where oh where

let's see. i have been gone a long time, so i will just give some random updates:

on tuesday, i shoveled about 5 inches of heavy snow.

yesterday, i raked leaves and picked up sticks and cleaned the gutters.

i am learning to be flexible like that :)

i still am not sure how to wear skinny jeans without boots, though. life is hard.

i bought a couch about a month ago. the guy has still not delivered it, and i actually really don't care anymore. says something about impulse spending.

i did NOT buy this absolutely darling 'loveseat' for my office last weekend, when lou and i decided to drive 4 hours to minneapolis for a 2-hour thrift sale. i have thought about it every day since.

yeah. go figure that one out.

 siesta is scurrying out the door every chance she gets these days. cats just KNOW. good things are out there.

other than that, i'm trying desperately to get into a mode of less = more. which makes it hard when i want to go to every thrift store in the tri-state region. Lord, help me.

otherwise, things are well. busy, but good busy. and i have both a dentist AND a doctor appointment set up in the next two weeks. 2 years of procrastination is about to be tackled.

pray for me that THIS time, procrastination was not a big mistake.
happy friday y'all!

learning to edit

so, over the weekend I rearranged my office for summer. mostly, i wanted myself (and siesta) to be able to look out the window and daydream more - like we need that.

but as i sit here on day 3 of working in the space, i'm reminded of how calming it is to see order instead of clutter. i have mostly friends who know how to edit things down, and keep spaces clean and orderly. i have NEVER been one of those people, because i love all manners of stuff too much.

but, i am trying. some of you may not think of these pictures as 'spare' - but I'm telling ya, they have come a looooooooong way.


i think perhaps I am becoming an editor.

yes, Siesta is batting 1,000 for 'getting in the shot' - what can I say? she is gifted.

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 :)

random monday somewhere in the midwest

hi ho!

i have not alot to say this fine Monday, but a few small tidbits. so let's randomize:

 this scene could be from any one of the last few days. we had another 'snow event' which really turned out to not be very eventful.

siesta is always hoping for some action, however, thru the safety of the front door. she'll let you know if anything exciting happens.

 i went to church yesterday, and chalk Jesus greeted me. he's really quite big (over 3', i'll bet) and very nicely done. this is what my friend anne does when she has free time. i kind of wish she had MORE free time.

ps. if you think you could draw like this, try imagining drawing Him in REVERSE, because that is what you have to do with white chalk on a black wall.

which kind of makes my brain hurt.

i have done nothing creative in quite awhile, i feel like. it's like your brain goes numb after awhile.

i did slipcover my couch over the weekend, which required some skill in wrestling. i love it except for when i sit down, then it bothers me.  so I get up and fix the wrinkles, then sit down again.

i did not really need a hobby like that, but it IS winter after all.





happy Monday :)

crabtastic day

what to do when the weather turns...according to ms. siesta.

it's 3:34 right now. i just looked around, and realized what a perfectly crappy day i've had so far.

i woke up late, skipped my bible reading, pulled a bunch of half dead plants back out on the front step to live for another day before the inevitable happens, pulled on a sweatshirt and sweat socks and sweat everything, because i am unbelievably COLD all of a sudden,

and sat down at this desk to a bunch of incoming messages from people that i sometimes forget are people, instead of stupid incoming messages.

now, right now, i need to reboot. my thinking. my attitude. my day in general.


i don't think it's too late to start over yet, do you?







happy tuesday!

weekends are good.

schwew. here we are again! i am not sure how many stunned and amazed monday posts i've blogged over the years, but they keep coming...where do weekends GO?!

mine was fab. some of it spent down at the arts thing on friday, and even more at an event called 'junkfest at the nest' on saturday. i almost almost feel guilty, since i'm going to junk bonanza this week, but since i scored some good things, not really.

i may have to rethink my decision not to have a full-time career in junk :)

i was lucky enough to come upon a couple of things that pretty much EXACTLY fit into my living room decor.

i suppose that isn't entirely weird. there is a lotta turquoise out in the world these days.

anyway, the fabric came on two nice mid-century chairs that i got for a 'package deal' that was too good to pass up. the fun thing about thrifting is that you replace a $5 chair when you are sick of it...much better than spending $100's and feeling guilty ;)

these two have both been 'refinished' and reupholstered, which was nice, since i am getting lazy in my old age. i always like seeing what stuff looked like in its original state, though, so of course i turned to mr. google when i got home.

turns out the smaller of the two chairs was a pretty good find. a 'gunlocke' chair, most of which go for between $100 and $200 each on ebay. the good news is that it's comfy to sit in, too. except for siesta hates it. i think because the back is 'open' and she cannot cozy into it. sigh. it actually might be nice to have ONE piece of furniture that the cat does not destroy, anyway.


lots of projects going on...i'll be showing you pink furniture, new drapes and the FINALLY completed kitchen in the next couple of weeks. i guess you could say that i am in 'nest' mode for winter around here ;)


happy day!

alive and well!

oh, hi. i know, i haven't been around much lately. that is because of the *very big project* that hopefully will go away next tuesday.

after that, i can already tell i will be going from 110 mph to 10 mph. sigh. oh well, perhaps the change will be good.

there are things still happening on the back forty.

for instance:

there are some 'purpley' things rani, just not doors ;)

crunchy, crunchy, very dead grass. and some very alive little morning glory weeds. at least there is something.

green beans! must. pick. today.

tomatoes too! quite aways away from ripe, but still....coming.

no pumpkins though, as my very big/cool pumpkin plant has been attacked. so very sad to see it just die within less than a week. curse you, squash borers!

4 little fishies of 10 are left. not super good odds, but the remaining seem happy enough.

siesta says 'oh hello - are you going to let me roam wild yet???!'

hidden treasure

yesterday, i decided to make a to-do list. just for work, not for any of the other things that i might have going on. 31 items. they vary in size, from a simple business card layout, to finishing a book layout. yesterday, i was able to check off 4 items. i realize that many days, i'm simply a person on a treadmill, trying to keep running because if i stop, there is impending danger of slamming my body onto the ground in a painful fashion.

and yet, stop i do. this morning for instance, which has been a perfectly lovely way to wake up.

perhaps you remember my post from yesterday. i find that whenever i have these sad, sad thoughts that speak more to hopelessness than hope, God will step in gently and softly and whisper a Truth that is like a salve to my soul.

He does that for us, you know.

so this morning, as i was sitting in the sunroom (which, btw, is mostly beige and strewn with unpretty things and should be another bullet on my to-do list) with the morning coffee, i prayed a little, and soaked a little, and read a little of my bible and of various other teachings. doing this in the morning is almost the same as having your mom read a bedtime story when you are little, only in reverse. do you remember that feeling? do you remember not knowing how things would end with the story and how exciting that was?

God sort of revealed to me that He wants the same kind of BEGINNING to my days. that He has a plan for this day, for me. in the words of one of my devotionals, He explained it like this:

Approach each new day with desire to find Me. Before you get out of bed, I have already been working to prepare the path that will get you through this day. There are hidden treasures strategically placed along the way. Some of the treasures are trials, designed to shake you free from earth-shackles. Others are blessings that reveal My presence: sunshine, flowers, birds, friendships, answered prayer. I have not abandoned this sin-wracked world; I am still richly present in it.

Search for the deep treasure as you go through this day. You will find Me all along the way.

'My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.' 

Collossians 2:2-3

do you see? do you see the way that God spoke to me about yesterday's post? do you see how He ALWAYS does that, if we enter in (and sometimes even if we really don't)?

ah....peeps. i pray the richest of God's treasure for you today. for there is no other treasure that can compare :)

happy Wednesday.

Siesta basking in the promise of her day ;)

post easter post.

hi all.

how was your easter?

i spent some time yesterday in the sunporch with siesta, sun shining on me, reading 1 john (and 2 john and 3 john, actually). what a good way to spend easter morning. truly soaking up the knowledge of God who loves us. what that really means, more and more and more.

the rest of the weekend was good, too. saturday i cleaned this place with a vengeance. what a lot of yuckiness to clean, from carpentry and winter and just general unruliness on my part.

as luck would have it, i ran out of windex. which sent me a googlin' and found me a great recipe!

1/4 cup white vinegar
1 T. cornstarch
2 c. warm water....


which is BETTER than good! my stupid, stupid very black and always showin' something yucky stove is sparkly. and streak-free, something i had a hard time achieving before.


yay for homemade cleaners! must. make. more.

 yesterday, i went home for the day.

my dad helped me with a few projects, like assembling my tiller and painting/rewiring my cool 1960s light fixture. which i love. both that my dad helped me, and the light fixture :) what a blessing family is. i love, love, love my family.

mom and i spent a bunch of time figuring out plants for me to transplant. i decided to wait a week, since there is supposed to be a killer frost tonite. not that it will matter, but i guess i figure it's best not to transplant and expose the plants to frost on the same day.

next week, i will bring home some of my grandmothers' raspberry bushes. very excited :)

today, i plan to take an extended holiday...especially since i worked on friday. not sure what i'll do exactly yet, i do have a couple of projects up my sleeve.


:) happy day after! see you tomorrow for our regularly scheduled post :)

goodbye march

Siesta remembers her old favorite spot...I think.

Yes, I did start planting this weekend. Rosemary (yum) and a baby fern, of course.

happy monday, folks.

i don't remember feeling so good on a march monday, well, EVER. probably because it's not really march anymore, it's more like june. after 85 degree days this weekend, we dakotans are confused. it seems too early for green grass, grilling and hot summer nights. but yet, here we are. and most of us are happy about it. last night, i went for a walk at 8pm, and there were tons of families doing the same thing! it was like a parade! it could be the new neighborhood that is just different from the old, but i think it really IS the weather that brought so many out...so good.

today, the men come to finish installing the bathroom fixtures. i did NOT finish the walls, but I got a start. wallpaper is easier to install on HGTV than it is in person. i swear, i almost, almost ripped it all down. thankfully, it is not quite as hideous upon drying. i am not looking forward to finishing, however.

then next monday, because apparently i am into torture, the landscapers are coming. i cannot tell you how happy i will be to NOT have ron, glen, curt, dylan, paul and joel stopping over to mess up my house every day!!! sheesh! i'm not even lying! that is far too many people for this hermit to deal with :)

 

the good news is that siesta is becoming more comfortable with people again. like me, however, she is probably happier with the bunnies and squirrels that hang outside the window all day ;)

have a great day!

friday photo essay

The state of things over here is pretty chaotic. Bathroom parts strewn everywhere, half done laundry and construction dust. Siesta finds solace in the middle of the madness. Good to remember that it can be done...

I discovered a new hardware store yesterday. It was like walking back in time, and the guy spent 15 minutes with me searching for a $1.58 part. I was once again reminded that the 50s must have been fabulous.

My amaryllis now has SIX blossoms. and 2 yet unfurled...I have been reading up on how to keep it going, but most everyone mentions that normally there is ONE stalk, not two, of blooms. A small miracle in my midst...thank you Lord.

wow. kind of a crazy week. finding beauty in odd places, though. hope you have a lovely weekend guys!