Sentimental Sunday

My friend Cha Cha is hosting Sentimental Sunday and I decided to join in this week

I am in the planning stages of a 40th wedding anniversary party for my mom and dad

I have been looking at pictures of days gone of all of us as I ready for a surprise of my mom and dad and came across this picture of my mom and I after Christmas in  probably 1982

I got the knitted outfit from Santa for my doll

I loved playing with dolls so much and always wanted to be a mommy

I can remember the whole house ~ we are in the living room and even though this set is long since gone I can still recall how my mom said she saved  a long time to buy it

Red plaid set with green carpeting ~ I guess I know where my love of plaid comes from

I kept warm with that afghan on the back of the couch 

My neighbor Thelma made it. She is now in her late 80's and a few months back she gave my mom an afghan that she crocheted for my baby because she said she was not sure she would be here to meet him or her!

On the right hand side I can see my rocking chair ~ I loved that chair!
Oooh I have so many more pictures that I am weeding through
I will be taking a sentimental journey all week long as my task is to tackle PICTURES!

Whats Going On?

Do you ever feel like you are missing something and cannot figure out what it is?

I have been missing something and it is this ~ my blog and all of you!

So since the last time we spoke things have been pretty good

*Through faith we got through the unemployment hurdle and my hubby is now working for the unemployment office... go figure!

*I believe that we are #5 on the adoption list as of right now

*Still making changes to the house and loving every second of it including decluttering (pics will follow of this process)

*I have not found a full time job yet

* Mom launched her baking business

Italian Pepper Cookies

*Planning my parents 40th wedding anniversary party for April

I will be back ...promise!

November 1

For me it is officially the Holiday season

As soon as Halloween gets here, I start thinking of Thanksgiving and Christmas

I begin taking a survey of what I need to do to prepare for the "holiday season" in terms of decorating and gift giving!

This year will be a little different as we both refocus our priorities

For Thanksgiving we will spend the day with my in laws at their home in the beautiful country

For 11 years we spent Thanksgiving with my moms brothers and sisters... it was always a wonderful  gathering ~ and now it is time to move on!

Christmas Eve is at our house with my parents and the hubbies parents Christmas Day is at my parents home

Gift giving this year will be different ... we are on a budget, a tighter budget than ever before.

I need to get creative and I plan to buy a lot of gifts from local crafters and mompreneurs & my etsy friends!

It will be FUN ... I know it will

We are blessed... I know we are

And now...

it is Fall!

I cannot believe that I have neglected my blog for so long. 

I just commented to the hubby that I was missing something in my life... INSPIRATION!

What an uneasy feeling!

All day I could not get comfortable... wanting to do something just not sure what!

I made soup... chicken with spinach, celery, carrots and onions ~ I will add capeleti and some parmesan cheese!

I FINALLY figured out that I am missing... all of you!

I am missing reading and commenting on all the blogs that I enjoyed so much!

I am going to get acquainted again...  with a cup of soup on this chilly evening!

So excited!

Today I am going to see a miracle... 

My friend from 1st grade and her husband adopted a baby boy 

and 

today is the BIG party to meet the little guy!

Prayers are answered 

miracles happen 

God is so good!

Long time...

I came back to do a blog post update half expecting to see most of you gone by now... but you are not! Thank you for sticking with me in my long absence!

What is new with me... a lot!

Not a lot for the naked eye to see but a lot or internal stuff has been going on with me. 

I am not going to get too personal but I will  post just some things about the journey I have been on since the beginning of the year in a series of blog posts in the coming weeks. 

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The hubby and I are doing good... interviewing and waiting on jobs still!

The house is awesome... I still love it each day and I am so blessed and grateful for it!

Here are some early yard pics of the container gardens that are now giving us yummy tomatoes and peppers and zucchini and cucumbers!

Zucchini in a red tire planter!

Salsa mix of tomato, jalapeno and cilantro

And some scenes from around the yard

Bench near the backdoor on the driveway

Planters on the front stoop

Red bike with a basket of geraniums

This area had two large bushes that we took out and added a temporary area for a planter and some stone I found around the yard!

Next to it are two tomato bushes!

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Month 6

I forgot to do an update of my new years goals for May... here they are for June!

My goals are in bold

1.50 lb Weight Loss ~  I did not lose 50 pounds yet.... but I have figured out the way to lose it. I am sure that by

Dec 31 I will have lost 50 or more...

I am ONLY eating when I have physical hunger and I am physically active. 

THIS IS A MAJOR BREAKTHROUGH for me!!!

When I eat I stop half way through and ask myself if I am still hungry... this really helps a lot!

I am beginning a walking program this week which I know will jump start my goal. 

I also make a list each day of things I can do instead of eating... if I am still hungry after the activity then I eat... usually I am just bored!

2.Make Room to Create ~ DONE

3.Conscious Decision to be positive...it has been VERY difficult to be positive and we are now struggling to find jobs

4. Make more time for ME... still not doing this often enough!

5. Make more time for God... He is the ONLY way I get through some days!

6.Read all of Nicholas Sparks books~ I am DONE!!!

7.Join Twitter ~ hated it!

Will possibly try it again!

8.Household Projects

•Finish decorating our bedroom ~ all that is left is to spray paint our mirror (need to wait until the weather gets a bit warmer) and move the curtain over our bed (decided that the curtain is FINE and will not be moved)

•Find and re do a small desk for the office DONE

•drylock the basement Soon

•new front door and shutters Spring

decided to paint the shutters again and wait until we have the door a while, maybe even a year!

•install lighting outside Spring 

patio fixture

front door fixture

yard spotlights

large yard lantern

All the lights are now purchased we just need to install them

•cut bushes in front of house Spring

•cover for the air conditioner in the living room Spring

I decided to use my shutters as a AC cover when we are not using the AC instead of creating a contraption!

The real patio

We are fortunate to have a nice size patio right off our kitchen

In February I placed a patio set on layaway at Kmart and then took it out in April!

I could not wait to set it up and to enjoy time on it!

We probably spend 90% of our weekend on the patio!

We still have a lot to do as I keep saying BUT we have really come FAR... trust me

 The patio set is a blue color damask look!

I love the lazy susan in the center and the way the stained glass fruit looks!

We are going to be replacing the lattice soon all around the patio

For now I really like the metal candle holders 

At night the citronella candles look so pretty lit!

I painted the candles that are in the metal piece that I picked up at the thrift shop for 3 bucks

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I have a metal bakers rack in the corner with a birdhouse lamp and all sorts of accessories 

I also keep a water dispenser there for the hot days working in the sun... 

This is before we finished the rocker patio that I showed you the other day so there is still some clutter here and on the side!

I like to keep it real and not stage... for too long I have staged my life and I am trying now to live out loud and real!

I will be back soon about that ... living out loud and real and how I am working on and overcoming that every day!

Blessings 

Patricia

Pittsburgh in pictures...

The hubby had a convention in Pittsburgh a few weeks back and the ladies that attended got to ride the ducks... which is a military vehicle that took us around the city and then into the rivers.

Our vehicle was called South Side Sally!

WHAT A BLAST!

Here are some pictures from the trip!

Oh and as a side note my hubby rec'd a church award for all the activities he plans  for our church community... I was so proud!

Patio of sorts...

Here my friends is an eyesore ~ my battle for the summer...

As you can see it is a MESS

We got this MESS with the house ~ LOL

The orange cone is the basement window... the plastic bin has recycled bricks that the hubby and I have been collecting for a few months... the weeds well, they are just that... weeds... oh and the picker bush too!

We are so grateful for our home and love it! Slowly we are making it our own. Our plan to is to concrete this whole section but in the meantime we are using what we have to make an area for our rockers and an area that is less of an eyesore!

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What you are not seeing is the work that we already completed... hard to believe!

On the left hand side near the lattice were two huge arborvitae

We cut the arborvitae down in the spring and it has taken us until today to get the stumps out!

A broken shovel and ax later and it is all gone 

On the right hand side was a picker bush (still one there in the pic) and a small oak tree!

We cleaned out the area near the window and pulled out the picker bush and killed the weeds

Then we laid down newspaper as an under covering weed blocker

Then we added the black ground cover and started laying the stone

Sloped so that the rain will not hit the house and seep into the basement

Not too bad for amateurs!

oops... I forgot to add my cute pillows...

Oh and there is a market umbrella stand in between the chairs too so that I can put it up when it is HOT!

So now our goal is to paint the cellar door and then get a cover for the cellar window and then I  plan to take the concrete that was around the arborvitae and place it sporadically and add some small stone ground cover and potted plants... maybe by August LOL!

I taught him well

Last week was my B~day and this is what I found on my computer from the hubby!

A gift basket that he made himself!!

I was so impressed and got teary that he thought so much of me to make a basket

It was filled with 

gift certificate to cts

sweedish fishies

teas

a monogram water bottle

garden gloves

He wrapped it all in cellophane and tied it with a rubberband!!

I am so blessed!

Bad Blogger

I never thought I was going to become such a bad blogger... 

I have been away for so long from blogging and really I have no excuse!

I have been doing some interesting things... just not blogging about them

I have been super busy in the yard... just not blogging about that either

I miss it... blogging that is!
I have some house progress pics to show and vacations and projects too.
I need to get back to blogging
I miss you all... and I lost a few of you ): in my neglect!

I will be back... promise and I will be better... I miss you all so much!!!

My Ta Da!

I am going to post my Ta Da List here for all the world... (150 wonderful people) to see!

I have so many things that I want to get done before I finally find a full time job that my head is swimming and I am not getting anything completed!

So here it goes!

1. Put rock at mailbox
2. Put new light outside
   
3. Dig out all the stumps in front ~ having trouble
4. Hang flag pole
5. Dig out all the stumps in back ~ most gone
6. Dig stump on side
7. Lay the brick patio ~ maybe next year LOL
8. Reorganize the cupboards
9. Have T over for lunch
10. Clean up area near driveway tree
11. plant groundcover near tree
    
12. Plant flowers at mailbox
13. Build bench
14. Clean up near corner of driveway
15. install solar lights
    
16. Sell Air Conditioners
17. Paint mirror and frames in bedroom
18. Put folding table together for laundry
19. Sell Washer/Dryer
20. Paint shepherd hooks (one complete... 2 to go)
21. Have J over 
22. Plant grass around shed
23. Seal Shed Platform
24. Fix Bathroom Sink
25. Caulk shower
    
26. Paint shed platform
27. Hire someone to put outlets outside
28. Fix the ugly corner by the driveway
29. Fix the ugly corner by the back door
30. Get rid of all the leaves
31. clean siding in back
32. Plant hosta around shed
33. Plant tomatoes
34. clean siding on side
    
35. Plant veggies
36. Put winter clothes away 
37. Summer Curtains for kitchen
38. New shower curtain
39. Plant sunflowers
40. Plant pumpkins
41. Fill in the trench
42. Plant Roses
43. Plant thyme
44. Plant new grass seed
45. Move boxes for donations
46. more stones around mailbox
47. Hire someone to repaint the shutters
48. Paint flag holder
49. Hire someone to paint trim
50. Paint foundation
51. get cover for cellar window
52. lay stone at patio side
53. Organize the basement

Finally Home!

I have never been away from home this long... 3 weeks minus a few lay over days!

I cannot wait to get back to a schedule!

I missed the house and yard so much... I missed blogging too!

I have one more big event tomorrow and then I am back!

What is this?

Vacation

We have returned from a much needed vacation!

We left Virginia Beach with the thermometer reading 87 and came home to 47!

BIG huge DIFFERENCE!

We had such a glorious week of wonderful weather and  NOTHING!

We have been going there for 9 years now and this time all we did was veg out at the beach and it was fabulous!

I have some pics and an expert review coming soon!

(I say expert because after 9 visits I now feel that I am an expert at all things VA beach LOL total joke)

I just finished our third load of laundry and I am looking up how to make sweet tea for our dinner tomorrow with the Moms!

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY to all the MOMS and MOMS to be!

God Bless!

More Yard Stuff!

Here they are... my latest projects!

Our house came complete with two tire planters!

Can you just imagine... 

I had thought about freecycling both of them but then decided to keep them

First I had to empty them of stone and weeds and hard dirt!

Next to the planter is a bike!

I always wanted a bike planter if ever I was fortunate to have the room~

Well I am fortunate to have a beautiful side yard that looks like a park with lots of trees!

A friend of ours brought the bike over to us 2 weeks ago 

I wanted to paint the bike white but my brother... an avid biker told me that a white bike means that a biker passed away. 

So I decided on RED... fire engine RED!!!

I am looking forward to filling the planters with flowers!

And I am so excited to add a basket of flowers to the front of the bike!

(yes the tires are red in spots... from over spray that I plan to fix... once it stops raining!)

How I met my house!

I am so excited to join this party!!!

We were looking and looking for houses for about 6 years!

Nothing was ever right to the point that I thought we would never find a house and we were destined to live in my parents upstairs apartment for forever!

I wanted a Victorian fixer upper and the hubby wanted a ranch!

He was not going to budge.. so I did... reluctantly!

I drove by our house for 2 years... looking at the for sale sign thinking 

"yah it is a brick ranch BUT look ... there is no yard" and every excuse I could think of!

Online too I kept running into our house...3 bedroom ranch I would read... not again I would think... I don't want that house!

But our house was persistent ... in perusing us!

So ... one day I finally said to the hubby that in order to clear my mind I needed to see this house!

Even though it was a ranch he did not even want to see it... it was too small... no yard... too old... too much work!

So we called our family friend/Realtor and asked to see it!
He thought we were crazy and really did not want to show it to us!

So on a rainy, dark and dreary day... we met and it was 

Love at first sight!

It was everything we did not know we wanted!

Within a month we closed on this house and spent the next month making it liveable... and we are now content to spend the rest of our lives making it a home!

We are so blessed!

New Year Goals Month 4

Once a month I do an update on my New Years goals...

Stop reading now if this bores you ~

If not, thanks for sticking with me... here is how I am progressing

My goals are in bold

1.50 lb Weight Loss ~  I had a minor setback with this however even though I ate when I was not hungry I caught myself doing it and then stopped before I binged!

This was an accomplishment for me!

I also became aware of what was causing me to over eat at the times when I was tempted to do so!

Major breakthrough for me!
Still following the Weigh down and loving it!

2.Make Room to Create ~ DONE

3.Conscious Decision to be positive... this all ties into my faith in God, I FINALLY figured this out... my negative behavior and attitude at times is ALL attributed to my lack of trust that God has a plan!

4. Make more time for ME... still not doing this often enough!

5. Make more time for God...praying many times daily and actually wanting to go to church rather than feeling like I have to go out of obligation.

6.Read all of Nicholas Sparks books~ I am DONE!!!

7.Join Twitter ~ hated it!

Will possibly try it again!

8.Household Projects

•Finish decorating our bedroom ~ all that is left is to spray paint our mirror (need to wait until the weather gets a bit warmer) and move the curtain over our bed (decided that the curtain is FINE and will not be moved)

•Find and re do a small desk for the office DONE

•drylock the basement Soon

•new front door and shutters Spring

decided to paint the shutters again and wait until we have the door a while, maybe even a year!

•install lighting outside Spring 

patio fixture

front door fixture

yard spotlights

large yard lantern

All the lights are now purchased we just need to install them

•cut bushes in front of house Spring

•cover for the air conditioner in the living room Spring

I decided to use my shutters as a AC cover when we are not using the AC instead of creating a contraption!