5 weeks and 3 days ago . . .

You'll have your kitchen in 3 weeks! We had our first 'real' meal in the 'not-quite-finished' kitchen tonight! We've been driving by the sweet corn stands for weeks and wondering how long it would take to boil water on the grill (no, we don't care for 'grilled' corn on the cob) and with our mouths drooling, we finally had it tonight. MAYBE the kitchen will be finally finished tomorrow when the cabinet doors are hung. No, wait, it won't REALLY be done until the stove that was delivered yesterday is replaced (stove doesn't work, go figure!) so MAYBE next Wednesday when the new one comes I can finally say 'finite'. So actually it will be 6 weeks and 3 days! I'll post pictures of the 'kitchen from hell' tomorrow!

Here's to not eating another cold sandwich for a LONG time . . .

Ciao!

Chicago, Chicago, that toddling town . . .

This post is going to be all pictures (it only took me 2 hours to upload these!). Everyone should see Chicago . . . once! The traffic, the people, the prices! BUT, Navy Pier, the architecture, the history, Tiffany's . . . WOW!

This is my daughter and me in 'the bean' . . . TOO COOL! They say the bean's curveture adds 50 pounds! HA!

All in all, other than going to the wrong hotel and then having to take a taxi to the right one, we had a great time and we plan on making this the first annual mother/daughter trip (now that she can pay her own way!).

There still is no place like home . . .

Ciao!

Just plain randomness . . .

I am so late in thanking Angela for the ribbon tag that I won in her recent giveaway BUT that doesn't mean that I wasn't thrilled to receive it. Thanks a bunch Angela! She has a fabulous etsy shop and a very lovely blog. Go visit her and be amazed yourself!

This is a handmade book kit from Carol Wingert that I have been working on. She also does fabulous things! (Really, everyone that I visit does way, way fabulous things!) Just a few unfinished pages that I like . . .

Oh . . . and the kitchen. I guess it is moving right along (I have kind of gotten over it, really just tired of the whole thing). I can't tell you the problems I have had with different vendors and I won't because it will make me cry/disappointed/furious all over again. Suffice it to say 1. DO NOT do any business with Sears; 2. NEVER expect anyone to call you RIGHT BACK when they say they will; 3. DON'T be afraid to have something redone because it wasn't done right in the first place; and 4. ALWAYS plan a remodel to take longer and cost more than expected! By the way, my contractor/crew has done a SUPER job! Never seen so many guys so particular!

My daughter and I are leaving tomorrow for Chicago for a few days. YIKES! Anyone have any tips, suggestions or places that we MUST see while we are there? Without having to deal with a taxi (I'm just a small town girl, going to the big city)!

PS Just found out that the cabinet doors (that had to be redone) won't be finished when promised so I have to wait 2 more weeks to get this kitchen up and running! Hopefully, my next post will be more cheerful! Until then . .

Ciao!

Day 2 - almost as bad as day 1 . . .

I'm not even going to show pictures of the kitchen today. Too many bad memories. Had 6 men at one time (with 3 more showing up later) standing around wondering how to fix problems, mistakes and how to give me what I wanted. And then how to tell me I couldn't have it. Things really weren't all that bad, just disrupting my day with phone calls and questions I couldn't answer. I mean really, does anyone know how their duct work runs and where their pipes are? The good news, the re-done cabinets should be here tomorrow! I know, I know -- the kitchen will be beautiful when finished but all I can think about is how to get these people out of my house!

Surfed some out-of-this-world blogs today. Oh, to have only half of the talent of these people! Not sure if it is okay to mention blog names without permission, but someday I am going to make a list. You should see the length of 'my favorites' that I try to visit every week!

Here's to calmer days . . .

Ciao!

It's a 'DO OVER' . . .

The cabinets were delivered today. Yippee! But . . . they were glazed the wrong color and all of the doors, drawers, crown molding and pedestals have to be re-done! Hated to be so picky but, by gosh, they are too expensive to not just love them! Luckily, the cabinet people stand behind everything and didn't bat an eye when learning of their mistake and the work they must do to correct it. Also luckily, the bases are okay so they can still be mounted, starting tomorrow. Doesn't seem like there is room in the kitchen for all of these cabinets! Let's see . . . what could possibly go wrong next?

Picked these little do-dads up this weekend. Dreaming of big things for these little flowers (they are made of something like bakelite).

Took a photography class last week - does this picture look any better? So confusing . . . aperture, shutter speed, ISO, white level. Guess I have to break down and read the camera manual!

Ciao!

Pepe Le Pew and Bambi too . . .

This is my expression after this weekend. Coming home from a baseball game and fireworks, right in front of our house, we swerved to miss a skunk but the little bugger still sprayed the car. P-U!! So the next morning, taking the car in to get washed, my husband hits a deer! Took out the whole front end after we just put in a new condenser for the air conditioning a couple of days before! And you know what -- the car still stinks!

Picked up some old books yesterday and plan on (be still my 'save it, you might need it someday' heart) tearing them apart tomorrow. Want the book covers to make some journals. Do I really need to save all of the pages? I just can't get over destroying a book like that.

Here's to luckier days . . .

Ciao!

She was afraid to ask, thinking she'd look stupid . . .

I've had some extra time to surf the web lately (the kitchen remodel - no cooking, no cleaning) and visit some fantastic blogs. I'm amazed at the beauty and creativity of them. I'm astounded at the amount of time they must take to maintain and the commitment that these ladies make to blog most every day and with pictures to boot! When I read these fabulous blogs, I'm always asking myself the same questions:

1. Do you people ever sleep? Or clean house themselves (they must

because the pictures of their houses are always immaculate and

beautiful)? Or just sit and waste time? They must not, or else

they somehow have more than 24 hours in their days! They all

accomplish so much!

2. Are they all professional photographers? Do they photo shop all

their pictures? To say the least, the pictures posted are sights to

behold! The vignettes are always over the top!

3. How did they meet each other? It seems like they are always

traveling to some distant spot, getting together at one of the

group's 'just like in a magazine' houses and spending time

antiquing, flea marketing and crafting, finding fabulous little

trinkets and tidbits to use in their creations. And not just little

crafts, but big, complicated, gorgeous things that would take

hours. I can honestly say that I don't personally know anyone

that likes this stuff like I do, that goes ga-ga for the collages,

journals or altered boxes, that wants to go to Silver Bella.

4. Where do they get their supplies for all of the fantastic things
they make? Online? Specialty stores? Around here, there is

Hobby Lobby. Period. What I see them using is beautiful, old

diamond encrusted jewelry and old books that they have torn

apart. How can you stand to part with these items! (Guess that

is my problem - I can't stand to rip apart a book or give up the

things I hoard!)

5. Where do they live that they are always going to out-of-this-

world antique stores (the midwest stores' prices have gotten

way high so I can't imagine what they are on either coast), estate

sales (no such thing around here) or huge 'art fairs' that some

local store puts on that crafters from around the world come and

sell their wares?

6. What is it about creative people that not only can they make

beautiful things but that they are also so pretty themselves?

7. How does one join a swap?

8. Do they design their own blogs or pay someone to come up with

pretty? Some even have a different header for each season!

Amazing!

9. The biggest question for me when I enviously read these blogs

is -- HOW CAN I BECOME JUST LIKE YOU!!!

None of these questions that I ask myself are criticisms concerning these blogs. They only boggle my mind. I will continue to visit, ask questions (that's how you learn, right?), read of interesting lives and projects, live vicariously through their travels and found objects and be constantly entertained by pure, unadulterated beauty!

(OK - just published and the formatting is all screwy. I have tried to fix it several times and I am just giving up for now.)

Ciao!