What's on my nightstand?

I have never participated in "What's on Your Nightstand?" before, but I have listed the books I was reading on my blog before.  But, my dear friend, Jesse, took part and since I love her more than a fat kid loves chocolate cake (and I love books), I thought I'd tag along.  I'm also pretty excited that a new blog dedicated to books was opened up to me. Yay!

To participate in this party we're supposed to share about why we chose our books and when we sneak in reading.  I currently read in little snippets for the most part when I can snag a few moments during the day.  So, here's what I'm reading.

I got a new MacBook and need to learn the nuances between this and my old PC.  Nuff said.

Single income household.  Want to learn as much as I can about ways to get out of debt and save some major fundage.  I really liked this book.  It's a great base that made me realize I really need to dig deeper into the world of investing.  Nuff said.

I homeschool my 10 year old son and we are currently reading this classic together.  We're really enjoying it - only have a few chapters left to go.  We went to the library tonight and rented the DVD of it that stars Pierce Brosnan to watch as soon as we finish it because we're enjoying it so much.  I opted not to get the video version starring Jackie Chan.  Although I like him, the reviews I read said that it barely held to the book.  Nuff said.

I like Amish fiction.  I figured I'd also like Amish reality.  I do.  Nuff said.

My husband and I dream of owning acreage with chickens, cows and goats one day - off grid and all.  Since we don't live like that at this point, we put out a big garden and I make the most of this time as a learning experience for when we get to live the total dream.  Since we've moved to this house with a yard I've learned to can, make our soap and stuff like that.  These types of books really help.  This seems to be a really good primer in the basics.  Nuff said.

This book is similar to the last one, but tends to be more detailed with how to build different sorts of shelter, solar panels, ponds and things like that.  It would be good if you're going to do that stuff yourself instead of hire a professional.

Alright, so that's what's on my nightstand at the moment.

Happy Tuesday, y'all!
Pam

Fess Up Friday

Kendra at New Life On A Homestead has started a fun little carnival called Fess Up Friday that I decided to participate in.

I try really hard to keep a clean(ish) house while doing everything required of me during the day.  But, I have a room upstairs where very few enter (BWAHAHAHAHAA! - add eerie music) that is supposed to meet multiple functions for our family.  It's our school room/craft room.  At one point it was very organized and functional.  Now-a-days it usually looks something like this;

The computer/printer/copy machine table.  Notice the over-flowing trash can. 

Sewing and school work in one big mangled mess.

The vacuum, papers waiting to be filed and a tote filled with God-only-knows-what.

I cleaned it all up.  But it only looks slightly better than this right now.  I swear I think the junk in there is breeding like rabbits.  It couldn't be my fault, after all!

So, there you have it!  I fessed up.  Aren't I supposed to feel better now?  Hmmm...

An Excited Thank You

I wanted to send out a big, warm thank you to Rhoda at Southern Hospitality this morning. Yesterday she hosted the Crazy for Burlap Party that I participated in. I was amazed at all of the uses that creative people found to do with the stuff. If you missed it you can still get some ideas. Rhoda posted highlights from the party on her blog today. Guess who almost fell out of her chair with excitement when she saw the picture of her bathroom on there? :0)

So, thanks Rhoda, for a great party and for adding my shade to your highlights!

New Bathroom On The Cheap

Today I thought I'd share with you one of my most favorite rooms in my house, so far. But first, let me give you a little back history. When MW and I were looking for a house to buy upon returning to Indiana after nine years in Florida - well, let's just say it was not a quick nor easy process. I'll save the details for another day. Anyhoo, we learned our lesson financially (the hard way) early on in our marriage and decided that we didn't want to be strapped to a huge house payment this time around. We decided to buy a home where the payment left us plenty of breathing room each month and we could fix it up with cash as we went along. So, we settled on a cute little repo. It had great bones, but had suffered severe neglect. The carpet was trashed and the furnace quit working immediately, along with the whole onslaught of things that you deal with when you buy a repo. Thus began our journey of making this little house a home on a shoestring budget.


This is what our bathroom looked like when we bought it. Notice the nasty carpet, broken mirror on the medicine cabinet, mildew on the top of the wall, and that brick. A friend said that going into my bathroom felt like walking into an alley. The brick was broken and not applied in a decent manner. And it was beyond filthy. I spent 7 hours with a toothbrush just trying to get the crud off of it. My hand looked like a claw for days.

The first thing we did was strip off that awful wallpaper and border, Kilz everything and paint it out white. Even the brick got a fresh coat of white paint. It was all of the same paint that we used to paint the rest of the house upon moving in - so I don't really count that as an added cost.

The foul carpet was ripped up and replaced with vinyl peel and stick tiles from Lowes. The tile runs less than a dollar per square foot. I don't remember how much it cost us, but I don't think it was very much because our bathroom is so tiny. You can close the door from the toilet, which is at the opposite end of the room - if that helps you get an idea of what we're talking about here. :0)

My favorite part - and the reason I'm linking to the Frugal Decorating Ideas Party at The Shabby Nest today - is what I used to wallpaper the top of the wall above the bricks. Here's the equation I used to decide what to wallpaper with: music lover + wanting to have something unique + being cheap frugal = wallpaper from a hymnal. I had 3 old hymnals in my book stash, so I tore some of the pages out of one of them, bought a container of wallpaper paste for $5 (I still have a ton of it left) and went to town. When I was finished with it, I gave it a coat of the same polyurethane that we sealed our painted floors with to protect the paper from the bathroom humidity. It worked like a charm.


This picture was taken before it was sealed with polyurethane. You can see here where a little edge of paper is raised. Once it was sealed, it layed right down.



The final major thing that the bathroom needed was a shower curtain and shade for the window. I posted about making these out of burlap yesterday. I was able to buy enough fabric (6 1/2 yds.) to make both of these items for $15 using my 40% off coupon from JoAnn Fabric.


The last thing I need to do is paint out the rest of the wood surfaces white and it will be complete. Since I still have the paint for that, it won't cost me anything except labor.

All in all, for less than $100 I was able to transform this little bathroom from back alley to beautiful (with the help of MW laying the floors and ripping out detestable carpet). And most of the budget went into flooring. It's now one of my most favorite rooms ever.

Want to see it one last time?

This was before. This is now (almost complete).

I hope you enjoyed the tour of my little bathroom. Check out The Shabby Nest for more frugal decorating ideas.

Have a great weekend!

It's A Burlap Party!

Well, I finally got my projects done for the burlap party - about 15 minutes ago. Nothing like getting right down to wire before finishing it. But, it just wouldn't be like me if I did it any other way. I sorta got hung up on figuring out how to do one part of it. I'll explain later. Would you like to see what I made?

Drum roll, please.....

Ta Da!


I finally got around to making a shade for the window and a shower curtain for our teeny, tiny, itsy, bitsy bathroom. It's spent the past 15 months since we've lived here just as naked as a jaybird.


The shade even works. Impressive, huh? Yeah, I'm sure you're just 'oooh-ing and aaah-ing' right now wondering how someone could go through life with such undiscovered talent. This is where you can gag if you must.


For real, though. I really like it. The burlap was a breeze to work with except for the part where I had to try to figure out how to make button holes 'cause I'm too cheap to buy grommets. My sewing machine is supposed to make automatic button holes. It has a special presser foot and everything. I never could figure the darn thing out. The manual that came with my machine had instructions in 4 languages and I couldn't comprehend a single one of them. They should make sewing machine manuals in the "For Dummies" series. I ended up googling how to do it, and thank God, I came across a video clip. I was bright enough to make a practice strip to try them out with first. Even with that, it took me a really long time to make those boogers. I started to really get the hang of it when I had 2 or 3 button holes left to make.

Originally, I was going to make my shade and shower curtain out of ivory/black toile. I so love anything toile. It gives me warm fuzzies just thinking about it. But, since the weather is heating up I kind of feel like I don't want anything visually heavy in there. I love how the burlap still lets light filter in the window while providing much needed privacy. I might decide to make a toile set for winter some year. We'll have to see. But, for now, I'm digging the burlap. It let's my "hymnal" wallpaper be the star. (I'll post more on that later.) I still need to paint out the wood surfaces. Once they are white like the rest of the woodwork in there it will be perfect (for me).

So, did you join the party? Would you like to see what other creative ways people used burlap? Then follow me on over to Southern Hospitality and let's see if we just can't get some more organic inspiration for this awesome fabric!

Are You Ready To Par-tay?

Hey y'all! You up for a party? Rhoda over at Southern Hospitality is hosting a "Crazy for Burlap" party on Thursday, May 28. If you have burlap in any of your projects or if you are planning on using burlap for any upcoming projects - then snap to it! Get 'em done! Take some pictures! Join the party! Or...maybe your thinking, "Crazy people! What in the heck would you use burlap for besides potato sack races?" Well, let me just tell ya, you'd be surprised. Come on over and check it out.

I had actually just bought some burlap on Friday for a project that's been a long time comin'. I'm not telling what it's for, though. You'll have to come to the party if you want to find out!

Have a wonderful Sunday!

Toile Party

I have this thing for toile. I think it's timeless, romantic, flexable and it makes me feel oh, so good every time I look at it! Evidently, I'm not the only toile freak out there 'cuz there's a whole toile party goin' on over at Pretty Organized Palace. If you're so inclined, head on over there and check it out. Moving on...

When we bought this house a year ago I decided that I would start taking sewing lessons and make all the window treatments, pillows, yada, yada, yada. I settled on black and white toile fabric for the living room and kitchen since I love it so much. I also figured that years down the road if I get tired of the color scheme I've got going on I can paint the walls, change the pillows and accents I have and the curtains are still gonna match. And I'll still be in love with toile, so why change a good thing. (Iknow it doesn't actually look like I have a color scheme going on but you would see that there is garnet everywhere if you could see the whole space together. Which you can't, so you'll just have to trust me on this!)

These living room curtains are my first sewing attempt. Not bad for a novice. I love them.

Next, I moved on to my kitchen with Roman Shades. A bit more challenging than the panels in the living room. Not perfect. I don't care. I love them, too.

I have fabric left over that will be throw pillows for the sofa as soon as I get the courage to try messing with the gorgeous piping that is just waiting to finish off my loverly pillows. I also have plans to make a toile shower curtain and another shade of some sort to finish off the bathroom.

So, as you can see - I like toile. A lot. I wish I had more of my projects done to show you just how much. But if you like toile or are a closet toile-a-holic, take a peek at the party going on over at Pretty Organized Palace. I won't tell. I promise. You may just get some fabulous toile ideas. I think I'm gonna have to make myself one (or fifty) of the toile eggs that Nester showcased. Now, if you'll please excuse me, I have a party to attend.

Happy Tuesday! Pam

My Husband ROCKS! Fridays - Valentine's Day

For this week's installment of My Husband Rocks Fridays I am supposed to share about our first Valentine's Day together, what 'secrets' we do well, or what we are going to be doing for Valentine's Day this year.

Our first Valentine's Day together was a little nerve racking for me. We had just had our first date on New Year's Years Eve and he had not yet declared how absolutely, madly, crazy, totally, head-over-heels in love with me he was. I think that came about a week later! LOL! Anyhoo...MW was my first true boyfriend, so I was really 'green' and insecure about the whole What is appropriate at this point? and What do I get him? thing. So, I did what any mature and highly sophisticated woman in my position would do. I had a girl we worked with start snooping out what he was going to do for me! I didn't want to know what he was getting me, just an idea of how much he was spending on me so I would have a better idea of what to do for him. Bad idea. She was absolutely clueless about what anything costs. I hope she never aspired to be on The Price Is Right, 'cause she would have TOTALLY bombed! She told me he was probably spending about ten bucks on me. He ended up getting me roses and this adorable teddy bear. TEN BUCKS?! We worked at a super store, for heaven's sake! How did she ever come up with that figure? Since I had no idea what was appropriate to get a man for VD (That abbreviation doesn't quite look right, does it? Oh, well.) I ended up getting him a pair of leather gloves to go with his leather dress coat and bag of chocolates in the shape of big, juicy, hot lips! We also exchanged cards. I still remember so vividly what his said to me: "It's your heart I'm after..." Now, you didn't REALLY think I was going to give it all away, did you? That's personal! I did save the card, though. And the teddy bear, too. Actually, I still have filed away every card MW ever given me. I guess you could say I'm the sentimental type.

I'm going to skip the part where I mention what we do well. I think I've covered that plenty in the past couple of posts.

As far as what we're going to do this year for VD (that still makes me giggle!) - well, we're ditching Little Britches for a few hours of Mommy/Daddy time. It will be in the day time, so no romantic evening planned. I don't really care what we do, as long as we do it together. Of course, we'll grab a bite to eat somewhere. We have also talked about going to check out hot tubs. The one that came with the house when we bought it last year is yet to be up and running. So, we're either going to fix it or replace it. Maybe we can wear our swimsuits underneath our clothes and sneak in one and feed each other chocolate covered strawberries while the employees aren't looking. That could be exciting! Whatever we end up doing will be great because MW has this knack for making everything fun!

If you'd like to participate or just read about what other couples are doing tomorrow - click on the meme at the top of this post. That will take you to Katy Lin's site where you can read posts from other MHR Fridays participants at the left side of the screen.

Me and Mr. Wonderful - Installment #2

Yesterday I posted my first installment of the story of Me and Mr. Wonderful for the Valentine's Carnival happening over at We Are That Family. If you would like to participate or simply read a little bit about other's love stories, just click on the SWAK Valentine's Carnival button.

Now that you know how MW got his name, (if you don't - read yesterdays post) I thought I'd share a little bit more about what makes us tick as a couple. I previously mentioned that he is not perfect. Nor am I for that matter. But, and that's a BIG but, we're perfect for each other. I don't believe that there is such a thing as a perfect marriage. Since I am such a Sharpie, I developed this conclusion on the basis that I don't believe that there are perfect people. Having said that, though, I think marriage rocks! I'm sure that every marriage is different because every couple is different. So, keep in mind that the things I'm about to share are things that work for us.

Both of us came into this marriage with the full knowledge and recognition that this deal was 'till death do us part' - and neither of us was going to be doing time for homicide! Before we ever said our vows we declared that D-I-V-O-R-C-E would never, ever, ever be a part of our vocabulary. And it hasn't been. I think that one decision alone severely alters the way you deal with one another. It's like, "Hey we're stuck together so we better figure out a way to work this minor difference out." There really aren't many things that are as big of a problem as they may seem like in the heat of the moment.

We also remind ourselves whenever necessary that WE ARE ON THE SAME TEAM. There is nothing worth breaking up the team. Even (sometimes especially) the "little wonderfuls" in our lives. When you take 2 very different people and throw them together and say something like, "Now have a ball!" - there is bound to be some adjustments that need to be made. Learning to live with, consider and respect someone other than yourself doesn't automatically happen. That's where the whole team concept works for us. We realized that my areas of weakness were his areas of strength and vice versa. On a team, you don't want every member to have the same areas of expertise. It benefits everyone involved if each persons strengths are allowed to shine. So, we look at our differences as complimentary instead of competitive.

Also, every person has buttons that can be pushed. Oh, you know what yours are. And you know what your spouses are, too! We decided pretty quickly that it wasn't a good idea to push each others buttons. Although, sometimes it was very tempting in the beginning! You know, sometimes when you're ticked off and worked up you want him to be, too. Be honest, now!

We also worked at communicating with each other. I would think I was being really plain about what I was trying to convey, when in all actuality, I was still pretty much beating around the bush. I've had to learn to be much more direct than I even thought I should be. Most of the time my little signals just weren't getting through. I also remember another instance early on in our marriage. I would come home from work after a frustrating day and I would tell MW the maddening things that happened. He would then proceed to tell me what I should do or should have done about it. He was always trying to "fix it". That made me even more frustrated. One day I finally told him, "I don't NEED you to FIX my problem! I just NEED you to let me vent!" He tells me that's one of the best things I've ever told him. He's a man. Men are "fixers". We want "listeners". And then - if we want them to "fix" it, we'll let them know!

Every marriage goes through storms, or fires as others might say. We've had more than our fair share. But it's what we DO during those times that determines the outcome and joy we experience in our marriage. Do we let those times drive a wedge between us? Or do we let them forge us together into something so strong it cannot be broken?

To break it down - these are the few key principles that we have learned to adhere to. a) D-I-V-O-R-C-E is not an option, b) remembering and reminding each other when necessary that we are on the same team, c) don't push each other's buttons, d) learning to communicate with each other, e) And this one is really the most important one, keeping Christ at the center of our relationship. He is the one who has taught us how to navigate through this wonderful adventure I like to call "marriage" after all. It was all his big idea to begin with!

It's funny now because there is no effort involved in keeping our marriage healthy. It runs like a well oiled machine. We have actually gotten to the place where we DO read each other. We don't have to say a word. A look or a gesture will often say it all. We love each other. He thinks about my needs and desires. I think about his. It works beautifully that way because we both end up extremely fulfilled. And it's not a burden, either. It's a joy. It pleases me to please MW. It pleases MW to please me. We each get so much by giving. Even our struggles don't seem like struggles any more. We have weathered a lot of storms together through the past decade and a half and have become expert navigators. We both know that no matter what punches life throws our way, we've got somebody in our corner. That, my friend, is a beautiful gift.

The Slightly Abbreviated Story of Me and Mr. Wonderful!

I have a confession to make. My husband is THE BEST! Oh, you may think that you have the best husband in the world - but I know that I am married to Mr. Wonderful (who will now be lovingly referred to as MW from this point on)! In April we will have been married 14 years. I feel very proud to say that. Most marriages don't make it that long anymore. It's not work for us, though. It's relationship. We are very best friends and so much more. Now, don't get me wrong - he's not perfect. Neither am I. But...he's perfect for me. And after all of these years together we're more in love now than the day that we married.

Ours was a whirlwind romance that stirred the big turd up in the punch bowl, to put it mildly. We met one glorious October night at Meijer where we both worked. I worked in stationary. He worked in grocery. I was doing my shopping one night when it happened. Our eyes locked. He smiled up at me with those gorgeous green eyes and full, juicy lips. I swear I saw that certain glint that sparkles off of brilliantly white teeth, like in the movies. And I thought, "Ay chihuahua! Where have you been all my life?" or something really sophisticated like that. Actually, I remember making a mental note that I was DEFINITELY going to have to make it a point to meet this oh, so sexy, not your ordinary skanky grocery guy as he followed me to the next aisle. We formally met the next day and thereafter took every single break together for the next 3 months until he asked me out.

Our first date was on New Year's Eve. I still remember it so plainly. We were both in school at the time. He took me to The Olive Garden for dinner and then to a movie. We saw Dumb and Dumber. I thought that was a bold move since he really didn't know my sense of humor, yet. We laughed until both my stomach and my jaws ached. It's still one of his favorite movies. After watching it 248 times now - it doesn't quite affect me quite so much as it did that first 100 times. Anyhoo...after the movie the date didn't truly end. We spent the rest of the night together...at work. GET YOUR MIND OUT OF THE GUTTER! We worked third shift. At the stroke of midnight on January 1, 1995 we managed sneak away from our respective departments long enough to say Happy New Year. He brought me a single red rose that night, and every night thereafter for quite some time.

After that we were inseparable. Our first kiss was on our third date. When I went home it took three hours for the butterflies in my stomach to fall asleep. I'm not joking. Talk about feeling like a giddy school girl!

Three months later we eloped. That's when the punch bowl was stirred. That didn't exactly make my parents very happy (I can't say that I blame them.) or a whole slew of other people for that matter. But...you can't change the past and I would still marry him all over again. I was absolutely, madly, crazy in love with MW. And I still am.

He is smart, sensitive, funny, romantic...The list could go on and on. He still brings me flowers for no reason at all. I often find little love notes tucked into my wallet. He calls me every day from work just to tell me he loves me. He ALWAYS opens my doors and has taught our son to do the same. He helps around the house.

Saturday morning when it was just the two of us in the early morning hours before the little guy woke up I told him I had a certain love song on my mind. He told me to put it in the CD player. Then he asked me to dance. And dance we did - breast to breast, just taking in each others scent in the living room at dawn, oblivious to the world around us. Aaah.

Fast forward to Saturday afternoon. I mentioned to MW that I felt like I was starting to look old. You know, getting those little lines around the eyes that never used to be there? I said, "Can you tell?" And the rest of the conversation went something like this:
MW. "Honestly?"
Me. "Yes."
MW. "Honestly. You don't look any different to me today than the day that I married you."
Me. "Aw. You're so sweet."
MW. "I'm being serious. To me, I see you just like you were when I married you. I love you."
Me. "I love you, too. I'm so glad you're my husband. There's nobody I'd rather grow old with."
MW. "Good. 'Cause you're stuck with me!"
And I could see the sincerity of his words in his eyes.

And finally, jump to last night. First, you must know that I have been EXTREMELY hormonal for the past few days. It hasn't been this bad since I was pregnant almost nine years ago. And, no, I'm not pregnant, if you're wondering - just seriously PMSing. I cried all day yesterday. After dinner I was literally sobbing. MW wants to know what's wrong, if he did something. "No. (sniff) You didn't do (sniff) anything. It's just my (sniff, sniff) hormones. There's nothing wrong (sniff, sniff, sniff) but I can't quit crying. (WAAAAAA!) I think I'm going to hang out in the bedroom for a while." He said, "Come on, I'll go with you." Then he took me to the bedroom and had me lay with my head on his chest while we watched a comedy and I had my cry out. Now, I told you he was wonderful, didn't I? He did, however, comment that if I have to end up going back on the pill to even out my hormones after he had a vasectomy - that was really gonna suck! LOL!

So, this Valentine's Day me and MW will have our date. I sooo look forward to our dates. Sometimes it's necessary to take off the Momma and the Poppa hats and just be a 'couple' again for a a few hours. But, this won't be the day that I'll be looking for flowers or jewelry. We choose to not to buy flowers when the prices are super inflated. If that happens to be your cup of tea, then, "Cheers!" But it will be a day that we remember just how blessed we are to be in each other's lives. And it will be a day that's special. Because, when you're married to MW, every day is special!

To all you other lovely ladies and your Mr. Wonderfuls out there in bloggy land - may every day be Valentine's Day!