Easter art show

Our church has hosted an art show for the past three years. This year Brett made a cross. We also bought two pieces.

Murphy's Law

Murphy's Law is in full effect here at our house. We are working on a "small" bathroom update. Well it has turned into a "big" bathroom update. Brett is doing a great job with all the projects! It just so happens that each project is turning out to be complicated. We have some pics and maybe I'll get them up here later. We have become good friends with the staff at Home Depot and we have learned a lot of new things!

It has been a long time

It has been a long time since I posted something on here. Life is well, just life. Things happen. Here are just a few things that have gone on in the past few months.

Our 2nd Anniversary
Thanksgiving
Christmas
New Year's
Brett's Birthday
My 30th Birthday
I got shingles (maybe more on this later, maybe not)
I worked a lot of over time in March
We have been working on several home improvement projects.

So there you go! You are caught up on our lives.

I fell into a hole

Ok, so no I didn't really fall into a hole, but that is my excuse for now. Lots going on this summer, might post about it at some point. But for now I leave you with this.

I picked up Mittens today a the vet. She had her surgery so she will never have babies :( As I was leaving the clinic my vet was following behind a dog outside trying to get a poop sample. I realized that no matter how bad my job is, I don't have to follow a dog around trying to get poop!

DISCLAIMER - I love my job and it is not bad at all. But we all have days that are less than perfect. I love my vet, Dr. Allen. He is a wonderful vet and very sweet to all of his animals. I don't mean an disrespect towards him or his profession. It was a very funny sight to see two grown men following a dog around trying to get him to go to the bathroom . . . .

Just a quick update

I promised that I would be posting more, but life and sickness gets in the way. I was down for the count for 8 days with a double ear infection that caused vertigo. - NOT FUN- I am so glad to back to "normal" now.

The gutter hanging went really well. No one got hurt and the gutters look great! Brett did a great job and even did the front side of the house all by himself. (that day was the first day of being sick and I slept on the couch the whole time) The gutters have been tested already by a few rain showers. The biggest difference is the noise. On the back deck we basically had a waterfall, all the water went over the edge of the gutters, not down the down spout. We didn't realize how loud that really was until the waterfall went away.

Not much else is going on. I am trying to grow some cherry tomatoes, normal tomatoes, and jalapenos. They are growing very slowly so far.

I also made a curtain for the living room. I'll just say that I did pretty good! I'll get a pic of it soon.

We are looking forward to Uncle Jeff and family coming to visit soon. Martin, Ashlan and Carew will be here right after Jeff and Ann. And next weekend I will be in DC to see Laura. Lots of fun times with friends and family!

Just Hanging Around

This weekend we will be just hanging around - hanging gutters! Yep we are going to replace our gutters and do it all by ourselves! Brett and I have absolutely no experience doing this type of project, but we have read about it on the internet and it sounds simple enough.

The old gutters are leaking and causing water damage to our house, so this task must be done. We went to home depot and priced that the materials would cost. I was surprised at how much just the gutter supplies cost, so I can only imagine what it would cost to pay someone to do it.

So wish us luck! If you have any words of advice, let me know.

Workin' 9 to 5 . . .

Wait - make that Workin' 8 to Noon.

Yep, I am going part time. Brett and I have made this decision for many, many reasons. But the Lord's timing is perfect (and it always is). Brett has a great job that he loves and it has a great salary with great benefits. I want to focus on my home and family. (I am NOT prego.) So starting Tuesday, June 1st I will only work 20 hours a week. I can't wait to have less stress, more free time, a chance to keep up with house work, and most of all time to spend with family and friends.

The light at the end of the tunnel

On Sunday, May 23rd I will finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Work has been overwhelming for the past three months. But, it is all coming to an end and for the most part went very well.

Here are some short updates
1) Brett got a job and he started yesterday.
2) The three kittens are doing great and growing up so fast they are 7 weeks old.
3) My house is a wreck and it is just going to have to stay that way for a little longer.
4) I have some travel/vacation coming up this summer. I am very excited about it.
5) Home improvement jobs are about to start and I can't wait!

More to come on this blog about everything. I can't wait to get back on track and catch up on the blog.

Geocaching

Here is a great video that explains geocaching.

Updates will be slim . . .

There might not be much going on here for the next three months. Work is really busy. We have two MAJOR projects going on right now. The funny part is they happen at the exact same time. It feels like a three ring circus! It takes all my focus and energy to work so I come home wiped out. The blog will be on the back burner for now. But here are a few random thoughts . . .

Our cat Patches is prego. I think she will have kittens in about three weeks. We are looking for good homes for them. If her first litter of cats is any indication, these are going to be some cute cats!! I'll even throw in some free cat food.

Brett has started a blog. Check it out. He will talk about "Man Things", and leave me to talk about "Woman Things" on this blog. He has been working on lots of projects around the house.

Speaking of Brett, he has had one job interview so far. It went really well and we are just playing the waiting game to see what happens. In the mean time, he has found more places to apply and we are still praying for wisdom and guidance.

The budget thing is going well. Which is a really good thing because we have to pay Uncle Sam a big chunk of change. I have never had to pay taxes. I am not to happy about it at all. We do get a nice refund from the State, but it is not enough to cover what we owe to the Feds. *sigh* That is why we have savings and money set aside for emergencies. But it is no fun. :(

I am very, very, very ready for Spring. I need some sun shine and warmer weather. Because it has been so cold, I haven't gotten my birthday flowers yet. Every year around my birthday God grows little pink/white flowers in every one's yard. The day Mom and Dad brought me home from the hospital Martin went into the back yard and picked a handful for Mom and me. Ever since then we call them Birthday Flowers. (Most people call them weeds, but they just don't know the proper name.) So I am ready for some warmth and for God to grow some Birthday flowers.

I have finished our Christmas stockings and I have bought two more kits. They are matching. One is a tree skirt with the Twelve Days of Christmas. The other is ornaments of the Twelve Days of Christmas. I am really enjoying working on them. Now the race is one to finish them by December 2010. I am still thinking about making these felt Christmas decorations and selling them on etsy.com But I told myself that I had to finish the stockings, tree skirt, and ornaments before I started anything else. So we will see what happens . . . .

My birthday went really well. I got lots of cleaning supplies for Our House. We were able to go with our small group the day after my birthday and visit with the folks there. We had a good time playing Bingo, Uno, and Taboo. I think we can really help meet some needs there.

I am so glad we have cats. They each are so different! Tiger doesn't come around much. He is like a moody teenager who thinks his parents are lame. He will stop by to eat our food once in a while. He loves to go visit other houses in the neighborhood. He often smells like another woman's perfume. I think he has a hurt paw right now. I am guessing he is trying to be the Alpha Cat and not doing too good at it. I caught him running into the storm drain the other day. How he got out, I don't know. Also it looks like some one tried to give him a hair cut. My guess is a little girl got some gum stuck in his fur and they had to cut it out. Boots is our loyal and true one. He hardly ever leaves the back yard. And if he does leave, he just goes to the front yard. He loves to eat. If another cat is eating he always goes and joins them, even if he just ate right before that. He has become so sweet and loving. He will let anyone pet him and loves to cuddle on the couch with me. (Yes we do let them in the house sometimes). Patches has made the most dramatic change. She is very lovey and sweet now. Probably because she is prego. She loves to come into the house and explore. She loves to be petted and held. She comes running every time we open the back door. And she has become Brett's special helper in the shop!

That is about all that I can think of right now. I know it is a long post, but it might be all you get for awhile. In June I'll have time to catch back up and starting with November 2009. If you think about it say a prayer for Brett to find a job and a prayer for me to stay sane at mine.

Are you an artist?

Do you paint, draw, take photographs or sculpt? If so please consider entering the Epoch Church Art Gallery. The theme is “Life of Christ” Check out http://epochchurch.org/artgallery/ for more details.

Goal Update

Goal Update

January's Goals:
e-mail the Christmas letter out - not done yet
**** Still not done, I have decided to just post it on the blog and be finished with it

February's Goals:
finish our stockings for Christmas 2010 - Mine is 98% there, Brett's is 80% there

**** FINISHED!!! I can't wait to show off the finished product.

wrap the hot water tank with insulation

*** Not even started, but Brett did get some insulation for the pipes under the house. Does that count?
e-mail the Christmas letter

***** See above

On another note - the couch recover project is almost finished and that wasn't even a goal. :)

I'm a WINNER

I enter blog give-a-ways all the time. Once I thought I had won something on Pioneer Woman. But there was another Jill who's favorite dessert was pecan pie . . . sigh . . . .

But today - I AM A WINNER!!!!!

I entered the give-a-way over at The Pilot's Wife the other day. I met Emily in the summer of 2002. We worked together at a Summer Day Camp in Mountain Home, Arkansas. She was a hard worker, loved the kids, and was super creative!

Emily married Patrick and they have a cutie of a son. Patrick's parents own a wonderful jewelry store in Mountain Home called The Jewel Chest. This store is amazing. The staff is warm and friendly and they know their stuff. I bought a ring there in summer of 2003. I LOVE that ring. I know that it will be something that I will wear for the rest of my life.

Back to the give-a-way - Emily was offering a give-a-way for a sterling silver ELLE necklace and I won. I can't wait for it to come in and show it off. Please check out Emily's blog and The Jewel Chest.

Thank you so much Emily and Carter Family.

The New Budget

When Brett was laid off we took action to make sure we would not go into debt during this time. We stopped some of our monthly payments (Netflix, support of two charities, our monthly savings). In addition we were just about to start a monthly contribution to our retirement funds, and put that on hold. We pared it down to the essential things.

I am sad to say in the past we have spent TOO MUCH on food and misc. things each month. So in order to get that under control we have switched to the cash system for these two categories.

Each week Brett gets cash for groceries and cash for our "fun money". Brett and I get an equal amount of "fun money" each week. We can choose how to spend that money. It can be on eating out for lunch, buying something we want, or saving for a larger purchase. In addition if you get birthday money or such you can keep that and add it to your fun money.

At the end of each month we evaluate the situation and make a decision on how much we can put into savings. It will vary each month because of emergencies that might come up. We are trying very hard to add to savings each month because we don't know how long Brett's unemployment will last. We want to be ready for the time when it will end.

1,000 Gifts 41-50

41. An ice day last week.
42. A SNOW day on Monday.
43. A second SNOW day on Tuesday.
44. The possibility of SNOW tonight!
45. Making a snow man with my hubby.
46. Curing cabin fever with the hubby with a trip to Chick-fil-a
47. My hubby helping with a Wal-Mart run.
48. Kitties that keep us laughing.
49. Not loosing power.
50. Not wrecking on the ice or snow.