Thruthful Thursday or {Me Coming Cleaning}

Hello friends!!

It's a quick confession today, my confession.....I finally hired a house cleaner. Yes, I finally admitted that [to myself] that I can't do it all. Bubba Hubster has been on me to hire someone to help me out, just come in and do the deep scrubbing and cleaning. He said if he had someone come in and do the yard maintanence for him,I needed someone to come in and do maintanence cleaning. For a long time I resisted, but then I finally gave in, and to be completely honest....I absolutely love it! As long as we can comfortably afford it I will continue to have them. It's so nice to not have to spend my weekend time scrubbing. I can actually get projects done faster, and completed!!

And another confession.....last week when my guy's boots dropped dried mud on the floor Wednesday night I didn't even sweep it up. Nope, I thought about it running out the door Thursday morning, forgot it that night and didn't worry about it at all Friday morning since they come Friday after noon.

It was nice!

Luvs!
Michelle

Thrifty Tuesday {or trying to get posting down which I'm not sure will ever happen!}

Good Morning!!

I know I seem to pop up like weeds in a flower bed - all beautiful mulch one night and then the next morning - BAM! - there I am all scraggly 4' of me, lol!

A quick recap to get caught up:

Menu Monday -

M: sloppy joes & chips
T: denny's (Bubba Hubster & my daddy are out of town so Buckaroo, Momma Matriach (my momma) and myself will be treating ourselves to a dinner out!)
W: drive - thru - I know I know, two days in a row but it's church and we dont get out until 8ish and a 30 min drive after dropping off Cor's friend. yes, please and thank you for McDonald's.
T: sausage, potatoes and carrots
F: french bread pizza (new recipe I'm going to try from a great blog I read Blissful & Domestic)
S: I'm taking another que from Danielle and doing a leftover night and this will be it.
S: pork chops & corn

Thrifty Tuesday:

I had some major scores this week! My aunts came in and we went to the cannery and canned lots of food. We also hit a couple different  thrift stores that I don't normall hit.

 

Isn't it all great looking!!

 

 

Now onto the goodies! To the front left a set of four handled beautiful peach colored carnival glass bowls ($4). To the back left is a liqour decanter with a glass etching of a deer in the forest ($2), to the side of that is an iridescent crystal bowl ($4) (I love me some iridescent)! Of course my 'go-to' spot  each and every time the kids book sections, I also found a McGee and Me video (total $5). I told Bubba Hubster I need one of those machines that transfers VHS to DVD. Then I think my most favorite item a family themed Matryoshka doll - I have a love affair with them ($2)! This has a daddy, mommy, child, doggy and kitty. 

I hope everyone has a great day and come back tomorrow for Wonderful Wednesday!!

Much Luv,
Michele

Friday Fun

Hello Friends!

I want to make a fun easy post for Fridays. So as I do with our menu planning I try to make up a name for the day that has the same letter as the day (yes seriously I do that Taco Tuesdays).

My Fridays are now known as Friday Fun, it's a quick post that you can show a link to your post or just tell us what you have planned for the weekend! Yeppers, that easy!! Easy Peasy Lemon Weasey!!

We will have a fantastic weekend. We are wanting to see Jurassic Park in 3D on Friday, that series is one of Buckaroo's most favorite. I thought it would be awesome to be able to see it with him and then on top of that it's 3D folks!! On Saturday my SIL & BIL are coming in from Oklahoma and staying with us for the evening and we are taking them to Galveston for their seven day cruise. We are so excited we haven't seen our OK family in WWAAAYYYY too long! Since we are gonna be in Galveston on Sunday we decided to make it a family outting and enjoy the Strand and some shops.

What is everyone up to? Hope to hear from you!

Much Luv,
Michelle

Thruthful Thursday.....{or Me Being a Little Less Chicken}

Good Morning Friends!!

I hope everyone has had a great week so far, just think we are only really one day away from the weekend. I figure why count today, when we've already gotten up because that's the hardest part for me!!

Speaking of which, what time do y'all wake up? What do you do in the mornings? I used to be sleep until the last second possible, run run run and leave. At the time I was a smoker and I wouldn't even wake up early enough to have relaxed smoke in the morning! Well now 9.5 yrs later, I'm total opposite, I'm smoke free and I get up at 5 am and we leave at 7:50 am. I pick up, change the laundry, dishwasher, tidy, etc until 6 am then I allow myself to have 'me' time. I usually do all my computer stuff so I can have a clear plate to start the day,read blogs, emails, facebook, etc and have my coffee. I enjoy having everything cleared, tidies and a fresh slate, plus it would take me three times longer in the evening along with everything else.

Anyways, I've been doing the link up from Amy of While Wearing Heels for This is Me, and this is been such a cathartic experience for me. So much so that I've decided that I'm going to make Thursdays around here Thruthful Thursdays, along with other posts if I want/need to. It's going to be about anything that I would normally not share because it's not "perfect" dang type A personality! I hope that you'll join me! Now I have no idea how to do a Linky Party so if you do want to join post a link, a story, etc in the comments and I'll try to start to figure out how to make a linky party.

So here it is:

 Before

After

 

Y'all laundry, ugh, laundry. Don't get me wrong I am so grateful that we are blessed to have clothes and the "problem" of laundry, BUT I can't stand the putting away part. For real, I wish we had three complete outfits, one towel and rag apiece, and two pairs of jammies. I would NEVER have anything to really put away, lol! Nothing else of laundry bothers me, not the sorting (which I gave up long ago I just use vinegar in all my loads), changing from washer to dryer, unloading and preparing the clothes to be hung, folding EXCEPT putting them away. Maybe it's all the different closets - gosh I sound like a BRAT! But it is what it is, and I am who I am (thanks Amy!).

 

Ok so I snapped this picture on Mondays and was gonna put it on facebook to show my 'downfall' ......but I'm too chicken still to do that. So I decided I was gonna share over here where I'm completely more comfortable. This little exercise was two fold for me, making myself more comfortable with showing the real me, and it pushed me to put away those clothes. I could just hear all of y'all saying, 'Take a break shell, rest and then put them away a small section at a time.' So thank y'all so much for allowing this blog to be that sanctuary that I always wanted it to be! This is my work on goal for April, I usually leave all the stuff folded and ready for hangers on the dryer. I'm gonna work on putting away each load asap! So I best close out and go put up the one on the dryer now!

 

Ok confession time! What are you struggling with, words or pictures are great! Please tell me I'm not alone?

 

Much Luv,

Michelle

 

PS. Ok since it IS Thruthful Thursday, that first picture isn't completely accurate....both sides were about 4-6" higher. But I just couldn't bring myself to post THAT picture yet!

This Is Me or {Being Naked Is Scary Part 2}

Hey Friends!

It's that time of month again, Amy's This Is Me linky party, and I'm really excited (even more so than normal) to link up this month. Ok, I'm really nervous too, I don't normally show my vulnerable side to most people. I'm just not comfortable with it, but it's a bit of relief to take off that "everything is perfect and I have no issues" mask.

Ok so now that we know Michelle has some serious issues (lol!) here's the picture:

It's technically looking towards the ground BUT it was looking down my camera, plus it just connected to me so emotionally I HAD to go with it. I know most people would say "ok this is a total normal let's post to facebook and show people what I'm doing" picture. But not to me. To let you in on how m brain works this is what I see, and what truthfully went through my head, BUT it was fleeting, came in and went out. And truthfully y'all Amy's linky parties have been so wonderful for me, so liberating and the feedback y'all give me well, it has boosted my confidence so much that I can tell myself, 'No Michelle THIS is enough, this moment, this place, these things, these are enough. You don't have to do/be/say anything to be better you *ARE* good enough just being. Right here, right now, right this way - YOU ARE ENOUGH! A very dear dear friend, you know those kind that you might not talk to for a couple months but hen you do u pick up right where you left off like you were talking to them yesterday, yea that kind, well she planted the "enough" seed and started watering a while ago, then Amy came along and this wonderful linky party and she gave me some fertilizer and food and then y'all are watering me with your feedback. Please do NOT misunderstand and think I don't have this support at home because I do and always have from my family, adolescence just wasn't nice y'all, it wasn't. It's just different when you hear it from people that aren't your momma, daddy, hubby or son. I hope and pray everyday that I raise my son and future children to always ALWAYS A-L-W-A-Y-S think of how the person you are talking to will receive the message you are saying. And to always stick up for people even if you don't know them. It's hard to go against the grain, but if you do and you get splinters we will ALWAYS be there to pick them out., be that person that helps pick splinters out.  People just don't realize how deep scars really run, especially when you're young.  Ok so now that I got totally off track, here's my first thoughts.

1) Um, no this will not work because
     a) look  - my belly's protruding into the picture
     b) um ever seen an elephants foot - no? well just look at my heels it'll be a great reference point
     c) yea i'm ssssooooo not linking a picture with the stuffing coming out of the cushion - damn squirrels
     d) I can't see it now, but I'm sure there was a D then.

So all in all, it wasn't PERFECT.

 The belly represented my umpteenth failure at weight loss - even a GASTRIC BYPASS surgery didn't do it.

The elephant hide heels well I don't know what it repped but it just doesn't fit with perfect.

The chewed up cushion, again it wasn't perfect.

What will people say? What will people think? Oh my look at how fat she is she's a failure. Why did she take a picture of her scaly feet? Why hasn't she gotten a pedicure? Oh my word look at that stuffing coming out - why hasn't she replaced it yet?

Remember I forewarned y'all about the way I think, LOL!

All this played like super fast forward in my mind, lasting about two minutes max. Wanna know what then immediately popped into my mind?

ENOUGH

Yes, I am enough, my world is enough, my everything is enough!!

 

I looked at that picture again, and this is what I REthought (yes it is a word even if it isn't ;)

 

I AM going to use this picture because:

a) my belly - well it housed, fed and protected the most wonderful little being ever in my world that we never thought we'd be graced with.

b) my elephant heels - yes I still want a pedicure (who doesn't!?) but I haven't wanted to spend the money or time on it for a while because I've been spending that same money and same time doing amazing adventures and making the most marvelous memories with the most wonderful BIG being in my world that helped make that most wonderful LITTLE being in our world and that same little being.

c) the cushion - it's a freaking cushion!! and it helped a momma take care of her babies during the winter months, be it a squirrel, bird, whatever. it helped another thing survive. I can buy another cushion.

 

This picture also represented that I was starting to take time for things that I enjoyed again. I love to read but had pretty much stopped doing it except for blogs because it took too much time from CLEANING, (aka PERFECTING things). Umm, sorry but that is crazy, (yes I sometimes need a hammer to donk me upside the head). I was just so deep into and surrounded by the trees that I couldn't see the forest.

 

Ok I know that was deep LIKE really really REALLY deep, I don't normally do that but you know sometimes you have to step out of your comfort zone.I hope you will continue to come back and I didn't scare you off! I thank God everyday that He has made our paths cross and that we are encouragement to one another.

 

Thank you for watering me!

 

And Amy thank you for fertilizing and feed me AND us!

 

Much Luv,

Michelle

 



 



Coffe Table {Round 3...I think...}

Hey Friends,

Sorry so late in the day, but I wanted to get this up since I said I would have a post and I'm so darn tooting excited about it.

All but one set of our furniture has been hand-me downs, some good others...not so much. Anyways it all served its function. This last set we currently have is our new to me set, and.....I hate it. There I said it. I really do, but I'm stuck with it for a while. A LONG while. Except the tables I can change those babies out one at a time and I have. The two end tables I have done nothing to, they were and are perfect. The coffee table was ok and it would have sufficed but I wanted color. I've always been the 'play it safe with nuetrals' gal but has I'm getting older I'm starting to realize that my tastes are changing, or maybe they've always been there I just followed others lead and wouldn't speak up because it wasn't concurrent with others views. I'd bank on the latter of the two. Plus it was 1980's Goodwill special, the bones, structure and texture are spectacular. I forgot to take before pictures of the actual table but I found one that had the same finish. Mine is a little different, the bottom is just like the top and add some brass balls (no commentary from the peanut gallery - I already giggled like a 5th grade school girl when I wrote it, lol to the 10th degree).

source: unknown

 



Anyways, I bought the most FABULOUS Joel Dewberry fabric from his Deer Valley collection, for living room draperies. Oh My Word y'all these have some color, now I just have to make them but I got about 2 months before I'll have had the fabric for a year so I kinda feel ahead of schedule, HA! I wanted the table to match the aqua green in it so I took it to my ever so helpful Lowe's (not I'm not getting paid to endorse them they are just the most helpful of the two chain and the one sorta independant home improvement stores around us), and had them color match it. I was in luck and got the lady with years of paint experience and matching since cloth is uber hard to match. She matched it to a T! I took it home and it sat....(are y'all starting to notice a trend here??? I'm beginning to think we think everything is like wine and the longer it ferments the better it is - LOL!). I won't say for how long (if I were a betting person I'd say 9 months).

source: unknown

 

This is the fabric that I purchased, the deer fabric pillow is for the front of the drapes, facing the living room. It allowed me to have masculine yet pretty drapes with a hobby that Bubba Hubster and Buckeroo love. The lattice quatra foil fabric is the matching back of the drapes so it looks pretty from the window. I spray painted the brass Goodwill lamps the orange color a while ago. The blue is more greenish in life, that's the table color. Here she is:

 



 

What do you think? I love her. I do think I will have to have two pieces of clear plexi glass for the top and bottom to protect the caning. I distressed it because I really like that look and I used primer and didn't sand it. Quick tutorial: I spray painted primered it, two coats of paint let each one dry in between, distress with sanding block, spray paint sealant. One thing I learned I will ALWAYS sand every piece before painting. It was a good thing I like the distressed look because it was already knicked up after one day of moving it from the garage to the driveway to finish. I learned that sanding allows the paint to grip much better than kust primer.

 

What do you think? The brass finials and feet are just marvelous! I luv it, and she only cost me aprrox $17 with tax, here's the break down:

 

Table: $19.99 w/ 30% off (color tag of the day) $15.29

Paint: $13.00 but still have enough to do 9 other projects with - $1.30 worth

Total: $16.56 with tax

 

Much Luv,

Michelle

 

 



A Little Snippet or {one of Many Overdue Projects}

Hello Friends!

Yes, please do not faint this will be two posts in one day AND that makes three posts in two days!! Shut the front door!!

Anyways, y'all know we live in the country, as Buckeroo says, 'Wear cuntry peeple.' Yes I know that's all jacked up on the spelling but I spelt it phonetically how he says it. Well we've lived in our current home for a little over seven years and we've never had house numbers. Yes, my friends you read that right! Seven years - no house numbers.

Now in hubster's  our defense, no one delivers to our area or at least not until recently and we don't really care for those places that do. And the original homeowners put the driveway on the other street, we have a corner lot. So I figured what the heck why worry about numbers people will be confused anyways and I'll have to go and wave them down as it is. But then, well pinterest came along and I looked at all the houses with these gorgeous porches with the number right under the dental molding. Well SWOON right there! I have a humongous front porch WITH dental molding AND columns. Ace Hardware almost lost their doors I ran so fast! Then they sat....and sat.....and sat. You see this girl right here *I'm doing the fonzie hitchhicker thumb toward myself*  don't do ladders (and yes I know that's grammatically incorrect but I want to prove a point)! I don't do the third step on the three step step stool (wwooooeeeee that was a tongue twister).  So Bubba Hubster was kind enough to get them put up this Spring Break (along with our other matching flag pole that needs a Texas flag - what? did u really think I wouldn't leave another little tidbit to do later :D lol).

What do you think?

 

House without Numbers

 

 

House with Numbers

 

 

I know the angles are different but it's the only before/after pictures I had. Plus that's how I roll peeps, I tell you living on the edge.

 

 

What do you think? I think its like the last little tweak that finishes it, kinda like that fly away hair you gotta hold down with an extra squirt of hairspray.

 

Much Luv,

Michelle