ummm... tuesday thoughts

i started a really thoughtful & semi-deep blog post yesterday.

you know, when it was actually tuesday?

it was cloudy & cool & raining lightly.

i felt dissatisfied.

mildly unhappy.

grumpy.

unproductive.

i never finished the post.

today it is warm & sunny & smells like Spring.

i got to run in the sunshine- 7 miles in shorts & a long sleeved t-shirt.

bulbs are sprouting in the funniest places all over my yard,

and the sunlight streaming through my window is gorgeous.

i feel more content.

hopeful.

inspired.

gracious.

i wish my joy was more consistent & less dependent on my circumstances.

i should certainly be less affected by the weather.

i had Bible study yesterday (BSF), and we were discussing John 16.

verse 22 says, "So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you."

hmm. makes me think.

that's all.

have a happy wednesday- i know i am!

progressive decorating

i don't mean progressive as in, "favoring or promoting change or innovation."

i mean, "happening or developing gradually or in stages; proceeding step by step."

or as the mommy dictionary defines it:

"do what you can in 20 & 30 minute chunks during naps &

Veggie Tales videos."

so that's how i'm proceeding!

5 days later, i have a light fixture that is no longer shiny gold!

it's supposed to be 'oil rubbed bronze,' but it appears black unless you look closely.

oh well! good enough for me!

i don't really love the fixture, but i can't justify the big bucks for the kind of fixture i'd really love!

$6 for a can of spray paint is enough love for me!

there are 2 problems...

one is this:

the spray paint rubbed right off the moving parts! makes sense, of course- but i did not anticipate that. it gives it a bit of a 'shabby' look, i've decided.

the other problems is this:

i'm trying to be energy conscious, so i put in the CFL bulbs. yup- they stick right up out of the top of the fixture! they have a really ugly light, too.

would it be horribly un-green of me to use

incandescent bulbs just in this fixture?

i promise i'll be green in the rest of my house! i'd just like pretty light over my table!

so once i had the light fixture prettied-up, i turned to the rest of the room.

the time has come.

i am making holes in the walls!

before:

after:

yes, i'm a Nester follower (if you're not, you should check out her blog! she has great ideas for simple ways to get your home to feel warm & welcoming). that's where i learned about decorating with cheap plates.

don't like it?

that's fine- just don't tell me because i love it! ha!

and i love these flowers:

they were a super inexpensive purchase at an antique mall a few years ago, and i've never stopped loving their faded colors. i may switch them out seasonally- i have some other thoughts about what could go there in the Fall & Winter!

and yes, i went nuts with bunnies & Easter eggs already. i know it's not Spring officially, but i'm DYING for some color.

plus, caroline's 4th birthday party is around the corner and i plan to use the bunnies in her party decor.

don't call the cheesy police- i'm not going to begin decorating with dolls & stuffed animals year round. just a few bunnies for Spring!

this is how they looked when i took them out of the box yesterday:

wanna see that knot up close?

see? it took real dedication to get those bunnies untangled!!

but i promise this: the bunnies won't stay year round.

the plates will stay.

i also did a little work on the buffet table.

i'm considering painting it, but i'm not sure what color... any suggestions?

i didn't realize until i uploaded this picture how cluttered that feels... hmm.

that will probably change very quickly!

but i got a fun idea from Joys of Home to store my silver out where i can see it!

makes perfect sense- i have it, might as well display it. plus, i'll be more likely to use it when it's out rather than stored in my basement!

i think it's fun & sparkly... but apparently i'm a sucker for cute things (hence the bunnies).

so this is the dining room for now:

notice how i'm not showing you the other side of the room?

there's a reason for that!

work in progress... i'll update you soon.

well, probably not soon.

just being honest.

i also did a little 'spring-ifying' to the foyer:

yes, those are more bunnies.

don't un-friend me!

i have a fabric in mind for recovering the hall bench & doing some window mistreatments as well... so hopefully i'll get to that soon!

well, again... probably not so soon.

naptime is only so long, you know.

warmer weather means...

it's time to be outside!

we had a lovely time playing with stomp rockets in our backyard this week...

thanks grandma- we love them!

first: load the rocket.

second: stomp as hard as you can.

third: watch your rocket fly!

not pictured is step 4: mommy sets her camera down to retrieve rocket from window ledge, fence post, rain gutter, driveway, neighbors' yards...

we also did some exploring of our 'new' yard.

the rocks looked pretty tasty...

but they are not.

'mommy, we need better rocks.'

'ron, don't eat the rocks.'

'can we go running now?'

in addition to playing & taste-testing, i did a little dreaming & scheming about the future of our little pile of dirt.

there are bulbs coming up EVERYWHERE!

i can't wait to see what we've got- this is one of the fun parts of a new house: letting Spring & Summer unveil the garden's secrets!

i use the term 'garden' loosely...

here's the back of our house... yes, the rest of the house is painted white. we'll make it all one color someday!

we also plan to make that little brick patio a bit bigger this spring.

by we, i mean matt!

wow- we need some color back there!

all in due time...

check out this little mess:

garage, with extra mold & yuckiness!

and you know you're jealous of this:

my very own special pile of rocks!

this is where i envision a compost pile & cute workbench for potting, etc.

i've got an amazing cottage garden in mind...

maybe not this growing season-

it may take us a while to clean this place up!

HAPPY ALMOST SPRING!!

meatloaf

yup. meatloaf.

i've never been a huge fan- i liked meatloaf okay on the evenings my mother prepared it: fresh, hot, a tiny bit crispy on the edges, but soft & juicy on the inside.

however, she (ever the loving mother who packed my lunches for me for 17 years!) tended to pack a cold piece of meatloaf between 2 pieces of bread the next day for my lunch.

not my favorite.

sorry mom!

so i have avoided meatloaf in my married life/motherhood cooking adventures for the most part.

then last night i had 1 lb of nice ground beef staring at me- needing to be used. i dug into my recipe file for something that my kids might eat.

Berry Mini Meatloaf. Perfect!

cute little muffin size meat loaves with yummy berries poured over the top- easy, yummy, fun!

i highly recommend it- make a batch of your favorite (preferably NOT spicy) meatloaf recipe, then divide it into a muffin tin. cook at 350 for 30 minutes.

while those are cooking, put 1 cup of frozen berries (i used some fabulous local blackberries that i froze last summer) and 1 cup of orange juice on the stove to simmer.

when you're ready to serve, just pour 1-2 tbsp of berry sauce over each mini meatloaf! seriously- how easy & tasty is that?

did my kids eat it?

well, no.

julia picked at it & ate some of the beans & rice i served with it.

caroline stood on her chair & sat in time out for most of dinner.

(by the way, the beans & rice were supposed to be dinner the evening before, but i didn't get the beans soaked early enough & they were still crunchy at dinner time. BUT- they tasted fabulous with this meal!

red beans cooked in lightly salted water, drained, then seasoned with a bit of rosemary & reheated in hot olive oil. the long grain white rice was cooked with roasted garlic & olive oil. simple & yummy!)

tuesday thoughts

hmmm... anna suggested i continue doing tuesday thoughts, but now i'm not sure i have anything of interest to write about! maybe i only had one tuesday full of 'thoughts' worth sharing.

i'll let you decide.

keep reading if you'd like- i'm not promising anything!

matt's oncologist appointment was good- nothing in his bloodwork or in physical examination to cause alarm. this is what we expected, but we've been burned by high expectations before. matt blogs occasionally (weekly?) about how his perspectives have changed over the last few years... not just due to cancer & chemo, but also parenting & marriage & ministry & life.

i think it's an interesting read, and i also think he's pretty hot.

maybe i'm biased.

we moved caroline & julia into one room last night for the first time. i like the idea of them sharing a room, but have put it off to protect julia's naps. caroline still takes a 'rest' time every afternoon, but it's the LOUDEST rest i've ever witnessed. she hasn't actually slept in almost a month, but she needs that alone time.

who am i kidding- I NEED THAT TIME!

love my girls- love them even more when i've had a few minutes to myself.

so anyway- we moved julia's crib into caroline's room,

then we moved caroline's toddler bed into julia's room.

by we, i mean matt.

the idea was that caroline would sleep in the twin bed that has been in her room for 3 months, but slept in only 10 times.

wrong.

she fell apart shortly after i announced that it was time to go potty before bed- sobbing that her bed was missing & she didn't want to sleep in julia's crib. i explained my plan, but that was NOT okay.

long story short- i moved the toddler bed back into her room & they giggled & cried & threw things for almost an hour before falling asleep.

today, caroline 'rested' in my bed. julia slept in her crib in caroline's room. with the twin bed. and the toddler bed.

too many beds in that room.

not sure what we'll do, but we'll figure it out!

flylady update- i'm still doing it. i suppose i'm 'fluttering.'

i don't like cute nicknames & acronyms very much.

but i do like being a little more at peace with my home & my schedule.

this week i've been trying to do my 'weekly' routine a little more closely, which means i've set aside tasks for each day of the week instead of just getting to them whenever i have time. so far so good!

i do have 3 loads of laundry to fold, which is not so good.

but here's where flylady is encouraging to me; she says:

'you're not behind! just begin where you are!'

and

'just do something. even 5 minutes is better than nothing.'

(i'm paraphrasing).

it makes me feel better- i'll go fold some clothes as soon as i'm done here.

i'm almost officially completely done with my job as Nursery Director for our church! this probably warrants a separate post- i have lots of thoughts.

2 1/2 years. funny- if you had told me 5 years ago that i would be a nursery director, i would have laughed a lot! it's still a little funny to me- my degree is in Exercise Physiology. i've worked for several hospitals in cardiac/pulmonary rehab and a few fitness/wellness facilities as a personal trainer. not jobs that immediately scream,

"you should plan crafts & Bible stories for toddlers!"

but i learned SO much... i'll make some notes & write more about this later!

Spring is COMING!

i'm going to work on planning my lawn/garden/flower extravaganza

this week!

then i'm going to start selling crack to pay for it.

we sold our old house, kind of! well, our realtor did- she's awesome.

it's a lease-purchase contract, and we're thrilled!

i should go- caroline is in time out for jumping on the couch, then hitting me. maybe i should get off the computer? yup.

have a great tuesday!