Fa La La La La!

So you all know we've had the flu and I don't have any new furniture pictures for you....I'm working on it though....but I do have a few great pictures I've been wanting to share.  


My little Sugar Bug has run a fever for 9 straight days at this point and we've been to the Dr. 4 times, had tests run and x-rays taken.....the conclusion is, she just doesn't handle the flu well!?!?!  SO, antibiotics have finally started and we are trying to get back on track around here.  I have ONE WEEK to get things ship shape before the holiday break starts!  AAAAHHH!


In the midst of all this, the holiday spirit just doesn't seem to have hit yet.  Today I got up with renewed vigor, the Christmas music is going and so are we!!!


Here are just a few of my favorite things from this past week!

A winter sunrise in Alabama!

I love the glow the lights cast on everything in my home!

A cabinet full of my jadite, my Grandmother's china, and chalk decorations my Dad made for his grandmothers at least 50 years ago!

My sweet Sugar Bug with her snowman creation.....a home from school project!

Oh, and the coloring we did this week!!!

I hope everyone is in the Happy Holiday spirit!  Stay healthy!!


Lisa

It's confirmed...we have the flu!

We've been to the doctor and it is confirmed....we have the flu!!!  AAARGH!


Luckily, as I said earlier, I think I will actually live now but as of Saturday morning, it was really questionable.  I have one baby bedded down on one couch and the other tucked snuggly in my bed.  My sister has been quarantined upstairs so that we will at least have one survivor who can run out for emergency supplies, and I am doing my best to get the Christmas ornaments out in fits and spurts!  


The flu.....REALLY?!?!?!!  The best part of the whole thing, depending on how you look at it, is that I can now visually identify 90% of the cast members on Shake It Up!, Hannah Montana, iCarly, Phineas and Ferb, Pair of Kings, and Sonny With a Chance.  It isn't often we sit and watch much TV but even  more rare that I sit too and with these as my TV choices, it's no wonder!!


So now that I think I might live, between taking care of my poor little sick babies and trying to decorate for Christmas, I am also finally kicking myself into high gear on this lovely!!

I blogged about it here but in case you missed it, this will be a birthday present for a very special girl. She decided she doesn't want it painted and would rather just have it restored and refinished to match the other traditional antique pieces already in her room.  I hope to get it done this week so that next week can be dedicated to Christmas presents!


Wish me luck!

Lisa

Sick!

Sugar Bug was the first victim Thursday night at Disney on Ice!  I was the second and now my little Cowboy is sick too.  I don't think I've slept that much in years but, as of today, I think I will actually live.

Hope everyone else out there is doing well.

Lisa

The furniture sometimes talks!

While I was making my little Craigslist pick-up the other day, I decided to make a side trip to a thrift store that can really be hit or miss.  Well, this time it was a HIT!!!

Just a little background..... my little sister Meg, while working on her MBA, is living with us and has taken over my budget spreadsheet.  I tell you she knows down to the penny, what I've spent, what I've earned, and where my little business stands financially.   SO, she has sort of hinted that we have enough inventory right now but.....this little bedroom set screamed, "HELP ME!!!"  I couldn't walk away.  Well, not twice anyway!  I did try but, I just couldn't actually drive away from the store without talking to the workers and then negotiating a little.  Meg was saying something about the garage, the list of projects, the budget and I could see her lips moving but....."HELP ME!" was all I could really hear! Oh, and the lady that said she would take 1/3 off the already great price!


Before she could say too much more, Meg was helping carry a bed, chifferobe, and nightstand out to the truck!  I'll have to catch up on some projects and hopefully the budget will work itself out but I know I heard "THANK YOU!" when I closed the tailgate!


Don't you think these little guys deserved rescuing?  The black might not have been so bad if it weren't high gloss, sloppy, and then my personal favorite was the previous owners addition of the creepy silver spiky corner things!!  But, I do love the casters and the lines so, I think they will be gooorgeous when finished!

Lisa

Lucy

This year, like many others in America, we are really trying to scale back on the Christmas presents.  I am trying to make, redo, and be creative with my present giving but I still want everyone to LOVE everything they get!! With all that being said, I have been combing Craigslist for a few things that I think could be remade for some of the special people in my life.  

SCORE....on Wed. I found something that will be a huge hit (once it is loved on a little bit).  I can't say too much because well, it's going to be a gift and I don't want the surprise ruined should someone special be reading this however, when it's all said and done, before and afters WILL be posted. 

One of the best parts of this Craigslist pickup was that it was a stay-at-home Dad that I dealt with.  Dad, Malcolm (2), and Lucy (4) answered the door.  Lucy proceeded to tell me all about her birthday, their recent move, and her brother's potty training issues.  To which, Malcolm stripped down, climbed on the couch and started jumping from couch to couch to table!!  Dad calmly got out the screwdriver to take apart my purchase!  

picture courtesy of: http://www.cobaltcarriers.com/blog1.htm

Later, I got an e-mail saying Lucy would like the lady with the August birthday to send pictures of the "present" in it's new home!  I'm sure she has no idea this little treasure will travel great distances before it is in it's new home BUT, I did promise to send pictures when it's done!

Don't you just love it when people surprise you and it's fun?!  As I was checking off my to-do list and fitting in this little side trip, Lucy, Malcolm, and laid back Dad were NOT what I expected!

Hope you have a pleasant surprise in your day!

Lisa

Thanks and Sorry!

Hey!

Lots to tell:
Not sure if ya'll remember the highchair, but sweet pregnant Kim came yesterday to pick it up.  Her mother-in-law bought if for them as a gift and she was thrilled with how it turned out!  She sent the nicest thank you note after she got home; isn't that the best part of this?!  Thanks again Kim and MIL!

Thanks to Handsome Hubby for buying tickets to Disney on Ice!  He is away on travel and left the tickets as a surprise for us and boy, were the kids surprised!  It was a school night (ugh!) and Cowboy was not sure he wanted to sit through 7 singing princesses but, Sugar Bug was thrilled.....until she started complaining about a tummy ache.  Hhhmmm, no fever, no cough, let's just go potty and see what happens I thought.  Everything seemed well enough...do you hear it coming?!?!

We had seats so close, you could feel the shavings of ice as the skaters moved around but, Sugar Bug would not leave my lap.  This is so unlike my baby that I really did start to wonder about her tummy ache.  After the 6th princess did her thing, they announced an intermission and the lights came on.  My girl, the strong willed steel tongued 5 year old I love SO much, very quickly and quietly pulled a Taco Bell bag from her coat pocket and proceeded to get very sick right there in the middle of a million giggling girls.  UUUGH!   As cool as a cucumber, she said, "Mom, I need a wet wipe and I think we'll have to skip Cinderella!"  No kidding?!?!

SO sorry to anyone sitting close to us last night....I sincerely hope we didn't spread anything!


Although I hadn't planned on having kids home today, when Cowboy climbed in bed at 3:30am complaining of his tummy I decided this might be the perfect day to get some of the ornaments on the tree (finally) and watch Cinderella on DVD!  Oh, and did I mention the boy that didn't want to see the dancing princesses really wanted his sick sister to just stick it out and stay for the Cinderella show after she puked her guts up.....he really didn't want to miss the best part!?!?!  Two thumbs up for Disney on Ice: Princess Classics! and an opportunity to discuss sibling compassion!

While at the ranch last week, in total peace and quiet, I watched a very red sun rise off in the distance.  Although it was dark when I got up this morning, I couldn't see the rising sun and am thinking back on this bit of beauty.  I hope for healthy children when they wake!

I have some great furniture projects planned for the next 2 weeks (I promise!!) and will post pics as soon as I get to work!  Hope everyone has a great day!

Lisa

Happy Days!

Oh, it's been SO crazy here for almost two weeks!  I know everyone is busy this time of year but I had to get up extra early this morning just to get a few quiet minutes alone and finally post something!


As most of you know, we headed out the Friday before Thanksgiving so that we could spend a whole week at our ranch in Texas!  This is one of our favorite times of the year and we all look forward to gathering at the ranch to hang out and celebrate.  Now, getting there is usually much harder than hosting 30 or more people!  Driving across the United States with 2 kids, 2 dogs, and a Suburban full of stuff has made for many a good story BUT, don't you worry, this trip we added my sister's horse dog to the mix and were pulling a U-Haul full of furniture for my other sister's new house!  Oh, the stories to tell!!  If only I could have been a fly on the wall instead of in the middle of it!

Before we could even begin loading the U-Haul, our wild child dog busted through the wire fence and was gone.  After a long and tiring search, she was recovered but not before many uuuugly words were exchanged between me, my sister, and my husband!  Then Meg and I started loading the U-Haul.  We moved and repositioned and moved some more!  Finally it was loaded and I started on the Suburban!  We were PACKED!

We started the trip in the dark hours of the morning and finally got to my Mom's in the dark hours of the evening.  There, we had to unload and repack half the trailer so that The Col. (my step-dad) could take it the rest of the way to Colorado and deliver to Erin's doorstep.  We were all tired, a little cranky (maybe an understatement, but honest nonetheless), and ready to get to the ranch!  We decided to get a good nights rest and start again the next morning.

The night was restless and I really think we all woke up crankier than we went to bed.  But, just when things couldn't get much crazier, we looked around and Meg's precious, first born, horse dog, was missing!!!!  We split into three teams and started combing the neighborhood.  If you live in the Mesquite area and were awakened by people screaming "REBEL" at the tops of their lungs.....I'm SO sorry!  Anyway, just when I was getting a little frantic, my cell phone rang....UUUGGGG, it was Meg!  I really thought it was parental six-sense and I was going to have to admit losing her only child but no, the local (Texas) Fire Department had called to tell her Rebel was eating breakfast at their house and would be ready to go home anytime!  Thank goodness he was was safe BUT, I was NOT HAPPY with the dog and this doesn't even touch on my already cranky husband's feelings!

As we got closer and closer to the ranch, miraculously Handsome Hubby's mood brightened.  We got there early enough to unload and get ready for an evening hunt which made for at least 3 VERY happy people!

Nothing palatial but, the place that makes me take a deep breath and smile!

This is the first installment of a series that will have to be continued later.....I must get moving to go make Christmas ornaments with Sugar Bug and her Kindergarten class!

Hope you are getting in the holiday spirit and I promise there won't be such long lapses in blogging again until Christmas!

Lisa