Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Reclutter


I've been trying to declutter my house, so today dh and I took a bunch of stuff to the local thrift store. And since we were there, of course we had to go in and look around! There was a little milk glass available, so I was able to add 2 more pieces to my little collection. I like the little pear plate, just have to figure out how to display it so you can see it! The other piece is a candle holder, so I'll have to find a pretty candle to go in it. The vase is actually for my sister; it matches a piece she already has. The cherry plate is also for my sister, as her kitchen is decorated with cherries. It is SO cute! She really has a flair for decorating. It was nice to find some things for her, since she is always finding things for me! I was really happy to see the flower plaque. It matches my bedroom perfectly! I'm thinking I might add some lace around the outside edge. We'll have to see how it looks. I also found another pair of clip-on earrings, which was really exciting! I would love to find a bunch of vintage jewelry, but most of the jewelry at this thrift store is 80's chic LOL You can't see the cupcake stand very well, but I was thrilled to find that too. Once again, copying my talented sister. She has one of these, and it is always decorated so cute! I found the 3-tiered shelf last month, but haven't shown it yet. I LOVE it. It still had the price tag from the store on it, for $37! I paid $3. Now I just have to figure out where to put it. It's not the most convenient shape LOL Dh calls it the "sleigh", so I'll be decorating it for Christmas at least!
So, declutter, reclutter :)

Tagged

I've been tagged by my sister at Keep Me In Stitches to share 6 quirks about me. I either have too many quirks, or not enough, because I can't think of 6 specific ones LOL But I'll give it a try...

1. I'm a LISTER. I make a list of literally everything. Birds I've seen, wildflowers I've identified, books I've read, DMC floss, all kinds of things. I don't feel like I've accomplished or it isn't real until I've made a list of it LOL And apparently I keep all those lists. I'm in the process of decluttering, and I'm finding lists all over the place!

2.I'm a READER. I read everything I can get my hands on (except most cheesy romances LOL). Right now I'm paying $163 a year so I can have access to a bigger library. Keep your fingers crossed that the new county library bill will pass, and I won't have to buy a library card anymore! (of course, we will pay through our taxes, but I'm okay with that :) The great thing is, I can read, watch TV and listen to dh and the kids all at the same time. Since I am the only person in this family who doesn't talk non-stop, this is an important skill to have LOL

3. It's easier for me to deal with a GROUP of people than an individual. I can get up and give a talk in sacrament meeting or even sing a solo a capella (which I did this past Sunday), but stick me in a one-on-one conversation with another person and I just about pass out. I have to force myself to attend things that might require me to interact with people LOL, unless I am the one giving a lesson, then I'm just fine!

4. I love to LEARN. This kind of goes along with reading. If I decide I'm interested in something, I'll read and research until my curiosity is sated. And I have a HUGE variety of interests, although most of them have to do with the natural world. This makes me a know-it-all on Jeopardy nights :) One of my goals in life is to be an eternal student. I'm hoping to go back to university as soon as all my kids are in school all day. I love it when my kids have homework, because I love doing it with them! And now that my oldest ds is in middle school, the homework is finally getting interesting LOL

5. I'm a COLLECTOR, but I don't collect the "usual" things. For instance, if you visit my house, you'll notice rocks everywhere. That's because I have never outgrown the childhood habit of putting rocks in my pockets. I find interesting rocks all over the place, and if it's movable (and it doesn't obviously belong to someone LOL) I put it in my pocket, or the back of the van, which drives dh nuts. I also love elephant shaped beads. Guess what? There aren't a whole lot of elephant shaped beads out there LOL And milk glass... who couldn't LOVE milk glass? But I only buy it at my local thrift store, and I refuse to pay more than $2, so my collection is pretty small at this point. My biggest collection is field guides. When you love books, are obsessed with learning new things... well, field guides are my best friend :)

6. I want to be a NATURALIST when I grow up. More than anything I want to take young kids out in nature and show them how AMAZING it is! This is one reason why I love working with cub scouts so much. We have a nature center just up the canyon, and I hope to volunteer there some day. To that end, I'm trying to learn all about everything up the canyon, and here in the valley, since it's an incredible place too. I'd love to go around to schools and do presentations. It's so much fun to open eyes to the beautiful world God has given us! And I enjoy teaching kids how important it is to take care of our world too.

So there you have it. 6 things about me. I'm supposed to tag 6 other people, but that would bring out my fear of talking to individuals LOL, so.... if you post 6 things about yourself on your blog, let me know, and I'll come read it!

Friday, September 26, 2008

Must be lazy...

Sadly, it has now been ANOTHER month since I've posted! I have to say though, that September has been a little crazy. Getting the kids back into the school routine has been hard. Especially now that S is in middle school/6th grade. It's a whole new world once you leave that elementary school, for me as well as for him! And having a half-day kindergartener is throwing me off too LOL I just can't keep track of everyone! It's so much easier when they all leave at the same time and all get home at the same time. But on a positive note, E, who has been homeschooled for the last 2 years, is really enjoying 5th grade at the school.
It was also my birthday this month, which leads us to the subject of the birthday curse LOL Seriously, my birthday IS CURSED!!! I have spent 2 birthdays in the last 6 years in the ER with injured kids. The other 4 years, someone has been injured right around my birthday, but not on the actual day. We actually joke about what is going to happen THIS year? LOL Luckily there haven't been any serious injuries, but it never fails that someone will be injured (stitches, broken collar bone, falling off a jungle gym, biting through bottom lip, dislocated elbow, you know, the usual). This September seemed even worse than usual. Not only did A bite through his lip, but every time I turn around I am either tripping over something or running into something. I'm one big bruise! LOL Thank heavens it's almost October! :)
Right now I am working on a cute wall hanging. If you have the BHG Holiday Crafts magazine for this year, it's the 12 Days of Christmas project on page 61. I have all the images stitched, and I'm going to get the pears done today. I'm cheating and using felt to back my pears, then blanket stitching around everything. The whole sandwhich everything together was too much work LOL I'll try to post some pics in the next day or two.
I hope you are all enjoying beautiful fall weather! It's crisp and cool here!