bit by bit

lee and i moved in our house almost 4 years ago, 

since then, i've been looking for the perfect way to decorate this big wall in our kitchen...

didn't really have room for a hutch or piece of furniture

we also thought about doing a "photo wall" of various family pictures

[since the photo wall thing can be a pretty fluid shape, we opted to do that on the "triangle wall" (the wall that is the staircase) in our living room]

and i wasn't willing to settle until i found exactly what i wanted.

i had a huge clock over the fireplace in the living room (that we both LOVED) 

that had been taken down after we had the tv mounted there...

i decided to hang it on that wall

and wouldn't you know it, i found two pictures that were EXACTLY what i'd been looking for

something sorta funky with blues and browns to tie the living room color scheme into the kitchen color scheme

what do you think?

(i used two camera settings--the color of the walls looks different)

so, after 4 years, i've finally "finished" this wall! :)

spring cleaning and toddler-proofing

generally speaking, our house is pretty "eden-proof", but the time has come to depart with my favorite rug... the one under our kitchen table.

bless its heart--it was so full of fashion... funky circles... brown and blue and khaki colored... tied the kitchen and the living room together so nicely... but these last few months of table food for the toddler haven't been kind...

i'm simplifying... one less thing to clean... i can just swiffer to my hearts content now... from the laundry room, through the kitchen, down the hall and into the hall bath... with out the gigantic "swiffer dead spot" that i have to vacuum and/or sweep and/or scrub pooch hair out of it.

the house looked so fresh and spring-y, eden and i ventured to lowe's and got a couple of plants for our porch!

don't worry--i only got plants i've been remotely successful with in the past. and on the way home, i apologized to each of them in advance.

a carolina jasmine plant and a clematis... both crawling vine type plants that in the past, i've managed to sustain for more than the trip home from the store.

my jasmine plant was left outside during the snow a "couplah" years ago and didn't make it...

and the clematis i've even round-upped by accident and wouldn't you know it, it's coming back this year!! wow!...now THAT's the plant for me!! hahah

i've also been wanting to get a hook hanger thing for the awesome wind chime we picked up in jamaica... and i even indulged the impulse shopping trip a little futher by getting a bird feeder. i've been wanting to get one for e--i know she'll love hearing the birds and watching them :)

does anyone know of a strong man to cLimb a step ladEr with thE drill and hang up this stuff?

happy spring, y'all!

...but wait! it gets BETTER!

the cherry on top of the best christmas ever was

going to be a fun "day after christmas" shopping spree for me and eden...

my little sidekick.

because i'm normally working on the day after christmas--

but we're not open on sundays!!

however, there's only one acceptable alternative when my plans didn't work out...

SNOW!

nearly a foot of snow!!!

(its actually more than a foot in some of the "drift" type areas)

enough snow that lee didn't have to work today! woo hoo!

even nershi got in on the action... he had to jump around...

the snow was almost as deep as he is tall

lovely white natural light sure does make for some great pictures!

i love this girl!!

sporting my new coat from nana... perfect timing!

so, yes, i'm bummed that i didn't get to scoop up some

cute ornaments for eden's christmas tree that

i bought on clearance friday and get a new tree skirt....

but to trade that in for a foot of snow

....i think i'll get over it ;)

this'll do

i've still not gotten eden's santa picture scanned, BUT...

i keep forgetting to show you guys my candy cottage! this was the HIT of the junior league shopping spree this year... and i ventured to do my first one... no help, no real "blue print"

so, the candy cottage is a plastic "house" and "yard" that LOOK like gingerbread, and all you have to do is use a container of frosting and stick any sort of candy on there! they advertise them for ALL occasions... i saw some really cute halloween houses, and even some spring-y ones...

then when you're done, warm water washes everything away! and you're gingerbread house is ready to be decorated for the next occasion!

i wouldn't say this was my BEST work, but i had a lot of fun doing it and just "learning" how to use, spread, portion the icing... i'm looking forward to doing one for most of the holidays around here!

i used starlight mints, twizzlers, and the christmas m&ms... and kit kat "bricks" for the side of the house!

next time, i may try piping the icing instead of a massive spread... lots of fun & a GREAT gift idea!!!

you want one?? well, click here and get your credit card out!!

bittersweet...

i've been looking forward to getting our new living room furniture for a while!!

well, i've been thinking about getting furniture for a few months, but have been waiting for the furniture i ordered for about a month and a half...

nearly every room in our house had been properly furnished & decorated (i use the "decorated" term very loosely), except our living room.. yes, the one room of the house EVERYONE sees...

it had been piece milled, and didn't look terrible, but it definitely didn't coordinate...

and as much as i LOVED that sofa, it was just too big...

the original plan was to craigslist the old one (yes, i made "craigslist a verb.), and see how the sofa & loveseat felt in the room before we made any decisions about my beloved blue recliner.

the sofa & loveseat (tan & dark brown, respectively) looked FANTASTIC in the room--however, they were overshadowed by a NAVY recliner. bleck.

so, we did some additional rearranging--put the glider in eden's room and brought her brown comfy glider downstairs... and... and... and... we had to move my blue recliner upstairs to the guest room... aka "nana's room"

...ok, so maybe i'm being a bit dramatic, because i really DO love eden's brown chair... but i love any comfy chair that rocks :)

so, here ya go... pictures of our new furniture!!

an "aerial shot":

from the front door:

from the kitchen:

(i just realized the pillows weren't so nicely arranged when i took this picture... oh well)

i'm now REALLY beginning to understand just how stinkin' big that green sofa really was... we have the most furniture we've ever had in this room... and we also now have the MOST playroom/floorspace... how does that work?!

looking forward to lots of family time in here... we love our new spot...

...well, its not actually a new spot... but you know what i mean!

it's also really nice to have the living room "finished"...makes the house feel comfy & home-y and look nice, too :)

hey mama, you missed a spot...

...the peanut gallery as i was mopping this morning :)

happy sunday!!

i'm feeling extra good today since the high is ONLY 79!! woo hoo!!

we're having a cook-out at our house tonite

with eden's boyfriend jonah & cousin owen!

what a lovely day to have some friends over and play! :)

...lee particularly enjoys this because it means the house will be CLEAN!!!

haha... he never complains otherwise--

just gets excited when we're having company over :)

a sight for sore eyes...

the weathermanperson has been calling for scorching heat from now until...

FOREVER....

ok, so maybe not quite that long,

but!

this afternoon, i got the most pleasant surprise!

this is how the radar has looked for the better part of an hour now...

we've been gettin the coolest, steadiest, cleansing, rain!

woo hoo!!

and here's the radar at 7pm tonite!! i think we've hit the thunder-boomer jackpot!!

lately these afternoon storms seem to be disappearing

as they start heading to our neck of the woods...

bummer...

but not today! :-D

basically after july 4th i am D.O.N.E. with summer...

the heat gets too hot (well, its too hot to begin with, but 100+ is TOO HOT)

i get tired of wearing my summer clothes...

i miss spending time outside...

i miss walking with my friends...

and i had a project i'd been wanting to do... but its been too darn hot!

i've been wanting to scrub our porch rails...

since our porch is covered,

sometimes the sun doesn't get to dry up the damp mugginess as fast,

and they were starting to look a bit grungy!

well, the the cooling, steady rain and a little bit of wind,

i was able to wash & scrub them

and the rain washed them off!

so, now, i'm done with my project, eden is still napping

and nershi and i are enjoying a bowl of popcorn while we catch up on DVR :)

but its not all gloomy weathered stuff... there's a metaphorical ray of sunshine...

(by the way, metaphorical rays of sunshine do not increase the temperature)

there's someone coming to (attempt) to fix my dishwasher today!!!!!

i've got my fingers crossed...

who knew our attempt to eat at home more would be challenged by the dishwasher!!

UUUGH!!

its been broken for 3 days now... yuck... really yuck.

it makes me not want to cook because of all the stinkin' dishes :(

but! not to worry!

seems like i'll be living in a new house here before too long!

new ceiling fans, shiny clean porch rails, a working dishwasher, and new living room furniture*

*i'll post more about that when it arrives!

ahhhh, my rays of sunshine shine the brightest on the cloudy days of summer!

happy friday!

what are you up to this weekend?!

our new additions....

i know what you're thinking....

...."but, eden is only 4 1/2 months old?!"

but i'm pleased to announce....

....

drumroll please!!

....

our new ceiling fans!! :-P

(above) a new one in our bedroom... the other one is "resting in peace" in our dumpster...

(below) here's the new one in our kitchen...

bye-bye, chandelierweweren'tcrazyaboutwhenweboughtthehouse!!! :)

i LOVE having a cieling fan in the kitchen...love it. really.

the lighting is more our style... and it makes the room feel so nice and cozy...

and comfortably cool! :)

we're having one more installed tomorrow in eden's room...

our handy electrician ran out of time today...

no worries, just so he finished the one in my bedroom FIRST.

AHHHH.... here's to a good nights sleep tonite... i've missed my ceiling fan!!

(its been a few weeks!!)

sooner or later...

i knew this day was coming as soon as i saw the little + on the pregnancy test...

i rearranged the living room today... and lee took the coffee table upstairs...

here's the finished product...

the room is HUGE.

...so was the coffee table...

but, yesterday and today as i was making my "plan of attack", i couldn't help but think about sweet little nershi... that coffee table is "home base" for him...

he does still get under there and hide from time to time--mainly when he thinks he's in trouble. but that coffee table the first place he went the second his little paws hit the floor when we brought him home...

(if you search "nershi coffee table" in the top left hand corner,

you can see ALL the posts where my sweet boy was under it...)

i'm sure one day we'll bring it back down here...

you know, little e won't be in that pack-n-play forever :)

i really have mixed emotions...

i feel like i've taken something away from nershi

but...

we have so much room to play on the floor as a family (which includes nershi)

ah! yes... and we all know how much i LOVE rearranging...

lesson learned.

i've been wanting to re-do my kitchen cabinets (rearranging what is in which cabinet)... and put some things that i don't use that much in a less convenient place...

well, i REALLY wanted to just do a few drawers... but those of you who love to organize know that's never how it happens :)

so, i put eden down for her nap and dove in!

i started just after lunch... and its now 10:54pm and i have just finished.

of course, once i finished the kitchen cabinets, i had to situate all the stuff under the sink... only to discover a leak. great. but--i am pretty sure one of the pipe-thingies just needed a little tightening... dad came over and saved the day. i'll keep an eye on it for the next few days just to make sure!

so! lesson learned... lots of my fellow mommies have informed me that i will be interrupted in the middle of projects and things i want to get done for the rest of my life!

and because i'm such an honest person... i will share with you the picture of my kitchen after i realized i'd gone a little too far...

wow. i told lee it looked like an episode of "hoarders", except my cabinets were empty :)

...i'll post an "after picture" tomorrow... i'm wore slam out. and we're about to have a thunderstorm... sleep is in my near future!

oh, and speaking of "tomorrow"... the ENTIRE day today, i thought it was friday (and that i'd have to go to work "tomorrow"--saturday)... whew. good thing i have my shows automatically record... i would've missed grey's anatomy!!

another jewel in his crown!

if you've been at my house for more than 4.5 seconds, you know how much i HATED the trash can that we got for our kitchen. yes, it was very pretty and stylish, but the little latch wasn't very...uuuuh... "user friendly"

and unfortunately, if you never saw the old one--you never will. it doesn't deserve to have its picture taken and put on the blog. ugh.

...well, my w.o.n.d.e.r.f.u.l. husband got so sick and tired of me complaining "took the hint" and took me to target today to get a new trash can. i felt like he took me to the car lot and said "honey, pick whichever one you like"...man! how exciting! isn't he the best!!

so, without further a-dooooo... i'd like to introduce you to our new trash can.

yes, it really IS that exciting for me. i REALLY hated the other one :)

baby shower!

this past sunday was eden's baby shower... and wow! we had a blast... to quote another pregnant friend (who missed the shower because SHE had a shower, too!) "whew! who knew that eating and opening gifts could be so exhausting!"

the day was nothing short of a huge success and tons of fun! the house was totally transformed and lots of people came by and saw the nursery, too (since it was at our house!). we got basically everything off of her registry! what a blessing... we. are. READY!

here's a few pictures from sunday...

nancy's cake... she made it to match eden's bedding set... WOW! and that doesn't even begin to describe how delicious it was...
the beautiful flower arrangement... with granny pat's gorgeous punch bowl... and another view of the cake.
shellie and jasmine with the FEAST! table #1
table #2 under the bar...
most of my wonderful hostesses (debi was sick & couldn't come at the last minute!)
lee's aunt jackie... holding baby earl! :)
and the gift opening began.......

this was a really cute bib that my friend andrea got for eden... (in case you can't see it, it says "my mom is hotter than your mom")
aunt lisa holding baby earl while michele, morgan & maggie look on...
mom was telling stories about me when i was just a babe :)
oh, and this little car...
...this little car has been at granny tarboro's since i was

...this big... and i LOVED riding this thing... in fact, i rode it everytime i went to granny's... even when i was beginning to "grow out of it"...i STILL rode it... i rode it so long, that it became not only a tradition to ride it, but a NECESSITY to ride it when i was at her house... even when i was, ummm.... say, maybe... 22 years old?! YES.

and try as they might--mom and granny wanted me to ride that thing AT the shower. no thank you--i think they simply forgot i'm not a "dress" sorta gal--everyone there would've seen something that i can assure you they didn't come to see.

any-hooooo--back on point here! granny brought the little buggy to pass on to eden... heck, she even dressed it up with new "2nd generation" stickers from strawberry shortcake! :) and now its in her nursery waiting for her to get big enough to drive the wheels off of that thing... thanks granny! :) maybe eden will enjoy that HALF as much as i did...hahah

here's some friends from elementary/middle/highschool... (L to R) lauren, emily, andrea, and kristina)
and i'll post a picture of what our bed looked like after the shower (that's where the gifts were put on display during the party)--we didn't get that on mom's camera, but i think someone did... i'll share it with you when i get it... it really wouldn't do any justice now to show it to you because i've sorted through about 85% of it and have it organized (imagine that.) and separated and even started to put somethings away! :)

there were so many more happy memories, friends, and family there that we didn't get a picture of--but we surely won't forget what a special day it was! gosh, i even left my camera on the coffee table, thinking someone would pick it up and snap a few photos. nope. in fact, as shellie was about to leave she said "oh no, someone left their camera!" haha... oh well! :)

all finished!

today, lee and i took a day trip to go down to the beach & get our new (to us) head board & footboard... from mom & david

and my extra manly husband, carried it in BY HIMSELF... and put that thing together like a PROFESSIONAL!! the only thing i did was vacuum where the bed sits when he hauled out the old frame! and take this picture while he was workin'

what a HUNK!!

remember... it matches the stuff that dad got us here!

i've taken a couple of days off at work & lee's taken off over a week! ...its hardly a "baby-moon" but i'm enjoying my time with lee... hanging out, getting some stuff checked off of our "to-do before eden gets here" list... tomorrow we have a date night on the docket, along with a few finishing touches on eden's room (tree!! and curtains!!)

i'm just beyond thankful for the ability to take off sometime before the baby, while lee's off too!! :) ...ya know, he's pretty fun to hang out with...

don't rain dust on my parade

after a long day of piddlin'* around the house, i've gotten A LOT done... dusting, vacuuming, mopping, bathrooms, laundry, organizing, blah blah blah...

*doing chores with no real agenda... eeeh, sweep then sit and watch tv for a while... then dust... hmm... think i'll take a nap... etc. etc.

earlier this week, i did a "rough" vacuum... mainly because i was tired of looking at little brown furballs in the carpet--they kept catching my eye... and i was thinking they were a stain... or that they were taking on a life of their own... i had full intention of doing a good job this weekend... (no knowing i'd have a whole snow day to do it!)

...back on topic... when i vacuumed earlier this week, i noticed after vacuuming 2 rooms there was NOTHING in the canister... hmph... it all clogged up in the hose & i didn't even know it... it was of no use for me to try to fix it today... i think i made it worse... and the parts to replace it are about what i paid for the vacuum...

no biggie... we can manage with only one vacuum for a while (we have one upstairs and downstairs)...

so, bust out the dyson to finish up my cleaning ADVENTURE today! (lee and nershi escaped again to go running!), its workin' like a charm... cut it off... roll it to the trash can... pull out the canister only to realize that the latch broke on the canister... ?!?! yes, BEFORE i got the canister to the garbage...

dust & pet hair EVERYWHERE! i won't deny that i said a dirty word or two four... heck, i think i even made one up... buuut anyway!

lee comes in, standing back (smart guy), and wants to know how he can help... so we got the broom and dustpan... and the dust buster to clean what was all over the floor & the vacuum up...

...until the dust buster broke.

wow. i broke 2 vacuum cleaners AND the dust buster in a matter of MINUTES!

i will NOT let this ruin my day... because the house looks great... there's snow outside... i had a day off of work and STILL got lots done! :) ...i'm just deciding that it was just a mere coincidence for all three to bite the dust (arg arg) at the same time...

plus, at least i was able to finish! :) so, the house shouldn't need any more vacuuming until the new one arrives... nice.

hey, a grown up lives here!

so, lee and i never got bedroom furniture when we got married... we never really knew WHAT we wanted... and we never stumbled across anything that we just had to have...

well, recently we got a really nice tv from dad--and he offered to have it mounted on the wall... which we didn't want right then, because we didn't have any bedroom furniture... and we weren't sure how the room would be arranged when adding in furniture (you know, that DOES tend to change things! haha)....

so for christmas, dad also got us bedroom furniture!!! (it was delivered last week... but i wasn't ready to show of the finished product...becuase the tv hadn't been mounted

but today, the tv was mounted just above our new dresser (sans the mirror--we didn't want the mirror)... its distressed black and its JUST the look that lee and i wanted... simple, clean lines...

and we have the lovely nightstands to match... and i feel like a GROWN UP!! haha... it looks SOOOO nice...

WOW! thanks dad for the furniture and tv mount!

...and talk about timing... about the time all of this happened, mom and david offered for us to have a headboard and footboard that was brand new... since they were upgrading to a king size and didn't need the queen sized stuff... so, when we got wind of this, we knew exactly what kind of wood to match! :) we started with the headboard and footboard--thanks to mom & david for that!... and were then blessed with the rest of the set (of course, we made sure it matched!)... and a mounted tv!! WOW!

in a matter of a week, we've gone from a tv on a stand... with a bed just on the frame... and two wooden circular tables (the ones with the glass top--you know which ones i'm talkin' about!) to a bedroom with a mounted tv, dresser, two nightstands, and a headboard and footboard

oh, and just a side note about mounting the tv... i wasn't ever super crazy about it... simply because of my love to rearrange... but i LOVE this setup, and have really surprised myself how much i love the tv mounted in the bedroom... it works out perfectly since our bedroom could/would really only be arranged this way... and did ya notice how nice and clean it looks with no straggly cords hanging out?!?!

re-discovery

lee and i have been eating at home every night... and its been GREAT! i've gotten back in my groove of cooking... we're enjoying nice quiet nights at home... and not to mention the moo-lah we're saving by not going out (...or through the drive-thru!). we have been tempted a time or two to pick something up for dinner, out of sheer convenience, but i managed to whip up soup & grilled cheese... or something pretty easy and we enjoyed that so much more!!

and since we've been cleaning and organizing and donating... we've had a chance to re-discover some of the "toys" we've forgotten about or neglected... like our WII!!! when we first go it, we hardly turned it off... then, like lots of stuff, we got tired of playing it... but now, its just like we've gotten a new one... we RE-DISCOVERED IT! :-D

...now, you can take that two ways... we're just enjoying being at home more and what it has to offer, yes... or have we re-discovered these things out of fear that i will CRAIGSLIST THEM!!?? (that would be the verb form of the word "craigslist")

haha... either way, we have found new joy in just plain ole bein' at home... its become a place we really prefer to be! ...and in staying at home more, we've also discovered that it makes going out even more fun!! we went to the grocery store together tonight... and treated ourself to a new wii game that we'd both enjoy...

once we got home from the grocery store tonite, lee commented "you love it when that refrigerator is full!"...and yes, he's exactly right... because it means we're planning on being HOME for the next handful of days... oh, and it means i have OPTIONS of what to cook for dinner! :)

its funny how our "new years resolutions" (i put that in quotes because they were hardly that, it was supposed to be more of a goal for the new year...anyway) have blended together so seamlessly... saving money by eating out less, keeping the house more organized & not letting "chores" get too far behind... and they have transformed into something totally different and rewarding on so many other levels... more than just the money we're saving, or keeping the house cleaner (which OBVIOUSLY makes it a nicer place to be!)...

and i've also noticed, we're eating healthier in addition to cheaper... when we're not eating at home as much, i'm not able to buy as many foods that are fresh--since they'll just end up in the trash... but we've been running out of fruits, vegetables and cereal and those healthier snacks...instead of THROWING THEM AWAY because they've gone bad/stale/just plain yuck.

i've been so proud of lee taking his lunch to work and his commitment to our family goals so far this year! it makes me want to pack a better lunch FOR him!! :)

so, are you still clinging to some of your new year's goals? are you seeing any results or fruits of your labor?!

new years nesting

...a DANGEROUS combination!

most new years i get in a "let's get rid of this, we don't use it enough" sort of mood--usually as a result of getting lots of new stuff for christmas and wanting to start the new year... FRESH! not to mention, its also after our busiest time of year at work (which means the house stays a little messier) and i tend to have a little more time and want to get everything in order and back to "normal"...and the need to put away all the christmas decorations

i love it! its such a great feeling to get in this "mood" and to look for projects to organize and rearrange* and start out the year on a GREAT note!

*lee doesn't like the rearranging as much...

well, this year it seems to be a little more extreme...

i've sold things on craigslist

i've stayed on top of my cleaning that usually piles up (dishes and clothes)

i've donated things to goodwill

washed sheets

cleaned nershi's stuff

made lists for things that i can't seem to stop thinking about or ideas that i have for the house

organized the areas of the house where things get "tossed" or set down or left there because there's no good place for it to go

cleaned out the pantry of food we'll never eat (or things where there's one left in the box, etc...

sorted out my plastic storage containers and tupperware

cleaned out the freezer & fridge

given new "purpose" to the office upstairs (and cleaned out the junk that was piled up there)

trimmed some of the shrubs outside (yea, it was bit chilly)

...i could go on for days... but i'll spare you! :)

...and when i sit down for 5 minutes? i get bored and find something else to clean. or organize. or sell. or cook... and lee mumbles "oh me, oh my, here she goes again"...i'm borderline ADDICTED! haha

heck, i even try to "clean up" the bills... every year, lee and i evaluate what we're paying for certain services (cable, phone, etc...) and call to see if they're running promotions or if we can upgrade for the same thing we're already paying... or lower the bill for what we already have...

...if you don't do this, START NOW! you would be AMAZED at what sort of offers you'll get, just because you called!

don't believe me? let me give you an example... lee and i have our cable/phone/internet bundled... and yes, that one bill looks expensive, but its all in one... so, i decided to call them and see what promotions were running... welp, simply because i called, they've reduced my bill by $40 a month... yes, that's $480 a year. WOW. i was hoping for 10-15 bucks... or free HBO or something...

we're also doing the same thing at our bank... and have applied to save some on our mortgage... amounting to $600 a year...

...so, if you're counting, that's $1080 a year... that we wouldn't have because we simply didn't ask.

i mean really, what's the WORST that could happen for a few wasted minutes of "holding" on the computer... you hang up paying the same amount you're already paying, right? why not give 'em a call... you. never. know.

without going into a whole lot of detail, lee and i had set some financial goals for the year, and its been amazing how making a few phone calls and selling some useless junk (well, it was to us, anyway!) on craigslist what we've been able to do in just a few weeks!! its VERY exciting... if you thought retail therapy was fun... you should try SAVING THERAPY! its EVEN BETTER and WAY more rewarding! taking a few minutes every-so-often to really look at how you spend your money will really shock you (good or bad)... lee and i took it a step further this year with the goals we established (since eden's on her way, ya know!).

its been a blessing, an education, and a reminder when we pick up that dvd or new candle or see new shoes/clothes on clearance...whatever it is and ask "do we really need this?"

now, don't get me wrong, we still have fun and have money budgeted for things we enjoy but don't NEED... eating out on occasion, vacation, lee's races, concerts, etc... but it makes you think twice before buying so impulsively... lee and i have really challenged each other to make smarter decisions about our money... and its been great!

i'd say we've started out this year with a bang! and i love it!!

it IS the little things...

now that we've been homeowners for nearly two years (wow!)... i've gotten a few notches in my belt in terms of learning to be a bit of a handy man...

however, there've been two things that i've not been able to conquer... our toilets, when flushed, sound like a tuba warming up for the symphony...

and our back door (the one into the backyard...not the garage) has ALWAYS stuck... it stuck when we walked through this house after finding a window open (no realtor needed!)...it was on our punch list for our walkthrough (never fixed)... and it stuck this morning ...FOR THE LAST TIME!!

...you see, its never been a bother since we always went out the front door... but now with our FENCE!! we're ALWAYS out the back door! and i've adjusted that dern thing till i was BLUE in the face!

we had a local handy-man come out to the house (thanks, mr. charlie!!) and replace the valves in our commodes and had to trim about 1/4" off the bottom of our door!!

...and with the completion of those two little tasks, i feel like i live in a nice home that's not falling apart!! lol.. no really, how often do we open that door... and flush the commode! i was constantly encountering the "tuba" and the sticky door... sigh... NOT ANYMORE!! life. is. good. :)

mr. charlie and his helper even did a few other really minor things that i've just been putting off doing (i don't know why... just tedious tasks!)... what a jewel!!

what a find!

i'm bouncing off the walls!! of the hundreds of things that i've sold on craigslist, this is the first thing i've BOUGHT! and it was quite a catch!

this chair was in a nursery of a little girl who was born super early, and once they got her home (6mos. later...), they never sat in it!!

the color matches perfect... and if i'd gone to the store to buy a brand new one, this one would've been in the top 3!

the rain made things difficult for us to go get it... however, it let up long enough for us to decide it was going to keep pouring all night, drive out there, and drive home! whew... i was sweatin' bullets with lightning all around us for the ride home...

for the record... nershi likes the chair too... as soon as i sat down, he hopped up here with me without promting... and lee took our picture! :)

yippee! i'm so excited, i might sleep in it tonite! ;)

interesting day...

lee and i went to church this morning... which was refreshing to say the least... i won't go into all the details, but please be in prayer about us finding another church home. this process has been WONDERFUL for our marriage... and on the same note, been very difficult... its hard to explain unless you've been in our shoes...

...i ask you to be prayerful and encouraging during this time and not judgemental... the latter accomplishes nothing... once this is all said and done, it will be an interesting story--most likely one i'd be willing to share (for others going through similar situations)

...moving on... after church, lee and i had lunch together at moe's! when was the last time we did that?!? WHO KNOWS!

i'd been wanting to water-proof our deck in an effort to get that fresh wood look to hang around longer! ...so i did... although the deck cleaner didn't quite get the freshest wood look, i'll try pressure washing next year...

...after i finished cleaning and it dried, i decided to start the sealing... you do the math, we have a 12x12 deck... 144 sq. ft. + rails... and the cleaner was for 1500 sq. ft. (but i ran out as i was doing the last little bit & steps)... the water sealer was for 300 sq. ft.... and i ran out right after i'd done the rails (before i even started the "floor")... so lee offered to go to lowes and get more...

...but they didn't have any... so he went to home depot... and they had some, so he got 2...

...and then his car broke down on the way home :( so i went and picked him up...poor guy!! we went to dad's and got the pick-up truck (thanks, dad!)

all in all, the deck looks pretty good...and while i was waiting for the cleaner to dry, i de-pollenated the porch... again... i did it a little early last time... we should be good to go this time! i hosed off the windows, chairs, concrete, rails, steps, door...ANYTHING that showed the slightest dusting of YELLOW! i got lots done around the (outside of the) house...i'll work on the inside later tonite or tomorrow...

oh! and i'm sooo excited! mom and david are coming over thursday to teach lee and i how to use the grill! got some juicy steaks and i'll whip up some sort of veggies and salad... i'm keeping my fingers crossed that we have good weather!

so, keep your fingers crossed for lee's car--i'm sure its nothing too major...hopefully the $$ won't be too major either :-\

that's about all for today... still wrestling with these allergies and now a little sunburn... but hey, at least one of those is self-inflicted... so i shouldn't complain too much! :)