Taste and See

Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. ~ Psalm 34:8

Leftover Hot Apple Cider with Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Hot apple cider is a very enjoyable beverage for me. I have been surprised, though, by how many of my guests have not wished to try it. Not even one little sip. Last Christmas, my brother-in-law said that he wouldn't try it for a five-dollar bill. Yesterday, at our leaf jumping party, my sister-in-law said that the mere thought of hot cider gave her "the willies." No amount of coaxing seemed to help, no amount of saying how much I enjoyed it, how warm and soothing it was going down the hatch nor how pleasant to hold the warm cup in the chilly outside air. Nothing.

Grand; John Sipping Hot Apple Cider with His Sisters

Sometimes it's like that when Christians share the Lord with others. No amount of coaxing helps. One has to find out for oneself. You may be glad to know that my sister-in-law later reported that she had tried the hot cider and liked it. The cold had driven her to it. So I encourage you, if you haven't tried hot cider, go ahead, you may enjoy it. And, far more importantly, if you've never tasted the Lord and found Him good, go ahead! You will be pleasantly surprised.

More Leaf Party Silliness

A delightful Sunday to you...

(As always, Sunday's comments are closed.)

Grands Are Great!

Last Sunday, when I wasn't sure how I'd make it through the day because I was feeling so low,  I learned something quite wonderful — re-learned something quite wonderful. Grandchildren are sent just when you need them most!

My son made a wreath holder, my daughter purchased a wreath, I made an arrangement, the grandsons brought their bikes and we struck off for the cemetery.

Where I learned that activity and fresh air are antidotes for the gloomies. (I also noted that the bike seats on those grands' bikes need to be raised already. They are growing like weeds.)

When bike riding ended, we sat on a granite wall and talked for a while. Then the eldest grand said, "Let's go to Nonni's!" Oh dear. I remembered that there were ladders up, inside and outside, paint cans, nails, a regular fright show so I suggested another day. This did not compute with grands at all. I explained. Still no understanding. More explaining. Finally, Sam said, "So you don't have time for me today, Nonni?" Nearly broke my heart in two. And, though his father intervened reminding him that we'd spent a nice long time already, the gloomies settled in. 

In the end, a party was planned, which is when I re-learned another important thing. Make plans! Plans are good.

The party is today. I'm prepared more or less. Must do an apple cider run and a doughnut run. This will be one of those growing posts. When I have more pictures, I'll be popping them in.

A happy Saturday to you...

Such fun; such silliness!

It was a happy day!

Brrrr...It's a Novembery Day

Dull November brings the blast,
Then the leaves are whirling fast.

~Sara Coleridge

Hear those skittering leaves and the gentle howl of the wind?

We've been enjoying a busy Novembery day. John has been working outside and has now come inside...more on that in a bit.

This morning, he put the new siding on the cheekwall outside my sewing room. While I puttered in my warm and cozy room, he was outside in the wind and cold.

When I went outside to see what he'd been doing, I saw this little leaf in the puddle. Looks as if it has been there too long and is becoming a frog!

It even looks cold, doesn't it?

John's Afternoon Project

I am loving my new window and will show it again once the moldings are on.

Hope that you are having a pleasant Veterans Day and I hope that you've had the opportunity to thank a veteran. If one lives at your house, would you thank him or her for me?



The Heavens Declare

Did you see the asteroid last night? My daughter called at 6:15 telling me that it was clearly visible to the right of the moon and that by 6:28 it would be at its closest point. That sent me scurrying for the tripod, camera, and a housecoat.

So there I was after dark on the front lawn snapping pictures when a group of teens walked by. (Some of the very same teens who have been on the wrong side of the law lately.) They looked at me kind of funny (I do not blame them for this. It's not every day that you see an old lady on her front lawn wearing a red housecoat taking pictures of the sky.) I said, "Some asteroid, eh?"

They started looking around...at least they were looking up...and I pointed them to the bright, bright "star" to the right of the moon.

"Oh wow!" they said and kept on walking down the street looking up at the sky. It was cute.

l–r Moon, Asteroid, UFO, Streetlight

Last Night's Moon

Last Night's Hexagon Asteroid? Jupiter!

I'm not sure about this asteroid. I thought they were just chunks of rock, not six-sided golf balls dropping by. I may actually have to do some research: here, here, and here.

I STAND CORRECTED: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/ataglance 

Jupiter! That daughter of mine! And I am nearly hysterical thinking of standing out there on my front lawn for lame old Jupiter. Shoot. I have learned my lesson, thanks Christine!

More on yesterday's topic another day. There were nearly as many behind-the-scenes comments that I'd like to discuss (protecting everyone's identity, of course) and perhaps in the new year. We'll leave pretty Blogland to enjoy the holidays.

Voting Results 2011

Morning's news found that Mainers are a pretty uninformed lot over all. I'm so unimpressed with us. It's going to be hard to get over it. I'm feeling about the same way I felt in '08 when I woke to what faced us for the next four years and I believe my feelings were far more justified than I could have ever imagined on that sad morning.

So what have we done? We've decided to hang onto same day voting registration, which means we have the most liberal voting registration in the county. Come one, come all, come vote today. No time to check your creds. We don't really care.

Locally, we've passed the same school budget that has been voted down three times prior because we're just too tired to hold the line anymore. We'll take that grant money— thank you very much— even though it will disappear in one year's time and then we'll just add the program to our burdgeoning list of money pit items so that the tax payers can fork it over once again. I know that good education, no, EXCELLENT education does not cost an arm and a leg. In fact, the best educators I know are the homeschooling parents and the private school educators who care about basic education and have no need of the latest "bells and whistles." We continue to toss extra monies at our public school system with precious few results, but can one say, "It's not about the money, people. It's about the teacher and the support behind him or her" ? That would be no.

And so I am riled up enough to clean that nasty sewing room of mine, which is saying a lot. If I  disappear for a month, you'll know where I am.

A Different Perspective

And I'm speaking literally.

The projects continue outside and inside. Sometimes the projects are interrupted by another's agenda. Like yesterday when I saw my neighbor enter the garage door and so went to ask him if I could help. What did he want? He wanted to clear the leaves from the front lawn for us, but there was that dastardly pile of snow.

Thus ended my indoor project for the day as I soon found myself chipping away at snow and ice. Then I found myself dog sitting Shadow while my neighbor mulched leaves. It was the least I could do and everything looks so neat and tidy now.

Because I was hanging out with Shadow, I was able to take some photos of our home from a different perspective. I got to see what my neighbor sees. I'm so happy that his view is slowly improving.

Notice all the color that still remains toward the ravine?  We've had a wonderful extended autumn, if one doesn't mind an unexpected snowstorm and more muted colors than usual.

And if the foliage disappoints, one can always look up to those crystal clear blue, blue skies.

Thanks, Shadow, for getting me out of the house!

Today it's off to vote and finish that project.

A happy Tuesday to you...

Comfort

...All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.~ Psalm 139:16 NIV

I take comfort in that for myself and for my loved ones. Last year, when Nan was going through her final days on this earth, a commenter (thank you, Lea) prayed the most comforting prayer: May she live every one of her intended days.

In our humanity, my family and I would never have chosen November 6 as Nan's departure date because it is also my mother's birthday. So we're all struggling a bit with this anniversary that presents a double whammy. You'll be happy to know that we are talking about it. So important.

My daughter and I will be working on a project together trying to create some new memories for this day and my sister and her family will be doing something together that will be meaningful for them as well. And we'll continue to talk about it.

I'd also like to share something that a friend told me recently. She was probing a bit to see how I was "really" doing, asking those pertinent questions. I responded with my usual, "I know where they are and I could not wish them back." To which she replied, "Your grandmother and mother are having an entirely different experience from your own. It is all right for you to say that you miss them terribly and to acknowledge your own pain."

Perhaps at that point I mentioned that scripture teaches us not to grieve and she reminded me that it does not. What?! No, it teaches us not to grieve as those who have no hope. We have a great hope.

You are my refuge and my shield; I have put my hope in your word. ~Psalm 119:114 NIV

Thank you for allowing me to share my heart today...

Tell Me a Story

Tell me a story. In this century, and moment, of mania, tell me a story.  Make it a story of great distances, and starlight. The name of the story will be time, but you must not speak its name. Tell me a story of deep delight. ~Robert Penn Warren

My grandmother was a great teller of stories. Not lies, rather the facts and impressions that shaped her world and the world of her parents and grandparents. It is a fascinating oral family history that I have loved hearing all my life.

For example, I know that my great-great grandmother died of typhoid fever. Serepta was her name. I know what she said as she lay dying, I know that she was the first cousin of the only Canadian Premier (Prime Minister) to hale from New Brunswick. I know, I know, I know so many intriguing tidbits.

My mother was a storyteller as well and so I think I come by storytelling myself quite naturally. Now whether anyone is interested in the stories...

I'm feeling so Paul Harvey-like this morning. Here is the rest of the story behind *the making of the pillow*,  written about day before last, and a bit about my grandparents' love story as first told to my sister in an email sent after she had received the pillow, which did, as some have suspected, make her cry.
                   
                    Dear Sister,

A few years ago, when I was giving Nan her baths, *I found a stack of letters tied with a ribbon on her side table with these words printed on the top: "To Be Destroyed."

They were the letters that Jack had mailed to her through the years and, when questioned, she'd said that they weren't anyone's business but hers. I asked Mom to do something, if she could, to rescue those letters.

So I was delighted to find a few...a precious few...among the letters and cards here. Somewhere, I even have the "to be destroyed" note.

Anyway, I noticed that Jack often used the phrase you see lifted out there to close his letters: "Hope that you are well and happy, Honey."

About two months ago, I entered a contest at a blogging friend's  blog for a fabric design. Incredibly, I won, which meant that I had a bona fide fabric artist create this fabric using the images I sent her. I wanted a way to tell the "love" story if you will. The letters turned out to be chatty descriptions of Jack's days and not so much about being "love letters" after all. (You will remember that Nan spent summers between the lake and Moncton and not home in Maine. Since he was a railroad man, Jack could meet up with her at either location.)

My friend was so patient with me as I kept adding this and that or taking it away. When she had it all done, I was still feeling that it wasn't
quite right even to the point of sadness and then I realized that it wasn't quite right because the pillow did not have any reference to Mom who, as their only child, was a huge part of their love story. So that's when Mom's little girl self got tucked in as well.

You probably remember the story of their courtship...how Jack owned the taxi service and picked Nan and a friend up for a dance the first evening and dropped them off. The friend was going to sit in the front, but he said that Miss Delahunt was small and would fit better. Then he asked her if she'd go out with him sometime and she said,"Why don't you call me and find out." Cheeky little gal that Nan of ours!

He made her an offer that she couldn't really refuse...that of being able to call for a taxi free of charge at any time. That's why I really wanted to get that business card on there because Nan was certainly pleased with that.

Then when they started going out, he was very impressed with her musicality and on their first date, he asked her to sing "My Pal" or "My Buddy" which was a song about a man and his son. (Very sad song...I know since she sang it for me sometime within the last decade while we were going through her sheet music one day.) He would repeat that request one September evening in 1951 just before he died and she sang it without breaking down. When someone asked her how she could manage that, she replied that it was the least that she could do for him.

I didn't include the older picture only because I couldn't find it in time for the fabric to be done. In the end, I think the younger photos look best. The young lady Nan would have been the right age for when Jack met her; Nan with the chipmunk was taken the summer Jack was ill. I included both passport photos just to get the link between Canada and the USA, which is so important in family legend and lore. That pretty much explains it, but if you have questions, I may come up with more answers.

The back of the pillow is made with the Irish linen that Sharon had me pick up last summer. It's kind of fragile, actually, so I doubled it. I thought that it would be a nod to Nan's Irish roots. I did the best I could with making it, but don't look too close because, since I sewed it, it is full of flaws. I did bind all raw edges in a hope to keep it around for a long time. And I made it so that it can be removed and washed by hand in Woolite.

Now I have enough fabric to make another for myself. Don't know when I'll get to it...

          
Since my grandfather John "Jack" died before I or my sister was born, we've always referred to him as Jack just as his friends and my grandmother always did. Interestingly, he always signed his letters to her "John."

And, of course, the story has many more tendrils as all stories do. Thank you for reading...

A happy and relaxing weekend to you!

*First discussed *here* and proving that eventually everything comes full circle on this blog.

A Pleasant Day

Hope that you have a pleasant, tea and crumpet cranberry English muffin kind of day. And a new magazine can't hurt either!

For those who wanted more of yesterday's story, see you tomorrow...

Eighty Years Ago

Eighty years ago, November 3, 1931, my grandparents were married in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada. Of all the wonderful photos in my possession, I have not been able to find my grandmother's wedding photos. They show a bride dressed in the style of the day with a close-fitting cap and long veil and a wedding gown described as dual-level with the front at her knees and extending down gradually to full-length on the sides and back.

Several weeks ago, I won a giveaway at Karen's A Scrapbook of Inspiration. The offer was to create a piece of fabric via Spoonflower. If you've never visited Karen's blog, you really must brew a cup of tea and make a piece of toast with jam, and treat yourself to an event. I mean this most seriously. Nothing like it exists in Blogdom. If you enjoy magic, Narnia magic as Brenda would say, you'll enjoy Karen's Scrapbook. Needless to say, I was thrilled to win!

Working with Karen was delightful. She was so patient with me as I changed my mind and fiddle-flipped around. When we both had the piece just as we wanted, I asked her to add something more and she did. Without. saying. a. word. (She might've been saying a word on her end, but never to me. ☺) Thank you, Karen, for helping me to create something so meaningful to me and my family. It blessed me so very much.

Sometimes I get so ahead of myself...beep-beep-backing-up...this is the gift as I first found it sitting in the chair on the deck just outside my door.

Notice the foreshadowing on the package...

The exquisite card and gift

Sweet details

The fabric

based on these images sent

The final product~a gift for my sister's birthday

The pillow tells a story, which probably would only have meaning for family members. (I could be begged to tell more being the loquacious gal I am. < insert cheeky grin >) I have enough fabric to make more pillows and will get to my own pillow at some point. I also want to share the frame that I found recently at TJMaxx. It had the year "1931" on it and so I knew where I was going to save some of the ephemera I've always held dear...my grandfather's business card and an envelope in lovely script written to my grandmother. The fabric and the frame came together in the same week...a God-wink I believe.

Not all of us are blessed with "things" that help us to remember so I am grateful to be blessed with such treasures. Most of all, I am blessed and grateful that my grandparents married all those years ago because three years and three days later, my beautiful mother was born.

Thank you for hanging in there and reading to the end; I promise shorter posts for the remainder of the week.

Edited to Add on April 12, 2013

This wedding description is from a yellowed newspaper clipping re-found just this morning and typed up to document here. It is interesting and even amusing to read. It is also lengthy. I feel as if I could have been there.

Parker-Delahunt
Wedding a Pretty
Nuptial Event

     Popular Moncton Young Lady, Miss Irene Delahunt, became the bride of  John W. Parker of Brownville, Me.
     The residence of Mr. and Mrs Fred R. Delahunt, 52 Enterprise Street (unreadable) ...ding last evening when their only daughter, Miss Irene C. Delahunt, became the bride of Mr. John W. Parker, of Brownville, Me. The ceremony at eight o'clock was peformed in the presence of a large number of guests by Rev. Neil Herman, former pastor of the First Baptist Church here, who came especially from Halifax to officiate at the nuptial event.
     The ceremony took place in the drawing room beneath a beautifully decorated arch of evergreens and Japanese Jack o' Lantern flowers of orange shade while large baskets of orange and yellow mums flanked the arch on each side. The staircase was also executed in similar attractive decorations and a feature of the bridal procession was the aisle formed by eight girl friends of the bride with wide white satin ribbon, on which were fastened colorful bouquets of evergreen and Jack o'Lantern flowers. As the ceremony commenced, they circled in on the bridal party forming a crescent (unreadable) each side of the arch.
     The bride was charming in a beautiful gown of white satin, fashioned along Princess lines, and wore a bridal veil and a cap of Point d'Esprit lace, with the conventional orange blossoms. She carried a large shower bouquet of pink roses and lilies of the valley and was given in marriage by her father, entering the room to the strains of Lohengrin played by Miss Constance Cowan, while the latter young lady also sang very sweetly "Oh Promise Me," during the signing of the register. As the minister completed the ceremony the bride was showered with rose petals from a white satin bell which was suspended from the centre of the arch. Little Sheila Keating, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Keating, was the only attendant making a very winsome flower girl in her pretty dress of pink organdie.
     Following the tieing of the nuptial knot, the bridal party and guests repaired to the dining room where a delicious luncheon was served by the girl friends of the bride, Miss Marjorie Keith serving at the bride's table. Here again the decorations were attractively arranged, the color scheme being orange and yellow, with roses and 'mums predominating, while the buffet was banked with evergreens and baby mums. Centering the table was a huge three tier wedding cake, adorned on top with a miniature bride and groom standing beneath a floral arch. White satin ribbons were festooned from the electrolier to the four corners of the room and to the dining table. Rev. Mr. Herman made a brief but very pleasing address in which he extended congratulations to the newly wedded couple and wished them every happiness and prosperity on their voyage through life.
     After receiving the congratulations and best wishes of the guests the happy couple followed by a large number of relatives and friends motored to the C.N.R. depot where, amidst showers of confetti and best wishes, Mr. and Mrs. Parker left on the Maritime Express on their honeymoon trip Western Canada and the Pacific Coast. On their return, they will take up residence at Brownville, Maine, where the groom is a well known locomative engineer on the Canadian Pacific Railway. For traveling, the bride was attired in a smart dress of black and white, with hat to correspond and wore a white fur.
     The bride was for some years past a popular member of the district office of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. here, and the popularity she enjoyed was attested to in the large array of beautiful and handsome presents she received, including silver, cut glass, gold, cheques, china, chests of silver, oil paintings, linen, and many other fancy and useful articles. The bride was also the guest at several showers given in her honor prior to the nuptial event. The groom's gift to the bride was a substantial cheque. Both bride and groom also received many congratulatory telegrams from different places in Canada and the U.S.A. last evening.
     Among guests from out of town present at the wedding were Mr. and Mrs. William Beaumont of Boston; Mrs. Parker and daughter, Inez, of Salisbury; Mrs. Chas. Delahunt and Mr. Lloyd Delahunt, Charlottetown.

Just for the record, I've never found the silver, gold, chests of silver or oil paintings. Ha!

cross-referenced here

Good Weather

When one has been working as long as John has on this wee haven, believe me, we get very excited to hear good weather news. And it looks as if we have two weeks of good weather stretching ahead. It's been a weird weather year and so often plans have been thwarted because of it. Now we're down to crunch time with winter's shadow nearing and we are both eager to tie up the loose ends.

I'm also very grateful that our outrageous electric bill — $150 a month (and that with a propane stove and a propane dryer) — is about to be a thing of the past. It will be wonderful to get the new main attached. The electrician thinks that we're losing a lot of power through a corroded, old wire running from the pole to the house and about to be removed in favor of the underground system. Yes! I'm quite excited. In fact, you may never have heard me this excited.

Here are the steps in order of what's next...the remainder of the west side, the dormer, and the front of the house.

So, tell me, what's floating your boat these days? Can it be any more exciting than new wiring?

Things 1 and 4

Thing 1 and Thing 4 visited last night. The eldest grand selected "Thing 4" because his outfit came with four digits 1–4 and 4 was the closest to 5 (his age). I love how kids think.

Thing 1 thoroughly enjoyed being Thing 1 and told me that Thing 1 didn't feel like cleaning the house so Thing 1 was leaving. (Seems to have been stuck on speaking of himself in the third person.) He emptied all of his candy into mine in a reverse trick or treat. The face he's making at the miniature Kit-Kat almost says Do I have to eat the rest of that? Wish that I had a similar problem.

Notice the pumpkins? John used his drill to create polka dots and to spell out the grands' names. What a blessing he is to these boys whose own paternal grandfather died long before they were born. They adore him and he thinks that they are mighty fine, too.

In my own childhood and into my 30s, I was blessed with a "substitute" grandfather. He could not have done a finer job of grandparenting if he had been a blood relative. He was a gentleman, polite and quiet, and one with whom I felt perfectly at ease. I could listen to him play his violin for hours and be content. Though a man of few words, he gave wise counsel when asked. He loved his garden allowing my sister and me to join him there and teaching us about the earth and the plants. He loved making us little trinkets and toys and would happily play "Go Fish" or teach us how to for real. Even now, I sometimes often find myself missing him.

Do you have some special people in your life who, though not related, are family?

Something to Crow About

You know, if we hang around long enough, we're going to see things not seen in over a hundred-fifty years like early snowstorms in October after a late autumn. I've seen snow on green leaves in the spring before, but never like this in fall.

Hard to believe that we'll be welcoming a new month tomorrow. Just a reminder about the Giving Thanks Challenge starting tomorrow at South Breeze Farm. Clicking on the button in my sidebar will take you there. Leah is putting up Mr. Linky sometime this evening around 10 p.m. (I don't know if I can stay up that late.) Hope to see you there!

Saturday was bitter cold and every breeze whispered snow. It made me feel like stopping by the local gift shop, which I did. Oh it was wonderfully decked out for Thanksgiving and Christmas. A crockpot near the door was filled with delicious smelling hot apple cider and the aroma of cinnamon floated about the entire store. Hmmmm...

I found these things:

Edited to Add Photo showing Mr. Crow, now named Edgar Allan Crow at Auntie's suggestion, where he should be...

Yes, a crow to sit on top of one of the fenceposts instead of where he is now and some Deco Lights from Darice with silicone tips. They have a very soft and warm look, which you've already seen if you saw yesterday's post.

So that's my simple Monday post. Hope to catch you soon!

A Tumultuous Privacy of Storm

Announced by all the trumpets of the sky, Arrives the snow, and, driving o'er the fields, Seems nowhere to alight: the whited air Hides hills and woods, the river, and the heaven, And veils the farmhouse at the garden's end. The sled and traveller stopped, the courier's feet Delayed, all friends shut out, the housemates sit Around the radiant fireplace, enclosed In a tumultuous privacy of storm. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson We are safe and warm around our "radiant fireplace" so we'll not complain too loudly about the early snow. And we shall hold our own church service as morning services have been canceled. Wonder what John will preach on. I can suggest a verse: As the cold of snow in the time of harvest, So is a faithful messenger to them that send him; For he refresheth the soul of his masters. Proverbs 25:13 John has nixed this scripture saying that it means a cold drink and not actual snow. He's right. I see it now and just when I was going to be able to think about this experience in a new and better way... ☺ Edited to Add: Morning found us without an internet connection, though we had power. The snow has stopped falling and all is good. With temps in the high 40s and low 50s predicted for the rest of the week, we are looking forward to getting back to normal. Hope that all is well with you! Sunday comments are closed

Finding Joy

I was told that the electrician would be by around 9 a.m. to check on a few things. I had no idea. He was here by 8:30. In very short order, Mort and John were moving all the furniture away from the walls to check each and every light and outlet. < thud >

Oh, my dear, can you even imagine? Yes, do allow your mind to go there.

Two and a Half Hours of Pure Joy

Mort grinned at John some time into the project and said, "It's been two and a half hours of pure joy, right John?"

Now they really did seem to be having some fun, but my house was a disaster area, no electricity so I couldn't amuse myself by sewing or by being on the computer. I did eat...as I recall...it all went by in a blur...an entire jar of candy corn. (Yes, we are still on our eating program.)

Two and a half hours of something considerably less than joy

I have not yet learned how to make myself content in all situations nor to consider it all joy. I should take lessons from Molly (the poodle) there who curled up on one end of a crowded sofa and napped using the birdhouse for a pillow.

Finally, I thought of my camera. Here are a few of the sweeter vignettes I found among the piles.

Photoscape~Antique

Photoscape~Cali something

Truly the Last of the Flowers...Clematis, Rose, Geranium

So, should you find yourself in a mess (a white mess) today and tomorrow, so many of us will, try to find the sweet joys lying all around.

A Grand Story

They were dressed in their little boy plaid flannel pjs, fresh from their baths, and all ready for bed. One wore red plaid; the other blue; and I forgot my camera hence the word picture.

Two dogs bounded about my legs...a hyper beagle named Jack and my grandpuggy Bazil.

My son and daughter-in-law were leaving for the first parent-teacher conference of the year so I had been invited to watch Toy Story  for a bit and to visit with the grands.

The baby grand's vocabulary has picked up immensely in recent months and he is speaking in full sentences and communicating quite clearly. I'll share some of our conversation from last weekend and you can see what I mean.

Baby Grand: Nonni

Me: Yes?

Baby Grand: Your lips are chapped.

Me: Jake?

Baby Grand: Yes?

Me: So are yours.

Baby Grand: Nonni

Me: Hmmmm?

Baby Grand: You have a mustache.

Me: What?!!!

Baby Grand: No, no. Not a mustache. You do not have a mustache.

 You don't think I have a mustache, do you?

Ever since, it's been touch and go between us. He seems worried that he's going to say something I won't be able to handle. That's just how tricky human communication can be sometimes. And I am afraid that he's going to take my amusement all too seriously.

Don't worry, we'll get it figured out. Last night we called up Auntie and she came to rescue us from tears and general anxiety. I just hope that Jake won't tell his aunt that she has a mustache.

Have a great weekend...

Accomplishments and Giving Thanks Challenge

The burning question is whether anything was accomplished yesterday, right? Well, John has the driveway fixed enough that we don't have to park our cars on the front lawn anymore. This is very good with Halloween coming next Monday. I had visions of the cars being egged and keyed.

(The neighborhood's actually had trouble with a gang of boys who don't have a lot of scruples because their parents don't either. They stole $300 and a GPS from my neighbor's car one evening last week. It certainly gives us all pause. Nothing will come of it as per usual. I'd like to think that a stern talking-to by the town police will work, though past incidents would suggest not.)

Back to accomplishments. I swiped some paint on a cupboard door and then promptly removed the door. I'm still deciding whether to leave it off or put it back. It's the glasses and mugs shelves and the cabinet is always sporting dirt. I'm not saying that the dear man who has been digging ditches and putting it all back together is responsible or anything... < insert whistling >

Say, do you have any open shelving in your kitchen? How do you like it? Tell me please!

Then I decided to paint the door in the living room area the same color as the kitchen cabinets...you know...when I actually do get around to painting them. This is the other side of the green door.

Before and After

The color is Linen Cloth from Sherwin Williams in a gloss. I need to be able to scrub off fingerprints easily. Originally, I had thought I'd paint the door something punchy. I've now decided neutral is the way to go and light. It's a dark enough room. I need to do the second coat this morning.

Have you noticed that Leah at South Breeze Farm is hosting the 5th Annual Giving Thanks Challenge? It has always blessed me to slow down long enough to think about those things for which I am truly grateful. Last November was a difficult month in many ways for my family and me so participating in this challenge kept me focused on the gifts of life that make living worthwhile. There are so many!

Leah will give you all the details soon and she's already started telling about it. Won't you consider joining in? And if you've already celebrated your Thanksgiving or if you don't celebrate Thanksgiving, it won't be held against you. =) It may prove to be a fresh way to center yourself in the month before Christmas and the New Year and to share it with your readers.

I'll put my growing list in my sidebar and sometimes I'll talk about it in a post in a more detailed way. November 30 will be the post where I save the entire list so that I can return to it again. If you'd like to see my 2010 list, you can find it *here.*

Hope to see you at South Breeze Farm soon!

Now have yourself a sweet day...

Fresh Eyes

A Fresh Morning

Don't you think we'd all be well served by looking at everything in life with fresh eyes? I thought about so many of the comments that came in yesterday on the blogging tips post. There are some really good ones! One of my friends said that she goes through her sidebar often and removes things that might be dragging her blog down or cluttering the look.

That resonated with me because I have an unwritten policy in my home that says "Something In/Something Out." I have not been following it so well with the house and I haven't been following it so well on my blog home either. I have recently added three items to the sidebar and this morning I took off two. Progress, right?

When I look at everything with fresh eyes, I see things more clearly. For one thing, you'll notice my post is late this morning. It's late because I decided that the first thing of the morning is no longer going to be putting up a post. No, I'm going back to my F*lyLady tip about getting dressed first thing in the morning. Now where are my shoes? (F*lyLady doesn't think one is dressed without shoes.)

I still enjoy posting before eight in the morning, but not at the expense of being unprepared for the day. I've also realized how often I hang out in my pjs until late morning. Now where is my Vitamin D? We bought some at BJ's last week, yet I haven't managed to get one from the bottle to my lips.

So I have many things to work on. Here it is years later and I still haven't painted the kitchen cabinets. I do have the paint, though. And today, yes today, I am going to paint something. I'll show you tomorrow. I will.

Time moves on and if I have no goals and no plan for moving toward them, I'm going to wake up one morning and realize that nothing in my life has been accomplished. I'll still be wearing my nighty and wondering where my life went. On that note, I'm off!

Have a great Wednesday...