another shelf identical to the blue one(on Mark's side of the bed) so we could get truly symetrical if we wanted to. I like my shelf because it is slightly taller and holds taller books but since I've got my books on the bookcase in the hall, this isn't necessary now. Any input is more than welcome!

A Lucky Break!

I know a few people know about me losing my BAM bag(booksamillion) but I didn't mention it specifically on my blog. The last time I remembered having it was when we went fishing at Gladewater Lake, back when I thought I saw a baby alligator way back on June 8th. It couldn't be found for our last camping trip. Thinking it was stashed in a pile somewhere, I didn't worry about it. Things have been busy since we got back and the bag's whereabouts were pushed out of my mind... sort of. It nagged me that I couldn't find it. NAAAAGGGED ME. Bad.

I have literally torn the house apart several times looking for this bag. Its loss was the catalyst for my latest decluttering efforts. Finally I decided that I must have taken it to a park day and left it there, though I couldn't remember having it at the park since before the alligator trip. So, I drove to the lake to look in their lost and found, drove to the park and combed the woods, had false memories of putting it down and walking away, nightmares even. I do NOT lose things and not remember!


(bag booty included about 75 hexagons for my Victorian flower quilt, my peppermint essential oil, 3 pairs of scissors and my handmade hussif-sewing kit- with pocket made from one of my dad's few neckties from my early childhood, a pair of silver earrings and a pack of gum)



Anyway, this morning Amy was looking in the hutch, one of the blue ones, where we keep the guinea pig polar fleece and towel bedding. She spied MY BAG!!! YES!!! I didn't lose it!! Wooohoot!

In other news:

I slept past 9 this morning and did not do a dang thing all day long except eat and watch tv. My hip was killing me as well as the top of my foot(aggravated by swimming unfortunately and keeps me from walking a lot most days). I did manage to watch the girls swim for over an hour, make a pan of brownies and a batch of spaghetti sauce. Oh and laundry, I did some of that too. But no working on my shelves at all. Oh well, I have tomorrow.


(here they are, mostly done)

Just because my bag was found does not mean I'm slacking off on the decluttering! I'm hitting it hard and heavy tomorrow morning. I want to get some done before we do our "fun thing" with the kids, yet to be determined.

Well here's a quotable quote!...

Vision is not enough, it must be combined with venture. It is not enough to stare up the steps, we must step up the stairs. ~Vaclav Havel

I feel like I'm doing a bit of both here. Sometimes all I can do is just stare at steps all over the house! Yesterday was my raw milk run so I was gone a good bit of the morning, til 11 o'clock, actually. Then Ryan had a friend over to spend the night, I was on the phone a lot, the girls wanted to swim, grocery store trip, etc., etc. I got nothing done declutter-wise. I'm trying not to get frustrated by this. I'm ready to step up the stairs but life is getting in the way. Today is homeschool park day and we'll have to take Ryan's guest home at some point. Instead of giving up though, I'm making plans to get back after it on Friday.


(decorated for Halloween)

Currently the fireplace is junked up again. The mantle is decorated for summer now but the hearth is cluttered with quartz and mica rocks, baskets, and some fabric. Not too bad but definitely being used as a storage place. I'd love to have two low-backed comfy chairs to put facing the fireplace for a reading area. May have to search the thrift shops over the weekend.







Here's the living room. The first picture is from our rearranging session last summer, before I painted the hutches. The second is from around Christmas because I see Ryan's arm in a cast from when he broke it. The hutches and loveseat are centered on the wall, unlke the position of the loveseat in the first picture. Its just hard to tell from the angle. The Peace banner(wip) is gone but the horse quilt is still up. There is now a middle shelf on the right-hand hutch. I keep some of my quilting and other craft books on it. The vintage suitcases have old quilts and works-in-progress in them but that corner has become a catch-all for yarn baskets and floor pillows. It is in dire need of a overhaul too.


(China cabinet's current location beside the fireplace)

My goals for the weekend include getting the hearth cleared off and swept, moving the china cabinet to make room for a computer area(and setting that up), dusting all the furniture in the living room, sorting the "pretties" box I have in the dining room(items from the red kitchen carts and the entertainment center), and clearing out the suitcase corner. I hope I'm able to get all of this done!!!

Tuesday's Goals...

I met my goals today!!! The living room bookshelf is devoid of books!! I have a few magazines and a bible on my nightstand shelf and that's it! The shelf at the end of the hall is almost completely filled with my books and the two units in the entry hall(our tallest) still have room for a few more books. I need to clean off the tops of each of these things but that can wait til another day. In the end, there were only about 20-25 books to give away. There is a shelf that needs to be redone, it has games, puzzles, flash cards, that sort of thing, and is quite unorganized. I probably would have gotten it all done but I had to pick Ryan up from his camp, along with three friends, take a friend home, stop to let another friend get his swim suit, then stop at the store for hot dogs to feed them for lunch. They swam for a few hours, then I had to take those two friends home. When we got back I took the girls swimming. Whew! I wish I could take a few pictures of one of the friend's grandmother's kitchen. She had her cabinets and walls painted a bright white and the cabinet doors painted a beautiful retro mint green to match the mint green ceramic tile countertops(original to the house). It was gorgeous!!!! In fact, I sat and talked to her for 20 minutes while the boys waited in the car, lol!

This is from last fall, they weren't nearly as bad this time around. Wish I had after pictures but I can't find my camera, or the girls' either. They've been missing for a few days now.***hubby informs me it is on top of the entertainment center, which explains why I can't see it-too high!


(this shelf is to the right of the entry hall and stands almost 5 feet tall)


(this brown shelf is almost as big as the first one but has been relocated to the end of our other hallway so I could put my retro black shelf in its place)


(this shelf has remained clutter free, strangely enough)

Decluttering....

Here are some handy websites for us to read on our journey to a more peaceful life.

Its Not About Your Stuff

Less Is More

Neither site has been updated in a while but the archives have some great stuff to offer.

This one, Disorder2Order is a personal blog rather than a professional organizer type site like the other two. I really like how she says things.

Angie mentioned in the comments yesterday that she cleans off a space and it becomes the new clutter collector. That happens here too. I cleaned off my dresser a while back(like months ago) so we could move it for painting. It immediately became the place to store my CDs and my clean laundry, make-up(because of the window and natural light), and more knick knacks that I thought I needed for decoration. So, I cleaned it off again. Less than a week later it was piled high, again. It is a never-ending thing and this happens with other surfaces in my home(my entertainment center, red kitchen carts, and tops of bookshelves are the worst spots). I would love to know why this is. Do I just have too many "pretties"? I KNOW I'm not buying stuff hand over fist to fill these spots, it is stuff I already have, things that were lurking on a bathroom shelf, under the sink or in a closet. Things I thought might look good here or there.


(this would be the before, and current, state of the dresser top, but right now it is just clothing and a few make-up items, not trashed out so bad as this pic)
*** I noticed Tom was in this picture, taken in mid-January of this year, before I ripped the carpet out. Since taking the carpet out, I don't let the floor get cluttered like this at all, guess that's a positive out of it all.


(this is the after picture, it does clean up nice doesn't it?)


(red kitchen carts right after I decorated them)


(red carts a few weeks ago)
***had to add this, The cat in the background, with the glowing eyes, is our Muffin. She manages to get in the background of most pictures I take around here. Chester left us in August of last year and Tom(the orange one) died late this past winter.

You'll notice that the "pretties" are gone, I put them in the china hutch for safer keeping. After that, it just fell apart, they are catch-alls of the worst kind! They get the dregs.

What I probably need to do is get everything back in its proper place, wherever that is. Gather my make-up stuff and put back in my overnight case in the bathroom(after I clean it out from our camping trips, the last of which took place over the first day of summer weekend, June 21st), put my folded clothes away, find a place for my CDs. The boxes of stuff I have just sitting, waiting to be put back on the dresser, I think I'll sort through that and part with some of it. I couldn't even tell you what is in there except a doll my grandparents gave me when I was a girl and some ??? what??? I really don't remember! It is that bad. Of course, when I see it, I might be inclined to keep it and that's ok, as long as I can find a place for it and it isn't clutter. I mean, there are things in there that are nice, special things. It is ok to keep stuff, I am not a minimalist for sure, but I do want to get rid of the dead weight.

Today I'm turning on some fun music and getting after my bookshelves! I did some yesterday and managed to clear off two shelves on one of the hall units. We homeschool, most of you know that already, so I have tons and tons of books. The kids read mostly online or the things that interest them, they take after their dad and read for information and not entertainment(like I did as a kid) so we have a bunch of books that we just don't need. Anyway, our shelves consist of two tall white units from Walmart(in our entry hall), and two units my dad built that hold about the same amount each(one at the end of our hallway and one in the living room), plus about half of my nightstand and a hutch(living room). My goal is to get the unit at the end of the hallway completely filled with MY books from the three other units and free up space on the white entry hall units for kids books from the other unit my dad made(getting all the books off of it). What are your goals?

Piles....

I has them.


(september of last year)


(january of this year)

These piles have been dealt with but there are still others in corners and on most surfaces of my home. The tops of bookshelves seem to be the worst but there is also the fireplace, the red kitchen carts, the vintage suitcases in the corner piled high with baskets of yarn and fabric and vintage tool boxes(among other things), the kitchen bar, etc. I've been thinning and decluttering for months and months, years actually, but they don't seem to be getting much smaller. In reality they are shrinking, I take bags and bags of stuff to Goodwill each month, at least 3-4 large garbage bags each trip. It just seems like the dent isn't as big as it should be by now. I know one thing that would help is another book toss. Earlier this year I gave away at least 2500 books and I could easily find another 500 or so to pass on.

My goal for the rest of the summer is to not only reduce my piles, but to eliminate them completely! By the first day of fall I want to be not only clutter free but have the rest of the stuff organized. Anyone want to join me in a blog-world decluttering movement? Maybe we could post once a week about our progress or something.

Want More????

Ok, here's a bit more...

We aren't going vegan or joining a commune. I'm not pregnant, we aren't adopting. Things still aren't all the way finished so I can't show yall yet. Sorry!! For now you can enjoy the finished painting of the bedroom the filling up of the pool...





The hardest thing about this color is that I have no idea what to put with it. My plan was for this to be more neutral like a stone or dove grey. It turned out waaaay bluer than I wanted but I do like it. None of my bedding goes at all which means I'll be doing a new quilt(but what colors?). Actually, if I get off my duff and *finish* my Buckeye Beauty repro quilt I'll have one that mostly goes.



I just hate doing the same thing over and over and over(quilt blocks, that is). The Unicorn Storm quilt is still in the planning stages. It will be a Turning Twenty quilt of blues and purples with a pretty unicorn fabric accented with silver as the focal point. I'm sure it will be the perfect match for the paint but probably too wintry for year-round use.

Anyway, we still have to declutter the shelves and decide if we're going to trade them for something else, paint them or what. One idea I have is to take an old round table top, cut it in half and mount it to the wall above the shelves. Then staple fabric skirt to it in pleats with another table cloth on top to hide the staples. This way we could have our junked up shelves(which we need) but we'd have a more polished look. We could also coordinate the headboard with the skirt fabric. I do know that the lamp shades have GOT to go. The maroon ones were on deep clearance at Tarjay a few years ago and were pretty ugly when I got them(but they were on Saaaaale!).

I also have an idea for my curtain rod but that will have to wait until I price some materials. Anyway....



Isn't this liner GORGEOUS???!! I think I did good picking it out! I wish the color of the border would have shown better in the pictures, it is really a nice brown, not washed out greenish-grey(do I need a new monitor?) as you see here.



We aren't sure why there are large pieces of cardboard in the pool. My guess is that they are parts of the liner box that blew in last night.



I think all they have left to do is cut the holes where the jets and intake go and fill it the rest of the way up! We are thinking we'll get about a month of swimming in. This summer has been much dryer than last, we only swam about 7-8 times last year because of all the rain.

Ryan is kinda peeved because he has church camp and thinks he might miss getting to swim in it this weekend. I'm betting it will be too cold for that and might not even be all the way filled(least that's what I'm tellin' him). The girls can hardly stand waiting til tomorrow to get their goggles and noodles.



I'm really glad to have finished painting already. Now I can enjoy the pool without feeling too guilty about stuff needing to be done inside, although something *always* needs done!

Last but not least! A scat update. I sent pictures to five bonafide experts and got replies very promptly. One person(not the one who left the comment) said it was coyote. The other four said it was most likely and/or definitely Ursus Americanus(American Black Bear) scat. Some of these experts have been in the field for decades and know their stuff very well so I will go with "very probably" bear scat. I'm of the conspiracy ilk and think the dissenter probably doesn't want to alarm the public. Sooo, that's the scat report for today. I WISH that could get me a job!!!

Just some stuff....

(Aaron at the start of the AT)

I heard from my brother today! He is finishing up hiking the Appalachian Trail. Last year he started in March and went til mid-August, coming off the trail a few times for personal reasons(and an injury or two). Since he got behind, it was going to be too cold to continue and the trail would be closed anyway. He really had a strong desire to finish and a few weeks ago an opportunity presented so he went for it! I'm not sure how much he has to go, somewhere between 500 and 600 miles, about 2 months worth or so. Right now he's in Vermont staying with the Twelve Tribes. He says they are very interesting.

Mark worked through the holiday weekend, all day Friday and Saturday and most of the day yesterday. His last call was last night at 10:15, he had to go see a patient about 45 miles from us and didn't get home til midnight.

The girls and I took care of our neighbor's dog and cats while Mark was working. They have a very super cool frog pond in their backyard with a waterfall and everything. Sarah loves to sneak up on it and find the frogs so we went "over and above" our call to duty and visited several times a day.

We did end up painting and got probably 90% of it done last night. I did the ceiling and baseboard edges today and will put a second coat on the whole thing tomorrow. It is still not the grey I wanted. I was after "stone" and this is "storm" but it is ok and growing on me as I get the trimming done. I made a decision about our china hutch too. Right now the chest of drawers is beside the bathroom door. We'll move it between the closet doors(to the right of the bed in this pic) and the hutch will go where the chest was.


(ignore the mess, it is gone now, as well as the boxes and bookshelf)

Once we get the room put back together I can start on my Summer Two-Color Challenge. I have my fabrics picked but can't reveal the pattern I'm doing until September 1st. There are also some PIFs and UFOs on my todo list so I hope to be back to crafting soon.


(red is one of the two colors for my challenge quilt)