Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Wishful Wednesday

The next item on my Wishful Wednesday wish list is foundation repair. It's certainly not a glamorous way to spend a chunk of change, but the house needs it desperately. We had a minor issue when we first moved in that was really only noticeable in the kitchen. And nothing really changed for a number of years.

The severe heat and subsequent drought conditions of the last several years wrought their damage. Shouldn't they tell you when you buy a house that you should water it??? I mean, if you come from a state where that's not an issue, how are you supposed to know these things??

We've always had slight issues with doors being harder and easier to open and close as the seasons waxed and waned, but things have not righted themselves this year. I can no longer completely shut my bedroom door nor the master bathroom door. DD's bedroom door and one of the hallway closet doors close, but they rub the upper jamb. All these doors are located on the far east side of the house and are ones you head north or south through. The bathroom door, which you walk east or west through, remains unaffected.

*sigh*

Some of the damage...

Space between kitchen back splash and the wall. Maybe between 1/4 and 1/2 an inch.


In Sonshine's room, up at the ceiling.



This is in the hallway. The door issues I mentioned are all on this side of the crack.


This is as far as I can close my bedroom door.


I guess it's time to look into foundation repair whether I want to or not. Anyone know any reputable and fair priced companies?

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Monday, December 9, 2013

Oh, the weather outside is frightful...


Last week an icy arctic-type weather system plodded across the state of Texas leaving many of us iced in for several days. After school activities on Thursday were cancelled and many districts across the area closed schools well in advance. Much to my surprise, ours was one of them. Normally, FWISD waits until the very last minute to decide. Which I get. Kids need to be in school.

Even DH/boss man deemed the office closed on Friday and instructed clients and employees that work would be done remotely. I don't think that has ever happened. But I wasn't complaining. I was certainly glad to have a three day weekend so soon after my nine day vacation. DD was supposed to be at work some 20 miles or so miles away by 5AM on Friday. Yeah, that didn't happen either. Though she drives a large pickup truck, affectionately call The Tank, she took a test drive around the block and had no traction at all and decided she wasn't chancing it.

Thankfully, we never lost power and our dead tree remained standing. I braved the cold temps to take some pictures of our house, yard and car...

Poor birdies trying to eat up the last of the bird seed. I did refill the feeders and threw squirrel corn all over the ground. Not only do the squirrels eat the corn, but so do the mourning doves, blue jays, and grackles.


 When not completely weighted down by ice, this bush thing stands taller than the roof line.


 Icicles hanging off the front porch roof.

Frosted pine branches--so pretty.

Once I refilled the bird feeders, I enjoyed watching all the birds come and go.

We had the usual bird varieties in addition to the woodpecker I rarely get a chance to photograph.





I've often thought about installing a wood burning stove somewhere in this house. As I mentioned earlier, our power never went out, thankfully. I was a little worried about it though because we'd had several outages just prior to the Thanksgiving break. And even though Texas doesn't experience such bad weather very often, it can still get cold, and a warm fire would just be a good thing to have available.

If you were affected by the bad weather, did you get to enjoy it?



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Friday, December 6, 2013

Counting my blessings...


The other day I was in a right funk. Very pissed off about my troubles and jealous of pretty much everybody I know. Kind of ironic considering Thanksgiving was just last week. And just last Wednesday I even posted all the things I'm thankful for. And I am still thankful for all of them, but you know, sometimes we have bad days.

So today I needed a bit of a kick in the pants and decided to count a few blessings.

1) I have a husband and children who love me and whom I love.
2) I have family who loves me and whom I love.
3) My Brown Eyed Girl just celebrated three years clean.
4) I have a roof over my head and food to eat.
5) I have friends who care about me and whom I care about in return.
6) I can read books for free if I know where to look. (and I do)
7) Me and mine are relatively healthy. We're not suffering chronic conditions or illnesses.
8) I live in one of the more economically sound states of the Union. (Well, it is for now. I know it can change.)
9) I've had the opportunity to travel and/or live not only around the US of A, but to a couple of foreign countries as well. (Denmark and England)

While the list seems short, these nine things encompass a lot of blessings.

What about you? Is there something I didn't mention that you are especially blessed with??


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Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Christmas is just around the corner...


Last year, if you remember, I did a countdown to Christmas, posting everyday on some aspect of the holiday. It was a lot of fun and I enjoyed doing it, but as you can see I didn't plan very well for this year and, well, what's really changed since last year?

So as of today, there are a mere 21 days left until the big day. I've started a bit of Christmas shopping, though I s'pose I better pick up the pace a little.

This weekend, I'm going remove the fall and Fourth of July decorations and put up some Christmas ones. I'm not sure about the tree yet, but I'm definitely stringing some lights around this house (inside for now as it's supposed to be really cold).

And now that the Brown Eyed Girl has her own place and her own tree, it's time go through the ornaments and give hers to her. The ornament thing is one of her favorite traditions, and I have a couple of years to make up, so I'll keep on with it for now.

When do you start decorating for Christmas? Over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend? The first weekend of December? Or some other time?
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Monday, December 2, 2013

Refreshed...?


Yeah, for the most part.

After most of nine days away from work, I am back. What I wouldn't give for another nine days and another nine and another. In other words, I wish I didn't have to work. DH keeps promising that eventually he'll hire someone to do most of what I do and then I can work from home. And I'm holding on to that promise.

So if I did work from home or was able to give up work completely, what would my day entail?

Well, cleaning for one. I'd definitely get back on a regular cleaning schedule and those once-in-a-great-while tasks would happen more regularly. I had a schedule once upon a time and it worked really well.

I'd cook too. It's hard to cook a tasty delicious meal when you get home at 5:15 and are already starving!!! If I were home I'd be able to start soups and stews and casseroles in the middle of the day and have them ready at a decent mealtime.

I'd exercise everyday. Well, I'd intend to, anyhow, since I'd have all those lovely hours to fill. Plus, then I could eat all those tasty meals I'd be cooking without worrying too much about carbs and calories.

And, of course, I'd proofread and write. There'd definitely be time for one or both everyday.

I'd do crafts and bake and basically be Suzy Homemaker. I should have been born in the 1930s or 40s when it was expected and acceptable and not frowned upon to aspire to that. But you know, I like being at home taking care of my family.

What about you?

Career Woman or Suzy Homemaker?


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