Room Reveal

Hello Everyone.  Hope everyone had a great weekend.  My #2 left on Saturday after spending a week in the nest.  It was a really quiet week because she was studying almost every minute of it.  The Mister and I are perplexed as to where she got her study habit gene.  Certainly not from either of us.

#2 on one of her few outings during the week.  I miss her already!

#1 will be home in a couple of weeks.  I'll have to fasten my seat belt for that one.  It will be her last Spring Break as a student!  Instead of the study habit gene, our #1 lucked out with the shop 'til you drop gene from my Sista.

*****

The Room Reveal today centers around the dining room.   The first couple of pictures were taken when we moved in. 

The next picture is of the previous owner's dining room.

Drum roll please...
The Room Reveal

I am debating as to whether to install window treatments.  I love the windows so much.  The dining room is in the back of the house so we have plenty of privacy.  
Your thoughts? 

I love having a table that I don't have to worry about scratches or water marks.  It make entertaining so much more relaxed. Especially when Sista forgets to bring her manners. 

I am a plate and platter addict as well as a rooster hoarder.  This buffet gives me plenty of room to store all my great buys from Homegoods.  When I buy something new, I can store it in there for a week and then when the Mister asks me if it is "new" I can tell him that I've had it for awhile.  

This weekend, we will christen the room and entertain in it for the first time.  Sista and BIL are coming to visit to celebrate Sista's birthday.  They haven't seen the house yet.  Hope Sista remembers to pack her manners.

You can't walk too far in my house without discovering another rooster.  The Mister tells me that if I buy one more he will put in the the hen house...

Best buy of the week.  I got these cute little plants AND planters for $5.00 each at Whole Foods.

This is what they looked like this morning.  Just realized I left the price tag on the one on the far left.  Pretend you don't see it.

In honor of Sista's birthday tomorrow, enjoy something sweet and really old! 

Dude Goes A Packin'

A Guest Post ala Dude

On a recent 10 day trip which involved plane and train travel I am proud to say that I packed a carry-on (and personal bag) ONLY!! I never in a million years would think I would be able to do that! 

Ok....so here's what I did...Three weeks ahead I went through my closet , planned out  my outfits (all items that could work with each other) then packed a "test run/practice bag"... OMG! Everything fit!!!  After seeing a packed suitcase hanging around, a confused Mr. Dude asked , "wait...when  are we leaving ?!? " I proceeded to tell him, "not for three weeks , BUT he would be so happy that I'm going  to be sooo organized and  I will only be taking a CARRY-ON! "Then, I unpacked the bag , took pictures of everything (so I could remember what I packed). 

 I also made a list of my planned outfits including shoes and accessories (10 days in one small bag has to be an exact science)....

In conclusion , I found that if I planned  out all my outfits ahead ( and referred back to my "outfit list") then all of my clothing  decisions were  made  ahead of time...no aggravation or taking time away from my vacation trying to decide what to wear!!!

P.S. I also had to fill my "personal under-the-seat bag" with food for my gluten and dairy free diet...yikes

Thanks Dude, for  another great post!  The only thing that I have packed on in three weeks is 10 pounds.



Hope your week is as organized as Dude's suitcase!

Best Dog of Shame Video Ever

Hi y'all!  Hope everyone is having a great weekend.  I was not going to post today, but I came across this hilarious video on Facebook and I wanted to share it with you! 

If you've already seen it, mea culpa.  I always seem to be a day late and a dollar short!

Hope your Monday is full of mischief! 

If You Could Redo One Thing in your Kitchen...

I want to begin this post by thanking everyone who took the time to help me through my our marble vs. granite decision in the kitchen.  The Mister and I have made the decision and I would say 98 percent of it was based on your generous and insightful comments.  I am not ready to tell you our choice.  I want you to live in suspense and lose many hours of sleep and lots of weight worrying about whether we made the right decision. For those of you who are new to my blog, that was my faint attempt at sarcasm.  

So now I have a question for y'all.  If you were to change one thing in your kitchen, what would it be?  I invite you to share with me any decorating or architectural decision that you or the previous owners have made that you would like to change.   

For instance...

Perhaps you may have used too much wallpaper.

Or maybe the color of the cabinets did not quite meet your expectations.

Or the floor was not your dream of walking barefoot on.

Or you felt you would rather cut through the counter tops rather than on them.

Or maybe the overall design is too complicated...

Or your appliances are more fad than functional.

Whatever it is - I want to hear about it.  
Next week I'll be asking you about the BEST feature of your kitchen.


Hope your weekend is full of great taste!

Happy Birthday Erma

   Good Morning Everyone, 

The following was written by the late and great Erma Bombeck after she was diagnosed with a fatal disease.  

If I Had My Life To Live Over

by Erma Bombeck

If I had my life to live over, I would have talked less and listened more.

I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained and the sofa faded.

I would have eaten the popcorn in the 'good' living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.

I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.

I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.

I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage.

I would have sat on the lawn with my children and not worried about grass stains.

I would have cried and laughed less while watching television - and more while watching life.

I would have shared more of the responsibility carried by my husband.

I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.

I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.

Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.

When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later. Now go get washed up for dinner."

There would have been more "I love you's".. More "I'm sorrys" ...

But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute... look at it and really see it ... live it...and never give it back.

Happy Birthday, Erma Bombeck! 

From one of your biggest fans,

fave and not so fave things for a few bucks

It seems like forever since I have done a Favorite Things post.  It's not that I haven't discovered new favorite things.  I have - I just forget them.  Sometimes I write them down and then I forget where I put the paper or it gets lost in the Bermuda Triangle in my purse.

This one is neat compared to mine.

So here goes.  All my favorite things that I can remember.  I also included a few from friends and family.

The Mister bought these at Whole Foods the other day.  As usual, he couldn't wait to eat them and opened them in the car.  Naturally, I didn't want him to feel embarrassed about stuffing his face, so I dipped my pudgy little hand in the bag and helped myself to two servings worth of the most delectable piece of chocolate heaven I have ever experienced.  If you like the hard edges around the brownies in the pan like me, you will lust for these delicious bites for days to come.

Also - they are made with all natural ingredients.  
In my book that means no calories.  

My buddy, Dude, introduced me to Mary's Gone Crackers in her favorite things post.  I hate to admit to Dude that she was right - they are mouthwatering.  These pretzels just came on the market and if you like salt with and a whole lot of crunch - these little sticks are for you.  And by the way... they are the perfect compliment to a nice  cold bottle glass of Chardonnay.

An added bonus is that they are gluten free.
In my book, that means no calories.

Remember my Marble or Granite post?  Tery wrote to me about how much she loved having carrera marble in her kitchen.  She also told me a story about one of her children accidentally getting black sharpie on her marble top.  Tery said that she used  Barkeepers Friend and got it out completely!  She raved about this product.  Tery said that this little cleanser in the canister is worth its weight in gold.  By the way, I took this pic right after I ran to the store to buy two of them.

I bought this mascara last week thinking that this might be one of my new favorite things.  It's not.  First of all, this is a 2-step process.  The first step is the mascara and the second one is to "intensify."  The second step is a waste of time.  The tube is huge and wouldn't fit in a normal sized cosmetic bag.  Also, the mascara is clumpy.  They should change the name from "bombshell" to "clumpshell."  I think I'll spend the extra bucks and go back to my old favorite "They're Real!" at Ulta. 

This is the Mister's favorite thing.  Seems he thinks that I change my mind a lot.  Especially about furniture placement.  Also, the Mister  thinks his wife is a lightweight who can't carry heavy stuff.  So when I told him that I could not look at the credenza in the dining room another minute and it HAD to move to the den, he said he had to go to his home-away-from home, Lowes.  He came back with this nifty little box and it worked like a charm.  

By the way... I was so right about the credenza looking better in the den.  
Your welcome, Mister.

Zicam is one of Sista's favorite things.  Poor Sista gets whacked with killer colds.  If she sprays this miracle in a bottle in the back of her throat the minute she feels that first twinge of a cold, and continues to do it every few hours, she can lessen the effects of a devastating cold.  Sista swears by it. 

If it doesn't work for you, sue Sista.

Sista loves Airborne too.  She travels a lot and takes a couple of these before boarding a flight.  There is one problem with these though.  These little gummies are positively delicious so keep it out of the hands of little ones.  And actually big people too.  I could eat the whole bottle.  If I don't watch out, I may have to call  Dr. Drew.

If I have to be snowed in and George Clooney is busy, I want to be a shut-in with a book by Jojo Moyes.  I positively loved her last book and so I went to Amazon and ordered this book that she wrote earlier in her life.  

Jojo did not let me down.  This book is pure, raw, unadulterated  romance.  

If you loved An Affair To Remember, you will adore this book.


In the "if you can't beat them, join them" mindset I took these two photos over the weekend. 

It sure is pretty, but enough already!


Happy Hump Day!