Home Make-overs

For the first time since we've moved into our little farmhouse, I feel like I've got each room almost the way I want it. Of course, I am a woman and I do like to change my mind (and rearrange things), so this may just be a temporary thing.

Over the past few weeks I've made-over Ted's bedroom, consolidated several school bookshelves into one, rearranged my dining room (twice) and cleaned up my desk/office area. Here are some pictures of what I've been working on:

One wall of my dining room. There is a china hutch just to the left of this.

This is the opposite wall.
I've since moved the table back longways against the wall and removed the
round table from the corner. My dream is to buy an old farm table (with a bench) and have it
going longways against this wall.

This is one side of Ted's room - the technical side.
It looks busy (and it is). His guitars hang on the wall opposite the bed (at the foot of the bed).

This is the domesticated side of his room.
I thought he would hate the curtain set-up, but he liked it, so I left it.

It's amazing how much better I function in rooms that are pleasing to look at!

Have a great day!

Debbie

My Teenager - Ted

This was the day he was leaving for his rock climbing trip.

I think this might actually be the day when I get some time to write. It seems like lately my days have been so busy, which I don't like. I like a little action mixed in with some down time, but lately, it's been all action.

A few weeks ago I said I was going to write about my son (teen) Ted, so I guess I'll start with all that has been going on in his life lately.

Ted will turn 17 in two weeks. First of all, that seems impossible - the thought of me having a 17 year old. Age 16 still has the sound of "kid" to me; age 17 rings of being a young man. And, I must say, this is a fine young man.

Ted has always been "older" than his actual age. He talked in complete sentences when he was a year old, and everyone in the store would ask me "Are you sure he's only a year old?" Sometimes even Ted will ask me "Mom, are you sure I'm not older than you say I am?" My memory is going, but it's not gone yet! (Whoever said you forget all the birth stuff was NOT telling the truth! 17 year ago seems like yesterday and I still remember ALL the details!)

Ted has always been very creative. When he was young, I would get so upset because he would mix all my shampoos and conditioners, like a little scientist, when he was in the bath. It seemed so wasteful! All these years later, he still likes to mix things and experiment. That's how God made him and, I'll tell you, there's something to be said for being creative. That's why Ted picked up the guitar when he was 12 and hasn't stopped playing yet. You can find him in his room, late at night, creating a song on his recording equipment. He'll create music for hours.

He has spent many days creating something out of nothing in my father-in-law's garage. He's taught himself graphic arts on the computer and is actually a decent artist (when he takes the time to do it). All in all, he's just a creative person.

But, creativity is not his only asset. Ted is incredibly responsible for someone his age. He has his typical moments around here; not wanting to do certain jobs that we need him to do. What teen doesn't? (Or 11 year old, for that matter) But, his commitment level, when it comes to ministry responsibilities is impeccable!

For almost 3 years now, he has served on the Sunday morning worship team (band) at one of our church venues. That has consisted of getting up at 6-6:30 am every Sunday for 3 years! And he has never once complained about getting up and going. For a young man, whose friends are all still asleep at that time (especially after a Saturday night), he has really impressed me.

Along with that job, he has always played in at least one other praise band, and this year, it has been two - one on Wednesday nights and one on Thursdays - at a local church. Music is his passion and God-given talent, and he is certainly using it for the Lord. I pray the Lord will continue to use Ted in the music industry and in ministry. I'm looking forward to seeing where God will take him.

Other than music, Ted has experienced having a job this year. That has been an eye-opening experience, to say the least. Back in the Fall, he was a photographer for a local TV station; "shooting" football games on Friday nights (this is Texas, remember). When that job ended (season was over), he landed a job at the local FOX affiliate, in the production department.

We were so excited for him to gain the experience and knowledge of TV production. He learned to run the teleprompter, the studio camera (the one that the anchor talks into during the news), and the controls in the control room. He learned to give the anchor and weather man cues, and how the whole news show actually works. It was a good amount of knowledge and we were excited for him. Until.......

A few months into the job, I noticed his enthusiasm started to go down. He wasn't as upbeat when he would come home at night and didn't seem excited about going anymore. That's when he confessed to us that the environment in the production department was horrible. There were several men that work in that department, in their 30's (roughly), that made it their goal to say every cuss word known to man - all in front of the 16 year old, with no regard to his age. They would come in to work and talk about their nights of drinking and (I'm afraid to know) who knows what else. I have a feeling there was a lot that Ted didn't tell me. However, it was really bringing Ted down, having to listen to these men act like complete idiots every night.

We encouraged him to report it to his boss, but he felt there would be trouble if he did that, so eventually we encouraged him to quit. I can almost hear or feel the moms reading this, screaming at me "Why didn't you do something?!" Believe me - these men are lucky I don't know what they look like. But - when you're trying to allow your son to do a little growing up, you want to give him some room to make decisions. And, he did. He put in a two week notice, endured more personal remarks from the losers, and stayed until the last hour that he was expected to work. And I must say - This Mom Is Extremely Proud Of This Young Man!
(And I'm proud of the restraint that I showed during all of this!)

So....now Ted is jobless and enjoying being a regular teen again. We have graduation to think about and college (the next post coming up), and summer music opportunities coming up.


Overall, Ted is a young man, doing his best to live for The Lord in a corrupt world. That's a challenge in this day and time. But he's doing it with a lot of prayer (his and ours) and his eyes on the goal.

In the mean time, I'm glad he's still here, and has no desire to "fly the coop". This mom is not quite ready to push him out of the nest - yet.

I love you, Ted. Thanks for being a great kid!

Love, Mom

A Quick Word

Here is a list of all the things I so desperately want to write about, but can't seem to find the time. So as a reminder to myself and a commitment to my friends, soon I will be back to tell you about:

My Teen
Taking my teen to register for college:(
Teen room makeover
Dining Room makeover
Apple Cider Vinegar
Little Boy No More
The South Texas State Fair

Ok, now it's in print and you know I'm still alive, so I feel a little better!

Back soon - I promise!

Debbie

Our Government

I can honestly say that I'm disgusted with our U.S. government. We are no longer a free country; we are on our way to being a socialist society. We just took the first step.

My prayer is that God will put Obama in his place; humble the arrogant man, and show him who is REALLY in control - which would be GOD!

I can't help but feel that this country is getting what it deserves, considering we've spit in the face of God for quite sometime now.

You can't live like there is no God and then expect Him to bless you or the nation you live in.

I think anyone who voted for this joke of a man should be the first ones to hand over their tax money and distribute it evenly amongst those of us who are being forced and robbed. Thanks for nothing!

Just an opinion.
As of now I still have the right to voice it.

A Few Questions

Here are a few questions I'm throwing out just for fun today:


#1 Have you ever seen the shocked look on the face of your child as they tell you there is no more hand soap in the bathroom and you suggest they use the bar soap until you can get some more hand soap? What? Wash our hands with a bar of soap rather than a pump of liquid? Oh my!


#2 What do you use to sweeten your coffee that won't give you a sugar high (plain sugar) or make your coffee taste like a chemical plant (splenda/sweet-n-low)?


If I come up with any other earth shattering problems, I'll be sure to post them.

Thanks!

Cabin Fever

Ok, I didn't lie when I said my next post was going to be about my teenager, I just haven't had the right mindset to sit down and write it the way I've wanted to, so I haven't.

Collin is just now feeling better. I really hate writing about sick kids (we all have enough of that, don't we, without reading about someone else's sick kid?), however, a sick child seems to consume you and the whole household. That has definitely been the case here.

I missed a wedding on Saturday, due to Collin being sick. We had a good day though. David had to drive his parents to the wedding, which was 3 hours away! Ted was with Maddey during the day and then worked that night, so Collin and I had to occupy ourselves with taped episodes of the Supernanny. When you've been in the house ALL week, whether you're the nurse or the patient, you get a little stir crazy!

After that "quick" trip to the wedding and due to Collin still coughing like crazy, we stayed home from church Sunday. I have to say - it was really nice.

The morning was beautiful, so David and I had our coffee out on the porch and had a peaceful morning, just talking. There is something so nice about being home on a Sunday morning. I could really get used to that feeling. It sure beats running around, getting ready, getting to church, then running around the rest of the day, trying to keep up with all the "day of rest" activities. Do I sound bitter? Well, maybe just a little. I do get frustrated that our lives seem to be dictated by outside activities and things we "must do".

This week is hopefully full of better things: we have a fence going up around our property. That means we will be able to move our horses over pretty soon. I'm so excited to think that one day we'll drive down the driveway and see the horses looking over the fence!


On the school front this week:
I've ordered Ted's diploma. That was exciting! If anyone is looking to do the same, I ordered his from HomeschoolDiploma.com. It will have a seal on it and on the cover that says "To God Be the Glory!" And to that I say "Amen"! I couldn't have done it without God's guidance and the privilege He has given us, to be able to have Ted at home all these years. Now, if the college entrance stuff doesn't kill me, we'll be good!

I've also ordered Collin's curriculum for next year. Might seem strange to think of that already, but this is always the time of year that I order new stuff for the Fall. I like to beat the mad ordering rush in the summer and I also like to take the summer to do my planning and organizing. By ordering it early, it gets here sooner and I have plenty of time to look it over. Sometimes we even start on something new and do a little in the summer when we're bored.

I'm not a huge advocate of year-round school, at least not full time schooling. I really feel like the kids need time just to be kids and I need time, just to be "mom". But a little here and there keeps all the knowledge from slipping out of their brains while they are sitting around doing nothing for 2 1/2 months!

Well, on the agenda for today:
I think Collin and I will finally get out of the house. There is a movie store going out of business and we hear they are selling all videos and games. Guess who's begging to go look at the games? I didn't have to be pushed too hard. Remember? I've had cabin fever for a week!

The plan, though, is to get him a few games and then drag him into some antique stores, since that's what I have a "hankering" for today. Fair is fair - right? Oh, the whining! Can I handle it?

I let you know later.

In the meantime....have a beautiful day!

Debbie

Glad it's Friday

What a beautiful day it's been! The weather is a perfect as you can get - cool and sunny! Thank you, Lord! (and I really mean that!)

It's been a wild and crazy week. I'm pretty sure I said that in a previous post, but it's worth repeating!

This is the first time I've sat down today and I really don't want to get up.

I've been up several nights in a row due to Collin's cough. When you've exhausted all the options (meds, vicks, sip of water, etc.) all you can do is hope they fall asleep and you do too. Well, tonight it's nighttime cough medicine that I hope will do the trick.

Ted made it home yesterday around 3:30pm. Of course he was exhausted. He had a good time, but I think he's growing up and getting kind of annoyed at some of the drama that exists among kids in the youth group. I think that's a good sign!

I went to my favorite grocery store today - HEB. (HEB is only in Texas and Mexico) Throughout the store they have coupons hanging on different items. These are store coupons and they usually include something FREE! For instance, some of the items I got free today were:

Buy Pre-made hamburger patties plus American cheese slices and get Ketchup, buns, chips, mayo, soda, and bacon slices FREE. This is called their Meal Deal.

Also, buy GoldFish crackers and get Juicy Juice juice boxes FREE.

Also, buy Shredded Chicken (cooked) and get grated cheddar cheese FREE.

Also, buy Pasta sauce (Alfredo, Tomato, etc. these are specialty sauces from their cooking dept.) get the pasta FREE.

I can't remember all the other deals I got, but I saved about $35 by using their store coupons.

I have a well stocked fridge and pantry now. That always feels good!

An added bonus at HEB is that for every $75 in groceries you buy, you get a coupon for $3.00 of gas at their gas pump. I usually give those to Ted for his teen-mobile.

Speaking of Ted - tomorrow I will be writing a special post on this teen living in my home. It dawned on me one day, that I don't write about him very often. I sometimes feel that his life needs to be somewhat private and respected. But I want to share some things about him with my blogging friends, so I'll try to do that in the quiet hours of the morning, before a certain 11 year old turns on cartoons!

I wish you all a relaxing Friday evening. I'm off to load the breathing machine for Collin:)

Debbie

Spring Break

This week has been "Spring Break". Hmmm. First of all, they schedule it so early now that it should be called "Mid Winter Break." Everyone knows that March is not a month of sunshine, which I would associate with Spring. The least they could do is move it to the end of March, beginning of April, when the sun has a good chance of showing up. But regardless - this week is Spring Break. And, even though we homeschool, we follow the church schedule, because they are the ones taking the kids on the trip.

Ted left on his rock climbing trip Sunday afternoon so my plan for this week revolved around his room makeover. Monday was Collin's birthday, so I knew that I would have to divide my time between activities with him and the project I had planned. As it turns out, Collin was sick on Monday (still is) and really just wanted to lay around all day, so I had plenty of time to get started.

I was actually dreading this project as much as I was looking forward to it, just because I had to purge the room before I could get to the fun stuff - the decorating.
On one side of the room is a little office setup where he has an L-shaped desk with multiple computers set up and his recording gear (keyboard, headphones, etc.). In the adjoining corner and wall are all his guitars (hanging) and amps and pedal boards on the floor. Soooooo.....what that means is that I only had one side of the room to really work with because I wouldn't dare move any of the music equipment.
That gave me from the middle of the room, to the left, to build a "bedroom" looking setup. You see, the problem with this room is that we had the bed pushed up against a wall, longways, so the room looked like it was all bed then the office space. Terrible set up. I'm not sure why we left it like this for so long. Anyway.....

Once I started working, it went surprisingly fast. After cleaning off the remaining book shelf and throwing out old clothes and whatever else looked useless, I was able to move the bed to the middle of the room. And what a difference it made! To the left of the bed I put a chest of drawers and his end tables and voila! A bedroom!

Tuesday I went to look for new bedding and lucked out at Wal-mart when I found a comforter set that even included a set of sheets - all for $39.99! Oh yeah, I forgot to add that I went with black and red because of the chest we used in there. It's red, so that dictated what colors I needed to use. His furniture is black, so the red worked out. The comforter is black, white, and red, with a modern pattern. I came home, put it on and it worked wonders for the room. Today I'll be putting up the curtains and the room will be complete.

I've always wanted to pull off one of these surprise makeovers while someone was gone. Now I've done it! I can't wait to see his face when he comes home tonight!

On the homefront - Collin is still sick. Apparently allergies have been a real problem for him this winter. This is the third time he's had this same illness, but this time he actually ran fever. I took him to the doctor Tuesday and he had a slight infection in his throat from all the drainage. He still doesn't feel great.

I just want to get out of the winter months and move on to outdoor time. Everyone agrees that this has been a long, cold, wet winter. How 'bout that global warming?!

Well, I have several more things to write about, but I'll do that in a separate post. I'll also be posting a book review for Booksneeze today, so be sure to look through the last few posts to catch up on what I've been doing.

Until then......

Book Review: Beautiful Things Happen When A Woman Trusts God

"Beautiful Things Happen When A Woman Trusts God" by Sheila Walsh, is by far, one of the greatest books I've ever read.

In this book, Sheila shares her testimony of struggling with depression. Although I'll save the details of that journey for you to read for yourself, it's her revelation that through each of life's hard times, we must trust God with the hidden details, that captures you and makes you want to continue reading.

She weaves her own stories in with stories of different people in the Bible, and the trials they faced along the way. Some of the characters she mentions are familiar to us, such as Joseph and Paul. Others we may have heard of, yet are less familiar, as in the stories of Gideon and Tabitha. Either way, she has a unique perception of each story and the trust it took for each character to overcome their trials and be used by God.

This book will not only open your eyes to people in the Bible who struggled with trusting God, but will touch you with the author's real life struggle to trust Him, as she walked in darkness.

As she reveals how each piece of her journey was a time to grow closer to the Lord, I felt hope that I would be able to trust Him, too, as life hit the tough times.

This book was very inspirational and one that I will keep around for those times in the future when I need a reminder that beautiful things can happen when a woman trusts God.

Potato Heads and Birthday Fun

Today was the big birthday party for Collin.
The weather was beautiful - about 65 degrees with blue skies and sunshine. Perfect weather for a birthday party.

Birthday Spud

By noon we had 5 boys in our house, excited to be together and ready for some fun.

After pizza and drinks we loaded them up and headed to the Sports Connection. The drive was festive, to say the least. For the 20 minute drive we listened to the boys chattering away about "random" things, as they say. It was a joy to me to just listen to how happy they were and their 11 year old logic. They can be silly one minute, then talking about politics the next. Quite entertaining!

When we pulled into Sports Connection, they couldn't get out fast enough and they were heading for the go carts! Of course - first things first - we must give the ticket lady our life savings BEFORE we can ride anything!

After buying more tickets than seemed logical, we headed to the track for some driving. BUT - on the way to the track they were distracted by the pool of water and the bumper boats, so that's where we started. Within our first 5 minutes at the park, they were soaking wet, but having such a great time.


For the next hour they rode the go carts twice, the bumper boats twice, and some did the batting cage. The highlight of their day was when David got in the bumper boat and they all ganged up on him. Each boat has a water gun that squirts pretty far and they all 5 surrounded him and soaked him from head to toe!

It was great!

After we ran out of tickets we came back to the house for ice cream cake, presents, and the Potato Head Scramble. We gave them each a naked potato head and about 5 chances to grab articles out of the basket (eyes closed). They had to take the items they selected and make a creative potato out of it.

Here are the results:

David chose the overall "most creative" and the winner was:
Lucas with his arm and handbag.
This was alot of silly fun!

After the contest was over, they actually had enough energy to play outside for about 2 more hours!

I know some boys (and our dogs) will all sleep very well tonight.


Thank you, Lord, for friends.
We've had a great day!

People and This and That

Today we had our monthly support group/co-op day. I took my tubs of books and sold a few things and gave away a few things. I'm a horrible sales person! I sell things for next to nothing - $1 or $2 - anything to get rid of it, plus I can't look someone in the face and say "I really think that's worth $5". I would rather jip myself than feel as if I put someone else in a hard place. So....I made a few dollars and came home with books that I will now have to cart to the homeschool store in another month or so.

What's really on my mind today though, is people. PEOPLE! AHHHH!

Sometimes I find it so hard to communicate with people. Some people just make me uncomfortable and I feel certain it shows all over my face! So please indulge me for a moment (or two) while I describe some of my uncomfortable moments over the past week.

Sunday I went to a bridal shower. This was a young bride, whom we've known all her life - literally since the day she was born - so I felt I needed to make an appearance. Wrong! I should have stayed home. This shower took place at our old church, which we left about 8 years ago - for good reason. The people there wear their self-righteousness like a badge which they are very proud of !

So I walk in and within 3 minutes of me talking to an old "friend", I am reprimanded for not speaking to someone that walked up while we were talking. The fact is that I did speak to the lady, but my "friend" didn't hear me. So she proceeds to say outloud "Don't you speak when spoken to?" right in front of the other person. I was humiliated because her tone was very rude. Needless to say, I was ready to walk out but I didn't. I was so glad to get out of there though and I don't plan on going back for anything else. That was the kind of attitude we put up with for 15 years while we were there. FUN!

Then, once a month I am forced to communicate with someone who tries to manipulate my time at our co-op meeting. This woman wants to corner me and have some deep conversation, not minding that something important might be going on. For the last two meetings, she has tried to talk to me during the pledge and prayer time. I find myself avoiding her and yet coming face-to-face with her. Each month I pray that I will show her grace, but it's so hard. There is too much history with this person to go into, but she is controlling and manipulative and I'm uncomfortable around her. She is the kind of person that you would tell your kid not to indulge as a friend, if you know what I mean. In other words - if my child were to describe the antics of this person, as a friend of theirs, I would be giving them the advice of just being nice but not hanging around them and surely not allowing them to control every situation. Well, I'm the kid this time! It's really hard to be nice and yet, keep your distance at the same time. Gotta work on this one.

How's that for bellyaching?

Tomorrow we are having a "party" for Collin's 11th birthday. He is inviting 4 boys over for pizza, then off to the go cart place for fun, then back to the house for cake. I let him pick out a cake today and he chose an ice cream cake. Yay! I love ice cream cakes!

Something cute that came to me this week is the idea of playing a game with the boys called "Potato Head Scramble". I have a huge wicker basket of Potato Heads and clothes and parts, of all different kinds of Potato Heads. To name a few: Rock Star Spud, Birthday Spud, Pirate Spud, Santa Spud, Darth Vadar Spud, Cowboy Spud, and more that I can't think of. I am going to give them each a "naked" spud and then one at a time, let them pick (eyes closed of course) parts to go with their spud. They can only use what they pull out of the basket. Then we'll take a vote on the craziest spud and the prize will be - of course - a mini Potato Head!

As much as I hate to get up from this computer, I must go start on dinner. Tonight we're having Roast, potatoes, carrots, and I don't know what else (I guess that's enough actually). I usually cook my roast in the crock pot, which falls apart, it's so tender. But, David has been asking me to do one in the oven with the bag, so I'm doing that tonight. I don't have faith in it coming out as tender, but only one way to find out.

Hope all is well with you!

Debbie

Books and more books

Not much to write about lately. I'm still cleaning out Ted's room and purging my school bookshelves. I can only get into Ted's room when he leaves for work, so that puts me in there after 3pm, which doesn't leave me much time before I need to start working on dinner. I need to move fast in that room though, because when he leaves on Sunday for his rock climbing trip, I'm going to do some rearranging. He'll be gone for 4 days, but with some other obligations I have next week - it will be a stretch to get it done by Thursday!

On the bookshelf purging front -
I am getting rid of many books that we've never used in our schooling. Some of these books I've had for 10 years and never used them, unless the kids read them on their own. I've kept many books on the shelves for "reference" yet, I forget they are there!
So.....I'm using the rule that you use with clothes - if you haven't used it in at least a year - get rid of it!

Normally, this would never apply with books. I keep all of my own books, just in case I ever want to read it again. But, with homeschooling, I'm getting to the point where I'm ready to streamline my choices. I find that too many choices just clouds my mind. Over the years I've gathered books that, in my perfect homeschooling senario, we would read together, notebook about, and spend weeks on the same subject, soaking up every aspect of that particular topic. In reality, we would read about something then my kids would want to get the academics over with so they could get on with real life! I'm sure girls are more into the notebooking, but for the boys in my house - it just wasn't happening! So.....we are no longer holding on to books that we don't use.

I'm a little worried though; I don't like to see empty spaces on the bookshelf! Considering I've just ordered 2-3 more books this week, I guess that won't be a problem for long!


On the Bible Study front -
I'm still reading Sheila Walsh's book "Beautiful Things Happen When a Woman Trusts God" and I couldn't be more blessed by a book! I have to finish and write my review for Booksneeze, and then I can elaborate on it.

Exercise front -
Hasn't happened in about a week!

Cooking front -
Haven't actually followed my cooking plan as far as what meal on what day. However, I have cooked the meals, just on different days due to circumstances.
Today I'm cooking Beans and Sausage in the crockpot and really looking forward to it!


Well, I'm off for the day. It's actually beautiful here - cold and sunny.

I wish you all a beautiful day, as well.

Debbie

Household Projects

There is something in life that always amazes me - taking on a project at the oddest of times.

Saturday when I had big plans to organize and clean several book shelves, I never got a round to it. Yet, Sunday, after being at church from 8:30-11:30, eating lunch, going to a wedding shower, going to Wal-Mart for containers, and cooking supper, I somehow managed to tackle one of my projects on the to-do list.

This was such a spur-of-the-moment thing because I was actually really tired from my "Day of Rest" (haha). However, as I was home alone and knew there would be nothing on the 200 channels worth watching, I started pulling cookbooks off the shelf in the kitchen.

Sometimes when you leave stuff in the same place for a lengthy amount of time, you kind of forget that it looks junky or just doesn't really add to the decor. This was the state my kitchen has been in for a while. I had cooking magazines on the counter by the stove, then a pile of cookbooks up on the self next to the stove. One of the problems is that I have no cabinet doors which adds to the busyness of the room.

So.....last night I started weeding out cookbooks that I don't use, found a place for the ones I want to keep, cleaned off the counter (decluttered), and then created a cute little vignette in the open cabinet above the stove with some tinware, an old cookbook, some rolling pins and chicken decor. It turned out really cute! I was also able to take my collection of creamers and spoons and line them up on the stove ledge. Overall, a very productive hour!

For the rest of this week I will be tackling the rest of the bookshelves around the house, starting with Ted's. Little by little, (when he is at work:) I will be purging his shelves, getting ready for his room makeover, which will take place next week while he is gone ( I love surprising him).

On a whole different note - you know that phone call that has been on my to-do list for weeks? I finally made it today and guess what? VOICEMAIL! Uggggg! Does it still count if they don't answer?

Until next time......

Debbie