Category: MISC

~*~*~*~*~WHY? WHY? WHY?~*~*~*~*~

    A friend emailed these to me & they bear repeating~they are the adult version of a 2 year old.

  • Why do we press harder on a remote control when we know the batteries are going dead?
  • Why do banks charge a fee on “insufficient funds” when they know there is not enough money?
  • Why does someone believe you when you say there are four billion stars, but check when you say the paint is wet?
  • Why do they use sterilized needles for death by lethal injection?
  • Why doesn’t Tarzan have a beard?
  • Why does Superman stop bullets with his chest, but ducks when you throw a revolver at him?
  • Why do Kamikaze pilots wear helmets?
  • Whose idea was it to put an “S” in the word “lisp”?
  • If people evolved from apes, why are there still apes? THIS IS ONE OF MY FAVORITES!
  • Why is it that no matter what color bubble bath you use the bubbles are always white?
  • Is there ever a day that mattresses are not on sale?
  • Why do people constantly return to the refrigerator with hopes that something new to eat will have materialized?
  • Why do people keep running over a string a dozen times with their vacuum cleaner, then reach down, pick it up, examine it, then put it down to give the vacuum one more chance?
  • Why is it that no plastic bag will open from the end on your first try?
  • How do those dead bugs get into those enclosed light fixtures?
  • When we are in the supermarket and someone rams our ankle with a shopping cart then apologizes for doing so, why do we say, “It’s all right?” Well, it isn’t all right, so why don’t we say, “That hurt, you stupid idiot?” I’m not fond of this one unless of course they were aiming for me to begin with.
  • Why is it that when you attempt to catch something that’s falling off the table, you always manage to knock something else over?
  • In winter why do we try to keep the house as warm as it was in summer when we complained about the heat?
  • How come you never hear father-in-law jokes?
  • The statistics on sanity are that one out of every four persons is suffering from some sort of mental illness. Think of your three best friends — if they’re okay, then it’s you.

~*~*~*~*~KITCHEN ORDER & THE IMPORTANCE OF BOWLS~*~*~*~*~

As my friend Bren over at Brenda’s Little Cottage will tell you, there is NO such thing as TOO MANY bowls. Seems like the size and one you want or need is always already in use which means there must not be enough bowls.

I have a set of blue speckled, confetti, splattered (you pick the word you like to describe them) nested, matching, Texas ware bowls. Now you would think that would be enough since they range from about 7 inches up to 13, but NO, they’re never enough! So, following along with the plan to get my kitchen in order, I bought myself a Christmas present.


Aren’t they great? I accidentally ran across an eBay auction from an estate sale for a brand new set of nested, still in the cellophane wrapper set of pink/red bowls identical in size and confetti pattern as my blue set. Now I have twins. You may or may not know, but these are in big demand on eBay and go for a pretty penny. Since I’m not willing to part with too many pretty pennies, I was thrilled to get a brand new set that left little to the imagination that their condition was truly mint and that I’d be getting quality merchandise for those pennies.

I don’t like to use mixers or sharp tools in these despite their durability so you MUST also have a nice Pyrex set or two also. I love my nested Pyrex blue belles almost as much as I love my Texas ware. The two tone blue odd wider sizes are great too. They all still have a beautiful shine and no chips, cracks or crazing.

Many of you may not know or remember, but we were forced to tear out the entire kitchen just weeks after moving into this ‘new’ house due to the previous owners non-disclosure of MAJOR MOLD. This left us without walls, kitchen cabinets, floors, ceilings, etc… I mean it was really bad. We would hold our breath with every wall we opened that maybe hopefully this was the end of the demolition and were constantly praying that it never got any worse.

We’ve been living out of Rubbermaid totes and metal shelving units. We are putting in the cabinets as we can afford it and as time permits. So, every bit of organization is celebrated, right down to the bowls.

~*~*~Resolutions & Epiphanies~*~*~

So I was visiting ‘Yours ’til Niagara Falls’ this morning and have been inspired to actually put into writing a more extensive resolution list for myself in 2008.

I too like the idea of having even one epiphany, especially as the New Year begins. Epiphanies can lead to resolutions and one of my resolutions is the follow through it takes to bring those Epiphanies to life.


Here’s an very incomplete, but great beginning to the list of resolutions/epiphanies/ultimate goals I want to address in 2008:

  • Be ready for book club in time each month


  • Make most, if not all of next year’s Christmas gifts by hand and tailored to each person’s likes/dislikes


  • Get my kitchen in order ~ I used to (before the nightmare of this house came to life) make my menus a month in advance. This was really helpful to our budget also. If a recipe called for half of an onion on Monday, I’d make sure to follow it with a recipe on Tuesday that called for the other half. During that time we tried at least 1 new recipe per week so I could try to empty the shoebox (my husband just reminded me that there 3, not “1” of these) FULL of recipes that I’d cut out from newspapers, magazines and such. That never worked because I always filled it right back up, but now it’s overflowing and desperately needs thinning out!!!!!!


  • Limit my craft & fabric purchases to ONLY the items I need to make things using mostly materials that I already own


  • Take a walk daily (weather permitting or not) OR AT LEAST use the treadmill, it’s already here after all!


  • Force myself to eat breakfast ~ today was a bowl 1/2 Cheerios & 1/2 Special K ~ maybe tomorrow I’ll add bananas


  • Continue my volunteering monthly, even if it’s just a home project for something I already support


  • Write some freelance newspaper/magazine articles


  • (Here’s the big scary one I’ve avoided for more years than I care to admit) I will write the novel(s) that have been swirling in my head for years. I have the plots, characters, synopsis and the settings. I’ve conversed with the characters like they are old friends and family, I’ve developed the towns, supporting characters and walked through the houses and buildings like I built them myself. I know everyone’s likes, dislikes, personality traits and idiosyncrasies. I know all the dogs in town and who rides their bike to work or walks. I know how deep and blue the lakes are and how clear the night sky is so much so that all the stars sparkle bright and appear as if you can reach up and pull them down. All I need to do now is capture it all on the blank pages between the colorfully bound covers that I can see so vividly


  • Try to sell my screenplay (inquiry letters are written and the 1st couple dozen rejection letters are making for a great book)


  • Find a publisher for the cookbooks I’ve written

So… I too scared myself a little (okay ~ a lot and I mean A LOT) with this list. But as she said, the age-old question truly is ~ “How do you eat an elephant?” And the answer will always be ~ “One bite at a time!” Some bites will be smaller than others, but that’s okay too!

Happy New Year, one and all, and may you too see the light to your epiphany!

~*~*~*~HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!~*~*~*~

I’m going to do my traditional list, but I think this year I will be more realistic.


1) Lose weight ~ I know every year EVERYONE says this one. This year I got a head start after the bout of pnuemonia and flu throughout December. I already lost the first 10 pounds.

2) Get organized ~ another one that EVERYONE always says. Once again I got a head start though. Last year was devastating for us with the move, the military red tape, the fraud from the previous owners of this house and probably a few other things. But, I started this past week at putting together the office/studio/workshop and it’s already going well.

A place for everything and everything in its place…


3) Start in January to hand make next years Christmas presents ~ Once again, I started already so the hitch will be to maintain a schedule and actually follow through. Wish me luck. And look for peek-a-boo pictures to come (after all we can’t give away what’s what or who it’s for before next Christmas).

4) Be happy ~ Worry less ~ Smile more ~ Be more productive ~ Spread joy ~ Make a difference

I wish you ALL health, happiness, tranquility, spiritual well being and prosperity in 2008 and may we ALL be able to face our challenges with much strength and grace, and may we receive ALL our blessings with thanksgiving and appreciation.

Christmas Wish

For a very long time I’ve dreamt and wished I could make everyone’s Christmas gifts each year, but time usually wins out and I end up going shopping and shopping some more looking for the right gift. This year I received a very special gift, a hand made quilt from my cousin, Jennifer, a very talented artist. Ironically, she says I picked out the fabric a couple of years ago when I was visiting. It’s so me.

Every hand made piece has a story and this one is no different. My very first hand quilted piece is a tree skirt that I made for Jenn back in 1991. It has had an interesting history itself (survived a fire while stored in her mother-in-law’s basement when they were moving), but was a cornerstone piece for myself and Jenn falling in love with quilting. From there she earned her degree in the arts and became a teacher and taught just about everything from clay to textiles at some point in time I think. She hand dyes her own fabrics as she did with this quilt. That too adds some weave to our family history. One Christmas not too long ago she dyed fabrics and used them as wrapping paper. I saved them and you can now find them in the quilt I made my mom which is the pink & green one in my quilt entry.

She hung this quilt at her show this past November in Kansas City. I think they really do look like cathedral windows. If you’d ike to see her other fabulous hand made, one of a kind quilts, log into her blog, What I did at School Today. I’ve hung the quilt between 2 pictures to draw out the colors. Ironically the picture on the left was given to me by my grandmother, but was painted by Jenn’s mom as was the one to its left. The picture at the bottom is of us at her wedding and she made the candle to its right for me.


She’s inspired me to actually get busy. That is my New Year’s resolution ~ to hand make everyone’s Christmas gifts for next year.

Major Catch up Time

We went to California for a surprise (and boy what a surprise it was) birthday party for my sister-in-law Bobbie (White sweater with sister Marilyn) and ended up staying for Thanksgiving. We really enjoyed our time with Bobbie and the family! With all the travel time and both events, the month just got away from me.

As soon as I got back I had tons of laundry, cleaning, Christmas prep like wrapping gifts & shipping packages, and like a fool I signed up for a 4 day stained glass class in the midst of it all. But the worst was that I came home sick and proceeded to get even sicker before it was over. Today’s the first day I feel like a human being again. I do like the stained glass piece though and am happy to have found a new hobby that hubby and I can do together.
During this time was the end of a 3 month long swap that I was participating in. I had a great Sweet Goodness Holiday sister Jenn. She sent me the pictures on the left (Thanksgiving box and the Christmas box with place mats, tea towels, hot cocoa, potpourri, cookie cutters, icings, cider mixes, chocolates, corn, knitting needles, chocolate coffee, peppermint bark, ornaments and more) and I sent her the pictures on the right for Thanksgiving and Christmas (snowman candle holder and tree like taper candles, knit cap, snowman ceramic buttons, snowman dip spreader, snowman cookie press, 2 quilt patterns, tea towels, leaf coasters, mobile, cat tails, dip mix, cookie cutters, tealights, First magazine and for her birthday a combined copy of the 2 cookbooks I’ve written for the family).

I was also participating in a Christmas garland swap for GAGA for Garlands and had a great partner Fanny. She sent me this wonderful peppermint themed garland that fits just perfect around my mantle. I went with the jingle bell theme and did a looped quilted garland with bells for her.
So, I’m fairly up to date for now and will start fresh with the new year. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all…

Art Show

My cousin, Jennifer, is having her 1st show tomorrow night for her Art work. I know she has worked really hard to make this perfect and just want to let her know that I support her and wish I could be there for her. I’ll be there in spirit! Here’s a copy of her invite! You can see her pieces on her November 11th, 2007 posting at http://www.whatididatschooltoday.com/


Bathroom Anniversary

Some of you already know this story, but for the sake of clarification I’ll reiterate a little. It’s a really great house, but it’s 115 years old. So, we knew we’d need to do some upgrades eventually. We figured we’d have all the time in the world to do them though. After all, the previous owners had just painted some of the more crucial rooms like the main bathroom and kitchen. So, we figured we were set for a while. What we didn’t know was that they had only temporarily ‘fixed’ the problems noted on the home inspection report ~ things like the electrical box holding water and broken drain pipes ~ that they were supposed to “permanently” fix to complete the sale ~ I guess they truly believe that duct tape and electrical tape are the fixalls they claim to be. The “fresh” paint was actually “camouflage” for a mold problem they’d been having and failed to disclose to us ~ no wonder they were in such a hurry! Ten days after we moved in we were forced to begin the laborious process of tearing out all the walls in the main bathroom and kitchen as well as the plumbing fixtures and cabinets since it was ALL infested with mold. We hadn’t even finished unpacking before we were forced to pack back up and dig in to the work at hand. Before it was all over we had 3-60 yard dumpsters and MANY more truckloads that we took to the dump.

Now we still need a couple of things in the bathroom; a new toilet and a new floor, but the rest of it is finally done. We tried a 3 tone color scheme to enhance the character, but I hated it. So after I finished yesterday with painting the entire room “INNOCENCE WHITE”, my husband said it looked SOOOO “BOBBIE” (my sister-in-law loves white)! I just thanked him and continued on. We had to replace everything with any kind of wallboard, but we were able to salvage some of the old wood pieces for the lower cabinets. The challenge came with trying to distress the new wainscotting to match with what we could salvage.

The room was originally a butler’s pantry when the house was built. It was changed into a downstairs bathroom in the late 40’s. It’s kind of long and narrow (6×12), but it has this really interesting ‘room’ at the end. It was originally used for cold storage when it was a pantry, but someone added a window. The window never made sense to me because there was a door on the room and the window added no value to the bathroom. We turned the door into a ‘dutch’ door so the light could shine through. In the spring, summer and fall I’ll have curtains up there and in the winter we’ll use top and bottom doors to aid against the cold. We also added a ‘cat’ door and now use the little cold storage room for the cat’s food and litter boxes as well as storage.

The pictures are in chronological order for the past year. As you can see, the mold was horrific! We added an exhaust fan and replaced the molded light fixture and added an additional light towards the rear ~ now you can see what you’re doing in this room! We also added 36 inches of upper oak cabinets for storage and a glass shower door. We had to replace the sink due to the mold and will add a pedestal after we get the floor done.






Another great swap

I just received this great swap from Bren at Brenda’s Little Cottage. It was hosted Crafting by Candlelight for Halloween. There’s this great scrapbooking mini tote that I can’t wait to fill with toys. In the little pull out drawer Bren put a great “Friend” stamp. There’s also a pair of bat socks with “Battitude”, apple (my favorite) tealights, Halloween toothpicks, a pampered chef biscuit cutter and a bag full of wonderful chocolate candy. I especially love the caramel filled eyes. Oh and I just found goofy Dracula teeth at the bottom of the bag! Thanks Bren!

Sweet Goodness Holiday Sister Swap & Crafting by Candlelight Halloween Swap

I’m one of the swappers in the Sweet Goodness Holiday Sister Swap. For this swap we have the same ‘sister’ for the 3 holiday months of October, November and December. I got this great package today from Jenn.
The shaker box is decorated with an ‘adorable’ witch and sparkle spiders. Those are cupcake candles decorated in the most precious pink designs and they were in the shaker box. And I love the Kahlua truffles. I’m using the Halloween pencil as I write and there was this great skeleton key. The irony isn’t lost on me.

I sent her this package:

Jenn said she’d love to learn how to quilt. So I found a small McKenna Ryan applique wall quilt pattern (Beneath the Boughs) that I thought was peaceful and fall like. I selected a choice of fall colored batik fat quarters and fat 8’s for the applique and a 1/2 yard for the border, backing and binding so all she’ll need is the batting and iron on sheet for the applique (Wal-mart has it for 99 cents a yard). My thrifted item is the crocheted ghost from my grandmother’s rummage sale and the handmade item is a bright orange and yellow polka dot round ruffled candy table cloth. Jenn likes sugar free candy so we added some and a fall Yankee candle wax tart for those calorie free days when she wants to inhale her sweets. She got it today too and loved it.

I’ll be away for some family events so I have made Jenn’s Thanksgiving box up already and will send it early. I found these great fall colored dish towels (who doesn’t need more towels when prepping Thanks giving dinner?). I also found a kitchen aid silicone scraper in fall colors to match. I made some fall leaf linen coasters for her handcrafted item. There are some turkey and pumpkin cookie cutters, fall colored tic tacs, and some peach cranberry dip mix. The thrifted item is the stalk of fall colored willows. I also found a turkey mobile DIY craft. I hope she likes it.

I started her Christmas one too, but I’m sure this time of year will get away from me as always and soon I won’t be as ahead as I am now. But we’ll keep Christmas as a big surprise.

Bren is my partner for the Crafting by Candlelight swap and here is what I sent her:
Bren Loves to decorate for Halloween. I thought I’d keep with that thought. So, her handmade item is an orange and yellow polka dot candy table cloth and her thrifted item is a collapsible witch basket. I found this really cool bat night light with a bubbler on top. You know the kind of bubbler light that our grandparents had on their Christmas tree lights. Bren is also not a fan of chocolate, but loves Hot Tamales and Neccos. I found a new (at least new to me) Neccos of smoothie flavors. I also included a pumpkin pie wax tart for those times she wants to inhale without calories. And Halloween (nor Easter) are not complete without some peeps – these are ghosts. I found a glow-in-the-dark pumpkin scraper, some cute little drawing pencils and a book about all the great things that begin with the letter “B”. There’s also some of my favorite glycerin based salve from Camille Beckman. She just emailed me that she likes it!

1 step closer

Well we’re 1 step closer this week to feeling finished. As many of you know, the contractor we hired last January to seal the sun porch floor and put down a sub-floor over the slab to line up with the existing kitchen floor did us wrong. He left us with a sub floor that was 1 3/8 inches taller than the existing kitchen floor. Once we got the sealing done and the outside baseboards we were able to start on the ‘new’ sub-floor. Along with the ‘spot’ warping of a 115 year old floor ~ by the time we finished the new sub floor yesterday it was over 2 inches off. Fortunately, we have taller ceilings than today’s build and can afford to lose a couple inches. We took this opportunity to add a little extra insulation also. As you can see Whiskey is settling just fine with the new floor ~ she loves to lay where she can see 2 doors.


Now we can start on some of the little things like molding, baseboards, ceiling, real floor…

Natural Highs

This was in an email sent to me recently, but seemed so upbeat and positive that it bears repeating.

1. Falling in love
2. Laughing so hard your face hurts.
3. A hot shower.
4. No lines at the supermarket.
5. A special glance.
6. Getting mail.
7. Taking a drive on a pretty road.
8. Hearing your favorite song on the radio.
9. Lying in bed listening to the rain outside.
10. Hot towels fresh out of the dryer.
11. Chocolate milkshake (or vanilla or strawberry).
12. A bubble bath.
13. Giggling.
14. A good conversation.
15. The beach.
16. Finding a 20 dollar bill in your coat from last winter.
17. Laughing at yourself.
18. Looking into their eyes and knowing they Love you
19. Midnight phone calls that last for hours.
20. Running through sprinklers.
21. Laughing for absolutely no reason at all.
22. Having someone tell you that you’re beautiful.
23. Laughing at an inside joke with FRIENDS
24. Accidentally overhearing someone say something nice about you.
25. Waking up and realizing you still have a few hours left to sleep.
26. Your first kiss (the very first).
27. Making new friends or spending time with old ones.
28. Playing with a new puppy.
29. Having someone play with your hair.
30. Sweet dreams.
31. Hot chocolate.
32. Road trips with friends. These are by Far the Best!
33. Swinging on swings.
34. Making eye contact with a cute stranger.
35. Making chocolate chip cookies.
36. Having your friends send you homemade cookies.
37. Holding hands with someone you care about.
38. Running into an old friend and realizing that some things (good or bad) never change.
39. Watching the expression on someone’s face as they open a much desired present from you.
40. Watching the sunrise.
41. Getting out of bed every morning and being grateful for another beautiful day.
42. Knowing that somebody misses you.
43. Getting a hug from someone you care about deeply.
44. Knowing you’ve done the right thing, no matter what other people think.