Learning to Go With the Flow

If I remember correctly, I used to like a plan and then to stick to said plan. I am still like that a bit but, since I am no longer in control of everyone in my life - and truth be told I never really was but it is easier to think that I was when my children were young and still living under my roof - I have to go with the flow. They may not always be available when I would like them to be and, I may have other plans but if I am needed, those plans will change quickly.

And so it looks like I am needed this weekend. Daughter #3, her hubby and grandson #1 are off to Orlando where my grandson will accept an award from the VFW for a speech he has written. It will be a long event and the two younger grands really don't want to go so it looks like they are coming to Nana's for the weekend. Of course, once that was cleared, my daughter said they would love to make it a Valentine weekend like "the old days" and, since Nana didn't really have that in the plans, I scrambled. When I was out running errands yesterday, I just grabbed some stuff and thought the kids could actually help me plan what they would like to do.

Of course, the Girl Scout in me always comes out and I am always prepared for crafts-just because I've been at it so long that I will never use up all of my stockpile.

In the old days, I always made a sample so the kids would have some idea where we were going but these days, they are far more creative than I and so I just lay it all out and they can take it from there. I can't wait to see what they come up with.

And, I used to go crazy with menus...but, again, these days I go a lot simpler. If it is red or heart shaped, it is fair game. I grabbed a few things that will work for dinner and we'll see what they want and then I have some ideas for some things they can bake - which they both really enjoy doing - so dessert will be ice-cream and any "side" they want. If we get something baked, yay but, if not, I'm once again prepared. Lol

And, being the dinosaur that I am, I pulled out my old file to remind myself of some of the games they enjoy playing. Their favorite is usually the Minute-To-Win-It games and I'm pretty sure I have all of that stashed away safely somewhere. And, if this is all behind them these days, I am sure we can find more than enough other things to do to keep everyone busy. Heck, there are still tons of leaves to rake if anyone gets bored. Lol And yes, before you say anything, I know I have tons of things "pinned" on Pinterest but, I just like looking at papers. I told you, I'm a dinosaur!

I am off once again. I'll be sure to let you know how the weekend goes. Stay safe and stay tuned.

WooHoo

 Yay me! I got the familyroom and both bathroom floors and all base boards washed today as well as all of the bedroom carpets vacuumed! But, I still haven't tackled the wood floors. I'm not sure why I'm putting that off...well, yes I am. In order to do a good job, I really have to move every piece of furniture and the living room carpet. I have a lot of furniture and stuff so it is a bit overwhelming but I will get to it soon. Not tomorrow because I have a ton of errands...but, soon. Lol

In any case, let's head into the sunroom today.

Well, that was short and sweet. Once again, it is minimal in the sunroom because we really do use this area a lot and it is just easier if there isn't a lot of stuff to move before we can.

Now, as for what I was doing when I wasn't on my hands and knees doing floors...did anyone think this wasn't going to happen?

Of course I added the glitter. The wreath just felt like it needed a bit of a pop...not quite as much or as brightly colored as the Halloween wreath but just a bit of gold and green to give it a little sparkle. I haven't added a hanger yet because I feel like I need to see where it will hang before I know what kind of fiber I might want. As much as I love Valentine's Day, I am wishing away the time until I can put out St. Pat's. I just love the calm and freshness that green brings to the house.

That's it for today. I have a few other things to do before I can call it a day so I am off. Stay safe and stay tuned.

Not Sure How I Got Here

 When I woke up on this beautiful day and made my plans, number 1 on the list was wash and wax all wood floors and wash bathroom floors. Well, so much for that. Here is where I am now and how I got here is anyone's guess. Lol

As I said, now that my furry friend was gone, today was for cleaning. Except, somewhere during my second cup of coffee, my mind started to stray to making a list of things I needed when I decided it was time to run errands. On that list was a piece of foam board because I thought I wanted to make my St. Pat's wreath more along the line of the "dummy board" wreaths. That got me thinking that I should really get to Pinterest and see about printing some of the images I saved. So I did.

But an image on there spurred a memory of some St. Pat's banners I had made years before but haven't used in awhile. And so, before I used any of my new, very expensive ink, I thought I should check my St. Pat's Rubbermaid. I was pretty sure if I hadn't thrown them away, they would be in the container in the house because I like those kind of things to have temperature control. And so, this happened.

And, sure enough, there they were so it was back to the drawing board to see how many I could use and how many more I might need.

Now that I knew I had what I needed, I didn't want to wait until I got the foam board so I decided to just use another $ Tree wire form that I already had. And, I decided I liked the size of the Thanksgiving wreath I had bought so I brought that out and started thinking of a layout.

I used some burlap I had on hand to wrap the frame,

And, before I knew it, pretty much all of the day was gone and I was here.

The jury is still out on whether or not I might want to add some glitter-I keep fluctuating. Luckily I still have some time before this beauty needs to be hung. I don't think I will hang it in front of a mirror this time as I really don't like seeing the back reflected. But, we shall see.

And so now, no floors have been done and I have a tornado's path of destruction to clean up before I can call it a day. Guess we'll see what tomorrow brings. Stay safe and stay tuned.

Mother Nature is at it Again!

Oh my gosh! After a few rather chilly days where we may have hit freezing during the night, we are having the MOST beautiful spring weather ever...only trouble is that it is still WINTER! My son-in-law just came by to pick up my grand dog who was visiting again for a few days and he and I were outside talking for awhile. After he left, it took everything I have not to get out into the gardens! But, I know once I head out there trimming of dead things will begin and the UF master gardener's program just issued another warning - to people like me I assume - NOT to trim until dangers of other frosts are over. Everything feels so gorgeous out there but looks so sad.

And so, that brings me here to you. Before I set out on another tangent I thought I had better get another room of Valentine's decor posted. Truth be told, except for a possible Valentine get together, I am already thinking of St. Patrick's Day. I love all things Irish...especially the greens. Green is my favorite color and once it comes out I start thinking about spring and the gardens and - oh well, you know where this will end up. Lol

I think we're ready to head into the dining room.

The only thing new here is the addition of that cute - now empty - velvet candy box from that incredible candy store we found in Jacksonville last year. If I remember correctly this box held chocolate caramels...yum! My oldest daughter also gave me her empty box and it is somewhere else in the house?

So that is the dining room for this year. Last night was one of those chilly nights so Hazel and I snuggled in to watch a movie or two while the fire burned. Daughter #2 was here yesterday to give me my next "streaming" lesson now that I no longer have cable. This is all new to me so it is taking a bit of time but I think I am finally getting it. After many, many, many years of cable, TiVos and ultimately the Cox Contour box, I need to learn a whole new mindset. The jury remains out on if you can or can't teach an old dog new tricks. Lol In any case, I can now find lots and lots of movies. I love how this room feels at night!

I'm off to cook up something for dinner and then make my plans for the rest of the week. Floor washing and waxing were put on hold while Hazel was here so that will probably be next. Stay safe and stay tuned.

 

 

 

Too Much Time on my Hands?

 So yes, this may come under the category "too much time on my hands" but I prefer to think of it as the "I love this too much to part with it" category. My brother and sister-in-law gave me this flag as a birthday gift many years ago. In fact, it was my first flag ever-except for the American flag-and quickly got me hooked and I was on the search for a flag to fly for every holiday/season. For a long time, they were easy to find almost everywhere but now I know of only a few places locally where I can find them and, even though I knew this one was fading more and more every year and I was kind of keeping an eye open, I never found one I liked as much. 

And so, I thought I could repaint this one as I did my Thanksgiving flag a few years ago. The only difference was that that flag was pieced and the areas of paint were like coloring in a coloring book-if you didn't go out of the lines, you were good!

This flag was more like a water color painting and, the more I tried to stay exactly where their color was, the more it looked like I was  making a mistake and painting in the wrong places. Since I knew I could never totally replicate the original, I just went with it and I think once it is up and flying, it will be just fine! You can see here just what a toll the Florida sun took on this beauty.

I also got a table repainted with chalk paint that has been on the to-do list for a very long time. Yay me! Daughter #2 is coming down for the day tomorrow so at some point I need to do a quick clean up but, the sunroom got COMPLETELY finished yesterday..but, that won't last long because my little furry friend is back for another visit while her family is in south Florida for a lacrosse tournament. Just when I got all of the dog hair vacuumed up...sigh...

So that is pretty much my day-it is pretty chilly here today and looks like we might hit freezing again the next few nights. Welcome winter! Stay safe and stay tuned.

 

Oh Mother Nature!

Mother Nature, it's not nice to fool Floridians! I am always happy that I live in Florida. Just our few days of freezing temperatures reminds me that I don't function well when I'm cold. Yes, I'm happy to put on layers and get a chance to wear my sweaters and jackets but, if my feet and fingers are cold, I'm miserable! And so, as much as I complain about our hot weather as well, I am definitely more productive when I'm warmer than cozying up under a blanket and watching a movie when I'm cold.

And that is what happened today. It is absolutely gorgeous outside but gardening is out for me or I would be cutting things back way before I should. I knew I needed to get some deep cleaning done after having so many dogs visiting for so long...especially in the sunroom where the rough bricks and rough wood grab onto everything. I really had just planned to do a good vacuuming but then decided it was necessary to move the furniture to do that correctly and, before I knew it, I was living once again in "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie"!

I opened windows and decided that the grooves the windows slide on needed cleaning, and then so did the bricks and the floors and then even the windows. I think I started too late to get the whole room done today so I'm doing a half at a time and getting it done correctly. Of course, we are nowhere near spring so I am guessing I will be repeating this again when Mother Nature comes back to reality. Lol

I started by giving the plant stand and the plants a nice bath.

 Then it was on to the window channels and the floors.

And then comes the windows. I really need to address the outside of the windows as well but they are a bit more challenging out there as the ground is so much lower and necessitates climbing a lot higher on the ladder. If I can find the outdoor Windex again, I think I will go that route instead...that only requires a hose and terra firma. Lol

Before I went off on this tangent, I did a few quick crafts...definitely nothing to write home about as I really had no idea where I was going and just wanted to craft. Sometimes it works that way and then I have absolutely no place to put the new item. That is kind of what happened with these but I moved a few things and, until I come up with some place better, here they will stay. I will say that the table reminded me of the old days when all of the grand children would be here making Valentine cards and gifts and I would just put out everything I had and they would let their creativity run! I actually still have a lot of those masterpieces!

I put the canvas on the shelf in the kitchen actually replacing another canvas I did last year but I like that this one is taller and has a better pop with the red background.

And last year's canvas looks more at home with the flowers in this vignette. I do wish it was a bit taller and I might look for something to prop it up on later.

And, for whatever reason...maybe because I love numbers and letters in decor...I made this. It found a home in the family room on the shelves in the TV unit.

And so for anyone who was just dying to know, that is what I've been doing to keep myself busy these days. There is a lot more to get done in the cleaning arena so, if I'm not back for awhile, that's where I'll be! Stay safe and stay tuned.

Life Moves On...and So Does Our Tour

As much as it saddens me to say it, my Christmas tree is finally down! And, the HUGE branch that had fallen is now cut into still pretty huge logs-which will require some Paul Bunyon splitting skills before they are small enough to fit into a fireplace. My grandson surprised me on Sunday when he arrived with chainsaw in hand and got busy. And, of course, I wanted to stick close just in case he needed me so, I pulled out the rake and got 5 cans full of leaves raked up. You have to love living in Florida. The weather was absolutely picture perfect but the leaves-which I thought must have ALL come down through our 2 recent hurricane visits-are STILL falling! 

It took me most of yesterday to get the ornaments and lights off of the tree, lights untangled and organized, the area cleaned up and all of the furniture moved back into place. I was going to hit the ground running this morning to get going on some heavy duty cleaning but I got called into service to tag team with my daughter because, try as she might, she can't be in two places at once. Somehow, my grand daughter ended up with an orthodontist appointment close to the time my daughter had to head to Gainesville with my grandson for his U.S. Coast Guard Academy physical. And so, Nana to the rescue and I went with Presley and then got her back to school. And then, because the housekeeper was coming to their house, I brought the dog home with me. And so, a good bit of the day is gone and my furry shadow is here, so no heavy duty cleaning today for me. Instead, I'm here with you and we're moving on to the kitchen in all of its "red" splendor.

I'm loving how my new pot looks on the stove.

The Target Dollar Spot has started putting out the holiday shaped wood pieces for each occasion. I got the tree for Christmas and now I grabbed the heart. A lot of people are using them for crafting but, since I currently have my cutting board obsession, I like it resting here near some of my other boards.

It looks like the only additions to this room since last year are the wood heart and the heart shaped pot. I actually have 2-3 more craft ideas I am dying to get to but I seem to be missing just one supply for each and won't be able to get to the store today. I'll be sure to let you know when I get crafting again. Until then, stay safe and stay tuned.

Thought I would share a picture of a spa day...no, not for me but for my silk florals. I have never actually been to a spa day so you would have to ask my plants how it feels. I think I've told you before that I am not the biggest fan of faux flowers but, there are some places that just call for flowers but fresh or potted ones would simply not survive. And so, when I find realistic looking faux flowers, I am usually OK with spending a bit extra...but, then, that means they have to last FOREVER! lol

Most of my good fauxs are on display in other rooms of the house when it is not their chance to shine as I don't want them getting crushed as I shove them into Rubbermaids - like the poor mis-shapen tulips you see. Of course, that means that they tend to get dirty and that was always an issue until I happened upon a silk flower spray cleanser that can be found in craft stores. I simply pretty much saturate the flowers and greenery and set them to dry basking in the sun. The spray not only "melts" the dust but it gives a new life to the flowers and it kind of smells clean as well. It's a win all around. Now if only all of my other cleaning could be just this easy!