Craft Room

It is Sunday.  I love Sunday.  I take a nap every Sunday.  Except when the husband is out of town.  And he is.   Let out a very big sigh right now.  Follow that up with a very big yawn.  This is how I am feeling at the moment.  Sigh.  Yawn.  
So instead of a nap, I am trying to work and clean the playroom/craft room/piano room.  My kids don't really play with toys too much anymore.  This gives me a very mixed feeling of sadness and relief.  Sad that they are growing up so darn fast.  Relief that I no longer need to devote a room of my home to toy storage.  The room we use is really a formal dining room.  Many years ago, my husband built a wall to close it off to be our office.  We were at the time using the office as the toy room because it had doors.  Then I switched the rooms and the "office" was my creative area and the toys were hidden in a concealed plastic paradise.  Then we got a piano.  Into the plastic paradise it went.  Then I got a thingy with 25 cubby holes.  If you click the link, you shall see that it is an Ikea Expedit bookcase.  It is extremely versatile and awesome.   I loaded it up with my sewing stuff.  And I was so pleased.   Then Doug began working from home.  My space was gone! Gone, I say.  G-O-N-E!   I was left with nothing.  So I took over the kitchen table because we eat 99% of our meals at the island anyway.   And I began storing stuff in our bedroom.  And there was  not a single room in the house that wasn't messy.  I began to live in constant fear of the crew from hoarders showing up on my door step.  Then we got an extremely nice, free couch.   I bet you didn't know there was such a thing.  But there is and it is mine now.   It went into the toy room.  And then, my husband left on business and I decided to paint his office and rearrange the furniture and move the craft stuff out (not to be confused with the sewing stuff.  The 25 cubbies stayed) to move the couch in.  The kids could now be trusted with access to markers and beads more than they could be trusted with a white couch.  Also, I thought it would make his office feel nicer since he was in there all the time.  It was a 3 man job.  I did it alone.    He was not thrilled with my decisions.  Two days later as he peacefully slept on the couch in his office I crept up to his slumbering face and yelled, "I told you so!" (OK, not really, but I wanted to.)
So now, I am working on the latest phase in the toy room saga as I try to minimize the kids' toys and maximize mine.  When I get done, I want it to look like this.....   But, alas, I look into it and find that she has purchased all that furniture and her sewing desk, while very cool cost $1500.  Another sigh.
Now I have to get creative.  So I dash on over to Ana White.  You don't know Ana White?   Well, she is amazing.   She is Bob the Builder for chicks.  She builds furniture.  Furniture that looks very Pottery Barn, but without the price tag.  She has plans for a table like I want.  See the aqua one in the middle?


She also has plans for the table that the sewing machine is on.  It is the narrow farmhouse table.  But I don't really have space for all of this, so I am left wondering what in the heck I am going to do.  I really really want that table.  Hint hint handy husband.  Valentine, Anniversary, Birthday are all coming. Don't make me do it myself.  It won't be level. I will measure twice and cut once and it will still be wrong. This is the entire reason I quit architecture.  It will look awful propped up on a deck of cards trying to keep it from wobbling.  And if it does wobble when I am rotary cutting, it will be a bloody mess.   Bye bye finger. And I will be down to 8 because I will probably lose at least one in the process of making the wobbly table.  Please.  Pretty pretty please.  Wow, I took you guys on a ride there.  Welcome to my mind!
 
I really want my room to match more.  I am tired of living in a hodgepodge.  I really want the now office to be my craft room but, that is not at all going to happen.   So, now that I have spent an hour in fantasy land looking at perfect craft rooms. (which clearly aren't used, right?  Where are the threads on the floor?  Where are the half finished projects? I mean if you have THAT, something should be in process all the time.)
I think the current answer is sort, arrange, donate, and ditch.  And just maybe in this process I will find the answers, or at least a whole new set of problems!   Happy Sunday Friends!

The Menu Plan

Ok, so I said that I was going to try to do a better job of planning meals.
The kids and I came up with the week's plan.

Sunday-Turkey Tacos/Taco Salad
Monday- Lentils and Rice. Grapes.
Tuesday- Boneless Wings.  Fruit
Wednesday- Spaghetti and Meatballs.  Caesar salad. Green Beans.
Thursday-  Leftovers.
Friday- Doug's choice.

New Year!

Ahhhhhh, a New Year!  Yes, I do realize that I am a few days late in my acknowledgement of this event, but I have been in the mountains and time seems to stand still when on vacation!  So, today, back in my abode it is my New Year's day.  I have been thinking about resolutions and the best way to tackle them.  A few years ago, I read to choose a theme word and work toward that.  That seems to work for me.  Under the heading of that word, I try to add specific goals.....lots of them.  I always think, "I have 12 months to get this done. That is ample time.  I can do it." Then reality takes hold and a year turns into what seems like about 4 1/2 days and there is never enough time!
So for this year.... my word is going to be ROUTINE.  I am often guilty of flying by the seat of my pants.  I seem to work best under a pressing deadline.  And then, everything else falls by the wayside.  I admit that at times, dinner preparation comes as a surprise to me.  And, as stated before, I am not the best house keeper. I often fail at delegating and then I get cranky that I have no help!
Ahhh, the list goes on and on, but many of my woes can be solved if I work towards a routine.
So, here we go....the list--

HOME ROUTINE
1) Make a chore chart/list/assignment sheet for the kids. My husband says not to do this.  He says simply ask them when I want something done.  I, personally,  like to see things as part of a list and maybe they will too.    Assign regular chores and make some chores for pay.  Allow them to earn a little money to manage, save, and help squelch the "I want"s.
2) Purge unwanted stuff room by room
3) Prepare items for consignment.
4) Get help in the form of a maid.  I have wrestled hard with this.  Very hard.  My dear, sweet, wonderful, incredibly kind friend knows that this is my Achilles' heel and gave me the gift of a house cleaning for Christmas.  (No, I was not offended.  Relieved. Excited.  Overjoyed. But not offended!)  Opening that gift made my whole being let out a huge sigh of relief and from that moment on, I began thinking of things I could sacrifice to keep that sense of relief.  Target and I are going to have to go on a break.
5) Organize recipes and menu plan.  Then dinner won't be a surprise!
6) Manage the calendar and attempt to no get over booked. (Haaaaaaaaaaa haa haa!)

KIDS' ROUTINE
1) Tackle homework FIRST!
2) Prep and plan for activities
3) George- practice piano and baseball
4) Lindsay- School work, dance, art
5) Establish chores as part of daily living.  (Drop to your knees now and pray for me!)

MY STUFF (In no particular order)
1) Establish exercise as a part of life.
2) Complete half done quilts....there are lots of them.
3) Catch up Christmas scrapbook.  I have given up on the rest.  Scrapbooking is too high pressure.  I spend way too much time on each page.
4) Make another tutu.
5) Do Christmas sewing early.
6) Make something for myself.
7) Sew for others for pay to try to keep the maid.

So, that is all.  Completely do-able.  If nothing comes up. Ever.

Happiness is.....

Today, I spent much of my morning setting up various i devices and wondering what the heck had happened to my music library after a recent update of itunes.  Apple can call their magic storage place the cloud.  I am going to call it the Phantom Menace.  I mean really.  I was happily putting music onto an ipod and mid-stream all these clouds popped up.  It looked like the weather radar and then I get a message that I must first download the music to my computer to continue my dragging and dropping. What? But, it was just there?!?   Phantom Menace.  Anyway, I was severely irritated, but somewhere in the process, I decided I wasn't going to let it tick me off for half of the day.  I decided I would focus on the simple things (without chargers or passwords) that make me happy.  Here's what I came up with.......

Happiness is......
making a quilt
a job well done
red nail polish (I did this today!)
a White Christmas

Happiness is.....
kids singing in the shower
a dog
glitter
an empty dishwasher

Happiness is.....
getting lost in a story
revisiting the classics
a garden in bloom
poinsettias

Happiness is........
the glow of the spotlight
snow
a favorite song
a good night's sleep

Happiness is......
warm slippers
the pop of a champagne cork
comfy pj's
a new toothbrush

Happiness is......
a fresh start
a full moon
sand in your toes
fresh powder

Happiness is......
a rally cap
the crack of a bat
the snap of a glove
sliding into home

Happiness is........
a beautifully executed eschappe
the Snow Scene in Nutcracker
The Sound of Music
pointe shoes

Happiness is......
hot chocolate
Cold Dr. Pepper
Dark Chocolate
light and fluffy mashed potatoes

Happiness is......
playing cards with Grandma
watching Pa stir the soup
fishing with Pappy (my grandpa)
Sewing with Sudy (my grandma)

Happiness is.......
an electric train
sequins
a full bobbin
a bubble bath

Happiness is.....
soft sheets
starched white shirts
a brand new box of crayons
giving the perfect gift

Happiness is.....
a day at the lake
fireworks
hydrangeas
a crisp fall day

Happiness is.....
a spring thunderstorm
cold November Rain
butterflies
puppies

Happiness is....
remembering the way it was
anticipating how it will be
learning along the way

Happiness is.....
a clean house
a fresh start
a new year
an adventure

Happiness is all around us.

PS-- If you have any tips on outsmarting itunes, do share.  That makes me happy too.

Where I Live

My little girl is reading the book "Where I Live"  by Eileen Spinelli.  I am loving the sweet story about a little girl and how she has to move.  I am loving the way it is written is as a series of poems.  Words do not fill the page margin to margin which, I think is VERY VERY VERY overwhelming for my little girl who has dyslexia.  Her eye gets to rest, her brain gets to rest and she gets to enjoy the story rather than feel like she is running against the wind or going into battle with all of the words on the page.  I hate dyslexia,  but I love this book.  I think we might need to own this book.  
I just read the part I missed because she read with her uncle yesterday.  Yes, I am reading my kid's library book while she is at school.  I am OK with that.  I found these words a poetry instructor gave to her students.  It spoke to me.

be brave,
be messy,
write what we feel,
tell the truth,
love who we are,
share,
keep a notebook,
take it everywhere,
open our eyes
and our hearts.
.........

Wow!  I love this book.

The Boy's Room

I have been redoing my daughter's room.  The last time it was re-done, she was turning 4.  She is now turning 9.  9!  Well, part of her room redo (which I will not yet show you) involved swapping some furniture with her brother and thus re-arranging his room.  I did the swapping and re-arranging today.  I did not declutter his room yet due to lack of time.   I put a shorter dresser in his room.  I thought it would be nice if he could reach all of his drawers.  He thought it would be nice to climb the dresser,  jump off,  and pretend to "slam dunk like Dirk Nowiskey." Yes, I spelled it wrong-- that is how he said it.   It is also exactly how I feel about liquor- No Whiskey.

My husband built the loft to give him the feel of a dug out and afford him a little more floor space to play in.  I  would have liked to paint before the construction began, but alas, he just started building. Plus, the brands on the wall are from his western theme nursery.  Doug and I painted them.  Some are real brands from Texas ranches.  Some we made up to be significant to our family and interests.  Doug also made the barn wood sign.  He did it with black crayon--yes, crayon!  to give the weathered look.  Isn't it awesome?!
I have to figure out a better place for the night stand than in front of the ladder, but then again, the kid is part monkey.  Missing a few rungs won't slow him down!    I think at some point I will paint a scoreboard on the wall opposite the "dugout", but I have LOTS to do in the girly room first.  Tomorrow, I begin painting 3 pieces of furniture.......

Climb the dresser to the right.  Jump and dunk on the Nerf hoop in the center.  Awesome, huh?  

Just noticed he has attached the hoop with Duck tape.  So lovely and functional.

Just A Quote....

This was the tipping point that made me blubber about my baby starting Kindergarten....Over a week into school.  Being tough is over rated.  

“To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket- safe, dark, motionless, airless--it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable.”
C. S. Lewis