somebody stop me!!!

So this is the "before" pic, that I remembered to take after I started sanding. Yes, I sanded it down right in our room, sawdust flying, vacuum cleaner handy. To be fair, I only lightly sanded it, then used some good primer, two coats. This morning, the first coat of chalk paint, white because...it's what I have, and I'm not feeling adventurous. Evelyn stopped in just now, and when I showed her the progress, she suggested I paint the top black. Hmmm. I'll have to think about that one. I am going to spray paint the handles, but it's raining out today. Even if it doesn't come out perfect, it'll be nicer than it was, we bought it for twenty bucks, sight unseen, answered a little ad for Dresser For Sale in the local paper, way back when...back when we lived in our first mobile home, I think. We had a water bed, because Paul bought it in college. We had couches and end tables because I bought them when I was a senior in high school, on a weekly plan, with my babysitting money. Oh dear, I've always been old! Anyway. Molly came over with little Ophelia and the kindergarten Miss Lydia Eleanor yesterday afternoon.

I went on my walk this morning before the rain started, well, I got pelted as I walked back up the driveway. I need to go do a second coat of chalk paint, so I can think about waxing it up and getting finished. I like to start projects, but oh boy do I like to finish them! Then I start looking around...the tall dresser, Paul's, needs something, but I don't like it at all, it's so old and big, and takes up too much room...I'd rather find something smaller, then paint it to match. Today, I have to bring Miss Camille to the dentist, then we're going to Aldi to stock up on our meal plan list. And now, another coat of paint...bye!

falling for autumn....

White pumpkins, who knew?

Took a little drive this morning, what beauty. Then, a bit of coffee, and a walk...

...right down the road...

My kids are all gone, school today, in-person. That's like one of our new words, "in-person", and I always think "impersonate", like we're copying normal. Speaking of normal, how about "new normal"? Or "mandate". Anyway, I got off my lazy rear end and went for my walk.

Today, the rest of the deck lumber is supposed to be delivered. I know, you don't believe me, because I've said it so many times. How do you think I feel, ha. I was going to make some plans today, but I had better stay here, they said either today or tomorrow. Well, I got some new lampshades for the new lamps for our new room, now I just have to find some used end tables/side tables to refinish. There are some on marketplace for cheap, but I'm not sure I love them. After I bought my coffee table, I saw one I loved, for half the price. Watching stuff on marketplace is like waiting to pull out into traffic...you wait and wait and dang, you should have gone, but you didn't, then wham, you pull out when you probably shouldn't. You watch things come up, they look nice, but you don't move on them and they're gone, so one day you see something, and you jump the gun, voila, it's yours, and well, is it really what you wanted? After I get my tables, I should just stay off marketplace, and just be thankful for what i have, right? I am thankful today, thankful that God hears my prayers. I woke up and had it on my heart to pray for more patience, and wouldn't you know, within ten minutes I had noticed at least ten times how impatient I am? Sometimes we just don't see ourselves at all, and our friends and family have to suffer because of our own impatience or snappiness. But God is so faithful, when we ask, we receive, and now I have something to work on today! Our president is doing better too, I sincerely hope. I've been praying for him! Whatever you believe, and whomever you support, praying for our leadership is wise! I absolutely don't love everything about President Trump, but I do value freedom and I think he is fantastic for our economy. I favor lower taxes, also. Also, he is a person, with a son, a family, a wife, how on earth can anyone gloat or rejoice in his sufferings? Oh well, have a really really good day!!!!

across the moors in the bracken...

I just wanted to pretend to be English for just a minute...the leaves here are a sight to behold, but the cows don't even care.

Our pool, all tucked in for the winter. Notice the deck isn't finished yet. We haven't yet gotten our second delivery of the rest of the lumber. They had it all saved for us, waiting on just a few 16 foot boards. Well, those boards came in, and the rest of the stuff had been taken from our pile. It's not a big deal now, we did enjoy the deck, even not completely finished...one of these days we will get a delivery of lumber, and in the spring, the deck can be completed. Yesterday afternoon, we had a housefull here for dinner, which was oven roasted pork loin with rosemary, applesauce with apples sliced in it, baked with cinnamon and sugar on top, roasted broccoli with cheese sauce, and a huge yummy garden salad from Mariel. Ashley made apple bread for dessert, and Emily made sugar cookies. We did try a bit of the pumpkin ale, with sugar and cinnamon on the rim of the glass, oh devine! So Emily, Abigail, Ben/Ashley/Anya/Elise, Mariel, Molly's husband Josh and baby Ophelia, Margaret/Adrian/Wulf/Tennyson, Evelyn, Sonja, Jonathan, Charlotte Claire, Camille, and of course Paul and I...it was a little bit loud, but so very nice. We don't really do "loud" in our family. We just don't. If sports are on the tv, we keep it muted, and always mute commercials. It's one of those things, that we work on not interrupting each other, or talking over each other. You would think that with 20 people in the house, it would be mayhem, but actually not really. Little Tennyson cried a little bit, and Wulf and Elise and Anya would be excited and run around a little, but they mostly played with the little Critter houses with all the little pieces, and with some playdough at the table before we ate dinner. Char played matching game with Anya, and Wulf got Uncle Benjamin to read him a story. So next Sunday, Florida!!! I hope the hurricane that's headed for the Gulf coast doesn't cause damage, and is done and over with by then. Our next trip, in November, might be visiting Kathryn in Oregon! This coming weekend, Emily, Abigail, and Jonathan are going to Virginia to visit Samuel and Grace and little Grant. I wish I could go, but poor me is going to Florida on Sunday... On Saturday, Mariel, Evelyn, Molly, Sonja and I are going to a few wineries...mostly to enjoy the beautiful trees in the Finger Lakes. :)

a crispy lovely autumn day for visiting and for crafting and for making pie....

This is the road to my son's house. It's still like a dream come true that he lives ten minutes away. When he was in the Army, then stayed in Washington state, he was gone for seven years. When he moved back with his wife and little Anya, they got an apartment for a year not too far from here, but when this house came up for sale, the huge country house he bought, I was thrilled! I went there for brekky this fine morning, had my first cup of coffee with two sweet granddaughters snuggling me, Miss Anya and Miss Elise. I brought some bacon, and Ashley made eggs...from their very own chickens. Mine was a double-yolker!

I made a little wreath...just because.

Have you ever tried pumpkin ale? It is SO GOOD. I am not really a drink-y person, but sometimes I like half a beer, or a glass of wine. More and more I find that alcohol doesn't agree with me, so I keep it to a minimum. I also don't believe that alcohol blends AT ALL with being with small children, aside from like...half a beer, or a glass of wine...but tipsiness and being around kids, nope. Anyway, this beer...you wet the rim of the glass, then dip it into sugar with cinnamon, and yeah, I don't really eat sugar either, but this is divine...makes sipping the beer an extremely autumn-y event.

This was back in the spring, when the leaves were new, and the lockdown was real, and we decided to open a yummy bottle of wine out on the deck...just because.

Keto no bake pumpkin cheesecake pie, just made this. I made a crust with melted butter and some almond flour, then added some very dark chocolate that I had put in the food processor, so it was like a powder. Then a bit more dark chocolate melted and swirled on top. I can guess that it's going to be yummy, because YEAH, I did lick off the spoon! Tonight, I am going to my sister's house! She's having some ladies over, and I'm bringing that cheesecake. Emily's making a charturie board, and I know I didn't spell that correctly. Let me look it up: it's "charcuterie". Close. Somehow my spell check is turned off. I swept and mopped the floors, did some dishes, a few loads of laundry, shined up the appliances, and washed some windows today. In it all, I've been praying for the president and the first lady, and whatever staff members who have been stricken with this awful virus. Whether you agree with his policies or his personality or not, it's only right to be respectful. Even our governor sent well wishes, promises of prayers, and some special treats from New York state. It's very classy of him. I've seen some ugly things, one article in a midwestern paper likening this day to a joyful, gleeful day, because yay, the president is sick. Seriously? It hurts my heart when people are so cold and harsh.

These two, they love going bye-bye. Yesterday we took them with us to town. I had promised the girls ice cream after school, soft serve pumpkin. The dogs heard some key words, like "going", and "treat", and started to get ready to leave with us, and you know how sometimes you just can't break hearts? They hopped in the back (they usually only go in Paul's truck, it's broken in and has it's share of dog fur in it)...they stayed in back wagging and panting and smiling, until we got out to get the ice cream, and voila! Sunny was in the driver's seat, with Suri in the back seat, making her way up front too! They got fur everywhere, but the seats are leather...now they have some doggie claw scratches...ugh. And shh, yes, I got an ice cream. One cannot always behave, right?

Baby Ophelia, isn't she lovely? She is such a sweet little squish.

Sonja Kathleen and Evelyn Joy, on a nice weekend away with a few girls... Miss Char and Miss Camille are also away, on an overnight with a few friends. Jonathan and Paul are out bow hunting right now, so shh, it's quiet in here! And guess what? I don't mind at all!

I just LOVE a good before and after...

I found a whole box of new outlet plug covers, but they were off-white, and with the white trim, nah. I thought I might splurge and buy some white ones, then I had an AH-HA, and yes, black spray paint!!!

Yesterday, I spray painted a lamp that was lime green, and the register covers from my room, which were like a brownish putty color.

(I forgot the "before" pic!) Here's the lamp, didn't get a "before" pic, but the stem and base of the lamp globe were lime green...

So I didn't take a complete "before" pic of the bedroom either, but these will jog your memory of the hideous carpet, the dark walls...

Now, it's not totally done, still have a bit of things here and there, but:

Isn't that bed nice!!!?

And the new floor!!!! I LOVE it! I'm still in the market for some fixer-upper night stands,and lamps, and the bench will probably be moved to the foot of the bed. The closet doors are still brown, wood, but I might leave them like that. And lest you think more highly of our room than you should, here's the wall facing the bed:

You see old dressers, I see projects. And that is MY sweater draped on there, the taller dresser is Paul's, he's had it since childhood. It's too big for the space, and the door doesn't open all the way, but that dresser had been on my side of the bed since we moved in, and dang it, I want a little table with a lamp. He's open for getting something smaller, but I don't want to give up my mammoth mirrored dresser, I like it. Stripped with clear varnish, or chalk painted, or just the way it is, maybe with the drawers closed all the way...it's fussy, it doesn't like the drawers closed right. And yes, that is Paul's bow in it's case there in front of it.

Suri was suspicious of the spray paint, but she's black enough. She doesn't much like getting her picture taken either.

Sunny...hogging Sonja's bed.

Autumn table, and out the back window... Molly came over to visit yesterday with kindergartener Lydia, and baby Ophelia. I didn't think to get any pics, amidst the hugs and cuddling and getting out toys for Lydia, and getting her a snack, and making coffee, and getting dinner into the oven (marinated chicken (vinegar, Montreal chicken seasoning, olive oil, ground pepper), brussel sprouts, cubed potatoes, baby carrots, salted and peppered and olive oiled, roasted, mmmm!)(I love the "throw it in the oven" cooking instead of grilling everything, although believe me, that will change!) My next project...maybe my bathroom, maybe the dressers, maybe the coffee table, maybe the end tables I haven't bought yet...

home where he belongs...with coffee!

Mr. Jonathan is home! We picked him up from Oregon yesterday afternoon. Sonja K., Charlotte Claire, Camille and I took a quick jaunt through Aldi first, for important things like cilantro, sour cream, taco seasoning, avocados, and chicken breast. We also stocked up on chocolate, got some unsweetened applesauce (you can slice some fresh apples on top, add a wee bit of sugar and cinnamon, and bake it, mmmm.). It was so good to see Jonny, he's so mature, I can't believe that he turned 16 in April and has traveled by himself across the country!

MMMMM, he brought me some of my favorite coffee beans! So Paul went to the hardware store and got more screws and bolts for the bedframe, some were the right ones, ha. This bedframe, can I just cry for a minute? I should have just gotten a brand new one. This one hasn't been used, but it also didn't come with any instructions, or any hardware. So Paul is a good guesser, and I am a good second guesser, so I was in there all helpful-like, suggesting things, but he actually had it right. The weird thing is that the little inside legs don't actually touch the floor, so we fixed it up, with some replacement tiles and wood blocks, the outer ones look just lovely. I just wanted a NORMAL BED. We cannot just move it now, because the blocks in the middle would be compromised, so it stays put. Also, it has such little clearance from the bottom of the bed to the floor, it's so low. I should have turned around and ran when I saw the pile of pieces that the lady sold me, ha. It is together now, but the bolts on the footboard are wrong, so it looks all out of kilter, but it didn't collapse last night, and it was comfy...but then why wouldn't it be, with a sleep number mattress, then two memory foam mattresses, a padded mattress cover, and fresh new sheets? My room does look 99% better than it did last week. No more green carpet, and all the clutter moved out. Now we have to work on not letting it back IN. When you see those lovely pinterest pics of master bedrooms, where are the laundry baskets, the guitars, the hunting boots? Where are the big fat polka-dot bathrobes that do not go with the decor of the room? The sweaters and jackets that drape across dressers? hmmm? I bought over-the-door hooks but the door wouldn't close, so they're in a hall closet. Ah well. And does anyone else have this problem? You work on one room, and the whole rest of the house goes to heck in a handbasket? I cannot.cannot.keep up with it all. There is still a huge-0 stack of boxes and wrappers from the flooring here in the living room. Today, we'll get it cleaned up. maybe.

Our power went out of a half hour or so last evening, and it was fun. We lit candles and were all settled in for some cozy, then the lights turned back on! It's a beautiful autumn day...I hope to get outside for a bit and forget about all these indoor projects!