Giveaway

I really don't want to share about this giveaway, because I want to win it. If you don't know about it, then I have a better statistical chance of winning it. But in order to get an extra entry, I have to tell you about this giveaway. I think it would be nice to win. I have a 9 year old little girl who is kind of sad about moving next week. This could cheer her up considerably. But I'm not going to tell you about it. Nope, you have to go here and find out about this giveaway yourself. And may the best bear... *cough, cough* um.... person win.

Hugs,
Melinda

Sky pictures

So, I'm an amateur photographer. I won't ever be a "professional," but I do enjoy playing. And I enjoy looking at other peoples photographs for both learning and inspiration.

Somewhere along the way, I signed up for a newsletter called Photojojo. One of the recent editions was titled "Sky Play." I was intrigued.

Did you know that you can capture clouds in a ketchup bottle and squeeze them out again when you need them?
Or, if you have a magical personality *cough, cough* you can zap things. I'm new to this, so my zapping finger is a bit weak and blurry.
Well, the left finger did a bit better. Believe it or not, this is a bit more difficult than it looks.
Oh, my right finger got into gear quite quickly. *Bing* I zapped good thoughts to my friend Sandi. (She lives that direction. Sort of.)
And we'll keeping training this finger.

I'm finding that photography is about having fun with whatever subject you choose to shoot.

Hugs,
Melinda

I'd like to share my heart with you.

I would like to share my heart with you. It's something not easily shared. I have a fondness for potato soup.


Yes, this is the actual potato I used to make last night's soup. It was yummy. So while I would like to share my heart with you, I'm afraid I already ate it. :D

Hugs,
Melinda

Works for Me: Moving

It's been a while since I posted on WFMW. If you haven't ever been to Shannon's blog to read some of the myriad of tips, you ought to try it at least once.

I don't have a lot of time today, but I thought I would post this one tip that is coming in very handy for us right now. And I'm actually shocked at how many people don't know this, too.

We're moving. Which means we need boxes. Lots and lots and lots of boxes. But we don't go to a moving company and pay for boxes. We go to the grocery store. If you go at a time they are restocking (well, any time really), you can get OODLES of boxes for FREE! I recommend egg boxes and banana boxes, because they are the sturdiest. I don't recommend granola bar and frito lay boxes (they are too small to be of much use to us).

The other thing that seems to be working effectively: I wasn't sure that Little Bit was getting the concept of moving. We'll give her a box and tell her to pack her toys. She seems to understand that. We do have to be careful that she doesn't then UN-pack, but we're working on it. :D

Grocery Store = Free Boxes and that Works For Me!

Hugs,
Melinda

In case you were interested....

My UFO quilt won 3rd place for best use of challenge fabric and 2nd place for best use of color.
I'm proud. :D

Hugs,
Melinda

FYI -- Computer Trouble -- Still

FYI -- Computer Trouble

The motherboard on our computer isn't playing nicely. It's taking longer and longer to turn the computer on in the morning. I figure I have less than a month left with the thing. If I disappear for a long time, it's because we are trying to save money to replace it with a nice desktop PC. We have the monitor, keyboard and mouse, so all we need is the hard drive unit thingy.

Gotta dash. Quilt guild meeting tonight.

Hugs,
Melinda

Boogeyman in the Basement

Last but not least, the basement.

The first time we went down these stairs, I got really nauseated and dizzy, and didn't like the basement at all. The washer/dryer hookup is to the right of the stairs in this picture.
Even though it's an older home with a stone foundation, it's remarkably dry. Even so, there are plenty of shelves for storage.
More shelving.
And even more shelving.
There's a mud room sink across from the washer area. It could be turned into a nice little laundry room with a bit of work. (Oh yeah..... to the right of this sink.... even MORE shelves.)

Well, that's it. That's the grand tour. Now we are into the "renegotiate" phase. If that all passes well, then we wait for loan approval (I think). We're also trying to raise some money for an appraisal.

I'm excited. The biggest thing I see is all the potential this house has. It's really nice now, but we can make it so much more. Ya know?

Well, it's late. I better go. Have a good one!

Hugs,
Melinda

The Upstairs bedroom (pt 2)

Remember these windows? Part of the charm, I think. I keep seeing low bookshelves, lots of pillows on the floor. Maybe a bean bag chair.
This is the view out of those windows. See in the back? See in the tree? A tree house AND a swing set. :D There's not a ladder currently, but that's okay. We want to make sure that everything is stable and secure before we let the girls go up there.


On to the problems. I didn't get a good shot of these windows, but...... even though Sweet Pea wouldn't go out here, I can see Little Bit following the inspector's lead and heading out of this window.
There's a problem with the chimney.
The attic space is right off of the upstairs bedroom and it has a leak. This could be the one thing that holds up and keeps us from being able to buy this house.

Well, if you can stand one more set of pictures........ It's time for the basement.

Hugs,
Melinda

The upstairs bedroom (Pt 1)

Let's go upstairs, shall we? The upstairs has been designated the official bedroom/playroom/craft center for the girls. They are loving it.

Here's Little Bit turning on the lights at the top of the stairs.
Here's the other side of the stairs.
See the closets? Just the right size for a "clubhouse." ROFLOL There's one on each side.
"I love my clubhouse, Mommy."
The ceiling is kinda low. That's my head, and I'm trying to show how much space there is to the ceiling.

Ready for part two?

Full bath and odd pictures

So I'm starting this batch with "odd" pictures. Like the inside of the hall closet. I'm not sure why, but I find this closet .... "odd."
Then there's the picture of Sweet Pea headed upstairs. We'll follow her in a minute.
This is the full bathroom. Pink walls. That will be painted. Soon. Very soon.
I love it. It's a semi-deep bathtub, with the perfect slope for my back. :D Bring on the bubbles.
And another "odd" picture. This is a very blurry closeup of the shower ..... what do you call it? The shower tiles? stones? lining? I wanted to make sure I had the colors, because it's a very definite contrast to the pink. walls. that will be painted. very very soon.
If you're still interested, I've got more. :D

Master Bedroom, Hall, half bath, and a surprise.

Hello..... More pictures. This is the hall way. That's a nice built in unit there. The open door is the full bathroom, and the closed door is a closet.
This is the master bedroom. It's a "pretty" purple, isn't it? Don't worry, Dale and I plan on painting it. Soon. It's a fairly longish bedroom. There's a third window just to the left in this picture.
This is the half bath.
With the "surprise." A cedar closet! I'm so excited. I love cedar. It's as close to living in a log cabin as I'll get. LOL
A different view of the half bath.
On to the next batch.

Hugs,
Melinda

Sewing room ??

So there is a room right off of the kitchen. It appears to be an enclosed porch. It's got the most windows of any room in the house, save the upstairs bedroom. It's light blue and "airy." I think it will work nicely for my sewing room.

This is the cabinet that's in there. Lots of space for stash storage, don't ya think? ;)
Isn't it purdy?
Lots and lots of windows. Good for sewing by.
This looks like a good area for a design wall. Maybe. I sort of like those coat hooks on the wall, and that's the back door to the right in this picture. I may leave it.

If I don't use this for a sewing room, then one day, I want to re-wire it and plumb it for a laundry room.

Hugs,
Melinda

Kitchen Pictures

This is the kitchen. Gas stove. Nice cabinets (but I will need some contact paper on the shelves). Nice counter space.
Lots of cabinets. Dishwasher. Fridge goes by the dishwasher.
Pantry. It's wider but more shallow than what we have currently. I'm sure it will be put to good use. Older doorknobs because the doors are original to the house.

I forgot a picture. This is from the dishwasher looking into the hall. The folding white door to the left in this picture is the basement steps. It makes me a bit nervous, but one of my first projects will be to put a hook up high that the girls can't reach to keep it sort of "locked."

Front Porch, Living room and dining room

So this is the front porch of our house. It's got these great shade trees, and some nice shrubbery. Cute curb appeal in my opinion.
This is the front porch. I'm sure the wrought iron railing is probably original, but it's still in great shape.
This is the living room. The door is immediately to my right.
This is the doorway between the living room and dining room. Notice the hardwood floors.
Another angle of the dining room.

House Pictures

So...... we're buying a house. Or, at least we're in the process of buying a house. Today was "Inspection Day." I managed to remember to take my camera along this time, and while I did get a lot of pictures, I'm sorry that most of them are blurry.

This is going to take multiple posts.

Hugs,
Melinda

Is it all a dream?

I just got off the phone with my realtor friend. Our loan was sent to underwriting (which apparently they don't do if there's any sort of problem). We are yet one more step on the road to being homeowners. It's moving so fast (and yet, ironically, so slow) that it feels like a dream. Is this REALLY happening?

Oh wait.... that's the lack of sleep talking. LOL

Hugs,
Melinda

Hula Huts are Finished!

Well, I just finished adding the binding to Hula Huts (designed by Lisa Boyer, one of the funniest people you will ever read). I did add my own additions. (Shh... don't tell, but they are hiding some of the "rough" spots.)


The flowers and tree tops are from a Hawaiian print fabric that was in my mom's stash. I think it adds a unique flavor to the whole top.And at this point, I would like to say a big thank you to whoever invented Invisible Thread. :D

That's all. I hope it does well at the Silent Auction, although I'm highly tempted to keep it for myself. LOL

Hugs,
Melinda