Lost and Found

Today, I am participating in

"Five Minute Friday"

This Friday's word is Lost

I will write for five minutes, no editing, about the word lost.

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My husband traveled for his job and was gone almost weekly. It was “the dead” of winter and I had been cooped up in this house for weeks waiting for “old Man Winter” to give me a break. So my husband asked me to go with him. 

He told me we would stay in a nice hotel with an indoor pool, spa, and workout room, down the road from a mall. How could I say no?

So I grabbed a couple of good books, my swim suit, workout clothes and even a little black dress in hopes we would make it out to a special dinner one night. We arrived, and my husband kept his promise. We had a beautiful room on the corner of the building with beautiful views of both the sunrise and the sunset.

Oh, how I relaxed that week. I forgot about everything, and everyone. I got lost in my new place, with no laundry to do or dishes to put away. And, I didn't feel a bit guilty about it. 

I spent that week completely

worry-free

on purpose. 

I made it a point to not allow a negative thought or worry come my way. That beautiful hotel room was a “positivity sanctuary” for my soul.

That week,

I lost myself and 

found myself all in one place. 

I came back to our home and our daily routines with a clean attitude, fresher attitude and a clearer view of my world. I even felt like I weighed less, not just body weight, but world weight, the weight of the world on my shoulders was less.

Getting lost can be a good thing.

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linking up with

"five minute friday"

over at

www.LisaJoBaker.com

Wednesday Hodgepodge!

“Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy;

they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.” 

― Marcel Proust

Today, I thought I would Join in with

the hodgepodge questions by

Joyce

over at

www.fromthissideofthepond.com

1. What summer activity most takes you back to your own childhood?

Swimming in the lake with my family, jumping off those high rock cliffs and swimming to the boat, floating on my noodle Except back when I was a child, we used our Dad's old inner tubes with that pointy air stem thingy poking us. We used to wait in line to get them all together and make sure they were aired up and tied down in the back of his old work truck. My Dad loved the water and could throw us kids off his shoulders time after time, after time!



2. What's your favorite summer smell?  A campfire!

Especially if it has some hickory in it. My Grandpa used to put an 8 inch copper pipe in his campfire then we would all wait for it to get pitch black outside and we could see the different colors coming from that pipe as it heated up. We called them rainbow flames.

3.  It's beach season in the US of A... so, how do you feel about sand?

I haven't had much experience with sand.  My first trip to the beach was when I was 8 years old in California. They had just had an oil spill (yeah, they had them way back when) and I got that black tar all over my feet. It was hidden in the sand, so you couldn't see it. After we got back to my Grandma's, my Dad took gasoline and had to scrape the tar off the bottom of my feet. I am very ticklish so they had to hold me down to get it done. The second trip to a beach was in Galveston, it was storming. I walked along the beach while getting plastered in the face with ocean spray and sand. So both visits were not fun. But I plan to give it another try, maybe this time at a resort in Mexico?

4.  Sun tea, SunChips, sunflower seeds, Capri Sun, Sunny Delight, Sun-Maid raisins, sun-dried tomatoes...your favorite food or beverage with sun in its name?

That would have to be sunflowers. Whether in a salad or chocolate covered, they are delicious! And healthy too! Sun tea comes in second, though, sun maid raisins third. This list could go on and on!

5.What's your favorite way to cool off on a hot summer day?

Swimming in the pool. What is better than having your own pool? Your neighbor having one!  My cousin Thomas lives two doors away and has the biggest pool with a large deck and a pavilion for parties. I had my last birthday party there and we sang karaoke and danced till midnight!



6.  Share a favorite song with the word sun or sunshine in it's title.

That would have to be "You are my sunshine" (not quite sure of its name though) "My only sunshine".  I sang it all the way to California on a trip when I was a child. I remember my Dad telling me he never wanted to hear that song again. I guess three days of me singing the same song over and over was a bit much. So I sang "Zippity Doo Dah" all the way back home. My Dad was a very patient man.

7.  Tell us about a time when you had an exceedingly good or a truly awful customer service experience. If it was awful, did you report it? Ever go back there again?

It was a nightmare experience.  I was born with ulcerative colitis and was in the hospital for an attack, too weak to walk, so the nurse helped me to the bathroom. She left and told me to pull the string when I was ready to get back to my bed.  I pulled the string, no one came. I could hear a birthday party happening down the hallway at the nurses station. I kept pulling the string and I finally ended up on the bathroom floor. I then crawled out into the hallway and begged for someone to come and help me. A nurse finally came with a half eaten cupcake in her hand. The next day my doctor moved me, in an ambulance, down the road to another hospital at no charge to me. I think he addressed and fixed the problem.

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

I am realizing that I have different favorites almost everyday. I change my favorite color almost daily, I never eat the same snack twice, and I am constantly moving things around.  And each time, it is my new favorite?  Today my favorite food is sliced strawberries and my color for today is pink (it is usually yellow or blue).  Only in America, could I celebrate so many choices! Have a wonderful American Day!

As life goes...
Yesterday I was fitted for a "bone growth stimulator" at my spine surgeons office.  I must wear it for four hours a day for four months. It sends electrical impulses through my spine and hopefully convinces and assists the cadabre bones to fuse with my other bones. I am now 5 weeks out after having 2 discs replaced in my neck and am feeling good! I am hoping to get to drive soon!

We have a big family reunion over the 4th of July with one of the tripe'ts getting married on the 5th. We are working to finish some projects around the house so we can do nothing but visit over the holidays! We just found out that our adopted K2daughter (adopted at the age of 28) is pregnant! She is feeling great, no morning sickness (yet) and the due date is February 28th, my brothers birthday! It's a happy day today! 

Finding the sugar?

It's just another Monday

here in the

Heart of the Ozarks.

I want to share a project I did in Picmonkey.

A few weeks ago, K2daugher and her fiancee came for a weekend visit. They live a very busy life and seldom get to slow down. Their work in the Nursery (plants) business goes almost 24 hours a day during this time of the year. So when they come to visit, we slow down, sleep late, eat lots of barbecue and 

play a game called "Wahoo". 

We team up

 - girls against boys - 

and the girls are the 

reigning Wahoo champions!

K2daughter's fiancee gets up around 4:30am each day, 7 days a week.  So he is the first to the coffee pot! I had just purchased these little canisters at TJMaxx for only $2.99 each (a bargain I thought). I scrubbed them clean and put our coffee condiments - sugar, creamer and sweetener into them and put them on a distant counter (I know that wasn't a smart thing to do, not thinking that guests wouldn't know to look across the room). Poor Kman, he had to search for the sugar and he finally came across the 4lb bag in my baking cabinet and had to spoon his sugar out one at a time. 

So that afternoon, 

I made labels in Picmonkey and 

moved the canister's closer to the coffee pot.

I love Picmonkey. 

It is somewhat easy and user friendly.  

You can find it here

www.picmonkey.com

I started with a 4x6 blank canvas (so I could print it on photo paper), with a white background.  Then I selected a label that I liked and made it a color that would go with my red coffee pot.  I then sized it and then duplicated it three times.  Then I selected a font and typed in my text and centered it on the label. I did this three times as I needed three labels.

I saved my work and then went to my printer software and printed a 4x6 photo of my labels. I have an HP printer and it is so easy to use!  Then I cut the labels out, punched a hole in the top, ran some twine through the hole and tied it to the handle on top of the canister.

Now Kman will be able to find his sugar!

Thanks for stopping by to visit!

As life goes...

Emmy Lou, our chocolate Labrador that was attacked recently, is doing much better. She is walking, visiting all of our family, begging for biscuits each morning. But she is still favoring that left front leg. But we see a full recovery ahead of her. As for me almost 5 weeks out from sine surgery... the surgeon has ordered a "bone growth stimulater" and a nurse will be coming by to help me with it in the next few days. I still have a little swelling on the right side but as long as I don't lift or drag anything, I feel no pain. I see the surgeon tomorrow and am hoping he will allow me to swim in the lake. It is so hard to be on the water and not be allowed to get in!
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Linking up with:

Brenda
tweak it tuesday
A Cozy Little House
and
Kristi

Inspiration Monday

I should be mopping the floor
and
Marty
Inspire Me Tuesday
A Stroll thru Life
and
Linda
nifty thrifty tuesday
at Coastal Charm Blog
and
Megin
Brag about it
at VMG206

Cindy
Amaze Me Monday
dwellings-the heart of the home blog

My first childhood memory

“Don't you wish you could take a single childhood memory and blow it up into a bubble and live inside it forever?”

- Sarah Addison Allen "Lost Lake"

 Brenda over at

A Cozy Little House Blog

features Java Talk.

It's a place where you can strike a conversation with

many people, from many places about a particular subject

that Brenda posts about on Wednesday.

This week Brenda asked her readers to discuss

Your First Childhood Memory.

I have always known what my first memory was.

It was of my Granddad.

There he is on the left with my Father,

His first born son.

He was a lead and zinc miner.

A tough man,

with 10 kids to feed and support,

and very little education.
He arrived home from the hospital in a taxi,
refusing treatment because he said the food was bad.
He had discharged himself from the
hospital against doctors orders
and he refused to return.

He died of Tuberculosis

when I was only 3 years old.

and

he loved candy.

And so did I!

We were on the sunporch and 
I was sitting on the edge of his bed. 
I remember the color

of the bedspread - tan plaid with a
thin red stripe running through it.
He was laughing and telling me funny stories.

He was very ill,

and he knew he was going to die soon
but I didn't know.
At the age of three you can't
comprehend death.

He had a little brown paper sack

full of penny candy

and

he shared it with me.

I can remember feeling so safe, so secure,

so loved, and so yummy in my tummy,

eating candy with my Granddad's full attention!

So here I am at age 3.

As life goes...

I am feeling great after my neck surgery 4 weeks ago. I feel no pain at all. I do have minimal movement in my neck, from left to right and even less when I move front to back.  I am so relieved to have the pain and limited control in my right hand 

so much better! I will say the surgery was a big success!

Creating place settings...

"All great change in America

begins at the dinner table." 

Ronald Reagan

I loved hearing President Ronald Reagan give a speech.  His speeches gave me hope, enthusiasm and boosted my determination to try.  His quote is similar to how my Granny lived. Her door was always open, there was always food to eat and her table was always set. Though she didn't have much, her home was comfy and full of love. Problems were solved at her table.

Brenda over at www.cozylittlehouse.com always writes about her shopping experiences at walmart.com and how they charge no shipping fees.  I had been wanting a white set of dishes so  I ordered the Better Homes and Gardens Dishes from walmart.com and this morning the UPS man delivered them to my front door.  So simple, I feel this could become my new way of buying.

I got so excited that I had to play with some different ways to set my table.  I cruised through some blogs looking for beautiful place settings, with folded cloth napkins, beautiful centerpieces, and gave it a try.

I even drug my ironing board out of the closet,

dusted off the cobwebs and ironed all of my linens.

I had such a good time,

playing with my linens and dishes.

I tried several centerpieces, but this is my favorite. I bought the blue ball jars at Target the other day, I just couldn't resist them and I knew I would find a way to display them someday.

I was searching for a blog that could help me with folding napkins, using two different patterned napkins, and just overall napkin design.  If anyone has any links, or suggestions for blogs, sites for napkins, please share with me.

Thank you for stopping by and taking a peek at my morning project.  Ya'all come back and visit again!

As life goes...
Emmy Lou, our chocolate labrador is healing slowly after her attack by a pit bull running loose down our lane. The local police have laws protecting us from loose running animals however, our local town is so small that rules just do not get enforced.

I am now on my third week after spine surgery and feeling better each day. The doctors orders to not lift anything, drive, and to take it easy is harder now that I am feeling better.  Another week and a half and maybe The doctor will allow me to begin physical therapy and start building my strength back.

I want to thank each one of you

for your prayers, 

I know they worked,

and filled my heart

with comfort and joy!

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linking up with:

Kathe with an E
gonna love it tuesday

Linda over at Coastal Charm Blog
Show and Share Party 

Angie over at  Knick of Time Blog
Knick of  Time Tuesday

Maria over at

Maria Elenas Decor

Tuesday at our Home

I should be mopping the floor
Inspiration Monday

Brenda over at Cozy Little House
Tweak it Tuesday

The Dedicated House
Blue Friday

Six word Friday - Double

One Nation,

Under God,

We Celebrate!

"Golf Cart Parade"

July 4th Celebration, 2013"

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Linking up with Adrienne

over at

http://www.mymemoryart.blogspot.com

Six Word Friday - Double

I need your prayers...

“A dog is the only thing on earth

that loves you more 

than he loves himself.” 

― Josh Billings

Our Chocolate Labrador,

Emmy Lou, 

was attacked yesterday in her own yard, 

by a neighbors pit bull.

She has a crushed left leg and several lacerations.

The neighbors are nice people however, they have NO fence,

their dog is not registered, licensed or permitted.

They claim it is a "family pet".

I have contacted our county sheriff who explained that unless

Emmy Lou dies, he can not do anything.

I also contacted our local cop of our small town,

who says it is out of his jurisdiction since the attack

happened 1 block outside the

city limits.

I do NOT want a pit bull living, 

without a well designed fence, just 2 blocks from our home.

10 years ago, I lived next door to a very nice

single mom who had a pet pit bull she had raised from a pup.

It was a family pet, never gave them a bit of trouble,

it was loving, adoring and protective.

UNTIL...

one day she pulled into her own driveway with her family

in the back of her pickup truck, they were returning from a 

float trip down at the river.

Her lovable pet, her prize pit bull,

jumped into the back of the truck, drug her 3 year old

out and under the truck then proceeded
to maul the child and completely tore off her ear.

Her daughter endured terrible pain,
many surgeries, and large medical bills.

So, I am asking for prayers for our
precious Emmy Lou, and that
we can get this dog removed from
our neighborhood or at least confined inside a
secure fence.


I am just heart broken over this, I don't want a neighbor feud, but I feel I must continue the fight to have this dog
placed in a safer environment. So far, law enforcement
just says "sorry".

Expressing Simplicity!

The art of art,

the glory of expression

and the sunshine

of the

light of letters,

is simplicity.

Walt Whitman

Linking up with

Adrienne

over at

mymemoryart.blogspot.com

Going Blue...

and keeping my oak...

Hi everyone!  We recently started making over our home, in do-able and affordable portions and taking it in a new direction as far as our style, needs and budget.

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Today I wanted to share my 

photo frame makeover! 

I've had this frame stored inside a box full of old frames, upstairs, in the attic, under a bunch of other boxes, buried behind the Easter decorations. 

It was a dark brown so I cleaned it good, painted it with a mixture of two colors of craft paint ($0.50 each). 

Then I took some scrapbook paper scraps(?) ($.25) Cut one to fit the oval shape on the inside of the frame. 

Then I went through my jewelry box and found some costume jewelry pieces that I was tired of, then stuck one to the outside of the frame with rubber cement.

I can change the paper background anytime, as well as just pull off the jewelry piece. 

I think this is a keeper just because it is so versatile.

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We built our home in 2002 after downsizing from 3600 sq ft to 1890 sq ft. And we brought most of the furniture from the bigger house with us. I had furniture up against every wall. All my favorite pieces that I dearly loved were right where I could enjoy them. I loved them, until it came time to clean them. I just don't bend as easy as I use to.

This year we have chosen to finally 

"live in our home" 

and to let the old home go. We are changing every room on a budget, hoping to re-use most all of my own items, and be a bit crafty along the way.

I am going to keep the treasures that I love, 

whether they be in style or not, 

and am going to blend them into a more modern and up to date style of my own. I plan to re-purpose most evey thing and stay on a minimal budget.

In 2008, I fell in love with every color. So I chose a grayish purple and sunny yellow to go on my dining room/kitchen walls. I smiled each time I walked into that sunny and happy room.  Others laughed. But I loved it. 

It stayed that color for four years, 

until thehubs came to me and said 

he just couldn't take it anymore. 

The purple had to go.

So, keeping our decorating goal in mind,

here is our newer

2014 kitchen and dining room!

The seafoam green, and robin egg blue, were a big change for me. I purchased new valances but stuck with the same kind of mini blinds.  We rarely lower our blinds. We live in the country, so privacy is not an issue. So I will be changing the window dressings, actually I am hoping to make them.

Glad you stopped by,

and hope you will come back and visit!

And as life goes...

I am still recuperating after neck surgery. The pain and nausea are less, thus requiring less pain medication. I am happy to say I am feeling better and able to move around quite a bit.  Thank you to each and everyone of you that prayed for me. I am still wanting prayer as this is a long road, thank you so much!

Linking up with...
Brenda over a Cozy Little House
Linda over at Show and Share via A Coastal Charm
Kathy over at Kathywithane You're goona love it Tuesday
Marty over at A Stroll Through Life Inspire Me Tuesday