Thanks to London Media via Bill Lites’ email.
Filed under Funny Signs - Humor
I LOVE this! :0)
Thanks to my friend, Marsha Koenig, for her email.
Filed under When Wood Comes Alive
“Fragrant Beauty” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under Paul Militaru Photography
guff.com
I’m fighting with the same three pounds over and over again. I get them off, put them back on, then spend another week getting them off again. I lost pound 46 this morning, but I’m not at all sure it’ll stay off yet. I’m happy to be entering a new ‘decade’ on the scales, but I’ll be happier when I can take that a bit more for granted.
“Annoying Leslie” and I are walking every day again, though I haven’t made it through the two-mile walk yet. I’m at about the 1-1/2 mile level now. I’m just making sure I get in there and do what I can each day. The two-mile level will come eventually. Meanwhile, I’m moving muscles with her that I apparently don’t in everyday life, even though I’m moving a lot more.
No change on measurements today, still being at 22″ off. Progress will come here eventually, as well.
I’ve been feeling a LOT more energetic since our weather did an abrupt change. We went from over 100 degrees F. actual temperature with a heat index thrown in due to stifling humidity to a high in the 80’s and either rain or a lot less humidity. It was like going to a different planet! It gave me energy to spend three days pressure washing the back sidewalk and our deck, for example. The heat has returned, though, so I’m feeling limp as a noodle right now, even though I’m in the a/c. I think the heat is a psychological thing for me, as well as physical.
Between Walking with Leslie, vacuuming and cleaning for tonight’s dinner guests, I should be doing a reasonable amount of exercise.
I’m looking forward to the weeks when I can tell you I officially went down another size in jeans, and when I can tell you I’ve lost 50 lbs. – however long that takes…
Filed under getting the lard off
doingeverything.wordpress.com
I have my bulldozer out, clearing things out a bit for our cookout tonight.
We’re having two dear friends for charcoaled steaks, baked potatoes (for some), green bean casserole, and salad.
Since I’m such a terrible housekeeper, an evening like this starts with the bulldozer, moving things from where they ARE to where they SHOULD BE. Then I can do the regular dusting and vacuuming in the public rooms on the first floor (office, foyer, living room, dining area, kitchen, utility room, pantry, and two half baths. I’ll need to clean up the porch (which is now our cat Smoke’s area) because it’s on the way to the deck. I’ll clean off my table by my recliner so that whoever sits on the sofa by the table will have a place to put a drink down. I’ll get out a tray table for our other friend.
I’m delighted that our friends are coming tonight. One of them works full-time in Fort Smith and will be tired after working all day. We’ll have some wine and a nice dinner for her without her having to cook anything. Our other friend is retired, like us. She offered to bring a green bean casserole, so that will be a real treat for all of us. I’ll prep the steaks, baked potatoes, and salad. One friend is an artist who does pastel paintings. The other is a former race car driver (dirt track), and is looking for another race car to buy because she misses racing. Both women enjoy practicing shooting – though it will be too hot for that this evening. Our conversations are lively and eclectic.
I’ve got to get busy if I’m going to have things ready. I hope you have a fun day!
Filed under Friendship
Zen to Zany via Cathy Ruggiero
My husband and I are very, very lucky.
Several times a week one of us will look at the other, saying, “Our life is so good.” It doesn’t mean we don’t have our problems. It doesn’t mean that everything is perfect. It means we CHERISH the fact that our lives are as good as they are.
I’m always trying to win the Publisher’s Clearing House Sweepstakes or the MegaMillions Lottery, but I fully realize that I truly have everything I need – right now.
Our son is across the world from us, and I have no clue when we’ll see him next time or for how long, but we communicate via a chat program, being able to reach out across the miles (and oceans!) to find out how the other is, what’s going on, and share virtual hugs. We “talk” most every day, feeling closer than a lot of families feel when they’re in the same city. How very lucky we are!
My husband and I make each other laugh regularly, arguing over important stuff, such as what mailbox decoration we should try to cut out next on our CNC machine, or what colors to paint it, once it’s cut out… :0)
Our home is full of love. We share it with Bambi, our pit bull; Molly, our cocker spaniel/schnauzer cross; Abby, our tortoiseshell cat; Smoke, our relatively new kitten; and Freckles, our black goldfish. We’re finishing up our hot weather garden and getting ready to plant our fall garden on newly-constructed raised bed planters. Our lives are busy, full, and fun.
Someone said that being rich is not necessarily having a lot, but cherishing what you have. I couldn’t agree more.
Filed under Attitude
Thanks to the London Media and email from Bill Lites
Filed under Grin for the Day
This sun face is HUGE and HEAVY. I was afraid my husband would hurt himself trying to lift it onto the humongous hanger we put on the tree. We made some templates and cut out each ‘flame’ separately and then welded each to the round sun face. The eyebrows, nose, mustache, lips and beard + sunglasses are all separate pieces, as well. After all the pieces were welded, I began the painting. The final part was making and attaching the sunglasses. The tree is toward the top of our driveway. He greets all comers. :0)
This is my husband’s design for a butterfly. (No light, delicate, ‘sissy’ butterflies for HIM!) This is made totally from scrap metal pieces welded together, plus old satellite dish arms. The eyes were made by cutting a rubber ball that had ‘studs’ on it in half. I painted the ball halves black, then dabbed paint on all the studs in iridescent green, then sprinkled glitter into the wet paint.
This dragonfly clown hangs from the ceiling in the shop. He’s made from scrap metal, some round glass for his eyes, and welding rod for feelers.
We bought this wonderful turtle from a shop in Van Buren, Arkansas. He was totally concrete colored – much too tame for our tastes. I mixed up several shades of green and painted his shell, plus gave him an eye, a mouth, some toenails, and a bit of webbing on his legs.
Filed under Lewis Art, Lewis yard art
“Profile Star – Yellow Baby Duck” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under Paul Militaru Photography
My husband and I just took a break and walked out to the garden, where we harvested these, plus around the yard, where we found a rose in bloom. Mostly, things have shut down with the excessive heat, despite the irrigation system. I still have all kinds of leaves in the main square foot garden for things like melons. We have a few more cucumbers and some green tomatoes. The plants in the nook planter on the side of the house we think are finished. I’ll probably take them down this week. My husband wants to take out the asparagus I transplanted and use the planter for more tomatoes, since they seem to be happier on the east side of the house. We’re going to figure out something to make a wind break and we’ll cover the plants with netting.
We have a hydrangea that bit the dust this summer. It was in a blue half-barrel to the side of the walkway to the shop. I’m thinking about dumping that out, replacing the dirt in the planter with Mel’s Mix, and transplanting my asparagus there. The roots would have a lot of room in there…
I’m about to stretch string in the raised bed planters. I want to get carrot and radish seeds going, as well as get the planters ready for fall plants, whether they come as transplants from the seeds I’ve started in the house, or plants bought from local sources.
I’ll give the original square foot planters longer before I clean things up out there, in preparation for replacing the ground garden with the other three raised bed planters we have ready to install.
I may have little clue what I’m doing, but I’m having a GREAT time doing it!!!! :0)
Filed under Gardening, Square Foot Gardening - Raised Beds
“Colors: Red and Green” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under Paul Militaru Photography
Yesterday I worked from noon until about 6:30 in the evening finishing pressure washing the deck.
My husband took this picture of me while I was working on the outside of the deck. Here are some before and after pics –
This is our back sidewalk BEFORE pressure washing.
And AFTER!
One set of two stairs to the deck BEFORE –
And AFTER!
Part of the upper deck BEFORE –
And AFTER! (With Smoke supervising) You can see to the right of the pic that I haven’t started on the main part of the deck yet…
Part of the main deck BEFORE –
East side of deck AFTER!
West side of deck AFTER!
Part of outside of deck AFTER!
Part of me is embarrassed to have shown you what our deck looked like before I started pressure washing, but that’s what 25 or so years of NOT pressure washing does. The deck doesn’t look new, but it sure looks BETTER! :0)
Filed under Acting Like a Grownup, Housekeeping - Maintenance, I'm a slob
Lisa Bearnes Richey
I love this quote, and I simply melted into a puddle when I saw this sweet little girl in the bucket.
Filed under Attitude, Favorite Pictures, Favorite Quotes
-ipaintandcontract.com
I’ve been pressure washing the deck since noon. I came in now because it started to rain heavily. I’m hoping that it will stop soon so that I can finish the job. I’m working on the outside edges and uprights of the deck and then it will be finished.
I honestly can’t say enough about this ‘new tool’ for me. I’ve tried all kinds of deck cleaners, but it was a complete waste of time. I guess your deck should be clean BEFORE you use these – they didn’t phase our deck. I had given up on getting rid of the black stuff, green stuff, and identified ‘stuff’ that was all over our deck.
I love seeing the grain of the wood again! Our boards are warped. We have nails that have worked their way up. It doesn’t look like a new deck by any means, but it is cleaner than it has been for at least 25 years, and that means a lot to me.
I think I’ve shocked my husband. He really didn’t expect me to do anything with this. He asked me today, in one of the many times he came out to check on me, if I wanted a bigger, more powerful pressure washer, now that I seemed to be using it all the time. I told him ‘no.’ This is one I can handle. I don’t have to worry about it getting away from me. It’s not as heavy as some I’ve seen.
When the deck is back together again, I’ll post pictures of our CLEAN deck!
professional-powerwashing.com
If I were a younger person, I would still be outside with the power washer. As it is, I spent an hour and a half today cleaning stuff, then came inside and fell asleep in my recliner. As I type, my jeans have dried mud on the legs and I have a thin film of ‘stuff’ all over me.
I did the back concrete sidewalk today, and got a good start on our deck. Since they’re both 30 years old and have NEVER been power washed, I’m not sure you can imagine what I’m dealing with.
I’m going to try to finish the deck tomorrow, and then I’ll post before and after pictures.
I honestly can’t believe what a power washer can do. I may be becoming addicted….
Now, up for a shower, clean clothes, and I’ll start dinner.
Source Unknown
This picture came in an email a long time ago. I just couldn’t part with it and wanted to share it with you. Isn’t it spectacular?
Filed under Awe-Inspiring Photography
I got antsy about trying to get my fall garden going. One of my friends said she’d already planted her seeds for her fall garden, so my “antsies’ increased.
Today I’ve gotten out a seed starter and I’m in the process of soaking the little peat pot pellets in preparation for planting some seeds. Since our cats look at anything planted in a pot they can reach a ‘bed,’ I’m going to put the seed starter tray with its transparent plastic lid on the dining area table where a fourth person would sit, along with two glasses with celery bottoms in them.
I would like to have the following in my fall garden:
I’ll still be on the lookout for actual fall plants from my usual sources, but I thought I would give starting from seed another try….
My sweet sister-in-law aptly dubbed my the ‘serial seed killer’ after I’ve shown her time after time how inept I am at this. MAYBE THIS TIME
I’ll surprise everyone – including myself!
Filed under Gardening, Square Foot Gardening - Raised Beds
“The Barley Field” – Theresa Moynes Photographer
Filed under Awe-Inspiring Photography
creativeartworksblog 