Have you seen my shoes?

I have to laugh at myself, I seem to have misplaced 2 pairs of shoes since moving into this new house and we've been in here a month now (it was official yesterday). It's been about 3 weeks since misplacing my shoes and I've not even seen a glimpse of them since that fated day. It sure would be nice if I could find those shoes since I'd like to wear pants today (it's a rather blustery sort of day) and those shoes are my dress shoes that I wear with pants. The other shoes are my beloved purple Veggies. I've been wearing my hot pink Veggies these past few weeks. Now the last time I saw the purple ones my daughter had them on her feet. I have grilled her several times since that day and I have yet to see them. Personally speaking I think that they've been shoe napped and are they're being held captive in a trade off for chocolate, I wouldn't put it past Hannah, LOL! She loves her chocolate dearly!

Happy News!

I went outside to water my container garden and I noticed that there's a sale pending sign on the house next door to ours. I knew that our realtor Angie had shown the house recently and I wondered if she sold it. So I called her and YES she was the one who sold the house. I'm so happy for her! I really like our realtor, she is one who really works for her clients. So these soon to be new neighbors are neighbors in military housing to our soon to be neighbors on the corner across from our house. WooHoo! This is a happy day indeed!

Organizing your Scrapbook Nook...and keeping it that way

As much as I like to proclaim myself as being a purging queen when it comes to getting rid of "stuff" that no longer has a place in our home, I still am finding a virtual ton of things to get rid of since moving into this new house. Of course there's the bedding from our bedroom (the queen size Americana Quilt with matching quilted pillow shams) and Andrews' Nature themed quilt (another queen size) with matching pillow shams- yup that fills a big box. But there's also other things like shower curtains (there's a couple of those) and those plastic rings that go with them. But I'm talking about my scrapbooking space today. Oh my gosh how many of us have gotten things for FREE from scrapbooking events that we look at and never have used? I know that I have. There are those scrapbook albums in odd sizes that I knew that I would never use but they looked rather cool in their pretty packaging displayed in my nook. They are in the garage sale box! I'm also pushing myself to make the purge of tools that I just do not use, trust me I have tools that I have not touched in ages! Part of my problem is that I'm filling my space up with stuff that looks good but it isn't being used. I tried pulling stuff out and seeing if I would use it before the move and did I use it? No of course not, LOL! I don't know what I was thinking with that one.

Bags- Oh do I have oodles of little crop type bags. Do I use more than one or two at a time? Heck no. So those are being purged as well. I think that there will be some scrapbookers out there that will be VERY HAPPY to see them for sale at our garage sale.

Lettering Templates - I thought that I had gotten rid of them ages ago. The look on my face was one of surprise when I opened a box and saw that they're still around as are a ton of alphabet stickers that I never used. Yup more garage sale merchandise. You know what they say..."One mans junk is another mans treasure".

Paper Trimmers- I love using rotary paper trimmers. So all of those sliding paper trimmers by Fiskars are going into the garage sale...along with all of the spare blades that I have. I have 2 large rotary paper cutters and having them for crops comes in very handy! The other ones, they're outta here! Then ones I tuck away for crops on the go are my Cutterpedes and I will keep them around. They're great to tuck into my crop bag on wheels.

Embellishments- more things to go through and purge items that I am no longer interested in using (because my scrapbooking style has evolved past using those items). But hey... some is going to find a virtual treasure trove of scrapbooking goodies when they come to our garage sale :-)

So when it comes to organizing, really look at your tools, what ARE you actually using? What are you keeping that you haven't used and it taking up valuable storage space. Are you using those decorative scissors? Then put them where they can be easily accessed, same goes for the Xyron that you bought but hardly use. I use mine quite a bit so I put it in an area where I can get to it without difficulty. Do you use the Xyron 250 more than your 550? If so, then sell of that 550! Organizing your space is about keeping things that you actually use versus things that look good and impress others. So get on the band wagon and clear out that old stuff!

Lunch with Friends

I hope that my girlfriends had as good of a time as I did yesterday. We had out once a month OSC scrapbook group get together yesterday with one new member in attendance. We laughed and laughed, had lunch and some of us got some scrapbooking done while chatting the afternoon away. I adore all of the wonderful ladies! There is something special about each and every single one of them and I'm so glad that we've been put in a place (Ellsworth AFB) where we were able to meet and become friends :-)

It was delightful right up until I noticed that the wind was picking up and the sky was turning a rather ominous dark gray. Yikes, a thunderstorm approaching fast! Everyone took off because they had open windows at home (just like I did). Let me tell you the rain came down hard! The wind was really blowing and I had to anchor down the new grill because the wind was blowing it all over the deck (and it's a heavy grill too).

After anchoring down the grill I went into my new scrapbook nook and just breathed this huge sigh...this is one cool little place to hang out! I started tooling around in there and just having fun! Today I'm going to pull the rest of the boxes containing my scrapbooking supplies into the house and put them away. Okay so while I'm organizing I'll also be weeding out stuff I no longer want or use (off to the garage sale pile it goes).

I better get to the garage now while I'm feeling motivated to do so. I have a lot of boxes to rearrange in that garage too!

The Honey Do list...

For the most part we all have a "Honey Do list" of one kind or another, be it taking out the trash, mowing the lawn or sweeping out the garage. Mine (since moving into the new house) tend to be of some detail. Here's the list I currently have;

1-4) install curtain rods in Master Bedroom, Family room, both children's bedrooms

5&6) install Easy Track Closet Systems- my closet and husbands closet

7) hang dresser mirror on wall in master bedroom

8-10) install floor cabinets, counter top and clothes rod in laundry room.

11)install plantation blinds in guest room/home office

12) replace shelves in master bathroom with wider ones

13) replace side light windows by front door with leaded glass ones

14) install ironing board/iron wall storage rack

15) rearrange boxes in garage

Yup, that's my list (for now). I'll keep it updated as we get things done around here. I bought my husband a new Jig Saw this morning since his old one died while cutting the counter top for my scrapbook nook the other night. He ended up finishing the cutting by hand!

Before you say it, yes I do know that I have a pretty terrific husband. He's a hard worker and always finishes the projects he starts. He puts his all into every project and it shows.

My Scrapbook Nook

Oh am I ever happy with how My Scrapbook Nook is coming along! This has been a combined effort on both of our parts in getting this room together. Last night we also needed our son's help in getting the counter top into the room.

There are a couple more thing that we need to get done...the knobs and drawer pulls need to go on and I need to get the rest of my scrapbooking and stamping supplies into the room. The wall cabinets look terrific! And the floor cabinets are HUGE! There's tons of storage in them that's for sure! I have a feeling that I'll be able to locate my camera dock in one of the 8 or so large boxes of scrapbooking supplies that are still out in the garage. I've found my QuicKutz hand tools but not the dies...and I packed the stuff so I have no one but myself to blame for that one, LOL!

My rubber and acrylic stamps are neatly tucked away into plastic shoe boxes and are on a shelf in the closet under the stairs. They might just stay there for a while until I can get another chrome shelf. I really like the way they are stored, easy access is one key to being organized. If you see it, you will use it, so have you stamping and scrapbooking tools and supplies organized well so you can see what you have and use it! The place is a little messy right now but by the weekend I hope to have it put together in a way it will feel comfortable. It'll probably be reorganized a few times until I get it feeling just right but that's a natural thing (it is for me anyway :-).

Oh look at the time...I've got to finish my BBQ pulled Pork, tidy up the formal dining room and get the boxes out of the family room from last nights cabinet installation project because friends are coming over to scrapbook in a couple of hours. :-)

What a way to start your day!

Yesterday it was a flock of wild Turkey's and today it was a herb of wild Deer running around down by the creek that's behind our house. I love how we can watch them from our house. I saw the Deer this morning and I went downstairs and told the kids. They both watched the Deer nibble on grass and drink water from the creek. It's amazing to see wildlife this close up, and once I pull out my binoculars I can see them even closer, LOL! But seriously, watching them makes you feel relaxed, similar to the effect of watching fish swim around in a large fish tank.

Still no luck in finding the baby bunny that's in our garage. I'm hoping that it was able to get out. I've had the garage doors opened a foot of so just in case it made it's way to the front of the garage. I don't want to find a dead bunny, that would make me sad. We've got fresh water and some bird seed out for the bunny and if you're wondering...yes, bunnies do like to eat bird seed- we have first hand knowledge of this. I haven't let our cat into the garage for a couple of days because I'm afraid that f the bunny is in there that out cat would find it before we did...and that just wouldn't be a good thing if you know what I mean.

Horse Trivia

With my GIrl Scout troop working on earning all of their horse badges (they're almost done) through of the help of my friend Kim and her horse Freckles, well I thought that some horse trivia would be very appropriate...enjoy!

 

The horse that starred as Mr. Ed in the TV series, was

a registered American Saddlebred.

***

Draught Horses are the world's strongest animals apart

from elephants.

***

It is estimated that there are about 750 million horses

in the world.

***

                                  Old Bill

Many horses live, (and work), until they are over 30

years old! The oldest recorded horse was a barge horse

in England known as "old Bill". He lived till the grand

old age of 62!

***

Different gaits of the horse:

Gait - any forward movement of the horse

Walk - the horse raises its feet one after the other and

puts them down in the same order (4 miles per hour)

Trot or Jog - the horse lifts the front leg on one side

of its body and the hind leg on the other side at the

same time. The other two legs hit the ground together.

The trot is faster than the walk. (9 miles an hour)

Canter - the horse gathers its hind legs under its body

and extends its forelegs. It is a controlled gallop. At

one point, all four feet are off the ground.

(12 - 40 miles an hour)

***

We use Mud Masques Too

Mud helps to moisturize and seal the hoof. Without

moisture, the hoof will dry out and crack causing con-

siderable pain for the horse and possibly making him

go lame. Water alone is not always enough to prevent

hoof dryness. Another way to moisturize a horse's hoof

is to use one of the commercial hoof moisturizer products.

 

  

it was a go go go kind of day

Have you ever been so busy that you didn't have time to sit down? That would describe my day yesterday. It was go go go from the word go in the morning.

The cabinets arrived yesterday and wouldn't you know it, the last one that is unloaded off of the truck is seriously damaged. I saw it and said "Whoa Nelly, this one goes back". Actually it was two cabinets and on one the entire back was broken out- seriously I do not see how anyone could have missed that...from being on the sales floor, to putting it on the loading dock to loading it onto the truck and especially the crew bringing it into my house- Grrr! I was nice about it and let them know that the 2 cabinets will be going back on the truck. These guys know about my last unhappy episode of damaged goods being delivered by Lowe's (apparently they heard it from management). Get this...they took the damaged cabinets back to the store and in an hour (give or take a few minutes) they were back with my replacement ones- now that's the customer service I'm looking for!

The counter tops look terrific! I can hardly wait to have everything installed! Last night my husband and I installed the wall cabinets in the scrapbook nook. Let me tell you that the instruction sheet makes it look a lot easier than it is. I was so afraid that I was going to mess up and not have them level.

So here it is, Wednesday- eek! I'm having the scrapbook group over tomorrow and I'm hoping to have my scrapbook nook finished with the rest of the cabinets and the counter top in place. My new work area is going to be so seriously cool! There's tons of hidden storage and none of those Rubber-Maid wire racks in this scrapbook nook! I am very excited about this, more than anyone will ever know. And now that fold up card table can come out, I forgot how difficult those are to work on. Wobbly and that soft top, well it's not a very good work surface. I'd much rather work on one of those hard plastic top tables. I think that I might buy one just to have when we have a dinner party with extra guests...and large crop parties :-)

I've been so darn busy since moving here that I've not had a chance to visit my favorite websites and see what's going on in the scrapbooking world. I can't wait to take pictures of my new scrapbook nook and post them. I still have not found any fabric for valances...then again I haven't really looked. I've glanced here and there but nothing has struck me ( you know...like an apple falling out of a tree). I'll get something going on in there as I can't stand a naked window, LOL! Which reminds me, I do need to get the valances up in our bedroom, then again it helps to install the curtain rod, LOL!

We have the natural gas grill up and running and I'll be cooking on it today :-) Meanwhile I'm putting together 2 other meals for later on in the week. Cooking is such a stress reliever for me. With that in mind, today I'll be preparing meals that take time, one is of course my marinated pork roast with pancetta and fresh herbs and the other is BBQ pulled pork. The pork has to be slow roasted and then I let it cool and take out all of that fat and gristle by hand and then smother it in yummy BBQ sauce. There's something about cooking foods that take time that makes me feel good about what I do in the kitchen. I have beef tips marinating since yesterday, I'll be making cheesy potatoes (a family favorite) this little treasure of a recipe is one that I got from my dear friend René. She would make this dish and it was always a hit! Lets just say it makes your mouth smile with the first bite! It's a true comfort food :-) Another recipe from René is her cornbread...the trick to it is that you HAVE to use a well seasoned cast iron skillet for it to come out the way hers do. My skillet was one of those casualties of our move from TX to VA (mysteriously missing with a few other items from the kitchen). So when I go home to see my folks this summer I'll be bringing home my Mom's cast iron skillet (won't that look funny in the x-ray machine viewer at the airport while it's inside of my suitcase).

It's time for more coffee and to get things in those cabinets in the scrapbook nook!

My Favorite Stores...

Hands down Someones in the Kitchen has got to be the best! I love going in there and finding all sorts of gadgets that I can use. And their coffee bar is the BEST!!! I'm drinking my Mocha and let me tell you it's seriously YUMMY!!!! Even though it is a kitchen store, they also sell other interesting items. I went in there today to order a large framed quote by Abraham Lincoln but saw a smaller one and bought it instead because I bought a large framed Family quote (quote by Marcel Proust). It's perfect for our new home!

What's better than a Wal-Mart? It's Target! I can always find a great deal at Target! I found a great framed quote at Target and I picked up a couple of picture frames in the shade of deep brown that I like (it's so dark it's almost black). Have you been to their bathroom section lately? WOW are there ever some great looking shower curtains, bath rugs and more! I found the cutest froggy bath mat and tissue holder for the kids bathroom. Hannah adores frogs and spent her own money on her frog themed bathroom. So when I saw that I could add some darling froggy items to her collection at a great price, well I didn't hesitate to do it! The froggy items were a fraction of the price that Kohl's has their frog themed bathrooms items...Target's froggy trash can $19.99, froggy tissue holder $14,99 Kohl's froggy trash can $56.99 tissue holder $44.99 - you tell me where the savings are, that's right it's at Target!

For home improvement stores is Lowe's, I can always find something at Lowe's! There are several other home improvement stores here in town, there's Knechts where we ordered our East Track closet system and Menard's where we ordered the drawer kit. But Lowe's is the place for me to really shop and check things out. Menard's tends to lean more towards home builders versus home improvement weekend warriors same for Knechts.

Home Improvement

Ah Sunday, a day of rest and relaxation...well for most people it is but not for us! My husband gets back form being gone all week and he's off like gang busters on getting more home improvement plans drawn up and ordered.

My Scrapbook Nook - Well it's about to get a lot of new stuff! I can not believe this man and how he really thinks about my needs in my scrapbook nook. My work area materials have been bought and will be delivered on Tuesday afternoon. I'm going to have wall cabinets, base cabinets and a nice counter top. Tons of hidden storage space! This new nook area is going to be such a delight to work in!

Laundry Room - My hubby ordered cabinets for in here too! There will be base cabinets with a counter top, and wall cabinets and a hanging bar for those clothes that you want to hang up right after they dry :-) We also bought the drawer hardware (knobs and drawer pulls). We are going to be BUSY this week!

On the Deck - I had my husband pick out a new grill (it's a belated b-day gift). Our old grill has been through the wringer. It fell over in a wind storm back when we lived in Virginia and the handle broke, still works great but the handle is broken in the middle. We were wanting a grill that can be converted to working with natural gas and yes we found one! I even bought the latest cookbook publication from Southern Living on Backyard Grilling! Oh it looks good! And it's chock a block full of terrific recipes! I'll be putting a chain on this baby and locking it to our deck! It's better safe than sorry I always say.

In the Kitchen - I bought some things that will help me out here, there are these great baking pan holders ( they kind of look like a bike rack) to go inside of my lower cabinet. I used those plastic cinch ties to hold them together (they would move every time I pulled out a pan). So now I've made a more efficient use of that space! I'll have to take pictures of that space and post them. Then there was the over the sink colander...oh have I ever needed one of these! This really would have come in handy when we lived in base housing! I'll take pictures of these things and post them later. I almost forgot...my husband also bought cabinet doors, he's going to make the back side of this cabinet open up and make that space more accessible. I'll have to post pictures on this too. There's a slender door on the inside part of the kitchen but the space is HUGE! You can't get mush through door to really make any use of the space. So there's my husband to the rescue!

In the Bathroom - Here my husband is making a drawer where there was only a fake drawer front. He ordered the kit for the making of the drawer and it's being mailed to us from the manufacturer.

Adding to the Curb Appeal- No I didn't buy more terracotta pots or plants, LOL! We ordered a house number plaque. We've been in this house what? 3 weeks now (it really doesn't feel that long) and without house numbers. I want the pizza delivery person to be able to get to the right house, LOL! It too will be shipped directly to us.

By the time we were done at Lowe's we were both starving! I suggested Mongolian Grill for lunch. Who doesn't love a bowl of steaming hot vegetables, meat and noodles? I have to tell you all... the food is top notch! You pick out what you want in your bowl and they cook it up, what's not to like? :-) By the end of the day I was wiped out! Did I sleep well? Yes! So well in fact that I totally slept though the alarm clock and my husband had to wake me up at 6:15 am.

I've got lots on my plate for today so I better get on with it all!

TICKS!

After writing about container gardens on Saturday and how much enjoyment they give me blah blah blah...my son comes upstairs and says "Mom, what is this on my neck? I think it's a tick". Sure enough it's a tick. That insect has got a firm grip on his neck too! I was thoroughly grossed out and freaking out...where oh where did this tick come from? How long has it been sucking my boy's blood? Does this thing have any diseases or parasites? I have no clue how to get this thing off so I call my friend Cindy thinking..."hey Cindy has 3 boys and a couple of dogs she's probably been though this dozens of times". Knock on wood, but Cindy and her hubby have not had that experience (yet) with their children and pets. She called another friend to see if she knew (her husband had worked for the forest service once upon a time) and there was a big no there as well. Meanwhile I'm trying all kinds of things to get this blood sucker off of my child's neck. I went to the internet and looked up "how to remove ticks" and came across this little gem of a site http://www.anapsid.org/lyme/removingticks.html
let me tell you it helped me a great deal! I was able to safely remove the tick and he's in a zip lock bag properly labeled and in the freezer. I took a picture of this but alas...I still have not been able to locate my camera dock. I suppose that I could just use the cable and load pictures from my camera onto the computer but where's the fun in that?

Container Gardens

One of my passions...besides scrapbooking and gourmet cooking is container gardening. One of my fondest memories of my Mom (yes, she's still alive) is of how she had these container gardens on the patio in the backyard and the front porch. They were fantastic! All sorts of exotic plants and some a little more domestic. The plants grew and grew and were so beautiful. I felt that it was like our own little peace of heaven on earth.

So through the years I have created various kinds of gardens at the various home we have lived in our the years. My favorite has been the floral gardens that I created in the front yard of the house we owned in Virginia. The scent of those flowers just hung in the air...to me it was heaven on earth. Peonies, Hydrangea, Gardenias, Azaleas, Lilacs, Wisteria, Fuschias in hanging baskets, and the Roses....dozens and dozens of them! I had a Rose Garden, lots of huge fragrant rose bushes and miniature rose bushes everywhere! They were in every color and some had a heavy fragrance and others a lighter scent but all of them together in the hot summer evenings in Virginia made our entire cul-de-sac smell heavenly! The scent is what I think that got the rest of my neighbors to add flower gardens to their front yards :-)

So where am I going with this today right? LOL! Well...my front porch needed something, it needed curb appeal! So my daughter and I looked at it and we planned something out (okay I did the majority of the planning and I let her pick out the flowers). The flowers hung in the garage for a couple of days and I said enough is enough and I got it started yesterday without her. I'm pulling out terracotta pots and arranging them on the front porch. Then I heaved out the heavy bags of soil for containers (be aware that there are many different kinds of soil in a bag and make sure to get the kind that is right for the job...it might not always be the cheapest one either- oh how I know that one). So any way...I get started on my container garden and a couple of hours later-WOW! Just some terracotta post and a few containers of flowers from your local nursery or home improvement store can add tremendously to the curb appeal of your home. For those of you that are getting ready to sell your home keep this in mind...it's not that expensive to add some charm to the front or backyard of your home with some strategically placed pots with great looking plants. Add a nice looking door mat and there you have it, a warm and inviting front entry to your home.

I'm also staring my container herb garden. I love using fresh herbs and have wanted an herb garden for years (it's just that I never started one). Now that we're going to be here a while longer...I decided that I am going to have my herb garden, I'm going to be putting the herbs into some larger pots (one I find the box that they are in out in the garage). I'm going to have them on our deck, it needs something green :-) I'm going to take pictures of my plants on the porch once they start opening and blooming. I would love to have a small bench to put on my porch where I could sit and admire our little garden. I know that it will be a while until we get to the landscaping of our yard. So this for me is the next best thing.

Do something fun today, make a little container garden be it herbs or flowers. Put them in an area where not only you can enjoy them, but others can enjoy them as well. I have a girlfriend who loves to create topiaries out of small evergreen bushes and trees. She has these pom-pom like trees (reminds me greatly of Dr. Seuss) flanking both sides of her garage and front door. It adds a classy look and when you put them in fancy pots it's a real eye catcher! I've found myself toying with the idea of flanking my garage with those topiary trees.

The neighbors across the street from us must have thought that I was nuts, seeing all of those flats and pots of flowers and then watching me heave these 4 big bags of potting soil. Then I happily sat in the sun digging in the dirt planting flowers. Anyone who knows me knows that I am all about flowers...I love to see them everywhere, outside and inside of my home. The scent of flowers is throughout my home, I either have floral scented candles burning or I have those Glade plug-ins going on.

Imagine my surprise when I went to Target yesterday and I came across their dollar section and there were garden tools for $1! There were many colors to choose from...green, yellow, purple and pink! I even bought some tools for Mother's Day gifts for a couple of friends and a set of tools for each one of my Girl Scouts. From kneeling pads, to watering cans, garden stakes (to mark what kind of plants you have) and more...go to your local Target Store and check them out, but you better get there quick before they sell out!

Thunder Storms and Rain

I was rudely awakened at 3 am by pounding rain and very loud thunder. The lightening show was most impressive but unfortunately I was unable to get back to sleep. Just when there seemed to be a break in the storm and I was just on the verge of falling back to sleep I'd see (through my eyelids) my entire bedroom light up from the lightening strike then I'd hear the BANG of thunder and my windows would shake. It freaked out the cat and she was pretty shaken- meowing her head off every time the thunder would boom. So by 4:20 am I just gave up even staying in bed, I got up and got dressed. I started moving boxes and putting more stuff away.

Boxes, I've made quite the dent in that collection of boxes that is out in our garage. I want to put a bigger dent in them but the only way that is going to happen today is if I run them over with my car, LOL! I've got those flowering bulbs to put into pots and I need to work on those OSC scrapbooks some more.

Just say cheese...cheesecake that is! I made a Creme de Menthe cheesecake yesterday for OSC and did the house ever smell wonderfully fresh and minty! Today I've got a Turtle cheesecake in the oven, this one is for my boy to take to his JROTC Ball tomorrow night. Baking (for me) is such a wonderful stress reliever. Yesterday I also made a Ragout (pronounced ragu), it's a very veggie full tomato based pasta sauce. My daughter cracks me up, she is just crazy about this sauce! She'll eat it just as is...no pasta needed, LOL! I love to chop veggies and create delicious meals and snacks. Being able to think of something else besides where I'm going to put another vase platter, or box of books, LOL!

I'm off to spend some time in my Scrapbook Nook...with a cuppa of course!

Volunteering in your community

I can't begin to say it enough...be a volunteer in your community! Not only does it give you a sense of accomplishment it also helps out the local community in so many ways!

Today I attended a luncheon given in honor of the military members and military dependents that volunteer their time to the local community. There we a lot of people there and a lot more who were unable to attend at this luncheon. What a wonderful way to recognize those that do so much for the community be it organizing sports games, scouts, volunteer their time though the local schools, library, humane society, through their squadrons and more. Colonel Alexander of the Mission Support Group was our key speaker and let me be the first to say WOW! I find Colonel Alexander to be an inspiring role model for women of all age groups. Hands down, Mission Support Group is the Heart of this base! I'm proud to be a part of the military community here at Ellsworth AFB and a part of the Mission Support Group. We (the volunteers) received a certificate of appreciation with our names on it and beautiful picture frame from Hallmark, I love it and now am looking for a 5x7 photo to put in it :-)

My Webshots...

I feel badly about how I have neglected my webshots albums for so long. I will be striving to post to that album on a more regular basis than I have been doing these past few months. I want to share with you all what I've been working on and so forth.

Spring is in the Air

It's true, I think that Spring is trying very hard to be here now. The weather has been pleasant, not too excesivly windy, lets call it "breezy". I got the call yesterday from Lowe's Home Improvement Store that our window order was in and ready for pick up :-) I waited for the kids to get home from school and then Hannah and I went out and got the windows. We also picked up some wonderful spring plants for our flower pots. So today after school Hannah and I will be busy digging in the dirt! We also bought some Rosemary herb plants...I adore Rosemary! I want to go back and get some Lavender plants...I love the way Lavender smells, it's so lovely and fragrant!

I'm working on the OSC albums today while the kids are in school. Trying to get them together as best I can and then present them on Thursday (and ask for them back in the same evening). Ugh! And here I have to get 2 more months of functions (April and May) in them before those ladies leave in June. Expecting me to have them all up to date during a move is an unreal request and it kind of gets my panties in a bunch ...but I'll get over it. The scrapbooks were packed away, the layouts were packed away...and now I have to drop everything and work on them, grrrr! I have so many other things on my plate and then this was flopped on my lap, breath Sandie breath, LOL! My Scrapbook Nook is slowly coming along. I still have at least a dozen boxes of items that need to be put away in that room. I located the box with the adhesives and have most of my cardstock and paper out of their heavy duty boxes and back into their paper holders. There is still a great deal of work to be done in that room. My darling husband wants to to look at cabinets this week and pick out a style that I like. We're going to put in something that is more pleasing to the eye versus using those wire shelves we had in the utility closet we transformed into my scrapbook nook in the last house.

Now for another mug of my chocolate coffee and off to the garage to go through more boxes...ah moving is such fun, LOL!

There are days and there are days...

I'm beside myself with grief over the Virginia Tech mass murder that happened yesterday. I pray that the Lord was by their sides comforted them and welcomed them into heaven. These were innocent souls just students attending college, striving for a higher education, taken down just as their lives were beginning.

It's rough having a day where you are feeling as if you are on an emotional roller-coaster. The man who is doing the Radon pump set up was supposed to be here at 8:30 am...did he show up? NO! I missed out on a luncheon with some girlfriends because of him not being here. It angers me when people don't show up when they say they are going to show up. So basically, I've been stuck here all day waiting on this man to show up and probably do 15 minutes worth of work. I need to go to the recycle center on base and rid myself of a minivan FULL of compressed cardboard boxes and bags of packing paper. I need to go downtown and pay for our latest order of Easy Track closet components.

OH MY GOSH...guess who drove up a few minutes ago, dropped in a few buckets of gravel and left without saying a single word to me. Yup t was the man doing the Radon work, ugh!I'm going to finish eating my lunch and then I'm off to run some errands. I'm not about to wait around any longer for this guy. I'm feeling quite put out!

It's Monday Gromit

Ahhh Monday, my favorite day of the week...no seriously it really is! Everyone is off to do their thing, kids on their way to school, husband gone to work and now for me to have a moment of peace and quite. Do I have a list of things "to do", of course I do! For the life of me, I seem unable to locate the box that contains the rest of my spices.

My darling husband has been a busy bee this weekend. I've got under the cabinet lighting, a large pull out drawer in a cabinet for my pots and pans )oooh that is such a nice feature too). I've got my wire racks in my pantry for my spices, vinegars, oils and other items. And he hung more blinds too! My Scrapbook Nook now has those lovely 2 inch plantation blinds, oooohhhh I love it! I've also got a remote switch that turns on and off my kitchen light. The electricians (who have proved to us that they have no common sense what so ever) wired this house just a little strangely. The switch to turn on the kitchen light is locate by the back door, not a realistic spot for it what so ever! So there are so many wonderful things at your local hardware and home improvement stores these days...and this remote switch is just one of a handful of great innovations for the home! Did I mention that he also installed a medicine cabinet? Oh yes he did! I can't believe that not a single bathroom in this house has one. Actually this builder doesn't put them in, if you want it it's "extra". SO my husband being the fixer upper man that he is saw a need, figured out how it was going to go in and then went to the home improvement store and looked at the different styles on display, bought one, brought it home and installed it. There's none of that let it hang around and gather dust stuff going on around here. My husband is not a procrastinator, oh no not in the least! When it comes to getting things done in the home he is right on top of it! He has made lots of storage spaces for me to be able to get things put away. He installed wider shelves in the pantry this weekend, and now everything that is supposed to go in it actually fits...how awesome is that?!!! I tell ya ladies this husband of mine is a true catch!

Now it's time for me to go into the garage and bring in more boxes. My goal is for us to be able to park all 3 cars in there by the end of the week. Lets see if I can do it, LOL!

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

There is something that I had totally over looked and it's how frequent trains come though this area of the country. You see, living on base had us ignorant to the idea that trains come though this area more than a couple of times a month. When in fact it's more like 3 to 4 times a day. We are not bothered by the sounds of the train, just surprised at how many times a day they really do come thought this area.

Planes, heck we hear B-1 bombers taking off and landing nearly every day. But you also have to keep in mind that commercial planes don't land at the base. We are now more near to the commercial airport and see a lot more of those planes coming in for a landing than we did while on base. And wow! Do we ever have a terrific view of B-1's landing an taking off. The next time there's an Air Show we're staying at home because we have a first class view!

We do not get the automobile drive by traffic in this neighborhood like we did while living on base. No more loud car stereos booming all day and night. I can see the highway in the distance but we don't hear the cars- how nice is that? :-)

I want to make a layout based on those 3 things and title it just the same "Planes, Trains and Automobiles". I'll need to take pictures of all 3 of those things and go to work on it.

Home Improvement

Here we are in a brand new house and yet we're doing "home improvements". Lets face it, not every house is going to have all of the little extras that you would like. So we're adding things here and there to tweak it out to what "we" need.

It's a beautiful day, the wind is minimal and the sun is shining brightly! The kids are exploring the creek that is our house. There must be some good stuff to explore since they've been gone over 2 hours. Usually if it's lame they would have been back here looking for some lunch about now.

I've got a workman putting in the radon gas pump system today. It's perfect weather for him to be working on this stuff too. We've cleared out enough boxes to be able to park 2 of our cars in the garage, now that right there is a major accomplishment folks! I've not gotten any father on getting stuff put away in my scrapbook nook - but then again we're also looking at putting in some cabinets and wooden shelves. So I'm taking my time on getting that room put together.

My wonderful husband is out getting shelving to expand the shelves in the linen closet that is located in the master bathroom and the pantry in our kitchen. Making these areas have more potential storage space is not only for us, it'll help in adding to the future resale value of our home. I've still got to figure out how I am going to store my knives. I have an oak storage block but that drove me bats at the last house since counter space was so limited. I suppose that I could use that here but I want to keep my counters as clutter free as possible. I have to find it though as I do need a temporary storage solution as having them wrapped in dishtowels stored in a drawer is not working for me.

I don't know about my kids but I'm in need of some lunch. My headache is growing worse and I know that it's from hunger.

Life...as I know it

I could not stop myself from laughing this morning as my children were scurrying out the door to catch the bus to school. Living off base is a very good thing! You see, in our subdivision the school bus stops at every house picking kids up for school. This morning I'm telling the kids...get ready the bus will be here at any moment. Are they listening to me? Oh of course not, LOL! So there it is, stopped right smack dab in front of our house waiting for my kids to come out (all I can say is what a nice bus driver we have). So I'm now telling the kids that the bus is waiting right outside the door...Andrew comes running up the stairs grabs his backpack and runs out the door. Hannah on the other hand is doing something that reminds me of a Chinese Fire drill running all over the place with her hands in the air and then she realizes that she doesn't have her shoes on nor does she remember where she took them off. I started cracking up as I suggested that she wear the slippers that are by the front door, LOL!!! Oh my gosh that sent her into a tizzy! Then suddenly she remembers that they are under the kitchen table (not a smart place to leave your shoes) she puts them on but not all the way and scoots out the door as I toss her a coat and her back pack...did I mention that she's got this "whaaaaaa" going on this look on her face that is of total surprise and horror that her shoes are not really on her feet...it was seriously comical here this morning! It's been an hour and a half since this all occurred and I'm still laughing about it. Did I mention that my kids must be horrified that the entire bus loaded full of kids saw their 40 something mom in her jammies- oh yeah life is full of wonderful moments such as this!

The Human Mind

I received this from a friend today and what a crack up this one is! This is another one that you’re going to share with friends!

 

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it  

deosnt mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are,  

the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat  

ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl  

mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs  

is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter  

by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.                       

 

  

 

It's Thursday

We awoke to there being another beautiful white blanket of snow covering everything the eye could see. Each morning it's been like this and then by the early afternoon it's gone, melted by the sun with it's moisture seeping into the ground.

I've got a list of things I want to accomplish today, well I'll be happy if I get half of the list finished but am prepared to go the extra mile to start getting things brought into my new and improved Scrapbook Nook. I started bringing in a few things from the garage into the Scrapbook Nook. The paint has cured and now for me to assess my storage needs. As I bring things into the room I'm also going through them and will be weeding out stuff. Things that I no longer need and or want are outta here! I'm serious, I do not want to have things hanging around that I'm not using. I want to stream line (hey don't laugh I'm serious here). There are things that just have to go! All of those lettering stencils that I had to have 7, and 8 years ago and no longer use...gone! I've kept my decorative scissors and have used them on various projects so they can stay...for now. Supplies are being gone though yet AGAIN! I've gone through my paper stash and have donated a ton of it to my girlfriends. But now I need to sit down and go through the stash of embellishments and purge the ones that I know that I will not use. A local scrapbook store is collecting supplies for Hospice patients as they are working with them on making memory books. Hey this is a worth while charity and they can have my no longer needed supplies!

Alright I'm off to make some phone calls...need to see if that man who is supposed to be working on our Radon situation is coming today (as he didn't come over like he was supposed to yesterday- or even call for that fact). Such is life after moving into a new home, tons to do and it seems like it's taking for forever and a half to get it all done. I also have to call our contractor about a window that needs to be replaced, a do a couple of returns in town.

Please say a prayer

Yesterday I posted that every day is a Gift From God- and it's true it is. But I also knew something that I couldn't write about until it was made public knowledge. A child from my daughter's school had committed suicide on Tuesday. This was an 11 year old boy that she actually knew and was friends with. My heart goes out to the family, I can only imagine their grief. But that leaves me wondering about where we are as a society, are we not listening to our children? Hannah said that the last thing she talked to the boy about was his pet guinea pig that died last year she asked him and that was last week. She said that he was nice, smart and a popular child at school. He was well liked by everyone and that he played basketball very well. I remember this boy being in my daughter's 4th grade class, he was silly like all 4th graders should be.

The school principal addressed the child's death of the PA system (this is not something that I would have done). He didn't mention that it was a suicide but did touch on the fact that he will be missed and that the death of a child certainly is a tragedy. The school counselor was helping the children that were in his classes deal with his sudden death. My daughter said that there were a lot of boys and girls crying yesterday. The the rumor started spreading that the boy had killed himself. Hannah said that she was saddened by this. She told me that as far as she knew that this boy had nothing to be sad about. I let her know that we really don't know anything about his home life, that we only know how he is at school around other children. He leaves behind an older brother and a younger brother, a father (who is in the military) and a mother all of whom loved him very much.

I reinforced my thoughts on suicide with my children yesterday...That there is without a doubt NOTHING in this world that is worth taking your life over, absolutely 100% NOTHING! That there is nothing that they can not come to their parents about, that we have no secrets from one another. If you have a question ask it! We are hear to listen and will do our best to help them or to find help for them.

Please say a prayer as this military family deals with this terrible tragedy.

How to get from New York to London

 

This chuckle is courtesy of my friend Liz...

1. go to www.google.com <http://www.google.com/>
2. click on "maps" (above the search box)
3. click on "get directions" (under the search box)
4. type "New York" in the first box (the "from" box)
5. type "London" in the second box (the "to" box)
6. scroll down to step #23

 

I was cracking up when I did this, trust me it's worth sharing with friends!

Lunch with Friends

A lovely way to spend part of your afternoon is to have lunch with friends. A girlfriend on base opened her home to us for lunch and it was wonderful! There were many different types of salads, each one yummier than the last. I don't think that I could pick out just one that was the best as they were all so delicious! We had wonderful conversation- that open heart to heart kind of talk that close friends have with one another. After yesterdays massage and today's quality time with people -I enjoy being around, I feel so very blessed. I'm happy and content and at peace with the world. I can't begin to tell you all what an awesome feeling this is, to feel this at peace.

Did the man who is supposed to to the work for our Radon ventilation call me? No, will I get it taken care of? Yes. Am I mad that he didn't call? Not even. There are things to worry about and others that make no sense to get so stressed out over. Reminds me of how I was spazzing out over the bathroom faucet fixture, LOL!

Time for some tea and to assess what needs to get unpacked.

Each and every day is a gift from God

I truly do believe what I just said...every day is a gift from God, it really is. Yesterday my husband really surprised me with something that we said that we would do but never have. And hear I was thinking that he was going to take me to do one of the following;
a) to go look at used cars for our son who will soon be driving on his own.
b) to take a Corvette out on a test drive (yes it's the hubby's dream car).
c) to go look at landscaping.
The big surprise was that he took me to Mystique Massage, oh my gosh I was like a limp noodle when I left that place! What an awesome surprise! We the most relaxing 1 hour massage of our lives! My darling husband thought that after all of the stress that we've been going though that this would be a special treat for us, and was he ever right about that! My recommendation is to do it! I plan on doing this again for both of us. I know that I'm going to book an hour massage for the 2 of us for our anniversary (unless my husband beats me to it Ü)

I came back from our massage session feeling sooooo relaxed, it was as if all of my tension just melted away. I made us a fabulous dinner of my Italian style marinated pork loin roast that is cooked in dry white wine (use wine that you drink not cooking wine) and fat free low sodium chicken broth. Now, this will fill your home with a wonderful scent Ü and have your family asking you "when is dinner?". The roasted garlic mashed potatoes came out great and a simple side salad is all you need to have a wonderful yet simple dinner.

After dinner my wonderful husband finished installing the rest of the blinds in the house. No more glare from the sun, woohoo! When it snows the sun reflects so brightly that you feel as if you need to have on sunglasses in the house, LOL! And it's nice to have that privacy thing going on while there are construction workers near by. I do have to figure out what I'm going to do with the window that is above the kitchen sink. I tend to get a great deal of sun through that window but I don't want a full blind on it.

Today I'm having lunch at a girlfriends house on base and afterwards it's back here for the installation of the Radon pump and to unpack more boxes, LOL! Each and every day is a gift, let those you love know how much they mean to you!

a 100% pass!

I'm doing the happy dance...our little cottage passed the final inspection in record time- 7 minutes! Our cleaning lady did an awesome job and I would HIGHLY recommend her to anyone who wants to get a 100% pass on their final inspection! That's one thing to check off of my list of things that were stressing me out!

Now of course I need to get more stuff unpacked and put away, ah the toil of every day life. My husband has his secret surprise for me this afternoon. He still won't tell me where we're going or what we're doing on our "date" and it's got me curious as to what he's up to :-)

Okay off to go unpack...

run run run

Do you ever feel as if you're a dog running around in a circle chasing your tail? Oh my gosh that is how I have felt all day long! Running in circles getting no where fast.
Our new replacement appliances arrived today. Did they call like they were supposed to before they came over? Noooooooooooo. So there they are, 2 newbies (New employees ) to the world of delivering appliances. I hate to say it but it was almost a farce. I knew more about these appliances then they ever could. I knew that oven doors have hinges and are removable...on any brand. If it wasn't for the fact that these two boobs were messing with MY new appliances it would have been down right funny. Watching them try to figure out how to remove the oven door was cracking me up...could they listen to what I was telling them? Oh no...but damn it if they didn't listen to me when I was waving the instruction booklet at them with pictures in it showing them how to remove the oven door (just like I was telling them how to do it). I let them know (and I actually said the words) "Look guys, this isn't rocket science okay, my soon to be 12 year old daughter can do this". Okay so I didn't bother to mention to them that she'll probably be a rocket scientist one day, LOL!
After that Andrew and I had some Mom and Boy driving time. I let him drive me to the base, to Lowe's and back to Lowe's again and then to the base again and then home and back to the base again. Even Andrew was getting tired of all of the driving around that we had to do. I made sure to get that $300 credit to my credit card today. There was no way I was going to trust them to "just do it" so I made sure that it got done! So yes I have received my $300 and I'm happy! I turned around and spent it on the new leaded glass side windows for the front entry. The front entry is going to look fabulous once we're done with it! Each side of the front door is flanked with these long narrow side light windows that are just plain. Since we replaced the window in the door with a leaded glass window it has made a huge difference in how we look at the front door. Now this will add greatly to the look of our new home and add in the resale value of it later on.
I spent the afternoon disposing of recyclable items, and sweeping out the garage. The little cottage on base is CLEAN! Oh my word the woman who cleaned our base house is a miracle worker!!! I would recommend her to anyone! I was never able to get the stove as clean as she has gotten it, all I have to say is WOW!!! The house smelled clean and it looks great!
I've gotten many boxes of our belongings put away- mainly my husbands clothing. Who knew that he had so much stuff, I didn't. I've been making a small dent here and there. I had planned on getting into the formal dining room but alas the spouse had other plans for me. Tomorrow is the final inspection on the cottage on base. Then in the afternoon I'm meeting my husband for a "date". He won't tell me where we are going or what we are doing...just that it's a surprise.
As an added surprise my friend Kristi dropped by with a beautiful Azalea plant just FULL of bright pink flowers to welcome us into our new home. She said that when she saw it that it reminded her of my kitchen and dining room of our little cottage on base. What a charming and thoughtful surprise! I love the flowers and they are in our formal dining room window seat waiting for nicer weather for me to put them in one of my giant flower pots on our front porch. My mother-in-law sent us a lovely floral bouquet on Saturday and WOW they are so fragrant! They are a group of all kinds of flowers...I love them all! My motto for today...there's no such thing as TOO many flowers!

Happy Easter Happy Spring, Happy Happy Everything!

Okay for some people it's a Happy Easter for others such as myself it could be better. We waited ALL DAY LONG for those appliances and we finally get a call...at 8:45 pm letting us know that we will NOT be getting those appliances delivered, lets face it folks, I was not happy. I made a phone call to Lowe's and spoke to the manager on duty...explained my situation - basically letting him know that I was held hostage in my home all day long, not being able to leave in case the appliances arrived. Not being able to do any holiday baking there are no cheesecakes or baked honey ham anywhere to be had (which is a very sad situation). That our stove had been sitting in the middle of my kitchen unhooked since 7 am, that I had not been able to give my family a proper lunch or dinner and it looks like it will be the same thing for Easter Sunday! I point blank asked him how Lowe's plans to compensate me for being so seriously unconvinced- are you ready? I'm getting my new appliances delivered Monday morning and can you please say a prayer that they are not damaged because they were on a truck all day long yesterday- one that went out to Custer. AND here's the good part, I am getting a $300 refund (not to be confused with a store credit) but a real refund to my credit card.
My wonderful husband took us all out for a nice Easter Brunch at Dakota's (the Officer/Enlisted Club on base). What a nice set up they had, great food and terrific service! It was nice being able to be out of the house and not having to worry about making a nice meal for my family. While at the club we ran into several friends, many of which were curious as to what was going on with our move off base and how it's going and so forth. I told a couple of friends the story about the nondelivery of our appliances yesterday and the last minute cancellation of the cleaning lady. Yes there have been a few rough patches but we are getting through them. I have hired a wonderful cleaning lady and she and her staff have already cleaned my house and it's ready for inspection (wow, how awesome is that?). But alas, I have to wait for Lowe's to bring our new appliances Monday morning so I'm still tied to having the final inspection done on Tuesday.
If it wasn't for my 11 year old daughter trying to comfort me while we were in the commissary I would have broke down in tears today. You see, I was buying frozen TV dinners for us to eat tonight and tomorrow. Hannah made me laugh when she said "Well Mom it could be worse...at least it isn't Christmas". True it isn't Christmas, but it's just as important of a Holiday is you ask me! Here I had planned out this wonderful meal for my family, our first holiday in our new home and what are we eating? Frozen microwavable meals...NICE! And then she pointed out that we have 2 microwave's that we can use. Okay, so it's not so bad looking at it the way she was. From a kids point of view it was picnic and junk food heaven, LOL!
Now on a better note...Our bedroom is set up and it looks beautiful! We have blinds on our bedroom window and will be putting up blinds in the other rooms today. Our bedroom is now my personal retreat, a space that I can sit in my recliner and read a book and feel relaxed. I slept last night, I mean really slept well. I woke up and felt relaxed, for the first time in a long time!
Now for me to work some more on the formal dining room, I want to take it over like I did the master bedroom- working on just it and nothing else until I am done with it. That's how I want to do each and every room in the house, to work on "it" then move on to the next space. No more of that jumping from one room to another than another until I'm so frazzled that I don't know where I'm going or what I am doing.
So off I go to unpack some more boxes and have a "cuppa" (that's British/Aussie slang cup of tea). And do I still think that we are blessed with all of the crazy stuff that it happening to us every day? Yes I do. Just because this is happening doesn't mean that God has forsaken us, it's just that there is a reason for everything and I don't know how it's going to end quite yet. I'm confident that my being patient will aid in things working out in a more pleasant manner. So I'm without my stove for a couple more days...I'm getting $300 compensation for that inconvenience, that's money that we will put to good use in other ways. We have a roof over our heads, warm beds to sleep in, food to eat and clothes to wear- that's a lot more than some families have. And for all of that I give thanks to the Lord.

another day of working on the new house...

It's Saturday and I've been waiting for Lowe's to deliver the replacement appliances. I'm not very good at waiting for people...those open windows of time really kill me. You know the ones, "we'll be there between the hours of now and forever" ugh! Today's window is between the hours of 12 noon and 4 pm, well it's 3:14 pm and NOTHING!!! My husband has disconnected the range and I'm not about to empty the refrigerator until they actually arrive with the appliance (hopefully it's undamaged).
To make time pass more quickly I've written a letter, marinated my pork roast and have it all wrapped up nicely in plastic wrap, vacuumed the upstairs, swept all of the floors without carpeting, and have sent a few e-mails. I'm going to lose my mind waiting around like this. I need to hunt for things in the garage...things like my clay roaster so I can cook our Easter Hammy for tomorrow's dinner.

Our bedroom has been painted and it looks great! Oh my word I love the color- it's called Wicker and it's a great looking tan color (very relaxing). I can hardly wait to set up our bedroom...I need to look at the bed skirt and see if I need to iron it (I'm sure that I do). I know that I need to press the valances- I still can't believe that I found them at Lowe's, what a huge surprise that was! I looked at fabric and nothing grabbed me, then I was looking at Lowe's for shower curtains and those were on the same isle and low and behold- there where 3 different styles of nice looking valances in the color scheme that I was looking for...so I bought all 3 different styles and brought them home and had Lucien look at them with me. We made our decision and here we are Ü now to install the plantation blinds and curtain rods. Of course we have to wait 24 hours for the paint to dry and cure before we do any of that. I'm just anxious to get it all done.
My biggest bargain of the week was finding these napkin and place mat sets by Waverly for a mere $2.00 each! Oh my gosh I can't buy the fabrics and thread and make them for that price! They're got that wonderful Scotch-guard stain resistant treatment too! Here and there I've been finding little gems and that was mine for yesterday Ü I drug the kids to JC Penney after lunch at Olive Garden (I've got to bribe them with something really good to get them to go shopping with me) I found rugs to go in both of the upstairs bathrooms and a lovely shower curtain for our Master Bathroom. The off to Sam's Club to buy some pillows and a few other things.
So while I'm frittering away the time on the computer my husband is downstairs painting the 2nd color on the walls of my scrapbook nook. I can hardly wait to get in there and get my scrapbooking tools and supplies out, organized and put away. I didn't send any Easter cards this year and it's gnawing on me. I have some that I made with the intention of sending but alas I forgot to pull them out so I could send them off, they'll just have to wait for next year.
Only 20 more minutes to go on this 4 hour window. I will be VERY upset if they do not show up today. I think that Lucien will be pretty bent out of shape if they don't come, especially since he doesn't have any more of that sealant for the gas pipe and tomorrow is EASTER!

We are in the house!

Oh my gosh what an ordeal it has been- talk about the stuff soap operas are made out of, LOL! Today was supposed to be the final inspection of our base house but wait...the cleaning lady cancelled on us at the last minute (no joke). that left me scrambling to find another team to clean our house all at the last minute. I was so upset yesterday that I didn't want to be around anyone. I ended up hiring my neighbors cleaning lady and her team to do the job and with it being Easter weekend (and it's also spring break weekend for our school system) well I had to push back the final inspection date until the 10th. Every day we are tied to that base house is one more day that we do not get the housing allowance- grrrr!

My husband and I have been working double duty...trying to get moved into this house and moved out of the other house. Getting appliances installed here and the rooms painted before the furniture arrives. The kids rooms look great, my scrapbook nook is half painted and the master bedroom is on hold until the weekend. The cottage on base has been given a good coat of primer and is waiting patiently to be cleaned. We finally have everything moved out of it...what a long hard journey it was too! Moving yourself is not for wimps! It's much easier to move across country than it was to move four and a half miles down the road. Each and every day has been a struggle, it's been bitterly cold and it's snowed every single day as a matter of fact, it's snowing right now. The weather has been so raw, I've got a major head cold going on that is kicking my hiney, our son Andrew has it too (poor kid is also doing his SAT testing this week).
What else has been going on... our phone line was messed up and we finally got our land line installed after being here 5 days-ugh! Got the Internet back on line today (yes it's another interesting story there too). This moving in thing totally makes me think of our European vacation last summer where every day something went wrong, LOL! As the saying goes...What doesn't kill us makes us stronger right? Well for me it's making me down right crabby!
The appliances arrive and guess what...they're damaged. We have no choice but to install them and wait for Lowe's to bring us new ones. My beautiful convection oven range is beat up as well as the refrigerator. Can you see me using the grill in the snow? If people thought that I was crabby now...they should see me cooking in the snow with 45 to 55 mph winds...that would just be plain UGLY!
On the up side...it's nice to be in a larger house where we can spread out and not feel as if we are on top of one another. We have tons of boxes to go through and it makes every one we open a good surprise. It's always fun finding that little thing that you've been looking for...I found Wilson the Travel Pig hanging out in Andrew's room in a laundry basket, I found Hannah's over due library book hanging out in my walk-in closet underneath a pile of clothes, I found my husbands patches for his flight suit under the bathroom sink and Andrew found his ROTC Friday shirt in the guest room closet.
Our entire garage is filled with boxes filled with our belongings. It took us 3 weeks to pack it all up and I'm sure that it will take at least that long to put it all away. We still have to expand the width of the shelves in the linen closet (it's in our master bathroom) and extend the width of the shelves in the pantry. The Easy Track systems have been ordered for the kids closets... but they have yet to arrive. We still need to get the other 2 shower curtain rods up, put up the plantation blinds on all of the windows and then go for installing curtain rods and hanging up the valances and sheers. I'm tired of just thinking about what we still have to get done around here.