In just a few hours my husband and I (If he can make it that is) will sign on the line and become home owners for the 3rd time in our marriage. WOW! I'm so ready for today, trust me this day could not have gotten here fast enough! The kid mobile is packed with oodles of boxes and some other essential items that will be needed right away in our new home...toilet paper, hand soap and hand towels for starters.
The Radon stuff will be taken care of on Monday. A team of experts will be installing the proper equipment to take care of the problem. Apparently we've set some sort of precedence in the neighborhood. Since our home was discovered to have radon gas issues, all of the new homes built out there will be built with the ventilation system for Radon Gas...nice! I'm proud of myself for getting that one going on :-) I plan on letting the members of our neighborhood home owners association know of there being radon gas discovered in the neighborhood (our home) and that they should get their homes tested if they haven't done so already.
Little things to get taken care of before closing...call the place where we got the flooring and see why they are trying to bill us for $300 more (we've already paid them up front for everything), then there's the issue of the builder trying to double bill us for the extra cable/telephone outlets and some other extra work we had them do, such as sound insulation in the wall that is between a bedroom and the family room and the special outlet for the freezer. Ah, just what I needed, an extra helping of stress this morning, LOL!
The weather here today is nasty! Wind blowing steady at 35 mph, rain being beat into your skin...what's not to like? LOL! And later on we might even get some snow...ugh! Perfect weather for moving into a new house right? It is if you happen to have a 3 car garage at this new house and you can drive right in! Oh yeah, life is good!
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
writing letters and making your own stationary
I'm a letter writer, always have been. Even though I have the internet and e-mail ET all, I still like to sit down and hand write letters to a friend or a family member. Okay so I have to send snail mail letters to my family since none of them have computers (strange huh). I enjoy making my own greeting cards (yes it's true... I have a serious addiction to paper). I love making my own stationary, putting my own touch to it with using special ink to give the paper a watermark image. I buy the fancy shmancy paper that has cotton fibers in it and had a linen like texture to it, it's a little more expensive but it makes for excellent stationary. Since it comes in a box of 100 sheets or so and it's 8½x11, I can cut it down to make it 5½x8¼ so it tucks nicely into a standard sized envelope.
I've checked out the prices of nice writing paper and it's actually more expensive than what I make for myself and you only get 20 sheets of paper and 10 envelopes. I use Versamark watermark ink when making my watermark stationary. I like to use large stamps, usually something with a floral design but at times I have been known to use other patterns such as seashells, leaves or something more of an architectural nature. The important thing is to choose something that appeals to you. Then ink up your stamp and go to it! I just get into a mode and stamp stamp stamp my paper! Be sure to let it dry thoroughly or if you're a little impatient use a heat tool and heat set the ink. I like to give g my handmade stationary as gifts to dear friends...especially when they are moving. I think that it's a rather thoughtful kind of gift to give; combined with a book of stamps, some envelopes, and a nice pen it makes a very nice gift indeed! It's much nicer (and more personal) than anything you can buy at your local Card Shop that I'm certain of!
Now if you're more into making cards versus your own stationary but feel a little behind the curve when it come to making a nice looking card? You just might want to check out www.inspiremecardkits.com loads of inspirational ideas for card making to be had over there!
I've checked out the prices of nice writing paper and it's actually more expensive than what I make for myself and you only get 20 sheets of paper and 10 envelopes. I use Versamark watermark ink when making my watermark stationary. I like to use large stamps, usually something with a floral design but at times I have been known to use other patterns such as seashells, leaves or something more of an architectural nature. The important thing is to choose something that appeals to you. Then ink up your stamp and go to it! I just get into a mode and stamp stamp stamp my paper! Be sure to let it dry thoroughly or if you're a little impatient use a heat tool and heat set the ink. I like to give g my handmade stationary as gifts to dear friends...especially when they are moving. I think that it's a rather thoughtful kind of gift to give; combined with a book of stamps, some envelopes, and a nice pen it makes a very nice gift indeed! It's much nicer (and more personal) than anything you can buy at your local Card Shop that I'm certain of!
Now if you're more into making cards versus your own stationary but feel a little behind the curve when it come to making a nice looking card? You just might want to check out www.inspiremecardkits.com loads of inspirational ideas for card making to be had over there!
Is it a man thing or what?
I tell ya, packing up your belongings for a move is not for wimps! But I have to ask you all this question "is it a man things or what? That when it comes to the last day or two of packing do men just like to throw it all together and tape the box closed? I mean really?" Oh my gosh I am shaking my head. I don't get mad at my husband very often and when I do it's usually because he is in his "man mode" LOL! OH yeah yesterday it was one of those "man mode issues" and I was quite upset. You see ladies he packed up my jewelry boxes and he didn't even tell me. He just took it upon himself to pack them up and put them out in the garage. I was livid! The funny thing is that he could not understand why I was upset...HELLO!!!! That's my jewelery out there somewhere in the GARAGE! The fact that 1- I don't know which box it's in makes me angry and 2- the fact that you took it upon yourself to pack something like that and not ask me about it....AUGH!!!!!!! He did this to me before back in 1994...yup my gold jewelery was packed away in a shoe box that went into storage for 11 months...trust me I was VERY upset! It's not as if I have the Crown Jewels or anything like that, it's just that what pieces I do have I treasure them. A lot of the items are from my Mother, they are precious items that were given to her by my Dad over the years. I still am at a loss as to why he would even pack those items... I've got the box that contains my earrings and now the hunt is on for me to find the box which contains my necklaces...men!
Favorite places to be on the www
Everyone who uses the internet has a favorite place or two that they like to hang out and read articles and such. One of my all time favorite places is www.3scrappyboys.com Besides having the best scrapbooking kits around (there's seriously good stuff in these kits) the owner has started her own line of acrylic stamps...how cool is that? I mean really!!! You should see these things, they're (in the words of my 11 year old daughter) Super Cute! I made sure to sign up for the stamp of the month club...I do not want to be missing out on them!
I love to incorporate stamping into my scrapbooking when possible, and www.3scrappyboys.com has combined the best of both worlds (or at least I think so). Looking for some inspiration, check out the gallery there at 3 scrappy boys, tons of great layouts, want a friendly place to hang out? Join the message board!
I love to incorporate stamping into my scrapbooking when possible, and www.3scrappyboys.com has combined the best of both worlds (or at least I think so). Looking for some inspiration, check out the gallery there at 3 scrappy boys, tons of great layouts, want a friendly place to hang out? Join the message board!
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Being a proud Mom
Our son Andrew came home with an award from jr AFROTC today...he made it as Cadet of the Month. He gets to wear a special cord that signifies his being Cadet of the Month. Andrew has found his niche in AFROTC, he really enjoys this program and it's done a lot to encourage his growth as a person. He participates in many of the AFROTC after school programs. Any time there needs to be a person to step up and volunteer to get something done he's one of the first to raise his hand. He's still shy, but he participates in all sorts of clubs and activities!
Horseback Riding
As part of earning a Girl Scout badge or three, we went to the riding stables here on base and road my girlfriend Kim's horse Freckles. What a wonderful time the girls had of it too! I Have to say that my eyes were welling up with happiness. What sums it up best is true Christian generosity, Kim has that running through her veins. She gave a great talk and even showed the kids different saddles, boots and other items needed for riding a horse. There was a farrier there replacing horse shoes on the horses; the girls got to see him in action and he also gave them a short demonstration on how to clean a horses hove. Another girlfriend who knew that I was getting rather stressed out about the new house (the radon evaluation pretty much ruined my day) brought me a Mocha Coffee from Gizzie's (I love that coffee shop). It was a well spent afternoon learning about horses and taking pictures of my girl scouts riding Freckles.
What else can happen???
Have you ever heard the expression manic Monday? Oh there's a reason they call it that, trust me! We get the results back from the Radon test (you can read more about Radon the silent killer here http://www.epa.gov/radon/ )lets just say that the levels are not good. The builder needs to install a system that safely takes the radon gas out of the home. The cost will be around $2,500- out of his pocket not ours. Then there's the other thing...I'm looking over our Midcontinent details about switching over the phone/cable/Internet service (remember that it's 4 miles from door to door on this move). I notice that there's a phone number on there for telephone order details...then it dawns on me, they're going to give us a NEW phone number, AUGH!!!!!! Now I've got to work at making sure that we get to keep our existing phone number. You would not believe what a nightmare it would be having to notify folks of a number change here in base and in the local community. That's the one things that I thought that I wouldn't have to do, grrrr!
As it is, our service will be cut off here on the 30th and later on that afternoon it will be hooked up at the new house. We shall see how smoothly that goes. Yes that's a little bit of my humorous sarcasm inserted in that statement.
It just seems as if there are all sorts of little things needling me with this last week before we close on the new house. Things the contractor will and will not fix (that downstairs bathroom faucet being one of the issues at hand). He did get a conscious and had all of the locks re-keyed. The guy must be living in a bubble if he thinks that leaving the key to my house out 24/7 on top of the door frame is a "safe" way to do business. Why he doesn't have a contractors key box is beyond me. I loved his reaction when we asked for him to re-key all of the doors with locks, he thought me were nuts then he says "well nothing has ever happened out here before" (meaning houses being broken into). He's just lucky that his lackadaisical business practices haven't gotten him sued by any clients...yet. Our reply to him was "So you mean to tell us that you're willing to cover us on any loss? You're willing to guarantee our safety? You're willing to guarantee our very lives?" he didn't have a come back for that one. He was trying to be a stinker to our agent with being adamant about not replacing those locks...I'm glad that he came to his senses. That guy needs to wake up and smell the coffee and become part of the "real world". My statement to my agent (who by the way is a true champion for her clients) "So Angie, Do you mean to tell me that he never locks his doors? That he really knows everyone that works on these houses that he and his brother have going up in this subdivision? That they do a through background check on each and every person that works or lives out here? Come on! NO one can be that naive or that trusting." My realtor Angie starts laughing as she can totally relate as to what I am talking about. I can see myself being a contractor one day...and actually working with clients and giving them what they want instead of giving them what I think they can live with, LOL! Our realtor Angie is with Century 21 real estate in Rapid City and she has been top notch in everything she's done for us. Trust me, this woman is working for this commission...she's being a mediator with the realtor representing the contractor (who by the way is not doing his clients any special favors). She's really gotten a lot of things worked out for us and has made this entire ordeal go as smoothly as possible. I appreciate all of her hard work, I really do.
I need some more coffee...I can tell that today is going to be a coffee drinking kind of day all day long!
As it is, our service will be cut off here on the 30th and later on that afternoon it will be hooked up at the new house. We shall see how smoothly that goes. Yes that's a little bit of my humorous sarcasm inserted in that statement.
It just seems as if there are all sorts of little things needling me with this last week before we close on the new house. Things the contractor will and will not fix (that downstairs bathroom faucet being one of the issues at hand). He did get a conscious and had all of the locks re-keyed. The guy must be living in a bubble if he thinks that leaving the key to my house out 24/7 on top of the door frame is a "safe" way to do business. Why he doesn't have a contractors key box is beyond me. I loved his reaction when we asked for him to re-key all of the doors with locks, he thought me were nuts then he says "well nothing has ever happened out here before" (meaning houses being broken into). He's just lucky that his lackadaisical business practices haven't gotten him sued by any clients...yet. Our reply to him was "So you mean to tell us that you're willing to cover us on any loss? You're willing to guarantee our safety? You're willing to guarantee our very lives?" he didn't have a come back for that one. He was trying to be a stinker to our agent with being adamant about not replacing those locks...I'm glad that he came to his senses. That guy needs to wake up and smell the coffee and become part of the "real world". My statement to my agent (who by the way is a true champion for her clients) "So Angie, Do you mean to tell me that he never locks his doors? That he really knows everyone that works on these houses that he and his brother have going up in this subdivision? That they do a through background check on each and every person that works or lives out here? Come on! NO one can be that naive or that trusting." My realtor Angie starts laughing as she can totally relate as to what I am talking about. I can see myself being a contractor one day...and actually working with clients and giving them what they want instead of giving them what I think they can live with, LOL! Our realtor Angie is with Century 21 real estate in Rapid City and she has been top notch in everything she's done for us. Trust me, this woman is working for this commission...she's being a mediator with the realtor representing the contractor (who by the way is not doing his clients any special favors). She's really gotten a lot of things worked out for us and has made this entire ordeal go as smoothly as possible. I appreciate all of her hard work, I really do.
I need some more coffee...I can tell that today is going to be a coffee drinking kind of day all day long!
Monday, March 26, 2007
Ah Monday....
I've been so busy packing up stuff around here that I really didn't get any time to check my e-mail or post to my blog. Only a handful; of days remain until we sign for the house. The closing date was moved up 1 day so now it's the 29th.
We are dragging our bums on packing the remainder of items left hanging around this house. We know that the end is in sight but it's hard to pack up things that you might need later on in the day. I see us really jumping on it on Wednesday and Thursday.
I ordered the "Easy Track" closet system for our kids' closets on Friday. We've seen these (and maybe you have too) on those wonderful home improvement shows on HGTV, Discovery and a few others. To check it out on line go to www.easytrack.com I ordered the Cherry finish as it (to me) looked more like furniture and gave the closet a rich more detailed look. The Maple finish looked rather yellow when I saw it in person and the white finish did not have the attention to detail as the other 2 color choices (knobs and detailing to the drawers). I'll be sure to post before and after pictures of the closets. I'm looking forward to seeing the transformation from "the construction standard" to the "Wow look what the home owner did".
We are going to be having one heck of a garage sale after we move into our new home. Every single box I pack has got something in it that I would be okay with donating or selling at a garage sale. I think that living in this dinky house has given me the gift of being able to really look at some of the things we own and say "yes we can live without that". One of my most favorite home improvement shows has got to be "Clean Sweep". I love how they just gut a room or two and make the owners of that stuff that has been causing havoc in their personal lives got through it and only keep a small portion of it. Just a note...my home has NEVER looked like any of those homes on that show. But I take the philosophy behind the camera very seriously. There are reasons why we feel so attached to a lot of the needless things we keep around that cause us clutter. Being a military family that moves every so often, it is important to go through our items on a regular basis and purge the weight! We're only allowed so many thousands of pounds for a move (that goes by rank and time in the military) go over that weight allowance and you have to pay the difference. So yes it is in our best interest not to hang on to "stuff" that we really don't need or worse yet things we no longer use. So I've become very practical in my approach as to what stays and what goes. I don't have the kinds of things in my closet that most others have...what's that you wonder? That fat clothes/skinny clothes thing...I got rid of that 3 years ago. Lets face it, for those that are over weight and you're hanging on to clothes that you say you'll wear after you loss those extra pounds...get serious! You are going to want to buy yourself some NEW clothes once you achieve that weight loss goal. And buying yourself new clothes is an added incentive- at least I think so :-) Besides those skinny clothes are going to be out of date.
My note for you today- go out and buy a new color of nail polish and give yourself a manicure!
We are dragging our bums on packing the remainder of items left hanging around this house. We know that the end is in sight but it's hard to pack up things that you might need later on in the day. I see us really jumping on it on Wednesday and Thursday.
I ordered the "Easy Track" closet system for our kids' closets on Friday. We've seen these (and maybe you have too) on those wonderful home improvement shows on HGTV, Discovery and a few others. To check it out on line go to www.easytrack.com I ordered the Cherry finish as it (to me) looked more like furniture and gave the closet a rich more detailed look. The Maple finish looked rather yellow when I saw it in person and the white finish did not have the attention to detail as the other 2 color choices (knobs and detailing to the drawers). I'll be sure to post before and after pictures of the closets. I'm looking forward to seeing the transformation from "the construction standard" to the "Wow look what the home owner did".
We are going to be having one heck of a garage sale after we move into our new home. Every single box I pack has got something in it that I would be okay with donating or selling at a garage sale. I think that living in this dinky house has given me the gift of being able to really look at some of the things we own and say "yes we can live without that". One of my most favorite home improvement shows has got to be "Clean Sweep". I love how they just gut a room or two and make the owners of that stuff that has been causing havoc in their personal lives got through it and only keep a small portion of it. Just a note...my home has NEVER looked like any of those homes on that show. But I take the philosophy behind the camera very seriously. There are reasons why we feel so attached to a lot of the needless things we keep around that cause us clutter. Being a military family that moves every so often, it is important to go through our items on a regular basis and purge the weight! We're only allowed so many thousands of pounds for a move (that goes by rank and time in the military) go over that weight allowance and you have to pay the difference. So yes it is in our best interest not to hang on to "stuff" that we really don't need or worse yet things we no longer use. So I've become very practical in my approach as to what stays and what goes. I don't have the kinds of things in my closet that most others have...what's that you wonder? That fat clothes/skinny clothes thing...I got rid of that 3 years ago. Lets face it, for those that are over weight and you're hanging on to clothes that you say you'll wear after you loss those extra pounds...get serious! You are going to want to buy yourself some NEW clothes once you achieve that weight loss goal. And buying yourself new clothes is an added incentive- at least I think so :-) Besides those skinny clothes are going to be out of date.
My note for you today- go out and buy a new color of nail polish and give yourself a manicure!
Friday, March 23, 2007
One week to go...
It's box city around here. And now the big push to get the rest of the house packed that's what I have going on today and I'll be getting my family to work on all weekend long. Living life as if we're on vacation is the motto for next week.
I've got to get the Zebra Fiches loaded into my kid mobile and delivered to the Youth Center here on Base.
With all that is going on around me, I've been taking pictures every single day of things going on around me. It's amazing what you take for granted, the comfort of a warm bed, being able to take an uninterrupted soak in the tub, music to dance to and the unconditional love you get from a family pet.
I've got to get the Zebra Fiches loaded into my kid mobile and delivered to the Youth Center here on Base.
With all that is going on around me, I've been taking pictures every single day of things going on around me. It's amazing what you take for granted, the comfort of a warm bed, being able to take an uninterrupted soak in the tub, music to dance to and the unconditional love you get from a family pet.
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Today is a new day
Yesterday was one of those roller coaster kind of days. One that I took head on and didn't take any prisoners. When I'm handed something difficult to deal with I take it head on and deal with it. I refuse to hide my head in the sand or sit around crying about something that may or may not happen. For those women who tend to bury their heads in the sand and try to ignore things...hey that's totally up to you how you live your life.
So who's wondering what was going on with me? I'm sure anyone who reads my blog on a regular basis has got to be curious. Here's the scoop... a last minute 8 month deployment to Afghanistan came down and it was between my husband and another man (who by the way is single and has no kids or pets)...this deployment will take place on Monday the 26th...yes that's right this coming Monday. Can you picture the stress levels I was experiencing yesterday? Moving out of one house, into another, getting things set up with phone, cable, sewer gas, electricity. Painting the old house, passing inspection on the old house...meanwhile wrangling all of the stuff for the new house all by myself. I told only 1 person here...my friend Kim. She is a gem! I liked how she told me that she wears her emotions on her sleeve and how she's amazed at how calm I am with all of it. I told her that I've got a lot to get done and I can't freak out when I don't know if this is a 100% sure thing about my DH going on this deployment. I put my trust and faith in the Lord and I know that he will not give me more than I can handle.
So there I was thinking about all of the stuff I have to do, things to get done and so forth. I asked my realtor to push up the closing by one day (we now close on the 29th) and I'm scheduling all of the house stuff for Friday morning...water, sewer, electricity, gas, cable, phone and appliance delivery. The movers are still moving in our furniture on the 2nd and I have a cleaning team coming on the 3rd. I've got it going on and let me tell you I am not stressed any more!
Meanwhile through all of this I'm planning a deployed spouses luncheon to honor those men and women who make the sacrifices here on the home front. I've got a terrific cast of friends who are helping me make this happen. There's my friend Cindy with her designing talents making invitations not to mention that she's also putting together something very nice for everyone- yes it's safe to say that it's scrapbook related :-), there's Molly making her delightful scented candles so I can give each person one, Kim who is going to be cooking up a storm with me as well as Jody and Sherri.
So while all of this is going on around me I asked the Lord for guidance and strength. Do I fell blessed? Why yes I most certainly do. But do not think that for one minute that I do not realize that my husband can be sent away on a deployment at a moments notice.
So who's wondering what was going on with me? I'm sure anyone who reads my blog on a regular basis has got to be curious. Here's the scoop... a last minute 8 month deployment to Afghanistan came down and it was between my husband and another man (who by the way is single and has no kids or pets)...this deployment will take place on Monday the 26th...yes that's right this coming Monday. Can you picture the stress levels I was experiencing yesterday? Moving out of one house, into another, getting things set up with phone, cable, sewer gas, electricity. Painting the old house, passing inspection on the old house...meanwhile wrangling all of the stuff for the new house all by myself. I told only 1 person here...my friend Kim. She is a gem! I liked how she told me that she wears her emotions on her sleeve and how she's amazed at how calm I am with all of it. I told her that I've got a lot to get done and I can't freak out when I don't know if this is a 100% sure thing about my DH going on this deployment. I put my trust and faith in the Lord and I know that he will not give me more than I can handle.
So there I was thinking about all of the stuff I have to do, things to get done and so forth. I asked my realtor to push up the closing by one day (we now close on the 29th) and I'm scheduling all of the house stuff for Friday morning...water, sewer, electricity, gas, cable, phone and appliance delivery. The movers are still moving in our furniture on the 2nd and I have a cleaning team coming on the 3rd. I've got it going on and let me tell you I am not stressed any more!
Meanwhile through all of this I'm planning a deployed spouses luncheon to honor those men and women who make the sacrifices here on the home front. I've got a terrific cast of friends who are helping me make this happen. There's my friend Cindy with her designing talents making invitations not to mention that she's also putting together something very nice for everyone- yes it's safe to say that it's scrapbook related :-), there's Molly making her delightful scented candles so I can give each person one, Kim who is going to be cooking up a storm with me as well as Jody and Sherri.
So while all of this is going on around me I asked the Lord for guidance and strength. Do I fell blessed? Why yes I most certainly do. But do not think that for one minute that I do not realize that my husband can be sent away on a deployment at a moments notice.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
How do you handle bad news?
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
It's done...I've packed up my scrapbook nook
My Scrapbook Nook is packed up and ready to be moved. I just popped my head in there for a pair of scissors and wow it’s bright in there! The yellow paint reflects the light ever so well. This has been my happy little haven for 3½ years. Paper crafts of all kinds have been made in that happy little space that I shared with the furnace and water heater. To think that in 9 days I will be transferring everything from my little space into a new and improved “scrapbook nook”. I feel as if I should have some sort of unveiling ceremony once I have it done up. Oh wait…that’s called having a house warming party and I have to wait until the entire house is ready, LOL!
I started working on my part of the closet here in the bedroom, why do I have so many purses? How many can I really use? With that in mind, I’m going to send my Mom and nice new purse out of my collection. I have a red one that I bought to use on our European family vacation to hell and back taking the scenic route all the way around(yes I’m being sarcastic that vacation still gives us nightmares). Anyway I never did use the purse and there it was on the shelf. So my Mom will get a surprise along with some votive candles I just bought for her. I came across the leather backpack that Lucien bought for me when he was TDY at the American Embassy in Bogota Columbia- I hate to say it but dang it’s ugly! One word comes to mind…garage sale!
another day of packing...
Here we go again, another day of packing up our belongings. I’m not sure if I’m ready for it. When I was on my way back from taking the kids to school this morning a wave of nausea washed over me and I haven’t been able to shake it. It was as if someone flipped a switch I was feeling okay to suddenly I’m going to be sick to my stomach. I was in the middle school parking lot and suddenly felt this overwhelmingly urge to vomit. Once I arrived home and got out of my kid mobile, as I walked up the drive way I had to try very hard to not throw up right there. Oh my goodness, it was horrible! I thought Hmmmm okay I better hurry up and eat breakfast. Okay I ate breakfast and I still feel horribly ill. I don’t have a headache; it’s a yucky upset stomach which is making me feel light headed. I feel as if I was on a roller coaster ride on a full stomach- yuck!
I have so much to get done, yet I don’t feel up to it at the moment. I’m going to pack up my part of the clothes closet here in the master bedroom. That’ll be a lot easier than packing up the scrapbook nook. I’m going to tape the drawers closed on the plastic carts in my nook and call it good, oh do I wish that I would have thought of that 2 days ago…that would have saved me much time and undo stress.
Reading the News on line
I keep telling myself that I need to watch, listen to and read the news more often. That’s one of my things I’m working on for my making 2007 better habits list. I just can’t stand incomplete news and let me be the first to say that I feel that our local news channels and news paper are just chuck full of incomplete news. It’s frustrating to watch a local news program and not get the entire story. I catch myself tuning in later on to see if the late night news cast has more information on the story and nope, it’s just as incomplete as the 5 o’clock news cast. UGH! So I prefer to read my news on line. I check out Reuters, Google News, CNN on line and so forth, I always get the complete story there. But there are times when I’ve had enough of the sensationalism with the news…such as Anna Nicole Smith’s death. I don’t think that President Ronald Reagan or Naturalist Steve Erwin (The Crocodile Hunter) got as much press coverage when they died as Anna Nicole has…and they were famous for actually making a difference in peoples lives in a positive manner. Enough is enough…lets get on with life and move past all of the who-ha with Anna Nicole. Do we really care who fathered her infant daughter? I can tell you that I don’t and you shouldn’t either, LOL!
Monday, March 19, 2007
Pet Food Recall
As I’m scoping out Google news I came across an article about a pet food recall after some pets have died. Here’s the link…go check it out! Eeek! I saw Iam’s on there and almost had a stroke! I’m okay now since we don’t get out kitty that brand of wet cat food, she only eats Iam’s dry cat food, what a relief!
http://www.menufoods.com/recall/
mission impossible...
Looking for something like European square pillows should be easy right? Especially since every department store sells the shams for these 26 inch square pillows. Well I'm here to say NO, that is note the case what so ever! What a silly thing to have to drive all over town to find. Oh well such is life in a small town.
The cleaning team leader finally showed up...only 3½ hours AFTER her appointment with me. To me it's just common courtesy to let your appointments know that you're running late for what ever the reason. If you ask me, common courtesy is something that our society is running a little short on these days. I can only hope that she and her team show up on time to clean our house for our final inspection. Did she apologize for being so late? Nope, not even a hint of an apology was given!
The cleaning team leader finally showed up...only 3½ hours AFTER her appointment with me. To me it's just common courtesy to let your appointments know that you're running late for what ever the reason. If you ask me, common courtesy is something that our society is running a little short on these days. I can only hope that she and her team show up on time to clean our house for our final inspection. Did she apologize for being so late? Nope, not even a hint of an apology was given!
What a weekend!
We've spent the entire weekend packing boxes-ugh! Our house is filled with them! Everywhere you turn there are boxes. I had no idea that it would take so long and so many boxes to pack up my Scrapbook Nook. WOW is a word I say quite a bit at the moment. I'm finding things right and left that I haven't used in years (such as my lettering templates) and I found another box of scrapbooking papers that I set aside for donating or just giving to friends that scrapbook. At first I thought that I would just put it all aside for our moving in garage sale...but that soon proved to be a more difficult task that I had anticipated. So in the end, I grouped it all together and well - I'll just have to sort it out while putting it away in my new Scrapbook Nook. It's too much for me to try to deal with at the moment. I'm going to do that with each room...go through everything while putting it away with the keep, toss and donate/sell boxes.
While my husband and I were out and about on Saturday we went to Ashley Home Furnishings. It was built last last year and we've always meant to go in there but just never had gotten around to it. WOW, what a nice store! We set out looking for night stands for our bedroom. We're tired of the decorator tables we've been using for the last 16¾ years. We want to make our master bedroom complete. I've been on the look out for a new bedding set for our bedroom. I'm so sick of this red, white and blue Americana themed quilt and pillow shams that I could just puke! There's nothing wrong with it, it's just that I'm very tired of it. It was meant to go in our guest bedroom but it went into our bedroom. Anyway while at Ashley we found several pieces of furniture to our liking and low and behold...they also sell bedding sets. There were many beautiful and elegant bedding sets on display and I couldn't believe they were for sale! As I'm looking at the wonderful displays of furniture throughout this store I came across a bedding set that caught my eye...it was what I was looking for in color and in style. Beautiful cabbage roses in shades of green, burgundy, taupe and topaz. Besides the cabbages roses on the comforter, there's a striped bed skirt, striped European style 26 inch square pillow shams, regular pillow shams with paisley and foofy tasseled fringe, decorator pillows with the paisley and tasseled fringe and a very fancy neck roll pillow with more of the elegant fringe and fabrics. I am in LOVE with this bedding set! It is just what I was wanting for our bedroom. Because it was the last one I was able to get a deal on it...oh yeah I think that I got a good price on this set, you should see the detailing the braided cording trim, the tasseled fringe the quality of fabrics used in the construction of this set.
Meanwhile there's my wonderful husband looking at furniture...he found a coffee table and end tables that he really liked, ones that would look great with our leather sofa and love seat. Okay then to make me love him even more, he wanted me to try out a recliner that he liked, then he tells me that this is what he wants for our bedroom. I look at him and he proceeds to tell me that he wants to create a little reading nook in our room. Where we could curl up with a book and just relax, we can put our Ott lamp in there next to the recliner. Oh my gosh the chair was perfect! We made note of these furniture pieces and we plan to come back to purchase them after we move into the house, we bought the bedding set and I've been floating on cloud 9 all weekend long! I can see our Master Bedroom coming together and becoming the restful haven I've wanted it to be for so long.
About the new house....On Saturday the wood flooring was installed and yesterday the carpet was going in. I'm going to check it out later on today.
Currently I'm waiting for the cleaning team to give me an estimate on how much it's going to cost to have them do the deep cleaning required by base housing. I prefer to pay a cleaning team versus Lucien and I doing it. This sounds stupid but it's true...if you employ a cleaning teams they will get passed 100% of the time versus if we do it chances are that they (base housing) will ride us harder than the cleaning team. So for a few dollars I'd much rather have the professionals do the work. These ladies know what they're doing, they know what kinds of things the hosing office is looking for to pass inspection.
Okay now I'm off to get some more laundry done, vacuum and to do what? Yes pack up more boxes!
While my husband and I were out and about on Saturday we went to Ashley Home Furnishings. It was built last last year and we've always meant to go in there but just never had gotten around to it. WOW, what a nice store! We set out looking for night stands for our bedroom. We're tired of the decorator tables we've been using for the last 16¾ years. We want to make our master bedroom complete. I've been on the look out for a new bedding set for our bedroom. I'm so sick of this red, white and blue Americana themed quilt and pillow shams that I could just puke! There's nothing wrong with it, it's just that I'm very tired of it. It was meant to go in our guest bedroom but it went into our bedroom. Anyway while at Ashley we found several pieces of furniture to our liking and low and behold...they also sell bedding sets. There were many beautiful and elegant bedding sets on display and I couldn't believe they were for sale! As I'm looking at the wonderful displays of furniture throughout this store I came across a bedding set that caught my eye...it was what I was looking for in color and in style. Beautiful cabbage roses in shades of green, burgundy, taupe and topaz. Besides the cabbages roses on the comforter, there's a striped bed skirt, striped European style 26 inch square pillow shams, regular pillow shams with paisley and foofy tasseled fringe, decorator pillows with the paisley and tasseled fringe and a very fancy neck roll pillow with more of the elegant fringe and fabrics. I am in LOVE with this bedding set! It is just what I was wanting for our bedroom. Because it was the last one I was able to get a deal on it...oh yeah I think that I got a good price on this set, you should see the detailing the braided cording trim, the tasseled fringe the quality of fabrics used in the construction of this set.
Meanwhile there's my wonderful husband looking at furniture...he found a coffee table and end tables that he really liked, ones that would look great with our leather sofa and love seat. Okay then to make me love him even more, he wanted me to try out a recliner that he liked, then he tells me that this is what he wants for our bedroom. I look at him and he proceeds to tell me that he wants to create a little reading nook in our room. Where we could curl up with a book and just relax, we can put our Ott lamp in there next to the recliner. Oh my gosh the chair was perfect! We made note of these furniture pieces and we plan to come back to purchase them after we move into the house, we bought the bedding set and I've been floating on cloud 9 all weekend long! I can see our Master Bedroom coming together and becoming the restful haven I've wanted it to be for so long.
About the new house....On Saturday the wood flooring was installed and yesterday the carpet was going in. I'm going to check it out later on today.
Currently I'm waiting for the cleaning team to give me an estimate on how much it's going to cost to have them do the deep cleaning required by base housing. I prefer to pay a cleaning team versus Lucien and I doing it. This sounds stupid but it's true...if you employ a cleaning teams they will get passed 100% of the time versus if we do it chances are that they (base housing) will ride us harder than the cleaning team. So for a few dollars I'd much rather have the professionals do the work. These ladies know what they're doing, they know what kinds of things the hosing office is looking for to pass inspection.
Okay now I'm off to get some more laundry done, vacuum and to do what? Yes pack up more boxes!
Saturday, March 17, 2007
I spent Friday running around doing errands, took out boy for a physical and that sort of thing. I realized by 1 pm that by not eating breakfast or lunch I was feeling rather ill. Even after I ate, I was out of it for the rest of the day.
It's Saturday, and Lucien and I have been out running around. First we went to Menard's, where I found a beautiful granite sink that I want to get for our kitchen, some cabinets that I want to get for the laundry and a counter top (for folding laundry). We went to Lowe's where we bought packing boxes and a few other things we need here and at the new house. After that it was a trip over to Ashely Home Furnishings...what a nice store that was! We spent a couple of hours in there and ended up buying a a complete bedding set of "our" bedroom. It's lovely, it's got rich hues of green burgundy and gold. I adore big cabbage roses, and it's got stripes too. The pillow shams and the decorator pillows are so beautiful. I'm finally getting our bedroom looking the way I want it to look...elegant, romantic and comfortable. This Americana stuff is outta here! This stuff is up for sale after we move!
Andrew likes his new bedroom stuff, shades of blue, brown and tan make it very masculine looking.
Okay while at Ashley we found other furnishings that we really liked, new coffee table and end tables for our living room, and a recliner to put in our bedroom. No luck on finding end tables for our bedroom- but I'm going to shop Moose-head Furniture on line and see what I can find. If worse comes to worse I'll have them ship it to us from Maine. Our house is going to be so warm and inviting....I can hardly wait to get it decorated and ready to show to our friends.
It's Saturday, and Lucien and I have been out running around. First we went to Menard's, where I found a beautiful granite sink that I want to get for our kitchen, some cabinets that I want to get for the laundry and a counter top (for folding laundry). We went to Lowe's where we bought packing boxes and a few other things we need here and at the new house. After that it was a trip over to Ashely Home Furnishings...what a nice store that was! We spent a couple of hours in there and ended up buying a a complete bedding set of "our" bedroom. It's lovely, it's got rich hues of green burgundy and gold. I adore big cabbage roses, and it's got stripes too. The pillow shams and the decorator pillows are so beautiful. I'm finally getting our bedroom looking the way I want it to look...elegant, romantic and comfortable. This Americana stuff is outta here! This stuff is up for sale after we move!
Andrew likes his new bedroom stuff, shades of blue, brown and tan make it very masculine looking.
Okay while at Ashley we found other furnishings that we really liked, new coffee table and end tables for our living room, and a recliner to put in our bedroom. No luck on finding end tables for our bedroom- but I'm going to shop Moose-head Furniture on line and see what I can find. If worse comes to worse I'll have them ship it to us from Maine. Our house is going to be so warm and inviting....I can hardly wait to get it decorated and ready to show to our friends.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Being Creative
Yesterday I was playing around with some paper scraps in my little scrapbook nook. You see, I was contemplating on getting rid of some of my Creative Memories cutting system pieces that I really haven't ever used. So I decided to pull them out and look at them. They're that hexagon, octagon and the huge oval (I haven't a clue as to why I even bought them with the exception of that they were dirt cheap on e-bay 5 years ago). I was holding those funky shapes in my hand but was drawn to use the circles (go figure). I also have a new punch that I bought for a project a few weeks back but haven't made the time to use- so I get it out. Here I am with a smile pile of cardstock scraps in awesome colors, my new flower punch, a couple of different circle tools and a cool stamp set from Stampin Up. I look at the colors I gathered together and the idea came together in the blink of an eye.
Our roller coaster weather
This has been one wacky week for weather here on the plains. On Monday this week it was in the mid 80º's and it felt like summer then on Tuesday it was in the lower 70º's and it felt like Spring. There was yesterday...first if rained then it snowed off and on all day long- I'd say that was Winter weather and today it feels like Autumn- the high for today is supposed to reach into the 40º's. So there you have it, a different season every day this week!
My husband and I have joined the crowd and have bought our eldest child a cell phone. With Andrew driving soon, we figured that it is to our advantage for him to have one. I used to not think that having a cell phone was necessary item, but you know what...we've really come to depend upon having one with us. I do not want our children driving anywhere out here without one with them! This is a big area and by them having a cell phone on their person- well it gives me peace of mind and I think that it does for them too.
We're still packing boxes here, I'm getting down to what the "what do we reeeeeally need to keep out and what can go in a box right now" stage. Yesterday I went to get a particular bowl from the cupboard and guess what....I realized that I had already packed it. I started to laugh because it was pretty funny. I can see us all doing that with various things in the house. Now I have almost all of my rubber stamps in clear shoe boxes. That is the way that I plan to store them in my new and improved Scrapbook Nook at the end of the month. I haven't thought about packing the rest of my scrapbook nook though. I know that once I start I won't be able to stop. Then I'll be without supplies for a couple of weeks. I just want to make an easy transition to our new space. And lets face it, I've got quite a bit stuffed into that little space- more than you can imagine. I'm going to pop the wheels onto all of those carts to make it easier to move around in the next room. I have so many ideas going through my head right now on colors to paint that room. Currently it's a pale yellow with a bright sunny yellow glaze overcoat. But I want to change that in the next house. I want to use more muted colors throughout the house. So today I'll have to bring over my color swatches to see what they will look like in the natural light of that room...for that matter, in all of the rooms.
My husband and I have joined the crowd and have bought our eldest child a cell phone. With Andrew driving soon, we figured that it is to our advantage for him to have one. I used to not think that having a cell phone was necessary item, but you know what...we've really come to depend upon having one with us. I do not want our children driving anywhere out here without one with them! This is a big area and by them having a cell phone on their person- well it gives me peace of mind and I think that it does for them too.
We're still packing boxes here, I'm getting down to what the "what do we reeeeeally need to keep out and what can go in a box right now" stage. Yesterday I went to get a particular bowl from the cupboard and guess what....I realized that I had already packed it. I started to laugh because it was pretty funny. I can see us all doing that with various things in the house. Now I have almost all of my rubber stamps in clear shoe boxes. That is the way that I plan to store them in my new and improved Scrapbook Nook at the end of the month. I haven't thought about packing the rest of my scrapbook nook though. I know that once I start I won't be able to stop. Then I'll be without supplies for a couple of weeks. I just want to make an easy transition to our new space. And lets face it, I've got quite a bit stuffed into that little space- more than you can imagine. I'm going to pop the wheels onto all of those carts to make it easier to move around in the next room. I have so many ideas going through my head right now on colors to paint that room. Currently it's a pale yellow with a bright sunny yellow glaze overcoat. But I want to change that in the next house. I want to use more muted colors throughout the house. So today I'll have to bring over my color swatches to see what they will look like in the natural light of that room...for that matter, in all of the rooms.
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Our Pre-inspection
I am doing the Happy Dance! Our pre-inspection went VERY well! Oh my gosh we hardly have to do anything! use primer on the walls, I get to cancel the carpet cleaning because the carpet is going to be replaced. We don't have to paint or patch the nail holes because housing is going to do it all, woohoo! All I have to do is to sweep and vacuum! So I save some $$$ on having the carpet cleaned, that's nice!
I'm going to have some tea and biscuits (the British version of Cookies) to celebrate!
I'm going to have some tea and biscuits (the British version of Cookies) to celebrate!
a story about Friendship
My friend Kim sent this to me for National Friendship Week. NO matter how many times I have been sent this story I read it all the way through. It's heart warming, or at least I think it is. I already know about the power of friendship. I know very well that God puts us in the lives of others for a reason. I've experienced this first hand...haven't you? And I'm proud to say that I am all the richer for it, maybe not with money but with something far more valuable...I am rich in friends!
One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class was walking home from school.His name was Kyle.It looked like he was
carrying all of his books.I thought to myself, "Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd."I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friends tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on.As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt.His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him.He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him as he crawled around looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear in his eye.As I handed him his glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks.
" They really should get lives." He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!"There was a big smile on his face.It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived.As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before.He said he had gone to private school before now.I would have never hung out with a private school kid before.We talked all the way home, and I carried some of his books.He turned out to be a pretty cool kid.I asked him if he wanted to play a little football
with my friendsHe said yes.We hung out all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him, and my friends thought the same of him.Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again.I stopped him and said, "Boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday! " He just laughed and handed me half the books.Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends.. When we were seniors we began to think about college.Kyle decided on Georgetown and I was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never
be a problem.He was going to be a doctor and I was going for business on a football scholarship. Kyle was valedictorian of our class.I teased him all the time about being a nerd.He had to prepare a speech for graduation.I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speakGraduation day, I saw Kyle.He looked great.He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school.He filled out and actually looked good in glasses.He had more dates than I had and all the girls loved him. Boy, sometimes I was jealous!Today was one of those days.I could see that he was nervous about his speech.So, I smacked him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy, you'll be great!"He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and smiled." Thanks," he said. As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began"Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach...but mostly your friends...I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give them.I am going to tell you a story." I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the
story of the first day we met.He had planned to kill himself over the weekend.He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home. He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile."Thankfully, I was saved.My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable."I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment. I saw his Mom and dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile.Not until that moment did I realize it's depth.Never underestimate the power of your actions.With one small gesture you can change a person's life. For better or for worse.God puts us all in each others lives to impact one another in some way.Look for God in others.
One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class was walking home from school.His name was Kyle.It looked like he was
carrying all of his books.I thought to myself, "Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd."I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friends tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on.As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt.His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him.He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him as he crawled around looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear in his eye.As I handed him his glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks.
" They really should get lives." He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!"There was a big smile on his face.It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived.As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before.He said he had gone to private school before now.I would have never hung out with a private school kid before.We talked all the way home, and I carried some of his books.He turned out to be a pretty cool kid.I asked him if he wanted to play a little football
with my friendsHe said yes.We hung out all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him, and my friends thought the same of him.Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again.I stopped him and said, "Boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday! " He just laughed and handed me half the books.Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends.. When we were seniors we began to think about college.Kyle decided on Georgetown and I was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never
be a problem.He was going to be a doctor and I was going for business on a football scholarship. Kyle was valedictorian of our class.I teased him all the time about being a nerd.He had to prepare a speech for graduation.I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speakGraduation day, I saw Kyle.He looked great.He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school.He filled out and actually looked good in glasses.He had more dates than I had and all the girls loved him. Boy, sometimes I was jealous!Today was one of those days.I could see that he was nervous about his speech.So, I smacked him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy, you'll be great!"He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and smiled." Thanks," he said. As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began"Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach...but mostly your friends...I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give them.I am going to tell you a story." I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the
story of the first day we met.He had planned to kill himself over the weekend.He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home. He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile."Thankfully, I was saved.My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable."I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment. I saw his Mom and dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile.Not until that moment did I realize it's depth.Never underestimate the power of your actions.With one small gesture you can change a person's life. For better or for worse.God puts us all in each others lives to impact one another in some way.Look for God in others.
I can't believe that I said "yes"...
Last year I agreed to be the OSC (Officer's Spouses Club) Historian for the 2006-2007 board year. Basically I get to take pictures and make four 12x12 scrapbooks. That's right up my alley! So I thought that I'd do it again for this coming board year (2007-2008). So I agreed and said yes I'd do it. I'm okay with doing it, it's something that I take great pride in.
Okay so I get this phone call from Jody, our OSC Parliamentarian asking me if I'd be interested in being the new OSC Program Director fr the upcoming board year. That she had heard through the grapevine that I might be interested. That others have said that I'd be very good in this board position. I thought about it and told her that I'd have to think about it. So I thought about it...and thought and thought some more. Angela our current program directer has done an outstanding job these past 2 years. She (Angela) said that she's not interested in doing it a 3rd time though...I think that her family may be moving this year. SO after mulling it over, I agreed to do it....So here I am the new OSC programs Director. I better get on it and figure out what we're going to be doing this next board year!
So am I excited about it? Yes of course I am! I've got events to plan, meals to plan, table settings and entertainment to schedule. This is going to be a total BLAST!
Okay so I get this phone call from Jody, our OSC Parliamentarian asking me if I'd be interested in being the new OSC Program Director fr the upcoming board year. That she had heard through the grapevine that I might be interested. That others have said that I'd be very good in this board position. I thought about it and told her that I'd have to think about it. So I thought about it...and thought and thought some more. Angela our current program directer has done an outstanding job these past 2 years. She (Angela) said that she's not interested in doing it a 3rd time though...I think that her family may be moving this year. SO after mulling it over, I agreed to do it....So here I am the new OSC programs Director. I better get on it and figure out what we're going to be doing this next board year!
So am I excited about it? Yes of course I am! I've got events to plan, meals to plan, table settings and entertainment to schedule. This is going to be a total BLAST!
I'm feeling a bit boxed in...
As we are packing up our household items, I'm starting to feel rather "boxed in". I'm surrounded by boxes, they're everywhere I look. No room is without a box, well minus the bathrooms, those boxes are located in the rooms nearest to them. The boxes are clearly marked with what is in them or what room they go to/in, unlike our last move where things like the iron were located under 10,000 Lego pieces.
Someone from the housing office is coming by today to give us an initial evaluation inspection. I'm sure that they've seen worse looking places than ours. Our house is clean, it's just that boxes are everywhere and that there's a mountain of "stuff" piled on the tables that needs to go into a box.
I cringe at the thought of packing up my scrapbook nook- oh my gosh it's going to be a lot of boxes! I bought some more of those plastic shoe boxes so I could box up the rest of my rubber stamps. Oh do I ever have a lot of rubber stamps! I didn't think that it was that many, but once I started boxing them up...oh yeah it's a lot of rubber stamps. And to think that I know people that have double and even triple the amount of stamps that I own...it's mind boggling! Where do you begin to store them all? I mean really??? So here I am looking at this and I'm shaking my head. At times I feel very overwhelmed with the entire process and at others I'm at peace with it. I just have to remember that this is only for a couple more weeks and then we'll be in our new beautiful home.
Someone from the housing office is coming by today to give us an initial evaluation inspection. I'm sure that they've seen worse looking places than ours. Our house is clean, it's just that boxes are everywhere and that there's a mountain of "stuff" piled on the tables that needs to go into a box.
I cringe at the thought of packing up my scrapbook nook- oh my gosh it's going to be a lot of boxes! I bought some more of those plastic shoe boxes so I could box up the rest of my rubber stamps. Oh do I ever have a lot of rubber stamps! I didn't think that it was that many, but once I started boxing them up...oh yeah it's a lot of rubber stamps. And to think that I know people that have double and even triple the amount of stamps that I own...it's mind boggling! Where do you begin to store them all? I mean really??? So here I am looking at this and I'm shaking my head. At times I feel very overwhelmed with the entire process and at others I'm at peace with it. I just have to remember that this is only for a couple more weeks and then we'll be in our new beautiful home.
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Friends
There's nothing that can't be fixed- well with the exception of Humpty Dumpty. I love my friends, when I'm having a bad day they help me to see the light. My friend Cindy is no exception. Talking with her about the house and things we've yet to do with it or to it. Those things I complained about yesterday are such petty issues...they can all be fixed, the chrome towel bars can be replaced with brushed stainless ones. Cindy helped me to find the boxes in the garage to those towel racks...who knows I could get more $$ for them at the garage sale with the boxes. I think that what I was really upset about is that I feel that if I'm not in person that the contractor will be cutting corners (he's already proven that). I really don't like feeling as if I have to sit on top of someone to get them to do what they said they will do.
But you know what?...Real friends can talk to one another about silly petty things without them thinking you're a total idiot, LOL! I'm finding this to be true with Cindy, she's a gem! And lucky for me she's going to be a neighbor too!
My friend Susan and her husband David are moving back to the States this summer (I can't begin to tell you how happy this makes me). David is in the Air Force and will be going back to re-qual in LA while Susan and their boys are in ND. I've invited them to visit us during the summer, I can hardly wait! I've also invited them for Thanksgiving. I can not believe how close we'll be, only 1 state away! That's so much better than the entire USA and the Atlantic Ocean, LOL! Susan and her husband are dealing with issues pertaining to the Death of David's father, the will his father left and the step mother trying to sell off the property that is being held in trust for David and his siblings. And of course their stress levels are off the charts because they are over seas. Not being able to deal with something like this in person has got to be rough. When I look at what they are dealing with it makes my issues about towel bars, sink faucets and lighting fixtures so seriously petty.
I received an e-mail from my friend René- she read my blog entry about suicides and wrote me a touching letter (René- if you're reading today you brought tears to my eyes). How a parent deals with the suicide of their child...the grief has got to be immense. From what I remember my Mom dealing with after the death of her husband/my father- it was sadness on the most profound level. She tried to hide it from me, but I know that she cried for days on end, but at the same time she made sure that she reassured us that SHE was going no where. My mom has been my biggest inspiration in life. The things she has seen and dealt with through the years...has helped to make her the tough old German lady that she is today. When dealing with the suicide of a family member you feel as if you had failed the person, when in fact they never let you in. I think that if my mother had known about my fathers deep seeded depression that she would have sought help for him. But this was in the mid 1960's, seeing a psychiatrist back then had a stigma attached to it (only crazy people saw shrinks). Nowadays it's okay, seeking help from a psychologist or psychiatrist for insight on how to deal with a personal matter for yourself (or a loved one) is widely accepted. I'm sure that the parents of the young man who recently committed suicide probably feel as if they had let down their son, that they too had failed him. But being human...we can't see into the hearts and minds of others. We have to go on what they tell us and believe it to be true. My other thing to say about this (yes-more of Sandie's words of wisdom here, bear with me) this will probably sound cliché but it's meaning holds true..."Time heals all wounds, great and small".
But you know what?...Real friends can talk to one another about silly petty things without them thinking you're a total idiot, LOL! I'm finding this to be true with Cindy, she's a gem! And lucky for me she's going to be a neighbor too!
My friend Susan and her husband David are moving back to the States this summer (I can't begin to tell you how happy this makes me). David is in the Air Force and will be going back to re-qual in LA while Susan and their boys are in ND. I've invited them to visit us during the summer, I can hardly wait! I've also invited them for Thanksgiving. I can not believe how close we'll be, only 1 state away! That's so much better than the entire USA and the Atlantic Ocean, LOL! Susan and her husband are dealing with issues pertaining to the Death of David's father, the will his father left and the step mother trying to sell off the property that is being held in trust for David and his siblings. And of course their stress levels are off the charts because they are over seas. Not being able to deal with something like this in person has got to be rough. When I look at what they are dealing with it makes my issues about towel bars, sink faucets and lighting fixtures so seriously petty.
I received an e-mail from my friend René- she read my blog entry about suicides and wrote me a touching letter (René- if you're reading today you brought tears to my eyes). How a parent deals with the suicide of their child...the grief has got to be immense. From what I remember my Mom dealing with after the death of her husband/my father- it was sadness on the most profound level. She tried to hide it from me, but I know that she cried for days on end, but at the same time she made sure that she reassured us that SHE was going no where. My mom has been my biggest inspiration in life. The things she has seen and dealt with through the years...has helped to make her the tough old German lady that she is today. When dealing with the suicide of a family member you feel as if you had failed the person, when in fact they never let you in. I think that if my mother had known about my fathers deep seeded depression that she would have sought help for him. But this was in the mid 1960's, seeing a psychiatrist back then had a stigma attached to it (only crazy people saw shrinks). Nowadays it's okay, seeking help from a psychologist or psychiatrist for insight on how to deal with a personal matter for yourself (or a loved one) is widely accepted. I'm sure that the parents of the young man who recently committed suicide probably feel as if they had let down their son, that they too had failed him. But being human...we can't see into the hearts and minds of others. We have to go on what they tell us and believe it to be true. My other thing to say about this (yes-more of Sandie's words of wisdom here, bear with me) this will probably sound cliché but it's meaning holds true..."Time heals all wounds, great and small".
Monday, March 12, 2007
My head hurts!
Today must be the day that all sorts of things will annoy me. I start off the day hearing on the radio about suicide and the news cast announcer practically glamorized someones apparent suicide- made me very annoyed to wake up having to listen to that kind of news sensationalism.
I went to mail off some packages this morning. I think that surprising 3 people with goodies in the mail is a good way to get away from having such a bad start this morning.
Okay so after the post office I went by my soon to be home- but alas I was only to find some fleeting joy and some more of me being annoyed. When I had the contract drawn up one of the things I was adamant on was having the lower portion of the house being done in the "same quality" as the upper portion of the house. Alas I found super cheap lighting fixtures (like you would expect to see in a college dorm) and a cheap bathroom faucet. The ones upstairs are lovely and very fancy. It's important to me that we keep the same quality throughout the house since this is not our forever home and we will be selling it in 3 to 3½ years. It's having that attention to details that makes a home sell quicker and they also help to seal the deal so to speak. Granted we did not build this home from scratch and pick out every last item (carpet, hardwood flooring, tile flooring and light fixture) like our last 2 houses. This house was partially finished, the upstairs was 100% done, beautiful top quality light fixtures, beautiful cabinets in the kitchen and bathrooms, and lovely faucets in both the guest and master bathrooms. You can only imagine my surprise when I saw cheap $5 light fixtures and a faucet that was no where near the quality of the ones that were in the upstairs bathrooms. I'm just a bit disappointed in this lack of attention to detail with this contractor. They made a beautiful home...upstairs and I want the same attention to detail and quality in the down stairs level of this home. We are paying top dollar to get the downstairs portion of this house finished, and to say the least it is drawn out in our contract as to having the downstairs done in the same manner of quality as the upstairs.
I need to take some headache medicine...my head hurts with all of this stuff!
I went to mail off some packages this morning. I think that surprising 3 people with goodies in the mail is a good way to get away from having such a bad start this morning.
Okay so after the post office I went by my soon to be home- but alas I was only to find some fleeting joy and some more of me being annoyed. When I had the contract drawn up one of the things I was adamant on was having the lower portion of the house being done in the "same quality" as the upper portion of the house. Alas I found super cheap lighting fixtures (like you would expect to see in a college dorm) and a cheap bathroom faucet. The ones upstairs are lovely and very fancy. It's important to me that we keep the same quality throughout the house since this is not our forever home and we will be selling it in 3 to 3½ years. It's having that attention to details that makes a home sell quicker and they also help to seal the deal so to speak. Granted we did not build this home from scratch and pick out every last item (carpet, hardwood flooring, tile flooring and light fixture) like our last 2 houses. This house was partially finished, the upstairs was 100% done, beautiful top quality light fixtures, beautiful cabinets in the kitchen and bathrooms, and lovely faucets in both the guest and master bathrooms. You can only imagine my surprise when I saw cheap $5 light fixtures and a faucet that was no where near the quality of the ones that were in the upstairs bathrooms. I'm just a bit disappointed in this lack of attention to detail with this contractor. They made a beautiful home...upstairs and I want the same attention to detail and quality in the down stairs level of this home. We are paying top dollar to get the downstairs portion of this house finished, and to say the least it is drawn out in our contract as to having the downstairs done in the same manner of quality as the upstairs.
I need to take some headache medicine...my head hurts with all of this stuff!
Suicide and a few other things...
Who here has had enough of celebrities in the news dieing, committing suicide or either attempting to commit suicide? I mean really? Myself, I am someone that has been personally affected by someone close to me killing himself. It's not the glamorous attention getting things that some might think it it. It comes from a deeply rooted and hopeless sense of depression from which they feel no escape. A friend who is a child psychologist told me a story about when he was first becoming a doctor that try as he might to help a young man who was a patient in the hospital where he was working was suffering from severe depression. This young man had tried to take his own life several times...but my doctor friend told me that he thought that together they were making great progress. Then suddenly out of the blue, the young man committed suicide. My friend was devastated. He thought that he had failed to help this young person...a person that had much to live for and so much to give to society. But in the end it was his mentor that let him know that sometimes they are unable to help someone...even the ones who needs help the most. That when you are so determined to take you own life no matter how much those around you love you and are there for you...you're going to do it anyway, no matter who it hurts.
My views on suicide- there is nothing I mean NOTHING in this world that is worth you killing yourself over, do you hear me NOTHING!!! Killing yourself is a selfish ignorant act that in the end hurts so many people but at the same time it leaves you out of the picture for taking any responsibility for what you did. It makes people think that they didn't do enough, they they were somehow to blame. But the truth of the matter is, the only loser is the one taking their own life.
I had a girlfriend named Jennifer...she was always threatening to commit suicide. It drove me crazy! I would get so mad at her every time she brought this up. When did she act stupid like this? Every time she had a boyfriend and every time she and her boyfriend would fight or when a boyfriend would break up with her. Come on! Boyfriends come and go and none of them are worth killing yourself over. I got married and moved from the west coast to the east coast (got to love the military) and Jennifer and I lost touch over the years. I have no idea what happened to her after her failed marriage. I sometimes think about her and wonder if she ever really would have killed herself over a failed relationship.
I remember finding out about an ex-boyfriend that had committed suicide. He was handsome, had everything that he could ever want but was also troubled at the same time. He killed himself a few years after we had broken up. I had found out through some mutual friends that he had gotten into drugs like cocaine and marijuana and was steroids to help him get pumped up (he was seriously into bodybuilding). In my eyes, this man led a very privileged life, had a wonderful family that adored him and he threw it all way.
My 3rd story of suicide is closer to home. I was 5½ years old when I had found my father dead in the bathroom in our small apartment. He had shot himself in the head. That's right, I was right outside the door when he did it, the first one on the scene. Was there a suicide note? Not to my knowledge. You see, I was a very bright child, I could read books (and not the look look books that common 4 years old read at the time) and write by age 4- I was what they called a "bright child" now days they would called it "gifted". At age 5, I taught my mother to read and write English. I remember having to write out the checks to pay for the rent and electricity because she couldn't do it. I look at my father as deadbeat who couldn't couldn't face life. He found it much easier to kill himself than to confront life and take situations head on. I'm 44 years old and I have never forgiven him for killing himself...killing himself while I was right outside the door. how can you do that to your own child?
So any time I hear of people like Britney Spears and other celebrities such as actors of comedians attempting to commit suicide I wonder if it's for attention. That is a desperate cry for help. It's heart breaking when you learn of an actors death, but when you learn that they took their own life? It makes me stop and think..."What in the world is so bad that you had to kill yourself over? I mean really?"
So anytime anyone around goes on and on about killing themselves it makes me angry, very very angry! So now you all see a little glimpse into what makes me who I am.
My views on suicide- there is nothing I mean NOTHING in this world that is worth you killing yourself over, do you hear me NOTHING!!! Killing yourself is a selfish ignorant act that in the end hurts so many people but at the same time it leaves you out of the picture for taking any responsibility for what you did. It makes people think that they didn't do enough, they they were somehow to blame. But the truth of the matter is, the only loser is the one taking their own life.
I had a girlfriend named Jennifer...she was always threatening to commit suicide. It drove me crazy! I would get so mad at her every time she brought this up. When did she act stupid like this? Every time she had a boyfriend and every time she and her boyfriend would fight or when a boyfriend would break up with her. Come on! Boyfriends come and go and none of them are worth killing yourself over. I got married and moved from the west coast to the east coast (got to love the military) and Jennifer and I lost touch over the years. I have no idea what happened to her after her failed marriage. I sometimes think about her and wonder if she ever really would have killed herself over a failed relationship.
I remember finding out about an ex-boyfriend that had committed suicide. He was handsome, had everything that he could ever want but was also troubled at the same time. He killed himself a few years after we had broken up. I had found out through some mutual friends that he had gotten into drugs like cocaine and marijuana and was steroids to help him get pumped up (he was seriously into bodybuilding). In my eyes, this man led a very privileged life, had a wonderful family that adored him and he threw it all way.
My 3rd story of suicide is closer to home. I was 5½ years old when I had found my father dead in the bathroom in our small apartment. He had shot himself in the head. That's right, I was right outside the door when he did it, the first one on the scene. Was there a suicide note? Not to my knowledge. You see, I was a very bright child, I could read books (and not the look look books that common 4 years old read at the time) and write by age 4- I was what they called a "bright child" now days they would called it "gifted". At age 5, I taught my mother to read and write English. I remember having to write out the checks to pay for the rent and electricity because she couldn't do it. I look at my father as deadbeat who couldn't couldn't face life. He found it much easier to kill himself than to confront life and take situations head on. I'm 44 years old and I have never forgiven him for killing himself...killing himself while I was right outside the door. how can you do that to your own child?
So any time I hear of people like Britney Spears and other celebrities such as actors of comedians attempting to commit suicide I wonder if it's for attention. That is a desperate cry for help. It's heart breaking when you learn of an actors death, but when you learn that they took their own life? It makes me stop and think..."What in the world is so bad that you had to kill yourself over? I mean really?"
So anytime anyone around goes on and on about killing themselves it makes me angry, very very angry! So now you all see a little glimpse into what makes me who I am.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Waking up Happy
I love it when I wake up Happy! I woke up and was gently humming to myself...just a happy little tune nothing extra special about it. I went and did some grocery shopping came home and started baking a cheesecake...now that's what is special. I'm at my happiest when I'm creating, I just am and there's something in the air today. I'm making something that is going to make a few someones very happy :-)
I got to play with my new little picture printer- I'm in love! Not only is it fast, it's quiet! The pictures are clear and crisp, it's awesome!
Last night I got creative with food...I tried another new dish and oh my gosh it is out of this world YUMMY! I am going to make this for the deployed spouses luncheon that I'm hosting in May. I've rounded up some friends from Mission Support who are willing to assist me in hosting this event in my home. Of course I'll be making a couple of cheesecakes for dessert and these delightful stuffed tomatoes! The ladies who are assisting me will be making dishes as well. We'll be having about 12 ladies for lunch, we'll also be sure to invite the commander for Mission Support Group- she would love to have lunch with all of us, I'm sure of it! I look forward to letting these ladies know that they are not forgotten, that they are appreciated for who they are and the sacrifices that they are enduring. I plan on hosting after luncheon during the summer months...when it can be held outside...because there will be up towards 30 kids when school is out and 30 kids in one persons home...I don't even want to go there, LOL! I'd make that one a pot luck where everyone brings a dish to share :-)
I've got my husband and son boxing up things in the boys room- woohoo! A girl friend just dropped some boxes off at out house (big ones too). This is a tremendous help! She said that she has even MORE boxes to drop off here tomorrow...I welcome it with open arms, or should I say with an open garage door? LOL!
Okay now for me to get busy with writing up some journaling for my picture a day year of my life project. I've got the pictures printed up...just got to finish up the other part.
I got to play with my new little picture printer- I'm in love! Not only is it fast, it's quiet! The pictures are clear and crisp, it's awesome!
Last night I got creative with food...I tried another new dish and oh my gosh it is out of this world YUMMY! I am going to make this for the deployed spouses luncheon that I'm hosting in May. I've rounded up some friends from Mission Support who are willing to assist me in hosting this event in my home. Of course I'll be making a couple of cheesecakes for dessert and these delightful stuffed tomatoes! The ladies who are assisting me will be making dishes as well. We'll be having about 12 ladies for lunch, we'll also be sure to invite the commander for Mission Support Group- she would love to have lunch with all of us, I'm sure of it! I look forward to letting these ladies know that they are not forgotten, that they are appreciated for who they are and the sacrifices that they are enduring. I plan on hosting after luncheon during the summer months...when it can be held outside...because there will be up towards 30 kids when school is out and 30 kids in one persons home...I don't even want to go there, LOL! I'd make that one a pot luck where everyone brings a dish to share :-)
I've got my husband and son boxing up things in the boys room- woohoo! A girl friend just dropped some boxes off at out house (big ones too). This is a tremendous help! She said that she has even MORE boxes to drop off here tomorrow...I welcome it with open arms, or should I say with an open garage door? LOL!
Okay now for me to get busy with writing up some journaling for my picture a day year of my life project. I've got the pictures printed up...just got to finish up the other part.
Friday, March 09, 2007
It's Friday and no school for my kids- ugh!
It's a beautiful day and my children are home from school- got to love those in service days. So where are they? They should be out of doors enjoying.
SO I have no font choice today...how strange. I prefer to use Century Gothic or Verdana but today alas there is no window in which to choose a font from.
I've been keeping busy by plugging away at packing boxes. I've gone and done the kitchen and then the guest bath, the mast bath and now I'm working on putting away videos tapes, cd's and books. I can not believe how many boxes of stuff came out of mt little pie cabinet- wow! I've amazed myself at how much that thing can hold. If this is going to be any indication of how this is going to be around here...this house is going to be stuffed to the gills with boxes! Well it's back to the salt mines for me and I've got more packing to get done!
SO I have no font choice today...how strange. I prefer to use Century Gothic or Verdana but today alas there is no window in which to choose a font from.
I've been keeping busy by plugging away at packing boxes. I've gone and done the kitchen and then the guest bath, the mast bath and now I'm working on putting away videos tapes, cd's and books. I can not believe how many boxes of stuff came out of mt little pie cabinet- wow! I've amazed myself at how much that thing can hold. If this is going to be any indication of how this is going to be around here...this house is going to be stuffed to the gills with boxes! Well it's back to the salt mines for me and I've got more packing to get done!
Thursday, March 08, 2007
The New Scrapbook Nook....
I went by my house today to see if the door to my scrapbook nook had been reversed and it has :-) I am going to be loving this new creative space! Having those windows in that room is going to add tremendously to my quality of life. As it is here in base housing I'm stuffed into a little room without heat or air conditioning. I share my scrapbook nook space with a water heater and a furnace- both of which can be rather noisy. There are no windows and it's not recommended to close the door while you're working in there for a few reasons;
1- if you're the least bit claustrophobic this room is not for you!
2-there's that natural gas thing...both the water heater and furnace are powered by natural gas. There's a vent for the exhaust fumes but who really knows how well those work, ya know what I mean? It is after all military housing.
3- There aren't any ducts for heat or air conditioning to come into the room. So what ever temperature it is outside, that's pretty much what it's going to be like in that room- unless you leave the door open and you have a little electric space heater/fan for the really cold days.
So YES on so many different levels is this NEW Scrapbook Nook going to be an improvement over my current scrapbook nook. I love having my own little room for scrapbooking, stamping and just creating. And thanks to a girlfriend my little nook is going to have a cool new toy...a Kodak Easy Share 500 photo printer with the pop up screen. Oh my gosh I got to work with these while in Boston at CKU-Masters and they were wonderful! They can be hooked up to your computer OR (this is the really cool part) you pop in your digital media card - from just about any camera- talk about SWEET!!! It's WiFi ready and bluetooth wireless technology capable (yes I copied that information form the Kodak site). I love that pop up screen and the fact that you don't have to hook it up to a computer, that you can pop in a media card. This is going to be proudly displayed in my Scrapbook Nook! It's something I see myself using a lot! My friend doesn't know this yet but she's about to get a surprise...a special gourmet cheesecake for her family while she has company this week!
Take it to Heart
I received this in my e-mail box a few days ago from a dear friend...it's probably making it's way through the Internet but I wanted to share it with you all in case you don't get it in your e-mail box. These are true little things about life...
1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Life is too short for long pity parties. Get busy living, or get busy dying.
17. You can get through anything if you stay put in today.
18. A writer writes. If you want to be a writer, write.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: "In five years, will this matter?"
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood. Make it memorable.
38. Read the Psalms. They cover every human emotion.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
42. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
43. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
44. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
45. The best is yet to come.
46. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
47. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
48. If you don't ask, you don't get.
49. Yield.
50. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.
1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Life is too short for long pity parties. Get busy living, or get busy dying.
17. You can get through anything if you stay put in today.
18. A writer writes. If you want to be a writer, write.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: "In five years, will this matter?"
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood. Make it memorable.
38. Read the Psalms. They cover every human emotion.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
42. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
43. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
44. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
45. The best is yet to come.
46. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
47. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
48. If you don't ask, you don't get.
49. Yield.
50. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
You Know....
When you "think" that you should be somewhere else instead of a boring board meeting...you should probably follow your instincts! I knew without anyone telling me that the door to my scrapbook nook aka artists studio/home office (that's what I'm telling the realtor I'm going to use that room for) anyway the door was hung going the wrong way. Might seem like a little mistake but when it was written out in the agreement and it's still hung wrong, it makes me crabby. Not like "mean crabby", but more like "can you not read the plans?" annoyed type of crabby. I shake my head over the whole thing!
The concrete slab still needs to be patched so the vinyl flooring can be installed in the kids bathroom and laundry room. There's something else that has me annoyed crabby...the cabinet guy isn't installing the bathroom cabinet until the flooring people put down the vinyl flooring in the bathroom...mean while back on the ranch the plumber can not come in and do HIS job of putting in the sink and toilet and hooking up the water because the cabinet guy wants to make it easy for the flooring people. Who ever heard of the cabinets going on top of the vinyl flooring? What if the next owners hate the flooring I picked out and want to put in tile flooring? What then? Do they rip out the cabinet and pull out the vinyl that's underneath of it? I mean really...do they? When you start to think about it, it's all so stupid. I say install the cabinet so the plumber can come in and get his job done. The flooring isn't here yet and won't be installed until the 16th and the rest of it on the 19th. That's a long time to be waiting for someone else to get their job done and you're hanging around waiting like a vulture. for them to be done.
I managed to hire a moving company today. It's $145 an hour for 4 men and a truck...not bad considering the other alternative....move it all ourselves. I figure that we'll have everything boxed up and most of it outta here by the time April 2nd rolls around. We'll have the beds taken apart and ready to be loaded onto the truck. Heck I could have things out in the lawn ready for them to load it on the truck if that will help to speed things along!
Well it's almost time for me to entertain some young ladies this afternoon with a cooking with chocolate lesson. We're making baby (as in small) Chocolate Lava Cakes. A good friend of mine who home-schools her 6 children (she is a braver woman that I am) is sending a couple of her daughters down to spend a few hours with myself and my daughter. This is going to be oodles of fun! I went out and bought some new ramekins just for this! I look forward to my new house...it has a larger kitchen and we won't have to mix everything on the kitchen table, we could do it on the counter top where it should be done!
The concrete slab still needs to be patched so the vinyl flooring can be installed in the kids bathroom and laundry room. There's something else that has me annoyed crabby...the cabinet guy isn't installing the bathroom cabinet until the flooring people put down the vinyl flooring in the bathroom...mean while back on the ranch the plumber can not come in and do HIS job of putting in the sink and toilet and hooking up the water because the cabinet guy wants to make it easy for the flooring people. Who ever heard of the cabinets going on top of the vinyl flooring? What if the next owners hate the flooring I picked out and want to put in tile flooring? What then? Do they rip out the cabinet and pull out the vinyl that's underneath of it? I mean really...do they? When you start to think about it, it's all so stupid. I say install the cabinet so the plumber can come in and get his job done. The flooring isn't here yet and won't be installed until the 16th and the rest of it on the 19th. That's a long time to be waiting for someone else to get their job done and you're hanging around waiting like a vulture. for them to be done.
I managed to hire a moving company today. It's $145 an hour for 4 men and a truck...not bad considering the other alternative....move it all ourselves. I figure that we'll have everything boxed up and most of it outta here by the time April 2nd rolls around. We'll have the beds taken apart and ready to be loaded onto the truck. Heck I could have things out in the lawn ready for them to load it on the truck if that will help to speed things along!
Well it's almost time for me to entertain some young ladies this afternoon with a cooking with chocolate lesson. We're making baby (as in small) Chocolate Lava Cakes. A good friend of mine who home-schools her 6 children (she is a braver woman that I am) is sending a couple of her daughters down to spend a few hours with myself and my daughter. This is going to be oodles of fun! I went out and bought some new ramekins just for this! I look forward to my new house...it has a larger kitchen and we won't have to mix everything on the kitchen table, we could do it on the counter top where it should be done!
Everyday is a New Adventure
When you stop and think about it, it's true...everyday really is a new adventure unto it's self.
Here I sit typing and I'm thinking about what I have going on for the day. I've got 1001 different things bubbling through my head when it comes to decorating the new house. What colors am I going to paint, what fabrics will I use when I make the new window treatments? I've got a few ideas on the kinds of rods I'd like to buy for in the kitchen and eat in area when the kitchen table and chairs will go. I've got to swing by the house to make sure that the door to my Scrapbook Nook swings the right way...hey it's the little things that matter here, LOL! I've got an OSC board meeting to attend at 9:30 am that I'm hoping to leave early from. Then there's those six- 6 ounce ramekins that I have to buy today for baking chocolate lava cakes this afternoon with my daughter and her friend Lucy. I need to call more moving companies and get more rates...and of course pack more boxes today. Just another day in my life kind of thing- for March, LOL!
Oh that reminds me...I need to print some more journaling out for my page a day, send off some photo's to be printed at Walgreen's for OSC and get some more laundry done!
I've been up since just after 3 am and I have a feeling that I'll be in much need of a nap later on this afternoon before the baking session with the girls.
Yup, this is going to be one of those go-go-go kind of days, then once I sit down to catch my breath I'll fall asleep!
Here I sit typing and I'm thinking about what I have going on for the day. I've got 1001 different things bubbling through my head when it comes to decorating the new house. What colors am I going to paint, what fabrics will I use when I make the new window treatments? I've got a few ideas on the kinds of rods I'd like to buy for in the kitchen and eat in area when the kitchen table and chairs will go. I've got to swing by the house to make sure that the door to my Scrapbook Nook swings the right way...hey it's the little things that matter here, LOL! I've got an OSC board meeting to attend at 9:30 am that I'm hoping to leave early from. Then there's those six- 6 ounce ramekins that I have to buy today for baking chocolate lava cakes this afternoon with my daughter and her friend Lucy. I need to call more moving companies and get more rates...and of course pack more boxes today. Just another day in my life kind of thing- for March, LOL!
Oh that reminds me...I need to print some more journaling out for my page a day, send off some photo's to be printed at Walgreen's for OSC and get some more laundry done!
I've been up since just after 3 am and I have a feeling that I'll be in much need of a nap later on this afternoon before the baking session with the girls.
Yup, this is going to be one of those go-go-go kind of days, then once I sit down to catch my breath I'll fall asleep!
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
My Tuesday Shocker!
Little did I know that I was about to be give a real shock today! Where do these companies get these rates? One company wants $165 per hour for 2 guys and a truck and another wants $220 per hour...are we suddenly going to have our furniture moved by attorneys or what? LOL! So I figure that I'll call every company in the phone book that will give me a price quote over the phone. All I need is the hourly fee for 3 or 4 guys and a truck. Maybe I've led a sheltered life with all of our military financed moves across the USA. But to me, this all seems a bit too unreal. Then I'm quoted 8 and 9 hours to complete the work...get real! I say 4 to 5 hours tops with 4 guys!
24 days and counting
24 days and counting...that's how long until I sign on the dotted line and take possession of our new home. As Sponge Bob would say...I'm ready, I'm ready, I'm ready edy edy edy edy!
I've not heard back from Allied moving company- she said she'd call back yesterday with our estimate and she didn't. I'm going to call all of the other ones in the phone book and get quotes from them as well.
I popped in to see what's going on with my house and it's got it's first coat of paint! I can see that it will need at least one more coat of paint downstairs. It looks so good though- every room looks huge! The amount of natural sunlight that is streaming through the windows into my scrapbook nook is wonderful! It's going to be such a positive and energetic place to work and create scrapbook layouts! The family room is going to be such a warm and comfortable place for our family to hang out in. And the best part is that the TV set won't be on top of us!
My husband is looking forward to the roomy garage...it's a 3 car garage with plenty of storage space! There's even room (and a 220 outlet) for me to get a stand up freezer!
While downtown this afternoon I'll give a change of address to our Orthodontist and the Dentist offices. Well I better get out of my jammies and make use of the boxes I got from my pal Cindy yesterday. I hate to do it, but I'm going to pack up some of my bake-ware and my pasta machine and it's accessories. I just don't see me baking any cakes or making home made pasta for the rest of the month.
I've not heard back from Allied moving company- she said she'd call back yesterday with our estimate and she didn't. I'm going to call all of the other ones in the phone book and get quotes from them as well.
I popped in to see what's going on with my house and it's got it's first coat of paint! I can see that it will need at least one more coat of paint downstairs. It looks so good though- every room looks huge! The amount of natural sunlight that is streaming through the windows into my scrapbook nook is wonderful! It's going to be such a positive and energetic place to work and create scrapbook layouts! The family room is going to be such a warm and comfortable place for our family to hang out in. And the best part is that the TV set won't be on top of us!
My husband is looking forward to the roomy garage...it's a 3 car garage with plenty of storage space! There's even room (and a 220 outlet) for me to get a stand up freezer!
While downtown this afternoon I'll give a change of address to our Orthodontist and the Dentist offices. Well I better get out of my jammies and make use of the boxes I got from my pal Cindy yesterday. I hate to do it, but I'm going to pack up some of my bake-ware and my pasta machine and it's accessories. I just don't see me baking any cakes or making home made pasta for the rest of the month.
Monday, March 05, 2007
Sharing Happiness
I love to share happiness. Something I like to do is to surprise friends with small tokens of my appreciation. I see these Military spouses who go above and beyond the call of duty...looking out for a sick friend, making meals, shoveling snow and never thinking twice about jumping in a lending a helping hand. One of my tasks I've set for myself is to let these special people know that they touch the hearts of more than the actual family that they help. All it take is a note card letting them know how special they are...it holds it weight in gold.
A dear friend shared happiness with me today and I was moved beyond words. It's one of those things that moves in circles...before you know it everyone has some happiness! My hope for you is to share something happy with a friend...it'll make you feel warm and for the lack of a better word happy all over! Try it and see! As I go to bed tonight I'm happier than words can say because I know that through my own random acts of kindness I have made others happy :-)
A dear friend shared happiness with me today and I was moved beyond words. It's one of those things that moves in circles...before you know it everyone has some happiness! My hope for you is to share something happy with a friend...it'll make you feel warm and for the lack of a better word happy all over! Try it and see! As I go to bed tonight I'm happier than words can say because I know that through my own random acts of kindness I have made others happy :-)
Waiting...
It's true, waiting is not one of my strong points. If there's anything I really dread doing it's got to be waiting around for someone to show up. Be it housing maintenance, the sales rep from the moving company or the cable man. Then again I think that it has something to do with those time frames they set up...we'll have someone to your home between the hours of 8 am and 12noon...then they show up at 2pm-ugh! I figure that there is always something else I can be doing that is a better use of my time than waiting around for them to show up.
Today my waiting around is for the sales rep from the moving company. I told them to make the appointment for 9am, the office guy said that she has an appointment before ours and could be a little early or a little late depending upon her first client.
Today my waiting around is for the sales rep from the moving company. I told them to make the appointment for 9am, the office guy said that she has an appointment before ours and could be a little early or a little late depending upon her first client.
Saturday, March 03, 2007
Our new cell phones are here!
I love the Internet, you can order just about anything! We've been long over due to get new cell phones. The batteries on these ones die in such a short amount of time and have to be recharged daily. These news ones have V Cast music capability...oh give me a break! I was cracking up with these phones and what they can do...all I want to be able to do is to make a phone call, LOL! Okay so I did find that picture taking capability on my last one a rather cool feature. It was rather nice to be able to take a picture of something and sent it to my husbands phone so he could see it, LOL!
So we got the new phones set up over the Internet, transferred our phone lists and everything. Talk about easy! WOW! Now my phone is set up and ready to make phone calls...how cool is that? I'll tell you, it's seriously cool!
We're looking at setting up a cell phone account for our kids. With our son driving soon, I'll feel much better with him having a cell phone with him in the car. I used to think that we didn't need a cell phone, but then we moved to Virginia and my opinion on that changed! YES we did need a cell phone, especially in a large metropolitan area like that. And now that we are somewhat out in the sticks, I still find it a necessity to have on me. If I find that I've left my cell phone at home, I will turn around to go home and get it. I want my children to be able to get a hold of me if they need me, same with my parents, in-laws and my spouse. I no longer see cell phones being a luxury item but more of a necessary item. I think that it has to do with the fact that we have no family here, that when we move we lose those people we feel comfortable using as an emergency contact in case out children get sick at school. Heck being military we always seem to have friends coming and going and the emergency contacts for our kids change yearly...but the cell phone number for mom and dad never change!
Moving and all that comes with it
So we are moving...okay no big deal. I called one of the top moving companies in the area (the one recommended by our realtor). I have an appointment with one of the sales reps to com out here on Monday to give me an assessment of how many boxes and so forth it will take to pack us up and move us out. Well after getting prices over the phone for the hourly rates I almost crapped myself. It's $90 per hour for 2 men to move boxes and furniture out of your house, $35 per hour more for each additional person. If I want them to pack boxes that's an extra fee plus the cost of boxes and packing materials. Sure they can do it quickly but dang it's going to cost some serious dollar$. I figure that we can hire the professional movers to move the heavy stuff like all of our furniture. We can pack our own boxes...heck we did it before we can certainly do it again. It's just that this place will look like a war zone for the month of March. I'm going to head out today and get a couple dozen boxes to start packing up things we don't need from the kitchen and bathrooms. The armoire can get gutted out with the exception of a few needed school supply items. I'm going to be working like crazy to get this place packed up. I suppose that we can borrow a friends truck and use my minivan to haul those boxes over to our house. At least with us packing we'll know that when a box is marked "kitchen" there really is kitchen stuff in it, and that it's not a box filled with Lego and Brio pieces.
As I sit here typing this I know that my days in this tiny house are coming to and end. I'm excited about it and can't wait for signing on the dotted line to take possession of our new home!
As I sit here typing this I know that my days in this tiny house are coming to and end. I'm excited about it and can't wait for signing on the dotted line to take possession of our new home!
Friday, March 02, 2007
what a windy day!
I don't think that it can be recycle day without 40 to 50 mph winds. I'm not dragging them out today to be blown down the street. I can always take my bags of recyclables to the recycle center here on base. I just checked the weather...it's 18º and with the wind-chill it feels like a big ole "0" outside. Hmmm, I don;t know about you, but that's no kind of weather that I want to be out and about in right now.
I finished up my pages from yesterday and I have them in page protectors. Now for me to get with it and figure out which printer to buy. I'm not looking for one to print pictures I'm looking for one that can handle printing on cardstock and vellum.
I finished up my pages from yesterday and I have them in page protectors. Now for me to get with it and figure out which printer to buy. I'm not looking for one to print pictures I'm looking for one that can handle printing on cardstock and vellum.
Thursday, March 01, 2007
my printer is kaput!
Here it is, the first day of March and what do I have to report? My printer is broken. As I was printing out all of my journaling for my picture a day project for the month of February (so I could have something easy to work on while my scrapbooking friends are here). All of a sudden I hear this grinding noise...that's never a good sign. So here I am, I've got 20 more pages that need to get printed...but at least the journaling is done :-) Now to start for March. I'm shaking my head because it's so darn frustrating to have this happen to me right now. At least I have 8 pages to work with and that should be looked at as a GOOD thing.
Now for me to get back to the kitchen and finish making the quiche for lunch.
Now for me to get back to the kitchen and finish making the quiche for lunch.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
