let's randomize today.

 Hello all and a good friday to you. I have spent this past week in another anxiety-filled frenzy, and I am hoping the reality of today and the redemption that comes from it will pull me back into the reality of Christ. for today, I will attend a 'darkness' service tonite and remember the cup that he drank from, for me and for you.

i have not really thought much about gardening yet, probably because of the cold temps that have lingered. I have thought about yellow though, and that is almost as good :)

 last weekend, the downstairs fishies got some new digs. they are my backyard pond fish, the only remainers of at least 15 or 20 fishies. they deserve a nice new tank and no threat of being cooked alive, or eaten by birds.

 taxes are done for another year. praise God!

the work in the basement continues. i want to buy/do so many things, but so far, it is still looking cute with even my old things. siesta concurs.

looks like they made it! a small band of houseplants have endured the harshness of winter and my bad caretaking, and will go outside soon. for that, i am ecstatic!

happy Easter everyone! i hope you have a joyful weekend and a serious time with God, too. it's not really about the bunny :)

 i will not get depressed. i will not get depressed. i will not get depressed.

even if a year ago this week, my front yard looked like this:

i hope it is spring wherever you are....sigh.

blustery monday

i keep thinking i need to change my header picture to spring, then a day like today hits, and i'm reminded 'not quite yet.'

the wind is absolutely whipping around outside my window as i type - it's relentless. wind can be good or bad, i think. today, it feels like an assault.

good thing i am bundled up in jammies for most of the day. i remember when i used to have to go out in this stuff all the time, i have lost my edge completely. staying home does that to you.

i have a few pics to show you of the basement progress. i made my first craft project down on my 'new' $15 table top (thrifted from the habitat restore) this weekend. it was a no-sew curtain for the super ugly basement window. it 'turned out', as they say.

i am impatient, but this is the fun part. i have to remember that, as i look around at all that is not finished. the process is also the plan :)

happy monday, everyone!

$15! I need to get some ikea craft table legs next month, but wow. this is SPACE. very excited about that.

newly found attraction to foxes...esp. orange ones.

oh pinterest, you inspire me ;)

out from storage and onto display.

too bad i cannot figure out how to set the time ;)

....always in the wings.

ides of March

That's all I can think about today. I had to google 'ides' because even though I say the phrase all the time, I have no idea what it means!

Apparently the ides (which is middle-of-the-month, or the 15th) became notorious as the date that Julius Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC. Sorry Jules!

Otherwise, it's a perfectly lovely day. I was very excited yesterday to have my first spring walk around the neighborhood.

It was very pleasant to go outside. I may do it again sometime!

Otherwise, I spent some time in the basement again. I'm not really moving at light speed down there, probably because I am not really into basements.

Things are coming along, though. I still need to set up the craft room. I got the shelves up last night, so maybe this weekend? Dunno. Taxes also must be done. sigh.

I got another rug for the space. that makes a bad paint job and 2 layers of rugs, if you are keeping track.

 As Lou remarked when I sent her a pic, 'that's SO Bobbi Gaukel!'

Alas, she is correct. I could lick this rug, I love it so much.

  That's magenta fringe, in case you can't tell.

It really does help the very 'blah' room to pop a little.

Things will of course be better when I get all of the shelves stocked, and yes, get some artwork hung!

My cutest decorating accessory really matches the room :)

Happy Friday, folks!

craft room update

sigh. it's been awhile since I showed you the craft room. i actually thought it would be done by now, but isn't that the way it goes?

it's pretty much done as far as the foundation goes, but for some reason i cannot visualize what the finished room should look like. i usually 'see' the end product, but this little room is stumping me. probably because of the mish mash of junk furniture i have to work with, and the limited budget i want to spend to complete the project.

the 'before' shots give you an idea of the dreariness.

i really wanted to carpet the space, but at the last minute decided against it because a) it would have been sort of expensive and b) i am really not sure how water-tight the basement is, since we have been in a drought since i bought this house. might be better to wait and see.

so, there you go. I went with a sisal rug instead of carpet (actually 2, which i will eventually stitch together). the orange wall has me questioning things. might be a little too bright, but I plan to line that wall with shelving, so hopefully it will tone down a bit.

i also hope to bring in a giant work surface - thinking of a solid-core birch door, or even some butcher block countertop. something sturdy. so that i can sew and craft and store all of the 'stuff' that is randomly strewn about.

i'll keep you posted as i go along :)

ps. a certain someone is very very interested in breaking in the new rugs in this home .... :)

so the photoshoot went really well. the reporter girl and the photographer girl were both really nice, and into vintage things. half of the time i forgot they were here for a purpose, i.e. to take pictures and interview me.

the only time it came back to me was when i had to sit down for a sec in order to be photographed myself - eeek! the photog is an old acquaitance, and really, really gentle. she even let me see the shot, which was not as bad as i had imagined.

it was just so nice and reassuring to have two people who have never been in my house be so encouraging! i guess because my house and how i spend my time making it pretty is kind of important to me.

it's funny how much good even a tiny bit of encouragement can do, isn't it? hmmmm. something to ponder :)

happy weekend, all! i promise to come back next week with an actual post or two :)