HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

HAVE A HAPPY AND SAFE HALLOWEEN!!!!!!!!!..............Jen

Whatcha Working On Wednesday!!!

Oh My!!.. What a day this has been!!!...I went to get Taylor{takes an hour},brought her home to change,and then back on the road again...Get down the road and she forgot her purse...We come back home again...Then I head to McDonald's to get her some lunch and head to meet Tim...Tim was taking her back to work with him and then to her interview at the Mellow Mushroom which is downtown near his work...After that he is taking her back to campus to meet her sorority sisters for their "Black Diamond Ceremony"....Then I will go pick her up afterwards while Tim is at a meeting at church......WHEW!!!....Meanwhile..Back to me dropping off Taylor... I drive home with Luke screaming because he saw his daddy!!..And I mean ALL the way home!!...{REMEMBER NO NAP AND ITS 3:30}... I just got home and ran in to get Luke to sleep for at least a hour nap!!!...I think I need one,too!!...Ha!....I now have a headache!....But I have to get my blogging done now or it won't be put on today!!....
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It's Whatcha Working on Wednesday!!!....We'll right now I'm still working on a Stacy Nash halloween sampler...I haven't gotten very far and even though halloween is almost here I will complete it before moving on to something else...I just need to stay off the computer more at night..HA!....

I'm also working on deciding where to put these..I pulled them out of a box in the garage this past weekend....I really need some shelves or cabinets..But I'm taking my time decorating...I have some furniture pieces that I need to get made...So these items will probably go back in a box til I know exactly where to put them....

And here is my new towel rack...I threw some ripped osnaburg on it for now til I find the time to get some towels made...I then added a twig wreath, some berries, and a sampler I had...How does it look???....OK?!?



And while I was gone Heather{ebay-oldesummerkitchen} called me from PA on my cell phone...I'm buying a twiggy primitive Christmas tree from her...She was at the place that she buys them and called to tell me me sizes available and prices...So I decided on a 8 foot tree...YEAH!!!...I'm soooo excited!!...I can't wait to get it!!!...More details on that later!!....I've got to get Luke up!!...That hour sure did fly by!!..Now it's time for a light dinner{soup and sandwiches}when Tim gets in,some housework, and then a hour trip to get Taylor....Have a blessed evening!!....Jen

OCTOBER 27th..MY SPECIAL DAY!!!

This is my special day!!...Forty two years ago today I was born...My mom was in the hospital in labor with me while my grandmother{my mom's mom} was in the hospital having my Uncle John....I was born several hours before him..But I don't just have a "birthday"...I have a birthday month!!...October is my birthday month!!...I remember Taylor saying that she couldn't wait til her birthday month comes..I said "OH!NO!"...I'm not asking you to make this month special for me I will make it special for myself...So the month of October I have been a little kinder to myself and purchased a few little items for myself...We have had cake every week...The first week of October we had butter pecan cake with cream cheese icing..YUM!!!...The second week we had yellow cake with chocolate icing..My sister asked me last week "What cake are you having this week?"...I told her we were having brownies this week...Then Tim and Taylor started asking me "what cake are we having this week?"...Well, when my sister asked that this morning I told her real quick we were having chocolate with chocolate icing of course!!!!...My favorite!!!....Tim and the kids took me out to the Cracker Barrel for dinner...Love the atmosphere!!...So everyone should have a birthday month!!!...I highly recommend it!!!...And since I haven't ordered all my gifts for myself yet my birthday month will be spilling over into November..HA!...I wanted to share two pictures of some items that I bought for my birthday and I will share my other birthday gifts when I get them....hugs to everyone!!!...Jen

I've been wanting one of these for a long time...I will show pics when I get it up and towels put on it...


I absolutely LOVE these bowls!!...They are wonderful!!!..I have been wanting some of these for a long time, too!!!... I got these at thecandlebaker.com...The flash makes the colors bright, but the colors are really drabby like I like them..I don't decorate with green, but the color is really a moss color and almost looks black....I will share pics when I decide where they will go....... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~Happy Birthday to me!!!~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Whatcha Working on Thursday

Wow, where has the week gone?!?..It's been a busy week!!!....I'm sorry I haven't been on here...I even missed Whatcha Working On Wednesday...So this is Whatcha Working on Thursday!!!!LOL.....Well, I completed the Notforgotten Farm x-stitch pattern from last week....So what do you think???.....I really like the way he turned out!!!....


Then I stitched a Stacy Nash design.... It is really screaming for a coffee bath!!!..
I can't wait to get it stitched up into a pinkeep/cupboard sampler...So simple and sweet!!!....Perfect to lay in a wooden bowl!!!

It's amazing how coffee dyeing makes everything look sooooo much better!!!...The joke around my house is that Tim and Taylor are always saying I'd coffee dye them if they'd let me...ha!...
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Is Fall ever going to really get here....It has been so warm and we really don't have many leaves changing to all the magical colors...We've had leaves turning brown and falling off....But that seems to be typical here in Georgia or at least here on the GA/S. Carolina border where we live...

Last year at this time it was magical...After years of no color we were pleasantly surprised with a glorious scene of God's handiwork....But wouldn't you know I never got around to taking any pics of our last Fall in our previous home.... I do however have the family picture we sent out in our Christmas cards...It was taken on Thanksgiving Day...We were suppose to be having it taken outside, but it started pouring rain...So if you look ever so closely you can see the beautiful scenery in the background....What a wonderful sendoff for our last Thanksgiving in that house!!!

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What does your work space look like???...I always wonder what the work spaces of other crafters/designers look like....Mostly mine is my recliner when x-stitching.....But the rest of the time it is spent at my primitve work table {which is one of my favorites}....I have had it many years since we lived in Northwest Georgia....The table was in a house my parents rented and when they were moving to Maryland I had mom ask if I could have the table....The owners agreed and I have had it ever since.....It's not as large as I'd like for it to be so it stays piled up when I'm working on projects,but it has the primitive look!!!!...And isn't that what matters..HA!....So for my BIG projects I use the diningroom farmhouse table....
A close-up!!!...What a mess!!!
The little stool under the table was my Granny Jakes.....I prop my feet on it while I'm sewing or painting.....
My work table next to my faux fireplace....
I try to keep it straight...I'm planning on making a shaker cabinet to put all my supplies out of sight and Luke's reach...
These are my stacks of fabric, and boxes I paint...Along with my x-stitch that I have to put high, so Luke won't get in it....
For some reason Luke doesn't really bother my basket with my x-stitch patterns in it...But that may change tomorrow and I will walk in to patterns all over the room...ha!...But he just loves my x-stitch material and I often find it all over the place....
My ebay goodies.....

So, this is my work space....What does yours look like??...
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Have a blessed weekend!!!...We will be busy with a yard sale on Saturday !!!.......Jen

WHAT A FRIDAY NIGHT!!!

Thank goodness it is Saturday!!!....Friday was NO fun!!!!!....You see I've been having a pain in my right lower stomach for some time..{maybe several months}....I kept it from Tim because He worries enough for both of us...Well, last week I had to tell him because it was making me start to worry...When I told him he just hung his head and sighed and asked how long I've been hurting....But the thing is somedays I hurt and some I don't....And wouldn't you know as soon as I told him I had a few days of less pain....But it didn't stop his worrying and constantly asking if I was ok....And I knew I had to make a doctor's appt, but with no pain I wasn't going to do it....You see, I've been poked, prodded, ex-rayed, pet-scanned{Yes, the scan is called that and it is for humans!!!}, CT scanned, MRI's,surgeries, etc.....that I DON'T run to the doctor in a hurry....I especially don't cause unneccessary worry in my family!!!...You see I'm a 6 year cancer survivor!!!!!...When my surgery was performed 6 years ago to have my thyroid removed the doctor came out and told my familyit was cancer and and I had 6 months to a year to live....

So I am running around making the hour long trip to get Taylor yesterday, running back by the house, getting the kids something to eat at McDonalds and running to the dreaded docor's appt..And when I mean DREADED I mean it...And I told the doctor as I sat in the room that if I hadn't been hurting so bad on Thursday that I wouldn't be here today....Because as usual it hadn't been bothering me that bad leading up to the appt.....Well, he vetoed appendix and other things because I was having no other symptoms....Which was good...I mean no other symptoms!...And then he gets to my medical history!!....Then there is a look that comes over his face and then the plan of action is totally different...I forgot to tell you that this wasn't our regular family doctor...She only works certain days, so we had to see the doctor that fills in for her...And I've seen him before and like him, so it isn't a big thing... But as soon as he starts asking questions and see his expressions I get a little teary eyed and hold my breath...

So since they can squeeze me in on a Friday afternoon{only because I came prepared and hadn't eaten all day} I'm on my way downtown to have a Ct scan instead of a regular x-ray at 4:00....And I have to hear my husband sighing the wholde time....WE've been through this more times that I can count..The trip to the hospital to have a test either in silence or me being chatty because I couldn't stand the silence....But thank goodness they can fit me in instead of having to wait the weekend to have the test on Monday...And it will be a WET READING...Which means the radiologist will read them before the ink dries and call my doctor with the results...Then he will call me at home....We will know tonight!!.....

When we get there and finally get where we are suppose to be then the insurance person informs me that we have to wait for approval of the test because it is VERY expensive....We've never had to do that because all of my test have been approved ahead of time and thank goodness we've always had everything covered...I've always had wonderful medical care during my chemo, radiation, and surgeries...My heart has always ached for people that have had to worry about paying for procedures on top of just dealing with the life or death outlook.... Finally they came with the news that I was ready for the test....Ok..But you don't just walk in and have the test...I am given a big tall bottle of chalky slightly flavored stuff to drink...I've done this many times before....Half to drink now and the other half to drink in an hour and then another hour to wait...So two hours before they can do the test...UGH!!!...What a way to spend a Friday night...I was freezing, so Tim found me a blanket... He was soo patient walking with Luke and keeping him entertained while we waited, calling Taylor and telling her we were at the hospital to have a scan, and walking with Luke some more...Tim had taken Taylor to work earlier while I was waiting to see the doctor so she was unaware of what was going on and was needing to be picked up at 8:00....

But eventually time passed and with an iv and the rest of the bottle drank they show up with another bottle to drink..YUM!!!YUM!!!!..UGH!!NO!...He told me to drink as much as I could, so I drank it all while I waited some more....So when he came back it was time....I go in and they inject dye in the iv and I can feel it go all over my body within milli-seconds....The test is listening to the voice say "Hold your breath"..."Now breathe"...while the scan is being done and then it's over in about 15 minutes...Then a moment to make sure I can be around my son and nothing they injected into me was radioactive....I had test that I couldn't be around Luke for 8 hours afterwards...

So now it was time to get Taylor and something to EAT!!!!..I hadn't eaten in 24 hours....All the while You don't think!!!...You don't let things enter your mind...You do the normal and don't think until you get the results...You do alot of praying and numbing yourself for if you receive the news that they've seen something{We've had those phome calls}....All the while praying that they see NOTHING!!!....

We go to the doctor's office and get Tim's truck and I go on home with Luke..Tim will get Taylor...Hopefully the docotor has called and he has!!!....A message was left "that the radiologist called and everything looks good"..."I have my pain medicine for the weekend and to call him if I need him...He is on call all weekend"........Now this is ALWAYS the time I have my breakdown...I'm strong when I need to be and fall apart when everything is Ok'ed.....I guess it is the buildup of emotions that come out...BUt they didn't see anything!!!!!!!..Thank You GOD for your blessings!!!!!!...So, now I have my pain medicine and I've really been hurting since he did all the pushing on my stomach yesterday....BUt as I sit and type this tears come to my eyes as I'm watching Luke outside riding his little truck on the sidewalk with his daddy... I'm continuously reminded of God's grace and mercy because if I wasn't here today in remission, then he wouldn't be here either!!!!...And what a gift he is to our family!!!!!.God is soooo Good!!!...

Hug someone today that you love and be sure to tell them you love them!!!....hugs everyone!!!...Jen

It has been a very rainy day today and I was so thankful that I didn't have to get out in it today!!!!...Taylor only has classes on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays...Thank goodness!!...Some may wonder why I pick her up, take her to work, and sorority meetings..Well, she turned 18 in June and she drives quite well but she is afraid to drive...The traffic around here is crazy, but I told her that it isn't going to get any better...Meanwhile, her fears were increased when she was coming home with a friend one afternoon and they were hit by another car...So her dad drops her off on campus in the mornings and I pick her up...It takes a good 30 minutes to get there and 30 to get back and that is IF the traffic is good...So it is a hour trip...Then like tomorrow we will get back going on 2:00, but she has to be at work at 3:00...So I either come home and have to go back in 45 minutes or we grab lunch and kill time til 3:00...Then I literally make a running dash in the house to get Luke to sleep for his nap, so he can get at least a hour and a half of sleep....We use to have weekends free except for her working on Saturdays and whatever plans she has with friends in Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays that she needs picked up from, but now we take her to her sorority meetings on Sunday evenings also....It makes it tough with a little one in tow and trying to keep him on a schedule....But eventually she will get her confidence up...SIGH...Then I will experience the worry that EVERY mother has when their children leave the house driving themselves!!!

The house is smelling good!!!...Over the weekend I bought some new tarts for my burner....They are the first ones used this Fall season....I only use my burner during the cooler months and since we moved here in April I haven't used mine yet this year in this house....I got cranberry and red apple.....YUM!!!
I hope everyone has a great Friday and weekend!!!!.....Jen

What'cha Working On Wednesday!!!

It is a drabby and rainy day here in Georgia!!...But the temp is wonderful!!!!!... I love rainy days when I can stay home, but I had to go get Taylor and go to the post office to get an ebay item mailed...Then I got Luke to sleep so I can post for my first What'cha Working on Wednesday!!!!...I'm working on a x-stitch pattern of Lori Brechlin's of Notforgotten Farm......I love this pattern!!...I'm really bad about buying a pattern and not getting to it for several years because I have so many others I haven't stitched yet....Well, I had to get this one stitched up!!....Isn't he cute??...I can't wait to get him finished and into a coffee bath.....The Fall season is just too short...I just went last week and picked up an order of patterns...On Friday I had 8 more picked out and ordered....But they are all Halloween and Halloween will be upon us soon, so I will have to save these for next year!!!...I'm not sure how much Christmas I will do this year because I have request for everyday samplers and pics....But I'm sure I will be putting some orders in for some Christmas patterns,too!!!ha!

Back during the summer I finally got around to getting patterns drawn to all my patterns...And they've laid on my work desk since then....They have been a thorn in my side because EVERY time I go near my desk I see them and feel bad because there are many unfinished projects stacked up....Not to mention I have to move the stack to use my sewing machine... So last night the stack moved to the diningroom table..YEAH!!!..I may just sit and start drawing patterns this afternoon [inbetween doing the laundry] on the big bolt of osnaburg fabric I've had for a while just for this purpose....So maybe just maybe inbetween my x-stitching I might just get some patterns done and I can share them with you....We'll see!!!

On top of that I've been waiting all summer for the Fall to get here...I've had projects picked out to make.... The summers here are brutal!!!... And I couldn't drag myself out to the garage to work on any wood projects in 100+ temps after I spent 8 hours out there one day early in June cleaning out and organizing....{That was before the snake skin was spotted in the garage}....I pulled EVERYTHING out into the driveway and it was cooler out in the driveway then it was in the garage!!!....So Fall is here and I want to make a cupboard,drysink,settle bench,cabinets to hang, and a big cabinet to put all my supplies in and out of reach of little hands....But first a yard sale to clear out...And that will be next weekend!!!...So hopefully I will be getting those projects marked off my list and pictures to share with you!!!..We'll see!!!

Have a great rest of the day!!!!.........Jen

WE HAD A BIG SCARE TODAY!!!

Taylor says she had a near life experience today...It was scary!!!...It is a terrible fear when your children need you and you can't get to them....Let me back up to yesterday when Taylor took the lizard out on the back deck ....She kept wanting me to look at it...I wanted no part of it!!!..She had Luke out there for a while before coming in and leaving it on the porch railing all night...This afternoon she decided to go check on it and of course took Luke with here...She was out there no longer than 20 seconds when I heard her crying and screaming...I ran to the door and something told me it was a snake...She was frozen in place and I couldn't open the door because the snake was right in front of the door...She had walked over it when she walked out...I kept telling her to back off the porch...She wouldn't because the snake was finally going through a crack between the house and the deck..She was afraid it would come out from under the deck....After what seemed like eternity she made a run for the door that I had open by that time....She collapsed in tears and she just sobbed...It took both of us time to calm down!!!


Several months ago Tim found a snake skin in the garage....A LONG one!!!...I had been going in and out of the garage a hundred times that day trying to organize my craft supplies and then he comes in and tells me what he'd found...He had found it right in front of the door...Needless to say I don't spend time out there unless it's to run and grab something and run back...Until the other night when I decided I NEEDED my antique ironing board...Tim had been out there organizing and I no longer could see it from the window looking into the garage...Well, I went and drug it out from behind some stuff...Thank goodness no signs of a snake...But I still don't trust that it is gone like Tim says it is...And we're having a yard sale next weekend and we need to get stuff cleaned out and priced...I think I'll be moving stuff with a broom handle!!ha!....



This is a wooden bowl I have in my kitchen..
I love these faux candy corns!!!!...I got them
last year while antique shopping with my
sister, Heather...

Finally the weekend is almost over....Weekends are always so busy around here....Last evening we met friends for dinner and then we took our 22-month old,Luke, to get some new clothes and shoes...He has to have a new wardrobe at the beginning of every season....~Shirts,socks,shoes, and pants~He had been running around barefooted and had no long sleeves for some of the cooler mornings....He was none too happy about trying on shoes and let EVERYONE in the store know about it...We finally gave up on more than one pair....But he got everything, but new pants....So there will be more shopping.....

Today was church...Then a lunch of pasta and meatballs that were waiting for us in the crockpot..Thank goodness!!...As soon as lunch is over then I rush to get Luke to sleep for his nap....And the sooner I get him to sleep the sooner I can lay down for one....And I don't miss a nap on Sunday!!..HA!HA!..I even tell my daddy not to call me on Sunday afternoon...It's nap time!!!!....But today it would be a short one...Tim had a meeting at church and I had to take Taylor over to campus for her sorority meeting....Dinner...And now everyone is in bed...Oooooooo...The weekend is finally over!!!!

There is something growing in my bathtub!!!!....My dd works at an educational toy store....Last week she brought this tiny little creature home and said she was putting it in the tub...I was busy doing something at the time,so I only caught half of the comversation....Later on I look in the tub and I see a wash cloth laying over the creature in several inches of water....Well, I knew it wasn't real, but it still gave me the creeps!!!...I remember when we moved here almost 10 years ago...In our other house a big lizard was in our toliet in the master bath...I mean BIG!!!...I still think it was someone's pet that had gotten loose in the water line....I've never seen any that big running around outside since we've lived here.....Anyway to this day I still think about it and always turn on the lights when entering the bathroom...Well, all week it just unnerved me knowing that that thing was in the tub!!!...Sometimes I'd peek in and just make sure it was still there..HEE HEE!!!.... When I 'd look in I couldn't see anything because the wash cloth covered it...Then one day the tail was sitcking out from under it's cover!!!!...Ooohhh YUCK!!!!.....It was definitely growing!!!...And Taylor said it had to be in there til Sunday...We'll it's Sunday and it's still there and it's BIG!!!!...HA!ha!....I'm ready for Monday!!!!!!....I'm off to do some x-stitching!!!

Hope you all had a good weekend!!!!.....Jen

MORE HOUSE PICTURES!!!!!

P.S.- Something is growing in my bathtub... and it's not mold!!!!!

Me Again!!....

Here are some pics of my house...It is a work in progress...We have just lived in it 5 months...It is considerably smaller...The house we sold was a 2-story Victorian...We loved it, but the upkeep was constant..So we started out looking for a brick one story...In picking this one we lost over 200 square feet...But it is cozy and just needs the cabinets, trim, etc. painted just like my other house to get rid of all the white....I keep telling my dh that this isn't my "FOREVER" house....So I've held off on doing too much to the interior......

I sell a lot of the items I x-stitch on ebay, but this year I would like to get all the things stitched I've been wanting for my house..~A girl can dream can't she~So as I add new items I will share with you all....I have also been cleaning out and I've gotten rid of alot of items that I'm tired of, so I can buy new..LOL..

Enjoy the pics....Jen.

Fall is Here...

IT'S FINALLY FRIDAY!!!!

I was awakened this morning with a phone call....Of course my phone wasn't in my room...Guess where it was?!?....Yes, in my dd room....She was calling from campus saying her last two classes had been cancelled and needed me to come pick her up...So I grab my little one and off we go....So the day started earlier than normal...But thats what happens when you stay up til 3:30 in the am to get computer time and x-stitching time..My son has always slept late...He has never gottten up early and had a morning nap, so it works out really well...I get my creative time and then I sleep 6 hours...

So I have been running around cleaning house and snapping some pics....Have a good weekend!!!......Jen

Happy Fall Ya'll

I never thought I'd be doing this blogging thing...But with encouragment from my daughter that kept telling me I should do it.... I decided to give it a try!...I will be posting about my adventures as a mom of a 18 year old that just started college and my starting over with my 22 month old{no empty nesting here for a long time!..love it!!}....They both keep me running!!

I also manage to do my primitve decorating...As all primitve decorators all know it is an addiction!.... And if I go too many days without decorating, reading primitive blogs, or working on my x-stitching I can get pretty cranky!!!!..

So be sure to check back...I'm going to be adding house pics soon of my Fall decorating...Have a great weekend!!!...

Jen