Happy List

Things that make me happy:

Yard Sales
Candles
Magazines
People of quiet courage
Flowers
Cards made by my kids
Helping someone
Losing weight
Kind people
My comfy bed
Laughter
My Vintage Trailer
'Sister' outings
True Friends
Fresh veggies from the garden
HGTV :)

Seeing the Forest for the Trees...

Well yesterday seemed a bit 'poor me', sorry about that. I can see the forest inspite of the trees. I know there are good things waiting out there, that things will work out. I just have to trust in 'the plan' for my life. Is this a mid life thing cause I'm way too old for that twenties angst!
I have been enjoying the outings in my trailer the last couple of weekends. Mother/daughter this last weekend was fun. I enjoyed hanging out with the femme fatales in the family, sitting by the fire, looking at the stars in the clear summer sky, making 'smores...It was nice to get out and enjoy nature with my creations!

Another year under my belt

Well, I wonder if any of you are still checking in to see what's up? I admit, I've been neglectful. I've been on the road a lot, back and forth between work and moving out of the house. Finally got all moved out, but then it's still back and forth to see the kids on weekends. I can't say I am loving my life right now. I don't like being in transit all the time, and I don't like not being a part of the kids' lives every day. I missed the last days of school, all of Max's baseball games so far, Zoey getting her driver's license...All of my stuff is in storage. Waaaaaa. Listen to me whine.
I recently "celebrated" my birthday. The kids were here and that was fun. They made me dinner and cake. The candles were a bit ridiculous. After a certain age one candle as a token should be sufficient. I'm trying to be hopeful and look forward. I have a job that I enjoy in an area I like with new faces and places. Still, it all seems all so unsettled.
Well, it's not being a very cheerful, yea life, kind of entry. I do have much to be thankful for, and am thankful. I just need to get things together and feel like I have a home and family again. Stay tuned.

Teacher Appreciation

Teacher Appreciation is May 3rd through 7th. While perusing my friend Rachel's blog I found these cute ideas for showing appreciation to the teachers in your life.So dang cute and so easy and inexpensive to do!
So show some love to those who spend hours each day guiding your children in their education.
Even I can afford one of these ideas and I am beyond broke!

Welcome!

My life was getting too complicated to document on four blogs. Go figure! So, I decided to condense all that fabulous information to share onto one blog, the olde stone cottage one, at which you have arrived. So Welcome!

Right now I'm desperately on the job hunt and mighty stressed out about it.

All the times before when Jeff has moved out I have had a job, so haven't had to worry about things like homelessness or lack of utilities, etc. I'm having yardsales and Sister Shic sales to get some extra 'bones' as Lexy likes to call money. But still, times are getting desperate.

I have two jobs that I'm waiting to hear on, and if neither of them pans out, yikes! So, it's no wonder I have a permanent knot in my shoulder that hurts and needs several rubs from my chillies (my nickname for my kids) during the day.

The photo on this entry is a reminder to self to enjoy the view and trust that things will work out. Hmmm. OK.

Junk Market Style

This fun book is full of outdoor ideas for using your 'junk' to decorate with and create cozy outdoor spaces. I've been pouring over its pages and pictures for ideas to liven up my outdoor spaces and create new ones. There are several ideas for outbuildings and I am pleased to say I am ahead of the game on many of the suggestions. One of course is the chicken coop I highlighted in a previous entry.

This is the outbuilding I pegged for a guest cabin right from the start. The Man hung the vintage window over the metal frame 'trailer' window and it looks so much better. Now I just need to work on that pesky door so it will hang right and close properly.

The Guest Quarters. My oldest daughter has spent some time habitating the place so it's not in its tip top form, and it is still a work in progress. Still, it is such fun to have a rustic place for those fair weather visits!

The reading nook! Not sure much reading gets done here, though!

Mother Hen

We have been in this house for just over a year, and one of the things that attracted me to it were all the outbuildings in the back yard. Outbuildings! Oh, the possibilities! I eyeballed turning one of them into a chicken coop, and The Man didn't object because we had two other outbuildings plus a garage. (I have since taken over the three outbuildings and half of the garage. Sorry Man!) Look what I found! Just as we were working on our backyard chicken coop I ran across this magazine which is all things about chicken keeping!

This is the lovely chicken coop in progress. We are annexing one of our backyard outbuildings. Gotta love those out buildings!

The Man working on the door for the coop. I found this pink door on a junk heap in Baker City about seven years ago and have been hauling it around ever since, through at least three moves. At last, the perfect use for it!

Yesterday I salavaged some corrugated metal for the roof, from some long neglected railroad buildings that I have been driving by for years and coveting the metal. Finally I went and picked up some pieces that had flown into the ditch near the buildings. I'm helping clean up, right? Truly, though, I would have asked someone, but knew not who that person might be or where they might be found. There was no nearby farm house or other such fixture that I could assume the buildings belonged to, and for sure whoever is responsible for the buildings has long given up care taking. I don't advocate salvaging without asking first when at all possible. Just ask my kids!

Anyway, stay tuned for the finished product!