The Finish Line is in Sight!

The dishes piled up, but at least we ate, albeit very much out of our regular time slots.

We most definitely like to keep a bit of a schedule, and oftentimes it amazes me how people eat at all times of the day. I suppose we're old-fashioned? We also go to bed about the same time every night, unless, of course, we get sucked into a show on Netflix, like Ozark, which is very hard to quit watching. I was saying to Bruce that those types of shows are like reading a good book that you just can't put down. Do you agree?

Back to the magic of caulk, here's a better shot of how it works wonders as Bruce is making his way around the room.

And so it began, the rolling of the walls that about did me in. This is a large room, I think something like 14x17 feet, and as I neared the finish line on the second coat, my arms were feeling it. Honestly, I wanted to quit, but how were we to finish with that sort of attitude? Bruce was the one getting off and on a ladder to paint the new crown molding. Now that's an art!

Actually, I took the photo below on the first pass. Thank God for Pam who loaned me her extension pole which allowed me not to use a ladder to reach the 10 foot ceilings. That, my friends, is a life saver. although it is also the reason I tired because, well, let's face it, I'm a wuss these days. My arms ain't what they used to be, for sure.

I heard from Jane who said she was a wee bit sad that we'd abandoned the first color scheme, inspired by her painting, however, there is plenty of her influence to be seen as you will soon see. But before we get to the draperies, once the painting was complete, we got the furniture all back in place and it was time to add the personal touches, as in stuff for the shelves. Bruce was like, "I can't wait to see how you fill it." No pressure honey!

Rummaging around, I found some stuff hidden away in cupboards, including the tv cabinet which had some of my favorite books behind stacks of CDs. Because it had been two years since I'd seen them it is understandable that I'd forgotten all about them. Now, however, they will again see the light of day!

Also, I found some neat hooks at Marshalls that I had Bruce put up on the left wall for hanging our stuff, be it, clothes or in this case, bags. Although we had some art there it was not ideal as that is a very narrow wall. Okie, dokie, here we are about an hour later.

We just love shelving, the more the better! One thing you might note is that one bedside table is larger than the other. Because we bought this bedroom furniture for our 25th wedding anniversary, I have no recollection as to why we bought one nightstand, and as I discovered from reading the back when it was moved, one chest. BTW--our 46th wedding anniversary is about a month from today. My title today is about nearing the finish line because I've got one other thing up my sleeve. This morning I purchased 24 new knobs to update the furniture, and once I get Bruce's go-ahead, well, I will go ahead. :)

You would think I had no time for nature, and truthfully I've not had much, but one otter came to say hi this week,

and yesterday morning, after Bruce left to work at the church, I got back to taking a walk for more reasons than one. I wanted to begin breaking in my new Sketchers that I purchased to take on our upcoming trip.

As has been mentioned before, when we fly anywhere we take one suitcase and one purse/travel bag. Married to a weekly business traveler, this is how he did it, so who am I to argue?  Our friend Susan was extolling the virtues of packing cubes, suggesting that I watch some Youtube videos on them. Now that we get it on our television, I began looking for ideas. Eventually I settled on tried and true, Rick Steves. In turn, he passed the torch to Sara ,and when she came on, I could hardly believe my eyes. Why so? Well, she was wearing a dress made from the same material as one that I made!! You just know I had to take a picture, don't you?

Eventually she got around to mentioning that she'd made the dress because the material is so lightweight!! See that bag on the table in front of her? That is what she takes for a two week trip to Europe where she is a guide for Rick Steves!! While my suitcase is not that tiny, packing for two weeks means having a plan. In my case, everything I will be taking is some form of blue (!) and one pair of shoes. Thus, the new Sketchers. Like my black pair, they are immediately comfortable. and for someone who oftentimes has sore feet, it is just what I need.

Once out of the car I thought to myself, it is unlikely that I will see anything new, but then again, you never know. Not long after, this guy came swooping down out of the trees, inches from my head!!

While not nearly as exciting, the light was right on this squirrel.

Now it was time to get down to business, making a pair of draperies. And for the record, I learned that draperies are lined, while curtains are not. Thank goodness for lots of open space on the living room where I rolled out the fabric, cutting two panels 79"x54", and about the same for the black out lining. We've been home for 11 months now and every single night it has been far too light in our bedroom. In another blunder, when I had the shades made, Dave kept asking me if the shades were dark enough, and I said, of course they are. I'm a light lover, hating dark interiors. Duh, should have listened to him!! Once upon a time I could get up and down off the floor with ease, however, age has a way of changing things, and although I still can do it, ease does not come to mind. Anyway, following an online tutorial, I worked away, changing but one thing and that is how you attach the back tabs.

Instead of attaching the bottoms first I chose the other way around and am happy with that decision. And why did I not just buy some curtains you might be wondering? Several reasons, chief among them is that the window size is unusual. And while I love the look of floor length draperies, my table dictated that I go to the window sill. Shoved up against the wall, function precluded form in this case.

We slept well last night!! You might note, just beyond the corner of my computer is the offending light bollard that has been giving me fits! I wish I could show you a better shot of them, but it's well nigh impossible shooting a photo into light from the window. They are pretty, take my word for it.

Bruce just called and he's on his way home after spending another long day at the church. He's been remodeling our pastor's office which now has the finish line in sight as well. Last evening, just after he left to attend the community board meeting, I was chatting with Nancy when all of a sudden, the big sliding glass doors shook and there was a loud, and I mean loud, BOOM. Scared the dickens out of me! Turns out it was the Space X rocket booster returning to Earth, 50 miles away. Really something. As was the rainbow that happened soon thereafter, although I only got the tail end of it. Plus, while I was looking at the rainbow, I heard an owl hoot down the way although I never could find it.

Finally, on Sunday following church, we met up with Jeff and Lori at Dubsdread. Remember them?

Should you be one who prays for strangers, please add them to your list. Jeff is getting no better without going into any details.

Now, only one more room to go, however, when we tackle the master bathroom is ytbd. I wonder if I can find funky blue floor tile????

your friend,

Gail