Some Work Upstairs

Wanna see some new pics of the house??

Of course you do. haha

So let me show you what's been going on upstairs...

These two pics were taken when we moved in. This room is probably gonna be Cat's.

There's still quite a bit to be done. But at least there's insulation!!!

Ooo wanna see Hallie's room?

Before. See all the day light coming through the wall?

Let there be floor and no extra light. hahaha

And now Matt's room...

Before. The window is covered with siding.

Ooops not much has happened here. It became junk storage. Oh and look the window is uncovered!

The Destructin-Ator!!

I have introduced you all the Rufus before. He's usually a very sweet, well behaved pooch, but sometimes..... well he's quite the lil pain in the butt.

Yesterday I came home to the mess of all messes! Jeremy was all ready here and had picked up some of Rufus' (aka Elvis the Destructin-Ator! -this is his name when he's in trouble) mess.

He had the cushions off the couch. (Probably looking for Matthew's stinky socks to chew on.  YUCK!) Then he decided to drag the laundry room trash out- lint balls and dryer sheets. Somewhere he found candy wrappers. But no that wasn't the worst.

He found my bag of wool locks and ripped them open and scattered them all over the bed and floors! What a turd!

He's lucky I love him and that he's sweet more than he's naughty.

Never-Ending List

Now I know why nothing ever seems to get done around this house. I have a list a mile long and it keeps growing!

I decided to go through the house and see just how much there is that can be done and needs to be done soon.

(the only repairs this list includes are minor ones)

1. 
   
   Organize the bathroom
2. 
   
   Scrub the bathroom shelves
3. 
   
   Mop the bathroom floor
4. 
   
   get rid of the old sink
5. 
   
   find globes for the bathroom light fixture
6. 
   
   replace flush handle
7. 
   
   organize kitchen
8. 
   
   re-finish counter top
9. 
   
   take out old black splash
10. 
    
    scrub stove
11. 
    
    finish cleaning out back room
12. 
    
    take yard sale stuff to sister's
13. 
    
    clean blinds in the living room and kitchen
14. 
    
    get all junk out of my room that doesn't belong in there
15. 
    
    dust and vacuum my room
16. 
    
    find blocks for burn barrel
17. 
    
    get everything off the front porch
18. 
    
    find gutter guards
19. 
    
    clean out the back gutter
20. 
    
    get rid of tree limbs
21. 
    
    mow yard
22. 
    
    cut trees out of fence
23. 
    
    clean out the room upstairs
24. 
    
    trim Rufus' nails
25. 
    
    lower blinds in the living room

Check back tomorrow. I'm sure there will be at least 5 more things added to this list.

Hallie & Rufus

Two peas in a pod- Hallie & Rufus.

The new rule of thumb in our home should you stop in for a visit- you must meet Rufus before you get to Hallie. If not be prepared to be bitten. Very protective little guy. Kinda like Ruby and Jeremy.

Unlike Ruby, Rufus likes the camera.

(Something else he and Hallie have in common.)

 

Perhaps he likes it a little too much!

Hallie made Ruby get in for this one. I think she got bit out of this. Good thing for her she has a tough hide. :P 

Scrub-a-Dub

Last Sunday I had taken the dogs out and came back into the bathroom to clean up Ruby's little mess. I put two fingers (no pressure) on the corner of the sink as I pitched her droppings into the toliet and the sink fell off the wall!

(That's the old sink. One of those old-fashioned jobbies that hang on the wall.)

So what did I do? I bee lined it to Lowe's and found a sink top/vanity combo. It took some fan-angling but it's all together.

It's a little crowded. I would rather have the sink on the wall opposite the commode, but I'm just not ready to learn how to move the drain and water lines.

I had to learn to run a new drain too. The job isn't perfect by any means, but not too bad for someone who really didn't have a clue. :)

Luke the Gumball Tree

Meet Luke our gumball tree. He is massive!
(Is it weird that we named our tree?)

Here's a closer shot of Luke~

The wind is not a friend of Luke's.

This is the little half of the limb that blew out in this afternoon's storm.

And this is the big half.

Hallie wanted in the shot too.

Remember I said "halves"

Yes it was one big limb that stretched from one side of the alley to the other.

It also took out the old cable/phone line to the neighbor's house.

We found an old, dull ax and I chopped it in half.

So much for feeling it tomorrow, I'm feeling it now!

There was a couple of good things that came about from this~

1. The kids gleaned bunches of gumballs and are now ready for their next battle.

And

2. Jeremy and his buddy had a good laugh at the thought of me swinging an ax.

I am reconsidering the thought of heating with wood some day. That's a lot of work! But it would also be an awesome workout.

Old Door from Habitat ReStore

As if mowing the lawn and the alley wasn't enough this morning. I decided to see if I could hang the new door Jeremy and I picked up at the Habitat ReStore weekend before last.

This is what it looks like without the door. Ewwww!!

Would you really want your company to see this the moment they walked into your home?

"Cutting process" was interesting. A jig saw is not my favorite thing to use. And if you look really close you can see the door is a little wavy at the top. I had to cut 3/4" off. I'm really glad Cousin Bob forgot his sawhorses the other day. :D

I had to have help hanging the door of course. Jeremy is so lucky! He got the job of holding it in place while I got the hinges attached to the door frame. Now we just need an antiqey looking doorknob.

Living Room

The before pictures

The after pictures

Moved In

We are FINALLY all moved in! Can you believe it?! Still not unpacked, but.....

Oooo that's a creepy pic, isn't it? I think I need to get some new pics of the house. I have some before pics and as I start getting rooms put together I'll post the befores and afters so ya'll can see how the old place is coming along.

You know what is really tempting? To take a stay-cation. I have been self-employed for the last three years and have yet to take any kind of vacation. My last "vacation" of sorts was when I worked at the nursing home and used my vacation time to recover from my gall bladder surgery. I think I'm a little past due. How bout you?

Never Wash a Latchhook Rug

in the washing machine. It falls apart and clogs the drain. This isn't going to be a fun day. :(

Difference in Cameras

Believe it or not these two shots are the same shot. Taken at the same distance, lighting... The only difference- the cameras. The dark shot was taken with my old camera- a Vivitar ViviCam 5386. The other picture was taken with my new Canon PowerShot SX120. Can you tell which camera I like better?! I had to wait a long time to get the Canon PowerShot but it was so worth it!

My 1st Necklace

I think I have found another something to keep me busy. Tell me what you think. I'm also thinking that I may try to start an online shop soon.

Thriftin & Junkin

I've been doing a lot of this lately. I really need to slack off at least till I get moved.

Here's a couple of pics of some cool stuff I found at the Goodwill in Boonville a couple of days ago.

And I found these pretties at an antiques store in Newburgh last Thursday.

Procrastinating

Well it's Tuesday. I have been to work this morning and was finished by 10:30. That's not bad considering I did some extra cleaning while I was there and not just the usual going over. Just wish I could experience that kind of momentum when it comes to cleaning my house.

Speaking of cleaning my house, I took a look-see at the FlyLady site to see what's on the to-do list for this week according to her list. This week is the master bedroom. I know it really wouldn't take that long to clean my room and FlyLady doesn't even expect you to do the whole thing in a day. How long is it she wants? 15 minutes I think. Now I started off good this morning. I spent 15 minutes and tidied up the living room before I went to work. You know you would be really surprised at just what you can do with 15 minutes. I couldn't see the top of my desk, let alone the couch. No I didn't go into detail and make sure every little piece went back exactly like it's supposed to but it's close enough and if I have unexpected company I won't be ashamed to let them in the door. I was going to start on my room, but then my tummy growled. It decided lunch was far more important than a clean room.

Egg and Cheese sandwich with just a little mayo. Mmmmmm I bought some different eggs yesterday at the grocery. Usually I just grab whatever and go. As long as the eggs aren't broke and their cheap, in the cart they go. Well, I've been trying to see things in a "greener" light. So yesterday I opted for the Cage Free brown eggs. I would have liked to bought the organic cage free eggs, but at $3 something a carton, I'm afraid they just were not in my budget. Well I can't taste any difference in my egg sandwich, but if the chickens have a better life than it was all right.

Well, enough play time. The washer is buzzing and my room is crying, "Clean me. Please clean me." Have a good day!!

New Layout

I found this awesome new layout at http://www.btemplates.com ! I think this suits me much better.

The kids went to Youth Group this evening. I believe that it is really rubbing off on Matthew. I turned around to tell everyone to get ready for bed and he was already stretched out with his eyes closed. I saw his lips moving. Ahhh praying before bed. That's really good. Now if Hallie can just come along too.

While the kids were at Youth Group, I went to Wal-Mart. I know I say it a hundred times, that I can't stand that store anymore. I really do mean it. But it's about all there is in this little bitty one horse town. I went to look at digital cameras. No I did not buy one. I want to kind of. But I know my camera has got to be floating around this house somewhere and why spend that kind of money for something you already have? But I was finally able to do something this evening. I went into Wal-Mart and didn't buy anything at all!!! I think I deserve a pat on the back.

I looked for things for a new craft project but decided I had enough UFO's lying around all ready. I have decided that I will not start another project until everything else is completed. So here's what's on my to-do list:

1. Finish fat man- All I have left to do is make his head
2. A quilt I started on last year- this will be a full size quilt
3. and the Block of the Month quilt I signed up for on MJF- I am really really behind on this one. I think this one is supposed to be a twin size quilt.
4. A back pack style purse

I believe this is all I have left waiting for me to finish. As soon as I hit the publish button, I'll probably remember something else.

Dude I got a Dell!

Hahahaha Whatever happened to those commercials? So the old computer died yet again. I am tired of trying to keep breathing life into it. I broke down this past weekend and went to Best Buy and treated myself to a new pc. Yes a Dell. I didn't go looking for a Dell. I was actually going to get an eMachines. Yeah the eMachines was cheaper, but also had less space on the hard drive and less memory. I decided that the Dell would be a better buy for me considering that I use my pc to store my pictures, music and what-not. I can wind up with a 100-something pics of Hallie alone. That is when I have my camera! Speaking of which I know a couple of girls that need to go clean their bedroom and find my camera.

Book Review for The Noticer

The Noticer by Andy Andrews is one of those books that is hard to put down once you begin reading. Not only does the author hold your attention with the story, but he also teaches some wonderful lessons about life. The little things in life that go unnoticed or people tend to take for granted, he brings back to the surface. In reading the lessons taught by Jones, I began to see many ways in which I need to apply them to my own life. I don’t know anyone that likes to admit that they are at fault, have made mistakes or bad choices, but we all have at some time or another in our lives. But the character, Jones, teaches what it means to be a true friend, to be a loving and loyal spouse, a loving parent, a fair and honest business person and so many other things. This book is great for any age to read. Jones is not bashful in who he speaks to- young and old they are all the same to him. I have enjoyed this book very much and will recommend it to my family and friends and anyone else along the way.
I would also like to thank Thomas Nelson for my complimentary copy of The Noticer.