My successful Craig's List find!

This is only my 2nd purchase off of Craig's List. If you recall the last one, it was a huge flop. Thank goodness it only cost us $15. I was ready to throw in the towel due to aggravation & disappointment, but I know so many who have had great success with CL, I thought I'd try again.

Score! Ü Ah she's a beauty! (The desk, that is. The chair is mine.) I was wanting something where the kids could whip out the laptop, do their homework or games or whatever, & then put it away & close it up.

Score! Ü

I discovered "her" (meaning, the desk) immediately after she had been listed. She was listed for $100. I emailed the owners & offered them $80. Because it was freshly listed, the owner wanted to wait a few days (completely understandable) & told me they would email me if she didn't sell. I assumed that would be the end of that, but low & behold, I received an email a few days later & my offer was accepted!

Score! Ü

She was owned by an elderly couple who lived in an immaculate (per hubby) house. She has no flaws what-so-ever. Perfect.

I am so not into oak and/or light colored wood anymore, so eventually, she will be painted. And I really dislike the brass hardware. I am so not a brass person & our entire house seems to be smothered in it. Exhibit A:

Our 500 lb. formal dining chandelier. Ok, maybe it doesn't actually weigh 500 lbs. Maybe it's more like 350. To be honest with you, I can't believe that sucker hasn't fallen. It is solid brass. And someday, it too, will be painted. ;o)

Happy Saturday! Ü

I am organized. I am organized. I am organized.

Except in my closet! OMGosh! Help! I could probably lose a kid in there!

Holy pickles! I don't even know where to start! See the bag on the floor, in the middle, right behind the remote truck? Why do I have a remote truck in my closet? Anyway, that bag is full of bank statements from NINETEEN EIGHTY FIVE!

I know you needed a good laugh tonight. You're welcome. ACK! Ü

If I Had My Life To Live Over - Erma Bombeck.

I read this poem years ago. Literally, years ago. I have never forgotten about it & I try to remember her words every chance I get. Today I looked up the poem & decided to share it with you. Happy weekend. Ü

If I Had My Life To Live Over

by Erma Bombeck

The following was written by the late Erma Bombeck
after she found out she had a fatal disease.


If I had my life to live over, I would have talked less and listened more.

I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained and the sofa faded.

I would have eaten the popcorn in the 'good' living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.

I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.

I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.

I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage.

I would have sat on the lawn with my children and not worried about grass stains.

I would have cried and laughed less while watching television - and more while watching life.

I would have shared more of the responsibility carried by my husband.

I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.

I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.

Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.

When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later. Now go get washed up for dinner."

There would have been more "I love you's".. More "I'm sorrys" ...

But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute... look at it and really see it ... live it...and never give it back.

© Erma Bombeck

Most photos ever in one post. Camping!

Spite hubby's truck breaking down the morning we were to leave, spite arriving at 8:30 p.m. to find the state park we planned to camp at closed (due to flooding), spite running my battery down resulting in my car not starting the following morning & spite the miserable heat -

It was fantastic! Ü

Here was our view. Beautimous!

Going to check out the lake.


Saturday afternoon, this little cove became our saving grace. We were so hot, we actually came down here & got in to cool off. Even Bray walked in the water & laid down. If it weren't for this cove, more than likely we would have packed up & headed home due to the extreme heat.


Saving grace #2.



Yay! Got it running. Thanks AAA.


Chef!


This little tyke spent a lot of her time in the car with the a/c on, watching a movie. Smart girl. Sometimes I'm in the photos. See?


Neighbors.


Old enough now to fake smile. Sigh.


Bored? Hot? Both?


Sweat! I was so concerned about my kids in the heat.



I found a clip & pulled her hair up! That helped. A smidgen.



Jaguar faired well. She's tough.



Audi skeptical about roasting.


Gettin' dirty! :)


Adorable.




Typically I don't take this many photographs of wildlife. But there were so many, I was mesmerized. ♥ nature. There's just nothing like it.



Great shot! ♥



We are so excited to camp again! But never again in the heat. Didn't I say the very same thing about having a garage sale? Ü

There's just something about being in the out of doors. Living in nature. Smelling, listening, breathing, seeing, appreciating. Ultimate stress reliever (unless your car won't start & you're stranded at a camp ground. Teehee. ;o). And other campers? Friendliest people around. As we were pulling out Sunday morning, our neighbor campers came running up. Why? His truck wouldn't start & he needed a jump. LOL

I encourage you. Go camping. Try it. Don't let life go by without experiencing the great outdoors. Don't worry - most camp grounds have indoor potties & showers. Live! Ü

I thought she looked pretty this morning.

So I took her picture. ♥

Guess I startled her in the one below. Ü
Adorable. ♥

(Yep, the photos are awful. Why? Flash. Snapshots. Grr.)

My $17 spray painting table.

Pretty cool huh? I found this at Goodwill. I think it's a desk of some sort, but I like it because of it's height. I have a bad lower back, so I won't have to bend over so far to spray paint. 'Cause sometimes when I bend over at a certain angle for too long, well, I can't stand back up straight. Pain-free, anyway.

Time to Clorox wipe it down & put it to use! Ü

How to get water based paint off of molding.

Lookie! I'm acting like one of the important people & doing a tutorial! Yay me! Why am I doing it? I dunno. Teehee. :) Moving on.

When painting Jaguar's room, I mentioned that I used old painters tape & it did not adhere to my baseboards/crown molding thus creating sloppy molding lines. My perfectionism tends to call the shots, so you already know that I must, must, must have clean, straight lines. After hyperventilating over said sloppy molding, I was bound & determined to come up with a solution to get off the extra paint, short of purchasing/painting/installing new molding. Ü

That little white spot is a paint crystal (which are amazing!). Anyway, my first thought was to try to kind of scrub it off with something wet. Hello baby wipes! Using my thumb nail, I put my thumb under the wipe, running the wipe along the very edge of the molding. The paint along the molding gets damp from the wipe, but it dries right up. It took a tad of elbow grease, as the paint at this point was several days dry...

Tada! Worked like a stinkin' charm.

I couldn't believe it! I just can't tell you how happy & content I am that Jag's room now has nice, neat molding lines. I've never had this issue before when painting, so I was so relieved to have found a solution. Things such as this keep me awake at night & I need my beauty sleep. ;o) I will always use water based paint (I think most do) from here on out, if for no other reason than this dilemma alone.

I also discovered along the way that molding is probably never going to have perfect, error-free lines. Why? Because woodwork isn't perfect. Ours isn't, anyway. Our house is over 12 years old, & all of our molding has some sort of nick, ding, missing slivers, etc. Tape can't adhere directly to areas such as that. That's ok with me though, as long as the molding that isn't damaged in some way is nice & clean.

I'm finishing up Jag's room this weekend (including most of the decorating). Then up & on we go! We have 14 more rooms to do. Teehee. Ü

(The dark spots in the photos aren't on the paint. Seems I have some water spots on my camera lens. Oops. :)