Ice Storm 2013 = New Bathroom for Me!

If you read my last blog entry you found out I joyously have a bit more time on my hands these days; and in case you don't know me too well then let me tell you extra time means I get a LOT done.  I'm not really very good and just "sitting around and eating bon-bons" as my husband would say.  Even when I am watching TV I like to be "doing" something.  So for some Christmas presents I have been making creations which is what dominated most of my time while iced in alone for four days (can't show you those yet, maybe after Christmas I'll blog about those).  Phil, my husband, works in an ER about an hour away so that means a couple things...
1. He HAS to go to work.  You can't really call in when you work in the ER.
2. You also can't drive back and forth when it is super icy and it's midnight so he stayed in a hotel and the dogs and I hunkered down trying to keep warm.

Arden was not a fan of the ice.

Frozen things are cool but I couldn't stay out long I'm a wuss. 

Change is in the Air

The past few months have flown by in a sort of whirlwind that has almost had my head spinning.  In fact, my last blog was in August and let me tell you since then my world has been rocked.    Let me give you a little update.

As you may know this year Phil and I were blessed to take several trips.  Starting in April we went on a cruise, followed by a weekend in May to Boston and then in July we went to Hawaii.  (I haven't yet blogged about Hawaii... but it's coming don't worry along with TONS of photos.)  These trips were truly amazing, fun and eye opening for me.  Within all of them there was a massive reoccurring theme that "something in my life had to give".  As we would approach returning from these trips rather than having a sense of excitement to return home I would panic, melt down and become very anxious that I was returning to a stress level that wasn't healthy and was in these moments crippling.  As the realization settled over me that I was over-committed, over-stressed and I was the only one who could change that.  So I began to pray, talk with Phil and walk toward making changes.

5 min Friday - Small...

It's that time again.  Five Minute Friday.  Last week I had a little more to say than 5 minutes of writing so I took a pause to blog about that.

TODAY'S PROMPT:
Small...

Choosing to Not be Offended

WARNING: This may be offensive to some.

It's interesting to me how easily offended we are.  Mostly I mean women.  I know we are in general emotional creatures; we have hormones that tend to fluctuate (uh em... I mean rage), we are sensitive in a way men simply can't understand.  But ladies, why are we so easily offended?  Our toes are so easily stepped on.  Our feelings are so easily crushed.  Our hearts are so easily shattered. AND goodness knows our soapboxes are ENORMOUS!  Maybe I am stepping up on mine now but I hope that I am speaking in love and that it falls on soft hearts and open ears.

5 min. Friday - Story

TODAY'S PROMPT:
Story...

5 min. Friday - Beautiful

Okay, so here is the deal I said I was going to join in this and so today I am actually doing it.  I have felt so busy lately that I haven't blogged at all.  BOO!  But today I join in and this link up I think is definitely worth it. Check it out by clicking the image below.

Today's prompt.
Beautiful...

Potential Roller Coaster

PREFACE/DISCLAIMER:  I reread and tried to edit this post but it is sort of beyond editing, it's insane.  Enjoy.

I have found almost everything humorous today.  I have giggled, chuckled, almost cried laughing at multiple things throughout the day; and if I'm honest this isn't my typical state of being.  I would say today things just happen to be funnier than normal but I don't think that is the case.  I can truly say I am a little worried for tomorrow.  It kind of is like when you know you are "homoronally" pissed and irritable   You know it but it doesn't change the fact that your are still pissed and irritable   Well today I was the opposite of that.  Everything is funny.  Here are some examples.

Cruisin'

Wow am I behind on blogging.  I haven't blogged in so long it is crazy.  Honestly, for me, blogging is like journaling and journaling is like therapy.  So the break in posts isn't a good thing for my heart and soul.  Writing is a a way for me to process my thoughts and feelings and blogging makes me edit and review.

The past few months have been so busy.  We have been traveling, Phil changed jobs, my freelance jobs are keeping me on my toes (and at my computer); it's been busy.  I feel as though I have been out of town more than I have been in town but I love the life adventure I have been experiencing.

Our first trip was a cruise!  I had never been on a cruise before so I was pretty excited.  And we had a great time so I was not disappointed.

Our ship the Carnival Magic.

Cruises are a funny thing though.  They are kind of like summer camp.  Or have you ever seen the movie Dirty Dancing?  It's just like that; a bunch 'wealthy' adults being entertained.  It seemed too cheesy - too fake and people were eating it up (figuratively and literally). So sometimes I had a bit of a hard time with that. I met folks from Indonesia, Philippines, Panama, Australia, England, Nevada - everywhere. Many, perhaps the majority, of the crew on board were from less fortunate countries and lives working hard (very hard - long hours) to make and send money home.  They were away from their homes, families, children for months at a time.   I didn't intend to make this post to have a social commentary but it was something I walked away with in my mind so I thought it was important to at least acknowledge that the dynamics of the boat were strange for me, often humbling as I vacationed in luxury.

So it wouldn't really be vacation without a bunch of fun and that we had.  It felt like we were always on the go, something to do or see.  We went to magic shows, comedy shows, fancy dinners and casual meals.  We laid in the sun, went down the water slides got massages bought watches and perfume and had a marvelous time. The cruise was 7 days with 3 stops to Jamaica, The Cayman Islands, and Cozumel.

In Jamaica, Phil and I floated the river.  The river looked very dirty because it had been raining in the mountains and that was stirring everything up as it came down the mountain.

The river was very still and we were tied to a group of 10ish with a guide that basically paddled us down the river.  He was a really nice guy that liked to go by Shrek.  

These are a few pics of the view up through the mountain.

My favorite part of the cruise was our second stop of the trip at the Cayman Islands where we went on a Stingray excursion.  Originally I thought this excursion would be boring and with too many people and while there were SOOO many people I didn't even care I just loved watching the stingrays.  I even got to hold a couple!!!!

I'm READY!!!! --- see all the people.

snorkle kiss.  haha.

Cayman was the most beautiful place and the day was perfect.

The whole Gang!

Me and my Buddy.

Other than what was your favorite part of the cruise the other main question I am asked is did I get sea sick. Well yes I did!  Not completely sick but off enough to wish I had gotten a prescription.  

I took this video below one day to show how much the boat was moving.  This is our door knocker.  Keep in mind that I completely stopped the sign and just let it pick up speed on it's own.

And here are a few other random photo favs.

So that's it.  As our maitre d' would say, we had "fun fun fun"!

What do you want to know about home schooling?

Hey everyone, I am working on a post about my experience being home schooled.  Since I seem to have a lot of friends thinking and considering home schooling for their children I thought it might be useful for me to share my experience and what I know with whomever is interested.

Before I write what I think you might want to know I thought I would try and find out what you really do want to know.  So I am asking!

Here is a brief outline of what I thought I would share:

• Why we were home schooled.
• The transition from public school to home school.
• Co-ops/Socialization
• Curriculum

Leave a comment and let me know what most interests you.

Chemical Free Cleaning

I think I have fallen in love with white vinegar!  I decided the other day that I wanted to experiment with some DIY natural cleaning products.  So I did a little research and found that white vinegar was an ingredient most commonly referred to.

Here are a few things that I have played around so far.

• Laminate floor cleaner (used it to spot mop and was quite pleased....looking forward to the full floor mop up)
• Kitchen counter cleaner (not for marble!!!)
• Air freshener
• Dog ear cleaning solution (afterward the dogs kept sniffing each others ears which was cracking me up)
• Stainless Steel sink cleaner
• Gnat trapper (worked better than I expected)

I found this site which, as it is aptly titled, has a TON uses for white vinegar!!!

Here are a few fun things I found out while researching.
1. When a recipe calls for alcohol it can be rubbing or drinking like vodka.
2. Lemon is a great ingredient to add it is a fresh smell, degreaser, and whitener.

So I bought a spray bottle at Walmart to mix up my first solution of white vinegar, water, and lemon.

So there you have it.  My potion a la clean!  I have to admit though there is a part of me that has been so {fooled/tricked/taught/reliant} on the harsh chemical cleaners that I don't feel like things are clean and sanitary unless they smell like chemicals, have a label on the bottle shouting antibacterial.  I might need to make a label for my bottle... or become a chemist. hmm.  I mean seriously sometimes I just want to swab the counter after I wipe it down and look under the microscope to see how clean it is.  Needless to say the complete transition to chemical free or perhaps more likely chemical-less in my house will be a slow process as I retrain my brain but I think I'll get there one day.

Next solution to try is white vinegar and baking soda for a good scrub down for the bathroom tub.  oh boy.

Photo a Day Challenge

Well I've tried it once before but to no avail but I am trying again this month to follow a photo a day challenge. Each day already has a pre-assigned topic for you to shoot. I am joining The Idea Room in this challenge and it is really fun because you post your photos on Instagram with the hashtag (# symbol for those who don't know) and then you can look in the category of all the other people's photos who are also participating. I think it is really neat to see how people interpret the topics differently. Also it's neat because several people (my sis and cousin) are also participating so it's like a little daily interaction that we probably wouldn't necessarily have otherwise. So this being the 6th, it's day six of the challenge and so far I have posted a photo every day.

Here is the challenge list and my photos for each day so far.

Kitchen Makeover

Over the past couple of months I have been in the process of having my kitchen undergo a bit of a makeover.  Our house was built in 1963 and I'm fairly sure the counter tops were original. (If not original-pretty close cause they were OLD!)  I have been pretty proud of this project because the money for this project came from my first personal payday from my freelance/side business which I felt was a nice accomplishment for my little "after hours" job.

Have you ever redesigned/remodeled/updated your house?  Well it is harder than you think!  Or at least harder than I thought. Making decisions based on little bitty swatches and samples can make a person crazy.  I think this project turned out okay.  It is growing on me I guess. I honestly don't think the photos do it justice but here is the before and after run down.

Homemade&Save - Lil' more Social - A Hodge Podge

Well I can't really believe how quickly January has flown by.  Not that I mind.  I am always ready for the cold weather to get a move on outta here.  We still have to endure February which generally proves to be cold but I'll happily endure if it kills some of those pesky mosquitoes from last year.

I haven't blogged in awhile I suppose that's because I haven't thought I had much to say other than complaining.

But we did celebrate Phil's birthday by a trip to WinStar Casino and he bought a remote control helicopter to celebrate 32 :)

A Little More Mess

Last weekend I took down the Christmas tree but I just wasn't ready to take down all the decor so I left some up in the name of "winter decor".  Snowflakes, garland and twinkle lights have all remained.  Some ornaments even stayed out because I didn't yet purchase more pine cones to replace them.  I don't really mind them though because they are gold, green and browns as opposed to traditional Christmas colors.

In the process of cleaning up I found myself frustrated with my decor in my living room.  My bookshelves seemed cluttered and my entertainment center felt haphazard so I went to work on restaging.  I saw on someone's Facebook page (I don't even remember who) this picture of them in front of their bookshelves which were adorable, books and little nick knack chotchkies everywhere and instead of looking like a mess it was very visually interesting. So I thought perhaps that my problem with my book shelves and entertainment center was not that it was too messy... it was that it wasn't messy enough.  LOL.  Crazy sounding I know.  But I went to work on them adding and repositioning things for a better visual interest and I feel very pleased with the results.

So the downside here is that I don't have before pictures but here are the after pictures.