A Makeover and a Medley

Hello my friends.....yes, I'm still kickin'!

I can't believe it's been since before July 4th that I have posted anything.

I don't really know why...I mean nothing earth shattering has happened to speak of.

Do you ever just get that way... and blogging almost becomes sort of a burden?
And steroid withdrawal didn't help matters either... the struggle is real, folks!

My excuse last week was that I took a week of "staycation".

All week long I was busy working on projects that I had been putting off for months and months needed done around the house...from early in the day until late in the afternoon.

Needless to say, the old gray blonde mare, she ain't what she used to be...

...at least until I am able to get my mojo back!

I actually surprised myself by not falling off the step-stool as many times as I was up and down it!

There's still lots to do, mind you, but getting that tiny master bathroom redo accomplished
was a big check mark off my list.

So before I get to the Medley questions,
I'll give you a little peek at my teenie-weenie bathroom makeover.

There are no before pictures but believe me when I tell you it was quite a transformation.




I used the same wallpaper (yes, I said wallpaper) that I papered our bedroom with

a couple of years ago....and you do realize that wallpaper is making a comeback, right?

It never really went out of style in my world, at least.
Anyway, unless I wanted to put up all new sheetrock, wallpaper was pretty much a necessity.

Whoever built and decorated this house back in 1985,

chose to put wallpaper in nearly every room...right on top of raw sheetrock...

...no sizing, no primer, nothing but raw sheetrock...and it and the wallpaper became one...

...impossible to remove without ripping layers of the that white chalky stuff.

So I have basically been re-papering the walls as long as we have lived here,

adhering any new paper to the original, irremovable paper!

The paper I replaced was a dark-ish, marble-ish, textured-ish looking paper.

WOW...what a difference this made in brightening up that tiny bathroom!

And I do mean tiny...another question mark as to why a master bathroom would be this small!

But if the room had been any larger, I may have actually died redecorating it! 😩

So now let's get on over to the Medley...

This week it's all about family...cousins, aunt & uncles to be precise.
So just copy and paste the questions from Terri's blog to yours...
...and well, you know what to do after that

1.  What can you tell us about your cousins, please, or someone who is close like a cousin?

Coming from a family the size of mine (8 kids) and since both of my parents also came from large families, I had so many cousins I couldn't keep track of all of them. Also, many of them lived quite a distance away from us, therefore we didn't see each other very often growing up and many of were not close. Oh yes, there were family reunions on both sides but it was really hard to keep track of that many people when you're a little girl.

Some of my older siblings among some of the cousins. I can't identify some of the cousins...lol!

My older siblings have a much better recollection of who everyone was and closer relationships as well. Since I was one of the younger ones, most my cousins were quite a bit older than me and I wasn't really super close to any of them. Of course I have many people in my life that are not actually "blood" family that I love dearly but comparing them to a cousin would be doing them an injustice since I didn't really have that experience.

2.  Do you still see your cousins and will you contact them on National Cousins Day?

I can't remember when I last saw one of my cousins...isn't that sad? Of course many of them still live up in Ohio and the family reunions of yesteryear just don't happen much if at all anymore...but when they do, I am rarely able to attend. When the aunts and uncles who were their parents passed on (which they just about all have), many of the cousins didn't keep the reunions as a priority. I have reconnected with a couple of my cousins on Facebook and even found an older cousin who I never knew until she stumbled upon my blog a few years ago. You can read about it here.


My long lost cousin, Sharon.



3.  Terri had a favorite aunt and uncle she will tell us about.  How about you?

Out of all my aunts and uncles, I did have had a few favorites. Among them was my Aunt Clara, one my mom's sisters and I have written about her on my other blog. She and Uncle Bud lived out in the country but pretty close to us. Their children were probably the closest in age to me and my siblings and we visited each other often. I loved visiting them at their old farm house with the wrap-around porch and the cow pasture across the road.

My sweet Aunt Clara who lived to be 103 years old!

4.  Did/does your family have reunions and can you tell us about them?

All throughout my childhood and beyond, family reunions were something I always looked forward to year after year. They were held every summer, always on a Sunday, at the same park in Troy, Ohio. This particular reunion was started by my mother's parents and was always known as the Davis Reunion. I don't remember any of my grandparents on either side but I do know they had LOTS of kids! The Davises had seven, each of the seven went on to have that many and more of their own. That gives you just a hint of how large these reunions were at one point.



My mom and five of my siblings at one of the Billheimer reunions.

My dad's family (the Billheimers) also had an annual reunion that I remember attending a few times but we were closer with Mom's side of the family. All of the Davis children are gone now and so are some of their children. Things change. For the past several years, my siblings have tried to keep up with our own reunion. We were unable to meet last year and of course we lost our dear oldest brother in 2017. We had a different kind of reunion that year...bittersweet as it was. Nothing has been planned for this year due to one reason or another but hopefully we can all get together in 2020!

5.  If you have children, are they enjoying relationships with their cousins, aunts, uncles?

Oh, they absolutely are! Our grandchildren range in age from 20 down to 10 and I can't remember a time when they weren't absolutely thrilled to be in each other's company, no matter what age they were. The older boys have always loved visiting the Tennessee Bunch...they LOVE their Uncle Adam...and Adam's two are always thrilled to see what "toys" their Uncle Aaron is tinkering with at any given time. The older ones even especially enjoy visiting the great aunts and uncles in Ohio and have frequently made those trips with us as well. And thanks to Facebook, my own two boys are probably closer to many of their aunts, uncles and cousins in Ohio and other states that they would not have had otherwise! So now, I shall bore you with some photos of my favorite group of cousins...

Cousins...when it was just the boys.

Cousins...and then there were four...finally, a girl!

Cousins just wanna have fun.

Cousins chowing down on some good grub and Parker's trademark silly face...lol!

Cousins chillin' in the pool.

Cousins with a moose.

Cousins/Uncle Adam group hunt.

The gang's all here!

6. Tell us something random about your week.

So I am back to work this week after my aforementioned staycation and it has been good to get back into my regular routine once again. To make things even better, the blood test results from last week's visit to my hematologist are coming back (there are a few still out) and so far, everything looks good. I think she took a dozen vials from me ...no kidding. Since the first of the year when everything started to go haywire, my blood platelets had been dropping like flies... BUT...these tests revealed that they are on their way back up! It's comforting to know that I won't bleed to death when I have my upcoming surgery! Also, we are currently experiencing a nice break from the heat after a dozen days of 90+ temps...a few days were nearly 100 degrees! It was in the 70s earlier today and is in the 60s as I am writing this. I am savoring every moment, as short-lived as it will be. Fall, I am ready for you!

*****

So that's it for me this week.

May your days be blessed until we "meet" again!

One Room at a Time (Sweet Jesus)

My plan was to start in January.

Well, January has come and will be gone in a couple of days.

Have I started yet?

That would be a big fat NO.

~

Every room in our house needs some attention in one way or another.

We replaced the floors less than a year ago and closets were cleaned out...

...and remember that bedroom redo from last spring?



But that is just a drop in the bucket, my friends.

And since we all are aware of how the months fly by,

the spring will be here before I blink twice.

There is so much to do before our home is market-ready.

~

I get overwhelmed thinking about all I have to do as a whole...

...sorting, purging and getting rid of the organized (organized?) clutter.

So I have decided I need to do this one room at a time.

And by that I mean not only the de-cluttering, etc., but repairing nail holes,

touching up walls and painting the new primed doors and woodwork, etc., etc.
One. Room. At. A. Time.
~

 So the other day I was when I was feeling particularly lazy and disinterested,

That still, small voice in my head reminded me, "Just do one room at a time, Debby."

And then that old gospel song from the 70's infiltrated my brain...

"One day at a time, sweet Jesus, that's all I'm asking from you,

Just give me the strength to do everyday what I have to do...."

You probably remember how the rest of the song goes.
~
Once the song started playing in my head, I couldn't make it stop
so I thought I'd take advantage of the opportunity and take it a step further.
I decided to take a few creative liberties with the song...no offense to anyone...
...and I'm not trying to make fun of this beautiful song or it's message.
So here it is...

One room at a time, dear Debby, that's all that you have to do,
You'll muster the strength to do everything that you need to do.
January's near gone, dear Debby and spring will be here real soon.
So get off your tail, let progress prevail,
One room at a time.

I really do need Jesus to help me with this.
I'm feeling a little emotional these days and unmotivated to get my act together...
...dragging my feet, I guess you could say.
I'm thinking that subconsciously I'm still in a bit of denial when it's all said and done.
Twenty-five plus years is a long time...lots of memories under this roof.


Remember how excited I was when I finally got my front porch?





Don't get me wrong...I am getting excited about our move to Tennessee.
But a part of me is also a little ambivalent...having a hard time letting go.
And a maybe just a tad apprehensive...
...but I've just got to suck it up and get motivated, y'all!
~

"Yesterday's gone, sweet Jesus and tomorrow may never be mine.
Lord help me today, show me the way,

one day (and one room) at a time."

 

New "Under-standing" and Happy Valentine's Day

Many times at the beginning of a new year,

we find ourselves saying this..."out with the old and in with the new".

Our home was built in 1985 and the original carpet was still underfoot...
...if you do the math, that's 32 years, y'all!

It has certainly served it's purpose and then some but it was time to say buh-bye...

...W-A-Y past time!

~
It is a little surreal when I look around but I am thrilled with them...what a difference!
And somehow, it has increased the square footage...it looks so much bigger inside.
My fur babies were totally disoriented at first but they seem to be getting used to the change.
As I write this, Jim has yet to see the new flooring since this was his weekend to work...
...yes, I planned it that way.
It's always best to remove as many humans (and dogs) as possible at times such as this.
This is where Oscar and Tasha spent the better part of Friday.

Friday it barely made it out of the 40's but by sharing each other's body heat,

they seemed to stay toasty on the front porch in their crate covered in a thick quilt.
So I took today off to finish getting the place back together and still have much to do.
Here's a peek of what's been happening in my world.





Amidst all of the chaos, there was actually a moment when I felt kind of homeless.
I was stuck in a corner with no real place to go except outside but it was so windy and cold.
I tried to imagine what really being homeless might be like.
Of course I knew that this upheaval was only a temporary situation but still, it made me think.
Maybe it was just a fluke when I made my way to the kitchen sink for some water...



...and saw this beautiful dove perched atop the feeder.
Peace, be still...
Fluke? I choose to think not :)

Oscar, checking things out.

So...that was my weekend!
Tomorrow is Valentine's Day already...can you believe it?
And as I was going through closets preparing for the new floors,
I came across this at a most appropriate time...

...my Adam made this for me in ceramics class many years ago.

It used to play "Let Me Call You Sweetheart" but the electronic music box doesn't work anymore.
That's alright, it's still adorable, don't you think?

And one last thing...

Someone posted this on my Facebook page which I thought was so cute.

Of course it would have better if the wiener had been a brown one :)

♥Happy Valentine's Day!♥

Sharing at...

Mosaic Monday

This Hodgpodge Will Floor You

Hey everyone...

It's HUMP DAY and time for HODGEPODGE...

...where Joyce asks the questions and we answer them on our blogs.

It's been a busy couple of weeks and in the words of my dearly departed mother,
my house "looks like it's been hit by a cyclone".
Does anyone use that term anymore?
Oh well, more about that later...here are this week's questions.

~*~*~*~*~*~

1. What's the last thing you did that someone else thought was super? 

Maybe it was the chicken noodle soup that I made over the weekend. Do you think the words "really good" might translate into super...or soup-er??

 2. The last thing you ate that tasted superb? 

Even though the soup was pretty darn good, I wouldn't describe it as superb...but the meal that we ate after church this past Sunday was. We went to the Longhorn Steakhouse and I ordered the Parmesan Crusted Chicken with Maple Roasted Spaghetti Squash.... Oh. My. Goodness.  Jim had a steak and said it was one of the best he's ever had. It had been years and years since we'd eaten there but we had a gift card ...so glad we did! They give you a whole split breast and I ate the other half for my dinner on Monday with broccoli :) Do you have Longhorn Steakhouses in your area?

3. Supersensitive, superstitious, superwoman, superambitious, supercilious, supervisor, superficial...pick a super word from the list and tell us how it relates to your life in some way recently or currently. 

I will say superambitious AND superwoman...and this is why my house looks like a cyclone hit it...I have been getting the house ready for new flooring...throughout. This means that EVERY closet has been purged and emptied of it's contents, EVERYTHING has been removed from the hutch and corner cabinet and among other things, EVERY nook and cranny has been dusted so the installers don't see all of my dirt! It will be bad enough when they start pulling up that 30+ year old carpet...I can only imagine what they might find. There is still much to do...all electronics, including TVs and/or anything else that is breakable must be moved off the furniture, etc., etc. They will be here Friday morning but we do have to live here until then. So for the past two weekends, Superwoman has showed up to do her thing...and she was only ambitious because she had to be! Here's just a hint of what she's been up to...

...and she'll be returning this weekend as she goes behind them, getting everything back in place. She's already exhausted just thinking about...BUT...it will be way more fun! Another post for another day.

 4. Do you love easily? If you're comfortable doing so, explain why you think that is. 

Wow...this isn't easy to admit...but not always. Not like I should. Not like I want to. Not like I need to. I'm so glad God is not finished with me yet.

5. Valentine's Day lands on a Tuesday this year. Will you mark the day in some way? If you're celebrating with a dinner out somewhere will it be on Tuesday or will you celebrate over the weekend? 

By the time Valentine's Day gets here, I will probably feel like I got run over by a Mac truck. Jim is never off on Tuesdays (he stays at the group home when he's working) so no chance of going out or doing anything special. The flowers he got me last weekend are still looking quite beautiful. 

I am taking Monday off to get the house back in order but will be back to work on Tuesday. When I get home, I just may eat my dinner off of my shiny new floors. Needless to say, they will never be clean enough to eat off of again...never. I might even share a bite or two with Oscar and Tasha :)

6. What's something you are loving right now? 

The thought of having new floors :)

 

 7.  Write a three word (or less) phrase you'd like to see on a Valentine candy heart.

God loves YOU!

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

I'm between overwhelmed and excited right now...but it's gonna be SO worth it! And you just don't know how glad I will be to get rid of this ugly green kitchen floor.

If I don't get back to Blogland before next Tuesday,

I want to wish everyone 

Happy Valentine's Day!

♥♥♥

Little Red House in the Woods

I've been dreaming of it for years.

Now that it's finally a reality, I'm just tickled pink...but I'm seeing RED...
...in a good way! :)

~

Years ago when we first moved into our little brown house in the woods,

I really liked it's rustic charm but over time, the brown faded and became quite worn.

And after we had the garage built, we weren't able to match the browns exactly.
We lived with the slight difference in paint color for close to twenty years.

Yes. Twenty. Years.

It was time for a change.

WAY past time.
~
A couple of months ago, I posted an update and a little sneek peek of the upcoming changes.
It is still a work in progress but it's far enough along to finally be able to share.



It went from brown to primer gray to red.
Our contractor suggested that instead of replacing the old, decrepit front stoop,
he could build us a good sized front porch.
Ohhh...YES please!



We painted the existing shutters black and added new black ones to the back.

I painted the front door black...

...and sprayed the old green wrought iron patio set with oil rubbed bronze...

...and added new cushions and umbrella.

There is still some trim work to do and finials to add to the stairs,

but it was a happy day when just this past weekend we were finally able to use the new porch!

 

We have really missed having a front porch ever since we sold our cabin

and it has been exciting anticipating that fact we were going to add one here.
 I have been decorating it in my mind since June when the project began :)



 

Our vintage metal glider has been rescued from the garage since it's face lift...

...and is now at home on the new porch!

These wicker rockers were $3.00 (each) yard sale finds...

...repaired and sprayed with the same paint that I used on the glider.

The vintage ice cream table set was a present from my hubby for my birthday :)

 

We were trying to beat the clock to get the porch set up before our first visitors arrived...

...and we just made it with a few hours to spare.

 

This is my Nashville bunch, testing out the glider...

our first front porch guests.


And Buddy, their dog, made himself right at home, as you can see.

 It was little chilly to sit out there very long...

...but was much warmer sitting around the campfire in the back.

This is my oldest son with his two boys, his significant other, and her son.

And here's the whole bunch of us, all together at one time.

I was one happy Mama/Mawmaw, having the whole family gathered together :)

~

The home improvements are still a work in progress, like I said.

There is still plenty of work to be done.

The past few months have had it's share of stresses and there will be more before it's all completed.

And although I am thrilled with the newness of our surroundings,

there is nothing to compare to just being together under one roof...or sky...as the case may be.

 Brown house, red house...it simply doesn't matter.

Memories are memories and treasured wherever they happen :)

 

Sharing at:
Mosaic Monday

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