Welcome to My Kitchen--the photo tour!

 

Welcome!  Come on in!  This is what you would see of my kitchen after coming in the front door.  Of course the first thing one sees is books--lots of books.

 

 

 

But if you turn and look to your left, you'll see that the entry is also the start of the kitchen.

 

 

If you want to see any photo larger, just click on it

 

Please, walk this way.  Now you are standing in the middle of the kitchen, facing the front of the house. That is the front door off to the left, where you just came in, with my Dear Husband's vest and hat hanging there, the things he grabs when it's time to bring in more firewood.  This stand we use for the microwave is not my favorite, but it does the job, and even hides some of my bulk food storage underneath, which is helpful. It is graciously on permanent loan from DH's parents, as are the kitchen table and chairs.

 

When we first moved into this house, that is right where the fridge sat.  Old beat-up fridge right next to the front door--does that say class or what.  

 

Same view, just looking up.   The carved and turned wooden cups displayed above were made by my great-grandfather Troy Lager back in Southern Illinois.  Up there are also some pretty little turned wooden candle-stick holders--not heirlooms like the cups, but still beautiful.  I brought back all these treasures from my parents' house last summer.

 

I have to step back for a minute, to take a longer shot and help you get a feel for how the room starts all together. 

 

When we bought the bigger fridge, the only place to put it was in front of a window.  That bugs me, because we lose some light and it seems odd, but the only view from that window is the neighbor's house and bedroom window, so actually having the fridge there (and thus the curtains behind it always pulled closed) gives us more privacy.  Still, this has always in my mind been a temporary location.

 

The space next to the fridge by the window is just the right size for storing the rest of the antique wooden folding chairs, so they are ready for company.

 

It was not quite as dark in the living room as this shot would lead you to believe, but our house is pretty dim on a cloudy day like yesterday was. Still there is enough natural light for everyday living--I just turned on the lights to try to help the photos turn out.

 

 

 

For this shot I stood all the way in the living room at the foot of our bed/sofa.

 

When we first moved into this house, there was only one light in the entire kitchen-living room area--a creepy, buzzing, bad motel pull-string metal bathroom fixture over the kitchen sink.  So one of our first home improvements was putting in these lights, which I got on sale from Restoration Hardware.  My MIL proclaimed installing them was like "putting lipstick on a pig."  ; )

 

 

As you can see, most of the house is still wired with the original 1928 "knob and tube" wiring, which is actually much better wire than the stuff put into houses today!  We are slowly replacing it, and you can see where we need to finish the walls after re-wiring.  There were originally redwood valances that hung over both of the large windows and covered the curtain hardware, which we had to take down for the re-wiring.  One of these days we will put them back up, I'm sure. 

 

The one bit of beauty in my front yard--my little cottage flower garden, which you can see a glimpse of out the front kitchen window.  Someday with the fridge moved, this space could be a lovely little table nook.
 

There was a large, ugly door on that cupboard over the sink that was hinged on the right so it was obnoxious to use while cooking, so I had DH take it off years ago.  It too will be replaced someday.  Hopefully.

 

 

 

 

This photo cracks me up, because you can see that only hours after I had this kitchen as perfect as I could make it, there are already dishes back by the sink (at least mostly clean!) and stuff sitting out in use.  That yogurt container is my make-shift compost container--I'm on the hunt for something much more attractive that is worth the counter-space.

I tried a second shot with the lights off, to see if that would more accurately capture the colors of the wood and cabinets.  There is not really a corner for the trash can, so it usually lives there in front of the oven, and I just pull it out of the way whenever I need to get into the oven.  The stepladder is ugly but necessary, since most of my storage is up high. I have to move it too anytime I want to open the oven door fully.  That's ok--I use the stovetop most.

 

Why, yes, that is a gargoyle on the hutch.  Doesn't every kitchen have one? 

 

The things sitting out on these shelves probably say more about us than the rest of the kitchen (except for the fridge, when it is in full display).  Top shelf left is the family candy basket--where the excess holiday candy goes.  As hard to reach as possible. Next to it is a photo of DH and I in our Renaissance costumes, taken B.C. (Before Children).  And then comes the little pot my sister brought me back from Europe when she was studying there.  Then comes the liquor.  Finally, the tagine and platter DH and I hand carried all the way from Morocco, where we visited his sister when she was in the Peace Corps there (also B.C.). 

The best close-up I could manage.  I knew if I did not try someone would complain. ; )

 

On the middle shelf on the left is my collection of "special" loose teas (thank you for sharing from your international collection, Mom!) and my "girlfriend" tea pot and cups.

 

 

Then comes a hand-made covered dish we bought at an art fair back in Old Colorado City.  It's my only "special occasion" dish.  Then come the antique blue glass mason jars my dad gave me when they moved--which hold my everyday loose teas. 

 

All the things on the shelf used to be grouped in a manner which I found more aesthetically pleasing, but when I started to worry about earthquakes, I started to imagine the damage (and potential fire hazard) of things falling down onto the gas-burners. . . so this arrangement is not as attractive to my mind, but sets my mind to rest.

 

The bottom shelf of course has the most utilitarian objects, none of which merit description. 

 

 

 

Except for the jar of sea glass, exceptional shells, and other found treasures.  With some vibrant lichens we just brought back from Lake Tahoe on top!

 

 

 

To the right of the hutch you see the doorway to the bedroom.  With no door.

 

 

And if you look farther to the right, you see the standing cupboards that were here when we moved in, which constitute most of our in-house storage.  The missing door is to my side of the clothes closet DH and I share.  Next to it is the broom closet, and children's art supplies storage.

These cupboards are very, um, rustic, and are clearly not original to the house, which overall was well constructed, with nice details.  So one of these days I hope we will build new ones (they are not only valuable storage, but serve as a dividing wall between the kitchen and living room) and then the refrigerator will be here on the right, with the cupboards built around it.  Yes, we will lose inside storage space that way (and who knows where the vacuum will go then), but I think it is the most logical and potentially attractive place for the fridge.  

We really do have to make the most of our in-house storage, so we use the top of the cupboards too. 

 

Back to Monday night--after the ladies left, I just had to marvel at my sink cabinet, faucet, soapstone counter and sink.  I need to see them more often. ; )  I love everything about this little section of the kitchen, because this is one thing we planned and designed and made happen.  This is like a little glimpse of how cool our tiny, antique shack could be if we really put our hearts into it.  It gives me hope.

 

Thanks so much for coming by! 

 

 

 

 

Anti-Procrastination Fun in the Kitchen

So, last night I had the chance to host a little Soul Kitchen "Conversations" meeting at my house.

I have had close friends over to my house, I have had one-on-one meetings at my house, I have even hosted birthday parties at my house (yes, inside!), but I have never been able to host any SK meetings, because I just don't have enough places for women to sit.  I mean, we can pack people in at our kitchen table for informal meals, with family members or friends of our kids, but it's just too close for comfort for a meeting where people will be getting out binders and calendars and other planning materials. But this meeting was just for the upcoming Fall Conversations events, and so there were just going to be three of us.  Perfect!

And also the perfect time to get motivated to do some long-overdue deep cleaning. 

I wish I had listed these things individually on my Big List of Things To Do, so I could have the pleasure of scratching them out--but instead, I'll just share these favorite bits of accomplishment with you!

I inherited these brown crocks when my Grandma died.  I had washed them before, and knew there was a gunky film on them, but thought it would be hard to get off.  I am embarrassed now to confess that I have been using them in my kitchen for THIRTEEN years now, and never tried to deep clean them.  They looked fine.  But yesterday I decided to just use some warm soapy water and baking soda--and quickly discovered that a) the gunk came off quite easily with a little elbow grease, and b) the crocks were not actually brown.

Not only are they actually bone colored stoneware, but the upper glazing is shiny.  Who knew?!

When we needed to get a new fridge a few years ago, DH wanted stainless steel.  But because I have always used our fridge doors for homeschool show-and-tell, and because this finish is not magnetic, I warned him I would be covering the beautiful stainless steel doors with taped-up artwork.  He was ok with that.  So, most of the time our fridge is covered in kid's creations, maps and timelines, etc. The tape leaves some sticky residue, but we always just cover it back up with more paper and art, so I don't pay it much mind.  But a few weeks ago we finally took down last Spring's display, which had lingered up too long.  But it being summer, I didn't have anything new to put on the fridge (except for this cute smiling sun Happy made) so I was constantly looking at the tape-marked, smudged fridge doors.  So yesterday, I used that same magical formula of warm soapy water, baking soda, and elbow grease, and voila!

I never imagined it would turn out so pristine.  It really made me happy.  (This photo was taken at night, after the ladies had gone, so the orange streaks on the door are the reflections of candles on the table.)

Even the stove-top and hot water kettle got the magic baking soda treatment!  And I oiled the soapstone counter and backsplash too, which I rarely do--but I love the way it looks when I do.

So, a few things that took some work, but which  are paying off in satisfaction!

And now--the BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!

Because of all the deep cleaning I did the past two days in the kitchen, I am FINALLY READY TO GIVE YOU THE PHOTO TOUR.  Well, of that one room at least.

I have a feeling the women who once really wanted to see my house lost their patience a long time ago and no longer stop by.  Aubrey.  Desiree.  But Jessica, tomorrow's post is for YOU! ; )

So, come on back tomorrow, and be ready to feel SO MUCH BETTER about your own kitchen!

Checking things off the Big List!

As happens all too often, I started writing this post on Monday. . . and now here it is Weds Thurs. . . but the good news about that is that I have not had a chance to blog about the stuff I need to do because I have actually been doing stuff!

Well, that and watching Antiques Roadshow on Netflix Instant.  (If that's not a sign of latent, desperate clinging to unproductiveness then I don't know what is.)

But still, YAY! 

I still want to share my list, and hope you will share your plans--and accomplishments!--with me too. 

But I also want to share some more stories with you all.  Because so many of the items on my latest To-Do List represent so much more meaning or emotion than the simple words could ever convey.  Some of the things on my list are/have been a very big deal to me in some way, and it feels like doing them and crossing them off will be a huge accomplishment.  Part of the fun in accomplishing will be sharing the stories with you!

For example, one of the things I just today crossed off my list was "buy bed."  Those words are so innocent--but they represent a full year of dreaming, and several months now of serious research, imagining, planning, sketching.  You see, I think we have finally decided on what kind of bunks we will be making for the kids' bedroom.  I say we, but really I mean my Dear Husband.  As some of you know by now, I am an ideas person, so I can really have fun trying to creatively solve a logistical problem set before me.  That has been the case with these bunks.  Here were the starting parameters for the beds:

--The beds have to take up as little room as possible in what is officially considered a "half-bedroom."  The size of a nice walk-in closet. This is why we could not just go buy some bunk beds and call it a day. No, these babies were destined to be custom-built from the start.
--There should be four separate sleeping spaces.
--The design has to be something we can do ourselves, with our fairly basic abilities.
--It has to be something made with materials that are easy to work with, and readily available.
--It can't be too expensive to make.
--Both DH and I have to like the plan.
--And of course, I want them to look great--and even cool. : )  Esp. I wanted them to lend some kind of vintage feel to the room, and work well with the other vintage things we have in there.

That does not sound too hard, right?

But those of you who know me, and my Dear Husband, are already rolling your eyes and chuckling.  (Susan, I'm looking at you.)  You see, we were starting from nothing.  No materials in mind, no overall look--which started out really exciting (oh, the possibilities!  We're doing this from scratch, so we can do anything we can dream up!).  But starting with nothing in mind meant I felt like I had to think through ALL the possibilities, so I make sure to pick the best one.  That was really fun at first, just going nuts imaging so many wondering possibilities, but it quickly became so frustrating for me, because my DH can't see all the Pin-worthy ideas in my head, and so it was hard to get him to see my visions, and even harder to sell him on one.  He does not outright trust my instincts and excitement on home projects, which is overall good, so I don't run with the first idea that gets me going and we together make sure it's a good idea before we invest in it--but also means I have to do a lot of work to plan an idea just to present it to him, but then if he does not like it I'm back to the drawing board.  So I have spent this whole summer gathering ideas, working through logistics, presenting the ideas to him, waiting while he processes the ideas (can take weeks), and then finally realizing he does not like the ideas, and having to start all over with new ideas.

I confess to at least one moment of despair.  But I just focused on the end goal--the beds for our kids, which they need.  Like, last year. And so I persevered and DH and I were really good about listening to the other, trying to find the things we both liked and agreed upon, etc.  The design phase has taken much more time and effort than I would have expected, but we have been good partners throughout, and I think that is ultimately more important. 

And finally. FINALLY. I think we have a starting point for our design.

During the annual Week Without Children, DH and I took advantage of our freedom to visit local salvage lots and antique stores getting ideas.  And while at one local antique store that specializes in reclaimed antique furniture and salvaged decorative house parts (Crawford's Antiques, for my local friends), I saw the bedrails from an antique rope bed.  And fell immediately in love.

This is not that same bed, but just one on eBay I found a picture of so I could show you some idea of what I'm talking about.  The long bedrails that first caught my eye look just like the 4"x4" piece with the wooden knobs running along the bottom of that headboard, but are the long pieces that would make the sides of the bed.  Immediately I starting designing in my head bunks that would use these antique bed rails. . .

And then upon inquiry, we found out the rails were part of an old wooden bed from possibly the early 1800's, from Pennsylvania.  Roughly similar to the one in the above photo, but with a much plainer headboard.  So cool.  But there went my idea, since it would be sacrilegious to cut down an antique bed to make bunk beds from it.

Or. . . not. . . ?

The next day or so, I just could not get the idea out of my head.  If we used an antique bed for our starting materials for the bunks, we would have lovely carved wooden bits to lend a wonderful vintage feel to the project, which is one thing I wanted.  And the bed the rails belong to was languishing in unlove in the "half-price" room of the antique store.  The bed itself is nifty--I love to imagine the hands that crafted such things--but not that pretty.  It was $150.  And still, nobody wanted it.  From all my Antiques Roadshow viewing recently, I can say with authority that old and really neat do not automatically mean valuable.  Also, pieces that don't fit modern ways of living don't tend to be valuable--this bed we liked was a rope bed, and a 3/4 size at that, which means nobody could use it as-is.  Most likely whoever bought it would discard those beautiful side rails and just use the headboard and footboard with a modern twin metal bedframe.  So, to be used and appreciated, somebody was probably going to have to alter it from its original state.  Why is it worse to modify it heavily than modify it a little?  The end is the same--an old bed no longer in its original state, which makes it less valuable.  But yet, it is only as valuable as it is useful!  And I figure it is more of a waste for this bed to stay intact but remain disused and unappreciated than for us to buy it and hack it apart and turn it into something that will hopefully be used for years and years.  (And might even end up a fond heirloom of its own in our family!)

I hope I reassured you of the rational thought behind this idea, and no one is upset at my initial premise.  Because either DH caught the vision, or he decided to make me happy--whatever happened, this past weekend he agreed to the idea.  Yipee!

And today I went and bought the bed!  And having bought the bed, the official process of building the beds has begun!

Now, of course that is just the first step--but I really do believe it was the hardest.  Now we have to take the bed apart and measure and figure out how to make the pieces do what I hope they will do.  But DH has the tools and ability to work with wood, and we can just go buy wood pieces to fill in all the extras we would need, which is not that expensive.  We can do it.  I'm so excited!

Another thing on the list I also need to do ASAP--research windows.  Because I am trying to convince DH that we need to put in two new windows there on the wall in the bedroom, so that a) the kids will have emergency egress from each level of bunks, and b) the bottom bunks have natural light.  He is really loathe to do it, because of all the permit mess I explained in a previous post.  But it seems like one of those things in which the benefits will greatly outweigh the negatives, so I am hoping to convince him.  But once again, I have to do a lot of research and planning and vision casting, and we'll see. . . .

So, I'll let you know as things progress.  But for now, here is the

Big List of Things I'm Getting Done:

This past weekend I:
--bought new fabric, trim, padding and tacks for re-upholstering bench in living room
--researched and ordered tool for finishing re-upholstery job on bench
--ordered Smiley's b-day gift
--set date for Happy's birthday adventure (pottery painting with her friend Mini-Rosa--thanks to my Mother for the gift certificate!)
--finished organizing large storage items under house
--reorganized book/homeschool storage under house
--went to hardware store for chalkboard paint

This week so far I have:
--cleaned items to donate to pregnancy resource center for auction, and delivered them
--made Target run to buy a couple more plastic bins for books/magazines
--bought thread needed to mend things in overflowing mending bag
--started getting classes and events on the calendar for Fall
--watched documentary for discussion (another story behind this one--more on this later!)
--bought bed (!!!)

Still need/hope to:
--research housing code for new windows with emergency egress
--research possible windows
--get other necessary materials to finish bench
--take out all excess staples on bench so it is ready for fixing & upholstery
--sort and organize homeschool cupboard
--finish organizing homeschool/books to be stored in bins under house
--prepare last boxes of plums for freezing
--clean all the sorted bins off of deck and get organized back under house
--finish putting new bedding plants into garden

Know I won't get to this week, but will soon need to:
--list and deliver more freecycle
--order bottom sheet for box springs
--put new coat of paint on school chalkboards
--figure out best way to contact friend in England for long-overdue catch-up
--find ukulele teacher for Happy for this year
--plan Sunny's pioneer birthday adventure
--make pie with Sunny from the berries she collected from the backyard all summer and froze

That's all stuff that has been in my mind, that I want to get done and get out from under.  There's one more "little" thing--cleaning the whole house top to bottom. I need to prepare for a friend staying at our house while we are away in Chico at a family reunion.  Oh, and I have less than a week to do it. ; ) 

But I'm telling myself I have plenty of time.  Before I turn my attention to a Big Clean I want to get a few more things done on this list--so we shall see what this weekend allows.

And hey--blogging about all this has been one of the things on my mental to-do list this week as well!  So, whoo-hoo!

Please do share your successes and goals with me in the comments, if you are similarly mindful of getting things done this week. : )  I would love to hear them!

Anti-Procrastination--and a story

I wrote this yesterday, but did not post it because I wanted the Princess Penny auction to have center stage. : )  Doesn't matter--it is just as relevant today, as you will see!

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It's Wednesday, and that means the weekly Anti-Procrastination Day.

And this week, I mean business.

Just recently I realized how much mental baggage I am carrying around with me daily from things undone that I really want/need done.  They are a drain on my thinking, and when I let them go too long they start to drag at my spirit.  There was something in particular that had been on my to-do list since my big GET IT DONE push this past Spring--and one week ago I still had not done it.  And since telling you all about this is one more thing I have been meaning to do for some time, this is the perfect day to do so!

You see, our neighbors on one side of us had a little dog named Willa, who for a while kept escaping from their yard, and running away down our busy road.  Of course any time we heard them calling for her we would go help look--that's what neighbors do!  But then they must have figured out where she was getting out and fixed the problem, because months went by without a single escape, and thus without us really interacting with them. 

But during those months our neighbors (who were living together but not married) went through a bad relational spell, and were fighting all the time.  And the woman was a yeller.  Our house is only about 5 feet from their house, and our walls are thin--we couldn't hear most of the words (although often we could) but we could hear the raging and miserable voices rising and falling, and things slamming and banging.  Sometimes I was really concerned that she was going to make him so mad he would  hurt her, because she was truly a shrieking harpy, attacking him, tearing him apart.  It was really ugly.  Sometimes they would start in yelling and the kids would be lying in bed listening to it for over an hour as they were trying to fall asleep.  I didn't know what to do about it--so we would just put on music, or talk to the kids about sin and how it consumes us and hurts our relationships if we let it, and pray for the neighbors.

I think they knew we could hear them.  They probably heard me yell at the kids enough to know how sound carries between our houses (I often find myself yelling to the kids to do/stop doing X, Y or Z while I am standing at the kitchen sink washing dishes before dinner--the place closest to their house where the sound probably travels the best.  I love being such a great example of parenting to the world. Sigh.).   And I know the woman at least felt badly about it--because one day this past Spring as we were sitting quietly schooling in the living room, the girls saw Willa running down the road again.  Of course I ran over to knock on the neighbor's door to tell her, and was thankful that they were home.  The neighbors went searching, and found her within 10 minutes--ironically in our backyard (she must have run through a different neighbors yard down the road and then backtracked up the creek).  So, it was all over very quickly, and was not really that big of a deal.

But then half an hour later, there was a knock on our door, and there stood the neighbor lady, with a large gift bag in her hand.  She wanted to thank us for what great neighbors we are, and of course I just said that's what neighbors do, but then she apologized for how they were not great neighbors, and the way she said it I knew she meant the fighting.  So she and I made it a quick and slightly awkward but friendly exchange.   Once inside, we opened the gift bag to find a large plastic tub of craft bits (with a $30 price tag on the bottom!) for the kids.  And then there was also a card for me--the wording of which confirmed my suspicion that this gift was given more as an apology than a thank-you.  Inside the card was a gift certificate to a local upscale kids/home boutique--for the amount of $300.  Yes, three hundred dollars. 

Of course I flipped out a little, and thought we can't accept this!  It was clearly a guilt offering.  Accepting it would be like taking blood money, a bribe to keep our eyes averted from the carnage.  But yet. . . I thought about the few exchanges I had earlier with this neighbor, who had lived next to us for about one year.  How I took her some fresh picked strawberries, and she brought over a rainbow-maker for the kids' window.  How I took her some fresh picked tomatoes, and she brought over a potted orchid for my kitchen windowsill.  Gift-giving seems to be one of her main love languages, as it is one of mine.  I thought about how I would be feeling if I was in her place--probably being really hard on myself for how poorly I was reacting to the conflict between me and my partner, and then also feeling so guilty for not being able to stop it, even if I knew it was negatively affecting others.  I would be feeling really vulnerable, and wanting to be accepted and loved and forgiven.  If gift giving is really one of her love languages, then giving back the gift would be like rejecting her love--and being critical not only of her in her weakness, but also of her attempts to make things right!

But I also felt badly keeping it.  It was just so over-the-top.  Finally, I decided we would use some of it to buy something fun or useful for our family, and with some of it I would try to buy something little and meaningful for the neighbor as a thank you back, and then the rest of it I would ask the store if we could break up into two separate gift certificates, like $100 each.  I can then give those to our local Crisis Pregnancy Center for a silent auction they have coming up--using this woman's love offering to spread even more love around our community. 

But most importantly, I needed to give the neighbor a big THANK YOU that would show her the forgiveness and acceptance and love I think she wished for.

But.  This is where perfectionism and life got the best of me.  Because  this happened right in the middle of all the stressful, busy, overwhelming season I had this past Spring, and I had in my head the "right" way to say thank you (for the kids to make a rainbow craft from some of the goodies from the big jar the neighbor had given them, because we know she likes rainbows) but that ended up being just one more thing to do and our weeks were already so full, and to also invite the neighbor over for tea and some "girlfriend" chat, because maybe God wanted me to minister to her heart with some loving, encouraging words, but my house was such a wreck and I was such a wreck and so I kept thinking I would get everything "right" and then take over the thank you/invite the next week. . . .  And I kept meaning to, and meaning to.

Finally, I decided the Week Without Children would be a good time for uninterrupted, adult conversation, and made up an invitation for tea in my kitchen and asked her to contact me to arrange it at her convenience.  I waited until after the mail carrier had come by, and then walked over and slipped it into their mailbox with the other letters.  And never heard from her.

But then about 2 weeks ago I started to notice some things were different over there.  Our houses are very close together, but their front entry and driveway are on the other side from us, with tall privacy fences in between, so we really don't see the neighbors coming or going or notice what they are about unless they come over to the far side of their back deck, which overlooks our yard.  But I started to notice all the usual things from the deck weren't there any more.  I didn't hear the neighbors as much (the terrible fighting stopped shortly after the big gift, so maybe the two are connected--I don't know), and somehow the house just started to seem less occupied. So on July 30 in the evening I asked DH to walk over and peek into their windows (looking through their front fence into the big picture window in their living room--not being a peeping tom, because anyone could do this just walking by) to see if he saw anything amiss. And he came back and reported that it looked like they were moving, as most of their furniture was gone.  And he suggested that since the next day was the last day of the month, they would probably finish moving their stuff out that next day.

Ack!  No more time to procrastinate!  So the next morning I wrote out the thank-you note I should have written months earlier, and ran over and taped it to their gate.  Then the girls all sat at the kitchen table and made the sweetest big rainbow out of heavy cardstock and tissue paper and colorful embellishments and cotton ball clouds and a big red heart.  It took all day (except for lunch and some errands), and we finished right before having to leave for swimming lessons at 5pm.  It was still tacky with glue, but I was worried the neighbors would come and get the last load of stuff in the driveway before we got back from swimming.  And my timing was perfect, because when I ran over, there was a friend of theirs loading up the stuff from the driveway, and so he opened the garage so I could put the art in it by the very last load they would come back for (and I taped the thank you note on the back).  I am sure now they must have received it.   

I also found out from the friend that they only moved across the creek!  So they are still very near, and so I have hopes that the woman will contact me and say yes to my invitation, which I repeated in the thank you  note.

We'll see.  It's possible that my months of delay acknowledging the extravagant gift hurt her feelings and put a wedge between us.  It's possible she wants a clean break from their rough relational patch while living next door to us, and getting together with me would seem to defeat that.  It's possible she does not want to talk about anything personal, and fears I would want to.  None of this matters.  I thanked, I invited, we crafted and gifted.  I did what I needed to do to get the weight of the undone off my shoulders.

And it feels sooooooo good! 

Once the art and note were delivered, I felt free.  Spiritually so much lighter.  I did not realize how much weight just that one big undone thing carried.  I think it weighed so heavily because it involved the feelings of another person--and me imagining the unlove I might be causing that person to feel, which led me to feel guilty.  I have to remind myself that I did not ask for the overwhelming gift, it came at a really bad time, and I did not handle it like I should have, but it is over now.  DONE.  I refuse to carry any lingering remorse or guilt about it.  I will do what I intended with the gift certificate, and then that will be done too.  I even just got a notice that the charity auction is coming up, and the timing could not be better. And when I go shopping with the remainder, I will allow myself to enjoy it, and be thankful.  : )  I will be blessed by it and pray God blesses my former neighbor too.

But the huge release I have already experienced just from delivering the art and note leads me to think--what else have I been dragging my feet on that is a huge burden in my life/heart/house/thinking/energy/spirit?  I want to seek out those things and GET THEM DONE.  I have enough to worry about in every day--I don't want excess!

So even before I got out of bed this morning I thought about the things that I wanted/needed to do, the things that seemed most urgent or that I was spending too much time thinking about.  I'm making my list--and this time I'm not going to list everything, but just a few specific things, and then just get them done.

I meant to start today.  But this is a "summer school" week and my kids are choosing poorly and yesterday they did not get their (minimal) work done and I am finding I have to stay on top of them today (i.e. hang out here in the living room where they are working) to keep them focused and choosing well.  So, I could feel defeated before even starting my Anti-procrastination push.  But I'm just choosing instead to be happy for lots of blogging time today, and make firm goals for the big push.  I hope to blog more specifically about it tomorrow--and will let you know when I'm starting, in case you want to jump in the fun with me!  We can encourage one another! 

Happy Wednesday Thursday everyone!

Very special auction ends tonight!

[The following message is from Amy Rainey.  See you over at Princess Penny's auction before midnight tonight!]

Greetings!

Can you believe that another week-long auction is almost over? Only hours remain in our Princess Penny auction.

Have you been outbid? It is time to check things out. There are still some item with no bids, or with extremely low bids. Many items are still way below their retail value.

It is not too early to start thinking about Christmas gifts! Make your money work hard. Find a lovely gift, and help a precious girl come home. She matters!

Thank you in advance, my friends!

 Be Blessed,

 Amy Rainey

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My words now!  I can't believe how quickly time is flying by.  I did not realize the auction for Penny would only be one week long--and so I have not told you about it! 

This auction is one blogger's way of *doing* something to help special needs orphans get into their forever families.  She organizes the auctions, and then wonderful, generous people give things to help raise money for the adopting family, and then other wonderful, generous people place bids on those things.  I too have participated in several of these auctions, both in donating and in bidding.  There are some really nice things at very low prices still available!  I did early Christmas/birthday shopping the last time there was one, and got things like a custom-made baby quilt for my baby niece Sweetness, a handmade little girl apron for her big sister Spice, two handmade doll afghans (just right for the girls' American girl dolls, which can go in their Christmas stockings), and some homemade, pure vanilla extract in adorable little bottles for MIL and me!  So please go look at the things offered--maybe you will give yourself  the gift of getting some gift buying done while you are blessing Penny's family!

This auction is very special to me for another reason too--we have something very special up for auction in it.  : )   As you know from all the photos I have posted over the years (like here and here and here) my mother is amazingly talented, and the vintage-style smocked dresses she has made for the girls are beautiful.  Each girl has so enjoyed having special things made just for her by Grandma, and I have enjoyed seeing my girls in such cute things.  But now we are outgrowing most of the hand-smocked things, and I am starting to pack them away "for posterity."  Hopefully they will do well in storage under our house, and hopefully my girls will someday grow up and have daughters of their own, and will be glad to have those loving memories and beautiful things for their own girls.  But I have no guarantee of any of that.  I have been taught over and over through so many things in life that we can't hold too tightly to things.  There is a good chance that my best efforts at storing them will not lead to the end I hope for--we could have a house fire, or flooding, or I don't know what could happen, and so I can do my best to preserve them, but I can't count on having these beautiful, meaningful things forever. 

In other words, I can attempt to store up my treasures here on earth, or I could try to store up more treasures in heaven.  

So about a year ago I asked my mother if she would mind if we donated one of the dresses she made for my girls to help bring home an orphan girl into her family, and she graciously said yes.  So just last week as I was going through our "heirloom" bin to pack away things recently outgrown, I chose one dress that I thought others might like and would bid on.  It was made for Sunny, and worn by all three girls, but only to church, and so it is in excellent condition still.  It makes my heart sing to give something I love to God's "Kingdom work."  Not only will the money raised help bring a little girl to her new family, but whoever wins it is going to be so excited to give it to her daughter or granddaughter.  So I *could* have kept the dress, and hoped it would safely store for the next 20-30 years until there is a granddaughter old enough to wear it.  But now, in giving the dress to bless others for God's good purpose, it will be worn and loved by who knows how many more little girls! 

If you want to see which dress, and my sweet Happy modeling it, I encourage you to stop by the auction.  Who knows--maybe you will see something else you want to bid on too!  : )

Just be quick, because the auction ends tonight!

p.s.  If you see me bidding on something, please feel free to outbid me. In fact, please outbid me.  It would make me so happy. : )