Crossing items off the list...

I've been working on my to-do list lately, and have maganged to make quite a dent in it. Today I've been concentrating on things that are fun, but still things I have been putting off. Like what, you say?

Like actually using the teeth whitening product I bought a year and a half ago. Now tell me, do you see a difference? I spent two hours doing multiple repeated steps, including using a special light. I don't see any result at all, and don't plan to go to the trouble again.
before

after


Then my efforts moved from my head to my toes, which I gave a pretty sad attempt at a french pedicure.


After having two such taxing jobs crossed off my list, albeit not with a great deal of satisfaction, I thought I had earned some computer time. (I mean, come on, if I'm going to procrastinate, I might as well blog about it, right?)

So what do I find in my inbox? An e-mail from a service I subscribe to which is an aid to maximize efficient time usage. It asked 'do you put your energy where it counts the most?' And then suggests 'concentrating on tasks that produce the greatest rewards.'

Point taken.

Back to the laundry and decluttering!

So there we were, the two of us side by side with a light cotton quilt over us...

Saw this idea over at What's Happening At My House, and since I just went to the library and have two unread books sitting right beside me, I wanted to play along.

• Grab the nearest book to you
  
• Turn to page 56
  
• Post the text of the fifth sentence as a post title, and pass this meme on to who you like

The sentence in the post title is from Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. I'll bet it had some of you wondering what the heck this post was about, huh? :) If you're reading this and want to play too, consider yourself tagged!

An inquisition from Joolz...

I just had to put up this photo for Joolz (cheeky girl) who asked the following questions on her blog.

# 1 What's for dinner tonight? stir-fried rice

# 2 What's your favourite cute animal picture? I'd show you, but my scanner and I are feuding.

# 3 Who does the dishes in your house? I usually clean up as I cook, then Carey puts the tableware in the dishwasher and washes up pans.

# 4 On a personal note, regarding toilet paper - Are you a Scruncher or a Folder... or a Fruncher/Scrolder, he he! Whatever it takes to get the job done!

# 5 What jar (brand) of (tomato based) Spaghetti sauce do you use for Spagetti Bol? Classico - Fire Roasted Tomato and Garlic

# 6 Do your children make their own beds and put out their clothes or do ... you? Alas, my nest is empty.

# 7 Can I have your favourite recipe for a dessert you love? Sure! Oh, you mean right here, right now? No.

# 8 My ironing board is permanently set up - do you labour over baskets of ironing or do you fold, put away then iron as you need.... like me? I try to never buy clothes that need ironing...but in the extreme case, I iron as needed...I have an over-the-door fold-down ironing board in our bathroom.

# 9 Do you wear makeup each day or go Phhhffft! Stuff it! How often do you go to thehairdresser? I always wear makeup to the office...other days, it just depends on my mood. When my hair is short, I have to go every six weeks or so, or it starts looking pretty scruffy...right now, it's pretty long, so I can go longer between trims.

# 10 What is your ultimate personal indulgence eg. relaxation/treat An appointment with my reflexologist. Aaaahhhh...

Look what I found...

headboard and footboard

(pay no attention to my quilt frame rails underneath)

A friend asked me to go to an auction with her yesterday. I didn't really feel like it. Definitely didn't need to bring home one more thing. But I hadn't spent any time with my friend for such a long time, and a whole day together is a rare thing indeed. So I said yes.

We got there early and walked the room, scoping out things we might want to bid on. I didn't see anything I couldn't live without. Then towards the end of the day they brought this beauty out of nowhere, and it was love at first sight. My resolve flew out the window, and my hand with its bidder number kept popping up with absolutely no resistance from my sensible side.

All my life my mother talked about her grandparents' beautiful tall bed, and how it had to be cut down to fit smaller rooms when they moved off the farm and into town. Apparently that happened a lot, as I have seen lots of the cut-down versions over the years. But I don't ever remember seeing an unaltered version before...at least not one that spoke to me like this one does.

You may remember seeing our current bed in a previous post. When we moved into this house five years ago, we finally had room for a king-sized bed, so we invested in a Select Comfort (LOOOOOOOVE IT!), but we had no headboard. We were hosting a big family party (Carey's side) with everybody coming from out of town, and I couldn't stand the idea of a naked bed. I bought the black metal frame from a friend's mother for $50. I like it and was glad to have it, but it's never been one I wanted to keep forever.

So all this time I've been trying to decide what style I would really like to have. I keep finding myself attracted to really tall headboards, and have been considering doing a DYI project of some kind. Actually, since antique beds don't come in king size, this one will require some DIY. I'm going to have to find a way to visually extend the sides without causing any damage to the head/footboard. Any ideas? I've been thinking maybe mounting the headboard directly to the wall and putting up narrow upholstered panels on each side. Or maybe painting a section of the wall (a mattress-wide section) an accent color, with the headboard centered on it. I'm afraid I can't think of any way to use the footboard at all.

I'll have to give this some thought. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. And I'll post the final results when there are some.

Frustration...

Know what happens when I enter my own blog address or click on it from my favorites?

I get an error message that Internet Explorer cannot open this website.

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

I was able to get to the posting screen by going through blogspot.com and my dashboard.

Just venting...and letting you know there is a prob in case you don't see any action for awhile.

What's your sign...

There's a house that I pass every morning on my way to work. It's been on the market for awhile. It looks like a nice roomy house, and if I was interested in moving in to town, I might even consider it. But that would mean I would be 'somewhere' instead of four miles north of nowhere, and that's just not what I'm interested in.

Anyway, back to my story. Every morning the sign in front of this house catches my eye, and I think of the comedian, Bill Engvall, and his 'here's your sign' bit. This is the sign I'm claiming for my own...

No, I'm not for sale. LOL It's the addendum they tacked on the bottom that I love--I'm gorgeous inside. Indeed. Each time I see this sign it prompts a mini self-examination...am I a good friend, wife, mom, grandma...do I give thanks and praise each day...do I practice the golden rule...have I searched out the blessings that each day brings and felt joy? I don't actually tally up a score, I just know that this makes me smile.

Don't get me wrong, I am far, FAR from perfect. But I love and am loved. And I feel absolutely gorgeous inside!

Now as for the outside...

Paper Weaving Card...

Some time back, I saw some gorgeous cards and an awesome tutorial on paper weaving at Folding Trees. I kept going back and looking at it, and kept loving it. Today I was in the mood for some craftiness, and thought, 'today is the day!'

Of course I complicated the process more than need be by not looking at the tutorial again before starting...surely I had looked at the picture often enough to be able to remember what it was supposed to look like. Alas my results were far from satisfactory. Then I went back and read the directions. Ah...much better.

I'll find a way to use my first effort in some project or other.

Oh, and the '2' in the middle...it has a purpose.