Friday Ramblin'.....

I was up waayyy too early this morning!  3:15 I'm wide awake!  And I knew it wasn't one of those times that if I just lay there and close my eyes, I will just drift off back to sleep. So, I got up.  Having my coffee and computer time. 

After several attempts at taking some photos of things to put in my etsy shoppe, I decided to say forget it....I'm just going to take it to the mercantile. I just couldn't seem to get good clear photos.  I think I may close my etsy shop for awhile if not for good.  It's been sitting empty for awhile now and I just don't have  time for everything.  Every once in awhile ya just gotta stand back and look at the whole picture and ya realize somethings gotta give.

The bathroom redo is coming along slow but sure....I was really hoping to get it done this week since I had the time off, but there are little things that come up that delays the process by adding a little more work.  Ya know what I mean?  Once I got the walls stripped, I looked at the ceiling and realized it just couldn't be repaired so I may as well scrape that down and redo it as well.  Do that before I start painting the walls, right?  Then we notice the commode is really tilting to one side.  Weak spot in the floor.  So now looking at that minor repair and hoping that the commode won't need to be replaced as well.

Here are a couple of before photos.....

Wallpaper down, ceiling stripped, towel rings/bars off and holes filled....I changed out the light switches and power outlets yesterday.  The lighting fixtures will be taken out and updated...This vanity will be staying for now....it will just get a little facelift. 

So that's my work in progress....It's never taken me so long to redo just one room...two or three days, tops!

Today I'll be on the hunt for an inexpensive yet attractive lighting bar....one that will mount on the ceiling in the existing box.  Wish me luck!!

I hope you've had a great week.....and have a fantastic weekend!!!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Yep....the big 45!  I'm spending it at home....I have to say I was beginning to wonder just how good a day it could be when I woke to no power.  I woke at 6:30 and the little light in my bathroom flickered and the storm had begun outside and I no sooner got out of bed to go turn the coffee pot on when the power went out so back to bed I went!  I'm really not one to do that but if ya can't have coffee first thing in the morning, what's a girl to do?  .So 2 hours later, still no power! For cryin' outloud!!  I threw on some clothes, and was going to run over to the convenience store that is 6 miles away to grab a cup of coffee and lo and behold the power came back on!  All is well in my world again!!

Last Wednesday our a/c went on the fritz.  Then our garbage disposal started leaking and had to be taken out, which didn't bother me none.  A couple of truck issues on top of that but nothing too serious this time.  I got the wallpaper stripped in the bathroom and walls sanded.   There was a gathering of winter Texans here at the farm over the weekend ..... what a wonderful group of people!  Took a group over to visit the Amish on Saturday morning....always nice visiting over there!  So back at it this week....had two cleaning cancellations this week so I have the rest of the week to finish that bathroom! Today, it's scraping the ceiling!  How's that for celebrating a birthday?!! LOL  Works for me....I've been wanting to do this for a long time!

I'll also be getting some things listed in my etsy shoppe later today and getting some things together to take to the mercantile....multi-tasking!  As late as I slept today, I should be able to work a long while this evening!

Hope you all have a wonderful day!!!

Today's the day...

...that I begin, again, to redo our main bath.  For more than a couple years now, I've been wanting to redo our main bath.  I even started to strip the wallpaper.  The border came down easy enough. Then I started on the wallpaper.  Hmm....over the shower was as far as I got for whatever reason.  It's been so long ago now who can remember! That wallpaper has been my holdup....to strip wallpaper takes a great amount of time and patience even when using a good remover solution.  Two things that I don't have alot of for things as such!  You would think that I would of found time over the past two years to get this done.  Instead, I used the time I had for such projects to redo this spare room, which is my sewing/computer room and the laundry room.  

I did remember to snap a before pic...but I will save that to post once the project is complete!

*****************************************

I hope you are having a great summer!  I can't believe it's already mid-July!! It's been three weeks since my last post....seems I'm going backwards instead of forwards when it comes to my blogging.  Not that I haven't had the time or anything that was blog-worthy, it's just taking the time.  I've hung up my waitress apron since my sister is back to work.  Besides the cleaning service, I'm still hemmin' pants at the clothing store.  I had a little bit of creative time to put together a few things that I will soon be listing in my Etsy Shoppe and some things will go to Randolph Mercantile.  Took a little road trip over to IL this past weekend to meet John.  I visited the Beardstown Antique Mall where I found a few bargains.  I even found some Peaches & Creme yarn on mark-down at the Beardstown Wal-Mart, in case I get hit with that crochet bug!  Then we found a new place over in Jacksonville called The Peddler's, where I found a couple more things.  Of course all these will be repurposed and up for sale soon! (Hopefully soon!)  My Etsy shoppe has been sitting empty for weeks now!

Well, that wallpaper isn't going to strip itself, so I better get myself off this thing and movin'! 

Have a GREAT day!!

The road to Grandma's house...

We had a little family gathering the other day out at my sister's place.  She lives just up the road from where our grandparents lived.  We were reminiscing of the many walks we used to take on that road....so off we went.....just as kids, other than NOT going barefoot, although we were all wearing flip-flops, not minding the heat, we took off down the road that leads to Grandma's house. Remembering the old rickety wooden bridge that is no longer there, the old sandstone that we used to sit on and carve our names into....it's still there but lost in the brush that has grown up over it through the years.  The wild cherry tree, which still stands but the two trees on either side of the driveway, where we all spent many hours playing beneathe as kids, gone from either being cut down or taken out by a storm.  And the house....what was once known, and will always be remembered as the PINK house...is now white and black shutters have been added along with a few other changes. Other family members may live in that house now, but it will always be Grandma and Grandpa's.  The road is just a half mile,  up hill both ways, I might add and we sure got a work out but we also made another memory on that road!

**************************

It's been hotter than blue blazes out lately!  I'm not complaining though....I'll take it over snow and ice anyday! It is so hot that even our outside cat didn't greet me as I went out the front door yesterday....she planted heself amongst the yarrow....

...all stretched out, just nappin' in the afternoon shade.

After a hot sunny day today, the past hour or so has looked like it could come a downpour at anytime. Ahh....here comes the rumble of thunder.  With all the rain we have been getting, I'm afraid that come mid-July we will be begging for rain! Let's hope I'm wrong. 

The garden is coming along nicely, thanks to all the rain....I did finally get out there to use the hoe and do some weeding....and boy have I felt it today! 

I hope you all are having a great week!  Try to stay cool and drink plenty of fluids!

Friday Ramblin'.....

Since it's been two weeks since my last post, I thought I'd pop in and at least let you know I'm still here.  Just working alot....at home and away from home.  I hope to get back to blogging regularly here pretty soon.

I do want to tell you about a couple of new forums.....If you like to cross stitch or like samplers, you might want to check out Samplermakers....the link is over on the sidebar....just click on it and it will take you right there!

The other is Farmhouse Kitchen....a forum I created on delphi for those of us who do enjoy spending time in the kitchen...sharing our recipes, tips and techniques and more.... just click on the link below...

http://forums.delphiforums.com/farmhouse3

If you are not already a member of delphi forums, then you will have to go thru a quick registration.  It's simple and it's free unless you want to upgrade to a paid membership.

 Time for me to get off this thing and get busy!!!  Hope y'all have a great day and awesome weekend!!!

Garden Thyme...

Good Morning All! It has been a beautiful week here in my little corner of the world.  Busy...but beautiful! Hot....but I'll take it!  After all the snow, ice, cold and rain....I'm SO ready for sunshine and heat! 
I've finally gotten my lavender planted...it's a wonder I didn't lose them since they'd been sitting outside in their little greenhouse pots waiting to be planted!  I transplanted the two plants I already had and let's hope I didn't move them at the wrong time.  I've already snipped some of the blooms to dry....as well as some of my yarrow...and from the looks of it this morning, I need to snip it again!

And this lambs ear will be ready to cut soon! 

This plant came from a start I received 10 years ago in a friendship garden swap from a lady out in New Hampshire.  I planted her start in the flower garden at my old house and as it grew, and did it grow!...I took a start and brought it to my MIL for her flower bed, at the house I live now! That little start went wild!  It has taken like six years to get it under control....and I still have to weed a little bit of it out at the beginning of the year....I don't know how it spreads so!

And I have finally gotten some gardening done!  It is definitely a make-do garden....Seems when my oldest son moved out, so did the majority of my gardening tools.  So rather than run around to beg and borrow, I made do with what I could find to put plants in.  The tomatoes won't grow fast enough for John!  I have a nice little assortment of veggies with some watermelon and canteloupe as well as some herbs! 

There are few more things I need/want to put in.....hopefully I can squeeze that in sometime today!

I will be taking off a couple days....a little R&R...then I'll get back to work in the sewing room.....

....to finish up this order of quilt blocks!  It's nice to sit down at the sewing machine to work on something other than alterations!

I hope you have a safe and wonderful holiday weekend. 

Many THANKS to our service men and women and to their families

who sacrifice SO much!

GOD BLESS YOU!!!

May Ramblin'....

Where in the world has the month of May gone to? It's two-thirds of the way passed and what have I been doing that I've not been here?  Work.  Work.  And let's see......Oh!  Work!  I know I make it sound like I've been working 24/7....not the case, just feels like it!  Seems there's always something.....

Just want to share a few found treasures with you today.  The first picture are treasures found in an old shed from my folks place. I don't think they even had a clue that this stuff was in there!  Things left there from the old man who lived there before them.  They are wanting to tear it down this year so while I was out there several weeks ago...shoot, I think it was Easter....I went thru the old shed and found these things.  I packed them around in the bed of my truck for weeks! When I finally caught a nice day and got them out and cleaned them up.  There are  a few other things that I forgot about to make the picture! oops! Oh well....

They will all be put to use....somewhere, somehow. 

This next photo is from my little overnighter to Springfield, IL last weekend. 

The old picnic basket is my new needleworks basket. The fabric will be used for some cross stitching.  The jug will most likely become a lamp.  Now to find the time!

It's been gloomy here for several days now, but we are supposed to be getting some sunshine and much warmer temps.  According to google, it's to reach 90 on Sunday?  I'll take it!!!

I hope the sun is shining where you are!  I'm going to work up a few alteration pieces then settle in with some cross stitch and hopefully find a good movie!!

Have a GREAT weekend!!