Thank you!

Deanna is one of my friends that lives in my computer. :-)

Yesterday I received a little something in my mailbox from her -- look how cute she packaged it --

 

There is a darling frame with a scripture quote on it, and matching cute magnets that were sitting on a cute tag (is that a chalkboard tag?). I love it all, Deanna! Thanks for the sweet words on your pretty card, too. Everything is wonderful! 

I love seeing your comments here at the Bend, and I love checking out your little corner of the world. Her pictures are works of art, people! So talented.

Thank you again, Deanna! ♥

Words to Live By

 

Love one another and you will be happy.

It's as simple and as difficult as that. 

                                        --  Michael Leunig

A Little Update

Here's the skinny on our current situation. I guess I haven't talked about it in a while -- so it was easy to get confused on just what I was saying while I was doing my happy dance at my own personal party for my very good friend, Heidi. :-)

Mr. H has been working since the spring, but at a 1099 contract (this means you get paid, but your employer pays none of the taxes usually taken out of a person's paycheck. Sounds pretty good on the surface, but the reality is that Uncle Sam will come find us in April with his hand out and stern expression on his face, and say "WELL?") -- while we are so thankful for the work, no matter what it's form, it has been stressful.

We have to save a good-sized chunk of Mr H's check to prepare for the looming tax bill -- bleh. Sometimes, like with our daughter's recent surgery costs, we don't save anything at all, and just take care of current obligations. Double bleh. Add in the fact that this was supposed to be a very short term contract, that for some reason keeps getting extended...and you have a very thankful, but very nervous girl.

I feel blessed that we have money coming in. But I can't quite get out of the survival mentality; the work could disappear at any moment and while it's here, it's a blessing that has an eventual bite to it. While counting my blessings, my eyes are to the skies, waiting for that other shoe to drop.

(okay, does that picture creep anyone else out? ~shiver~)

Life is good in the meantime. I'm a worrier (what woman/mom isn't ?) and I have my days when the uncertainty of it all really gets to me, but for the most part I try to focus on the here and now and the blessings found in each day. Life is here now. It is what it is. I try to make the best of it. But, you can't blame me for getting a little excited when my parallel-universe-kindred-spirit-friend has really good news to share -- that means something good comin' down the pipe for us, too! Happy dance time.

Hoping and wishing all good things for you, too. I hope life is treating you well in your little corner of the world. ♥

Defining a Library

Mr. H and I have dreams of a having a library in our home. We have a spare bedroom, and our family loves to read (and write) so why not?

When I think of a library, I think of this. (sigh) I just want to curl up in one of those chairs and lose myself in a book, don't you? Well, our spare room is nowhere near that size, so we'll have to scale down from this.

On our current precarious budget, we'll also have to take baby steps as we move forward on putting the library together.

Baby step #1: A Dictionary Stand. This is one of the things on the "library list" that Mr. H and I made a while back. Yeah, whatever -- where in the heck would you find one of those old-fashioned things, nowadays?

Uh, at a local thriftstore, apparently:

Woo hoo! Found one! $15? -- that's a deal.

(Sorry -- couldn't keep Bij away from the thing long enough to take a picture. He loves this thing! Silly gato.)

We've got some nicks and scrapes and a big problem: the shelf the dictionary's supposed to sit on is missing!

Ack. Time to get creative.

Bye-bye nicks -- say hello to some furniture touch up pens...

OK. So, how to make the stand functional without adding a crappy looking shelf that won't ever match no matter how hard we try? Kitchen cabinet knobs! Mr. H, you're a genius! ♥  Flat ones that won't get in the way of the book, but hold it evenly (form follows function, ya know), and somewhat blend in with the look of the thing....

Mission accomplished:

Add an old dictionary we picked up at that same thrift store... and...

it works!

Cool! Love it!

 

 

 

Two things will put a polishing touch on this project for me. <-----  This idea. It's gonna go right over the space where we put the stand. Vinyl lettering defining the word "read":

... and to be able to tell my Sweet Girl to

  look it up 

-- like my parents did!

A Kindred Spirit

 

Remember I told you how behind I was? I wasn't lying.  After we got the Sweet Girl up and at 'em, we had guests visit and then a close friend of the family passed away after that, then back to school... what a whirlwind!

In all of the kerfuffle was a little message that I tucked away in a happy corner of my heart, to see to later:

... I also need to post pictures of our yard, M put in a sprinkler system himself, but we hired someone to lay sod, put up a fence and do some other maintenance work that we could have done but would have spent the entire summer doing. What a blessing to be able to hire someone. Best of all, M. GOT A NEW JOB!!!!! And it's with a large, very financially secure company. We feel BLESSED!!!! Now hoping the same for you!!!

This was from my friend, Heidi. She and I are kindred spirits. Have been for mumble, mumble years and follow a strange and wonderful life of parallels. We're way past the point of funny. It's scary. We have gone through "similar everythings" together in our adult lives and *have never met in person*.  Heidi, what's up with that? LOL

Proof -- look at that message up there. Mr. H and I are doing extensive yard work, too. Fence needed? Yep. New sprinkler system? Uh-huh. Sod? Oh yeah. I happen to know they are planning an arbor entry to their back yard....just like us. We never check our plans with each other. We just touch base here and there, and find out that we are still traveling parallel lives.

I am blessed to have a friend and kindred spirit like this out in the world.

:::

Heidi, Mr H and I are so happy to hear of your good fortune! If the pattern holds true, our dreams and plans of a back yard haven are on their way. Better yet, Mr. H has steady, full time work in his future!

Time to celebrate! From our house to yours -- WOO-HOO!

:::

 To play around with making your own signs (like the fortune cookie one up there), go here.

 picture credit

Back to the Routine

...and not a moment too soon. I feel totally kerfuffled lately. I am so behind! Maybe it's 'cause we had such a weird summer; distracted with getting the Sweet Girl back on her feet. Maybe it's 'cause I keep on adding to the to-do list and project pile without clearing off the old stuff... maybe it's just 'cause I've been lazy.

Not lazy, really. Overwhelmed. I take a look at what's needing to get done, and  I rebel and run away from what I know I should be doing. Please tell me I'm not alone in doing that ....

Unfortunately, we don't have a "Jeeves" hanging out in a spare closet anywhere, so I'm it. Look at Jeeves'  face -- it's the one I'd get if he popped in and saw my house this week. LOL It's the old saying -- "if it's to be, it's up to me".

Alright. No Jeeves, but I got Flylady.

Back on the wagon I go.

I recently updated my routines and emergency pages and put it all together in a new control journal. I think if I just have a system to follow every day, I'll do better.

Call it a Jeeves on paper. Who knows? Jeeves probably had a Control Journal himself.

Back to school time means back to a schedule with routines. Especially for me. :-)

Back to School

 

Back pack packed?

Check.

Breakfast in you?

Check.

Looking good?

Check.

Tylenol to get you through the day, tailbone girl?

Check.

Pillow to sit on all day?

Check.

A Sweet Girl that somehow fast forwarded
from first-grader to our sophomore-in-high-school-girl?

Check.

Mom sniffling just a little after dropping off her high-schooler?

Check.