a message...

Wishing you a Blessed and Happy New Year!
~*~

Photo Hunt #5 - Squeaky

...my doggie and his new squeaky toy...

If you would like to join Photo Hunt, click here.

winter is here...

This snowman is peeking from his hiding place to see if it is safe for him to come out and play yet. Alas, while it is very windy and cold here, there is no snow and too much sun for him to survive. We are both hoping that the snow and cold that is blanketing the rest of the country, soon moves into our neck of the woods. I have been enjoying looking at all the photos of snow that everyone is sharing on their blogs...if only it could be here... or I could be there. At least it is colder today and it no longer feels like spring...

I have been a very busy girl... I am not sure what has come over me, but I must say I am truly enjoying it...I am cleaning up a storm and being so productive...this pattern will stick.. I'll see to it. :-)

There is Santa, he must be checking up on me...hopefully he thinks I've been nice... there is just one more thing that I'm wishing for, maybe he'll help me get it... I'm being good, Santa, and I promise I will continue to do so.

time to check on my chili...

happy solstice and winter blessings,
~*~

Photo Hunt - #4 Wide

My "wide" cat...

If you would like to join Photo Hunters click here.

Chances...

If you have read either of my blogs for any length of time, you have seen me mention my "dream home." I know I haven't mentioned it here but I might have mentioned on my other blog that last month the house went under contract to close this month. When I heard the news, I was devastated. It is MY home. I do not just want to live there, I NEED to live there. The first time I saw the listing on the Internet, I fell in love. Mum and I made arrangements for a showing and we drove the 1 & 1/2 hour drive to get there. The moment I stepped out of the car onto the property, I felt like I finally belonged somewhere, I felt that I was Home.

When we came home from that trip, even my mum said it was me and she could see me being very happy there. She has never said that. What's more, she has never wanted me to live more than 10 minutes from her. I was shocked, I expected her to say that she didn't think it was safe, that it was too far, it was too much work, anything to get me to stop thinking about it. But she didn't, she encouraged me and said if it would make me happy, to do it. I love her for that, and for many other things.

In an effort to help me get this house, I have prayed, made a wish board and done more spell work than you could imagine. I never took down the wish board and altar that I have set up around it. Something wouldn't let me, even after I heard it was being sold.

Yesterday I found out that the deal fell through and the house is again available for sale. My heart wept tears of joy. I've been given another chance. Another chance to make a change in my life that I know will make me happy. It will be hard, and sometimes things will be tight, but it will be so worth it. I have an appointment to see the banker on the 29Th. I refuse to pass up this opportunity. Gas prices have come down, and I'm willing to spend 3 hours five days a week in the car until I could find something closer. I know that now is not the best time to look for a job. So I'm not. I'm going to continue to work here, make the best of it as I can, but I'm going to also work my life. I'm going to start doing the things that I know I will enjoy, making art, crafts, growing herbs, flowers and vegetables, taking care of my soul...my spirit. I know that if I do what I love, everything will work out. (If you haven't read the book: Do What You Love, The Money Will Follow, I highly recommend it.)

So, I'm ready universe, I'm ready to take the next step. I'm ready to move to the Hollow and change my life. Thank you... Universe, Goddess, God, Creator, Spirit...thank you for giving me another chance to live my dream. I will embrace it with open arms and a warm heart.



Blessings,
~*~

my new toys...

I keep meaning to show you what I gave myself for Yule...



I'm loving it. I've copied all my personal stuff off my work laptop except for my iTunes and music. Hopefully I will get that done in the next few days.

Tonight I had a surprise and an early gift from my mum...



Yep... she is so hooked on hers that she bought one for me and another to give to my brother and sister-in-law. She said she just couldn't wait until our gift exchange night to give it to us. I'm kind of excited about this. I tried the Wii Fit on hers and really liked it. I'll have to see if I can figure out how to hook it up. Maybe tomorrow... I'm tired tonight. I stayed up too late last night playing on my laptop.

I can already see these will be knitting distractions... oh well... :-)

Blessings,
~*~

knitting progress

I've finally finished a knitting project. I finished my second pair of socks. I'm not really happy with how they turned out. I think one is actually shorter than the other, but I'm not about to try to fix it. :-)

I also have been working on my mum's socks, but I don't think I'll get them done by gift giving time. And, as if I didn't have enough yarn on sticks, I've started a simple k2p2 scarf in gray. I realized I don't have a basic color simple scarf to wear and I want one.


So, that has been my knitting update. I've been spending a lot of time playing with my new laptop. I finally copied my photos and documents from my wok laptop and now I just need to copy my music and iTunes stuff.

I'm off to let the beast out and then watch Prison Break.
Blessings,
~*~

Photo Hunt #3 - Favorite

not the best photo... he's still one of my favorite things...

Click here to join Photo Hunt.

Blessings,
~*~

limited posting...

I may not be online much this weekend. My new toy arrived today and I will be busy copying all my files over and getting it set up and getting used to it. I'll try to get on when I can. I have the photo hunt to participate in and I have lots of knitting updates.

Have a great weekend!
Blessings,
~*~

home...

I spent last weekend in the beautiful North Carolina mountains. When we arrived there were remnants of the last snowfall still on the ground. It was just a small amount, but honestly, any snow makes me happy.


This is our house. It was my grandparents second home and now belongs to my mum and uncle. They are trying to sell it, but I would love for us to keep it in the family. We used to spend weeks up there during the summers and we would go up for Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. My grandparents loved being there and I did too. It takes about 3 and 1/2 hours to get there for us and with the pets, it just makes it hard to get up there very often.

It is always so beautiful in the mountains. The air is crisper and cleaner somehow and the sky seems so much closer. I hated to leave and even tried to convince mum that we should stay another day. They were calling for snow the day we had to leave, and I so wanted to hang around to see it. Oh well... maybe I'll head back up during the Christmas holiday. I'm taking a few vacation days and will have almost two weeks off.

I wish I could say it was good to be home. But truly, it isn't. I would rather have stayed there, in the mountains, in the clouds.

Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving...

Blessings,
~*~

Photo Hunt #2 - reflections

i liked the way the light and my cat show up in the glass on my new french door that i haven't hung yet...

I'm headed out of town today to a place with NO INTERNET! Oh No! :-)
I'll get caught up on the blog reading and photo hunting when i return and on Monday. Have a great weekend!

Blessings,
~*~

magic

To me, winter is a magical time. Everything goes dormant, quiet and hunkered down in whatever cocoon we can find to keep us warm and toasty. A cup of tea or hot chocolate..our favorite book... the smell of wood burning in someones fireplace... these are things that to me... make winter days magical...

Even though it is not yet winter, in my area, we have had winter temperatures for quite a while now. As I leave the house each morning for work, the air is brisk and nippy, chilling my face and hands and making me wish for my warm, cozy bed.

Early this morning, I awoke to find that the sky outside was just a tad different than it should have been in November in my neck of the woods. In fact, I groggily thought that it almost looked like a night filled with snow. (Yes, I said the S word!) I chided myself as I made my sleepy way to the window, that there was no way it could have actually snowed. My neighbor must have her outside lights on, I thought, that is why the night looks so ... well... light.

Imagine my surprise, when I peeked through the blinds... to find...



Yes... it really did snow!

Of course, when I made this discovery, it was three something in the morning and much darker. I took the photo above just before leaving for work, around 6:45 this morning. I also took this one...



...pansies slumbering under a blanket of snow...trying to keep freezing their pretty little petals off...

the moon on this snowy morning was very pretty as well...

there is so much magic in a snowy moonlit fall morning... and winter is still to come!

Blessings,
~*~

a cozy day...

I have spent a cozy day indoors today for the most part. I did venture out early this morning to the grocers to pick up a few items I needed. I have had a most productive day really. I finished a book, washed several loads of laundry, washed dishes, swept the entire house and cleaned the windows on my back door.

A little while ago I went out and took all my empty garden pots and my outdoor cushions to the shed. Tonight it should get into the 20's so I thought this would be a good time. It is amazing the difference in temperature since yesterday. It really felt like an Indian summer day yesterday, but today it is much chillier, although we have kept the blustering winds and that adds to the chill.

The past few hours I have spent knitting in front of the fire and a lovely movie, "You've Got Mail". I love that movie! In fact, I actually pulled it out last night (I have it on VHS) and watched it, and when I sat down to knit I found that it was coming on abc family channel, so I watched again!


I've been sipping hot tea, knitting and watching a movie. What could be better on a cold blustery day?

I'm off to hurry to feed the kids before the football game starts. Yes, I love football! It is snowing in Pittsburgh (I'm a die-hard Steelers fan!) and I can't wait to watch the snow, the football, sip my tea and knit. Just lovely!

I forgot to mention my knitting progress. I started a sock class last week because try as I might I could not remember or figure out how to do it. I have about 10 more inches to knit before Tuesday nights class. This is my second pair of socks and I'm looking forward to becoming more proficient with it. :-)


Enjoy your evening.
Blessings,
~*~

My first Photo Hunt

I love taking pictures. I love trying to get just the right angle, the right light or shadow to make a great picture. I tell people I am an amateur photographer, although I consider my skills to be below amateur level.. basically "newbie".

In an effort to expand my skills and also take more pictures, I've joined Photo Hunters which is hosted by tnchick. I've watched as various bloggers participated, seen such beautiful photos and creativity with the themes and thought it must be just so much fun.

So, here is my first photo hunters picture. Today's theme is: ruin(ed)



Blessings,
~*~

Quilt giveaway contest

No, I'm not giving away any quilts! But I would, if I knew how to quilt! :-)

I saw this contest mentioned over at on the needles and decided to check it out. I love giveaways and I love quilts so I thought I should at least look.

Turns out this wonderful woman named Dana at Old Red Barn Co. is giving away three fabulously beautiful quilts! Wow!


Of course, after I looked at the photos and read the post I thought, nah.. I won't enter...


Psych! Had you going there for a minute, didn't I. No? Well, yeah... guess not. :-)

Hee hee...

Blessings,
~*~

Projects

I have a list of projects that I want to do around my home. I decided that I will list them here so that I have some sort of accountability. As they get done, I'll post notes and photos. Sound good? Great! Here we go (in no particular order)...

Project: Yard: Status: begun (I actually have some landscape guys coming next week to start! Yippee!)
My yard is out of control. I have ivy and periwinkle ground covers covering almost everything including my shed. I also have all kinds of trees growing up that I just don't want to have there. In the summer they block off most of the yard and I can't see the back and watch for the dog. I have this grand plan in mind for what I'd like to do to my yard, and the start of that is to get it cleaned up.

Project: Paint Status: on hold for spring
The exterior of my house is cedar shake shingles. I have someone lined up to paint the exterior trim, the front porch floor and the front door. On the front window I have a dark green awning. It matches the porch floor. I'm thinking of painting the porch floor a sage green this time but am not sure about the awning cover and if I need to replace it or just was it. I don't want to remove it because it really helps keep out the heat from my bedroom. I'm also going to paint my front door a "different color". Right now it is white, like the trim of the house. I'll take some pictures and you guys can help me decide. :-)

Project: House shingles
I need to replace the cedar shake shingles on my home. Several are in good shape, but a lot are broken, exposing the clapboard underneath or they are so weathered down that there is barely anything there. One person suggested replacing them with concrete. They look just like wood, but would last a lot longer. I'm going to have to think about this.

Project: Fence Status: soon I hope...
My front fence pieces on each side of the house are woefully desperate to be replaced. One side is falling down, literally leaning about 90 degrees. The other side, the gate is almost impossible to open. The rest of the yard has chain link fencing. On one side, there are a lot of shrubs and trees that have grown up beside the fence and created nice privacy for the yard. The back has a privacy fence about a foot inside of the chain link fence that I think was put up just for privacy sake. It only goes to just behind the shed and doesn't go all the way across the yard. The last side is the problem side. It is the side with the "nasty neighbor". The one that had me looking for condos because I just could stand the thought of putting up with her anymore. Anyway, I have very little purposely growing along that fence, but anything that is there, she comes and pulls off the fence or her dad cuts it all down (over a foot inside MY side of the fence). That side is getting a privacy fence for certain!

Project: french door Status: found the door
I have a room that I use only for storage. It is currently storing my grandmothers reproduction Victorian living room set. There is a couch, two chairs, coffee table, and two end tables. The tables are cherry with marble tops. I have always loved this furniture and always pictured having a big house with a parlor with french doors that I could look into the room and see the furniture and be able to keep it pristine. With my tiny house, it is hard to deal with. Plus I have to keep the door to the room closed because of the kids. With the door closed, I lose a lot of light. So, I decided to buy an old french door and replace the door that is there. Yay!

Project: paint (interior)
ugh...

Project: restore windows
again... ugh... ($800 per window...oh my)

Project: shed
I'd like to turn the shed into something fun... like a little country room or a studio. Lots of ideas for this.

Project: Enclose part of deck
My dad did this at his house. He had a nice big deck and decided to enclose it (really it is a screened porch) but he put a vaulted roof instead of just a flat roof and added some skylights. I could live on that porch. My deck is plenty big enough to do this and I really think I'm going to do it. I might even go so far as to put glass and screen so I could protect it from the elements. I have a table that I want to get from our mountain house (big picnic style table {think Walton's} that is made of wormy chestnut), but I have nowhere to put it. I could put it out there it would be great and it would give me more space. :-)

Project: remodel bathroom
another ugh...

Project: ceiling stripping
My ceilings are in bad, bad shape. Someone put up that popcorn stuff in some of the rooms and it is falling off and the ceilings are splitting. In the office the ceiling is separating. It is bad.

Well, that is all I can think of now. I'll try to keep updated here and if you have any suggestions, please let me know. :-)

Blessings,
~*~

Happy Halloween!

Have a happy and blessed Halloween/Samhain!



(I haven't carved my pumpkin yet. This one is from two years ago.)


Blessings,
~*~

knit knit knit

I've been working on the never-ending afghan, again. I finally (after a year!) finished the first of four strips.


Each strip is made up of four different panels. Each panel is a different color and design.


Above is panel number one...


Next, panel two...

Then panel number three...

And finally, panel number four.

Originally, the dark blue of panel four was going to be a light kind of sagey green colorway, but when I started knitting it I decided I did not like all the colors together. I like these colors now.

Last night I started on the second panel. I have three panels and then to sew them all together and add the border. I hope to have it completed in about a year.

In other news, last night was our first freeze warning of the year, so I went out to the garden and harvested some herbs and picked the last of the habanero's and tomatoes and peppers. It is so lovely to feel the chill in the air and to watch as the leaves change. The crunch under my feet as I walk through the fallen leaves. The smell of wood burning in a stove and seeing the curlicue of smoke wafting from someones chimney. Autumn... it even has a nice sound to it.

What is your favorite thing about autumn?

Blessings,
~*~

photos

I've been taking a lot of photos lately. I have been looking for a class to take that will teach me more about taking digital photos. So far I have not found one, but I will persevere. Here are a few that I have taken lately.


a pretty pansy...

a country farm...

a blossom from a mum...

Blessings,
~*~

Autumn is here...

It has finally turned cooler here. Yesterday I woke up to 36 degree temps outside and not much warmer inside as I did not realize it was to be so cold and had left all my windows open. It was very difficult to get out of bed. :-)

I've been wearing sweaters and sweatshirts the past few days which is wonderful to me. I love the cold! I haven't done much in the garden the past few weeks. I need to take advantage of the cool weather and get out there and get the old stuff pulled up and get it weeded and mulched for the winter. I keep wanting to plant winter vegetables, but never actually do it. Maybe next year...

I'll leave you with a picture of another picture like my banner. I took several trying to get different views. Don't you just love autumn colors? I adore them and white pumpkins!


Blessings,
~*~

Heat Wave

Isn't this October? Isn't it the middle of October? Yep, just looked at the calendar and it is, indeed, the middle of October. Then why is it so freakin HOT!?! It is 83 degrees. That is way too hot for October! Ugh! It feels like summer outside. Supposedly, we will drop from 84 on Thursday to 67 on Friday and then will be back to our regularly scheduled weather pattern. Whew... I sure hope so. I'm melting here! :-)

I'm still working on setting up this blog the way I want it. I need it to be my happy side. I tend to get morose and depressing if I stay in the dark for too long, but the other blog just screams dark to me and it needs to be. :-)

I'll be back later with some photos.

Blessings
~*~

revisiting my light side...

I've decided to re-open this blog. I am working on it and it may be "under construction" for some time. I love my other blog, but it really represents my 'darker' side and I have been missing having a place to share my 'lighter' side.

So, I'm back here. I will be using both blogs to try to express myself as I need. Hopefully you will enjoy both sides of me. :-)

Blessings,
~*~