Sky Watch Friday - It's That Time Again

It's corn time in Indiana.

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Thursday 13 - The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly

So, I should preface this list with an explanation. Our house is not for sale! It is not listed with a realtor, nor is there a FSBO sign in the yard, NOTHING. With the way the market currently is and the way house values in our area have dropped we would be luck to get out of it what we still owe on it. Other pertinent info is that I got laid off in March with no chance of recall. My husband is retired from Delphi so his retirement income is subject to change - and not in a good way. So when someone delivers a potential buyer to the front door of your house, I think you have to assume it might be a God thing. We showed the house yesterday and I have very mixed feelings about it. Thus, the list:

The Good

A smaller house payment would be awesome!

A smaller house to clean would be great.

If moving means getting away from the mutant bugs that seem to have appeared this summer that would be good with me.

A place with less stairs would probably be a good thing - especially long-term.

Moving would force us to get rid of some of our excess stuff.

A new place would undoubtedly have less flower beds to weed.

The Bad

I would have to leave all the perennial flowers I have planted that are finally naturalizing the front yard.

I'd be leaving my five acres of woods with the deer and owl and funny little lizards.

We built most of this house ourselves - we have a lot of blood, sweat, and tears invested.

The decks, the fire pit, the outdoor kitchen...

We'd have to get rid of a bunch of stuff - it's not the stuff so much as the deciding what to keep and what to do with the rest - sell, donate, or burn in the fire pit.

Where would we (and Gracie the 100 lb. Rottweiler) go from here exactly?

The Ugly

The actual process of moving. I hate it. The packing, the unpacking, the sorting, the storing, the lifting, the hauling, the upheaval.

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Wordless Wednesday - Caught

The trash trashing culprits have been caught "white" handed.




In case you city folks don't know, those are racoon prints sliding down the side of our garbage can.

Sermon in a Sentence

Marriages don't typically fail because of an isolated disaster, but from failure to pay attention to the basics regularly. -paraphrased from Truth for Life

Photo Hunt - Utensils

Here are some of my favorites.







If you think you see a trend, you're right. My Pampered Chef representative loves me!

Sky Watch - The Giving Tree

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Thursday 13 - Faeries, Sprites & Lights

Here are the 13 little houses we were able to find at the Faeries, Sprites & Lights event. I started with my favorite!









I really liked this one too.

Sorry that last one is a little blurry. Scroll down to the Two for Tuesday post to see a couple more photos from this event.

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Wordless Wednesday

Two for Tuesday - yadseuT rof owT

Isaac in Wonderland

Enjoying the evening with Christy & Isaac at Faeries, Sprites & Lights.

**More photos from this event on Thursday**

Sermon in a Sentence

Compromise represents a far greater risk than courage. As difficult as it is to stand for truth, it is much harder to live with the consequences of moral failure.
-Dennis Rainey

Sky Watch Friday - Hey Hay!

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Thursday 13 - Things a Grandparent Should Know

Things change - so if you are about to become a grandparent for the first time there are some things you should know.

Here are just some (13 to be exact) of the things I have learned in the past two years.*

1. Rule # 1 - assume all the rules you remember from being a Mom/Dad are wrong!


2. Diapers come in multiple sizes and food is divided into age stages.


3. Anything that ties is bad - hats, coat hoods, bibs - bad, bad, bad.


4. Bibs all have Velcro now - be sure to attach the Velcro together before putting the bib in the laundry with your good sweater, shirt, etc.


5. They are not called play pens ( because you are not confining the child - that might warp their little id), they are Pak n' Plays.


6. Everything you will sit the child in will have shoulder harnesses and lap straps (so apparently when they are sitting it's okay to warp confine them).


7. Unless you go retro, every toy you buy will require batteries.


8. Never assume the child safety latch you just bought will work.
   
   It took Isaac less time to remove this one then it did for me to put it on!



9. Any toy you kept from when your kids were little may put you at risk of child endangerment - it undoubtedly has smaller parts than are now allowed.


10. FYI - car seats have expiration dates! Don't ask me to explain why, I can't.


11. Oh, and if you have grandchildren that tend to be thin or small, they'll be in some kind of car seat until they're 12.


12. The list of what you can feed them until they are about two is about the same length as what the list of what you couldn't feed them was when you had your kids.


13. Good news - according to the surgeon general, the CDC, and all the parenting magazines and books, you can still love them just like you did your kids.

*DISCLAIMER -This list is not meant to disrespect or poke fun at my daughters in any way. They roll their eyes at some of the "new" rules too.

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Wordless Wednesday - Mushroom Flowers?

Sermon in a Sentence - Freedom

The truth is that we may have one sin acting as the biggest obstacle to freedom, the simplest sin we don't even notice - thinking that our past is too overwhelming for God to do anything about. -excerpt from Finding Freedom From a Broken Past/Women of Faith

Saturday Photo Hunt - Garbage

The Aftermath

This is the trash can "line up" after the clean up from the 4th of July celebration at a local park.

Sky Watch Friday - Clouds

A great sky for a science teacher showing the different types of clouds...



... turns into an amazing sunset.






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Thursday 13 - Technologically Speaking

This post is late because I spent the morning getting a new cell phone in Dante's first level of hell - otherwise known as the Vrzn store. During the waiting process I determined that I have a love/hate relationship with technology...


I love that I can call my friend in Kazakhstan on the phone and talk to her like she is just across town.

I hate getting a new cell phone and trying to figure it all out - again!

I love that my new phone has a QWERTY keyboard.

I hate that you lose your ringtones when you switch phones just so they can charge you for them yet again.

I love that the inside screen lets me do a slide show for wallpaper so I can have photos of all the grandbabies.

I hate that the screen on the outside is so tiny that the time covers up most of any picture you put on there- I wasn't willing to pay the $30 more for a screen that was larger by half an inch.








I love DVD's so you don't have to worry about the "tape" breaking or stretching if you play the same movie over and over.

I hate myriad of remotes required to operate the TV, DVD player, surround sound, and Dish.







I love my digital camera that lets me know immediately if the picture is good, doesn't waste film, and lets me easily share my photos with you.

I hate the rate at which said camera goes through batteries. (Yes, I have rechargables which seem to run down at the same rate whether they are in the camera or out of it. So much for carrying backup batteries.)

I love Facebook and connecting with old friends and getting a message from a boy (man) who remembered me as his first kiss in 4th grade!

I hate feeling like I have to check Facebook regularly because no one under 40 will pick up the phone to call and tell you something - they just post it.

I LOVE that I can have a blog and share what's on my mind and in my world and also learn about you and yours.



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Wordless Wednesday - Our 4th

The 4th of July celebration at our house!

Sermon in a Sentence

The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.
- Franklin D. Roosevelt

Sky Watch #50

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